Jalapeño Popper Dip
Growing up, and most of the way through my 20s, I couldn't handle spice without chugging a glass of milk. It's a tolerance I've worked on increasing and can proudly say I am well on my way to completing the Hot Ones Wings of Death challenge. But it wasn't always like that. As a kid, we would get frozen jalapeño poppers from Sam's Club that were breaded jalapeño filled with cream cheese. I couldn't eat the pepper so would just eat the cream cheese and whatever breading came with it. Gross.
When I moved to Texas, I realized what a real jalapeño popper is thanks to my friend Patricia and a forced fun work Thanksgiving potluck where she made seemingly an endless supply of them. Never in my life had I seen a jalapeño halved and filled with cheese and wrapped in bacon. That was an idea I could get behind. I have since enjoyed many poppers, from shrimp variations, sausage stuffed poppers, pimento cheese poppers, and even whole jalapeños cored, filled with cheese, wrapped in bacon and cooked until the bacon was crisp and cheese was molten.
I however don't have the patience to make them by hand - that's way too much work and labor for too little of the reward. Lately, I've been craving them, and the ones that I could get from my local grocer aren't the greatest, so I decided to go back to my midwest roots and take a dip! Just wait, more midwest classics coming soon. A jalapeño popper dip is just what I needed. I decided to leave the seeds in the jalapeños and just used scissors to cut them into small dice - the same scissors I used for the bacon. Invest in some kitchen shears, they're definitely one of my top three used kitchen tools. With all the dairy that's in the dip, the extra punch of seeds really helps make the dip delicious and not super bland. I also don't add any salt because the bacon adds plenty on its own.
Keep it at room temp when you're serving in and pair with some pork rinds or cheese chips, and it will be hard to stop snacking!
Jalapeño Popper Dip
Ingredients
8oz Cream Cheese, room temperature
8oz Full Fat Sour Cream
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
3-5 Jalapeños, diced
8 strips Thick Cut Bacon, cooked to crisp and diced
Pork Rinds
Optional Toppings:
Diced Bacon
Sliced Jalapeños
Instructions
In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese and sour cream until completely mixed together. Stir in the cheddar cheese, jalapeños, and diced bacon. Top with diced bacon and jalapeño slices. Serve at room temp with pork rinds or chips. Cover and refrigerate for up to a week.
Happy eating!
Kelly