Tuesday 18 January 2011

A strange soup

Today I took some vegetables out from the freezer and a container with green stuff in it...but did not remember what it was. I was sure it was a soup of some sort, but what kind of soup? Well I had to wait till it was defrosted in the pan.
This morning I started to do cuttings from the pig which was dispatched last Saturday. I managed to cut one of the carcasses in three pieces and then refined the cut of the back leg, ready to be put under salt for ham.
I hope to do all the cuttings by the end of this week.
With the pig head, like last year, I managed to make 15 burgers and seven jars of brawn (?), boiled meat and bones. The bones and the meat from the head produces a natural gelatin and preserves the meat for long time.
It is amazing how much meat can be saved from the head of a pig. You probably can feed with both the burgers and the jars 30 people if you add a dozen of boiled potatoes to it. The meat cooks for about three hours and it comes loose from the bones and is very very tender and tasty. I normally put some bay leaves and mashed peppercorns and and salt to the water, but in Sardinia we add some vinegar as well.
With Christine we are planning to make cured hams, cured bacon, some sausages and salamis and if I got time I might attempt some smoking meat as well.
Yesterday I defrost peas, beans and beetroots leaves and cooked last winter cabbage. Peas are very sweet and the beetroot leaves are as good as spinach.
I have boiled the cabbage and some potatoes to then mash the potato and chop the boiled cabbage and mix the all lot together with some milk and one egg. The dish went into the oven and it was a real good meal.
The mysterious green soup was for my lunch today and it was made with pea pods and potatoes. The taste of the pea pods was strong but edible. The only problem was caused by the pea pods filament ....but it did not bodered me as I am no fussy about it.
I am trying to use more stuff from the freezer and so I am trying to feed the rest of the family with my products. There is still lots of food in there...and still coming in. The goose, the pig, the cockerel ....and spring will not be long with new herbs starting to grow around.
Christopher juice cartoons are saved as we are planning to produce more juice next time, and certainly more concentrated ones that are fantastic for teas. Peter is the one whom has tried the cherry, damson and raspberry ones, saying that they were all very good. So, is not only me that likes them. I should one day offer a fruit tea around the school and see the result...
Here some recent pictures.


Some of the seven jars of the pig head and one of the two big jars of gelatin. This product is very similar to the old fashion SPAM.


Spam with cans.jpeg
The Spam product on the right is processed finely to give it a better appearance. Mine is made with pieces of meat but with no additives or else..

Above the burgers from the meat of the pig head.

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