Bacon Pineapple Bites

For those of you that love bacon, this one is a winner. I am not a big fan of bacon, but I did try this and I have to say it was actually really good. I guess I like bacon as long as there is something else to drown out it's flavor haha! The hubby ate these up and loved them!
 Now if I could just figure out a way to wrap everything in chocolate and I will be a happy camper also. ;)

 The original recipe can be found here: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/appetizers-and-snacks/bacon-wrapped-pineapple-bites/

6 pieces of bacon, cut in half
Fresh pineapple cut into chunks, or canned pineapple chunks (in juice, not in syrup)
1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375°.
Place the brown sugar in a medium bowl.
Take a bacon half and dredge it through the brown sugar.
Roll the sugar coated bacon around a chunk of pineapple.
Place the rolled bacon/pineapple onto a broiler pan, sprayed with Pam, so that the fat can drip through. Cook at 375° for 25 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil these for just a couple minutes to crisp them up. Watch them carefully as the sugar will burn fast under the broiler.

All Inclusive Breakfast

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to take all of your breakfast ingredients and combine them all together in one little bundle? It's ok. I hadn't either. So when I saw this idea on Pinterest, I decided, like always, to expand upon it. I'm not much of a breakfast food eater. I know, I know, everyone thinks I'm crazy, but I would much rather snack on fruit or eat leftovers for breakfast.
 So you are probably asking....then why did you make this? Well, sometimes a girl (ok, ok, a not so young lady) just has to use up leftovers that are in her house. I had recently made the hubby a BLT, which I didn't eat, because once again you will probably think I'm crazy, but I really don't like bacon very much. I also had some leftover frozen hash browns that really needed to be used up, since I honestly can't remember when I have ever made hash browns. So thus began the journey towards this "all inclusive breakfast"." I sure like the ring of that title.....I just wish I were being served this while on an all inclusive vacation. Maybe soon...maybe soon.
*This was what the final product looked like.

*Or you can make some gravy from the few pieces of bacon you cooked to crumble on the top and this is what your finished product will look like. That's the beauty of this, you can add whatever you would like to suit your taste.

* Sorry my measurements won't be exact as I just threw this together and honestly never stopped to think about measuring to write it down. But really you can just throw this together yourself also.

small amount of diced sauted onions
Large handful of frozen hash browns, thawed
1/4 tsp oil
salt and pepper
grated cheddar cheese
4 eggs
2-3 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 Tbsp chopped Italian parsley
1 tsp chopped fresh jalapeno
grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 425°. Grease 4 cups of a muffin tin.
In a skillet, saute onions until bite tender. Set aside. In a bowl, combine onions, hash browns, oil, salt, pepper and grated cheddar cheese. Divide this mixture into 4 equal parts and press the hash brown mixture into the greased muffin tin compartments and make a well in the center, so your mixture kind of forms a "nest". Bake this at 425° for 18 min. (Check every so often to make sure the edges are not getting too brown. If they are, cover with the pan with tin foil).
Remove from oven and turn the oven down to 350°.
Crack an egg into each "nest" and top with bacon, Italian parsley, chopped jalapeno and more grated cheddar cheese. Bake for 15 more minutes. Loosen them with a knife around the edge and serve.
*If you would like to serve them with gravy, just add enough flour to your bacon drippings to make a "paste". Add milk to thin. Season with salt and pepper and cook until you achieve the right consistency.
 **Original recipe from: http://thevillagecook.com

Loaded Potato Casserole

There should be a clear warning with this recipe that announces, "you are about to close an artery", but oh my goodness it sure seemed worth it at the time we were eating this for dinner tonight. This is such an easy meal to prepare and if you like a baked potato with all the yummy fixins like...green onions, butter, sour cream, bacon etc, then you will definitely love this casserole.

5 lb russet potatoes 
10 slices bacon 
8 oz cream cheese, softened 
1/2 cup butter, melted 
1 cup sour cream 
1/4 cup chives, minced 
2.5 cups cheddar cheese, grated 
2 tsp salt 
1/2 tsp pepper

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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes, and cut into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large saucepan, and add enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender and easily pierced with a paring knife, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain; return to pan, cover, and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon, and cook until crisp and browned, turning once. Transfer to paper towels to drain; let cool, and crumble into pieces.
3. Using a fork, mash the potatoes in pan until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, and sour cream, and stir until combined and smooth. Add the chives, 2 cups cheddar cheese, half the bacon, salt, and pepper. Stir until well combined.
4. Transfer to a buttered 3-quart baking dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Bake until top is slightly golden and potatoes are heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; garnish with remaining bacon. Serve immediately.

