Showing posts with label bacon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bacon. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Bacon Honey Mustard Biscuits #FoodieExtravaganza

Super full of bacon with a good hit of sweetness from the honey, these bacon honey mustard biscuits will be a favorite on your breakfast or brunch table. 

This month our host for Foodie Extravaganza is Kathleen at Fearlessly Creative Mammas and she has exhorted us to help her celebrate her southern roots by baking buttermilk biscuits. Apparently it's Buttermilk Biscuit Day on May 14th. Who knew? Being from the southern United States myself, I have several biscuit recipes already in my repertoire, like these make ahead biscuits that are frozen and can be baked as you need them which is very handy! I could also have shared my aunt’s made from scratch biscuits, the ones I make most often, but she got the recipe from her mother-in-law and it includes instructions that are hard to quantify, like “add just enough milk.” How much is just enough? Ah, therein lies the secret of Mrs. Davis’ fluffy biscuits.

I was trolling the internet and came across a recipe for maple syrup biscuits with bacon which sounded fabulous. The addition of bacon to any recipe is a good thing. All those from maple syrup producing regions, please cover your eyes for this next admission: At our house, Aunt Jemima Butter Lite syrup is our maple syrup substitute. We love that stuff. It's a bit thin though so I wasn't sure how it would behave in biscuit dough.

You know what also goes with bacon?  Honey and mustard – think Christmas ham. Mine always has a honey mustard glaze!

Serve these guys warm and they will be gone in no time.

Ingredients for 12 biscuits
1 pound or 450g streaky bacon, cut into 1/2-inch or 1cm pieces
1 3/4 cups or 220g flour, plus extra for the work surface
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup or 115g chilled butter
1/3 cup or 80ml honey
2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
1/3-1/2 cup or 80-120ml cold buttermilk – just enough till it hangs together like a dough

 Method
Fry your bacon pieces in a large pan until they are nicely browned but not too hard. Drain them on some paper towels. I use some newspaper from the recycling bin and put a piece of clean paper towel on top so the bacon isn’t touching the newsprint. Works like a charm and saves on paper towels.

Sift together your flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.

Cut the chilled butter into 1/2 in or 1cm cubes. Use a pastry blender to cut them into the flour mixture, until the little butter pieces are tiny and covered in flour.



Add in the bacon and stir to coat the bacon with the flour mixture.

Add in your honey, mustard and about 1/3 cup or 80ml of the buttermilk. Start folding the ingredients together, adding the rest of the buttermilk if it seems too dry.



Flour your clean work surface and scrape the dough out onto it.

Flour your hands liberally and knead the dough two or three turns. Press the dough out till it’s about and 1 in or 2.5cm thick.

Flour your biscuit cutter or a large glass and cut the biscuits out and put them on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment or a silicone liner.



Pop the whole pan into the freezer to chill while you preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.


When the oven is preheated, bake the biscuits for 18-22 minutes or until they are nicely browned.



Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving warm.

My original plan was to brush these with melted butter and honey when they came out of the oven but I can assure you that they don’t need it. They are chock full of bacon and just sweet enough from the honey already inside! They go ever so nicely with a sunny-side-up egg.


Enjoy!

How do you like your biscuits? We've really kicked them up a notch this month!



Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook group Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out here.

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Sunday, February 21, 2016

Roasted Savoy Cabbage Slaw with Spicy Bacon Dressing

Roasting cabbage wedges before slicing them for coleslaw brings out the sweetness in this winter vegetable, which is further enhanced by the salty, spicy, slightly creamy bacon dressing. Best of all, this coleslaw can be made a day or two ahead.

We eat a lot of salads in the summertime, especially since we moved to Dubai three years ago. With temperatures soaring it’s hard to think about turning the stove on unless it’s really, really necessary and something chilled and fresh like this Tuscan Bean Salad is the perfect dinner. As we head into Autumn, salads get heartier and we enjoy what the French called salades composées including this Sweet Potato French Bean Lentil Salad. But even during winter here, salads are a favorite. They change complexion somewhat, with the addition of couscous or bulgur wheat, making them heartier and more sustaining. Or they feature winter vegetables like cabbage and Brussels sprouts. This week our Sunday Supper group is sharing winter salad recipes, hosted by super Sue of Palatable Pastimes. Make sure you scroll on down to the bottom to see all the great dishes we have for you today.

