Bacon Using The Sheet Pan Method

Makin' The Bacon!!  I use the sheet pan method for making bacon. Benefit of this is bacon that isn't curled and is evenly cooked. It also keeps your stovetop from getting spattered with bacon grease. 

Start with a sheet pan.   I had 18 slices so I needed two sheet pans.  The first step is do NOT pre heat the oven.  The secret to this method is that you don't preheat.  More on that later.  I suggest lining your pans with aluminum foil since it will make cleanup alot easier.  Lay out the slices on the pans so there is enough space between them and none are touching.   Once you have your pans ready it is ready to place them into a cold oven. Then you can set the oven to 350°.  

Here is where not preheating comes into play.  By slowly raising the heat, you will render more fat from the bacon earlier in the process.  It also will keep the finished bacon flat.   The reason bacon cooked in a frying pan curls up is that the pan is hot and the bacon is cold or room temperature. That initial shock of the protein will curl it and make it hard to have evenly cooked bacon.  

Absolutely critical to this method is that you are constantly watching the cooking process and setting the timer.  Cooking times will vary based on how thick the slices are.  If you have thin bacon, start the timer at eight minutes. Most ovens have a window and I suggest turning the oven light on so you can keep track of the rendering without having to open the oven door.  

The bacon I made was thick cut (about 1/16th of an inch) and it took close to 20 minutes.  Your oven also may have cold spots and if so, I suggest rotating the pans after the first eight minutes.   After eight minutes you can see how cooked your bacon is and set the timer for a few more minutes.  Keep checking until the bacon reaches the doneness you like.  Keep in mind that the bacon will continue to cook once you take it out, especially if you leave it in the bacon grease.   You should have a ceramic plate with paper towels ready so you can lift the cooked bacon off for draining.  You want to keep it separate so that the slices don't stick together.  The end result is delicious bacon!!  

QUICK BITE: Fantome Chocolat

Another in my series of large format bottle beer.  This is Chocolat which is from Fantome in Belgium.  It is a saison style.   Traditional saison is usually fruity and carbonated.   They upped the game here by brewing with cocoa and chili pepper.  You can definitely taste the essence of chocolate - it has a bit of chalkiness  and bitterness you'd expect from cocoa powder.   For the pepper, I sense more of a freshness from green bell pepper, not a spicy chili pepper.  Not a bad taste, just expected a bit more punch on the palate.  This has an ABV of 8% so it certainly isn't a session beer.  I would recommend.  The listed price for the bottle at Mr Dunderbaks was $20 and I got for $10 during their half price table sale.  Well worth that.  

#Beer #Saison #Food

Stuffed Peppers with help from the Instant Pot

One dish we have made alot during the "stay at home" is stuffed peppers.   They are simple to make and you can put anything you want in them which makes it great if you have leftover veggies or sauces.  I am putting these together now so that we can bake them for dinner later.   Main ingredients were three bell peppers, sliced length wise and cored, one pound ground beef, one cup of rice cooked (using the Instant Pot), some leftover marina sauce I had made, smoked paprika and pepper flakes.  For a quick marina, use a can of your favorite crushed tomatoes. I like Tuttorosso  I added salt, Italian seasoning and pepper flakes and put in the "chili" setting of the Instant Pot.  That is 40 minutes on my machine.  Tasted like an all day "gravy".

Season the beef with kosher salt and brown until there is no pink left.  Add smoked paprika and pepper flakes to taste.  Cook for about a minute to wake up those spices.  Then add your rice and cook until well combined with the beef.   You are then ready for your liquid, in this case marina sauce.  You can also use chopped tomatoes , Rotel or your favorite jarrred sauce.  Do your final seasoning .  I added my favorite condiment Tabasco Chipotle sauce .  Then you are ready to stuff.  You will want them to be heaping since there will be a little shrinkage when they cook.  Once stuffed, I like to top with cheese. Bake covered with foil in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes.  Then uncover and turn on your broiler and cook for another 5-10 minutes.  Keep a constant eye to prevent burning.  This will brown the cheese and also crisp up the stuffing!!

