The Best BLT You Will Ever Eat

I'm just gonna say right off the bat that this recipe is not paleo.  For those of you reading who follow those principles, as I myself *generally* do, please close your browser and walk away from the computer.  Pretend you never saw this, because you may be too tempted by the mouth-wateringly decadent flavors (although, sadly, not the underwhelming photographic evidence).

For the rest of you, here's how the sandwich went down.  I visited the Barton Creek Farmer's Market with my Dad yesterday and acquired some uncured, super-fresh pork belly bacon from Richardson Farms.  I made a quick stop at Whole Foods on the way home to grab a crusty loaf of sourdough, local sprouts and a ripe avocado.  I returned home as quickly as possible to assemble the remaining ingredients of a garden tomato and Smith & Smith Family eggs.

I fried up the bacon with a light sprinkling of hickory smoked salt, toasted thin slices of sourdough in the broiler, then fried two eggs in the bacon grease.  I layered tomato slices, sprouts, avocado and bacon, and placed an over-medium egg on top.

The first bite had the yolk oozing out, coating everything in its golden richness.  The crunch of the toast with the creaminess of the avocado, the chewy saltiness of the bacon and the garden-freshness of the vegetables made this, quite possibly, the Best BLT Ever.  If you really want to take your sandwich to the over-the-top tier of decadence, throw in some room-temperature Brie right over that fried egg and experience culinary nirvana.  I dare you.

Pigs and Figs

It's fig season here in Austin, but what's a girl to do when she doesn't know more about figs than what comes in a Newton?  I got fresh figs in my Urban Roots CSA and I also discovered fresh figs down in the neighborhood park, so I'm on the lookout for fun ways to prepare this foreign fruit.  And at the risk of exposing my true figgy colors, I actually haven't enjoyed the taste of figs in previous concoctions I've sampled at others' hands.  So I'm taking back the reins, and looking for a new way to prepare figs that might appeal to me more.  A quick recipe search linked this little guy with figs regularly:

By the way, did you know that a fig was the original object of desire in Eden, not the apple we see today?  I'm partway through In the Devil's Garden, a book that traces the "sinful history of forbidden food" and I'm gathering all sorts of interesting food factoids to bring out at dinner parties.

And just look at that sensuous fig. I'd have taken a bite, too.







The recipe is simple, the results a sinful combination of salty & sweet.  It's almost enough to make a fig-lover out of me.  Of course, bacon makes everything better.

Bacon-wrapped Figs

Ingredients:

As many figs as you find

Uncured bacon (no nitrites added)

Directions:

Cut the tips off each fig.  Wrap each whole fig in 1/2 slice bacon.  Pan-fry with seam side down to secure bacon around fig.  Slowly turn until all sides of bacon are fully cooked.  Let cool on paper towels to absorb the delicious bacon grease & pop into your mouth.  Feel free to fry an egg or two in the pan drippings. Why waste a good thing?