Ashlynn and Nyrielle worked in comfortable harmony, and soon, the air was filled with the sounds and smells of sizzling ingredients that would form the base of their dishes tonight.
Once the sliced onions were swimming in a pool of melted butter, Nyrielle turned to the boar belly, following Ashlynn's instructions to produce small lardons of the intensely flavorful meat that would slowly render down over low coals until the outside was crisp, the inside was tender and the pan was left with a pool of fat to cook the cabbage and potatoes that would follow.
"The hard parts are always the beginning and the end," Ashlynn said as she stood up from the hearth to join Nyrielle at the table, fetching a mortar and pestle that she began to fill with walnuts, dried berries, sweet thyme, and fresh rosemary. "Once everything is started, things fall into their own rhythm, and you just have to keep an eye on them for occasional stirring and turning."
