Why not? In essence, I was just shoving the bacon into the folds at each end of the roll. Which is sort of what you're suggesting, except that my method is less efficient! I wasn't going to cut all that neatly-tied string... I think Marcella wants the bacon to be in more intimate contact right through the meat. The recurring philosophical kitchen question arises: do I buy a special piece of kit just for one recipe that I might use once or twice a year at most...?


...Unless, of course, I can dig out a few more dishes that call for a larding needle... :-)