Posted by judywrites @BaconScotch

http://www.baconscotch.info/?p=1925

Hi everyone,

Wandering through the cookbook aisle of our library, this title immediately caught my eye – Bacon, a Love Story ~ A Salty Survey of Everyone’s Favorite Meat. I really wasn’t looking for a book on bacon, but it was calling me.

What a great book! It is divided into two parts: Bacon 101 and The Bacon Diet. It is a light fun read with some neat recipes. Now, they aren’t necessarily different than anything you’ve had ever, but presented in a different perspective.

It also has some fun facts – for instance, did you know A&W was the first restaurant chain to add bacon to a cheeseburger. Thank you A&W! The meat vegetarians miss the most is, of course, Bacon! To the point, they even make a tofu bacon.

Anyway, if you have a bacon lover, who also likes to cook, consider this book for your holiday list.

Take care,

Judy

http://www.baconscotch.info/?p=1925

If you haven’t heard about the popular recipe book “I LOVE BACON!” then I can only assume you have either been very busy or simply taking a break from the world, off under the “proverbial” rock somewhere.

This Recipe Book features a bunch of truly delicious bacon featured dishes, covering everything from brunch, soup, salads and side dishes to numerous meat, pasta and even fish entrées as well as cocktails and yes, of course there are lots of bacon dessert dishes to dive into.

“I LOVE BACON!” is written by Jayne Rockmill and published by the good folks over at Andrews McMeel Publishing. All in all, there are more than 50 different recipes coming to you from the likes of such popular and prominent chefs as Cat Cora, John Besh, Ming Tsai, Jasper White, Pichet Ong and Julian Medina

It’s an impressive collection of culinary concoctions, with recipes for everything from “Spaghetti Carbonara” and “Bacon Bread Pudding,” to more eclectic fares such as “Bakon Mary Cocktail” and “Chocolate Bacon Cupcakes”. More importantly, a portion of all proceeds go directly to charity, specifically, the Food Bank for New York City and Share Our Strength.

Here’s just a short sampling of some of our fascinating conversation shared with “I LOVE BACON!” author, Jayne Rockmill:
 

BT: Have you been a Bacon Freak your entire life, or is this a taste that simply grew on you over time?

JR: Not in my early years, only once I started cooking, I began to value the mouth-watering aroma and satisfying taste that bacon delivers. I love to add bacon to recipes for dinner parties, as it always makes the dish sing. 

BT: What’s your perspective on the now raging, popular trend of “Baco-Mania?”
 
JR: I found it to be a natural progression from the artisanal cheese and charcuterie craze the past 10 years to something both chefs and consumers can easily afford and find locally. Bacon is the ultimate comfort food.  I think it’s here to stay although most probably will ebb and flow in the culinary world as other items take a star position from time to time.
 

BT: So what was the original impetus leading to the creation of this book?

JR: I wanted to combine my professional career as a literary agent with my passion for specialty food and wine and create a way to give back to the community. For several years I have been producing and volunteering on assorted food and wine events for charities and then realized a book would reach a wider net of people.
 

BT: How did you go about contacting all of the chefs that you gathered to participate in such a huge but worthy undertaking?

JR: I simply asked a few chefs I have worked with over the years if they would be keen to donate a recipe. Once I received ½ dozen positive response, I began calling chefs across the country. To my delight I had wonderful conversations on the subject and learned about a vast array of recipes that incorporate bacon in new and exciting ways.
 

BT: Tell us about the charities that will be helped by the proceeds coming from the sale of this remarkable book.

JR: Share Our Strength® is the leading national organization working to make sure no kid in America grows up hungry. By weaving together a net of community groups, activists and food programs, Share Our Strength catches children at risk of hunger and ensures they have nutritious food where they live, learn and play.

Working closely with the culinary industry, Share Our Strength creates a vast number of engaging and pioneering programs involving national grassroots effort, a touring dinner series, a cooking-based nutrition education program and a program involving thousands of restaurants nationwide. To learn more about our goal of ending childhood hunger in America by 2015, please visit Strength.org. 

