Epic Portions

Category: Uncategorized

  • The Return of Dave! BBQ Bacon Four Cheese Pizza

    So, after a lengthy time away from the site, I have returned, and so has my other blog, Tales From a Messy Kitchen. But I have come here to share the wonderful dinner I concocted last night.

    My daughter wanted cheese pizza and I decided to up the ante.  Maybe I’ve just been watching too much Epic Mealtime, but I felt the need for lots of bacon on this pizza.

    Here’s the end result…

    It ain't pretty, but it is tasty…

    I started this food creation off by cutting up and frying some bacon (roughly 7 or 8 strips) .

    You have to be very brave or very stupid to fry bacon shirtless…or both.

    Then I used the bacon grease to saute some sweet vidalia onions…

    mmmmm….bacon onions.

    By the time I got all that done, the dough had risen.  I poured the remaining bacon grease into the dough. I used Trader Joe’s Whole Wheat Pizza Dough. I misunderstood the instructions and thought I had to knead this stuff in flour.  So I started to do so and it began firming up on me.  Apparently, all you have to do is spread it over a liberally floured area into a 12 inch circle…oh well.  I fought with it a bit and then decided it was supposed to be a deep dish 8-inch pizza.

    I added my sauce of choice, Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey Barbecue…

    Then a layer of mozzerella…

    Then the orgy of bacon and onions…as well as the grease in the bowls I put them in.

    Then more mozz, sharp cheddar, and parmesan…plus a slice of muenster that I ripped up.

    Into the oven!

    The Aftermath!  This is why my blog is so aptly named Messy Kitchen. I’m too focused to clean as I go.

    I decided to accompany this meal with a Sam Adams Boston Lager.  Traditional, yet still a bit snobbish.

    My girls all enjoyed this, though Audrey (the one with curls) put up a fuss until I picked the onions off of hers.

    Don't be fooled by their ambivalent expressions, they loved this.
    Tastes great once I throw a fit and demand that the onions be removed!

    So there you have it!  I may need to go take some Zantac, but I enjoyed both making and eating this.  BTW, I have a new house.  Check out my other blog for more pics and details.  Okay enough plugging.  Mangia!

  • Moving to Paris

    So when John and I started this blog, we thought it would be sort of cool to put up food stories and perspectives from different towns in Michigan and North Carolina.

    Well, I’m moving. To Paris. It’s only temporary (6 months), but it’s still going to be awesome and I’m going to eat a lot of butter.

    "France is Bacon"…in Todd's stomach

    You can follow all my wacky antics here on epicportions.com and those of my fiance on her new blog – The Hungry Butterfly.  I’m going to eat.  She is going to cook.

    In fact, she is going to cook very, very well since she is now a student at Le Cordon Bleu Paris, the most famous cooking school in the world, and the alma mater of Julia Child, Mario Batali, and my nerdy grillin’ hero, Steve Raichlen.  She’s getting a culinary diploma – 9 hours a day, 6 days a week.  I will be standing outside with a fork, knife, bib, and camera.  So Stay Tuned!

    P.S. Image stolen from one of my favorite blogs – the Map Room.

  • VOTE NOW!

    VOTE NOW!

    Remember a couple days ago when I asked for your help in defeating the evil Tios Mexican Cafe in the AnnArbor.com Best of Mexican/Southwest category? Now is that time.  Here is a very simple set of instructions for what you need to do.

    1. Click this link
    2. Click Sign in on the top right and log in with your Facebook account. This is a lot easier than creating an account, if you don’t feel like doing that. You don’t need to sign up for anything.  It’s just two clicks.
    3. Vote for La Fiesta Mexicana.  They are who I am currently throwing my weight behind.  If you haven’t been there, don’t worry.  They are legit.
    4. Close the window knowing that you assisted in stopping a terrible restaurant from receiving even more credit that they do not deserve.

    That’s all you have to do.  Even if you’re not from this area, just imagine the worst restaurant in your city being voted the best and do the right thing.  We need your help. Thank you.

    Update (6/12): Beezy’s has our back.