cvwine.com Blog

Gourmet Bacon & Shrimp Over Southern Grits!

Serves 4
Ingredients:

3 cups of Chicken Stock
1 cup of Cream
1 cup of Corm Meal

(Toppings)

12 slices of Gourmet Bacon: Well diced after being cooked until crispy)
1 red pepper: Seeded and diced
1 medium Onion: Diced
20 large, raw, peeled and de-veined Shrimp
1 dollop of Butter for sautéing shrimp
¼ cup chopped fresh Parsley

Instructions:

Take the cup of cream and the 3 cups of chicken stock and pour it into a deep stainless steel pot.

Bring the pot to a simmer.

Be sure to adjust the heat, so that it stays at a gentle simmer.

Slowly add 1 the cup of cornmeal, carefully whisking as you go.

Turn the heat down as low as it will go and stir it once in a while as it cooks.

This should take a total of 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile use another large sauté pan to crisp up 6 diced pieces of bacon.

Remove the bacon when it’s nice and crisp.

Pour off most, but not all of the bacon fat and add 1/2 of the seeded and diced red pepper

Add ½ of the diced onion.

Once the peppers and onions have softened up, approximately 5-6 minutes, take them out of the pan and add them to the plate with the cooked bacon.

Now add the large, raw, peeled and de-veined shrimp to the pan.

Add the dollop of butter to the pan and be sure that the shrimp cook evenly on both sides.

When the shrimp are cooked to your liking, add the peppers and onions and bacon back into the pan.

Now add the chopped fresh parsley.

The grits should be creamy and soft to the teeth when they’re done, which should be right around the same time as the shrimp.

Dig in …. Bon Appetit!

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Bacon Club by clicking here

The perfect treats for pork lovers everywhere with a Mediterranean twist. This recipe is taken from Gaea’s cookbook 5 Greek Chefs and Their Favorite Meze. The cookbook focuses on healthy living recipes using their environmentally friendly Greek olive oils, and sauces that add a flavor that transports you straight to the shores of Greece.

One recipe that is too good to pass up is Chef Christofors Peskias’ Salami chip on wild mushrooms recipe. This dish has an assortment of great flavors; the Salami is baked until crispy than placed above the garlic sautéed mushrooms. To accentuate the flavor 4 pieces of bone marrow are placed around the mushrooms and a red wine sauce that includes ground cumin and coriander that is drizzled above to add the finishing touches to the dish. This is a great recipe that would compliment a good wine or the main course of pork.
Cooking directions:
Prep time: 30 min. Cook time: 4 hours 6 servings
1 ½ lbs small chanterelle mushrooms (also called giroles) cleaned & dried
10 ounces raw bone marrow divided into pieces of 1.75 grams each
2 cups chicken broth
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
2 Tbsp. Gaea DOP Kalamata extra virgin olive oil
1.4 ounces butter
½ bunch fresh oregano, leaves only
7 ounces salami cut on slicing machine
For the sauce
1 ¼ cups sweet Agiorgitiko wine or other sweet red wine
2 ½ cups red wine
2 ½ cups dark chicken broth
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
Small amount of chopped chives
Coarse sea salt
Salt, freshly ground pepper

Arrange salami on cookie sheet lined with baking paper and bake in preheated oven at 175 degrees for 2-3hours or until dry and crispy similar to the texture of chips.
Prepare the sauce: Combine wines in a saucepan and reduce over medium heat until it becomes syrupy. In separate saucepan reduce the chicken broth until thick and rich. Combine the two liquids in one pot and add cumin and coriander. Poach the bone marrow in the chicken broth for about 10 min., without the broth coming to a boil. Cut cooked bone marrow into 4 slices.

Prepare the mushrooms: Sauté with olive oil on high heat for 30 seconds to release the liquid. Place mushrooms in a colander and let drain fro 2 min. Add butter and garlic to frying pan and sauté mushrooms again on high heat for another 30 seconds. Season and add chives.

