Candied Bacon

Dangerous candied bacon

What is that dark slimy looking spider like blob up there? Well its simply one of the most addicting flavors to ever be added to confections and desserts. Candied caramelized bacon. Thats right salty and smoky taste awesome with sweet and chewy food. Its almost evil. Putting meat in dessert feels bad, but tastes so good. Ive written this recipe before, but by popular request I have chosen to give candied bacon its own recipe. Its is amazing baked into chocolate chip cookies, or if youre really fancy these monster chocolate toffee cookies. You could also use it to garnish cupcakes (think banana peanut butter Elvis style!), doughnuts or whatever needs a modern and slightly wild kick. Whatever you put it in, people will ask you for the recipe. Send em here.

There are two popular recipes for candying bacon. Well one is more popular than the other. Most often I see recipes suggesting people put bacon on a silpat, cover with sugar, and let it do its thing in a 300 degree oven. That will work, and it will work with much less effort. But the bacon fat will crowd the baking sheet, and prevent the sugar from adhering and caramelizing perfectly. Small batches on top of the stove allows you to perfect the carmelization.

Candied Bacon

1 lb bacon
1 cup demura sugar (raw sugar)

Par-cook the bacon in a wide sauce pan or stock pot until only beginning to brown. You want to render off half the fat so you dont get that swimming in fat problem. I usually work in batches of 4-5 strips, pouring the fat off into a can between batches. You will finish cooking the bacon as it caramelizes.

Fry bacon a little bit to render off fat first

Pour off all remaining oil from pan. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of sugar right on to the pan. Lay 4 strips of half cooked bacon on top, and cover with another layer of sugar. Let sit for 3-4 minutes until the sugar begins to melt. You may hear a quiet hiss or see small bubbles. If its loud and spitting oil you need to turn the heat down or you will burn the sugar. Periodically press the bacon down and into the sugar to really coat it. Flip after 5-6 minutes, and repeat. The bacon will be a very dark brown when its ready. Remove from pan and let harden in a cool place on a cookie sheet about 3 minutes. Repeat until all the bacon is done.

I find a pound of bacon takes the better part of an hour, maybe more like 90 minutes after clean up. You can chop the bacon up and add it to any baked good, or freeze it in airtight bags. The bacon is coated in salt and sugar, which means it should last for a few months. Dont be too ashamed to it plain like candy, sooooo good.

Australias Exotic Fruit Farm 2 Fruit Tasting

Tasting fruits in whole form

Youre greeted with a cool glass of water with splash of West Indian Lime at the Cape Tribulation Exotic Fruit Farm on arrival. The flavor is recognizably lime, but subtler, less tart. The fruit farm has been collecting and growing unique tropical fruits since 1988. The tasting is a chance to get up close and personal with some very rare fruits, many of which are grown on the same land the farm sits on. Trish, our instructor also offers lots of information on recognizing when the fruit is ripe, peeling and cutting the fruits, and recipe and flavor pairings. Its a fruity dream in a tropical rain forest.

Tasting list

Breadfruit is a large spiky fruit. When its fully ripe, its a falling apart mess. Its eaten in its starchier state, and has lots of uses. We had ours roasted like potatoes. The flavor was nutty, and rooty. Very like a parsnip.

Roasted breadfruit

Youve probably heard of the next one, jakfruit. Its available in a can in the states, and Ive had it in halla halla, an Asian dessert. The canned version doesnt have much to do with the real thing. Its a monster. Jakfruit is the biggest tree-born fruit and can weigh as much as 88 pounds. The segments of the jakfruit are removed and cut into pieces after the skin is removed. The fruit is full of a sticky latex that will aggressively adhere to skin and clothes. Its recommended to wear gloves when cutting it up, and wipe your knife to prevent build up.

Cutting the jakfruit

The flavor is beautiful. Bright honey, banana, even a little watermelon in there. The texture is crunchy, and smooth. The segments contain seeds, which can be boiled and eaten too.

Jakfruit segments

Pomelo are becoming less and less exotic. They are widely available in New York City markets. These Burma bases fruits are the granddaddy of a many other citrus fruits, namely grapefruit.

