Why I Need an Annual ‘Charcuterie Day’

KevinBacon, Big Game, Butchering, Charcuterie, Deer, Dry Cured Meats, From Local Farms, From the Cellar, From The Wild, Guanciale, Hunting, Nature's Green Acres, Pork, Sausage, Whole Muscle3 Comments

It’s becoming increasingly clear to me that an annual ‘Charcuterie Day‘ marathon immediately following the annual ‘Pig Day‘ is in my future for a long, long time. Here’s why. Bacon. Beyond bacon [reason alone], I’m not concerned with the possibility of trichinosis in my extremely high quality bush-raised-and-handled-by-me pork and skipping right past freezing and into to curing and dry … Read More

Cob Oven Bacon

KevinBacon, Charcuterie, Cob Oven, Cooking w/ Fire, From the Cellar, Nature's Green Acres, Pork, Smoking w/ Fire5 Comments

Writing about bacon. Again. Just when I thought there wasn’t anything additional to add to the conversation I have with myself here, there was something else to add. A simple conclusion: wood ovens are fantastic smokers. Different than a commercially manufactured smoker that generally involves automation, an element, and some wood chips, it still requires some finagaling in the way … Read More

Smoking Heart and Bacon

KevinBacon, Charcuterie, Cooking w/ Fire, Dry Cured Meats, From Local Farms, From the Cellar, Heart, Peck N Berry Acres, Pork, Smoking w/ Fire5 Comments

I had been thinking of cold smoking my piece of curing elk heart, and then ‘Meat Smoking and Smokehouse Design‘ arrived from the library. Inspiring book. No question I was going to give it a go after reading all kinds of cool ideas on how to cold smoke. It’d only been curing a couple days, but I had some bacon … Read More

Bacon Deserves Some Respect

KevinBacon, Charcuterie, Cooking w/ Fire, From Local Farms, From the Cellar, Nature's Green Acres, Pork, Smoking w/ Fire, Wood Fired Oven Project7 Comments

I know, I write about bacon a lot. And I know, bacon’s so last year, right? Wrong. Putting bacon in all kinds of stupid stuff – that’s so last year. But top-shelf bacon is, and will be so long as man and pork collide, a force of awesomeness to be reckoned with. For those of you who have been paying … Read More

I’m Thankful for This Soup

KevinBacon, Charcuterie, Dairy, Fall Veg, Foraging, From Local Farms, From the Cellar, From the Garden, From The Wild, Mushrooms, Nature's Green Acres, Pork, Smoky Valley Goat Cheese, Vegetables3 Comments

I’ve been really grateful for the abundance around me lately. I feel a little like I’ve won the lottery [I don’t buy tickets]. This soup kind of summed up my happiness of late. It’s a purée of winter squashes from my former lawned front yard, with celery and leek from my backyard garden + a whack of chevre from Holly. … Read More