With December coming up, I’ve started to crave the traditional Danish dishes that we usually eat around Christmas. One thing I like to make is Æbleflæsk, which translates to something like apple pork or apple bacon. It’s basically apple jam with bacon. It sounds weird, I know. I didn’t like it as a kid, but it’s a dish that grows on you. Also, it’s a great way to use up bits of bacon, or apples that have seen better days.

If you want to try it out, here’s the recipe.

Ingredients

500 grams of apple (or the closest you can get in actual apples)
200 grams of bacon (I like the smoked variety)
50-100 grams of sugar (or no sugar, if the apples are sweet)

Directions

1. Cut the bacon into small cubes.
2. Core and roughly chop the apples. If you don’t want the apple skin in your final product, peel the apples first.
3. Fry the bacon in a big pan, until it’s crispy (but not burned)
4. Set the bacon aside in a bowl, but leave a bit of rendered fat in the pan
5. Fry the apples in the bacon fat at low to medium heat. When they start to soften, you can mash them a bit with the stirring spoon
6. When the apples are soft, add the sugar and stirr
7. When the mixture begins to brown a bit, put the bacon back in and mix everything together
8. Let it simmer for a few minutes
9. Serve the dish warm (not hot), with slices of rye bread (see recipe here) or some other whole grain bread