Bacon Wrapped Cheesy Breadsticks Recipe

Crispy. Chewy. Cheesy. And wrapped in BACON! An everyday, ordinary breadstick is transformed into an extraordinary indulgent appetizer. When these twisted Cheesy Breadsticks are dunked in a spaghetti marinara sauce, they're not only brought to a party, they then become the party. These are the perfect finger food for game day. 

Bacon's the best. Even the frying of bacon sounds like applause. ~ Jim Gaffigan

My philosophy - anything can go from good to GREAT just by adding bacon to it and rolling it in cheese. Since I've been on a bacon kick lately I've wanted to include it with anything and everything. I thought I would make the perfect finger food for football parties. So ... here ya go. Cheesy Breadsticks Wrapped in Bacon. If you're looking for another fabulous recipe you will want to try my Ham and Swiss Sliders. 

What I love about this Breadsticks Recipe:

They're just plain fun, never boring - the twists and turns of bacon and breadsticks. Sometimes you just want something that not only tastes great but is fun on the platter. These appetizers are much more entertaining than a dull tray of raw veggies and ranch dressing.

The pizza dough is versatile. With the same dough, you can cut it into strips and whip up these breadsticks or you can add your favorite toppings and make some pizzas.

Once the dough is rolled out, these appetizers are super easy. Basically, lay a strip of dough down, lay a strip of bacon on top, twist, and roll in shredded cheese. It's that simple.

These Bacon Wrapped Breadsticks are the quintessential party appetizer. You can either serve them piping hot out of the oven or sit them out to enjoy at room temperature. Anything to make your job as a party planner easier is what you should go for.

Ingredients for Bacon Wrapped Cheesy Breadsticks

Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe 

• Pizza dough can seem a little intimidating but honestly, it is so ridiculously easy to make. I make up several batches at a time and freeze them individually. When I'm ready to make a pizza or these breadsticks, I pull them out, let them defrost in the refrigerator overnight, and enjoy delicious pizza dough from scratch. 
• BTW - this recipe is my all-time most viewed recipe here on my site (not to toot my own horn - wink, wink) but every comment has raving reviews. 
• You can substitute homemade pizza dough for the store-bought kind in a can, but if at all possible, try my recipe. You won't be disappointed. 

Bacon - Thick Center-Cut Bacon

• Thick - why would you wrap it in bacon if you can't taste the bacon, right? And center cut, because it's meatier with less fat, therefore it doesn't shrink up near as much as regular.

Melted Butter (because why not?)

Parmesan Cheese - Freshly Grated

• Don’t grab the green powdered can of parmesan off the shelf of the grocery store to replace freshly grated parmesan. There really is a substantial difference between the two.
• Avoid the pre-grated packaged parmesan when purchasing. Parmesan is best and obviously the freshest when grating just prior to using it in a recipe.
• Don’t throw away the parmesan rinds. Instead, put them in a freezer ziplock bag and keep them in the freezer. Pull them out and throw them in soups, sauces, or stews to give additional flavor.

How To Make Cheesy Breadsticks

#1 - Start with a pizza dough that is both crispy and chewy. 

The foundation of this recipe is the pizza dough and my homemade pizza dough is truly the best. The dough takes a little bit of time to knead, rise and roll out. But let me tell you, it's all worth it in the end. Click on the link for "step by step" instructions.

• With this same dough, you can make two gourmet pizzas that are to die for - Chicken with Raspberry Jalapeño sauce (dang it's good) and a Mediterranean pizza with Lamb Meatballs and Pesto Sauce (which makes my mouth water just thinking about it!).

#2 - Roll out the Pizza Dough for the Breadsticks

Take one of the balls of pizza dough from the recipe above and roll it out in an oval/rectangle shape onto a lightly floured surface. The dimensions will be somewhere around 12 inches long and 8 inches wide. 

#3 - Cut the dough into strips

Cut the rolled-out pizza dough width-wise into 12 strips. Lay a piece of bacon on top of each strip then "twist and shout ... work it on out" (that's a song in case any of you are too young). Okay, well just twist. Twist in opposite directions from both ends until you get a nice candy-cane look. You want the bacon and the dough to basically be the same length when starting. By whatever means you want to achieve this, either by pulling the bacon longer or scrunching the dough shorter.

• A pizza cutter works great when cutting this dough into strips. 

#4 - Brush the breadsticks with melted butter

In order for the shredded cheese to stick well to the bacon-wrapped breadsticks, you'll want to brush them with melted butter on all sides. Okay, so it's not the healthiest recipe you can make, but who's counting calories when watching a football game? Brush on the butter, then roll them in the shredded cheese. It's that simple.

#5 - Roll the breadsticks in shredded cheese

This is the cheesy aspect of these amazing game-day appetizers! I thought I had parmesan in the fridge when I was making these but it ended up I only had smoked gouda. Which BTW turned out to be spectacular. In reality, you can use whatever type of cheese you want. I just would stay away from the soft type cheeses. I think Gouda is considered a semi-soft cheese, but it worked for me. Next time I'll make sure and have parmesan available. But hey, play around with whatever you like.

#6 - Bake these Homemade Cheese Breadsticks 

These bacon-wrapped cheesy wonders went into my 400°F oven and baked for 25-30 minutes. What you're looking for is a nice golden brown crust, bacon that is crispy, and cheese that is not burnt. You'll notice in the pictures (below) that the bacon did shrunk up a bit but it's okay because I still got bacon in every bite.

• I used a cookie sheet with a wire rack on top so that they would cook evenly on all sides. If you use foil or parchment paper under the rack, it will make clean-up so much easier. 

What to Eat with these Pizza Dough Breadsticks

Homemade Spaghetti Marinara Sauce. These Cheesy Breadsticks Wrapped in Bacon would not be complete without dunking them into a delicious marinara sauce.

• My recommendation, when serving at a party, would be to fill small plastic appetizer cups and let your guest have their own individual serving. This removes any possibility of "double-dipping" which is a "no-no" at any party.

Roasted Tomato and Garlic Aoili. This is a smoky sauce that is great for dipping any kind of bread.

Tomato Basil Bisque. Instead of a piece of garlic bread, take it up a notch or two and serve the soup with these breadsticks made from scratch.

Vodka Pasta Sauce. Another really great recipe that these breadsticks will complement is this vodka sauce. 

Breakfast. Serve these bacon-wrapped breadsticks alongside scrambled eggs and breakfast potatoes. These are a wonderful addition to a brunch menu. 

Can these pizza dough breadsticks be made ahead of time and frozen?

Yes, and it's such a great idea for time-saving and convenience sake. To freeze, make as directed and bake at 400°F for about half the time - 12-15 minutes. Remove from the oven to cool completely. Transfer the breadsticks onto a baking sheet to freeze for an hour or two then carefully place them in an airtight container. They will store in the freezer for one month. When ready to serve, bake in a 400°F oven for 10-12 minutes until the bacon is crispy and the bread is golden brown. 

Bacon and bread belong together like peanut butter and jelly or macaroni and cheese. There's happiness that exists between the two of them when combined. I think you'll find this Breadsticks Recipe to be one of the most tempting and comforting appetizers around. Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.

If you're looking for more appetizers to serve at your Super Bowl Party, check these out:

Spinach and Feta Puff Pastry Cups

 Mini Taco Wonton Appetizers

 Chicken and Waffles with Peppadew Jam

Grilled Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce

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