Turkey Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

Peppers are in abundance right now, and you will typically see people’s backyards full of them. Jalapeno and serrano peppers are probably my favorite peppers and I use them in a lot of my dishes. I actually used some serrano chilies on top of my pizza last night, that is how much I like them.

I had jalapenos on my mind yesterday, and at first I wanted to make some jalapeno poppers, but I did not have any cream cheese on hand. It was a beautiful afternoon, so I thought that I would do something on the grill. This is when the idea of a stuffed, and grilled jalapeno came to mind. As I searched my refrigerator, I came up with ground turkey, cheese, and my favorite bacon. A stuffed jalapeno pepper with turkey and cheese, wrapped in bacon, and grilled. The sound of it alone sounded like a fantastic appetizer! Let’s get started on this crowd pleaser.

Serves 6
Ingredients:

• 6 whole jalapeno peppers, sliced in half lengthwise, seeded and stemmed
• 1 1/2 cups of ground turkey
• 1 1/2 cups of shredded monterrey jack cheese
• 12 slices of your favorite bacon
• toothpicks

Begin by adding a tablespoon or so of turkey into each halved jalapeno pepper. Top with a generous amount of cheese, then wrap the jalapeno in a slice of bacon. The goal is to cover as much of the jalapeno as possible, then secure them with two toothpicks. Repeat this process with the remaining ingredients.

Preheat your grill on a medium heat, allowing one side of the grill to be set to a much lower heat. Why, you ask? Because of the fat on the bacon, it will drip down onto your coals, or gas grill, and it can quickly ignite into much larger fire, of which is not desired. Keep a close eye on the grill, and carefully rotate the peppers, until the bacon is cooked, roughly 12 minutes or so. Please note that the bacon does not have to be fully crisp as you would cook it in a pan or in the oven, but just gently crisped.

Plate and serve, keeping in mind to remove the toothpicks.

Trust me when you cut into these, you get a perfect balance and texture from the smokey bacon, perfectly cooked and moist turkey and melted cheese, and just the right mild heat from the pepper. The combination of flavors will get any party started. Enjoy.