Popper Pain

I love me some jalapeno poppers.  Cream cheese, cheddar cheese, bacon and of course the peppers.  So simple, so yummy.  I decided in the 100 degree temperatures that would make a great snack.  Obviously, my decision - making process was a little lacking to begin with so one shouldn't expect any great genius at that point. 

I grabbed the two bag of jalapenos that I purchased at Aldi ($.69 each bag), the cheddar cheese block ($1.59) and the cream cheese ($.89 from the freezer) and set them on the counter.  Daughter got the box of bacon from Sam's out of the freezer ($1.90/lb) and laid out about 4 pieces to thaw.

I washed all of the peppers and began cutting and seeding, combined the cheeses and stuffed the pepper halves, and finally wrapped the bacon around them.  After I put them in the oven, I finished cleaning the kitchen and washed and dried all the dishes-the normal cooking duties.

They finished cooking and I divided them out for everyone and put a few away for later.  We all enjoyed them greatly, eating them in front of the extra cooling box fan as we watched the Family Feud participants try to win the big money. 

All of a sudden the top of my left hand started to feel like I it was inches from a ranging fire.  What in the world?  It got more intense until I could think of nothing else.  I grabbed the iPad and researched jalapeno skin burn.   To ease capsaicin oil reaction, try milk, lemon or lime, apple cider vinegar, aloe, cooking oil (olive, canola, coconut), water compresses, and so on, so forth. 

I slyly took everyone's dishes into the kitchen and proceeded to pour a bowl of milk and stuck my hand in it.  It had an immediate cooling effect but nothing long lasting.  The family saw this and thought I had lost my mind.  I explained what an idiot I was by deciding not to use any gloves to cut these dozen jalapenos up.  They agreed.  Rubbing a lime on my hand reacted the same-short lived success.  After an hour or more of this discomfort, I tried my facial moisturizer-a homemade concoction of olive and coconut oil and rubbed it in.  The sting dulled immediately, not as completely as the other two had done, but eventually the sting died away. 

Even now there is a slight tightness to the skin.  Yes, I more than likely will not only wear gloves when cutting peppers but will probably also don gloves when picking peppers just because.  Hmm, I guess those warnings in recipes are there for a reason.  Who knew!

Nonetheless, they were yummy :)