Free Friday IV

We only had 1 plant but we had a bumper crop of jalapeños in the garden this year. There aren't enough to can, so we made jalapeño poppers.

They were incredible. I scraped some of the peppers better than others, so some were REALLY hot and others were mild. My husband referred to it as the lottery plate; I got a lot of winners but was burned several times as well... I just couldn't stop eating them.

1) 2 tablespoons frying fat (bacon grease, olive oil, vegetable oil, butter, whatever)
2) 1 onion, chopped
3) 1 fat clove of garlic, minced
4) seasonings to taste (I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and 1/2 tsp chipotle powder)
5) 1 package cream cheese, softened
6) 1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used mozarella, but whatever floats your boat)
7) 10 fresh jalapeños, sliced in half lengthwise, carefully seeded and de-veined (unless you like pain)
8) 10 (or 7) slices of bacon cut in half (or 3rds)

1. Preheat oven to 375, line a baking sheet with foil and put a cooling/baking rack on it.
2. To a hot frying pan, add 1-4 and cook over medium heat until caramelized (8-10 minutes). Cool slightly.
3. Mix the above mixture in a bowl with 5 & 6.
4. Stuff 7 with above (you can be generous).
5. Wrap the whole thing with 8 and secure with toothpicks (actually it's important to do that... it keeps the bacon in place).
6) Bake for 25 minutes, or until bacon is golden brown.
7) Eat one of them. Wish you had scraped the peppers better while you beg for mercy and chug some milk. Eye the poppers and eat another one. Fight back the tears. Repeat.

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And since it's Friday, there are some freebies for you.

Get a free MP3 download from Amazon.com (only through Sept. 6th)

Next Wednesday (Sept 9th) is "Good Neighbor Day." FTD is giving away free flowers then.

Get a free small cup of coffee at Borders (if you have the bookstore nearby, why not?)

Get a free Glade candle at Wal-Mart or Rite Aid. ($3 off coupon, sell for $2.99 and hence, free. If you don't see it, enter "85708" in the zip code)

and of course, only during September and only on Fridays:

Get free chocolate.