August 2, 2021

Cheese stuffed banana peppers

Creamy and cheesy stuffed banana peppers are a delicious appetizer or side dish. They are stuffed with a three cheese blend and can be made with either sweet or hot banana peppers depending on your preference. 

Stuffed banana peppers are something that I've eaten my entire life. These are a popular garden pepper grown in our area, so we always had them in the summers. Also, in the western New York region, stuffed banana peppers are often on the menu at pizzerias, Italian restaurants, pubs/bars, etc. Those are generally stuffed with meat and have more of an Italian flavor profile. 

Two of my other favorite ways to enjoy banana peppers are in the (Un)Stuffed Banana Pepper Soup and in this (Un)Stuffed Banana Pepper Macaroni and Cheese. They also make terrific pickles and are great on pizzas.

This stuffed banana pepper recipe uses a three-cheese blend of cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, and mozzarella. The cream cheese provides the soft and creamy base. Then the sharp cheddar adds flavor and the mozzarella add that nice cheesy pull. I season these simply with a little salt, parsley, and garlic. 

Then the peppers are halved, stuffed, and baked - followed by a quick broil - and they are all cheesy and delicious! We like to have them as an appetizer or side dish with things like pizza or a large summer salad.

This year we are growing sweet banana peppers in our garden. This recipe uses sweet peppers, but you can use hot as well (or make a batch of each - just don't mix up which pan has the hot and which one has the sweet peppers). My husband and I do enjoy the hot ones, but with little kids we use the sweet more often.

This week is #FarmersMarketWeek and we are joining a bunch of bloggers to highlight a lot of fresh seasonal summer produce and other farmers' market ingredients. Check out all the recipes for today at the bottom of this post. 

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Farmer’s Market Week is always the first week in August. Whether you have a great local farm stand or market, are a member of a CSA or purchase your fruits and vegetables at the supermarket, follow our Pinterest board, for great recipes including those for appetizers, drinks, breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and more.

Yield: 4 servings
Author: Amy (Savory Moments)
Cheese Stuffed Banana Peppers

Cheese Stuffed Banana Peppers

Creamy and cheesy stuffed banana peppers are a delicious appetizer or side dish. They are stuffed with a three cheese blend and can be made with either sweet or hot banana peppers depending on your preference.

Ingredients

  • 4 medium-large banana peppers (sweet or hot)
  • 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
  • 1/3 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1/3 cup grated mozzarella cheese
  • good pinch of salt
  • 2 teaspoons dried parsley, plus more for topping
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  2. Carefully halve the peppers lengthwise and remove the seeds. (Tip: wear disposable gloves if using hot peppers and be careful to not touch your eyes).
  3. Place the pepper halves cut-side up on a baking sheet.
  4. In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, mozzarella, salt, 2 teaspoons of dried parsley, and garlic powder until combined.
  5. Fill each pepper half with the cheese mixture, spreading an even layer into each pepper.
  6. Top each with a sprinkle of extra parsley. Bake for 10 minutes. Then turn the oven to broil and broil for 3-5 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the cheese is bubbling and golden. Watch carefully so they don't burn.
  7. Let cool a couple of minutes and then serve.

Notes:

You can change the cheese in these peppers. I like the combination of sharp cheddar and mozzarella for both the flavor and the gooey-ness. Jack cheese or Parmesan would also be good.


Pepper sizes will vary due to how large they are. I find this amount of filling works well for 4 medium to large banana peppers.

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I hope you give these cheese stuffed banana peppers a try! Let me know in the comments below.

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Check out these other banana pepper recipes:

(Un)Stuffed Banana Pepper Soup 

(Un)Stuffed Banana Pepper Macaroni & Cheese 

Here’s more Farmer’s Market Week Recipes

Starters and Drinks Recipes

Side Dishes Recipes

Main Dish Recipes

Dessert Recipes

26 comments:

  1. I have never thought of stuffing other kinds of pepper than jalapenos. Thanks for turning on the light in my mind.

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  2. I've never heard of stuffed banana peppers, but now I can't wait to try them!

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  3. From garden to table...simply the best! I will have to make an extra batch of cheese filling and devour it with a spoon :-)

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  4. This one is for me! I love stuffed peppers but not so much the heat from them. SO I can make a pan of each as you suggested!

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  5. I just got a big bag of banana peppers and love adding them to salads. This is a great way to use them too!

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  6. I don't think I've ever eaten banana peppers except on pizzas and hot dogs, love this fun way of serving them!

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  7. Such a fantastic appetizer and use of banana peppers. I also like that I can do this with sweet or spicy peppers.

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  8. I think I could eat this as a meal. I’m thinking of all the cheese blend I could do!

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  9. This is a fantastic way to use banana peppers. And all that delicious cheese is calling my name!

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  10. I love all the cheese possibilities! These look amazing and sooo good!

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  11. My husband LOVES banana peppers and stuffing them with cheese sounds so good!

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  12. Those sound amazing. I love the char on the cheese. So melty good.

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  13. This is an amazing way to enjoy the peppers and can't wait to try!

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  14. Putting banana peppers on my list, have to give this a try!

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  15. I have never grown banana peppers before but now I want to! These look delicious and I'm going to the farmer's market on Thursday so I will have to look for some to pick up!

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  16. Fantastic recipe with an amazing idea of stuffing these banana peppers. Yum!

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  17. I just love your produce recipes. They are unique and always have me saying: "that sounds sooooo good!". I can't wait to try this one as I love you soup with banana peppers.

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  18. I can't wait til my son tastes the peppers he's a vegetarian

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  19. Mine turned out great! Thanks for sharing ;)

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  20. Cooking some right now stuffed with cream cheese and cheese.

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  21. Def trying this and combining with another recipe I saw by wrapping it in bacon and baking at 475.

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  22. Can you freeze them

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    1. I haven't tried freezing them. I'm not sure how the cream cheese would hold up. If you try, let us know! Thanks!

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  23. this recipe is great it the end of growing season up north so I have some smaller ones I'll do the best or use the in pepper soup

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  24. Any advice? The flavor came out okay but the peppers themselves are a bit watery.

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    Replies
    1. Hard to say. I find all stuffed peppers to be a bit watery as they get juicy when they cook.

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