BT: I’m impressed by the wide variety of recipes, ranging from very simple and quick menu items to some extremely exquisite and elegant entrees. Was this by design or the natural flow of what the chef’s submitted to you?

JR: At first I simply asked for a bacon recipe, and was thrilled with the diverse collection of recipes I began receiving, but quickly realized I had to build categories and fill in blanks. I knew I wanted a combination of classics as well as exotic recipes.

Some chefs had so many options, that they asked me to choose which worked best for the book. In a few instances I actually altered some recipes in collaboration with chefs to build categories and more diversity.

BT: Unlike most bacon recipes, based on eggs, soups and vegetables, your book includes lots of menu items involving other meats, as well as fish. Which recipes took even YOU by surprise? 

JR:  My first surprise was Wayne Nish’s Bacon Chourcroute, then Michael Symon’s Pastry Chef; Cory Barrett’s Maple Bacon Ice Cream, and Pichet Ong’s Chocolate Bacon Cup Cakes!  

BT: There are a lot of Pasta Recipes featuring bacon. We’re you surprised by the all the pasta dishes contributed by the chefs and do you think it’s a sign of another trend in the “foodie galaxy?”

JR: Yes, that is interesting. I received many recipes for Bacon with Pasta; perhaps it will be my follow up book, combing 2 very comforting foods ~ perfect.
 

BT: Everyone is aware of the current, seductive relationship between sweets and bacon, so there’s no surprise that there’s a lot of delightfully delicious, decadently delectable dessert dishes delivered by your cavalcade of chefs.
 
JR: Yes, chefs are really pushing the envelope when it comes to dessert. Salt combined with chocolate really opened the door on this, as chocolate covered chips, pretzels, etc. converted the masses including me. As I mentioned the Bacon Ice Cream and Bacon Cup Cakes surprised me, and then more dessert recipes kept coming. It was really surprising and wonderful to include a dessert chapter! They may sound weird to some, but they taste awesome. It’s a thrill to watch people crinkle their nose at the idea and then watch their eyes light up when they sample them!
 

BT: What the most valuable thing that you learned from putting all of these wonderful bacon featured recipes together?

JR: The generosity of chefs.
 
BT: Now that the book is officially out and reaching so many people in the “Baconista” Brother-Sisterhood, what’s next on the horizon for Jayne Rockmill?
 
JR: In the short term, promoting the book with chefs across the country by way of book signings and bacon dinners to sell lots of books and help abolish hunger in America.
If all goes well, a follow up cook book!

Order by clicking on the cookbook below!

Photo Credit: Andrew McMeel Publishing

After watching and hearing about all the bacon products. I decided to search for the best kind of products for bacon lovers! Aside from the normal products, like bacon kitchen utensils and bacon foods (bacon bits, bacon favored cupcakes, etc.) you could also have a bacon scarf (my personal favorite this homemade knitted one) or bacon art or so much more….
Here are my top 10 favorite products found during my search:

10. Bacon Bandaids: Yes friends, anytime you get a paper-cut or the next time you knick your arm on a staple you could cover it up with a adhesive bacon band-aid.

These particular band-aids are even cut to have edges like real bacon

9. Bacon USB: A few of these can be found online, I posted the link to the most realistic looking 4GB at a reasonable price for a trendy commodity. The perfect way to show off your love for bacon with a piece seemingly sticking out of your computer.

8. Bacon Earrings: I own a couple hundred of pairs of earrings, so I have a preference towards them. There are two types of bacon earrings that I really enjoyed. The first being a pair that looks like real little strips of bacon. And then the was a breakfast pair:

7. Bacon Gummies: We have gummy bears, gummy worms, gummy coke bottles and now we have bacon gummy. It looks like bacon, it is packaged like real bacon but it doesn’t taste like bacon. Apparently that is a step to far for the candy makers, its a bacon gummy that tastes like strawberries which just makes it amusing. But I still think it is a pretty cool product.

