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Sweet, salty, spicy, and crunchy, these candied Bacon Crackers are the perfect appetizer. Made with just 5 ingredients this easy appetizer recipe is sure to become a staple for every party.
Bacon crackers are the perfect bite-sized party food, whether it’s the holidays or game day! After you fall in love with these bacon crackers, try these Cream Cheese Sausage Balls next!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
Crunchy, buttery club crackers are topped with bacon, sprinkled with brown sugar, cayenne, and black pepper, then baked to golden perfection.
The bacon fat and sugar create a caramel that melts onto the crackers for a tray of irresistibly addictive bite-sized treats. In other words, they’re basically heaven.
Aside from being extraordinarily tasty, this bacon crackers recipe:
- Is Made With Just 5 Ingredients. I’d bet you already have over half of what you need on hand.
- Takes Just 10 Minutes Of Prep Time. Even on my busiest days, I can eke out a measly 10 minutes. They’re my go-to recipe whenever I’m put in charge of bringing snacks during the school year because they’re so quick & easy! Plus, they’re built to be made ahead of time.
- Is Budget-Friendly. A box of crackers, a pound of bacon, and a few pantry staples are all you need. One batch only costs about $7 to make!
Ingredients
- Club Crackers – I prefer the rectangular shape of club crackers because it matches up perfectly with the bacon strips. Feel free to swap in any buttery cracker you prefer like Ritz or Townhouse, just be sure to cut your bacon to fit.
- Bacon – Regular thin-cut bacon is all you need. Feel free to swap in turkey bacon if you prefer.
- Brown Sugar – Either light or dark brown sugar will work.
- Cayenne Pepper – For some sneaky heat. Feel free to swap in hot paprika, red pepper flakes, or any other spicy red chili powder you have on hand.
- Black Pepper – Freshly ground is best.
How To Make Bacon Crackers
See recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper and top it with a wire rack. Arrange the crackers in a single layer on top of the sheet.
- Slice bacon into 3 pieces and top each cracker with a piece of bacon.
- Sprinkle brown sugar evenly on top of the bacon, then a pinch of cayenne and black pepper.
- Bake at 300℉ for about 30-40 or until the sugar begins to melt and the bacon is nice and crisp.
Recipe FAQs
You sure can! In fact, I recommend that you do. Once made, they should keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to a month. To serve, let come to room temperature.
Absolutely! They won’t be quite as rich as if you use regular bacon, but they’ll still be tasty.
Club crackers are perfect because of their size and shape. But you could use Ritz crackers instead and just cut small pieces of bacon.
How To Serve
These delicious nuggets of crispy, crunchy candied bacon cracker goodness are a delight to eat all on their own. They also make for a spectacular addition to any cheese or charcuterie board.
They’re a lovely pairing for just about any kind of dip like my sour cream and onion dip, creamy herb veggie dip, or garlic whipped feta. I also like to serve them alongside soup.
Storage
Once baked and cooled, the crackers can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 hours. To preserve them longer, pop them in an airtight container or zip-top bag and place in the fridge for up to 3 days. They can also be frozen for up to a month.
Expert Tips
- Use scissors to cut bacon. Trust me, it makes life so much easier.
- If there’s any leftover bacon fat, scoop it into a container and keep it in the fridge for later. I like to use it to add flavor to cornbread or for cooking breakfast items like pancakes or waffles.
- Thin bacon is better for this recipe. If bacon makes everything better, then logic would follow that MORE bacon is even better, right? Well, not exactly. I don’t suggest using thick cut bacon here because it’ll take too long to candy and your crackers will burn.
- Bring the heat. If you want to really lean into the heat factor, top each cracker with a thin slice of jalapeño.
More Bite-Sized Appetizers To Try
- Fried Pickles
- Everything Bagel Pigs in a Blanket
- Cranberry Brie Bites
- Garlic Chicken Wings
- Ranch Oyster Crackers
Bacon Crackers
Ingredients
- 1 box Club crackers about 36 crackers
- 1 pound bacon cut into thirds
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- cayenne pepper
- black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire cooling rack on top.
- Arrange crackers in an even layer on the baking rack. Top each cracker with a piece of bacon and sprinkle about a teaspoon of brown sugar evenly on top, then a pinch of cayenne pepper and black pepper.
- Bake until sugar begins to melt and bacon is crisp; about 30-40 minutes.
- Cool completely and allow to harden before serving.
Made these for part of our Easter appetizers and My family absolutely loved them..they were super easy, loved that I could make them ahead of time per instructions and brought to room temperature. These will be a staple on our entertainment menu. Thanks for a great, easy and convenient recipe.
You are so welcome Karen! Love your feedback, thanks for stopping by.
Hi there,
Are you using thick bacon, or thin slice?
Thanks!
Yes, I talk about this a couple of times in the post. “Thin bacon is better for this recipe. If bacon makes everything better, then logic would follow that MORE bacon is even better, right? Well, not exactly. I don’t suggest using thick cut bacon here because it’ll take too long to candy and your crackers will burn.”