3778. SCALLOP TARTARE with PICKLED BEETROOT, BACON and APPLE

serves four

For the mayonnaise

3 free-range eggs, yolks only

1 tsp English mustard

½ lemon, juice only or 2 tsp white wine vinegar or cider vinegar

300ml/10fl oz light rapeseed oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the beetroot

200g/7oz raw beetroot

2 tsp red wine vinegar

pinch salt

3 tsp sherry vinegar

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 tsp chopped thyme

salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 tbsp olive oil

For the scallops

4 rashers smoked streaky bacon

12 scallops, cleaned and corals removed, the scallop meat diced into 5mm/¼in pieces

1 apple, peeled, cored, cut into 5mm/¼in dice

1 shallot, finely chopped

2 tsp finely chopped gherkin

2 tsp finely chopped chives

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

4 slices sourdough bread

handful rocket leaves

lemon wedges

½ quantity mayonnaise, from above

For the mayonnaise, put the egg yolks, mustard and lemon juice or vinegar into a bowl and whisk together for one minute. Now gradually add the oil, drop by drop to begin with, then in a steady stream, whisking constantly, until the mixture is emulsified and thick.

Alternatively, you can make the mayonnaise in a blender or food processor, blending the egg yolks, mustard and lemon juice or vinegar for one minute and then adding the oil slowly through the funnel with the motor running.

Season the mayonnaise with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.

For the beetroot, place the beetroot in a saucepan, pour on water to cover and add the wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer, add a pinch of salt and cook for 25 minutes.

Leave the beetroot to cool in the water until you are able to handle it, then remove and peel off the skin. Cut the beetroot into 1cm/½in dice, using a sharp knife.

Place in a bowl with the sherry vinegar, shallot, garlic and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle over the olive oil. Mix well and then cover and leave to marinate for at least two hours.

For the scallops, preheat the grill to high.

Lay the bacon on a grill tray and grill on both sides until very crispy. Allow to cool down and then chop the bacon into small pieces.

Put the scallops and apple into a bowl with the shallot, gherkin, bacon and chives. Add two teaspoons of mayonnaise and mix well. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as required.

To serve, toast the bread on both sides and place on four serving plates. Spoon the scallop tartare neatly on top. Spoon some of the marinated beetroot with a little of its dressing alongside. Scatter over the rocket and serve with lemon wedges and mayonnaise in a bowl on the side for guests to help themselves.

bacon recipe source: Nathan Outlaw, Saturday Kitchen, BBC Food

3277. SMOKED MACKEREL, BACON and DUCK EGG

serves four 


For the bread
200 grams light malthouse bread flour
300 grams white bread flour
300 ml beer
35 grams fresh yeast
10 grams (2/3 tablespoon) butter
20 grams (4 teaspoons) salt

For the topping
2 fillets of smoked mackerel
8 rashers of cooked lean bacon, sliced
4 duck eggs
200 grams watercress leaves 

For the mustard dressing
½ teaspoon finely chopped shallot
½ teaspoon English mustard
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
100ml rapeseed oil

For the bread, mix together all the ingredients, except the salt, to form a dough. Knead for five minutes. Add the salt and knead for a further two minutes. Place the dough in a bowl, cover with cling film and leave in a warm place for half an hour. Remove the dough, divide and roll into shape for two loaf tins. Place in the tins and cover with a damp cloth. Leave in a warm place for 45 minutes and preheat the oven to 235°C. Remove the cloth from the loaves, dust with flour and add a splash of water to the top, to create steam in the oven and a crusty top. Bake for 20 minutes. To make the topping, flake the smoked mackerel into large pieces and mix together with the bacon and watercress. Combine the mustard dressing ingredients together and drizzle over the salad. To serve, toast four slices of the beer bread, place the topping on the toast, poach the duck eggs for three minutes, season and add to the bread.


bacon recipe source: The New West Country Cookbook; Stylist Magazine

2711. BACON, EGG and CHICORY SALAD

serves four


7 oz. smoked rindless streaky bacon, diced
6 medium eggs
6 heads mixed red and green chicory

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts optional

Dressing
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 teaspoons English mustard
1 scant teaspoon caster sugar
sea salt
4 tablespoons walnut or hazelnut oil
3 tablespoons groundnut or vegetable oil

Fry the bacon in a large nonstick frying pan over a medium heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently until golden, then drain on a double thickness of kitchen paper and leave to cool. At the same time, bring a medium-sized pan of water to the boil, gently lower in the eggs and simmer for 7 minutes. Drain the pan, refill with cold water and leave the eggs to cool.

Trim the heads of chicory and separate into leaves, discarding any damaged outer ones.

To make the dressing, whisk the vinegar, mustard, sugar and a little salt together in a medium-sized bowl, then gradually whisk in the oils a tablespoon or two at a time until combined into a thick, deep-yellow dressing. Give it another quick whisk just before serving.

