My dream of being a gardener is happening slowly, but at the steady pace of a novice. I really have not much of an idea what I’m doing. My husband is becoming quite the green thumb, too, as he helps plant, water and harvest our little raised beds. We have three now, and I was so excited to receive my newest edition of Southern Living this weekend and find an article about raised bed gardening! I really want to expand each year. There’s just something so special about growing herbs, flowers and vegetables that you get the pleasure of using in your home and cooking!
One plant that was producing quite well last week was our Banana pepper plant. I like them pickled, but I wondered how I could use them fresh. Wellllll, I found a special appetizer that was A.Maz.Ing!
These sweet peppers got filled with a little cream cheese mixture that had sweet red pepper, red onion, Cheddar Cheese, diced cherry tomatoes and a little salt and pepper. I kept it mild. There are some recipes that call for hot peppers, but we aren’t crazy about those spicy varieties. So for our tastes, we kept it on the sweet and savory side, and it was wonderful! I forgot to mention that the pepper gets wrapped in a little blanket of bacon before it’s popped under the broiler for a few minutes! If you need a killer appetizer for a summer party, this is it! Here’s the recipe and a little tip as to how I put mine together.
Cheese-Stuffed, Bacon-Wrapped Banana Peppers
- 6 large banana peppers
- 1/2 cup (2 oz) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 3 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup diced tomatoes – I used cherry tomatoes for sweetness!
- ¼ cup diced red onion
- ½ small sweet red bell pepper, diced
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper
- 3 thick cut bacon slices, cut in half – I found that 1/2 slice of bacon was plenty for each pepper,but if you want to go crazy with the bacon, use a slice for each pepper.
- Cut tops off banana peppers. Remove seeds.
- Combine cheddar cheese, cream cheese, tomato, onion, bell pepper, salt and pepper. Mix well.
- Fill a small plastic bag with the cheese mixture. Cut a hole, about 1/2 inch in one corner. Squeeze the cheese mixture into the peppers. (See picture below)
- Wrap with bacon slice. Secure with a toothpick. Place on a rack with broiler pan. Broil for 4-5 minutes per side until golden and oozing.
If you have access to banana peppers, you need to try these appetizers. They’re so good you might want to make them the main course!
Who else is gardening this summer? What are you growing?
With love from my country kitchen,
If you entertain outside, you don’t have to make sure the house is dusted! Who doesn’t love to sit out at a fire pit, talk in hushed tones and roast marshmallows?!
