Low Carb Bacon Grilled Cheese

That’s right… LOW CARB grilled cheese wrapped in bacon.

Instead of bread I make the sandwich with “cauliflower bread”. It does takes a wee bit of effort to make, but it’s so worth it. I use this recipe (step-by-step photos) on The Iron You website.

After cooling the cauliflower bread, just add cheese then wrap the sandwich in bacon. Check out the short BuzzFeed video (and photos) here.

Cauliflower mix ready for oven.

Cauliflower “bread” after about 20 minutes in the oven.

Once it was wrapped in bacon and cooked, I didn’t miss real bread at all.

Cauliflower bread recipe

Bacon-wrapped grilled cheese video

If you’re on instagram, I tag all my low carb dishes with #LowCarbJo. Enjoy!

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Low Carb Frico (Parmesan Crackers)

I’ve been cooking up lots of frico (parmesan crackers) lately. Mostly to top salads, but I also use them on soups and simple snacking too. These frico with toasted seeds were a big hit at my dinner table recently. So easy to make and low carb too!

Step-by-Step

Clockwise (from top left):
1. Sprinkle seeds in heated non-stick pan.
2. Add shredded Parmesan (Manchego is lovely too) and make sure the seeds are covered with cheese bits. Use a spatula to make a tight circle.
3. When the edges turn brown, gently start lifting with a thin spatula.
4. Turn frico (use two spatulas if needed) and cook until browned underneath. Carefully transfer frico to plate and let cool to harden. Break into pieces for salad topping or just EAT as is.

This works with pieces of herbs or leafy greens too. Frico with toasted baby kale here.

I post low carb recipes on instagram regularly. Follow me @MyLastBite or search #LowCarbJo.

Bacon Potato Chips!

A few years ago I shared photos and a Saveur recipe for delicious Sage Potato Chips. I recently made them again and updated the photos in a set on flickr.

While trying to come up with a fun snack for the big game on Sunday (Puppy Bowl for me, Super Bowl for Peter), I decided to change-up the recipe with (what else?) BACON.

Before scrolling down, check out the step-by-step Sage Potato Chip photos here. The bacon process is similar.

What you need:

Two large russet potatoes. You should get about 10-15 chips, depending on width of cut.
Five pieces of Bacon.
Oil for frying.
Salt (and thyme if you want).
Mandolin (I use a Kyocera) or use your good knife skills!

Instructions (a few photos below):
1. Clean and dry the potatoes. 

2. Using a mandolin (or sharp knife), make long, even slices of the potato. Make them thick enough so the potato doesn’t tear when inserting the bacon.

3.  Make two cuts (photos below) in the center of the potato to hold the bacon. 

3. Cut five pieces of bacon in half (or maybe in thirds depending on the size of your potato) then pan-fry the bacon until cooked about 50%. Drain and set aside.

4. The potatoes will be cooked TWICE. In a separate pan, heat up oil (just enough to cover the potato slices) to 200 degrees. Fry each potato slice (without the bacon ) for ten seconds each then drain.

5.  After the potato pieces cool down a bit, carefully insert the partially cooked bacon piece into the center cuts.

6. Heat oil to 350 degrees and fry until cooked to your liking.

7. Drain on paper towels and season if you want extra flavor on the potato.

Photos (make sure you’ve looked at these sage potato photos first):

Fry the potato (precut for bacon) in low heat. You want it pliable enough so it doesn’t tear when adding bacon.

Insert the partially pre-cooked bacon gently into potato cuts. This is what they look like BEFORE frying the second time.

Fry until done to your liking then drain and season (if needed). I also call these “Bacon Sandal Crisps” and served with guacamole.

Chef Dan Barber’s Original Sage Recipe via Saveur

Need MORE bacon?

How to make BACON ROSES

Easy BACON ICE CREAM

BACON-Wrapped Baby Potatoes

BACON-Wrapped Breadsticks

How to make a BACON BOWL

Roy Choi’s SPAM Bánh Mì

Roy Choi’s “L.A. Son: My Life, My City, My Food” is a heartfelt immigrant story AND it includes a fantastic recipe for SPAM Bánh Mì (step-by-step photos below).

