Cassoulet!

All the work was worth it. Even the part when I was trying to rip one of the duck's legs off and I grabbed its neck and a trapped air bubble qucked out. Even when I was pulling tendons out of the braised and very hot lamb shanks and they snapped like rubber bands.

Yes, it was worth it, because cassoulet is by far the most delicious dish ever.

The beans, velvety. The meats, tender and just gamey enough. The crumb layer, crisp and full of butter. Thank you Julia!

I did accidentally drink a whole bottle of champagne during dinner and so I don't remember dessert. But it looks good, doesn't it???

Life Plans

I'm sorry there is a stupid ad in the screen, but this was one of my favorite scenes from the movie. I can relate so closely to how she feels!

A Whole Duck

I got a whole duck from work on saturday night, beak, eyes, paws, flippers and all. It is soooo cute and now different parts of its body are allll over my kitchen. First, its head, spine, and ribcage were dismantled and roasted in the oven( I am a terrible butcher, by the way. It took 4 knives and a lot of ripping for me to get everything apart). Toasted bones make a great stock.
Meanwhile, the breasts have been wrapped and are now relaxing in the freezer until further notice with a pound of awesome ground beef that I changed my mind about for tonight's dinner. The legs and wangs are in the oven after being pan seared, and are nestled in around 4 pounds of lamb shanks, onions, garlic, herbs, tomato sauce and cabernet.
The skin is boiling on the stove in order to render of some fat that I can eat with a spoon during dark moments.

What ever am I up to?

Well... I saw Julie and Julia on Saturday morning with Kevin and Shane and we (I) cried through the whole movie. I loved it! And, just like everyone else who saw it, I remembered how amazing Julia Child was and rushed to get a copy of MtAoFC (and wished I went to a private cooking school in Paris). Naturally, every (every) book store in Portland is sold out! It was kind of embarrassing to ask for it today, as I knew all kinds of yahoos have been searching for it just because of the movie. I'm just sad that I didn't already have a copy.
You see, I already made plans and invited everyone over to have Pate de canard en croute tonight. But then I couldn't find the book this morning. I already had the duck, the beef and the pork for the filling, I just needed the recipe and a trussing needle!
So anyway. It was not meant to happen today. I did find a copy of Julia Child & More Company though, and decided to make a cassoulet. I tracked down four pounds of lamb shanks and some navy beans, and now everything is cooking.

I had never butchered a duck before today- it is much harder than they make it look at my job. I will post photos later of the process and the results. In the mean time, go see that movie!