pineapple | Ski Boots in the Kitchen

It’s hard to believe that kids are starting to go back to school already! Park City public schools start on Thursday, some other schools in the state started last week! But, but wait… summer was just getting started!! Even crazier… some of the leaves are starting to change already! I am not ready for this!

One thing I am ready for… football season! We are just two weeks away from the start of regular season NFL games and I am so excited. One my favorite fall actives is getting together at someones house and watching the Patriots play. It’s one of my East coast traditions I’ve taken with me to the West… Sunday is Pats day. Ok, so you don’t need to love football or the Patriots to love these jalapeno poppers because they are down right delicious and perfect for any occasion. The spice from the jalapeno, the creaminess of the cheese, sweet from the pineapple and salt from the bacon come together for one popping popper! Bring this to your next cocktail party, cook-out or tailgate party and you’ll be everyone’s favorite person. Enjoy!

Jalapeno Poppers with Pineapple and Bacon

10-12 medium/large Jalapenos (or 15-18 small ones)
1 8 oz. block cream cheese, at room temperature
1 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained
¼ cup shredded white cheddar
3-4 pieces bacon, cooked

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees
Cook the bacon in a skillet until crispy, place on paper towels to cool. Chop into small pieces and set aside.
Remove the stems of the Jalapenos, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds and ribs. Be careful not to touch your face or eyes during this process you will burn yourself and regret it!
In a medium bowl combine cream cheese, pineapple and cheddar cheese.
Using a spoon stuff each jalapeno half with the cream cheese mixture so it is even with the sides of the jalapeno (about 1 or 2 tablespoons of filling depending on how large your jalapenos are)
Place cheese side up on a baking dish and bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is slightly brown and bubbly. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool about 5 minutes.
Sprinkle with chopped bacon and serve!

**Thanks to Mia from Blonded by Style for taking the pictures. This post was part of our Mexican Fiesta, check out the whole menu here.

Happy 1 Year Blogiversary, Ski Boots in the Kitchen! It seems crazy to me that a year has gone by since I decided to start this blog. My first post was one of my favorite childhood fall recipes- Stew in a Pumpkin… I never thought a year later I’d be posting my 74th recipe! Stew in a pumpkin was a recipe my mom always made for us as kids and she still makes it for my nieces and nephew- we were always so excited to see the whole pumpkin on the table filled with stew! It’s usually a good excuse to carve pumpkins too!

My niece dressed up for Halloween and ready to eat Stew!

Stew in a Pumpkin

Carving pumkins with friends

Nothing says fall better than a Sunday afternoon watching football and eating some hearty stew or chili. One pot wonders, crock pot magic- whatever you like to call it soups are easy, cheap and feed all the hungry boys that have come over to your house, taken over your couch and drink all the beer! But serving chili without cornbread is like serving lamb without tuna fish… wait I think I meant to say, its like serving spaghetti with out meatballs (that was for all you Big Daddy movie fans…) anyways, you get the idea.What is worse than chili without cornbread? Dry, boring, stale cornbread that tastes like sawdust. That is kind of how I feel about a lot of cornbread, ohhh but not this recipe. The secret ingredients? Well not that secret because I’m going to tell you… Crushed pineapple, creamed corn and pepper Jack cheese!

Spread mixture into a baking dish

Don’t worry if the mixture looks curlded, thats normal!

Dry ingredients

Cream the butter and sugar together

This recipe was one my mother got out of Blanchard’s Cookbook but it was also one of the recipes I got at my bridal shower! Everyone that came to my bridal shower was asked to bring a copy of their favorite recipe for me to add to my collection! (that way I’ll always know your favorite dish when you come over for dinner!) This was the recipe Diane S. brought for me! So thank you Diane and mom for the recipe because it has become one of my favorites too! You’ll never think of cornbread the same after eating this deliciously moist and yummy treat! It would also make a great addition to your holiday meal and it freezes well too! So make up a big ol’ pot of chili, a big ol’ batch of cornbread and get the best spot on the couch. Enjoy!

Caribbean Cornbread (click for printer friendly)

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups canned cream-style corn
1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple, drained (small can)
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack or mild white Cheddar cheese (definitely use Jack cheese!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Butter and flour a 9-inch square glass cake pan. (You can use a metal cake pan, but glass works best).
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, corn meal, baking powder, and salt, and set aside. (You can use gluten free all purpose flour from King Arthur for GF option).
In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs on at a time, beating after each addition. If the mixture starts to look curdled at this point its OK.
Add the corn, pineapple, and cheese, and mix to blend. On a low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix until blended well.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown around the edges and a tester stuck in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.

*to freeze- let cornbread cool completely before cutting and removing it from the pan. Double wrapping in plastic and freeze.

Recipe from Blanchard’s Table Cookbook.