Bacon Cheeseburger Empanadas, Bacon Pancakes and Chocolate Maple Bacon Cupcakes.
What dad doesn’t LOVE bacon? I know the dad in our house sure does, and so does the dad married to the talented Mrs. V, a blogger in Kingsland who shared these fun Father’s Day recipes with us.
For more great ideas, check out Marissa Velasquez’s blog – The Domestic Adventures of Mrs. V – where she shares her passion for cooking, crafts and style. She’s also a great event planner. I would tell you a million examples of her cool ideas, but it’s better just to check her website out yourself at domesticadventuresofmrsv.com. She writes guest posts for Mamamelia readers. Thanks, Marissa!
Father’s Day is quickly approaching and lucky for you I have given this day a lot of thought already! For the two significant Father figures in my life, my own dad and the father to my son- my husband, I need to go all out for them because they have such a profound impact on my life and the life of my child. I know that a lot of people do barbeques for Father’s Day, but I wanted to think outside of the grill this year.
These two guys of mine absolutely love bacon. So, I decided to devote the entire day’s menu to the savory goodness that we know as bacon. I am sharing some great Father’s Day inspired recipes for you to make for all of the Dads you hold near and dear.
Mothers are not the only ones who should get breakfast in bed – Dads deserve this privilege too. So I came up with a bacon-filled breakfast that Dad, along with the whole family, will love indulging in. The star is a personal favorite of my husband’s- the bacon pancake. Yes, I said it- bacon pancakes! They could not be easier to make, too- so get the kids involved in the construction of this bacon-rrific breakfast for Dad!
Bacon Pancakes
Cooking pancakes with bacon.
What you will need:
- Pancake mix (I used store bought because it is just so easy!)
- 1 pack of your Dad’s favorite bacon
- Butter
- Maple Syrup
The Process:
1. Cook bacon in a skillet or bake it in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until it gets nice and crispy. Once bacon is cooked, pat dry with a paper towel, give them a rough chop and set aside.
2. Heat up griddle or skillet to medium high heat. This next step is a great way to incorporate your kids into the cooking process; prepare pancake mix according to box instructions. Have your little ones measure everything out and pour it into the bowl and then mix everything together to make your batter.
3. Take a ¼ cup measuring tool to scoop out mix. Pour batter onto heated and greased griddle or skillet, then sprinkle with chopped bacon. You can put in however much or as little as you like. Once pancake is full of bubbles flip and finish cooking. Serve immediately with butter and syrup. Since these pancakes are such a rich main dish, I like to serve them with simple scrambled eggs and a fruit salad.
Bacon pancakes for breakfast on Dad’s special day.
Dads everywhere are sure to enjoy what is coming up for dinner: Empanadas. Empanadas are a Spanish baked or fried pastry filled with savory ingredients. After being introduced to South American cuisine when I married my Colombian husband, my father developed a deep love for Latin food. He loves all kinds of dishes from South America, but empanadas were a huge hit when I made them for him. These are dedicated to him and three things that he loves: empanadas, bacon, and me cooking for him!
We are not making typical empanadas, but ones that Dad’s everywhere are sure to love: Bacon Cheeseburger Empanadas!
Bacon Cheeseburger Empanadas
What you will need:
- Store bought Pie Crust (1 pack of 2 crusts will yield 6-7 empanadas depending on how big you make them)
- 1 egg (for egg wash)
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 package of bacon
- 1 chopped onion
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 3-4 dashes of Worcestershire Sauce
- Several slices of Cheddar Cheese
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
The Process:
1. Brown ground beef with chopped uncooked bacon and onions in skillet. Once beef is completely cooked, drain fat, leaving onions and bacon in with the beef. Add in the garlic, ketchup, Worcestershire, and salt and pepper. Let flavors come together. Once everything tastes to your liking turn off heat and let cool.
2. Meanwhile, roll out the pie crust. You are going to cut out 4-5 inch circles from the dough (I have a set of glass bowls that work as a great stencil for this step!). A biscuit cutter or cup with this same length will work great too; just use anything that can get you a nice circle out of the pie crust. When you have cut out all the dough will allow, gather up the left over crust and form a new ball to roll out to cut more circles from until you run out of dough.
3. Fill circles of dough with meat mixture then top with a slice of cheese. Fold over dough and press seams with a fork to seal into a nice pocket. Pressing the seams down is a great job for the kids!
4. Lay empanadas on a greased cookie sheet and brush with egg wash (one egg scrambled). Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until dough is golden and flakey. These would taste great with a side of fries or a yummy potato salad!
Father’s Day just would not be complete without a fantastic dessert! Dads like sweet things too, at least the ones I know do! This finale is too amazing for words so I am just Chocolate Maple Bacon Cupcakes. I repeat, Chocolate Maple Bacon Cupcakes! These little cakes of love are fantastic. They are salty and sweet and just over the top yummy. The cupcakes are pretty simple to make from scratch too.
Chocolate Maple Bacon Cupcakes
What you will need to make 1 dozen cupcakes:
- 1/2 C butter softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1 C all purpose flour
- 1/2 C cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 C granulated sugar
- ½ cup canola or coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp Maple syrup
- 1- 1/2 C fat free milk (this is what I used, you can use regular milk as well)
- 1/2 C chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate chips- our favorite!)
The Process:
1. Line muffin tins with cupcake liners, set aside.
2. In a bowl, mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda & powder and salt, set aside
3. In a large mixing bowl or counter top mixer; beat butter on medium-high speed until it begins to get creamy. Gradually add sugar to butter until well combined
4. Add eggs 1 at a time until blended
5. Beat in vanilla, maple syrup, and oil
6. Add a bit of the flour mixture at a time and then a bit of the milk. Keep alternating the flour mixture and milk until everything is well combined
7. Fold in chocolate chips 8. Bake in oven until toothpick inserted in the cupcakes comes out clean, set aside and cool
For the Maple Frosting:
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup (add more or less depending on how you want it to taste)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 container of store-bought vanilla icing (I have tried to make my own icing for years, and it never comes out right, so I saved myself the trouble this time around! )
Mix everything together until well combined. Wait until cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting them.
For the Maple Bacon:
- 4-5 Slices of bacon
- 1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
- Maple Syrup (for drizzling)
Line baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sprinkle each piece of bacon with a bit of brown sugar then drizzle each piece with maple syrup. Bake for 8 minutes, and then flip bacon over and repeat sugar and maple syrup drizzle. Bake for another 8-10 minutes of until bacon is crispy and sugar has melted. Let bacon cool before chopping it up and sprinkling frosted cupcakes with.
Father’s Day 2014 completely planned out for you; well as far as the meals go at least! I hope you enjoy these bacon- inspired recipes and I want to wish all the Dads out there a very Happy Father’s Day! I am sure I speak for many Moms when I say that we could not do all that we do without your love and support.
Marissa
Marissa is a teacher turned stay-at-home-mom/military housewife who loves to cook, craft, plan events, and dress to impress…all while sticking to a budget and chasing after an active toddler! Domestic Adventures of Mrs. V is a way to show others with her same interests or those who are in her same situation that you can “do it all” – or at least, do whatever it is that makes you happy in life while being a mom, wife and watching your finances.
There are many more great ideas for fun cooking, crafting, event planning and even fashion for moms on her blog, domesticadventuresofmrsv.com.
