Cassoulet!
We had 8 guests for cassoulet last night. I spent all week at it -- made the confit, made the sausage, soaked the beans, cooked the beans, added stuff and let it sit, then cooked with bread crumbs on top. It was the first time I'd made confit with salt. It was quite salty eaten alone, but cooked into the cassoulet the salt wasn't noticable.
Along the way, I also made 3 versions of salame. Well, I started 3 versions of salame...it's hanging the in garage, and won't be done for another 3-4 weeks, *if* they all turn out. The 3 versions are
-- chinese 5 spice and orange peel
-- chorizo with lime peel and pasilla oaxaca
-- tuscan salame with red wine
We had a number of wines. The only clunker was the only new world wine! The list was:
1999 Piellot Roussette du Bugey "Cuvee Buster"
2000 Foillard Morgon [last bottle :-(]
1996 Gimmonet Champagne "Fleurons"
1996 Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec
1993 Ridge Mataro Bridgehead
1993 Bastide Blanche Bandol "Longue Garde"
1995 Hermitage La Chapelle
1999 Pegau Chateauneuf-du-Pape
1988 Clape Cornas
1998 Dujac Morey-St-Denis 1er cru
some dessert wine
We also made an aperitif with passion fruit puree from the latino market and passion fruit liqueur and prosecco. It was really good (though not for the tart-averse).
We also made some little tartlets with a base of pureed sun dried tomato and manouri cheese, topped with matsutake mushrooms sauteed in duck fat. The little tartlet things at Big John's PFI were half-off on Friday, so I had to find something to do with them.
Along the way, I also made 3 versions of salame. Well, I started 3 versions of salame...it's hanging the in garage, and won't be done for another 3-4 weeks, *if* they all turn out. The 3 versions are
-- chinese 5 spice and orange peel
-- chorizo with lime peel and pasilla oaxaca
-- tuscan salame with red wine
We had a number of wines. The only clunker was the only new world wine! The list was:
1999 Piellot Roussette du Bugey "Cuvee Buster"
2000 Foillard Morgon [last bottle :-(]
1996 Gimmonet Champagne "Fleurons"
1996 Huet Vouvray Le Haut Lieu Sec
1993 Ridge Mataro Bridgehead
1993 Bastide Blanche Bandol "Longue Garde"
1995 Hermitage La Chapelle
1999 Pegau Chateauneuf-du-Pape
1988 Clape Cornas
1998 Dujac Morey-St-Denis 1er cru
some dessert wine
We also made an aperitif with passion fruit puree from the latino market and passion fruit liqueur and prosecco. It was really good (though not for the tart-averse).
We also made some little tartlets with a base of pureed sun dried tomato and manouri cheese, topped with matsutake mushrooms sauteed in duck fat. The little tartlet things at Big John's PFI were half-off on Friday, so I had to find something to do with them.