BLT Bites... Great Appetizer for Fellow Bacon Lovers

My brother is in town this weekend so we're having a family get-together at my sister's place. I was looking for a fun and different appetizer recipe to try and Chris and I settled on Bacon Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes, which we renamed BLT Bites (the fresh basil fills in for the lettuce).

2 lbs. bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled
1.5 cups mayo
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 cup grated parmesan
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
4 pints of cherry tomatoes

Cook the bacon to desired crispiness. I inadvertently picked up two different types at the store, one a regular cut and one a thick cut. I cooked both packages in shifts in a 400 degree oven and the thick cut slices turned out better as far as this recipe was concerned. While the regular cut was inconsistently cooked and about half of each piece had to be chopped up the thick cut worked out great... consistent and easy to crumble. Not to mention the nice chunks of bacon fat!

Place all the ingredients except the tomatoes in a large bowl and blend.

Cut the tops off the tomatoes and scoop out the insides with a good melon baller. (By the way, just try finding a melon baller – good or bad – in your local supermarket! We found every kitchen gadget but this so Chris picked one up at Williams Sonoma.)

Try for pints that have a good ratio of large cherry tomatoes which are easier to clean out (and hold more filling!). Turn the hollowed out tomatoes upside down on a tray lined with paper towels and let them drain a bit.

Fill a pastry bag with a large tip (you don't want the tip to get clogged with bacon bits as we had happen with our first tip). Fill each tomato with a blast of the mixture, cover and place in the fridge to chill. We found that while it was a good idea to let the mixture get a little soft before piping it into the tomatoes be careful because you may have some of the bacon grease liquify and rise to the top of the bag as you're filling the tomatoes. In other words, wearing a nice Patagonia polo shirt is probably not the best attire for this job!

Original recipe calls for dried basil (fah!) and says that this amount will serve 16.

Tabasco Mayo?! Why Am I Only Learning About This Now?!

It wasn't until recently that I became aware of the violently anti-mayonnaise underground at work in our fine country. I can certainly understand the hatred of cilantro, the soapy-tasting herb of doom that has plagued many a Mexican recipe I've wanted to try, but even I have been able to get past that... for the most part.

But I thought anti-mayo nuts were just that. A fringe sect of our society that professed to hate the creamy glue that holds together our various "salads" all the while downing forkfuls of Mom's potato salad and Aunt Barb's macaroni & tuna side dish.

Recent encounters on – of all things – a Eurotrash film message board have convinced me that this is more than a mere sect. This is a movement bent on recruiting nothing less than the leader of the free world to their evil cause! Then again, Obama and Biden both pledge to prefer their burgers cooked medium... yet another piece of information I would have liked to have had on hand during the recent election.

Despite these nay-sayers beating their chests in anti-mayo gloom, I'm glad to see that manufacturers are still pushing the creamy mayo envelope with new and wonderful flavors for us to try. Naturally, we're all aware of Baconnaise by this point, thanks to recent appearances on both Oprah and The Daily Show (just to name a few).

But yesterday, while I was out searching for tartar sauce I stumbled upon McIlhenny Spicy Mayo, "made with Blue Plate Real Mayonnaise and flavored with TABASCO brand Pepper Sauce... TABASCO brand Spicy Mayonnaise features the zesty flavor of south Louisiana."

Since I was in a rush and couldn't find the tartar sauce I was looking for I ended up leaving the store empty-handed, but after discovering this and the store's wide selection of Mexican condiments, cheeses and creams I have a feeling I'll be going back.