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Other options:

Add shredded cheese to the mix before your final seasoning.  I used quinoa in an earlier batch and loved how they came out.  Where rice can get mushy, the quinoa really holds up.  If you use that, you will need to  have some cheese to use as a binder. 

#StuffedPeppers #InsrantPot #FoodBlog

QUICK BITE:. Rye Farmhouse Ale

The third in my series of large bottle format beers.  This is a farmhouse ale called Rustic Sunday from Birds Fly South, a brewery in Greenville South Carolina.    Farmhouse Ale is not really a style of beer so they vary alot from state to state and country to country.  The origination of the term comes from Europe where farmers would brew their own beer using whatever grains they had that summer.  The taste would generally be described as "funky" or "earthy*.  In Belgium you will see a saison style (high carbonation, lower alcohol with fruits and spice) which is often considered to be a farmhouse ale but they also have biere de garde which is a high alcohol pale ale and also a farmhouse ale. 

Rustic Sunday had the deep yellow color of a lager with high level of carbonation.  It had a faint essence of banana, reminiscent of a hefeweisen.  It poured cleanly without any lingering yeast.

The taste was earthy with a bit of ripe bananas. Where I was expecting a bit of bite from the Hallertau Blanc hops, there was none.  It was a little boring on the pallette. Even as it warmed up to room temperature, I didn't get any additional redeeming notes on my pallette. 

Stay tuned for more of the series. 

#FarmhouseAle #Beer #FoodBlog #BirdsFlySouth

QUICK BITE: German Beer Day: Gewurzgose

In honor of German Beer Day, here is the second in my series of large format bottles beers.  This one is Gewurzgose which is a style of gose from Leipzig Germany.  Gose's uniqueness is that it is usually brewed with salt so that the taste can be in the saltier side.  Combined with the lactobacillus bacteria, it can produce a wonderful sourness.  Gose are also flavored with coriander, orange peel and other aromatics.  This one has those plus vanilla and nutmeg.  I was hoping it would not have too much "Yankee Christmas Candle" taste - and was very pleasantly surprised. 

It pours very cleanly since there is no additional fermentation in the bottle with this gose. The color is a straw gold.  Barely any head and only slight carbonation.  Faint aroma of orange and vanilla in the nose.  First taste and there is a bit of salt on the tongue with a pleasant orange peel note at the finish.  As it warms up, I taste a bit more of the vanilla and some caramel. 

#GermanBeerDay #Beer #FoodBlog #Gose

QUICK BITE: Fermented Ale Tasting: Panil Divina

The first in my series of tasting several large format bottles of sour and farmhouse style ales.  These are all beers that have some level of fermentation.   First up is Panil Divina which is a lambic style of beer.  Lambics are fermented using wild yeast - and based on the bottle it is yeast from under a full moon. 

It is very frothy on the pour, accounting for all the yeast.  It is a bit cloudy for the same reason.  You have to be careful pouring since you don't want that yeast in your glass.  Yeast is great in bread dough but not the best tasting experience on its own. 

The taste is dry, almost like a dry Sauvignon Blanc with some notes of stone fruit, especially peach.  Different tastes immerge as the ale warms up. I am detecting blackberries and strawberries.  

QUICK BITE: Coffee From Thailand

The third coffee in our series.   This one is from Thailand.  The beans are about the same size as my "control" bean from Eight O'Clock.  They are still lighter than I would have expected for a coffee labelled as medium roast. Bean size is the the same as the control whereas the beans from China and Ethiopia were much smaller.  Guessing that is because Thailand has lots more rain than either. 

It brewed to a medium color which I expected based on the color of the beans.  The flavor is surprisingly much richer than the prior coffee.  It also has a bitter note after the first sip which is more balanced as you drink more.  Using a furniture analogy, it is that armchair that you first don't like because it is too stiff and unsettling, but then appreciate after awhile since it gives you a lot of support.