Cocktails and Meatballs

I am having some indulgence with myself tonight and made a fancy cocktail, titled the White Lady, which I think is super funny. I am a person socialized as white, or white-bodied, and I do identify as such, and also am socialized as a "lady" or woman, though I identify as queerly gendered. So. A toast to you, White Lady, of which I have some appreciation and trepidation both. The cocktail choice really came about after I looked at my liquor cabinet (aka, the ledge at the top of the basement stairs next to the cobweb duster) and saw gin and Cointreau, and then typed those 2 words into DuckDuckGo's search engine. Behold, White Lady Cocktail. Which is strong, as straight up cocktails tend to be, and quite tasty.

White Lady and I communed while "Czech Pork Meatballs" (from Mel Joulwan) cooked in the oven, alongside reheated squash and beet soup. (Because right now, it is all squash, beets, and carrots!) The meatballs are a really easy and simple caraway/mustard affair that was tasty with aforementioned sides and some sauerkraut. I did not have parsley, but that would make things more top notch. 

White Lady

1 1/2 ounces gin 

3/4 ounce Cointreau (or another orange-flavored liqueur, though that will tinge your white-ish cocktail) 

3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice 

lemon twist, for garnish

1. Add the gin, Cointreau, and lemon juice to a cocktail shaker. Fill two-thirds with ice, cover, and shake vigorously until well-chilled, about 15 seconds.

2. Strain into a chilled coupe glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

 

Meatballs

• 1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)

• 1/2 tablespoon salt

• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds

• 1 teaspoon ground paprika

• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper

• 1 cup fresh parsley leaves, minced (about 1/4 cup)

• 1 tablespoon grainy mustard

• 2 pounds ground pork

  Mix everything together with your hands and form into 1" meatballs. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes (or cook on the stovetop). Serve with kraut!
  

Coffee Pulled Pork

Less "pulled" and a bit more "chunks"

I had a large pork butt (7 pounds) that I made in the slow cooker the other day, and now I have lots of leftovers! I found this particular rub and spice blend tasty and easy, which I modified from this Paleo/Gluten Free Blog. I thought the pork was good as is, and also with the addition of some bbq sauce. It doesn't need much - I had some fancy bbq sauce in the fridge that I bought at the co-op a year ago, and I just gave a pour atop my re-heating meat. The bbq flavor was especially festive with homemade coleslaw.

Coffee Pulled Pork

2.5-3 lbs. boneless pork butt
1.5 T finely ground coffee (I used decaf!)
1 T chili powder 

2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon mustard powder

2-3 cloves fresh garlic, sliced or minced
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 

1. (I have never done this step that is often recommended for cooking pork butt, but my roast was so large this time, I wish I would have!) Slice off the thick slab of fat (known as the fat cap) along one side of the pork butt. Place the whole butt into the slow cooker insert.

2. Mix together all the spices and rub all over the meat, making sure to cover both ends and get into the nooks and crannies. You might think you don't need all of the rub but keep massaging it all over the meat until it's all used.

3. Set your slow cooker to high for 5 hours or low for 9.

4. You can shred the meat one of two ways. You can shred it directly in the slow cooker with two forks. But when you transfer it to a serving bowl or container, you probably won't need all of the sauce. Leave about half behind. Stir to blend the meat with the liquid, taste, and add more liquid if you think it needs it. If you want to serve directly from the slow cooker, leave as is. The liquid will help keep it moist. Or you can transfer the meat to a bowl, shred it with two forks, and stir in about half the liquid. Taste the meat and add more liquid if it's a bit too dry, no more than 2 tablespoons at a time.

Optional step: if you want crispy bits of meat, spread the shredded pork out onto a baking sheet. Broil for 5-8 minutes, or until some parts are crisp.

Serve is as, with Tequila Pineapple Barbecue Sauce, or sauce of your choice. 

Here it is slightly more pulled, with some bbq sauce mixed in

Egg Roll Bowl with Dandelion Greens

It is Ramadan and I am fasting, which means I pretty much just make one bigger meal at sundown, called Iftar. It is funny that the recipe I am posting at Ramadan is a pork recipe, something no Muslim would be eating! (This would be good with beef too.) I was especially happy to toss in a bunch of dandelion greens and some green onions from the garden. I wish I had collected more greens because the subtle bitterness was really nice in here - a good match to the sweetness of the green onions and sauteed cabbage/carrots. I'll have to pick some dandelion greens to eat as a salad to do them proper justice.

I stumbled across the notion of egg rolls sans wrapper sometime back - apparently it is a keto and paleo super recipe, which I wasn't necessarily going for, but I do like to go high veggie content. Really it is a very easy stir-fry that is slightly bland but is reminiscent of egg rolls, which I enjoyed. Also I was working pretty late, so an easy meal prep was handy. I liked it best with the inclusion of fancy hot sauce.

