November 4: Candy

So I'm sure that you have heard buzz about bacon lately. Its smoky aroma has infiltrated the culinary world from the renderings to the crisped up meat that gives its taster a feeling of comfort and other-worldiness.

Wait...why does the heading infer that November 3rd was National Candy Day when you're talking about bacon? It was...and I am...

I present to you: candied bacon. I made about a tablespoon of brown sugar using 1 T white sugar and just as much molasses as a spoon-dip in the jar would hold. I mixed this together and then added a pinch of cayenne pepper. This was spread over the top of a piece of bacon and broiled for about 10 minutes.

While the bacon didn't cook as evenly as I had hoped, the result transcended my lofty expectations. The bacon had the ever-present fatty crispness that we know to love when biting down on each cell. The sugar candied to the point where it just slightly adhered to your teeth, but was cleared as quickly as it landed by the strength of the bacon structure. The flavor hit the senses hard; sweet, salty, meaty, deep caramelization, fatty, and a warming spiciness from the cayenne.

Please do this. You will sleep better when your taste buds have been sufficiently worked out.