BBQ Deviled Eggs

These deviled eggs are summer in a bite with BBQ sauce, corn off the cob, and crunchy onions. Normally I’d think of them in the app category but we ate them beside the pool one hot night as a dinner side dish which had me wondering why we haven’t done that sooner! 

The Three Bite Rule - BBQ Deviled Eggs

BBQ Deviled Eggs
Ingredients: (for 6-8 people, 12 egg halves)

6 eggs
3 tablespoons mayo
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 teaspoon relish
1/2 – 1 teaspoon BBQ rub (or mix of chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder)
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
2 tablespoons bbq sauce
1 tablespoon corn
fried onions

Directions: 
Hard boil eggs for 12 minutes then add to a bowl of ice water for at least 1 hour. 
Peel eggs, slice them in half, and pop the yolks into a food processor (or into a bowl for a hand mixer/immersion blender). 
Add mayo, mustard, relish, rub, liquid smoke, and salt & pepper to the food processor with the yolks and blend well.

The Three Bite Rule - BBQ Deviled Eggs

Spoon the filling mixture into a zip-top bag inverted into a glass to hold it open. Seal and refrigerate until serving. 

The Three Bite Rule - BBQ Deviled Eggs

To serve, snip the corner of the bag and pipe into each egg half.
Top with corn, a drizzle of BBQ sauce, and fried onions. 

The Three Bite Rule - BBQ Deviled Eggs

Enjoy!

Before a meal, with a meal, it doesn’t matter. Anytime you serve them, they’ll be delicious. The idea came from our hard boiled-egg-loving guy when we talked about ways to use the 2nd BBQ sauce we opened by mistake which had an expiration date coming up. This doesn’t use much, but the flavors were fun. 

BBQ sauce in the filling would taste good but might turn it a funny color. They travel well unassembled and take just a few minutes to put together. 

The Three Bite Rule - BBQ Deviled Eggs

Need some other ideas? Bacon Ranch Deviled eggs are always a hit! Caesar Deviled eggs would go well with a summery meal too.

Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Loaded Fries

Yes. The answer is yes. These are exactly what you need. Chicken, bacon and ranch fries are delectable and so good for a quick lunch, for a crowd, as a meal, or the hefty snack.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Loaded Fries

These fries have rotisserie chicken, bacon crumbles, white cheddar, white queso and are finished with a drizzle of ranch.

Chicken, Bacon & Ranch Loaded Fries
Ingredients: (for 1 as a meal, or 2 as snacks)

2 cups fries
1 teaspoon ranch dressing powder mix
1 cup roasted chicken
2 strips of bacon
2 tablespoons queso blanco
2 tablespoons ranch dressing
1 green onion sprig, chopped up

Directions:
Cook the fries until crispy – I airfried mine for ~10 min from frozen.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Loaded Fries

Shake the hot fries in the ranch powder mix and add half of the fries to a pan and top with half the cheese, half the bacon, half the chicken, and half the queso. Repeat.

Bake for 5-10 minutes until all melted and warmed through.
Drizzle with ranch.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Bacon, Ranch Loaded Fries

Sprinkle with green onions.
Enjoy!

They’re kind of a fork (or close-friends) loaded fries as you will be licking your fingers. I think the layers are key – otherwise only a few fries will have anything fun! These are a great way to use a small amount of these ingredients. Try it with waffle fries, or as nachos.

Cheeseburger Hash Brown Cups

These were a superbowl snack for us but cheeseburger hash brown cups would be a great non-grilling season dinner too! Mr. J grills year-round but a burger-ish app is great to use up leftovers, prepped as an app for a party, or as a twist to the format. These gave me another idea so stay tuned for that one too! 

The Three Bite Rule - Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups

They weren’t perfectly intact, but still good. I think my muffin tin in a bit bigger than usual and maybe a bit more care forming them would have helped.

Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups
Ingredients: 

~1/3 bag of tater tots (~4 per muffin cup) 
1/2 pound ground meat/meatless mix
1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional, or sub 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds
3 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
3/4 cup cheese, shredded
toppings: pickles, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, tomatoes, etc!

