Italian Sausage Stuffed Mini Peppers

Made with just a few ingredients, these Italian sausage stuffed mini peppers are a quick, easy and delicious appetizer. They will disappear in no time flat, I promise!

I was invited to a get-together a while back and was looking for inspiration in my local grocery store for something to contribute when I came across a marked down bag of mini peppers. They were a lovely mix of bright colors, perfect for a party.

My first idea was just to make a dip and cut them in slices for scooping said dip but then, on the same shopping trip, serendipity sent me Italian sausage on a two for one sale. SOLD! 

Italian Sausage Stuffed Mini Peppers

I used hot (spicy) Italian sausage for stuffing the mini peppers but you can substitute mild, if you prefer. 

Ingredients

8 oz or 225g hot Italian sausage

8 oz or 225g mini peppers

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1 oz or 28g extra sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated

Method

Brown the Italian sausage over a medium heat in a nonstick skillet, breaking it up into crumbles as you go. 

Drain on a paper towel. If your crumbles are not small enough for stuffing, you can chop them smaller with a sharp knife. 

Cut the mini peppers in half. I tried to leave the stems intact where I could because I like how they look. They are, of course, not edible. 

Put the peppers in a bowl, drizzle them with the olive oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle on the salt and toss again to distribute the salt evenly. 

Preheat the oven to 375°F or 190°C and line a baking pan with baking parchment or a silicone liner. Spread the mini pepper halves on the lined baking pan. 

Spoon the sausage crumbles into the pepper halves. 

Top with the cheese. 

Bake in your preheated oven for 10 minutes, turning the pan around halfway through to make sure they cook evenly. Broil for a few minutes to brown the cheese. 

Serve warm. Enjoy! 

Welcome to the 9th edition of Alphabet Challenge 2026, brought to you by the letter I. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the I recipes below:

• Indo Chinese Idli Fry - Leftover Idlis from Sneha’s Recipe
• Homemade Italian Dressing from Jolene’s Recipe Journal
• Italian Sausage Stuffed Mini Peppers from Food Lust People Love
• Smaller Chocolate Eclair Cake (from scratch) from A Messy Kitchen
• Mini Ice Cream Cakes from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Iru Puli Kuzhambu from Mayuri’s Jikoni
• Nutella Ice Cream from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sun Dried Tomato Italian Dipping Oil for Bread from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice

Here are my posts for the 2026 alphabet challenge, thus far:

A: Ají de Cerdo aka Peruvian Pork Stew

B: Baby Cos Peach Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing 

C. Traditional Cullen Skink 

D. Coconut Cream Date Caramel 

E. Edamame Summer Salad 

F. Lamb Feta Mint Patties 

G. Ricotta Gnocchi à la Poêle 

H. Hazelnut Vodka 

I. Italian Sausage Stuffed Mini Peppers - this post!

To check out the Alphabet Challenges for 2024 and 2025, click here.

Pin these Italian Sausage Stuffed Mini Peppers!

.

Firecracker Tofu Broccolini Stir-Fry

This firecracker tofu broccolini stir-fry is spicy, savory and absolutely delicious. Eat it just as is, or serve over rice or noodles. 

First of all, let me say that I make this dish with tofu that I have frozen and then thawed and you should do the same. As it thaws, or maybe as it’s freezing actually, the tofu releases a lot of the liquid it contains. When you open the container, you can pour a lot of it off already. Then it’s simple to slice it thickly and squeeze even more out. 

Why are we trying to dry the tofu out? Because when you get rid of the excess liquid it makes browning the tofu much, much easier! And browning is all about adding texture and flavor. 

 

Firecracker Tofu Broccolini Stir Fry

The sambal is essential for spiciness to give the tofu its firecracker name. If you aren’t sure about how much spiciness you can manage, start with 2 tablespoons. We love it with four – or more! 

Ingredients

For the firecracker sauce:

¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce

3 tablespoons brown sugar, tightly packed

2 tablespoons black vinegar (or substitute rice vinegar)

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2-4 tablespoons sambal oelek

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated

¼ cup water

1 tablespoon cornstarch

For the dish:

10 oz or 283g baby broccoli aka broccolini

1 lb or 450g block extra firm tofu, frozen then thawed

2 tablespoon canola or another light oil

1 medium yellow onion

For garnish: 

Sesame seeds

Spring onion, sliced diagonally

Method

Grate the garlic and ginger into a mixing bowl. 

Add in the soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, sambal oelek, sesame oil, water and cornstarch. Whisk to combine then set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Trim the broccolini and cut the stem parts into bite sized pieces. Set the florets aside. 

Blanch the stems in the boiling water for 1-2 minutes, depending on whether they are thick or thin, then add in the florets. Blanch for another minute.

Transfer the broccolini into a colander and run cool water over it until it is cool also. Set aside. 

Squeeze the thawed tofu to remove as much excess liquid as you can then crumble it with the tines of a fork.

Peel and chop the onion finely. 

