What’s special about her bacon recipe?
FTV posted it. It’s microwaving bacon. That’s it. You know, take bacon, lay out on paper towel, etc.
But the comments were freakin’ hilarious. I can’t find it anymore.
Bummer. Never got the MW method. Always the oven for me.
MW is fine in a pinch. But the least good way to make bacon.
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I’ve been baking bacon for several months now and just love it. Made it the ‘old’ way recently and could hardly remember how to do it.
My Family’s Country-Style Pâté (aka French Meatloaf)
o 1 medium onion, chopped in FP
o butter
o big splash brandy or cognac (no need to use the good stuff)
o 2/3 lb EACH ground veal, ground pork and ground dark meat turkey
o 1/3 chicken livers, cleaned and chopped in FP after onions
o 2 cloves garlic, minced
o 1 egg, beaten
o generous 1/2 tsp allspice
o 1 generous tsp EACH salt and pepper (really)
o cheap fatty non-smoky, non-maple bacon (store brand is usually just right)
o bay leaf or two
optional additions
o about 1/4 to 1/3 cup shelled pistachios
o about 1/4 to 1/3 cup dried currants
o about 1/4 to 1/3 cup diced dried apricots
o 1/4 inch strips of baked ham – enough to go end to end in the pan in one or two rows
o Note on optional additions: only use one or two, not more
variation
o use ground venison instead of ground turkey and add 2 or 3 finely minced juniper berries
Preheat oven to 350.
Sauté onion in butter until translucent, add brandy and cook until almost evaporated. Cool.
Add to remaining ingredients (including any optional ingredients except ham strips) and mix very well.
Line a 1.5 quart loaf pan with bacon, allowing the ends to hang over so you can fold them over the top when filled.
Pack the pâté mix in very firmly firmly so there are no air holes, adding the ham strips (if using) down the middle when half-filled then topping so that when the pâté is sliced they will make an attractive pattern in the middle in cross-section. Top with one or two bay leaves, then fold bacon over, covering completely.
Tightly cover with a triple layer of aluminum foil.
Place in a baking pan and pour water halfway up the side of the loaf pan.
Bake to 140 internal temp, about 1 hour (it will continue to cook a bit on the counter).
Remove from water bath onto a cookie sheet or similar, leave covered, and weight down with bricks until cool (juices will gush out, hence the cookie sheet).
Once cool, refrigerate, weighted, at least 2 days before eating (aging 2 days gives you a MUCH better pâté than aging 1 day; you can age for several days longer and it only improves).
Remove bacon and bay leaf before serving.
Serve with cornichons and crusty bread.
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Big fan of country pate. I always make one around Christmas to this recipe:
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This is decidedly down market but when i make it there is never any left.
I am looking for another horrifying recipe that uses 3 cans of different Campbell soup and Tater tots , but cant seem to find it, here goes. Sorry.
1/2 pound bacon, diced
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
1 (3 pound) pkg diced hash browns
1/2 c. mayo
1 (11 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup
red pepper to taste
black pepper to taste
salt to taste
granulated galic to taste
1 pound cheddar cheese, shredded
saute bacon till crisp, remove bacon and saute onion and bell pepper till tender.
hashbrowns in bowl w/ remaining ingredients except cheese.
all into casserole dish, top with cheese.
350 degrees until cheese starts to bubble.
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This reminds me of my mother’s rouladen, though there’s no sour cream in her soße; she did kind of a roux thing. She did have that exact filling of bacon, onion and pickles. She also had the butcher at Demoulas trained to slice the beef properly for her too. “Set the slicer at number nine! Not eight! Not ten!”
I think I’ll try my hand at a batch this month due to your inspiration.
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That does sound tasty, hyde, but I’m already thinking about fiddling with the ingredients to make it doable for us:
…a lesser amt of pancetta/for bacon
…lesser amt of stir-fried in ghee cubed potatoes/for pkg hash browns
…homemade cream of mushroom soup concentrate
…minced garlic
…less cheddar
Comments?
why not grated potates instead of the packaged hash browns? Even if fried in straight-up butter and a little vegetable oil.
I might make a bechamel and add some sauteed mushrooms in place of the soup.
But let’s be really honest with ourselves – sometimes you can’t argue with success. Just like green bean csserole, sometimes the downmarket recipes just taste good. While it’s not a good idea to make a steady diet of recipes like this, once in a while isn’t going to kill anyone.
