BLT Sandwich - Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato

 Bacon everything! At the spear end of the bacon fad is the BLT Sandwich. Bacon seems to return every few years as a popular ingredient. It does go back a way as a sandwich ingredient that really came into its own when G.I.'s returned from WWII. 

BLT means Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich in the restaurant world and the public soon adopted it, too. I remember making them with leftover bacon from breakfast. 

What's so great about the sandwich is how simple it is. Just fry or bake up a few slices of bacon, toast some bread, and slide the bacon between two slices smeared with mayo, and add sliced tomato and lettuce. It's a crunchy first bite.

I jumped back into the BLT game when I saw Hickory Smoked Uncured Turkey Bacon by Applegate Naturals at my local 99c only Store last year. I jumped on that deal big time and bought five packages to freeze. I haven't seen this Bacon again there, that's why you have to buy a good deal when you first see it because they will not be there for long!

Right away I made a Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich. Simply delicious. While pork bacon is the gold standard, this uncured turkey bacon hit the spot. It is a lighter and meatier sandwich without the thick veins of pork fat of regular bacon. The smokey flavor is still there, and I didn't miss the porkiness. 

Turkey Bacon does not have the crispness of cooked bacon, the texture is closer to fried thin slices of ham. But the Turkey Bacon BLT still rules. 

Small 4-slice packages of real Bacon still show up at my local Dollar Tree. And 4 slices are just enough for a sandwich or two. 

Lettuce and tomato are affordable. I even find small jars of mayo cheaply. 

Make a BLT with any favorite bread. Of course, I get mine from the day-old bargain bin at my local supermarket, Ralphs. White, wheat, sourdough, or rye...go for it. 

A BLT is constructed with toasted bread. I used a popup toaster so both sides of each slice are crunchy.

I usually fry my Bacon slices, but you can bake them as well. I learned to bake bacon at a lower temperature, about 325 degrees or less, so the bacon grease doesn't get all over the place (you could loosely cover the bacon with parchment paper, too.)

Turkey Bacon

How do you assemble your BLT? Is Bacon on the bottom or top? How about 2 slices of bacon on top and 2 slices on the bottom. Any way you stack it will work! 

My video recipe is just a reminder for you about how tasty a BLT Sandwich is - go ahead and revisit a real American Diner classic, and don't forget the Campbell Tomato Soup...from the can (they are now low in sodium.)

BLT Sandwich - VIDEO             Play it here, video runs 2 minutes, 36 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients (one sandwich)

• Bacon - 2 to 3 slices. Enough to cover a slice of bread. Regular bacon or any favorite substitute.
• Bread - 2 slices. Any type you like. I toast mine.
• Lettuce - a leaf of lettuce, just large enough to cover the bread. Okay to shred or chop lettuce.
• Tomato - a couple of slices, depending on the size of the tomato. Enough to cover a slice of bread. Okay to use sliced cherry tomatoes.
• Mayonnaise - Apply on the inside of one or both slices of bread.

Directions

Start by frying or baking bacon slices. If you are using a substitute like Turkey Bacon then add a teaspoon of oil to a frying pan so Turkey Bacon does not stick to the pan. 

Fry bacon until crisp on both sides. Usually takes about 5 minutes in total.

As bacon cooks, slice tomato and wash lettuce leaf if necessary. Pat dry or shake off excess water from the cleaned lettuce leaf. 

You can toast the bread just before the bacon is done cooking. Toast bread slices as browned as you like.

To assemble BLT, just smear mayo on toast on one or both slices. 

Stack lettuce, tomato, and cooked bacon in any order you like. 

BLT + A - Deal of the Day Sandwich

This classic sandwich is given, a 99 Cent Chef twist with the additions of low-cal Turkey Bacon and luscious avocado. My BLT + A, made with warm toasty bread, bacon, tender tomato, creamy avocado and crisp lettuce, has all the textures that make up a great bite.

My new favorite local Latin grocery chain store, Superior Grocers, has been selling 4 large avocados for a dollar the last 2 weeks. So I've been adding creamy slices to salads and every type of sandwich I make.

I would normally use real bacon for a BLT sandwich, but seeing Turkey Bacon on sale at my local 99c only Store, I wanted to finally try some.This is the type of special Deal of the Day that is snatched up quickly. So when you see something like this, you have to just buy it and figure out later how to use it -- because by the time you come back, after wandering the asiles, it may be gone! Believe me, this has happened many times and forget about coming back the next day, it will definitely have sold out.

You are getting a 2-fer today: a Deal of the Day review of Turkey Bacon and this delish recipe!

Now right off the bat, it does not compare with real bacon, but it's not bad. I guess the best thing you can say about Turkey Bacon is that it's low calorie.  There is a smokey flavor similar to cured bacon. It has the texture of baloney, but manages to crisp up fine. Although it doesn't scrunch up, or crunch and shatter like well-done real bacon. And Turkey Bacon shrinks very little, so you don't need to cook as much. For a lighter breakfast I would cook with turkey bacon again. So on a scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best, I give this Deal of the Day a 6. (Anything I rate a 5, or higher, is worth a try.)

If your sandwiches are boring lately, then try out my cheap and satisfying  
BLT + A -- and make sure to load up the sandwich with thick slices of creamy avocado!

