Late nights in college were often capped off with a trip to Sonic Drive-In. I craved Cheddar Poppers–jalapeños stuffed with cheese and deep fried. If you’ve ever tried to make pepper poppers at home, you know that a jalapeño is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to bite into…a mild, tame pepper or a flaming, taste bud murderer. So I’ve done away with the guessing and switched out the jalapeño for a small baby pepper. I’ve seen them at almost every grocery store I’ve walked into, and they’re usually found in little cute plastic bags, hanging around the other peppers.

Ingredients

• 1 lb sweet baby peppers
• 2 ripe Haas avocados
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 handful cilantro, chopped
• 1 t chili garlic or hot sauce
• salt, to taste
• 8 oz bacon, chopped & crisped up

Method

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Prepare the peppers by cutting off the stems, then cut the peppers in half, lengthwise. Pull out the white membrane and seeds. Place the peppers on a baking sheet and bake until tender, about 10 minutes. Alternatively, you could leave the peppers raw.

Meanwhile, assemble the guacamole by mashing together (with a fork) the avocados, lime juice, cilantro, hot sauce and a good pinch of salt.

Use a small spoon to fill the peppers with guacamole. Top with bacon crumbles.