Egg Roll Bowl
1 lb ground pork (or beef)
2 T sesame oil/coconut oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1" ginger, grated
half medium green cabbage, sliced thinly/shredded
1 small carrot, grated/julienned
1 small jalapeno, minced
3 tsp apple cider vinegar
3 T tamari
1 T dijon mustard
salt/pepper
(opt) dandelion greens - as many as you want
2 green onions, chopped for garnish

1. Cook pork in a medium skillet over medium heat. Break up pices with a spoon as it cooks. When done, set aside to add to veggies.
2. While it is cooking, heat oil in a large cast iron pan on medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and ginger and saute until onions soften, about 5 minutes.
3. Add cabbage, carrots, vinegar, tamari, mustard. Cook and stir for 5-10 more minutes until cabbage and carrots soften. Add dandelion greens, cooked pork, and salt and pepper to taste.
4. Serve with green onions and your favorite hot sauce.

Wonton meatballs

I made Nom Nom Paleo's wonton meatballs in a double batch tonight. I made a similar dish some years ago in the style of sui mai dumplings, which was a similar recipe steamed in zucchini "cups." This time I just followed Michelle Tam's recipe and made meatballs. Delicious. I made a double batch b/c I bought a 1lb frozen shrimp package when it was on sale, and just froze some of it to make again later.

At the time of this meatball consumption, I am in the midst of an obsession with Christine and the Queens. This song is the current one on repeat. OMG. I am in love with her. Other videos showcase her moves, which inspire me to dance in the kitchen and get all swoon-ish at the same time.

Wonton Meatballs (by Michelle Tam of Nom Nom Paleo)
¼ ounce dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
½ pound shrimp peeled and deveined
1 pound ground pork 
2 scallions finely chopped
¼ cup cilantro minced
1 tablespoon coconut aminos
½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
½ teaspoon fish sauce
¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
¼ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1) Hydrate your dried mushrooms - mine take 30 minutes in warm water. 

2) Preheat the oven to 400°F, and squeeze the water out of the shiitake mushrooms. Cut off the hard stems, and finely mince them.

3) Finely chop the shrimp until you’ve got a chunky paste.

4) Place the shrimp in a large bowl and add the pork, mushrooms, scallions, cilantro, coconut aminos, salt, fish sauce, white pepper, and sesame oil.

5) Use your hands to squeeze and mix the meatball mixture until a sticky and tacky mass is formed.

6) Heat up a small frying pan over medium heat and add a little cooking fat. When the pan is hot, form a little patty and cook it in the pan. Taste it and see if the seasoning is right. Adjust with additional salt if needed. (Not cooking yet? You can store the meatball mixture in the fridge for up to 12 hours.)

7) Form the mixture into 1½-inch balls. Roll the mixture into round balls and arrange on a baking sheet. You should end up with about a dozen balls.

8) Bake the meatballs in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through. I finished mine off under the broiler to get a good sear. 
This time I ate these with roasted broccoli and eggplant and some sriracha. I've also used them in noodle soup with tasty results.

Meatloaf - Pork and Beef

This is a really good, very traditional meatloaf recipe from Food 52. I will make it again, as I think it is my favorite meatloaf recipe thus far (I like mushrooms and carrots in there, and all the parsley). I modified it just a little to be GF. This hit the spot for something easy and filling, and cozy for this cloudy bit of weather. I ate it with fried potatoes. Yum.

Meatloaf
olive oil 
2 stalks celery
1 medium carrot
¹/₂ small onion 
¹/₂ cup parsley with large stems removed
1 small bell pepper diced
6 mushrooms, with tough part of stems removed
1 pound 80% ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 cup GF oats
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
spoonful of tomato paste (or a small diced tomato)
2 tsp salt, plus pepper to taste
2 tablespoons heavy cream (optional)
splash of fish sauce (opt, for some umami!)
ketchup to slather on top of loaf

1. Preheat oven to 375° F and lightly oil a rectangular baking dish or loaf pan. Dice celery, carrot, parsley and onion into small bits. Alternatively, process in a food processor until the vegetables are ground.
2. Dice the pepper and mushrooms and sauté them in a small amount of olive oil until the pepper softens.
3. To a large mixing bowl add the meat, ground vegetables, sautéed pepper and mushrooms, oats, egg, tomato paste, salt and pepper, and cream (if using). Mix with your hands until it's all combined. (To check the seasoning, fry off a tiny test patty, taste, and adjust accordingly.)
4. Plop the meat into the oiled baking pan and shape into a loaf. Cover with ketchup. 
5. Bake for 1 hour, remove from oven, and let sit for 15 minutes before slicing. 

Pork & Cranberry meatballs

I make meatballs pretty regularly, often from Mel Joulwan's Well Fed site which has a whole meatball madness link page (I think I've made her Czech meatballs, Cuban meatballs, Merguez meatballs, and maybe the Moroccan ones, though if I remember right I did not like them.) I've been on a pork meatball fest lately, and recently made a Bon Appetit Vietnamese inspired meatball, where I learned that I can cook meatballs entirely in the broiler, which makes them really crispy and delicious.

This recipe is based on what was originally ground turkey to make a Thanksgiving inspired meatball. It was delicious with pork and easy ingredients I had at home (lemons yes, oranges no; baking soda yes, cream of tartar no). I ended up reheating a bunch of left-overs to go along with these, and this meal was a total star this weekend: roasted squash, pickled beats, the last greens of my wilted garden, and a bunch of saurkraut. I ate about 3x the amount of kraut pictured in the photo because it was so good with every other thing on the plate. 

