Monkey Bread - For All Your Favorite Monkeys

Oh my gosh, is this ever an easy evening snack or quick dinner party starter or a great breakfast treat for crazy monkeys.

I think that I'll make this savory version for our next family movie night which we like to do when it's cool enough to have the outdoor fireplace going.

We roast marshmallows, little smokies and Tsunami will set up the flatscreen tv so we can watch the movie outside by the pool, sit by the fire and have snacks right in the garden. Quite lovely and festive.

I got this idea after having traditional monkey bread with my girlfriend and her little girl. Something we love and have made together before. But because we wanted a quick fix, we decided to cut the whole process short and use biscuits in a can instead of making the monkey bread dough from scratch.

No time for that with a 6 year old! Instant gratification is more important and so, we made it together the night before and put plastic wrap on top in the fridge so we would have it the next morning. She liked rolling the dough balls and we worked on the sugared mixture.

Quick Fix Monkey Bread:

• biscuits, cut in half or quarters, rolled into balls
• buttered or oiled bundt pan

Traditional Sweet Flavors:

• 1 stick of butter
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1/4 c brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla

Savory American Flavors:

• Bacon, crispy and crumbled
• Wisconsin Sharp Cheddar (or Vermont)
• Chives or Green Onions, (optional garnish)
• Melted butter

Savory Italian Flavors:

• Sopressata chopped
• Parmesan cheese
• green olives chopped
• Parsley chopped (optional garnish)
• olive oil

Savory Mexican Flavors:

• Chorizo, fresh or cured
• Quesadilla cheese
• Red onions, diced
• Cilantro, chopped (optional garnish)
• olive oil

For the sweet monkey bread:
Melt the butter, sugars, vanilla and cinnamon in a saucepan on the stove over medium heat, mixing thoroughly before hand but not stirring while it heats up. This prevents sugar crystalizing and allows the mixture to caramelize and thicken. Once the sugar has melted and dissolved, turn off the heat.

Dump all dough balls into the warmed sugar mixture and then dump the whole pan of sugared dough into the buttered or greased bundt pan.

Optionally, you can also add raisins soaked in Brandy or Cognac, which I love, but since we were making these for the youngster, we opted to leave this out and just do plain.

While we were baking these, which we baked for about 30 minutes on 350 F, our hungry munchkin asked if we could make some icing. Of course! So the pretty little princess helped and that's what we did.

Icing:

• 1 cup of powdered sugar
• 1 tsp of vanilla
• 2 tbsp of milk or enough to make the consistency you desire
• 1 princess to stir until it's perfect

For the savory monkey bread:
Put dough balls and all savory ingredients into a bowl and gently fold to mix everything thoroughly. Dump the whole mess into a bundt pan and drizzle with your favorite olive oil or melted butter.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

To serve any version, turn out onto a serving dish and serve immediately.

Braised Cabbage with Beer, Red Onion and Pork Belly

Nothing feels more like comfort food to me than braised cabbage.

I grew up with cabbage as a child and my mother, my grandmother braised it in bacon drippings and beef or chicken stock, which is one of my favorite ways of preparing it.

So simple, my puppy could make it:

• Cabbage wedges
• Sliced Red or Yellow Onions
• Bacon, Pork Belly or smoked hamhocks
• 1 bottle of your favorite beer or apple cider
• Salt, pepper to taste

No need to slice and dice... just cut big wedges of cabbage, slice some onions if you feel up to it and toss in either ham hocks, slices of pork belly or diced bacon. Drench the rest with some of your favorite beer and you are good to go.

Don't have beer on hand? How about some apple cider? No apple cider, try chicken stock or beef stock. We had a root beer but preferring a less sweet version, we opted for the half drunk bottles of Pilsners leftover from the night before. So what if it's flat? By the way, a root beer would be the perfect foil if we had a red cabbage but since we have the most monstrous head of green cabbage I've ever seen, we opted for a lighter liquid and chose to use the leftover beer we had on hand.

Bake:
Bake at 350 F for about 45 minutes to an hour, adding more liquid at the half hour mark if it looks like it is cooking out too quickly. I use a large Creuset, uncovered, to bake this dish or one of my large stainless stockpots if doing it on the stove.

If baking, just pop it in the oven, set the time for 30 minutes just to check on it and keep baking for the full 45 minutes to an hour if you prefer your cabbage more or less tender. The flavors really develop the longer it braises so keep an eye on it so the liquid doesn't cook out and it begins to burn instead of caramelizing.

If braising it stove top, you can cover it and simmer on low for the first 30 minutes and uncover it the rest of the way to reduce down if you like more of the caramelized flavors like I do.  To me though, baking is the easiest way and if I bake it, I can usually get in my evening swim while it braises away!

Makin' Bacon, Again...

