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Food For Thought: Fakin' Bacon

So Leson emails me a link to a Bon Appetit recipe which claims to make mushrooms taste like bacon.  In the subject line she writes "Methinks this has a FfT in it."  Methought the same.

Naturally I was dubious that any recipe entitled "How to Make Mushrooms That Taste Like Bacon Bits" really could deliver but it did look like fun.  I tossed the mushrooms with minced rosemary, garlic, pepper, olive oil, and smoked salt for boosted baconosity.  Hedging my bet, I made cheeseburgers that night.  I figured that if the recipe really delivered we'd have (fake) bacon cheeseburgers.  If not, there's nothing wrong with a 'shroomburger, either.

So did those mushrooms taste like bacon? Nah. Mushroom ado about nothing like bacon. But they are good as a concentrated mushroom preparation.  Nance suggests keeping them in the 'fridge for grilled cheese sandwiches or as a mushroom soup topping.  She also likes the idea of tossing them with pasta for an easy weeknight dinner.

"Not presume to dictate, but broiled fowl and mushrooms – capital thing!"  – Charles Dickens

Dick Stein joined KNKX in January 1992. He retired in 2020 after three decades on air. During his storied radio career, he hosted the morning jazz show, co-hosted and produced "Food for Thought" with Nancy Leson and wrote and directed the Jimmy Jazzoid live radio musical comedies and 100 episodes of Jazz Kitchen.