Posts from — March 2009

This week we welcome the Holiday Market and Westborn Market chain of stores.

Weekly Deals for Detroit Area Stores  - 3/16/09:

Kroger - Kroger Bacon, Any Variety, 16 oz. (2 for $5 w/ card) AND Oscar Mayer Bacon, Select Variety, 16 oz. (BOGO w/ card)

Meijer - Thorn Apple Valley, 16 oz. (2 for $5)

Hiller’s - Smithfield Bacon, Rugular or Low Salt, 16 oz. ($2.99)

Busch’s – Spartan Bacon, 16 oz. (2 for $5)

Holiday Market – Nothing listed this week.

Westborn Market – Nothing listed this week.

Go Get Some!!

Need to see another store on the list…let me know!

In the immortal words of Bevis from Bevis and Butthead – “Oh my liver!”

I am back home for the long weekend in Indianapolis.  It was the annual pilgrimage to the Big 10 basketball tournament.  There were three of us on the drive down, but we were five strong on the ground. The weekend started well enough (as it always does), when made good time, got in to town a hour before MSU’s game with Minnesota, found a place and got seats right along the bar before the game began.  But then…it was all down hill (as it usually is).

The rest of Friday night saw us hitting six bars and almost getting into a fight with a female body builder from Wisconsin about how much Bo Ryan sucks (that was my bad).  There was no bacon consumed that day, but at least seven White Castle cheeseburgers…

So Saturday started out where Friday left off, and that was with White Castle (I’ll leave that to your imagination).  UGH!  I wimped out at breakfast too when I ordered the granola yogurt parfait…no meat at all…yogurt…so already, the day felt off.  I finally did man up and I got my bacon from a BLT at our third bar of the day (after the Spartans lost, we call that a typical Saturday at the tournament).  What made the sandwich even better…the Jameson 18 Year whiskey.  I love me some Jameson and this was like nectar from the gods, over ice.  This and a BLT…HEAVEN!!!  But I do also believe this was the beginning of the end…

The Saturday tally for yours truly was only 5 bars…for it was at the 5th…the little bar back at our hotel…was when I decided I had to go upstairs for a bit.  I have no idea what I said or why I had to go up to our room, but I never left as I laid down and didn’t get out of bed until almost 12 hours later. Seriously, one of the weakest moves by me EVER!  I blame the yogurt…I started the day soft.  I should know that to start a marathon day, you need a marathon breakfast!

It was a slow Sunday morning, but I made up for the weak breakfast the day before with a “Tremendous Twelve” breakfast (minus the eggs) at Perkins on the way home.

So now I sit at my computer, stinking up the basement, eyes drooping and stomach doing flips…but the Spartans, amid the weekend loss, still got their #2 seed and will be in the Midwest bracket which shapes up well for us to make it to Detroit for the Final Four.  I got to see my friends, made a few new ones, drank some fantastic whiskey and bad rum, watched us win and suffered through the loss AND had one hell of a time doing it (as usual).  Good weekend!

Up next…Detroit Tiger’s Opening Day (which is on a FRIDAY – HOLLA’)

Hey all – it’s early in the morning and when this is “robo-posted” I will be on the road with my boys, headin’ to Indianapolis for the Big 10 Tournament.

The fine institution of higher learning that graduated me back in 1994, America’s First Land Grant College, Michigan State University will be playing at NOON. So it was up at 6 am, giant coffee from Dunkin’ Donuts and away I go.

As I will be more than likely be drinkin’, I will not be posting until Sunday night. Have a great weekend!! When I get back I should have some bacon tales, a story or two from Indy and my review of “Watchmen” (finally seeing this weekend).

If you just can’t wait til Sunday night, I will be Tweeting.  Check out the Twitter Widget on the left side of the blog or follow me on Twitter!

Go Right Through for MSU!

OUT!

“This is why you’re fat“

I had two friends, Stacy and Rob (SHOUT OUT!) both at different times send me links to this wonderful, disgusting, site.

It features recipes that are in NO WAY good for you and in some cases just the image starts to make your stomach growl and not necessary in a good way.  The whole site is like a high-speed wreck on the freeway…you just can’t look away, you want to, but can’t.

So what’s the bacon connection?  Well, just about every recipe!  A few of my favorites…

Bacon Wrapped Mozzarella Sticks

The Double Bacon Burger Fatty Melt  

Chicken Fried Bacon (w/ Gravy)

and finally Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf with Layer of Mac & Cheese

Check out the site and see if you don’t just keep hitting NEXT to see what other concoctions have been developed!

The date for “BACON SUNDAY III” has been set for Sunday, March 29th.  This is our third celebration that encourages everyone to spend one Sunday a month enjoying a big breakfast with friends, family or even just by yourself with a big old newspaper!  Of course that breakfast includes bacon!

We have seen a nice increase in “attendees” over the first two events…would love to see us get to 100 confirmed participants.

You can sign up for this event on Facebook by following this link.

Facebookers – join The Daily Bacon group to receive future event notifications!

