Bacon, there’s no denying it’s delicious on just about everything (especially things involving cheese!)  So, after a little research, I decided to take on the challenge of making my own.

I found this great video tutorial, which I used to guide me through the process.

Here’s a summary of the steps involved and some snapshots from my process:

1. Pick up a pork belly from your local butcher. Ask them to leave the skin on the pork belly. This helps develop the flavor, and you can cut it off after it’s smoked.

2. Cut the pork belly into manageable chunks so each chunk can fit in its own big Ziploc bag. Add the spices and sugar/salt rub to the pork belly and then put the pork into the Ziploc bags. Set the bags in a cool area. (I used my garage in the winter. This is ideal because the temperature doesn’t change too much.) If you have an outside fridge that isn’t opened that often that would work, too.

3. Mid-week, move the bag around to make sure the sauce has been created (the salt extracting liquid from the pork belly mixing with the spices) and is fully covering the pork-belly. 

4. Take the pork belly out of the bags, rinse off, and allow it to dry for 24 hours. You can let it sit on an oven rack (but make sure no one turns on the oven!) The above photo is what it looks like after drying for 24 hours.

5. Smoke the pork belly in a smoker according to the directions, but make adjustments based on the size of pork belly you buy.

6. Cut off the skin once the pork belly has cooled.

7. Use a slicer to slice up the bacon.

Would you take on this challenge at home? It was a lot of work, but absolutely delicious!

By Mary

Setting the table was always the kid’s chore at my house growing up. Perhaps it was my uncanny love of polishing silver that landed me this very important role during the holidays. While the place settings aren’t what your guests will remember the next day (pressure is on all you turkey roasters and pie bakers), a properly set table is one of the first things your guests will notice, and it will set the tone for a festive meal. Although table settings can vary slightly depending on what you’re serving and the age of your guests, here are some basic rules to follow when preparing for your guests this year.

Rule 1: Place your plates about 2 feet apart (center of plate to center of plate) to make sure your guests have enough elbow room. Make sure the placement of the plates is right before you start laying down the rest of the settings. I like to use metallic chargers to add some extra pizzazz to each place setting.

Rule 2: If you’re serving soup, place the soup bowls on top of each plate.

Rule 3: Place silverware in the order of its use, from the outside in. The utensils you’ll use for the main course should be closest to the plates.

Rule 4: Place forks to the left of the plate, and knives and spoons to the right.

Rule 5: Place the cutting edge of your knives toward the plate for safety and consistency.

Rule 6: Napkins should be to the left of the forks, or under the forks if space is tight on the table.

Rule 7: Place a butter plate above the forks, to the left side of the plate with a butter knife on top.

Rule 8: Dessert silverware should be placed above the plate with the fork handle to the left, and the spoon handle (or knife, depending on what you’re serving) to the right.

Rule 9: Coffee cup and saucer should be on the far right above the knife and spoon(s).

Rule 10: Additional drink cups should follow counter-clockwise as such: White wine glass, red wine glass, water glass. The glasses should be in a line with the largest (water glass) behind the other glasses decreasing in size.

Rule 11: If you have festive napkin rings, tis the season to bring them out. You can also add place cards for a festive (and sometimes strategic) touch to your table.

What festive touches do you like to add to your holiday place settings?

By Amalya