Bacon Strips Adhesive Banages and Uncle Oinker's Bacon Mints

Greetings fellow lovers!

My good friend Kat sent me a neat little bacon "care package" today!

Kat told me there'd be a surprise in the box and Kat did not disappoint!

The bacon mints have a nice hint of bacon amongst their minty flavor.

So a big thanks to my friend Kat for this package!

Kettle Brand Maple Bacon Potato Chips

Greetings, fellow bacon lovers!

My sister's best friend, Kim suggested I try these chips.

They are Kettle Brand Maple Bacon potato chips.  They are available at Whole Foods.

For health conscious bacon lovers, take heart they have no trans fat, MSG, preservatives, gluten, or GMOs.

They are also only 150 calories, 9 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated and polyunsaturated fat each, and 7 grams of monounsaturated fat.  No cholestorol, and 400 grams of potassium.

Now with all the health stuff out of the way, how does it taste?

At first I was hit with a sugary, maple taste, but as I chewed on the chip, that flavor turned into the salty, bacon-y flavor.  And I think it was excellent(and I am not really a big fan of "kettle" chips.)

These chips are available at Whole Foods and as I end up at Whole Foods once a month picking up gluten free bread for our church communion, I'll be sure to pick up more of these chips.

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Bacon Cinnamon Rolls!

Greetings fellow bacon lovers!

Today I decided to try a recipe I found herehttp://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/bacon-cinnamon-rolls/c268a5e7-46af-4de1-9edf-d8e7996a4a60.

So I have my ingredients:

(Yes I guess you could say I cheated and used pre-cooked, but I think the pre-cooked is just as tasty as the real thing.)

What you're supposed to do it cook the bacon per package instructions, using one strip of bacon per cinnamon roll(ie, 8 rolls=8 strips of bacon), disassemble the cinnamon rolls, put the slightly cooked bacon inside the rolls, and roll them back up.  I learned an important this time, next time, use Grands cinnamon rolls.  But these will do in a pinch.  I say to use Grands is because you can unroll the rolls easier.

Here they are ready to go into the oven.  I used a bundt pan because our metal roll pan is MIA.  But the bundt pan will work too(Thanks, America's Test Kitchen!)

I put them in a 400 degree oven(according to cinnamon roll directions) for 14 minutes(in retrospect I should have done 12 or 13 but I think they came out good(and even my Mom said they were tasty!)

And there you have the final product. 

I think this was a nice savory addition to the cinnamon rolls, and who am I kidding, everything's better with bacon!

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

I wasn't planing on having a Halloween costume this year...

Greetings fellow bacon lovers!

I LOVED Halloween growing up as a kid.  One of the reasons was obviously, getting the candy but the other reason was my mom.  My mom, being the creative genius she is, ALWAYS made my costumes.  Over the years, I've gone as a lion, Elvis, a Dwarf(from Snow White) "Herbie Husker", mascot of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and many more.

My church resurrected a Halloween party this year, and I originally wasn't going to go in costume.  I was going to just find a Halloween shirt at Walmart and call it good.

Until, that is, till I went down the costume aisle and Mom's genius struck again.

I showed up at the Halloween party as(and of course, this is the perfect tie in to this blog):

Yup, I showed up like this and said "I am the Bacon Monster."

People LOVED it.  People were taking pictures of me in it and I felt like a kid again!

So have you ever dressed up as a favorite food for Halloween? Or any food for that matter?

Leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading, Happy Halloween and happy baconing!

Nice! Maple Flavored Bacon jerky review

Greetings bacon lovers!

The Bacon Monster fan Tiffany alerted me to Nice! brand Maple Flavored bacon jerky so, Tiffany, this review is for you!

I have really gotten to enjoy bacon jerky lately.  I really do prefer it to beef jerky, mainly because I it doesn't taste like shoe leather or taste like you're trying to eat a shoe.

Enter Nice! brand Maple Flavored bacon jerky, available at Walgreens.

The bacon jerky comes n a 3 ounce container.  110 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 30 mg of cholestorol, 530 mg of sodium, 4 grams of carbs, 10 grams of protein.

How does it taste?  Really good, a nice hint of maple flavor.  It feels a bit...I don't want to call it slimy but you can definitely tell they added something to the strips to add the maple flavoring but not bad, considering.

A really great and tasty bacon product.

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Review and demo: Idahoan Applewood Smoked Bacon Mashed Potatoes

Greetings fellow bacon lovers!

