Texas Twinkies
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Posted: 03/25/24
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Try our easy and tasty smoked Texas Twinkies recipe for your next barbecue or game day snack. These bacon-wrapped cream cheese stuffed jalapeños are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
Everything’s bigger in Texas, right? Well, that includes flavor! These Texas twinkies are big and bold in the flavor department and are absolutely delicious. Loaded with a cream cheese and smoked brisket stuffing, there’s so many reasons to eat more than one of these tasty bacon wrapped bites. They’re a giant Texas-size step up form jalapeño poppers!
Make them for your next party or backyard BQQ because they are sure to be a hit with any crowd. Fire up the smoker and make mouthwatering treats like smoked Texas twinkies and armadillo eggs. All the smoked bacon goodness that you can get!
Why You’ll Love Texas Twinkies
- This recipe is a wonderful way to repurpose leftover brisket. Don’t let those leftovers go to waste in the fridge! Instead, turn them into an amazing new dish.
- You can easily prep this dish ahead of time and then pop them in the smoker when you’re ready to serve. A great way to reduce prep time for parties.
- Easily double or triple this recipe to have tons of Texas twinkies to go around at your next party!
What is a Texas Twinkie?
Texas twinkies are essentially extra large jalapeño poppers! They are filled with a brisket cream cheese filling, wrapped in bacon, and glazed with BBQ sauce. They are originally made popular by Hutchins BBQ in McKinney, Texas.
Ingredients for Texas Twinkies
- Cream cheese – Allow the cream cheese to soften before mixing it with the other filling ingredients.
- Jalapeños – For best results, choose jalapeños that are all similar in size so that they finish cooking around the same time.
- Thick cut bacon – A package of your favorite thick cut bacon makes the best outer crispy crust for these delicious Texas twinkies.
- Shredded Colby jack cheese – I personally prefer the flavor of Colby jack cheese, but you can use cheddar cheese or another type if you want!
- BBQ rub – Grab our Gimme Some Grilling BBQ rub or use a favorite that you already have in your spice cabinet. You can also make homemade BBQ rub!
- Shredded smoked brisket – Adding chopped brisket to the center of a jalapeño is downright drool-worthy!
- BBQ sauce – You can use a bottle of your favorite store-bought sauce or make homemade barbecue sauce.
How to Make Texas Twinkies
Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit and then begin prepping the Texas twinkies.
Take each jalapeño pepper and slice it across the top lengthwise, just through one side of the pepper. Then use a small spoon to scoop out all the filling and seeds from the inside.
Place the jalapeno peppers on the preheated smoker and smoke them for about 20 minutes.
While they smoke, your can mix together the filling for the jalapeño poppers! Mix together the softened cream cheese, shredded brisket, and Colby jack in a large bowl.
Then remove the peppers from the smoker and stuff each of them with the cream cheese mixture.
Next, take a slice of bacon and carefully wrap it around the whole jalapeño, making sure that it is fully encased. If you are using peppers that are larger in size, it may take 2 slices of bacon to fully wrap them.
Season the bacon wrap poppers with BBQ rub and then place them back into the smoker. Let them cook for about 1 ½ hours or until the bacon is dark and crispy.
During the last 10 minutes of cooking, glaze each Texas twinkie with BBQ sauce.
Once done, pull them off the smoker and allow them to cool for 5 minutes and then enjoy!
How to Store Leftover Texas Twinkies
These go so fast, I doubt you’ll have any leftovers! But if you do, just transfer them to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for three days. Reheat in the microwave, or pop into the oven to crisp up the bacon.
Can I make these ahead of time?
Yes! Just prep them as directed, but do not smoke them the second time. You can then store in the fridge or freezer.
FRIDGE: Cover the uncooked poppers in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, or transfer to an airtight container. Store for 1-2 days, then smoke as directed. You may need to add on a few extra minutes of cook time.
FREEZER: Place the twinkies on a baking sheet and freeze. Then transfer them to a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Do not thaw before cooking. Instead, place the frozen poppers into the smoker and just add on some cook time!