To serve: Place some mushrooms in the middle of the plates and top with salami chips. Arrange 4 pieces of bone marrow around the mushrooms and sprinkle with coarse sea salt and oregano leaves. Drizzle sauce on top.
Smile when you eat!!!
Andres Samperio
Intern writer for Coastal Vineyards Gourmet Food Clubs

O.k., you love bacon! You have it fro breakfast, lunch and dinner. You even dream about bacon. Have you ever considered bathing in it. Archie Mchpee has done it again, inventing a new bacon soap bar that will allow you to wake up to to sweet smell of bacon in the bathroom. Each bar of soap has the words “Bacon Soap” embossed on top!

In addition to the soap the have made a vinyl Bacon Belt with a metal buckle fits waist sizes 30″ to 40″. Thankfully they were considerate enough not to go to big on this belt. The bacon movement doesn’t need to see anything to gross!

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Bacon Club by clicking here

we are excited to announce the launching of a new method to interact with our customers. We have had so much great feedback from you that we wanted to create a venue to share recipes and bacon related ideas. On the Baconfreaks Youtube channel you will find videos of Rocco himself cooking up some bacon, and other great bacon ideas. To help us spread the word about this great new venue for our customers, we are having a BACONFREAK recipe contest!

BACONFREAK recipe contest - Have a favorite recipe that you love using Boss Hogg’s bacon for? Do you think it is the best tasting and delicious recipe that would make other Baconfreaks tremble? If you do, then sent it to us at “Recipes at baconfreak.com”. The top three recipes will be made by Rocco and added to our Youtube channel and we will send you 2lbs of Boss Hoggs favorite bacon to share with your friends and family! We will pick 1 winner from each of these three categories:
• Breakfast
• BBQ
• Creative/Original
Admissions will be accepted until mid August! Please make sure to include the name of the recipe, ingredients, cooking instructions and your name. If you are a winner we will contact you by e-mail for an address to send your prize.

Visit our youtube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/baconfreaks

Summer is finally really beginning to kick in and the warmer weather means two very significant things!

(1) Our wardrobes automatically becomes much more casual, laid back, fun, often funny and definitely more comfortable and relaxed.

(2) People are feeling the sunshine brighter, stronger and longer and that means higher temperatures. This naturally leads to the desire to show off a little more skin in order to effectively “cool ourselves down” while potentially “heating things up!”

So do the math, (1) + (2) = T-Shirts … lots and lots of T-Shirts and Bacon Freak / Coastal Vineyards is happy to announce that “We’ve got you covered” (pun definitely intended!).

Whether you are looking for something casual, classy, cute or comfortable, we’ve got just what the Doctor ordered. Everything from our hilariously funny multiple versions of the Bacon is Meat Candy T-shirts with our popular Bacon Freak cartoon Pig Character to some of the classiest, professionally acceptable Premium Wine & Gourmet Bacon cotton shirts that breath and help avoid sticky situations.

For the Ladies, we have everything form the most classic conservative shirts to some of the slinkiest, sexiest “Ladies Tank Tops!” Or perhaps something somewhere in between is preferred, then by all means, come check out our very cute and highly fashionable “Baby Doll Shirts!”

Planning on spending some time under the sun and want to protect yourself from the potential damage of those direct U.V. Rays, no problem, come check out our official “Bacon Freak Caps

Don’t forget this wonderfully warm weather means a lot more meals being eaten outside plus LOVE of all LOVES, plenty of “BARBECUING” so yes, of course we have our very popular Bacon Freak Apron / BBQ Smock.

If the outdoor event last long into the late evening, have no fear, the Bacon Freak Hooded Sweatshirt is here to help you transition into the cooler night temperatures.

According to several emails, letters, phone calls and conversations shared with our loyal members and customers, we’ve learned that many of our more conservative female bacon Freak apparel wearers like the additional personal privacy of wearing a nicely loose fitting Bacon Freak T-shirt over their swimming suit when they are out in the public eye or feeling uncomfortably on display in front of mixed company visiting.

Interestingly enough, we’ve also received word and few interesting photos of some of our less that conservative “Lady Friends” who also seem to enjoy getting their Bacon Freak T-Shirts wet as well, so it seems to a common thread shared by a full spectrum of the female Bacon Freaks out there, and we think that totally awesome. After all, that’s why we took the time, money and effort to design so many different T-Shirts to choose from.

