Jalapeno Poppes

Our friends, Ashley and Paul Poppe (I know, right? Puns like that don't come along everyday), kindly shared some of their homegrown jalapeno peppers.  Ashley has quite the vegetable and herb garden, I'm going to need to pick her brain when I decide to venture beyond Boris (who by the way, looks incredibly vibrant in his debut post).

Look at these...



I could just bite right in. Well, almost.



I decided that Jalapeno Poppers (or Poppes) were a worthy cause for these beauties.  M made sure I intended to fry them (which I did), and after a little research I began.

First, cut them lengthwise...



remove seeds and most of the white rind (I like heat, but I'm no martyr).



Then mix up your filling, 4oz of cream cheese and a slice of cheese. I know you're thinking, "gross! a kraft single?".  Let me put your mind at ease, it is real cheese.  But keep in mind, jalapeno poppers are supposed to taste like they came from the Waffle House. And if I'd had a brick of wibbly velveeta- I'd have used it.



Now, add in some chili powder, cumin, S&P (just eyeball it according to your spicy threshold)



Mix it up and you're ready to stuff your little jalapeno halves...



Time for the outside breading (I think this has a more technical term, but I'm at a loss right now). Next time I'd like to try Paula Dean's with corn meal, but this worked nicely.

1 egg (at room temperature), flour, bread crumbs and a bit of milk (which I realized was necessary after I took the picture)



Dip each stuffed pepper in milk, flour, egg, bread crumbs (in that order). Might be a little much, but I like to guarantee a thick, crispy breading...



On to the frying, but first a quick word... If I've ever told you I didn't like fried food- I was lying. There are a million reasons to not eat fried food, but that doesn't mean it doesn't taste good.  Remember, the jalapeno poppers are good because they contain only ingredients you would deny in public.  Sarah Barry's mother used to say, "people who say they don't like mayonnaise are lying". I think the same principle applies here.

As far as my frying expertise goes- I have fried like, 2 things in my life (I welcome advice).  I have no idea what temperature the oil should be at, or the exact cooking time. I do know that canola and vegetable oil are best (high smoke point, relatively low in saturated and trans fats).  I used about an inch (deep) of vegetable oil heated on high in a 2 qt saucepan. I pulled it back to medium/medium high when I started frying. It's ready to go when throwing a drop of water in makes the oil "spit".

These poppes fried up fast- I would say no more than 10 seconds.



Served up with some ceasar dressing...



Mmmmmm. And an antacid for dessert.

Thanks, Poppes!