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Dedication
Her Grace the Duchess of Valderano and the Right Honourable the Countess of Shannon at the Baron de Felici's Castello di Ropollo.
This book is dedicated to the memory of my dear friend, the Duchess of Valderano, whose recipes form the first part of this book, as well as to the many dear friends who inspired the recipes.
I have the great fortune in being the friend to a lady who has an almost boundless compassion and fount of energy in her mission to alleviate the cares and misfortunes of those around her. To use the old Celtic phrase, she is one who has the power and, through her work as a healer, has earned the gratitude of her very many patients. In addition, she enjoys the admiration and respect of all her students to whom she imparts her deep knowledge in this field and that of spiritual advancement. She is descended from two very ancient and noble families. On her fathers side it is from the family of de Villiers de lIsle Adam le Belle de Pompone through the Lord of Chantermerle, Governor of Poitou and Lord Chamberlain to King Louis XIV, whose grandson Louis de Villiers, Lord of Camper and Chantermerle, owing to the Edict of Nantes against French Protestants, had to leave France with his family and took refuge in the Province of the Cape of Good Hope where they arrived on 6th May 1689. Here the Dutch Governor permitted them to settle provided that they renounce their French titles and spoke only Dutch! From then on the de Villiers family became one of the leading political families in South Africa. In fact, her young life was one of a very nomadic existence because the family was constantly travelling as her father followed his Parliamentary duties. On her mother's side, the family is of even more ancient Norse origin through a Baron de Plessis and Count de Pr with their castle at La Rochelle. There was an early Countess de Pr called Almine, since when that Norse name has been perpetuated in this family. Today she is widely in demand as a lecturer on life enhancing topics involving constant travelling yet again. As a published author, she has also produced numerous presentations, had her essays read at the Geneva Art Association, and she has even been a newspaper columnist. Some years ago she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in England and has founded her own charity for helping deprived children known as Bring the Children Home: World Global Foundation. In spite of all this hectic activity, she cultivates considerable culinary skills, frequently insisting on feeding as well as instructing her multitude of students, often with new recipes concocted in the mood of the moment and reflecting the theme of her work. So now, as Baroness Carleton, Baroness Castlemartyr and Countess of Shannon she, together with her dear friend the late Duchess of Valderano, offers this unique collection of choice recipes for your enjoyment which cover every possible social occasion.
foreWorD
Perhaps it was greed really, but I like to think that it was curiosity. My interest in cooking started, when as a small boy, I noticed that the mashed potato made by some people was so very much tastier than that made by others, most especially the type served up by the Preparatory School which I attended where it was no more than hot, dry potato flour resulting from over boiled potatoes being put through what I called in my mind a worming machine.* Cooks in those days were nice plump friendly bodies who did not mind a small boy watching how their favorite vegetable was prepared. I quickly learned that the secret was to whip up the result of the dreaded worming machine to allow much of the steam to escape, leaving the dry potato to receive the previously warmed mixture of butter and milk. This was then whipped in with much gusto until the whole was firm and white again. Not too much butter, otherwise the result was greasy and unpleasant. Finally, a little salt to taste was shipped in and the result was perfection. Much of the secret was a good strong right arm rapidly wielding a fork, not just a little idle stirring. I have always been a strong supporter of good simple, tasty fare and I eschew the almost religious consumption of things which are solely unusual, rare or expensive to give them merit. Some things I can eat, but wonder why, such as small pieces of jelly in sea water, otherwise known as oysters, and which ruin a good steak and kidney by making some parts of the meat taste fishy. In addition, small pieces of gristle, otherwise known as escargots, which ruin the enjoyment of excellent garlic butter, which is so much better if used with mushrooms. Fish roes are good and nutritious but, except for the price, I cannot see that caviar deserves quite the fuss that is made over it. Were it not so cheap and available, I am sure that the humble hens egg would easily displace many of these vaunted delicacies. I believe that all food must be fresh, especially fish, and I do not believe in the policy of relying on a measure of putrefaction to make up for an otherwise tasteless commodity. Hence I am not too keen on things such as game but I must admit that I do like green cheese in moderation. Some of the tastiest and tenderest meat that I have ever eaten came from Kosher rations issued in the Army; meat eaten within a few hours of slaughter, not left for some weeks being hung until friendly bacteria had destroyed the tougher elements. Much of our attitude to dishes is often bound up with nostalgia, perhaps romantic, perhaps through impressive or other circumstances with which we associate them. Think of that quite wonderful rice pudding made with evaporated milk, butter and brown sugar in a mess tin over an open fire. I think it was a French chef who described English cooking as excellent provided that you had breakfast three times a day. How right he was, the English breakfast was well received although many hotels now only produce a similar but somewhat degraded meal termed an American breakfast. The real English breakfast in a country house was a banquet for the Gods; long rows of entre dishes on hot plates containing porridge, eggs, boiled, fried, poached or scrambled, bacon, mushrooms, kidneys, kippers, sausages, saut potatoes, kedgeree and always a large ham on the bone accompanied a most delectable jar of pickled peaches, usually bearing a Fortnum and Mason label. Incidentally, these latter can easily by made: merely peel, halve and stone some fresh yellow cling peaches and boil for a short time in a mixture of white malt or wine vinegar with sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Put hot into jars and seal. In this book you will find that Almine has included the simple dishes liked by all, those which she remembers from her background in South Africa as well as her formal dinner party menus and those contributed by the late Duchess of Valderano, who, as you will see, entertained most of the crowned and uncrowned nobility of Europe. So, if you are entertaining just me, a world famous gastronome or the ex Emperor of Ruritania, all the appropriate dishes are herejust take your pick!
Menu No. 1
DInner
rice
supreme de Chocolat
suggested Wine: Ideally Champagne, but any good dry, white wine, well chilled, will suffice. If you can find it, Zeltinger schlossberg Cabernet (German) would be delicious!
Asparagus is thought to have come originally from Asia, and there are reports that it grew to a gigantic size in Libya in ancient times. It was a very favorite dish of the Romans, who used to dry it, and then, when required, soak it in water before cooking, rather as we do with dried fruit today. In the Middle Ages, it was grown near Venice and very much prized. It seems that varieties in those days were much larger than now and a single shoot is said to have weighed three pounds! Asparagus with Parmesan is an Italian dish, which is delicious as the grated cheese brings out the flavor of the asparagus.
Beat the cream and egg yolks until well blended and add this to the sauce in the skillet. Reheat, it, but be careful not to let it boil. When ready to serve, put the scallops in the center of a large serving dish, surrounded by the mushrooms and pour the sauce over them, then serve very hot. Accompany with plain, boiled rice.
This dish should serve 6 people.
Now heat the rest of the butter in a large saucepan or skillet, and gradually stir in the flour. Add the wine with the onion and stir in very well until there are no lumps. Strain into this pan the liquid from the scallops (the Vermouth in which the scallops have been cooked) and continue stirring. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Wash the mushrooms well (it is best to use the large, open mushrooms rather than the button variety. Under no circumstances, use tinned mushrooms.) Slice the mushrooms and saut them in half the quantity of butter for about five minutes. Meanwhile, cook the chopped onion or shallots together with the white wine in another saucepan for 15 minutes.
10
supreme de Chocolat
This is a Parisian sweet, probably from that area called the Ile de France. Below is a rather simplified recipe of an elaborate dish served at the French Court before the Revolution. It is very easy and fairly quick to make, using a blender, but should be made one day before it is required to be eaten.
2 ounces (60 grams) of sweetened chocolate 2 ounces (60 grams) of unsweetened chocolate 7 tablespoons of softened butter 2 tablespoons of brandy 4 eggs, the yolks separated from the whites 1/4 cup of sugar Melt the chocolate, both sweetened and unsweetened, in a bowl over boiling water and mix the chocolate well together. Mix in the sugar. Beat in the egg yolks one by one. Add the brandy and the butter. Blend the mixture well together.
Beat the egg whites until they are stiff and fold them into the mixture.
Lightly oil a quart (1 liter) mould and pour in the mixture. Put it in a refrigerator and chill it well overnight. When required, unmold onto a serving dish, decorate with crystallized violets and rose leaves and serve with thick cream.
11
Menu No. 2
DInner
Jerusalem artichoke soup
hazelnut stuffing
Game Chips
Buttered fennel
autumn Mousse
suggested Wine: ideally a Chateau bottled Claret such as Chateau Talbot or Chateau Pichon. lalande, but any good Bordeaux type wine will do.
Pour in half a liter of stock and simmer until the vegetables are soft. Put the mixture through a blender until completely smooth.
Put them with the chopped onion, garlic and celery with two ounces of the butter into a large pan, cover and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes, giving an occasional stir.
Stir in the last two ounces of butter, the cream or Yoghurt and the herbs; add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Reheat, but do not allow to boil.
This soup is also excellent chilled and served cold, but in this case it is better to use chives instead of the chopped parsley and omit the croutons.
Jerusalem Artichokes have nothing whatever to do with Jerusalem and they are not artichokes. In fact, they come from North America where they were eaten by the Indian tribes living along the Canadian/ American border. They can be eaten raw in a salad, baked or made into a sort of porridge. One thing you cannot do is to put them into a stew. Once, my husband, who likes them very much, bought a few, cut them up and added them to a stew, which I was making with meat and other vegetables. He did not say anything to me, and the first I knew of this was when a really appalling smell came wafting out of my kitchen. At first, I thought that something very drastic had happened to the drains, but then tracked the origin of the stench to my beautiful stew. They had gone black, and one would have had to have found a very hungry dog prepared even to try them. Jerusalem artichokes however, make a good vegetable by themselves and also a really delicious soup, in fact, one of the best soups you can possibly make. This is how you do it.
13
ormerod Pheasants
2 young pheasants prepared for the oven 1/2 cup of finely chopped parsley, chives and celery leaves 1/2 pound (250 grams) shelled hazelnuts, coarsely chopped 1 white bread roll soaked in milk and squeezed dry 1 ounce or two tablespoons of butter 1 egg, beaten 1/4 cup of red wine 4 slices of streaky bacon 1 ounce or two tablespoons of melted butter 1/2 cup sour cream for basting 3 tablespoons of red currant jelly salt and pepper to taste Rub the outside of the birds with salt and pepper and the inside with herbs.
Chop up the pheasant livers and mix with the hazelnuts, the bread roll, one ounce of the butter, the beaten egg and the 1/4 cup of wine. Mix this very thoroughly and fill the cavities of both the birds with it. Lift the skin away from each carcass and insert pieces of the bacon between the skin and the flesh. Smooth the skin down again. Put the pheasants on a rack in a roasting tin, cover with foil and roast in a moderate oven for 20 minutes.
Serve the pheasants with game chips (French fries) and decorate with watercress. (It is not worth making the Game Chips yourself but easier to buy them and just heat them up before serving.)
Make a gravy from the liquid in the pan, collecting any sediment, strain through a sieve, bring to the boil and mix with the red currant jelly and a little more sour cream. Test for seasoning and serve in a hot sauce boat.
Remove the foil, brush the birds generously with the sour cream and put them back in the oven. Roast for another 20 to 30 minutes (or until cooked), basting twice with melted butter. Remove the birds from the oven and keep warm.
There is a tradition that pheasants were brought to Europe from Colchis in Asia Minor by the Argonauts, who went there to steal the Golden Fleece. Certainly they were prized by the Greeks, who kept them in cages and later by the Romans who reared them on a large scale. They were carried in cages in triumphal processions and they figured in banquets. There were also used, together with Guinea Fowl as birds of sacrifice and were slaughtered ritually on the altar to Caligula, once he had proclaimed himself a God and during his brief but bloody reign. The Roman Legions carried pheasants throughout Western Europe, and brought them to Britain. Pheasants were popular during the Middle Ages and there are very many excellent recipes for cooking them. The following is a recipe from my own family. 14 Cooking With Class
Buttered fennel
6 heads of fennel, trimmed 1 large Spanish onion, chopped 1 clove of garlic, crushed 100 grams (4 ounces) of butter chopped fennel leaves salt and pepper Slice the fennel heads, but not too thinly. Cook them in salted water gently until just tender. In the meantime, soften the onion and garlic in half the butter, in a skillet. When cooked, add the drained fennel and the rest of the butter. Simmer uncovered until the fennel is very tender. Season and sprinkle with the finely chopped fennel leaves. Serve very hot.
15
autumn Mousse
1 pound (1/2 kilo) cooking apples 8 ounces (250 grams) blackberries, fresh or tinned a little water or the juice from the blackberries if tinned 4 ounces (125 grams) castor sugar 1/2 ounce (15 grams) gelatin powder (or one envelope) 2 egg whites 2 tablespoons of Calvados Wash and peel the apples, cutting them into quarters. Put them in a pan with a little water, or the juice from the tinned blackberries, and most of the sugar. Add the blackberries, well washed if fresh. Cook gently until the fruit is soft. Liquidize and strain into a large basin. Dissolve the gelatin in a little water and stir into the fruit. When it is cold, whisk the egg whites until stiff and then fold into the fruit puree with the remaining sugar and the Calvados. Pour into a serving dish and chill until required.
16
Menu No. 3
lunCheon
Melon with Parma ham Pheasant risotto Green Peas Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate sauce
suggested Wine: a red, white or rose wine such as rene Barbier may be served with this luncheon.
Pheasant risotto
This is one of my very favorite dishes and it is not just a way of using up leftovers. however, you may well have some of the pheasant left after the Dinner and this is a marvelous way of using it.
