David's Stuffed Peppers

At a recent party, my friend David (stonescaping extraordinaire by day, creative foodie by night) arrived with an appetizer worthy of recreation. His brilliantly stuffed marinated peppers lit up like little packages of flavor in your mouth. Not only were they fantastic to look at, they drew party goers to them not unlike a confident street performer. They arrived, took their position, then worked their magic.

Thin slivers of blood orange and lemon peel elevated the filling of creamy goat cheese and salty olive perfectly. They did not last long. And thankfully, as I was pulling pulled pork from the oven, a friend came up to me and insisted I take a moment to go and try one. Only a few remained.

The best part? No heat of the oven required, and assembly is stress-free. May they become a welcome addition to your next gathering.

David's Stuffed Peppers:

*15-20 marinated peppers (often found on olive bars of specialty grocery stores)

*15-20 pitted cured kalamata or green olives

*4 oz package high quality chevre, room temp

*1 organic blood orange

*1 organic lemon

*handful of garlic chives

Choose firm peppers when shopping for ingredients. Begin by fitting a pitted olive into each pepper. Cut the corner tip from package of chevre. Pipe into the center of each olive, overfilling slightly.

Peel the rind from blood orange and lemon, avoiding the white pith. Cut lengthwise into very, very thin strips. Place lemon and orange slivers into the goat cheese filling with a small garlic chive sprig. Serve at room temperature.

Can be assembled in advance, wrapped and refrigerated until serving time.