Ingredients
For the coleslaw and dressing:
6 slices streaky bacon
Rendered bacon fat from streaky bacon

For the coleslaw:
1 head Savoy cabbage (Mine weighed 1 3/4 lbs or 800g.)
Generous handful small red radishes – About 9 or 70g – Put more if you love them.

For the dressing:
1 clove garlic
1 small purple onion – about 2 1/2 oz or 70g
1 small red chili
2 tablespoons white Balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons plain Greek-style (thick and full fat) yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon bacon fat (or use more olive oil)
1 heaping teaspoon whole grain mustard
Good pinch flakey sea salt, plus extra to taste once the coleslaw is tossed

For optional garnish – young beet sprouts

Method
Fry the bacon until crispy and drain on some paper towels. Set aside one tablespoon of the bacon fat for the dressing and save the rest for brushing on the cabbage before roasting.



Preheat your oven to 425°F or 220°C.

Cut the cabbage into six thick wedges and place them in a large baking pan. Brush the bacon fat on with a pastry brush.



Roast the cabbage wedges in your hot oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the tops are turning brown. Some of the leaves on the bottom may get very dark. If they taste burnt when they come out, discard those bits.



Mince your garlic and chili pepper and put them in a small bowl with the balsamic vinegar. You can remove the seeds of the pepper if you don’t like things too spicy, of course. I left mine in. Cut the onion in half and then slice it as thinly as you can. Add it to the vinegar bowl and stir.





When the cabbage is out of the oven, set it aside to cool. You want it to be browned on the edges, but still crunchy.

Add the yogurt and the mustard into the dressing, along with the salt, and stir well.



Chop the bacon up, reserve a good handful for sprinkling on the coleslaw and add the rest to the dressing, along with the 1 tablespoon of bacon fat you set aside earlier and the olive oil. Mix well.



Once the cabbage is cool enough to handle, cut out the hard stalk in the middle and slice the wedges up into strips.

Remove any thick ribs as you go along. You can share these with your furry helper, if he’s nearby. Vegetable lover that he is, mine is always right under foot when the cutting board comes out.

Cabbage, you say? Don't mind if I do. Cabbage is good for dogs! 

Remove the ends of the radishes and slice them into pretty white circles rimmed with pink.

Pile the sliced cabbage and radishes into a large bowl with plenty of room for tossing.



Add on the salad dressing and toss well to coat.

Taste a piece or two and add a little sprinkling of salt, if necessary. This can be served immediately or stored, tightly covered in the refrigerator for a day or two.

When you are ready to serve, let the coleslaw warm up a bit, if it’s been refrigerated. Give it another good toss, plate it up then top it with the reserved bacon bits and some young beet sprouts, if desired.



Enjoy!

Are you a fan of winter salads too? Have we got a line up for you!

#SundaySupper Winter Salads


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Posted by at 1:58:00 AM 0 comments
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Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Okie Peasant Potato Soup #BloggerCLUE


This creamy thick potato soup, seasoned with shallot, garlic and bacon, is sure to warm body and soul on a cold winter’s day. 

One of my favorite days of the month is here – it’s Blogger C.L.U.E. Society reveal day when I get to tell you the clue we were assigned this month – soups and stews - and which blog I’ve been poking around in – the wonderful Eliot’s Eats! I’ve been getting Debra’s recipe posts in my inbox for a very long time, although I am terrible about commenting, so she may not even know that. I just checked the “read” emails in my inbox and this is the weirdest thing but the very first one was from the day I signed up - a message to confirm my subscription – on February 10, 2013! Isn’t that a wild coincidence! It’s our anniversary! Three years of delicious recipes from Eliot's Eats in my inbox!

Proof! Not that you didn't believe me but only because I hardly believe it myself! February 10th! 