1 1/2 pints (30 fluid ounces or 3 cups) of strong pheasant stock 6 ounces (185 grams) or more if you have it, diced pheasant meat 4 shallots, chopped 2 onions, small, chopped 3 tablespoons pine nuts 3 tablespoons raisins, previously soaked for 1/2 hour in hot water 1 tablespoon tomato concentrate 6 ounces diced Chinese mushrooms, soaked for 1/2 hour in boiling water. When cooked, strain and reserve this water 3 cups Arborial Rice (or Uncle Bens rice) 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese, grated 4 ounces (125 grams) of butter salt and pepper Prepare stock - take all the meat off the carcass and the legs, removing any sinews or skin, and dice it rather finely.
With the carcasses of the pheasants, make a good, strong stock using a carrot, an onion (all chopped), a little parsley, a bouquet garni and a chicken cube, and enough water to provide a good 1 1/2 pints or 30 fluid ounces or three good cups of the stock - 1 1/2 pints (30 fluid ounces or 3 cups) of strong pheasant stock. In a skillet, melt 3 ounces (90 grams) of butter. Add the chopped onions and shallots, cook until golden. Add the uncooked rice and stir continuously until all the rice has been very well covered by the butter. Now add 1/2 pint (10 fluid ounces or 1 cup) of the pheasant stock and also about 1/2cup of the strained water in which the mushrooms have been soaked. Continue cooking over a medium heat. When this liquid has been absorbed, lower the heat a little.
You can make this risotto using duck, chicken, turkey or guinea fowl, but it is best with pheasant.
When the rice is cooked and has absorbed all the stock, add one tablespoon of tomato concentrate (puree), and then all the other ingredients: mushrooms, pheasant meat, pine nuts and raisins. Stir lightly with a fork until well mixed, sprinkle with the grated Parmesan and stir well again.
In a separate pan, melt the remaining butter (1 ounce or 30 grams) and cook the chopped, dried mushrooms (which have been previously soaked). This will only take two or three minutes. Then add the pine nuts, the pheasant meat and the raisins (also previously soaked and drained). Heat this all through thoroughly over a fairly low heat.
Green Peas
Always boil peas with a little sugar in the water, and also a small sprig of fresh mint.
To make the Chocolate Sauce, take: 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) of plain chocolate 180 grams (6 ounces) of castor sugar 155 grams (5 ounces) of single cream or evaporated tinned milk 1 tablespoon of strong coffee 1 teaspoon of rum a pinch of salt In a double boiler over boiling water, melt the chocolate. Then add the sugar, stir it well, cover it and let it cook in the double boiler for 30 minutes. Then add the cream (or evaporated milk), the rum, coffee and salt.
Remove it from the heat and let it stand, stirring occasionally, until it thickens. You can also freeze the sauce if you wish and it may be served hot or cold.
19
My husband and I were traveling up to Madrid for New Years Day some years ago, and arranged to spend the night of the New Year at the Castle of Oropessa. We used to do this whenever we drove to Madrid, leaving late after luncheon, arriving in the evening at Oropessa in time to have a rest, a bath and change before dinner. Then we would leave the following morning after breakfast to be in Madrid and comfortable for luncheon. Oropessa had once belonged to the Alvarez de Toledo family, Viceroys of Spain in the New World, but, since the Civil War, had gradually been transformed into a government run Parador, beautiful, quiet and very comfortable. He had telephoned for reservations, and was not very pleased to be told that the entire hotel had been booked by some French millionaire to accommodate a huge shooting party, with their wives and friends, which he was bringing down in his private jet from Paris. However, we knew the Manager of the Parador very well, and had been clients for many years. He told us that he had a double room and bath for us, but as the French party had booked up the whole place and ordered a huge table running the entire length of the dining room would we mind sitting with the Manager, his wife, family and some of the members of staff of the hotel for the New Years dinner. We said that we would be delighted if this did not inconvenience them. We were sitting in the bar before dinner when the shooting party returned and we soon became aware that there had been some accident followed by a most tremendous row. Quite what it was all about, we were never able to discover, but it apparently concerned an Ambassador, a member of the shooting party, who had returned to the hotel and was skulking in his room and refusing to come out, and at the same time demanding a car to take him back to Madrid to the airport there. Various attempts were being made to persuade him to come out and rejoin the party, but he refused and dinner went ahead without him. The French party consisted of some 35 people and the great dining hall of the castle had all been decorated for the occasion. Our own table was at the end of the room, well out of the way, and there we had a very nice dinner with the Manager and some of the staff. At the conclusion of the dinner, all the lights were turned out except for the candles on the tables, the great doors at the end of the room were thrown open and the piece de resistance was brought in. It was in fact on of the most wonderful things that I have ever seen; a model made in sugar of the castle, but made in the most minute detail and measuring about eight feet long by six feet wide. This enormous and really very beautiful object was carried in by half a dozen waiters and placed on tressels at the end of the hall. There was hush of expectancy, the Manager got up and made a little speech about this masterpiece called the Castle in Flames, and then suddenly it was burning. I suppose that it had been soaked in brandy, and, of course, under the sugar there was a cake, which would have been cut up for the French party. It was really quite remarkably beautiful, and there was great applause which died away as flames leapt up from the great cake and caught onto paper decorations put up for the New Years celebrations. From there, they caught onto the tablecloth and from there onto more decorations. A waiter standing by it lost his head and poured the first bottle that came to hand, over the cake. Unfortunately, it was brandy and a sheet of flame shot up and ran over the floor. By this time, it was not just a question of The Castle in Flames being alight but the castle itself was alight too! The French party ran about overturning chairs, the women let drive with some maximum decibel screams, waiters tried to beat out the fire and squirted soda siphons, but all in vain. By this time, the end of the great hall was blazing quite well when somebody arrived with a foam extinguisher. This did the trick, but made quite a mess, and I dont think that my suggestion that the piece de resistance could now be renamed The Castle Under Snow was thought to be at all funny.
CasTle In flaMes
20
Menu No. 4
DInner
ham Mousse Quails on their nests with White Grapes Cauliflower Polonaise fondant Potatoes syllabub Creole
ham Mousse
There are many good recipes for this, but I think this is the best one and has the merit of being easy to make.
1 pound (500 grams) lean, cooked ham without fat 2 eggs 1 1/2cups (350 milliliters or 12 fluid ounces) of chicken stock 1/2 ounce (15 grams) of gelatin powder 1/2 cup (125 milliliters or 4 fluid ounces) of brandy 1/2 cup (125 milliliters or 4 fluid ounces) of double cream A little black pepper Mince the ham very finely. This should provide about 4 cups of minced ham. Make the chicken stock (one chicken cube or chicken stock maker), Separate the eggs.
Heat the chicken stock and sprinkle with the gelatin powder and then combine carefully with the yolks of the two eggs. Put on one side to cool. Whip the cream and beat the egg whites until very stiff. When the chicken stock and gelatin begins to thicken, mix the minced ham together with the 1/2 cup of whipped cream, the 1/2 cup of brandy and the stiffly beaten egg whites, in that order. Now, mix in the chicken stock and gelatin liquid and stir all together very well. Wet a mould thoroughly and spoon in the mixture. Chill in the refrigerator until firm.
When required, turn out onto a serving dish, decorate with watercress and serve with a green salad.
22
6 or 12 quail (American quail are larger than their European counterpart, and while one per person will be sufficient with the European quail, allow one for two persons with the American) 75 grams (2 1/2 ounces) of butter 3 tablespoons of brandy 150 grams (5 ounces) of white Muscatel grapes l of a glass of dry, white wine 6 half loaves of white bread (see below) salt and pepper Clean the quail and salt and pepper them.
Heat the brandy, pour it over the birds and flamb them. Add the white wine, pouring it over the birds. Cover and leave to simmer for 5 minutes or a little longer in the case of the larger American birds. Heat a little butter in a small pan and add the grape pips. Cover and leave to cook for 5 minutes. Then strain, remove the grape pips and cook the grapes in the butter on a very low heat until hot. Then add them to the quail and cook all together for another two or three minutes.
Heat the butter and olive oil in a skillet. Add the birds and brown them carefully on all sides. This should take about 12 minutes.
When all is ready, put one American or two European quail into each fried bread box together with some of the grapes. Pour hot cooking juices over them and serve very hot.
Prepare the bread cases (see next page) and fry them in butter and olive oil until they are golden brown on all sides.
23
Remove the crust from all sides and then cut them into very thick slices about 3 inches thick.
note: If you find it a nuisance to make the bread boxes, you can also serve the quail just on fairly thick slices of white, fried bread. In this case, put the grapes on the fried bread, and the quail on top of the grapes and pour the sauce over them when serving.
Carefully remove the bread from the centers of each slice so as to leave hollow, open boxes. These are then fried as set out above.
At one time, quails were considered to be a cure for epilepsy and also to be able to restore life to the dead. It seems that Hercules, the great hero of ancient mythology, was on one occasion killed, but his friend, Iolaus, who immediately took and roasted a quail, which happened to be ready at hand, and wafted it under the dead heros nose. Hercules immediately returned from the dead, and presumably devoured the quail. Some skeptics doubted this miracle and maintained that Hercules had had an epileptic fit. The Greeks raised quails in cages and ate them the year round; they were also used for quail fights, rather as cocks were used later, as quails are very aggressive little birds. The Romans on the other hand, would not eat quail, as they believed that the meat actually caused epilepsy. Thus quail for many years, flourished unmolested in Italy. Later gourmets overcame this prejudice and quail returned as a delicacy to Roman tables.
Cauliflower Polonaise
1 cup dried bread crumbs 4 ounces (125 grams) butter
Trim 2 medium-sized cauliflowers of all green leaves and boil them in salted water until tender. When the cauliflowers are cooked, gently remove the flowerets and arrange them in an ovenproof dish. On top, put one ounce (30 grams) of butter in little pieces.
Meanwhile, hard boil three eggs and remove the shells. Chop them roughly and put on one side.
Spread the chopped hard boiled egg as a layer on top of the cauliflower, then spread the chopped parsley as a layer on top of the hard boiled egg, and finally spread a layer of bread crumbs over the parsley. So far, the dish may be prepared well in advance. When required, heat the remaining butter, three ounces (95 grams) and pour it evenly over the top of the dish.
Place the dish in a pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes at Gas Mark 7 (220 Centigrade or 425 Fahrenheit.) Serve very hot.
fondant Potatoes
3 pounds (1 1/4 kilos) boiling potatoes 3 1/2 ounces (105 grams) butter 7 tablespoons oil Peel the potatoes and cut them into quarters. Round off the edges with a knife and put them into cold, salted water in a saucepan and put on the heat. Bring them to the boil and cook them in the boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain thoroughly. Heat the butter and oil in a heavy saucepan, add the potatoes and saut them well on a moderate heat, taking care that they do not brown too much.
Add salt and pepper to taste, reduce the heat and cover the pan.
Cook the potatoes very slowly for a further hour, shaking the pan from time to time. A few minutes before serving add 6 teaspoons of water, which the potatoes will absorb immediately.
Serve hot.
syllabub Creole
2 egg whites 2 ounces (60 grams) castor sugar 1 miniature bottle or a jigger of Tia Maria Liqueur 1 1/2 teaspoon of instant coffee powder Whip the egg whites in a bowl until stiff.
In another bowl, whip all the other ingredients together until smooth. Then fold in the egg whites. Refrigerate in syllabub glasses or bowls.
This syllabub can be made with other liqueurs, such as Grand Marnier, Kummel or Kirsch, but of course omit the coffee powder! Syllabub is an old sweet and it was a great favorite in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The old syllabub glasses are difficult to find now, but the best equivalent today are the continental champagne glasses, the tall thin ones, rather than the flat bowl type of tazza glasses which are more commonly used for champagne in Britain and America. You may have some of the Ham Mousse left over from the Dinner, or you may have made some extra deliberately so as to use it for the following suggested Luncheon Menu.
25
Menu No. 5
lunCheon
Tuna fish salad with endives ham and eggs "neopolitan style" fried Zucchini french fried Potatoes Caramelled Bananas with Cream
suggested Wine: a fresh white wine from alsace or Moselle, or perhaps from the loire.
a tuna fish salad requires no explanation and most people have varieties of their own. Personally, I like tuna fish, chopped spring onions, a crisp lettuce and an all-i-oli sauce, with a few olives.
all-i-oli sauce
2 egg yolks 1 tablespoon lemon juice 2 cloves garlic, peeled 1 1/2 cups (15 fluid ounces or 450 milliliters) good olive oil at room temperature salt to taste a few drops of cold water It is very important indeed that the oil should be first quality olive oil and that it should be at room temperature.
Put the garlic cloves in a mortar with a few drops of lemon juice and a few drops of water. With the pestle, grind up the garlic cloves really well.
Transfer to the blender. Add the egg yolks and blend. Continue blending while adding the olive oil very gradually. Continue blending and add the rest of the lemon juice and the salt to taste. The sauce will then be ready.
There are several ways of preparing this sauce; basically it is a garlic mayonnaise. Of course, there are some people who very much dislike garlic. King Alfonso of Castille disliked it so much that none of his Knights who had eaten garlic during the past month were allowed in his presence. As this was in the 14th century, and the entire Court was probably pretty gamey, it does emphasize a very strong abhorrence for the stuff. Some of the All-I-oli recipes are very strong indeed, but heres one which is excellent and fairly mild! All-I-oli is a Catalan sauce, and they like it very strong. In Andalusia it is milder and called Ajiaceite.
The salad
a good quality tinned tuna fish, lettuce, olives and one or two bunches of spring onions, cleaned and chopped. Make a salad with all this and pour the All-i-oli mayonnaise over it.
27
Choose small, young zucchini; do not peel them, but slice them into sticks about a 1/2 centimeter or a quarter of an inch long. Cover them with salt and allow them to dry.
Allow them to stand under the salt for a while and then wash them well, dry them, flour them and tip them into fairly deep, boiling oil. Only fry them for a minute or two until they are tender.
Put them in preheated oven until they are cooked. (Medium oven, about 10 minutes) Serve very hot, but with cream which has been well chilled.
