Tomato Bacon Cups

My mom took me to a cooking class at one of her friend's houses a few months back; where we sat in this woman's gorgeous kitchen and she cooked a delicious meal for us. This recipe was the appetizer of the night, and it's so simple you won't believe it. There is minimal chopping, minimal prep, and it results in a tasty little bite full of tomato, bacon, and cheese flavor.

The original recipe calls for a 12-ounce tube of refrigerated biscuits. I could only find the Grands biscuits at the store, which are 16 ounces and come 8 to a can. So I divided each biscuit up into 5 sections and that in turn gave me 40 bites (instead of the 30 the recipe said it yielded), with more than enough filling to cover them. Trust me, you will want more of these so buy the Grands!

I actually made these a whole day in advance, baked them, and then just reheated before serving and they still came out delicious. You can certainly do that, or just serve right from the oven!

Tomato Bacon Cups

slightly adapted from Paula's Pantry

Makes 40 bites

1 medium tomato, seeded and finely chopped

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons real bacon bits

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded swiss cheese

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons mayonnaise (I like low-fat)

1/2 small onion, finely chopped

1 1/4 teaspoons dried basil

1 tube (16.3-ounces) Grands refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Combine the tomato, bacon bits, swiss cheese, mayo, onion and basil in a small bowl. Mix thoroughly and set aside.

Cut each biscuit into 5 equal wedges. Work with your fingers to make it as round as possible and press each round into a greased mini-muffin pan. Spoon tomato mixture into cups.

Bake for 10-14 minutes or until golden brown and cheese is slightly bubbly. Serve warm.