Beef & Bacon Pinwheels

Last night I made beef & bacon pinwheels for dinner to celebrate having my grill back. Yum!  What a hit.

Last week my husband finally got around to ordering me the new parts for my gas grill. It took him a few “man tools” like a blowtorch, hacksaw, shop vac, grinder and Allen wrench to disassemble the entire inside of the grill. About two hours worth of his time and only $30.00 from our checking account and the job was complete.  Sure beat the price of purchasing a new gas grill. As a treat to reward him for all his hard work I decide to make him beef & bacon pinwheels.

Yum Factor!

Beef & Bacon Pinwheels

Ingredients:
8 strips of bacon
1.5 pounds of beef flank steak
4 wooden kabob sticks (soaked in water)

Directions:

1.) If you want crisp bacon I suggest pre-cooking your bacon a little before assembling your pinwheels.  Line a microwave-safe plate with paper toweling.  Lay bacon down flat.  Cover the bacon with another layer of paper toweling.  Partially cook the bacon for 3 minutes on high in the microwave. It is not necessary to do this step but skipping it will produce bacon on the chewy side.

2.) Cut steak horizontally (like butterflying a fish) but leave about 1/2 inch uncut on opposite side.  Open meat so it will lie flat like an open book.  Cover with plastic wrap and flatten to 1/4 inch thick using a rubber or wooden mallet. Remove the top plastic wrap when you get the correct thickness.

3.) Place plastic wrap under the flank steak. Place the grain of the meat left to right.  Place all bacon strips down evenly spaced and roll up tight using the plastic wrap as a guide to help you roll the pinwheels tight in a jelly roll style.

4.) Then skewer steak, crosswise, at 1-inch intervals using the wooden kabob sticks (soaked in water) that you have clipped to 5  inches in length.  Using a sharp knife, cut between skewers to make 1-inch-thick pinwheels. The pinwheels will end up being about 1 1/2 inches thick when cut separately.

5.) You can grill or broil the pinwheels. To grill – preheat your grill. Grill cut side down and then flip. – Grilling around 4 minutes on each side.  To broil – broil 5 inches from heat.  Turn at the 4-minute mark and broil another 4 minutes.  Please see guide below to cook to the pinwheels to your own perfection.

Medium = 140 to 145 degrees F
Medium Well = 150 to 155 degrees F
Well =160 degrees F and above

If you do not already have one, can I suggest that you purchase a meat thermometer because it takes the guesswork out of grilling.

It is a superb tool to have on hand for yourself and for when you have guests that wish for meat cooked a way you normally don’t personally cook for.

I purchased a fork thermometer. This was the second meat thermometer that I had purchased.  My first thermometer only lasted me one grilling season.  The fork one has lasted over three seasons. Still going strong.

I can not say enough good things about the fork thermometer.  It tells me both the temperature of my meat and if it is well done, medium, medium rare, or rare.

At first, I laughed at the size. Then, I quickly understood I wasn’t burning my fingers trying to remove it, like my old one.  WHY DIDN’T I INVENT THIS GADGET!

Now that my grill is fixed, I see more grilling recipes in the future.  I like the fact I don’t have any pan to clean after dinner.

Beef and bacon pinwheels, roasted asparagus and toasted garlic bread. That is what’s for dinner!  Good things do come in small packages.

Enjoy!