Yes? Good. Because you may need to put a little faith in me for this post.
Don’t even ask me where I got this idea.....it would probably take us down roads that are better left untraveled. Sometimes my mind works in mysterious....and moderately disturbing....ways.
Suffice it to say that this recipe goes along with the theme of last weekend for me, which was “finishing up old projects”, since this has been on my list for quite awhile. I honestly didn’t know how it was going to turn out, but in the end, it was a real people pleaser.
2c sugar
1c water
1/16 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. butter
1 1/2 c Chili Cheese Fritos
½ cup cooked, chopped bacon
Spread Fritos out on a piece of parchment paper that has been placed inside a 9x13 baking dish. Combine sugar, water, and salt in a large saucepan and stir until dissolved. Cover and boil for 3 minutes. Remove lid and cook until the syrup turns a rich caramel color (320 degrees F/Hard crack stage). Remove from heat and quickly stir in butter. Pour over Fritos and bacon.
Cool completely before breaking apart.
**NOTES: I more or less poured what was left in my bag of Fritos into the pan. In retrospect, I think 1 ½ cups would have been a better amount. As it was, there wasn’t quite enough sugar syrup to hold all the Fritos together. This treat is sweet...and salty....and smoky....and a little bit evil. The first bite was a little odd. But the next one really packed a punch. The third had me hooked.
Variations:Add grated mild cheese, such as Cheddar or Jack, about one cup per batch of batter.
seasoning it with your favorite barbeque seasoning,
topping it with Italian sausage, various levels of barbeque seasoning and sauce, more bacon, and in our case, jalapeños.
Then, rolling it all up into a “fatty” or “log”, adding more seasoning, 
and smoking it for a couple of hours,
then basting it with more sauce to give it a good glaze.
Bacon Explosion.....we love you.
for a friend’s birthday, this was definitely on my “must try” list. I’ve been dying to make these cookies, but since Ginny beat me to it, I’m going to let her tell you about them. But, not before I remind you about my giveaway!
Bake until the cookies are firm and very lightly browned (they won’t get golden brown), about 12-15 minutes.Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool.
Then, spread with maple icing and top with a small piece of candied bacon (recipes below).
One thing that was different this time is that I assembled them the day before, intending to cook them Sunday evening, but we had an injury/incident at home that night and they went right back into the fridge for the next day (everyone is fine now, but it made for a crazy night). I was concerned that having them sit out of the marinate for that long would dry them out, but they ended up being just fine. Obviously. You know. Since we scarfed them down like a bunch of Mary Jane lovin’ college students with the munchies. He’s lucky he had any to take to work today.
I highly recommend this one for any outdoor gatherings you may have this summer, they go over like gangbusters, and it never fails that people end up begging me for the recipe. I tend to make this one any time I see big, beautiful fresh jalapeños at the grocery.
Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sprouts; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Saute until brown at edges, 6 minutes. Add 1 cup water and 3 tablespoons butter. Saute until most of water evaporates and sprouts are tender but still bright green, 3 minutes. Add shallots and bacon, season with salt and pepper.
Its important not to cover the whole surface with the pepperoni, as the cheese is the “glue” that holds the rolls together. Then, starting at the long end, carefully roll it up into a log. It helps to do this on a piece of foil, or in my case, a Silpat, so that you can use the foil or sheet to roll the log evenly. Once the log is rolled, use a pair of kitchen shears to cut it into ½ inch discs. Lay the discs a couple of inches apart on a baking sheet (lining the sheet makes cleanup much easier!) and bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the dough is done, and the cheese is caramelized on top of the rolls. YUMMY!! Makes about one dozen, depending on how large you rolled out your dough. 
The other appetizer doesn’t have a snappy name. I thought about Bacon Snacks, but thought that sounded too much like a dog treat. Another super simple recipe, this one only has five ingredients! Cocktail weenies, bacon, butter, brown sugar and honey. Cut strips of bacon into thirds. Wrap one piece of bacon around each sausage, securing with a toothpick.
When you have all the sausages wrapped, lightly fry them in a skillet until the bacon is just done on all sides.
Transfer them to a 9x13 baking dish. Mix together 1 stick of melted butter, 3 tablespoons of brown sugar, and 3 tablespoons of honey and pour over the sausages. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the sausages are caramelized and glazed with the sugar/butter mixture. Serve hot! Makes about 48.
Cut chicken breasts into bite sized pieces that are the right size to fit in a half a pepper. Mix all marinade ingredients together in a large, lidded container and toss with chicken to cook. Refrigerate at least a couple of hours.
Fit a piece of marinated chicken into a pepper half and wrap with a slice of bacon, securing in with a toothpick. 
The trouble with having such an imprecise recipe is that it almost never works out that you have a proportional amount of all your ingredients, so you generally end up with some miscellaneous leftovers. But hey! Its okay! You know why? Because that little piece of bacon is going to be a tasty snack while I'm cooking the poppers, the leftover chicken will taste great on my salad for lunch tomorrow, and the jalapeños will get diced up and put some kick into my Spicy Sloppy Joes tomorrow night! Its all good, just find something to do with the leftovers. I do!
before stuffing it into the peppers, then cook the poppers on a stovetop griddle. 
The sides of the bacon doesn't get as done as the rest this way, but the hubs doesn't mind. 
** When I make this, I usually do it when I already have bacon leftover so that it saves me a step at dinner time.