Are you familiar with Melrose peppers? Ask almost anyone who “grew up Italian” in Chicago and, trust me, they’ll know. While I didn’t grow up here, I was raised in an Italian-American household, so I’m always interested in how the Italian culture grew elsewhere. When I finally had my first taste of Melrose peppers several years ago, I just had to know more about them!
For a quick bit of history, while the Melrose pepper is now known as a Chicago summertime treat (it’s seasonal!), it most definitely has its roots in Italy. The story goes that the seeds were brought to Chicago by Italian immigrants Josef and Lucia Napolitano. At the time, the pepper was simply their favorite sweet pepper from Nocera Superiore, Italy – it wasn’t “Melrose” just yet. They planted it in their garden where they settled in Melrose Park, IL. After some time, their son began selling both peppers and plants at local markets. (When I read that I had to wonder… Do you think they called them “farmers’ markets” back then?) And thus the “Melrose Pepper” was born! Starting out green & “grassy-sweet”, they turn red the longer they stay on the vine, and then they lose the “grassy” notes in favor of pure sweetness. I have never had a lot of luck finding the red ones myself – but I’m on a mission!
Melrose peppers may be prepared any number of ways: sauteing, roasting, or stuffing them with meat and/or cheese. That said, my favorite way to prepare them at home is to bake the peppers with sausage, marinara sauce, cherry tomatoes and just a hint of garlic. It’s simple and makes for a flavorful and satisfying meal.
Because the Melrose pepper has virtually no heat – it literally rates a “0” on the Scoville heat scale! – I like to use “hot” Italian sausage for flavor contrast. But that’s just a personal preference. If you don’t care for or don’t tolerate spice well, by all means, use “mild” or “sweet” sausage. I generally use approximately equal weights of peppers and sausage; in this case, I used a pound of each.
I should note that while the Melrose pepper is considered local to Chicago, you’ll sometimes find them in farmers’ markets in other parts of the country, especially in areas with some Italian-American population. And while I have not yet grown them myself, seeds may be found on Amazon for about $4.00 per packet. I may just have to try growing them on our balcony garden next year! If you don’t have access to Melrose peppers – or, since they’re a “summer pepper”, if they’re out of season – a good substitute is the banana pepper, found in many supermarkets. It’s thin-skinned like the Melrose pepper, so it cooks similarly. It does, however, have a mild heat to it, so bear that in mind from a flavor standpoint.
To get started, preheat your oven to bake at 375⁰ F (convection, if available) and place the oven rack in the upper third of your oven.
Cut your sausage into approximately 3” lengths.
I had link sausage, so I just cut them in half. If you have a rope of sausage, about 3” is what you’re shooting for. Set the sausage aside.
It’s time to prepare the peppers. Since Melrose peppers have no heat, you don’t have to worry about capsaicin lingering on your skin. Capsaicin is the substance that gives peppers their heat. Even washing your hands will often not remove all of it. There is nothing worse than forgetting that you handled hot peppers and then trying to remove a contact lens! This is why many choose to use gloves when handling hot peppers. But there’s no need to do so with Melrose peppers.
First, trim the top off the pepper and discard it.
I generally trim the tops off all the peppers before proceeding to the next step. Whenever there is a lot of repeat motion, as in the case of a pound of peppers, it’s just more efficient to do all the pieces at once before moving on.
Next, slice the peppers in half lengthwise (again, do all of them before proceeding). Finally, pull out the seed pod and whatever inside membranes come with it and discard them. The peppers don’t need to be completely clean – if a few seeds or membrane strands remain, it’s not a issue, since they don’t carry any heat.
I mentioned earlier that these are thin-skinned peppers, which is part of what makes them cook so tenderly. Here’s a photo where you can see just how thin the skin is.
Compared to the walls of a bell pepper, the skin is probably half as thick – maybe even thinner. The skin also has a firm texture to it when it’s raw, which makes it ideal for stuffing, because it doesn’t break easily. My first Melrose pepper years ago was at a restaurant that stuffed them with a mixture of ricotta, taleggio, and parmesan cheeses. They were divine! That said, this remains my go-to simple preparation for a good weeknight meal.
Next, slice a handful of cherry tomatoes in half and give two or three garlic cloves a little smash with the side of a knife.
By simply smashing the cloves instead of chopping them, you’ll get just a hint of garlic flavor in the dish. The finer you chop garlic, the stronger the flavor will be – a little fun fact to keep in mind whenever it’s on your ingredient list!
