Paleo Pizza Peppers – A Promising Alternative to Pizza

Real Food, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Paleo, Whole30

EVERYONE LOVES PIZZA, RIGHT?

Who doesn’t love the taste and smell of pizza? These Paleo Pizza Peppers will deliver. Growing up, my mom made pizza from scratch. It was a Friday night tradition. As a married adult, I made my mom’s pizza recipe regularly. This is probably the thing I miss most about being gluten and dairy free. I’ve tried cauliflower pizza crust. It’s a well known option in the paleo community. The texture is never quite right, though. I’ve made calzones from white sweet potato dough. These are supper yummy. A worthy repeat recipe. But honestly, it’s time consuming.

A few months ago, I made greek stuffed peppers. When I took them out of the oven, I just happened to get a hint of pizza smell, and it made me think, why not improve on that? Strengthen the idea? Make it better? Thus, my idea for Pizza Stuffed Peppers was born.

This is not going to be your go-to meal if you are following the Autoimmune Protocol. It’s heavy on nightshades (peppers and tomatoes). But, if you’re paleo, Whole 30, or have successfully reintroduced those two items, this could be a great option to curb those pizza cravings.

SOURCING INGREDIENTS FOR PALEO PIZZA PEPPERS

The trick here is to find the highest quality ingredients that you can. It’s tricky to find a ground sausage that doesn’t include cane sugar or corn syrup. I have two go-tos, besides my local sources. Pederson’s No Sugar Italian Ground Sausage is a great option. If you cannot find that, the Whole Foods 360 brand makes a sugar free sausage called Mild Italian Pork. (Their regular Pork Sausage includes yeast and maltodextrin derived from corn, so avoid that one.) As far as pepperoni goes, Applegate Naturals makes an Uncured Pepperoni that’s sugar free. It’s a good choice.

The only other sourcing issues involve my olives and tomato paste. Always read the ingredients when you buy something in a jar or can. With olives, it’s possible to find them jarred with just red wine vinegar, water, and salt. My family enjoys the Kalamata olives from Trader Joe’s. I find my tomato paste at Trader Joe’s too. It’s just tomatoes and salt. I try to avoid anything that says “citric acid.” While it sounds like citric acid should just be a byproduct of citrus fruit, 99% of the commercially produced citric acid is actually acquired from a black mold that grows on GMO corn. Yep. You read that correctly. I don’t think I need to explain why such a thing should be avoided in our food chain.

Once you’ve sourced your healthy ingredients, I think you will love making these Paleo Pizza Peppers. They’re fast and easy. They smell like pizza. They taste like pizza. Plus, you won’t leave the table with that bloated, yucky feeling that traditional pizza delivers. Enjoy!

Paleo Pizza Peppers

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February 12, 2019

by Jennifer Schmidt

Category All Posts Main Paleo Recipe Whole30

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

50 minutes

Total Time

1 hour, 10 minutes

Ingredients

• Five Multi-Colored Peppers, halved
• 14 oz. Ground Sausage
• 1 Small Onion, diced
• 8 oz. Mushrooms, sliced
• 4 oz. Uncured Pepperoni, quartered
• 6 oz. Black Olives, halved
• 1 tsp. Oregano
• 4-5 oz. Tomato Paste
• Parchment Paper

Instructions

1. Set the oven to 375.
2. Slice the peppers in half down the center. Deseed. Lay open side up on a parchment lined baking sheet.
3. Brown the sausage in a skillet.
4. While that is browning, wash and slice the mushrooms. Dice the onion and slice the olives. Quarter the pepperonis.
5. When the sausage is nearly browned, add the sliced mushrooms and diced onions. Cook these down until they begin to soften, then add the pepperoni quarters and the olives. Stir to combine.
6. Add the tomato paste and oregano. Stir again to combine. When done, remove from heat.
7. Spoon the mixture into the halved peppers, packing it in and piling it high.
8. Place the peppers on the top rack for 20 minutes. At the 20 minute mark, check the peppers. If they are browning, cover with tin foil before baking another ten-fifteen minutes. Your peppers are done when they are fork tender.

Tags

Citric Acid,

dairy free,

gluten free,

Nightshades,

Olives,

paleo,

Paleo Pizza Stuffed Peppers,

Pepperoni,

Pizza,

real food,

Sausage,

Stuffed Peppers,

Tomato Paste,

Whole30

https://realfoodrealhealing.com/paleo-pizza-peppers/

If you like this recipe for Paleo Pizza Peppers, and like to stuff other things in the kitchen, check out my recipe for Stuffed Acorn Squash. It’s another family favorite.