Stuffed Pepper Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
• 2 cups cooked white or brown rice
• Optional: shaved parmesan and roughly chopped fresh parsley for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and use a spatula to break it up. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the beef until browned, stirring occasionally. Once fully cooked, drain the beef and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil in the pot, then add the onion and bell pepper and saute for 3 to 4 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic, basil, oregano, and thyme and saute another 30 seconds.
3. Add the ground beef back to the pot along with the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and beef broth. Cover the pot, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low, and stir occasionally for 20 minutes. Note: if you haven't yet pre-cooked your rice, you can cook it while the soup is simmering.
4. Stir in the cooked rice. If you'd like a slightly thinner soup, feel free to add more broth. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with freshly chopped parsley.

TIPS

• Each serving is about 2 cups.
• I recommend using 90% lean ground beef so that you don’t have any leftover grease to remove from the pot. If you use 80% ground beef, you’ll need to drain the pot before adding the veggies to saute. 
• You can substitute ground turkey or ground chicken for the ground beef.
• You can substitute Italian seasoning for the individual spices.

For those interested; this comes in at around 541 calories per serving.  You can of course lower that further by adjusting your ingredients.  Like using ground chicken or turkey.