Bacon Habanero Infused Vodka

As a teacher, I often think about my personal vs. public life. This blog makes me think about those private/personal lines and my privacy as well (especially right now as I am teaching Internet Safety/Responsibility/etc). I am an adult, but I am also an educator and the shaper of young minds. My students know that I blog and I am sure that some of them have found it. 

I’m an adult who is legally allowed to consume alcoholic beverages (not that I ever really do though, seriously, its pretty rare for me- I can count on my hands the number of times I have had a drink in the past year). Even though I am an adult – I always want to be a responsible role model for my students.

So here is the post, written by a teacher in her late 20’s who is a lover of food and exploring new ways to use her ingredients and who also encourages her students to make the right choices in their life…

I made Bloody Mary Tomato Juice for my Grandmother with lots of our garden fresh tomatoes and wanted some spicy vodka to go with it, especially since I was making the drinks for my grandmother who loves them spicy (a constant challenge to make them spicy enough for grandma)! We have an over-abundance of habaneros in our garden (all thanks to one plant) and I am trying to come up with ways to use them without burning my face (or hands) off! When I stumbled across Kitchen Konfidence, I knew that I had to make this for my grandmother (and share with my spice-loving neighbor).

At first I was not sure if I should add the bacon (by all means feel free to make this vegetarian by leaving out the bacon), but it did add a bit of ‘smokiness’ to the vodka. Play around with it & be careful with the heat (no touching your eyes) and how long you let this infuse!!

Bacon-Habanero Infused Vodka

• 2 – 3 slices (cooked) bacon
• 2 habaneros, sliced in half
• 1 jalapano
• 2 cups (approx..) vodka

Cook, drain, & cool Bacon. Slice your peppers in half. Add all solids to a mason jar (or any clean recycled glass jar you have around the house). Pour your quality vodka over top. Allow to infuse for up to 7 days – the longer you let it set, the stronger it will be.

Feel free to use this after 2 days or so (at 2-3 days I took mine out and it was more than plenty strong for me – if you like it spicier, leave it) but after about a week, take out your solids & use your infused vodka with caution & enjoy responsibly!

I wonder what else this ingredient can be be used for… I can see some sort of “Devil Drink” to be a perfect use for this Habanero Vodka for Halloween – suggestions? 

And I Leave You with this, Today’s Question of the Day… What flavors  of an infused liquid have you created or do you think you would enjoy the flavor of?