Posted March 11, 2008 by Nick Lindauer in Makers

Review: Big Dawg Fire Department – Chipotle Dip Mix

One of the items that I picked up at the Fiery Foods show was a chile grill. After seeing them show after show, I finally picked one up and have already put it to good use. When I got home, I lined up all my goodies on the bar and started doing a mental inventory of all the items and trying to figure out what I can use with each other. The Besito Caliente mix is already gone (it rocked and I’ll be ordering more soon) and when I was thinking about using the grill, I remembered that I had a packet of Big Dawg’s Seasoning to put to good use.

Ingredients: chipotle flakes, garlic powder, paprika, sea salt, MSG (Monosodium Glutamate), and other spices.

The little zip lock baggies come with instructions on how to mix the seasonings, but it’s pretty simple – 2 packages of cream cheese and a package of seasoning, mix and refrigerate for a few hours.

The making of the stuffed peppers is also simple – remove the tops of the peppers and use an apple corer to remove the seed (be careful not to puncture the sides of the peppers). Using a toothpick, put a small hole in the bottom of each pepper and then fill with the cream cheese mixture (but not to the top of the pepper). Leave about 1/2 inch of space so that the filling can expand. Top each pepper with 1/4 a slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick.

Once all the peppers are stuffed (I did 10 for 3 people) – place into the chile grill and onto the BBQ. My BGE was already set up from smoking ribs all day (hence the drop pan), but set yours up with indirect heat at about 300 degrees. When the bacon is done, the peppers are done (about 15 to 20 minutes).

The peppers turned out fantastic and the chipotle cream cheese was a terrific addition. The chipotle flavor blended nicely with the smoky bacon and fresh jalapenos. So well that I ended up eating more peppers then ribs that night – and I can’t wait to get the garden started so that I can try the chile grill out with other peppers.

But what was one to do with all of the leftover chipotle cream cheese? Well, coming from NY, bagels were the obvious answer. The spread was a little salty for straight bagel application, but I’m definitely going to be ordering more soon to give it another whirl. The chipotle cream cheese flavor is unlike anything you can buy pre-packaged, so if you love a good bagel in the morning I would highly suggest you check out Big Dawgs Seasoning selection. Not only can you use the seasoning with cream cheese, but I’m also told it’s fantastic mixed in with a little ground beef for a taco seasonings. Yum!