So I know it's a product not entirely made of bacon but last time I went grocery shopping I figured I needed to give it a go.

Enter Idahoan Applewood Smoked Bacon flavored mashed potatoes.


So let's take 2 cups of water:

Put it in a pot:

Put it to a boil:

And when little pot is done boiling, add the mashed potatoes, turn off the heat, give them a good stir and let them sit 1 minute.

Then you have your finished product:

Idahoan did an excellent job(and I suspect they used real bacon but I didn't look at the ingredients) capturing the bacon flavor because the pieces of bacon in the mashed potatoes really and tasted like real bacon and not bacon bitx.


Idahoan mashed potatoes come in a variety of flavors and are available at most major grocery stores.

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Sorry, I have been away for a while, so let's talk about pre-cooked bacon!

Greetings fellow bacon lovers!

I am very sorry I have been a bad little bacon monster and not been bacon blogging in quite a while.  I have had a lot of things come up lately(work, close people to me passing away, etc.)

Anyway, I've been intrigued in pre-cooked bacon.

Now, I'm sure you're thinking...a bacon blogger trying PRE-COOKED bacon? Blasphemy!

It's actually quite good.

I used Oscar Mayer but a lot of companies have pre-cooked bacon.  Just pop in the microwave and voila!

Tastes just as good and it's usuable for sandwiches, recipes, anything.

Expect a full on test of two brands of pre-cooked very soon!


Question: What is your favorite brand of bacon? I like Oscar Mayer and Corn King.

Happy Baconing and thanks for reading!

The Bacon Lover's Breakfast

Hello bacon lovers!

“The question that women casually shopping for perfume ask more than any other is this: "What scent drives men wild?" After years of intense research, we know the definitive answer. It is bacon. Now, on to the far more interesting subject of perfume.”
― Tania Sanchez, Perfumes: The Guide

Well, bacon's smell does make me a happy monster!

Anyway, a local restaurant, the Original Pancake House has advertised the Ultimate Bacon Lover's breakfast.

Now I had to check it out!

For $11.49 you get the following:
-2 pancakes
-3 eggs
-SIX slices of thick-cut bacon-y goodness!

How was it, you ask?

It was excellent.  The bacon was a bit crisp(I don't like it too crisp) but it was well worth the $11.49 and the bacon was nice and thick, just how I like it.

Question of the Entry: What is your favorite restaurant that has bacon dishes?

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Bacon maple funnel cake: Making a delicious treat even better!

Hello bacon lovers!

Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.- Doug Larson

I agree!

I went to a fest this past weekend, the Midwest Zest Fest in Highland, Indiana.  While on a quest for anything bacon related, I was alerted to a vendor that had bacon funnel cakes.  So off I went to California Funnel Cakes, a Northwest Indiana based food vendor, where Tiffany served me up a funnel cake, but not just ANY funnel cake:

Let me tell you, it was excellent.  It combined sweetness of maple confection drizzled on the cake, the saltiness and savoriness of the bacon, and of course the wonderful fried taste that comes from the funnel cake.

I love fried food and I love tried and true fest favorites like funnel cake but Tiffany and California Funnel Cakes took it to the next level, an incredibly delicious level melding the flavors of bacon and maple.

So a big thanks to Tiffany and California Funnel Cakes! I will definitely see you again at next year's Zest Fest!

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Chocolate flavored bacon on a stick...A delicious cold chocolate covered take on bacon!

Hello Bacon lovers!

I unfortunately still crave chicken McNuggets and bacon, which is the meat candy of the world.
Katy Perry

Katy, you say that like it's a BAD thing!

Anyhoo,  going to fairs and festivals means that there's a lot of really neat foods, including foods on a stick.  So I went to a local festival in Highland, Indiana, where my sister lives, called Zest Fest, which ironically is a lemon themed festival.  So they don't have a whole lot of lemon-flavored things but they do have something pertinent to this blog.

My sister let me know that one of the food vendors had chocolate covered bacon on a stick.  So I visited a booth named Dawn's Confections, which is an Indiana-based vendor that goes to various festivals in the Northwest Indiana region.

Paid $2.50 and got THIS:

The vendor told me to eat the bacon on a stick like corn on a cob.  It was an incredible slice of bacon covered in chocolate.

So question of the video: Have you tried anything at a fair with bacon?

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Bacon candy canes, and thanks for recipes!

Hello fellow bacon lovers!

 I think we love bacon because it has all the qualities of an amazing sensory experience. When we cook it, the sizzling sound is so appetizing, the aroma is maddening, the crunch of the texture is so gratifying and the taste delivers every time.

