FatBoy Creations: Fatboy Cheesesteak

Fatboy's Take on a steak sandwich!I love a nice steak sandwich, but get tired of philly-style cheesesteaks. I wanted something cheesy and full of flavors I love, and this is what I came up with. It was a hit in my house, see how your family likes this little piece of FatBoy Heaven.

Fatboy Cheesesteak

YIELD
 4-6 Sandwichs
ACTIVE TIME
 20 minutes
TOTAL TIME
 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

    • 1 lb. Bacon
    • 2 lbs. Thin-cut Carne Asada Steak
    • 1 tub Philly Cooking Cream - Italian Cheese and Herb flavor
    • 1 lb fresh whole leaf spinach
    •  Hard hoagy style rolls

INSTRUCTIONS

    1. Brown bacon in large deep cast iron skillet until crispy, drain on paper towels and set aside
    2. Cut steak into 1 inch wide strips on the bias
    3. Fry steak in bacon grease until cooked through medium-rare, drain grease
    4. Add Cooking Cream and stir into steak, coating well and cooking until cream starts to brown
    5. Cut rolls
    6. Layer fresh spinach, then steak, then top with chunks of Bacon and serve

Bacon Night! - Apple Bacon Tomato Soup

It is really easy to find new recipes using bacon, but finding new recipes that intrigue me with new flavor profiles takes some doing.  I love doing soup this time of year, mostly because it makes for great leftovers that usually hold up well in the freezer for quick meals when we need them.  I found this recipe at All Recipes in an email they sent out a few weeks ago, and decided to give it a try.  Super simple to make and great flavors have added this to the FatBoy rotation.

Apple Bacon Tomato Soup

 

YIELD
 8 servings
ACTIVE TIME
 15 mins
TOTAL TIME
 45 mins

INGREDIENTS

    • 5 slices bacon
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1/2 white onion, chopped
    • 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
    • 2 cups beef stock
    • 1 (15.5 ounce) can pinto beans
    • 1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
    • 2 stalks celery, chopped
    • 1 bay leaf
    • 1 medium apple, thinly sliced
    • 1/2 cup red wine
    •  salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

    1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, coarsely chop, and set aside.
    2. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, and saute white onion and garlic 3 to 5 minutes, or until tender. Stir in beef stock, pinto beans, tomatoes, celery, and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer.
    3. In a small saucepan over medium heat, cook and stir the apple in the red wine until soft.
    4. Mix bacon, apple, and remaining red wine into the soup mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally until well blended.

Dinner Time - Linguica and Potato Stew

I was looking for something easy tonight, and found this great recipe for a stew with a Basque twist.  The flavor combination was incredible, and everyone ate their fill tonight.  The combination of tomato, bacon, linguica and potatoes worked with the zucchini to make magic.  Lots of bacon, lots of pork fat, how could it go wrong?  This was a great fatboy comfort food meal, and I'm actually looking forward to leftovers.

Find the recipe Here.

 

Bacon Night! - Gluten Free Bacon Chicken and Dumplings

One picture sometimes really is worth 1,000 words. Creamy chicken soup with bacon, potatoes, and gluten free dumplings will warm anyone on a cold winter evening.  I love this recipe, and will definately make it again.  To deepen the flavors I used chicken thighs instead of the breast meat the original recipe called for.  The only other change I made was using gluten-free biscuit mix from BetterBatter, which worked exactly like it was supposed to, always a bonus for gluten free cooking.

The recipe is here, and you can find BetterBatter gluten free products here. 

Bacon....wait for it....Jam!

Yes, you read that right.  Bacon Jam.

I ran across this recipe on Pinterest, and the idea seemed too good to pass up.  Bacon Jam??!??  Are you kidding me? How could I not make something called Bacon Jam?

The flavors of the salty bacon combine with the brown sugar, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar to make an amazing flavor profile that cannot be missed.  I will be making more of this as soon as what I have now is gone.

Now this is why we call the place Fat Boy Heaven!

The recipe is here.

Bacon Night! - Bacon Pie

I know I am posting this late, but I was a bit under the weather this week and didn't get things posted that I should have.  I found this recipe online and adapted it to be better for those with wheat and gluten problems.  

Quick and easy prep made this a great meal, and it drew rave reviews from the family.  Cheese, Bacon, eggs and onions combine for great flavor and make for an awesome meal anytime. I did it for dinner this time, but I can see taking it to brunches as well.  We may even do this in the fifth wheel the next time we go camping.

