Guanciale wrapped

Guanciale unwrapped

Each time we get our hogs slaughtered I make sure to get the jowls back fresh not frozen. The jowl is similar to the belly that is used for bacon. And it is perfect for curing. Hanging under the stairs alongside a ham or two there is usually at least one jowl waiting for our occasional dishes of spaghetti alla carbonara. The cured jowl is traditionally called guanciale when called for in a recipe.

Recently, in addition to the carbonara, I have discovered the joys of making roulade with pork cutlets wrapped in strips of guanciale. Since the cucumber harvest began overloading the kitchen counter at the start of the season we have been looking for ever more creative ways of using the surplus. Simple salads of cucumbers, onions, mint and yogurt or cucumber, tomato and basil have graced pretty much every dinner since May. But thanks to a New York Times piece a month ago we have begun fermenting our pickles. Big spears of cucumber with fresh dill, garlic, peppercorns and coriander seeds packed into jars with water and salt yield terrific pickles in less than a week.

So as we prepared my birthday dinner a few days back roulade was the perfect choice to take advantage of the pickle spears, the guanciale and the pork cutlets. We finished the dish with gravy made from some homemade onion jam, cream and fresh chanterelles. Dessert was Cindy’s banana pudding crested with huge waves of fresh meringue washing across the surface.

And if you think I am boasting and a bit of a braggart you are correct.