Bacon For Dessert

            You will often hear me refer to bacon as my favorite vegetable. Anthony Bourdain refers to it as a gateway protein. Vegetarians I know say that they would never touch meat but they eat bacon. Bacon is one of those magical substances which makes everything it touches, somehow better, tastier, and just plain good. It is one of my go to fix it ingredients. Messed up a recipe, no problem, put bacon on it. It turns the inedible into tasty. I have friends that cure their own. What up Toby?  It is so good that I am willing to concede that there might be a god with the only proof being bacon. I love it, ‘nuff said.

            So the idea for this recipe came from a couple of places. The first being a doughnut joint in Portland. Voodoo doughnuts makes a bacon maple glazed doughnut that is simply killer. The second is a farmers market in my town and a very lovely tattooed lady who was selling bacon apple fritters. Both of these things are freaking delicious and they got me to thinking: I love bacon; I could probably pull off a bacon dessert. And so I delved into my shallow pool of baking knowledge head first and came up with this recipe.

            Now everyone I got to try these liked them but they seemed to be a bigger hit with the dudes. The ladies would say that they were good or I would get a reserved mmmm. The Dudes eyes would roll back in their heads like a shark mid frenzy. They would grunt like Homer Simpson at the Frying Dutchman and one guy just pointed at the container and gave me puppy dog eyes like he was begging for a treat. So I guess this one goes out to the dudes.

Bacon Shortbread Cookies to the tune of Mr. Someone Else by, who else, The Dudes

½ cup butter at room temperature

½ cup caster sugar: This is very fine sugar, I buzz regular sugar in a spice mill until it is really fine

1 large egg beaten

1 cup flour sifted

8 slices thick bacon diced

1 heaping tbsp of honey

Splash of milk

-Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

-Fry off half of your bacon and drain off the remaining fat.

-In a mixer beat your butter and your sugar until it is smooth and fluffy.

-Add in your egg and bacon and beat some more.

-Turn the mixer to low and add the flour in a little at a time until the dough comes together. Form into a ball wrap it up and refrigerate it for about an hour to let it firm up.

-After it has chilled roll it out to about 1/8 of an inch thick and cut it into whatever shapes you want. I went with rectangle ish. Place on a greased sheet pan and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden. Place on a cooling rack and let them cool.

-While they are cooling heat a pan over medium heat and add the remainder of the bacon and let it work.

-In a bowl whisk together the honey and the milk and then add to the bacon reduce the heat stirring often remove from heat when the bacon is all sticky and beautiful looking. You want a little bit of residual liquid in the pan.

-Drizzle over the cookies and let cool.

You my friends have now made Bacon Shortbread Cookies. Mad science or evil genius? You be the judge.