White Wings

As most of you have probably heard, Jenna Bush - President Bush's daughter - got hitched at the family ranch in Crawford, Texas this past weekend. Very few details of the weekend's festivities have been made public, but the Washington Post managed to track down a few tidbits from the rehearsal dinner that took place the night before the wedding ceremony. The information comes to us courtesy of the owners of the businesses that hosted and catered the rehearsal dinner (they were in the dark themselves until 3 hours prior to the event). You can read the full article here.

Catering was done by The Range Restaurant in Salado, Texas. One of the items on the menu was a Texas delicacy called "white wings." On the restaurant's catering menu, this dish is described as "bacon wrapped chicken and cheese bites." I ran a Google search to find a more specific recipe, and thankfully was able to find one on The Bacon Show.

Basically how white wings are made is you place a Monterey jack cheese cube and one slice of jalapeno pepper on a chicken strip and roll it up. Then you wrap a slice of bacon around each rolled up chicken slice, forming a ball. But you don't just stop with one strip of bacon - next you wrap another slice of bacon around the ball in the opposite direction. Using toothpicks to hold the bacon and chicken in place, you grill the meat balls over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, rotating constantly.

White wings sound like the perfect way to kick off a weekend of merriment, whether you're getting married to the President's daughter or just hanging out in your backyard in the 'burbs.

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Unity Sandwich

A few months ago, Food and Wine Magazine published a recipe for a BLT Fried Egg and Cheese Sandwich that was created by Chef Thomas Keller of the highly acclaimed restaurant, French Laundry.

The idea behind this sandwich is that it "combines three of the world's most popular sandwiches - bacon, lettuce and tomato; fried egg; and grilled cheese."

While it is impressive to say that you can combine three sandwiches into one, I prefer to look at it as combining two sandwiches that are adored by bacon lovers - the BLT and a bacon, egg and cheese. Whichever way you slice it, this sandwich is a masterpiece.

BLT Fried Egg and Cheese Sandwich

4 thick slices of bacon
2 slices of Monterey Jack cheese
2 thick slices of rustic white bread, toasted and hot
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
4 tomato slices
2 leaves of butter lettuce
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
1 large egg

In a skillet, cook the bacon over moderate heat, turning until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Set the Monterey Jack slices on 1 piece of toast. Spread the mayonnaise on the other slice of toast, then top with the bacon, tomato and lettuce.

In a small, nonstick skillet, melt the butter. Add the egg and fry over moderate heat, turning once, until crisp around the edge, about 4 minutes; the yolk should still be runny. Slide the egg onto the lettuce; close the sandwich and eat right away.

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Bacon Nation Unwrapped (it was a slow week - sorry!)

Recent news from the Bacon Nation...

• Jimmy's 43 in Manhattan hosts a Bacon Week.
• Hillary Clinton reconfirms her love for American bacon over Canadian bacon.
  

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Bacon Nation Unwrapped: Bacon in unusual places

Recent news from the Bacon Nation...

• Cupcakes are very trendy these days. And bacon is always in style. Endless Simmer highlights a few bacon cupcake creations from the blogosphere.
• Bacon is never in style in Kuwait where it is prohibited for religious reasons. But fortunately American troops can eat bacon on base. Crispy on the Outside recently interviewed an Army JAG officer stationed in Camp Arifjan about food options available to troops abroad.
• Make a tiara for the bacon princess in your life.

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Loans for Hogs

I've been threatening for a while now to adopt a potbelly pig. My friends look at me like I'm crazy anytime I bring it up. Unfortunately for them I'm used to people looking at me crazy so it has very little impact. But deep in the back of my mind I know that a 300 pound porker barreling through my house full of breakables and light colored furniture is probably the last thing I need in my life right now. So for now, my home remains hog-free.

Instead I've decided to channel my adopt-a-pig thoughts to a more productive place. At the suggestion of my friend Todd, I recently created an account with Kiva with an initial $250 investment. If you aren't familiar with Kiva, it is a non-profit, person-to-person, micro-lending website that focuses on finding individuals who are willing to lend directly to entrepreneurs in the developing world. My plan is to invest in projects where entrepreneurs (preferably women) are interested in creating or growing a business that involves purchasing and raising swine.

My first investment is with Isabel, a 54 year old woman in Paraguay who owns a pantry from where she sells basic everyday food products. She also offers home deliveries and supplies other businesses in the area. Isabel requested a $700 loan from the Kiva network in order to buy stock for her store, as well as pigs and chickens to rear, so she can offer a better supply to her customers.


I'm happy to report that between myself and 13 other investors from around the United States and Canada, Isabel has received her $700 loan. She will repay us over the next 12 months.

