Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp & Roasted Jalapeño with Cheese Dipping Sauce

Happy birthday to my little munchkin who turned ONE yesterday! This week is both an exciting one and a very busy one for me.  My little baby is no longer a baby! Oh, where does the time go? 

I had every intention to make cupcakes from scratch but that is not going to happen at this point.  I baked cupcakes and made a frog cupcake cake for my son's birthday yesterday and need to bake and decorate another round of cupcakes and a small "smash cake”.  I also want to make frog-shaped Rice Krispie cereal treats. Did I mention I also have a mid-term for my class this week? 

Since my theme of this week is parties, a tasty appetizer comes to mind. Claire Robinson’s “Bacon Prawns with Cheese Dip" are wonderful!   Although it is not appropriate for a one year old birthday party, these will definitely make a debut at the next party I host. 

I was excited when I saw this recipe on Claire’s show “5 Ingredient Fix” because it reminded me of the most amazing bacon-wrapped shrimp I once had at a party a couple years ago.  Claire’s shrimp were just as succulent! Even though, Claire wrapped a Jalapeño in her shrimp, it was not too spicy, at least not for me.  I am not too crazy about spicy food in general but I figured the roasted Jalapeño wasn’t going to be too bad, which it wasn’t.  I recommend washing your hands right after working with the Jalapeño!  

I made some minor changes to the original recipe based on my experiences.  I also included directions on how I roasted the Jalapeños. 

Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp & Roasted Jalapeño

You will need for 16 servings:

• 16 thick slices of bacon
• 8 roasted Jalapeños, split in half and seeded
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper 
• 16 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese 
• 3/4 cup heavy cream

Hardware:

• Non-stick baking sheet
• Toothpicks
• Paper towel
• Glass bowl
• Small pot (optional, you will need this if you are melting the cheese on the stove top.)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

• Place the bacon on a baking sheet. Bake until they are half cooked, about 5 minutes or more depending on the cut of the bacon. Drain on a paper towel and set aside until cool enough to handle.

Now, roast the Jalapeños:

• Turn the oven temperature up to 425 degrees.

• Cut the tops off of the Jalapeños. Next, cut them into half and remove the seeds.

• Place the Jalapeño halves on the baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over the Jalapeños and season with salt and a little pepper.

• Roast the Jalapeños for about 10-12 minutes. Allow them to cool.

Putting all the ingredients together:

• Assuming the shrimp have been peeled and deveined, place the roasted Jalapeños around the shrimp and wrap a strip of bacon around the shrimp.  

• Secure with a toothpick and place them down on a non-stick baking sheet.

• Bake until the shrimp are cooked, about 10 minutes.  They will turn white.

The cheese sauce:

• Combine the cheese and heavy cream and microwave it for a minute or two just long enough for it to be fully melted. Stir it to fully blend the cheese and cream. You can also put the bowl over a pot of simmering water, as Claire suggests.  Make sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water.  Slowly stir the cheese until it is melted and blended with the cream. 
• Serve the cheese dip along side of the shrimp and enjoy.

Stuffed Peppers and Noodles

Last week, I made a wonderful Stuffed Pepper recipe from my mom that just screams to be shared.  Not only was it easy to make but was so comforting and delicious! Nowadays, the less time it takes me to do something, the better. 

Before I kick-off Super Bowl recipes this week, let’s start with the Stuffed Peppers. My mouth is watering as I write about them!  Take it from my husband, you do not have to be a fan of peppers to enjoy this dish.  The pepper can just act like a vessel for the meat.  All you need to do is add egg noodles and tomatoes and you have yourself a chunky tomato soup.  Two for the price of one! Yum! 

You will notice that I add a seasoning called Vegeta to this recipe. It is my mom’s secret (and now my secret) to great tasting food.  It consists of salt, dehydrated carrots, parsnips, onions, celery, parsley, black pepper, nutmeg, and garlic.  I add Vegeta to soup, meatloaf, lasagna, and just about anything that calls for salt.  If used properly, it can elevate food to the next level.  I say “if used properly” because it is strong so a little bit goes a long way.  If you can’t find it at a local grocery store or an international specialty shop, you can buy it online, or simply just use salt instead.

I call my mom’s Stuffed Peppers “Stuffed Peppers Alla Jozefa”.  I am sure you can figure out who Jozefa is!

Stuffed Peppers Alla Jozefa

You will need:

• 4 medium peppers
• 1 lb. of ground turkey or ground beef
• 1/2 Italian seasoned bread crumbs with Romano cheese (you can use plain bread crumbs and add seasoning and grated cheese if you wish)
• 1 egg
• 2 big tomatoes, chopped
• 1/4 of a small onion, finely diced
• Small pat of butter or butter substitute
• 2 Tbsp Vegeta seasoning (If don't have it, use but I wouldn't use an entire tablespoon.)
• About 2 Tbsp of heavy cream
• Enough water to cover peppers
• Salt and pepper to season
• Medium bowl
• Small frying pan
• Large soup pot 

Healthy substitutions:

• Ground turkey instead of ground beef
• Homemade bread crumbs using whole wheat bread and adding Italian seasoning
• Butter substitute instead of butter
• Sea salt instead of regular salt

Directions:

• Mix ground turkey, onion, bread crumbs, egg, 1 Tbsp of Vegeta or 1/2 Tbsp of salt, and a pinch of pepper together in a medium bowl.

• Cut tops off of green peppers, cut a little bit off the bottoms so that they can stand upright, and clean out the insides.

• Split meat mixture in four quadrants and roll them into balls.

• Stuff each pepper with the meat “ball”, replace the lid and place them into the large pot.

• Pour enough water to cover the peppers and once boiling, boil for 20 minutes.

• In the meantime, chop the tomatoes and heat up the frying pan.

• Add butter and saute the tomatoes. When they turn orange, they're done.

• Add the tomatoes, egg noodles, and Tbsp of Vegeta (or 1/2 Tbsp of salt; add more or less according to your taste buds).

• Continue to cook for 15 minutes, stirring at times.  The lids to the peppers will fall off but that’s ok.

• Pour in enough heavy cream to turn the soup a creamy orange color (add more if soup appears clear) and cook for another 5 minutes.

I think I found the perfect crispy barbeque chicken wing recipe which I am going to attempt tomorrow.  Check back on Friday to see how they came out and for an incredible easy crowd-pleasing appetizer!