Tag Archives: bacon

Slow Cooker Creamy Bacon Chicken

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On a bun. As a dip. It doesn’t matter how you serve this slow cooker creamy bacon chicken, you’re going to love it. Tender, moist chicken. Creamy cheese. Bacon. Ranch dressing flavors. Bacon. Oh, I said that already. I love bacon.
Slow Cooker Creamy Bacon ChickenSlow cooker creamy bacon chicken is mighty darned good as it is. Now, you know me (or well, maybe you don’t) but I like a little kick to my food. I would not be afraid to use jalapeno cream cheese instead of the plain stuff. And I wouldn’t be afraid to add a few squirts of Sriracha, either. Heck, throw in some diced roasted jalapenos too. You can always make two versions. One nice and mellow and one nice and spicy.

Also try my slow cooker teriyaki chicken.

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Slow Cooker Creamy Bacon Chicken

On a bun. As a dip. It doesn’t matter how you serve this slow cooker creamy bacon chicken, you’re going to love it. 
Course Main
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 15 minutes
Servings 6 servings
Calories 332kcal
Author Based on a recipe from Cookies and Cups

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds chicken breasts boneless, skinless
  • 2 8 ounce cream cheese cubed
  • 2 1 ounce packets Ranch dressing seasoning
  • 1/2 pound bacon cooked, crumbled

Instructions

  • Place chicken into your slow cooker.
  • Top with the cheese and dressing seasoning.
  • Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until the chicken is tender.
  • Remove the chicken and shred with a fork.
  • Return the meat to the slow cooker. Stir in the bacon.
  • Serve as a dip or on buns with extra sharp cheddar cheese as sandwiches.

Nutrition

Calories: 332kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 122mg | Sodium: 452mg | Potassium: 635mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 64IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Pepper Crusted Bacon Cheeseburgers

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In my world there’s nothing better than a burger cooked on a super hot flat top griddle. Boy do I love that nice little char you get on the patties. These pepper crusted bacon cheeseburgers amp up that great flat top (though you can certainly grill them!) flavor even more.

The patties are loaded with sweet onion and lots of black pepper. Lots of black pepper. Crispy bacon, lettuce, smoky cheese and a fantastically garlicky aioli top it all off Every bite is loaded with flavor.
Pepper Crusted Bacon CheeseburgersDo not be shy with the black pepper when you roll the burger patties in it. You really want a good strong pepper flavor. I used smoked pepper but any good freshly cracked pepper will do. For extra smoky flavor used smoked garlic instead of regular raw garlic.

Also try my spicy bacon burger!

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Pepper Crusted Bacon Cheeseburgers

In my world there’s nothing better than a burger cooked on a super hot flat top griddle. Boy do I love that nice little char you get on the patties. These pepper crusted bacon cheeseburgers amp up that great flat top (though you can certainly grill them!) flavor even more.
Course Main
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Calories 715kcal
Author Based on a recipe from The Chunky Chef

Ingredients

For the garlic aioli

  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon parsley minced

For the burgers

  • 2 pounds ground beef
  • 1 small sweet onion
  • 1 tablespoon heavy cream you can omit this if you don't have cream on hand
  • kosher salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 8 hamburger buns
  • green leaf lettuce
  • 8 slices cheddar cheese smokehouse cheddar is best!
  • 8 slices bacon cooked

Instructions

For the garlic aioli

  • Place garlic in a small bowl. Add the salt and mash with a fork until it becomes a paste.
  • Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until combined.
  • Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the burgers

  • Place beef into a large bowl.
  • Great 2 tablespoons of the onion into the beef. Slice the remaining onion thin.
  • Add cream, salt and pepper and mix well. Form into 8 1/4 pound patties.
  • Spread cracked black pepper out onto a plate. Lightly press each side of each patty into the pepper.
  • Cook patties as desired. I prefer them grilled on a flat-top griddle, but you can also cook them in a skillet.
  • Lightly toast the buns.
  • Assemble burgers by slathering buns with the garlic aioli. Add the lettuce, cooked patties, cheese and bacon and serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 715kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 53g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 708mg | Potassium: 480mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 218IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 231mg | Iron: 4mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Baked Bacon

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Baked bacon is one of my favorite things. A little time, a little seasoning and I’ve got a wonderful treat. I like my bacon to not be super-duper crunchy. Just a little bite is perfect. For me, baking is easier than cooking bacon in a skillet and I get a more-consistently cooked product (with minimal curling!). With less mess, too.

