Everything Tastes Better with Bacon
Encyclopedia
Everything Tastes Better with Bacon: 70 Fabulous Recipes for Every Meal of the Day is a book about cooking with bacon
, written by Sara Perry, an author, food commentator, and columnist for The Oregonian
. It was published in 2002 by Chronicle Books
. Perry describes her original concept of recipes combining sugar and bacon. Her book includes 70 recipes for bacon-flavored dishes and desserts.
The book received positive reviews, and its recipes were selected for inclusion in The Best American Recipes 2003–2004. The St. Petersburg Times
classed it among "the genre's most interesting and unique cookbooks", the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
highlighted it in the article "Favorite Cookbooks for 2002", and The Denver Post
included it in a list of best cookbooks. Recipes from the work have been featured in related cookbooks. The work's impact served to increase interest in cooking with bacon.
give me the feeling that I have time. I can relax and savor the day." The beginning of the book provides background on the phrase "bringing home the bacon", introduces the reader to types of bacon, and describes storage methods. The book offers 70 recipes for bacon-flavored dishes, in nine chapters organized by topics, including breakfast, greens, pasta meals, side dishes, party servings, desserts and appetizers. Recipes include a sandwich using bacon and other ingredients, a bacon crunch topping for ice cream, a bacon concoction to top a fruit crisp, and a pie crust that incorporates bacon. Methods are offered for cooking bacon on a stovetop, in an oven, and under a broiler to maximize its flavor and appearance. The book is illustrated throughout with photographs by Sherri Giblin.
, is a columnist for The Oregonian
, a radio restaurant commentator and a cookbook writer. She authored four books prior to Everything Tastes Better with Bacon: The New Complete Coffee Book, The New Tea Book, Christmastime Treats and Weekends with the Kids. Her editor at Chronicle Books
suggested bacon as a cookbook subject. Bacon was becoming increasingly popular at the time, but Perry believed a paucity of recipes would make writing the book difficult. Recalling her fondness for honey-baked ham, she combined sugar and bacon to create dishes, and realized that bacon could be used like "a good spice or wine" in flavoring dishes, including salads and pastas. She discovered that bacon increased the sweet and salt tastes of food. Everything Tastes Better with Bacon was published in English in paperback format
by Chronicle Books in 2002. A subsequent edition in paperback was published in French in 2004 by Les Editions de l'Homme, as part of the "What a dish!" series.
reported that it sold 30,000 copies in its first month of publication. Janet F. Keeler of the St. Petersburg Times
commented positively on the book's title. She noted the work was covered by food critics who included its recipes in articles about the subject. Keeler posited that the Atkins diet helped enhance the book's popularity. She classed Everything Tastes Better with Bacon among the more intriguing cookbooks within the topic. Sheri Giblin's photography in the book received favorable commentary from Cindy Hoedel of The Kansas City Star
. The Arizona Daily Star highlighted the book in their "Hot Reads" section. Assistant Texas Taste Editor for The Dallas Morning News
Laura H. Ehret wrote that the book successfully conveys the experience of consuming bacon. Marty Meitus wrote for the Rocky Mountain News
that the book had contributed to his increased appetite for bacon dishes. Meitus recommended dessert recipes, including Hazelnut-Bacon Candy Crunch, Peanut Butter Cookies with Bacon Brittle, Pear-Apple Crisp with Brown Sugar-Bacon Topping and Ruby Raisin Mincemeat Tart. Steve Smith, executive chef at Dixon's Downtown Grill in Denver, was inspired by Perry's "Maple Sundae" recipe, and used it to create his own macadamia-bacon crunch ice cream dessert.
Writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
, Marlene Parrish gave the book a favorable review, highlighting it in an article "Favorite Cookbooks for 2002". Parrish wrote that she enjoyed sampling some of the recipes from the book. Parrish added that Dr. Robert Atkins
would think favorably of the "Gorgonzola Cheeseburgers with Bacon" dish. The Denver Post
included the book in a list of best cookbooks. Another article for the same newspaper highlighted recipes in the book, including Spaghetti alla Carbonara and Cobb Salad, Pear-Apple Crisp with Brown Sugar-Bacon Topping, and Bacon Brittle. A review in The Toronto Star criticized Perry's lack of creativity in her choice of recipes. The review concluded the book was a good deal compared to other cookbooks on the subject, yet noted its lack of comprehensiveness. Michele Anna Jordan of The Press Democrat recommended Perry's work, commenting, "The book ... is clearly a work of passion; her exuberance is infectious."
period. Recipes from the book were selected for inclusion in The Best American Recipes 2003–2004: The Year's Top Picks from Books, Magazines, Newspapers, and the Internet. Perry's recipe for "Succulent Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp" was referenced in the 2003 book Smoke & Spice: Cooking with Smoke, the Real Way to Barbecue. Fran McCullough, the author of The Best American Recipes, commented that Everything Tastes Better with Bacon was a surprising addition to the field. The Atlantic said that three years after the book's publication, bacon had entered a "cult stage", and was as popular as chocolate
or olive oil
. Leah A. Zeldes observed in a 2006 article for the Chicago Sun-Times
that the book contributed to the body of works that display the adaptability of bacon in recipes. In his 2009 book Hungry Monkey, author Matthew Amster-Burton commented on the phenomena involving bacon and books on the subject in prior years, listing the book along with The Bacon Cookbook
and Seduced by Bacon
.