Peel the bananas and split them down lengthways. Arrange them in a shallow, heat proof dish. Cover them well with butter and then thickly with brown sugar.
28
The GuesTs
It is sometimes said that it is the guests who make the Dinner. This may be true of a cannibal feast, but not otherwise, as even the most brilliant, witty and interesting guest will become numbed when confronted by Dish Water Soup, followed by grey, soggy and tepid Fish Fingers and a scrawny Chicken which apparently died during one of the Egyptian dynasties and has been embalmed ever since. I believe that the guests and the food are complimentary to each other, and that the taste and presentation of one will improve the wit and interest of the other. Some hostesses entertain because they must; they entertain other diplomats or their husbands business associates, many of whom are quite lacking in charm or interest., This duty of entertaining can be tedious especially when the guests, for all they know or care, might as well be eating boiled blotting paper. Then there are dinners where the hostess selects the guests whom she thinks will entertain each other and whom she herself wishes to entertain. There are the dinners to which a special guest has been invited who is expected to entertain the rest. The others have been asked to meet him because he has had some interesting experience or has some specialized knowledge, or perhaps is a known raconteur, who will tell amusing stories and entertain the whole table. There are dinner parties of close friends, the best, and sometimes there are dinner parties given to amuse the hostess, and to which she deliberately invites people whose interaction between each other she wishes to observe. In this last category must come a rather odd luncheon party, which an eccentric friend of ours gave some years ago. It seems that our friend had incurred the displeasure of the British Ambassador, a man well known for being stuffy, pompous and without any sense of humour. The Ambassador, rather undiplomatically, had mentioned to some people that he considered our eccentric friend to be a lunatic, and most of his friends as well. The people to whom this remark was made lost no time in reporting it and our friend, who we will call Francis, was not amused. There was living in the town at the time a certain Mr. Matness, and Francis scraped an acquaintance with him. There was also a well known Professor of Belles Lettres at the University called Professor Lupe. The telephone directory revealed the presence of a Doctor Potti who was a lawyer and Francis lost not time in making the acquaintance of the professor and the lawyer. Finally he discovered a Goanese doctor called Dhotti who he immediately went to see. Some weeks later he laid a trap for the Ambassador and invited him to luncheon in such a way that the Ambassador could hardly refuse. On the appointed day, the Ambassador arrived at Francis house and was shown into the Drawing Room where Francis greeted him saying, Good afternoon, your Excellency, may I introduce you to my friends, Professor Lupe, Doctor Dhotti, Doctor Potti and Mr. Matness (he pronounced it madness). I have been told that you know my friends. The Ambassador turned purple with embarrassment and rage and left immediately in a huff. As he did so, he heard Francis saying in a clear and ringing voice. I do apologize for the Ambassador, I cant think what is the matter with him. I think that he must be mad.
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Menu No. 6
DInner Cold Cucumber soup steak alla Diavola Creamed leek riced Potatoes fresh Pears in lemon sauce
suggested Wine: a french burgundy, Volnay or Moulin a Vent, with the main course, or an Italian Villa antorini Chianti. The same white wine could be served again with the pears or a dry, light white wine such as frascati or Marques de la Murietta Blanco
2 Cucumbers a dash of vinegar 4 ounces (125 grams) of butter 2 pints (1.1 liters) of good chicken stock 1/4 cup white bread crumbs 1/4 cup milk 2 medium onions, chopped very finely salt a pinch of sugar 5 tablespoons cream, sweet or sour as you prefer a little chopped dill if you like it Peel 2 cucumbers and cut them into small pieces, remove all the seeds, and boil the pieces of deseeded and peeled cucumbers in water to which has been added a dash of vinegar for 3 minutes.
Drain them well and put them into a saucepan with 4 ounces of butter, and heat. When the butter has melted, add the 2 pints of chicken stock (3 cubes). Add the 2 onions, cut up very finely and 1/4 cup bread crumbs which you previously soaked for a few minutes in the 1/4 cup of milk. Add pepper and salt if you are using a chicken stock, but do not add any salt if you are using the stock cubes, as they are salty enough. Bring the whole mixture to the boil and simmer on a reduced heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain, or put through a blender and then add to the soup the 5 tablespoons of cream.
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6 rump steaks each about 3/4 inch (20 mm) thick 300 milliliters (11 fluid ounces) red wine 300 milliliters (11 fluid ounces) dry Marsala 6 tablespoons of olive oil 2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and very finely chopped 2 tablespoons concentrated tomato puree, diluted in an equal quantity of water Just under 1/2 teaspoonful of very finely chopped chili (These are the little dried chilies and not the powdered chili in jars) 3 tablespoons chopped parsley 2 teaspoons of fennel seed salt and pepper Take a very large frying pan, big enough to hold all the steaks if possible. Heat the oil until very hot and the entire bottom of the pan is well coated with it. Then add the meat and cook over a very high heat for 3 minutes on each side. Turn down the heat so that the oil does not burn, and continue to cook the steaks until they are done. Season them as required with salt and pepper and put them in a serving dish. Keep warm.
Add the steaks to the hot sauce and turn them so that they are well coated and very hot.
Remove from the pan most of the remaining fat, leaving only about 3 tablespoonfuls. Turn the heat up to high and add the Marsala and the red wine. Bring to the boil and continue to boil for about 1/2 minute, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen anything adhering to the bottom. Add the chopped garlic, and stir in briefly, then do the same with fennel seed. Add the tomato puree (diluted in an equal quantity of water) and the chopped chilies. Turn the heat down and continue to cook for 1 1/2 minutes, by which time the sauce should have thickened.
Return the steaks and the sauce to the serving dish, sprinkle with the parsley and serve very hot.
note: since writing this, I have read Maria hazans excellent book on Italian Cookery and see that there is an almost identical recipe for this dish. however, it was first made for me some 35 years ago by lisa Cuccato, our family cook in Italy.
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Coulis of leeks
originally, like most leek dishes, this came from Wales and it is an excellent vegetable dish with meat or poultry.
2 1/2 pounds (just over 1 kilo) of leeks, without the coarse, green tops 1 cup (250 milliliters or 8 fluid ounces) of double cream 3 ounces (90 grams) butter a pinch of nutmeg a little black pepper Having removed the coarse, green leaves at the tops of the leeks, now partly slit them down from the top in order to be able to clean them very thoroughly and remove any earth between the leaves. Slice off the end of the root and cut the leeks very finely. A food processor can also be used, but make sure the slices are as thin as possible.
Heat the butter in a pan and add the leeks. Cook over a moderate heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring frequently. When they are soft and cooked through, add the cream and continue to cook until the mixture in the pan has thickened. Sprinkle a little nutmeg and fresh, black pepper and serve very hot.
riced Potatoes
Boil the potatoes in salted water until cooked. Drain them well and keep warm. When required, put through a Ricer. This is called a SCHIACCIAPATATE in Italian, and it is a standard piece of kitchen equipment in Italy.
In the first place, it makes a few potatoes go a long way and it gives a pleasant, fluffy consistency to the potatoes and it also looks very nice on the serving dish.
It should be possible to find it in shops elsewhere in Europe and in America specializing in kitchen equipment, and it is a useful utensil to have.
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The sauCe 3 lemons 1 teaspoonful cinnamon 1 tablespoon of very finely chopped preserved ginger Take and peel 6 good, ripe pears. Make sure that they are eating pears and not cooking pears! Cut them in half and remove the cores and then cut them into quarters.
Arrange the pear slices in a serving dish, pour over the sauce and put in the refrigerator.
note: You can adjust the spices according to your personal taste.
Combine the lemon juice, cinnamon and ginger and mix very well. Then put the mixture in a saucepan and heat over a low gas for 2 or 3 minutes. Put aside to cool.
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Menu No. 7
DInner smoked salmon Mousse Beef olives Marques de rio Castel fried Potato Balls sliced Carrots Glazed Grapes with Cassis
suggested Wine: a Chambertain or Marques de riscal (spanish red). as a treat with the Grapes, Baume de Venise, a glorious french Muscatel.
3/4 pint (450 milliliters or 1 1/2 cups) strong chicken stock 3 tablespoons dry white wine 1 teaspoon mustard powder 1 pound (500 grams) smoked salmon 1/2 pint (1 cup or 300 milliliters) double cream 2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice 4 eggs, whites only 1/2 ounce (15 grams) of gelatin Dissolve the gelatin in the white wine by pouring the wine into a bowl and putting this over a saucepan or very hot water, kept just at boiling point. Sprinkle the gelatin over the wine and stir occasionally until dissolved.
Remove any little pieces of skin or bone from the smoked salmon and put it in a blender.
Beat the cream until it is fairly stiff and then fold it into the salmon mixture. Whisk the egg whites until they are also stiff and fold them into the mixture carefully using a metal spoon.
Add the stock to the gelatin mixture and now gradually add this to the salmon in the blender, blending until it is a smooth paste. Blend in the lemon juice and the mustard powder.
Decorate the mousse with gherkins and sliced hard boiled eggs.
Pour the mixture into a suitable dish, such as a souffl dish, and refrigerate it for at least two hours, but preferably overnight.
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3 pounds (1.3 kilos) of lean topside of beef 9 ounces (230 grams) of minced veal 1 large Spanish onion 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped 6 ounces (150 grams) of sliced mushrooms (try to buy the large open ones rather than button mushrooms) 1 egg 6 ounces (150 grams) of ham 9 or 10 pickled walnuts (ideally these should be black truffles and the original recipe calls for these but they have become so expensive that pickled walnuts will make a good substitute) 1 teaspoon of marjoram, chopped 1/2 teaspoon thyme, chopped 1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped 500 milliliters good veal stock 1 glass red wine 2 or 3 mint leaves, very finely chopped salt and pepper mustard, any herbal mustard The beef should be first cut into thin slices or scallops and beaten with a wooden mallet to tenderize it. Spread one side of each scallop with the mustard and put to one side.
Place the rolls in a large ovenproof dish, pour in the wine and the stock and cover the dish. Put it in the oven and bake it slowly at Gas 3 or 180 Centigrade for about 1 1/2 hours.
Beat up the egg and mix it well into the mixture in order to bind it. Place a quantity of the stuffing mixture in the center of each scallop or meat and wrap the meat round it securing the meat with one or two wooden toothpicks. See that the stuffing does not protrude from the ends of the rolls.
Chop up the mushrooms and the onion, remove any fat from the ham and chop it finely. Break up the pickled walnuts into very small pieces and mix the mushrooms, the onion, the ham and the crushed walnuts with the minced veal. Then mix in the chopped mint leaves, the marjoram, the thyme and the parsley and season the mixture to taste.
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Put them in a saucepan on the stove together with a chopped carrot, one large onion (roughly chopped), a turnip, and a leek. Let the vegetables sweat for 1/2 hour. Add two pints of water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for about 2 hours or until the stock thickens.
Obtain a few veal bones from the butcher (or beef bones will do if veal is unavailable). Put them in a pan with a little olive oil (or corn oil) and bake them in the oven at Gas 6 (200 Centigrade or 400 Fahrenheit) until the bone begins to brown.
This will always provide you with an excellent base for sauces or for any dish where stock is required. It is a little time consuming to make this stock but it tastes so much better than any cube, that it is well worthwhile making it.
note: If the other vegetables are not available, 2 carrots, 2 onions and a little parsley will suffice.
When ready, strain into a basin, add salt and pepper to taste, and when cold, put into the refrigerator.
2 pounds (1 kilo) potatoes 2 ounces (60 grams) flour 5 tablespoons milk 2 ounces (60 grams) white bread crumbs salt and pepper Peel the potatoes, and then, with a grater, grate them into cold water. Alternatively you can use a food processor to grate them, then drop the grated potato into cold water.
Take them out of the water after a short while, and wrap them in butter muslin. Squeeze all the water out of them and put them in a bowl, add the bread crumbs, flour, and season to taste with the salt and pepper. Then add the milk until the potatoes are well bound together. Extract quantities about the size of a hens egg, squeeze each one well together and drop them into boiling fat until they are browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and put them back on the butter muslin to drain. Arrange them on a dish, and before serving, put them in the oven for a few minutes to reheat.
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1 1/2 pounds (750 grams) white grapes (or black) 1/2 pint (1 cup or 300 milliliters or 10 fluid ounces ) double cream 4 full tablespoons Cassis liqueur 6 tablespoons Demerara Sugar Remove the pips from the grapes, cutting them in half, but leaving their skins. Put them into a shallow bowl with the Cassis liqueur and leave for an hour. Whip the cream until it is stiff.
Put the dish in the refrigerator and leave it there until it is very cold.
When they have been marinated, put the grapes and the liqueur into a heat proof flan dish and spoon the whipped cream evenly over the top.
note: You should be able to buy miniature Cassis bottles from a wine merchant. a good one is Crme de Dijon sIsCa made by lejay-lagoute.
Preheat the grill and when it is hot, sprinkle the Demerara sugar evenly all over the top of the cream in the dish, then put it under the grill. Leave it there for a very short time, just until the sugar has dissolved, and whilst this is happening, watch it constantly as it burns very easily. When the sugar has dissolved and spread over the cream, take the dish from under the grill and put it back in the refrigerator until you require it for the table.
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Menu No. 8
DInner russian Borsch soup roast Ducks with a Morello Cherry sauce Garden Peas riced Potatoes Greek honey sweet
suggested Wine: With the ducks, a good claret or burgundy. With the sweet, a dry white wine.
2 pints (1 liter ) of good, strong meat stock 2 medium sized beetroot 1/2 pint (or 1/4 liter) white wine 1/2 lemon 1/4 pound (120 grams) finely chopped ham 1/4 pint (5 fluid ounces or 150 milliliters) sour cream Bake the raw beets in a hot oven allowing rather more time than you would for potatoes of the same size.
