Hang your Hat and Stuffed Peppers

"Don't hang your hat higher than you can reach."

Is this possible?  Or is this a metaphor for staying where you are within your capabilities.  I know my capabilities and limitations,  but I do try to hang my hat just a little higher all the time.  Take writing.  I don't use nearly as many commas as I used to and I am not afraid of short sentences.

Hat making is an ongoing process of practice makes perfect. Then on to the next challenging technique.  Metaphorically speaking I hang each hat a little higher than the previous one.  Soon I will need a chair to get my hat!

So don't hang your hat too high and don't pass up three organic (red, yellow and orange), bell peppers for $3.29.  It changed my whole menu. I had gotten grass fed beef and a little ground pork to make meatballs, but it ended up mixed with rice and stuffed into those peppers.  

Stuffed Peppers

serves 3-4 

3 bell peppers, cut in half, seeded and par-boiled in salted water for 7-8 minutes
3/4 cup red rice, cooked in 1 cup water, fluffed and cooled
1 small zucchini diced
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmegiano-Reggiano
1 tsp. chopped fresh marjoram
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
2 tsp. fresh chopped parsley
1/2 lb. grass fed beef
1/4 lb. ground pork
1 tsp. salt

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees

Drizzle a little olive oil in a baking dish and arrange the pepper halves in it, cut side up.  Mix together all the other ingredients for the filling.  Stuff each pepper with filling mounding it until all the filling is used.  Pour a cup of chicken stock around the peppers, cover loosely with foil and bake for 1 hour, basting every 20 minutes.  Uncover, top with a mixture of gluten free bread crumbs and freshly grated Parmigiano- Reggiano, drizzle with olive oil and bake another 20 minutes until the crust is golden.

To see the latest collection of Zazu & Violets' hats, please visit our on-line Etsy shop.