Bacon Cream Cheese Bites

I had some phyllo dough left over from my post about Spanakopita so I thought I would put it to good use. Phyllo is a traditional Greek pastry dough that is super thin, even thinner than paper. It folds really nicely into triangles and makes a great party appetizer. You can stuff pretty much anything in there as long as it doesn't have too much moisture. I think bacon and cream cheese fit the bill, don't you? ;-)

Bacon Cream Cheese Bites
Makes: 24 triangles

1/2 lb bacon, chopped
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 scallions, chopped
4 oz (1/2 brick) cream cheese, softened
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Pinch of salt
8 sheets of phyllo dough, thawed
1 tbsp butter, melted

• In a skilled over medium-medium-high heat, brown the bacon until it is crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside. Reserve one tablespoon of the drippings.
• In the same pan, cook the onions and garlic in the bacon drippings over medium-low heat until the onions are soft but not brown, about five to six minutes.
• In a stand mixer, or with an electric hand mixer, on medium whip the cream cheese until it is light and fluffy, about two minutes.
• Add the bacon, onion mixture, scallions, Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, cheddar cheese, and salt. Continue to beat on medium until well mixed, about 30 seconds. Set the mixture aside.
• Brush a large baking sheet with the melted butter.
• Now you'll need to assemble the triangles. If you read the next few steps and you have no idea what I'm talking about, see my post about Spanakopita which includes photos.
• Take one sheet of phyllo dough, use a barely damp paper towel to cover the rest so they don't dry out.
• Cut the phyllo dough into thirds length-wise with a pizza cutter.
• Place a small spoonful of the filling at the top and off to the right of one of the strips.
• Now you'll need to start folding. You fold these like you would a flag. Grab the upper left corner and fold it down to the right so that you form a triangle at the top.
• Now take the top right corner and fold it straight down.
• Take the top right corner again and fold it down and over to the left.
• Take the top left corner and fold it straight down.
• Repeat until you get to the end and have a perfect triangle. Place it on the buttered baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining phyllo dough and filling.
• If you're making these a day ahead, you can stop at this step, cover it up with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it. Then place it in the oven the next day about an hour before you're ready to serve.
• Bake at 350° F for 30 minutes.

A few tips:

If you haven't invested in a spatter screen yet, I highly suggest it. They're relatively cheap and will save you from getting popped when you fry stuff such as bacon.

If you're not sure what to do with the rest of the bacon drippings, here's what I do. I line a bowl with aluminum foil then pour the drippings in. Once the drippings are cool, fold it up and chuck it in the trash!