Jalapenos- stuffed and wrapped in Bacon

The Courtyard by Marriott in Chennai has a restaurant called Rhapsody and one one of my food review visits, the Chef there insisted i try the Jalapeno Poppers. It was the best i have ever had and whenever we go there, we make sure its on our starter list. One of the perks of writing for a magazine and doing the PR was the contacts you make. The Director of F & B at Marriott was a very jovial chap and we clicked right from the first interview i ever did of him. Marriott Chennai is like a second home to me now. Just recently when we visited India, we stopped by at Rhapsody for a meal and i harassed them to pass on the recipe for the poppers, but they were like..of all the things on the menu, you want the recipe for the Jalapeno poppers? that's sad! (maybe they just didn't want to give out their trade secret).

Anyways, coming back to London, its so strange that none of the super markets in freaking London have Jalapenos. So on our Friday lunch date at Borough Market i was delighted to see Jalapenos at one of the stalls (this...after going in and out of the several other veggie stalls). Picked up a few and decided to make the poppers. After searching the net for a while, i came up with an easy recipe for stuffed Jalapenos and not the poppers. I have only used up half of the Jalapenos so i shall try the poppers with the remaining. Here's the recipe:

Jalapeno peppers- 6

Shredded cheese- 1/2 a cup or even less ( i used mature cheddar)

Bacon- 3 halved

Slice the jalapeno peppers into half and remove the seeds and veins (this is the really spicy part). Fill the halves with shredded cheese and wrap with the bacon, all around, and make sure the cheese doesn't fall out.

Pre-heat grill to about 170C, layer the peppers on a baking tray and grill for about 15 to 20 minutes. Make sure the bacon is cooked and browned. Serves as a great BBQ dish.

Notes: If you have cream cheese then its even better, you can mix it with the shredded cheese and use it as the stuffing. More rich and tastier. I didn't have any left, so just used the cheddar shreds.