Baked Stuffed Tomatoes & Peppers with Herbed Rice

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Big beefsteak tomatoes and bell peppers hollowed out, filled with a lemony rice stuffing loaded with dill, mint and parsley, then slow-baked over olive-oil potato wedges until the shells collapse and caramelize. The scooped tomato pulp becomes the cooking liquid, so the rice steams in pure tomato flavor. Great hot, even better warm the next day.

Ingredients

• 6 large ripe beefsteak tomatoes (about 3 lb total)
• 4 medium bell peppers, any color
• 2 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 tsp kosher salt

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 yellow onions, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup medium-grain white rice (Arborio or Calrose), uncooked
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

• 1 1/2 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into thick wedges
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• flaky salt, for serving

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375°F with a rack in the middle. Slice the top 1/2 inch off each tomato and set the caps aside — they are the lids. Using a spoon, scoop the pulp and seeds into a bowl, leaving a 1/4-inch-thick shell; work gently so you don't pierce the bottom. Sprinkle the inside of each tomato with a pinch of the sugar and salt and set them cut-side up in a large roasting pan or 9x13-inch baking dish.
2. Cut the tops off the bell peppers the same way, keeping the caps. Pull out the cores and seeds and nest the peppers in the pan alongside the tomatoes, packing them snugly so they support each other upright.
3. Purée the reserved tomato pulp in a blender or mash it hard with a fork until loose and soupy — you should have about 2 1/2 cups. Set aside.
4. In a large skillet, heat 1/2 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, 8 to 10 minutes until soft and golden at the edges. Add the garlic and pine nuts and cook 2 minutes more, until the nuts smell toasty.
5. Stir in the tomato paste, oregano and cinnamon and fry for 1 minute. Add the uncooked rice and stir 2 minutes to coat every grain in oil. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of the tomato purée, add the raisins, 2 tsp salt and the black pepper, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring often, until the rice has swelled slightly and the pan is nearly dry. The rice should still be firm and chalky in the center — it finishes in the oven.
6. Off the heat, fold in the parsley, dill and mint. Taste and adjust salt; the filling should be aggressively seasoned.
7. Spoon the filling into the tomatoes and peppers, filling each only about three-quarters full — the rice needs room to expand. Set the caps back on top.
8. Toss the potato wedges with 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tsp oregano and a generous pinch of salt, then wedge them into all the gaps between the vegetables. Pour the remaining tomato purée and the 1 cup hot water into the bottom of the pan, around the vegetables, not over the lids.
9. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake 50 minutes. Uncover, baste the tops with pan juices, and bake another 35 to 45 minutes, until the rice is fully tender, the tomato skins are wrinkled and blistered, and the potatoes are browned. If the pan looks dry at any point, add 1/2 cup hot water.
10. Let the pan rest at least 20 minutes before serving — gemista is meant to be eaten warm, not scalding. Finish with flaky salt, a drizzle of the pan oil, and lemon wedges for squeezing.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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