who needs the sun?

a few days ago the sun shone bright and warm(ish) over brighton.
if we are lucky springtime might actually come sometime soon, i thought.
among many other more meaningful things it made me realize i do not have much time to talk about one of my favourite winter comfort foods.

(yes, i was actually leisurely pushing my little girl's pram on the seafront and worrying about this blog. ten out of ten for dedication!)

there's no lack of winter comfort foods where i am from, a small town on a lake close to the swiss border, with an average of 250 rainy days per year and ball freezing cold winters aplenty.
my mom is from the northof italy too, from a region where rice is grown extensively and october fogs last until february.

that's how mediterranean i am. there's no olive oil in my childhood memories.

my mom cooked with butter, sunflower oil, cream - not at same time, mind you, i wouldn't be here to tell the tale - and one of her signature dishes is maiale al latte o pork cooked in milk and cream.

a nice piece of roasting pork is browned in butter (note to british readers: remove all skin first) then covered in cream an milk and left to braise for one and a half hours or until you see it's going to break under a slight pressure of a fork. you want it to be *tender*.

when its ready i slice the meat and transfer the lot in a roasting tin with some porcini mushrooms and boiled potatoes. the tin goes under the grill to give the lot a slightly charred edge.

serve on its own and eat all snuggled up in warm clothes with someone you love and a glass of a nice ruby red wine of medium body (nebbiolo, grignolino).

who needs the sun?