Jalapeno Poppers with Bacon
This delicious bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers appetizer recipe will have your guests asking for more!
Servings: 24
Calories: 161kcal
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 8 ounces Mexican style four-cheese blend, (I used Kraft brand finely shredded)
- 12 medium-sized jalapeño peppers, sliced in half with seeds and veins removed
- 24 pieces thin-sliced bacon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Line two large rimmed baking trays with a piece of aluminum foil. Place an oven-safe baking rack (one that fits inside the baking tray) over the top of the foil. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes or until no lumps remain.
- Add the shredded Mexican cheese blend and mix on low just until all the cheese has been fully incorporated.
- Fill each jalapeño half with about a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture.
- Once you have filled all the jalapeños with cheese, you can wrap each one with a single slice of bacon. Make sure that it covers the entire jalapeño with as little overlap as possible. Try to start, and end your wrap on the back side of the jalapeño popper so that when you place it on the baking rack, the end pieces are on the bottom.
- Place poppers, cheese-filled side facing up, onto the prepared baking tray in a single layer.
- Place the trays of bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers in the refrigerator to chill for at least 1 hour or up to overnight, to allow the cream cheese to firm back up. This helps to keep the cream cheese from oozing out of the poppers when baked.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
- Turn your oven to broil, and broil for an additional 2 to 3 minutes to let the bacon crisp up. Keep an eye on them as they can burn quickly on the broil setting.
- Allow the bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers to cool slightly before plating and serving.
Video
Notes
- Using thin-sliced bacon is a must for this recipe. Thick-sliced bacon just doesn’t crisp up nearly as well. You can use low-sodium bacon, smoky bacon, or regular bacon, just make sure it is thin sliced. Also, if your peppers are on the small size, then you can cut your pieces of bacon in half to wrap each popper. Avoid having too much bacon wrapped around itself or your bacon will not crisp well.
- Make sure that you wash your hands very well after handling the raw jalapeños. Do not touch your face or eyes. You can use food prep gloves if your skin is very sensitive to the oils in the peppers that cause the stinging/burning.
- You can make these with a toothpick inserted through the piece of bacon and the jalapeño. This will keep the bundles together and make it easier for guests to pick up their appetizers.
- Some jalapeño peppers are on the small side (mine were about 3 inches long) so you may get more than 24 poppers out of this recipe if your jalapeño peppers are not as big.
- Oven temperatures vary and may need to be recalibrated periodically to ensure they are accurate. Make sure to keep a close eye on your poppers as the suggested cooking time approaches.
Nutrition
Calories: 161kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 281mg | Potassium: 83mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 273IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 1mg