Barbeque Bacon Chicken

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Ingredients:

6 chicken thighs, skinless, and boneless

6 slices bacon, uncooked

Barbeque Sauce (I make my own. I make home-made ketchup using Giada DeLaurentis’s recipe. Then I use that ketchup in The Neely’s recipe for homemade barbeque sauce. It takes a few hours, but I make a double batch and freeze it in plastic pint containers. It’s so good and worth the time!)

12 slices of cheese  (I used mozzarella, because that’s what I had on hand. But, my first choices for cheese  were Baby Swiss, Gruyere, or Jarlsberg.)

Coconut Oil

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

Salt and pepper both sides of chicken thighs. Wrap each thigh with one slice of bacon and secure the ends with toothpicks. (I sprinkled a little extra pepper on both sides after they were wrapped. )

In small saucepot, heat barbeque sauceon low just until warmed through.

Heat a large iron skillet over medium heat.  Add about 1 teaspoon of coconut oil, just to coat the bottom.  (This helps the meaty portions of the bacon to not stick while the fat is rendering.)

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Lay bacon-wrapped chicken thighs, skin-side down, on heated skillet. Cook until bacon on that side is crisp, chicken looks cooked about half-way up the side of the thigh, and the bacon side releases easily. (Some sections of the bacon may need to be nudged a little. You just don’t want to overcook the thighs.)

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Turn them over and cook until thighs are just cooked through. (Juices run clear.)

Spoon barbeque sauce on each thigh and top with cheese slices.

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Cover skillet for a few minutes just until cheese melts slightly. (I just used a large sheetpan to cover.)

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Remove the thighs from the pan and let rest a few minutes. Remove the toothpicks before serving.

Enjoy!