A Little Bacon goes a Long Way!

One lesson we learned from National Pork Month: everything tastes better with bacon!

At first, bacon was popular as a breakfast side dish and as the best part of a BLT. Recently, bacon's popularity has been on the rise and it's appearing everywhere, including as a dessert ingredient on maple bacon donuts or candied bacon ice cream. They definitely sound crazy, but people love 'em. We're also seeing anything and everything wrapped in bacon, including shrimp, scallops and hot dogs.

With so many great ways to use bacon, the FoodPair team thought we'd highlight bacon as an ingredient that makes veggie dishes sing. We all know people (and kids) who shy away from leafy greens and lima beans, but adding a little bacon will help them give those foods a try.

So, without further ado, here are some great side dishes with bacon. Enjoy!

Fresh Figs with Bacon & Goat Cheese
Start off with something tasty, sweet and savory.
Ingredients in this recipe: figs, goat cheese, bacon, balsamic vinegar



Green Beans with Bacon & Shallots
A great way to make green beans irresistible.
Ingredients in this recipe: green beans, bacon, shallots, butter

Collard Greens Miniera
Collard greens are delicious when sliced thin; add citrus to make it sing.
Ingredients in this recipe: bacon, collard greens, lemon juice or lime juice (optional)

Bacon Smashed Potatoes
Bacon and dill spice up potatoes. Mash 'em or smash 'em!
Ingredients in this recipe: bacon, dill, sugar, apple cider vinegar, Yukon Gold potatoes

Spinach & Chick Peas with Bacon
This Spanish-inspired side is great with pork chops or chicken.
Ingredients in this recipe: garlic, olive oil, bacon, chickpeas, baby spinach, red pepper flakes

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon & Thyme
Bacon and thyme will have you begging for more Brussels spouts.
Ingredients in this recipe: bacon, thyme, Brussels sprouts, salt, black pepper

Let’s get cooking!

Any other favorite ingredients you'd like us to highlight? Post them in the comments section or on our Facebook page!