I have to tell you that I didn’t even get around to a search for stews because I was bookmarking so many soups to make that I knew the choice was going to be hard enough. Check out the Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Soup that may have won Debra’s husband’s heart or this spicy Furious Five-Spice Noodle Soup with an Asian flair.  I was also loving the way Debra has turned favorite non-soup dishes into soup like these pizza and enchiladas ones. I mean, sometimes you want pizza or enchiladas but sometimes a body just needs soup.  Can I get an amen?

Those of you in the cold areas of the world right now are going to laugh in my face when I tell you that Dubai is cold when we are only talking the late 40s°F (<10°C) at night but remember that we have no heating whatsoever. These tile floors, thick walls and reflective windows are designed to keep us cool during the extraordinary heat of summer but they make it really chilly indoors during the wintertime. Plus I don't seem to own the right clothes. What I needed was a thick, comforting soup so I finally settled on Debra’s mom’s Okie Peasant Potato Soup because it starts with bacon and ends with cheese, and what could be more perfect than that?

Ingredients - Makes about 6 servings.
6 slices bacon
1 1/2 lbs or 680g red potatoes
1 large carrot
1 small shallot (Debra used dried shallots but I don't have any of those.)
3 cups or 710ml chicken broth
3 tablespoons bacon fat
1 garlic clove
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups or 710ml low fat (but not skim) milk
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Grated cheddar to serve

Method
Cook your bacon until crispy and drain on some paper towels. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat. Chop the bacon with a sharp knife and set aside. I also set aside just a little for use as garnish when serving. I left it pretty chunky.



Cube your potatoes, leaving the peels on. Peel and dice your carrot.



Peel and mince your shallot and garlic clove.

Put one tablespoon of bacon fat in a large pot with the minced shallot and sauté until translucent. Add in the potatoes, carrots and chicken broth and bring to a boil.

Cook until carrots and potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

In another saucepan, heat the rest of the bacon fat and lightly sauté your garlic. You don’t want it to brown and turn bitter, but just to soften. Add the flour and whisk until mixture bubbles to cook the flour.



Carefully whisk in milk to make a sauce.


Cook for a few more minutes until the white sauce thickens a little and then remove from the heat.



Use a firm whisk to add the sauce into the potato pot.  Some of the potatoes should break up a bit, thickening the soup even more but make sure to leave some chunks too.



Add in the crispy bacon bits. Cook for a few more minutes and then taste your soup. Add salt if it needs any and few generous grinds of fresh black pepper.



Ladle into warm bowls. Sprinkle on some cheddar cheese (and bacon if you saved some) to serve. And, yes, that's just a little more black pepper. I love that stuff.


Enjoy!


The Blogger C.L.U.E. Society - February 2016 participants



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Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Bourbon Baked Beans #BloggerCLUE


Tangy, spicy, rich, and loaded with bacon, these bourbon spiked baked beans are the perfect side dish for a barbecue or even to serve as the main course with a loaf of crusty bread.

I must confess that here in Dubai, we don’t grill as often during the summer as we do the rest of the year because with temperatures that soar into the 120s°F (49-50°C) the last thing we want to do is light a fire and stand over it. But an assignment is an assignment and this month’s Blogger C.L.U.E. theme is “barbecue and grilling.” So I headed over to learn more about Lisa, the talented writer, photographer and cook behind Authentic Suburban Gourmet and poke around in her blog, as instructed, to hunt for dishes that fit our theme. A search for the word “grill” turned up eight pages of recipes! Clearly this bonafide Bay Area foodie, as Lisa refers to herself, is keen on grilling everything from peaches to cauliflower to flank steak. I was just about choose one of those lovely dishes and take one for the team when that same search for “grill” revealed this flavorful baked bean recipe with barbecue sauce. Sure, I'd have to turn the oven on, but that’s why, on the eighth day, God created air conditioning for the great indoors.

The only ingredient changes I made to Lisa’s recipe were to start with dried beans instead of canned (but I’ll leave both amounts in case canned is easier for you – just rinse them well) and I added a couple of hot peppers. Because we like that kind of heat all year long. She didn’t say what sort of vessel to bake them in so I took the liberty of inaugurating my brand new bean pot (Isn't it pretty?) and sealing the loose-fitting lid with a flour-water dough.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups or 315g dried white beans = 4 1/2 cups cooked beans or 3 cans (15 oz 425g) white beans
8 slices smoked bacon
1 large onion
2 hot red chilies - optional
1 cup or 240ml ketchup
1 cup or 240ml traditional barbecue sauce (I used one labeled BOLD.)
1/4 cup or 60ml bourbon
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: dough seal for bean pot
1 cup or 125g flour
Lukewarm water to make soft dough (I used about 1/2 cup or 120ml.)