Let us know which one is your favorite. Send us some pictures of you or someone you know in an official Bacon Freak T-Shirt and we will most definitely show our sincere appreciation and make it worth your while.

Check our website “Contact Page” for directions on how send the photos and “we’ll certainly be “seeing you” soon!

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Bacon is Meat Candy Tshirts by < http://www.cvwine.com/TshirtDesign.html>clicking here

Have you ever wanted bacon on a Monday before work to start the week off right? Usually there isn’t enough time, I mean who has the time to bake or fry up a pound of bacon on a Monday morning while getting the kids ready for school, making sack lunches and getting all your work related stuff shoved into your laptop bag, right?

Well a new company called WowBacon just invented a Microwave Cooker to cook your favorite gourmet bacon in a hurry. Basically you hang or rack the bacon in what looks like a water pitcher for about 30 seconds per strip of bacon, a few minutes later you have a pound of bacon for breakfast. The best part is the grease drops to the bottom of the pitcher, dump that and toss the Microwave Cooker into the dishwasher and your off to work after having a delectably delicious bacony good breakfast. Sounds good, right?

Visit our bacon store to load up on Bacon Freak Bacon

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Bacon Club by clicking here

Boss Hog’s “BBQ Pork Cracklin’s”, it simply HAD to be! We’re talking one of the most delicious snack treats on earth. These, my good friends are no mere “mass produced pork rinds,” this is a sweet and salty, savory sample of Southern Style Satisfaction!

While driving along, on a wonderful trip down below the “Mason Dixon Line,” I stopped at a local, road-side food stand for something to go along with my snack of Bacon Freak Bacon Jerky!

The enthusiastically friendly lady working the stand recognized the package of my Bacon Jerky and told me that the same company makes her favorite bacon and that I actually look a lot like the guy on the package.

As you can imagine, that led to a pretty interesting conversation, when out of nowhere she said, “Hey Rocco, I gotta show you something!” Out from under the counter came a Tupperware bowl and when opened the lid, it was like the gates of Heaven had just swung open.

They were what the locals called “Cracklin’s” made from award winning pork with the most awesome barbecue aroma and flavor. Now I have had “store bought” pork rinds before and I must confess, I’ve never been much of a fan, but these “Cracklin’s” were absolutely delicious.

She said her husband was getting on in years and with the preparation process being so meticulous and involved, that soon these delightfully delicious taste treats would soon be a thing of the past, unless someone with access to premium pork and a penchant for top quality gourmet snacks would be willing to make them. … Hmmmmmm?

Introducing Boss Hog’s BBQ Pork Cracklin’s; made from the skins of our finest, award winning country hams. We meticulously prepare these fresh pork skins by first cooking them to a golden brown crispness in a pressurized vat, then a second time in a convection oven in order to dry them to perfection and seal in their flavor and crispness.

Then we carefully add our special blend of herbs and spices to give this premium pork the most impressive barbecue flavoring. Our “Cracklin’s” are so totally delicious, they can be thoroughly enjoyed simply eating them straight out of the package, but if you really want to experience the “tried and true taste” of the “Deep South,” cook them up in this awesomely authentic, farm fresh cornbread recipe!

Country Cracklin’ Corn Bread

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups cornmeal
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup Boss Hog’s BBQ Pork Cracklin’s

Directions:

Mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and soda thoroughly in a mixing bowl.

Toss in the eggs, buttermilk and Boss Hog’s BBQ Pork Cracklin’s

Stir well.

Pre-heat a well greased cast iron skillet in an oven at 400 degrees for 3 minutes.

Pour batter into the hot skillet.

Bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Bacon Club by clicking here

Well, Bacon Freak just got another victory under our belt when it comes to “comparison tests” of our products again those of our competitors by a collection of media gourmets, connoisseurs, aficionados and “foodies!”

This time out is extra special however, because the “thumbs up” victory declaration is this time coming to us from a media outlet that is specifically known for their hilariously clever, often “tongue in cheek, “sarcastically irreverent” spoofs that they take at everyone in their cross hairs.

These wonderfully wild and wacky wordsmiths are the journalists over at The A.V Club. The A.V. Club is an extremely popular and widely read pop culture / entertainment newspaper and website that is closely associated with it’s even more famous, beloved and “Peabody Award” winning parent company, “The Onion.”