Pork & Cranberry Meatballs (makes 12)
1 pound ground pork
1 T lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 c dried cranberries
2 cloves garlic, minced
*1/4 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 T warm water (opt)
(Mel uses baking soda and cream of tarter to tenderize meatballs sans breadcrumbs. I never do and find them to still be delicious. This time I did do the baking soda, for whatever reason!)

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prep a cake pan with foil or parchment if you like - these do get a little broiled on, but it scrubs off with a scouring pad.
2) Mix all ingredients except baking soda/water in a bowl by hand. Add baking soda/water mixture and combine.  Form meatballs. (Mel has us chill the meatballs prior to baking. Is it necessary? I don't think so.)
3) Bake for 20 minutes. I then put mine under the broiler for a few to get them nice and caramel-y. The exposed cranberries do burn a bit (the sugars!) so keep an eye on them if you do that.

Let cool a minute or two and serve! These were delicious with saurkraut and squash.

Paleo Mu Shu

Happy Solstice! I have not posted in a long while - definitely not since the days were much longer and the garden was still in full swing. A couple of months ago I began an experiment and moved up to the northside homestead full time. Now I am by the garden all the time, but it's got a layer of snow covering the whole thing. Snow that looks pretty mushy today! The harvest continued so late that I am only now finishing off the last of the tomatoes that have covered the kitchen table since November. Otherwise there are about a dozen carrots left, and 3 squash. I had to start buying vegetables at the store last week for the first time since summer!

The final carrot harvest! So pretty!

Tonight's dinner was an attempt at Mu Shu, but rather than wrapping it in the traditional "Chinese pancake" I used steamed cabbage leaves. Mu Shu was the only thing I ever ordered at Evergreen restaurant, a really delicious, home-style Chinese place, and really all for the pancakes. I haven't eaten there in years because of my gluten allergy, but I trust they still make great Mu Shu. Other than the pancake, the only other thing to "paleo-ize" was the Hoisin sauce, which is a critical component to the whole thing since it is what gives the flavor.

The verdict: it was delicious, and the cabbage leaf made a perfect stand-in for the pancake. The Hoisin sauce was definitely different - instead of bean paste, I used nut butter (per various online recipes). It tasted really good, just more like hoisin-sauce-meets-thai-peanut-sauce. Which makes it sound weirder than it was, because really, it was great.

I adapted an online mu shu recipe and paleo hoisin recipe to get what is below. Because I was trying to be authentic, especially for the first go of this, I wanted to get bamboo shoots. You could substitute carrots if you wanted, but, My Charming Companion says part of what makes Mu Shu is the blandness of color - everything is white-ish/yellow except the green onions. Carrots would sort of ruin it. So, I went to Sun Foods up here in Brooklyn Center for bamboo shoots - I had never seen them fresh before, and was originally expecting to get them canned. But as I walked into Sun Foods, which is basically an international Cub foods that feels like a different world - I started seeing all kinds of produce that made me think, huh - is that a bamboo shoot? I walked by enormous yams and tubers that seemed of African origin, and then a bunch of cactus and plantains and yucca before getting to these long yellow things that were the bamboo shoots. Which then were sold in 4 different varieties! So, uh, no need for the canned ones. I was in a time crunch, so the only other thing I got was friend plantain chips (YUM!) but I am pretty curious to go back there and see what strange new fruit or vegetable I come home with.

Paleo Mu Shu, serves 2-4
3/4 lb. pork loin, cut into strips
2-3 T tamari (or slightly more coconut aminos)
1-2 T sesame oil
1/2 small head cabbage, cored and thinly sliced*
1 1/2 cups bean sprouts
3-4 eggs, beaten
3-4 stalks green onion, julienned on the diagonal
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup chinese mushrooms, stemmed and cut into strips**
1 cup bamboo shoots, cut into strips
5 T coconut oil/lard
Steamed cabbage leaves*
hoisin sauce
*Note: the taste will be superior if you have two separate cabbage heads - 1 for steaming and 1 for slicing for the insides. You will have leftovers from both cabbages, but one will be pre-steamed and won't be as crunchy in the mu shu!
**I just used regular mushrooms - we had some dried ones in the cupboard from a friend, so I re-hydrated those.

1. Steam cabbage leaves, aka mu shu wrapper: cut the core from one medium cabbage head. Steam the cabbage head in whatever steamer system you've got - it takes about 15 minutes before you can peel the outer 4-6 leaves, and another 10 minutes to get the next 4. The cabbage is hot when it comes out of the steamer, but use tongs to help you peel each of the leaves. It's easy so long as it steamed long enough. 8-10 leaves should do it. I set them aside in a cake pan, then 5 minutes before dinner, pop them into a 200 degree oven so they will be warm.
2. Prep your veggies and pork. Cut everything up because things go fast as soon as you get started. Put sliced pork in a bowl with tamari and sesame oil.

