Cider, Hams & Le Tour de France
by girlinafoodfrenzy
Thank goodness for Saturday’s! Woke up after my dozey slumber and was pleasantly surprised by a few things.
No.1 gorgeous sunny day outside, (yes) I can do the washing,
No.2 lovely cured ham hock in the fridge and better yet an assortment of yummy things to accompany it.
No. 3 Tonight begins the Tour de France and my sweetheart is somewhat addicted to the race, (being an outdoorsy, fishing type guy who also does Mountain biking)
I on the other hand am a bit clumsy when it comes to fishing, I’m terribly frightened of snakes, spiders and even worse…Goanna’s (near my least favourite picnic spot. If you’ve never seen one, let’s just say you’re lucky!)
Anyhow, I digress.
I can’t ride to save myself so basically, can’t fish, scared of reptiles and won’t be taking up mountain biking anytime soon.
Nonetheless, road races come reptile free. That and Gabriel Gatê’s taste de le tour and the European countryside will keep us up late for the next 21 days.
So to kick things off, I’ve cooked a little wintertime Braised Ham Hock with Cider, which seems appropriate as we begin in Belgium on Le Tour tonight…see you at the end…
Like this, you might want to see:
Slow cooked BBQ beef
Chicken Kiev with home-style chips & slaw
Chicken in a pot (en Poulè)
I hope you enjoy the racing, I’m always nervous in case they fall off their bikes, I hate it when there’s a crash of some sort. Your photos are getting better and better! I tried to use your theme for my teacups press blog but I couldn’t work out how to do the CSS stuff. You seem to be a real whizz at it, your layout is gorgeous!
Hi Lorna, I agree. Those first few moments when the cyclists take off is definitely a ‘hold your breath’ moment. I enjoy those little rituals we have each year, the online guide, the occasional snacks themed on each town and cheering for our current fave, Cadel Evans of course! Regarding the blog theme & CSS it’s a bit of trial and error but I go online to a few forums to troubleshoot, trust me I’m a novice
Maybe you can’t fish, but you’re a heck of a cook! The flavor of a ham hock lends a lot of good taste to any recipe. I’m sure the acidity of the cider broke down the whole dish, and made it tender ! Watch out for those reptiles! I don’t like them either!!
I was really pleased with the dish. The cider & honey really elevate the Ham too. As for cooking, that’s what got us into trouble at the BBQ spot (some time back,) my guy and I got stalked by the Goanna who came out of hiding as soon as he smelt the Lamb Chops. I wish that lizard didn’t quite appreciate our cooking that much!
The racing is always such a pleasure to watch my friend (though I personally can’t even ride a bike
)
Great celebratory post!
Cheers
CCU
Thanks Uru, I’m in it for the cooking segment on SBS pre-race, ha ha!
I think it’s nice that you ‘divide’ up the complimentary interests haha
The ham looks amazing!
Thank you! It’s slways interesting to see what kind of meal request I get during the tour. One of my favourites was the buckwheat pancakes with ham, gruyere & leek. Mmm, mmm..,
Oh I love buckwheat pancakes/gallettes!
The ham looks salivating!
Thank you Angie. We both agreed it was like a mini hot xmas ham. Glossy, shiny glaze. Cured meat cooked and tender from the beer and yummy, yummy sides
That looks amazing and I’m starving ( I <3 hamhock and cabbage). I will be teleporting over to trade cocktails for food. And that casserole dish is cute!
Cocktails for food! Anytime
ham/hocks is one of those foods, which I’d usually a soup stock or sandwich meat but as the focus of the meal, I forgot how good it could be!
Gorge pix, as always. Your blog is STUNNING.
Thanks hungry mum
I’m just going to say the veggies and ham are the stars here, cause they look so great together it just makes my job easier (but truly, thanks for taking the time to stop by and comment, cause I’m grateful for the feedback!)
Lol. Perhaps biking and fishing aren’t your speciality, but cooking certainly is. Your man is one super blessed dude. Lovely photos, by the way!
Lol, let’s hope so! I wouldn’t make it past the first round of survivor anyhow