About the book (via Amazon):

Abounding with both the food and the stories that gave rise to Choi’s inspired cooking, L.A. Son takes us through the neighborhoods and streets most tourists never see, from the hidden casinos where gamblers slurp fragrant bowls of pho to Downtown’s Jewelry District, where a ten-year-old Choi wolfed down Jewish deli classics between diamond deliveries; from the kitchen of his parents’ Korean restaurant and his mother’s pungent kimchi to the boulevards of East L.A. and the best taquerias in the country, to, at last, the curbside view from one of his emblematic Kogi taco trucks, where people from all walks of life line up for a revolutionary meal.

Filled with over 85 inspired recipes that meld the overlapping traditions and flavors of L.A.—including Korean fried chicken, tempura potato pancakes, homemade chorizo, and Kimchi and Pork Belly Stuffed Pupusas—L.A. Son embodies the sense of invention, resourcefulness, and hybrid attitude of the city from which it takes its name, as it tells the transporting, unlikely story of how a Korean American kid went from lowriding in the streets of L.A. to becoming an acclaimed chef.

The book is co-written with Tien Nguyen and Natasha Phan. Available at bookstores and Amazon.com

Roy Choi’s SPAM Bánh Mì Recipe (posted with permission). Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

For the pickles:
1 cup julienned daikon
1 cup julienned carrots
1/2 cup natural rice wine vinegar (not seasoned)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup of water

For the sandwiches:
4 demi baguettes
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Maggi seasoning
1 tablesppon Sriracha
Butter, softened
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 can of SPAM, cut into 8 thin steaks
Fresh cilantro sprigs
Fresh Thai basil or opal basil leaves
Fried Shallots (store-bought)
Limes

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the daikon and carrots in a small bowl. Combine the vinegar, salt, sugar, and water in a small pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn off the heat and let it cool until it’s warm. Pour over the daikon and carrots and let it sit for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours. Note: The second time I made this, I added fresh chiles from my garden.

Instead of store-bought shallots, I made my own. Just thinly slice shallots and fry in 350º oil until brown, then drain and lightly salt.

Cut the baguettes in half but keep them intact. In a small bowl, mix the mayonnaise with the Maggi seasoning and the Sriracha. I’m calling this Roy’s MaggiMayCha and I’ve been slathering it on EVERYTHING!

Slather the cut sides of the baguettes with softened butter and toast them in your toaster oven or in a pan over low heat until they’re nice and crispy. Set aside.

Heat the oil (I used brown butter) in a skillet, add the SPAM, and cook over medium heat until it’s golden brown in color. Transfer to a paper towels and reserve.

Slather the buttered sides of the baguettes with the spicy mayonnaise. To build the sandwiches, place the SPAM on the bottom half of each baguette, then top with the pickled daikon and carrots and add a layer of cilantro and basil (I used regular basil).

Top with the fried shallots and a squeeze of lime and close up the baguette. CRUNCH!

Not a fan of SPAM? Try it with grilled provolone instead!

About Roy Choi

Follow Roy on twitter

More photos

Bánh Mì

Stuffing Frittata

This is a repost of my favorite “Thanksgiving Leftover” recipe. This stuffing frittata is SO easy to make for a post-holiday breakfast or brunch.

Ingredients 

Cooking spray
2 cups leftover stuffing

1 cup of diced leftover turkey
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
8 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon ground fresh nutmeg
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 400

Coat an ovenproof nonstick skillet with cooking spray.

Place over medium heat (on stovetop).

Mix stuffing and turkey in a bowl, then put mixture in the bottom of pan to warm through.

Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese over top.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, 1 tablespoon of parsley (save the rest for later), red pepper flakes, and nutmeg. Add salt and pepper to taste… it depends on how much seasoning was used in the stuffing.

Pour egg mixture over stuffing and cheese to cover stuffing. Sprinkle Parmesan over top.

Carefully transfer to preheated oven.

Bake until the eggs are set and the sides have puffed up a little bit and cheese is golden, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Cool before cutting.

Sprinkle with remaining fresh parsley.

Remember: This isn’t just for “Thanksgiving Leftovers”. I’ve made it with good old Stovetop stuffing on a lovely Spring day. It’s fun, easy and super tasty!

PHOTOS: Chef Ludo’s Confit Pork Belly

Last week I made Chef Ludo Lefebvre’s Confit Pork Belly, in celebration of his new cooking show, The Taste (on ABC).

