Roasted Fall Chicken Dinner

Does a fall dinner roasted on one pan with bacon sound great for dinner? I thought so, which is why you definitely need to try this recipe out!

Ingredients:

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tsp. garlic salt
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 lb. brussels sprouts, cut in half
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
2 Tbs. olive oil
4 slices thick bacon, chopped into 1 inch pieces

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Season the brussels sprouts and sweet potato with the sea salt, pepper and 2 Tbs. olive oil. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet. Rub the chicken breasts with the remaining olive oil, and season with the garlic salt. Place on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle the chopped bacon slices around the chicken on top of the vegetables. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked on the inside and the vegetables are tender in the center. Divide the chicken and vegetables among 4 or 5 serving dishes.

Mini Canadian Bacon and Dill Toasts

These little tasty toasts go great as a side with some over easy eggs, or would even be good as an appetizer at a casual gathering. You could also add some scrambled eggs on top and call them little mini breakfast pizzas!

Ingredients:

3 Sara Lee Hawaiian Dinner Rolls (or King's Hawaiian), cut in half
24 mini pizza style Hormel Canadian Bacon slices
1 Tbs. fresh chopped dill
I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, Extra Virgin Olive Oil Spray
1/8 c. reduced fat shredded marble (or colby) cheese

Flatten each dinner roll half using a rolling pin or your palm. Spray each half (cut side up) with the evoo spray. Heat a large skillet to medium heat and place the bread butter side down. Cook 1-2 minutes until the butter spray turns the bread a deep golden brown. Heat the oven to broil.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the toasted buns golden side up. To the top of each, add 4 slices of Canadian bacon.

Sprinkle the top with about 1 tsp. shredded cheese each, and then finish with the fresh dill. Stick under the broiler for 1 minute or less, or just until the cheese melts.

Baked Bacon Cheddar Pancake

Breakfast could not have gotten easier....if you have a cast iron skillet. This pancake is practically fuss-free! You just mix, pour and bake and walk away while the oven does all of the work for you.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1 c. milk
1 c. flour
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. lemon juice
2 Tbs. maple syrup
3 Tbs. butter
1/4 c. bacon bits
1/4 c. shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together. Add in the flour, white sugar, lemon juice, maple syrup and salt and whisk until combined. Melt the butter in the 12-inch cast iron skillet while the oven is preheating.

Add the batter to the skillet and sprinkle the top with the bacon bits and shredded cheese. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until the top is golden brown and the edges curl.

It looks absolutely crazy when it comes out the oven, but don't worry, as it cools down it deflates and forms into the perfect, massive pancake!

I topped mine with some scrambled Egg Beater's and it made the perfect breakfast! (Or lunch or dinner if you are anything like me....)

Chicken Bacon Basil Panini

A simple, few ingredient, flavor packed panini sandwich. There is not a whole lot of effort put into this delicious sandwich, which is why you should make it. If you don't have French bread, use normal sandwich bread, or whatever you have laying around your house. And if you don't want to use bread at all and want to make it into a salad, instead of Miracle Whip, mix the basil with ranch dressing and a small amount of sour cream and drizzle on top!

Ingredients:

3 Tbs. light Miracle Whip
1 1/2 Tbs. fresh chopped basil
1 green onion, chopped
8 slices Oscar Mayer thin sliced Rotisserie Chicken
4 slices thick cut bacon
3 Tbs. reduced fat shredded Mozzarella cheese
Mini French loaf, divided in half width and lengthwise

In a small bowl, combine the Miracle Whip, basil and onion together and set aside. Line a microwavable plate with two sheets of paper towel. Line the four slices of bacon evenly spaced on the paper towel and top with two more sheets. Microwave for 3 minutes, let sit for at least one minute, and then remove the bacon from the paper towel (it stays perfectly straight and is super crispy).

Lay the slices of bread out and divide the dressing mix evenly on each slice. Top the bottom halves with four slices of deli chicken. Top with two slices of bacon on each, and follow by 1 1/2 Tbs. Mozzarella. Place the remaining bread on top. Heat a grill pan to medium heat. Place the sandwiches side by side on the grill pan and add a weight on top to press the sandwiches down. Cook on this side for three minutes, flip, and cook for another 2 minutes or until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is fully melted. Let cool slightly before cutting in half and serving.

