2873. TRIPLE-CHEESE SPINACH MANICOTTI with BACON

makes six servings 


12 manicotti shells, uncooked
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. extra-lean ground beef
1 8 oz. package neufchatel cheese, softened
1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 teaspoon each dried basil and oregano leaves
1 24 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese 

Heat oven to 350ºF. Cook pasta as directed on package. Meanwhile, cook bacon in large skillet on medium heat 4 to 5 min or until crisp. Use slotted spoon to remove bacon from skillet, reserving drippings in skillet. Drain bacon on paper towels. Add onions and garlic to drippings; cook and stir 2 min. Add ground beef; cook and stir 6 to 7 min. or until no longer pink. Stir in bacon, Neufchatel, spinach, mozzarella and herbs. Drain shells; fill with meat mixture. Pour 1 cup sauce into bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; top with shells. Add water to spaghetti sauce jar. Cover with lid and shake jar. Pour water over shells; cover with foil. Bake 45 min. or until heated through, uncovering after 35 min. Top with Parmesan.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Kraft Foods, Three Lakes Drive, Northfield, Illinois 60093

2401. CHEWY PISTACHIO COOKIES with BACON CREAM CHEESE FILLING

serves eight


3/4 cups pistachio meat
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
tartar, 2 pinches
pinch salt
3 large egg whites at room temperature
1 drop green food coloring
4 oz. Neufchatel or reduced fat cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoons crushed cooked bacon

Blanche pistachios is boiling water for several minutes and remove any loose skins with a towel or by hand. Pulse pistachios in blender or food processor until it’s a coarsely ground paste. In large bowl, whip egg whites with hand mixer, when they start getting stiff, slowly add 3/4 cup powdered sugar, tartar and salt. Fold in pistachio paste and food coloring, making sure you break up any chunks without collapsing the egg whites. Fill a piping bag with mixture and pipe into desired shape onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for 18 minutes, rotating halfway trough. To make the cream cheese filling, mix 4 oz. Neufchatel with 1/2 cup powdered sugar and vanilla using a handmixer until smooth. Fold in bacon. When cookies have cooled, gently peel them off parchment. Coat one side of a cookie with cream cheese filling and sandwich with another cookie.


bacon recipe courtesy of/adapted from: Vianessa Castaños, Sound Bites, September 3, 2011

2205. STUFFED JALAPENO with NEUFCHATEL CHEESE wrapped in BACON

6 jalapenos
6 slices bacon
4 oz Neufchatel cheese

Cut jalapenos in half and clean out the seeds and membrane. You now have 12 halves. Fill each half with Neufchatel cheese so it's level with the top. Take the six pieces of bacon and cut in half and wrap each piece with bacon and secure with tooth pics. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes until done. Let cool slightly.

bacon recipe courtesy of: izzet, Fat to Skinny Forum, June 13, 2010

1541. BACON-WRAPPED SMOKED STUFFED CHILE POPPERS

serves 4


8 ounces cream cheese or Neufchâtel cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
12 large jalapeño chiles (green, red, or both), cored and seeded
1 empty cardboard egg carton, lid removed, or a metal jalapeño popper rack
12 pecan halves, toasted
8 ounces thin-sliced smoked bacon
1/2 cup wood chips, soaked in water and drained, or 1 cup dry wood chips for a gas grill

To make the popper filling, combine the cheeses in a medium-size bowl and stir them together with a fork. Put the cheese mixture in a gallon-size zipper-top plastic bag and cut a small hole in one corner of the bag. Squeeze each jalapeño full of the cheese mixture. Place the cheese-filled jalapeños in the egg carton. Push a pecan half into each pepper. Wrap a half strip of bacon around each jalapeño and secure with a toothpick.

Fill your charcoal chimney with briquets, set the chimney on the bottom grill grate, and light or prepare a fire in your smoker. For a gas grill, turn half the burners to high.

When the coals are ready, dump them into the bottom of your grill, and spread them evenly across half. Scatter the drained wood chips on the hot coals, or put the dry wood chips in a metal container and place closest to a burner on a gas grill. Place the jalapeños on the indirect side of the grill. When the smoke starts to rise, close the lid.

Smoke the peppers at 350°F for 1 hour and 15 minutes until the bacon is cooked and the jalapeño have a smoky aroma.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Ardie A. Davis, "25 Essentials: Techniques for Smoking," Epicurious, August 2009