FAKE OUT: World of Beer's, Pint O' Bacon.

World of Beer? Pint of BACON?! Where is this magical place? 

I had the opportunity to join my Honey Badgers (our lady's group name) at World of Beer, Baltimore. World of Beer is a restaurant/ bar with so many craft beer selections on tap... it brought a tear to mine eye. It is also home to an appetizer called, Pint O' Bacon. That's right. It's a pint glass with strips of juicy bacon in it. Not just any bacon, however. Fear not! I figured out the incredibly simple rub that will take your bacon experience to a whole new level. 

Uncured Applewood Smoked Bacon (I'm a bacon snob)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1tbsp Creole seasoning 

Mix the two together really well and put on a plate. Take your fully cooked bacon and roll it around in the heavenly mixture. Voila. 

Feel free to add your creole strips on a sandwich, next to your eggs, or, put some in a pint glass... but, I doubt they make the trip? Nom nom nom nom... 

Honey Badgers 

Wonton Soup

Believe it or not, there are days when I don't want to cook. Blasphemy, I know! So, the family and I will order out. Unfortunately, the Polar Vortex shut just about everything down this past week and I was forced to throw something together. I was cold. So... Soup's on!


You can do this two ways:



1) Make the wontons yourself. Here's how- Wontons/Dumplings

or...

2) Go to TJ's (Trader Joes) and pick up a frozen bag. So far, TJ's has the best pre-made wontons I have tasted- and that INCLUDES the ones at the Asian market. Not too shabby!

WONTON SOUP
Serves 2-4
Prep 20 minutes

• 3 cups water
• 1heaping tsp 'Better Than Bouillon' Organic Vegetable base (LOVE THIS STUFF!!)
• 1 pkg wontons
• 1/2 scallion- green part reserved and sliced
• 1 thinly sliced medium mushroom
• 3 shakes of Teriyaki sauce
• 2 tbsp Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
• 2tsp Salt 

Let the water come to a boil and add the bouillon and wontons. Let them boil until fully cooked- they should rise to the top. Turn the heat down to medium. Add the Teriyaki and Vinegar. Add the scallion and mushroom into the serving bowls and ladle the soup on top.  Taste test! There. Done. Tasty and simple.

Tomatillos: Simple Salsa Verde & Hummus

Tomatillos? What do I do with them? 

Make salsa! Better yet...  make hummus! I've got it... DO BOTH!

Tomatillo means "little tomato" in spanish. Tomatillos are a member of the gooseberry family and are a staple in Mexican cuisine.  You can use them just like you would any tomato. They keep longer than red tomatoes; Husk them and I swear that they will stay ripe in the fridge for weeks! You can freeze them, too.

In a food processor add...

• 8 medium Tomatillos, peeled and washed  
• 1 medium onion
• 1 large handful of fresh cilantro (most of the stem removed)
• 10 spanish olives 
• 1 jalapeño pepper (The heat is up to you. Seed it or leave 'em in there. Want it really hot? Roast the jalapeño, first) 

Blend the above ingredients until smooth.

Add the blended tomatillo concoction to a storage container and add...

• 3 tsp salt 
• Freshly cracked pepper
• The juice of one large lime (or two small ones)
• 2 tsp Tajin* (I loooove Tajin!) 

Stir them together and TASTE IT! Adjust the flavor:  Need more salt? More pepper? More heat? It's up to you! You can serve it right away, but, it tastes much, MUCH better after a few hours. Overnight even.

Now. You have a choice: Eat it as salsa... or... go a step further and combine it with some homemade hummus. Duh!

First, make tahini paste, unless you have some store bought stuff? If not:

• 1 cup toasted sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup olive oil

In a food processor, blend the seeds together while drizzling the olive oil into the seeds. Pulse until a paste forms. Scrape the sides of the blender in between pulses. Scrape it out of there and put it in a container.

Now for the HUMMUS:

• In the same food processor add...
• 2 cups of canned chick peas- liquid strained & reserved
• 1tsp salt
• 2 garlic cloves
• The juice of 1 lemon
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 cup of tomatillo salsa
• 2 tbsp reserved chickpea water

*Add a tsp of Tomatillo Salsa, Cilantro and Cracked pepper to serve

Pulse all of these bad boys together and VOILA! Heaven. This recipe should satisfy even the veganist Vegan and Paleoist Caveman at any party, anywhere under the flipping sun!