Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Œufs pochez à la Princesse - Princess Poached Eggs

Princess Poached Eggs.
Start by dissolving sugar [simple syrup], cooking until it takes a consistency of syrup; break eggs, using only the yolks, put each one in an eating spoon, & hold in the syrup, until they are cooked; make as many and as cooked [hard or soft] as you like, & when your dish is filled, sprinkle with sugar, and when they are served, pour a little Orange flower water over them and add a grating of candied lemon peel.

Interesting taste, one of those items of which you close your eyes before you take a bite--reminds me of what I thought was crazy when the boys in the cafeteria at college in East Texas poured pancake syrup on their eggs--but it actually tastes good. Evidently it is still appreciated in Quebec where they pour maple syrup over eggs.

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Œufs pochez à la Princesse.
On commence par faire fondre du sucre qu’on cuit, jusqu’à ce qu’il ait pris une consistance de syrop; on casse des œufs dont on ne prend que les jaunes, qu’on met l’un aprés l’autre dans une cuilliere à bouche, & qu’on tient ainsi dans le syrop, jusqu’à ce qu’ils soient cuits, on en fait tant qu’on en veut de cette maniere, & lorsque le plat est rempli, on les poudre de sucre, puis on les sert, piquez d’écorce de citron confits, avec de l’eau de fleur d’Orange, qu’on verse pardessus.

Le Menage de la Ville et des Champs, et le Jardinier François, Louis Liger & Nicolas de Bonnefons. Chez Jean Leonard, Brussels, 1712, p.156-157.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Fricassée de Poulets & à la Bourdois

Chicken fricassee.
Take two fatty chickens which you singe, then remove the skin and entrails; cut them into pieces and rinse in tepid water; blanch for 1 minute in boiling water and plunge immediately into ice water, drain and pat dry with a towel; barely color them in sizzling butter, on medium heat, and add some mushrooms and a tablespoon of flour, stir to coat and add two ladlesful of good [chicken] broth; add a well seasoned bouquet [garni]; remove any foam that arises, and degrease it only at the end. When the chickens are cooked, you drain them on a white cloth and then put them in a small pan; reduce the sauce if it is too liquid, and bind it with three egg yolks, a good piece of butter and juice of a lemon; strain the sauce through cheesecloth onto the chickens, hold over a bain-marie, until you serve.

Chicken fricassee à la Bourdois.
Chicken fricassée à la Bourdois is made in the same way as the preceding one, with this difference that when it is drawn up on its dish, you cover it with bread crumbs. Put on the bread crumb small pieces of large butter like a pea: color it below a lid of tart plate [salamander or red-hot fireshovel] or in a furnace [oven]: serve warm. This way is good to mask a fricassée which one [has already, i.e., leftovers] served at table.

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Fricassee de Poulets.
Prenez deux poulets gras que vous flambez, épluchez et videz; coupez-les par membres et les faites dégorger dans de l’eau tiède; vous les faites blan¬chir légèrement et les égouttez ensuite sue un torchon; vous les passez au beurre, sur un fourneau un peu vif, et y mettez quelques champignons et une poignée de farine, que vous délayez avec deux cuillerées à pot de bon consommé; ajoutez-y un bouquet bien assaisonné; ayes bien soin de l’écumer souvent, et ne la dégraissez qu'à la fin. Lors¬que les poulets sont cuits, vous les égouttez sur un torchon blanc et les mettez ensuite dans une petite casserole; vous faites réduire la sauce si elle ne l’est pas assez, et la liez avec trois jaunes d'œufs, un bon morceau de beurre et du jus d'un citron; vous la passez à l'étamine, sur les poulets, que vous te¬nez chaudement au bain-marie, jusqu'à ce que vous serviez.
***
Fricassée de Poulets à la bourdois [family name].
La fricassée de poulets à la bourdois se fait de la même façon que la précédente, à cette difference que quand elle est dressée sur son plat, vous la pannez de mie de pain. Mettez sur la mie de pain des petits morceaux de beurre gros comme un pois: faites prendre une couleur dorée dessous un couvercle de tourtiere ou dans un four: servez chaudement. Cette façon est bonne pour masquer une fricassée que l’on a desservie de la table.