Baked Bacon

When I worked at the cafeteria at a large army base outside of Washington DC we would bake an unbelievable amount of bacon. And specially for Saturday morning’s buffet. Rack after rack after rack of bacon. I started as a dishwasher. Nothing was harder than scrubbing stack after stack of large sheet pans that had pieces of bacon stuck to them. I avoid that now by lining my pans with foil. A teen making minimum wage was probably cheaper than foil back in the day, so we didn’t line the pans at the cafeteria. We also didn’t season the bacon, something I really love to do.

If you’re planning on draining off the bacon drippings to use for other purposes, you might want to skip the seasoning all-together, or strain it first to remove any spice pieces.

For cleanup I take the paper towel that I drained the bacon on and toss it onto the baking sheet to absorb any grease. I fold up the sides of the foil and seal it tightly to create a packet that can be tossed into the bin without having to worry about it leaking.

Baked bacon is also a great way to use up those last bits of the spices you have in the pantry. You know the ones, they’ve been in there forever waiting for you to figure out what to do with them. Well, know you know!

Baked Bacon
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Baked Bacon

Baked bacon is one of my favorite things. A little time, a little seasoning and I’ve got a wonderful treat. I like my bacon to not be super-duper crunchy. Just a little bite is perfect. 
Course Side
Cuisine American
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 315kcal
Author Mike

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces bacon thin- or thick-sliced
  • seasonings see notes

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 F. For thick or crisper bacon you can go as high as 400 F.
  • Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
  • Lay the bacon out onto the baking sheet. Do not overlap the pieces or let them touch.
  • Sprinkle the top side of the bacon with the seasoning.
  • Bake for 20 minutes. The bacon will still be mostly uncooked.
  • Flip and season the other side. Return to the oven for 15 minutes or until the desired doneness is achieved. I like my bacon done, but only lightly crispy. Thin bacon usually takes a total of 35 minutes, while thick can take 45 minutes or longer.
  • Remove bacon to paper towel-lined plate to drain then serve.

Notes

Do not use seasonings that contain a lot of sugar. If your seasonings contain a lot of salt I recommend using them sparingly as the bacon is already salty to begin with if it has been salt-cured.
I usually use Grill Mates from McCormick. Todd’s Dirt is also a favorite, along with any of the mixes from AlbuKirky Seasonings.
Sometime bacon, specially thinner slices, can be hard to separate when removing it from the packaging. I freeze my bacon for a few minutes to make the pieces easier to remove. Just don’t put the bacon in the freezer and forget about it!

Nutrition

Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 500mg | Potassium: 150mg | Vitamin A: 28IU | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Mississippi Mud Cheesy Potatoes

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I’m lucky in that I usually love darn near everything i make. These Mississippi Mud cheesy potatoes are definitely no exception. In fact, love may be an understatement. Anita and I both devoured them. You just can’t beat the tender potatoes, ooey gooey cheese, crunchy smoky bacon, and green onions. It’s a lot like having a loaded baked potato, and yep, you guessed it, I love loaded baked potatoes too.
Mississippi Mud Cheesy PotatoesThe only possible change (and really, it’s a stretch perhaps) I would make to these Mississippi Mud cheesy potatoes would be to add a roasted jalapeno or two. Actually, that’s not a stretch at all. Or maybe a pinch or two of smoked paprika or chipotle powder. Yeah, I’m going that for sure now!

Also make my delicious melting potatoes.

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Mississippi Mud Cheesy Potatoes

I’m lucky in that I usually love darn near everything i make. These Mississippi Mud cheesy potatoes are definitely no exception.
Course Side
Cuisine American
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 1078kcal
Author Based on a recipe from Mama Plus One

Ingredients

  • 10 cups Russet potatoes diced (about 5 medium potatoes)
  • 1 pound extra sharp cheddar cheese shredded
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 pound bacon cooked, chopped
  • 1/2 cup green onions chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 325 F.
  • Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
  • Pour mixture into a 9" x 13" casserole dish.
  • Bake for 1 hour until the potatoes are tender.

