The Diva That Made Bacon Wrapped Sweet Plantains with Lime, Garlic & Jalapeno Mojo

These rock! Liza de Guia is an inspiration. Not only does the lovely founder & chief storyteller of FOOD CURATED make rich and informative videos about passionate people who bring us incredible foods, but when she was on a holiday, she tweeted about eating bacon wrapped sweet plantains and bells went off in my head! Ding! Ding! I had to make them!

You could totally eat these on their own, but I decided that the sugar in the plantains and smoky goodness of the bacon would be DELISH with a spicy dipping sauce. I love the salty, garlic in oil condiment that is served in Latino restaurants would be a good place to start, but maybe too over-the-top for my guests. The lime and chilies and cilantro temper the garlic.

My guests flipped for these! YUM! YUM! YUM!

Bacon Wrapped Plantains

• 2 ripe sweet plantains
• 1/2 lb of bacon rashers (you can use turkey bacon)
• Canola spray or oil
• Toothpicks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Cut off the ends of the plantains and pierce the skin with a knife to create air holes. Place on lightly sprayed baking pan and roast for 20 minutes on one side then turn over and cook for 20 minutes on the other side. The skin may pop open. When the plantains are tender remove and cool.

Cut cooled plantains in quarters lengthwise and into 1.5” lengths. Take a rasher of bacon and roll around the plantain until it overlaps, then cut it and secure it with a toothpick.

Spray or grease a heavy skillet with canola oil. Brown bacon rolls and serve.

I browned them all ahead of time and reheated them in the toaster oven.

Lime, Garlic & Jalapeno Mojo

• 1 bunch of cilantro
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 T lime zest
• 10 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1/2 c chopped onion
• 2 jalapeño peppers, deseeded (if you like it spicier, leave the seeds in)
• 1/3 c sherry wine vinegar
• 1 T cumin
• 2/3 - 1 c of extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

I based the recipe for the sauce on one I found at Epicurious for a marinade. You could use this one as a marinade too. It would be perfect for marinating a fresh ham, pork loin or a chicken.

In a food processor, fitted with the steel knife, process cilantro, onions, garlic cloves and jalapeño peppers until fine. Add the lime juice, lime zest, cumin and sherry wine vinegar and process again. With the motor running, add 2/3 c of the olive oil to make a sauce that is suitable for dipping. Taste and check consistency and add more olive oil if it’s too strong or not thick enough for dipping. Season and try to resist eating it with a spoon.

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