How do you remove jalapeño seeds?
After using a sharp pairing knife to slice open the jalapeño, you caneither slice out the membrane and remove it along with the seeds or use a spoon to scoop them out. If you want to make your poppers more spicy, then leave a bit of the membrane in!
What to serve with Texas Twinkies
We love to serve these alongside burgers! But they’re also perfect with other grilling favorites like grilled chicken, grilled ribeyes, and BBQ pork chops.
If you are serving them as an appetizer, pair them with other favorites like smoked potato skins or smoked queso dip.
Pro Tips for the Best Texas Twinkies
- Keep the oils from jalapeños off of your hand and face by wearing gloves while you slice them and strip the seeds from them. Don’t touch your face!
- For the most cheesy and gooey results, grate your own cheese from a block. It will melt better than pre-shredded cheese.
- If needed, use a toothpick to secure the bacon around the stuffed jalapeños. Once cooked, you can remove the toothpicks before serving.
Dig into these big bites of smoked brisket and cream cheese goodness!!
More Smoked Appetizer Recipes
- Smoked Brisket Nachos is another great way to use up leftover brisket. So tasty!
- I bet you’ll never go back to regular deviled eggs after you try these Smoked Deviled Eggs.
- Smoked Pretzels are a tasty snack and great addition to the appetizer table.
- These Smoked Pork Belly Burnt Ends are a total game changer in the appetizer world!
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Shop Now!Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag me on Instagram at @gimmesomegrilling or #gimmesomegrilling so I can see your grilling masterpieces!
Texas Twinkies
Delicious smoked Texas Twinkies are a twist on jalapeno poppers. Jalapenos stuffed with cream cheese and brisket then wrapped in bacon and smoked.
Ingredients
- 12-14 whole jalapeños
- 8 ounce cream cheese softened
- 1 ½ cups shredded smoked brisket
- 1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
- 12-14 slices thick cut bacon
- 1 Tablespoon BBQ Rub
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Take a jalapeno, slice it across the top lengthwise, just through one side of the jalapeno.
- Using a small spoon, (a ½ teaspoon measuring spoon works the best) scoop out all the filling and seeds from the inside of the jalapeno.
- Place the jalapenos on the preheated smoker and smoke the jalapenos for 20 minutes.
- While the jalapenos are smoking, mix together the cream cheese, shredded brisket, and colby jack cheese in a large bowl.
- After the jalapenos have smoked for 20 minutes, remove them from the smoker and stuff each of the jalapenos with the cream cheese mixture.
- Next, take 1 slice of Bacon and carefully wrap it around the whole jalapeno, making sure to fully encase it. If your jalapenos are larger it might take 2 slices of bacon to wrap it.
- Season the outside of the bacon with the BBQ Rub and set to the side. Repeat this for all the other jalapenos until completed.
- Add your Texas Twinkies to the smoker and let cook for about 1 ½ hours or until the bacon has become dark amber and crispy.
- During the last 10 minutes of cooking, glaze the outside of each Twinkie with BBQ sauce and let cook to get a nice sheen.
- Once done, pull them off and let them cool for 5 minutes before you enjoy them.
Tips
FRIDGE: Cover the uncooked poppers in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, or transfer to an airtight container. Store for 1-2 days, then smoke as directed. You may need to add on a few extra minutes of cook time.
FREEZER: Place the twinkies on a baking sheet and freeze. Then transfer them to a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Do not thaw before cooking. Instead, place the frozen poppers into the smoker and just add on some cook time!
Nutrition Information
Calories: 305kcal (15%), Carbohydrates: 5g (2%), Protein: 14g (28%), Fat: 25g (38%), Saturated Fat: 11g (69%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 10g, Trans Fat: 0.05g, Cholesterol: 69mg (23%), Sodium: 441mg (19%), Potassium: 252mg (7%), Fiber: 0.5g (2%), Sugar: 3g (3%), Vitamin A: 503IU (10%), Vitamin C: 17mg (21%), Calcium: 76mg (8%), Iron: 1mg (6%)
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