6. Bacon Formal Wear: You can find tuxs that have bacon designs, dresses, and ties. No article of clothing left unturned even shoes and headbands. (There are even bacon bras ladies, in case you wanted to be ahead of the next trend).

5. Bacon Tape: Much like duct tape but with bacon on it, it’s what holds the universal together.

4. Bacon Envelopes: This one came close to being one of my favorites. Envelopes that taste like bacon!

3.Bakon: A potato vodka that tastes like bacon! We might be exploring some of the drinks we can mix with that!

2. Bacon Jelly Beans: Bacon the candy meat, small enough to swallow in one bite and plenty of them to snack on for an entire afternoon.

1. Bacon: A Love Story. A book filled with trivial facts and enjoyable stories about everyone’s favorite meat.

Remember you  never know what can prove your love for bacon out there! There are over a 100 different types of products and several variations of each!

Today we received an email from Boss Hog over at BaconFreak.com announcing that he’s released the first edition of his Bacon Cookbook. What better book about bacon could there be than a bacon book that helps you cook the meat candy?

According to the web site (with the oh-so-catchy URL of BaconCookbook.com) they’ve got recipes from some renowned chefs that will help you get your bacon fix for breakfast, lunch, dinner, appetizers, and even bacon desserts.

We got a chance to peek at the bacon cookbook ahead of time and were impressed with the quality of the bacon recipes included in the book. Don’t be surprised if you see a couple examples of bacon dishes we test out here at Bacon Today. We’re planning to cook up a few of the meals to give them the official Bacon Today taste test.

The Bacon Freak Bacon Cookbook is available in both downloadable PDF and paperback formats. Head on over to BaconCookbook.com and get your copy today!

Upon closer examination though revealed that Tractor Supply Co. has it’s priorities straight. I spied the book “How to Raise Pigs” — in a way a book about bacon from start to finish.

This book is filled with everything you need to know about raising pigs and preparing them for a future as sweet, sweet bacon. Just look at the table of contents – this sucker is action packed!

Chapter 1 – An Introduction to Pigs & People
Chapter 2 – Getting Started
Chapter 3 – Pork Production Systems – What’s Your Plan?
Chapter 4 – Breeds of Pigs
Chapter 5 – Pork Production Systems – Organic, Sustainable, and Convential
Chapter 6 – Housing and Facilities
Chapter 7 – Fencing and Enclosures
Chapter 8 – Nutrient Management
Chapter 9 – Breeding and Reproduction
Chapter 10 – Feed for Profit and Production
Chapter 11 – Managing Your Pigs
Chapter 12 – Marketing Meat
Chapter 13 – Home Butchering
Chapter 14 – Exit Strategies
Chapter 15 – Showing Pigs
Chapter 16 – Country Living
Chapter 17 – Help and Advice

Here are a couple sample pages. Run out and buy this one, start raising some pigs, and document the process. We’ll start a new series on Bacon Today featuring your entry into the world of start to finish baconing!

As always, we welcome any suggestions you might have for new bacon words, terms or phrases. Just  send the word, pronounciation and definition to bacontoday [at] gmail [dot] com.

Now, without further ado, we present the Bactionary – second edition.

The Official Bacon Today Bactionary – Second Edition

back bacon (noun) – Prepared from brined, center-cut pork loin. (Wikipedia) See also, Irish bacon, Canadian bacon.

baclical (adj.) – When conversations or occurrences seem to revolve around bacon, they are baclical. Think cyclical, but with bacon.

baco (noun) – ba-co [bah-koh] – Success embodied and carved into a convenient hand-sized package of glory. – See, it’s not “bake-o”, it is “bah-koh”, got it? You know, like a taco. A taco BUT WITH A BACON SHELL! Here is a rhyme you may use to help you with this pronounciation: “Crumble crumble little taco, don’t you wish you were a baco?” Also you may use this classic: “One, two, buckle my taco/ three, four, give me a baco.”

bacompose (verb) – To write songs, music or parodies about bacon.

