Bacon Studded Polenta with Tomato Gravy - Ciao, Yawl!

Bacon Studded Polenta with Tomato Gravy~

Some of us were born to color outside the lines, inside the lines and sometimes draw our own lines.  Combining Italian Polenta with crispy bacon bits, then smothering it with a deep Southern Tomato Gravy is one of those meals where the lines between the countries get blurred.  What comes out of this marriage of "Ciao and Chow" is good country eating, no matter what country you're talking about.

And speaking of countries, this month the Lets Lunch Bunch (my virtual lunch buddies from all over the globe) are celebrating a very special debut of a new cookbook:

Cowgirl Chef: Texas Cooking with a French accent.

Ellise (Cowgirl Chef) is a true Texan who has been living, learning, teaching, growing and loving in Paris, France for the last few years.  Her story of how she embraced her authentic and true self, talents and dreams by meeting the challenge of a brand new environment is inspiring (and the recipes are down right "must-makes.")  Ellise is one of the original foodbloggers to start our unique monthly lunch meeting online several years ago.  I was there for the very first one and we all made our own versions of a BLT sandwich.  It's a great example of one of the good things that come from our tech-driven journey.

This month's challenge was to create and share a meal that represented our own past experiences and another country, too (ala: Texas and France.)  

Picking something Italian was a no-brainer for me.  I've been obsessed with all things Italian for many years and will be fortunate enough to be packing this week to visit our good friends in Cossignano, Italy and stay at their Organic Agriturismo (Fiorano.)  Paolo and Paola are part of the Slow Food Movement and are very active in Organic wines, foods and conservation. 

Agriturismo Fiorano in Le Marche

I speak a little Italian from years of studying and soaking it up, although it seems to be with a good ol' Southern twang no matter how hard I try to pretend.

My grandmothers in North Carolina made Tomato Gravy and poured it over biscuits, toast, rice and grits.  It's a poor man's marinara sauce and it's packed with tomato bits, bacon flavor and rich roux.

Polenta is ground corn meal and considered an Italian comfort food.  Depending on the region, it's served warm and loose like soupy grits, or thick and cut into sections or even baked.  If you've seen the pre-made tubes of something they call Polenta in grocery stores, please don't judge Polenta by that gross congealed yellow tube food product (smiling, but serious.)  

Making Polenta is as easy as rice. There are just a few tips for making it successfully:

1)  When the liquid begins to simmer, rain in the Polenta grains.  This means do NOT pour it all in (that makes it clump.)  Rain it in, sprinkling it gradually and stirring while it goes.

2)  Reduce heat and stir often so not to scorch the Polenta.

3)  Keep in mind, it's easy to add a little more liquid if it's too thick, but not so easy to make it thicker if you add too much liquid too quickly.

4)  Adding butter makes it a little bit looser, cheese will make it a bit thicker.

The liquid used in Polenta, like rice, can be water or stock, milk, or something in your imaginative recipe developing "coloring book."

When I made this Bacon Studded Polenta smothered in Tomato Gravy, I also ate almost the whole plate of it.  So, be careful. :D

Check below to see the many varied and delectable recipes of country fusion cooking from other Let's Lunch pals: 

Chery's Goin Pork Curry Tacos at Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan
Eleanor‘s  Wok Picadillo at Wok Star
Ellise‘s Salty Lime Sablés (Margarita Cookies) at Cowgirl Chef
Emma‘s Kimchi Bulgogi Nachos at Dreaming of Pots And Pans
Felicia‘s Mexican-Lebanese Hummus at Burnt-Out Baker
Grace‘s Taiwanese Fried Chicken at HapaMama
Jill‘s Southern Pimento-Stuffed Knishes at Eating My Words
Joe‘s Grilled KimCheese Sandwich at Joe Yonan
Karen‘s Ukrainian-German Cabbage Rolls at GeoFooding
Leigh‘s Venezuelan-Italian Cachapas Con Queso at Leigh Nannini
Linda‘s Project Runway Pelau: Rice & Beans Trinidad-Style at Spicebox Travels
Linda‘s Edible Salad Totes at Free Range Cookies
Lisa‘s Sunday Night Jewish-Chinese Brisket at Monday Morning Cooking Club
Lucy‘s Coconut Rice Pudding with Mango at A Cook And Her Books
Nancie‘s Chili-Cheese Biscuits with Avocado Butter at Nancie McDermott
Rashda‘s Mango Cobbler at Hot Curries & Cold Beer
Renee‘s Asian-Spiced Quick Pickles at My Kitchen And I
Steff‘s Chicken Fried Steak at The Kitchen Trials
Vivian‘s Funky Fusion Linguini at Vivian Pei
*********

