Florina peppers are named for a city in western Macedonia (Greece), a part of the Greek countryside in which peppers are an all-important agricultural crop. They have a thick, red, sweet, firm flesh and are perfect for stuffing. I was first served them at the table of Mrs. Fany Boutari, the gracious matriarch of Greece’s premier winemaking family. While Florina peppers are not easily found in the United States, you can buy them roasted and bottled, or you may be lucky enough to find some red Anaheim chiles that will work. In a pinch, you can use good old green Anaheims or the bigger poblanos, as I do. They won’t be quite as sweet, but they will be good.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
To roast the chiles, place them on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil about 8 inches from the broiler. Broil them until the skin blisters and turns black on both sides. (Do not burn the chiles themselves.) Remove the baking sheet from the oven and quickly cover the chiles with a clean dish towel. Let them sit, covered, until they are cool. Using a paring knife or your fingers, carefully peel off the skins, then slit one side and remove the seeds and veins.
Step 2
In a bowl, combine the onion, rice, cinnamon, cumin, currants, dill, and parsley and mix thoroughly with a fork. Using a garlic press, press the garlic into the rice mixture. Add salt to taste and mix well.
Step 3
Oil the slow cooker insert with the olive oil.
Step 4
Fill each pepper with as much of the rice mixture as it will hold, then carefully put the chile back together and lay it in the bottom of the slow cooker insert.
Step 5
When all the chiles are in the slow cooker, sprinkle them with the feta cheese, cover, and cook on low for about 2 hours, or until the chiles are tender and the stuffing is hot all the way through.
tip
Step 6
I often make a double batch of the stuffing and then freeze half of it in a plastic bag. That way, it is available for instant stuffed veggies (it works in eggplant, tomatoes, and zucchini). Use within a month or two.
Suggested Beverage
Step 7
Three Rs: retsina, rosé, or red.