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I’ll chime in for the low-carb contingent with the recipe I made for guests last night - LC Mac and Cheese. An oxymoron, I know. But it really works! It’s also a great dish for vegetarians who need to add more protein into their diets or are just looking for a new way to enjoy tofu.
3 pkgs firm/extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 lb cauliflower florets (fresh or frozen, but frozen works great)
1/2 c. cream or half and half (sour cream, yogurt or even buttermilk will also work if you like tang)
4 oz. cream cheese (or chevre, again for tang)
2 oz. American or Velveeta cheese (more if you like it)
approx 1 lb. sharp cheddar, gruyere or whatever other cheese you like
1 t. dry mustard
pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
additional grated cheese (I use parmesan) for topping
Boil the cauliflower in an ovenproof skillet large enough to hold the tofu (eventually) until very soft; drain well. Place drained cauliflower in blender with cream and cream cheese (or substitutes) and blend until completely smooth. Return cauliflower puree to skillet over medium low heat and add mustard and nutmeg; stir to combine. Add cheeses (a couple of handfuls at a time) and stir until melted and smooth (add additional cream if required, but this sauce should be much thicker than the sauce you would use for traditional pasta mac and cheese). Season to taste and keep warm.
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350. Cut the tofu into 1/4" planks and then cut these planks crosswise into 1/4" strips. Gently fold the tofu into the cheese sauce and press the mixture flat in the pan. Top generously with additional cheese. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly, then broil for a few minutes to get the top brown and crunchy.
I know this sounds weird, but every person I have ever served it to LOVES it. It does NOT taste like cauliflower - the cauliflower is just there to add body to the sauce and keep it from breaking. You can add anything you’d add to traditional mac and cheese to customize it.
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Velvety Broccoli Cheese Soup
1 12 ounce steamer bag of Green Giant Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
(nuke for 8 minutes according to package directions_
Approx 1 cup hot chicken broth
Cut top off steamer bag with scissors, then dump the entire broccoli/cheese contents into a the jar of a high speed blender. Add enough hot chicken stock to cover broccoli. Blend on high speed until you can no longer see bits of dark green broccoli florets whirring past in the totally smooth soup. Serve.
To have complete success with this you have to use a high speed blender. I make mine in my Waring “commercial” 2 speed blender and it does a fabulous job. I tried to make it once in my Ninja blender, but it absolutely could not blend out all of the green bits of brocolli florets, and they feel “gritty” when this soup is make correctly. I’ve also made it with hot water instead of chicken broth, as well as with hot milk and it’s delicious all three ways. It is the length of time in the blender at super high speed that whips the soup into a very thick velvety micro-bubbled foam that makes it so delicious. I "invented it’ last year or whenever and immediately told eveytong about it on that other board, and it was well recieved. But be warned: after inventing this recipe I simply cannot face any canned or restaurant brocolli cheese soup, this is that good!
Enjoy
Jfood’s Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
This recipe needs planning. I normally serve it on a Sunday night, but I start with marinating the ribs on Friday night and braise in the oven during the day on Saturday. Then around 5PM I start Sunday dinner and these are ready to go. This recipe should feed 6 with sides.
INGREDIENTS
4-5 pounds beef short ribs, cut into 4” chops (this should give 12-14 pieces)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 cups red wine
½ Cup sugar
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
3 sprigs fresh or heaping Tablespoon dry thyme
3 ounces oil
2 Cups small-diced onion
½ Cup small-diced celery
½ Cup small-diced carrots
6 ounces canned chopped tomatoes
2 cups beef broth
2-4 pounds cremini mushrooms
2 bay leaves
DIRECTIONS
Day 1
- Generously season the short ribs with salt and pepper. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the red wine, sugar, garlic, thyme and a pinch of salt. Marinate the short ribs in the wine mixture for 12 hours in the refrigerator.
- Slice mushrooms and sauté slowly until all of the liquid is evaporated and they just begin to brown. Remove to a separate bowl. This can be done day before and refrigerate.
Day 2 - Remove the short ribs from the wine and allow the beef to rest for several minutes and come to room temperature. Reserve marinade.
- Pour 3 ounces oil into a Dutch oven over high heat.