*original recipe from: sixsistersstuff.com

Sweet and Salty Bacon Wrapped Pretzels

 Sweet, salty, crunchy, chewy, spicy! Those are the words I would use to describe this treat. My company tonight definitely loved these and I will remember these as a "go to" recipe for a pot luck type appetizer dish. They are quick to make, easy as pie and are a crowd pleaser!! :)

 1 package of bacon, cut into halves
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3 Tbsp chili powder
3 Dashes cayenne pepper (next time I'm going to use more cayenne and make this good and spicy)
1 package Pretzel rods


Preheat oven to 375.
Break the pretzel rods in half. Cut the bacon slices in half also. In a bowl, (use a flatter edged bowl for easily dipping the bacon), stir together the brown sugar, chili powder and cayenne pepper. Dip each bacon half into the brown sugar mixture, pushing down and making sure you coat all sides of the bacon with the sugar mixture thoroughly. Wrap the dipped bacon half around the half of a pretzel rod. Cover the entire rod with the piece of bacon. (for some pieces it only "almost" covers them, that's ok)
Place the covered pretzels onto a broiler pan (or any pan that has holes for the fat to drip through into a bottom container) so that when the bacon cooks, the fat drips off of them into the broiler pan below. Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes. Let these cool as the pretzel "hardens" back up after it cools a bit. Serve!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken with Garlic Butter

Some people claim anything tastes better with bacon, but I don't happen to be one of those people. I don't hate the taste, I'm just not a fan. But....tonight's dinner tasted really great with bacon wrapped around the chicken. The garlic butter and parmesan gave the outside of the chicken a little bit of a crisp and the flavors all meshed together beautifully. This recipe doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and it should be very simple for anyone to make!

4 chicken breasts
8 slices of bacon
4 1/2 teaspoons fresh grated parmesan
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 cube softened butter
Salt/Pepper to taste


In a food processor or blender, combine the cheese, garlic, butter and some salt and pepper until smooth.
Wrap 2 pieces of bacon around each chicken breast so it's almost completely covered in bacon.
 Sprinkle salt and pepper. 
Using your hands or a pastry brush, brush the butter mixture from the food processor onto each bacon wrapped chicken breast. Place in the refrigerator for about a half hour to chill the butter.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-40 minutes depending on the size of the chicken breasts.
*Make sure you cook this on the top of a broiler pan or something that the butter and juice can drop into it while the chicken is cooking!

Parmesan Crisps with Pancetta and Roma Tomato Salsa

I think Guy Fieri is quickly becoming one of my favorite Food Network chefs. I have tried a few of his recipes and they are always so yummy. Tonight I tried one of his appetizer recipes and it was very easy to  make. It kind of looks like a "mini taco" when it's done, although it's hard to tell from this picture because there are 7 of them on the plate.The outside is basically a parmesan "shell" and it's filled with tomatoes, basil, olive oil and pancetta.

Here is the Guy Fieri recipe link if you want to try this recipe.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/parmesan-crisps-with-pancetta-and-roma-tomato-salsa-recipe/index.html

Garlic Lime Bacon Wrapped Tilapia

I love seafood so much and am not a big fan of bacon, but I do have to say that these flavors went together very well. I've had this recipe for a long time and it is actually a shrimp recipe. I had a lot of Tilapia in my freezer, so I decided to try to adapt this recipe for Tilapia. It worked very well.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 Tbsp lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
10 Med shrimp (or Tilapia cut into smaller pieces)
5 slices bacon, cut into half
1 (4 oz) jar whole green chilies, drained and sliced lengthwise
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced (optional)
1 lime, cut into wedges (optional)

Directions:
1. Whisk together the oil, lime juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Toss the fish in to marinade. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
2. Preheat an indoor grill (or skillet) to med-high heat.
3. Remove fish from marinade and shake off excess liquid. Wrap each piece of fish with a strip of chili pepper, than half a bacon slice. Cook on preheated grill (or skillet) until the bacon  is crisp, and the fish is hot. Approximately 6-10  minutes. Sprinkle the fish with diced avocado and garnish with lime wedges to serve.