Amidst odd looks and some concern from the people in my household, I have taken to artfully arranging and photographing my food. Our home is primarily governed by a neurotic control freak (otherwise known as me), so grocery shopping for us is a very strictly planned and organized event which takes place, as it has for years, on Mondays between 1 and 2 pm. This is preceded by the week's dinner menu planning, which occurs on Sunday. Each week's dinners usually consists of a chicken meal, a fish meal, a veggie meal, and a pork or beef meal, with varying international themes. This routine is only slightly altered in the spring and summer months when occasional trips to the produce stands are added.

 

Delaney Lane Daughtry, Wallingford, two adults, one child (13), and regular random drop-ins.
Dairy: whole milk, butter, sharp cheddar cheese, almond milk
Meat/protein: one whole chicken, 1 1/2 lbs Sockeye salmon, frozen sausage, canned tuna, turkey lunch meat, eggs, raw almonds
Produce: tomatoes, bananas, apples, yellow squash, celery, asparagus, strawberries, raspberries, pears, zucchini, carrots, basil
Condiments: salad dressing, peanut butter, jelly
Snacks: pita chips
Other: rice, boxed mac 'n' cheese, cereal, bread, tortillas, bagels, oatmeal, butternut squash soup, spaghetti

Not Shown:
1) Try as I might, my strange addiction to compressed meat circles usually leads to an emergency bologna run midway through the week.
2) One PMS-fueled cheeseburger massacre.
3) Early morning coffee and scone date with the ladies.

Things I have learned during this little experiment:
1) I really dig food.
2) Our household goes through an excessive amount of bread products.
3) Round produce is extremely difficult to balance for photographs (they roll around too easily).

Just when you thought you knew where the best pizza in Wallingford was, SHAZZAM!, Zaw Artisan bake-at-home pizza appears on the corner of 46th and Stone Way. Now, I know it feels like you can't take two steps in this town without running face-first into a business claiming to be "artisan", but let me assure you, this shop’s claim is legit. I observed these pizzas being lovingly hand-crafted by a staff who appeared to be not only true food artistes but to take a great amount of pride in their work.

Zaw's owners, Greg Scott and Greg Waring (both Pacific Northwest natives), grew up in similar families, where meals were a social event and the ingredients were straight out of the garden. This appreciation for good food definitely carries through in Zaw's strict adherence to only the finest ingredients, as stated in their mantra: "If it doesn't have a bit of S.O.U.L., then it doesn't go into a bite of Zaw" (S.O.U.L. stands for Seasonal Organic Unique Local). From Alvarez Organic Farms in Yakima for fresh vegetables, to Billy’s Organic Gardens in Tonasket for herbs, to Mt. Vernon’s Draper Valley Farms for free-range chicken, they have continued to develop strong relationships with local farms. Since opening their first store in late 2008, t­hey have even been known on occasion to spend a day at the farmers markets, making pizzas and mixing it up with the vendors.

In addition to great toppings, such as that roasted free-range chicken and fresh organic apricots, Zaw also offers vegan cheese, gluten-free crust options, and get this, a full selection of Northwest wines, microbrews, and small-batch sodas. (Pizza descriptions are helpfully paired with wine and microbrew suggestions). And for those of you who are fans of Autumn Martin’s Hot Cakes Confections, Zaw now features her infamous Dark Chocolate Decadence molten lava cake, another bit of bake-at-home greatness. Large, medium, and kid-size pizzas are made to order and bake in about 10-14 minutes. I’ve found that 11 minutes is the perfect amount of time for immaculately crispy crustiness.

I ingested several of these delightful pies in the name of research and strongly recommend the pig-n-pear (thin sliced prosciutto, pears, and crumbled gorgonzola), and the shroomfest (sauteed portabella, button, and crimini mushrooms, roasted red onion, fresh thyme and garlic, and asiago cheese), in both cases paired with a nice frothy porter. All six Zaw locations can be found at zaw.com
photo courtesy Zaw. 

As we prance merrily into 2012, one New Year’s Eve discovery still lingers in the recesses of my mind: vodka. Specifically, vodka with bacon in it. Where, do you ask, does one find this genius elixir? And who are the geniuses at work? 

In 2007, three handsome Seattle gentlemen, Stefan Schachtell, Chris Marshall and Sven Liden, embarked on a journey which began--much to the amusement of his wife--with 15 jars of cooked meat floating in various liquors in Sven’s kitchen. After two years of rigorous testing, Black Rock Spirits was born. With a perfected infusion of high quality potato vodka and everyone’s favorite breakfast meat, they brought us “Bakon Vodka” in 2009. 

With a name like Black Rock Spirits, one might assume that these fellows have some origins in a certain fire festival in the desert, and one just might be right. It is with just that Burning Man type of skill set and ingenuity that they set forth to produce their first batch of 140 cases. What started as a tiny Seattle company will soon have their product distributed in 41 states as well as Germany, Denmark, Canada and Japan. 

When asked how one suddenly decides, “hey, I would like to put pork in some booze,” Chris Marshall says, “Well, you know how everyone has that one friend that always brings 3 pounds of bacon camping? Well, we all know that camping leads to drinking, and drinking while camping leads to morning bloody marys and bacon, and well, the rest is history.” He also assures me that, “Bakon Vodka is not another sugary flavored vodka, but has a complex and peppery taste, fit for even the most refined palate.” I would tend to agree.

Bakon Vodka retails for about $29.95 for a 750ml bottle, and can be acquired at your local liquor store, as well as bars and restaurants in your area. Their web site bakonvodka.com is a fun little jaunt through the history of the company, and includes a stack of cocktail recipes. Your bloody mary won’t know what hit it.

When looking for a new and interesting cookie recipe to make a name for yourself at this year's holiday party, consider this: chocolate chips and bacon, together as one. This marriage of rich creamy sweetness and salted meat is decidedly not made in heaven—if food can be sinful, then these cookies cover all the seven deadlies in one bite.  I happened upon this recipe thanks to my good friend Jade Owen, mother and baker extraordinaire. Although she admits to “borrowing” the original idea from another lovely woman known simply as “The Mouth from the South”, she believes she has adapted it and made it her own.
According to Jade, this is a surprisingly easy undertaking. She recommends that when first attempting it, you “baby the butter,” watching it carefully, and making sure to take into account that it will continue to brown for a bit after being removed from the heat. Also, larger bacon hunks are apparently the way to go, but note the unsalted butter and lack of additional salt in the cookie dough—bacon is plenty salty enough on its own.

Jade also tells me that since discovering this amazing treat she has developed a severe addiction to brown butter and finds herself making excuses to add it to everything that she eats.  You have been warned.

Browned Butter, Bacon, and Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 18 cookies | start to finish: 35 minutes 

1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
8 slices bacon
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 cup dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix flour and baking soda and set aside.

In a heavy skillet set over medium heat, fry the bacon as crisp as possible without burning it. Chop the crisp bacon into 1/4” pieces.

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 10 tablespoons of butter and cook, stirring constantly, until the solids have toasted a light brown. Pour into a large mixing bowl, then add remaining 4 tablespoons butter and stir to melt. Whisk in sugars, salt and vanilla until well blended. Add egg and extra yolk and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula. Let the mixture stand for 30 seconds, and repeat twice more, to make sure the sugar dissolves in the hot butter. Stir in flour until just incorporated, and fold in the chocolate chips and bacon chunks. Take care to not over-mix.

Form dough into mounds of about 1 1/2 tablespoons, and arrange about 2” apart on lined baking sheets.  Bake 12-14 minutes, until the edges are light brown and the centers are set.