Bacon Jam

Remember I said I had a few cookbooks to review….and remember how I said I procrastinated a bit, well…I’m getting caught up and feeling good about it. And this post was supposed to be up on Monday but my friends at Verizon provided very LAME service this week with an internet outage both Monday and Tuesday nights and then a television outage last night. I was busy doing nothing while sitting on hold pretty much of the time and didn’t have the energy to write anything regarding…..well, anything.

Now I’m here, writing to tell you about this awesome new cookbook….just released and ready for purchase…..Breakfast for Dinner.

Doesn’t that sound fun and tasty? Who doesn’t love breakfast? I admit I do skip it occasionally but it is my favorite meal of the day. The only reason I skip it is that my morning coffee/tea fills me and then by the time I’m ready to eat….it’s lunchtime.

So, this book is perfect for those of us that can’t make it to breakfast at a normal time…like before noon.

It’s full of decadent and unique takes on your basic bacon, eggs and waffles and was created by Lindsay Landis and Taylor Hackbarth from the blog “Love and Olive Oil”. They are also the creators of The Cookie Dough Lover’s cookbook which is equally fascinating! Check out their blog….you’ll love it!

Back to “Breakfast”, the book is beautifully illustrated (which I LOVE, I don’t like cookbooks without pictures. I realize I’m a 5-year old.) and starts out by discussing the staples you should have on hand to make a number of the dishes. And then the fun begins with recipes for main dishes, sides, starters, drinks and desserts like:

• Steak and Eggs Benedict
• Italian-style Stuffed French Toast
• Greek Baked Eggs
• Sunny-Side-Up Burgers
• Breakfast Sausage Ravioli
• Maple-Glazed Port Meatballs
• Mini BLT Biscuits
• Maple Bacon Cupcakes
• Blood Orange Mimosa Sorbet

You’ll also find recipes for basic techniques…like poaching eggs. (always a problem for me.)

I chose to take a crack at something more adventurous….Bacon Jam. I like it but it has to be used on the right delivery system, like a burger or a cracker with cream cheese. You won’t find me sitting on the couch watching reruns of Sex.and the City eating this out of the jar with a spoon. But you will find me stuffing it between two slices of sourdough with some Gruyere and grilling it in a panini press. Yeah…that’s good stuff.

Bacon Jam

Recipe from Breakfast for Dinner

makes about 2 cups

1 pound sliced bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup brewed coffee

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup orange juice

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon orange zest

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

1/4 cup bourbon

heat a large heavy skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook bacon until it starts to brown, 10-12 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plat. Drain off all but 2 tablespoons of tha bacon fat in a skillet.

Reduce heat to medium. Add onions and garlic and cook until onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently so the garlic doesn’t burn. (very important not to burn the garlic!) Return bacon to skillet and add coffee, vinegar, orange juice, maple syrup, brown sugar, orange zest, ginger and pepper. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes. Transfer mixture to a food processor and pulse briefly until finely chopped. Return mixture to pan and cook for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add bourbon and gently simmer for 30 minutes more, or until jam is thick, syrupy and dark in color; if at any point the mixture starts to stick to the bottom of the pan and starts to look more like paste than jam, add water, 1/4 cup at a time. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Refrigerated in an airtight container, bacon jam will keep for 3-4 weeks.

The Breakfast for Dinner: Recipes for Frittata Florentine, Huevos Rancheros, Sunny-Side-Up Burgers and More! cookbook can be purchased at Amazon.com by clicking the link.