Chef Nick DiGiovanni shares the best BLT recipe from debut cookbook 'Knife Drop'
If you've ever seen a knife slam tip first into a wood block cutting board, then you've probably seen celebrity chef and food personality Nick DiGiovanni's viral recipe videos.
The content creator, who has 25 million followers combined across YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, joined "Good Morning America" on Tuesday in tandem with the release of his debut cookbook, "Knife Drop: Creative Recipes Anyone Can Cook."
The 27-year-old was the youngest finalist ever on Gordon Ramsay's hit competition series, "Master Chef," when he competed in Season 10 coming in third place.
Since the show, Ramsay has become a mentor to DiGiovanni, sharing the screen with him for cooking videos on social media and even penned the foreword of his new book.
Earlier this week the pair set a Guinness World Record for one of Ramsay's most iconic dishes, beef wellington.
Check out his upgraded version of a classic bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich, as well as a jazzed-up chicken quesadilla recipe, below.
Finally, a Good BLT
"The bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich has been mistreated for so many years," DiGiovanni writes in his cookbook. "It lacks any sort of identity, but if each of the ingredients is treated with great care, it suddenly becomes an inexplicably good sandwich."
Makes: 2 sandwiches
Prep time: 7 minutes + making bacon, salt, and chicken skins
Cook time: 5 minutes
Ingredients
8 thick slices heirloom tomato
Flaky salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 thick slices sourdough bread
2 tablespoons mayonnaise, plus more to taste
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 strips maple lemon bacon, finely chopped (recipe below)
4 leaves baby romaine lettuce
Crispy chicken skins
For the bacon, makes 15 to 20 slices1lb (454g) uncured bacon
1/3 cup (104g) pure maple syrup, divided
1/2 cup (107g) brown sugar, divided
1 lemon, to grate for zest
Directions
To make the bacon: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top of the foil.
Arrange the bacon evenly across the baking rack. Using a pastry brush, coat the bacon with half of the maple syrup and sprinkle half of the brown sugar over the top.
Place the sheet in the oven and bake for about 12 minutes or until the sugar has started to caramelize. Flip the bacon, brush with the remaining maple syrup, and sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes more, depending on your desired crispness.
Remove the sheet from the oven. Using a Microplane grater, immediately grate some lemon zest over the top so the zest sticks to the glaze as the bacon cools. Serve immediately.
Tip:You should always bake your bacon. It makes for a far better final product. No more stovetop bacon please, unless absolutely necessary.
For the sandwich: Place the tomato slices in a single layer on a work surface and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Using a pastry brush, lightly coat one side of each slice of bread with mayonnaise, about 1/2 tablespoon per slice.
In a nonstick skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat. Place 1 slice of bread in the skillet, mayonnaise side down, and toast for 5 to 6 minutes or until golden brown. Repeat with the remaining slices.
Use a pastry brush to brush the untoasted side of the bread with a thin layer of mayonnaise. Add some chopped bacon so it sticks to the mayonnaise.
Layer 2 leaves of baby romaine lettuce atop the bacon. Add 4 tomato slices and top the tomatoes with some crispy chicken skins. Repeat with the other sandwich. Serve immediately.
Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla
Makes: 4 quesadillas
Cook time: 20 to 28 minutes
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups (225 grams) chopped rotisserie chicken meat4 slices of maple lemon bacon, chopped (same as above recipe)
1 cup (113 grams) freshly grated sharp cheddar
1 cup (113 grams) freshly grated Oaxaca cheese
1/2 cup (57 grams) freshly grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 scallion, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons salted butter
Four 10-inch (25-centimeter) flour tortillas
1/4 cup (60 milliliters) ranch dressing, recipe below
Guacamole, to serve
Salsa, to serve
For the bacon, makes 15 to 20 slices1lb (454g) uncured bacon
1/3 cup (104g) pure maple syrup, divided
1/2 cup (107g) brown sugar, divided
1 lemon, to grate for zest
Directions
Prepare bacon according to recipe above.
In a medium bowl, combine the chicken, bacon, cheeses, scallion, and salt. Mix until well combined.
In a large nonstick skillet, melt 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add a tortilla and spread 1/4 of the filling mixture on one half of the tortilla. Drizzle some ranch dressing on top and fold the tortilla in half. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until the cheese is melted and the tortilla becomes golden brown and crispy.
Remove the quesadilla from the pan and repeat step 2 to prepare the remaining quesadillas.
Serve immediately with ranch dressing, guacamole, and salsa.
Ranch Dressing
Makes: 1 cup
Ingredients
1/4 cup (56 grams) mayonnaise
1/3 cup (75 grams) sour cream
1/4 cup (60 milliliters) buttermilk1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh dill
1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions
In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients.
Excerpted from Knife Drop reprinted by permission of DK, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Copyright © 2023 by Nick DiGiovanni.
