Microwave Jalapeno Cheese Chips

Before you get hangry (because that’s never a good thing), you need to be ready and able to whip out a quick, tasty snack like these microwave jalapeno cheese chips.  You can make a serving of them in under three minutes.  Even you can wait that long, can’t you?

There are just two ingredients, but you do need a silicone sheet to cook them on.  My friend Deloris was the one who taught me how to make microwave cheese chips and I’ve made them with a sprinkle of cayenne, plain, with a little Italian seasoning on top.  Trust me, they’re all good.   I think this variation, which uses slices of fresh jalapeno, may be my favorite, however.

Here are the steps you follow:

Get out a bag or container of shredded cheddar cheese, a microwavable tray topped with a silicone sheet, or a platter topped with a silicone sheet.  If you don’t have the silicone sheet (are you sure — have you examined your baking supplies?), you could try making them directly on a microwave safe plate.  Either way, you will want to stand  by with paper towels.

Drop a tablespoon of shredded cheese loosely on your cooking surface.  It should look lacy, not thick.  The first time I made them, I topped them with the jalapeno slices from the beginning, as shown below.  In subsequent batches, I have put the jalapenos on part way through the cooking process and that’s what I recommend — but it works either way.

Microwave for one minute.  Wad up a paper towel and using fairy fingers (aka a light touch), blot the oil very gently.  Add your thin jalapeno slices.  Place back into the microwave for another minute.  Blot again.  Gently pull the chips off and place on a paper towel-covered plate.  This will soak up the remaining oil and the chips will crisp as they cool.  If yours aren’t crisp after they cool, stick them back into the microwave for another twenty seconds.

BTW, if you decide to make these with parmesan, rather than cheddar, don’t cook them as long.  The hard cheeses, like parmesan, seem to crisp up much more quickly and you can overcook them accidentally, if you are not careful.

We started out with just one slice of pepper per cheese chip.  After making a couple of batches, we went “all in” and started putting four or five per chip.  If you like it hot, do what we did below and spice up your life!