Brown Sugar Bacon Wrapped Smokies

12 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they’re so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus there are five flavor add-in options for you!

The ultimate holiday appetizer, these Bacon Wrapped Smokies are the perfect finger food for your crowd, perfect served with toothpicks along side some Cocktail Meatballs.

Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!

BACON WRAPPED SMOKIES

Bacon Wrapped Smokies are the easiest and most popular holiday appetizer you’ll find at most tailgates, holiday parties, or game day parties and with good reason! With just three ingredients these Bacon Wrapped Smokies are guaranteed to be the hit of your event.

When you are planning holiday menus it is important to make sure you don’t have a lot of complicated recipe or recipes that require you to be in the kitchen while people are at your party. This recipe is easy to prep ahead of time and can be cooked and served with just a small bowl of toothpicks near your serving dish.

HOW TO MAKE BACON WRAPPED SMOKIES:

  • Prepare Sheet Pan: Line your sheet pan with heavy duty foil or a double layer of regular foil. This keeps cleanup easy and simple. If you do not line with foil the brown sugar that melts and caramelizes will harden on the pan. If this happens, once your pan has cooled add water immediately to it and let it sit 1 hour to soak before cleaning.
  • Bacon: Cut the bacon in half. The smokies are small and only need a half a piece of bacon to wrap well.
  • Wrap: Wrap with just a bit of tension in the bacon, do not wrap too tight or the bacon will contract too much in the oven and possibly split.
  • Roll: Roll the wrapped smokies in the brown sugar, do not toss the ingredients.
  • Toothpick: Pierce the end of the bacon back into the smokies to hold the bacon closed, then place it on the baking sheet.
  • Bake: Bake until brown sugar is melted and bacon is crisp.
Brown Sugar Bacon Smokies Collage of prep steps

MORE PARTY APPETIZERS

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT BACON WRAPPED SMOKIES

How should I prep my pan to bake Bacon Wrapped Smokies?

So important it bears repeating twice, line the pan with foil to avoid a long cleanup.

Can I make Brown Sugar Bacon Wrapped Smokies in advance?

If you want to prepare these ahead of time, be sure to cover the baking sheet well with plastic wrap so the brown sugar doesn’t dry out. It will prevent it from melting well.

How do you make this recipe spicy?

Perfect as they are if you want a hint of spice add a pinch of cayenne or for a milder heat, some crushed black pepper to taste.

How do I cut the bacon for this recipe?

When cutting your bacon in half be sure to cut it to form two shorter pieces, so the bacon is half as long. Don’t cut through it horizontally making long skinny strips of bacon.

How can I keep Bacon Wrapped Smokies warm at a party?

These are best served warm, if you have a small slow cooker you can set them in or a warming plate.

Brown Sugar Bacon Smokies in serving bowl

I know what you’re thinking, you’ve seen these Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies before right? Well we’ve been making these for years and over the years we’ve come up with five awesome variations to this classic recipe!

VARIATIONS ON BROWN SUGAR BACON WRAPPED SMOKIES

  1. Jalapeños: Add minced jalapeños or cayenne pepper to spice things up!
  2. Sauce: Add some franks red hot sauce and honey to the brown sugar, just like in these amazing Chicken Fire Poppers.
  3. Cheddar: Yes, just like in the Bacon Wrapped Tater Tot Bombs, cheddar adds an amazing flavor to these bites!
  4. Blue Cheese: Wrap a small cube of Blue Cheese in with the smokies and the flavor is awesome!
  5. Dates: Wrap a ¼ of a date wrapped into each bundle, the salty sweet combination will be a hit.
Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!

MORE EASY APPETIZER RECIPES:

Wait Before Serving!

Word of warning. These are going to come out of the oven covered in a molten hot melted brown sugar coating. Please, please wait 2-3 minutes before touching them or use a spatula to remove them from the pan directly onto the plate. There is risk of suffering sugar burns to fingers and tongues by grabbing one as soon as they come out of the oven.

Remember molten sugar right out of the oven = burns.

HOW TO STORE BROWN SUGAR BACON WRAPPED SMOKIES

  • Serve: Bacon Wrapped Smokies can be out at room temperature for up to 2 hours before they should be refrigerated. They are best served warm, so if you have a warming plate, you can serve them on low heat to keep them warm.
  • Store: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat at 350 degrees until just warmed.
  • Freeze: Cool completely, or freeze on a baking sheet for one hour, and place in a sealed container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Brown Sugar Bacon Smokies in serving bowl

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Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies

Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they’re so easy to make! Just three ingredients and you have the easiest appetizer ever!
Yield 12 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients
 

  • 1 package Beef Smokies (or other mini hot dogs)
  • 1 pound bacon , cut in half
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar , packed

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Line baking sheet with heavy duty foil (or two sheets of standard foil).
  • Cut bacon slices in half (vertically, not horizontally so they are shorter, not skinnier and longer).
  • Wrap each strip around a little smokie sausage.
  • Roll in the brown sugar, packing on the sugar onto the ends and pierce the end of the bacon slice with a toothpick to hold it closed.
  • Place each rolled smokie on the baking sheet (do not crowd).
  • Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the bacon is crisp and the brown sugar is all bubbly.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 250kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 1188mg | Potassium: 168mg | Sugar: 14g | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg
Keyword: Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies
Brown Sugar Bacon Smokies Collage

Photos used in a previous version of this post.

Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!
Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!

Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!
Bacon Brown Sugar Smokies are the quintessential party food that everyone fights over even though they're so easy to make! Just three ingredients plus I have five flavor add-in options for you!

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. so good. i made mine with extra sugar and added texas pete and agave instead of honey. so good and its good with a little bit of ranch dipped.

    1. You’ll want to bake them in a single layer. Piling them up creates too much moisture and they’ll be steamed vs crispy. Enjoy!

  2. I’ve made these for years and taken them to work, people love them! I have to make a lot so everyone can eat a lot. I usually prep them the day before, layering the bacon wrapped smokies in a huge bowl with lots of brown sugar. They sit in the fridge overnight and marinade in the brown sugar, which turns out all syrupy. I then bake them the next day.

  3. These are ridiculously easy and delicious!! I am taking them to a football party this weekend. I have made them for several parties!!

  4. My sister and I have been making these for over 40 years and have never had leftovers. In fact, we are lucky to even get one!

    1. At the very least warm, yes. Cold congealed bacon fat is very oily and slimy. It won’t have good mouth appeal.

  5. I want to add the cheddar but not sure how to. Do you wrap the cheddar and then the bacon?
    Excited to make these and thank you for sharing your recipe!

    1. I have a tater tot version that adds cheddar. Make sure you use a sliced cheese piece small enough the bacon wraps completely around it. Wrap it somewhat tightly then cross your fingers and hope it doesn’t leak. Make sure the cheese is facing up off the pan, under the smokies and they will definitely leak.

    1. I don’t even turn mine when they’re in the oven but you could try putting them on racks and see if that gives you a more uniformed crisp all the way around. If you decide to try it, let me know how it goes.

  6. Have been making these for years.  We call them Heart Attack on a Stick.  My daughter must have them every year around the holidays.   Yummy!

  7. Incomparable things compared! Wow, I am really surprised with the result – I NEED to try it now. It doesn’t even seem like bacon to me – more like a bowl of candies lol