Valentine’s Day Bacon Roses

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Whether you love it or loathe it, I hope you’ve all had a fantastic day…. Ok, Ok, so this post is a little bit late! But please bare with me as these these are really great to treat a loved one any time of the year, not just Valentine’s Day.

When it comes to Valentine’s Day, for some it’s for spreading the love, for me, as always, it’s about indulging in food! OK, don’t get me wrong I love the fact it’s day to show your appreciation of your loved ones and to show this there’s an abundance of flowers, chocolates, champagne, jewelry and cuddly toys galore to buy, not to mention an array of sentimental cards filled with flowing heart-felt poems… but I just don’t that will cut it with Dean…

So I will treat him the best way I know how and that’s with food. Don’t they say the best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach??! Well it’s a tried and tested method with me, which is why this year Dean will be receiving a big bunch of roses, that is of course, bacon roses. Yes, I thought I would combine the romantic gesture of roses but in the form of crispy grilled honey basted bacon dipped in sriracha pepper seasoning. Perfect.

It’s just a bit of fun, but if like me you struggle to find the perfect gift for your man (or woman) then if they’re a bacon fan, this is a sure win, so easy and yet so effective too. They’re Valentine’s Day themed, they are homemade and they are edible, ticks all the boxes.

So if you fancy giving these a go, you will first and foremost need a bunch a fake roses. You can either opt for one big single stem rose or a bunch a roses… I guess it depends on how much your partner likes bacon! Then of course you’ll need a pack of thick cut streaky bacon and some cocktail sticks.

When buying the roses, look out for ones that have leaves on their stems, it just makes the final rose look more authentic. More importantly however, try and buy ones that have a kind of a green cup/holder at the base of the rose. It’s not imperative, however it does help hold the bacon rose in place.

Next, peel off all of the fabric petals so you are only left with the stem and any green leaves around the top.

Once the petals are removed, part of the wire that forms the rose stem should be exposed. Make sure to clean this as this is where your bacon rose will sit. If you prefer you can always wrap the stem in a bit of foil before sitting the bacon on if there is any residual glue on the stem. 

Next prepare your bacon roses by taking a rasher of bacon and rolling up. If you want a bigger rose simply wrap another rasher of bacon around. Secure the rose at the bottom by pushing two cocktail sticks through the bacon in a cross as shown in the picture.

You should then be able to stand your bacon rose up in a lined baking tray. Place in the oven and at 170 degrees and cook until the edges start to crisp (approx. 15 mins). Once cooked, transfer to kitchen towel to soak up any residual bacon grease and allow to cool. 

For extra flavour I dipped the top of my roses into a bit of honey followed by sriracha pepper seasoning. This is optional but added a lovely sweet and spicy kick to the bacon. 

Now it’s time to assemble, simply pop your bacon rose onto the stem and arrange in a vase as you would with rose flowers and present to your loved one! It’s that simple.