Jan D'Atri

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balsamic vinegar

Bacon Jam

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Bacon. It’s my favorite five letter word! In fact, when I was doing a lot of catering, bacon was my secret weapon. If it was a breakfast catering, I would make three times the amount requested, and it was never enough. For a lunch or dinner catering, I would make beer candied bacon as an appetizer and just pile it on a giant platter. Again, every crumb gobbled up. Never enough. Don’t know what to make for breakfast, lunch or dinner? Just add bacon somewhere in the dish, and you can bet it’ll be a hit. Here’s another idea that’ll get your taste buds sizzling—Bacon Jam. Just seeing those two words together, I knew it was going to be delicious, and I was not disappointed. Bacon Jam can be used in so many ways! It’s fantastic on a charcuterie board with lots of different cheeses, crackers and crustini. Bacon Jam also makes a wonderful condiment for a turkey burger! I cooked up a large ground turkey pattie, (beef is just as tasty) loaded it up with sliced tomato, lettuce, avocado, blue cheese dressing and then I slathered the pattie with bacon jam. YUM! It turned a very ordinary turkey burger into a super burger! A few things have to go right to get the perfect bacon jam. Cook the pieces of bacon until they are crispy. When the bacon foams up (that’s the bacon fat talking) that is a good indication that the bacon is just about done! Also, make sure to use sweet yellow onions, which add the natural sweetness to the salty bacon! Perfect combination! So, if bacon is your jam, Bacon Jam may be just the recipe to spread around!

Watch my How To Video for Bacon Jam here!

Trifle Salad

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It’s one of the prettiest ideas for dessert. English Trifle is always a show stopper, with its layers of fresh fruit, pudding and whipped cream. Trifles go back to the 16th century. In fact, they were also called Fruit Fools, believed to have originated from the French word “fouler” which means to mash or press. That’s the fun thing about the trifle. The presentation is gorgeous, and then you just dive in and scoop up soupy, fruity spoonfuls of goodness! Well, I decided to give salad the same eye-popping treatment!
I mean, we pretty much all love a salad of some sort, but they can get a little boring after a while, especially if you eat them a lot.
With this Trifle Salad, you can combine and layer any of your favorite salad fixings in a trifle bowl (or any large clear glass bowl), drizzle with your best Italian dressing and serve it up as a main dish! The sky’s the limit on what you can add to your Trifle Salad. If you’re looking to make it ahead for a special occasion or picnic, you’ll want to choose ingredients that will hold up and not wilt. Color, texture and flavor are also considerations. You can find a trifle bowl at stores like Bed, Bath and Beyond or any kitchen supply store. If you can find the mini trifle bowls, they make perfect individual single serving salad. If you don’t have a trifle bow, a large, clear bowl makes a great substitute, especially if you place it on top of a cake stand for the ultimate presentation.

Here’s how I built my Trifle Salad. (For a large trifle bowl)

Watch my How To video for Trifle Salad Here!