Tag Archives: bacon

Jalapeño Poppers, Baked

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Made these for the 4th of July and am looking for a BBQ event to bring them to so I can side swipe a few between drinks. It’s the perfect “over served” food. Bacon-y, kinda spicy, cheesey. Sooo good. In fact, I bet we could doctor them up to look Halloween-y. Ok. Time for some creativity, ya’ll. Whatchya got? P.S. The mix is damn good on toast under some avocado sliced.

  • 12 jalapeños, half and seeded
  • 8 oz cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup aged cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 head roasted garlic (optional)
  • 10 stalks of chives, cut into 1/4” lengths
  • 6 sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled

Move rack to middle of oven. Line baking pan with foil. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Make filling by mixing all but 3 TBSP of the crumbled bacon. Cut jalapeños, deseed and demembrane.

Use a spoon to fill the filling into the jalapeño halves. Try to keep them upright (sometimes that requires leaning one up on the other-don’t worry though, they’re ok sharing space).

Cook for 20-25 mins or until bubbly. Sprinkle remaining bacon on top (I actually pressed the bacon into the jalapeños).

It’s like molten lava coming out of the oven. Use all the impulse control power you have to wait 10 mins until trying one. Trust me. Then enjoy!!

A different take on the classic

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Carbonara. Just the name sounds scrumptious. I mean the first syllable is “carb”! It’s rich and comforting and it includes pork fat. Pasta Carbonara is so easy to make and is very adaptable to whatever you have in the fridge. The only necessities are eggs, a hard aged cheese, pasta, and some pork belly (bacon, pancetta, etc).

Then your refrigerator is your inspiration. You could add in any sauted veggies – peas, zucchini, eggplant, any alliums (onions, leeks, shallots, etc). What combinations do you like together? Try them out in this rich and creamy pasta dish.

This take on carbonara embraces the approaching Fall weather by incorporating leeks and mushrooms into the recipe. Seriously, this is so good. You’ve gotta try it.

I found the recipe at How Sweet It Is 

I didn’t have any portabello mushrooms but I did have crimini. That was really the only adaptation. Enjoy!

Lidia’s Comfort Potatoes

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Do you ever find yourself with nothing to watch on the DVR so you have to watch LIVE TV. Oh the commercials are just so irritating. Why do they have to be so loud? That’s why I love KQED or any local public stations. I get to escape the commercials and watch Lidia’s Italy. I love that show. It’s so relaxing and inspiring. Watching the show the other day inspired this version of her comfort potatoes. Seriously, bacon and potatoes, marinated artichoke hearts and green beans all fried to deliciousness? How couldn’t I resist?

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Lidia Inspired Comfort Potatoes

Serves 4

  • 4 or 5 Yukon Gold potatoes
  • 3 or 4 slices of bacon cut into 1/2″ strips
  • 2 handfuls of green beans cut into 3″ lengths
  • 1 small yellow onion
  • marinated artichoke hearts (I picked some up from the New Leaf deli section and used what amounted to 3 whole hearts cut into 8 segments)
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Put the potatoes (whole) into cold water and boil until tender (a fork can easily pierce through it). Pull out the potatoes and slice them into 1/4″ rounds. I pulled some of the skin off. Using the same water, drop the green beans in for a couple minutes but not too long. Remove from water and set aside.

In a separate pan, fry the bacon until crispy. Remove and drain on a paper towel. Cook the onion in the bacon fat until tender. Add the potatoes and some salt. Let them cook over med/high heat so they get a bit browned. Add back in the bacon, green beans and artichoke hearts. Cover and cook for a couple minutes so everything can get to know each other. Flip over the mixture and cover for another 2 to 3 minutes. Salt and Pepper to taste. Serve with a grilled pork chop and enjoy!