When they are well cooked, peel them and cut them into thin strips.
Put the strips of beet into a pan, add the wine, the lemon juice, chopped ham and the hot stock. Season with salt and black pepper and allow to stand for 1 to 2 hours. As a decoration, it looks nice with a few finely chopped chives on top of the soup.
Heat through when required and serve with sour cream. Mix the sour cream well into the soup.
In the days of Ancient Greece, ducks featured prominently on the tables of rich Greeks and Plutach gave them to his family when they were ill, saying that he, his family and his whole household kept themselves in good health due to eating duck. Mithridates VI, the King of Pontus in about 100 BC was terrified of poisons (probably with good reason) and mixed the flesh of duck with everything that he ate as he believed it to be an antidote to all poison. Hippocrates thought that the meat of duck was nasty and indigestible, and Avicenna, the Arab philosopher and physician who lived at Cordoba in about 1000 AD, believed that eating duck caused fever. Certainly the Ancient Egyptians ate them and they have been highly considered in Europe from the earliest times. Wild duck can be very fishy if they feed on the saltings. However, if you cook them with a good onion inside them, this will take out the taste of fish in most cases. Here is a recipe from my mother-in-law, who is, alas, now dead, but who gave me very many marvelous recipes. I think that it came originally from her old house in Ireland, where she grew up as a girl. Today it is an abandoned ruin, standing gaunt and desolate in what were once gardens and lawns. It is a sad place, the trees have gone, and the whin grass is creeping up from the lake. I stood there on a late January afternoon under a lowering sky. Wild geese were circling over the islands in the windswept lake. I tried to picture it as it once was, full of life and laughter, mown lawns, under the great cedar trees sweeping down, flanked by beds of flowers to the boat house and the lake. My mother-in-law as a young girl there with her brother, who was so soon to die, as this was in those golden years before 1914, and before the red tide of war was to sweep it all away. Round the cornice of the ruined ballroom, there are still signs of gilding, but except for the moaning of the wind, all else is silence. They lived well in those days and the following is one of the most delicious ways of cooking duck.
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2 good, fat ducks (about 5 pounds or 2 kilos each) 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce 2 tablespoons of red currant jelly 1 tin (15 ounces or 450 grams) black cherries, without their stones 5 fluid ounces ( 150 milliliters) red wine 2 fluid ounces (50 milliliters) brandy salt fresh black pepper 1 quart (1 liter) Espagnol sauce (see following page) Roast the ducks. Prick them well all over with a trussing or darning needle. Rub them well with salt. Wash the livers thoroughly and replace them in the ducks. Place the ducks on a rack in the roasting pan, without any fat, and put in a preheated oven. The oven should be heated at Gas 8 (230 Centigrade) for at least 10 minutes before the ducks are placed in it. Roast for 35 minutes.
Remove all the fat from the bottom of the pan in which they have been cooked, leaving only the meat juices under the fat in the pan.
A great deal of oil should come out of the ducks. The ducks will be cooked when the skin has turned a golden brown color all over. When they are cooked, put on a plate and replace in the oven to keep warm on a low heat.
Then remove from oven, take out the fat from the bottom of the pan and prick the duck again with the needle. Replace in the oven and cook for another 40 minutes, basting occasionally with the fat (oil) collected from the pan.
PrePs for The sauCe Put the roasting tray, which now only contains the meat juices, over a low heat and pour in the brandy. When it is fairly warm, ignite the brandy and allow it to burn for a few moments before extinguishing it.
Pour into the pan the black cherries with a little of the syrup from the tin, add the red currant jelly and the Worcestershire sauce as well as the glass of red wine. Increase the heat and allow the mixture to reduce by about 1/4, all the time stirring well.
Serve the sauce separately and do not pour it over the duck. If you do, it will make the skin, which should be brown and crisp, damp and soggy.
The mixture is now ready for the Espagnol sauce. This should be added and the whole sauce well stirred over the heat for a minute or two before serving.
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Now the sauce is ready; strain it into a jug or container. Use at once or freeze for future use. This sauce can also be used for many other excellent dishes.
Now cook the sauce over a low flame for 1/2 hour in order to reduce the quantity by about 1/2 pint (275 milliliters).
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1 1/2 cups honey (use a clear honey, preferable a flower blossom one such as orange blossom) 4 egg yolks 1/4 pint (5 fluid ounces or 150 milliliters ) double cream 4 egg whites Put the honey and the egg yolks in a saucepan and beat them over another saucepan filled with fast boiling water. The mixture must not boil, and must be beaten until it thickens. This takes some time, from 25 minutes to 1/2 an hour, and although it is hard work, the end result is well worth it. When the mixture has thickened, set it aside to cool, and when cold, fold in the well beaten egg whites followed by the stiffly whipped cream. Put the mixture into a serving bowl and put in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator.
This sweet will keep in the refrigerator for at least a day if it is kept very cold, but it will start to break down as soon as it comes out of the freezer.
For this reason do not take it out of the freezer until you are actually about to serve it at the table.
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Menu No. 9
lunCheon avocado salad Grilled Pork Chops with Cherry sauce Mangetout Peas Baked Potatoes Cheese Board and Celery
suggested Wine: any dry, white wine such as some of the wines from alsace. serve Port or Madeira with the cheese.
Many excellent salads can be made with avocado, served with lettuce or endives, mixed with hard boiled eggs or tuna fish, lump fish caviar or salmon eggs.
Grill the Pork Chops in the normal way, arrange them on a serving dish and pour the hot Cherry sauce over them You will find that they are absolutely delicious. (Cherry sauce, see previous menu)
Mangetout Peas go well with this dish, but you must be careful to see that they are young and not old and stringy. failing the Mangetout, then I suggest french beans (string beans and haricots verts).
The Baked Potatoes also go well with the dish. some people bake them in foil, but I have found that the best way of all is with a sort of metal spigot on which four potatoes are impaled, having first been well rubbed in oil and coarse sea salt. The spigot heats up and conducts heat into the center of the potatoes ensuring that they are baked through.
You can serve baked potatoes with butter and a little black pepper, or with Yoghurt and chopped chives, or in many other ways, but they are always excellent.
When serving a Cheese Board, try to offer a selection of Blue cheese, hard cheese, such as Cheddar or leicester, and soft cheese such a Camembert, Brie and so on.
You can also use the espagnol sauce. It is, in fact, the base for very many sauces which can be used with meat, game and poultry. It is a useful sauce to have frozen, as with a few simple additions it changes. for example, in the following luncheon menu, the espagnol sauce becomes Madeira sauce, and it transforms the hamburger into something rather rich and rare.
Menu No. 10
lunCheon flemish eggs hamburgers with a Madeira sauce Mashed Potato Broccoli with Chili Peppers strawberry Ice Cream with Black Currants
suggested Wine: a light red wine such as a Medoc Claret or a Valpolicella
flemish eggs
This delicious entre was given to me by Mary Black, an old friend who lives in an enchanting Mill house at shepreth in hertfordshire, england. It is easy and quick to make.
4 large endives, chicory 7 eggs ( 1 per person plus 1 egg yolk for the sauce) 2 ounces (60 grams) butter 1 1/2 cups (12 fluid ounces or 375 milliliters) double cream salt freshly ground black pepper Melt the butter in a large skillet. Wash and clean the endive leaves, stripping them off and cutting them in halves (Otherwise they are rather too long to be managed easily). Put them in a pan with the butter and cook until they are tender, stirring them well for about 5 to 6 minutes. Add salt and black pepper and keep hot. Take the yolk of 1 egg, separating it from the white and put the yolk in a small bowl. Beat it up with a fork.
Heat the cream making sure that it does not boil. Poach the remaining 6 eggs (see below).
Transfer the cooked endive leaves onto a serving dish with the butter in which they have been cooked, cover them with the hot cream and arrange the 6 poached eggs on top.
Pour a little of the hot cream into the bowl containing the egg yolk, and mix it well together, then pour it into the pan containing the hot cream and mix it well, stirring on the heat until the cream has thickened., but do not allow it to boil as otherwise it will curdle.
To poach eggs: First put them into boiling water for 30 seconds, then take them out and break them into a large pan of boiling water in which you have added a good tablespoon of vinegar to each pint (2 1/2 cups or 20 fluid ounces or 1/2 liter) of water. Depending on how cold the eggs are, and how fresh they are, they usually take about 3 minutes to cook.
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Broccoli
To call somebody a Broccolo in Italian is an insult, but then it is also an insult to call anybody a Codfish. Broccoli are in fact delicious and there are very many ways of cooking them. here is one which comes from the mountains to the east of rome where we had a family house. It had once been an old tower and stood on the edge of an almost sheer drop of about 1,000 feet into the valley below. It is high in the mountains and cold at night, even in the summer. This dish uses the hot Chili peppers.
2 pounds ( kilo) of sprouting broccoli 2 red, dried chilies (or just 1 if you do not like things which are very hot) olive oil Use a good olive oil always. Bad or strong oil, especially the rather rancid oil which the Portuguese like so much, will ruin any dish.
When cooked, take them from the water and cut them up, cutting them into pieces. Run them briefly under the cold water to prevent further cooking. Chop up the chilies very finely, together with the seeds, and put them in a skillet with just enough oil as to cover the bottom of the skillet completely. Cook gently for 10 minutes. Then increase the heat to medium and add the broccoli and stir them round.
Remove from the sprigs of broccoli all the leaves and also the tough and stringy part of the stalks. Boil them in salted water until they are cooked. The time for this may vary and you can test with a skewer on the stalks. When they are tender, they are cooked. Be careful not to overcook them.
Do not let them brown, but when they are reheated thoroughly, serve together with the little bits of chili over them, but leave the oil in the skillet.
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serVanTs
Several of these recipes come from my husbands family and from a lovely, old house in England. There was an enormous kitchen, some 80 feet long by some 30 feet wide. At one end was a gigantic, coal burning kitchen range, and a long table ran down the center with other tables and sinks round the walls. On the walls themselves hung dozens of copper pots and pans, moulds and forms, all burnished to a gleaming brightness. Beyond the kitchen was the scullery where the plates and dishes were washed, and beyond that, the vegetable scullery where the vegetables were washed and prepared. There was a Cold Room (this was before the days of refrigerators) where great blocks of ice kept the temperature to below freezing, and a range of larders where game was hung, cheeses kept, hams suspended from the ceilings on hooks and so on. Over this little kingdom, there reigned Mrs. Sloane, the Cook. Under her, there were 3 Kitchen Maids and 2 Scullery Maids and in her kitchen, her word was law. Nobody was allowed into the kitchen without having Mrs. Sloanes permission. Nowadays, when we have very small kitchens, and very few people have a cook it is strange to look back on this other world, which disappeared really not so very long ago, but seems to have come from another age. The recipes too were often so elaborate that they required several people to make them and hours of work were involved. There were no machines, no mixers, no blenders and everything had to be done by hand. From the kitchens to the dining room was some considerable distance, down stone corridors and along passages, about 60 or 70 yards, and outside the dining room there was the serving room, where there was a large sort of trolley on wheels, fitted with a number of methylated spirit lamps under rings and hotplates. This was intended to keep the food hot, or to reheat it if it had got cold in transit between the kitchens and dining room. In theory, it was an excellent idea but in practice however, it rather frequently burst into flames and had to be put out by a fire extinguisher, kept there for the purpose. Occasionally this was known to have had a catastrophic effect on the food which was to be served. Meals were served by the Butler and 2 Footmen, and also sometimes by Jane Pott. Jane Pott was in fact a ghost. Table turning sessions in the past had elicited the information that her name was Jane Pott, that she had been a Serving Maid in the house in the 17th century and had been murdered by Albert Hicks, a Footman. Further table turning revealed that Hicks had himself been walled up behind the paneling on the first landing of the main stairs. In fact, a skeleton was found there some years after when a bathroom was being put in. Jane Pott had a disconcerting habit of waiting table, and she was seen by the family and by countless guests on very many occasions. However, when one turned to help ones self to the dish that she was offering, she and it vanished. Some guests found this disturbing.
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Menu No. 11
DInner lotte Thermidor (Monkfish) Circassian Chicken Cucumber Yoghurt orange sorbet
suggested Wine: a good sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris. The Pinot Gris is always regarded as the perfect accompaniment to salmon, but is also very good with chicken and other fish.
lotte Thermidor
This makes a most delicious entre and has the great merit that it can be prepared the previous day, put in the refrigerator and when required, reheated in a saucepan, put into the scallop shells, sprinkled with the Parmesan and put under the grill. It is then served very hot. It is easy to make and if you have a rather complicated main dish, it is useful to have this already made so that all you have to do is reheat it.
125 grams (4 ounces) of butter 60 grams (2 ounces) of flour 125 grams (4 ounces) mushrooms, sliced 300 milliliters (1/2 pint) fish stock (for this you can use a DASHI NO MOTO instant soup stock envelope) 300 milliliters (1/2 pint) milk 2 teaspoons dried tarragon 1 teaspoon English mustard 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan 500 grams (1 pound) monkfish, skinned and without bone 3 tablespoons dry white wine 2 tablespoons brandy Melt the 50 grams (2 ounces) of butter in a pan, and sprinkle in the flour over a low heat stirring for 1 minute. Stir in the fish stock and milk in order to make a smooth and rather thick sauce.
If not required immediately, put the mixture in the refrigerator until it is to be used, then fill the scallop shells, sprinkle on the cheese and put them under the grill before serving. The above quantities will fill 6 shells.
Add the fish and juices to the sauce, and if using immediately, spoon the mixture into the scallop shells which have been slightly heated. Heat the grill. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan over the filled scallop shells and place them under the grill until the cheese has melted and the mixture is bubbling.
