Mmmm, Bacon (almost)!

I have been in a deeply committed love affair with pork products most of my life. I know, I know; we all love bacon, the golden child of pork, but I love the lesser heralded cuts, too. Some are pretty obvious: ribs, ham, and more bacon. But what about sausages and pancetta and even the maligned and lowly pork chop?

Now, I know none of this is good for me. I know I should limit not just my pork intake, but try and make more of my meals vegetarian in general. Oh, but I do so love the puerco!

This morning I had a hankering for one of my favorite sandwiches, a FEBLT: Fried Egg, Bacon, Lettuce, & Tomato. It indeed makes me "feebled" (get it?) in the knees just thinking about it. I prefer topping the over-easy eggs and oven-baked bacon with micro greens or a so-called spring mix, and summer-ripe heirloom tomatoes, lightly dressed with a just a teensy bit of EVOO and fresh cracked sea salt and pepper, all on toasted sourdough or a ciabatta roll.

So, I dug into the depths of the freezer and found a package of Morningstar faux bacon, normally reserved for when we have veg-head guests or our annual Lenten "no-meat" sacrifice. Baked in the oven at 400 degrees, I now have a tidy stash of perfectly crisp almost-bacon to use over the next couple of weeks AND I satisfied my hankering for a FEBLT.

Happy tummy, happy body. Talk about a win-win.