Bacon Chili Cheese Dogs

Today is my 25th birthday.

I'm really not sure how to feel about 25. I definitely don't feel old. Maybe the best way to describe my weirdness about 25...I feel like the last decade of my life flew by! I definitely think it's been a lot of amazing years and wish they would just slow down some. At the same time, with the third deployment being over halfway done, I kinda don't want the time to slow down just yet :P

My oldest (who is 6 1/2 years old *sniffle*) told me I shouldn't cook dinner on my birthday. He insisted he would make sandwiches for dinner - his dream job is to be a Sandwich King like Jeff Mauro. I thought this was just incredibly sweet and asked him what he thought about going to a restaurant for dinner. He LOVED this idea and we picked Olive Garden, so tonight we're having Italian.

In other news...these chili dogs would have been a totally acceptable meal for my birthday. Anything that has bacon in it, on it, wrapped around it, is worth a try. I get the hankering for a good (messy) chili dog every once in a while. The chili is perfect - I subbed 1 Tbsp. of regular chili powder with some ancho chili powder. They are definitely and most certainly the best chili dogs I've ever had.

(Print)
What you need:

• 1 Tbsp. EVOO
• 1/4 lb. bacon, diced
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 to 2 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1 Tbsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. cayenne
• 1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• Salt and pepper
• Hot dogs (I prefer turkey dogs)
• Hot dog buns
• Cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Fry bacon in olive oil over medium high heat until almost done. Add onion (reserve some for topping) and cook until onions start to soften.
2. Add ground beef, brown and crumble.
3. Add Worcestershire sauce, garlic, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. Cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add tomato sauce and season with salt and pepper. Reduce to low and simmer while you cook hot dogs.
5. Cook hot dogs in your preferred way.
6. Serve hot dogs in buns, topped with chili, cheese, and onions.

Recipe from The Stir