Tag Archives: fruit

Sausages and Pears in Oil – The Lies of Locke Lamora

“You two have just volunteered to cook dinner. Pears and sausage in oil, and a double portion for your new little brother…”

-The Lies of Locke Lamora, by Scott Lynch

Thoughts:

The Lies of Locke Lamora bursts with lavish settings, appealing to the senses with descriptions of the sights and smells of bustling Camorr. Set in a fantastic world of alchemy and clockwork, it also contains accounts of glorious, glorious food. This dish is one of four in a given meal when young Locke is first welcomed into the fold by the Gentlemen Bastards.

This is a tasty, if unexpected, pairing. The pears pick up the spiciness of the sausage, holding a slight crisp bite in their skins. The sausages, on their own, are delicious. However, when taken with a bite of the pear, the textures and flavors complement one another very nicely. The addition of balsamic tones down the oil somewhat, and rounds out all of the flavors brilliantly.

I recommend it as an Autumnal dish, as the spices and roasting will warm both you and your kitchen. 

Stay tuned for the other elements of this same meal: black bean salad in mustard-wine sauce, fried chicken dumplings in gingery orange sauce, and red peppers stuffed with almond paste and spinach.

Recipe for Sausages and Pears in Oil

Serves 4

Prep: 15 minutes           Cooking: 15 minutes

Cook’s Notes: As I sadly don’t have an alchemical hearthstone, I’ve had to make do. As a result, the sausages and pears are first seared in oil, then roasted in the oven to finish them off. 

Ingredients

  • 6 spicy pre-cooked sausages (chorizo, linguica, or hot Italian are all good choices), split in half lengthwise
  • 4 firm pears, quartered and cored
  • 1/2 cup olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, plus more for serving
Drizzle grill pan with 2 Tbs. olive oil. Sear the sausages and pears in for about 30 seconds each side. Lay the sausages in a pan, add the pears on top, and drizzle with the oil and balsamic vinegar.
Roast in the oven at 450 for about 15 minutes.
For an elegant presentation, spread an even, thin layer of olive oil on the plates. Onto this, carefully let fall droplets of balsamic vinegar until the plate is decorated. Arrange the sausage and pears to your liking, and serve.

Cold Fruit Soup

“There were great joints of aurochs roasted with leeks, venison pies chunky with carrots, bacon, and mushrooms, mutton chops sauced in honey and cloves, savory duck, peppered boar, goose, skewers of pigeon and capon, beef-and-barley stew, cold fruit soup.” -A Clash of Kings

Medieval Fruit Soup

Medieval Cold Fruit Soup

Our Thoughts:

On first taste, the medieval soup comes across with just a strong honey taste.  The color tells one’s brain to expect a different flavor, a strawberry, perhaps, but once over that initial surprise, you can begin to really appreciate it for its own merits.  With a little  cinnamon on top, the soup reminded us of a candied apple, yet the almond milk lends it just a bit of exoticness.

This recipe, along with the modern version, is available in the Cookbook.