Guinness Glaze Syrup

Guinness is my favorite beer so whenever I get the chance to cook with it, mostly around St. Patricks’ day, I jump on it. This is a recipe I pull out every year.

The glaze is very simple and can be used in several applications. Just think of it as a simple syrup but using the Guinness instead of water. Start with equal parts by volume of Guinness and sugar, so 1 quart of Guinness and 1 quart of sugar. Combine the two in a pot and warm over medium heat.

Whisk as it warms to dissolve the sugar evenly then allow to simmer until the syrup thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Once the syrup is finished, cool and store in an airtight container.

The glaze tastes great as a dipping sauce with olive oil for fresh bread and is also a great sauce for sweet baby back ribs. I also like to use it as a sauce on an Irish Car Bomb Sunday.

Whatever you decide to use it with, just make sure you save half of the six pack for yourself.

 

Vanilla Bean Sugar

Vanilla is a flavor that is derived from an orchid of the genus “Vanilla.” In Spanish, vanilla means “sheath or pod”. First cultivated by the Aztecs and Spanish Conquistadors, it was introduced along with chocolate to Europe in the 1520’s.

The vanilla orchid was not cultivated outside of Mexico and Central America until 1841 when a 12 year old slave living on a French island discovered how to duplicate the natural pollination process with his hands.

Apart from saffron, vanilla is the most expensive spice in the world. That being said, making your own vanilla sugar is the best way to stretch your buck and still get the vanilla flavor and look you want. Vanilla beans can be bought at most grocery or specialty stores in the spice isle.

If you are able to get your hands on fresh vanilla beans, just split the pod in half, scrape out the seeds with a knife and drop into a mixing bowl with your sugar, along with the pods. I use about two quarts of sugar per vanilla bean. If you are using a dried vanilla bean, rehydrate quickly with a little bit of hot water then repeat the same process as the fresh. Using a whisk or mixer with the whisk attachment, mix aggressively to break up and disperse all the seeds throughout the sugar.

Once you finish mixing, place the sugar in an air tight container to keep moisture out and keep it from clumping. Let the sugar sit for a week to get the full amount of flavor distribution.

Vanilla sugar can be used in anything that you add sugar to, from French toast batter to tomato soup. I use this mostly in my baking and pastries, usually in cake batters, vanilla ice creams, and crème brulee.

 

Candied Bacon!

Love bacon? Candied bacon is the best thing to start with when you want to add bacon to any dessert. This treat is quite easy to make, but there are many steps.

Before you start this recipe, you need to decide which bacon you like the best – you will need a dozen strips for the recipe. I prefer to buy a slab of bacon from the butcher, that way I can cut into strips myself; my favorite is maple blueberry bacon from Whole Foods Market.

Begin by cutting your strips of bacon; you may use any thickness you desire, I tend to lean towards three quarters to one inch pieces. Once they are all cut, place them in a medium sized pot then fill with water until just covered. Simmer this for five minutes then drain.

In the same pot place a cup of granulated white sugar and the same amount of water and heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add the poached bacon and simmer for five more minutes. Drain once again and cool on a baking pan.

Once you have cooled the bacon, place in a deep fryer or a pot of canola or vegetable oil, whichever you prefer to fry with. The heat should be at three hundred and twenty five degrees, fry until golden brown. This will caramelize the sugars on the outside of the bacon and create a nice coat on the outer layer. Drain the extra oil off and cool once again for a few minutes on the same baking pan.

In a large sized sauté pan place a quarter cup of honey, a quarter cup of maple syrup, and a quarter cup of water. Bring that to a simmer and then add the bacon. Once the mixture reduces down and coats the bacon entirely, then transfer to a baking pan with a baking mat and place in a three hundred and fifty degree oven. Check and rotate every couple minutes until they start to darken as shown in the picture. When ready, remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Store the candied bacon in an airtight container with wax or parchment paper between each layer.

This is a great way to add bacon to any of your favorite desserts. I love to fold it into my favorite flavored ice cream when it is coming out of the machine. It also makes a great improvement to any cookie dough or cake batter folded in before baked off. This bacon also looks great as a garnish on top of cakes or layered in-between.

I admit, there are easier ways to make candied bacon (like topping with brown sugar before baking), but in my experience none give it the crunch and full flavor that you get from boiling, frying, then baking.