My Favorite Slab

I love bacon. Is there anything it can't do? Well it won't make you skinny, that's for damn sure. Bacon and peanut butter sammies, bacon and maple syrup, bacon in my grilled cheese, bacon in my mushroom risotto, really it partners well with anything. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if it were socially acceptable I'd marry a pound of bacon. Not the all fat crap you get from Maple Leaf and all the other big boys but the thickly sliced kind you find down at the market.

I used to be a vegetarian. That may be hard to believe from some of my recent statements, but it's true. When I went off to university I wasn't living high on the hog. I was pretty broke, and it turns out that meat costs a pretty penny. I started making lots of veggie dishes and soon enough I wasn't that interested in meats of any kind. When I did splurge and eat meat, it always made me feel a little ill.

Then along came Jess. When we started dating over a decade ago, he was very committed to wining and dining me several times a week. He made it his personal mission to free me from the chains of vegetarianism. It was all subtle pressure. Every dinner he'd order a meaty appetizer, at home he'd be making tasty looking hoagies, and at brunch he would he would opt for the bacon and sausage. Well what is a girl to do? There is only so many times I can look an enoki beef roll or some crispy bacon in the eye before I succumb. And now look at me, I crumble at the faint whiff of bacon frying. So let's raise a glass to meaty delights and bacon in any form. Here's one of my tastiest bacon combinations.

Bacon Nuggets

12 dates
12 half inch wedges of parmesan cheese
6 slices of bacon

Cut bacon slices in half. Roll one date and one parmesan wedge in a half slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Repeat. Place rolls on a tray and bake in oven at 425 F for 15 minutes. Serve immediately.