Bacon Candy Chipotle Deviled Eggs

Like any good Southern Lady, I love deviled eggs. I'm pretty sure that I could eat a whole plate, if left alone in a room with no one watching. Cause I'm a lady, and if anyone was watching, I couldn't possibly eat a whole plate. Oh no, not little old me!

I didn't own a deviled egg plate until a few days ago. Sacrilege, I know. If my mother's friend Miss Carol had known that I left the state without one, I bet I'd have been in trouble. Or would have received one in the mail shortly. Thankfully, the HomeGoods store had one left.

Now, about the bacon. It's candied. I'm not kidding. 

Thick cut, brown sugary goodness. With a bit of spice of course. Oven roasted to crispy perfection.

Then there are the eggs.

Boiled, cooled, halved, and scooped.

Add what's needed, and dump into a zip-top bag. Squeeze and mix away, getting out all the lumps. Rest it overnight.

Set up your station - whites on the plate, piping bag of yolk mixture, chopped bacon, chives

Using a piggy chopping board makes it taste better.

Pipe! Top! Add paprika!

And say nothing of the shameful, shameful thing you did with the leftovers.

No, that is not delicious deviled goodness piped onto a leftover piece of bacon. It's a - a mirage. Yeah. A mirage.

Bacon Candy Chipotle Deviled Eggs

Adapted from Pinch My Salt

Serves 6-8

For eggs:

12 eggs, hard boiled

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt, to taste (optional)

For bacon:
6 slices thick-cut bacon

1/2 c brown sugar

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

smoked paprika and chives for garnish

The day before - hard boil eggs. Cool them. Halve them. Put the whites in a container and place in the fridge. Remove the yolks and place in a plastic zip-top freezer bag. Add to the bag: mayo, mustard, vinegar, chipotle chili powder, and garlic powder (and salt, if desired). Squish the bag to mix thoroughly. Try to get all the lumps out. Remove as much air as possible from the bag and store in the refrigerator over night.

The day of - Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place your 6 slices of bacon on a cooling rack. Place the rack on a foil-lined jellyroll pan or sheet tray (a pan with short sides). Mix the brown sugar and spices together. Sprinkle mixture on one side of bacon slices and pat down. Put bacon in the oven for 20 minutes. Flip over each piece. Put back in the oven of another 10-15 minutes. Take out of the oven. Flip bacon so that sugared side is up. Let cool. Chop.

Remove all components from the refrigerator. Place whites on a pretty plate, hole side up. Snip the tip of the freezer bag and pipe the yolks into the holes in the whites. Top with candied bacon pieces (I did 5 pieces per white). Sprinkle with chopped chives and paprika as you like. Serve! You can also cover the finished eggs with plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for several hours.