Drizzle a baking dish with olive oil.
For this volume of ingredients, you’ll need at least a 13” x 9” dish. With anything smaller, the ingredients won’t be spread out enough and they’ll steam on themselves and won’t get nice and brown.
Add your cleaned peppers along with the smashed garlic cloves to the baking dish and toss with the olive oil to coat. Spread them out in an even layer.
Place the sausage on top of the peppers and distribute the halved tomatoes around the sausage pieces.
By starting the sausage on top of the peppers, as the fat renders out of the sausage it drips onto the peppers, flavoring them as the dish bakes.
Spoon the marinara sauce between the sausage pieces and give a final drizzle of olive oil over the top. I used about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups of marinara sauce. It really is to-taste, depending on how “saucy” you want your final dish. Keep in mind the rendered fat from the sausage will add to the sauce. If you choose to serve this over a starch such as rice, polenta, farro, or pasta, you may want to add more marinara sauce, since some will be absorbed by the starch component in your final dish.
Notice that I did not season the dish at all with salt and/or pepper. It’s a matter of taste, as well as your specific choice of ingredients. The hot sausage I used contains pepper; if you used a mild/sweet sausage, you may want to add pepper. My marinara sauce has both salt & pepper. Plus, I will serve the finished dish with a grating of Parmigiano-Reggiano, which adds more saltiness. So I skip both in preparation. You can always season at the end if you feel the dish needs it.
Cover the baking dish with foil and place it in the upper third of your oven to bake for 15 minutes. Covering the dish allows the sausage, peppers, and tomatoes to heat up and steam just a bit without drying out the sauce.
After 15 minutes, remove the foil and put the dish back in the oven for 15 minutes more. Then give everything a good stir. You’ll see that the peppers and tomatoes have started to soften, the sausage has begun to brown and some of the fat has rendered out of the sausage. Put the dish back in the oven for another 20 minutes or so – check it at 15 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the sausage is nice and brown, the peppers are almost completely wilted, and the sauce is lightly bubbling. Also, your home will smell amazing!
Give the sauce a little taste to check to see if it needs any salt and/or pepper. If it does, sprinkle it on now and stir to combine.
Spoon the sausage & Melrose peppers onto a plate and grate some good parm over the top (I like to indulge and use Parmigiano-Reggiano). And… Enjoy!
If you haven’t tried Melrose peppers before, I hope this encourages you to give them a go! They should still be available for a couple of weeks yet. And if you’re into learning more about preparing Italian dishes, you’re in the right place! Check out The Chopping Block’s class offerings for our upcoming Italian-focused classes like Italian Surf & Turf on the Patio, Pasta Boot Camp, and Taste of Italy. And don’t forget about those wonderful Italian wines in the Italian Renaissance of Wine class!
Melrose Peppers and Sausage Bake
Yields: 2-4 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: Approximately 50 minutes
Olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage (hot or mild/sweet), in the casing
1 lb Melrose peppers (if out of season, can substitute banana pepper (mild heat))
15-20 cherry tomatoes
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 1/4 – 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce (homemade or store-bought)
Parmesan cheese for serving (I like to use Parmigiano-Reggiano)
- Preheat oven to 375⁰ F (convection, if available) with the oven rack in the top third of the oven.
- Cut the sausage into approximately 3” pieces and set aside.
- Slice the tops off the peppers and slice them in half, lengthwise. Pull out the seed pod and attached membranes. (If some seeds/membranes remain it will be fine as the Melrose peppers have no heat.)
- Halve the cherry tomatoes and set aside.
- Smash the garlic cloves and set aside.
- Drizzle a baking dish with olive oil (at least 13” x 9”).
- Place the cleaned peppers and smashed garlic cloves in the baking dish and toss to coat with the olive oil.
- Place the sausage pieces on top of the peppers.
- Distribute the tomato halves around the sausage pieces.
- Spoon the marinara sauce between the sausage pieces.
- Drizzle with olive oil.
- Cover the baking dish with foil & place it in the oven to bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove the foil and return the dish to the oven for another 15 minutes.
- Stir everything together – the sausage should be beginning to brown, some fat rendered out and the peppers and tomatoes should be softening.
- Return the dish to the oven for about 20 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the sausage is golden brown, the peppers are almost completely wilted & the sauce is lightly bubbling.
- Check the sauce for salt and pepper, adding to-taste if necessary.
- Spoon into dishes and serve with freshly grated parmesan over the top.