Get the Good Stuff

Last Christmas, Hubs brought home a small, wooden cutting board from the area NAPA Auto Parts store. It was a token of appreciation for his business, and like all good promotional materials, the blonde wood board was imprinted with the business name on the handle. At the time, I joked that as sometimes readers of this blog, they were nudging for a shout out.

This cutting board was stowed away in the cupboard with all the other blocks of wood and polypropylene slabs that I use on a daily basis. It has been pulled out a few times for small tasks, but today, 6 months later, it is finally making its blog debut...whether this was the intention of the NAPA managers, or not.

It is pretty appropriate that NAPA's slogan is "Get the Good Stuff." Jalapeno Poppers are definitely the good stuff. One summer, I think that I made these for almost every get-together we attended...and a few that I didn't. Never ever did I come home with a leftover pepper. People love these creamy, cheesy bites of loaded jalapenos and smokey bacon. They can't get enough of the good stuff.

Good Stuff Jalapeno Poppers

25-30 jalapeno peppers

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese (We like to use the Mexican Blend.)

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

6 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped

Preheat oven to 400F.
Slice jalapeno peppers in half and remove seeds.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Blanch peppers in boiling water for 3-5 minutes.
Drain well and pat dry with paper toweling.
Combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and Worcestershire sauce until well blended.
Fill each pepper half with a teaspoon of cheese mixture.
Arrange filled peppers on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (for ease in clean up).
Sprinkle bacon on top of each popper.
Bake for 5 minutes until cheese is melted. (Serves 25ish...2 pepper halves per person...as if anyone only eats 2)