Bacon
Bacon is a cured meat prepared from a pig. It is first cured using large quantities of salt, either in a brine or in a dry packing; the result is fresh bacon . Fresh bacon may then be further dried for weeks or months in cold air, boiled, or smoked. Fresh and dried bacon must be cooked before eating...
, written by Sara Perry, an author, food commentator, and columnist for The Oregonian
The Oregonian
The Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
. It was published in 2002 by Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books is a San Francisco-based American publisher of books for adults and children.The company was established in 1968 by Phelps Dewey, an executive with Chronicle Publishing Company, then-publisher of the San Francisco Chronicle. In 1999 it was bought by Nion McEvoy, great-grandson of...
. Perry describes her original concept of recipes combining sugar and bacon. Her book includes 70 recipes for bacon-flavored dishes and desserts.
The book received positive reviews, and its recipes were selected for inclusion in The Best American Recipes 2003–2004. The St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
classed it among "the genre's most interesting and unique cookbooks", the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
highlighted it in the article "Favorite Cookbooks for 2002", and The Denver Post
The Denver Post
-Ownership:The Post is the flagship newspaper of MediaNews Group Inc., founded in 1983 by William Dean Singleton and Richard Scudder. MediaNews is today one of the nation's largest newspaper chains, publisher of 61 daily newspapers and more than 120 non-daily publications in 13 states. MediaNews...
included it in a list of best cookbooks. Recipes from the work have been featured in related cookbooks. The work's impact served to increase interest in cooking with bacon.
Content summary
Perry explains her feelings about bacon in the book's introduction: "In the morning, the sound and smell of bacon cooking in the skilletFrying pan
A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab handle opposite the main handle...
give me the feeling that I have time. I can relax and savor the day." The beginning of the book provides background on the phrase "bringing home the bacon", introduces the reader to types of bacon, and describes storage methods. The book offers 70 recipes for bacon-flavored dishes, in nine chapters organized by topics, including breakfast, greens, pasta meals, side dishes, party servings, desserts and appetizers. Recipes include a sandwich using bacon and other ingredients, a bacon crunch topping for ice cream, a bacon concoction to top a fruit crisp, and a pie crust that incorporates bacon. Methods are offered for cooking bacon on a stovetop, in an oven, and under a broiler to maximize its flavor and appearance. The book is illustrated throughout with photographs by Sherri Giblin.
Background
Sara Perry, a resident of Portland, OregonPortland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, is a columnist for The Oregonian
The Oregonian
The Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
, a radio restaurant commentator and a cookbook writer. She authored four books prior to Everything Tastes Better with Bacon: The New Complete Coffee Book, The New Tea Book, Christmastime Treats and Weekends with the Kids. Her editor at Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books is a San Francisco-based American publisher of books for adults and children.The company was established in 1968 by Phelps Dewey, an executive with Chronicle Publishing Company, then-publisher of the San Francisco Chronicle. In 1999 it was bought by Nion McEvoy, great-grandson of...
suggested bacon as a cookbook subject. Bacon was becoming increasingly popular at the time, but Perry believed a paucity of recipes would make writing the book difficult. Recalling her fondness for honey-baked ham, she combined sugar and bacon to create dishes, and realized that bacon could be used like "a good spice or wine" in flavoring dishes, including salads and pastas. She discovered that bacon increased the sweet and salt tastes of food. Everything Tastes Better with Bacon was published in English in paperback format
Paperback
Paperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
by Chronicle Books in 2002. A subsequent edition in paperback was published in French in 2004 by Les Editions de l'Homme, as part of the "What a dish!" series.
Reception
Everything Tastes Better with Bacon received a generally positive reception from reviewers and food critics, and the Chicago TribuneChicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
reported that it sold 30,000 copies in its first month of publication. Janet F. Keeler of the St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
commented positively on the book's title. She noted the work was covered by food critics who included its recipes in articles about the subject. Keeler posited that the Atkins diet helped enhance the book's popularity. She classed Everything Tastes Better with Bacon among the more intriguing cookbooks within the topic. Sheri Giblin's photography in the book received favorable commentary from Cindy Hoedel of The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star is a McClatchy newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes...
. The Arizona Daily Star highlighted the book in their "Hot Reads" section. Assistant Texas Taste Editor for The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
Laura H. Ehret wrote that the book successfully conveys the experience of consuming bacon. Marty Meitus wrote for the Rocky Mountain News
Rocky Mountain News
The Rocky Mountain News was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As of March 2006, the Monday-Friday circulation was 255,427...
that the book had contributed to his increased appetite for bacon dishes. Meitus recommended dessert recipes, including Hazelnut-Bacon Candy Crunch, Peanut Butter Cookies with Bacon Brittle, Pear-Apple Crisp with Brown Sugar-Bacon Topping and Ruby Raisin Mincemeat Tart. Steve Smith, executive chef at Dixon's Downtown Grill in Denver, was inspired by Perry's "Maple Sundae" recipe, and used it to create his own macadamia-bacon crunch ice cream dessert.
Writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
, Marlene Parrish gave the book a favorable review, highlighting it in an article "Favorite Cookbooks for 2002". Parrish wrote that she enjoyed sampling some of the recipes from the book. Parrish added that Dr. Robert Atkins
Robert Atkins (nutritionist)
Robert Coleman Atkins, MD was an American physician and cardiologist, best known for the Atkins Nutritional Approach , a popular but controversial way of dieting that entails close control of carbohydrate consumption, emphasizing protein and fat intake, including saturated fat in addition to...
would think favorably of the "Gorgonzola Cheeseburgers with Bacon" dish. The Denver Post
The Denver Post
-Ownership:The Post is the flagship newspaper of MediaNews Group Inc., founded in 1983 by William Dean Singleton and Richard Scudder. MediaNews is today one of the nation's largest newspaper chains, publisher of 61 daily newspapers and more than 120 non-daily publications in 13 states. MediaNews...
included the book in a list of best cookbooks. Another article for the same newspaper highlighted recipes in the book, including Spaghetti alla Carbonara and Cobb Salad, Pear-Apple Crisp with Brown Sugar-Bacon Topping, and Bacon Brittle. A review in The Toronto Star criticized Perry's lack of creativity in her choice of recipes. The review concluded the book was a good deal compared to other cookbooks on the subject, yet noted its lack of comprehensiveness. Michele Anna Jordan of The Press Democrat recommended Perry's work, commenting, "The book ... is clearly a work of passion; her exuberance is infectious."
Impact
Everything Tastes Better with Bacon is a niche work in the cookbook genre. Christian Science Monitor noted in a 2003 article that bacon had been "vilified by nutritionists", but was becoming an increasingly-used cooking ingredient. Perry stated to the publication that bacon had undergone a renaissanceRenaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
period. Recipes from the book were selected for inclusion in The Best American Recipes 2003–2004: The Year's Top Picks from Books, Magazines, Newspapers, and the Internet. Perry's recipe for "Succulent Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp" was referenced in the 2003 book Smoke & Spice: Cooking with Smoke, the Real Way to Barbecue. Fran McCullough, the author of The Best American Recipes, commented that Everything Tastes Better with Bacon was a surprising addition to the field. The Atlantic said that three years after the book's publication, bacon had entered a "cult stage", and was as popular as chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
or olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. Leah A. Zeldes observed in a 2006 article for the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
that the book contributed to the body of works that display the adaptability of bacon in recipes. In his 2009 book Hungry Monkey, author Matthew Amster-Burton commented on the phenomena involving bacon and books on the subject in prior years, listing the book along with The Bacon Cookbook
The Bacon Cookbook
The Bacon Cookbook: More than 150 Recipes from Around the World for Everyone's Favorite Food is a cookbook on bacon by James Villas. It was published by Wiley in 2007. Villas is a former food editor for Town & Country magazine, and The Bacon Cookbook is his 15th book on food...
and Seduced by Bacon
Seduced by Bacon
Seduced by Bacon: Recipes & Lore about America's Favorite Indulgence is a cookbook about bacon written by Joanna Pruess with her husband Bob Lape...
.
See also
- Bacon ExplosionBacon ExplosionA Bacon Explosion is a pork dish that consists of bacon wrapped around a filling of spiced sausage and crumbled bacon. The American-football-sized dish is smoked or baked....
- Bacon maniaBacon maniaBacon mania refers to passionate bacon enthusiasm in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Especially fervent in the United States, the enthusiasm has been described as forming a "Bacon Nation"...
- Bacon vodkaBacon vodkaBacon vodka is vodka infused with bacon flavor, part of a larger trend of "carnivorous cocktails" and the addition of savory flavor to mixed drinks...
- International Bacon DayInternational Bacon DayInternational Bacon Day or Bacon Day is an unofficial observance, often celebrated on the Saturday before US Labor Day...
- List of bacon dishes
- National Pig DayNational Pig DayNational Pig Day is an event held annually on March 1 in the United States to celebrate the pig. The holiday celebration was started in 1972 by sisters Ellen Stanley, a teacher in Lubbock, Texas, and Mary Lynne Rave of Beaufort, North Carolina...
- This is why you're fatThis is why you're fatThis is why you're fat is a website featuring submitted photos of over-the-top and extremely indulgent food creations. The blog of captioned pictures is subtitled "where dreams become heart attacks," and it has been covered by newspapers in the United States, Canada, and Germany.It was co-created...
- Turkey baconTurkey baconTurkey bacon is a meat product usually prepared from smoked, chopped and reformed turkey and commonly marketed as a low-fat alternative to traditional bacon...
External links
- Everything Tastes Better with Bacon, at the official website of the publisher
- SaraPerry.com, official website of the author