cvwine.com Blog

Is your college student unpopular?

Let’s say your son has been away to college for a year or two. He’s out of the dorms and on to apartment living, sharing space with other eager students, staying up late cramming for tests, and foraging for food. If there’s one thing I remember about my college days, it’s that I was hungry. ALWAYS hungry. Giving up the cafeteria meal plan was hard, and led to many late night calls to the pizza delivery guy. My friends and I practically drained our bank accounts on crummy fast food. That’s why giving the gift of bacon may just make you a hero to your kid and his roommates!

The picture of a popular college student

Outlets like BaconFreak.com make giving a smoky, delicious gift basket both easy and fun. You can give anything from two pounds of bacon to a basket crammed with meats, pancakes, seasonings and even apparel! But if you really want to go for the win, try a bacon-of-the-month club. That scholar of yours will wait with baited breath to see which unique bacon flavor awaits him in his mailbox each month. Not only does everyone love getting a package, but come on! It’s bacon! And, if he didn’t call regularly before, this gift will guarantee your phone rings at least once a month…he’ll be thanking you all year long.

If by some odd chance your kid isn’t a bacon fanatic, don’t worry. BaconFreak has everything from sausage to ribs to lobster for your gift giving pleasure. Even BBQ sauces and salsas! He’ll be the king of the grill, a skill he’ll use far more often in life than those Calculus formulas.

This year, enjoy the gift-giving season as you shop from the comfort of your living room. Go to www.BaconFreak.com and check out their full line of food and wine clubs for all your family and friends. Good taste has never been easier!

Marianne

Recently www.mygourmetconnection.com used our very own Baby Bubba’s Butcher Block Apple Cinnamon bacon to create to create a Bacon, Apple and Cider-Caramelized Onion Pizza

Lynne Web states, “This pizza recipe is full of contrasting flavor combinations. The onions and sliced garlic develop a mellow sweetness that’s accented by the cider, while the Granny Smith apples add a tart element. The most notable flavor, however, is the sugar-cured, hickory-smoked bacon with an apple-cinnamon rub (check the recipe notes for source information), although any top-quality bacon should do. The cheddar cheese adds a sharp bite, and the mild, smooth-melting Havarti pulls all the flavors together to create a truly mouth-watering pizza”

Ingredients
1/2 lb Apple-Cinnamon bacon, or other good quality bacon (see recipe notes for info)
2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup apple cider
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
3 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated
3 ounces Havarti cheese, grated
Pizza dough for one 10 x 15-inch crust (see recipe tips)
1 to 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation
Fry the bacon in a large pan until thoroughly cooked but not overly crispy. Drain on paper towels, reserving about 1 tablespoon of the drippings for cooking the onions. Cut the bacon into bite sized pieces and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of bacon drippings over medium heat. Add the onions and stir to coat. Season with about 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, until the onions are softened and starting to develop color.

Add the garlic and the apple cider and continue cooking, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes more, until the cider has evaporated and the onions are golden brown. Stir in the apples and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes until the apples are soft. Taste the mixture and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Remove from the heat, add the bacon pieces, mix well and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Roll the pizza dough into a 10 x 15-inch rectangle and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Allow to rest for about 10 minutes, then re-stretch a bit if necessary. Brush the crust lightly with the vegetable oil and place in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until puffed and slightly crisped on the bottom.

Remove from the oven and spread the onion, apple and bacon mixture over the top to within 1 inch of the edges. Sprinkle evenly with the grated cheddar and Havarti cheeses. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted and the crust is uniformly browned. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before slicing.

Preparations Tips
1. If your pizza dough is refrigerated, bring to room temperature before using.
2. Place the Havarti cheese in the freezer for about 20 minutes for easier grating.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

For full details and to view the original article written by Lynne Web of www.mygourmetconnection.com click here.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and as always, I thought it would be fun to share some of the most interesting and delightfully delicious “bacon featured” Thanksgiving Recipes that I’ve prepared over the years for family and friends.

Therefore, without any further ado, I’d like to introduce you to The #1 Ranked Recipe in this years prestigious Top Five Thanksgiving Bacon Recipes.

Enjoy!

