Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Line a large baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup. Place an oven-safe cooling rack on top of the baking sheet. The first time I made these, I tried it without the the cooling rack and found that the grease from the bacon soaked into jalapenos, making them soggy and overcooked. I much prefer using a cooling rack.

Begin by preparing the filling. In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is smooth and creamy. 

Add 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, 1 clove minced garlic, 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper. (The cayenne pepper won't make it more spicy, it just adds a boost of flavor. If you are worried about the heat you can skip it.)

Beat all the cheese together until creamy and well blended. Set aside. 

Slice all the jalapenos in half vertically. Do not remove the stems, otherwise your filling will spill out the end. Be kind to yourself and wear disposable gloves for this step! Or just be very careful not to rub your eyes the rest of the day!

Use a sharp serrated knife and a spoon to remove ALL the seeds and ALL the white membranes inside the peppers. If you want your poppers to be extra spicy, feel free to be lazy on this step! Most of the heat from jalapenos comes from the seeds and membranes, so the more you leave in, the spicier they will be.

Use a small spoon or your fingers to fill each jalapeno half with about a tablespoon or less of the cream cheese filling. If you over-stuff, the filling will just overflow the jalapeno in the oven, so don't go too crazy. (Although if it does overflow, you end up with crispy cheesiness baked into the bottom of your pan, and it's really quite delicious.)

Cut each slice of bacon in half. Wrap each stuffed jalapeno half with one half slice of bacon. Secure with a toothpick and place on the cooling rack that you already prepared. (At this point you can freeze for later. See notes.)

Bake at 400 for about 17-25 minutes. Start checking early. The poppers are done when the bacon is as crispy as you like it to be. If you like them to be extra brown on top, you can move the oven rack up to the top level and broil for 1-2 minutes. Don't walk away!! Be prepared for your toothpicks to turn into little birthday candles. 

Let the poppers cool slightly and serve with ranch dressing! I like to serve these at parties because jalapeno poppers are super tasty served either warm or room temperature, so letting them sit out at a party is no problem.