My goodness, Easter Sunday has really snuck up on me this year, which is strange because you’d think with it being so late in April I’d have been anticipating its coming and planned accordingly.
But I promised I would share some ideas for your Easter menu in addition to some fun desserts, so here we go.
I love asparagus when it’s in season, and I love bacon all year round! So bacon wrapped in asparagus is a no brainer, slam dunk!
So while it’s really a simple TWO INGREDIENT elegant way to serve your veggies for Easter, I do have a few tips to help it turn out just right.
The problem with wrapping bacon around your asparagus is that the asparagus tends to be cooked through before the bacon is crispy. So instead of wrapping a whole piece of bacon around the asparagus, slice it down the center so you have two thin strips, and only use half for each piece of asparagus. This helps the bacon cook faster.
Also, you want to look for “Center Cut” bacon, which has less fat. The fatty part of the bacon is what takes more time to get crisp. So lean bacon (haha, oxymoron) is the way to go.
Lastly, you want to buy asparagus with thicker stalks. Usually, I like to buy the thinner ones because they are more tender, but in this case I think the thicker stalks hold up better.
In order to reduce bacon shrinkage and unraveling in the oven, you will want to put your bacon wrapped asparagus into a cold oven, turn on the oven to 400 degrees and bake for 20-25 minutes total. The gradual increase in heat helps the bacon hold it’s shape.
Feel free to assemble these guys ahead of time, and then just bake them right before serving. It’s always nice to have your side dishes all ready to go beforehand.
At our big family Easter get together, I’m in charge of rolls, and I’m going to be sharing my go to recipe, Best Butterhorn Rolls, for you later this week. I’ve been making them since I was a spring chicken myself, and I know you’ll love them as much as my family does!
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Bacon Wrapped Asparagus
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 5 1x
- Category: Sides
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Bacon Wrapped Asparagus is a simple but elegant side dish. Includes a few tips to help you make sure your asparagus and bacon turn out just right.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch asparagus (20 stalks)
- 10 pieces of center cut bacon
- *Any quantity is fine, you just want to make sure you have half as many whole strips of bacon as you do asparagus.
Instructions
- Wash asparagus and pat dry. Trim off the woody stem – usually the bottom 2 inches.
- Slice strips of bacon down the center so you have two long, thin pieces.
- Wrap the bacon around the asparagus and place on a foil or Silpat lined baking sheet.
- Place the baking sheet in the oven (with the oven rack on the upper middle slot), then turn it on to 400 degrees. The bacon wrapped asparagus should be in the oven during the preheat phase.
- Bake for a total time of 20-25 minutes, or until the bacon is crisp.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Serving
- Calories: 121
- Sugar: 0.8g
- Sodium: 396mg
- Fat: 8.2g
- Saturated Fat: 2.8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5.1g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 2.9g
- Fiber: 1.2g
- Protein: 9.2g
- Cholesterol: 23mg
Melanie says
Wow these look gorgeous and delicious! My husband is just going to die when I make these!
Julie says
Thanks Melanie!
Casey says
Get him, Melanie!
Helen Taylor says
Great Keto and LCHF diet lunch. The right macro’s. Thanks!
Karen @ The Food Charlatan says
why have I never done this?? Why?? I’m so glad you posted this. If I ever tried it one day I’m sure I would use extra fatty bacon with thin asparagus and put it in a preheated oven. Now I know!!
Julie says
Thanks Karen, hope you get to try it!
Jess says
These look amazing- I love asparagus as it is, but with bacon wrapped around- now that’s brilliant!
Julie says
Thank you Jess. It’s so easy to do!
Consuelo @ Honey & Figs says
I love the simplicity of this dish! It looks so delicious! x
Julie says
Thank you 🙂
Catherine says
Oh I have found the perfect appetizer for my next party!!
Julie says
Great idea Catherine!
Christi says
Thanks for this fabulous – and simple to execute – idea. I have to confess I’ve never tried asparagus, and I think this preparation would be a perfect introduction to it. 🙂 Can’t wait to give it a try!
Julie says
Hard to go wrong with bacon! Hope you enjoy.
Jamie@Milk N Cookies says
These are so pretty and elegant Julie. I love how simple they are, yet they’re 100% company worthy. I’m thinking these would be perfect to bring to my in-laws house for brunch, since they can be made ahead of time and are so easily transportable. Thanks for the great idea!
Julie says
You’re welcome Jaime!
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust says
Oh man. I’d eat it ALL! I’m addicted to both asparagus and bacon!
Julie says
I totally hear you there! At least one of them is good for you!
Grace says
These were a HUGE hit at Easter! I had to bundle two asparagus to one half-strip of bacon, because I could only find thin asparagus, but it worked! Also, due to Easter “Kitchen Madness” I wasn’t able to wait for the oven to cool and then preheat… I stuck them in at 275 and put the temp up to 400 maybe 5-10 min later, and they still turned out great. Phew! 🙂
Julie says
I’m so glad everyone liked them Grace! Glad your idea to bundle them worked out too.
