Bacon is Red. Bacon is Rough. One Strip of Bacon is never enough. (Maple Bacon Waffle Cone Rice Krispy Treats)

One of the best things about the office I work in is the awesome food days that occur.  Food is a great work distraction.  My husband required my kitchen skills this week for a such occasion, and I had just received a recipe on Pinterest that was begging for some bacon to be added.  They were ooey.  They were gooey... and they had bacon.  What else could you ask for?  (Plus other Baconfiles brought in Hash brown Bacon-Weave Cups and Chocolate-Covered Bacon so this was a nice addition, or so I'm told). 

Maple Bacon Waffle Cone Rice Krispy Treats
2 sticks of unsalted butter
Two 10 ounce bag of marshmallows
24 ounces Rice Krispie cereal (approx. 4 cups)
12 waffle cones, crushed
1 pound of bacon, fried up and crumbled
½ cup maple syrup, grade B

Grease a 9-x-13 inch pan or 24 muffin tins using butter or Vegetable Spray. 

In a large pot, over low heat add butter and let melt.

Add marshmallows, stirring into the butter. Let them melt until almost all of the marshmallows are in liquid form, add maple syrup.

Once melted, take off of the heat. Add cereal, bacon and waffle cone pieces. Mix until all the ingredients are equally distributed (as best you can).  Pour into rectangular pan or equally split mixture between the muffin tins. Let firm up for an hour or so by placing in the refrigerator to cool. Cut into squares (if you used a rectangular pan) and enjoy.
 
 

Bacon. It's Gonna Save the World Someday. I Don't Know How - But it Will! (Bacon Potato Chip Cookies)

Today bacon loved potatoes.  I've been making a lot of the sweeter bacon recipes, so I decided to go savory.  Took potatoes and quartered them, wrapped half a slice of uncooked bacon around the spud and secured with a toothpick.  350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Perfect accompaniment to slow-smoked pork spare ribs.

 

But tonight's show stopper recipe is something I just put together, after hearing about the cookie at work.  My friend Jon told me all about these delicious Potato Chip Cookies he had a couple of weeks ago.  Of course, while he's telling me all about them, all I can think of is "I wonder how they will taste with Bacon?"

 

Bacon Potato Chip Cookies

6 Slices of bacon, cooked

3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup crushed potato chips

3/4 cup crushed toffee bits (or butterfinger)

1/4 cup sugar (for rolling)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Place bacon on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet in a cold oven, and cook for 20-25 minutes, our until desired doneness.  Remove from rack and drain on a paper towel.  Once drained and cool, chop fine.

Beat the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt together with an electric mixer until fluffy.  On low speed, beat in flour until just incorporated.  Stir in Bacon, Potato Chips and Toffee.  Make balls of cookie dough (about 1 tbsp) and roll them in sugar.  Place cookie balls on buttered baking sheet and flatten with the bottom of a glass (about 1/4 inch thick).  bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.  Don't cool too long on baking sheet, the toffee will stick. 

I used to think Bacon was bad for me. Then I stopped thinking. (Double-Chocolate Bacon Zucchini Muffins)

It's that time of year, where the farmer's markets are harvesting their squash and zucchini.  And the zucchini's I've seen so far this summer are HUGE!  I'm a big fan of sneaking veggies into other foods, like breads and cakes.  Add chocolate and even better, so why not add Bacon?!?  I adapted a zucchini bread recipe that I had used in the past.  Results are in, and taste testers approve.  So if you are looking for a way to sneak some veggies in, or just trying to get rid of the veggies you're growing, try it out.

Double-Chocolate Bacon Zucchini Muffins
6-8 slices of bacon
2 large eggs
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or bourbon vanilla extract)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup All-Purpose Baking Cocoa or Dutch-process cocoa
1 2/3 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 cups shredded, unpeeled zucchini, gently pressed (1 Large zucchini)
1 cup chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F, put slices of bacon on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet, bake for 20 minutes or until desired crispiness.  Move bacon to paper towel-lined plate to drain. Once cooled, chop bacon fine and set aside.

Lightly grease muffin tins or papers.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs, honey, oil, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add the salt, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa and flour, mixing until well combined.

Stir in the zucchini, chocolate chips and finely chopped bacon.

Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tins or papers.  Bake the muffins for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center will come out clean.

Remove the muffins from the oven, and let it cool for 5 to 10 minutes before turning them out onto a rack to cool.

The Mystical Powers of Fortune Telling Bacon (And Bacon Toffee Cheesecake)

Found this in my internet trolling this morning....Did you know that Bacon can tell your future.  No!  Not your future of Heart Disease....but the mysteries of the future are in the palm of your hand, and Bacon can show you the way.

Check out the website here!

We went to the new Monroe County Fair yesterday and enjoyed the livestock, the food, and the Large tractors.  My husband had a deep-fried Snickers bar, but had they offered this below, I would've emptied my wallet for them...

 

This week's recipe was a HUGE success.  I've never personally tackled making a cheesecake before, so why not try something new?  And how do we make things that are awesome, better people?  We add Bacon.  (This is the theme afterall).  The Cheesecake was so good, in fact, I sent out a public plea on facebook to come over and help me finish it.  It was so rich and filling.  I suggest small pieces when you make/share it.

 

Bacon Toffee Cheesecake

Four 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 – 1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted
5 large eggs
1 teaspoon bourbon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped toffee candy bars (I used mini heath bars)
1/4 lb. finely chopped almonds
1 package hickory bacon
brown sugar
cinnamon

1. Candy your bacon: Cook the bacon on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet.  Places slices down and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.  Put bacon into a cold oven and cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes until done.  Drain Bacon on a paper towel, and then chop fine into pieces once cooled.

2. Make the crust: In a food processor, chop the almonds until almost a powder. Butter your springform pan on the bottom and sides. Toss in the almonds and then gently shake to coat buttered areas. Wrap the outside of the pan with 3 layers of heavy duty foil.

3. Make the cheesecake: Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until smooth. Beat in butter, then eggs, one at a time, until just blended. Beat in bourbon vanilla, crushed toffee, and candied bacon bits. Slowly pour the cheese mixture into your prepared pan.

4. Bake the cake: Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Add enough hot water to come halfway up sides of the pan. Bake uncovered until filling is puffed around edges and moves slightly in center when pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Remove pan from water; remove foil. Place hot cheesecake uncovered in refrigerator overnight.

5. Serve: Now that your cake is cooled completely, run a butter knife around the sides of the pan. Release the spring and invert cake onto a plate. Garnish with a drizzle of caramel sauce or chopped up toffee and candied bacon.
 

I'm a Slacker and a Bacontarian! (Bacon-Stuffed Mushrooms)

It's been really hot out these past couple of weeks.  And I've been really lazy.  It's not that I've not been eating the bacon.  It's just that I've not been sharing it with you.  It's hard to share the bacon.  Really it is. 

I Love Bacon, you know...and I love appitizers.  Sometimes you don't want a meal.  Especially at night.  If your hankering for a late night snack and want to fill in that salty/savory craving, sometimes stuffed mushrooms are the way to go.  Or, if you're having a party...Just make a triple batch!)  These mushrooms were gone in 5 minutes.  3 adults happily sated the late night grumble of the stomach beast.

Bacon-Stuffed Mushrooms

1 Package of whole white mushrooms

1 Onion, diced
6 slices of Bacon cooked, drained and chopped fine
½ cup Panko Bread Crumbs
¼ cup Italian Bread Crumbs
¼ cup Parmesan Cheese
¼ cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Dice bacon and sauté in a pan, until crispy.  Drain on a paper towel.  Remove excess bacon grease from the pan, but reserve about 2 tablespoons to cook the diced onion.  On medium heat, cook onion until it becomes translucent and golden in color.  Remove from heat.

Remove any dirt from the mushroom cap and stem with a slightly dampened paper towel.  Pull mushroom stems off, and dice the mushroom stems fine.  Place mushroom caps, cap-side down on a pie pan or shallow baking dish.

In a bowl combine bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.  Then add diced mushroom stems, onion and bacon.  Mix well.  Spoon mix into each mushroom cap filling it to capacity. 

Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until mushroom softens.  Then add remaining cheddar cheese over the top of each mushroom, and bake for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from oven and devour.

