Persian Stuffed Mini Peppers (Dolmeh-Kouchoulou)

From Chow Bella

3/4 lb lean ground beef, preferably grass-fed

1 beaten egg

1/4 cup finely diced onion

generous pinch of crushed saffron

1 tsp dried parsley

3/4 lb mini sweet peppers 

1/4 cup tomato paste

1/4 cup water

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 tsp honey

salt and pepper, to taste

olive oil, for greasing

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 13x9 non-reactive baking pan and set aside.

2. Mix the meat, egg, onion, saffron, parsley, and some salt and pepper together in a medium bowl. Your hands work best for this job.

3. Cut all the peppers in half lengthwise and scoop out any seeds and pith. Arrange the peppers in the pan alternating stem ends to get a tight fit.

4. Taking out one pepper at a time, fill with a level amount of the meat mixture. Repeat with all the peppers.

 5. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the meat is done. While they are baking, blend the tomato paste, water, vinegar, oil, honey and a little salt and pepper in a small bowl. After the 20 minutes, pour the sauce over the peppers and return to the oven for 10 more minutes. After that time, raise the pan to 8-10-inches from the top of the oven, and broil for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce bubbles and the edges of the peppers become slightly charred. You may have to rotate the pan once through for even browning. Allow to rest for 3 minutes before serving.