Picadillo Poppers Recipe 465

Steps:

• FILLING: In a large skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium-high heat until meat is brown and onion is tender, using a wooden spoon to break up meat as it cooks. Drain off fat. Stir in cooked rice, the 1 cup cheese, raisins, olives, and sherry. Set aside. Cut a lengthwise slit in one side of each jalapeño pepper to create a pocket, being careful not to cut the pepper in half. Cut a very small crosswise slit on both ends of the long slit, making an "L" shaped opening. Leave stem intact and use a small spoon to remove seeds and scrape out membranes. Spoon filling into peppers. Place filled peppers, slit sides up, in a greased grill basket or on a greased vegetable grilling pan. For a charcoal grill, grill peppers in basket on the rack of a covered grill directly over medium coals for 8 to 12 minutes or until peppers are crisp-tender and filling is heated through. For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place peppers in basket on grill rack over heat. Cover and grill as above. If desired, sprinkle grilled peppers with additional cheese. If you want a sauce to serve with these Mexican bites, thin one 8-ounce carton of sour cream with a little milk and stir in 1/2 cup ground toasted almonds or pecans, a squeeze of lime juice, and a pinch of ground cinnamon.

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, saute onions, garlic, and pepper in olive oil until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add ground beef and olives and continue stirring to break up and brown the meat. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. When beef has browned, add tomato sauce gradually while stirring. Cook 1 to 2 minutes longer to incorporate sauce.
• Serve with rice and beans or tortillas.