Blast of Color Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers

I’m a firm believer that the more color I’ve added to a meal, the healthier the meal. After all, color is often in the form of fruits and vegetables, isn’t it?

If the meal is easy to put together and pop in the oven, that’s even better!

While stuffed peppers take some time to bake – stuffing them with precooked chicken and rice, tossed with creamy black beans, chiles and onions takes no time at all. Dinner was on the table in under and hour, and 40 minutes of that time was cooking time.

What an easy cleanup too! One bowl and one lined baking dish. Can’t beat that!

Happy cooking!

Blast of Color Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers

Serves 4

1 cup brown rice, cooked according to package directions
2 cups rotisserie chicken breast, chopped into small sized pieces
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 large roma tomato, seeded and chopped
¼ cup red onion, diced into small pieces
1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
½ cup low fat cheddar cheese, shredded
4 tablespoons low fat cheddar cheese, shredded
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fire roasted diced green chile
2 tsp chili seasoning
4 large bell pepper, halved and seeded
4 tablespoons light sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine rice, chicken, corn, tomato, onion, black beans, 1/2 cup cheese, garlic, green chile, and chili seasoning in a large bowl.
3. Line a baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.
4. Stuff bell peppers with chicken mixture by firmly pressing mixture into the pepper and mounding on top.
5. Top each pepper with 1/2 tablespoon of cheese.
6. Bake for 30 – 40 minutes until pepper is just tender.
7. Top with 1/2 tablespoon sour cream.

What’s good for me in this dish?

Bell peppers are off the charts in vitamins C and A both antioxidants are believed to protect against heart disease and atherosclerosism as well as promote lung and vision health. They also have B6 and folic acid known to reduce your risk of heart diseases. Lycopene in peppers helps with the prevention of cancers of the prostate, cervix, bladder and pancreas.

Chicken is a complete protein, with less saturated fat than beef. Much of the fat is in the skin, so it is best eaten without the skin, with chicken breasts being the leanest choice. Chicken provides 67% of your daily protein needs. It also has cancer protecting B vitamins, including Niacin and B6 for energy.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 392
Total Fat: 5.60g
Cholesterol: 107mg
Sodium: 549mg
Total Carbs: 39.23g
Dietary Fiber: 8.14g
Sugars: 5.36g
Protein: 46.63g

Weight Watchers Points 8

Nutrition details obtained from whfoods.org, nutritiondata.com, about.com, and abouthomecooking.com.

Last updated by Kristi Rimkus at May 28, 2010.

Tagged as: bell pepper recipes, cooking light, healthy cooking, healthy recipes, Light Recipes, light stuffed pepper recipes, mexican recipes, mexican stuffed pepper recipes, Mother Rimmy's Cooking Light Done Right, Recipes, stuffed pepper recipes, Weight Watchers Points