BLT Bagel

Ingredients

Scroll down to the BLT bagel recipe card for the amounts of each ingredient, but here's a quick visual + description of what's in this recipe.

• Bagel: Use your favorite savory bagel. I like everything bagels, plain, onion, and cheddar jalapeno bagels for a BLT bagel. Enjoy at room temperature or toast.
• Bacon: Cook your bacon to preference. I recommend slicing it in half before adding to your bagel. It'll cover the bagel better.
• Lettuce: Red leaf, green leaf lettuce, romaine, ice berg-any of these would work on this sandwich.
• Tomato: Tomatoes really are best when bought in season, choose the best looking tomato for a tasty, beefy tomato slice. Look for deeper color tomatoes, heavier ones, and soft-firm flesh.
• Cream Cheese: Why not swap traditional mayo for cream cheese on this bagel?! Or stick with traditional mayo. I like this sandwich with leftover cream cheese/bagels.

Instructions

Scroll down to the recipe card for more detailed instructions. Here's a quick overview + photos to see how to make this recipe in general.

1. Start to make your BLT bagel by cooking the bacon-lay out 3 slices on a large sautee pan. Cook until desired doneness. Remove bacon and place on a plate with a paper towel to soak up excess grease. Set aside.

3. Using bagel as your guide, break apart cooked bacon slices into slices to fit on bagel. Layer slices on top of cream cheese.

4. Fold lettuce over in half to better fit on bagel, or cut it in half down the middle. Top bacon with lettuce. Then place tomato on top of lettuce. Eat immediately.

Serve your BLT Bagel by itself, with a green salad, chips, or fresh fruit.

Storage/Reheating Tips

A BLT bagel is best made right before eating. You could pre slice the bagel, and lettuce store each in individual airtight bags or containers. For best results, slice the tomato and cook bacon right before serving.

It's not recommend to reheat this sandwich as the tomato will change texture and get juice on the bagel and bacon which isn't ideal.

You could slice and freeze bagels and toast when you're ready to eat them. You can also freeze bacon, see how to freeze bacon from One Dish Kitchen.

Substitutions/Tips

• Cook eggs, pancakes, chard/beet greens, or other veggies in leftover bacon grease.
• Use romaine, iceberg, green leaf, or red leaf lettuce in your BLT bagel recipe.
• I usually buy Neufchatel cheese instead of regular cream cheese. It has less fat than regular, and tastes exactly the same to me. It may also be marketed as ⅓ fat cream cheese. But use what you like/have access to
• Everything, onion, plain, and cheese bagels are great for BLT Bagels.
• Other Great Add-Ins: precooked chicken, turkey (breast or deli), avocado, mayonnaise, hot sauce, sprouts, American cheese, other vegetables, etc.

FAQ

What to do with leftover ingredients

When you're cooking for one, you often have leftover produce, cans of whatever ingredient, etc. Here are a couple ideas on how to use up the leftover ingredients. It'll help you save money by wasting fewer ingredients.

• Bacon: Chicken Bacon Sheetpan Dinner or Freezer Breakfast Sandwiches.
• Lettuce: Strawberry Salad with Balsamic Dressing (just swap the spinach for this leftover lettuce) or Chicken Salad Pitas.
• Tomato: Cucumber & Tomato Salad, No-Mayo Potato Salad, Mediterranean Grain Bowl.
• Cream Cheese: Easy No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars, Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream, or in this Mushroom Chicken and Rice dish.
• Bagel: Bagel with Eggs, swap for English muffin in this Time Saving Breakfast Sandwich.
• Bacon Grease: Cook eggs, pancakes, waffles, chard/beet greens, or other veggies in your bacon grease.