It?s official: I am in the wedding season of my life. In the past five months, I?ve been to six weddings. I was talking to Bob, the dad at the August wedding. He asked if I was a wedding crasher or how I came to be invited. With the quick wit I don?t have, I explained my friendship with the mother of the groom. With the slow wit I DO have, it popped into my head 10 minutes later that I should have claimed to be a wedding crasher investigating my next story for OCJ on wedding food. The following week, an obsession grew for finding a recipe for the candied bacon chicken appetizer served at that very wedding. A desperate Pinterest and Google search began. The sweet salty bacon ? all I can say is yum!
Bacon has taken the food world by craze. The Pork Council reports that 62% of restaurants have something bacon on the menu. Recipes, chef shows, novelties, apparel as well as websites are centered around bacon. Bacon tops sandwiches, salads, veggies and even desserts. And who doesn?t love Jim Gaffigan?s skit about bacon? Be sure to check it out on YouTube if you haven?t seen it.
Combos of bacon and ingredients you wouldn?t put together are tantalizing taste buds everywhere. Paul makes liquid nitrogen ice cream with the local chemistry class and the kids bring in the fix-ins for the ice cream. To this day Paul says the best ice cream he has ever tasted was a pancake batter ice cream with maple syrup and bacon. The chemistry teacher, Dr. U, explained to me the two flavors (sweet plus salty) create a yummy chemical reaction on your tongue but no one really knows the reason why we think it is so delicious. Dr. U shared an article with me from Cooksmart.com. In this article, they use a star to illustrate how flavors compliment and enhance each other. Sweet (such as honey/brown sugar/maple syrup) and salty (such as bacon) bring out the flavors of each other. No wonder a tad bit of sweetness makes an unforgettable bacon experience.
The National Pork Board stats show that the average American eats nearly 18 servings of bacon a year. The big question is what is a serving? Modern healthy diet preaches moderation and bacon can fit that mold with two slices of bacon providing only 73 calories and 6 grams fat. The problem is not many people can stop with two slices. My son Luke can pound down a pound of bacon himself! I?m guessing he is not alone. The huge shrinkage of weight after bacon crisps up makes it easy to indulge in the crispy, salty treat.
Good news to Ohio pork producers is that over 50% of Americans report always having bacon on hand in their fridge. In 2015, Ohio ranked 8th in pork production with a commercial inventory of 2.4 million pigs. Askthemeatman.com states 20 pounds of bacon (13%) comes from a 215-pound live hog. So quick calculating tells me that Ohio producers could produce close to 48 million pounds of bacon a year. That is a lot of bacon!
This October celebrate the oink by pigging out on bacon. Start your day like Jim Gaffigan, with the ?applause? of frying up some bacon. Enjoy lunch by topping off your salad, baked potato or veggies with Gaffigan?s ?fairy dust? of bacon, bacon bits. Wrap up the end of your day in bacon too, just make your day a little bit better than it already was.
Eat well and Healthy,
Shelly
Smokey Bacon Mac and Cheese Molly Yeh todayshow.com
?if I?m really feeling decadent, I?ll let the dish of mac and cheese cool overnight in the refrigerator, cut it until squares, and then bread it and deep-fry it.?
8 ounces medium shells
12 ounces applewood-smoked bacon
1/4 cup flour
3 cups whole milk
6 oz. smoked Gouda cheese, chopped
3 oz. pepper jack cheese, chopped
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated
1 1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
Ketchup, for serving
1. Preheat the oven to 375?F. Grease an 8 x 8-inch baking dish.
2. Cook pasta according to the package directions, reducing the cooking time by 1 minute. Drain and set aside.
3. In a large pan, cook the bacon until crispy. Chop the bacon and set aside. Pour off all but 1/4 cup of the fat in the pan. Heat it over medium-high heat and add the flour, whisking until combined, and then cook for 1 minute. Add half the milk, whisking continuously until thickened, about 5 minutes and then repeat with the other half of the milk. Add the Gouda, pepper jack, and all but 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan and stir until the cheese melts. Stir in the paprika, cayenne, and salt and black pepper to taste.
4. Fold in the shells and bacon and transfer to the greased baking dish. Top with the panko, a pinch of salt, a few turns of pepper, and the reserved 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Bake until the top is browned, about 25 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and enjoy with ketchup, if desired
Technique Tip: This recipe uses the fat from the bacon to make a roux that will thicken the sauce.
Swap Option: You can swap out the bacon for turkey bacon, pancetta, another type of salty meat, or simply omit it. If you omit the meat, you can substitute butter for the bacon fat in the roux.
Jalapeno Popper Wonton Cups Cathy Trochelman lemontreedwelling.com
12 wonton wrappers
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
? c. sour cream
12 oz. bacon, cooked & crumbled
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese (reserve 2 Tbsp.)
3-4 jalape?os, seeded and chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin pan with cooking spray.
Place one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup; bake 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together cream cheese, sour cream, bacon, cheddar cheese, and chopped jalape?os. Save 2 Tbsp. of cheese and bacon.
Spoon filling into wonton cups, then sprinkle with reserved bacon and cheese.
Return to oven and bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until wontons are golden brown and cheese is melted. Serves 12
Beer, Bacon & Potato Chip Cookie Bars lifeloveandsugar.com
Cookie Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup of chocolate chunks or chips
2 pieces of bacon, chopped
2 tbsp. beer
Topping:
8.5 oz. caramels (about 27 caramels)
1/4 cup cup beer
3/4 cup potato chips, broken into pieces
1/4 cup pretzels, broken into pieces
2 pieces of bacon, chopped
1/2 cup peanut butter chips
1/2 cup chocolate chips
Chocolate drizzle
1/4 cup chocolate chips
2 tsp. milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 9 pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil that sticks up above the edges. Grease the paper or foil.
Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Mix in egg and vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, add flour and baking soda.
Stir in chocolate chips, bacon and beer. Dough will be thick. Press cookie dough evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until the edges are slightly golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan.
While bars are cooling, melt caramels and beer together in a pan over medium heat. Allow caramel to cook on low for about 5-10 minutes. Pour caramel mixture over cookie bars and spread evenly. Pour potato chips, pretzels, bacon, peanut butter chips and chocolate chips evenly over caramel before it cools and hardens.
Microwave chocolate chips for chocolate drizzle and milk in a small bowl in the microwave until the milk begins to boil. Whisk chocolate until smooth Allow chocolate mixture to cool for about 2 minutes, then drizzle over top of bars. Once bars are cool, use parchment paper or foil to lift them out of the pan and cut into squares.
Bacon Jalapeno Deviled Eggs realhousemoms.com
12 large eggs, hard-boiled and peeled
1 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoon rice vinegar
3/4 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
6 jalapenos, seeded and diced
6 pieces bacon, cooked, crisp, and crumbled
Paprika, for garnish
Slice the hard boiled eggs in half, lengthwise. Remove the yolks and put them in a mixing bowl
Mash the egg yolks with a fork. Add the mayonnaise, rice vinegar, ground mustard, and sugar to the mashed egg yolks and stir until well combined
Mix in the jalapenos and bacon. Put the mixture in a Ziploc bag and cut a small hole in the corner of the bag. Fill each egg hole with the mixture. Sprinkle with paprika. Chill until ready to serve. Serves: 24 deviled eggs
