Don't let your sides bring dinner to a halt!
The holiday season approaches and with it can come all kinds of nervous thoughts. Let some of the anxiety go and use pork in your side dishes. A little addition of bacon or sausage may be just the ticket to put the smiles on every face around the table. 

Bacon and sweet potato biscuits 
2 slices bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
1 medium orange-fleshed sweet potato, peeled
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon allspice
8 tablespoons unsalted butter chilled and cubed
1 cup buttermilk
 
Cooking Directions 

Wrap the sweet potato with a damp paper towel and microwave on high until very soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, mash with a potato masher, and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, in a medium skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, then set aside to cool. Carefully set aside 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings from the skillet. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, salt, and allspice and pulse a few times. Add the cubed butter and pulse to make a coarse meal with a few pea-sized pieces. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and gently mix in the bacon, buttermilk, and 1 cup of the mashed sweet potato (save any remaining potato for another use).

Transfer mixture to a floured work surface and knead a few times to form a dough. Pat the dough to about 1-inch thick, then gently fold in half. Gently repeat 4 more times. Roll the dough out to 3/4-inch thick, then use a floured 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter to cut dough into biscuits, arranging them on the prepared baking sheet. Gather the scraps and repeat to make a total of 12 biscuits. Bake until the biscuits are browned and a tester comes out clean, 15 to 18 minutes. 

 

Corn bread, sausage and apple stuffing
8 ounces pork sausage, bulk

2 cups apple, unpeeled and chopped
3/4 cup onion, chopped
1/3 cup butter
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/8 teaspoon pepper
6 cups cornbread, coarsely crumbled
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 - 1/2 cup chicken broth, reduced-sodium


 
Cooking Directions  

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large skillet, cook sausage until brown. Remove sausage; drain and set aside. Drain fat from skillet. In the same skillet, cook apple and onion in hot butter until tender. Remove from heat. Stir in poultry seasoning and black pepper. 

In a large bowl, combine sausage, apple mixture, corn bread and parsley. Drizzle with enough chicken broth to moisten, tossing gently. Transfer to a greased 2-quart casserole. 

Cover and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until heated through. 

Last chance to get tickets to the Bacon & Bourbon dinner

 

It only comes around once each year - and for its fourth year in existence - the Bacon & Bourbon dinner is almost here! November 21, starting at 7 p.m. at the Gaillardia Country Club the bacon and bourbon will be rolling out of the kitchen and to tables of hungry guests. 

 

This five course meal boasts bacon in each dish and each dish is perfectly paired with a glass of bourbon. 

 

Never fear! There are still a few seats left and they are only $100 each. Come out and see us. Contact the okPORK office by phone at (405) 232-3781.    

 

About Oklahoma Pork Council

The Oklahoma Pork Council, a producer organization consisting of Oklahoma pork producers, represents the interests of all pork producers. Partially funded by federally collected Pork Checkoff dollars, okPORK promotes pork and pork products, funds research, and educates consumers and producers about the pork industry. For more information about this or any other programs of the Oklahoma Pork Council visit www.okpork.org or call 1.405.232.3781.

 
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