I heard a fable of an exotic bacon-chocolate chip cookie, which had made an appearance at a party I’d sadly missed. Having been notable enough to be the most mentionable event of the party, I was intrigued. Later, after seeing a lot of online talk about the bacon chocolate bars, I decided to investigate this mythical cookie, intending to recreate its magic for myself.
With the incentive of a party invite, I searched the internet and finally uncovered a recipe in the cache of a defunct blog (RIP neverbashfulwithbutter.com, thanks for the inspiration!). To this, I added a real maple glaze. The cookie was well received (all gone), and I shared a picture on line.
I’ve now had about a dozen requests for the recipe, so why not post it here?
This obviously is NOT health food! But truly a divine treat - containing two of the world’s most loved foods in one cookie! Plus, the maple icing adds a fantastic bridge to lift the sultry smokiness of the bacon to its fully realized high chocolate note.
The trend this anti-shopping holiday season is toward making gifts for the yuletide - imagine the delight and surprise of your family and friends after receiving these delectable beauties from your kitchen!
THE RECIPE
Makes one dozen cookies
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour (I prefer to mix 1 c unbleached white with 1/2 c of Whole Wheat pastry flour, but all white will do)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup bacon bits (this must be REAL bacon that you cooked to crispness, drained of fat on paper towels, and then chopped into bits yourself - nothing less will do! As far as quantity, I used a bit less than 1 pound of bacon to make the cup, leaving out three strips for garnish. But you can adjust according to your bravery or taste.)
ALL TOGETHER NOW
Soften the butter to room temperature before you begin. Beat the butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs until well creamed. Sift together the flours, salt, and baking soda. Add the dry mix to the butter and cream mix, and stir together until a batter forms. Add the chocolate chips and bacon bits and stir until combined. Spoon a generous dollop onto a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet (or an oil misted cookie sheet will do, though parchment paper keeps your cookie sheet nicer). Place the dollops at least an inch apart.
Bake cookies for approximately 11 minutes, or until the dough starts to turn brown along the edges. Remove the cookies and allow them to cool while you prepare the glaze.
REAL MAPLE GLAZE
6 level tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
2 tablespoons real maple syrup
Sift the sugar into the syrup. Whisk together vigorously until smooth and creamy.
Place the glaze on the cooled cookies, working with two spoons to help you edge the sticky sweet glob onto the cookie. Top with a piece of crisped bacon.
A NOTE ABOUT INGREDIENTS
I recommend using nitrate-free bacon, which can be had at organic grocers or ordered online. The very finest in bacon comes from Benton’s in Tennessee and can be ordered from Zingerman’s.
Always use the freshest and highest quality eggs and butter you can find. The quality of these ingredients is THE difference between good and amazing baking.
I think you’ll love this cookie as much as my friends and I did. Enjoy!
Few acts of cooking are more satisfying than removing a perfect loaf of golden brown, yeasty hot bread from the oven.
Bread has come a long way. Having been in the human diet since the dawn of civilization, with the yeast that creates its leavening power carefully cultivated and passed down through families, all the way to today - where scientists isolate and improve yeast strains for mass commercial production, and bread aficionados possess machines that knead and bake the perfect loaf.
USING YEAST - THE EASY WAY OUT
As a slow food enthusiast, I am currently deep in study of traditional bread making, and am currently nurturing a sourdough starter in a tucked-away corner of my kitchen. But this week was Thanksgiving, and my starter was not yet ready (cold weather rendering its evolution a bit on the slow side). Rather than buy bread, I really wanted to make some. Equipped with a little jar of yeast from the bulk foods store, I perused my recipe collection for a process that would seamlessly fit into my already busy cooking schedule. I stumbled upon an amazingly simple recipe - so easy I felt a bit guilty as though I were cheating. Yet, my guilt was mixed with the pride that comes from making your own staples.
LAST CHANCE FOR HOME-GROWN HERBS
Even though it’s frequently freezing in SE Michigan this time of year, I still have some hearty herbs hanging on in my kitchen garden. They likely won’t last long, so I wanted to make use of them for the holiday meal - perhaps the last meal they will flavor before Spring gives them new life.
Armed with fresh rosemary, thyme, and sage, I set about adapting the recipe for No-Knead Whole Wheat Herb Bread from Vegan Vittles, a popular recipe book for vegan standards. Except that I used real milk, having procured an excellent local source of high-quality, grass-fed milk, which I suppose make this recipe a bit blasphemous. I am sure it works fantastically with rice or soy milk, for those who are inclined.