3. In a large cast iron skillet, heat 1 T fat on med-high heat. When pan and oil are hot, pour in the beaten eggs. You are basically making one big flat egg sheet. Let the egg set until firm enough to flip in one sheet; flip it over for another 10 seconds or so, then flip the whole think out onto a cutting board. Slice the egg sheet into thin strips and set aside.
4. In the same skillet, heat 2 T fat over high heat. Add half of the green onions and stir for about a minute, until onions are sizzling. Add bean sprouts and cabbage. Saute until cabbage is wilted, but still crunchy (this took just a few minutes). Remove from heat and set aside in a bowl.
5. Heat the remaining 2 T fat in the same skillet over high heat. Add the rest of the green onions and garlic and saute for a minute, until fragrant. Add pork and stir fry until just done. Add the mushrooms, bamboo shoots, cabbage, sprouts, and egg sheet. Stir fry for another few minutes.

6. Serve each mu shu cabbage leaf with a smear of hoisin sauce down the middle. Place several spoonfuls of mu shu inside and fold the sides in! (Really, we ended up cutting each cabbage leaf in half because they were so big - these do get a little messy, so be prepared!)

Paleo Hoisin Sauce, makes about 2/3 cup
3 T tamari  (or more coconut aminos)
3-4 T nut butter (I used part almond butter/part peanut butter)
1 T honey (or use part stevia)
2 tsp cider vinegar
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
freshly ground black pepper

Stir everything together until combined - make sure to work nut butter well!

Chinese Dumplings (Sui Mai) Paleo-style

I'm pretty picky about what blogs I follow...I want them to be paleo, I want them to feature mostly food for meals (not desserts), and I don't really like when there is lots of promotional material. I also like when they feature foods from various cultural cuisines. Really, I have only a few staples that I check out regularly (i'm on the hunt for more). Studio Snacks is my recent find - I've mentioned the blog before, but this is my first mostly-true-to-recipe post. She seems to be on a quest to create some paleo dim sum options, this one being Sui Mai (stuffed zucchini). I haven't ever had dim sum, which will be my fate unless a gluten free dim sum place appears. But really, I found these delicious, so who needs it?!

I actually think I can do some more playing around with them. I made these twice - both times using zucchini instead of yellow squash because, well, the zucchini just keep growing. The first time I steamed the dumplings as directed, but found they were too watery for my taste. The second time I baked them in the oven, but then the meat texture wasn't as nice. I am not sure if this is a) due to baking, b) because I used a spoon to mix the pork/shrimp mixture and not my hands (maybe the fat from the pork didn't set well enough with the rest of the ingredients?), c) because I let the meat mixture sit out longer before stuffing the zucchini, or d) because the zucchini were larger and maybe too big, hence needing a longer cooking time and possibly over-cooking them.

Ultimately either cooking method worked, but the steaming meant watery dumplings, and the baking version had meat was a bit soft. Take 2 also included a trial of stuffing the meat mixture into mushrooms, but I didn't find that as tasty. The mushrooms were too strongly flavored, whereas the zucchini is more neutral. My Charming Companion (who was really excited about these because, unlike me, he has a long history of dim sum eating and was missing dumplings) also suggested trying to wrap these in steamed cabbage leaves, which I find intriguing and want to try.

Anyway - you can also just make this meat mixture, fry it up in mini patties, and eat dipped in some sauce. I did that with part of batch one and it was delicious.The meat gets a nice sear on it that way too!

Stuffed Zucchini "Dumplings"
3-4 medium zucchini
1/2 pound ground pork
5 large shrimp
6 shiitake mushrooms
1/2 inch of ginger
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon roasted sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon white pepper powder
1/4 teaspoon 5-spice powder (optional)

1. Shell/devein the shrimp; mince it, along with ginger and muchrooms. Mix together with the pork.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix into pork mixture. Use your hands (just in case this contributed to better meat texture) to really blend the flavors. Put mixture in fridge while you prep the zucchini.
3. Cut zucchini into 1/2" thick slices. Using a spoon, score around each slice in a circle, then dig into the circle and scoop out the center. Imagine you are using a melon ball scoop - but it's a spoon.
4. Fill each ball with meat mixture (it will be super sticky - wetting your hands will help). If you are steaming, start the water boiling in your steamer; to bake, heat oven to 350. To steam: put sui mai into steamer and steam for 15 minutes, or until pork is cooked. To bake: bake for 15-20 minutes until pork is done.

5. Serve with dipping sauce below!

I first used a simple coconut aminos/fish sauce/sriracha to dip these in, but My Charming Companion was not having that. The recipe he devised is a bit more traditional, and was delicious.

Dipping Sauce
2 T coconut aminos
2 T rice wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar)
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
sprinkle of sesame seeds
splash of sesame oil

Easy Zucchini Noodle Bowl

It's been 4 months since I last posted, and for some reason after breakfast today, I thought - I think I'll post this one?! So here I am.

Mayday!

Since the last posting, Mayday happened, I went to the boundary waters, attended several lovely wedding/love festivities, visited Colorado, and watched a lot of Lynx basketball! And did garden tending and cooking in there too...some of which I may post about if I get back into the swing of things on the blog.

Boulder mountains

My gardening got a late start due to the late spring and being up north, but things are looking alright as we head into fall. The cucumbers and green beans are bountiful, with zucchini and eggplant not far behind. I'm hoping the fall lasts long enough for at least a few good winter squash, but we'll see!


