Urgent Prayer Needed for Rick Meigs

I just read that Rick Meigs of The Blind Beggar and Friend of Missional was in a serious motorcycle accident and is in critical condition. Just wanted to spread the word to pray…

Thinkling and BHT member (and all around awesome dude) Jared Wilson shares a thought provoking look at suburban life in America, listing some of its major faults. He has some good ideas for Christians who want to work preemptively in this context, built on five key ideas:

• Intentional Prayer
• Scripture Reading
• Joyful Fasting
• Generosity and Service
• Christian Community

Jared is doing this for real, and you can see what’s happening through his church: Element in Nashville.

This is great (if only to see NT Wright slap the side of his head while saying, “Duh”).

From @jaredwilson: “We are too in love with our buildings and programs to do what it takes to reach those who will never enter them.”

(HT: @emckean via Twitter)

wotd: gnosophagy: and insatiable appetite for knowledge; inordinate curiosity.

Sometimes odd things pop into my head. My BHT friend Kurt mused on Twitter about the humorous mental image of throwing an apple at someone. This entered my twisted head, transmogrified, and came out as throwing a messy sub sandwich at someone’s head.

Then I got the idea that a fun Youtube schtick would be to make slapstick micro-comedies. They would be somewhere in the 5-30 second range. Hucking a sandwich at someone’s head from out of the frame would be a good start.

Carry on…

Please pray for Amy Welborn, a great friend of the Boar’s Head Tavern, on the sudden and untimely passing of her husband.

Is this a post about theology? Nope.

Is it a post about romance? As much as I love and adore my bride, nope.

It’s about … BACON … as in a couple links about the great meat.

First, I was pleased to discover that there exists a web site called Bacon Today. It almost brought a tear to my eye. But then I was given a link to a NYT article on a little concoction called the Bacon Explosion. That did bring a tear to my eye. (And it made my arteries harden just thinking about it.)

If any chef out there happens to read this, or someone who knows a chef who would send a little info love this way, I could use some advice. I have an idea for something I call The Pork Trifecta. Here’s how it works:

Make yourself some fresh ground sausage. Something smoky and savory will do, and garlic is always welcome. Then take a thick cut port chop and cut a pocket in it. (I suppose you could butterfly it, but I just think it would be better a little more closed.) Stuff that bad boy with the sausage. Now, wrap some nice thick cut bacon around that chop.

This is where the need for advice come into play. How does one cook such a beast in a way that makes sure everything in cooked properly and done at the same time? I’m guessing there would be some kind of pan sear followed by an oven finish, but at what temperature and for how long?

I picture this served with a nice chunky mashed potato (with butter and cream, of course) mixed with garlic and little bits of crispy bacon. (Yes, more bacon.) Along with that, have some nice garden fresh green beans with more beautiful crispy bacon. I suppose you could get really fancy and select three different kinds of bacon: one for the meat, one for the starch, and one for the veg.

If you’re going to serve a bacon feast like this, I humbly suggest that no mere wine is capable of standing up to the meal. The only proper beverage to go along with something like this would be a proper pour of Guinness.

Don’t think I’ve left out dessert. There are many fine options available at the first link above. But I’m thinking about another option, one that I will be making this weekend, Dark Chocolate & Bacon Cupcakes.

You may now clean the drool off your keyboard, and proceed to the grocery store. Good luck!

Yes, you read that right. I have been assured that the salt-sweet combination transcends whatever gross-out reaction you are having right now, and that they are indeed awesome.

I intend to find out this Friday.

Download the recipe if you want to try it for yourself.