MY ADAPTED RECIPE
1 1/2 cups milk (regular or soy for vegan version)
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup atta, white, or chick pea flour
1/2 small white or yellow onion, minced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs or 2 tablespoons dried herbs (of your choice)
Heat the milk on med-high, to just before boiling (little bubbles will begin to appear on the edge). Turn off the heat and dissolve the sugar and salt in the milk, and add the oil. allow it to cool to luke warm.
In a big bowl, dissolve the active yeast in the warm water. Add your milk mixture and mix in your flour, onions, and herbs. Mix well with a wooden spoon until well incorporated. This dough will be much “softer” than the dough you are used to kneading. More like a batter, really.
Cover the bowl with a clean, damp tea towel or cheese cloth and allow it to rise in a warm place for about an hour (I have a shelf high above my stove where I place my dough; it’s pretty toasty up there).
The dough will have almost doubled in size when you come back. Right about now you’ll want to turn on the oven to 350 to preheat. Stir up the dough again for ten minutes or so. Then turn the dough into a bread pan that you have coated or misted with olive oil. Let the dough rest for about 15 minutes. Bake the loaf for about an hour, until it’s a lovely golden brown color.
DAY-OLD BREAD
Of course bread is best fresh from the oven. But with this bread, it’s especially good the next day, re-heated, as the herbs have infused the bread even more. I recommend enjoying with a pat of butter. If you happen to have any left after day two (unlikely), this bread makes excellent croutons for soup or salad - simply cube and crisp in the oven with a spritz of oil and dash of salt or Parmesan.
It’s important to remember that, unless you have a convection oven, your bread is going to be a little heavier and moister than what you buy commercially. But much more delicious!
Ask me if I’d like some carrot soup and, like most people, I’d answer, “uhh…what are my other options? ” But all that has changed since I discovered this recipe!
I’ve realized in recent months that I was throwing away too much food, so I’m trying to be more disciplined and efficient with what’s on hand. This week I had a big bag of baby carrots, just sitting there, waiting for inspiration. I had not much else in the way of vegetables, either. And true to my mandate to stick with what’s in my fridge, I decided to try to find some way to use those little suckers.
RECIPE BOOK COLLECTION TO THE RESCUE
I use carrots in vegetable soups and salads, but don’t really have any tricks up my sleeve for highlighting them. To the rescue - the always entertaining Isa Chandra Moskowitz, creator of the PPK (Post Punk Kitchen). Whether you’re vegan or not, you’ve gotta love Isa’s style and her cookbooks, just loaded with thoughtful alternatives, enlightening suggestions and inspiration to be creative.
From her book Vegan with a Vengeance I found her recipe for Carrot Bisque. I noted I luckily had all the ingredients on hand — this one calls for a can of coconut milk (I keep a couple of cans from Trader Joe’s tucked away for Thai curry emergencies). So i was all set! I varied the recipe a bit - hers called for curry powder and I just made my own little curry with cumin, red pepper, garam masala and ginger. (Curry is actually a combination of spices that varies from region to region, and even family to family, in India, so I rarely keep the nebulously titled “curry powder” around - instead opt to make impromptu variations.)
CURRY SOUP?! WE HAVE A WINNER!
I have to say the sweet nutty richness of the coconut milk, with the spice of the pepper and cumin, made this a truly complex, satisfying and memorable soup. HIGHLY recommended! (I actually just bought more carrots today, an extra big bag, with plans to pair it with that last can of coconut milk waiting patiently in the pantry.)
COMPLETING THE MEAL
But the challenge was not over! I had to make the soup part of a complete winter-night meal. I had some cooked chick peas that needed to be used or they were going to riot their way right into the garbage can. So I whipped up a little crowd-pleasing hummus, adding cumin to bridge the gap between the two dishes. It was actually a great meal, receiving favorable views from the assembled diners - myself included.
I’m trying my best to eat less convenience foods. So, rather than cracking open a plastic package of something with unpronounceable additives ($3.50 at the local food factory), I’m trying instead to put a little imagination behind the basic ingredients in my pantry. I know that with a little effort I can whip up something with more flavor and nutrition (and at a lower cost!) than anything the food industry can provide on a shelf!
