Stash building, part II

So as I said, the stash is three things in the fridge. Makes my life very easy to eat well and not feel chained to the cook top!

The other great one to have on hand is bacon. Good ol bacon!  But really great bacon is not quick...easy, technically, yes...but TIME intensive.

So here is how we make bacon at our home and it gives me time back a few times a week!  I buy the all natural, uncured bacon from Earth Fare that has been humanely raised. I won't buy any bacon that came from sows in gestational crates. It can't simply taste good or be inexpensive, it must be humane, too!

We buy 2 pounds at a time and use the largest, deepest cookie sheet we have and line it with super absorbent paper towels. Then I lay strips of raw bacon from one end to the other, as closely as possible without overlapping and then there is usually space for two or four pieces perpendicular to the others and fully fill the face of the pan. Then put a layer of paper towels over the bacon.

Put this paper towel trifle in a 350 degree non convection oven. I have used a convection oven and the bacon was a bit too dry and did not have the same finish at the end. If you like yours almost 'breakaway' when you bite, then convect away. But I like a small bit of bendability. If I need it crispier I can quickly accomplish that later, but mostly I like it so that if I put it in a wrap or eggs or salad it doesn't explode when I bite, but has some chew in it. I remove the top layer of towel, let it cool completely and then store in a baggie or reusable container.

I check it at 20 minutes and then every 5 minutes after that. The strange thing is, sometimes it is ready at 20 and sometimes not until 35 minutes. Same oven, same temp, same cook, same brand of bacon...but there is a variance. Keep that in mind when you are making anything. It can be so different when all is generally the same!  My mother in law used to 'accuse' me of not giving her my real recipes for certain family favorites. But even when I made them at her home with her watching...things turned out a bit differently.

Be kind to yourself! And go make some humane bacon!