Cutting the pomelo

Pomelos are still very similar to grapefruits. The fruits are triple the size with a drier texture. The fruit, pith and rind are all edible. The flavor is less bitter than grapefruit, but with a good citrus taste.

Pomelo fruit

After the first 4 fruits the tasting took a real departure towards very exotic. Sapodilla is small brown fruit which turns a caramel color when ripe. An indicator of its sweet caramel flavor. I found it similar to a fresh date, but fleshier with a little mealy texture. Its wonderful.

Cutting the sapodilla fruit

The sapodilla is also used to make gum. The seeds should not be eaten. The sapodilla fruit is best fresh, and hard to cook.

Sapodilla, soft and sweet

Yellow sapote was another fruit first for me. Its texture is like no other fruit. Its velvety soft and a little dense. The flavor was mild. My eyes may be playing tricks on my palette, but I detected some pumpkin notes, perhaps a little peachy too.

Yellow sapote in halves

Because of the yellow sapotes unique texture it goes very well with cheese, in yogurt, and ice cream. Its just a delight to feel it in your mouth and shines with its stand-out yellow color. Of all the fruits I tasted I really imagine this one having its own place in the commercial market.

Yellow sapote fruit with a creamy texture

Next Trish held up what looks like a plus size unripened tomato. In fact even the farmers have a hard time knowing when this fruit is ripe. They watch the birds to know when to pick it. The black sapote is ripe 4-5 days later. From then you must be quick to eat it, or falls apart.

Youd never guess whats inside the black sapote fruit

Black sapote is also known as pudding fruit, because its flavor is just like pudding, Jell-o pudding to be more exact. Its related to persimmon, and shares a similar taste. The flavor is sugary, and undistinguished. But its minimal flavor and decadent texture makes it a great palette for other flavors. Go ahead and add cocoa powder or orange juice, maybe some cinnamon or spice. Black sapote could be the healthier vegan alternative to custards and richer desserts. If it werent so hard to package I can imagine this fruit also having a greater life in the international market.

Black sapote the pudding fruit

Davidson plum is local to the Daintree rain forest area. Its another surprise, but this time not so sweet. The tiny plum is mouth wrenching sour. Remember warheads? Its that sour, but I believe with more of a physical effect. Your face can not stop its self from puckering and twitching. The color is as large as the flavor, fluorescent magenta. How does nature event this stuff?

Mini Davidson plum with a huge flavor

The davidson plum is popular in savory foods. It does well in sauce with gamy flavors. Kangaroo with davidson plum anyone? It can also be used to color foods with 10x the color of a beet. If I got my hands on some of these plums you can bet Id make some really radical sour pickles.

Davidson plum electric sour flavor

The star apple is neither an apple or a star, discuss. Well, there is a star revealed by cutting the fruit in thirds. The flavor is mellow and sugary, a bit like a fresh fig. The texture is velvety and airy. Emphasis on the mouth-feel rather than the flavor.

Cutting the star apple

The star apple should be eaten in wedges. The skin is not edible.

Star apple

The next fruit has many names to many people. Guanabana aka soursop aka custard apple or the peoples jakfruit. Its the best fruit Ive tried yet. The flesh is wet and avocado soft with some fibers. The flavor doesnt know when to stop. Complex flavors are sweet, acidic, and a bit perfumed. Describing the taste is like describing the flavor of a banana. Nothing compares.

Saving the best for last, guanabana

Guanabana is ripe when the scaly skin is pale green. The stay away from the toxic seeds. The fruit is often paired with champagne. This fruit has an international reputation already, and I cant remember seeing it in America. I am dead set on finding it at home.

Guanabana aka soursop aka custard apple

With or without the exotic fruit farm the Cape Tribulation in Northern Queensland is a spectaluar place to visit. Combind with this special farm dedicated to collecting, and educating people on the delights of fruit I think its a number one destination for anyone interested in food. Really interested? Try a work stay or a few nights in their B&B. You only stand to risk to spoil your senses.

when it rains

it pours. Its been a rough couple of days around here. I get paid twice a month, the 10th and the 25th but due to x-mas I got paid on the 23rd and dont get another paycheck till the 10th, 18 long days, plus I used most of that check to buy x-mas presents for my daughter.

