Tailgate Tuesday- Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos

Who’s tailgating this football season? Or going to game day gatherings?

If that’s you, then you will likely be taking something for the crowd to snack on. I’m sure you’ve got some go-to recipes, but I’m here to offer you some new recipes that have been serving me well for many football seasons past.

Today, I’m sharing a delicious recipe for Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos.

I actually made this one for the first time this year, but they were well-liked, and I feel I could take them again to the same crowd. I first had this recipe while visiting my former neighbors in Louisiana. Megan made them for us, we at them all, then we made them again. They’re that good.

We start with a lot of fresh jalapenos. Twenty two of them is what the recipe calls for. It’s a lot, but most people don’t want to eat just one, so you need them. The next thing you’re going to do is cut them lengthwise and seed them.

WAIT! Promise me that before you even think about about taking a knife to even one of these peppers that you will put on disposable gloves. Double up even. And if you can’t find them at the store, call me! I’ll give you some of mine. Trust me. I learned this the hard way when I made them with Megan after we’d eaten the first batch she made. I didn’t know that seeding jalapenos would set your skin on fire. But it will. For no less than 36-48 hours. I seeded all of them glove-less, and I felt as if there was literal fire in my hands for a day and a half. Wear. The. Gloves.

The recipe is super simple to put together. I will say that I’ve never used this particular sausage before, but Paul was awesome and went to the store for me to get the ingredients on his day off and came back with this brand. It was great! I’m pretty sure Megan used Jimmy Dean, and it was great too. If you prefer a lot of heat, then definitely get the hot sausage instead of the mild. Megan told me she’s made them with the hot sausage and said they were delicious and not too spicy, so they are totally customizable to your liking.

First, you’ll need to cook the sausage and drain the grease. Then you’ll add in the softened cream cheese and the cup of parmesan cheese and warm through to melt and combine.

Spoon the sausage mixture into each jalapeno half and put in a baking dish. *This particular time that I made the recipe, I stopped at this point because I was prepping the night before I needed them. I knew that I wasn’t going to have time to do everything the day of, so I wanted to be able to pull them out of the fridge and cook them. I put them in two 9×13 baking dishes, covered with saran wrap and stored in the fridge overnight.

The original recipe tells you to cook them in the glass baking dishes, but because there wasn’t enough time to let them sit out and come back to room temperature, I decided cooking them on a baking sheet would be fine. And it definitely was. We always line our baking dishes with foil before we bake. Do y’all do that too? No dishes to wash!

Bake at 425° for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned and bubbly.

The next step is to plate them up on your favorite platter and serve to your tailgate crew.

You can also serve ranch dressing on the side as a dipping sauce, but we all liked them just fine without it.

Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos 

1 lb. bulk pork sausage

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

22 large jalapeno pepper, halved lengthwise and seeded

Ranch salad dressing for dipping (optional)

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, cook the sausage over medium heat until no longer pinkl dran. In a small bowl, combine the cream, cheese and Parmesan cheese; fold in sausage.
2. Spoon about 1 Tbsp. into each jalapeno half. Place in two ungreased 13×9-in. baking dishes. Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 15-20 minutes or until filling is lightly browned and bubbly. Serve with ranch dressing if desired.

NOTE: Wear disposable gloves when cutting hot peppers; the oils can burn skin. Avoid touching your face. 

Many thanks to my friend, Megan for making this for Paul and me. We’ll be making these for many years to come. Let me know if you make these this football season. And get ready for everyone to ask you where you got this recipe. Send them my way and come back for more. I’ll be back with all sorts of recipes throughout football season that will be a perfect addition to your tailgate.