Candied Bacon

 

Bacon bacon bacon! Yum yum yum yum! It's bacon! (Yes, I'm aware that I just quoted a dog treat jingle, but in this case, it is REAL bacon! And bacon is delicious, so I've made the only point that I need to.)

Ingredients:

6 slices bacon, cut in half
3 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil, and place a wire rack on top. In a shallow dish, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon together. Place each slice of bacon in the brown sugar mix and press down on one side. Place the bacon sugar side up on the wire rack. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the bacon is golden brown (the brown sugar will still be somewhat liquid, but do not over bake). Let rest on a plate lined with paper towel until the brown sugar solidifies or reaches room temperature.

BLT Skewers

Just trying to find more reasons to eat bacon...... As you can see I've been on sort of a BLT kick lately. This appetizer recipe uses all of the classic ingredients, but with a slight twist, and in miniature form! 

Ingredients:

1/3 pack Rubschlager Cocktail Rye, cut into quarters
Microwavable bacon, 10 slices, cut in half
Cherry tomatoes (about 10) cut in half lengthwise
Romaine lettuce, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 c. Miracle Whip, light
1 Tbs. Horseradish, creamy

Microwave the bacon inbetween two sheets of paper towel on a microwavable plate for 45-50 seconds. Let cool slightly. In a small bowl, mix the Miracle Whip and horseradish together. Lay out the pieces of cut rye bread, and spread a thin layer of the Miracle Whip on top. Assemble each skewer as follows:

Rye, Miracle whip up

1/2 piece bacon folded in half

Lettuce

Rye, Miracle whip up

Lettuce

Tomato Half

Rye, Miracle whip down

After assembling each skewer, place on a serving tray. If you are in a group of people who are crazy for the flavor or Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip, you could serve a squeeze bottle on the side so they can add more as they see fit.

Turkey Bacon BLT

Everyone loves BLT's. Even me, a person who hates mayonnaise with a passion. This is a lighter version that still has all of the authentic flavors, unless you are like my husband and only eat a BLT if it is minus the lettuce and tomato. So pretty much bacon on bread. Also a great go-to recipe for when you are at camp, have the most random ingredients left in your fridge and need to make a quick dinner....

Ingredients:

8 slices of turkey bacon
Miracle Whip, light
Tomato, sliced thin
Romaine lettuce, chopped into large pieces
4 slices of bread (white, rye, wheat, whichever you prefer. I used potato)

Heat a large grill pan to medium high heat and lay out the turkey bacon in an even layer. Let cook 3-4 minutes and when you can see the color change and grill marks, flip over and continue to cook for another 3-4 minutes. Lay each slice of bread out and spread with a thin layer of light Miracle Whip. Place four slices of bacon on top of each piece of bread. Break in half if you have smaller slices of bread so that they fit. Layer with tomato slices, romaine lettuce and place the top slice of bread Miracle Whip side down (obviously). This really is an easy recipe. The hardest part is cooking the turkey bacon, which isn't hard at all.

The G.A.B. Sandwich (Goat Cheese, Avocado, Bacon)

Ingredients:

4 Slices of bread (I used wheat)
Herbed Goat Cheese
1 Avocado, sliced
6 slices of bacon, cut in half and cooked

Toast the bread in a toasted. Spread goat cheese on each piece. To assemble the sandwich, place half of the sliced avocado on top of the goat cheese. Add six 'half' slices of bacon on top (or 3 full slices), and then place the other slice of toast goat cheese side down on top. Slice in half and serve!

(Makes 2 sandwiches, 11 WW points per sandwich. If you use less avocado, it will be substantially less points. Avocado is 4 points per 1/4 an avocado.)

Chocolate Bacon Pancake Dippers

Ingredients:

2 c. Heart Smart Bisquick
1 egg
1 1/2 c. Almond Breeze, chocolate almond milk (or any other brand)
18 slices turkey bacon (Jennie-O), cooked and crispy

In a medium size bowl, whisk the Bisquick, egg and chocolate almond milk together. Set aside. Heat a large flat pan to medium heat. Spray with non stick cooking spray. Dip four pieces of bacon into the batter and place on the preheated pan. In about 45 seconds to a minute, check to see if the bottom is golden brown, and if it is flip over and continue to cook for another minute.

