Why add bacon to fudge? What kind of question is that? That’s like asking why maple syrup is so good drizzled over bacon, why chocolate and chilli complement one another, or even why blue cheese goes so well with Christmas fruitcake. It just works. And this is another one of those blessed unions.
Logically, it seems weird, but if we think about the flavour profile of bacon fudge it all makes a bit more sense.
Our brains have been programmed to love all things sweet. Even foods that are conventionally savoury have a touch of sweetness that tricks our brains into saying “gimme, gimme more!”. I mean how savoury is tomato sauce really? It’s not, yet we smother everything on our plates with this sugary, crimson goodness. Chips just aren’t chips without it.
This is the same reason that McDonald’s burgers remain so universally popular. There’s the slightly sweet buns, and yes, our tomatoey friend again. Need I mention the sweet and tangy pickles, too?
Sugar equals happiness to our taste buds and that’s how and why bacon fudge creates a carnival in our mouths, combining smoky, cured, crispy bacon with a nutty caramel that’s set into fudge.
But that’s not where it ends. You can take these delicious nuggets of weirdness and churn them into home-made vanilla ice cream, or stir into icing for cupcakes or cakes.
I don’t know about you, but I’d love a bacon-fudge dark-chocolate cupcake round about now.
What’s the fuss about bacon and fudge? Try it out yourself!
Can I use buttermilk that has been frozen and thawed?