Italian Stuffed Peppers

This recipe is for Italian stuffed red peppers with ground chicken, spaghetti and cream cheese, mixed with my delicious tomato sauce.

I think that stuffed peppers are the ultimate meal. They combine a vegetable, protein and carb, all in one cute little package. Typically, you would find them stuffed with rice; however, I decided to spice things up and make an Italian stuffed pepper with my homemade bolognese sauce and spaghetti.

I absolutely love stuffed peppers. They are the perfect meal prep or easy weeknight dinner. Plus, there are tons of flavor combinations to try. You can chose from my famous pizza stuffed peppers. Try out my Mexican stuffed peppers or enchilada stuffed peppers. Keep it more Italian with my lasagna stuffed peppers recipe. But, these cream cheese and ground chicken stuffed red peppers are amazing!

Stuffed peppers make a great meal prep because they do not get soggy or go bad. They stay great and heat up very well in your break room's microwave.

Overview of these Italian Stuffed Red Peppers

I am going to go over how I make these stuffed peppers; however, there are also tons of substitutions and suggestions.

I begin with basically a creamy bolognese sauce. You will make this with ground chicken, cream cheese and my homemade tomato sauce. Start by cooking the chicken on the stove, then, adding the tomato sauce and cream cheese to make it super delicious and flavorful.

Then, add the cooked spaghetti pasta and mix that all together with the creamy bolognese sauce. After that, stuff it into some cooked bell peppers. You can also top it with some mozzarella cheese and broil it; however, you do not have to.

Quick Tips From Allie Carte

• Use any ground meat of your choosing!
• Skip the spaghetti or use spaghetti squash to keep it lower carb
• Substitute rice or riced cauliflower for the spaghetti
• If you prefer just a bolognese recipe, you do not have to stuff the peppers
• Add some shredded mozzarella on top and broil it
• Skip the cream cheese if you do not want it creamy

What You Need for Italian Stuffed Peppers

There are basically three main parts: the peppers, the pasta and the bolognese sauce.

• Bell peppers
• Spaghetti
• Minced garlic
• Diced onion
• Ground chicken
• Seasonings
• Crushed tomatoes
• Cream cheese
• Parmesan cheese

It may seem like a lot of ingredients but I promise it is very simple to make! However, we can go over some suggestions and substitutions.

Bell Peppers

I used some red bell peppers for these Italian stuffed peppers. However, you can use any color of bell pepper or substitute your pepper with a jalapeño pepper or mini sweet pepper. Also, I suggest trying some spaghetti squash, eggplant, zucchini or another vegetable that you love.

Spaghetti

I chose Banza protein spaghetti to use in this recipe. It provides some extra protein while giving you some of your carbs. There are various different protein pastas that you can use; however, you can also use a regular spaghetti. You can skip the spaghetti to keep it low carb; but, you can also substitute a veggie noodle such as spaghetti squash or spiraled zucchini.

Ground Chicken

I make these Italian stuffed peppers with ground chicken breast. I love how lean and protein packed ground chicken breast is. However, you can substitute regular ground chicken or a different type of meat.

Crushed Tomatoes

You can certainly use fresh tomatoes; however, I do not have time for that and I am sure you do not either. I use a can of crushed tomatoes as they are ready to go in my sauce. My favorite brand is Muir Glen no salt added. However, you can use any brand you would like.

If you are using diced tomatoes or actual real tomatoes, you will need to blend them if you want a smoother sauce.

Cream Cheese

I typically will do a ⅓ less fat cream cheese in these Italian stuffed peppers. However, you can use regular cream cheese.

But, my favorite thing to add into this is laughing cow cheese wedges! Which is similar to a Bourison cheese I would say. I plop two garlic and herb laughing cow cheese wedges in here and it makes the bolognese so creamy and flavorful.

Parmesan Cheese

Yes, I use the fake stuff from the jar that you buy in the grocery aisle. I also use reduced fat! However, pick whatever you like or just skip it.

Seasonings

Some people say this seems like a lot of seasonings but who doesn't want a well seasoned dish? I use your classic Italian seasonings, plus, some secret weapons.

• oregano
• Italian seasonings
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• salt
• black pepper

You are more than welcome to switch up the seasonings or add some in, such as ground red pepper to make it spicy.

Plus, my secret weapon!

• granular sugar replacement

Yes, sugar is definitely needed in this and I use a sugar replacement. I prefer something like Splenda or Swerve; however, you can use whatever you like. The sugar cuts the acidity of the tomatoes and you definitely need it.

You can add some lemon juice if you wish. Lemon juice brings out the flavor of the tomato sauce, just like salt does; however, lemon juice does not have the acidity of salt.

How to Make an Italian Stuffed Peppers Recipe

There are basically three phases to this dish: the peppers, the spaghetti and the bolognese. I start with the peppers, as they take the longest. Then I move onto the pasta and finally the sauce.

Bell Peppers

Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking tray with cooking spray.

Cut each pepper in half and remove the seeds/core. Place them on the baking sheet, cut side up, and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until desired wellness is reached.

Spaghetti

Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain well and set aside.

Bolognese Sauce

Heat a large pan over medium/high heat. Grease with cooking spray.

Once heated, add the minced garlic and diced onion. Cook until soft and fragrant, about 3-4 minutes.

Add the ground chicken and begin breaking it up. Add the seasonings and continue to break up while cooking and mixing up the chicken.

Once the chicken is fully cooked, add the crushed tomatoes and reduce the heat to low. Let the tomatoes simmer for a few minutes.

Then, add the cream cheese and parmesan cheese and mix that together until melted.

Add the cooked spaghetti noodles into the sauce and toss together.

Stuff the peppers with the spaghetti bolognese and enjoy!

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Italian Stuffed Peppers

This recipe is for Italian stuffed red peppers with ground chicken, spaghetti and cream cheese, mixed with my delicious tomato sauce.

This recipe makes 4 full bell peppers or 8 half bell peppers. The serving size is 1 full bell pepper or two halves.

If you are on Weight Watchers and looking for a points value, then click on this link and your points will automatically calculate for you. They are only 3 points for two halves for me and very filling!