Cut the fish into small chunks about 2 cm (1 inch) each. Melt the remaining butter (60 grams or 2 ounces) and cook the fish in this for 5 or 6 minutes or until cooked thoroughly. Add the brandy.
Stir in the mushrooms and tarragon to the sauce, add the wine and the mustard and continue to stir. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in one tablespoon of the grated Parmesan.
Melt 25 grams (1 ounce) of butter in another pan and add the mushrooms and dried tarragon. Saut the mushrooms until tender.
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Circassian Chicken
This is a very old Turkish dish served on rather special occasions.
2 good roasting chickens or boilers will do provided that they are not too old 1 1/2 pounds (750 grams) fresh walnuts 3 slices bread 1 1/4 pints (700 milliliters or 25 fluid ounces) strong chicken stock 1 1/2 tablespoons sweet paprika salt, cayenne pepper 1/2 cup walnut oil Boil the chickens in salted water with a chopped carrot, one large onion chopped, two sticks of celery, two chicken stock cubes, and one clove of garlic.
Boil until cooked and tender, between an hour and 1 1/2 hours, depending on the size of the chickens. When cooked, remove from the liquid, and put on one side. Reserve two pints (1 liter) of the stock.
When cool, remove the meat from the chicken carcasses and chop up the meat into small pieces. The sauCe First blanch the walnuts in boiling water for 2 minutes and then put them through the blender until they are reduced to a fine paste.
Transfer mixture from the blender into a muslin cloth and squeeze out as much oil as you can. Put the mixture black in the blender, reserving the oil Now add the chicken stock to the mixture in the blender and blend very thoroughly again. This should produce a thick creamy sauce. To serVe Put the chopped chicken meat in the centre of a serving dish and pour the thick sauce over it, covering it completely. Put in the refrigerator and chill well. You should allow at least 2 hours for this, or it can be done the day before and kept in the refrigerator until required.
As our walnuts do not contain as much oil as the Turkish ones, you will have to add about 1/2 cup of walnut oil to the mixture in the blender. Add a teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper and blend again very thoroughly.
Soak the bread in cold water, and then squeeze it dry. Add this to the walnut paste in the blender and blend again.
It is best not served with any other vegetables, but with a Cucumber Yoghurt Salad.
This dish of Circassian Chicken is served with rice, and it looks very well if presented on a large dish surrounded with rice which has been cooked with a little saffron in order to give it a golden yellow color.
Before serving, remove from the refrigerator, mix sweet paprika into the walnut oil until it is a good, red color and pour this thinly over the top of the sauce, making an attractive pattern.
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I first came across this recipe for Circassian Chicken when staying in Egypt with a Turkish friend of ours. He was the nephew of King Fuad and he had a marvelous estate outside Cairo. I will never forget the first time we went there, driving in through the gates of the garden. It was a walled garden covering over 300 acres and patrolled by armed guards. We drove in through the gates and then down a tunnel fully 1/2 mile long composed of different colored bougainvilleas which had been trained over a metal frame so as to make this incredible tunnel through which the sun filtered in clouds of purple, red, bronze, yellow and white. It remains one of the most beautiful things that I have ever seen in my life. The house at the end of the tunnel was an enormous mansion, and here our Host, the Prince, introduced us to the Housekeeper who was Turkish, the Butler and Major Domo, also Turkish, the Valet for my husband, also Turkish and the Ladies Maid for me, Turkish again, My host then told me that this was our house and these our servants, that they also included a Turkish bodyguard and chauffeur, and that they were ours to command. It appeared that he himself lived at another mansion some 300 or 400 yards away in the garden. It was told that I should give the staff my orders, that the Housekeeper would wait on me each morning to find out what we wanted to eat and that if we wanted anything at all, we were just to ask the Major Domo or the Bodyguard Chauffeur. This was all very well, but unfortunately, none of them spoke anything other that Turkish and neither I nor my husband knew 1 word of it. However, I soon learned sufficient to be able to carry on a short conversation and to ask for what we wanted. This is one of the dishes we ate there.
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Cucumber Yoghurt
This is a Turkish dish, but is found throughout the Middle east. It is delicious and cooling. for it, you will need individual bowls for each guest. The amounts given here are for 6 persons.
30 fluid ounces (1 1/2 pints or 850 milliliters) natural Yoghurt, unflavored 1 large, fresh cucumber 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 teaspoon sesame oil 2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar Beat up the Yoghurt with a wooden spoon, add the crushed garlic and a pinch of salt, add the vinegar and mix well together. Peel the cucumber and remove the seeds, dice it into small cubes and put in a flat bowl covering it with salt. Allow the cucumber to stand for about 1/2 hour, and then pour off the water which will have come out of it. Wash the diced cucumber very well, removing all the salt, and add it to the Yoghurt. Add the sesame oil and mix well. Then put in the refrigerator until required and serve in the individual bowls very cold.
orange sorbet
125 grams (4 ounces or 1/2 cup) castor sugar 1 tin concentrated frozen orange juice (about 175 milliliters) 250 milliliters (1/2 pint) water 1 egg white Dissolve the sugar in the water in a saucepan and when it has dissolved, boil it for 5 minutes.
Now add the 1 egg white and mix it into the sorbet. Replace in the refrigerator and chill until almost frozen. Turn it out into a mixing bowl and whisk until it is thick and smooth, then replace it again in the refrigerator and freeze until it is solid.
Remove it from the heat and add the orange juice. Mix thoroughly and allow it to cool. When fairly cold put it in the refrigerator and chill thoroughly.
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Menu No. 12
lunCheon Gambas a la Plancha Walnut Chicken french Beans saut Potatoes Cold souffl with Grand Marnier
suggested Wine: white wine from the loire or an Italian orvieto or a Portuguese Vinho Verde
Gambas a la Plancha
Gambas a la Plancha are prawns. use about 6-8 per person, peeled and boiled and then fried for about 3 minutes with 1 or 2 cloves of garlic. They should be served preferably in earthenware dishes with garlic oil.
Walnut Chicken
Walnut chicken is the Circassian chicken put onto large, thick slices of white, fried bread.
french Beans
haricots verts or string beans must be young.
With a sharp knife cut all round them, removing the strings. Do not boil for too long and serve with a little melted butter over them.
saut Potatoes
need no explanation.
The souffl is now ready and can be transferred to a souffl dish, put into the refrigerator and allowed to set.
When it begins to set, take it out of the refrigerator and carefully fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites. When these have gone in, do the same thing with the stiffly whipped cream.
Now put the gelatin in the 1/4 pint water and when it is hot and dissolved, stir it into the contents of the first saucepan (the egg yolks , Grand Marnier and the sugar). When it is all well mixed, pour it into another bowl and put it in the refrigerator.
Boil the water in a double saucepan, and when boiling tip into the top pan the Grand Marnier, the egg yolks and the sugar and stir this mixture over the boiling water until it becomes thick. When it does, remove it from the heat and put it on one side.
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Some people are very touchy as to how they are seated, and are acutely conscious of protocol. This can be very tiresome and while it is easy enough to arrange the seating at Diplomatic dinners, where the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, State Department of Foreign Office maintains a Chief of Protocol who will always settle such problems of precedence, such as the Surrogate Bishop of Middle Volta, the Second Secretary of the Ruritania Embassy and the ancient and crotchety Lord Senile all dining with you together. There are other occasions when it is not so easy. I have actually known a Hungarian to stalk out of a big dinner party because he thought that he was not properly seated, and on another occasion, a British Ambassador, when asked to dine and knowing that a former King would also be present said, please remember that I take precedence over the King. When told that he would not as it was a private dinner and not an official one, he refused to come, much to his hostesss relief. In fact, while it is always a courtesy to seat the principal guest on the hostess right and the principal female guest on the hosts right, at any unofficial meal you can seat the guests as you like. It is always as well to avoid seating 2 people whom you know hate each other side by side, unless you are one of those hostesses who invites her guests for her own amusement and enjoys watching them react to each other. It is also as well to avoid having 13 at table as some people are very superstitious about his. I personally do not like 13 and well remember an occasion many years ago when I was staying at a great English country house. The hostess had invited 12 guests apart from herself and her husband, but at the last moment, one of the guests telephoned to say that his car had broken down some distance away and for nobody to wait for him. Accordingly, we all went to lunch and sat down. There was general conversation until suddenly the hostess said, Oh dear! We are 13. How very tiresome. There was a general buzz of comment and then somebody said, What is so dreadful about that, what is supposed to happen? The hostess replied to the effect that there was an old superstition that if 13 people sat down together, the first person to get up from the table was supposed to die within the year. And so, continued the hostess, When I give the word, we will all get up together and that will break it. However, the man who had originally asked what was supposed to happen suddenly seemed to get very angry and said rather too loudly, What a lot of silly nonsense. I dont hold with that sort of superstitious rubbish. Look, Ill get up and youll see. Before anybody could stop him, he rose to his feet and fell forward across the table with a crash. He must have suffered a sudden, massive stroke, as he was stone dead. This made a great impression on me at the time, as I was very young, but I have never cared for 13 at table ever since, and a good many other people share this superstition.
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Many years ago in Ireland, my husband and I were invited to dinner with a friend who lived nearby. It was a summer evening and the bay glowed and sparkled in the late evening sun. As we arrived at the gate of the long drive which led up to the house, we were surprised to see our hostess in her car talking to two or three other friends whom we knew had also been invited to dine. We stopped, and Pamela, our hostess, explained that there had been a slight accident and that, as dinner had got rather overdone, she was going to take us all to dine at the local hotel in Ballylickey. We had a pleasant evening, but it was only the next day that we learnt what had happened. It appears that Pamela had put the roast in the oven of her kitchen and had then found that she had run out of whisky. She climbed into the car and drove the couple of miles or so to the local pub where she bought a couple of bottles of whisky and stayed talking to the landlord in the bar for some time. About a quarter of an hour later a countryman came in the bar and ordered a drink. After a while, he turned to Pamela and said, Would you be Mrs. Moorsom from the house down the road? Pamela said that she was. I thought you might be, the countryman replied. Tis a fine evening. Pamela agreed that it was and there ensued some further conversation about the crops and the weather. After a while, the countryman said, I suppose you know your house is on fire? Pamela said that she didnt and the countryman said, Well in that case, you had better hurry as it was burning fine when I came along some time back. When Pamela got back to the house, there was almost nothing left except a huge pile of smoking ashes. Dinner had, in fact got rather 'overdone. The house had been a wooden one and had gone up like a torch; everything had gone, her furniture, pictures, silver, and clothes. She had only what she stood up in and her car. However, as her guests were expected in a few minutes, she met us at the end of the drive, well out of sight of what had once been her house, and during the entire dinner, she mentioned none of what had happened. It was with Pamela Moorsom that we first had the dish with Scallops, which is given on page 10. In those days, Bantry Bay, in the southwest of Ireland, was full of scallops and we used to buy them fresh off the boats. I am told that since a huge oil refinery was built on Widdy Island, there are no more. Many of the best Irish dishes came originally from French recipes and this is one of them.
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Menu No. 13
DInner Queen annes Mushrooms sea Trout Poached in White Wine Cucumber and horseradish sauce new Potatoes with Mint salad Crepes filled with Marmalade and Grand Marnier
suggested Wine: Marques de la Murrietta YGaY Blanco (spanish)
1 1/2 pounds (750 grams) button mushrooms 3/4 pint (15 fluid ounces or 425 milliliters) double cream 6 egg yolks 1 lemon (or 2 small ones, to provide about 1/4 cup of juice) salt and cayenne pepper Remove the stalks from the mushrooms and wipe them clean (do not wash them). Slice them and pour the juice of the lemon or lemons over them, add a little salt and cayenne pepper and put in a skillet over a low heat. Stir the mushrooms gently until they begin to cook and then pour over them nearly all the cream, reserving only about 2 tablespoonfuls and bring the mixture to the boil.
Transfer to a serving dish and serve very hot with fingers of toast or French bread.
Boil for a few seconds and then stir in the rest of the cream which you have mixed thoroughly with the yolks of the 6 eggs. Continue to cook the mixture for a few more seconds, stirring the whole time and until it is very hot, but do not bring to the boil.
For many years we used to go to the Eo in North West Spain for the trout and salmon fishing, and sometimes also to Scotland. One of the best fish in the world is a small, fresh, brown trout taken out of a mountain torrent, and cooked as they do it in Northern Spain, with a piece of cured but uncooked ham in each of them and then fried over a wood fire. I think that perhaps Sea Trout is my favorite fish; it has a greater delicacy than salmon, and poached in a Court Bouillon as I have suggested, it is really delicious, either hot or cold. The Court Bouillon which I have given here can be altered to some extent although as it is, it will make a most excellent fish soup. Once it has been used, strain it, reheat it and boil it for seven to eight minutes with vermicelli or any of the little shapes of pasta that are used for soups. When it is cooked, sprinkle it well with grated Parmesan and serve. However, equal quantities of water and white wine can be expensive, and here is a substitute to the wine.
suBsTITuTe WIne
To make 1 pint (20 fluid ounces or 575 milliliters)
180 grams (6 ounces) wine vinegar 60 grams (2 ounces) sugar 360 grams (12 ounces) water
This mixture will make a very good wine substitute for cooking generally. However, if you use this substitute in the Court Bouillon, DO NOT USE ANY MORE VINEGAR IN IT. If you use vinegar in the Court bouillon rather than the wine, you cannot use it subsequently as a fish soup.
Court Bouillon
always make your Court Bouillon the day before. To make, use equal quantities of water and white wine.
A small piece of celery 1 carrot chopped 2 shallots chopped 1 clove of garlic chopped 1 clove a Bouquet Garni salt and peppercorns vinegar The water and the wine are brought to the boil in the fish kettle, using enough wine and water to cover the fish when they will be placed in the kettle. Add a tablespoon of vinegar to every quart of water used, now add all the other ingredients to the wine, water and vinegar mixture and simmer for one hour. Remove it from the heat and allow it to become completely cold.
