Herbed Cheese Mini Peppers

Ingredients

• 10  red, yellow, and/or orange miniature sweet peppers (6 to 8 ounces total)
• 1  8-ounce packagereduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel), softened
• 1  to 2 tablespoonschopped fresh oregano, rosemary, tarragon, or thyme, or 1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried oregano, rosemary, tarragon, or thyme, crushed
•   Finely shredded lemon peel (set aside)
• 1  tablespoonlemon juice
• 1  tablespoonmilk
•   Milk (optional)
•   Fresh oregano leaves (optional)

Directions

1. Halve each sweet pepper lengthwise. Remove the seeds; set peppers aside.

2. In a small bowl, stir together cream cheese, the chopped or dried herb, lemon juice, and the 1 tablespoon milk. Stir in additional milk, if needed to reach piping consistency.

3. Pipe or spoon cream cheese mixture into pepper halves. Sprinkle cream cheese mixture with lemon peel. If desired, garnish with oregano leaves.

Make-Ahead Directions: Prepare as directed. Cover and chill for up to 4 hours.