Imagine my husband’s delight when he opened the latest Food Network Magazine and discovered a piece on how to make “meaty cocktails.” For a guy who’s spent most of his career in the meat business, the idea of making bacon-infused liquor got his attention big time.

You heard me right. Bacon-infused liquor, because apparently you can never get enough bacon. My husband was telling me just the other day about a recipe he’d seen for bacon-flavored brownies. I turned up my nose. He also stumbled across a recipe for cupcakes with bacon. Same reaction from me.

Anyway, back to the bacon booze. In involves mixing rendered bacon fat with a bottle of bourbon or vodka and letting it sit at room temperature for eight hours. Then you freeze the concoction and strain the liquor back into the bottle, catching the frozen lard in a sieve. I don’t know about you, but this doesn’t immediately sound appetizing.

The article notes that “bartenders across the country are mixing cocktails with meaty flavors, so carnivores can get their fix before dinner even hits the table.” Then it goes on to describe a BLT cocktail made at a Virginia bar that combines the above-described bacon-infused vodka with tomato water and frozen lettuce juice.

Apparently it’s also possible to infuse cognac with Spanish ham. Add a crisp manchego cracker garnish and “It’s like ham and cheese in a glass,” the magazine extols.

This kind of experimentation takes meat worship to a whole new level. And I know it’s only a matter of time before my husband tries whipping up the bacon brownies.

When you depend on meat processing for your livelihood, you come to accept the carnivore culture that accompanies it. Our daughters learned quickly never to date a vegetarian. These were the same girls who called hammocks “ham hocks” and sang “Sweet Land of Liver-ty.” We don’t eat many meatless meals at our home. But fortunately for me, I love a good steak just as much as the next person.

We’ve been involved in the Montana Meat Processors Association for 20 years or better, and I still laugh about the time in the association’s early years when one of the state convention organizers lined up chicken and fish entrees for the convention meals. All hell broke loose.

That poor woman was told in no uncertain terms that convention meals had better include beef or pork on the menu from there on out because virtually all meat processors in the state depend on the cattle and hog industries for their livelihoods. We’ve had prime rib at the association’s annual awards banquet ever since. I suppose they had a valid point. Most of the wives secretly would welcome some salmon or shrimp, but we don’t say a word because that’s not “real” meat.

Who knows? Maybe meaty drinks are the next big thing. Instead of grabbing that mundane protein shake, we can puree the leftover pot roast in the blender, add a liquid of choice, and presto — dinner is served.

 Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com