Bacon Nation: 125 Irresistible Recipes (13 page)

Serves 4

Easy to assemble, this salad combines some of the most scrumptious foods on the planet on one plate—ripe Bosc pears, Humboldt Fog cheese, shallot, bacon, crinkly Bibb lettuce, and raspberries, all lightly dressed with a simple vinaigrette. You can find Humboldt Fog, an American goat cheese, in specialty food markets and at farmers’ markets. If you don’t have Humboldt Fog, substitute another good-quality goat cheese or even blue cheese. We prefer to oven-bake the bacon for this salad as we like the evenly browned slices baking produces.

6 slices bacon

3 tablespoons plus 1½ teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon plus 1½ teaspoons white wine vinegar

1 small shallot, finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 ripe, but still firm, Bosc pears

5 to 6 ounces Bibb or Boston lettuce, rinsed well, dried, and torn into bite-size pieces (about 4 handfuls)

20 sprigs watercress, rinsed and dried

5 ounces Humboldt Fog or other good-quality goat cheese, at room temperature, sliced into 4 pieces

12 raspberries, or 4 large strawberries, stemmed and cut in half

1
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400˚F.

2
Line a broiler pan with aluminum foil (the foil makes it easy to clean the pan after the bacon cooks). Place the broiler pan rack on the pan, over the foil, then arrange the bacon slices in a single layer on the rack. Bake the bacon until it is browned and most of the fat is rendered, 11 to 14 minutes (the exact baking time will depend on the thickness of the bacon). Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. When cool, break the bacon into 1-inch-long pieces.

3
Place the olive oil and wine vinegar in a small bowl or glass measuring cup and whisk them together. Add the shallot. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste and set it aside.

4
Using a paring knife, cut each pear in half lengthwise. Remove the core, the stem, and the blossom end, then cut the pears lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick slices.

5
Place the lettuce and watercress in a large bowl, add the dressing, and toss well.

6
Divide the salad greens equally among 4 individual salad plates. Arrange the pear slices, goat cheese, bacon pieces, and raspberries or strawberry halves on top of the salad greens, dividing them equally, and serve.

Serves 4 to 6

Iceberg lettuce wedges with blue cheese dressing were just the thing to have with a porterhouse steak back in the heyday of Madison Avenue. Maybe three martinis as well. This retro combination made a comeback about the same time that the cable TV series Mad Men captured our imagination. And so did the idea of crunchy pieces of bacon, with blue cheese on a wedge of crisp lettuce nearly as cold as a real iceberg. We found this recipe to be so rich that it works both as a satisfying lunch for four diners or as a side-dish dinner salad for six. You choose.

8 slices bacon

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

3 to 4 tablespoons milk

2 to 2½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 cup (4 ounces) coarsely crumbled blue cheese, such as Roquefort or Danish blue

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 large head iceberg lettuce

½ small red onion

2 hard-cooked eggs (see
page 98
), peeled and coarsely chopped

1 large ripe tomato, cut into wedges, about 1 inch thick

2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and coarsely chopped

1
Cook the slices of bacon in a large skillet (cast-iron is best) over medium heat until browned and crisp on both sides, about 8 minutes, turning the slices occasionally and adjusting the heat to keep the bacon sizzling without burning or browning too rapidly. Don’t crowd the slices in the skillet; if necessary, cook the bacon in 2 separate batches. Using tongs, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain, setting aside 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in a small mixing bowl.

2
Add the mayonnaise, sour cream, 3 tablespoons of the milk, 2 tablespoons of the cider vinegar, and the parsley and garlic to the bacon fat in the bowl. Stir in ⅔ cup of the blue cheese. If desired, thin the dressing with the remaining 1 tablespoon of milk and 1½ teaspoons of cider vinegar. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate the dressing, covered, for about 1 hour to allow the flavors to bloom.

3
Rinse the head of lettuce and, using paper towels, dry the outer leaves. Slice the head of lettuce through the stem end into 4 equal wedges or, if serving 6, cut the head in half through the stem end, then cut each half into 3 wedges. Use a paring knife to remove the tough core from each wedge. Season the lettuce wedges lightly with salt and pepper. Slice the red onion into very thin rings, then slice the rings in half.

4
Place the lettuce wedges on 4 or 6 large plates. Stir the dressing and spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons over the top of each lettuce wedge. Top the wedges with remaining ⅓ cup of blue cheese. Break the bacon into 2 to 3 inch pieces and add it to the salads, dividing it evenly. Sprinkle the chopped egg evenly over each serving and garnish each salad with the red onion and 1 or 2 tomato slices. Serve with any remaining dressing on the side.

