Gluten Free Toasted Bacon Jam BLTs

I tend to be a creature of habit and recently, I've replaced all my breakfasts with breakfast smoothies in an effort to slip in my 5-A-Day a bit easier and for an energy boost. Usually, after a 6 a.m. yoga session, I slip down a smoothie whilst perusing food blogs. This morning, however, I overslept, missed yoga and needed something invigorating to kick start my day.


I made the bacon jam a few days ago and the remains of it were sitting in a jar in the fridge, marinating and getting even tastier. The mini bagels were an impulse buy from Costco last weekend. I had no use for them, but just couldn't resist how cute they were! Indeed, if you don't have mini bagels, you could happily spread this jam on a good piece of crusty bread. Or toast for that matter. Or just stick your finger in the jar. It's seriously that good.

Note: It's best to prepare the jam a day or two ahead of time.
Also, this post was featured on Nap Time Creations! How cool is that?

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Ingredients:
For the bacon jam
 1/4 cup golden syrup
3/4 cup brewed coffee
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 pack (300g) bacon rashers, roughly diced
1 large onion
3 garlic cloves, crushed
salt and pepper

For the blts
2 mini gluten free bagels
1 tomato, sliced and salted
1 piece iceberg lettuce
butter

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All right, let's cook:

For the bacon jam, cook the bacon over a medium-high heet, stirring occasionally until it is nicely caramelized. Depending on the type of pan you use, this can take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes.  Remove the bacon from the pan using a slotted spoon and strain on paper towels. If there's a lot of fat left in the pan, discard most of it (you can save it to for another use if you'd like--bacon fat is great for keeping to roast potatoes in).

Add the onions and garlic to the remaining fat and cook until soft, about five minutes. Add the brown sugar, coffee, syrup and vinegar. Bring to the boil while stirring and scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan using a wooden spoon. Add the bacon back in, stir and season.

Pour the contents of the saucepan into a slow cooker and cook on high uncovered until the liquid is nice and syrupy. It took me about 4 hours to achieve the desired consistency. Once sticky and syrupy, spoon the mix into a food processor and leave to cool about five minutes. Pulse the mix so that it is coarsely chopped and allow to cool completely.

Once cool, decant into a clipseal jar or canning jar and refrigerate. The jam will keep for up to 4 weeks, although I doubt it will last that long without being gobbled up!

For the blts, halve the bagels using a serrated knife. Spread a generous layer of bacon jam onto the top half of the bagels. Spread butter on the bottom half and toast under a medium-hot grill (UK)/broiler (US) for about 2 minutes or until jam is bubbling.

Place a slice of salted tomato on the bottom half of the bagel, followed by a piece of lettuce. Top with the bacon jam slathered bagel half and sink your teeth in.