[ed-Seth: Eat Well Embrace Life has a new hummus dropping on shelves today:

It’s made of Cayenne, Chipotle, and Jalapeno Peppers (no relation).

/tries it

(Okay maybe there’s some relation).]

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It’s been way too since we had seafood on the tailgate post. It’s also been too long since we wrapped something in bacon. Even if it was last week (which it wasn’t) it’s not good to go too long between things wrapped in bacon.

I really love this combination and guests at the last tailgate agreed. This one is super tasty and can be cooked on the grill, in the smoker or in your oven at home. It can be prepped the night prior and tossed on the grill in the AA Pioneer parking lot an hour before kickoff. AND….it’s served on a stick. Albeit, a tiny stick, but it’s still a stick and everything is more fun served on a stick.

Ingredients:

Salmon (Skin removed)
Bacon (thick sliced)
Maple Syrup (Grade A, not the pancake syrup)
Bourbon
Meat Church Honey Hog Rub

[After the JUMP: as if the first two words in this recipe didn’t grab you, there’s also Bacon and Salmon. Also a giveaway at the end]

Directions:

If you are cooking everything on the grill, fire it pup to about 350 degrees. If you are using the oven, pre-heat it to the same. Lay your bacon out on a baking rack and sprinkle both sides with your favorite rub.

I love Meat Church Honey Hog for this (my buddy Matt has a FANTASTIC line of rubs and is always up for a tailgate. If you are looking for a great new rub to add to your growing collection, give this one a go).

We need to pre-cook the bacon a little on this one or else we end up with limp and under cooked bacon at the end.  Cook the bacon for about 7 minutes or until it starts to crisp along the edges.

Once the bacon is in the oven, cut your salmon into bite-sized chunks and dust with rub. Try and cut them into similar sized pieces that can be wrapped with 1/2 a piece of bacon.

The glaze is pretty simple. I mixed 1 cup of maple syrup with 3 shots of maple smoked bourbon (optional: if the chef is not driving he may also require 3 shots of bourbon). That’s it. I added it to a cast iron pot and tossed on the grill along side the salmon bites and let it warm.

Once the bacon is cropped up a little, it’s time to wrap. Wrap each piece of salmon with 1 slice of bacon and secure with a tooth pick.

So far, all of this can be done the night prior.  It makes for an easier Saturday when the prep work is already done.

Now, it’s time to toss ‘em on the grill. We are looking for a 300-degree grill or oven. If you are cooking indirect, feel free to use a little alder wood or pecan. If not, it’s no big deal. I chose to cook direct over the coals and it worked out great. Just don’t wander far as the bacon grease will cause a few flare ups. You will need to move the salmon bites around a little to keep them from getting too charred.

After about 5 minutes on a 300-degree cooking surface, dip them in the bourbon maple glaze that has been warming on the grill.

Once completely covered in the gooey glaze, put them back on the grill for 3 more minutes. The glaze will caramelize and thicken a little and add HUGE flavor that pairs well with bacon and salmon.

I typically like my salmon cooked medium, but I’m not shooting for a perfect internal temperature on these. They are one-bite treats with lots of flavor, so I’m not as picky here. If you would like to hit ‘em with a thermapen, go ahead.

The bacon was crispy and the glaze was gooey, so I was happy. These are good to go at this point, but I had to give them a dip in the Yellow Lentil Hummus. This has some heat and went great with the sweet glaze and sweet honey hog rub.

As I said earlier, this is a great “Prepare at home and cook at the tailgate” kind of recipe. I love to show up and cook on game day instead of prepping while all of my friends mingle and have fun. It makes things a lot easier and a lot more fun. Give this one a try and let me know how it turns out.

Giveaway:

Matt from EWEL Hummus has sent me some VIP coupons for free hummus to distribute to the best fan base in college football. However the Penn State fans I tried to give them to said they’d rather eat raw chick peas. Anyway, now I’m passing them to you.

I am looking for new tailgate recipes to try and would like to see what you have been cooking. Send me your favorite tailgate recipe, along with a pic if you have it (Not mandatory). The 3 best recipes will win some VIP coupons for free hummus. It’s that simple. Please send them to [email protected].  You can also reach me thru my site at www.gobluebbq.com.