Matthew’s carnitas

Our friend Matthew is very talented. He’s a brilliant writer, underspoken and hilarious. He’s a wonderful father to Iris, who is 6 and one of the smartest little whippersnappers you’re ever going to meet. And he makes a mean bacon and jalapeno pizza.

Last week, we went to visit him and the family. Spring had sprung and we smelled daphne wafting from apartment gardens as we walked toward their home. We were greeted with delighted giggles from Iris. Our toddler, Lu, took a few moments to warm up, even though she loves these three (Laurie is the solid base of that triangle). With the introduction of bubbles and some of Iris’s favorite toys, however, there was soon squealing and bouncing on toes.

A good time was had by all.

At lunch, Matthew had to leave to meet a friend at Matt’s in the Market. They have chips and dip as a starter, with house-made salt and pepper chips with bacon caramelized onion dip. We understand why he was leaving us. (Actually, he had planned long before to meet a friend from New York there. We’re lucky we got to see him at all.) Before he left, however, he showed us the pot full of carnitas he had made for us.

Bye, Matthew!

This was Lu’s plate, pretty simple. Carnitas, fresh cabbage, a wedge of lime. Not much more needed than that.

We ate and talked about the warm weather coming through the balcony door. Iris has become a much pickier eater over the years, which is to be expected, so she didn’t want the cabbage. Or much of the meat. She watched Lu gobble up every bite and demand more with her pointing finger.

“Wow,” she said. “Lucy and yummy food sure do go together!”

We all laughed. True. (And when she’s six, our little one is bound to be pickier too, so we’re enjoying these days of her eating everything put before her.) Yummy pork carnitas like this can go together with anyone.

The recipe for these carnitas is in Matthew’s incredible book, Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father’s Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater Rather than being a self-help book, a dour guide of what not to feed your children and how to avoid choking, Matthew’s book is a knee-slapping, full-of-information story of living with Iris and good food both. Besides stories so true you might spit out food from laughing as you read it, Hungry Monkey also contains recipes for foods that kids and adults might like.

Like these carnitas.

I was going to tell you to buy the book for the recipe, but Matthew was kind enough to give me a link for them, so you can make them now. This is a link to his podcast with our good friend Molly Wizenberg (of Orangette fame), a wonder of food and giggling called Spilled Milk. You should subscribe to the podcast too.

First, however, make these carnitas.  (It’s the first half of the carnitas salad recipe. You should make that too.)