PASTA, RICE & BEANS

Serves 10

2 pounds (1 kg) or 5 cups (1.25 L) large white kidney or navy beans
2 pork knuckles, or 1 pork shank or ham bone
3 Medium onions, 1 stuck with a whole clove
Bouquet garni (A carrot and a stalk of celery, sprigs of parsley and thyme, and a bay leaf tied in a cheesecloth  bag)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 ounces (100 g) fresh or salt pork rind, cubed
2 tablespoons (25 ml) duck fat
4 cloves garlic
2 Pounds (1 kg) pork shoulder, In large cubes
4 tablespoons (50 ml) tomato paste or 2 cups (500 ml) canned, cubed, drained tomatoes
6 Toulouse sausages
6 legs of duck confit (optional)* *
6 gizzards of duck confit (optional) * *

Soak the beans in cold water for 12 hours or overnight, then drain.

In a large pot, combine pork knuckles or shank or ham bone, the onion stuck with its clove, bouquet garni, salt and pepper. Add cold water to cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for two hours. Remove from heat, let cool slightly, then drain. Reserving stock and discarding onion and bouquet garni. Cut any meat from bones, set net aside and discard bones.

Next put pork rind and second onion in a large, heavy saucepan and cook over medium heat stirring, until rind is tendered (releasing its fat), about 20 minutes.  Add reserved pork stock and if necessary add enough cold water to cover ingredients. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, and cook until beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Reserve any liquid, discarding onion.

Heat duck fat in large, heavy frying pan over medium heat. Chop remaining onion and the garlic and cook in duck fat until beginning to soften. Then add cubed pork shoulder and brown on all sides, stirring in tomato paste or cubed tomatoes.

In another pan, heat a little more duck fat or oil over medium heat and brown sausages on all sides.

In a large, heavy 5- to 6-quart (5 to 6 L) casserole dish or Dutch oven, arrange ingredients in layers. Begin with half the beans with pork rind, then add the reserved pork and ham, the sausages, duck confit and then the remaining beans. Pour in enough bean-cooking liquid or water to cover the beans.

Bake at 350 degrees F (180 C), uncovered, until mixture begins to simmer and a crust begins to form, about an hour. Reduce heat to 250 F (120 C) and continue to bake for three hours, keeping mixture just simmering and adding a little water if it appears to be drying out. If desired, dish can be cooled, covered and refrigerated, then brought to room temperature and reheated at degrees F (180C) for one hour

(You can add a crumb crust by combining 2 cups/500 ml coarse bread crumbs with 2 cup/125 ml chopped fresh parsley and sprinkling it over the surface at the end of baking time, then browning it under the broiler.)