Beans!
Everyone has certain things they want to accomplish in life. Climbing the Matterhorn, say, or scuba diving with sharks. Some people call these things "bucket lists", but I think that's a bit gloomy.
This weekend, I accomplished one of mine. I made a classic cassoulet, including all the things: duck-leg confit, home-cured pork belly with quatre epices (not ventreche, alas, as I don't have a smoker), Toulouse sausage, a ham hock, a bit of pigskin, and half a pig's foot, carrot, onion, clove, celery, thyme, bay leaves, celery...)
And Tarbais beans from Rancho Gordo. These things are amazing! They swell to be as big as the first joint of my pinky (I have large hands), and take on the flavor of everything they are cooked with, as well as a texture as smooth as butter, or chestnut puree or something.
The whole thing was not exactly cheap, and made enough to feed Coxie's Army. (Seriously, I now have an 8-quart enameled Dutch oven, specifically for this, and it was FULL. That's two gallons of baked beans, people!) When I do it again, I will probably sub chicken thighs for the duck, at the very least. But I will do it again, because it was delicious.
Young Wonder was dubious, especially when I showed him the pigfoot, cut in half with a little blood in it. He rather annoyingly tried to fill up on the very nice cheese I had bought for a nibble, and told me he thought the whole thing was "a science experiment." But on the way from school to karate today, I asked him, "So, were you filling up on cheese because you were afraid you wouldn't like the beans?"
"Ye-e-e-s..."
"And how were the beans?"
"great."