leff's 40th bday medieval feast!

so leff says to me he says "i would like a turkey leg for my birthday, please!" since turkey legs are hard to come by this time of year (next month, sure! all the turkey legs you could want!)  i suggested "medieval feast instead?" and so that is what we did.

thankfully, i have friends who do this sort of thing professionally so i wasn't totally clueless when i started planning this meal. (thank you a MILLION times again, anthony! (all recipes that aren't linked were courtesy of mr manthatcooks.)) 

here's the result of the day's cooking and baking! although, ha! we aren't done at the time of writing. there is still a chicken. still. a. chicken. 0_o.

we started the morning with zabarbada of fresh cheese and black bread.

yes, i said morning. we have been eating off and on for, oh, eight hours or so now. hahaha 0_o

the cheese course was followed by three types of pies, greens, mushroom and fig tart. oh my goodness, they were so tasty.

we were still vegetarian by this time of day and continued to be so with this lovely green salad composed of parsley, watercress, butter lettuce, spring onions and cucumber dressed with a simple vinegar/oil dressing + salt and pepper. (that was kind of a cheat recipe. i often eat this salad on my own.)

but then bingo bango sugar in the gas tank  it was time for some cod that was poached in the white wine that accompanied it.

i added some dill. why would i not add dill? i always add dill.

well, ok, i didn't add dill to the braised apples with cheese. i'm not crazy.

ok, i lie. i am crazy.  for the braised apples with cheese. oh, and also the alows de beef. so damn good!

especially when paired with some hippocras wine.

here is where i would be putting a picture of the chicken if it had been finished before i wrote the post. just, you know, imagine a chicken. do you have the chicken image in your head? good. we were going to roast it in front of a big fire but it was, sadly, very warm today. it's in the oven instead. sigh.

you can stop picturing the chicken now.

anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEFF!!!!!

i PROMISE you that we will roast a chicken in front of a giant fire before the year is out. i have the trussing needle and some cooking string, after all.

swear on rhyley's rainbow unicorn cat that we will!