(Makes 18 servings, 2 WW points per pancake dipper!)

Chicken Bacon Asiago Salad

Ingredients:

6 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
1 c. cherry tomatoes, cut in half
8 Tbs. shredded Asiago cheese
1 chicken breast, seasoned, cubed, cooked
4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
Dressing (I used Wegmans light Parmesan Peppercorn Ranch)

Divide lettuce in half on two plates or in bowls. Top with half of the above ingredients per salad. Drizzle dressing on top. The most time consuming part of this salad is cooking the chicken and bacon, however, you could use pre-cooked and packaged grilled chicken, and bacon bits for this as well.

(This makes 2 salads, and 9 WW points per salad. With 4 Tbs. of the dressing listed above, it equals 13 WW points. 

Mini Apple Cheddar Bacon Tarts

Ingredients:

2-3 small apples, peeled, cored and chopped fine

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 c. chopped walnuts, toasted

2-3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 pkg. fillo tart shells

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the above ingredients together. Place the tart shells on a cookie or baking sheet. Fill each shell to the top with the filling and top with a small amount of shredded cheese. Bake for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Turkey Bacon - LT

Ingredients:

2 Kaiser rolls, or some form of bread
4 Laughing Cow Wedges, Light Swiss
4 large slices of tomato, I used heirloom
10 (1/2) slices Jennie-O Turkey Slices, cooked until crispy
Romaine lettuce

To assemble the sandwich, cut the Kaiser rolls in half. Spread a laughing cow wedge on the inside of each of the rolls. Place lettuce on the bottom bun. Layer with two large slices of tomato. Top with 5 (1/2) slices of turkey bacon. Then place the top bun on top of the bacon. Delish!

Bacon Cheddar Egg Salad

Egg salad sandwiches can be scary.....especially the kind that you buy at a gas station in the middle of no where and you aren't really sure how old the sandwich actually is, or what they put into the "salad" part of it. That is why I ALWAYS make them at home if I get a craving for one. I could eat eggs for every meal of the day, and egg salad is actually one of my favorite types of sandwiches. I get really bored with the normal way of making it, so I am always adding different random ingredients each time. This version turned out unbelievable...


Ingredients:

4 eggs, hardboiled, peeled and chopped
2 Tbs. stone ground mustard
1 slice bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 c. Miracle Whip, light
1 Tbs. Frank's Red Hot Wings Sauce, Sweet Heat BBQ
1/4 c. Kraft reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
1 tsp. dill weed, dried

 Combine the above ingredients together in a small bowl. If you are making them in the form of a sandwich, I like to toast the bread first to give it a bit of crunch. Divide the mixture into 4, and when the toast is cool, spread the egg salad on top. Finish with any type of leafy greens, and drizzle a small amount of yellow mustard on the top piece of toast.

(The salad alone, makes 4 servings, and is 3 WW points per serving. If you add the bread (which I used Taystee white bread) it ends up being 6 WW points per sandwich.)

Bacon Pancake Doughnut

 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbs. brown sugar
6 Tbs. maple syrup
1/2 c. milk, 1%
1 egg


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all of the above ingredients together in a large bowl. Spray a doughnut pan with non stick cooking spray. Fill each mold with about 2 Tbs. of the batter in an even layer (piping makes this part much easier). Bake for 10-12 minutes until the bottom is golden brown and the top springs back slightly when touched. Let cool fully on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, combine 1/2 c. powdered sugar and 1 Tbs. milk together. In another small bowl, pour your sprinkles. Dip the top of each doughnut in the icing and then directly onto the sprinkles. Flip over and let cool fully on a wire rack.

Creamy Potato and Asparagus Soup

Ingredients:

2 large bunches of asparagus, trimmed and chopped
1 1/2 lb. potatoes, peeled and cut in 1/2 inch cubes
12 oz. fat free evaporated milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
1 1/4 c. water
2 Tbs. butter
1 c. water
3 slices bacon, cut in half, cooked and crumbled
Honey

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour in the water and use an immersion blender or food processor to make smooth and creamy. Stir in the butter. Top each serving with 1 tsp drizzled honey and crumbled bacon.