Today I vacuum packed about 6 1/2 lbs of homemade bacon. Well actually, we started the process last week and as I labored through the process late last Saturday night, I had a few curious cats swarming the kitchen for late night snacks, checking out what I was doing.  

They had never seen anyone "make" bacon before... so I explained the process to my teenage skeptics who chuckled as they headed back upstairs with their popcorn and gummy worms, kinda used to the fact that I'm always doing something...

Last weekend we bought a 13 lb pork belly from Western Beef and cut it into quarters, skin on. 

I was feeling a bit creative and lately, I've been on a charcuterie kick, a bit fascinated by fermented meats. Most people don't realize that this is exactly what salami, salumi or prosciutto really is: lacto fermented meat. An age old practice of preserving meat that precedes refrigeration. 

I personally love charcuterie of all kinds and that is one of the many gifts my ex husband gave me... a love of what is mostly a European staple that is slowly making its way to the U.S. I see more and more farm to table chefs embracing this age old and timeless tradition, developing a deep appreciation for this art and introducing a new foodie meat culture into our American palette. 

One of the easiest ways to introduce yourself to an easy lesson in charcuterie is of course, bacon. The belly of the pork, which I find to be one of the many jewels of this creature.  I've made bacon before, which really opened my eyes and from there, I explored making fresh chorizo, which was truly fabulous. Longing for some of this culinary goodness, I decided to go a bit deeper. I am curing a lonzino, currently and intend to do a Spanish chorizo as well as a Brasseola as well, maybe a Cappocola since I love these cured meats. If you are going to try your hand, why not try your hand at something you love to eat?

This time I decided to do bacon 4 different ways. Here were my holiday flavor inspirations:

• Black peppercorn, Fennel and Cumin
• Espresso and brown sugar
• Sweet Mesquite from Costco
• Plain

First I cured it using this curing method, about 1/4 cup basic dry cure per piece of pork belly, which was freaking perfect:

Basic Dry Cure:

1 lb kosher salt

8 oz sugar

2 oz pink curing salt

Yields about 3 1/2 c of cure.  I weigh it all out using a kitchen scale, which I recommend. Pink curing salt is just that, it is a special nitrite salt that should not be mistaken for table salt. Its purpose is to consume the sugars in the meat, creating natural nitrates that preserve the meat, hence the actual fermentation process. It is NOT pink himalayan sea salt. Do your homework and research as it is a natural curing process and I won't cure anything again without it, now that I am enlightened. If it bugs you, research it and figure something else out if it still bugs you. For me, it works like a charm and I will always use it. A little goes far so it is affordable and easy to store when you need it.

Curing:

After applying the dry cure, you could see it start to weep immediately. I prepped all the other flavorings and did them one at a time, vacuum sealing each piece. I put the vacuum sealed packages in the fridge for a week, or 9 days actually. We took out the pieces, washed off the seasonings and then placed them on grated baking sheets to air dry before we smoked them.

Smoking:

Now, I should have checked my own freaking blog for the timing, but of course I didn’t and sometimes, what seems like a mistake turns out to be a masterpiece after all is said and done. I mistakenly took someone else’s blogging advice and we smoked it at 200 degrees on the egg for 3 hours 15 minutes. The erroneous blog said 4 hours which to his credit, my partner in kitchen crime balked about several times. This prompted me to finally check the temperature during the football game commercial period. 

Turns out he was right, of course, and so was I… on my own blog lol! In my first bacon post, I mentioned that we smoked our bacon for about an hour, which was probably right on the mark, without knowing what temperature we were at during the smoking phase. The charcuterie book I have also said check the internal temp after 1 1/2 hours,  at 200 degrees, which I should have done. Internal temp should be about 150 degrees. But having said that, the happy culinary "accident" that ensued was phenomenal. When we opened the egg, the site of the pork bellies was gorgeous and we both just knew... it was probably cooked. But we couldn't have cared less... the sight of them, the smell... We couldn't get it in the house fast enough.

Don't fall in love with me pulled pork, eat your heart out!! lol! If we EVER want to do a pulled pork again that is upscale and restaurant worthy, it will indeed be done with a pork belly, no lie.

When we took it off the grill, oh boy, it looked and smelled amazing. And it also looked… Cooked.   No worries. It was so freaking delicious we really didn’t care because it meant we could taste it without having to first cook it!  Remember, that even though bacon is technically "cured", it is one of those meats that must be cooked first before you eat it. However, our lucky little mishap was the exception...

Only problem was it was so freaking delicious, we practically devoured half of the plain piece (which happened to be the smallest quarter) in a matter of minutes. We had just eaten, but it was so dang good, we both kept wandering into the kitchen picking at the bark, pulling at bits and pieces...

Refrigerating and Slicing:

We left it to cool (and yes, it was hard to step away from the bacon) and then placed wax paper on the bottom of the refrigerator meat drawer to refrigerate over night. As you might have experienced, cold bacon is much easier to slice and cut and homemade bacon is no different. The colder the better and freezing for an hour or two is even better.  

