It’s Easy to Be Bewildered by the Rainbow World of Tasty Peppers

It’s easy to be stumped by the selection of peppers these days. While choosing recently among the sweet red, the green, the yellow, the orange, the purple and the black, I decided that color-coordination was a key--so I bought a pepper that went with the dress I would wear when I served it.

The rainbow of peppers on the market may be perplexing, but it helps to know that the darker varieties--purple and black--lose their color during cooking and are, consequently, best served raw, in salads. Sweet red has the sharpest flavor, yellow and orange the mildest flavor. Although I specify either yellow, red or green peppers in the following recipes, you can mix and match freely, according to your preferences.

FETA-STUFFED PEPPERS

2 sweet red peppers

3 yellow or green peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Freshly ground pepper

3/4 cup brown rice

1 1/4 cups vegetable broth or water

1/2 cup cottage cheese

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup chopped black olives

Minced fresh parsley

Minced fresh basil

Cut red peppers and 2 yellow peppers in halves. Place, skin side up, under broiler until lightly charred. Let cool, then peel away skin, taking care to leave shells intact. Chop remaining yellow pepper.

Heat olive oil in large saucepan. Saute onion and garlic until onion is translucent. Add chopped peppers and saute until tender. Add oregano, pepper to taste and rice. Stir until well mixed. Add broth and bring to boil. Cover, then lower heat and simmer until rice is cooked and all liquid is absorbed, about 40 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese, feta cheese and chopped olives. Stuff pepper halves with mixture, topping with garnish of minced parsley and basil. Bake at 375 degrees 15 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

SPICED SALAD-STUFFED PEPPERS

3 green peppers

3 sweet red peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground coriander

Dash cayenne pepper

Kernels cut from 2 ears corn

1 cup rice, cooked

2/3 cup cooked lentils

Salt, freshly ground pepper

Plain yogurt, optional

Cut 2 green peppers and 2 red peppers in halves. Place, skin side up, under broiler until lightly charred. Let cool, then peel away skin, taking care to leave shells intact. Chop remaining peppers.

Heat olive oil in large skillet. Saute onion and garlic until onion is translucent. Add chopped peppers and saute until tender. Add cumin, coriander and cayenne and stir.

Add corn kernels, rice, lentils and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir until well blended.

Fill pepper shells and serve at room temperature, topped with yogurt. Makes 4 servings.