Recipe: Bacon Studded Italian Polenta-

3-4 pieces of Bacon

1 cup Nonfat Milk

1 cup Water

2 Tbls. Butter

salt, pepper

1)  In a skillet, cook the bacon on Med. until crispy, remove and chop into small pieces. Pour off the fat/grease and save for the Tomato Gravy.  Save the bacon coated skillet for cooking the gravy in also.

2)  In a deep saucepan, bring the water, milk, salt and pepper to a low simmer, stirring so the milk doesn't curdle.

3)  Rain in the Polenta, stirring constantly until the Polenta is creamy.  

4)  Reduce the heat to low, stir often so it doesn't scorch.  Now is when to add a bit more liquid if needed. Stir in the bacon pieces now.  Cook and stir often for about 15 minutes.  The Polenta should be thick for this recipe.

5)  Stir in the butter and turn out into a buttered 8x8 baking pan. Leave to room temp or chill for later.

Press into a buttered baking dish

6)  Before serving, cut into squares and triangles and broil or fry for just a couple minutes until crisp on the outside. *It can also be used without this step.

Recipe:  Tomato Gravy

1/4 cup Bacon fat (use butter if there's not enough bacon fat)

1/4 cup Flour

2-3 Tomatoes (peeled, chopped)

2 cups Stock (veggie or chicken) warmed

salt/pepper

1) Using the same pan the bacon was cooked in, add the bacon fat/butter and the flour, salt and pepper.  Cook and whisk on Med. until light brown and a nice roux has been created.

 

2)  Add the chopped tomatoes and any reserved juice from chopping.  Lower heat to Low/Med and Whisk together.

3)  Slowly whisk in the warmed stock and continue cooking on Low for about 15-20 minutes.  If it's too thick, add a little water or more stock a little at a time.  Season to taste.

4)  Serve poured over the Polenta or biscuits, rice or scrambled eggs. Mmmmm.

Congrats to Cowgirl Chef!  Hope to see you on tour!

Christmas Brunch - and Happy Holidays

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS

from ShowFood Chef and Family~

As I look around the room, late afternoon on this Christmas Day, I am feeling so emotional. After a morning of laughs with my visiting in-laws, tons of presents, chasing the dogs to get the stockings back and feeling my daughter's baby move in her "pregger" tummy, I can't help but whisper a quiet "Thank You."

In the midst of our food-induced drowsiness, everyone of us are taking an electronic break. My husband is watching a short-film on television, one son is watching a movie on his new ipad, my mother-in-law is playing a word game on her iphone, my father-in-law is reading a book on his kindle, my other son is creating music with his new software, my daugher and her husband are on Skype talking to my mother on the other side of the United States. It's an amazing time to be alive. The world feels both giant and tiny at the same time. We're all in the same room chatting with each other, but also connected to the whole planet.

In a few minutes I'll be starting our Holiday Dinner that will include Ham, Toasted Couscous w/Corn & Tomatoes, Carrot and Zucchini Ribbon Salad, Roasted Potatoes w/ Escarole, and Celeriac Slaw. Later we'll go bowling together - yeah, you heard right - it's a family tradition.

Late tonight we'll end with another family tradition called "Dirty Bingo". It sounds like quite a few families have a version of this game. It involves rolling dice, trying to score doubles, choosing a wrapped secret gift from a pile of them, then trying to "take" presents from each other based on how the dice play out.

Every year when we play this together it dissolves into so much laughter you can hardly breathe.