I'm excited to be involved in this project, and I look forward to being involved in more Kiva projects in the future. I'll keep you posted.

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The best fast food restaurant bag ever

The bag says it all.

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Bacon in Food & Wine (5/08)

From the May issue of Food & Wine Magazine...

• Chef Rob Evans of Hugo’s Restaurant in Portland, Maine highlights restaurants he and his wife visited during their cross country motorcycle ride for their honeymoon. Binkley’s in Cave Creek, Arizona was one of his favorites - he especially enjoyed the pancetta wrapped trotter.
• Mario Batali shares a recipe for pancetta wrapped asparagus with citronette.
• The restaurant Harvest in Boston is listed as one of Food & Wine’s top restaurants of 2008. The editors loved the restaurant’s Crispy Kurobuta pork belly BLT.
• Another favorite restaurant of the Food & Wine staff is Herbsaint in New Orleans. They recommend the “bacony pan-roasted chicken with shell beans.”
• If you find yourself in Montreal, visit Kitchen Galerie and order the cocotte of roasted root vegetables with lardons.
• For a Mediterranean style meal, try Pasta with Rosemary and Onion-Orange Marmelade, a dish that features finely chopped pancetta.

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Bacon in Bon Appetit (5/08)

From the May issue of Bon Appetit Magazine...

• A reader from Los Angeles asked the editors of the magazine to track down a recipe for Hawaiian Seafood Chowder as prepared by the chef of Palm Terrace on the island of Oahu. This Polynesian favorite is made with thick cut bacon and lots of fresh seafood.
• Bacon and swiss chard pasta is a quick, vitamin rich meal to make for dinner.
• New Orleans Shrimp, Okra and Tomato Saute is also an easy weeknight meal to make, and bacon is one of the ingredients that makes this dish so hearty and filling.
• Orangette Molly Wizenberg reflects on her study abroad experience in Paris during college and her host mother’s cooking. Molly was exposed to a wide range of traditional French cooking, most notably the cheese souffle, but also everyday classics such as a casserole made with cheese, potatoes, onion, bacon and cream.
• Alex Palermo, a Los Angeles-based restaurateur, travels to the Italian region of Umbria where he tastes local dishes such as Pancetta Roast Chicken with Walnut Stuffing and Peas with Onions and Guanciale.

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Drew Carey takes on the L.A. Food Police

Drew Carey recently did some investigative reporting for the Reason Foundation about the ongoing controversy over bacon hot dogs being sold on the streets of Los Angeles.

"Amid the hustle and bustle of downtown Los Angeles, there exists another world, an underground world of illicit trade in—not drugs or sex—but bacon-wrapped hot dogs."

The video features an interview with Terrence Powell of the Los Angeles County Health Department who makes a very weak attempt at explaining why bacon hot dogs are illegal. Powell and his food police cohorts are a fine example of the problem with over-regulation of an industry. Powell claims that bacon is a potentially hazardous food...as if hot dogs potentially aren't?!?

Carey and street vendor Elizabeth Palacios sum it up best by saying that the customers "just want the bacon."

(sorry if the video causes this page to load slowly for you)

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What I Love About Mondays

Nothing. I love absolutely nothing about Mondays.

But I did enjoy this egg, cheese and Kansas City bacon sandwich for lunch.

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Bacon Nation Unwrapped: Obsession

Recent news from the Bacon Nation...

• Do you think I'm obsessed? Like, I don't think I'm obsessed, but some people think I am. But I don't think I am. Is obsession such a bad thing anyways? So I guess maybe I am a little bit obsessed. What do you think???
• Is McDonald's considering adding a Bacon Float to their menu?
• Good pork always makes the best bacon.
• Carbonara. It just never gets old.

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Hey Ladies...Guys LOVE Bacon!

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Meme This

I normally don't participate in meme events. But I was just tagged by Norm over at Eat or Die who caught me in a moment of weakness. So I'm going to play along.

I regularly link to other blogs that have written about bacon. But believe it or not, there are several blogs I read on a daily basis and admire regardless of the amount of pork products those bloggers consume. So in a rare departure from my normal reporting of all-things bacon, here's a glimpse into my non-bacon interests.

The rules for this particular meme are:

• Write your own six-word memoir and post it on your blog.
• Link to the person who tagged you in your post.
• Tag five or six more blogs with links. Let those bloggers know you tagged them.

I've been playing the six-word memoir game with some friends over the last couple weeks, so I've been practicing for this part of the meme. Here's one for this occasion:

Always up for a bacon adventure.