La Cuisiniere Bourgeoise, Suivie de l'Office. Menon, Chez Monory, Paris, 1769, p. 250-252.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Chicken Galantine

Galantine.
The nature of an Intermess of Galantine shall be hereafter explain'd in the Article of Suckling-Pigs, under the Letter P. and there also shall be shew'd the Manner of Garnishing it and Serving it up to Table: We shall only intimate here, that it may also be garnish'd with its Skin well breaded and brought to a fine colour, by means of the red-hot Fire-shovel; for the rest, the Reader is referr'd to the Place even now mentioned. P. 128.

I have discovered that any fowl can be deboned and stuffed, then rolled and placed seam-side down in a close-fitting casserole dish and baked with its lid--this will approximate the Stew-pan named in the following recipe. Once the bird is baked [350°F 1 1/2 hours or so], remove the lid and place a weighted board on the top of the galantine and cool overnight. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and broil [red hot Fire-shovel]. Slice and serve.

The close-fitting casserole takes the place of the napkin and the broth in which modern galantines are normally poached. Although this recipe is for suckling pig and includes Gammon [Old French for jambon--ham] & Bacon, this works very well for stuffed poultry or game birds. I used ground beef [with a spoon of brandy, 1/4 teaspoon curing salt and a teaspoon of Menues Epice] along with an egg yolk, the strong herb liquor and cream pounded until smooth to Farce the chicken and strips of turkey ham along with harden'd Yolks and Pistachoes; otherwise the recipe is the same. I cannot believe how easy this dish is to prepare. There is even lots of gelatin surrounding the cooled galantine to serve in little cubes.

Here is a video of Jacques Pepin deboning a chicken.



An Intermess of a Suckling Pig in Galantine.
After having caus'd your Pig to be well scalded and drawn, cut off the Head and the four Legs: Then let the Skin be slipt off, beginning at the Belly; but care must be taken that it be not cut, especially on the Back: Let this Skin be neatly spread upon the Dresser, whilst a Farce is preparing, with the Flesh of the Pig, a piece of very tender Veal, a little raw Gammon, and Bacon; also, a little Parsly, chopt Chibbol, and all sorts of fine Herbs, except Rosemary and Sage. In the mean while, a Strong Liquor is to be made, with a Quart of Water, two Bay-leaves, some Thyme, sweet Basil, Savoury, three Cloves of Garlick, and two or three shalots; this Liquor when half boil'd away, will serve to moisten your Farce. Let some Pistachoes and Almonds be also scalded according to discretion, and let six Eggs be harden'd to get their Yolks: Afterwards let some of your Bacon and Gammon be cut into thick Slices, taking only the lean part of the Gammon: When they are all well season'd, let a slice of Gammon, another of Bacon; as also, a Lay[er] of Almonds, another of Pistachoes, and a third of hard Yolks be set in order. Besides, you must put into the Farce, some Truffles and Mushrooms cut small, with a little Milk-cream, and soak them in your strong Liquor, adding afterwards the Yolk of one Egg. The Bacon and the other Things being thus order'd, this Farce is to be spread over them, beginning at one of the ends of the Skin, and then roll'd up; drawing the two Swards on both Sides close together, so as the Farce my not fall out: When it is well roll'd up of a convenient length, let it be tied, or sow'd up on all Sides, and put into a Napkin; which must be bound at both Ends and in the middle, to keep it very firm and compact. At last, it must be bak'd in a Stew-pan between two Fires, viz. one upon the Lid and the other underneath, for the space of ten or twelve Hours, with some Slices of Bacon and Beef_stakes, both on the Bottom and Top of the Pan: Let your farced Pig cool in the same Pan, and as soon as it is taken out of the Napkin, let it be untied, and cut into Slices, which are to laid in a Dish, upon a clean Napkin, and so serv'd up cold, with Slices of Lemmon and Flowers. P. 191-2.

The court & country cook, faithfully translated out of French into English by J. K. A. J. Churchill, London, 1702.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

BizYmoms Interview

Bizymoms.com has recognized me as a Top Blogger. Read my Interview on Classic French Cuisine.




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