Nutrition

Calories: 1078kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 96g | Saturated Fat: 37g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 125mg | Sodium: 625mg | Potassium: 860mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 651IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 440mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Spicy Bacon Burger

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Messy and spicy. That’s all I need to know. Plenty of crispy bacon too. And a little of ‘garden’. Nothing really that fancy, just a good juicy spicy bacon burger with plenty of kick. Thanks to the spicy cheese and a very spicy sauce.
spicy-bacon-burgerI usually cook my burgers on the grill, but not on the grates. Instead I use a griddle insert that is made of cast iron. The insert gets screaming hot, like a griddle from a diner. You know, the diners that make great burgers. When you cook on grates the juices drip down into the grill, lost forever. When you cook on the griddle the juices hang out, flavoring the patties and keeping them moist. You can’t go wrong griddling burgers in my opinion. You can also cook the bacon on the griddle, but I usually bake my bacon.

Also try my Louisiana burgers and my butter burgers. And you have to have my pepper crusted bacon cheeseburgers! They’re all seriously good.

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Spicy Bacon Burger

Messy and spicy. That’s all I need to know. Plenty of crispy bacon too. And a little of ‘garden’. Nothing really that fancy, just a good juicy spicy bacon burger with plenty of kick. 
Course Main
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings 3 servings
Calories 957kcal
Author Based on a burger from Applebee's

Ingredients

For the burger

  • 1 pound ground beef I prefer a 85/15% mix
  • Kosher salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 12 slices smoked bacon
  • 3 sesame seed hamburger buns
  • 3 slices extra sharp cheddar cheese
  • 3 slices habanero jack cheese
  • Green leaf lettuce
  • 6 slices tomato
  • 6 slices red onion

For the sauce

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon Sriracha or your favorite hot sauce

Instructions

For the burger

  • Preheat oven to 380 F.
  • Divide the ground beef into 3 equally sized patties. Season well with salt and pepper.
  • Place bacon slices on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake for 40 minutes, flipping once, until done but not overly crispy. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
  • Fire up your grill and cook the burgers until the desired doneness is reached.
  • Toast the buns if desired.
  • Top patties with cheese and melt.
  • Slather the buns with the sauce. Add the patties, lettuce, tomato, red onion and cooked bacon.

For the sauce

  • Whisk together all ingredients until smooth.

Nutrition

Calories: 957kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 67g | Fat: 63g | Saturated Fat: 26g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 216mg | Sodium: 1808mg | Potassium: 1076mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 906IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 481mg | Iron: 6mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Breakfast Pizza

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I was digging around in the bottom of the fridge when I came across a tub of pizza dough. A quick check of the freezer found that I didn’t have any pizza sauce. And no ‘normal’ pizza toppings in the fridge, either. Well, I figured that this was the opportune time to make a breakfast pizza. I can’t say I went into the project with great optimism. Well, I’ve been wrong before. This breakfast pizza was easy to make and came out tasting fantastic. It was a welcomed twist on a regular ole pizza.
Breakfast PizzaOf course you can add more toppings. Such as crumbled cooked breakfast sausage. Roasted red bell peppers. Salsa. Hot sauce.  Jalapeno slices. Use my version of breakfast pizza as sort of a canvas for whatever you want to do. You can’t mess it up. Also make my breakfast po boy and my egg McMuffin casserole.

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Breakfast Pizza

This breakfast pizza was easy to make and came out tasting fantastic. It was a welcomed twist on a regular ole pizza.
Course Main
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 770kcal
Author Based on a recipe from Pillsbury

Ingredients

  • 1 tube refrigerated pizza crust
  • 1/2 cup bacon coarsely chopped
  • 6 eggs beaten
  • 4 ounces cream cheese cubed
  • 2 cups pepperjack cheese shredded
  • 1/4 cup red onion thinly sliced
  • cilantro chopped, optional

Instructions

  • Open dough and prepare per package instructions but bake only 4-6 minutes until the crust just starts to ge crusty. Remove from oven.
  • Cook bacon over medium heat in a large skillet.
  • Drain all but 1 teaspoon of the drippings.
  • Add eggs, lower heat to medium low, and cook, stirring constantly, until just starting to set.
  • Remove from heat and sprinkle egg over cooked dough.
  • Drop cubes of cream cheese onto crust. Add the pepperjack, red onion and bacon.
  • Return to oven and bake 10-13 more minutes or until the cheeses have melted and the crust is crunchy and golden brown.
  • Remove from heat and garnish with cilantro.

Nutrition

Calories: 770kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 23g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 347mg | Sodium: 1390mg | Potassium: 249mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1183IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 490mg | Iron: 4mg

Nutritional values are approximate.