Hey friends! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. It was a soggy one here, and we didn't really have big plans or go anywhere special. We got a lot of chores and projects done around the house (some to show you soon!), celebrated my Mom's birthday, and sent the kids and their cousins home with my parents for a big sleepover. So, Ray and I enjoyed the day together yesterday just poking around the house and watching Netflix.
To kick off our weekend, Friday night we lit up the firepit (in the rain... but under the covered patio) and roasted some hot dogs. I put together one of my new favorite sides to go with them. I said "new" because I only recently started eating them. We have good friends that treated us to dinner in their home, made these, I tried them since I never had before, and I was hooked! (I've been a bit of a sheltered eater, but I've branched out in my adult years!) ;)
Ingredients:
Jalapeno Peppers
Cream Cheese
Bacon
After removing the tops, slice the peppers in half length wise, then scoop out the veins and seeds. I have a little grapefruit spoon that's serrated on the end, and it works perfectly for this. By the way, you might want to wear gloves when working with the peppers. If I'm making a small amount I usually don't, but I made about 60 of these at Christmas and a few hours later my skin was really burning from handling the peppers. If you happen to get a pepper burn, pouring rubbing alcohol over your hands helps soothe the sting.
When peppers are hollowed out,
fill each with cream cheese. One brick of cream cheese will fill about 8 large peppers (16 halves).
Next, wrap with bacon. Thinner bacon works best here. I start on the bottom of the pepper at one end, then wrap down the pepper, slightly stretching the bacon and pulling tight as I wrap. Mine usually stay together well, but you can secure the bacon with a toothpick if needed.
To cook, preheat the grill on medium high heat. When ready to cook, turn one side of the grill off and place the peppers on that side (you don't want them directly over the flame). Reduce the heat on the flame side to medium low, close the top, and cook over indirect heat for 30-40 minutes. I like the peppers to be really soft and wilted, but if you want them a little firmer reduce the cooking time a bit. Bacon should be crisp and cooked when cooking time is finished.
The grill adds such a good flavor to the peppers, but you can also cook them in the oven if needed. You kind find some good tips for oven cooking here.
That's it! These are super easy, but if you're doing a lot it is a bit time consuming, so plan accordingly. I love to have some leftover, too. I just re-heat them on low in the toaster oven and they're so good. Hope you give them a try this summer!
yum! everything is better on the grill!
ReplyDeleteand if not on the grill, then everything is better with ice cream. :)
All of my family would love these. I have to give them a try.
ReplyDeleteDelish! My hubby makes these (from his garden peppers) on the Big Green Egg! We use gloves when handling the peppers. They also freeze uncooked really well. Thaw and throw on the grill! xox
ReplyDeleteLove these! We grill them often. I always use rubber gloves and try not to touch anything until I'm done with the prep work. I also add shredded cheddar to my cream cheese:)
ReplyDeleteWe made these also this weekend, so so good!! We added green onions to the cream cheese. Our batch of jalapeños was super hot, but they are irresistible! Your fire pit on the covered patio sounds awesome and your weekend sounds like it was great too!
ReplyDeleteWearing gloves when handling peppers is a great idea! Even after washing your hands, if you touch your eyes, you could seriously burn them - NOT FUN! So remember to ALWAYS wear gloves when dealing with peppers, friends!
ReplyDeleteI love making these and my little man loves them too! We'll have to try them on the grill!
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