I’ve been baking bacon for years. I love the technique because you can cook a lot of bacon at once, it doesn’t get your stove totally greasy, and the bacon comes out great. It’s my favorite. But I didn’t realize until last week that there is a small trick I didn’t know about that makes for perfectly baked bacon.

So, what’s the big secret? This magical trick? The trick is putting the bacon into the oven when it’s cold. That’s right, do not preheat the oven. The cold oven allows the bacon to cook slowly, which makes bacon happy. Now, I’ve been putting my bacon into a preheated oven forever and been totally happy, but since I’ve started not preheating the oven, the bacon is just that much better and more evenly cooked.

Also, putting the bacon into a preheated oven doesn’t add any time to the preparation. After all, you’re going to be preheating the oven no matter what!

I know, an entire blog post about this little tip? Well, that’s how excited I am about it. This discovery is, to me, completely blog post worthy.

Perfectly Baked Bacon

 

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Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

• Bacon

Instructions

1. Place bacon on a rimmed baking sheet, making sure pieces do not overlap. It's okay if they are right up next to each other, but overlapping is no bueno. (I like to line my baking sheet with foil to help with clean up. This is one of the things I do in the kitchen that makes me feel totally guilty about my environmental impact, but alas, I continue in my terrible ways. It's just so much easier! But you totally can put the bacon directly on the pan.)
2. Place baking sheet in oven, then turn oven on to 400º F.
3. Cooking time will depend on how long it takes your oven to heat as well as how thick your bacon is. My oven takes 25 minutes to get to 400º F, and then our super thick bacon from the local grocery store takes about another 20-30 minutes to finish cooking, so my total cook time is usually around 45 minutes. I would start peeking at the bacon to see how it's doing once the oven is fully heated, and then check in on the bacon every 5-10 minutes. When it's getting close to done, 1-2 minutes can make a big difference in how crispy it is. You'll figure out what works best for your taste after a few times cooking it this way.
4. My other latest trick is to cook the bacon so it is a little bit underdone then storing it in the fridge so we have cooked bacon at our fingertips. To reheat, microwave for 30-90 seconds (depending on your microwave's strength, the thickness of the bacon and how crispy you like it - work in 10-15 second increments to find the magic number) to finish off cooking the bacon and enjoy!

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Two summers ago we stayed in Falmouth, MA for our annual Cape Cod family vacation. One night we ordered pizza from a restaurant called Stone L’Oven and every last pizza was delectable. My favorites were the fig and prosciutto pizza (which I already created a recipe for) and a wonderful sweet potato pizza. Nate’s cousin Sara and I went back and forth endlessly about which one we liked more. In the end we couldn’t decide, they were both amazing!

I have finally recreated the sweet potato pizza in my own kitchen and it was delicious! This pizza has all kinds of wonderful ingredients, from salty bacon and gorgonzola cheese to sweet caramelized onions and sweet potatoes. Top it all off with a balsamic glaze and you’re in heaven!

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A note on the balsamic glaze – I used to make it myself until I discovered STAR’s Modena Creamy Balsamic Glaze. Their glaze is the perfect consistency for drizzling on pizza, so that’s what I use now. I highly recommend it.

Sweet Potato and Bacon Pizza

 

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This pizza is the perfect combination of salty and sweet!

Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

• Pizza crust of your choice (I use this recipe or good naan bread for my crust)
• olive oil
• 1 fresh garlic clove per pizza you make
• caramelized onions
• fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced (regular shredded mozzarella cheese works, too, but I love fresh)
• gorgonzola cheese, small chunks
• sweet potato, cubed
• bacon, cooked and chopped
• fresh spinach
• salt and pepper
• balsamic glaze (if you want to make your own, click here for instructions. STAR makes a bottled balsamic glaze that I love - click here for more info.)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
2. Toss cubed sweet potatoes in olive oil and sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a cooking sheet and roast for about 20 minutes, until soft.
3. Roll out pizza crust then brush on a thin layer of olive oil across the surface. Push fresh garlic clove through a garlic press then spread with your fingers over the oiled crust. Top pizza with caramelized onions, gorgonzola cheese, spinach, sweet potatoes, and bacon. Finish with mozzarella cheese.
4. Bake pizza how you normally do it for your crust recipe.
5. Remove from oven, sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper then drizzle with balsamic glaze. Serve!

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I have been meaning to share this “recipe” with you for a few weeks and am finally getting to it. I’m excited – it’s a good one!

Years ago Nate’s Grammy McCarthy ordered us a BLT pizza from her local pizzeria. I was skeptical, but then I had a bite. It was heavenly and so simple. All these years later I have finally tried making it at home and with great success.

I made this when my brother and his family were in town and we ate every last bite. I’m certain we could have eaten a lot more if I’d made it! I’ve made it again since and this pizza is seriously is amazing. It was even close to edging out the honey goat cheese with caramelized onions pizza as our favorite, but I think the goat cheese pizza may still be in the lead. But just barely.

BLT pizza is essentially bacon pizza topped with salad. You’ll want to eat it with a fork. And you’ll want to eat the whole thing. Fair warning.

BLT Pizza

 

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So simple, yet heavenly!

Author: Jane Maynard

Recipe type: Main Dishes, Pizza

Cuisine: Italian, American

Ingredients

• I use this recipe for Uncle Tony’s pizza crust and it makes 4 mediumish pizzas
• I use this pizza sauce recipe for the BLT pizza because it tastes fresh and tomato-y
• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 packages bacon, cooked and then chopped (I bake mine at 400 degrees on a foil-lined sheet for about 15-20 minutes)
• 2-3 hearts of romaine lettuce, chopped
• ~3 tomatoes or a couple handfuls of grape tomatoes, chopped
• Mayonnaise

Instructions

1. Top pizza crust with tomato sauce, bacon, then an even layer of mozzarella cheese. Bake in a 500 degree oven until crust and cheese are browned. Remove from oven.
2. While pizza is cooking, toss the chopped lettuce and tomatoes with a couple spoonfuls of mayonnaise – a little mayo goes a long way, so start with less and add more if you need it. You just want to coat the veggies in a thin layer. I know, I know, the mayo thing sounds kind of weird, but TRUST ME.
3. Once the pizza is out of the oven, top with the salad mixture. Cut into slices and eat!
4. No exact measurements for this recipe – just go with your gut on amounts, but the above guidelines should be helpful!
5. A delightful addition to the lettuce topping would be chopped avocado, making this BLTA pizza! Yum!

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