If the fish is to be eaten hot, drain it and serve it hot or if as in this case, the fish is to be eaten cold, allow it to cool in the bouillon. To serVe:
Bring the water slowly to simmering point and cook very gently. The water should barely tremble. Allow 8 minutes per pound for fish weighing over five pounds (2 1/4 kilos). The skin will lift away easily when the fish is cooked.
Put the cold drained fish on a serving dish and decorate with watercress, lettuce, slices of hard boiled eggs, wedges of lemon, thinly sliced cucumber and radishes, star cut and put in iced water, so that they open like flowers.
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2 tablespoons grated horseradish 2 heaped tablespoons of chopped cucumber 2 small shallots 1/2 pint (250 milliliters) double cream 1 tablespoon tarragon vinegar salt and pepper Skin the cucumber, remove the seeds and dice finely to produce the required quantity. Cover with salt, allow to drain and then wash well. Whip the cream stiffly. Chop up the shallots very finely. Add all the ingredients to the whipped cream, and mix thoroughly. Put in the refrigerator until required and serve immediately.
note: Do not make this sauce too long before you require to use it or leave it for long out of the refrigerator, as it can break down.
Preheat the over at Gas 5 (350 Fahrenheit or 190 Centigrade). Put the parcels of foil containing the potatoes in the oven and cook for one hour.
With aluminium foil wrap the potatoes into parcels of about 5 or 6 potatoes each (depending on size) and bury in each parcel a good sized sprig of mint. Dot the potatoes in each parcel with about 1/4 ounce of butter, freshly ground black pepper and sea salt, then wrap each parcel tightly closed with the opening on the top.
The salad
Take 4 good heads of endive, wash them and dry them thoroughly. Arrange them around a large glass bowl like the petals of a flower. In the center of the bowl make a mound of previously cooked, young, garden peas. Round the base of this green mound of peas make a circle of slices of hard boiled egg, and outside this circle and on the ends of the leaves of the endives put small cut squares of beet root. Star cut some radishes and put them in iced water so that they open and place these on the mound of peas just above the circle of slices of hard boiled egg. Do not use a salad dressing as the sauce for the fish will be quite sufficient.
This is just a decorative suggestion, and you can, of course, make endless variations of your own.
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Depending on the sort of pan that you are using, the method of cooking crepes differs. Generally speaking, the pan should be heated and then sufficient of the batter mixture should be poured into it so that the entire bottom is covered thinly, and any excess liquid should be poured back into the basin containing the batter. Use a small jug to pour the batter into the pan and stir well before using. Put the pan back on the heat for 15 to 20 seconds (or a little longer) and until the surface of the crepe is completely dry and slightly brown round the edges, remove from the heat and tip out the crepe onto a plate. Put a piece of grease proof paper between each crepe to prevent them from sticking together. When they are all cooked, you can keep them in the refrigerator for several days well covered in a storage container.
When required to be used, de-freeze, fill each crepe with the mixture below, roll up and put into a greased, fireproof, flat dish. Sprinkle with a little more Grand Marnier and icing sugar (confectioners sugar) and warm up in a low oven at about Gas 3 (170 Centigrade, 335 Fahrenheit) for 15 to 20 minutes or until heated through. Serve hot. The fIllInG Take a jar of thick-cut marmalade and mix with two tablespoons of Grand Marnier liqueur. Garnish Garnish crepes with Sicilian Kumquats (tiny oranges).
Perhaps you may have some of the salmon trout left over from the dinner party, and the following is a suggested menu in which it can be used.
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Menu No. 14
lunCheon oeufs en Cocotte a ma facon salmon Trout fish Cakes Grated Carrots and Turnips fresh Pineapple with kirsch
suggested Wine: Moselle or hock
6 eggs 90 grams (3 ounces) mushrooms, cleaned and finely chopped 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons cream 3 tablespoons milk 2 tablespoons tomato concentrate 1 large shallot or small onion, finely chopped 1 heaped tablespoon of parsley, finely chopped Take 6 ramekins (ours, on which these measurements are based, hold 5 fluid ounces, 150 milliliters or about 1/2 cup).
Put a large roasting tin on the stove and fill with water so that the water will come up to just above 1/2 way up the ramekins. Heat the water so that it comes to the boil. Also boil a kettle so that you have water ready to replace evaporation from the water in the roasting tin. Clean and chop the mushrooms finely, and divide up equally between the 6 ramekins together with a small teaspoon of butter in each ramekin. Allow the mushrooms to cook in the ramekins. Meanwhile, finely chop a large shallot or small onion, and soften in a small saucepan on the stove in a teaspoon of butter until the onion or shallot is golden. Then spoon out the chopped onion equally in the ramekin and mix in well with the chopped mushrooms.
Cook for about 1/2 hour, checking the water for evaporation and topping up from the kettle as may be necessary. When cooked, sprinkle each ramekin with the freshly chopped parsley and serve at once with toast cut into fingers or Cracker Bread.
Break one egg into each ramekin, mix together with the cream, the tomato concentrate and the milk, and season with salt and black pepper. Then pour equally into each ramekin.
Use the court bouillon in which you cooked the salmon trout. Strain it, and then boil it for 7 or 8 minutes with the small pasta shapes suitable for putting into soups and which you can buy at any store which stocks Italian food. When ready to be served, sprinkle with Parmesan, finely grated.
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fish Cakes
use the salmon trout left over from luncheon.
There are no hard and fast rules about quantities; the more fish you have, the better your fish cakes will be, but even a little fish will go quite a long way.
Coat these with beaten egg and a little flour and roll them in bread crumbs. Then fry in butter until cooked.
Put it into a large bowl with mashed potato, roughly chopped hard boiled eggs, freshly ground black pepper, a little salt and a little nutmeg. Mix all well together, and make the mixture into fish cakes.
Mix well together and toss the mixture in a skillet with about 1 1/2 ounces (45 grams) of butter over a moderate heat for 3-4 minutes. Serve hot. They should be cooked through, but still crisp.
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Menu No. 15
DInner scampi lombardy style escallops of Veal with Brandy and orange sauce Broad Beans with summer savory Duchesse Potatoes Bernstein Walnut Cake Compote
suggested Wine: a white Burgundy such as Pouillyfuisse or a good white Macon
1 bay leaf 1 clove garlic, crushed 2 cloves 2 shallots, finely chopped 1 tablespoon fennel, finely chopped 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped 5 tablespoons white wine vinegar Shell and clean the scampi and put to one side.
When cooked, serve at once. The prawns can be placed in the center of a serving dish and surrounded by rice.
Take all the other ingredients, put in a saucepan and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 4 minutes, then add the scampi, stir well, cover the pan and simmer gently for another 15 minutes, gently shaking the pan from time to time.
6 good escallops of veal 1 1/2 ounces (45 grams) flour 4 ounces (110 grams) butter 2 large oranges 4 tablespoons brandy 1 1/2 cups strong chicken stock salt freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon chopped chives Marinate the veal escallops in milk for 2 hours before using.
note: When taking the rind from the oranges, peel it very thinly, taking just the outside rind and as little as possible of the white, inside pithy peel. You can also make this dish using chicken breasts.
Put the escallops on a serving dish, strain the sauce and pour it over the escallops. Sprinkle very thinly with the chopped chives and serve very hot.
Now stir the flour into the butter remaining in the skillet and add the orange rind (see below) and the juice of the 2 oranges, the brandy and the chicken stock. Replace on the heat, mix all the ingredients well together in the pan and bring to the boil. Season with a little salt and black pepper to taste, add the escallops of veal. Cover the skillet and allow it to simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes.
In a large skillet, saut the escallops in the butter until they are slightly brown on both sides. Remove the pan from the heat and take out the escallops, putting them on one side and keeping hot.
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Broad Beans
Young and tender broad beans can be amongst the most delicious of all vegetables, but the old, tough ones are almost inedible. I have a friend who always refers to them as Old Men in Leather Jackets. And he has a point! Oddly enough, in some of the Latin countries, broad beans are regarded as an animal food which is only eaten by the very poor people, and in Lisbon, I actually met people who were offended by being offered broad beans at a luncheon party! I find them delicious, and I like them young, tender and boiled in salted water with a little sugar, and then served with melted butter poured over them and sprinkled with Summer Savory. Summer Savory was a great favorite with the Romans, and figured prominently in their cooking. The Roman Legions brought it to Britain and it was taken from there to America by the first settlers. There are few hostesses left in London nowadays, but we go to a lovely house in Chesterfield Hill where our hostess entertains exactly as they once used to. The dining room is remarkably pretty with a ceiling of painted clouds in a blue sky, while the walls are painted too, so that one might think that one was in an arbor open to the sky. The table is covered with the most beautiful silver with the Royal Arms emblazoned on it, the cut crystal glasses are beautiful and the food is always excellent. We usually dine 14 or 16 people round the table and the hostess asks men who are leaders in the field of Banking and Industry, Artists, Politicians, Ambassadors, Scientists, clever career girls and witty and interesting men. The conversation is always interesting and amusing and it is a delight to go there. It was our host one evening who told me the origin of Duchesse Potatoes. It appears that the well-known English landscape artist of the last century, Landseer, was a great ladies man who became greatly enamored with the Duchess of Bedford. It was he who invented this way of cooking potatoes and named it after the Duchess.
Duchesse Potatoes
6 or 7 large baking potatoes 7 ounces (220 grams) butter 6 egg yolks 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten salt and pepper You can either bake or boil the potatoes, but if you boil them you must take great care to dry them very thoroughly. When they are cooked, put them through a ricer (or through a food processor so that they are mashed very thoroughly). Now put the riced or smashed up potatoes into a saucepan and stir them over a moderate heat to get rid of all moisture. When they are completely dry, remove from the heat and beat in the butter and the egg yolks. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Now make small balls of this mixture and put them on a well-floured board. The balls are flattened, cut into rectangles or squares 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick and score the tops of each with decorative lines. Then dip them in the flour and paint them all over with the slightly beaten egg yolk. Fry them in deep butter until they are golden and serve.
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Close to the Hungarian frontier, and in what used to be Hungary up until 1922, when the Burgenland became part of Austria, there is a beautiful, old castle which belongs to Countess Kuefstein-Almasy, who has been a friend of ours for nearly 35 years. It is one of the most delightful places that I know, beautiful, peaceful and with a feeling of warmth and friendship that is unique. We go there in the summer, and some of the recipes in this book came from there. During the day my husband goes shooting in the woods, and after dinner in the evenings, we sit with our friend and her daughter by a great open fireplace in the library and talk late in to the night. The castle of Bernstein is really too large to run as a private home today, so Countess Kuefstein-Almasy opened it some years ago to a limited number of guests in the Summer and I can think of nowhere more delightful to spend a holiday. All the way up the grand staircase, there are the coats of arms of the families that have owned the castle since it was built in the early 12th century. After the fall of Constantinople in the 15th century, the Turks spread westward sweeping into Hungary and Austria and coming up to the very gates of Vienna. Bernstein was attacked twice by Turkish armies and on both occasions, the Turks were driven off. Like the great Batthyany stronghold of Gussing, the fortress of Bernstein was a constant threat to the Turkish rear, and was a factor which caused them to withdraw from Vienna. It is a place of long corridors, of twisting spiral stairs within the thick walls, of secret rooms, a place of magic and enchantment. The battlements and gun platforms have become a garden which surrounds the whole castle, and outside, beneath the great wall of the castle, there is a little park with fallow deer in it. The Hall of the Knights has been converted into a great dining room with a most beautiful stucco ceiling. Here excellent meals are served by mellow candle light at night. In the Summer, during the day, we sometimes eat in the courtyard of the castle. A thousand acres of forest still belong to the castle, here and there are red deer and roe deer and sometimes wild boar. Bears have been known to come in from Yugoslavia and occasionally wolves in a very hard winter. The recipe for the Bernstein Cake comes from here.
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Take: 170 grams (5 1/2 ounces) walnuts, very finely chopped, 40 grams (1 1/4 ounces) white bread crumbs, 30 grams (1 ounce) self raising flour and mix together. Fold the first 2 mixtures together and then fold in the third. Grease a cake tin with a removable base and fill it with the mixture, and bake for one hour in a medium oven, Gas 5, 376 Fahrenheit or 190 Centigrade.
The Icing
8 tablespoons of icing sugar juice of 1/2 lemon Mix until very thick and then thin with a little hot water. Let it cool before icing the cake.
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Menu No. 16
DInner stuffed Vine leaf Dolmas Ibithenco roast leg of lamb little roast Potatoes Broccoli with Melted Butter and saffron al Zahras apricots
suggested Wine: a spanish red rioja wine with the lamb, Marques de la Murietta (red), and a very cold, white wine such as Montilla which comes from Cordoba with the apricots.
1/4 pound (1/2 cup or 110 grams) rice 1/2 pound (220 grams) vine leaves 1/2 pound (220 grams) chicken livers 1 onion, finely chopped 1 tomato, skinned and chopped 2 tablespoons finely chopped celery leaves 3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley 2 cloves garlic, cut into slivers 2 tablespoon tomato concentrate juice of 1 lemon salt and freshly ground black pepper To prepare them, put them in a large bowl and pour plenty of boiling water over them. Make sure that the water gets in between the layers of the leaves and leave them to soak for 1/2 hour.
Fresh vine leaves, if used, can be softened by putting them into boiling water, a few at a time, until they become soft.
After 1/2 hour , remove the vine leaves, drain them well, soak the leaves again in fresh, cold water and repeat this process three times so that you have removed all the brine in which they are packed.