Enjoy the picture, and you can find my version of the recipe here.

Bacon Night! - Bacon Pancakes!

We love breakfast around here, and we love bacon even more.  So combining the two into a delicious pancake is a no brainer.  I love crispy edges on my pancakes, and the best way to get that texture and flavor is to fry the pancakes in plenty of hot bacon grease.  This recipe just makes the process easier, and I think tastier.  It worked great tonight, and we will definately do it again.  Recipe is here!

The mixture of bacon and maple inside the pancake meant that even I didn't need to add butter or syrup to make these taste perfect.  Nice fluffy texture an perfect flavor.  I was a bit worried that the wheat-free flour mix would make these a bit denser than normal wheat flour, but they really were perfect.

Bacon Night! - Slow Cooker Northern White Bean Bacon Chowder

Bacon, Beans, and Crock Pots - yes please!Ok folks, it's been cold and windy, so a nice soup sounded good tonight.  I started with Northern White beans, and kicked them up with lots of bacon.  Add some chicken broth, veggies, and seasoning then throw it into the slow cooker and forget it for 8-10 hours.  Nice quick prep in the morning, then nothing left to do when you get home from work but add some milk to smooth it out and dish up dinner for the family.  You can find the recipe here.

Cooking with Beer Wednesday - Beer Braised Irish stew w/ Colcannon

Beer Braised Beef - always a good start!Cooking with beer.  Just makes you feel good to hear those words to start a post doesn’t it?  This week I turned to AllRecipes.com for inspiration, and found a new go-to dish.  I modified this recipe to make it gluten-free by using a gluten-free beer from 10Barrels brewing, and using an all-purpose gluten free flour mix from Bob’s Red mill.  The only other change I made was to use red potatoes instead of russets.  

Recipe is here for you to give it a try!  The beef was as tender as anything I’ve ever made, it almost melts in your mouth. The Colcannon was what made this meal interesting.  The little bit of crunch and slight bite from the cabbage and the richness of the bacon really kicked up the mashed potatoes.  I had never heard of Colcannon before, but even the kids agreed it was great.  I may never make mashed potatoes any other way again.  

A nice big plate of Fat Boy Heaven right here!

Bacon, Bourbon, and Beef - It's Bacon night!

OK, as I said earlier today, I have decided that Thursday will be Bacon night from now on.  So to kick it off, I went all out today.

Bacon and Beef Meatloaf

Bacon and Burger Meatloaf

2 lbs. 85/15 Ground Beef

1 lb Bacon (roughly cut)

1 medium onion, diced

3 tbs. Worshtishire Sauce

1 tbs. minced garlic

1 cup Oatmeal

2 eggs

 

1.  Start by cooking the bacon in a saute pan untill cooked to desired color.  Set Bacon aside to cool.

2.  Saute the onion in the bacon grease, then remove, draining the fat.

3.  Mix all the ingredients together and put into loaf pan.

4.  Cook at 350 for 60-70 minutes until internal temp exceeds 170

 

Candied Bacon Yams

Candied Bacon Yams

Ingredients:

5 large yams

1 lb Thick sliced bacon

1/4 cup Brown sugar

1/2 stick butter

1.  OK, the first step here is to candy the bacon.  Lay the slices on a cookie sheet, then sprinkle with the brown sugar.  Bake at 350 until bacon is a golden brown (20-25 minutes).

2.  Let bacon cool, and then crumble.

3.  Peel the yams and cut into medium sized chunks

4.  Boil yams until fork tender

5.  Drain

6.  return to heat, adding bacon and butter

Gluten-Free Bacon Bourbon BowniesGluten-Free Bacon Bourbon Brownies

Ingredients:

1 pkg Betty Crocker Gluten Free fudge brownie mix

1/2 lb. Bacon

4 tbs. Bourbon

1 egg

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2.  Fry bacon and then crumble.

3.  Add bacon crumbles (with grease), Brownie Mix, and all other ingredients to bowl and mix well.

4. Spread (mixture will be pretty thick) mixture into 9x9 pan.

5. Bake for 23-25 minutes until toothpick comes out clean from the center.

 

Bacon Night!

OK, bacon has rightfully taken it’s place as the sixth food group.  As such, Thursday night will henceforth be known as Bacon Night in America.  To start things off, tonight will be a bacon feast: Bacon Burger meatloaf, Mashed Yams with Bacon, and Bacon Bourbon Brownies for dessert.  Stay tuned for recipes and pictures!