Couldn't agree more, Alexandra Guarnaschell, Food Network chef!

I honestly can't believe I'm composing a NEGATIVE review of a bacon product.  But, with this blog, my goal is to provide you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  Well, at least my true opinions.

And in my opinion, I am not impressed with Accoutrements Old Fashioned bacon candy canes. Sure, I know that Christmas is four months away, but I couldn't help but be intrigued to try these out.

First off, I am a bit concerned that a food product wouldn't have nutrition facts anywhere.  You have to call a phone number if you want nutrition facts.

Well, no nutrition facts aside, let's move on to the ingredients: sugar, syrup, water, Citric Acid, Artificial Bacon Flavor, and FD&C red 40.

Now, how does it taste?

Not very much like bacon.

There's a bit of a peppermint taste to the candy cane, and a very odd smoke taste, like the smoke from smoking meat, like bacon.  But nothing really resembling bacon.

It's a bit of a disappointment, honestly.  I LOVE flavored candy canes and I wanted so much to like these, but alas, not so.










ENTRY QUESTION: Have you ever tried a bacon product you did NOT like? Leave a comment below.
In some more positive news, I have gotten two submissions for recipes.

Thanks to my mom for the Bacon Crescent Rolls recipe found here

And thanks to my friend Brandi for the Cheesy bacon bombs recipe found here

I will be devoting each recipe to its own blog entry, where I will show how to make them and provide my thoughts.

Thanks to all for their support of this blog.  This was started as a great idea and I love doing this.

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Bacon Baked Beans recipe from Mom :)

Hello everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

So to start off this entry, I share a quote from comedian Jim Gaffigan, who incorporates bacon into his act.

Whenever I'm at a brunch buffet and they have that big metal tray filled with the 4000 pieces of bacon, I always think, "If I was here by myself...I would eat only bacon. I would steal this tray, go lay down, and eat bacon all day."

Can't say I blame you there, Jim!

So tonight for Labor Day dinner at my sister's, my wonderful Mom made bacon baked beans, and being the awesome Mom she is, she shared the recipe "for da blog"

Ingredients:

• 10 - 12 strips bacon
• 3 cans (16 ounces each) baked pork and beans
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 cup ketchup, or use part barbecue sauce

Preparation:

Fry bacon until crisp; drain well on paper towels. Then cut in 1-inch pieces.

Combine all ingredients; transfer to crockpot; cover and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours.

Serves 6 to 8.

Enjoy!!!

I am open for trying any recipes you may have, for usage of course on the blog.  So if you have recipes, you can send them to me in the following manners:
-Leave a comment below
-Send them to e-mail at bacon_monster1@yahoo.com
-Share them on my Facebook fan page!

As always, thanks for reading, and happy baconing!

Bacon Mac and Cheese bites at TGI Fridays-a delicious bacon and cheese sensation

Greetings fellow bacon lovers!

So I am going to try to start off every new entry with a quote about bacon.  This one is from Food Network chef Anne Burrell.

I always use my 'Holy Trinity' which is salt, olive oil and bacon. My motto is, 'bacon always makes it better.' I try to use bacon and pork products whenever it can.

Oh, Anne.  You're so right.  Bacon ALWAYS makes it better.

And this brings me to TGI Friday's and their new Bacon and Cheese bites on their "Taste and Share menu."

I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE TGI Fridays.  I love the atmosphere, love the food, love the fact that I get rewards points with them.  But there's more to love now, oh yes.  TGI Fridays has these delicious bacon mac and cheese bites.
(Here's a picture I took on my iPhone:)

The TGI Fridays website describes them as:

Crispy bites with three varieties of cheddar and served with craft beer-cheese dipping sauce.

First off.  Nutrition:  These tasty bites(per TGI Friday's website) have 600 calories, 40 grams of fat, 16 of which is saturated fat, 41grams of carbohydrates, 1510 grams of sodium, 20 grams of protein, and 1 gram of fiber.

As you can see, the bacon mac and cheese bites are topped with real delicious bacon, and contain macaroni and cheddar cheese and coated in a delicious breading and fried.

Absolutely delicious.  Lots of bacon and cheese flavor.  The cheese sauce is a mix of spicy and savory.

Definitely worth trying at your local TGI Fridays. 

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Gearhead bacon lovers, rejoice! Oh, and Happy International Bacon Day!

 First of all, Happy International Bacon Day, everyone!

