Life & Style

Football Bacon Snacks

Thanksgiving doesn’t just mean copious amounts of turkey and pumpkin pie. For sports-lovers, Turkey Day is also synonymous with football—a tradition that harkens back to 1934. This year, it’s a three-game extravaganza. And what pairs better with watching the ol’ pigskin than bacon?

Here are three easy game-time snacks that will keep your football-loving family and friends sated— but not stuffed!—while the feast is cooking.

Game 1: Green Bay Packers at Detroit
12:30 p.m. ET – CBS
Bloody Mary with Bacon Swizzle Sticks

Game 2: Oakland Raiders at Dallas Cowboys
4:30 p.m. ET – FOX
Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp

Game 3: Pittsburg Steelers at Baltimore Ravens
8:30 p.m. ET – NBC
Spiced Nuts with Bacon

Bloody Mary with Bacon Swizzle Sticks

Makes 1 Bloody Mary & Swizzle Stick, can be multiplied as desired

Ingredients

1 slice medium-thick bacon
4 parts vodka (2 oz./60 ml.)
8 parts tomato juice (4 oz./120 ml.)
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste (freshly ground)
Juice of half a lime Worcestershire sauce (1½ tsp.)
6–8 dashes Tabasco® sauce
1 lime wedge

For the Swizzle Stick
Arrange a slice of bacon diagonally on top of a piece of paper towel. Holding the slice of bacon at each end, twist the slice in opposite directions into a tight spiral. Fold the paper towel in half over the twisted bacon slice so that the towel’s opposite corners meet. Then, starting at the fold, roll the paper towel under the palms of your hands around the bacon into a tube. Microwave the bacon in its rolled paper towel on high power until it is firm and shaped like a swizzle stick, about 1 minute and 15 seconds. Because microwave ovens vary in power, check for doneness after about 1 minute. Unroll the paper towel and let the swizzle stick cool.

For the Bloody Mary
Combine all ingredients, except the lime wedge, in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake quickly (about 9 to 10 times, as not to cause the tomato juice to separate). Strain into a highball glass over ice. Drop in the lime wedge and add bacon swizzle stick.

Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp

Makes 12; serves 6 as an appetizer

Ingredients

2 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 teaspoons finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 packed teaspoon light or dark brown sugar
1 large clove garlic, minced
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
12 jumbo shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), peeled (leaving the tail on) and deveined
4 slices bacon

1. Combine the scallions, soy sauce, ginger, brown sugar, garlic, and cayenne pepper in a medium-size mixing bowl. Taste for seasoning, adding more cayenne as necessary. Add the shrimp, toss to coat in the mixture, and let stand for 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Cut each slice of bacon crosswise into 3 equal pieces.

3. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450˚F. Cover the bottom of a large roasting pan completely with aluminum foil.

4. Remove a shrimp from the marinade. Working on a flat surface, press pieces of scallion, garlic, and ginger from the marinade onto the sides of the shrimp. Wrap a piece of bacon around the shrimp, securing it with a wooden toothpick. Repeat with the remaining shrimp.

5. Arrange the bacon-wrapped shrimp on the aluminum foil-lined roasting pan so that they are not touching and bake them until the shrimp begin to firm up and the bacon begins to brown and render its fat, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the roasting pan from the oven and, using long-handled tongs, carefully turn the shrimp over. Return the pan to the oven and bake the shrimp until they are cooked through and the bacon is lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Serve the shrimp immediately.

Note: If your oven is being used to cook the turkey, you can make this recipe on the grill. Instead of holding the bacon in place with toothpicks, thread the bacon-wrapped shrimp a few inches apart on metal skewers and grill them on the grill’s food grate set over a bed of medium-hot coals for 3 to 5 minutes per side.

Spiced Nuts with Bacon

Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients

5 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 cup unsalted raw cashews
1 cup unsalted raw walnuts or pecans
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 packed teaspoons light or dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¾ teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350˚F

2. Cook the bacon in a medium-size skillet over medium heat until lightly browned and most of the fat is rendered, 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often and adjusting the heat as necessary. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain, setting aside 1 tablespoon of bacon fat in the skillet.

3. Line a large shallow rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and scatter all of the nuts on it in a single layer. Bake the nuts until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes, then rotate the baking sheet 180 degrees so the back of the baking sheet faces the front of the oven and bake the nuts until fragrant and slightly darker in color, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the nuts cool.

4. While the nuts cool, combine the granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of the brown sugar, and the salt, curry powder, cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper in a medium-size mixing bowl. Set the spice mixture aside.

5. Add 2 tablespoons of water and the remaining 2 teaspoons of brown sugar to the skillet with the reserved bacon fat. Let come to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Stir in the nuts, setting aside the lined baking sheet. Add the drained bacon and cook, stirring constantly, until the nuts are glossy and the liquid has evaporated, about 1½ minutes.

6. Add the glazed nut mixture to the bowl with the spice mixture and toss well to coat. Transfer the nut mixture back to the parchment paper-lined baking sheet to cool completely.

Note: You can make these nuts the night before the big game and store them in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

For more recipes like this, check out The Party Begins with Bacon! by bacon masters Peter Kaminsky and Marie Rama—just $1.99 for the holidays!