Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

10-15 large jalapeno peppers, cut in half and seeded
1 1/2 pkg. Cream cheese (12 oz.), softened
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
1 pkg. bacon crumbles (the real kind)
1 cup chicken, chopped fine (I cook chicken breasts in a little oil then chop them fine, or you can use canned chicken)
1 small onion, chopped fine
chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1 pkg. sliced bacon, uncooked

Cut jalapenos in half and scoop out seeds with a spoon. **I would recommend wearing disposable latex gloves while doing this.** Bring 6 cups of water to a boil. boil jalapeno peppers for about 1 minute and then drop into a large bowl of ice water. Drain and dry peppers.
Combine cream cheese and next 6 ingredients in large bowl. Mix well. Using a small spoon fill each pepper half with cream cheese mixture. Wrap with piece of uncooked bacon, secure with a toothpick and place on baking sheet. Bake at 375 until bacon is crispy. About 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately.

** tip: when buying your jalapenos, look for large ones with a rounded end. The pointier the end of the pepper the hotter it will be! If you can find really large rounded ones, you can skip the boiling step and just use them raw. If they are pointy I would recommend boiling them to reduce the heat. **"

I tried Paula Deen's recipe for these and it was pretty gross...so I came up with my own. I love to make these in the summer when we can get really huge fresh peppers! Those are hard to come by in Minnesota!