Gutted, Stuffed and Wrapped!

I love browsing recipes and one of my favorite recipes sites is ThePioneerWomanCooks.com. She is very "down to Earth" with her recipes, meaning that you don't have to search for the ingredients, most of them are in your pantry. And don't get me started on the simplicity of her recipes!

Much like her chocolate pie that I added to, I had to add to this recipe. Her basic recipe was: jalapenos, cream cheese, bacon. Very simple! But when most red blooded Americans eat something spicy, what do they dip it in? Ranch! (or bleu cheese, but for blogging purposes, please scream "RANCH" when answering my question)

So here is what I did -

Jalapeno Poppers
Pioneer Woman mixed with Country Woman

Jalapenos (you want the stubby round ones, not the long skinny ones)
Whipped Cream Cheese
Ranch Powder
Bacon strips, halved (you want two half slices of bacon per jalapeno)
wooden toothpicks

preheat oven to 375*

mix the ranch powder and cream cheese to your liking. split each jalapeno from tip to stem and scrape out the insides. stuff each half of the pepper with the cream cheese filling (don't be shy, more is more here because while baking, some of it will ooze out) and then wrap it with a half slice of bacon and spear it with a tooth pick.

arrange the poppers on a wire rack in a roasting pan, try not to let them touch so the bacon will cook evenly. depending on the thickness of the bacon, you may need to cook them for up to 45 minutes. start at 35 minutes and just watch them. My bacon varied in size, so 40 minutes was a good medium for me.

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These were SO good and SO filling! If you aren't a fan of spicy foods, don't let that turn you away from making this recipe. The peppers lose their extreme heat and you are left with just a small kick.