We stumbled upon this very tasty appetizer at a restaurant in San Diego years ago. The name is what really intrigued me and I chuckled at the menu description. Our server did not know why the appetizer had the name, but it really didn't matter because these "rattlesnake eggs" were just insanely good! I've done my best here to recreate the dish... hope you enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 6-8 small/medium jalapeno peppers
- 6-8 med/lge peeled & cleaned shrimp - cooked & chopped
- 1 strip lower sodium bacon per jalapeno
- 4-6 oz regular cream cheese
- green parts from two scallions - minced
- olive oil
- garlic powder to taste
- extra heat like paprika, crushed Aleppo pepper, sriracha optional
Wash and dry the jalapenos. Slice open one side and carefully remove seeds. Do your best to keep the stem in place as it will serve as a "handle" for eating.
Soften the cream cheese using a fork and a touch of olive oil to mash. Combine with shrimp, scallion, garlic powder and any other heat you choose. I personally find the heat of the jalapeno to be plenty, but feel free to make these babies sing your own tune. :-)
Carefully stuff each jalapeno until full... then wrap each one in a slice of raw bacon. Place the assembled eggs in a lightly sprayed baking dish with the end of the bacon strip at the bottom of its jalapeno so it doesn't unravel during baking.
Bake at 375 F for 40-50 minutes or until the bacon is golden brown. Serve with a ranch style dipping sauce or create something on your own. I like to lean toward citrus & yogurt for this one.
Blessed be... and happy cooking!