It’s been a while, folks. And this post is coming from a new kitchen. Yes, I moved, and I am finally in my very own apartment – hopefully for a while. My first real venture in this kitchen was, fittingly, a Charcutepalooza challenge. Specifically, the October “stretching” challenge. I’m still getting used to my new cooking space (and I don’t have a real table yet), so I tried a personal take on rillettes, rather than going for a gallantine or some such. I also managed to leave my copy of the Charcutepalooza Bible at my dad’s house; thus, this recipe is cobbled together from sheer know-how. And the internet. I call the final product – a venison-hare potted meat – “Rillettes de Bambi et Thumper.” Yep. What can I say, I’m a sick puppy; doesn’t change the fact this is awesomely gamey and delicious.
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So, I’m back in the States. I’ve decided to finish out my Asia posts because I like the travel diary aspect of things, but I’m also going to include recipes in these last posts to round things out. Thankfully, as I was flipping through my new book Authentic Cambodian Recipes, I came across a recipe for a terrine of ground pork and prahok (fermented fish paste). August’s Charcutepalooza challenge – the first of the two I’ve missed – involved terrines; so, I’m killing two birds with one stone.
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I am the Queen of False Promises. Broken Promise #1: More frequest postings, post-bar. Broken Promise #2: Monthly charcuterie. I’ve been running around crazily and prepping for my 3-week trek across Southeast Asia…and I realized I had no time this month for Charcutepalooza, and that when next month’s post is due I’ll be stumbling off a 20-hour plane right from Hong Kong with a bellyful of Xanax (I hate flying).
The good news: I’m bringing my camera and computer to Thailand and Vietnam (don’t worry, all my hotels have safes), and I’m going to try to do posts for each of my five main destinations. It’ll be epic. In the meantime, I have two recipes for you – one from travels of yore, the other from The Complete Greek Cookbook. First, I bring you: a classic Greek Salad, or χωριάτικη (horiatiki).
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Confession time: I’ve been a bum about posting this week. Warning time: it might happen again this summer as I get closer and closer to the July 26 (eek!) bar exam. And then it might happen more afterwards, as I crash on a beach in Rockport, and then trek around Southeast Asia for three weeks. I’m pretty stoked about all of the post-exam bits, though, and will try to share as much as possible up here.
Before I dive into future travels, though, I’m harking back to a former jaunt I’ve already spoken about, and putting up a lovely Greek recipe for your enjoyment. I give you…Stuffed Eggplant!
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Last month I started down a Louisiana-centric path for my first Charcutepalooza sausage challenge, with a Creole Chicken Sausage. This only whet my appetite, however, for a recipe I’d been eying for a while in Michael Ruhlman’s Charcuterie: Smoked Andouille Sausage. So, for this month’s stuffing challenge, I pulled out all the stops, dove back into pork with a vengeance, and lived the andouille dream. I even got some shrimp ‘n grits into the picture.
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This is one of those “off-concept” times. I kind of walked into Whole Foods and went bananas over spring greens. Not as bananas as I went over bananas the other day…but pretty crazy. I kept trying to think of things to satisfy everyone in at dinner: vegetarian stepsister, the littler picky-eater ones, meat-loving dad, and those trying to diet (myself included). Somehow I grabbed a whole bunch of beets and decided to go from there. The result: beet salad with goat cheese and kale crisps, and turkey burgers stuffed with goat cheese and topped with sauteed beet greens. The beet salad was definitely the prettiest part.
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Sorry I took a wee break, all. We all know rent in New York is impossible. It’s so impossible, in fact, that I couldn’t afford to stay there between graduation and when I start firm work in November. So…I’ve moved home to the Boston suburbs, and am now sharing a house with my dad, stepmom, and three stepsisters aged 11 to 19. It’s full, but fun – very “Modern Family.” There have been some tangible benefits: I finally got around digging out my grandma’s recipe box. How’s that for history?
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