Serves: 8

Prep Time: 50 Minutes

Cooking Time: 4 hrs 15 mins

Ingredients:

1 (18- to 20-pound) Fresh Turkey

1 pound Boss Hog’s Hickory Smoked, Brown Sugar Cured Bacon

3 tablespoons Gourmet Olive Oil

2 medium white onions, peeled and halved

3 medium celery stalks

10 medium cloves garlic, peeled

Instructions:

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and allow it to reach room temperature (Approximately 30 minutes)

Pre-heat the oven to 400°F.

Remove giblets and neck

Rinse out the turkey’s cavity and thoroughly and pat dry with a cotton towel.

Trim excess fat and skin and make a 3inch slits through the skin where the legs meet the breast.

Rub the turkey all over with 2 tablespoons of the Gourmet Olive Oil.

Place the onion, celery and garlic cloves inside cavity of the turkey.

Place the turkey in a large roasting pan.

Roast turkey for 30 minutes.

Now lower the temperature to 350°F.

Every 45 minutes, baste bird with pan drippings.

About 45 minutes before turkey is finished, brush the bird with the remaining tablespoon vegetable oil and overlap the bird’s breast and legs with strips of the Boss Hog’s Hickory Smoked, Brown Sugar Cured Bacon.

Secure bacon strips about 1 inch from edges with toothpicks.

Return the turkey to the oven and roast for the remainder of the cooking time.

Carve and enjoy.

Bon Appetit and Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Signing off at Pigging out!
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock

Well bacon has continued to be all the rage this year! People love the sweet and savory smell of bacon. The uncontrollable urge to drool and salivate as its smell floats through the air and smacks you in the nose. Ah the memories of the smell of bacon!

The good people at www.baconfreak.com have provided us with some samples and the following is a list of their top 10 bacon related products this year. Oh an by the way if you are thinking bacon as a gift? Well look at it like this - What meat eating carnivore wouldn’t get excited about bacon?

# 10 - Boss Hog’s Bacon Chocolate Sueyts

Boss Hog’s Bacon Chocolate Sueyts perfectly pair the savory flavor of bacon with the sweetness of dark chocolate in one mouth watering bite! They use your favorite Boss Hog Bacon, cooked it crispy and soak it in Dark Chocolate. A combination that is like no other chocolate available anywhere.

# 9 - Bacon Freak Maple Bacon Pancake Mix

Boss Hog has created the perfect breakfast! His Boss Hog hickory smoked bacon and maple chunks are mixed into the batter mixing the sweetness of maple with the smokiness of bacon
into the perfect pancake! - Finally a pancake mix that is bold enough to say eat me!

# 8 - Bacon Pillow

Direct from Bacon Today comes a unique, hand-made, limited production item that is a must-have for the bacon lover in your life. Bacon throw pillows! Measuring approximately 13? x 23?, this soft slice of bacon is made of fuzzy red & white fleece. The outer cover even has a zipper so you can slip the inner pillow out and clean the bacon’s shell.

# 7 - Swine and Wine Gift Box

This gift set includes everything you need to throw a Swine and Wine Party! We will send you your choice of Cab, Merlot or Chardonnay paired with a selection of Boss Hog Hickory Smoked Bacon. We will add in a one pound chunk of our very popular Smoked Mozzarella Cheese. Oh yeah, your order includes a t-shirt that says, “Swine and Wine - Two of my favorite things” - that should help your party start your party off right. Gift includes a recipe that you can use to prepare the bacon. See our list of states we can ship wine to.

# 6 - Boss Hog’s Bacon Cheese Straws

These cheddar cheese straws have southern charm! Made with 100% real cheddar cheese and are sprinkled with our very own Boss Hog’s Bacon Seasoning. No self-respecting southerner would ever be without cheese straws, now you can offer bacon flavored cheese straws to your guests!

# 5 - Bacon is Meat Candy T-shirts, Hoodies and apparel

www.Baconfreak.com has over 15 bacon related t-shirts boasting their trademarked label - Bacon is Meat Candy!

