Halloween

I don't know if any of my readers are avid Hannibal fans but the TV show, despite not starring Anthony Hopkins was incredible in a whole other way. 

I love how they focused on Hannibal's cooking skills and showcased his dinner parties like they were performances. 

Loin of 'human'...

Halloween has always been my favourite night of the year, perhaps because I love the spooky atmosphere but probably because my dad always made it magical when we were kids. He used to get dry ice from work and create steaming cauldrons of limeade and tell us it was witches brew while we sat in the shed he built with torches under our chins- he is a great story teller and an incredible chef too. From the little pumpkin pasties he made us to the spooky themed jelly desserts. It was always far more magical than christmas. 

Janice Poon's 'Ortolans' made from hollow marzipan

Perhaps there's nothing wrong with channelling your inner Peter Pan but this Halloween I felt that it should be special, I wanted to combine my passion for foraging with my love of the elegant dinner parties on NBC's Hannibal. Luckily I had Janice Poon's blog on hand 'feeding Hannibal' combined with Pascal Baudar's book The New Wildcrafted Cuisine who's work has inspired me endlessly along with his equally talented wife Mia Wasilevich which supplied me with just the right ingredients for this meal fit for Hannibal...or just some Halloween nuts that want a foraged dinner in the style of Hannibal (yes that's me and my best friend although I'm sure she'd rather stay anonymous)  

Either way I hope you enjoy this, for after all 'tis the season to be spooky..... 

Aperitivo 

Natures embodiment of proportional perfection: the golden ratio.

Escargot.

Antipasto

Human emotions are a gift from our animal ancestors.

Cruelty is a gift humanity has given itself.

Foie gras au torchon with a late harvest of Hawberry and redcurrant sauce and fresh and dried figs.

Foie gras 

Faux pas

Pass on that cruel plate 

Take a pass 

or pass away?  

Primo

Endless loop 

Swimming slipping surging

Never reaching the end.

Only a quantum leap

will take you to the other side.

A möbius strip, the eternal chase. Watercress, marsh samphire 'seaweed'.

At a certain point, it becomes unclear who is chasing whom.

Secondo

Your crumpled paper heart 

Too thin and dry 

To break this angry heart of flesh 

and bone.

So stitch the present with the past 

And stay my heart

A mend

To beat again

Lambs hearts stuffed with seasonal nuts, seeds and berries, braised in forest floor. 

Crucified Guinea Fowl

Corntorno

Consuming consomme:

Restorative rest or rant? 

He offers you 

Clear broth

with 

cloaked intentions

soup 

to 

nuts.

Seasonal foraged buttered greens.

Fondant potatoes.

Dolce

Red blood on

White snow 

Soiled like a bone china plate.

Sanguinaccio spiced with hogweed seed.

Digestivo

Circle closes

Noose tightens 

Night falls 

Up side umop

Our end becomes our beginning.

Nocino 

Foie gras au torchon with fresh and dried figs