“Where have you been?” I am sure you are asking. Well, I have been too busy making stuff to write about making stuff.
Sunday was the baby shower for a friend, and also the gift exchange between some of my good friends. I did the food for the shower, and also food gifts for friends. So, for the shower I made:
Spinach artichoke dip (I was originally going to make pitas with this, but then I realized I was crazy, and no one cared that much, and brought tortilla chips instead)
Bacon wrapped jalapeños with cream cheese filling
Winter vegetable kabobs (sweet potatoes, tiny red potatoes, blue potatos, tiny onions, yellow peppers and brussel sprouts)
Cranberry orange bread
Pumpkin muffins
Chocolate covered graham crackers
Walnut clusters
For friend gifts I made:
White chocolate peppermint fudge
Oatmeal butterscotch cookies
Rosemary Parmesan crisps
Pumpkin pie fudge
Oatmeal bread
Glazed almonds
And I think I am leaving something out…
Needless to say, I had a cooking schedule for the past week.
The bacon wrapped jalapeños disappeared almost instantly, so, here is how to make them:
Buy a package of nitrate free bacon, and twice as many jalapeños as you have bacon slices. You will probably need just over one package of cream cheese, depending on the size of the peppers.
You really want to wear gloves (I found them in the candy and cake decor section of the craft store) when you remove the ribs and seeds of the peppers. You can leave the stem on, and eviscerate them though a slit in the side if you prefer, however, I find that too time consuming, and just cut off the whole top of the pepper.
Next, stuff the peppers with cream cheese, don’t get them too full, you want them to still close (more or less). It helps if you sort of squeeze the pepper open, holding it at the top and bottom, then just scoop the cheese in with a knife.
Once the peppers are filled with cream cheesy goodness, cut all of the bacon in half, and wrap a piece around the middle of each pepper, and secure with a toothpick.
I baked mine on a wire rack over a roasting pan, at 350, and I think I left them in for a half hour or so, you just want to keep an eye on them, and when the bacon looks crisp.
In my experience, people will eat an astonishing number of these, so, make lots!
