Recipe Tag: Bacon

Low Sodium Roasted Yam Soup with Bacon Bits

Serve with a side salad of your choice.

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place the yams in the oven and bake for 40 minutes until slightly soft. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes.

While the yams are cooking place the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 3 minutes.

Add the sage, peppermint, chicken stock, water, salt and pepper. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes and remove from the heat.

When the yams are cool, slice lengthwise and scoop out the flesh leaving the skins. Add the flesh to the pan with the soup. Cook for about 5 minutes and then puree until smooth. Add the milk and puree.

Reduce the heat to very low to keep the soup warm.

While the soup is keeping warm, place the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook on each side until brown but not crispy. Remove to a towel, pat dry and dice.

Slice the yam skins into a medium dice and add to the pan with the remaining bacon grease. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Add to the soup, stir and serve.

Spinach Salad with Bacon Dressing

Place the bacon in a medium skillet over medium to medium high head. Cover and cook until the bacon is crispy, turning once or twice. Allow to cool on a plate, reserving the bacon grease.

When the bacon is cool, crumble it into a large bowl. Add the bacon grease from the pan, the shallot, vinegar, maple syrup and pepper. Mix well and chill.

When ready to serve add the spinach and strawberries and toss well. Serve.

Risotto with Bacon and Peas

Place a medium skillet over medium high heat. Add the bacon. Cook for about ten minutes until the bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon to a paper towel.

When the bacon is cool enough to handle, dice it.

Add the onion to the hot bacon grease and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the arborio rice and rubbed sage and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring continuously.

Add the water, salt and pepper and stir. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rice is just cooked (it will just have lost any graininess).

Add the peas and a couple of tablespoons of water if needed. Stir the peas in and then add the goat cheese. Cook until the goat cheese is melted and the peas are hot, then add the bacon and fold together. Serve.

Pasta with Butternut Squash Sauce

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.

Place the squash in a large skillet cut side down and place the skillet in the oven.

Roast for 45 minutes. Remove and let cool to the touch.

Peel the skin off of the squash and discard. Place the flesh in a large mixing bowl.

Add the milk, salt, marjoram, and pepper.

Using a large whisk, blend until smooth.

Place the sauce in a saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally.

Place the water in a large stock pot over high heat.

After the water is boiling add the pasta. Stir and cook on a slow boil.

While the pasta is cooking, place the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.

Add the diced bacon and cook for about 3 minutes. (The bacon does not need to become crispy.)

Add the sliced onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

When the pasta is done, drain it, then add the pasta to the pan with the onions and bacon.

Toss well to mix the pasta with the bacon and onions, then divide between 4 bowls.

Top with the warm butternut squash sauce and then the cheese. Serve.

Linguine with Clam Sauce

Place 1 cup water in a large skillet over high heat. When simmering add the clams and cover.

Cook until all the clams open – about 4 minutes. (Any clam that fails to open is dead and should be discarded. But try tapping on the shell first.)

Remove the clams, reserving the broth, and then shuck the clams from the shells.

Strain the broth through a fine mesh sieve to remove any grit.

Rinse out the skillet and place the strip of bacon in the skillet over medium high heat.

Cook for about 10 minutes.

When the bacon is cooked, remove it to a cutting board and dice. Leave the bacon fat in the pan.

Place the remaining water in a medium stock pot over high heat. When the water boils, add the linguine.

Place the skillet with the bacon fat over medium heat and add the shallot, celery and diced bacon.

Cook for about 5 minutes.  Stir frequently.

Add the wine and the strained clam broth to the pan. Season with the pepper.

Cook over medium high heat until the liquid is reduced by about 2/3.

Add the clams, goat cheese and the oregano.

Remove from the heat and stir until the cheese is melted.

Add the drained linguine, toss well to coat.

Serve.

Bacon Thyme Potato Salad

Place the water in a large sauce pan over high heat.

When the water boils, add the potatoes.

Cook for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the potatoes are slightly soft.

Drain and set the potatoes aside to cool and then chill in the refrigerator.

While the potatoes are cooking, place the bacon and shallot in a small skillet over medium high heat.

Cook for about 15 minutes. Toss frequently.

Remove from the heat and let cool. Place in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes.

After the bacon mixture is cool, add the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, thyme, salt, and pepper and stir well.

Cut the potatoes into 1 inch cubes and place in a bowl or storage container.

Add the bacon sauce, celery, and peas.

Toss well and chill.

Baked Potato Soup

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Wrap the potatoes in foil and place in the preheated oven.

Place the bacon in a pan and place the pan in the oven. Cook on one side for about 10 minutes and turn the bacon. Cook on the other side for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place the bacon on a paper towel to drain.

Slice the white part off of the green onion and reserve the green parts for later (put them in the refrigerator). Place them in the pan with the rendered fat from the bacon and return the pan to the oven.

Roast the onions for about 15 minutes. Toss once or twice.

Remove the green onions from the oven and place on the paper towel with the bacon to cool.

When the bacon and onions are cool, cut them into small dice.

Place them back in the pan with the bacon fat.

When the potatoes are done (about an hour) remove them from the oven and let them cool.

Slice the potatoes in half and scoop out the flesh. Add it to the pan.

Coarsely chop the potato skin into about 1/4 inch pieces. Add the potato skin to the pan.

Add the milk, water, buttermilk, and pepper to the pan.

Slice the tops of the green onions crosswise. Add them to the soup and stir until well blended.

Reheat gently over medium heat.

Serve the soup topped with the shredded cheese.

Roasted Yam Soup with Bacon Bits

Serve with a side salad of your choice.

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place the yams in the oven and bake for 40 minutes until slightly soft. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes.

While the yams are cooking place the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 3 minutes.

Add the sage, peppermint, chicken stock, water, salt and pepper. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes and remove from the heat.

When the yams are cool, slice lengthwise and scoop out the flesh leaving the skins. Add the flesh to the pan with the soup. Cook for about 5 minutes and then puree until smooth. Add the milk and puree.

Reduce the heat to very low to keep the soup warm.

While the soup is keeping warm, place the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook on each side until brown but not crispy. Remove to a towel, pat dry and dice.

Slice the yam skins into a medium dice and add to the pan with the remaining bacon grease. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Add to the soup, stir and serve.

Bean with Bacon Soup

Place a large sauce pan over medium high heat.

Add the diced bacon and cook for about 10 minutes. Stir frequently.

Add the onion and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir frequently.

Add the carrot and celery and cook for 2 minutes. Stir frequently.

Add the beans with the liquid from the can, vegetable stock, water, salt and pepper.

Stir and when the soup comes to a boil reduce the heat to low.

Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Add the tomato paste and paprika.

Uncover and cook for another 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Serve.

Acorn Squash Soup with Apple and Bacon

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash in a large skillet cut side down and place the skillet in the oven. Roast for about 50 minutes until the squash is tender.

Remove, let cool and then peel the squash. Discard the peel.

While the squash is roasting, place the bacon in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Cover. Turn the bacon occasionally. Cook slowly until most of the fat has been rendered and the bacon is crispy.

Remove the bacon and set on a paper towel. When cool, dice the bacon.

Add the shallots to the pan with the rendered bacon fat and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the apples and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. When the apple is slightly soft, remove the apple-shallot mixture to a plate and set aside to cool.

When the squash is done and peeled, place the flesh in the sauce pan. Add the water, and using a stick blender, puree until smooth. (Alternatively, puree in a blender with the water and then place in the pan.)

Add the milk, marjoram, salt and pepper and stir. Add the apple-shallot mixture and the crumbled bacon. Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes.

Serve.