  

Kittens & Bacon (Chocolate Bacon Almond Crunch Candy)

Kittens & Bacon: The Most Viral Infograraphic Ever - Check this out.  It makes sense on why Bacon (And Kittens) get so much love on the Internets.

How would you like to smell like bacon, and prevent your skin from becoming bacon all at the same time?  Check it out.  Bacon Sunscreen

 

So this week was awesome for Bacon and I.  Since I professed my love publicly, I've gotten lots of recipes and even a couple of gifts...Here's my newly acquired gifts provided by a great co-worker and absolutely lovely yoga student...

<--Bacon Ice Cube Trays

                                         Bacon T-Shirt-->

This week's recipe came out of inspiration from the ice cube trays.  You can make candy in silicon ice trays.  I made my own candy.  It's delicious.  Here's the recipe below.  Mmmmm 

 

Chocolate Bacon Almond Crunch
Ingredients:
To do 24 chocolates

6 ounces of chocolate chips (semi-sweet)

4 or 5 slices of smoked bacon
chocolates or bucket mold silicone
caramelized almonds (crunchy) (recipe below)

Preparation:
Put the bacon well-spread sheets up two paper towels, putting up two paper towels and press slightly, introducing in the microwave (should be crispy), remove from microwave remove the paper and let cool completely. When cool grind blades with a food processor.

Temper the chocolate chips by putting it in a bowl in the microwave, melt them completely.
(Put your chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and cook on high heat in 30 second intervals until the chocolate starts to melt. You can melt chocolate over a double boiler, but I prefer a microwave in this case. A small amount of water can cause your chocolate to seize and working without condensation is a little bit safer. Once it starts to melt, heat the chocolate in 10-20 second intervals, stirring in between, until it has fully melted. Dark chocolate needs to reach a temperature of between 114-120F. Milk and white chocolate need to reach a temperature between 105-113.)

Almond Crunch recipe:
It has 3 simple ingredients. Butter, honey and chopped almonds. You will need 4 tablespoons Butter, 2 Tablespoons Honey and about 1/2 cup chopped Almonds.

First of all the honey and butter are melted over a low heat. Then the heat is increased (you need to watch the mixture as it can overcook easily) until it starts to bubble and turn a golden brown. At this point, add the chopped almonds and combine well. Stir the mix over a moderate heat for about 2 minutes and then turn out onto a non-stick baking sheet (or silicone paper) to cool. When cool grind blades with a food processor. 

 

Make chocolates:
Take the chosen mold and fill the holes with a thin layer of melted chocolate, throw in some crushed bacon and a little crunchy almonds and put in the refrigerator for about two minutes for the chocolate to solidify (the rest of the chocolate we have reserved temperature), remove the chocolate from the refrigerator bases and very careful not to smudge the edges of the molds, finish filling with melted chocolate.

Another way is faster and easier mixing with melted chocolate and crunchy bacon and fill the molds directly with all the mixture at once.

Celebrating the Fourth of July with Bacon (S'more Bacon Bars)

The Fourth of July is always an exciting time.  Lots of good food, picnics, barbeques, beer, bacon and fireworks.  What more could a girl want?  I hope that you and your family had a wonderful Fourth of July.  What would our forefathers think of us now?  I'm not entirely sure, but I'm sure that they would love the BBQ's, the Beer and the fireworks.

I made these desert bars for a 4th party.  There were mixed reviews.  One person didn't like the texture the bacon added, but most loved it.  Nothing reminds me more of summer than ooey, gooey S'mores.  These are still a little gooey, but in bar form they are less messy.  Try them out!

S’more Bacon Bars
Serves: 9 bars

Ingredients
6 slices of bacon, cooked, drained on a paper towel and crumbled into small pieces
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 and 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 king-sized milk chocolate bars
1 and 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook your bacon in the oven, on a cooling rack over a baking sheet for 20 minutes, or until desired doneness.  Drain on a paper towel, and crumble into small pieces and set aside.

Cream butter, brown sugar, sugar, egg, and vanilla together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, stir flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Slowly incorporate dry ingredients into butter mixture.

Press half of dough into a greased 9x9 pan. Set chocolate bars on top. Top with Bacon.  Spread marshmallow fluff over chocolate and top with remaining dough.

Bake for 30-35, or until golden.