Forget carving pumpkins—this year, carve your dinner! These Spooky Stuffed Peppers are the ultimate mix of comfort food and Halloween fun. With jack-o’-lantern faces carved into orange bell peppers, they come to the table looking festive and full of flavor. The hearty beef, rice, and cheesy filling makes them a meal that’s as satisfying as it is spooky. Bonus: the crockpot does most of the work, so you get big results with little effort.
Ingredients (makes 4 peppers): • 4 bell peppers (orange works best) • 3–4 cups precooked rice • 1 (4–6 oz.) can tomato sauce (no salt added) • ½ lb browned ground beef • ½ Tbsp Italian seasoning • ½ tsp pepper • 1 onion, diced • Worcestershire sauce, to taste • 1 package crumbled feta or tomato-basil-jalapeño cheese • 2–3 cups water or unsalted chicken/beef broth
Instructions: 1. Prepare crockpot. 2. Wash and hollow out bell peppers, removing ribs and seeds. With a knife, carefully carve jack-o’-lantern faces into the sides. 3. In a bowl, mix together rice, tomato sauce, ground beef, onion, seasoning, pepper, and Worcestershire. 4. Stuff peppers with mixture and top each with cheese. 5. Place in crockpot and pour liquid (water or broth) around peppers. 6. Cook on high 45 minutes to 1 hour, until peppers are tender and filling is heated through.
🎃 Halloween Fact: Jack-o’-lanterns were originally carved with scary faces to ward off evil spirits. The tradition comes from an Irish legend about a man named Stingy Jack, who was doomed to wander the earth with only a carved turnip lantern to light his way.
👻 Spooky Serving Idea: Serve each stuffed pepper on a black plate so their little carved faces glow against the dark background. For extra fun, place a tiny flickering LED tea light inside a hollowed pepper (before filling) to create a centerpiece jack-o’-lantern that matches your edible ones!