Today, we took them out of the refrigerator, wrapped in wax paper and popped them into the freezer for about an hour just before we put them through the meat slicer. My cohort sliced it perfectly and layered the pieces in wax paper while I vacuum sealed it all and labeled it. We ate the plain one the first night, leaving about a half pound of it. lol! It was that good but the bits left over, we diced and put in a ziplock bag in the freezer for later this week. 

We took the skin off for cracklings before slicing it though, which I highly recommend. I refuse to even consider how bad this might be for you, but being that I grew up on pork rinds and cracklings, I just rationalize it by saying I'm preserving my heritage. lol! Turned out beautifully and really, the bacon looks perfect. We both decided that while we cooked the bacon accidentally, it will still make beautiful bacon, it just won’t take that long to cook. And the real discovery is that smoked and grilled pork belly is a true delicacy to die for, a worthy meal in and of itself.

Now that’s looking at the silver lining... any way you slice it.

Makin' Bacon

Vegetarians, you better look away...

I make no excuses or apologies for what I'm about to display, which is a total fondness and affection for the grass-fed hog that was raised just for my family this year. Well, not just for my family because we purchased a whole hog from Wacholz Farms with some friends of ours so we ended up with half a hog, or about 80-90 lbs of fresh processed pork products.

I love pork. I do not have an issue with consuming meat but I consume smaller and smaller quantities of it and am becoming more particular about the "particulars" of the meat I do consume.  I want to consume with care, care for the animals that are raised, care for the environment, care of the locality and last but not least, care for my own health and well being.

I began to research organic and sustainable farms local to my area or within state boundaries. Granted, I live in the "Heartland of America" where my neighbors all bring something beautiful to the table (pun intended) but I wanted to first explore the abundance of Minnesota.  I will make the time and have the interest aplenty to begin this endeavor and so I embark on finding the products I use often, locally.

That it what inevitably led me to Cazzi. At the time, I wanted to find grass-fed, all natural meat. It could have been beef, chicken, lamb, pork, I was just looking to see what was available. I came across a website that I found to be very helpful, Minnesota Grown.  From there, not only did I find Wacholz Farms, but I fell down the rabbit hole and was convinced that my mission not only had viability but everything I was seeking beyond grass-fed hogs was within driving distance.

Since my car is more efficient than a commercial truck and my interest more than just a passing fancy, I felt rather elated at the possibilities of not only obtaining such quality products, but I would also get a chance to meet some pretty quality people along the way who not only think like I do, but are deeply passionate about what they do. It's a happiness circle!! Any and all kinds of grass-fed, natural meats, organic produce and dairy, grains, all of it could be found locally within my own reach if I just put forth the effort to become acquainted with all our farmers have to offer.

So, props to you, Cazzi for growing us the best dang pig I think I have ever had the pleasure of eating.  Our processing was done by Nick's Meats, who helped us figure out what cuts to choose and whether or not to smoke it or make sausages, etc. It is so well packaged, no chance of freezer burn which is an added plus, so kudos to the pride of our processor, as well.  We share recipes and ideas with our friends who have the other half of Wilbur and I have already put us back on the list for next year's hog. It's that good.

Now, for the bacon bits (lol!):

• Roughly 10lbs of pork belly (yep, bacon is from the belly of the pig)
• 100% Maple Syrup (should have been from Minnesota but I couldn't wait so will get some this weekend at the Mill City Farmer's Market)
• Sea salt

Sprinkle each of the belly pieces liberally with salt on both sides.  Drizzle maple syrup liberally all over that. Allow the bellies to cure overnight in the fridge uncovered and up to 5 days, repeating the process of adding additional salt and syrup each day.  The bellies should cure on a sheet pan with a grate or rack so the liquids can drain cleanly from the meat as this is the point of curing, to remove excess moisture from the bacon.   This means it will store better, keep longer and not get all gooey slimy when you do go to use it from the fridge.

Once the bacon has cured, wash off all salt and syrup and then pat dry with paper towels to dry the meat again. Let sit out to dry at room temperature or back in the fridge until completely dry to the touch.

We used a bullet style smoker, but if you wish to have a smoked bacon, you can cold smoke it with apple or hickory woodchips, whatever you like for an hour. That was plenty of smoke flavor. You can experiment but keep in mind that unless you vacuum pack it or seal it right away in the fridge, your whole fridge will be "smoked". :) Speaking from experience. But that smells so good, too, just keep it in mind if you have sweets or other stuff you don't really want smoked in the fridge at the same time.

It's ready to slice and because it is cold smoked, you still need to cook it but oh the joy of having homegrown, homemade bacon at a fraction of the cost for an abundance of flavor and humanely raised pork.  That, is priceless.  And what a treasure to trade come deer hunting season...  I'm unemployed at the moment, but I feel so rich!! :)