1. Bacon Cheeseburger Sliders
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef crumbled
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon dried onion flakes
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 ounces cream cheese cut into small cubes
- ½ cup barbecue sauce
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1 to 2 packages Hawaiian rolls may not use all; I used 1½ packages to fill a 9×13
- 2 cups cheddar cheese grated
- 1 pound bacon cooked and crumbled
- ½ cup salted butter melted
- 1 to 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Add ground beef, minced garlic, sea salt, onion flakes, and pepper to a saute pan. Cook over medium heat, breaking up the meat and stirring, until the meat is no longer pink.
- Stir cream cheese, barbecue sauce, and mustard into the meat mixture and set aside.
- Place the rolls into a 9×13 casserole dish and halve the second set of rolls to fill the casserole dish. Slice the tops off of the rolls in one full slice.Place the bottoms of rolls into the casserole dish and set tops aside.
- Sprinkle 1 cup of cheese over the rolls. Top with the meat mixture. Sprinkle crumbled bacon over the meat mixture and then cover with the remaining cheese. Place the tops of the rolls back into place.
- Melt butter in a microwave-safe dish and stir sesame seeds into it.
- Pour butter mixture over the rolls, using a pastry brush to spread the sesame seeds and butter evenly.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes until cheese is melted and rolls are heated through. Remove aluminum foil and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer until the tops are browned.
Notes
PRO TIP: Grated cheese spreads easily over the rolls and melts more quickly than slices of cheese in this recipe.
PRO TIP: The cream cheese and sauce mixed into the ground beef help it stick together and also make the cheeseburger sliders extra tasty.
PRO TIP: Crumbled bacon is much easier to work with than bacon slices when it comes time to pull the sliders apart for serving. Use leftover bacon from breakfast or cook up a quick batch in the skillet.
PRO TIP: Don’t skimp on the butter. It soaks into all the nooks and crannies and adds a ton of flavor to both the top and the bottom half of the slider buns.
Nutrition
Calories: 299kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 66mg | Sodium: 475mg | Potassium: 165mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 375IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 111mg | Iron: 1mg
2. Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ pound elbow pasta, cooked and drained according to package directions
- ½ pound center cut smoked bacon, cut into ½ inch diced pieces (approximately 6-7 slices)
- 1 pound lean ground beef, 93%-7% fat
- 21.50 ounces condensed tomato soup (two 10.75-ounce cans)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar-jack cheese blend, Sargento brand
Instructions
- Cook the elbow pasta in a large pot of boiling water according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- To a large skillet (10-12 inches) over medium heat, add the diced bacon pieces and cook for 10-12 minutes or until the fat has rendered and the bacon is crispy. Stir often to ensure the bacon does not burn.
- Using a large slotted spoon, remove the crispy bacon from the skillet and place it onto a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess fat. Discard the excess rendered fat from the skillet, but do not clean it.
- Increase the heat to the skillet to medium-high. Add the lean ground beef and cook for 5-7 minutes or until no longer pink.
- Add the condensed tomato soup, cooked bacon pieces, and drained elbow pasta to the skillet with the ground beef. Stir to combine.
- Top the bacon cheeseburger pasta mixture with the shredded cheddar-jack cheese (do not stir the cheese into the mixture yet) and cover the skillet with a lid. Allow the mixture to heat through, and melt the shredded cheese, for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the lid to the skillet, stir the melted cheese into the rest of the mixture and remove from the heat.
Notes
- Be sure to use a good quality brand of condensed tomato soup for this recipe as you are getting most of your flavor from the soup. You can taste the mixture before adding the shredded cheese to the skillet and add salt and pepper to taste if needed.
- Cheddar jack cheese is a wonderful cheese to you for its melting quality and flavor it adds to a recipe. A great alternative would be colby-jack cheese or mild cheddar cheese.
- Any short pasta can be used as a substitute for the elbow macaroni noodles.
- Be sure to use a very lean ground beef, or a ground sirloin, to avoid having too much excess fat in the skillet when cooked. If you are using a higher fat blend of ground beef, and have a good amount of rendered fat in the skillet when cooked, you will want to drain off most of the excess fat before adding the remaining ingredients to the skillet.
Nutrition
Calories: 933kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 54g | Fat: 49g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 164mg | Sodium: 1398mg | Potassium: 1531mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 1184IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 444mg | Iron: 5mg
