Beautiful, Luscious, Tremendous & Melancholy

I’d like to talk about one of our favourite breakfast/brunches, but I am also melancholy today.  Why is that you ask? Because the Wee Girl has gone off to Italy for 5 months as an exchange student and left myself and Himself here, bereft.  Well, I’m bereft; Himself has already moved his golf gear into her now vacant bedroom*…

So on her last morning *sob* in Sydney I made BLTs for us, they’re a big favourite, and with the Flying Pig bacon, home grown tomatoes and home-made mayo they ascend to a thing worthy of worship.

I cannot believe A. they’re so easy to make and B. I only discovered them a few years ago.  I’ve been making up time since, as they’re quick, we nearly always have the ingredients in the house and I try to tell myself they are moderately healthy (bacon is a whole food, isn’t it?).  Let us pause a moment to reflect on the sheer awesomeness that is bacon…

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Later…

Okay so, BLTs right? There’re a couple of tricks to attain awesomeness which I will now share with you:

Home-made mayo, very easy, delicious and not to be eaten if you’re preggers or suffer from some kind of weird raw egg allergy**

Season the tomatoes well before they go on!  Don’t season the sandwich, only the tomatoes.  Slice them up at the beginning, season LIBERALLY with salt and pepper and leave them to think about themselves while you do the mayo and the bacon.

Good bacon.  Make sure it’s terrifically smoky (or maple cured) and of course comes from happy, organically, pasture raised pigs (or you’re going to hell).

Lightly toasted Turkish.  Wholemeal Turkish bread is great, but white is good too.  In the picture I’d used pumpkin, we didn’t like it as much.

So now you know the tricks, here’s what you do.

Slice your tomatoes and season liberally.  Put your bacon onto fry.  While your bacon’s cooking, make your mayonnaise (recipe here).  Toast your Turkish, but not too much, you don't want it too crispy or it hurts the roof of your mouth when you eat it.  Drain your now crispy bacon on kitchen towel and then smear the toast bottom liberally with mayo (don’t put mayo on the top yet, it melts on the hot bread.)  I don’t use any butter because once you know how much oil is in mayo, you realise you don’t need any more fat that day.  Artistically place your bacon on the bottom bit of bread.  Add a flourish of tomatoes and then reverently place a couple of pieces of lettuce (or lots of baby spinach, or rocket if you’re in a peppery mood) on top.  Smear the top piece of toast with the more mayo and pop it on.  Hold together with a fancy toothpick/skewer for that “I’m from Woollahra*** and need the fancy pick to bring it all together” look.

Easy no?  Now there is no excuse! Go forth and BLT!!

*wait for the squawk of indignation when she reads this…

**you know who you are…

***I'm not, but I have a weakness for fancy picks