Ingredients

• 3-4 slices of bacon - I used turkey bacon on sale, but you could also use regular bacon.
• 2 slices of bread - toasted. I used wheat bread.
• Tomato - as many slices as you like for a sandwich.
• Lettuce - as much as you like for a sandwich.
• Avocado - as much as you like for a sandwich.
• Mayo and/or mustard - I used mayo only.
• 1 teaspoon oil - for turkey bacon. You will not need oil for regular bacon.

Directions
Saute bacon over a medium heat. For turkey bacon you may need a teaspoon of oil when frying. For regular bacon no oil is needed, but you may want to drain bacon when done.

Start bread slices toasting. (I used whole wheat bread purchased from the 99c only Store.) Slice tomato and avocado into desired thickness. Tear lettuce leaves into smaller pieces to fit sandwich.

Add mayo and/or mustard, and assemble the BLT + A sandwich.

Turkey Bacon Wrapped Jalapenos with Cheese

Like a green heat-seeking missile wrapped in turkey bacon, the latest 99 Cent Chef appetizer is one intense flavor bomb! A Turkey Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno with Cheese will separate the men from the boys, and the timid from the brash -- this recipe is not for the faint of palate.

This dish should earn The Chef hazard pay for handling a bag of spicy jalapenos. You need radioactive-proof mitts to keep off the fiery chile oils. And don't even think of satisfying that itch on your nose -- touch the skin anywhere near your eyes and you will be sorry.

But boy is it worth the risk. Melting cheese cools off some jalapeno spiciness, and a slab of savory turkey bacon brings this appetizer to delicious heights.

I was wary of cooking with turkey bacon - it just doesn't seem right, like lipstick on a pig. I had bought a package at my local 99c only Store a few months ago, and forgot about it collecting freezer burn in my freezer. When I picked up a bag of jalapenos from my local Latin market, I started Googleing recipes. Most whole jalapeno recipes call for stuffing them with cheese, breadcrumb coating and finally deep frying. I wanted to go after a lower calorie recipe though. (If you want an excellent use of whole cooked jalapenos, be sure to check out my L.A. Street Hot Dog video recipe by clicking here.)

The other recipes called for wrapping jalapenos in fatty (but delicious) bacon; that's when I remembered the turkey bacon in the back of my freezer. At first glance turkey bacon looks real -- but upon opening the package I noticed it resembles those fake plastic food display toys in the window of a Japanese restaurant.

I pinched off a piece to try: the texture is baloney-like and the flavor has that liquid smoke tinny taste. This was not a good start, but I was determined to push through and see what happens. And things turned out much better than I anticipated.

After stuffing the jalapenos with cheese, I wrapped them in a turkey bacon slice and roasted a pan full at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. I figured the turkey bacon would dry out and taste like a piece of hot asphalt -- wrong on both counts. The bacon held up well to slow cooking (maybe the steaming jalapeno kept it tender,) and the taste only got better when cooked through. While you will miss that crunchy pork bacon texture, you will sleep better, having not eaten your daily calorie limit with one cheesy stuffed and bacon wrapped jalapeno.

I always find 4 ounce pucks of Mexican cheese, Queso Fresco, and cream cheese cheap enough. You can use any favorite inexpensive cheese, either low fat or regular.

This is a recipe you may want to get out those bright yellow rubber gloves for, when stuffing my Turkey Bacon Wrapped Jalapenos with Cheese appetizers. And make sure to serve with a tall cold drink!

Ingredients

• 12 jalapenos - depending on size. I used big fat ones in the 2 - 3 inch length range.
• Cream cheese - a small container of about 5 ounces. Okay to substitute a firm cheese like mozzarella, cheddar or Swiss.
• Queso Fresco - about 4 ounces of Mexican cheese. Okay to use any favorite cheese you have.
• Turkey bacon - one package. If you insist, it's okay to use regular bacon.

Directions
Allow the cream cheese to soften at room temperature. Add it to a bowl and mix in any other  type of cheese - I used 4 ounces of Queso Fresco.

 Lay each jalapeno on a flat surface to see how it naturally lays flat. You want to slice the side that now faces you, so when the stuffed jalapenos roast, the cheese won't leak out.

Slice each jalapeno lengthways and make one more slice across the top, near the stem, to form a cut in the shape of a "T". Open up the jalapeno and remove seeds and the lighter membrane strands -- this is were a lot of spiciness resides. Be sure not to touch you face when handling jalapenos, because you will inevitably get the heat too close to your eyes.

Fill each jalapeno with cheese mixture. Wrap jalapenos in slices of turkey bacon. You can attach with a toothpick if necessary. Place stuffed and wrapped jalapenos in an oven pan and roast uncovered, about 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Check after about 30 minutes to make sure turkey bacon does not burn black. Mine just got a deep mahogany brown.

The cheese is extremely hot out of the oven, so allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Hindsight
 Next time I would just use Queso Fresco and another firm cheese like mozzarella, Swiss or cheddar. The cream cheese mix melted out of a couple of stuffed jalapenos. After they cooled down some, I just unwrapped them and put some of the cheese back in. (Turkey bacon remains flexible, so it's easy to work with.)

If you use real bacon, just bake until it is brown and crispy as you like, about 30-45 minutes.

 If you are sensitive to spiciness, then this recipe is not for you. However, taking out the seeds and membrane, plus roasting the chiles, does take out much of the heat. While I found it suited my tastes, my wife could only eat one half at a time. Hey, that left them all for me!

You may want to wear rubber gloves and fish out the seeds with a small spoon or butter knife -- or even wash the seeds out under running water.

If you use smaller jalapenos, then slice the bacon in half, if it is too long.