Sausage by Victoria Wise Read Free Book Online

tablespoon tomato paste
    2 cups fresh bread crumbs
    To prepare the duck, mix together the coarse salt, thyme, juniper, and pepper in a small bowl. Place the duck pieces in a nonreactive container large enough to hold them in a single, tightly packed layer. Spread the salt mixture over the duck and turn the duck to coat on both sides. Loosely cover with plastic wrap, place a weight of some sort on top, and refrigerate for 3 or 4 hours.
    To prepare the beans, first presoak them using the quick-soak method: Place in a large pot with water to cover generously and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat and let stand for 1 to 2 hours. To cook the beans, drain and rinse them and return them to the pot. Add water to cover generously and bring to a boil over high heat. Decrease the heat to maintain a brisk simmer and cook, uncovered, until the beans are tender, about 2 hours. (The beans can also be cooked in a pressure cooker without presoaking. Place in the pressure cooker with water to cover by 1½ inches, cook for 35 to 40 minutes after coming to pressure, then let stand for 10 minutes to allow the beans to finish cooking as the pressure subsides.) Stir in the kosher salt, and let cool completely in the liquid, preferably overnight, in the refrigerator.
    When ready to cook the cassoulet, preheat the oven to 350°F.
    Rinse the duck legs and pat them dry. Using your fingers and a paring knife, lift up the thigh skin on each leg and stuff the sausage between the skin and meat, dividing the sausage evenly among the legs.
    In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding, add the duck legs, skin side down, and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 6 minutes total. Transfer to a plate.
    Drain the cooled beans and transfer them to a baking dish large enough to hold the duck pieces in a single, tightly packed layer. Add the broth and tomato paste to the beans and stir to mix. Set the duck pieces on the beans, cover the dish, and bake until the juices are bubbling and the duck is beginning to turn golden around the edges, 30 to 40 minutes.
    Uncover the dish and sprinkle the bread crumbs evenly across the top. Continue baking, uncovered, until the duck is golden on top and the bread crumbs are well toasted, 15 to 20 minutes. If the crumbs start to burn, ladle some of the juice from the dish over them. Serve piping hot.
    Sweet Italian Sausage
    The fennel-spiked sausage that turns up in such favorite Italian American preparations as pizza, meatball sandwiches , custardy casseroles, and savory pies has so captured the heart of American cooking that it can be found in supermarkets and deli cases from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Northwest and everywhere in between. Not only is it one of the tastiest and most popular sausages, but it is also one of the easiest to make at home because it doesn’t require a casing. In fact, most recipes call for taking it out of its casing. If you want to serve the sausage as links, stuff it into hog casing. The recipe yields a larger amount than the other recipes in the book because this sausage is so versatile that I like to have some on hand in the freezer.
    MAKES 2 POUNDS
    1¾ pounds ground pork
    ¼ pound salt pork, fat part only, minced
    2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
    1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano or scant ½ teaspoon dried oregano
    1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or scant ½ teaspoon dried thyme
    2 teaspoons fennel seeds
    ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    ½ cup white wine
    1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste, if needed
    Place all the ingredients except the salt in a large bowl, and knead with your hands until thoroughly blended. Cook and taste a small sample, then add the salt if needed. Leave in bulk and shape as directed in individual recipes or stuff into hog casing. Cover and refrigerate for several hours, or preferably overnight, to allow the flavors to