Prepping and cooking the pork was almost a three-day process, but SO worth the time and effort.

Best of all? I got to share it with Ludo, his wife Krissy and a small group of friends, who gathered at the Lefebvre’s home for the premiere. If you haven’t seen The Taste yet, you can view it online here.

I purchased the pork belly at Lindy & Grundy. Erte was kind enough to score the skin for me!

The first step is to make a brine and refrigerate for 24 hours. Chef Ludo’s recipe is on page 228 of his book, LudoBites.

Remove the pork from the brine, then confit in lard in the oven on a low temperature. The lard was also purchased from Lindy & Grundy.

After it’s cooked low and slow, the belly must be cold-pressed in the refrigerator overnight. I used two glass casserole pans and foil-covered bricks to compress the pork.

After cold-pressing the pork belly, gently cut pieces, transfer to a new pan and cook until golden brown and heated through.

Make the Glaze
Ingredients:
1/3 cup of honey
1/3 cup of red wine vinegar
1/3 cup of reduced sodium soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, mixed with 2 teaspoons water

Instructions:
Combine the honey, vinegar, soy sauce and five-spice powder in a heavy small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Whisk the cornstarch mixture, then whisk into the glaze to blend and return the glaze to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside. Cover to keep warm.

I finished the pork belly at Ludo’s home and was thrilled that he (and all the guests) enjoyed it!

My Pork Belly Confit finished.

The recipe is from LudoBites, available on Amazon or iTunes. I’ve cooked several recipes from the book, and have loved every bite!

Follow Ludo on Twitter

All about The Taste on FaceBook

Follow The Taste on Twitter

Go #TeamLudo!

LudoBites the CookBook

“LudoBites: Recipes and Stories from the Pop-Up Restaurants of Ludo Lefebvre” will be released October 9, 2012. I tested some of the recipes this past week (photos below) and have so enjoyed reliving dishes from his pop-up dinners around Los Angeles.

From the online book description:

The cookbook chronicles of the visionary, charismatic chef Ludo Lefebvre and his cult hit pop-up restaurant, LudoBites, worshiped by critics and foodies alike.

Ludo Lefebvre is a culinary prodigy who worked at his first three-star Michelin restaurant at age fourteen. By twenty-five he was running his own kitchen in Los Angeles—winning accolades for serving the most imaginative, forward-thinking food the city had ever seen. In 2007, he traded fine dining—with its endless pomp and bottomless resources—for the freedom to cook outside the box, even if it meant sacrificing his skilled kitchen brigade and drafting an eight-year-old to clean green beans and separate eggs. (Amazon)

Note: Ludo (and his wife Krissy) are dear friends. But that doesn’t stop me from being a HUGE fan of Ludo’s cooking or LudoBites the cookbook! I’ll continue to try out recipes and share the photos on twitter.

A few recipes I’ve tried so far:

Vietnamese Vinaigrette (page 261). I spooned it over pan-fried tilapia and rice.

Brocamole (page 22). Broccoli instead of avocado. We ate it with pita chips.

Époisses (my favorite stinky cheese) Risotto w Egg Yolk (page 340). Ludo made this for dinner a few days before I had the cookbook. I’m happy to say that mine tasted just as good! We used leftovers for baked risotto balls the next day.

Ludo’s upcoming (Oct 2012) appearances

Watch Ludo on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations: Burgundy (video recap). You get to see his charming side and meet his grandma!

Ludo Bites America on the Sundance Channel (available on iTunes)

Order the book on Amazon

Follow Ludo on Twitter

My photos of Ludo

Just his food!

Cooking from LudoBites

Watching Ludo watch himself on No Reservations!

Deep Fried Ramen Dog

The Cooking Channel’s Unique Eats is one of my favorite, food shows on TV. The recent Hawaii / Polynesian Paradise episode included one of the most interesting hot dogs I’ve seen in years.

The Ramen Dog from Hank’s Haute Dogs in Honolulu is a skewered hot dog wrapped in sticky, cooked ramen then deep fried until crispy. Genius!

