For my first recipe out of Odd Bits, I decided to bust it open, literally.

The author, Jennifer Mclagan, mentioned that a sheep’s head was quite fiercesome looking.  When my butcher brought it out from the back, held right about head level, I’ll admit that it looked quite hideous. The eyeballs bulged from the naked flesh, teeth bared, tongue limp having fallen through the bottom of the jaw. He wrapped it up gently so the eyeballs didn’t break – a sheep’s head with a broken eyeball could be even more gruesome if it were possible – threw in a couple pig’s feet and off I walked home.

This delicious traditional walnut torte is grain-free and sugar-free. Made with chocolate, walnuts, cloves, cinnamon and cherries it is also an anti-oxidant rich powerhouse. No sin here! Only goodness for your health and your tastebuds

Torte:

• 4 oz (110g) organic raw chocolate nibs (ground)
• 6 T local grass-fed butter
• 3 T date syrup*
• 1 t cinnamon (ground)
• 1/2 t cloves (ground)
• 4 eggs separated
• 4 T date syrup*
• dash salt

I first heard about guanciale on Chopped.  It was a secret ingredient and for some reason I decided to look it up.  Oh my goodness!  Luscious pig jowl washed with wine and scented with black pepper and thyme.  This was something I had to try.

The word guanciale comes from ‘guancia’, which means cheek in Italian.  The jowl is the lower part of the cheek, the part that droops down, all fatty-like.  Mmmmm…  Supposedly the taste of the jowl is intensely porky, I would imagine because it gets a good workout from the pig chewing all day.  I won’t know for another couple weeks though, when my guanciale is ready.

To make the guanciale I cobbled together several different recipes (see my reference list down below).  My method relied on sensuality rather than strictness.

1. The first step: purchase the jowl.  I called my local butcher and they brought one in from Gelderman Farms.  It weighed about a pound and a half.  Once I arrived home, I unwrapped the butcher’s paper and found a very fatty and very hairy piece of pig cheek.   Hmmm…  What to do with all this hair?  Rather than look it up, I decided that I would tweeze out all of the hairs.  Yeah, tweeze them out.  After tweezing for half an hour and making some but not a whole lot of progress I decided to leave it hairy (see notes).  I figured the salt and sugar and/or final cooking would disintegrate the hair and if not, I would either remove the skin or just eat the hair.

2. The second step: bathe the cheek in wine.  Not being a wine drinker I wasn’t sure what kind of wine to buy.  White I decided, because I didn’t want the pig flavour overwhelmed or the fat stained burgundy.  I chose the brand to inspire my guanciale process – Barefoot.  Any suggestions for better wines to choose are appreciated.  I massaged half of the bottle into the jowl, taking my time.  The beauty of home cooking, or one of many, is the ability to luxuriate over the process.  There is no head chef barking at me to finish with my cheek already or a customer distracting me with an order.  It’s just me and my pig cheek and a bottle of wine on a sunny day in early spring.  Lovely.

3. The third step: cover with cure.  The cure recipes I found contained sugar, salt, thyme, and black pepper.  Normally I like to fiddle around with my spice combinations but not so with my guanciale.  It seemed like the spicing was the essence of the charcuterie, as if I couldn’t call it guanciale without using the correct spices.  I used equal portions of salt and sugar, a solid amount of freshly ground black pepper and several sprigs of thyme (picked fresh from my garden).  All of this went into a ceramic dish with the jowl and was popped, covered, into the fridge.  It was supposed to be left for 5-7 days but mine got ten and was flipped half-way through.

4. The fourth step: rinse and hang.  The last step before I eat my cured cheek is to let it hang in a cool spot for at least three weeks.  Oh the patience it takes!  I decided to use my storage closet in the unheated basement of my apartment building.  While it doesn’t have the sweet Mediterranean winds blowing through, it is cool and close so it will have to do.  I tied up my pig cheek in cheesecloth with a few extra sprigs of thyme tucked in.

Check back in a few weeks to see what happens or better yet subscribe to my blog!  Thanks for reading!

Notes:

• Learn more about the awesome anti-microbial power of thyme here!
• Since making my first batch of guanciale I have bought Odd Bits by Jennifer McLagan and now know to shave the pig skin with a disposable razor or burn it off with a propane torch.  I will probably shave it because I don’t like the idea of taking a torch to my little piece of piggie.

References:

Guanciale

Guanciale, The Magical Roman Bacon

The Art of the Cure

Guanciale from Babbo

This is actually a great recipe for grain-free Swedish pancakes. They aren’t as strong as a wrap made with grain but they get the job done and taste fantastic while they are at it. I also like to use 1/2 this recipe and make a stack of pancakes which you can then cut into thick or thin egg noodles and add to a chicken soup. Alternatively, add them into chicken stock for a very easy on the digestion, nourishing meal (my grandma used to make this). When adding into a soup, add at the last minute and only heat a couple minutes before serving.

• 6 eggs
• 1/3 c milk
• 2T fat
• salt & pepper

Method:
Beat ingredients together. Heat butter in pan, pour in batter. Roll pan around so batter will spread evenly. Cook 2 min each side.

