It’s been a few days, but I’m back from our trip to Minnesota and ready to get back in the bacon saddle!
We had a great time on the trip. It was crazy and fun and the boys were in love with their cousins and aunts. They had a HUGE grass backyard to run around in, and they did until they dropped. I got to make all the appetizers for the wedding {recipes to come}, and Mike played bartender. The music was great, and the ceremony was small and intimate. It was all just lovely. We had our first experience at Mall of America. That was totally insane, but the boys got to meet two of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles so it was all worth it. And mad props to the littles for good plane rides. Eddie had 2 two-minute melt downs, one each way, and that was it! *big sigh of relief*
I think the best way to recover from two 3 hour plane rides and a weekend away and kids off their schedule is cookies. Don’t you?!? I’ve been dying to make these cookies. In fact, the idea of combining bacon and hibiscus may be what started this whole bacon month idea to begin with. If you’ve never had hibiscus, the flavor is slightly tart and when you add the dried flowers to water you get this fabulous pink color.
I used these flowers in the Champagne & Hibiscus Cookies I made for the champagne round of the Spiked! Cooking Challenge a few months back. They were delicious. The bacon and hibiscus combo is wonderful and brings flavor to such a subtle cookie. Bacon and cookies are friends…in case you didn’t know. 😉
Bacon & Hibiscus Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter cut into 16 pieces – keep it cold!!
- 3 slices bacon cooked crispy and chopped into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons dried hibiscus flowers chopped into small pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon water
Instructions
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Place hibiscus flowers in a small bowl. Top with water and stir to coat. Allow flowers to sit for at least 30 minutes to partially re-hydrate. Strain and set aside
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Add flour, sugar, and butter to a food processor. Blend until a crumbly dough forms. If the dough is too dry, add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until everything sticks together.
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Transfer dough to a large bowl. Mix in bacon and hibiscus flowers until evenly combined.
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Place dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and press into a rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Wrap dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
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Remove dough from refrigerator. Cut dough into small squares, 20 to 25 cookies. Transfer to a parchment or Sil-Pat lined baking sheet. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until cookie bottoms begin to brown. Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
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