4 ways to add bacon to your meals

Many appetizers, entrées and side dishes can benefit from the addition of an important ingredient: bacon.

Here are four great dishes that are extra delicious when bacon is added.

Beef might not seem to benefit from bacon, but it can make a huge difference in flavour.

• Take a steak filet and wrap two or three strips of bacon around it before cooking.
• Sear it in a cast iron pan for five minutes on each side and then transfer the pan to the oven for an additional five minutes at 350°F (or 175°C).

Macaroni and cheese is super with a number of different additions and bacon is definitely one of them.

• You can make homemade mac and cheese by boiling elbow noodles, making a roux sauce and adding one or two of your favourite cheeses, letting them melt around the pasta.
• Gruyère and fontina cheese both work well.
• Finally, sear two or three strips of bacon in a skillet and crumble them over the dish.

If you want to give your asparagus an extra kick, try wrapping them in bacon.

• Use fresh asparagus and snip off the ends.
• Rinse thoroughly and wrap each individual stalk in one piece of thin-sliced bacon.
• This works best if you buy asparagus with thicker stalks so that the two ingredients cook evenly.
• Heat the oven to 400°F (or 205°C) and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Chicken is a versatile entrée that can be prepared in many ways but sometimes lacks a strong flavour.

• Wrap two to three strips of bacon around the chicken breast and bake it for 30 to 35 minutes or until it is cooked all the way through.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve it over a bed of rice with a side arugula salad for a hearty, well-rounded meal.