The bacon bandwagon

I've been thinking a lot lately about all the wonderful things that have just landed in my lap over my lifetime. It's hard to be angry or frustrated when I realize just how good I've had it. I had an older brother to look up to, and he even let me hang out with his friends. I ran into the love of my life at age 16 and am still madly in love. An amazing family has conditioned me to succeed. I've had the opportunity to live abroad in 3 amazing locales. Everything, from school to music to career, seems to have been laid out for me to be the luckiest girl in the world. It's sobering, and I don't deserve most of it. I know Thanksgiving is long past, but thanks. Everyone.


I spent last weekend on an oil-soaked beach in Louisiana sampling for a bioaerosols project. We people so some stupid shit to this world. The oil impacts are still so scary. If you dig 3 inches into the sand, it turns brown and then black. And the liquid seeping through does not look like water. There were clean-up crews on the beach manually cleaning the sand by dragging rakefuls out to the surf and rinsing them in the seawater. Where the heck do they think that oil is going to go?

It seems that recently bacon + sweet things has been a growing trend. Bacon with nutella, bacon cookies, chocolate-dipped bacon, candied bacon. As general bacon enthusiasts, we had to try this recipe. They are addicting. Brushing them with bacon grease was definitely a brilliant idea.


Bacon and Date Scones
from Bon Appetit

• 10 ounces thick-cut bacon slices
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt
  
• 3/4 cup coarsly chopped Medjool dates
• 1/2 cup chilled butter
• 2/3 cup buttermilk or yogurt

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Cook bacon in heavy skillet over medium until cooked but not crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels to cool and reserve grease. Chop bacon when cooled.
   
2. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. Stir in chopped bacon and dates. Grate butter into mixture using a cheese grater and stir in. Stir in buttermilk. Mix, then knead briefly.
3. Transfer dough to floured surface and form 8-inch round. Cut into 8 wedges and transfer to baking sheet. Cover and shill for 2 hours or overnight. Brush with reserved bacon drippings and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake scones until golden brown, 16-18 minutes. Serve warm or at room temp. If storing, cool completely and store in an airtight container.
   

Hobbies and hole hweat

I've come to the conclusion that I need a hobby, as Matt spends most of his free time playing with making mobile games. Knitting came up as a likely candidate. I've knit in the past, but usually find myself to restless to take pleasure in it. So last night I decided to knit a cabled hat, and throughout 5 hours of BBC Pride and Prejudice, I started and finished it. (pattern here) Pretty good, eh? Other candidates for hobby include guitar and painting. We'll see what I actually get to.


A friend had us up to her house in the mountains the weekend to watch the meteor shower. I thought I'd bake something to share for breakfast, but in my laziness refused to run out to replenish our supply of white flour. So the only option was whole wheat. Or flourless chocolate cake (why didn't I think of that at the time?) Marcy Goldman's "A Passion for Baking" has become my go to book when I need to make something ridiculously delicious for a crowd who isn't watching their calories (there's a brownie recipe with marshmallows, raisins, dates, oreos, chocolate chunks, pecans, crisp rice and almost as much butter as flour). There's also a section in the back with recipes that may or may not be actually healthy, but they usually lack something considered unhealthy or include something considered healthy. This is one such. She definitely goes for the kitchen sink approach, but these guys definitely garnered some compliments.

Breakfast Scones
from A Passion for Baking

• zest of one orange
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup oil or butter
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
  
• 1 cup granola
• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup sesame or sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup chopped almonds
  
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 3/4 cup frozen berries or chopped apple
  

1. Heat oven to 400. Line a cookie sheer/baking pan with parchment paper or grease it.
   
2. Blend zest, bp, bs, salt, cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour in a bowl. Drizzle in oil or cut in butter.
3. Add honey, syrup, eggs, and 3/4 cup yogurt or buttermilk. Mix halfway, then fold in granola, oats, cornmeal, seeds, nuts, and fruit. Stir and add more dairy if it does not hold together.
   
4. Pat half the dough into a 3/4 inch thick round and cut into six scones. Repeat with other half. Arrange scones on baking pan and bake them for 17022 minutes. You can brush with milk or beaten egg to make them more shiny if you like.
   

Off to summer camp

Lovely Santa Fe adobe architecture

I leave in two days to go to Massachusetts for a summer class. For 7 weeks. No oven. I am excited to learn lots of stuff and work my butt off, but sad that I won't be able to bake. Matt suggested that I make him lasagna for when I'm gone so that he can have easy dinners. So in the past few days, I have stocked the freezer with lasagna, chicken pot pies, enchiladas, cinnamon raisin bread, and sourdough bread. I must be nervous or something.

We spent the weekend visiting with some friends in Santa Fe. They were coming from Switzerland for a conference, so se made the (much shorter) 6 hour trek down I-25. Did you know there is a town called Wootton? And a Watraus. Go New Mexico. Our car does not have AC, which was less of a problem on Friday night that on Sunday afternoon. As engineers, we refused to submit to fate and bought a large styrofoam cooler that we filled with gas station ice and left uncovered to absorb heat in the car. When it got really desperate, the person in the passenger seat could even put their feet on it. Good thing, because it was about 95.

beautiful heirloom tomatoes at the farmer's market

We were supposed to eat amazing food there, but rather failed. The dinner place we went to was mediocre at best (and they wouldn't serve my friend's beer on their Swiss ID cards). We did have decent tamales from a food stand and granola at the B&B, but no huevos rancheros. And no green chile. I know, it's pitiful. I did really love the granola, and decided to try to replicate it at home. The lady said she used a mixture of honey, maple syrup, and molasses to get a dark flavor and winter spices for warmth.
Granola from Casita del Toro B&B. Delicious

So here is how nerdy I am. I used my muffin tin to try out 12 different variations on a basic granola mix. I tested spice mixes in varying amounts (cinnamon+nutmeg and cinnamon+nutmeg+ginger) and four liquid mixtures (1/1/1: oil/honey/maple syrup, 2:1:1, 1:1:1 plus vanilla, and 1:1:1 plus one part tahini). I toasted some oats and almonds and mixed two tablespoons with one teaspoon of whatever liquid mixture I was using.

I had twelve lovely variations on granola. And I am embarrassed to say that they all tasted about the same. Experiment failed. So much for my scientific method. That said, I do make some pretty good granola, so here's a recipe.


Granola

• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
  
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 T molasses
• 1 cup dried cranberries
  

*The ingredients are pretty malleable. Replace almonds with a mixture of other nuts (pepitas?). Try different spices. Use different ratios of the sweet liquids. Replace some of the oil with peanut or apple butter.

1. Preheat oven to 300. Mix oats, coconut, and almonds on a baking sheet and toast in oven for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice to prevent burning.
2. Increase heat to 350.
   
3. Mix spices, salt, and liquids in a small bowl. Pour over oat mixture and mix well. Bake for 20 minutes.
   
4. Cool the granola completely, then stir in the dried fruit. Cranberries are my favorite, but cherries and raisins also work well. Just make sure you don't bake the fruit, or they'll be bitter.