Gluten Free Jalapeño Poppers

Here is my recipe for Poppers. As a for-warning. WEAR RUBBER GLOVES when handling hot peppers. It makes your hands burn and leaves the juice on for hours regardless of any amount of washing, and do NOT touch your eyes.

First pick out about 16 larger jalapeños. The larger they are the easier they are to scrape out the seeds without mutilating them. Cut them long ways from tip to stem leaving about 1/4 uncut.

Then using the back handle of a soup spoon scrape out the seeds. If you want the poppers to have a kick to them, leave in a few seeds. And I mean one or two.

They pack a mighty big punch and are what holds all the heat. Once they are cut, rinse the peppers thoroughly and lay on a paper towel. Then prep your filling.

Mix in your cream cheese, ranch dressing dry mix, and bacon bits in a bowl. May need to heat up the mix a little bit to make stuffing easier. I used a disposable cake bag, but a zip lock baggie with the end cut would probably work just fine. Done try to use a spoon, it will make a mess. Ones they are stuffed, place on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 15-20 minutes.

 Just long enough to let the insides set up. Do not over freeze, this will break down the cell wall of the peppers. Not freezing them before baking or frying will result in the inside oozing out. Which you do not want. While the poppers are in the freezer, prepare your breading. Put about 2 cups of GF bread crumbs and rice flour in one bowl and 2-3 whisked eggs in another bowl.

Once the peppers are chilled, dip them individually in the eggs, then the crumbs. Repeating till completely coated going back and forth between eggs and crumbs. I did at least two coats of crumbs to ensure that the breading doesn't fall off during baking.

Spray pan and tops of poppers to add to the crispy coat. Heat oven to 350'F and place the poppers back in the freezer till the oven is heated. Then bake for 30 minutes or till completely crispy.

Pull from the oven and enjoy hot, warm, or cold. May want to keep a glass of milk on hand, they can be powerful! But oh so yummy :)

• 16-18 Jalapeño Peppers
• 8 oz of Neufchatel Cheese
• GF Bacon bits
• 1/4 cup of ranch dry mix