Method
If you are going to cook your own beans, pick through them carefully and remove any stones or small clumps of dirt and any beans that have holes or discolorations. Even the best quality beans might have stones since they are usually sorted by machines and the occasional non-bean gets through. Either soak them overnight in cool water or cover them amply with boiling water in a heatproof bowl and leave to soak for one hour.

After an hour covered with boiling water: All plumped up.



If you are using canned beans, pour them into a colander and rinse well.

When soaking time is over, pour off the bean water and put the beans in a pot, covered with fresh cool water. Bring to the boil then lower the flame to simmer and cook the beans until they are tender. Depending on how old (and, therefore, dried) your beans are, this could take an hour or an hour and a half.

Meanwhile, you can get on with the rest of the dish. Chop your onion finely. Do the same with the hot peppers, if using. Cut the bacon into small strips.



Fry the bacon until crispy. Remove it from the frying pan with a slotted spoon and place on some paper towels to drain. I highly recommend hiding this bacon bounty or you might find it all gone before the beans are tender if you leave it irresistibly, invitingly exposed on the kitchen counter.

Spoon or pour out all but a couple of tablespoons of the bacon fat from the frying pan (I recommend saving the fat in a jar in the refrigerator for another use.) then use that same frying pan to sauté the chopped onions and peppers until they are softened.



When your beans are tender, drain them and preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Tender beans


Put your cooked or rinsed canned beans in your bean pot or another ovenproof dish. Measure out the rest of your ingredients and add them into the bean pot or dish.

Don’t forget to add in the bacon, onions and chilies.

Stir everything well. Add salt and pepper to taste.



If you are using a casserole dish, bake it in your preheated oven for about 45 minutes.

If you are using a bean pot, you might want to add a dough seal. Simply put your flour in a small bowl and add enough lukewarm water to form a soft dough. Knead it for a few short minutes.

Roll the dough into a long snake that will reach right the way around the circumference of your bean pot lid. Secure it by pressing it to the rim of the bean pot itself. Gently lay the lid on top and press ever so slightly down.




Bake in your preheated oven for about 45 minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes and then loosen the dough seal with a pointy knife.


Remove the lid and serve up the bourbon baked beans!





Enjoy!







Whether you are looking for great grilling recipes or dishes to make for a barbecue, our Blogger C.L.U.E. (Cook, Learn, Undertake, Eat) Society has got you covered this month.


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Sunday, May 3, 2015

The Texas Dog #BallparkFood #Giveaway

A bacon-wrapped hot dog, tucked into a well-buttered, grilled slice of Texas toast, then heaped with jalapeño relish. Make your own or head on over to Minute Maid Park and enjoy a baseball game as well. 

One baseball season, 30 baseball parks to visit, with the sole goal of trying All The Food. Sounds like a dream job. The author of The Joy of Ballpark Food – From Hot Dogs to Haute Cuisine, Bennett Jacobstein took it upon himself, selfless person that he is, to research ballpark food and, along with his long suffering wife (and photographer) he did indeed visit all the major league parks in the 2014 season, eating his way through a substantial menu of offerings, in support of a bigger cause, the Second Harvest Food Bank. All royalties from his book will benefit SHFB.


Jacobstein shares his culinary discoveries, along with historical curiosities about the start of concession food from the beginning of hot dogs, peanuts and Cracker Jacks – and a thorough discussion of the song that made the last two famous - through new trendier dishes like carne asada waffle fries and crab-stuffed pretzels. (Unfortunately, no recipes are included, so you have to make the rounds yourself to taste the food!)

