Recipe: It's Always Better Bacon Wrapped

Another Recipe! From the cookbook Hot, Sticky and on Fire by Ted Reader comes this gem with minor modifications courtesy of my friend Heather. This dish is perfect for those lovely summer days sitting in front of the soothing glow of a flickering campfire (Now, I know those days are few and far between here in Calgary, but for the readers in sunnier pastures, give it a shot, you won't be disappointed).

So what fancy ingredients are required? Well. As the name suggests, bananas and bacon. Lots of bacon.

4 Bananas

4 - 8 Slices of Bacon*

Pepper

The Sauce

Step 1: Partially cook the bacon. Make sure it is still flexible enough so that you can wrap it around the bananas. Remember crispy bacon, though tasty, is not good wrapping bacon. You will likely want to soak up all the fat that will inevitably be oozing out of the meat.

Step 2: Peel bananas and wrap them with the bacon from Step 1. For a standard sized banana, it will take about 1 to 2 slices of bacon to fully cover it. But my banana is exceptionally large (That's what she said), and thus required at least 3 or 4 slices. Unfortunately for me, I did not purchase enough bacon (I know it's hard to believe but it's true, I wasn't trying to be cheap) and due to time constraints, I did not have enough time to buy more. I settled with two slices of bacon per banana and loosely wrapped them around (Mistake #1). Instructions in the book also calls for toothpicks to hold the bacon in place; however, I only had cocktail sticks with the fancy plastic at the ends. And since I had to throw these into a raging fire after, I felt that it was probably not the best idea to have small pieces of plastic on the end. Though, not properly securing the bacon around the bananas was also not the best idea (Mistake #2). So... Note to readers: buy toothpicks with no fancy plastic at the ends. You'll thank me later.

Step 3: Throw these bad boys onto the grill. Turn them occasionally to prevent burning. Grill until bacon is crispy. As it turns out, flipping the bananas over without completely destroying it is a much harder task than I had anticipated (Likely due to the lack of skill more than anything). As the banana cooks and slowly caramelizes, they become rather tender and mushy. And thus trying to pick them up with tongs and turning them was a nightmare. I was turning my hand (and body) ever which way to try to flip the bananas without squishing them. The result? Squished bananas and looking like I'm severely handicapped. 

Sprinkle with pepper for taste. Baste with the special sauce during the final few minutes (Instructions to follow).

Step 4: Serve with sauce and ice cream (Not shown).

Definitely could have used a toothpick or box of toothpicks here

So you may be wondering "How do I make the special sauce?" Patients, Young Grasshopper, ingredients and instructions are as follows:

1/2 cup Corn Syrup

1/2 cup Honey.

2 oz Bourbon or Navan <-- This is the secret ingredient! Shhhh...!

1 sprig Thyme

2 tbsp. Water

Pinch Cracked Black Pepper

Step 1: Take a saucepan. Throw everything into it. Crank up the heat and let it boil. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Reduce heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Remove and let cool. 

Step 2: There is no Step 2!

Taste wise, this recipe was a striking success. Looks? Not so much. But that’s likely due to:

1. Lack of bacon
2. Lack of toothpicks
3. Lack of skills

Probably in that order. In reverse. Give it a shot. Let me know how it turns out!