Mary says
I am baking chicken tonight, and my oven has to be set at 450 for 40 minutes…my question is when should i put these lovely little bacon wrapped asparagus in?? How should I go about this?
Thank you!
Julie says
Mary, my best advice would be to just take the chicken out and turn the oven down and just bake the asparagus while the chicken rests. If you decide to do them together, try 425 and adjust the baking time accordingly. Hope this helps!
Suzanne Heckman says
I followed the recipe and tips to avoid overcooking the asparagus. I still overcooked the asparagus before the bacon was crispy. Next time I will wrap the bacon around two pieces of asparagus, like Grace advised. 🙂
Julie says
I agree, Suzanne. I will try two pieces next time as well depending on the thickness of my asparagus. Thanks for letting me know!
Kind Soul says
Pro Tip: Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil, and add some salt & pepper.
Lilibeth says
Glad I found this recipe! Will add this to our Thanksgiving dinner this evening. Thank you!
Michael says
I’ve made this dish dozens of times, but I always do a quick Google search to verify an oven temperature or maybe discover a new twist on an old favorite, and I was glad to have found this page. I’ve always known that it’s best to put bacon into a cold oven, but I never followed this advice with regard to wrapping asparagus. Duh! More so, your idea to cut the bacon strips in half is sheer genius — my bacon turned out nice and crispy, even wrapped around a single stalk. It was also much easier to get those beautiful spirals. Thanks!
Julie says
Happy that I could help you out, Michael, and glad you enjoyed!
Brian says
finally… I’ve tried to make this a couple of times on the stove top. honestly, it never worked out. so I’ll try this one next and see if there is a better result.
Julie says
Hope you like them Brian. I’ve found that it works out pretty well, and everyone loves bacon so you can’t really go wrong :0)
Rosie says
I currently only have precooked bacon, suggestion on making this work?
Julie says
I have not worked with precooked bacon, but I’m wondering if it would just crack when you try to wrap it around? I think it would be best to stick to the recipe as written in this case. Thanks for your question!
Scott says
You only cook the bacon until it starts to glisten. Two or three minutes, then roll as soon as it’s cool enough to handle. This method works good if you’re grilling and cannot start with a cold grill. I like splitting the bacon though. Such a great idea and it reduces calories from bacon. (not that there’s anything wrong with bacon)
Julie says
That’s a really good idea Scott! I’m going to do that next time I make these.
Kelly says
A day off of work can sometimes turn into a LAZY day..well thats y these are PERFECT (delicious,low in fat and quick)…so to MY lovely little kitchen i go..Thanx Julie
Julie says
You are welcome, enjoy!
Suzanne says
I want to do this but was wondering, would the cook time change at all if I use turkey bacon? Personally I like regular bacon but my older kids are on a health kick so I thought I’d do both. Thanks!
Julie says
I haven’t tried turkey bacon, but I would think you could do everything the same. Hope you all enjoy!
Janet says
I have only made these with turkey bacon, since my daughter is highly sensitive to pork. Thin stalks of asparagus were not fully cooked inside at 20 minutes (starting from a cold oven), even though they looked a bit wrinkly on the outside. The next time I cooked them for 23 minutes, and the asparagus was cooked through — but the turkey bacon was slightly overcooked. I think I will try 22 minutes the next time. I’m not a fan of turkey bacon myself, but wrapped around asparagus, it’s pretty tasty .
Katie says
Would these be okay at room temperature?
Julie says
I prefer them warm, but I think either is fine.
Deaf Mama says
First time I ever had bacon wrapped asparagus was at a fancy wedding couple of years ago where there were lots of appetizers being served from trays carried among the guests. I don’t remember if they were hot but do remember them being delicious! So I’m here searching because I’m finally gonna try making these treats for valentine’s day dinner.
Deaf Mama says
First time I ever had bacon wrapped asparagus was at a fancy wedding couple of years ago where there were lots of appetizers being served from trays carried among the guests. I don’t remember if they were hot but do remember them being delicious! So I’m here searching because I’m finally gonna try making these treats for valentine’s day dinner.
Okay, made these last night. Mmmmmmm they are sooo good! Most definitely keeping this recipe to make many more times! They are best eaten warm.
Julie says
I’m so glad they worked for you! Thanks so much for your comment.
Markus says
These look amazing, but I’ve only prepared asparagus with boiling before. Are you not supposed to peel them before putting them in the oven?
Julie says
Hi Markus, I don’t peel the asparagus, but I trim off the bottom of the stem (usually about 2 inches) that is tough and fibrous.
Caroline says
One small tip – if you cook these on broiler pan, the bacon grease drips into the pan, allowing the bacon to get crispy before the asparagus gets mushy. Line bottom of broiler pan to minimize clean-up. Served these at book club, and even with soft bacon and mushy asparagus there were no leftovers and loads of raves!
Julie says
Great tip Caroline, thanks!
Kate Haver says
Yes!! I just tried this with the broiler pan….it also also allows the heat to circulate UNDER the bacon! I wrapped to stalks in a thin piece of bacon. I have made these many times, but these came out the best yet. Asparagus was not mushy, awesome tips, thank you!!!