In summer, as usual, I take advantage of their seasonality and stock up on peppers! Without hesitation, I could say that I appreciate all their characteristics: the flavor, their unmistakable aroma when freshly cooked, and, last but not least, their versatility! In fact, you can prepare anything with them, always bringing simple and genuine side dishes to the table or more elaborate and savory dishes. Sure, you might say, they are hard to digest, eaten raw they are certainly heavy on the stomach, but I guarantee that in all my recipes where peppers are the protagonists, a pre-baking is a must! I know, having to roast the peppers first and then clean and fillet them is always a bit tedious, but it will be absolutely worth it! In this recipe I propose, this operation will really make the difference! It is a main course that I am very fond of for territorial and also emotional reasons; it is in fact an old family-tested recipe that we have been preparing for generations, namely pepper rolls with an irresistible filling! The ingredients are typically Sicilian, of course: breadcrumbs, caciocavallo cheese, raisins, olives, pine nuts, and aromatic herbs. Once stuffed, these rolls will simply be baked to gratin for a few minutes and, in the end, believe me, they will be out of this world!
Do you love peppers like I do? Here are lots of ideas to enjoy them in always different ways:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 50 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer
Ingredients:
- 4 peppers
- 4.6 oz stale bread (grated)
- 1 oz Sicilian pecorino (aged, grated)
- 1 oz grated parmesan
- 1.8 oz cornmeal
- 3.5 oz caciocavallo cheese (or ragusano cheese)
- 1 oz raisins
- 0.9 oz pine nuts
- 1.4 oz black olives
- 0.7 oz salted capers
- 1 bunch parsley
- to taste garlic powder
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
Tools
- 1 Baking sheet
- 1 Parchment paper
- 1 Knife
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Tray
Steps:
Wash the peppers and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake for 30 minutes or until they are well roasted, then turn off the oven and leave them inside until completely cooled. Once cooled, gently remove the top of the peppers, empty them of water and seeds, and peel them (fig. 1).
Once cleaned, divide them without breaking into large enough strips to roll on themselves (fig. 2). Separately, pit the olives and chop them with a knife, desalinate the capers under running water and squeeze them (fig. 3).
In a bowl, combine the breadcrumbs with cornmeal (fig. 4). Add, mixing also grated cheeses, chopped parsley, torn basil, and garlic powder. Season with salt and pepper (fig. 5).
Slightly salt all the strips of pepper (fig. 6) and coat them, as if they were cutlets, with the breading, making sure it adheres well on both sides (fig. 7).
Gradually place them on a large cutting board or tray and set aside (fig. 8). To the remaining breading, now add the raisins previously soaked in warm water to revive them and then squeezed, the olives, capers, and pine nuts (fig. 9).
Finally, add as much oil as needed to obtain a soft and granular mixture and mix well (fig. 10). Take a flat tablespoon of this mixture and place it on each strip, then add a piece of caciocavallo and roll the peppers on themselves, trying not to let the filling out (fig. 11).
Place the rolls gradually in a baking dish slightly greased with extra virgin olive oil and with some of the leftover breading at the base (fig. 12). Drizzle them with another round of oil and possibly the rest of the mixture, and bake at 375°F for about 15-20 minutes (fig. 13).
Let the rolls cool for a few minutes before serving, but they are really excellent even cold!
And voilà… your Sicilian style pepper rolls are ready to be enjoyed!
Bon Appetit from La Cucina di FeFè!
Storage
👉You can store the Sicilian style pepper rolls in the fridge for 2-3 days, in fact, the next day, already cold, they are even tastier.
Tips and Suggestions
🟣 If you are not vegetarian or vegan, you can prepare a variant by adding some anchovy fillets in oil to the filling. Please, especially in this version, I warmly recommend not to overdo it with the salt, as all the ingredients are already very savory.
