Ultimate Bacon

While bacon is the ultimate food, not all bacon is created equal.  Granted all bacon is good, but some bacon is just a tad bit better.  Today I turned the ordinary bacon in to extraordinary bacon.  How do you do this? With a bit of brown sugar, Pure Grade A Michigan Maple Syrup and some thick cut apple smoked bacon, that is how.

The bacon was so tasty, 1lb was not enough for me.

Maple Brown Sugar Bacon

• 1lb Thick Cut Bacon- (Apple, Maple or any type will work)
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
• 2 tbs Grade A Maple Syrup

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Usually I bake bacon on a rack, but if you try to cook this bacon on a rack all of the sugar will fall off.  The only real way to do this is flat on a cookie sheet.  Line a cookie sheet with Aluminum foil.  This step can be skipped, but this will make cleanup a heck of a lot faster.

Next line up the bacon side by side on the cookie sheet.  If you have any left over, place it on the bottom lengthwise.  Don’t worry if the bacon touches, just try not to overlap the slices.

In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and maple syrup.  This will form a paste.

Next using a brush, glaze the bacon with the paste.

Place the bacon in the oven for 20-25 minutes.  Depending on the doneness that you desire.  Make sure to check the bacon throughout the cooking process to see if there are any hot spots in the oven.  You want all of the bacon slices to come out perfectly done, so you may have to rotate the pan.  My oven is not the best so I had to rotate my bacon a couple of times.

When the bacon is done you need to remove the bacon from the oven and then remove it from the pan.  Remove the bacon from the pan and place on a brown paper bag or on a cooling rack.  Since we cooked the bacon directly on the cookie sheet there will be a ton of oil and the bacon will not crisp up unless it is removed from the oil. Let the bacon cool on a rack or a brown paper bag for 1-2 minutes before eating.

– On a side note, do not place the bacon on a paper towel.  Since the bacon was glazed with sugar, it will stick directly to the paper towel.  You will end up with bacon/paper strips.  Totally not cool.

This bacon is amazing.  It is perfect for breakfast, BLT’s or even salads.  Try it out the next time you cook bacon.