How To Make Perfect Bacon in the Oven

We're betting there's a pretty high chance that you love bacon, since a lot of people do! But if you're tired of greasy stovetops or are interested in trying something new then how about baking bacon? Check out "How To Make Perfect Bacon in the Oven" below!

How To Make Perfect Bacon in the Oven

What You Need

Ingredients
1 to 2 pounds bacon

Equipment
Aluminum foil
1 to 2 baking sheets
Tongs
Paper towels
Platter

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F: Turn on the oven and preheat to 400°F. Place a rack in the lower third of the oven. If you're cooking multiple sheets of bacon, position a second rack in the top third of the oven.
2. Arrange the bacon on a baking sheet: Line a baking sheet with foil (this makes clean-up easier). Lay the bacon on the baking sheet in a single layer. The bacon can be close together, but don't let it overlap or the bacon will stick during cooking. If necessary, use a second baking sheet.
3. Bake the bacon: Place the baking sheet of bacon in the oven and bake until the bacon is deep golden-brown and crispy, 15 to 20 minutes. Exact baking time will depend on the thickness of the bacon and how crispy you like it. Begin checking around 12 minutes to monitor how quickly the bacon is cooking. The bacon fat will sputter and bubble as the bacon cooks, but shouldn't splatter the way it does on the stove top. Pour off the bacon grease as needed so the bacon isn't totally submerged in grease.
4. Cool the bacon: Remove the bacon from the oven and use tongs to transfer it to a paper-lined platter to drain and finish crisping. Serve immediately. You can also refrigerate leftover bacon for a week or freeze it for up to three months; warm the bacon in the microwave before serving.
5. Clean up: If you want to save the bacon grease, let it cool slightly, then pour it into a container and refrigerate. If you don't want to save the grease, let it solidify on the baking sheet, then crumple the foil around it and discard.

Recipe Notes

• Even Crispier Bacon: For even crispier bacon, set a metal cooling rack over the foil-lined baking sheet and lay the raw bacon over the cooling rack. Elevating the bacon allows it to cook from all sides and become extra-crispy.

Want more smart tutorials for getting things done around the home?
See more How To posts
We're looking for great examples of your own household intelligence too!
Submit your own tutorials or ideas here!

This post and recipe have been updated. Originally published 02/04/10.

(Images: Emma Christensen)

Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-perfect-bacon-in-the-oven-107970

Read more »

How To Create a Marbled Effect When Decorating Cookies

We've all seen the delicious holiday treats in the display windows and cases at stores. If you're making some homemade ones for yourself and others, check out "How To Create a Marbled Effect When Decorating Cookies" to make your cookies not only delicious, but almost too pretty to eat!

How To Create a Marbled Effect When Decorating Cookies

What You Need

Ingredients
1 batch cookies
1 batch border icing
2 or more batches flood icing, contrasting colors

→ To make the icing, check out How to Decorate Cookies with Icing: The Easiest, Simplest Method

Equipment
2 squeeze bottles
1 toothpick

Basic Marbling:

1. Outline and flood the cookies with icing: Using the border icing, draw outlines around each of the cookies. Fill in the insides of the cookies with flood icing. For more details on this step, read our tutorial on How to Decorate Cookies with Icing.
2. Draw a squiggle in contrasting icing: While the iced cookie is still wet, quickly draw a squiggle of contrasting color down the middle of the cookie.
3. Run the toothpick through the squiggle: Draw the toothpick across the squiggle, pulling the toothpick through each line of the squiggle.
4. Run the toothpick in the opposite direction: Next, draw the toothpick through the squiggle in the opposite direction.
5. Continue running the toothpick back and forth: Continue drawing the toothpick through the lines of the squiggle, back and forth, until you reach the bottom of the squiggle. You can play with spacing the lines further apart or closer together for different marbling effects.
6. Let the cookie dry: Let the cookie dry undisturbed for at least 24 hours.

