Four days into the birthday month 
 and I had dinner at friends’ Friday night, dinner at my sister’s of charcuterie/cheese/bread last night after we had lunch in Tomales Bay at The Marshall Store (where I’m going again in a couple weeks for the annual bday Stinson Beach weekend), and tonight I finally cooked - Pork Gumbo! didn’t know it was a thing, but googled and found a few recipes and then winged it.  I rubbed a small pork shoulder with kosher salt, pepper, smoked bourbon paprika, granulated garlic, a little cayenne, braised it for a couple hours, shredded it.  Made a roux (stove top for 1/2 hour, oven for an hour), and added some oatmeal stout to the chicken stock after the veggies went in (and of course Tony’s Chacheres and more cayenne).  Everything simmered stove-top for about half hour.  Turned out great!  Though I did miss the andouille… no okra to be found, fresh or frozen.





































