The cooks from the Ottoman Empire loved to stuff their veggies with minced meat and rice, and over the centuries, have spread their love onto all the territories they occupied, most notably the Balkans. We all know about the stuffed cabbage. And the dolmas. Stuffed peppers were a staple in the cuisines of Greece, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Bulgaria and Macedonia. However, despite their passion for stuffed vegetables, the Balkan cooks rarely combined all of the veggies in a singe pot. Yet, in the peak of the summer and early fall, when tomatoes, peppers and zucchini are at their sweetest and most fragrant, a long slow simmer in one pot creates a flavor bomb few dishes can beat. My dad thought me how to make this dish and on my recent visit to Belgrade we made it together and photographed the process to spread the love beyond the Balkans. And once you sample the veggies from the pot, that lonely stuffed pepper will not taste the same anymore.

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