Special to AOL Food by Joanna Pruess
People have always loved bacon. Its smell carries us back to comforting times. For me, I'm a child again in a warm kitchen laughing with my siblings and my mother, who served a pound-and-a-half of it every morning for breakfast. Always very crisp, always thinly sliced.
Whether it's eggs or maple syrup-drenched waffles with crispy slices of bacon to begin the day, a grilled cheese and bacon sandwich or juicy bacon cheeseburger deluxe for lunch, or a hearty stew perfumed with cubes of bacon or fish simply wrapped in it and grilled, the juxtaposition of salty, sweet, smoky and ever-so-slightly bitter tastes tantalize our taste buds.
Its aroma is powerful enough to lure me out of bed in the morning or draw me into eateries both humble or haute. The moment I hear that sizzle in the pan or even read about bacon on a menu, my senses are aroused. There is also that enticing play of the firmer, meatier streaks against the softer, juicer parts in each strip. The effects linger long after the last slice is eaten. And I'm not alone.
Virtually no other food in the American diet is so beloved and occupies as unique a position as bacon. Its salty-smoky flavor, often perfumed with molasses or brown sugar is essential to numerous regional dishes, from Southern grits and greens to Boston's clam chowder and baked beans. And the famous Cobb salad, created at the Brown Derby in Hollywood, Calif.? It just wouldn't be the same without bacon.
Bacon is far more than a food. It is a happy state of mind. It excites people to the point where some aficionados liken it to illicit pleasures. Can it be religion? Devoted subscribers to the Bacon of the Month Club might say "yes." Even vegetarians and people who don't eat bacon for religious regions think lusty thoughts about it. Ounce for ounce, slice per slice, no other quintessential American ingredient has the seductive powers of bacon.
Joanna Pruess is the author of 'Seduced by Bacon' and 11 other cookbooks. She lives with her husband Bob, who is also a bacon aficionado and restaurant critic, and their three children in Cleveland, Ohio.
Pecan-Brown Sugar & Bacon Ice Cream (from 'Seduced by Bacon')
Ingredients
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
4 egg yolks
1 cup chopped pecans
1 pound bacon, cooked until very crisp, blotted on paper towels and finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
Cooking Instructions
Combine the cream, milk and sugar in a heavy saucepan and cook over medium-high heat until hot and sugar is completely dissolved, stirring occasionally. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks until smooth. Slowly whisk in 1 cup of the hot cream-milk mixture. Return the yolk mixture to the saucepan, beating constantly. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon, 6-8 minutes. Do not let it boil. Strain the mixture into a clean bowl and let it cool completely. Stir in pecans and bacon and freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. To showcase the ice cream's flavor, before serving, remove from freezer and let it soften slightly.
More Bacon Recipes:
Fried Corn With Bacon
Bacon-Wrapped Barbeque Shrimp
Black Beans With Bacon
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