Earlier today, our brunch included these easy to make and gobble down "Eggs & Bacon In The Round". I'm sharing the recipe/process with you in case you'd find them fun and tasty, too.

RECIPE: Eggs & Bacon In The Round

For Each serving, you'll need 1 egg, 1 piece of bacon, 1 piece of toast and a bit of butter.

1) Toast slices of bread with just a bit of butter spread on them. Then cut a round out of each toast (the size of your muffin tins.)

2) Place the rounds in each muffin hole, wrap a piece of bacon around each round.

3) Break an egg onto each round and inside the bacon wrap.

4) Bake in a 350F pre-heated oven for about 15 minutes or until eggs are set.

*Garnish with parsley or chives, or a drizzle of good Olive Oil. I hope this posting finds you with people that you love, wonderful memories of people from your life, and the hope for a wonderful year in the making.

CampBlogAway & Spicy Avocado-n-Bacon Frozen Magarita Recipe

I went to Camp and all you got was this

Spicy Avocado Bacon Frozen Margarita recipe.

Why would anyone drive hours from home into the mountains of California and sleep in a cabin to talk about food blogging?

Because it's FUN, people, it's FUN!

Not only was CampBlogAway fun, it was inspiring. Yeah, I know that word can be overused. But when you leave a place with the feeling of energy and renewed focus because of other people's lives, viewpoints or challenges they overcame - what else can you call it?

Joy (Joy the Baker), an extremely successful gal, let us in on her secret to a great Food Blog: Write from the heart, be yourself, give your best and they will come.

Cheryl (5 Second Rule) and Susan (Food Blogga) reminded us that building a "community" and reaching out to others, paying attention to who reads our blogs, and staying accountable for what we put out there will result in a larger community and a better planet.

I call that inspiring.

Not only was CampBlogAway inspiring, it was informative.

I didn't know that Idaho Potatoes are naturally capable of being crisp on the outside and firm, but fluffy on the inside because of the Volcanic minerals in the soil of Idaho.

I didn't know that Fiji Water was helping villages receive water supplies for themselves, as well. I didn't know you could buy eggs (SafeEggs) that are pasteurized, therefore no worries of deadly salmonella.

I didn't know that fondant is so easy, anyone can create beauty. I didn't know that Wente Vineyards have such a light, crisp Chardonnay. I didn't know the inside of a California Avocado (next to the shell) has the most nutrients.I didn't know that Patti (Worth the Whisk and camp captain) was a Virgo (structured, yet nurturing, humorous and inventive). I didn't know that Rachel (LaFujiMama) and Dara (CookinCanuck) could talk and laugh until 2:30 in the morning, just like me.

I call that informative.

CampBlogAway was like being a teenager, away at camp with buddies......except there's wine and better food.
A special thanks to Diane (CreatedBy-Diane) for the buttery Lemon Poppy Seed cookies that got me through my afternoon munchies.

To cap off my adult adventure and use one of the perfect avocados I got from camp, and to send us into Cinco de Mayo - here's a savory, almost healthy (wink, wink) cocktail. SPICY AVOCADO & BACON FROZEN MARGARITA: (serves about 4)

1 ripe Avocado (peeled and chopped)
1/2 Jalapeno (chopped)
6 Slices of Bacon (cooked crisp)
3 oz. Tequila (can use Vodka)
2 oz. Triple Sec or Cointreau
4 oz. Lime Juice or Sour Mix
ICE

1) In a blender, start with a little ice, then add the avocado, jalapeno, 1 slice of the bacon, the Tequila, Triple sec (I used Cointreau) and lime juice. Puree this, then add more ice until it reaches the consistency you like.

2) Taste along the way and increase the lime juice or ice as needed.

3) Separately, grind 3-4 slices of crisp bacon into dust for garnishing the glass edges and use the rest of the bacon pieces as swizzle sticks. This is a savory tasting cocktail, not sweet like the fruity ones. Serve immediately for a creamy texture or hold in refrigerator and stir briskly for a more liquid version.

