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Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 20-30 minutes on grill or 15-20 minutes in the oven
To be honest my backyard garden did not do great this year, and I don’t really know the reason. Crops that did great in the past were crummy this year. This would bum me out except that a new addition to my garden, banana peppers are doing awesome. I’ve been enjoying new ways to use these spicy little peppers. Check out my Quick Pickled Banana Pepper recipe!
- 10 Banana Peppers
- 5 slices of bacon
- 1 tablespoon BBQ sauce
- 8 ounce cream cheese block; softened
- 1-2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 ounce chives, chopped (approximately ¾ cup)
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line your bacon on a baking sheet and brush each slice with BBQ sauce.
- Bake bacon for 20-25 minutes until crisp. I recommend the bacon to be crisp and well done so that there is less bacon grease leftover in the poppers. Once cooked, remove and let them cool before chopping up your filling.
- While your bacon is cooking, start to prepare your filling by using a hand mixer to combine cream cheese, garlic, chives, cheese, salt and pepper.
- Slice your peppers long ways and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds and membranes. Be careful not to touch your face during this time – using gloves is a great idea to avoid the heat on your skin!
- Chop your cooled bacon and add to your filling and do a final mix with your hand mixer.
- Now is the time to fill your peppers! Using a spoon, fill all 20 halves of your peppers and place them on a plate.
- If you plan to bake them, bake them for 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees. Broil them at the end to get crisp tops.
- If you plan to grill the poppers, you’ll need a grill tray or grill wok, otherwise they will fall through the grill.
- Place the peppers on the tray or in the wok. Grill for 20-30 minutes until desired level of brown. Remove. If you wish for really crispy tops, place in the broiler for 5 minutes or use a kitchen torch to brown the tops.
- Enjoy with a sour cream dip to help cool off the heat. What a great appetizer addition to your bbq!