I made a pork roast in the crockpot yesterday, and had some leftover broth from all the juices in there. I inevitably freeze that cup of pork broth and it gets lost in my freezer, so this morning I decided to just use it right away in an easy breakfast soup: zucchini noodles (or "zoodles"), some arugula, eggs and a bit of left over pork belly. It was super delicious, and in aftermath I realized it was partly inspired by a zucchini noodle bowl recipe I saw on a blog called Studio Snacks. All of the recipes are free of major allergins (wheat, dairy, soy and grains) and Cherry (the blogger) calls them "vegatable-forward" meals, which I find charming. Many are also Cantonese recipes since she grew up in Hong Kong. It's a new fave recipe checkout spot. My version is way simplified though.

Easy zucchini noodle bowl (for one!)
1 small zucchini
handful arugula (or spinach or swiss chard)
1/2 -1c. pork or chicken bone broth
fish sauce
coconut aminos
salt
slice of pork belly (opt)
egg or two
basil, chopped (opt)

1. Make zucchini noodles via mandoline and set aside.
2. Heat broth in a pot and keep on a low simmer. Add a dash of fish sauce, aminos, and salt if your broth is unsalted.
3. Cook pork and egg! I had pork belly left overs in the fridge, so I just cut a slice and re-heated it. If yours is raw, cook your slice/s longer. I fried my egg in the same pan as the pork belly.
4. While everything is cooking, get your bowl and fill it with the raw zucchini noodles and arugula. Pour the hot broth over the top (that will wilt the veggies to a nice texture) and top with fried egg and pork belly.
5. Serve with sriracha and chopped fresh basil on top! Cut green onions or garlic scapes would also be delicious here if you've got them.

Braunshweiger

In my last 2-4 trips up north I have checked out the local butchers and meat counters for Braunshweiger - a German liverwurst that seems popular in the northern part of the state. All of the versions I have encountered include corn syrup, which I seem to react to, so I have been unable to actually consume any. But then I got a copy of an amazing cookbook from the library: The New Midwestern Table. The cookbook is a lovely homage to midwest cooking, and includes numerous (non-paleo) delights like Michigan pasties, jello salads and an entire section of potatoes and onions. She also has recipes for wild rice/manoomin, deviled eggs (that she heats at the end?!), beet pickled eggs, cucumber salads, and pickled fish. She runs the gamut of Scandinavian, German, and Russian (Nebraskan Runza's - which are bread pies filled with meat) and they all seem to be really good looking recipes.

And - she has a recipe for Braunshweiger! With no corn syrup (or any sweetener for that matter). I followed her recipe pretty precisely, except for leaving out the garlic (I seem allergic), swapping vermouth for sherry, and using just a bit more liver than she calls for. Traditional Braunshweiger seems to be about 40% pork liver, and her recipe is only about 20%. I happened to have 3/4 pound of liver and used it all (bringing the liver total to 25%). It is important that you have fresh liver, because it gets bitter as it ages by the day. I bought frozen pork liver from the Seward, which is frozen fresh and was very easy. I just defrosted it in the fridge the day before.

I actually did not grow up eating braunshweiger, but in my recent fandom of liver in every variety, (and pork belly), I was fairly convinced that I would like this. It turned out great. I didn't wait for it to chill all the way before digging in, and it was more pate-like. But once it thoroughly chilled, it was like the braunshweiger of my imagination where you could cut slices. I ate mine on paleo crackers with some dijon mustard. Yum.

Homemade Braunshweiger
Based on the recipe from The New Midwestern Table
2 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 pounds fatty pork (I used half pork belly, half pork shoulder)
8 oz slab bacon (I used regular bacon)
12 oz fresh pork liver
1 T pork fat or ghee
2 T salted butter
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, sliced (I didn't use these!)
6 T dry sherry or vermouth
1/2 c heavy cream
1 tsp grated nutmeg
2 tsp dried marjoram
1/2 tsp ground allspice
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/3 c shelled pistachios (or pecans or walnuts)
Dijon mustard (for serving)

1. Combine the salt and pepper in a small dish.
2. Cut the pork and bacon into 1" cubes and put them in a wide bottomed 2 quart pot. (The pot should fit the meat in one layer, although a little double up is okay.) Add water just to cover and 3/4 tsp of the salt/pepper mix and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce the heat, and cook at a slow bubbling simmer until the meat is very tender when poked with a fork, about 3 hours. *I was leaving the house, so did this step all in a crock pot on high heat for 4 hours. It worked great.
3. Uncover and drain, reserving 3/4 c of the mixed juices and fat. Cover the meat and chill. *I had A LOT of juices/fat left, which will make great soup stock. I did reduce the liquid a bit by simmering it on the stove for 30 min or so. It wouldn't be necessary, but I wanted to get extra flavor in there. It still left me with an extra 2 c or so of soup stock.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the liver. Rinse the liver and blot it dry on an old dish towel or paper towels. Cut into 1" cubes (mine from the Seward was already chopped that way?!). Heat a large cast iron skillet over med-high heat and add 1 T pork fat/ghee. Season liver with a bit of the salt/pepper mixture. When the fat is hot, add the liver and sear on all sides until browned on the outside, but pink inside - about 5 minutes. Transfer the liver to a wide bowl.
5. Add the butter and diced onion to the skillet. Season with more of the salt/pepper mixture and cook over medium heat until the onions are sweet, golden, and tender - about 20 minutes. Add the garlic slices (if using) and cook another few minutes until softened. Add the sherry and simmer until it is reduced and "clings saucily to the onions." (I found this descriptor totally accurate and compelling! It did cling saucily!) Add the cream and simmer until thickened, about 3 minutes. Pour the onion mixture over the liver in the bowl, cover and chill in the fridge until very cold.