Frittata Ribbon Salad with Honey Bacon Vinaigrette - Breakfast for Lunch

Sometimes the best breakfast happens at lunch. I've never been a 9to5 person, never been an early morning person, always been a "stay up much too late for my own good" person. The smell of bacon crisping and the buttery taste of eggs can make my head dance any hour of the day.

Frittata Ribbon Salad

w/ Honey Bacon Vinaigrette This Frittata Ribbon Salad is very simple to make and contains all the flavors of breakfast with the lightness of a lunch-time salad.

If salad is not your "thang", this faux-fettucini (which is naturally gluten free, by the way) can be tossed in your favorite sauce, sprinkled with cheese and slurped down like an Italian pasta del giorno.
This month my gaggle of virtual lunch buddies (we call ourselves #LetsLunch on twitter) decided to have breakfast for lunch - luvvvvvvv it. The whole "Lets Lunch" bunch started almost 2 years ago when a few bloggers (including Cheryl from TigerInTheKitchen and Ellise from CowGirlChef) who lived across the planet from each other in the real world decided to invite a few of us to have lunch with them in the virtual world.
Now, almost every month, we pick a theme and post a lunch item on the same day in a global lunch date with each other while sharing inventive and multi-cultural recipes with our readers. You are welcome to join us by trying our recipes, reading our posts and also simply posting your own idea too. Contact me, or go to twitter today and look for the hashtag #letslunch and let us know you're interested. It's just that simple. I served this recipe at room temp. with warm grilled asparagus and warm honey bacon vinaigrette that gave the arugula just enough wilt to make it sweet. I also served it chilled, with a tomato salsa vinaigrette at room temperature for good drizzle and a vegetarian spin; it was light and crispy with a nice crunch to the minced carrots and the grilled asparagus.Who said breakfast has to be in the mornings --- or that mornings have to be in the mornings, right? You'll find my recipe below and also check in here for these other talented food bloggers with creative ideas for Breakfast at Lunch:

Caitlin Shetterly - Crispy Okra Coins with Fried Egg and Biscuits

A Tiger In The Kitchen - Austin Style Breakfast Tacos

Free Range Cookies - Cinnamon Roll French Toast Sticks

Hot Curries & Cold Beer - Sweet Potato and 2-Pepper Hash with Fried Egg and Avocado

Chez Us - Vanilla Yogurt Pancakes

RECIPE: Frittata Ribbon Salad with Honey Bacon Vinaigrette
(serves 4 small plates)

4 eggs
2 oz heavy cream
1/4 cup grated carrot
2 Tbls. minced shallot
1 tsp. minced jalapeno

1) In a bowl, whisk all ingredients until loose and lemony (for about 2 minutes).

2) Drizzle a small amount of olive oil into a well-heated flat skillet or crepe pan. Then, pour in a small amount of the egg mixture, lift, tilt and swirl the pan so that the bottom of the pan is equally covered and the egg mixture is setting. Return the pan to the heat.

3) When the sides look firm and the middle is not runny (probably only a couple moments), lift the crepe up carefully with a spatula and flip it over to briefly cook the other side.

4) When both sides are set, slide the crepe out of the pan onto a towel to cool. Pour more mixture in, just to cover the bottom and repeat process.

5) Allow the crepes to cool, then stack and roll up together. Using a long knife, cut the crepe into skinny ribbons that resemble pasta when unfurled. Set aside for topping your salad or tossing in sauce.

Honey Bacon Vinaigrette:
3 slices of bacon (cut into 1 inch pieces)
1/4 shallot minced
1 tsp. Stone Ground mustard
2 Tbls. Honey
4 Tbls. Balsamic Vinegar
pinch of salt
6 Tbls. (plus more as needed) Olive Oil
1 Tbl. fresh cracked pepper

1) In a skillet, cook the bacon pieces on Med. heat until crispy. Carefully pour the bacon fat through a strainer and save.

2) In a large bowl or jar add the minced shallot, mustard, honey, balsamic vinegar, pinch of salt and 2 Tbls. of the bacon fat. Using an immersion blender or strong whisk, beat the ingredients til well incorporated.

