Bacon Salt

I cannot for the life of me remember what I was reading when I saw the Google ad that brought me to find this stupendous concoction. I do, however, remember the feeling of excitement that welled up in the pit of my stomach after seeing those two words side by side. There are three other individuals on this earth that love bacon more than me and they are my wife, her brother, and our friend Neveen (see Flag Cake post). Upon spying the website, I sent them an e-mail with the link. My brother-in-law (Nathan, for those of you playing along at home) responded with the following, "This is going to change my LIFE! I told Cat (his wife, short for Catherine) about this huge personal development, but she thought that I was leading up to telling her that Andrea was prego. I said no, this is better." He then called me the following day to inform me that he secured the bacon salt at the grocery store. I instantly became jealous as I could not find it at Hy-Vee. Just imagine the possibilities! I asked him to try it out. So, over the phone, he opened his fridge and spied the remnants of a five-day-old rotisserie chicken that was on the verge of a hostile mold takeover. Sprinkle, sprinkle....chewing sounds...."it's fantastic!" He then proceeded to try it on a banana. I think he was going to make scrambled eggs this morning and report back.

Now our friend Neveen, she is a Muslim and it is against her religion to eat bacon. (Yes, she is a torn soul.) So, I thought this would be a friendly alternative given that the bacon salt is kosher and vegetarian. However, she is fearful that her religiously-strict mother (who lives with her and her husband) will die in their kitchen upon finding it in their cupboards. (She will just have to keep it at our house.)

So, I just went to their website and discovered the Hy-Vee that I work next to carries Bacon Salt! The Hy-Vee next to my house does not. Go figure. I have to go.

The Bitten Word

I have to give kudos to these guys at The Bitten Word. As Andrea can attest, I have been a long-time subscriber to several food magazines. They are piling up in our living room as we speak. Do I make any of the recipes found in them? Err...sometimes. With all of the food blogs I read (which I need to make a list and share as it is quite large), my magazines tend to get ignored. Anyway, Clay and Zach at the The Bitten Word are resolving to put their food magazines to use. And, I applaud them. Check out their BBQ Chicken post. Food porn.

Flag Cake!

In the spirit of the holiday, I thought I would post this little number. Andrea and I made it for a Flag Day booze fest we attended in celebration of our homie Neveen officially attaining her US citizenship. It rocked!

Flag Cake (Barefoot Contessa, 2002)

18 tablespoons (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
3 cups sugar
6 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1 cup sour cream at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
For the icing:
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 pounds cream cheese at room temperature
1 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
To assemble:
2 half-pints blueberries
3 half-pints raspberries

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter and flour an 18 by 13 by 1 1/2-inch sheet pan.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed, until light and fluffy. On medium speed, add the eggs, 2 at a time, then add the sour cream and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and stir until smooth.

Sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until just combined. Pour into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with a spatula. Bake in the center of the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool to room temperature.

For the icing, combine the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mixing just until smooth.

Spread three-fourths of the icing on the top of the cooled sheet cake. Outline the flag on the top of the cake with a toothpick. Fill the upper left corner with blueberries. Place 2 rows of raspberries across the top of the cake like a red stripe. Put the remaining icing in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe two rows of white stripes below the raspberries. Alternate rows of raspberries and icing until the flag is completed. Pipe stars on top of the blueberries.

I served this cake right in the pan.