Serves 4

Inside every grown-up who likes broccoli there dwells a kid who couldn’t stand it. One exception is when the broccoli is in this Midwestern covered-dish-dinner classic. We’ve enjoyed versions of the salad at holiday picnics and backyard barbecues, where it never fails to get eaten with gusto. Curry, a powerful seasoning in its own right, really ups the powerhouse flavor, especially with the bacon acting as heavy taste artillery.

4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch-wide pieces

Extra-virgin olive oil, if necessary

⅓ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon curry powder

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 cups uncooked bite-size broccoli florets

¼ cup minced red onion

2 tablespoons raisins

2 tablespoons roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds

1
Cook the bacon in a medium-size skillet over medium heat until browned and crisp, 7 to 9 minutes, stirring often and adjusting the heat as necessary. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain, setting aside 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in a large bowl. If necessary, add enough olive oil to the bowl to measure 1 tablespoon.

2
Add the mayonnaise, honey, vinegar, and curry powder to the bacon fat in the bowl and whisk until the dressing is smooth. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste.

3
Add the broccoli and stir to coat the florets evenly with the dressing. Add the red onion, raisins, sunflower seeds, and drained bacon and stir to combine thoroughly. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper as necessary. If you have the time, refrigerate the salad for 2 hours before serving to allow the dressing to infuse the broccoli with its flavor.

Serves 6

Farro is a traditional grain that’s quite popular in Italy. Although some people call it hard wheat, spelt, emmer, or einkorn, to us it tastes like a hearty barley. High in fiber and protein, farro is nutty and slightly crunchy. It is a wonderful alternative to Arborio rice for risotto. Because it is so robust, farro can play in the same sandbox as bacon. We think of this whole-grain salad as our bacony version of tabouleh. Great with ribs and fried chicken; fine with a fish fry, too.

6 slices bacon, cut into ¼- to ½-inch pieces

3 whole cloves

1 medium-size onion, peeled and cut in half

1 cup farro

Salt

10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into ½-inch pieces (about 1 cup)

1 cup cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained, if canned

½ cup red onion, diced

½ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 teaspoons minced seeded jalapeño pepper

¼ cup plus 1 to 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Juice of 1 large lemon

Grated zest of half a large lemon

1 large clove garlic, minced

½ teaspoon ground cumin

Freshly ground black pepper (optional)

1
Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until lightly browned and most of the fat is rendered, 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often and adjusting the heat as necessary. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain, setting aside about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in a small bowl.

2
Stick the whole cloves into the onion halves and place the onion halves and 4 cups of water in a medium-size saucepan. Cover the pan and let come to a boil over high heat. Add the farro, the reserved bacon fat, and a pinch of salt. Cover the pan, let come to a boil, then reduce the heat as necessary and let the farro simmer, partially covered, until it is medium-tender, 7 to 8 minutes. You want the farro to have a little bite, with a softened center; be careful not to overcook it. Drain the farro, discarding the onion and cloves, and let the farro cool.

3
As the farro cools, place the tomatoes, cucumber, chickpeas, red onion, parsley, and jalapeño pepper in a large mixing bowl or salad bowl. Place ¼ cup of the olive oil and the lemon juice and zest in a small mixing bowl and whisk to mix. Stir the garlic and cumin into the lemon dressing.

4
Stir the cooled farro into the tomato and cucumber mixture. Add the lemon dressing and the drained bacon and toss to combine. Add a little more olive oil, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the salad is too dry. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and some black pepper, if desired. Let the farro salad stand at room temperature or refrigerate it for about 20 minutes to let the flavors blend before serving.

Serves 6 to 8

This salad makes people look up and take notice when you bring it to a potluck dinner or barbecue. It features crunchy, nutty bacon, and there’s a touch of tang in the vinaigrette. If crunch is good (think oven-roasted cashews), then double crunch is better (bacon). When the green beans are summertime fresh, they are downright invigorating, and the creamy waxiness of fingerling potatoes gives a long finish to each mouthful.

For the salad

Salt

1½ pounds thin green beans (haricots verts), trimmed and rinsed

1½ pounds fingerling potatoes (each about 1 inch in diameter), scrubbed and sliced ¼ inch thick

2 large cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed with the flat side of a chef’s knife

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

5 black peppercorns

1 cup unsalted cashews

½ cup diced red onion

8 ounces slab bacon, rind removed (see
page 57
)

For the vinaigrette