# 4 - Bacon Gift Wrap

Don’t forget to wrap your gift in the wrapping paper that is perfect for the pork lover in your life

# 3 - Boss Hog Sampler Deluxe Gift Basket

This Gift Box is for the guy who loves bacon. Your get 2 pounds of the best Bacon Freak Bacon! 1 bag of Boss Hog’s Maple Bacon Pancakes (made with real bacon and maple chunks) and of course Boss Hog’s Bacon Seasoning to make everything taste like bacon! Shipping is included in the price.

# 2 - Bacon Freak Bacon Jerky

Bacon Jerky is the ultimate snack! No longer are you limited to eating bacon at home, you can now take and eat bacon at work, school or simply as a great snack no matter where you are at anytime throughout your day.

# 1 - Bacon Freak Bacon

Known as the candy of meats or as they like to say, “Bacon is Meat Candy”. Their bacon is the only bacon that you can fry naked as their bacon won’t shrink when you cook it! They have over 20 variety of bacon including flavors like chipotle, jalapeno, cajun, hickory, honey bbq, summer tomato and well the list continues.

This last one is for the bacon lover who wants his share his love of bacon with his pet:

# 0 - Bacon Pet treats

If Bacon is a way of life for you, it should also be a way of life for your dog. Let your dog enjoy 100% Real gourmet bacon snacks!

Don’t miss out on the chance to get the perfect gift for the pork lover in your life this year!

Signing off at Pigging out!
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock

Well the Bacon Freaks of the world have spoken and the official www.BaconFreak.com member / customer “Top Ten Favorite Bacon Recipe’ list has been officially tabulated! I must confess; there were a few big surprises that made it onto the list this time around, as well as a couple traditional standards that usually top the list off, which never even made it into tenth place “con-TEN-tion.”

One notable observation was just how quickly desserts made with bacon have caught on and become so very popular. Four “baconlious” Sweet Treats made it their way into the Top Twenty, including one that placed in the Top Ten. If these trends continue, it may not be too long before we see a bacon dessert recipe reigning over all other bacon recipes in the “number one’ position.

One of the coolest advantages of personally owning and operating a popular Gourmet Bacon Club like “Bacon Freak” is that I regularly get the chance to interact with a lot of our members and customers. This gives me a wonderful opportunity to ask people what foods they like to make most often with our bacon and which bacon they prefer to use to make it.

This allows us to hone right in with absolute precision, getting a very clear fix on exactly which flavor combinations our loyal “Baconistas” prefer to enjoy when they’re “makin’ bacon.”

I know I was a “bacon bit” surprised by a few of the meals that managed to sneak up into the top ten. Let me know what you think of the list and which of your favorite gourmet bacon recipes you believe should be given some very serious consideration for the next poll. We here at Bacon Freak always enjoy hearing from our fellow freaks.

Enjoy the list and be sure to look for our future postings of the ten most delicious bacon meal recipes, laid out in their entirety at www.BaconFreak.com so that each and every one of you can experience these flavor extravaganzas for yourself!

Without further adieu, we would like to present:

Bacon Freak’s Top 10 Bacon Recipes:

“Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Poppers” prepared with Smokey’s Savor Select - Maplewood Smoked Bacon.

“Bacon Brownies” prepared with Baby Bubba’s Butcher Block - Apple Cinnamon Bacon.

“Bacon Quiche Tarts” prepared with Boss Hog’s Hickory Smoked Brown Sugar Cured Bacon.

“Grilled Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops” prepared with Coastal Caliente - Smoked Jalapeno Bacon.

“Bacon Stuffed Mushrooms” prepared with Bourbon Street - Vanilla Bourbon Hickory Smoked Country Bacon.

“Almond Bacon Chicken” prepared with Smokey’s Savor Select - Hickory Smoked Bacon.

“Penne Pasta with Spinach & Bacon” prepared with Rocco’s Private Reserve Sun Dried Tomato Bacon.

“BBQ Bacon Wrapped Fish Fillets” prepared with Baby Bubba’s Butcher Block - Hickory Smoked Peppered Bacon.

“Bacon, Avocado & Cheese Omelets with Tomato Salsa” prepared with Bourbon Street - Cajun Style Hickory Smoked Country Bacon.

“Bacon Wrapped Barbequed Shrimp” prepared with Boss Hog’s Honey BBQ Rubbed Bacon

Signing Off and Pigging Out,
Rocco “Boss Hog” Loosbrock
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