Maybe I’m a food nerd, but the history was my favorite part. Who knew that the man most responsible for popularizing hot dogs at baseball games was a Brit, born in Derbyshire, England? Or that nachos were first invented by a waiter named Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya who called them Nacho’s Especiale, since he had created them? I was also tantalized by the menus from each ballpark, starting with the Arizona Diamondbacks and their Venom Dog made with habanero sausage through the Washington Nationals speciality dog named the DVM in which a foot-long half smoke is smothered with Maryland crab dip, then topped with Virginia ham.

This book would be a great gift for a baseball fan, perhaps to accompany some tickets to a ball game or even, maybe, a series of tickets in different cities so the recipient can try foodie favorites in a few places, budget allowing. But I gotta warn you, if your friends and family are the type to quote historical dates and numbers, you may well be hearing more facts about popcorn and hot dogs, not to mention Cracker Jacks, than you ever wanted to know. Because they are all in there, and Jacobstein’s warm and engaging delivery and sense of humor are motivation to keep reading.

I call Houston my hometown on Facebook and here on my blog About Me page, but sadly, I have never been to a home game in The Juice Box, aka Minute Maid Park . Truth is, I haven’t lived in Houston for a good number of years and a trip to the ballpark when I am home just never came up. When I read the fabulous food on offer, I wonder why. It doesn’t have to be about the ball game apparently. There are folks who just go for the food. Jacobstein doesn’t mention it, but Minute Maid Park has an all you can eat option, which includes a game ticket on the mezzanine floor and all you can eat hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, peanuts and soda. Way to upsize it Texas-style, Minute Maid! First thing I’m going to try is the Texas Dog, because it’s wrapped with BACON and cooked, then it’s put in Texas toast, and finally, it’s covered in jalapeño relish. And since I can’t wait, let’s just try one now.

A Note on Texas Toast
Here’s the thing about Texas toast: Don’t be shy about either cutting it thick or spreading on the butter the same way. The butter’s where it’s at when it comes to toasting slices on a griddle. Also, garlic is not essential, never mind what Bobby Flay might have you believe. The original Texas toast, whether it started in Dallas or Beaumont, certainly didn’t have garlic. Okay, tiny rant over. Let’s bacon wrap a dog!

Ingredients
1 slice smoked bacon (not thick cut)
1 hot dog of your choice (These here are Oscar Mayer because that's what I can get in Dubai.)
1 double thick slice bread
Butter, softened
2 tablespoons spicy jalapeño relish

Method
Wrap your bacon around the hot dog and secure it with toothpicks.

Fry the bacon-wrapped wiener until the bacon is crispy and the dog is hot through. Remove the toothpicks.



Apply softened butter liberally to both sides your thick cut bread.

Toast it on a griddle until golden and crunchy on both sides.



Place the hot dog in the bread and fold it up.

Cover it with the relish.



Enjoy!



If you know someone who would enjoy receiving a copy of this book, please head over to the website to buy one. Remember that all royalties benefit Second Harvest Food Bank so you’ll be doing a good deed and making someone happy all at the same time!

And since this is a charity effort, I am going to send my copy to one reader (US shipping addresses only, please, and book will be mailed out at the end of May from Houston, Texas) and the promoter is also offering one Kindle version to anyone worldwide who can accept an ebook from Amazon.com.

To enter the drawing, leave me a comment saying 1. real book or ebook and 2. who you are going to give it to and 3. why you think that person deserves it. It could be yourself and you are the biggest foodie baseball fan you know. Sell me! I’ll choose two winners from the comments on Wednesday, 13 May.

My decision is final and no discussions or objections will be entertained. Winners will be notified by email (The Disqus commenting system automatically saves them for me so make sure you use a valid email to comment.) and will have 48 hours to respond. If an original winner does not respond in that time frame, I will choose another winner. And so on, until we give both books away.

It’s a fun read! You all are going to love it!

Disclaimer: I was sent one copy of The Joy of Ballpark Food – From Hot Dogs to Haute Cuisine. No other remuneration was received. I am delighted to support this fundraising effort for Second Harvest Food Bank.

Update: I chickened out and couldn't chose between the comments for a winner so I let the random number generator at random.org do the job. Our winner for the real book is Jan Elmore and she has been sent an email to confirm this.

Thanks for playing, everyone!


Posted by at 10:19:00 AM 0 comments
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