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by BS

The Truth About Bacon

I have a confession: I rarely cook bacon.

I know, I know, I talk a lot of shit about bacon. And I stand by my oft-stated position that it lies among god’s greatest creations. I’m fully on board with the food blogosphere’s complete obsession with all things bacon. Whether it’s bacon salad, bacon cocktails, bacon wallets, or just plain bacon ridiculousness, I’m in. There’s something about this greasy, salty, over-the-top, wholly American food that is just so fun to blog about. But I have to admit, I blog bacon much more often than I actually eat it.

Growing up, bacon breakfasts were reserved for special occasions, or just a surprise best Sunday morning ever. Hence, bacon never made it into the roster of things that I regularly buy. Sure, I pass it in the supermarket all the time and have the urge to grab a pack or two of the good stuff, but I always feel it’s just too unhealthy to actually have bacon in my house and cook it every day. And don’t talk to me about turkey bacon, tofu bacon or tempeh bacon. NO.

So I generally reserve bacon consumption for eating out. Consequentially, I have become literarlly incapable of reading the word “bacon” on a menu and not ordering the encompassing item. My favorite diners and lunch spots might serve great burgers, salads, or pasta dishes, but I wouldn’t know, because I simply cannot pass up a good BLT.

But I’m thinking if I’m going to be a good food blogger, I really should know how to cook bacon dishes better myself. Not just bacon and eggs, but bacon-based french onion soup and all that good stuff. So my early New Years resolution is to cook more bacon. On that note, I have three questions for you all:

That’s Not Going Down My Throat

There is something that I need to let ya’ll know: I’ve started dating. If you are my Facebook friend then you will know that I am “In a Relationship.” I know I know, this is big news and I should have told you all sooner and I’m sorry for that. There is a reason why I have kept this a secret, I’m not proud of this but I really do have a good reason for my secrecy. You see, my other half is a picky eater, and that’s actually putting it mildly. He’s so much of a picky eater that I have yet to cook for him as I don’t know what to cook. I love food, I love to cook and I love food blogging and I have yet to cook for my boyfriend.

This is where you dear ES readers come in. I am asking, no, pleading, you to assist me in coming up with a date night menu. I really want to cook for my other half but I am at a loss. I would like to say it’s just your typical list of foods he doesn’t like, you know, things like olives, marmite or tripe—but this is not the case. You can find the list of foods he “detests” after the jump.

Me Sick

So I have the flu. And just like how Sam Jones demanded that Carrie concoct her a drink of Fanta grape soda and cough syrup that her mom used to make for her, we all look to past fixes and future remedies to make us feel better. And that’s where my ES buds come in. Sure, I have an Rx for some antibiotics and cough meds and all that crap, but I’m also a believer that food has a lot to do with health. Please send me your secrets for feeling better. DYING.

in Drinks / Personal 9 comments

by gansie

Finding Comfort in Butter

I totally love this time of year. No, really I do. Not only is it the season of massive amounts of eating and family time, but also the season of SICKNESS. For the past two days I’ve had a crazy high temperature, a severely aching body and long bouts of chills and sweat spells. Totally awesome.

Now I’m not sure how it goes – feed a flu? starve a cold? But what I do – eat a begal. It’s not just that the thick, doughy bread is satisfying to chew. And it’s not just the sensation of when you bite into a pocket of butter and it glides around your mouth like ice cream. It’s the memory of my Oma, helping to prop me up on the husband pillow, bringing me a tray of food: a buttered plain, toasted begal, an inch stack of Pringles, some ice water (crushed) and ginger ale with a straw.

The comforts of family and butter.

Photo: Flick user iirraa

in Personal 5 comments

by BS

No Top Chef Live Blog Tonight

Since we all plan to be busy cooking tonight, Top Chef live blog will have to wait ’til next week. Please forgive us and try to enjoy Fabio and the Foo Fighters without us this evening.

Check back next week, when we’ll chat with the next booted chef’testant, and resume live blogging on Wednesday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

in Holiday / Personal / TV 0 comments

by gansie

Drinking With Burnie

Before I was totally immersed in cooking, I used to spend my after-work hours drinking. Drinking. Drinking. And because of this, I met the most fabulous liquor store owner, Burnie Williams. Burnie owns Chat’s, a liquor store directly across the street from my then-office and just down the street from my then-apartment.

Burnie knew exactly what type of wine I should pair with my delicate white fish; exactly what type of fancy bourbon I should buy 80 for the holidays, and um, exactly when I wouldn’t ask for his opinion and just buy the biggest, cheapest bottle of alcohol I could find.

Burnie is always greeting patrons with a smile. He literally knows all of his customers’ names. And I can say this with confidence, he’s the only man on Barrack’s Row that rocks a suit to work. I know this post may seem scattered, but I just don’t know how to get across how much Burnie and Chat’s were a part of my Capital Hill life. But I do know, you should trust his advice for Thanksgiving drinks.

A Grape Holiday: Liquors for a Lovely Turkey Day [Express]

Photo: Jason Hornick/Express

in Drinks / Personal 4 comments

by Russell Warnick

Politically Minded Bourbon

In preparation for last weekend’s protest against California’s Proposition 8 here in DC, my friend BT came up with an ingenious idea. To make hot toddys and take them down to the Mall! The weather was awful so I think it was permitted. But just so we didn’t anger any cops we covertly drank from Starbucks cups. It’s amazing what a smile and a polite please can do to get some of these cups from the local coffee house. I’m not sure where the idea of hot toddys come from but my friends believe it is of British origin, which would explain my parents giving it to me as a kid when I would have a cold or flu. A sip of this will surely knock any young whipper snapper out*

Hot Toddy recipe after the jump.