My favorite part of the holiday season is family gatherings. I get to spend time with loved ones that I don’t get to see nearly as often as I’d like. Family gatherings mean potluck meals, which gives me the opportunity to fire up the grill or smoker and show off my culinary skills. My wife’s family likes a little heat with their food, but when I cook I don’t want it to be hot just for the sake of hot. There has to be good flavor to go along with it. To add that flavor to my delicious party food I like to throw in my favorite flavor of Tabasco Sauce. #SeasonedGreetings
Our first family gathering of the season is Thanksgiving, taking place at my mother-in-law’s home, and I’ve got the perfect recipe for our contribution to the festivities. I’ll be making bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers, or as we like to call them in the grilling world, Atomic Buffalo Turds (ABTs). #CollectiveBias
I found everything I needed to make my delicious creation at my local Target including fresh produce, and several flavors of Tabasco Sauce.
Grocery List:
- 24 jalapeno peppers
- 1 package (8 oz) of cream cheese
- 1 onion
- 1 Green Pepper
- 1 Red Pepper
- 1 package of bacon
- Your favorite flavor of Tabasco Sauce
Step 1: Cut the top off each jalapeno pepper, discarding the top. Then, using the end of a spoon, clean out the inside of the pepper. I also like to rinse out each pepper to remove all the seeds.
Step 2: Combine the softened cream cheese, and 1.5 tablespoons each of finely chopped onion, green pepper, and red pepper. Then, add your favorite flavor of Tabasco sauce. I actually split my mixture into three equal parts in order to use three different flavors. I added a teaspoon of Tabasco sauce to each bowl, using Original, Jalapeno, and Chipotle.
Note: The mixture can also be used as a fantastic cracker dip!
Step 3: Using a small spoon, fill each jalapeno with the mixture. Then wrap the pepper with bacon and hold it in place by poking a toothpick all the way through the pepper. I like to use a half strip of bacon for each pepper. It forces me to stretch the bacon to get all the way around the pepper. This way, the bacon layer is thinner, allowing it to more easily crisp.
Step 4: I fire up my charcoal grill for indirect cooking, which means I put the coals on the sides of the grill, and put the food on the middle of the food grate. This helps prevent the peppers from burning. I also throw a handful of mesquite or hickory wood chips on the coals to give the peppers a nice smoky flavor. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until the bacon is done.
My Atomic Buffalo Turds have always been a huge hit. But with the addition of my favorite Tabasco flavors, it gives them an extra dimension of flavor that will help make this year’s family gathering unforgettable!
Wow, I guess you could say that these recipes are a spicy hit!
You could definitely say that, Mario!
I am in the military so tabasco sauce in the main galley is always a necessity. Your jalapeno poppers look so good I can tell by just looking at them, I would have to skip the tabasco sauce and just eat….yum yum.
Glad you think they look good, Petrish…..you should try making them sometime and let me know how you like them!
Atomic buffalo turds? WORST NAME EVER, lol
I think they look good without the bacon =)
Hahaha, Holly – we could just call them Jalepeno poppers. 🙂
Wow, this looks incredible! I can see why they are always a big hit. Hope you share more recipes in the future.
Me Too, DC….I really enjoyed this opportunity!
Good god, just from looking at them I know they taste awesome. And you can never go wrong with food wrapped in bacon!!!
So trying it!
You’re soooo right about bacon……..but bacon AND peppers? Yeah, it’s a sure win! Thanks for checking out the post, Financial Underdog!
These look fantastic! I think we’ll be trying them soon – we always have a bottle (or three) of Tabasco sauce at the ready! #client
There’s always been a bottle of Tabasco in my fridge, Emily…..but after trying the chipotle flavor, I have to have a bottle of that in stock at all times too! Thanks for your comment!
Although that didn’t seem quite as appealing since I’m sitting here right now eating oatmeal, I have a huge desire to fly to Minn. sometime and just eat all your BBQ cooking! Every time you post a pic on fb I’m drooling!
I can see how the leap from oatmeal to Jalapeno Poppers might be a little difficult, Tonya. But you can be assured that they are delicious. You’re welcome to come visit anytime – I’d love to fire up the smoker for you!