Getting you started on outdoor adventures

I’ve got a huge garden this year, and I planted about 15 jalapeno plants. The first year I planted jalapenos, I planted 6 and then couldn’t figure out why I had planted so many!  Jalapenos are usually eaten pickled so I wasn’t sure what to do with them…

Now, I know exactly why MORE is BETTER:

Jalapeno poppers!

INGREDIENTS:

• 3-4 raw jalapenos per person
• Brick cream cheese
• Bacon strips
• Toothpicks or skewers

If you’re using toothpicks or wooden skewers, put them in water to soak so they won’t burn when you grill the popper.

Wash the jalapeno s and remove the seeds and stems. (But, keep the jalapeno in one piece!) When you are removing the seeds and stems, be sure not to run any water. The chili oils get into the air when you cut into the jalapeno; running water makes the oils settle so you breathe them. NOT fun to be coughing all the time in the kitchen!

Be sure to pat them completely dry.

I use a potato peeler to scoop out the seeds. Another tip is to also remove the ribs of the chili: the parts where the seeds attach to the chili wall. That area also carries a lot of “heat”.

Fill the jalapeno with cream cheese.I smash as much as I possibly can into the body of the pepper. You can use the back of a spoon or your fingers to fill the pepper. Just be sure you don’t rub your face at all when you’re handling these bad boys!

Wrap a slice of bacon all the way around the jalapeno (once) and secure with the tooth pick. You might want to cut the bacon strip in half so it’s not as long. This will reduce the cooking time.

Grill the popper on a tabletop barbeque until the bacon is done and the cheese is melted. Because the peppers have a lot of moisture in them, you won’t be able to get the bacon crispy. Be careful handling and eating the poppers, that cheese will be really hot.

Enjoy!

You can substitute any type of cheese you like for the brick of cream cheese. I don’t recommend the spreadable cream cheese (the one that comes in the little plastic tub), because it’s too soft and will melt and run out of the jalapeno before the bacon is done.

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