Stuffed baked sweet potato with bacon, arugula and gorgonzola sour cream

What do bacon, arugula and champagne vinaigrette all have in common? They're featured in three yummy dinner recipes this week! So get excited!

I bought a package of bacon and a bag of arugula at the beginning of the week, and ended up making three very delicious dinners out of them--some new, some recreations--and I'll be sharing those recipes with you guys this week! So head to the store and grab you some bacon and arugula and champagne vinaigrette and join me!

[you'll need: a sweet potato, bacon, gorgonzola bleu cheese, champagne vinaigrette,
sour cream, olive oil, parsley, arugula. beer optional (but not really).]

First up: a baked sweet potato!

I had never actually done a baked sweet potato before, so I didn't realize how...well..sweet and caramel-y they are! I popped one in the oven at 400 after washing and stabbing it a few times so it wouldn't explode, and let it bake for about an hour (keep an eye on it, though!).

While it was baking, I made the bacon. I fried three slices up in a pan, and set them aside to cool and be crumbled. **Special note: save your bacon grease! Keep a rinsed-out can in your freezer and pour your bacon drippings in there--it makes for a delicious fat for cooking things in later on! Like Amanda's butternut squash soup.**

Next, the gorgonzola sour cream. I was inspired to use it for this recipe by a restaurant in my college town of Rome, Georgia: Harvest Moon Cafe. They have a house-made sweet potato chips with a gorgonzola dip that is to die for--so from that I knew gorgonzola and sweet potatoes make a delicious pair.

I started with about 3oz of gorgonzola cheese, found in the deli section of my favorite Publix. I combined that with 2 tablespoons of champagne vinegar (spoiler alert: this will star in a salad dressing later this week!) and mashed with a fork until it was almost creamy. I stirred in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a third a cup of sour cream, as well as 2 teaspoons of dried parsley and salt and pepper to taste. I popped the bowl in the fridge until ready to use.

When the potato is all nice and baked through, I put it on a plate and made a slice through the middle, but not cutting it completely in two. I grabbed my arugula and put a couple handfuls in/on top of the potato, followed by a few spoonfuls of the gorgonzola sour cream, and topped it off with the bacon crumbles.

I poured myself a beer because I wouldn't want it to be too healthy, and voila!

Give it a try and let me know how you like it! and stay tuned for the next bacon/arugula/champagne vinaigrette recipe!

      

You know you're a beer snob if...

[The 3 Happy Eaters in NYC a few years ago, enjoying a brew in line for Shake Shack.]

I have a reputation among my friends as the beer snob. I won't let anything with the word "ultra," "lite" or "ice" in it pass my lips. I probably won't drink it unless it's darker in color than lemonade (or another famously yellow liquid). And few things offend me more than a potentially delicious beer ruined by a frosted mug.

I blame my snobbery on my dad. He raised me with a healthy attitude about alcohol. I don't remember my parents drinking it, but I also didn't receive the impression that it was taboo. Chalk one up for "all things in moderation."

[Like father, like daughter.]

When I became of consuming age, he taught me important things like that Bass Ale is bottom-of-the-line standard and that wheat beer isn't really beer (ahem Blue Moon) and that drinking out of the bottle is sooo middle class.

The all-time biggest offense to a well-cultured beer drinker is the frosted mug. My dad and I are both known to order an unfrosted glass while dining at lesser-informed establishments. And here's why:

Most bottles of beer (worth drinking, anyway) have the correct temperature at which the beer should be served printed on the label. It is never ever ever going to marked slushie-cold. No. You should only drink BAD beer at sub-arctic temperatures, because the colder the beer the less you can actually taste it. You shouldn't be drinking bad beer in the first place, so let's just stop it all together with the frosted glasses thing.

Speaking of glasses, despite the creation of more dishes to clean, I suggest you don't drink out of the bottle whenever possible. Much like wine, beer has a "nose" and crafters perfect their beers based on the assumption of that additional sense. It's a more forgivable offense, however, and I'd always pick a bottle over a frosted glass (are you getting the seriousness of that one yet?).

[A suite of beers to taste at The Brick Store Pub in Decatur.]

When you go to bars or pubs that have an extensive beer menu, you'll notice that different types of beers are served in different shaped glasses. This poster hangs above our bar cart and is a fun way of seeing which type of beer should be served in which glass (depending on the "nose" of the beer, as mentioned above).

[Sweetwater Motor Boat: here for a good time, not a long time.]

Now for some beer recommendations! I tend to go for the ambers, browns, and reds. My favorite beer of all time is a Sweetwater seasonal, Motor Boat, an ESB that usually hits Atlanta-area stores around October. As I mentioned before, Bass Ale is a great go-to when you're somewhere with a smaller beer selection. Another of my favorites is Rogue's Dead Guy Ale, an Amber that's very drinkable. 

[Eye Patch IPA by Monday Night Brewing that I snagged at The Beer Growler in Brookhaven.]

I encourage you to explore the local brews from your area--craft breweries are popping up all over! Also be sure to find your local growler--these are storefronts where you purchase a jug for around $5 and then choose from 20-30 different beers on draft (prices depend on the beer). They bottle it for you, seal it up so you're legit, and you get to have on-draft beer at home! (Atlanta Eaters: ScoutMob has tons of deals for growlers all over the city, even OTP!) 

Cheers!