Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Before cooking, prepare a dedicated uncoated stainless-steel mini-muffin pan with a 1/8-inch drainage hole in each well you will use. Have any modification thoroughly deburred, leaving smooth edges with no loose metal or sharp burrs, then wash and dry the pan. Do not drill a coated pan. Rest the pan crosswise and securely over a rimmed stainless baking sheet with clear drainage space underneath. Check that the setup cannot tip or slide. Do not line the wells.
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Roll each prepared raw bacon slice into a tight spiral. Stand one in each mini well, fattier edge down and leaner edge up. Repeat for the measured slices, keeping the rolls upright. Check that the supporting sheet will catch the fat from every used well.
- Bake for about 30 minutes. After 20 minutes, check that the used wells are draining into the lower pan. If a well has not drained, lift its rose slightly with tongs to release the trapped fat through the hole, then set the rose upright again. Keep both hot pans level.
- Continue baking for the remaining 10 minutes, then check the bacon through the inner coils as well as the outside. It should cook crisp throughout. If necessary, lift out and open a rose with tongs to inspect the middle. Continue cooking if the center is not done; thickness and tightness of the roll can change the time. A browned outside alone is not the endpoint.
- Transfer the cooked roses to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain and cool. Keep the hot catch pan of rendered fat on a stable heat-safe surface. Let the roses cool and firm before adding skewers.
- Insert the pointed end of a clean wooden skewer into the center of each cooled rose from underneath. Support the rose and keep the point from going through toward your hand. Arrange in a clean narrow-neck glass food jar or wrap the stems with food-safe parchment. Serve as a small savory part of a meal, or refrigerate promptly for serving later.
Notes
Use the linked homemade pork-and-salt bacon, prepared, rinsed, dried and sliced but not cooked. No sugar, starch, commercial curing blend, liquid smoke or glaze. The 2020 GAPS book includes bacon made with salt only among Full GAPS breakfast foods. This is not an early Intro boiled-meat recipe. The plain roses have no added dairy, eggs, nuts or plant seasoning.
One slice makes one rose. Twelve slices weigh about 1/2–1 pound depending on thickness. Weigh the finished prepared bacon rather than counting the raw pork-belly weight before curing. Allow 20 minutes preparation plus 30 minutes baking, 50 minutes total, with cooling additional. Making the bacon and modifying/deburring/washing the dedicated pan happen beforehand.
Use uncoated stainless mini wells with smooth 1/8-inch drainage holes, securely supported crosswise over a rimmed stainless catch pan. Leave clear space under the holes and do not line the wells. Arrange the fat side down. Check drainage after 20 minutes and lift a blocked rose slightly with tongs. Cook the inner coils as well as the outside until crisp through the roll; thickness may require longer than 30 minutes.
Drain and cool before adding clean wooden skewers. At 2× use 24 slices for 24 roses, approximately 1–2 pounds depending on thickness, with enough draining wells and supported catch pans. Keep 375°F and the 20-minute drainage check; do not double the time automatically.
Refrigerate cooked cooled roses promptly, within 2 hours, in a covered container at 40°F or below. Use within 3–4 days. Store roses in a shallow container and add clean skewers when presenting if easier. Keep a food gift cold and tell the recipient it belongs in the refrigerator. Parchment is presentation, not shelf-stable storage.