Baked Jalapeno Poppers

This easy recipe for baked jalapeno poppers is perfect for your next tailgate. Or party. Or just when you want a spicy, cheesy snack!  Bet you can’t eat just one (trust me, you will WANT to eat more than just one!)

Why we love this recipe

These baked jalapeño poppers are a snap to make, and I really, truly did want to eat every single last one of them my own self…and I actually did eat two of them immediately.

But then I exercised all my self control and left the rest of these cheesy, spicy, bacon-y treats for my housemates. I’m generous that way. 😂

All you need for this addictively delicious recipe is some cream cheese, some cheddar cheese (all the cheese!), some bacon, a little barbecue sauce (optional!) and a handful of jalapeno peppers. Oh, and some gloves – the disposable surgical kind. More on that in a sec.

You are going to stuff those peppers with the cheese, wrap them with the bacon, brush them with sauce and cook them up until the bacon is crisp and the cheese is melty and the world is perfect, jalapeno popper-wise.

And word to the wise on preparing these or anything else involving a jalapeno pepper. WEAR GLOVES. I am not kidding. If you don’t, and a few hours later you rub your eyes (or take out your contact lenses, even worse)…I don’t even want to think about it.

Okay then! Now go make them for the spiciest person you know.

Ingredients you need

Ingredient notes and substitutions

• Jalapeno Peppers: Jalapenos are on the milder side, pepper-wise, although if you eat them raw with the seeds intact they can still pack a fair amount of heat! This recipe calls for both taking out the seeds (the hottest part) and baking them, which makes them milder. Look for the smallest jalapenos you can find so that they are perfect nibble size…you can find them in the produce section of your grocery store.
• Gloves: Okay, these aren’t an actual ingredient, but I highly, HIGHLY recommend wearing them while you are prepping the peppers. There is nothing like getting jalapeno juice on your fingers and then absentmindedly touching your eye. OUCH.
• Bacon: Use the regular thin sliced bacon for this recipe – thick sliced is a little too heavy for this recipe.
• Barbecue Sauce: This is optional, but if you want to add a little extra flavor to your poppers, you can brush them with your favorite bbq sauce before you bake them. Sometimes I do this and sometimes I don’t!

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutritional information.

How to make this recipe

STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 400 and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.  Lay the bacon in a single layer on the pan and cook for 10 minutes.  Your bacon will be partially cooked but still pliable and perfect for wrapping.  Keep the oven on after you take the bacon out to cool.

STEP 2: Combine some cream cheese, shredded cheddar and scallions in a bowl until combined.  Set aside.

STEP 3: PUT ON GLOVES! (I get the box of latex surgical gloves at CVS. They are perfect for this sort of thing).

STEP 4: Cut the jalapenos in half lengthwise and take out the seeds and membranes with a spoon or your gloved fingers. 

PRO TIP: Want to amp up the spiciness of these poppers? Leave in some of the seeds and membranes. That’s where a lot of the heat of the pepper is. 🔥

STEP 5: Stuff each jalapeno half with cheese mixture.

STEP 6: Wrap each bacon half-slice around the pepper and secure with a toothpick.

STEP 7: Now and only now may you remove the gloves. I know, so bossy, but I’m just looking out for ya here. 🥰

STEP 8: Now is the time to brush them with bbq sauce if you want to. Bake in the 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until bacon is cooked and sizzling.

These poppers can be served hot or at room temperature, if they last that long!

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Baked Jalapeno Poppers

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This easy recipe for jalapeno poppers is perfect for your next tailgate. Or party. Or just when you want a spicy, cheesy snack!

• Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 36 poppers 1x
• Category: Appetizer
• Method: Oven
• Cuisine: Tex-Mex

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 18 slices bacon, cut in half
• 18 fresh jalapenos
• 1 8 ounce package cream cheese
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 scallion, sliced
• 1/4 cup barbecue sauce (optional!)

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Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.  Lay the bacon in a single layer on the pan and cook for 10 minutes.  Your bacon will be partially cooked but still pliable and perfect for wrapping.  Keep the oven on after you take the bacon out to cool.
2. Combine the cream cheese, cheddar and scallions in a bowl until combined.  Set aside.
3. PUT ON GLOVES! (I get the box of latex surgical gloves at CVS. They are perfect for this sort of thing).
4. Cut the jalapenos in half length-wise and take out the seeds and membranes with a spoon or your gloved fingers. 
5. Stuff each jalapeno half with cheese mixture.
6. Wrap each bacon half-slice around the pepper and secure with a toothpick.
7. Now and only now may you remove the gloves.
8. Now is the time to brush them with bbq sauce if you want to. Bake in the 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until bacon is cooked and sizzling.
9. These poppers can be served hot or at room temperature, if they last that long!

Notes

• • Jalapeno Peppers: Jalapenos are on the milder side, pepper-wise, although if you eat them raw with the seeds intact they can still pack a fair amount of heat! This recipe calls for both taking out the seeds (the hottest part) and baking them, which makes them milder. Look for the smallest jalapenos you can find so that they are perfect nibble size…you can find them in the produce section of your grocery store.

• • Gloves: Okay, these aren’t an actual ingredient, but I highly, HIGHLY recommend wearing them while you are prepping the peppers. There is nothing like getting jalapeno juice on your fingers and then absentmindedly touching your eye. OUCH.

• • Bacon: Use the regular thin sliced bacon for this recipe – thick sliced is a little too heavy for this recipe.

• • Barbecue Sauce: This is optional, but if you want to add a little extra flavor to your poppers, you can brush them with your favorite bbq sauce before you bake them. Sometimes I do this and sometimes I don’t!