I'd like to commemmorate this occasion with a bacon related quote from Gwenyth Paltrow:

I'm not sure how healthy bacon is in general, but I know it's incredibly delicious.

How true you are, Gwenyth!
 

 So,

Wanting a new car, but trying to show your love of bacon?

Well, Ford has you covered!

According to the New York Daily News, Ford is releasing a custom bacon-themed graphics package for the new version of the Ford Fiesta.  Yes, you can opt to put bacon strip decals on your brand new subcompact, and be the envy of fellow bacon loving motorists everywhere you go!

According to the configurator, you can get "bacon racing" for $191.25 + installation, for example.  If you really want to show the passersby your love of bacon, you can cover your entire Fiesta with a bacon wrap, at $3347.00 + installation.

Ford marketing manager Liz Elser said(per the article):
“It’s no secret that bacon inspires a lot of passion, and that’s what the Fiesta celebrates,” “Our customers have a hunger for self-expression. Plus, it’s just awesome to drive down the road in a piece of bacon.”

Indeed it would be Miss Elser.  Where do I sign up?

And finally, I invite you all to send any recipes, ideas of products I should seek out and try, or any fan mail to my new e-mail address!

E-mail me at bacon_monster1@yahoo.com!

And not just e-mail, you can like my page on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/thebaconmonster

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Bacon jerky? I must investigate this potential awesomeness...

To start off this post on The Bacon Monster, I'd like to share an awesome picture my good friend and former co-worker Melissa sent me:

Then last week, my friend Scott sends me this request on Facebook:

Dear Mr. Bacon Monster,

Might I suggest a review of these for the blog?

Sure thing, Scott!

Oh Boy! Oberto All Natural Bacon Jerky advertises itself as fully cooked, 100% real bacon, and is 20% less fat than USDA data for regular bacon.  And good news for those bacon afficinados that are on gluten free diets, because Oh Boy! Oberto All Natural Bacon Jerky is gluten free!

It advertises 130 calories, 60 from fat.  9 grams of fat, and zero trans fat.  30 miligrams of cholesterol, 670 milligrams of sodium, 1 gram of carbohydrates, and 12 grams of protein.  The bacon jerky is cured with water, sea salt, sugar and natural flavoring.

"But Dave, how does it TASTE?"

Great question!

I normally think of beef jerky as being very chewy, and having the taste experience of trying to eat your own shoe.  However, the people at Oh Boy! Oberto did really well at making this jerky not look or taste like leather.  The taste of the jerky is spot on like bacon, albeit a tiny bit salty.  Sure there are some tiny bits of fat there and some hard pieces of bacon, but overall it is an excellent experience.

So if you're looking for an awesome snack, check out Oh Boy! Oberto All Natural Bacon Jerky,  It can be found in convenience stores and also at Walmart.

QUESTION OF THE POST:  Has anyone tried any bacon snack products like bacon jerky? What have you tried an enjoyed?

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!

Greetings and Salutations!

Hello everyone, and welcome to The Bacon Monster!  My name is Dave, and thank you for checking out this blog.  The Bacon Monster is a way to combine two loves of my life writing, and bacon.

First, I want to acknowledge my mom, Kathy.  She is the one who inspired me to blog about bacon, and also she has nurtured and shared in both my loves of creative writing and bacon.  Including taking me to Denny's so I could take part of their "BACONALIA" promotions in 2011 and enjoy bacon maple ice cream.

Second, I'd like to tell you a bit about myself.  I'm in my mid 20s and live in suburban Chicago.  I work in customer service and sales.  I live with my family, two cats and a turtle.

I've always enjoyed bacon.  It's well understood in my family that if I eat bacon on a sandwich, I'll pull it off and save it for last.  I've become very interested recent bacon related products to come out onto the market, including the aforementioned bacon ice cream, bacon jerky,and bacon duct tape.  Yes, my friend Katy told me about duct tape that has bacon printed on it.  She also told me about bacon-shaped ice cube trays. 

My purpose in this blog is twofold.  I want to share my experiences with bacon, tell you about any interesting bacon related products that come my way.  But I also want this to be an interactive experience, with you, the reader.  So every entry, I will pose a question for you to comment below.

So this entry's question: What was the most interesting bacon-related food item you've ever tried?

I will definitely have to say for me it was the bacon ice cream sundae.  To put a face to this blog, here's a picture of me eating the bacon sundae.

Thanks for reading and happy baconing!


Dave aka TheBaconMonster