Bacomposer (noun) – One who writes songs, music or parodies about bacon or inspired by bacon. Jenny Winalski and Kristen Wall are wonderful Bacomposers who write musical parodies about bacon. Also -ed, -ing.

bacon (noun) – Delicious. Sweet. Written about daily on BaconToday.com.

bacon jerky (noun) – Dehydrated & treated bacon requiring no refrigeration. Take it with you on the road.

bacon test (bacon TEST) (noun) – A test to determine how much one likes bacon. Do you love bacon? Yes? Good. No? Ask again.

Baconista (noun) – One who both prepares and serves you bacon.

Baconite (noun) – A devoted fan of bacon, specifically one who reads BaconToday.com, a website that features daily updates on the world of sweet, sweet bacon.

Baconographer (noun) – One who writes about bacon and bacon related events.

bacontest (baCONtest) (noun) – A contest that involves or rewards contestants with bacon or bacon-related products.

Bacontrepeneur (noun) – A person who starts a business based on the preparation, distribution, sale or propagation of bacon and bacon-related products and other content. Justin & Dave, the Bacon Salt guys, are prime examples of bacontrepreneurs.

bacony (adj) – Of or relating to bacon.

bactastic (adj) – Amazingly wonderful, utterly fantastic bacon foods or experiences with bacon.

bactionary (noun) – The original dictionary of bacon from BaconToday.com.

Bactober (noun) – The 13th month of the year that should be recognized. (By the United Nations, if possible.)

bakini (noun) – Women’s swimwear made entirely of bacon.

belly bacon (noun) – Marbled, streaky or “American” bacon, which is made from the meat of a pig’s belly. See also: bacon.

Canadian bacon (noun) – See ‘back bacon’.

Enbaclopedia (noun) – A website of collection of books with articles that explore all aspects of all things bacon.

Irish bacon (noun) – See ‘back bacon’.

pre-bacon (noun) – A pig in its living & breathing state. If it will one day be bacon, then it’s pre-bacon today.

Smaste^TM (noun) – A proprietary Bacon Today rating system that represents a combination of smell and taste. This rating system is as arbitrary as it is inaccurate. The scale has a theoretical maximum of, oh, let’s call it 47. Bacon itself only factors in at a maximum Smaste^TM rating of 36.2174 when cooked to perfection. Smaste^TM is determined by the following made up formula, painstakingly developed by Mike Kirsch of Bacon Today: (([smell factor]+[taste factor])*uniqueness)/([strange factor]+[gross quotient])

Smastiness^TM (noun) – The quality of Smaste^TM contained in a food.

Smasteulator^TM (noun) – A device that calculates the Smaste^TM rating of a food.

Smastey^TM (adj) – Used to describe the amount of Smaste^TM contained in a food. Those bacon cinnamon rolls were very Smastey^TM. Those bacon lemon bars were not very Smastey^TM at all.

Thanksbacon (noun) – In America, Thanksbacon occurs any time bacon is made available or consumed during any meal eaten on the fourth Thursday of November. To wish someone “Happy Thanksbacon” is to impart a general sense of well-wishing that they may encounter bacon during Thanksgiving. Term first used by Bill Corbett of the Rifftrax Blog on November 24th, 2008.

Turbaconducken (noun) – A chicken wrapped in bacon stuffed in a duck wrapped in bacon stuffed in a turkey wrapped in bacon. First prepared by Corey James of Bacon Today.

turkey bacon (noun) – Turkey that’s cut, seasoned and prepared in such as way as to pretend to be bacon, but is not actually bacon.

I cannot support this book. No Sir.

If you love bacon, DO NOT read A Day No Pigs Would Die.