We asked all of our followers what recipes they would love to see more of in this coming new year. One of the requests was for stuffed bell peppers. Since its winter (and I was thinking comfort food), I decided to make my stuffed bell pepper soup. By using no or low salt ingredients, this recipe is also great for someone who has kidney disease. And if you have diabetes, you can lessen the amount of rice you add to your soup for a lower carb option. So enjoy this guiltless soup! Oh, and if your kiddos love stuffed bell peppers, they will love this soup too!

 -Tammy

Health tips:  kidney friendly*, diabetes friendly, low carb**

Ingredients: 6 servings

• Olive oil
• 1 lb. lean ground beef (I used 93%)
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped, crushed, or grated
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 large green bell peppers, chopped
• 4 cups (32 oz.) beef stock/broth-“low sodium” or “no salt added”
• 2 cups (16oz.) chicken stock/broth–“low sodium” or “no salt added”
• 2-14.5 oz. cans of diced tomatoes (I used fire roasted diced tomatoes) or 1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes-“no salt added”
• 2-8 oz. cans of tomato sauce–“no salt added”
• 8 large leaves of fresh basil, chopped (or you can use 3 tsp of dried basil)
• 2 sprigs of fresh oregano, chopped (or you can use 2 tsp of dried oregano)
• 1 cup of brown rice
• Parmesan cheese, shredded

 Steps:

If you are not watching your sodium intake, please feel free to use the regular broths and cans of tomatoes.

1. Cook your brown rice separately according to package directions. Set aside.

2. Add about 1 TBS olive oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. Brown ground beef in the oil. Add onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes.

3. Add bell peppers and cook for 5 minutes more.
4. Add both broths and all cans of tomatoes to the pot. Add in the herbs. Give it all a good stir then let simmer for about 20 minutes.

5. When you are ready to serve, add some rice (¼-½ cup) to the bottom of the bowl. Ladle the soup on top. Sprinkle a little parm cheese.

Notes:

I like to cook my rice separately and then add it to each individual bowl right before I serve it. That way, if you have leftovers, the rice won’t bloat in the soup and suck up all the good broth.

* If you are on a low sodium diet, or have kidney disease, use the stock/broth and tomatoes with the -“low sodium” or “no salt added” label.

**If you have diabetes, you can lessen the amount of rice you add to your soup for a lower carb option. Using brown rice is a healthier choice rather than using white rice.