How to make a meal with four rashers of bacon

In these days of economy, it is still possible (if you add a few extra ingredients) to make a meal with four rashers of bacon.

For instance, there's good old quiche (although Mr D prefers it if it's a flan!) - just add some eggs and cream/milk, a bit of grated cheese and black pepper and pour into a pastry case.

1 Make a suet pastry, roll into an oblong place rashers on suet with some chopped onion & mixed herbs. roll up & steam for 2-3 hours or pressure cook for an hour.


2 Chop some onions & whatever, chop bacon, slice some potatoes make a white sauce
layer with potatoes & white sauce on the top cook in the oven. Add herbs etc to taste.

3 Chop bacon & onion & fry. Slice some potatoes boil & coat with oil/fat. Put potatoes in the bottom of frying pan & start to crisp them a bit, sprinkle onion & bacon on top of potatoes beat up some eggs & pour over the bacon & veg, cook till crisp on the bottom & brown the top under the grill. Add tomatoes if liked & whatever else you can think off.

What makes you think I like bacon meals.

Cornbread isn't a big thing in the UK, because it's made in way which is rather dry and tasteless - there's ways however to make it a lot more tasty, and while I can't get creamed corn in the US unless I make it myself (which makes the ultimate cornbread) I found a recipe on the British Larder which is sort of a "posh version" of cornbread. You can use any cheese you want - I've used a veined shropshire cheese which was lovely and sharp. If you use self-rising flour you may still need to add a bit of baking powder, but they aren't going to rise much. The secret to proper moist cornbread is to only just cook it till done in the centre - overcook and you're left with dry stuff. I've also made this by pouring it straight into a cast iron skillet, which gives a beautiful golden crust

100g smoked back bacon
100g Gorgonzola cheese
175g plain flour
75g polenta
1tsp baking powder
small pinch of salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1tsp chopped mixed soft herbs (such as chives, parsley and basil)
50g melted butter
150ml full fat milk
1 whole egg
smoked paprika for dusting

Preheat the oven to 200°C and grease the chosen muffin moulds, I used a flexible oven safe rubber mould with each hole measuring 5cm wide x 3cm high.

Cut the bacon in 5mm dice; heat a non stick frying pan and sauté the bacon until golden brown and cooked. Set aside and let the bacon cool completely.

Weigh the flour, polenta, baking powder a very small pinch of salt and a grinding of black pepper in to a mixing bowl. Chop the chosen soft herbs and add to the flour. Crumb the Gorgonzola between your fingers and add to the flour. Stir to coat the cheese with the flour it helps to separate the cheese and it does not all get stuck together in a lump. Drain the cooked bacon on kitchen paper and add to the flour mixture.

Melt the butter; add the milk and the egg whisk vigorously for a minute. Add the egg mixture to the flour, stir to mix, do not over work the mix, the secret for light muffins is do not to mix it too much. Work light and fast.

Spoon the mixture in to the prepared moulds, fill them to the top as they do not rise much, just a bit of a puff. Place the tray on the middle shelf of the preheated oven and bake for 25minutes. Once the muffins are cooked, remove the tray from the oven and dust it lightly with smoked paprika. Turn the muffins out on to a cooking rack and let them cool slightly before serving.

Makes 15 x 5cm wide small muffins


Read more: http://www.britishlarder.co.uk/gorgonzola-and-smoked-bacon-morning-muffins/#ixzz11BJXri9I

That sounds lovely H - might try that one!! Also like Pol's suet recipe (I've just had to go out on a mission to buy more suet for dumplings to go with our bean casserole tonight!)

You can make two pasta recipes with four rashers of bacon:
make a ragu with tomatoes, green or red pepper and bacon, reducing it until the tomatoes are quite thick then serve on hot pasta.

You can also chop the bacon fairly small and put it into a pan with lots of sliced mushrooms. Heat gently until the fat runs: this cooks the mushrooms as you gently turn them over. When the bacon and mushrooms are cooked mix with hot pasta, turning over so that the juices mix in and adding freshly ground black pepper.
One of my brood didn't like 'wet' pasta sauces, so this was a good alternative.

