Balsamic Carrot Bacon Jam

I’m currently having a love affair with bacon jam. I made Brittany Angell's Bacon Jam two weeks ago and proceeded to eat it for a week. I felt kind of guilty about it, since it contains two whole packages of bacon.

I decided I wasn’t ready to break up with bacon jam. Instead, I came up with my own lightened version. I subbed carrots for one of the packages of bacon (trust me, it works), left out the maple syrup and added some balsamic vinegar.

IT IS STILL AMAZING! And not as bad for you. Win win.

Tonight we made bacon jam buffalo cheeseburgers, roasted onion potatoes and roasted broccoli. So yummy. I seasoned the ground buffalo with salt, pepper, and a little gluten free soy sauce. Tommy had half a buffalo patty, some potatoes and maybe a bite of the broccoli. Tommy probably could have the bacon jam, but we haven’t trialed whiskey, balsamic vinegar or cayenne pepper yet. Oh well, more for Ben and me. 

Balsamic Carrot Bacon Jam

12 oz bacon

1 onion, sliced

4 carrots, peeled and diced

¼ cup brown sugar

½ cup whiskey

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp salt

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Cook bacon in a medium saucepot until crispy. Remove bacon from pan and reserve 1 Tbsp bacon grease.

2. Add carrots and onions. Cover and cook on medium low for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Remove lid, add brown sugar and cook until caramelized.

4. Deglaze the pan with the whiskey. Add the cooked bacon and remaining ingredients to the pan.

5. Cover and cook on low for 30 – 60 minutes stirring occasionally

6. Puree in a food processor until smooth.