All-You-Can-Eat BLTs

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BLTs built for a party.

Southern Living Big-Batch BLTs on a tray to serve
Photo:

Greg DuPree; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen

Active Time:
10 mins
Total Time:
25 mins
Servings:
8

What's better than a BLT? How about ALL the BLTs you can eat? While there’s something simple, superlative, and oh-so-Southern about eating a BLT in peace at the kitchen table, with the aroma of freshly-cooked bacon still permeating the house, these big-batch BLTs take our love of the South’s best sandwich to a whole new crowd-pleasing level.

The choice that makes these big boys possible is using whole baguettes to build the sandwiches. Clocking in at an average of two feet long, split baguettes can hold a lot of bacon, lettuce, and tomatoes—plenty to feed your crowd of hungry tailgaters.

Speaking of, here’s' a hot tip if you’re tailgating on the go: Build your BLTs, leave them whole, then wrap them tightly in parchment paper for transport to the game. Once you’ve got your tailgate spot picked out and set up, sliced the baguette with serrated knife, and you have perfectly portioned grab-and-go BLTs ready for fans to enjoy.

Ingredients

  • 12 thick-cut bacon slices

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise

  • 1 tsp. grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)

  • 1 garlic clove, grated (about 1/2 tsp.)

  • 1/2 tsp. black pepper, divided 

  • 2 medium (8 oz. each) vine-ripened tomatoes

  • 1/4 tsp. kosher salt

  • 2 (12-oz.) baguettes, sliced in half horizontally and toasted

  • 8 butter lettuce leaves (from 1 [4-oz.] head), torn in half

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange bacon slices in an even layer on prepared baking sheet. Bake until crisp, 15 to 18 minutes. Drain bacon on a paper towel-lined plate, and set aside.

  2. Stir together mayonnaise, lemon zest, grated garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper in a small bowl; set aside.

  3. Cut tomatoes into 1/4-inch-thick slices; cut slices into half-moons. Season with kosher salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roughly chop cooked bacon.

  4. Spread about 2 tablespoons mayonnaise mixture over each of the cut sides of baguettes. Place lettuce on bottom halves of baguettes. Top with sliced tomatoes and bacon (about 3/4 cup bacon per baguette). Cover with top halves of baguettes. Use a serrated knife to slice BLTs crosswise into 4-inch portions before serving.

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