Line the bottom of a fireproof dish or large pan with a thick layer of vine leaves, then pack the stuffed vine leaves on top as tightly as you can, inserting slivers of garlic between the little cylinders of the leaves here and there. Now sprinkle the lemon juice over the top of the packed, stuffed vine leaves and add about 1/4 pint (150 fluid ounces or 1/2 cup) water in which the 2 tablespoons of tomato concentrate have been dissolved.
Place a vine leaf on a plate, put a heaped teaspoonful of the mixture in the middle of it, fold the stem end up over the filling mixture, then fold in the sides towards the middle and roll it up like a little, fat cigar. Squeeze it lightly in the palm of your hand and put on one side. Continue to fill the vine leaves until all the mixture has been used.
Fry the chicken livers in a little oil until partly cooked. Chop them and mix them in a large mixing bowl with the rice, the chopped onion, parsley, celery, tomato, salt and pepper. Add the tomato concentrate and mix again.
Soak and wash the rice in boiling water and then rinse it well with cold water and drain it thoroughly.
Put a plate on top of the vine leaf rolls to prevent them coming undone and cover the saucepan or dish with a lid. Cook very slowly for 2 hours, adding water from time to time as it is absorbed.
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4 hard boiled eggs, sliced 4 to 5 pounds (2 1/2 kilos) leg of lamb 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced 5 garlic cloves, chopped 3 tablespoons chopped parsley 5 hot chili peppers, seeded and finely chopped 1 large onion, chopped 2 shallots, chopped 3 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons butter Trim, wash and rub salt and pepper into the leg of lamb.
Cut slits under the skin of the lamb and fill with about 1/2 teaspoonful of this mixture for each slit.
In a blender (we used to use a pestle and mortar) blend the garlic, parsley and the seeded chili peppers until very fine.
Take the residue from the bottom of the pot, strain the fat off it, pat with kitchen paper to remove excessive grease and serve it as a sauce around the meat. Serve with small, roast potatoes.
When cooked, remove the leg of lamb from the pot and carve it, arranging the slices of meat on a serving dish. Spread slices of hard boiled egg over the meat and serve hot.
Put the terra-cotta pot on the heat with the oil and butter, and when hot, put in the diced apple and the chopped onion. When these are golden, put in the leg of lamb and cook slowly for 2 1/4 hours, when it should be cooked, depending on the depth of the meat. Cook on top of the heat using a medium flame and with a heat defusing pad to prevent the terra-cotta pot breaking.
Some years ago I spent six months with my family on the island of Ibiza, one of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean. At that time, there were one or two boats per week (perhaps) in the Summer, and usually none at all in the Winter. There was a hotel of sorts, and two bars in Ibiza, clean Domingos and dirty Domingos. The island was still quite untouched by tourism and was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to in my life. We had a small house with the garden running right down to the sea. It had no electricity and the cooking was over charcoal only. We spent a marvelous six months there, swimming in gin-clear water filled with thousands of fish, exploring the Phoenician Port, now sunk beneath the sea, bringing up amphorae, Roman, Moorish and Carthaginian pottery from the sea bed, walking through the pines and across the gloriously beautiful country and everywhere, the scent of wild herbs and flowers heavy in the air. There were little, sandy coves surrounded by steep cliffs crowned with pines, secret places which could only be reached by boat and where we spent the days picnicking and swimming. Now all that has gone and I am told that in the Summer, 63 aero planes loaded with tourists land every day and the coast, the pines, the sandy bays and virtually the entire island has vanished under concrete, and where once the herbs and wild flowers grew between the rocks, with twisted stunted pines framing incredible natural beauty, there are now concrete block hotels, discos and hot dog stalls. I am glad that I saw it as it once was. In those days, we had Maria Serra who came to cook for us and from her I learned the traditional recipes of Ibiza. These are very interesting in that they are totally different from those on the neighboring islands of Majorca and Minorca and have been handed down from a great antiquity. Some are certainly Arab or Moorish, but others are probably very much older and may even have come down from the Carthaginians more than 2,000 years ago. Already when we were in Ibiza, these recipes were being lost, the young people did not care about them, could not be bothered with them, and there were in fact a very few people who still know them. Senora Maria Serra was one. This is a delicious way of cooking lamb. Cooking With Class 75
When done, they should be served on a dish, with melted butter poured over them to which has been added a little saffron to give it color.
al Zahras apricots
This dish of dried fruit comes from here and I like to think that it was eaten in the lovely marble city and by al Zahra herself. Certainly, it is very old and something almost identical to it was eaten in Baghdad in the 5th century and, no doubt, brought to southern spain by the Moors from north africa in the 7th and 8th centuries. It is a cooling and really rather delicious sweet.
1/4 pound (110 grams) seedless raisins 1/2 pound (220 grams) dried apricots 2 ounces (55 grams or j cup) flaked almonds 1 1/2 tablespoons pine nuts 2 strips lemon rind 1 strip orange rind 1 full tablespoon each Orange Flower Water and Rose Water Wash the apricots and raisins very well and put them in a large glass bowl with the nuts and the orange and lemon rind, add the flower waters, and stir well together. Now add cold water until all the contents of the bowl are covered. Take from the refrigerator very cold, but not frozen. Serve with cream or Yoghurt (unflavored).
Cover the basin with stretch and seal and put in the refrigerator and allow to soak for 2 to 3 days.
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Menu No. 17
DInner Potato and Watercress soup Porco Veneziano spinach with Parmesan Trinidad Bananas
suggested Wine: Pinot Grigot from the region of Venice or any other dry, white wine
1 clove garlic 2 good bunches watercress 2 medium onions 500 grams (about 1 pound) potatoes 30 grams (1 ounce) butter 1 tablespoon flour 2 egg yolks 6 cups (48 fluid ounces or 2 1/2 pints or 1.25 liters) strong chicken stock nutmeg salt pepper Clean the watercress very well, removing any roots. Wash it several times and then chop it up very finely. Peel and chop the onions, the potatoes and garlic.
In a large skillet, melt the butter and then add the onions and garlic. Cook them for two or three minutes or until soft. Add the flour and stir in well. Now add the chicken stock, stirring continuously over a hot flame until the soup boils. Add the chopped watercress, the potatoes, the nutmeg and the seasoning to taste and continue cooking over a low heat until the potato is cooked and tender. Put the soup through a blender, pour into a pan and blend in the egg yolks (see below). Reheat the soup and serve hot, but do not boil. Garnish with a few watercress leaves before serving.
When adding the egg yolks, first separate the yolks into a bowl, beat them with a fork, put some of the soup into this bowl and mix. Then put mixture back into soup and stir in well.
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3 pounds (1 1/2 kilos) rolled, boned loin of pork 18 large slices white bread, fried (French bread is the best) 1 1/4 pints (25 fluid ounces or 700 milliliters or 3 cups) milk 3 ounces (90 grams) butter 3 tablespoons oil salt and black pepper ground cinnamon, start with a teaspoonful and add more if you require a stronger cinnamon flavour Melt the butter and oil together in a large pan (as you have to move the meat about until it is browned). A large iron Cocotte is probably best. If you do not own such a utensil, use a heat resisting mat under a normal pan, as this dish must be cooked very slowly and can burn easily.
This can be kept warm in a low oven until required to be brought to the table.
When the meat is cooked, remove it from the pan and keep hot while you fry the bread. Scrape the coagulated milk and juices, which by now have made a thick sauce in the bottom of the pan. Spread this on the slices of fried bread. Carve the meat in slices, and arrange the carved meat and the fried bread slices with the sauces on them on a large serving dish.
When the butter and oil is hot, put in the pork and brown carefully on all sides. When it is well browned, add 1/2 pint milk (about a cup) and bring to the boil. Add salt and pepper to taste and the cinnamon. Baste the meat frequently while cooking. Cook slowly on a lowered heat until the milk coagulates with the juices from the meat. Repeat this operation twice more with the remainder of the milk. This operation takes from 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
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Thousands of tourists go each year to Granada in Southern Spain where the Hispanic Moors built their great fortress palace on the Red Hill, the Alhambra. It is beautiful and at the same time impressive: the great towers and battlements of the fortress and the cool courts and tinkling fountains of the palace. For the Moors who had spent so many centuries in the waterless desert, there was nothing more beautiful than the sound of running water, the music of fountains or the still mirror of pools. Their halls too were decorated with stucco to resemble stylized stalactites dropping from the shadowy ceilings, a memory of those caves deep in the Atlas Mountains. Not so many tourists go to Cordoba where once flourished the most important University in the world, and even fewer go into the Sierra Moreana, the Dark Mountain, behind the city where a thousand years ago, the Hispanic Moorish Princes rode and hunted in the cool glens and amongst the walnut and chestnut forests. It was at the foot of this Sierra Moreana that Al Mansour built a dream city for his Love. She was called Al Zahra, the Flower, and he called his city after her. Workmen came from all over the Mediterranean, craftsmen, stonemasons and carpenters, Ships brought blocks of the pure, white marble from Carara in Italy, and little by little a marvelous city rose, Al Zahra, a wonder of the world. Where at Granada they had been content to work in stucco and plaster, here all was cut stone, the white marble was cut and pierced and worked into marvelous, lacey tracery, great marble basins flanked with colonnades and avenues of cypresses adorning the palace. Fountains of white marble played in the palace courts and the city set against the background of the mountain and surrounded by forest must have been like a white jewel glittering in its emerald cup. It is still there today, strange shaped mounds under a park land of turf which in the Spring is covered with wild flowers. Only a tiny part of it has been excavated, just enough to see what it must once have been before it was destroyed. The white marble city of Al Zahra had a short life, only a few years after it was completed, the wild, Berber horsemen crossed over from North Africa and under their black banners, and in the name of Allah, they sacked the city and burnt it, sacked it and burnt it again, and yet again, and in the frenzy of the religious hatred of what they thought to be a heresy of Islam, they systematically set to work to smash up everything in the city until there was little or nothing left larger than a mans fist. Al Mansur was driven north but Al Zahra perished in the flames of the city. He was later to return to take a terrible revenge, but his Love and the city had gone forever.
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Trinidad Bananas
6 large bananas 1 teaspoon crystalline ginger, very finely chopped 3 tablespoons raw cane Muscavado sugar 1 cup Bacardi white rum 4 tablespoons butter Cut the bananas open lengthwise, removing the fruit with a teaspoon and cutting them into small slices as you do so. Reserve the skins.
Put the dish in the oven and bake for 25 minutes at Gas 4, 350 Fahrenheit or 180 Centigrade.
The skins will have turned black, and this dish may not sound very attractive, but in fact it is excellent.
Preheat the oven. With a little of the butter, grease well a flat, ovenproof dish large enough to hold all the bananas in a single layer side by side. Put the banana skins into the dish and fill the skins evenly with the marinated fruit mixture, pouring the remaining juices over them. Sprinkle on the remaining sugar, and pour over the butter which is left and which you have melted.
Put the fruit in a bowl, add half the sugar, the finely chopped ginger, and the Bacardi rum and allow to marinate for about 1/2 hour.
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In the summer we go to stay with our friends, Count and Countess Stubenberg, at their lovely old castle in Austria. It was built in the 11th century and the same family that built it is still living in it. There is a myth to the effect that those who live in these great castles and houses live a life of idle indolence. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. In most cases, the owners and their sons work a 10 hour day, or more, often starting at 6 in the morning and finishing late at night, 6 days a week. They are professionals at running their properties, and they do it very well indeed. In many cases, they have degrees in Agriculture and Forestry, and the younger generation all have degrees and qualifications. None of them would be able to keep their properties for long if they were not efficient, and so far from being drones of Society, they contribute enormously to the national wealth. They have introduced the latest methods in forestry, cattle breeding and in agriculture long before the state forests and properties and in most cases, are not only extremely efficient, but the foresters and estate workers have conditions of housing and employment which are a model for the country. The Stubenbergs estate is one of the most beautiful and consists of forests of different conifers, upland meadows, mountain torrents between towering limestone cliffs and everywhere in the woodland glades there are wild flowers. Here too there are Chamois, Moufflon with their huge, curling horns and roe deer. They shoot the roe deer from wooden platforms built either in the tops of trees or towers made of pine poles. Some of these platforms are very high, especially those built in trees, and they sway in the wind. The deer are shot either at dawn, or at dusk, when they come out to feed in the clearings in the forest or on the alpine meadows, and although it may sound easy, it is not. The target over the roe deers heart is only about 1j inches in radius, quite frequently the roe is moving, sometimes at an angle, the light is usually very bad, as it is the first light of dawn or gathering dusk, and quite often the platform is moving too due to the wind. At a distance of 150 to 200 metres such a target is not easy to hit. The venison of the roe deer is the best of all. In Scotland, they shoot the old stags in the rut, and the meat is frequently smelly and wiry. The Victorians used to bury it and dig it up when it was rotting and eat it then, but I do not like high meat of any sort and even the thought of it repulses me. When we had a large property of our own, we used to have a lot of venison. My children tell a somewhat exaggerated story of how they used to be fed on venison pie, venison pasties, venison stew and venison hot pot, roast venison, boiled venison, hot venison, cold venison, minced venison and fried venison, and in fact neither of them will willingly eat it now. In fact, venison can be delicious, and here is a recipe given to me by Countess Stubenberg, which I find particularly good.
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Menu No. 18
DInner oeufs Murettes Venison Potatoes with Marjoram roasted onion ricotta with Barack
suggested Wine: Gevrey Chambertin or an Italian Barolo
oeufs Murettes
My uncle was a great sportsman, a first class fisherman and an excellent shot. Both he and my aunt were gourmets, who knew and appreciated good food and wine. unfortunately my uncle died some years ago, but my aunt has kindly given me some of their recipes. she is an exceptional cook and I have always had marvelous food in their house. The oeufs Murette is one of her recipes. They are quite easy to make and delicious.
