Spicy Pig Candy

Ingredients

1 lb thick cut applewood smoked bacon

2 c white sugar
1 heaping spoonful sriracha
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp brewer’s yeast

 

 Directions

Mix all but bacon until resembles brown sugar in consistency

Toss bacon in sugar mix & coat well
Bake at 325 on a cookie sheet with a baking rack for about 15-20 minutes or until well browned, rotating at least one time.

Red Enchilada Sauce

Servings: about 10

Ingredients
4 tbsp chili powder
6 tbsp flour
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 tsp granulated garlic
1 ½ tsp ground oregano
1 tsp paprika
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
¼ c dried onions, ground
2 c water
1 tsp lime juice
1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce

Directions
Combine all dry ingredients in a medium saucepan.
Whisking constantly, slowly add enough of the water to make a thin paste & is well combine.
Add rest of water.
Over medium heat bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens.
Whisk in tomato sauce

Pasties, Bacon & Enchiladas; oh my…

This has been a really great week. Work has been ok for a change – that is, where I am employed until our food truck opens. I also got to see a good friend last weekend, who I haven’t seen in like ten years & we celebrated his 40^th birthday; I got to do a bit of cooking (like usual) and had some very positive meetings for the food truck as well.
 

We’ve got a commissary lined up for the truck! That’s so excited & I was really pumped up when I got the news! Though I can’t really talk too much about it, it’s in a super location, the guy who owns it is awesome and the kitchen is just about perfect for what we need! On top of that, I meet with one of the financial folks I’ve been working with and she told us that we are now ‘bankable’! This was the shot in the arm I so badly needed. I also heard back from two other financial companies who are looking at us for backing as well.

 

Catering job offers keep coming up! It is so amazing & pushes us to get this thing off the ground. When I shared this at the meeting I had with Women Venture, she was very excited for us too!

A buddy of mine opened his brick & mortar restaurant this week. You might have heard of them - Potter's Pasties. They’re at 1828 Como Ave SE Minneapolis, MN 55414. Since their truck continues to be out, you can get your pasty (that’s past-ee not paste-y) love as much and often as needed. I got my fix on opening night which was Thursday. Potter’s shares the building with Joe’s Market who is in the front (look at the back of the building for the Red & Blue door for Potter’s) where I used to get my Ben & Jerry’s all the time. Joe’s used to carry all of the great unusual flavors that the big box stores don’t – just another reason for me to go back; as if getting an edible hand warmer wasn’t a good enough one!

One kinda fun fact, now that we’ve switched off our DirecTV and gone Roku: the kids are getting into the oddest shows. I wouldn’t think that Psych would hold their interest, but they love it; particularly looking for the Pineapple in each episode. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got nothing against DTV, it was that I couldn’t justify spending $90 a month on TV.

 

Okay on the cooking part of the program!

 

This week’s recipes are:

 

Spicy Pig Candy & Enchilada Sauce

 

I know, I know; our truck is not going to be a Mexican themed truck. I hear that clearly. We’re Diner-style gourmet comfort food – Where the Diner meets the Street; but I have always loved Tex-Mex as well as Asian cuisine. For a time, I spent a portion of my culinary career doing Tex-Mex & Tex-Mex/ Asian fusion. So those flavors hold a near & dear place in my heart. And while these two recipes are not fusion, there’s an Asian influence in the Pig Candy & I think that Enchilada sauce speaks for itself.