So for this first recipe I am reaching wayyyy back into the archives. I made this last summer when the boyfriend and I had first started dating and I needed to give him reasons to not run for the hills and also charm his friends into liking me. We’re still together and in looovvee and all that, so I guess it worked. Try it on your love interest, and report to me your findings!
Anyway, back to the Bacon. Whiskey. Caramel. Brownies. You heard me right. Specifically, Tennessee whiskey and Benton’s bacon brownies with whiskey and bacon grease caramel sauce. All the unhealthy things we love about Tennessee packed into little morsels of fatty deliciousness. For those non-Tennesseans out there, Benton’s bacon is the magical porky product of a Madison, TN pig farm. I have yet to taste any bacon better (although I will never stop looking). As boyfriend (Michael) likes to say, a pig’s highest calling is to eventually be made into this bacon. That being said, I will post many diet things in the future, but this is not one of them. Fasten your seat belts, readers. And then loosen them, because these are not for the weak of digestion.
Recipe: Tennessee Brownies
- 1/2 package or about 4 strips Benton’s bacon (a lesser bacon will do, though)
- 1 package brownie mix and necessary accoutrements (oil, eggs, etc…. You can be fancy and make homemade brownies from scratch, I guess. I’m sure they’d be excellent. But I wasn’t feeling that classy)
- Bottle of whiskey – I used Turkey Hill Tennessee Honey. It was awesome.
- White sugar
- Cream or milk, depending on your level of gluttony for the day.
1) Fry up your bacon over medium heat until crispy. Good bacon will give you a lot of fat in the pan. That’s ok. Save it for making the caramel later. Put your crispy bacon on some paper towels to dry and cool.
2) I’m no pro at making caramel, so I just winged it. After you’ve removed your bacon from the hot grease, add a few glugs of whiskey. It will sizzle and splash. You might get slightly burned. It’s a risk worth taking, believe me.
3) After that’s cooked down some, add a crap ton of sugar. You want enough sugar to absorb all the bacon grease while it cooks. Stir like crazy with a whisk. Add your cream/milk. If it’s not bubbling, it’s not hot enough. If you have a film of grease on top, add more sugar. If it’s too candy-like, as in hardening to your whisk, add more cream/milk. Once it looks like caramel, take it off the heat and pour into a heat resistant measuring cup (Pyrex is the bomb.com). Be careful, because it is VERY HOT and VERY STICKY so it will burn the crap out of anything it touches. Like your hand. Ouch.
4) Now make your brownies as usual, except replace the water called for in your recipe with whiskey. Chop your bacon into small pieces and add those to the mix. Mmmm bacony.
5) Now bake your brownies according to whatever metric provided by your recipe (or box, if you’re decidedly unclassy like me. Own it, y’all). I put mine in baking cups in muffin tins, but if I had to do it again, I’d use a regular baking dish. Brownies don’t perform as well in baking cups as their sissier cousins, muffins and cupcakes.
6) When your brownies have cooled, poke holes in them with a straw or small spoon or other pokey instrument and pour your caramel over the top. (If the caramel is too thick, cover it, microwave for 20 seconds, and stir.) Garnish with bacon pieces. Let cool, cut, and enjoy. Or do as I did and pawn them off on your bacon-loving boyfriend and/or dude friends so you don’t eat them all and die of a sweet, sweet heart attack.
MMMMMM DELICIOUS SUGAR AND CHOLESTEROL.
Seriously, though, this kind of thing is the exception to the rule. I generally eat what my mother refers to as rabbit food. I’m addicted to salad. I promise.
PS I love comments! Make my day!
The Grumpy Girl Cooks 
Oh man these look amazing!
Oh believe me, they were 🙂