The A.V. Club reports with humor and an original take on everything of note that is occurring in the fields of film, music, TV, books, games, DVDs, features and luckily for us, the occasional forage into the world of gourmet food & tasty snacks.

To our delight they decided to compare our brand new “Bacon Freak Chocolate Suetys” to the “Bacon Bar” brought to you by the fine people over at Vosges. Here’s what they concluded after their taste comparison, along with some of the personal comments made by the individual judges ruling in the contest:

“Bacon Chocolate Sueyets, on the other hand, clearly contain actual bacon, in much larger quantities than the Vosges bacon bar. The Sueyets are irregular, clearly handmade discs of dark chocolate with significant chunks of simultaneously crispy/chewy bacon scattered within.”

“The chocolate is rich and pungent, and so is the bacon, which actually, for a wonder, tastes more like bacon than like salt or liquid smoke. The tastes actually complement each other very well, and the blend of textures is appealing.”

Individual Judge Comments:

*** “This is way better than Vosges. Definitely. That was grainy and salty, and the bacon wasn’t as generous, and the chocolate wasn’t as good. I’d pick these any day of the week.”

*** “Well, I totally approve. I’ll have another. I thought this was really good.”

*** “I don’t like bacon, but I like these.”

*** “It’s sweet and salty and crunchy all at the same time.”

*** “The texture of the chocolate is really soft for dark chocolate. It’s almost like a truffle.”

*** “And it’s actually good chocolate!”

*** “Dark, smoky, a little bitter from the chocolate. Reminds me of chocolate-covered coffee beans minus the crunch.”

Thank You A.V. Club, we’re big fans, regular readers and are sincerely honored by your very kind, positive “thumbs up” review!

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
Visit our Chocolate Club by clicking here

Visit our Youtube channel at: http://www.youtube.com/user/baconfreaks

Baconfreak.com is excited to announce the launching of a new method to interact with our customers. We have had so much great feedback from you that we wanted to create a venue to share recipes and bacon related ideas. On the Baconfreaks Youtube channel you will find videos of Rocco himself cooking up some bacon, and other great bacon ideas. To help us spread the word about this great new venue for our customers, we are having a BACONFREAK recipe contest!

BACONFREAK recipe contest - Have a favorite recipe that you love using Boss Hogg’s bacon for? Do you think it is the best tasting and delicious recipe that would make other Baconfreaks tremble? If you do, then sent it to us at “Recipes [at] baconfreak.com”. The top three recipes will be made by Rocco and added to our Youtube channel and we will send you 2lbs of Boss Hoggs favorite bacon to share with your friends and family! We will pick 1 winner from each of these three categories:
• Breakfast
• BBQ
• Creative/Original
Admissions will be accepted until July 31st! Please make sure to include the name of the recipe, ingredients, cooking instructions and your name. If you are a winner we will contact you by e-mail for an address to send your prize.

For many years now Manhattan has been known as a place for Great shopping, Penthouse Apartments and its fashion conscience inhabitants. Well now it will be known for delicious South East Asian cuisine in a comfortable atmosphere, that induces conversation and playfulness. The restaurant is Kampuchea, owned and operated by Chef Ratha Chau.

Chef Chau opened his restaurant in 2006 and has had much success since. He bases his dishes on the colorful flavors of Cambodian street food, while adding regional flavors creating a style, which is refreshingly unique. A dish that is remarkably complex in flavors yet satisfyingly simplistic is his Crispy Pork Belly recipe.

The pork is cooked in an oven at 185 degrees F, with carrot, onions, ginger, apple cider vinegar, dry chilies and salt covered in water. Once cooked the pork is allowed to cool and diced into 1 1/2 inch cubes. Although the diced pieces of pork alone would be enough to make your mouth water, the meat is still lightly fried in a glaze of honey, dried chili, and fish sauce. Then garnished with scallions, cracked pepper, and sea salt.

This is a dish that is sure to satisfy your pork cravings with new and unique flavors.
Remember Smile when you eat!!!

Andres Samperio
Intern writer for Coastal Vineyards Gourmet Food Clubs
Visit our Pork Chops Club by clicking here