Paula Deen's Chicken Quesadilla Stuffed Jalapenos

mary winecoff's Note:

This is from Paula Deen's magazine. Great appetizers. The jalapeños can be stuffed up to 2 days ahead, covered and refrigerated.

• Total Time: 30 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 40

• 20 medium fresh jalapenos
• 2 cups cooked chicken , chopped
• 1 cup monterey jack and cheddar cheese blend , shredded
• ½ cup Rotel Tomatoes , drained
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Lightly grease baking sheets.
3. Cut jalapeños in half lengthwise.
4. Remove and discard seeds and membranes; Set aside.
5. In a medium bowl, combine chicken and remaining ingredients.
6. Spoon mixture evenly into jalapeños.
7. Place on baking sheets.
8. Bake 20 minutes.

Reviews

[SeasickSeaSerpent]

I have tried a lot of stuffed jalapeno recipes and loved most all of them. This one is a good one with a pretty authentic Mexican flavor. I noticed that one reviewer was not happy with the "spiciness" of the jalapenos. I can immediately think of two reasons that could happen. First it is the chilies themselves, jalapenos used to have a reputation for heat but now most of them seem to be too mild to be of much use. I believe this is because so many of them are now force fed with fertilizers and water to make them grow faster and thus generate more profits. It is a known fact that jalapenos grown under stress from a lack of water and a lot of hot sun will be hot. In the store you can identify the hottest ones by the "stretch marks" running vertically in the skin. The second possible reason for the result not being spicy or hot is the failure to use the Rotel brand of tomatoes used by Paula. These tomatoes are canned with hot jalapenos included in the mix. Regular canned tomatoes will be tame by comparison.

[TeresaS]

These were very tasty. Next time I plan to use a little less cumin. It's surprising that they are not hot. Nice appetizer that is quick, easy to prepare and looks great. Thanks Mary for posting.

[Starrynews]

Nice twist for serving jalapenos! These were flavorful and delicious. My jalapenos were spicy, so this packed plenty of punch for us. Thanks for sharing! Party '11