Following are five blogs from my daily reading list:

• The Gurgling Cod: Sarcasm, swearing, and mocking infamous food personalities are three of my favorite traits in a blog.
• Dealing in Subterfuges: Jordan's humorous and honest assessment of current events ranging from Top Chef to Major League Baseball is laugh out loud funny.
• Ping Island Strike: Sean Brock (Chef at McCrady's Restaurant in Charleston, SC) shares photos of his food adventures.
• So Good: A humorous view of the world of food from the perspective of a stand up comedian.
• Why.I.Hate.DC: When I'm not waxing poetically about all things bacon, I can often be found bitching about all of the things about living in DC that make me Very Angry. And Rusty from why.i.hate.dc is like the head cheerleader for all of us who are taxed without representation.

Hope you discover something new to enjoy!

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Taco Bell joins the Bacon Club

Recognizing there is a shortage of Mexican fast food options involving bacon, Taco Bell has launched a new product called the Bacon Club Chalupa.

"Combining Mexican-inspired flavors with classic 'club' ingredients, Taco Bell debuted the Club Chalupa at participating stores nationwide for $1.99. A fresh choice for burger-bored Americans, Club Chalupa satisfies the bacon lover's appetite with lively flavor that's loaded with zip and zest. The product features tender, juicy marinated all-white meat chicken and crispy, real smoked bacon surrounded in a crispy, flaky Chalupa shell. The Club Chalupa is topped off with a creamy sauce, crisp lettuce, a three-cheese blend and ripe tomatoes."

Time to get your Fourth Meal on.

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Bacon Nation Unwrapped: Sunday Funnies

Recent news from the Bacon Nation...

• Scott Kurtz of the webcomic PVP is having guest artists do strips for him while he recovers from illness. A recent guest strip involves a character who randomly gets attacked by a panda. In one of the strips, the character fashions a suit made of bacon to keep the vegetarian panda from attacking him. (Thanks to reader, Jason).
• Duff Goldman, the Ace of Cakes, was recently featured in an article in USA Today. When asked what food he likes to travel with, his response was "I like to travel with food that's not too messy and not too greasy...(but) what I really wish I could travel with is bacon. If they invented a way to travel with hot fresh bacon, I would travel with that all the time. Unfortunately, bacon's something you have to have at home or in a diner or something." By the way, I think Duff needs to do a bacon-themed cake for his show on the Food Network...
• Are you looking to pick up a new hobby? Consider becoming an expert bacon mat maker. This art form proves once again that bacon makes everything better, including art.

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Bacon in Bon Appetit (4/08)

From the April issue of Bon Appetit magazine...

• James Villas' The Bacon Cookbook (see my interview with James Villas here) receives yet another mention in a food magazine as a book recommended by the magazine's contributors.
• Bistro Daisy in New Orleans serves oysters on a bed of wilted fennel and spinach tossed with chunks of smoky bacon.
• In an article dedicated to the egg and its many uses for meals at anytime of the day, Orecchiette Carbonara with Leeks is suggested as a dinner dish that marries eggs with applewood smoked bacon.

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Bacon Nation Unwrapped: Bacon Inspiration

Recent news from the Bacon Nation...

• Knowing how to say "bacon" in many languages, including sign language, is a good life skill.
• There have been a bazillion references to the bacon bra in the blogosphere this week (which is one of the reasons I haven't written about it yet - the other reason being that it's just kinda gross, to be honest). But here's a link to the Flickr page with the full photo montage if you just haven't had enough of it yet.
• The Shameless Carnivore has released a book.
• Do you like skateboarding? Do you like bacon? Well then here you go.
• Sometimes all you need is a tortilla and a few pieces of bacon to start the day.
• A group of bacon connoisseurs is doing research to discover new and unique ways to consume bacon.

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Paris Hilton Video

Get your mind out of the gutter - no Paris Hilton sex video here, kiddies. This is a video of the infamous heiress frying bacon.

My Name is Earl returned to the airwaves last night with a cameo appearance by Paris. In this episode, Earl is in a coma and his friends try waking him up by waving a piece of bacon in front of his face. But in Earl's corresponding coma-induced dream, he imagines Paris frying bacon for him.

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Bacon in Gourmet Magazine (4/08)

As with the April issue of Saveur, the April issue of Gourmet Magazine also focuses on Italian cuisine. But there aren't many references to cured pork products. The only thing worth mentioning is a receipe for Venetian rice and peas that is quick and easy to make, and calls for 1/4 pound sliced pancetta.

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Bacon in Meatpaper Magazine (Winter 2007)

From the Winter 2007 issue of Meatpaper Magazine...

• A store called Layonna Vegetarian Health Food Market might seem like the last place you would find a product described as "bacon-flavored ham," but this store in Oakland's Chinatown is fulfilling vegetarians' secret meat desires with "fake meat" products made from soy powder and wheat gluten.

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