What to do with all these peppers?

So what do you do if you have a bucketful of banana peppers? 

Our favorite way to eat them is to stuff them with cream cheese, then wrap them in bacon and bake. 

It's a simple procedure, but the results are delicious. 

There's no telling how many of these I've made over the years!

Here's how I do it. I wash and drain the peppers, slice them lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds.

I spread the pepper halves out on an oiled cookie sheet, then I spread a teaspoon or two of softened cream cheese in each half.  

I open a pack of bacon, and slice across the whole bundle, dividing it into halves or thirds. 

I separate the short slices of bacon, then lay the pieces on top of each cream cheese-stuffed pepper half. A lot of bacon is good, but it really doesn't take much to impart that rich bacon flavor.

The cookie sheet then goes into the oven, preheated to 375 degrees.

The peppers need to bake for about 25 or 30 minutes. I know they're done when I start to notice some browning on the bacon and at the edges of the pepper halves. 

The peppers smell so good as they bake! They are always a favorite at potluck dinners. 

If there are leftovers, I like to add them to ham or turkey sandwiches on sourdough bread.  So, so good! 

Note: These aren't pretty, because I quickly slapped them together. If you want them to look a little fancier, you can wrap slices of bacon around the pepper halves.