Ingredients:
- 8 strips premium bacon, sliced crosswise into 1⁄8-inch strips
- 8 firm Roma tomatoes or green (unripe) tomatoes, cut into 1⁄4-inch-thick slices
- 1 cup flour
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 2 cups bread crumbs or panko
- 3 tbsps olive oil or more
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 ozs log goat cheese, approximately 11⁄2 inches in diameter, sliced 1⁄8-inch-thick
- 24 arugula leaves, lower stems discarded
Directions:
- Cook bacon over medium heat until crispy. Drain on a paper towel.
- Select the 24 most uniform tomato slices and save the rest for tomorrow’s lunch. Dredge slices in flour, then in eggs, then pat down in bread crumbs. Reserve on plates, but do not stack.
- In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add 3 tablespoons oil. When oil is hot, add as many breaded tomato slices as the pan can accommodate without them touching. Fry for approximately 2 minutes per side, or until browned and crispy. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
- Add more oil if necessary for subsequent batches.
- To assemble, line up 12 fried tomato slices. Season with salt and pepper, then top each with 1 cheese slice, a mound of bacon shrapnel and 2 arugula leaves. Cover with a second fried tomato slice. Secure with a toothpick. Let cool for a minute before serving. (Tomatoes have a surprising ability to hold the heat.)