Wow. It’s amazing how different things look in hindsight.
Being a perfectionist, it was hard to resist re-writing all my old posts, deleting them, and/or re-making many things just to take better photos. I cringe looking back at my photos and writing near the beginning. I used to write all the time – journaling, poetry, stories, whatever – but when this blog started it had been years since my last bout of creative writing, and the gap was evident. From a photography standpoint, the terms aperture, ISO, and white balance were completely foreign to me just a few months ago, but recently I’ve begun to explore my camera’s manual settings. Even now, neither is anywhere near where I want it to be, but I’m learning more and more each day.
The most popular post on this blog, crispy bacon-wrapped asparagus, probably has one of the most eye-catching photos I’ve taken (of the ones posted so far). Being able to achieve a clear focal point with a blurred background made me ridiculously excited. It looks like people in the online food community seemed to like it too. Granted, I’m sure people’s collective love for bacon doesn’t hurt either, but I’m becoming convinced that excellent photos make all the difference between recipes people want to try and those they do not.
That bacon-wrapped asparagus photo has been re-pinned on Pinterest a few thousand times already (and counting!), and I’ll admit I still get excited every time it happens. That number may be small by some standards, but for a blog as young as mine, it’s a big deal! If you’re reading this months after this was posted, I’m hoping that number is a lot higher now. Hearing about people making my recipes is the biggest rush.
Talking about this reminds me of how grateful I am to my readers. Thank you, thank you, thank you for stopping by! It truly means a lot.
Speaking of bacon, that brings me to today’s recipe.
Bacon crusted chicken!
The idea came to me out of nowhere one day when I was thinking about what new things to try with bacon bits – because there are always good things that can be done with bacon bits! Amazingly, I haven’t seen anything like this before.
The thin layer of mayonnaise underneath the crust does a great job at keeping the moisture locked into the chicken breast during baking. The smoky bacon crust is truly amazing, with a garlic aroma shining through. The best part is it’s so quick and easy – 25 minutes from prep to oven, to your table – and requires only a handful of basic ingredients.