*I did the previous steps one day, and just chilled everything together in a big bowl overnight. The next stage is to grind and process the meat. She uses a grinder attachment on her stand mixer - but I don't have a stand mixer, so did everything in batches in my food processor. The goal is to really grind the ingredients to a paste - however you do that - and almost "whip" in some liquid. The food processor worked great - it's just that the mixture is quite thick and paste-like and gets a bit sticky.I use that method below.

6. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
7. To remaining salt/pepper mixture, add nutmeg, marjoram, allspice, and cayenne.
8. Grind/process the meat in 3 batches in a food processor, drizzling part of the reserved liquid and part of the spice mixture into each batch. As you process each batch, empty the paste-like product to a large bowl. Once all of the meat is processed and paste-like, but also a bit fluffy from the processing - mix it all together to incorporate all of the flavors. I used a big wooden spoon, but you could also use a hand mixer. Taste the mix (I ate mine as is - it is all cooked - but you could also fry a little up) and adjust salt and pepper as desired. I needed to add another teaspoon or so of salt.
9. Scoop the mixture into a lightly buttered glass or metal 9 x 4" loaf pan. Smooth the top and press nuts into the surface. Set the loaf pan in a larger baking pan and pour hot water into it to reach halfway up the sides of the loaf pan, making a water bath. Bake until the internal temp reaches 150 degrees, about 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Then unmold the loaf, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill deeply.

*Mine did not "unmold" super easily - I went a little too early while it was still warm. I sort of reformed it back, but was nervous it would not hold its shape as it chilled on the front porch. It mostly did. I ended up cutting it in half and just wrapping up half in parchment paper.

Pork Belly!

The rules for the Whole30 are no added sugar or sweeteners, including in foods you might otherwise eat. Like bacon, for example. So it has been almost 3 weeks of no bacon for me, which is a pretty long time since I am otherwise a bit bacon fiendish. Me and Brittany Griner = Bacon lovers. There is a company that makes sugar free bacon, but it is expensive and you have to order it online, and really, I was more curious about making pork belly.

Geez - Pork belly! I kind of can't believe that I waited so long to try it. It actually is not like bacon at all...I mean, bacon is made from pork belly, but pork belly roasted in the oven, with the skin all crispy and "crackling" and the fat beneath all melt-in-your-mouth creamy, is totally different. After making my pork belly, I later found this review of How to Make Perfect Crackling (and really I can't tell the difference between crackling and roasted pork belly - I think they are the same thing by a different name). I am not about to get all high maintenance because my belly turned out great, but it was an interesting comparison that is well written and funny about people's techniques to get the best crackling every time (one includes a hair dryer).

I got my pork belly from the Seward Co-op - it is shelved in the store, you don't need to get it at the meat counter. Actually, My Charming Companion bought it for me after I'd mentioned wanting some - so it was an exciting surprise to be gifted pork belly! It's about $7-8 a pound for the pastured pork.

I looked at The Clothes Makes the Girl for her recipe for pork belly, and also thought about a more Chinese spiced option. Both sound delicious, but I decided to go for a simple salt and pepper version as my initial entry point. I was not disappointed. I ate some right out of the oven with my lunch, and easily reheated some on subsequent mornings for breakfast. Oh it is just so good. And you get a lot of delicious pork fat/lard at the end! I keep using that to cook up other veggies and things, and it is amazing. More lard-like than bacon fat, but more smoky and creamy than lard too. I don't know, it is just plain good.

Making pork belly is pretty simple, but it takes some time (2 hours or so) and will likely get a bit smoky (part of the process is putting the belly into some hot heat to get the fat going and crisp up the crackling - which results in some smoke). My smoke detector went off so I had to remove the battery and open some windows. It seems unavoidable. Other recipes online reported open windows too, and some included stress about cleaning the oven afterwards. For whatever reason mine did not seem overly greasy. I don't know, I have never cleaned my oven. I've never even thought about it til now. Clearly I am not one of those people who might feel stressed about cleaning my oven after cooking pork belly.

2 lbs pork belly
1 T+ Smoked Maldon Salt (any salt would work, but Maldon is my fave)
Pepper

1. Remove the pork belly from its packaging and pat try with paper towel or tea towel or whatever you want to use. Turn belly so the fat side is up. Use a small sharp knife to "score" the fat: you want to cut just to the meat, but not into the meat. I did lots and lots of cuts all over, some people do a more precise cross hatch pattern. You are basically creating a way for the fat to bubble up to "baste" the top so that the crispy cracklings form. I also flipped the belly over and used a fork to puncture the meat side 6 or 8 times too. Next rub the salt all over the fat side of the belly.
2. Set belly in fridge, uncovered, for several hours. I stuck mine in overnight.
3. When you are ready to make the pork belly, preheat the oven to 425. I took my belly out of the fridge to bring it to room temp first, but I am not sure that it was necessary. Put the belly in the hot oven. After 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 350 and roast another hour or 90 minutes. Mine stayed in 90 minutes and it was perfect.
4. Remove belly and let sit for 10 minutes. Slice or cube, and eat! Pour off fat into jars and cool for amazing cooking fat uses.

