Yay for the return of football season! I'm so pumped about our local high school team, the Panthers, that I can hardly stand it. Last Friday we gathered in Panther Valley for a little tailgating. It was fun and I really enjoyed visiting with all my family and friends and cheering on the Panthers during their walk through, but the food was crazy good and the highlight of the event for me. This was our second week to tailgate and I was told that I had to bring the same dish I brought last week by my Mother. And who is going to argue with their Mother? Not me. Ha! So, I made 50 stuffed jalapeno poppers. Again.
Here's the ingredients. As you can see, not very complicated. I adapted this recipe from one that I originally found on The Pioneer Woman's blog. You can find it here. I love, love, love this site for recipes and photography tips. My adaptation will make 50 poppers. It calls for 25 jalapenos, 2 bars of cream cheese (softened), 4 green onions (chopped), 1 bag of shredded monterey jack cheese, and a package of bacon. If you don't read anything else about this recipe, please read this. It's important to wear gloves when you handle the peppers or else you can get something very similar to a chemical burn. I got it the first time I made these and my hands burned for almost 24 hours. It was miserable, so please wear the gloves and do not touch your eyes! I half them vertically and take a spoon and scrape out the seeds and the membranes. This removes the heat from the peppers and then my kids can eat them too. Next, I bring a big pot of water to a boil and add a big pinch of salt. Then, I throw in the peppers for about a minute. This helps to soften them. I remove them with a slotted spoon and let them drain on paper towels. While they are draining, I make the filling. Put the cream cheese, chopped green onions, and cheese into a mixer and mix it well. Throw in a pinch of salt and pepper and mix again.
You can then begin to stuff the peppers with the cream cheese mixture. Let me tell you, this is so yummy. I have to refrain from eating the filling. Once the peppers are filled, take your bacon and cut each slice into thirds. Wrap a third of a slice around each pepper and secure with a toothpick. I like to bake these on a sheet pan lined with foil with a baking rack on it. It helps for the bacon to be able to drip as it cooks. The last step is to take your favorite BBQ sauce and brush each popper generously with it. These need to bake low and slow, at 250˚ for one hour. Your house will smell so good while these things are cooking. I always get so many compliments on these Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers. They are like the perfect bite. It's a bit time consuming to make them, but there is absolutely nothing difficult about it.
