I don’t know what you pack when you go skiing, but socks, gloves and hats only come along after we’ve packed the confit and there is still room in the luggage. Let’s just say, If the plane goes down in the mountains, we won’t have to worry about eating our fellow passengers.
This is a version of “What Food Would You Bring to a Desert Island”, only now we’re playing, “What do we need to bring to the mountains of Utah?”.
This is serious business, we’re going to a wild and wooly place where Dijon mustard is in the “Exotic International” aisle and I’m not kidding.
Here is our Mountain Survival Stash:
“Il Cortile”: “Il Cortile” is an Italian name for all the animals that live in the barnyard. In our case our cortile has: ducks, chicken, quail, partridge, bunnies. Of course, the duck legs are traveling as confit; they’re already resting quietly in a nice layer of fat.
5 lb shrimp for quick meals
10 lb of veal bones that I’ve already turned into a scant quart of the most delicious veal stock gelee. Instant flavor wallop.
Rice: basmati and carnaroli for risotto
Truffle Butter: don’t leave home without it
Zolfino beans: it’s a fabulous white, Slow Food protected bean that only comes from Anghiari, a tiny town just over the Tuscan border. I know eating beans at high altitude could be problematic, but these beans are well worth it.
Olive Oil: our own hand harvested oil...of course
Spanish Olives: mmmmmmm.....
Seasoned Salt
And a large can of wasabi peas.
And if we have enough room, I think I’ll bring along Paula Wolfert’s “The Cooking of Southwest France” for slow cooking inspiration.
Let the fun begin! See you in the mountains.
