Orange Couscous-Stuffed Peppers

OPEN KITCHEN with NATHAN SCOTT

Orange Couscous-Stuffed Peppers

Filled with a delicious orange-flavored couscous, these stuffed peppers make a great vegetarian entrée.

Ingredients

            Serves 4

	1	cup homemade chicken stock, or low-sodium canned chicken broth
	1	cup (about 3 oranges) freshly squeezed orange juice
	2	tablespoons unsalted butter
		Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
	1	cup couscous
	½	cup golden raisins
	2	navel oranges
	¼	cup shelled roasted pistachio nuts
	1	scallion, thinly sliced
	4	large bell peppers, stems cut out and reserved, ribs and seeds removed
		Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling and greasing

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF.  In a saucepan, combine the chicken stock with ½ cup of orange juice.  Add in the butter and season with salt and black pepper.  Set over medium-high heat and bring to a rapid boil.  Remove from the heat and stir in the couscous and raisins.  Cover the saucepan and set aside to rest for 5 minutes, or until the couscous has absorbed the liquid.

2. Meanwhile, use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest from half of one of the oranges.  Cut the zest into thin strips and set aside.  Then, remove the peel from the two oranges and separate the oranges into segments (discarding the peel and seeds).  Using a fork, stir the orange zest and segments, as well as the pistachio nuts and scallion, into the cooked couscous.  Season the mixture to taste with salt and black pepper.  Then, stuff each pepper with some of the reserved couscous filling.  Place the reserved stems back on top of each pepper.

3. Spoon any remaining couscous stuffing into the bottom of a greased 1½-quart baking dish.  Drizzle over the remaining ½ cup of orange juice, and arrange the stuffed peppers in the dish.  Drizzle the peppers with olive oil and season with additional salt and black pepper.  Cover the dish with a sheet of parchment paper, followed by a sheet of aluminum foil.  Bake the peppers in the preheated oven until tender, about 30 minutes.  Then, remove the parchment and foil covering, and allow the peppers to continue to roast until lightly golden, about 10 minutes more.  Remove from the oven and cool slightly before serving.