I found two nice ways to reheat the belly: place slices in a cast iron pan and heat on the stove top, or put slices in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes or so. Both methods will release more fat from the belly and will crisp up a little more in that.

Whole30 and Country Style Ribs

I FINALLY got It Starts with Food from the library - after a wait of many, many months. Who knew that so many Hennepin country residents were interested in a Whole30...I should put flyers for my blog in the book when I return it! ha. I enjoyed the book's easy to read quality - and indeed did get inspired to do my own Whole30. A Whole30 is basically 30 days of eating a pretty strict diet of no grains, dairy, alcohol, sweeteners (including stevia), soy, potatoes or corn products, or oils others than olive and coconut oil. I'm excited to go for it because I have never been really strict about some of those things (other than gluten/grains and soy/corn products) and I want to see what I notice.

So I kicked things off on Sunday, promptly making a batch of ghee since I have taken to snacking on butter sometimes while cooking dinner. I also made a batch of kalua pig with kale, and, to continue a pork feast, I tried making some country style ribs in the crockpot. I think it was maybe my last package from the half pig purchase, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experimentation of some unknown-to-me cuts of pork.

Country style ribs are more meaty AND fatty than other ribs, and it turns out they aren't technically even ribs, but are more "blade steaks" or chops. (This porknography site has all you might ever need to know about cuts of pork, recipes, pork history and more. It's very informative.) Country style ribs don't always come with the bone, and sometimes have more connective tissue. What is nice for me to know is that pretty much any ribs are good slow-cooked in sauce.

My Pastures a Plenty ribs were more like the ones on the left

For my ribs: I put them in the slow cooker, poured on some homemade sauce (modified below from this recipe) and put it on low for 8 hours. I also added a little water but that turned out to be unnecessary. I wish the slow cooker had a little steam exit, because I wanted some of the liquid to cook off. The sauce wasn't thick and gooey on there, which may have been due to my not cooking it down long enough, or my adding water to the crock pot, or both. These ribs being more fatty may have also released more fat, thus more liquid. Next time I will make sure the sauce is more viscous when putting it on the ribs and will not add water, or I'll just cook the ribs in a little broth and serve them with the sauce. I did have extra sauce afterwards, and it tasted great once I cooked it down some more.

Paleo BBQ sauce *Makes enough for at least 4 pounds of ribs with plenty extra

2 T bacon grease (I actually used lard in keeping with the strict no sugar business, but it seemed to separate more. Use bacon grease if you can!)
1 diced onion
2-6 cloves garlic, minced (I omitted)
1-1 1/2 c bone broth
1 jar tomato paste (6-7 oz)
1 tsp dried mustard powder
2 T chili powder
1/2 t chipotle pepper powder
2 tsp liquid smoke (opt)
2 T apple cider vinegar
salt to taste

In a saucepan heat bacon fat. Add onions and saute until tender. Add garlic (if using) and simmer another minute. Add remaining ingredients and cook down about 10 - 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Pour over crockpot ribs, or eat with bbq!

Herby Pork Breakfast Sausage

I am working my way through some more pork products, namely ground pork - which makes terrific sausage! (I also tried them in a meatball recipe that I'll post soon too.) My herbs are so over-flowingly bountiful right now, that I wanted to use lots of them in my breakfast.

This was a super easy recipe that I found from a blog called Use Real Butter that I modified just slightly. I did put in a little honey in the sausage, but you could very easily leave it out if you don't want added sugar. The sausage mix will last a week or so, or you could freeze it if you don't want to eat all the patties at once. These would be amazing with pancakes, though I have been eating them with lots of veggies with herbs for breakfast, and that is great too.

Herby Breakfast Sausage (makes 8 patties)
1 lb. ground pork
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp fresh sage, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well-blended. Form patties to desired size (mine were 2-inches in diameter). Place a skillet on medium-low heat and set the patties in the pan. Cook until the bottoms are browned, then flip and continue to cook until the sausage is done (about 10-12 minutes).

Pork Shanks with Sauerkraut

Well, I still have 5 quarts of sauerkraut to eat before making this year's batch. After this recipe, I am down to 4 - and this was a really tasty way to use some up. I have never cooked pork shanks before, and had a couple of packages from the 1/2 pig purchase this winter. The kraut and shanks paired perfectly for a German style crock pot meal.

I found a recipe from an internet search, and modified it a bit to be in line with my dietary needs and to go in a crock pot. It turned out delicious! Not at all sweet tasting, and super tender.