Strings of Hearts:

1. Outline and flood the cookie with icing: Using the border icing, draw outlines around each of the cookies. Fill in the insides of the cookies with flood icing. For more details on this step, read our tutorial on How to Decorate Cookies with Icing.
2. Drop dots of contrasting icing: While the cookie is still wet, drop small dots of contrasting icing in lines across (or down!) the cookie. How close or far apart you space the dots will affect the tightness of the heart strings.
3. Run the toothpick through one line of dots: Draw the toothpick through the dots like playing connect-the-dots. As you connect each dot, it will smear slightly and create a heart-shape.
4. Run the toothpick in the opposite direction: Move on to the next row of dots and run the toothpick in the opposite direction.
5. Continue running the toothpick back and forth: Continue connecting lines of dots, going back and forth, until you've created several strings of hearts.
6. Let the cookie dry: Let the cookie dry undisturbed for at least 24 hours.

Spiderwebs (not pictured):

1. Outline and flood the cookie with icing: Using the border icing, draw outlines around each of the cookies. Fill in the insides of the cookies with flood icing. For more details on this step, read our tutorial on How to Decorate Cookies with Icing.
2. Draw a spiral on the cookie: While the iced cookie is still wet, quickly draw a spiral of contrasting color on of the cookie.
3. Run the toothpick through the lines: Run the toothpick through the lines of the spiral working from the center of the cookie outwards (or from the outside in, if you like!). Run all of the lines in the same direction.
4. Let the cookie dry: Let the cookie dry undisturbed for at least 24 hours.

Recipe Notes

• The Contrasting Flood Icing: You'll notice a little bit of color bleed from the contrasting icing into the icing around it. For the most part, I like this effect and let it be. If you'd prefer more crisp, clean lines, make your contrasting icing slightly thicker than the icing used to flood the cookies.

(Image credits: Emma Christensen)



Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-create-a-marbled-effect-when-decorating-cookies-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-198344

Read more »

Winter Recipe: Bigos Stew

Winter months can be a challenge to cook in, but they don't have to be! Check out "Winter Recipe: Bigos Stew" for a tasty dish that everyone will love!

Bigos Stew

Serves 12 to 15

1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1/2 pound thick-cut smoky bacon, diced
2 pounds pork butt or shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pound smoked pork sausage, like smoked kielbasa, cut into thick slices
1 pound fresh pork sausage, cut into thick slices
12 ounces (1 1/2 cups) good amber beer or red wine
2 medium yellow onions, diced
12- to 16-ounces fresh mushrooms, like button or cremini, diced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 quart sauerkraut (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon whole all-spice berries
1 teaspoon whole juniper berries
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 bay leaf
1-2 cups chicken or beef stock
Salt and pepper

Serve with any of the following: spaetzle, cooked pasta, cooked rice, roasted potatoes, or dinner rolls.

Heat the oven to 325°F with a rack in the lower-middle position.

Place the porcini mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with about a cup of tap water. Set aside to rehydrate while you prepare the rest of the stew

Warm a teaspoon of oil in a large (6-quart) Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook until all the bacon fat has rendered and the bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Leave the bacon fat in the pot.

Season the pork with salt and pepper. Lay as many cubes as will fit in a single layer in the bottom of the Dutch oven. Sear without moving the cubes until golden, at least 2 minutes. Continue searing on all sides. Transfer the seared pork to the bowl with the bacon. Continue searing the remaining pork in batches — if at any time the pan becomes dry, add a few teaspoons of oil.

Sear the smoked sausage and fresh sausage in batches like the pork — if at any time the pan becomes dry, add a few tablespoons of oil.

By this point, there should be a thick, gummy, dark glaze on the bottom of the pan. Pour half of the beer into the pot and scrape at the glaze as it bubbles. Once the crust as dissolved, pour the remaining liquid over the seared sausages and pork.

Lower the heat to medium and film the bottom of the Dutch oven with oil. Add the onions and cook slowly until they have become very soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the fresh mushrooms and a half teaspoon of salt. Cook until the mushrooms have released all their liquid and the liquid has evaporated. Add the tomato paste and garlic, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Pour the remaining beer into the pot and scrape up any glaze that has re-formed on the bottom of the pan. Drain the sauerkraut, reserving the juices for another purpose if desired. Add the drained sauerkraut and the seared meats to the pot and stir to combine.

