Hi there,

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it seems like a good time to talk about this recipe. You may remember my writing about my friend Joanne who died when she was 45. Joanne died from Breast Cancer. I remember when Joanne first found the lump in her breast. She was sent for a brand new test called a Mammogram. Back in the early 1980’s, there was very little hope of surviving Breast Cancer. Today, thank God, it is a very different story.

This pepper recipe was one of Joanne’s signature dishes. Dom and I were always happy when these peppers appeared on her table. I never got around to getting her recipe and I thought it was lost to me forever.

About 20 years ago I became friends with Frank. Frank is a superb cook and it is always a treat to be invited to a dinner he has prepared. One Sunday, we were invited for Sunday Gravy and this stuffed pepper dish was the starter. I almost fell off my chair. Here was the taste I never thought I would find again. Frank explained it came from an Italian magazine called Attenzione. I remembered Joanne being a fan of that magazine too. The recipe was printed in 1982, so both friends were reading the same magazine back in ’82. Talk about Karma.

The above quote completely illustrates the serendipity of this situation. Lose a friend; gain a friend. Lose the recipe and unexpectedly find the recipe.

Well this time I made sure I got the recipe and now I am going to share it with you my friends, so that it will never be lost again.

STUFFED PEPPERS PALERMO

Ingredients:

• 8 small cubanelle peppers
• 6 tablespoons fruity olive oil
• 3 tablespoons of finely minced fresh parsley
• 3 tablespoons of garlic paste
• 10 ounces of tuna packed in olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of anchovy paste
• 1 cup of chopped tomatoes, San Marzano if you can find them
• 1/2 cup of unflavored bread crumbs
• 2 hard boiled eggs, finely minced
• 1/4 cup of well drained capers
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• black pepper to taste. I don’t use salt because the fish provides an ample amount of salt

Preparation

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
• Core the peppers and rinse and set aside
• In a large skillet heat 3 tablespoons of oil
• Add the parsley and garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes
• Add the tuna, anchovies and tomatoes
• Stir the mixture breaking up the tuna for approximately 5 minutes
• Add the bread crumbs, hard boiled eggs, caper, pepper, and oregano
• Cook for another 5 minutes. Mixture should be thick
• Stuff the pepper with the mixture
• Place them in a well oiled heavy baking dish and drizzle with remaining olive oil
• Bake for 1 hours, spooning the oil over the peppers every 15 minutes.
• Remove and serve at room temperature

I hope you enjoy these peppers and don’t neglect getting your mammography.

Talk soon, 💕🎀Bernadette