bacon

Spinach Artichoke Bacon Egg Souffles

For whatever reason, I have been craving crescent rolls for awhile now. The kind that come in a tube and you grew up eating on top of casseroles and straight out of the oven (at least, if you were in my family). So, I bought a tube with no real plan on how I would use them.

Then the other night, I had made individual serving egg casseroles using the dough, frozen spinach, and some leftover bacon. They turned out great, and became my breakfast for the week.

Spinach Artichoke and Bacon Egg Souffle Cups
Inspired by Pillsbury, Panera and others

1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls
4 slices bacon
1 tsp butter
1/4 cup diced red pepper
2-3 canned artichoke hearts, well-drained and chopped
1/4 box frozen spinach, thawed and well-drained
6 eggs
1/4 cup cream
2 oz Monterey Jack or other cheese(s), shredded, plus more for topping
Salt and pepper

Unroll crescent dough, pressing each pair of triangles together to create a rectangle. Press into the bottoms and sides of 4 1-cup ramekins, letting the edges overhang. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat. Drain and crumble. Remove pan drippings. In the same pan, melt butter. Saute peppers for about 3 minutes. Add artichokes and spinach, stirring to heat through.

Whisk together eggs, cream, cheese, 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt (or less if using salty cheese). Pour egg mixture into hot skillet. Stir constantly for 90 seconds to 2 minutes. Eggs will be very runny. Working quickly, pour into ramekins. Sprinkle with a little bit of extra cheese.

Place ramekins on a baking sheet. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Eggs should be set, and dough golden-brown.

Maple Bacon Biscuits

Bacon. Is. Good. So are fluffy biscuits. No wonder they are breakfast staples. I don’t usually buy buttermilk (why does it only come in a big carton when you almost never need more than a cup??) but in this case it was definitely worth it.

These came together pretty quickly on a weeknight, but you could also include them with weekend brunch or dinner, such as pulled pork, roast chicken, or soup.

Maple Bacon Biscuits
From The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perlman

Makes 6-8 biscuits

3 slices bacon
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Approximately 4 tablespoons butter, chilled and chopped into small chunks
1/4 cup buttermilk

Fry the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels. Pour the bacon fat into a measuring cup and put in the freezer until fat is solid.

Chop the bacon into small bits and place in a small dish. Pour the maple syrup over the bacon and stir; set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the solidified bacon fat from the freezer.

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients. You should have about 2 tablespoons of fat. Adjust the amount of butter up or down to have 6 tablespoons total. Using your fingertips or a pastry blender, rub the bacon fat and butter into the dry ingredients until mixtute resembles coarse meal. Add the bacon-maple syrup mixture and buttermilk and blend together with a rubber spatula until evenly moistened.

Gather the dough into a ball and pat out to a 1-inch thickness on a well-floured surface and cut into biscuits with a 2-inch cutter. Arrange biscuits on the baking sheet. Bake 12-14 minutes until puffed and golden. Serve warm.

Corn and Fingerling Potato Chowder with Bacon

So many summer meals growing up were just corn from my dad’s farm. I imagine that isn’t all that uncommon for midwestern farm families (sorry, carb haters — just telling it like it is).

These days, corn is usually a side dish, but it is still a must-do on my summer table. I love this chowder recipe: a few fresh, seasonal ingredients that complement one another, and just filling enough without being heavy.

Corn and Fingerling Potato Chowder with Applewood-Smoked Bacon

Adapted slightly from Cooking Light
Serves 5

2 slices applewood-smoked bacon
1 cup finely diced yellow onion
3 1/2 cups fresh (uncooked) corn kernels (about 6-7 ears)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup half-and-half
8 ounces fingerling potatos, sliced into 1/4″ rounds
1/4 teaspoon salt (or more)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or more)
Thyme sprigs, for garnish (optional)

Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble.

Add onion to drippings in pan; cook 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add corn, chopped thyme, and garlic to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, milk, half-and-half, and potatoes; bring to a simmer. Cover and cook 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Transfer 2 cups potato mixture to a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid to allow steam to escape; secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid to avoid splatters. Blend until smooth; return pureed mixture to pan. Stir in salt and black pepper. Season to taste, if necessary.

Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with crumbled bacon. Garnish with thyme sprigs, if desired.