A fun, "eye-appealing" appetizer that will steal the show at your Halloween party. This whimsical version of jalapeño poppers is stuffed with bacon and two types of cheese.
¾cupbaconpackaged Hormel Real Bacon or about 6 slices of fresh bacon, cooked and diced into small pieces
¼cupparmesan cheesegrated
¼teaspoongarlic powder
8-10jalapeno pepperssliced in half
1, 8ouncecan Pillsbury crescent dinner rolls - or any variety of refrigerated crescent roll dough
16-20candy eyes
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°
Soften cream cheese in the microwave on low power until it’s easy to spread. Add bacon, parmesan and garlic powder and stir to combine thoroughly. Set aside.
Rinse jalapeño peppers, pat dry with paper towels and slice in half lengthwise, include the stem if possible. Using a small spoon, scrape the pulp and seeds from each jalapeño.
Unwrap crescent rolls and pinch perforated seams together to create two squares of dough. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, create long, thin slices of dough to wrap each jalapeno.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with Pam.
Place a scoop of creamed cheese mixture into each jalapeno half and pat down so the cheese is even with the edge of the pepper and doesn’t mound up too high. Wrap each pepper with a slice of the dough. Allow a gap in the wrapping to create room for the candy eyes to be added after baking.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown.
Remove from the oven and place the candy eyes in the gap between the dough so they look like the mummy’s eyes.
Notes
Be very careful when handling jalapeño peppers. Wear kitchen gloves to protect your skin or avoid touching your face after handling and slicing the peppers. Depending on how large the peppers are, you may need to use more than one container of crescent roll dough. Serve these with Cranberry Jalapeno Meatballs and Individual Charcuterie Cups for a tasty appetizer round.