Let’s face it, bread is so boring.  Yeah there are a bunch of different types, textures and tastes…but at the end of the day, it’s just a bit blah.  That’s why we are always coming up with things to dunk, spread, wrap, cover, soak, etc. our bread.

Ya’ll know what bread needs???  BACON! 

[photo via cooking crave]

Here is a great recipe for tasty dinner rolls that everyone will love, from the blog “Cooking Crave“.

Enjoy!

This week we welcome the Holiday Market and Westborn Market chain of stores.

Weekly Deals for Detroit Area Stores  - 3/9/09:* 

Kroger - Kroger Bacon, Any Variety, 16 oz. (2 for $5 w/ card) AND Tyson Bacon, Select Variety, 16 oz. (2 for $6 w/ card)

Meijer - Oscar Meyer, Regular, Natural or Center Cut, 12 – 16 oz. (2 for $5)

Hiller’s – Gusto’s Thick Sliced Hickory Smoked Bacon, 20 oz. ($2.99)

Busch’s – Spartan Bacon, 16 oz. (2 for $5)

Holiday Market – Nothing listed this week.

Westborn Market – Nothing listed this week.

Go Get Some!!

Need to see another store on the list…let me know!

* I don’t believe in Wal-Mart, so if you grocery shop there, you’ll have to find out about the specials your own self!

Wait a minute…what happened to “Nerd News…Week 7″??  Well, I haven’t been nerdy at all lately!  Two full weeks have past since my last nerd post and seriously, I am shocked, SHOCKED at how “normal” my life has been these last few weeks.  Work has a lot to do with it.  When I was with Fathead, it was all sports and entertainment al the time.  At TOMCAR, well, it’s all about cars and off-road and military and heavy industry…so focus shifts.  And with Lil’ Baird in the picture, the time to sit and play a game for 12 hours straight, or plow through my comic books or even just surf the interwebs as been greatly reduced.

So here was what little nerdy things I was able to come with during these last two weeks.

• “LOST” continues to rock.  I completed LOVED this last week’s Saywer ep.
• I picked up a little Indiana Jones figure at Toys R’ Us when we were getting Lil’ Baird a bouncy.  It’s the classic outfit from “Raiders” and he has a pistol, whip and fertility idol.  I have given him a place of honor on my desk.  It is too bad that “Crystal Skull” sucked so bad, because these toys deserved a chance.  Hasbro did a real good job with them.
• “Burn Notice” ended it’s third season this week and it was a doosey!!  Season four starts back up this summer.  One of my guilty pleasures and it has Bruce Campbell in it!!
• I did watch a bunch of “The F Word” when I got home from Chicago, eight episodes.  They were all from 2007, but I don’t care.  I am developing a man crush for Gordon Ramsey.  Not the U.S. version, but the REAL Ramsey on BBC America.  Also watched two episodes for “Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares” from BBC last night as well…it’s literally night and day his delivery back home vs. what FOX does to his shows here.
• I HAVE NOT SEEN “WATCHMEN” YET!!!  More of Lil’ Baird ruining my life*…we are going to try to see it this week…just need a sitter.
• And finally, I have rediscovered Ebay…to my own peril.  I was a junky back in the early days, buying just about my entire collection of 12″ Star Wars “dolls” on Ebay.  I hadn’t been on in about 2 years and suddenly found myself back last week.  I got to surfing around and ended up bidding on five things, winning three!!  One was a really cool 1980′s “Return of the Jedi” action figure case in the shape of a Stormtrooper rifle.  It still has a KayBee Toys price sticker on it and is in great shape.  Also picked up a Hallmark ornament that I missed three years ago (Imperial Guard) and a set of misc. figures from the late 90′s.  More stuff for the collection…now if I’d just buy the rest of my shelves, maybe I can show it off.

*I may love my baby, but I am not above callin’ her out.  NOTE: when I say things like this…please note that I am a sarcastic ba$tard.

Some basic “classifications” of bacon that you should know:

Canadian bacon: Oval-shaped cut from pork loin; looks like ham; lean, cured, lightly smoked; called “back bacon” in Canada.

Country-style bacon: Can refer to any thick-sliced bacon; can also be salty, cured, heavily smoked bacon from the same hogs as country hams.

Jowl bacon: Typically a Southern variety cut from pork cheek; cured and smoked like regular bacon, but contains more fat.

Pancetta: Dry-cured pork belly, typically not smoked; often from Italy, but also made in the U.S.; usually rolled and sliced quite thin.

Streaky bacon: British term for typical American supermarket bacon.

Salt pork: Mostly fat, with a little lean, from cured pork belly; not smoked; sometimes called “streak o’ lean;” used mostly for flavoring.

Source: “The Bacon Cookbook” by James Villas (Wiley, $35)

Entitled “Bacon Making Bacon” and it’s for sale (my birthday is coming up…LOL).

8″ x 8″, acrylic on canvas, $200.

Artist is Joey Sayers, her site is here.

This just makes me smile.