Directions: 
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (or as tot package calls for). Spray the muffin tin with non-stick spray and put 3-4 tots in each muffin hole. Bake for ~10 minutes and then press down to mold them into the cup shape. Spray again and bake for another 5 minutes until crispy.

The Three Bite Rule - Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups

While the cups are crisping, pan fry the ground meat. When mostly cooked through, drain excess grease and add in liquid smoke, garlic powder, sesame seeds, salt and pepper.
Add in the crumbled bacon.

The Three Bite Rule - Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups

Sprinkle each cup with ground meat, and cheese.

The Three Bite Rule - Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups

Return to the oven to melt. Top with pickles and drizzles of ketchup and mustard. Enjoy!

I thought these were fun. It is easy to prep the cup part in advance and the rest comes together quickly!

The Three Bite Rule - Cheeseburger Hashbrown Cups

Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs

{originally published in 2017 and updated in 2022}

The twists on deviled eggs are endless. I whipped up these bacon ranch deviled eggs the first time for a holiday party. The hostess has a revolving door of party-goers, kiddos, and lots of food. I thought it’d be best to bring a ready-to-eat item. The ideal app for a busy party is one that needs nothing from the host and no oven-reheating time! We’ve had them a few more times and they’re always a hit.

I had all the ingredients on hand which is even better annnnd you can prep these in advance or in stages.

The Three Bite Rule - Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs

Ingredients:

6 eggs
3 strips of bacon
1/4 cup mayo
2 tbs yellow mustard
2 tbs ranch dressing
1/2 packet ranch dressing mix

Directions:

Boil water for the eggs and cook for 12 minutes. Then allow them to cool and peal them.
Pan fry the bacon until crisp. Then remove and drain.
Slice eggs in half, carefully popping the yolks into a food processor or a bowl. Then add in mayo, mustard, ranch, ranch mix, and half the bacon.

The Three Bite Rule - Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs

Blend in the food processor until totally mixed (or use a hand mixer).
Open a zip top bag into a cup to stabilize it. Spoon the yolk mixture into the bag.

The Three Bite Rule - Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs

Store the filling in the bag, then when serving, snip one bottom corner and fill each egg half.
Top with the remaining bacon.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs


I looooved these. They are always gone quickly at a party or are just fun at home. The bacon on top makes for no surprises (esp since these are type of eggs are normally vegetarian).

Caramel Apple Cheeseball

We went apple picking and now are eating 10,000 apples. I mixed up a caramel apple inspired cheeseball and it was a hit! I initially wanted it to be cutesy and look like an apple but was stuck on what I could roll it in that’d be green or red. It is tasty – but it doesn’t look like an apple.

The Three Bite Rule - Caramel Apple Cheeseball

I already had a request to make it again. We had it as an apps for dinner night then snacked on leftovers a few times.

Caramel Apple Cheeseball
Ingredients:

1 brick of cream cheese
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup butterscotch chips

Directions:
Let cream cheese come to room temperature.
Add cream cheese, powdered sugar, caramel sauce, and cinnamon.

The Three Bite Rule - Caramel Apple Cheeseball

Beat with a hand mixer (or in a food processor) until completely mixed.

The Three Bite Rule - Caramel Apple Cheeseball

Chop the chips and spread them in the center of a piece of plastic wrap. Then spoon the cheeseball mixture onto the chips. Roll it around to cover it, then gather up the plastic by the corners and twist together.
Refrigerate for at least an hour (or for a few days).
Serve with apples, pretzels, graham crackers or anything you like! Add some whole chips before serving.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Caramel Apple Cheeseball

This keeps well so make it and snack all week or spread it onto a bagel. Nuts would be good to roll on the outside but they don’t keep as well if eating it again later.

Pssst! Extra butterscotch chips? They’re great in pancakes & waffles so I use them to make McGriddles and Apple Cider Cookies! They’re fun on yogurt or in your trail mix or granola too.