Roast Bone Marrow with Parsley Salad {Macabre Meals}

I enjoyed researching, cooking, writing - and of course eating - my October Serial Killer Supper series so very much that I've decided to continue with it indefinitely. And because the space where death, culture, and food intersects is so vast, I'm expanding the category. Under the umbrella of "Macabre Meals" I'll be exploring all sorts of dark and lovely things. Real murderers, fictional killers, history, scandal, myth, and more. It's going to be so much fun!

As luck would have it, this month's Creative Cooking Crew Challenge, hosted by the lovely Joan of Foodalogue and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks, has dovetailed nicely with my current preoccupation. The task: Create an appetizer for Thanksgiving, something for guests to enjoy before the main feast.

Through a Bowl, Darkly: Garlicky Mussels with Squid Ink Linguine

I was binge watching Hannibal when I got the idea for this dish. I have always been drawn to fiction that intelligently explores the dark side of human nature and the allure of so-called "evil." Visually the show is lush and cinematic, and Mads Mikkelsen, the actor who plays Hannibal, is a brilliantly unsettling mix of charm, charisma, and creepiness.

I must admit that I take a perverse glee in the lovingly detailed shots of Hannibal cooking complicated Escoffier-style meals in his gourmet kitchen, knowing full well that the main course is more than likely composed of one or more of his victims. (Yes, Poppa Trix has told me I'm a bit crazy, but in a good way. He's not worried, so you shouldn't be either.)