When I was growing up, the only time a stuffed vegetable made it to the dinner table was in the form of cheesy twice-baked potatoes, not exactly a healthy addition to the family diet.
But stuffing vegetables goes far beyond potatoes. It's a culinary device that's been used for generations all over the world. The Eastern Europeans stuff cabbage; the Mexicans stuff chiles, and in the Middle East, well, if there's a vegetable that can be stuffed, it will be stuffed.
Its popularity isn't just about getting kids to eat their veggies, though. I would venture a guess that the primary motivation is less about working in more fiber, vitamins and minerals onto the dinner plate and more about simply making an appetizing, economical meal.
The concept itself is a fairly basic one — there is the stuffing and there is the vegetable that holds the stuffing. With only two major elements to a dish, both had better be good. I like to include a grain in most of my stuffings and often a little meat, as well. Spices and other sautéed vegetables are usually a part of the mix, as is an egg to hold it all together. Cheese can be a welcome addition, especially if the stuffing is a meatless one.
Choosing the right vegetable is important, too. Squash, small pumpkins and large zucchini make large-sized portions that can feed several people. They need to be precooked before stuffing. To do this, I typically season them, brush them with a bit of olive oil and roast them until they are almost tender. This ensures that the vegetable is well-flavored and will be cooked through at the same rate as the stuffing inside it. Peppers and tomatoes make smaller portions (although one large pepper may still be too big for smaller appetites, so just cut them in half), and don't need precooking. All you need to do is remove the stems and seeds by cutting around the stem with a paring knife, then gently digging out what's inside with a small spoon.
Red peppers are one of my favorite vegetables to stuff. They're delicious, easy to work with and make an impressive presentation. My kids love the combination of beef with warm aromatic spices such as cinnamon and allspice. They like it so much they hardly notice I've slipped in a healthy serving of baby spinach, as well. I use the slightly sweet and sour tomato sauce traditionally served with so many other stuffed peppers and cabbage rolls. It's a nice foil for the fairly rich filling.
Now that fall is here, serving these hearty, satisfying dishes just seems like the right thing to do. If your kids are introduced or reintroduced to vegetables in a different and fun way, so much the better.
Meredith Deeds of Edina is the author of "Everyday to Entertaining" and "The Big Book of Appetizers." Reach her at meredith@meredithdeeds.com. Follow her on Twitter @meredithdeeds.