Ingredients:
½ or 1 Ramiro pepper per person – choose fairly straight ones if you can
Vegetarian pesto, olive tapenade or sundried tomato paste
A little cheese, cut into very small cubes (I used feta, which holds its shape, but Mozzarella pearls are ideal, too)
A few capers or chopped olives
A few small cherry tomatoes, halved
A little olive oil
Preheat the oven to 190C.
Halve the peppers lengthways and carefully remove the seeds and pith.
Cut right through the stem if you can, so that both pieces have a pretty
top.
Place the peppers on a baking sheet lined with parchment and fill them
with your choice of cheese pieces, capers, nuts, olives and tomato
halves. Don’t be tempted to over-fill them – it’s nice to get something
different in every bite. Blob a little pesto, tapenade or sundried
tomato paste on top. Finally, drizzle a little olive oil over each
pepper – this is important as it will help to stop anything from
catching and burning in the oven.
Bake the peppers for 10-15 minutes, until they are softened but not
collapsing. The skins of the tomatoes will pucker and everything will
start to get a little browner around the edges. Then they’re ready to
eat – serve warm or cold, on their own as an elegant light meal or
starter, or add some fresh green salad, cooked grains or pasta on the
side.