Pork Shank with Sauerkraut
3-4 lbs pork shanks
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
4 slices bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 quart sauerkraut
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1 bay leaf
1 T stone ground mustard
4 oz apple cider

Season shanks with salt and pepper, set aside. In large Dutch oven or pot sauté bacon to render fat, stir in onion and cook and stir until onion is tender but not brown; push to one side of pan. Add shanks and brown on all sides, about 15 minutes, turning occasionally. Meanwhile, in large bowl stir together drained sauerkraut and remaining ingredients. Remove shanks, place sauerkraut mixture on bottom of pan, return shanks on top of kraut, drizzle beer over all. Cover and place in 350 degrees F. oven for 2-2 1/2 hours, until shanks are very tender. - See more at: http://www.porkbeinspired.com/RecipeDetail/1760/Fresh_Pork_Shank_German-Style.aspx#sthash.TN6t51ug.dpuf

1. In a large dutch oven or heavy pot, saute bacon on medium heat to render the fat, add onions and continue to saute until onions become translucent but not brown. While the bacon cooks, season pork shanks with a good amount of pepper and just a bit of salt (go light because the kraut will provide the salt to the final dish).

2. Move onions and bacon to crock pot, making sure the bottom of the pot still has some fat to brown the pork shanks. Place pork shanks in pot from onions/bacon and brown on all sides - I became a bit impatient and just browned on 2 sides and it seemed fine. I'm perpetually questioning the merits of browning meat when making stew or crock pot dishes - I just can't tell if it makes a big difference. Anyway, brown as you will. While that is happening put kraut plus any juices, and spices and mustard in the crock pot with the onions and bacon.
3. When shanks are browned to your liking, set them atop the kraut pile. There will be little bits of meat and such on the bottom of your dutch oven/pot, so pour in your cider to deglaze. Stir it around a bit to loosen all the good bits, and then pour it all over the meat in the crock pot.  Set your crock pot to cook for 6-8 hours and go about your day. Return to delicious German style kraut and pork.

Pull the pork off the bones (or just nibble them off as you go) and scoop it all in a bowl together: pork, bacon-y onions, and kraut. Serve with a sliced cucumber salad (you know the kind, with mayo and onions and dill).

2 pork shanks, fresh, about 3-4 pounds total
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 slices bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 32-oz package sauerkraut, refrigerated, rinsed and drained well
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 ounces beer , room temperature - See more at: http://www.porkbeinspired.com/RecipeDetail/1760/Fresh_Pork_Shank_German-Style.aspx#sthash.TN6t51ug.dpuf

2 pork shanks, fresh, about 3-4 pounds total
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 slices bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 32-oz package sauerkraut, refrigerated, rinsed and drained well
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 ounces beer , room temperature - See more at: http://www.porkbeinspired.com/RecipeDetail/1760/Fresh_Pork_Shank_German-Style.aspx#sthash.TN6t51ug.dpuf

2 pork shanks, fresh, about 3-4 pounds total
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 slices bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 32-oz package sauerkraut, refrigerated, rinsed and drained well
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 ounces beer , room temperature - See more at: http://www.porkbeinspired.com/RecipeDetail/1760/Fresh_Pork_Shank_German-Style.aspx#sthash.TN6t51ug.dpuf

2 pork shanks, fresh, about 3-4 pounds total
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 slices bacon, diced
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 32-oz package sauerkraut, refrigerated, rinsed and drained well
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 ounces beer , room temperature - See more at: http://www.porkbeinspired.com/RecipeDetail/1760/Fresh_Pork_Shank_German-Style.aspx#sthash.TN6t51ug.dpuf

Best Meat Rub Ever

My Charming Companion was given a hand-me-down smoker sometime recently, and last weekend was its inaugural adventure. The plan was to smoke two deer necks and some pork ribs to have copious quantities of meat to eat, freeze and share. The smoker was a big success - it's like a giant slow cooker that is outside and that imparts delicious smoky flavor not in the form of liquid smoke.  We tried two different rubs, and one of them was the clear winner: lots of paprika! The other rub was a cumin, oregano, chili powder blend that was just not as delicious. The paprika one went on one of the roasts and the ribs, much to my delight because it was so tasty.

Pre-smoked venison - this rub recipe is up front

Pork or Beef Rub
4 T sea salt
4 T paprika
2 T pepper
2 T garlic
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp ground celery seed (I used celery salt and reduced the salt)
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp ground chipotle pepper

Mix spices together thoroughly. It will make almost a cup's worth of rub, which will cover a lot of meat - you can save any extra in a jar with your other spices. You want the meat to be quite dry, so either press it with a towel, or let it sit out in the fridge uncovered for several hours to dry a bit. Sprinkle/press the rub all over the meat (no need to actually rub). Beef brisket, neck, or pork roast or ribs would all be great. *Be more sparing on ribs so that they aren't over salty.

I have never made ribs before, and there was something so delectable about eating them at home, fresh out of the smoker with some sugar free bbq sauce and homemade slaw. Who needs to go out to eat? The ribs we used were ones from the half hog Pastures a Plenty purchase - these were the one set of full ribs in the whole package. But now I want to get more because they are so incredibly delicious! All we had to do was sprinkle them with the rub, stick them in the smoker for 6 hours, and than eat them. You could do the same in an oven, slow cooking the ribs at a low temp.