We used Genas paycheck to cover bills and buy a couch for our new place but what we didnt plan on was Genas truck having electrical issues so we spent $80 on a battery and that didnt solve the problem so we spent another $150 replacing the alternator.

Finally it seemed like it was all good to go but that night she left for work and called me to come get her. The truck broke down about halfway to work. To make matters worse, my bank account was empty and I had 1/8th of a tank of gas to get me to work the next day so i could get the $35 a coworker owed me for repairing his computer.

I managed to make it to where she had broke down, popped the hood and found that one of the clips from a wire on the alternator has vibrated loose. I pushed the clip on tight, jumped started the truck and followed her back home going very light on the gas pedal as opposed to my normally heavy foot. We got the truck home without any issues but my car was sucking fumes at that point and with all the unplanned expenses and all of the money we spent closing on the house and getting moved we were both flat broke till payday.

Luckily we had a big water jug with a bunch of change in it and we scrounged up $11.00 to put gas in the car. This is where not having a credit card can really suck.

I managed to make it to work and my coworker saved my ass by paying me the $35.00 he owed me and I was able to put enough gas in the car to cover me until payday.

If something isnt done about the price of gas rising were all in deep trouble. Of course, nothing will be done about it and it will continue to rise. Oil company profits are at record highs and the bureaucrats are lining their pockets by protecting and subsidizing the oil companies. Add to that the fact the dollar is at an all time low, prices keep rising and our income is not keeping up.

That right there is why we decided to be more self sufficient, why pay for things that you can grow yourself? we can use the money for other things that we need like fuel.

Many People think Ron Paul is out of his mind but hes really trying to do what we are doing only on a large scale, take care of ourselves and dont rely on the government for anything. I think as prices continue to rise and people have less and less disposable income the idea of being self sufficient will catch on.


ok sheeple, that all for now

Day 003 Blue Mountains

My first passion fruit

Its still cold in Sydney. Worse, its colder than New York City. Otherwise Im impressed with Australia. Every morning starts with toast, coffee, and mango. Maybe yogurt, peanut butter. Most lunches involve avocado on bread and apples. Oatmeal is called for on a chilly day before heading out to the Blue Mountains with my ex-pat American friends Ben and Meredith.

3 Sisters of the Blue Mountains

Its about a 90 minute drive west from the edge of Sydney to the Blue Mountains. The mountains are foggy with a misty clouds collecting around the peaks and valley. Thankfully rain does not drop on us, and the clouds burn off by the afternoon.

Mountain picnic lunch

We choose a 7 km walk. It sounds easy but factoring the steep decline and incline to get into the valley its no walk in the park. The first part of the walk curves around the perimeter of the ridge. Looking down into the valley you can see white specks as cockatoos fly from branch to branch. After more than an hour we decide to stop for lunch.

Ben and I have predictably packed avocado sandwiches and apples. Meredith on the other hand has very generously collected kiwis, apples, oranges, strawberries, cheese, olive bread, and more avocados to share picnic style along with thermoses of hot tea. Meredith participates in a CSA in Sydney, so the kiwi and avocado have exceptional taste and textures. Both are denser with brighter flavors. I also broken open my Japanese green tea Kit Kat which tastes a lot like white chocolate. A little anti-climatic.

Skip it next time

The big moment is when Meredith splits open a passion fruit. Ive seen passion fruit flavored items, but have never had one. Definitely the flavor sensation of the year. Passion fruits transform in your mouth from tart to sweet in a big way that only a tropical fruit can. My first reaction was, "Oh my god its like gum," because passion has the magical morphing flavor of juicy gum. The texture is wet and loose with seeds that slide down your throat without drawing much attention to them. I have since been hunting them from grocery stores. Passion fruits are best when they are shriveled up. Bigger is better. Passion fruit is perfect on yogurt.

Surrounded by waterfalls, ferns and slippery steps descending to the valley

After lunch we wind our way down the stairs past "fern gully" to the valley. The built board stairs are wet an muddy, so every step must be considered. We change paths a few times to avoid the terrifying stairway to heaven, a steep set of 900 stairs straight up. After watering ourselves and a few stretches we drive to the local town Katoomba in search of scones, but end up happy with curry and sausage pies. The trail wiped us out, and my day is over except to pack and prepare for my trip up to Queensland.