This is not an intimidating task involving years of practice, study, and a dozen cookbooks. It’s just a matter of diving in.
Take, for instance, this morning’s banana bread. Now, I used to think that baking was a science. I believed would-be cooks had to have the exact ingredients, in the right proportions, added in just the right way, or the end result would be a disaster. I’m hear to tell you: NOT SO!! You can be just as adventurous with baking as any other kind of cooking.
Banana bread is a great example. Some recipes will say: “Take 3 to 4 bananas…”
Ummm, ok. Is that three or four? Big bananas or little ones? Define the exact size of said banana - right?
Then there is the egg thing. They rarely say what SIZE egg. What happens if I put two large eggs and they wanted two small ones? Should I just use one Jumbo egg?
What’s a conscientious baker to do?
CREATIVE BAKING
I say: Improvise! For instance, this morning I referenced this banana bread recipe, but only had one banana. So I sort of winged it with my proportions. For the egg, I used enough egg replacer for about 1/2 an egg, then I added about 2/3 less sugar than the recipe called for, and I also put in half whole wheat flour instead of all white. PLUS, I just lumped all the ingredients together and mushed them up with my hands instead of first mixing in the sugar with banana, then adding flour, etc.
I also put the batter into little mini soufflé pans rather than a bread pan. I cooked them on 350 until they looked done (maybe 25 minutes?).
BAKING EXPERIMENT - THE MOMENT OF TRUTH!
The result? Lovely little individual banana breads, perfect for Saturday morning coffee.
So my point is, BE BRAVE! Experiment! EVEN with baking!!! Make foods from the whole ingredients in your pantry, and over time you’ll be surprised at how much money you can save AND how delicious and satisfying the fruits of your culinary adventures can be!
Like many people these days, I’m stocking my cupboard with a strict budget in mind. This means coupons and cutting back on a lot of culinary luxuries that I once enjoyed. For instance, only breaking out the truffle oil when I have company, as I can’t justify spending $12 on two ounces of oil any time soon - as much as I ADORE truffle oil!
Part of my strategy is to buy less packaged foods and hit the bulk bins. I even have a great store here in Ann Arbor, called By the Pound, that is just bins and bins of grains, legumes, flours, spices, nuts, fruits - just everything a person could need. Even coffee and sweets. I feel so “smart-shoppery” when I leave there, little sacks of ingredients just waiting to be turned into healthy, economical, and delicious meals at my hand.
As I’ve been stocking up on the essentials, I’ve also been spending more time in the kitchen, as these in-bulk ingredients take a little more skill, thought, and time to become something truly wonderful.
GIVING POLENTA A CHANCE
In the past I’ve enjoyed polenta at restaurants or prepared easily from a pre-made packaged brand. Seeing polenta in my recipe books, it always seemed too involved to make at home. There is a prolonged cooking period - you must boil on the stove and stir frequently. But seeing that the price is so inexpensive, and considering I am spending so much more time in the kitchen anyway, I decided to give it a try. And I am very glad I did!
Polenta wasn’t really that hard to make. There was the stirring in the first few minutes, but I found it just requires a little check in now and again after the first 15 minutes or so. (There are also recipes that involve only baking and no stove top preparation — even better!) I’ve prepared a batch and kept it in the refrigerator as a hearty side that could be baked or fried throughout the week. A small batch lasted for four meals for two people. I even had a little bit for breakfast one morning, and it was very satisfying.
SOME SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
- Fry and serve with beans and greens
- Bake until golden and serve with marinated tofu, topped with salsa
- Bake and serve topped with chili for an especially filling meal
- Bake and top with and your favorite Italian marinara (I like mushrooms and red peppers, myself!)
- Bake or fry and top with goat cheese and chopped herbs
Here are some recipes for creating basic polenta - from the iCook Club and Busy Family Meals. .As I said, I stored the basic prepared polenta in the refrigerator, baking or frying throughout the week. But you can also freeze it. My favorite so far has been with added herbs from the garden along with some chopped mushrooms, just toward the end of boiling.
NOTE ON COOKING POLENTA
when boiling polenta, if it seems to still be under-cooked (i.e. a little crunchy) and yet is already quite thick, feel free to add more water than the recipe calls for until you get the desired consistency!
And if you don’t want to spend time over the stove top, try this version!
If polenta is new to you, I urge you to give it a try. You may find it a favorite addition to your repertoire. I know I did!