In the photo below I have pulled pork, peas and avocado. It was delicious. The great thing about wraps is that you can put just about anything in them! Get creative

I have recently found that I love having fruit syrups on hand to make a variety of fermented foods with. They are useful to add into coconut water kefir or kombucha for a delightful second ferment. They also make a great syrup to pour over a bowl of yogurt and nuts, or just as a syrup for pancakes, ice-cream and many other tantalizing treats. I don’t have the exact amounts here, but the great thing about these syrups is that if you haven’t added enough honey, you can always add more later. Your fruit will also have different levels of sourness depending on how ripe they are so it is probably a good idea to taste test as you make your syrup anyway.

• raspberries, fresh or frozen
• water (use about 1/3 c water per cup of fruit)
• rosehips, fresh or dried (if fresh be sure to remove seeds and hairs before using)
• honey

Method:
Put your raspberries into a pan with water to get the process started. Place over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat, cook for about 2 mins. Add honey. I usually will add about 1/4 c of honey per cup of fruit, allow this to reduce slightly. Add in the rosehips and cook about 2 mins. (I add the rosehips in later so that they will get less cooking as the heat destroys vitamin C, rosehips need to be cooked to remove an enzyme that destroys vitamin C faster than cooking)

This Christmas, when I heard my nephew and niece were gonna join us for dinner I decided to get crazy with the kombucha and make a lovely punch. I have been using coconut water to make kefir lately and decided to try it with kombucha. This recipe isn’t exact. Be sure to use your taste buds to decide how sour or sweet you want it as different brews will have different strengths.

Pomegranate juice is a must this time of year especially with the connection that they have to rebirth and solstice rituals. Mint makes any punch festive and the coconut water gives an exotic reminder that we are all connected. Not just though our guts to the microbes but also to each other all the way around the world.

• 1 batch kombucha (1 gallon)
• 5 medium pomegranates, juiced
• 1 lt coconut water
• 1 bunch of mint

Method:
After your kombucha has fermented, remove the SCOBY and divide between 2 ltr (1/2 gallon) jars (preferably glass). Divide the pomegranate juice, coconut water and mint evenly between all three jars, leaving room at the top for any gasses that build up in the fermentation process.

Allow the second ferment to stand in a warm place for 24 hours, check the flavor. If it is still very sweet allow it to stand another 12 – 24 hours.

Delicious, everyone loved it. I recommend drinking it with coconut water, pomegranate and mint ice-cubes for extra bling (although unfermented coconut water isn’t GAPS / SCD friendly).

I have just finished making a raspberry-vanilla-honey syrup to use in my second ferment of coconut water kefir. Since we are on the GAPS / SCD diets we have been finding every way possible to get more probiotics into our bodies. Coconut water kefir is a very delicious way to get extra probiotics as it creates a fizzy, champagne-like coconut water soda.

Personally I prefer using dairy kefir grains, which work quite well a few times, but since they prefer dairy to grow in they will get depleted and you will have to replace them. You can also use water kefir grains which just love a mineral-rich, sweet medium to grow in and coconut water is just perfect. If you are looking for cultures you can get dairy or water kefir grains here. The same method works for either dairy or water kefir grains.

Coconut water kefir is very rich in probiotics and it is best to only drink about 1/4 to 1/2 cup at a time especially when you first start drinking it.

I have been meaning to post this recipe for years now I feel terrible for not having posted it before–it is such a simple dish. Shan State in Myanmar (Burma) has a very unique tofu recipe which is made from channa dhal not soybeans. Channa dhal is a bean that is similar to chickpeas but smaller, more yellow and easier to digest, especially if it is properly soaked. This recipe is a delicious traditional recipe that can be made into a variety of items. From tofu nwe (a sort of warm tofu porridge with peanuts and cilantro–also used to make the delicious Shan Noodle dish), to tofu thoke (tofu salad) to tofu hnat pyan kyaw (twice fried tofu) to a sauce for the fried tofu. For a beautiful but heart wrenching true Channa Dhal Romeo and Juliet true story click here.

Lately I have become a fan of marinating my meat in kombucha. In fact last night I made a delicious pulled pork recipe which I first marinated in a star-anise, ginger kombucha — oh so tasty, but that is another recipe. This Kombucha chicken recipe is fantastic, simple and just look how the glazed skin twinkles in the sunlight! This just proves how true it is that the simplest recipes are always the best. This recipe is featured in the Hella Delicious 2012 Recipe Calendar.

• 1 free range chicken
• 2 c kombucha
• 2 T mint sauce
• salt & pepper

These are really easy to make, keep for a long time, are a great snack and are full of vitamin A and iron among other things. This recipe is featured in the Hella Delicious 2012 Recipe Calendar.

• 2 pounds apricots
• 3/4 -1 c honey
• 1/3 c water
• salt

Method:
Slice apricots thinly. Reduce honey and water to make syrup. Add apricots- simmer about 4 min. Let sit overnight. Strain out juice and reduce. Add apricots. Pour over baking sheet in thin layer. Place in sun for 2-3 days.