Shell and halve the eggs, which should still be slightly runny in the centre. Arrange the leaves, bacon and eggs on a platter or individual plates, drizzling over the dressing as you go (you may have some left over). Scatter over the walnuts if wished and serve.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Annie Bell, Daily Mail Online, February 4, 2012

2699. HERRING and SMOKED BACON with FENNEL, FRENCH BEAN and TOMATO SALAD

serves four


250 grams French beans, topped and tailed
4 tomatoes

1 fennel bulb
2 shallots, peeled
Olive oil, for frying
8 rashers of smoked bacon, preferably Alsace
8 fresh herrings, filleted but still with skin
4 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

For the dressing
2 egg yolks
1 garlic clove, crushed
6 large canned anchovy fillets in olive oil
½ teaspoon English mustard powder
1 teaspoon Maille Dijon mustard
Splash of Tabasco sauce
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
250ml olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon

Make the dressing, in a liquidizer blitz the egg yolks, garlic, anchovy and both mustards with the Tabasco and Worcestershire sauces. When well combined, pour in the olive oil in a slow steady stream, as for mayonnaise. When the emulsion becomes too thick (the consistency should be of barely pourable mayonnaise), add the lemon juice. Adjust the seasonings and, if still overly thick, add a little hot water.

Salt the boiling water and boil the beans in it until properly cooked. They must retain a vague resilience but should definitely not be crunchy. Remove them from the water and plunge them into a sinkful of very cold water to stop them cooking.

Blanch the tomatoes for 10 seconds or so to loosen the skins, refresh them in cold water and then skin and quarter them. Remove the seeds and cut the tomatoes into strips. Trim the tops of the fennel bulb and cut it in half. Cut off the bottom centimetre and then slice the bulb from top to toe into fine strips. Halve the shallots as well and cut them into similar strips. Mix all of the vegetables in a bowl with the dressing and set aside for 30 minutes.

Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan, place in the bacon rashers and cook gently until lightly coloured but not crisp. Remove and keep warm.

Season the herring fillets and fry them, skin side first, in the hot bacon-flavoured pan until they are sizzling away, about 2-3 minutes. Turn them over and leave for a few more seconds. This will give you a barely cooked herring fillet which is ideal if they are spankingly fresh.

To assemble, divide the salad into 4 tight piles, one on each plate. Then stack up 2 herring fillets and 2 rashers of bacon on top and garnish with the chopped parsley.

bacon recipe courtesy of: A Chefs Help.com

2125. ROAST COD with COCKLES, BACON and LEEK

serves one


vegetable oil, for shallow-frying
1 cod fillet, (150g)
freshly ground salt and black pepper
200 grams cockles, in their shells
2 rashers smoked streaky bacon
1 leek, finely chopped
150 ml double cream
1/2 teaspoon English mustard
small handful of chopped parsley
squeeze of lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 6. Heat the oil in a frying pan, season the cod with salt and freshly ground pepper and fry gently until the cod is golden on both sides. Transfer the cod to a roasting tray and roast for 5-6 minutes. Meanwhile, place the cockles in a saucepan with a little water. Cover and heat until the cockles are steamed open, discarding any that have not opened. Reserve the cockle cooking liquor and shell the cockles. In a frying pan, heat the bacon and fry gently. Add the cockle cooking liquor and the leek and cook gently until the leek is tender. Drain off two-thirds of the liquor from the cockle mixture. Add the shelled cockles, cream, mustard and parsley. Season generously with freshly ground pepper. Cook for two minutes. Place the leek and cockle mixture on a plate. Top with the roast cod portion. Season with sea salt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve at once.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Mitch Tonks, Good Food Live, UKTV

1966. STEAMED BACON CLANGER with PIQUANT SAUCE

yields one serving


1 pound(s) self raising flour
8 ounce(s) shredded suet
Cold water
5 tablespoon(s) parsley; chopped
Salt and pepper

Filling
8 ounce(s) streaky bacon; unsmoked
8 ounce(s) pancetta; diced
8 ounce(s) back bacon; unsmoked
3 onions; sliced
6 cloves garlic; sliced
2 ounce(s) butter
2 heaped tbsp fresh sage; chopped
1 small amount of beef stock
2 teaspoon(s) dripping

Piquant Oxford Sauce
2 tablespoon(s) dark brown sugar
2 teaspoon(s) made english mustard
1 pinches salt and pepper
6 tablespoon(s) sunflower oil; up to 8
4 tablespoon(s) vinegar

