Bloody Mary with Bacon

This recipe is soon to be featured in Onions Etcetera by Kate Winslow and Guy Ambrosino. For more delicious inspiration, follow them on Instagram @andweate.

We adapted this from a V8-spattered recipe that Kate’s father used to make in gigantic quantities every year for their New Year’s Day open house—a true hair-of-the-dog cure-all for the festivities of the night before.

Garnish with a spicy bacon swizzle stick for a twist.

Serves 8 | Total Time: Less Than 30 Mins

Ingredients

For the Bacon

1 package Applegate Naturals^® Sunday Bacon^® Brand
1 teaspoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne

For the Bloody Mary

6 cups tomato juice
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon freshly grated horseradish root
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce
½ yellow onion
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ cups vodka
Pickled pearl onions, garlic and vegetables, for garnish
Spicy Bacon Swizzle Stick, for garnish

Instructions

For the Bacon

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Separate the slices of bacon and wrap each tightly around a long bamboo skewer to make a long twist (to keep the bacon from unraveling, skewer each end as you wrap). Set the bacon-wrapped skewers on the baking sheet.
In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, paprika, black pepper and cayenne. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the bacon twists.
Bake the bacon until well browned and crisp, about 15 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel–lined plate to drain. To serve, gently pull out the skewers and discard. Serve the bacon twists as they are or in a bloody mary.

For the Bloody Mary

In a large pitcher, stir together the tomato juice, lemon juice, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce.
Juice the onion half as you would an orange. Add the onion juice and salt to the pitcher.
Refrigerate until very cold.
Just before serving, stir in the vodka and pour into ice-filled glasses. Garnish each glass with a selection of pickled vegetables and a Spicy Bacon Swizzle Stick.