It’s spring in Ithaca — whatever that means.  Although we all yearn for the delicious verdant vegetables of springtime, we find, instead, that it is raining and cold. The answer: spring comfort food. By combining winter cooking methods with spring ingredients, you can achieve light, exciting flavors and comforting meals in one.  Between the farmers’ market and Wegman’s, you can easily get all the ingredients for the following dish.

Don’t be daunted by the seemingly lengthy recipe; it’s very easy and only takes a little planning.  Start it on a Friday or Saturday and enjoy it the next day.  It’s a delicious way to cap off a weekend.

Serves 4

For the pork belly:

·      2 lb pork belly

·      4 carrots, diced

·      1 yellow onion, yellow, diced

·      2 cloves garlic, crushed

·      1 ounce fresh basil, torn

·      5 sprigs thyme

·      1 bottle dry white wine (I used Öko Pinot Gris)

For the potatoes:

·      1 lb Russian fingerling potatoes, wiped clean

·      reserved pork fat

For the asparagus puree:

·      20 stalks green asparagus

·      10 stalks white asparagus

·      3 tablespoons olive oil

·      1 tablespoon chopped parsley

·      ½ cup heavy cream

·      salt to taste

For the salad:

·      2 handfuls pea shoots

·      2 handfuls microgreens

·      2 stalks of green asparagus, shaved

·      1 tablespoon reserved pork fat

·      2 tablespoons lemon juice

·      salt to taste

For the sunchoke chips:

·      1 sunchoke, peeled

·      canola oil, for frying, at 375 degrees F

·      salt

Method:

Day 1

·      Heat oven to 250 degrees F

·      Season pork belly with salt and pepper

·      Heat a large skillet to smoking and then sear belly until brown on both sides

·      Remove belly from pan and place in a roasting pan or 13x9 baking dish

·      Add vegetables, herbs and garlic and sweat until soft and fragrant

·      Add wine and scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan

·      Simmer mixture for a few minutes; then pour over pork

·      Add water until braising liquid comes about 2/3 up the sides of the pork belly

·      Place roasting pan in oven for 6 hours, checking to make sure liquid is not evaporating too quickly

·      After cooking pork, place a pan on top of the pork with something heavy in it to weigh it down and then chill it in the fridge overnight

Day 2

·      Pork: Remove pressed pork from pan, trim into an even rectangle, and return to refrigerator

·      Sunchoke chips: slice sunchoke and fry in oil until golden

·      Transfer chips to a paper towel and season with salt

·      Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

·      Strain braising liquid into a saucepan, reserving fat in the strainer.

·      Melt fat and strain; reserve for potatoes

·      Reduce braising liquid to a glaze

·      Asparagus puree: Roast asparagus with olive oil and salt in preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until tender

·      Remove asparagus from oven and puree with cream and parsley; strain

·      Potatoes: in a pan, combine the potatoes with reserved pork fat; poach at medium heat until you can pierce a potato with a fork. Drain excess fat and turn heat up to high, crisping the potatoes.

·      Season with salt

·      Salad:  combine pea shoots, microgreens, and shaved asparagus in a bowl with fat, lemon, and salt to taste.

To assemble:

·      Heat a pan to smoking over high heat

·      Add the pork belly and sear on both sides until warmed through and crispy

·      Heat asparagus puree and potatoes

·      Slice pork belly into 1/3 inch slices

·      Spoon a pool of asparagus puree onto each of four plates

·      Fan five slices of pork belly on top of the puree

·      Place potatoes next to pork belly

·      Top with salad and then sunchoke chips; spoon some of the glaze around the plate

Enjoy!