Or spaghetti carbonara of course. chop the bacon and fry till almost crisp. toss with a beaten egg, some double cream, a big wodge of grated parmesan and a few peas if you like and stir through the pasta. plop a raw egg yolk on top as you serve.

Or simple dirty rice with lots of garlic, some peas and a dash or two of soy sauce.

Or just stick all four rashers between two slices of bread, enjoy your bacon sandwich and let everyone else fend for themselves.

It does depend on the definition of 'rasher' of course. Because we make and slice our own bacon, our rashers are pretty thick - like a shop-bought gammon steak - and also don't shrink when cooked because there is no pumped in brine. Four rashers is therefore quite a substantial amount. Proper butcher's bacon shouldn't shrink or exude brine sludge either, but four rashers of supermarket stuff would be a pretty scant platter.

The bacon we get from DT Waller in Ledbury is huge and doesn't give off that revolting gunk, either so am with Billy on this one, sometimes one rasher of his bacon is "enough" for a sandwich....but then I love bacon so always have more

probably why I am the general shape of a barrel

Having liver and onions and bacon, oven chips and assorted veg tonight, in fact...it is ready now. mmmmm must dash!

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote: Four rashers is therefore quite a substantial amount. Proper butcher's bacon shouldn't shrink or exude brine sludge either, but four rashers of supermarket stuff would be a pretty scant platter.

Point taken - it's just that sometimes when you're 'down on your uppers' it's good to know that you can produce a meal out of next to nothing

I regularly make a tomato and bacon cobbler which doesn't require much on the ingredients front, but is super yummy. Recipe is online here.

Mrs C

The topping sounds a bit like scone dough, or is it softer than that?

It is quite like scone dough - quite sticky when you make it but crisps up lovely in the oven and makes a great alternative just having pasta, potatoes or rice with things.

Mrs C

Dandelion wrote:

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote: Four rashers is therefore quite a substantial amount. Proper butcher's bacon shouldn't shrink or exude brine sludge either, but four rashers of supermarket stuff would be a pretty scant platter.

Point taken - it's just that sometimes when you're 'down on your uppers' it's good to know that you can produce a meal out of next to nothing

yes but therein lies the rub - supermarket bacon is a false economy - such a high percentage of it, by weight is just brine, which cooks off, whereas proper butcher bacon is pretty much teh same weight before and after cooking.

Besides which bacon offcuts and mis-shapes are available in most butchers. That is what we buy when we have none of our own and we pay £1.89 for a 900g bag. Compared to £2.50+ for half a dozen thin rashers about 300g in the supers.

We buy packs of offcuts too - it's amazing how many meals you can make with one bag. Sometimes you find a section of rashers tucked up in the bag (which the junior dandelions prefer)

at the bacon sandwich!

I love bacon but can only afford the cheap stuff int he supermarket but at $9/kg it's not too bad.

We like to make a creamy bacon pasta sorta like an Alla Panna. Cook diced bacon, onion and garlic, pour in some cream and parmesan and toss through cooked pasta. I also like to cook off some mushrooms and capisum when they are cheap too

Just found this. It is a wartime recipe by good old Marguerite

2ozs leek or onion peeled & chopped
2ozs bacon chopped
1pint stock or water
6ozs macaroni
salt & pepper
watercress.

Fry leek/onion or bacon till lightly brown
Add liquid & when boiling add the macaroni & seasoning.
Cook till the macaroni is tender & the water absorbed
Serve hot with the watercress

Said serves 4.

I do a nice dish with just a little bacon in it.

fry off some onion, garlic and chilli and olive oil in a saucepan Chuck in a whole heap of fresh tomatoes that you've cut up. Simmer down to a nice thickness, add some bacon and mushrooms. Add some cream and serve with some rice and fresh herbs. If i've got leftover chicken i'll add that in there to heat up too.
Make a big batch and freeze some for lunches

That sounds delicious KL!!