Use a fork to remove the porcini mushrooms from their liquid. Chop them roughly and add them to the stew. Set a small strainer over a measuring cup and strain the liquid leftover from soaking the mushrooms to remove any grit. Pour the strained liquid into the stew.

Gather the all-spice berries, juniper berries, bay leaf, and caraway seeds in a tea ball or knot them in a square of cheesecloth. Stir them into the stew.

Check the level of the liquid in the stew. It should come about halfway up the side of the pan and you should just be able to see some liquid beneath the surface of the ingredients (the ingredients should not be completely submerged). If you need to add liquid, add some chicken or beef broth.

Bring the stew to a simmer. Cover and place the stew in the oven. Cook for 2 hours. Check the stew — if the pieces of pork are so tender that they fall easily apart when pieced with a fork, then the stew is ready. If not, place the cover back on and continue to cook in the oven; check the stew every 30 minutes until the pork is fork-tender.

At this point, the stew can be served immediately, or it can be cooled, refrigerated, and served the next day. This stew is often better the next day. To reheat, place the stew over low heat with the lid partially covering. Warm until the stew is steaming, then serve.

(Image credits: Danielle Tsi)



Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/winter-recipe-bigos-stew-recipes-from-the-kitchn-197927

Read more »

5 Tips: How To Quickly Make Your House Look Cleaner Than It Is

Company's coming in a little while, and the place is a mess! What to do? Check out these 5 quick tips to make your pad seem a lot cleaner than it actually may be: "5 Tips: How To Quickly Make Your House Look Cleaner Than It Is".

1. Clean the Three T's: Toilets, Tabletops, the Television. What? The television? Yup! Most living rooms are centered around your tv and the amount of dust that hangs on it, your netflix stack and dvd box set pile that's off to one side could be tell tale signs of why the rest of your house isn't exactly spotless. Plus if you sit chatting in the living room, you'll be staring at it wishing you would have moved it. Toilets and tabletops are a bit more self explanatory, but important none the less.

2. Stash with Efficiency: When company drops in we've all been in a situation once or twice where things get tossed in a basket and shoved in the spare bedroom or closet. It's a quick solution, but it can be done with more efficiency so you can find your stuff later on. Add things to your basket according to the room they go in. That way when company leaves, you can remove the items easily without making 100 trips across your house or apartment to put things where they belong.

3. Pet Hair: Even if you have a sparkling clean house, if your sofa is covered with a layer of dog or cat fur, it suddenly looks less tidy. Keep a rubber glove or your favorite pet hair busting product on hand to knock it all down in a few sweeps.

4. Dishes Be Gone in Seconds Flat: Please don't judge me for this tip. Admitting that I've done it more than once is punishment enough alright? So here goes. Put your dishes in your oven. Wait, what? If you pile your dishes in the sink then it looks like you threw them all in there at the last minute as everyone knows you can't really wash dishes in that manner and you'll still look like a slight slob, even though you have clean counters. Instead, grab a baking sheet and stack like items together and slide them in the oven. They'll slide right back out, be prestacked and ready to be washed so you can recover from the guilt you just gave yourself for following through with this tip. Side note: don't preheat your oven... even by accident... until they're removed.

5. Spend 5 Furious Minutes on Your House Everyday: Isn't that cheating? We're talking about last minute company here, not preparing all week long for them to come! True, but think about how much you can clean in those few minutes before they arrive. 10 blocks isn't much. With traffic and parking and walking up your stairs, 5 minutes is a safe estimate. Bring that panic to your life every day and clean with the same intensity for just 5 minutes and your house will always look better for it. Plus, you still have time to watch Raising Hope without telling yourself you'll pick up on commercials.

Do you have a quick clean-up tip that helps you out when company calls? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Re-edited from a post originally published 11.1.11 - JL

(Image credits: Lydia Brotherton)

Original Article Here: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/tips-how-to-make-your-house-look-cleaner-than-it-is-159806

Read more »