Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts ****

These were actually really good.  Not that I had any doubts, lol.  It's bacon and water chestnuts.  What could possibly go wrong?  Hehehe.  I made this for our family Christmas Eve get-together, but I'm just now getting around to posting it (so sue me, we were enjoying our holidays, lol).  Every year, our family gathers at my parents' house, and we each bring 2-3 appetizers.  I adore appetizers.  I love being able to have just a little of this and a little of that, without having to commit to one main dish.  So needless to say, I look forward to Christmas Eve every year for this exact reason - it's the only time of year I get to experiment with appetizers.
So anyway, I chose this one based on the baby boy's (the 8-year-old) current obsession for bacon and his newfound love of water chestnuts.  I had every intention of using the homemade BBQ sauce on the included recipe, but time got away from me.  This was my last recipe of the day (since I wanted it to be served hot), so I used a bottle of our favorite BBQ sauce instead.  Our absolute favorite for the past few years is the Jack Daniels Hickory Maple Barbecue Sauce.  I normally can't stand BBQ sauce, but I could seriously drown my food in that stuff and be perfectly content.  It came out great.  I'm sure it's probably even better with the homemade version, but for a last-minute substitution, I was pretty pleased.  These were wonderful, though, and I would definitely make them again.

Warning: My picture does not do it justice.  I didn't think to snap one until they were almost gone, so it's a pretty lame representation of the final product.  Do yourself a favor and click on the link in the recipe to see her picture.  It's much prettier than mine. :-)

BACON-WRAPPED WATER CHESTNUTS
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ ClawsonLive via Pinterest)

Chestnuts
2-3 cans whole water chestnuts drained
1 (1 lb) package of bacon

Homemade BBQ Sauce
1-2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup brown sugar
squirt of mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
vinegar splash

I usually place the bacon in the freezer for a few minutes to really get it firm. I then cut the slices into 3 pieces right through the plastic. You're going to need a lot of toothpicks. Wrap each little chestnut in a coat of bacon and secure it with a toothpick. Place the chestnuts in a 9 x 13 inch pan. Once all of your chestnuts are wrapped top with BBQ sauce or make your own like we do.
If making your own BBQ sauce: Stir all ingredients together and pour over the chestnuts.
Bake in a 375* F oven for 30-45 minutes (or until the bacon is done). The tops of the toothpicks will turn brown so watch out for that. Enjoy every New Years Eve or Day for the rest of your life.