The Barrel Fairy: Chapter 2, The Sandwich

Bourbon Honey Glazed Bacon Grilled Cheese

It was early afternoon and after the phone call, I raided my fridge to find what I had on hand. Hopefully I could start the process right away, meet the Oak King and get back to a normal life.
Let me see...there's some bacon, a few random cheeses....hmmm, a sandwich made with bourbon.
I could glaze the bacon in the bourbon and honey and make a glazed bourbon bacon grilled cheese.

I heard the sound of glass breaking again. I would have to go with this. It's amazing I have any glass left.

"OK fairy, calm down. I'm working on getting you home. The Oak King will show up and I'll have lunch ready for him. "

My idea was simple but the flavors and textures would compliment each other perfectly. I had all of the elements I could think of in harmony in one sandwich, salty, peppery, sweet, buttery, crunchy, melty, gooey...Yes, I was sure this sandwich would make for a perfect lunch, even if my lunch date was otherworldly.

I used:
Equal amounts of shredded Monterey Jack and Gruyere
Thick Sliced Peppered Bacon
My Bourbon (of course)
A Wand or Two of Honey
Some Fresh Italian Bread
and Butter

I fried the bacon over medium heat in batches until I had the entire package nicely browned but not overly done. I set the cooked bacon aside on some paper towels to absorb any excess grease.

Once all of the bacon was cooked, I placed all of it, spread out, back into the 12" nonstick pan I had used to cook the bacon (minus the grease). It was still over medium heat but I turned the heat up just a notch or two. I had some alcohol I wanted to cook off.

I filled the bottom of the skillet with bourbon (just enough to fill the bottom of the pan and coat the cooked bacon) and it bubbled and began to reduce.

While it was reducing, I used my magic honey wand to drizzle honey very lightly over the bacon. The bourbon was going to be sweet already, so I didn't need much.
I moved the bacon around, making sure every piece was lightly coated with the glaze.

I knew it was ready when almost all of the liquid had evaporated and the bacon had become slightly shiny from the glaze.

I had my bread and cheese waiting. I set the bacon on a plate nearby. I wiped the skillet clean and once again set it over medium heat, melting a tablespoon of butter.

I made sure the bottom of the pan had enough butter to coat my bread and while I made the sandwiches, I added butter as often as I needed.
I ended up with a mixture of regular melted butter and  browned butter. (Brown butter is what forms right after your butter, cooked over medium heat stops foaming and turns a beautiful nutty brown.)

While the bread was grilling, I placed shredded cheese on the top and the bottom of the bread,

I also placed two slices of my glazed bacon over the cheese.

Placed one slice of bread on top of the other and by now, the cheese was all melty and gooey.

I sliced the sandwiches in half and watched to cheese ooze out.

I had to taste my creation. The bread was crispy and just like a good garlic bread, there was just enough butter to lightly coat your mouth when taking a bite.
The Monterey and the Gruyere blended and melted beautifully together and the sweet bacon with just a hint of the pepper complimented the entire sandwich, adding a much welcome sweetness.

I decided to whip up some soup...grilled cheese and tomato soup goes so well together and the bourbon just brings it over the top!

I used Tyler Florence's Roasted Tomato Soup recipe. I had never imagined tomato soup could be a good thing until I tried his.

I would imagine anyone in this world or the fairy world would without a doubt love this for lunch or even dinner.

What felt like a warm summer breeze filled the room. I heard the rustling of leaves and felt a warm breath on the back of my neck. I was enveloped in the deepest essence of a forest...a mossy, woodsy, musky aroma. The room then held the stillness one feels before a rain. There was no mistaking it, the oak king had arrived. 

"He's heeeere." the tiny fairy whispered in her best impression of Poltergeist, then broke out into a fit of laughter so strongly she fell off of the table she was standing on.

 He spoke. His voice..it was everywhere and no where. I couldn't tell if it was inside of my head or if it filled the room...It was deep and heady. It was a voice that commanded attention but at the same time soothed and enveloped. my entire being. 

"It will be acceptable. You may move on."

I was jolted back to reality. All at once, the dream-like state, the summer breeze, the deep voice, the food, gone before I could hardly interpret what was said.

I was left wanting more.

And there was a buzz and the fairy flew by dive-bombing me with some beads that used to be strung together on a chain. I used to like that necklace.

 

 

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