Even though I’ll be in Hawaii soon (for the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival), my schedule is so packed that I’m actually not sure I can make it to Hank’s. So last night I attempted to make the Ramen Dog at home. It was SUPER EASY and definitely a special (once-in-awhile ONLY) treat. Peter and my brother Greg loved it too!

My version of Hank’s Ramen Dog

Ingredients

4 hot dogs

4 skewers (soaked in water for at least 30 minutes to prevent burning). Note: I cut each skewer to fit in pan.

2 Packs of cooked ramen (no seasoning), drained and dried. You want LONG strands and it should be very sticky (and DRY).

Vegetable oil for deep frying.

Optional Garnishes: I cut up Nori and sprinkled each finished dog with Shichimi and Furikake.

Instructions

Skewer each hot dog with wet, wooden skewers.

Wrap each dog with various strands of sticky, cooked, DRY ramen. Set aside on plate.

Heat oil to 350 (make sure to prepare ramen dogs before eating oil).

Using tongs, gently lay ramen dog into hot oil, turn if needed.

Watch until the ramen strands are golden brown and drain on paper towels.

Garnish (optional).

Eat!

The Cooking Channel

Video of Hank’s Haute Dogs

Hank’s Haute Dogs
324 Coral Street
Honolulu, HI 96813
802-532-4265
Website
Facebook: Hank’s Haute Dogs
Twitter: @hankshautedogs

A Cocktail Recipe

I’m not a fan of overly sweet cocktails. Whenever I see “simple syrup” (sugar water) listed on a cocktail menu, I usually just order a vodka or scotch. There’s just something about mixing booze with sugar that guarantees I’ll be suffering a hangover the next morning.

Recently, my friend Chris Parke (mixologist/bartender at Raphael) created a special cocktail for the latest Test Kitchen night at Short Order. This was a one-time event showcasing burgers and cocktails from some of L.A.’s most talented chefs and bartenders.

On the day of the event, I was surprised when Chris tweeted that he named his clementine (“oh my darling”) cocktail after me. Of course I was honored, but what if was too sweet and I didn’t like it? MyLastBite.com has always been about focusing on the positive. If I don’t like it, I don’t share it.

Thankfully the drink was fantastic (everyone at our large table thought so too). It was fruity, refreshing and just a tad bitter. The clementine cocktail also went perfectly with my favorite burger of the night, made by Raphael’s chef Adam Horton.

Jo My Darlin’ Cocktail Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

2 oz Bourbon

1 oz Aperol

1 oz Clementine juice

2 dash orange bitters

A bit of chopped basil

A slice of clementine soaked in aperol for 24 hours (to garnish)

Lemongrass for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix Aperol, juice, bourbon, bitters and basil together in cocktail shaker, then pour over ice

Garnish with lemongrass and aperol soaked clementine

Note: Chris added a tiny bit of cayenne pepper in my drink. He knows I like it spicy!

Enjoy!

Follow Chris on twitter

Test Kitchen at Short Order

Raphael Restaurant

About Aperol

Cocktail Menu by Chris Parke at Raphael Restaurant. Note: “The Basil” is the one I order the most.

Photo of Chris by Lane Smith Jr. (provided by Chris Parke).

My Go-To (not just Super Bowl) Party Recipe

I’ve been making this EASY BACON appetizer for years. So simple and fun, that even my husband Peter likes to help make them!

The best part is, they can be made a day or two before you need them. I added cayenne (for heat) and fresh nutmeg to Food Network’s original mix.

Ingredients
1 cup grated parmesan
2 teaspoons garlic salt or powder
1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg
24 slices bacon
24 long breadsticks (with sesame if avaialable)

You will also need: parchment paper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the parmesan, garlic salt, cayenne and nutmeg.

GENTLY wrap each breadstick with a slice of bacon (so breadsticks don’t break), then place wrapped bread sticks on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. If you break one, just cut bacon to fit and add to sheet. No one will care if the pieces are small.

Bake for 15 minutes or until bacon is cooked to your liking.

Next, roll the breadsticks in cheese & spices. Do this while bacon and breadsticks are still warm, then set aside and let cool. (Peter loves this part!)

Can be made a day ahead and even taste great cold! I’ve even chopped up leftovers and used them as salad croutons!

Recipe on FoodNetwork.com (Note: I added Cayenne & Nutmeg)

(Originally posted 7/16/09)