Proscuitto with Havoc Farm Pork

I put a good leg of pork away to cure last week so that we can hopefully enjoy some Proscuitto in the New Year of 2016. It takes at least 6 months to hang and dry-cure properly. A good time to start is now (May/Autumn) so I can start the dry-hanging process in my front sunroom while I have cold days and nights that aren't above maximum temperatures of 15C.

Step 1: Salt cure

Ingredients/materials
Really good quality free range pork leg between 7-10 kilograms, aitch bone removed, and 'trimmed so it looks like a fine instrument'.
3kg salt and a good container with a lid

Place some salt in an esky or chilli bin that can be secured tightly with a lid

sit the pork leg on the bed of salt

salt it really well

Salt the pork leg making sure salt gets right around the hip bone as this is the most likely spot for problems to occur later.  Weight it down with something heavy that is clean (I used my pasta roller with a plastic bag). Leave it to sit curing for 3 weeks, turning it over every few days.

Step 2: Preserving and hanging

Ingredients/materials

Muslin cloth

Pork lard

cayenne pepper

black pepper

horopito leaves dried and crushed (native NZ pepper tree)

hanging twine

20 June 2015 

Today I washed the leg in water and dried it with an offcut piece of new muslin. I hung itcto dry for a couple of hours then proceeded to paste on the lard and spices, then wrap in muslin and twine, then hang from the rafters in the front room of the studio. This location is ideal as I am right next to a beautiful rainforest creek, and humidity is important as well as cool airflow. The photos show the steps today.

Now to wait six months! 



~ to be updated

Caramelized Garlic Bread

 

I planted some garlic the other day on Jon and Kristina's property and was so excited about garlic I made some bread for them with about 50 cloves in it.

 

Method

Prepare a Ciabatta dough, or a Foccacia dough.

Peel the cloves and fry in some butter on very low heat for about an hour.

After this, add a pinch of salt and pepper, 2 tbsp. brown sugar, 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar and stir not to let the sugar burn.

Fold the caramelized cloves into the ciabatta dough. They should be like caramel with a bit of sauce.

 

Shape bread and bake according to the dough recipe.

The Studio at Purakaunui

This is the studio at Jon and Kristina's property in Purakaunui TOm and I moved to for a little while.

back door to the native bush

There is a beautiful rainforest creek next to us with old Rimu, Totara, Fuschia, Horopito...

Local sand flats

The inlet is tidal and has nice track beside it that winds around to the open ocean past little bays

Manuka looking back south towards Mount Mopanui

Purakaunui inlet main channel

Purakaunui inlet meeting the ocean

Bitter chocolate, almond and coconut tart

A really nice rich bitter chocolate tart to have on a special occasion with some double or thick whipped cream.

 

Ingredients and method

 

Mix the following together for the crust, then press into a nice flat bottomed pottery dish (can cook for a drier crust in the oven, otherwise just use raw)

• ½ cup (40g) unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
• 1 ½ cups (190g) almond meal
• 2 tablespoons (30g) coconut oil, melted
• 2 tablespoons (30g) maple syrup
• ¼ tsp salt

Whisk the following together for the ganache, pour over crust, then refridgerate

• 1 cup (240ml) canned coconut milk, refridgerated, cream scooped out and heated (drink the leftover coconut water)
• 340g bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sprinkle on top

• handful toasted coconut flakes
• handful roasted unsalted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
• pinch of sea salt flakes