Bacon Meatballs

Inspired by EvilShenanigans

I was using  StumbleUpon and came across this recipe many times and finally decided to make it. As meatballs these were not very good, they were dry (somehow even though there was a pound of bacon) and not flavorful enough. However, I think these might be good if they were shaped into patties and then eaten as hamburgers instead of meatballs. I did pair the meatballs with a sweet / smoky BBQ sauce and this helped counteract the dryness.

Ingredients

           

·      1 pound bacon (I used Plumrose Smokey Maple)

·      1 ½ pound ground beef

·      2 teaspoons salt

·      2 teaspoons smoked paprika

·      2 teaspoons dry oregano

·      1/2 teaspoon black pepper

·      1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

·      1 egg

Directions

1.     Cut the bacon into 1 inch pieces and pulse in a food processor until no longer in large chunks

Greta's picture is here instead of food processed bacon, see notes below for the reason why.

2.     Add the bacon to a large bowl and then add all of the other ingredients.

3.     Mix the meat until completely combined.

I used a two tablespoon spoon to measure the meatballs, which worked great.

4.     Ball the meat to about 1 inch to 1 ½ inches in diameter and place into a preheated pan and brown on all sides.

Pre Browned

Browned.

5.     To a preheated oven 400 degrees Fahrenheit add the meatballs and cook for about 10- 15 minutes. 

After bakes, definitely set on paper towel to drain the grease.

Here are the meatballs with the BBQ sauce.

Notes

·      You may want to try cooking the bacon beforehand, and then crumbling it into the ground beef.

·      FYI: the bacon is really gross when processed in the food processor.