3) Add the olive oil and pepper and whisk again until thick and emulsified into a nice vinaigrette. Taste and season as needed.

TO ASSEMBLE: Rub fresh arugula leaves or mixed greens with a bit of the vinaigrette and place on a plate. Top with Frittata ribbons and drizzle more vinaigrette. Garnish with crispy bacon pieces. A couple grilled asparagus are a nice addition, as well as a slice of tomato.

ENJOY, and hope you'll join us for Lets Lunch next time. Thanks for stopping by here :D

Saltine Toffee Bacon Bark - Simple Saturday

Sometimes you need a sweet treat, and you need it in a hurry. I'm not one for buying a box of cookies - where's the fun in that? That's where these salty, chocolate, caramel, and bacon.......(HOLD IT, WHAT?), yes bacon bark treats come in.

SALTINE TOFFEE BACON BARK

This post came from my sweet/sour relationship with having a bunch of teenagers over to my house. The sweet part is: I know where my son is and what he's doing every moment. The sour part is: I know where 19 other teenagers are because you can't miss the racket and mess they are leaving in every place they breathe. My son is part of his High School Comedy Sports Team and they have rehearsal twice a week...in homes. And, I'll admit, it's so fun to watch these talented, intelligent and truly funny personalities attacking word games, spoofing cultural icons and satirizing political rhetoric. But they're teens and that means hyper-everything, from drama to spraying the counters every time they turn the water on, to somehow changing the direction the area rug is facing.

When they rehearse at our house, I like to prepare a sweet treat and usually I have a few days to play and create something - who knows, even sneak in something healthy.This week, I got 1 hour notice~ It was a called rehearsal because they had a chance to perform in a benefit, so it was understandable and my son "volunteered" our place. I love that he feels comfortable with us to want his team over here, but it doesn't give ya a lot of time to prepare.

I'll be serving these to adults, now that they've passed the hardest focus group around: Teens.

Dash to the cupboard and throw this together:RECIPE: Saltine Toffee Bacon Bark

1 pack of saltine (or like) crackers
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup cream
9-12 ozs. dark chocolate (disks, chips or chunks)
1/2 cup (or more) toasted chopped pecans (or other nuts)
2-3 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled (*obviously this is optional, but it gave it that extra special salty bite)

1) Line the crackers facing up, side to side in a lined baking pan.
2) In a saucepan, heat the brown sugar and cream to boiling and simmer gently for about 5 minutes, stirring.
3) Carefully pour the brown sugar toffee over the crackers in your pan and bake in the oven on preheated 350F for about 5 minutes.
4) Remove the pan from the oven and immediately sprinkle the chocolate all over the toffee. Let rest for a few minutes, then using a spatula, spread the melted chocolate out evenly.
5) Sprinkle with chopped nuts and bacon and allow to cool for 15 more minutes.
6) Place in the refrigerator to help set the chocolate for about 20 minutes or more.

Break into pieces and serve, or you can hold in an airtight container or freezer for a couple days.

I haven't tried this, but I bet it would be great with graham crackers as a bottom, or butterscotch chips on top. Hmmm, let me go check the cupboard again. :D Thanks for stopping by!

Poaching Perfection - Daring Cooks 12/10

Poached Egg on Grilled Romaine w/ Bacon Vinaigrette

Have you ever poached an egg? I mean poached without a "this will make it look like a poached egg" device? It's much simpler than you think. I warn you; once you do one, it's hard to stop playing with dropping the raw eggs into hot water and watching them become a balloon of golden comfort food.
Jenn and Jill have challenged The Daring Cooks to learn to perfect the technique of poaching an egg. They chose Eggs Benedict recipe from Alton Brown, Oeufs en Meurette from Cooking with Wine by Anne Willan, and Homemade Sundried Tomato & Pine Nut Seitan Sausages (poached) courtesy of Trudy of Veggie num num.

Now, for the grilling - it was done inside the house, in my fav pan: a La Creuset grill pan. No, as much as I'd love to be given a free La Creuset...anything, they did not sponsor this "rave". I just wanted to pass along the pan power. :D I'm sure there are other grill pans that also work well. Basically you just want the pan to be heavy (cast iron) and durable (cast iron) and have the raised grill stripes.

