Note: you can make regular white bread by eliminating the bacon and replacing the bacon fat with shortening, but why would you? You could also use a few extra bacon strips for a more intense bacon flavor.
Fry the 4 strips of bacon. Reserve and cool the bacon fat. Set the bacon aside to cool.
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let it set until foamy, about 5-10 minutes.
Warm the milk and add the salt, bacon fat and shortening . Place in a mixing bowl with a dough hook. Add 5 cups of the bread flour, the yeast mixture and the 2 eggs. Mix it on low speed for a few minutes until it all comes together. Place the bacon strips in a food processor to form a paste. Add the paste to the mixing bowl. Slowly add the rest of the flour as needed and mix on medium speed until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl.
If you still have some of the reserved bacon fat, grease a bowl for the dough. Place the dough on the counter and knead it for a few minutes, then place it in the greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and put it in a warm draft free place and let it set for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Grease two 9×5 loaf pans. (I only had one pan, so I used a baking stone for the 2nd loaf)
Punch the dough down, removing the air bubbles, and place back in the covered bowl again and let it rest until doubled in size again, 30-45 minutes.
Place the dough on the counter and divide the dough into two dough balls. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough balls into a 9×12 rectangle. Roll them up and pinch the ends to seal.
Place the loaves in the pans, sealed sides down. Cover and let rise until doubled again, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees or 350 degrees in a convection oven.
Using a bread lame, razor, or sharp knife, make a small slice across the top of the loaves. When the bread is ready, place in the oven and bake 30-40 minutes until well browned and they sound hollow when tapping them. Remove them from the oven, brush with bacon fat and cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
“Don’t Stand So Close to Me” by The Police from their third album “Zeno-atta Mondatta” released in 1980.
“From a Distance” by Bette Midler from her 1990 album “Some People’s Lives”
“I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor from her album “Love Tracks” released in 1978.
Browse my blog for more recipes to fix at home while social distancing…..
As of this writing, several bars and restaurants have been ordered to close or limit their seatings. These issues are likely to get worse before they get better.
I am by no means a Foodservice expert, but as a life long FoodService veteran, this scenario is heartbreaking for me and I would like to share some links, ideas and tips to help ease the pain of the crisis…..
How the Restaurant Industry is Responding to COVID-19 | James Beard Foundation
https://www.jamesbeard.org/blog/how-the-restaurant-industry-is-responding-to-covid-19
Here is another article that Apple News shared from Food & Wine magazine website….
Coronavirus Has a Trickle-Down Effect on Waitstaff’s Wellbeing
https://apple.news/AZbUs8LNqRf6c–asvzPRhw
You can also go to change.org and sign this petition…
Some other ideas…
Trim your menu now!
Keep your regular menus to use again when things calm down. Make temporary limited menus with only your best selling or easiest to prepare items.
Add some anti-viral items to your new menu and a blurb about their anti-viral properties. Here is a link from Better Nutrition…
https://www.betternutrition.com/diet-and-nutrition/anti-viral-foods
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.betternutrition.com/.amp/diet-and-nutrition/anti-viral-foods
Temporarily reduce your operating hours.
Be open only at peak times. Open an hour later, close an hour or two earlier, or close for a few hours in the afternoon and clean and wipe everything down.
No sports on tv? Turn something entertaining on. Classic movies? Have a Star Wars or Rocky Horror picture theme? Be creative! Probably keep at least one tv with a news channel on for the diehards?
Reduce your food inventory!
Especially perishable items. Use them up quickly and restock minimally.
If you don’t have curbside service, start one!
Push gift certificate sales. Start a server contest to see who can sell the most, and reward them!
If you have the room, remove half your tables and store them to keep a safe distance away between tables.
Check your local regulations about retaining some items.
Many restaurants retail spices or sauces. Why not buy a couple of cases of toilet paper from your food distributor and resale? Or maybe offer one roll per table free as a gimmick?
Come up with some Covid cocktails. Be creative!
Make a big batch of elderberry syrup and offer free or reduced priced shots for your patrons! (Recipe on my blog)
Place hand sanitizers or wipes at the entrance and exit to your restaurant. Put one on every table if you can. (You may have to chain them to the tables)
Support your other local businesses as often as you can! We’re all in this together!
Any other ideas or suggestions, hit me up and I will add to this list. Thanks!
And this from the Nashville Scene…
Cook / Prep Time – about an hour
Servings – 2 – 3
Add the vegetable stock, water and wine to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the salt, pepper and thyme leaves. Add the lobster tails and cook for five minutes. Remove them, let them cool and chop the lobster meat and place it in the refrigerator. Place the lobster shells back in the stock and simmer while cleaning the vegetables.
Melt the butter in a Dutch oven on low heat. Clean, wash and dice all of the vegetables, keeping the green onions separate (for garnish). Place the vegetable scraps into the stock pot with the lobster shells. Add the chopped vegetables to the Dutch oven with the butter and cook on low heat until the vegetables soften. Add the tomato paste to the vegetables and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the flour to the vegetables, continuing to stir for another 5 minutes. using a sieve, pour the hot lobster stock into the vegetables and let it simmer for 5 more minutes while stirring.
Using an immersion blender, purée the vegetables and stock together. Add the heavy cream and chopped lobster meat and return to low heat and simmer for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Garnish with the chopped green onions. That’s it! I served it with some toasted sourdough bread I made yesterday.
Kerrys Food Thymes 