In a large nonstick skillet, fry the tofu crumbles in the canola oil until browned and a little crispy. Depending on how dry you managed to get your tofu, this could take a while but it’s worth the time for texture and flavor. 

Transfer the tofu to a bowl and then add the onion to the pan and cook until it softens and the edges start to brown, stirring often. 

Put the tofu back in and stir well to combine.

Pour in the firecracker sauce and stir to coat.

Cook for a several minutes, stirring often, to mellow the fresh garlic and ginger.

Add the blanched broccolini and toss gently to combine. Cook until heated through and tender enough for your liking. We like our broccolini still pretty crunchy.

Top with sesame seeds and spring onions to serve. As I mentioned in the introduction, this is lovely just as it is or you can serve it over rice or noodles. 

Enjoy! 

It’s Sunday FunDay and today we are sharing recipes made with protein rich vegetarian ingredients like tofu, ricotta, cottage cheese and paneer. Many thanks to our host, Mayuri from Mayuri’s Jikoni. Check out the links below. 

• Corn Paneer Parathas from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Cottage Cheese Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cottage Cheese Wraps from Making Miracles
• Cheese Paneer Tikka Open Sandwich in Air Fryer from Cook with Renu
• Firecracker Tofu Broccolini Stir-Fry from Food Lust People Love
• Paneer Pakora from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Paneer Tomato Rice With Leftover Rice For One from Sneha's Recipe
• Pasta with Green Beans and Ricotta from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Potato, Cottage Cheese, & Caramelized Onion Pierogi from Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Retro Cottage Cheese Jello Salad from A Messy Kitchen

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

Pin this Firecracker Tofu Broccolini Stir-Fry!

.

Creamy Thyme Butter Beans

Simple and classic, these creamy thyme butter beans aka lima beans are a family favorite, the perfect side dish for any meal. And they are so easy! 

First of all, I need to clarify what I mean by butter beans. Many in the world would call these green delights lima beans. In the southern United States or at the very least in Louisiana where I was born and many my forebears before me, they are called butter beans. 

It wasn’t until I was a full grown up that I found out that more the mature white butter beans existed. I’ll eat those too, if well cooked and soft but for my money, the tender green beans are the best. The older white ones can be quite starchy and dry but cream helps so they can also work in this recipe.

This simple recipe was my mom’s favorite way to eat butter beans. She waxed lyrical about my grandmother’s light hand with this dish. A generous pour of rich cream, a sprinkling of thyme, often dried thyme because that’s what Mo had on hand. I like to use fresh thyme, which Mom also appreciated and I was happy to cook this for her, whenever she asked.

Creamy Thyme Butter Beans

If you can find shelled fresh beans, by all means, use them. I made these with frozen beans but I've also used canned ones before, drained and rinsed. When fresh purple hull or zipper cream peas are in season, I’ve made this with them as well. 

Ingredients

1 lb or 450g frozen butter/lima beans

1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste as desired

2/3 cup or 156ml heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme 

Several generous grinds black pepper

Pinch cayenne

Optional for garnish: more thyme

Method

Thaw and rinse the beans with warm water. Discard any loose pods or discolored beans. 

Put the beans just covered with water with the salt in a small pot.

Bring the water to a boil then simmer the beans until tender. This could take just 10 minutes with very fresh young beans, a little longer with older ones. The instructions on my bag of frozen baby limas said to bring to a boil then simmer for 20-25 minutes! Only you can judge if they are tender enough for you. I will say, try to choose the biggest ones to test.  

When they are tender, taste a bean and see if it has absorbed enough salt to your liking. If not, add another teaspoon of salt to the water, let stand for 10 minutes, and then drain in a colander.

Return the warm beans to the pot, over a very low heat then add in the cream and stir to coat. 

Stir in the thyme. Gently heat the cream till warm through but be careful not to not let it boil. 

Add in a few generous grinds of black pepper and a pinch of cayenne. 

Serve warm, garnished with more thyme, if desired. 

Enjoy!

As I mentioned above, I grew up eating butter beans/lima beans and didn’t know they were almost universally reviled! Why do many people hate limas? Perhaps because they weren’t cooked well. Today my Sunday FunDay friends and I are trying to change that! We are celebrating Lima Bean Respect Day ahead of the official date on April 20th. All hail the might LIMA. 

Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Culinary Cam. Check out the links below. 

• Butter Beans Curry, Maharashtrian Sprouted Usal by Cook with Renu
• Creamy Thyme Butter Beans by Food Lust People Love
• Greek Yogurt Soup With Zucchini, Lima Beans & Red Lentils by Sneha's Recipe
• Ham & Baby Lima Bean Soup by Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Pizza Beans by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Southern Style Green Lima Beans by Making Miracles
• Summer Squash Succotash by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Vaal Nu Shaak by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Why All the Hate? Recipes to Convert Lima Bean Despisers by Culinary Cam

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

Pin these Creamy Thyme Butter Beans!

.