Homemade Bacon

We made homemade bacon!  Seriously — homemade bacon.  As we noted in last month’s duck prosciutto post, we are participating in Charcutepalooza, which is a year-long effort by a collection of approximately 200 food bloggers to attempt and document a monthly charcuterie challenge.  This month’s endeavor was salt cure — bacon for the “Apprentice Challenge” and pancetta or quanciale for the (more advanced) “Charcutiere Challenge.”  The greatest part of this whole experiment?  It was foolishly simple, and the end result is so delicious that we are wondering why we have never done this before.  We may never buy the plastic wrapped stuff at the grocery store again.  Many thanks to the folks who put together Charcutepalooza — such a great way to inspire us and others to step out of our cooking comfort zones.  And now, on with the bacon! Continue reading “Homemade Bacon”

Duck Breast Prosciutto

Apparently, January is the time for new culinary experiences here at FoodieLawyer.  First, we made bread.  Now, we’re curing meat in our garage.  We are participating in “CharcutePalooza,” which is a year-long collective effort of a group of bloggers to execute monthly challenges using “charcuterie” — a collection of ancient methods for preserving meats.  Michael Ruhlman’s book on charcuterie is the guide for each of the challenges.  First up, duck breast prosciutto. Continue reading “Duck Breast Prosciutto”