To those of you who may be thinking, "Why would I cook lettuce, why would I purposely make my lettuce soggy?" I offer that grilling greens gives them a nice smokey flavor and they're on the heat just long enough to wilt and create a wonderful mixture of saute and crisp. This is a classic French Bistro Salad, often served with varied greens.
Then, there's the Bacon Vinaigrette - 'nuff said, am I right? There is no wrong time for bacon and eggs. The combo in this dish gives you the balance of buttery eggs that burst into their own sauce, on top of smokey greens with the tangy/sweet/savory bite of bacon and vinaigrette. Top this with a shaved shard of true Parmigiano Reggiano cheese that kicks up a natural salty zing and you have a full meal on a luncheon size plate.

RECIPE: Poached Eggs on Grilled Romaine with Bacon Vinaigrette-

Poaching the Egg-

1) Bring a deep sided sauce or saute pan filled 3/4 with water to a low simmer (not boiling)
2) Add 1 Tbls. vinegar to the water (it helps with keeping the egg together as it cooks).
3) Crack open the egg and drop the raw egg into the water gently (or put the egg into a cup first so you can control the gentle drop).
4) Cook the egg (s) for 3-4 minutes until the whites are set, but the yellow is definitely runny.
5) Remove with a slotted spoon and keep in cold water until ready to reheat and serve.

Bacon Vinaigrette:

3 pieces of bacon
1/2 shallot (minced)
2 Tbls Champagne Vinegar (or white balsamic, or other flavor)
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1 Tbls Bacon fat (from cooking the bacon)
pepper to taste


1) Fry 3 pieces of bacon in a pan til crisp. Remove the bacon and all but 1 Tbls. of the rendered grease. Chop the bacon into small bits and hold.
2) In a bowl, whisk together well the 1 Tbls. left over bacon fat, shallots, vinegar, mustard, and pepper.
3) Drizzle the Olive oil, whisking constantly until the vinaigrette is emulsified (or holds together and thickened) Set aside for serving.

Grilled Romaine:

1) Wash and dry completely several stalks of Romaine Lettuce.
2) Spray (or wipe) the grilling pan with olive oil and heat on Med/High until hot.
3) Lay the Romaine lettuce leaves out as flat as possible and allow grill marks to show, then remove to a platter for serving as soon as possible.

SERVING:

Reheat the poached eggs by placing them in a bowl of very hot water for just a couple minutes
Lay out the Grilled Romaine, top with a poached egg.
Drizzle the Bacon Vinaigrette over the egg, and sprinkle with the cooked bacon.
Garnish with a thinly shaved piece of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Here are a few tips from the Daring Cooks this month:

 Make sure to use the freshest eggs possible. Farm-fresh eggs will make for the best poached eggs. Old eggs will have a harder time with the whites spreading out all over the place when you place the egg in the water.
 Adding a bit of vinegar or acidic agent to your water will help stabilize the eggs and cook the whites faster, and keeping your water just below boiling point (about 190F) will help keep the fragile eggs from all the boiling bubble action rupturing the eggs. Also make sure to salt your poaching water well.
 The other main key to success is to crack your egg into a small bowl first, taking care not to break the yolk. Then it becomes easy to gently slide the entire egg into the water for the poaching process. Some people will also suggest swirling the poaching liquid into a bit of a vortex before sliding the egg in, in order to help keep the egg whites together. I’ve found it works fine whether or not you do this step.
 A poached egg is done when the whites are fully cooked and the yolk has just started to solidify but is still runny when you cut it open – usually three minutes. It’s ok to go a little longer though depending on your desired firmness. I like mine so the edges of yolks are cooking but the inside is still runny, so I usually let them go 30s longer.
 You can poach eggs ahead of time (about a day). Just immerse them in ice water after poaching, and then keep them in a bowl of water in the fridge. When you are ready to use them, place them in hot (not boiling) water until they are warmed through.

Enjoy and for another easy recipe on Poaching Fish from ShowFoodChef - click HERE.