Baked stuffed red peppers with cherry tomatoes, feta, and thyme

Filled with tangy feta and a handful of sweet tiny tomatoes, red bell peppers take on a Mediterranean twist. You can also try other varieties of small tomatoes such as grape, currant, or even yellow pear in the filling.

2 small red bell peppers (5 to 6 ounces each), halved lengthwise through stem, seeds and ribs removed

1 heaping cup cherry tomatoes (about 6 ounces)

1 1/4 ounces feta cheese (preferably goat’s milk), crumbled

1 teaspoon coarsely chopped fresh thyme

8 basil leaves, torn into pieces

Freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

• Preheat the oven to 400F, with the rack in the top third. Place the bell pepper halves, cut sides up, in a baking dish. Toss together the tomatoes, feta, thyme, and basil in a medium bowl; season with black pepper. Fill each pepper with tomato and feta mixture, dividing evenly. Drizzle each with oil.
• Bake the stuffed peppers, covered with aluminum foil, until they begin to soften, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil; continue to bake until the tomatoes begin to burst and the cheese turns light brown, 13 to 15 minutes more. Remove the stuffed peppers from the oven, and serve warm.

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