Meats | Gourmandistan

Making things a bit sunnier by adding apricots to lentils with sausage and prunes

November 28, 2016 by Steve

Gourmandistan’s old Kentucky home is once again undergoing the Commonwealth’s standard version of Winter, where “the sun shines bright” line in the official state song seems only a bitter, damp and cloudy joke. Looking to brighten things up a bit while avoiding all the heavy work we did while preparing for Thanksgiving, Michelle updated this Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall lentil dish with a dash of dried apricots. We really enjoyed the way the apricots’ tartness added to the savory lentils and sweet […]

Categories: Apricots, Beans, Cooking, Food, Pork, Prunes, Recipes

Strong beef sparks stunning salad with silky shallot vinaigrette

November 12, 2016 by Steve

Recently we have been happily patronizing Red Hog, a craft butchery and restaurant opened by our friend Bob Hancock of Blue Dog Bakery. Their meat has the kind of impeccable sourcing and careful trimming we’ve come to expect from England and Italy. We’ve quickly learned to depend on the sausages, roasts, chops and other meats we’ve picked up on several visits. We’ve also learned Michelle needs a bit of adjustment to dry-aged beef. We’re certainly no strangers to finely-aged beef, having enjoyed many meat courses at some […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Food, Lettuce, Meats, Recipes, Salad

Simmering a bit more summeriness into beef pot roast

July 5, 2016 by Steve

Pot roast is something we usually associate with colder months here in Gourmandistan. But we had a really cool 4th of July weekend, and even as the weather increasingly becomes hot and sticky around here, we cannot stop buying beef from our biodynamic neighbors up the road. A slab of chuck roast recently caught our eye and demanded we do something with it. With the help of Alice Waters and Bradley Ogden, Michelle came up with this lighter-than-expected pot roast. She […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Dumplings, Food, Recipes

Saying goodbye to Fil with sukiyaki

June 26, 2016 by Michelle

After 94 years of curiosity, crossword puzzles, conversations, travel and more, Steve’s “mom,” Filomena DeMarzo Farley, died last week. Fil was the older sister of Steve’s real mother, who died when he was a toddler. Fil was born in Orange, New Jersey and grew up as part of a large, interrelated Italian family. Gourmandistan has brought you bits of Fil’s childhood before, told through stories of struffoli and eggplant parmesan, and we may very well visit Mechanic Street again. But on the […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Family, Food, Japan, Onions, Recipes, Tofu

Bacon salad dressing brings back memories, blesses pea shoots and more

March 27, 2016 by Michelle

Michelle had never heard of Hillstone Restaurant Group before reading this month’s feature article in Bon Appétit Magazine. This “non-chain chain” is reportedly adored by such culinary luminaries as Danny Meyer and David Chang. As she read, Michelle felt a jolt of familiarity when she saw that HRG “started in 1977 with the opening of Houston’s in Nashville.” 1977, it seems, was the year Michelle and her college girlfriends also landed on Nashville’s West End Avenue, becoming a part of the beginning of what Andrew Knowlton, the article’s author, calls the “best-run, […]

Categories: Apples, Chicken, Cured meats, Food, Friends, Nuts, Pork, Recipes, Restaurants, Salad, Watercress

Take-out lo mein taken in to Gourmandistan, transformed by duck

March 21, 2016 by Steve

Over the years, there has been much debate in Gourmandistan over which Chinese food travels best. While it was never one of Michelle’s favorites because sameness, Steve usually asserted that lo mein was a reliable take-out choice. He felt the combination of noodles, sauce and assorted other things (mainly pork, in Steve’s preference) was always about the same quality at home as it was in the restaurant. However, this homemade version with duck may very well end the argument, as Steve agrees it […]

Categories: China, Cooking, Duck, Food, Mushrooms, Pasta

Pork and walnut crépinettes, because caul fat is amazing

February 19, 2016 by Steve

It is not a secret that Gourmandistan loves odd bits of animals, from oxtails to hog jowls to entire pig heads. Now, thanks to our badass local baker/pig farmer, we have another part to cherish—caul fat. This magical, membranous lipid has given us several memorable meals recently, including these delightful crépinettes. Caul fat, for those of you unfamiliar with it (we’re looking at you, most Americans), is a sheer membrane overlaying the stomach of some animals, including sheep, cows and pigs. We got […]

Categories: Food, Kale, Meats, Nose-to-tail, Nuts, Pork, Recipes

Improvised umami-mazing oxtail and ramen soup, now that we’re cooking with gas

February 2, 2016 by Steve

A period of unfortunately-timed icy weather last week saw Gourmandistan once again facing an empty heating fuel tank, forcing us to lower our thermostat to a fairly chilly 50° F, to take short showers and to avoid using our gas cooktop. (Steve has already set reminders to check the tank level more frequently next winter.) Thanks to a pan of lasagna made before we knew the house was running on fumes, we did not suffer too greatly. An “emergency” request to our propane […]

Categories: Beef, Cooking, Food, Recipes, Soups & Stews

In Winter’s midst, we make meatballs (and put them in beef and barley soup)

January 24, 2016 by Steve

Gourmandistan was fortunate enough to escape most of the massive snowstorm that engulfed America’s east coast in the past few days. However, several inches of snow and a somewhat ice-clogged creek have reminded us that, as in winters past, we may become stranded at home with no food options but what we have on hand. With an eye towards the ugliness that February might bring, Michelle brought home some beef, veal and pork and spent some time making a batch […]

Categories: Barley, Basics, Cooking, Food, Kale, Meatballs, Recipes, Soups & Stews