Sift the flour into a bowl, then add the suet and parsley. Dribble the water in and mix to a dough until the bowl becomes clean. Now roll it out see below. This suet pastry should be used immediately. Melt the butter and add the onion and garlic. Cook slowly for about 15 minutes until it caramelises, brown and sweet. Add a little sugar to help it on its way. Chop the bacon and blanch by placing the bacon in a saucepan of cold water and bringing it to the boil. Simmer for about 1 minute and all the scum will come to the top. This makes the bacon a lot easier to brown. Frizzle the bacon and pancetta in the dripping until golden brown and then add to the onions and garlic. Add the sage and season with salt and pepper. Roll the suet pastry into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick, then place on top of a rectangle of buttered greaseproof paper which in turn is on top of some foil. Lay the 8oz streaky raw bacon across the pastry, close together and lengthways so when you cut the clanger it will go across the bacon. Put the cooked filling on top of the bacon and pastry. Roll up and seal the ends. Then roll up the paper and foil, very loosely, to give room for the pastry to expand and seal the ends. Coil up in your steamer and steam for 11/2-2 hours. Sauce: heat all the ingredients together in a saucepan and adjust ingredients to taste.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Steve Murch, BigOven.com

1662. BACON CHOPS in CIDER

serves four

4 bacon chops, each weighing about 6 oz.
1 tablespoon prepared English mustard
1 oz. demerara sugar
1/2 pint dry cider
1/2 oz. butter
1 1/2 tablespoon plain flour
chopped fresh parsley, to garnish

Put chops side by side in a large ovenproof dish. Mix mustard and sugar with cider to make a smooth paste. Spread over chops. Leave for 30 minutes. Bake at 200°C (400°F) mark 6 for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, put the butter, flour and remaining cider in a saucepan. Heat, whisking continuously, until the sauce thickens, boils and is smooth. Simmer for 1 - 2 minutes. Season to taste. Pour over chops. Bake for a further 15 minutes, until cooked through. Serve garnished with parsley.


bacon recipe courtesy of: CookItSimply.com

1450. COUSCOUS-STUFFED TOMATOES wrapped in BACON and slow-cooked in BECHAMEL SAUCE

serves 3-4


9 tomatoes
9 rashers of bacon
85 grams mature cheddar cheese
pinch of nutmeg, freshly grated
dashes of Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon mustard
salt, and freshly ground pepper

For the Béchamel sauce:
1/2 onions
3 cloves
600 ml milk
50 grams butter
40 grams flour
1 bay leaves
1 teaspoon English mustard
salt, and freshly ground pepper
pinch of nutmeg, freshly grated

For the couscous stuffing:
85 grams couscous
60 grams pine kernels, toasted
2 handfuls of seedless raisins,
1/2 bunch of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 bunch of fresh mint, finely chopped
juice of 2 lemons
zest of 1 lemons, grated
8 tablespoons olive oil
pinch of ground cumin

First prepare the Béchamel sauce. Stud the onion half with the cloves. Place it in a pan with the milk and bring to a gentle simmer.

Meanwhile, in a separate, heavy-based saucepan, melt the butter gently, then slowly stir in the flour to form a paste. Cook stirring for about 1 minute over moderate heat, then slowly pour in the hot milk through a sieve, stirring constantly.

Once all the milk has been mixed in, add in the bay leaf and mustard. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper and a pinch of nutmeg and simmer for 20 minutes stirring now and then.

To make the couscous stuffing, soak the couscous according to packet instructions.

In a large bowl, mix the soaked couscous with the pine nuts, raisins, parsley, mint, lemon juice and zest, olive oil and cumin. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, mixing well.

Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas 3.

Bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Add in the tomatoes and blanch for one minute. Drain, cool and peel.

While the tomatoes are cooling, gently fry the bacon on both sides in a dry non-stick frying pan.

Slice a 'lid' off each tomato (reserving the lids) and carefully scoop out the seeds. Stuff each hollowed-out tomato with a little of the couscous mixture.

Top each tomato with a tomato lid and wrap each one with a rasher of bacon, securing the bacon with a cocktail stick.

Mix the Cheddar, nutmeg, Worcestershire sauce and mustard into the béchamel sauce and check the seasoning.

Spoon just enough of the Béchamel sauce into a large ovenproof dish to cover the base. Fill the dish with the bacon-wrapped tomatoes and pour over the remaining Béchamel sauce.

Bake the tomatoes for 40 minutes.

Serve straight from the oven.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Ed Baines, Good Food Live, UK TV Food

1396. PINK GRAPEFRUIT, BACON and AVOCADO SALAD

serves four


For the salad
4 slices bacon
1/2 head frisée lettuce
2 medium avocado, peeled and sliced
2 heads red chicory, leaves separated
1 head small lollo rosso lettuce, leaves separated

For the dressing
2 pink grapefruits
1/2 teaspoon English mustard
1/2 teaspoon wholegrain mustard
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
100ml olive oil

Heat a frying pan until hot, then add the bacon and fry until crisp. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

For the dressing, peel the grapefruit and cut into segments, taking care to reserve any of the juices. Put the juice in a bowl and stir in the mustards. Continue to whisk and add the white wine vinegar and olive oil.

To assemble the salad, layer the Frisée lettuce, bacon, avocado, and pink grapefruit segments in a large bowl, adding a spoonful of the dressing between each layer.

Follow with a layer of red chicory, a little more dressing; then a layer of Lollo Rosso lettuce. Repeat the layers until the bowl is full and serve straight away.


courtesy of: Janet Brinkworth, Great Food Live, UKTV Food