- Place the meat in the hot pan. This may take two batches. Stir and turn the meat often, carefully allowing each piece to brown on each side before removing from the pan. When browned (will take several minutes per side), remove the beef from the pan.
- Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Stir constantly and allow the onions to cook until mahogany in color, about 10 minutes; if onions are browning too quickly, reduce to medium heat.
- Add the short ribs back to the pot along with the reserved wine marinade. Allow the wine to come to a boil before reducing the heat to a simmer.
- After several minutes, add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil
- Cover the Dutch oven and place in a 275 degree oven for about 4 hours.
- Refrigerate over night
Day 3 - Take the Dutch oven from the fridge and skim off the congealed fat.
- Place the Dutch oven on the stove and bring the ribs to temperature.
- Transfer short ribs to a dish and cover.
- Season the short ribs and braising liquid with salt and pepper to taste.
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Stupidly Simple yet Fabulous Pork Shoulder
Fresh pork shoulder, weight of your choice
Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire Sauce
brown sugar
apple cider
-
Dry pork shoulder with paper towels to remove surface moister. Place it fatty side up in a deep lidded cocotte or dutch oven of a size that doesn’t leave a lot of open space around the roast, once it’s settled into the pan. No more than an inch on any side of the roast is ideal.
-
Generously douse the top of the roast with Lea & Perrings Worcestershire sauce. Be generous but don’t drown it.
-
Pack the top of the roast with a thick layer of brown sugar.
-
Gently pour apple cider or apple juice or hard cider down the inside of the pan while being careful that it does not splash the brown sugar or get it wet in any way until the cider/juice comes approximately 1/3 of the way up the side of the pork roast, but no more than an inch deep…
-
Cover with lid and place in the middle of a 225F oven for six hours.
6, Make gravy with the pot liquor or use it “au jus.” Carve or shred the roast and serve.
CAUTION: Do NOT add salt and pepper to the roast at any point. As simple as the recipe looks with only 4 ingredients including the pork, it produces a very complex and rich sauce and the pork is well flavored. I found this recipe on the web some years back and don’t remember where, but it turns out a fabulously sophisticated pork roast that is great served “family style” with mashed potatoes, gravy made with the jus, and your favorite veggie side. It also makes delicious pulled pork sandwiches and/or pork tacos. I have no idea if it would work well and have the same flavors if cooked in a crock pot. I have a crock pot but never use it. And I would NEVER cook this sous vide. It is just too wonderful the way it is! As the old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” Words to live by…
Red Beans & Rice
Cook some bacon. Reserve 1/4 cup oil and remove bacon. Saute one pound sausage. Remove from pan. In oil saute an onion, a few stalks of celery, a bell pepper and 1/4 head of garlic. Add 1 tbsp oregano, 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp sugar, 1.5 tsp black pepper, 1 lb dry red kidney beans, one Abita Amber or other amber beer and a pound of ham (either chunks or pickled pork or any ham product). Cover with water. Cover pot. Simmer for four hours or until beans are tender. Add sausage. Cook another hour. Serve over rice. Add cayenne to taste. I like mine with Tabasco.
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My Semi-Famous Pimiento Cheese:
8 oz. block sharp cheddar
8 oz. block Monterey Jack
I shred half of it on the regular sized holes of a box grater, and half on a hand-held, which grates much smaller. This is because I am crazy.
1 large (or medium? Smallish? I can’t remember if there are 3 sizes) jar diced pimientos, drained and rinsed and drained again. Maybe 4 oz. jar?
Approx. 2-3 tablespoons minced onion. I mean I chop it up about as tiny as I can. Little bitty. This big: □
Salt - long dash
Pepper - healthy smidge
Cayenne Pepper - hearty pinch
Garlic Salt - chubby sprinkle
Add mayo to desired level of moistness. I’d estimate about 2 cups, but you can always add more. Removing it is not easy. Can be used as a dip, spread, or for a grilled cheese sandwich.
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I think “chubby sprinkle” may be the best new phrase I’ve come across in a while.
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jfood14h
Jfood’s Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
I have made these many times, and they are my favorite! Thanks, Jfood!
Question about step 4: if I have a 9-10 lb. shoulder[quote=“Caroline1, post:38, topic:1832”]
1/3 of the way up the side of the pork roast, but no more than an inch deep…
[/quote]
seems difficult to do. 1/3 up the side of the roast would likely be more than just one inch deep.
?
