Sometimes the Fall rollercoaster gets the best of me, but last night I hopped off and opened up my trusty and well-loved 1977 edition of the Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen for a little cuisine inspiration. As usual, it was right there for the taking.

The spicy mixture of sauteed sweet peppers, onions and garlic – the holy trinity of flavors if you ask me – layered with cheese and topped with an egg-based custard was delicious, of course, and made a nice lunch leftover. There were a couple of little modification I made: first, throwing a bit (maybe 1/2 a cup) of leftover red wine into the sauteed peppers and letting the liquid cook off added a layer of flavor AND used up some red wine. Secondly, I used all Greek-style yogurt and no sour cream.

Mexican Pepper Casserole

Ingredients

• 6 medium bell peppers (use a mix of red and green)
• 1-1/2 cups thinly sliced onions
• 2 TBS butter
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 3 medium cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp each of salt, cumin, and coriander
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1/4 tsp each of black and red pepper
• 2 TBSP flour

For the egg custard-beat together

• 4 large eggs
• 1-1/2 cups sour cream (here’s where I used the beautifully thick Greek Yogurt I can get locally)

To Assemble

• 1/2 lb medium sharp cheddar, sliced thin (I used up a mix of hard but meltable cheeses just because)
• Paprika

Method

1. Slice the peppers in thin strips.
2. Heat butter and olive oil in skillet. Sauté onions and garlic with salt and spiced until the onions are translucent.
3. Add peppers. Sauté over low heat for about 10 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour. Mix well and sauté until there is no extra liquid (here is where I threw in the bit of leftover wine – still kept on heat until there was no more liquid in the skillet).
4. Butter a deep casserole. Spread in half of the sauté, top with half the sliced cheese. Repeat the layers.
5. Pour egg-custard over the top and sprinkle with paprika.
6. Bake (covered) for 40-45 minutes, uncover for the last 15 minutes.