Nothing beats sitting back, watching the summer stars, and enjoying the warmth of a fire… except maybe some great summer snacks to go with the experience! These Summer Night Poppers take the classic bar food and transform them into a grilled fantasy. Each spicy pepper is wrapped in bacon, stuffed with cheese, and grilled until crispy on the outside and melty on the inside. Serve them with a cream cheese dipping sauce and Summer Night Poppers basically start a campfire of flavor in your mouth! The good times are about to begin!
Ingredients
- 12 large jalapeƱo peppers
- 4 cheddar cheese sticks
- 24 pieces center-cut bacon
- 12 toothpicks, soaked in water for 30 minutes
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons honey
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the grill to medium heat.
Step 2 –Cut about 1/2-inch off the top of each jalapeƱo.
Step 3 –Cut the sides off of the top pieces you removed from each pepper and reserve them, discarding the middle stem pieces. These will be used to plug the open end of each pepper to help keep the cheese from melting out.
Step 4 –Use a straight peeler to scrape out the seeds and ribs from the inside of each pepper.
Step 5 –Slice each of the cheese sticks into pieces that are slightly shorter than the peppers.
Step 6 –Stuff the peppers with the pieces of cheese and take the reserved pepper side pieces and place them into the open end of the pepper to cover the cheese and plug the hole at the top.
Step 7 –Wrap each pepper in a piece of bacon, starting at the bottom and ending at the top; be sure to secure the plug at the top of the pepper.
Step 8 –Wrap the peppers in an additional piece of bacon and secure each pepper with a toothpick.
Step 9 –Sprinkle the peppers with the chili powder.
Step 10 –Place the peppers on the grill and cover, cooking them over indirect heat and turning them every 3-4 minutes, until the bacon is crispy, about 15-20 minutes.
Step 11 –Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the sour cream, the cream cheese, and the honey and mix until well-blended.
Step 12 –Serve the jalapeƱo poppers with the sauce.
