Thursday, December 4, 2008

Atomic Buffalo Turds (ABTs)


There is much talk about these yummy treats around the BBQ web sphere, and many a variation on this recipe. This is my version. My nickname for them is "Heart Attack" which becomes obvious when you see the ingredients and prep.


Ingredients
1 dozen fresh jalapenos
8 oz. cream cheese
8 oz. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
12 Little Smokies Smoked Sausages
12 slices of thick bacon


Feeling any chest pains yet? Yeah, we only eat these on special occasions. Now for the prep:


Preparation
Note: Gloves are a must when preparing the peppers. Treat these things like nitro-glycerin!


  • Cut the top off each pepper and use a small knife or spoon to clean out the seeds and remove as much of the ribbing as possible from the inside of the pepper. The seeds and ribs are where most of the heat is, so if you like it really warm, leave more of the ribbing and just get rid of the seeds. Keep the tops for later.

  • In a bowl, with the cream cheese at room temperature, mix with the shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

  • Fill each pepper with the cheese mixture. This can be done with a piping bag similar to what you would use for cake frosting or you can do what I do and improvise by filling a quart size zip-lock baggie with the filling and cutting one of the corners. Instant pipe bag!

  • Jam a Little Smokie into the middle so it is surrounded by the cheese filling.

  • Sprinkle the top of the filling with your favorite dry rub or choice of seasonings.

  • Replace the top of the pepper and wrap the whole thing in a slice of bacon.

    Some like to use toothpicks to keep everything together, but I find that if the bacon is long enough this isn't necessary. If you do use toothpicks I recommend the kind that are not dyed as the coloring can run.


  • A variation on the prep is to just cut peppers in half, fill each half with filling, a smoky, and wrap in bacon.

    Cooking
    Put these in your smoker or grill using indirect heat for about an hour at ~250. Everything is essentially ready to eat, the smoker just adds smoky goodness and softens the pepper. The most difficult part of this process is figuring out how to put these on the grill. You can stand them up or just lay them flat on the grate. Either way use a drip pan because they are messy!

    Once you pull these off the grill, it will become plain where they earned their name!


    These are great for keeping guests hunger at bay while waiting for larger cuts of meat to cook. I have found that they are less spicy when still warm from the grill and seem to get warmer when allowed to cool or when refrigerated over night.

    Enjoy!

    3 comments:

    Patrick M said...

    Should have added a butter sauce. Then it would be even better.

    (I don't fear the heart attack. Yet.)

    Gordon Scott said...

    You don't blister and peel the jalpenos beforehand?

    Anonymous said...

    Bull frog I dont agree with your politics or religious views but Ill damned if those turds dont look absolutely delicious. Bull frog come holler at me at unreasonable faith. http://unreasonablefaith.com/

    Peace my friend next time I do some I will blog about it.