3/4 cup lean, diced bacon 1 tablespoon melted butter 1 medium onion or 3 shallots, finely sliced 1 clove garlic, finely chopped 1 1/2 tablespoons flour 1 cup red wine Bouquet Garni 1 sprig parsley 1 sprig thyme 1 cup hot bouillon made from 1 chicken stock cube or a light chicken stock Saut the 3/4 cup diced bacon in the 1 tablespoon of melted butter. When cooked, remove the bacon from the pan and reserve. Now add to the butter in the pan, the chopped onion (or better, shallots) and the garlic, stirring over a low heat until they turn pale golden. Sprinkle the cooked onion and garlic with the 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour and stir well together on the heat until they blend. Now add the cup of hot stock and the cup of red wine, also the Bouquet Garni and the parsley, thyme and bay leaf. Add a little salt and pepper to taste. Stir all well together and allow to simmer over a low fire for 20 minutes. WhIle The sauCe Is CookInG, Take: 6 good slices French bread 2 ounces (60 grams) butter 6 eggs Fry the 6 slices of French bread in the butter. Put them on one side and keep hot. In a pan of boiling water, poach the 6 eggs, dipping them first into the boiling water for about 25 seconds and then breaking them into the water, to which has been added a tablespoon of vinegar. It is impossible to say how long they will take as this depends on the temperature of the eggs, if they have just been taken from the refrigerator or how new they are, but usually 3 minutes is enough.
When the eggs are nearly poached, increase the heat under the sauce and drop the diced bacon into it, bringing it to the boil. Than arrange the eggs on the fried bread and pour the hot sauce over them and serve very hot.
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larded Venison
You can use either the haunch or the saddle of the deer for this recipe.
Haunch or a saddle of venison, preferable roe deer Smoked lard (and larding needle), smoked, fat bacon Mustard, a rather bland mustard such as Dijon Freshly ground black pepper Rosemary Salt Cooking oil, quantity depending on the size of the piece of venison 2 medium onions 2 carrots, chopped 6 small sticks of celery a good bunch of parsley 6 or 7 juniper berries 2 bay leaves 1 cup boiling water 1/2 pint (1/4 liter or 1 cup) sour cream 2 teaspoons red currant jelly 1/4 pint (1/8 liter or1/2 cup) red wine First remove the transparent skin which is found over the meat and under the outer skin of the deer. Then cut the smoked, fat bacon into strips very thinly, and thread into the meat lengthways, using a larding needle. Rub the meat with a little mustard. However, be careful NOT to use a very strong mustard. To the mustard, add a little freshly ground black pepper, rosemary and salt, and rub the mixture well into the meat all over.
Fry for a few minutes and then add the meat, 6 or 7 juniper berries, 2 bay leaves and 1/4 liter ( one cup) of boiling water. Put a lid on the casserole, and put it in a preheated oven for from 1 to 1 1/2 hours at Gas 5, 375 Fahrenheit or 190 Centigrade. It is difficult to say exactly how long as this will vary on the size of the piece of venison. When the meat is cooked and tender, take it from the casserole and remove all the meat from the bones carefully, and cut it up into thick slices.
Heat oil in a casserole large enough to take the piece of venison and in it fry 2 medium onions, coarsely chopped, 2 chopped carrots, 6 small sticks of celery, coarsely cut and a good bunch of parsley.
The sauCe Pass the vegetables at the bottom of the casserole through a fine sieve, or make them into a fine puree in the blender. Let them rest for a few minutes so that any fat will come to the top. Remove this with a spoon or absorbent paper.
Now add 1/2 liter ( 1 cup or 1/2 pint) of sour cream (you can mix double cream with yoghurt if no sour cream is available).
Add 2 teaspoons of red currant jelly and 1/8 liter (1/2 cup or 1/4 pint) of red wine. Heat the sauce and correct for seasoning. To serve, pour some of the sauce over the venison before serving and the rest of it in a sauce boat on the table
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marjoram potatoes flour cooking fat, preferably beef dripping vinegar salt and pepper Peel the potatoes, boil them in salted water and then slice them.
Make a roux from the fat and flour and then add the dried marjoram, the vinegar and pepper to taste. Add enough of the water in which the potatoes were boiled to make the sauce. Then put the slices of boiled potatoes carefully into this sauce, taking care not to break them up. Leave the potatoes in the warm sauce at the lowest heat for about 30 minutes. Then bring to the boil just before serving.
roasted onions
The best way to roast onions is to peel them, then blanche them in boiling, salted water for at least 5 minutes. Then transfer them to a pan with plenty of lard and cook them at the top of the oven. Turn them frequently in the hot lard until they are well browned all over. They can be cooked over the meat in the oven or on their own. Alternatively, you can cook the onion in the meat juice with the meat. In this case, blanche them as before, but arrange them round the joint in the pan and turn them from time to time, allowing from 30 to 45 minutes cooking time, depending on the size of the onion and the heat of the oven.
ricotta Barack
ricotta is an Italian cheese, not unlike a cottage cheese or Philadelphia, but do not try to make this sweet with the latter two as it will not work! You can buy fresh ricotta at most Italian delicatessens, but make sure that it is fresh. Barack is a hungarian eau de Vie, and this too can be obtained at most shops selling hungarian food and specialties. however, if it is unobtainable, you can also use strega, which is an Italian liqueur which you will certainly be able to buy at any Italian shop selling Italian food and wines.
1 1/2 pounds (750 grams) ricotta 3 fluid ounces (75 milliliters) liqueur (Barack or Strega) 2 heaped tablespoons grated milk chocolate Mix well together in a bowl and then pass the mixture through a sieve into the serving dish. Sprinkle the grated chocolate over the top and serve with any sweet, crisp biscuits.
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Nobody knows the origins of the word picnic, but it is probably of English origin, neither the Spaniards nor the Italians have any word of their own for it, and the French have borrowed the English and transformed it into piquenique (or it may be that the English took it from the French.) Generally, the Italians do not care for picnics, and years ago they were almost unknown. Now they have become more popular, but are somewhat elaborate affairs with a table, stools, enormous quantities of food cooked at home and brought out. The Spaniards go in for picnics when they go on a Romeria, which actually means both a pilgrimage and a picnic. On these occasions, nearly the whole village will set out on a pilgrimage to a nearby shrine, often on horseback and carry panniers filled with food and wine with them. It is a feast and a religious occasion all mixed together with a village outing. In France, it is an occasion for a rather elaborate meal, again with tables and stools table cloths, different dishes and generally a rather different occasion to the simple picnic, sitting on the grass with sandwiches, hard boiled eggs, perhaps a pork pie and fruit, which is the usual English picnic. Eating out of doors is usually more popular in the northern countries in the Summer than in the Latin countries, and also perhaps because there is more feeling for the beauty of the countryside itself. I well remember driving from Genoa down the beautiful Ligurian coast with a Genoese businessman who had made a vast fortune in insurance. He was heavy going, and my attempts to make conversation were getting nowhere. In desperation I remarked on the marvelous beauty spread out before us, and indeed it was a breath taking view of mountains and sea, pine woods and little rocky coves. The Genoese glanced at it and remarked, Non me piace la natura. That is, I dont like Natura. After that there was no further conversation until we reached our destination. For a good many years now, the Barbecue has become popular, especially in America but also in Europe. Usually the menu is pretty well the same, with grilled steaks or chicken, chops and perhaps sausages. For a change you might care to make a Paella, one of the very best dishes in Spanish cooking. There are dozens of different ways in which it can be made, but this is a classic recipe from Valencia and you will find it very good indeed. This is the only barbecue menu in the book, but one day if you are eating out of doors, you might like to try it. Of course, you do not have to eat it out of doors, and it would make an equally excellent menu for luncheon or dinner in the Summer. When we lived in Ireland, we had a house at the end of the World. From the windows we could look 30 miles down the bay without seeing another house, a road, a telegraph pole or any sign at all of any human habitation. The house was situated on the edge of the sea, with gardens running down to a little bay, where the smugglers used to land brandy at night. It was wild, incredibly beautiful and infinitely remote. The house was approached by a long drive which ran through a farm yard just off the main road, and then ran down towards the sea for a mile or so. There were iron gates, then the drive made a sharp right hand turn, otherwise one drove into the sea, and then through more gates into the gardens. There was, of course, no electric light and the house was paneled in oak. It was lit by candles and the occasional oil lamp and it was beautiful, very romantic and extremely impractical. Today, the cost of the candles would be entirely prohibitive, as we used about 50 every 2 days. The ceilings too had to be whitewashed every year. However, it was lovely, and in the Winter with a great gale roaring in from the West, wind and spray shrieking past the house, a red fire glowing in the big fireplace in the drawing room and with the candlelight dancing on the paneled walls, it has left a memory which will never fade. Here we used to have our friends who came for the deer stalking and the shooting in the Autumn and Winter, and for the trout and salmon fishing in the Summer. There were Spaniards and Italians, Austrians and French, English and Turks, Americans and Hungarians, and we lived those halcyon days fishing on the rivers, out in the boat on the bay, or shooting in the mountains. An old friend of ours, Prince Alaeddin, with whom we used to stay in Egypt, came here several times. Once he came with another friend, a Frenchman who had been a Minister for something or other in the French Government. The last evening of their stay with us, we decided that each of us would cook some national dish for dinner that night. We had been out shooting all day and Alaeddin
The BarBeCue
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had shot an extremely good stag that he had been trying to get for the past 2 years. Our French friend too had shot a good buck and we were all very happy. The mountain where we used to stalk deer was quite some distance from our house, and when we finished shooting in the evening, I agreed to drive back with Alaeddin, while my husband took the Frenchman in our car. Alaeddin had hired a self drive car from the nearest small town to our house and he drove it with great abandon. I will certainly never forget the drive home that evening, although much of it is blurred. I know at one stage we nearly hit a cow and on several occasions we hit the banks on the side of the road. For some reason, Alaeddin was convinced that this wretched car would go quite well cross country, and from time to time, he just left the road where it made a bend and drove across the bog land until he rejoined the road on the other side. Happily, in those days, and in that part of Ireland, there was virtually no traffic, and by some miracle we finally reached the turning off, through the farm yard and down the lane to the house. At this time there were various pieces of furze bush, trees and other assorted vegetation adhering to the car. which also bore other scars of battle such as dents, some pieces had been torn off, crumpled fenders and broken glass. Just to one side of the farm yard was a huge midden which was about 12 or 15 yards long and quite deep and it was entirely filled with very smelly manure. Look out for the manure heap, I shouted, but it was too late. However, such was the speed at which Alaeddin was driving that we went straight through it. Suddenly we disappeared into blackness and nearly came to a stop before we emerged on the far side. Alaeddin switched on the windscreen wipers and was able to clear a small gap which was sufficient to enable him to drive. When we had wobbled down the drive and eventually got home, I got out rather gingerly and had a look at the car. In fact, it was almost impossible to see any car at all, as the entire manure heap appeared to have stuck to it. I went inside quickly and tried to forget the horrid thing. An hour later, all preparations for dinner were going ahead with enthusiasm. Esnault, the Frenchman had swathed himself in a large apron. He had announced that he was going to cook Moules Mariniere or mussels in white wine. He was in the kitchen with a large cauldron and apparently making good progress. Alaeddin told us that he would cook kebabs a la Turque and for this he said he wanted an open fire and also a spit. The only open fire large enough was in the drawing room and we did not have a spit, so he took one of the old cavalry sabres which were hanging on the wall in the hall, and, seating himself cross legged in front of the fire in the drawing room, he cooked the kebabs, spitted on the saber on the open fire. My mother in law who very much liked Alaeddin, had seated herself cross legged on a cushion on the floor beside him, with the whisky decanter between them. Onto this scene came Dicky Dick, the unfortunate man from whom Alaeddin had rented the car. He had come to take it back. My husband heard him drive up, and went to the front door to let him in. He had just come into the hall, when there were shouts of Gallic frenzy; something had gone wrong in the kitchen. Suddenly the kitchen door burst open and Esnault appeared with a huge steaming cauldron. He did not see Dicky Dick and nearly bumped into him, upsetting some of the boiling water over him. He apologized, speaking rapidly in French and disappeared as suddenly as he had come. I asked Dicky Dick if he would like a drink and took him into the drawing room He advanced into the room and then stood stock still while he took in the scene before him He then turned and said that he had to be getting back immediately. In fact, he seemed in a great hurry to leave, so my husband took him out to the car. Where is my car? Dicky Dick asked, looking about him. Inside the manure heap. My husband replied. Dicky Dick did not say a word but he walked all round the car very carefully and then suddenly rushed back to the car in which he had come, with his mechanic. He flung himself into the seat and shouted to his man, Get away from here! Its raving mad, they all are. As he drove down to the sea, I felt that perhaps he might have had some reason for this outburst. However, soon after the dinner was ready, and what a dinner it was! The mussels were marvelous, the kebabs were delicious and I remember that it was a particularly happy evening which went on far into the night. Alaeddin had to buy Dicky Dick a new car, but that was another day. 88 Cooking With Class
Menu No. 19
BarBeCue andalusian Gaspacho Paella a la Valenciana stuffed red and Green Peppers with Danish Cheese Cheese Board fresh fruit of the season
suggested Wine: sangrilla
To make a sangrilla, take a good spanish rioja (red wine), add a wine glass of spanish Brandy for each bottle of red wine. Then add 2 glasses of soda (carbonated) water for each bottle of wine. add several slices of orange and lemon, the juice of one lemon per jug of sangrilla and sugar to taste. add several large sprigs of mint and borage if possible. fill the jugs up with ice cubes and serve very cold. It is perhaps best made the day before and kept very cold in the refrigerator. You can also use Cointreau in place of the Brandy depending on taste.
Gaspacho
This is perhaps the best known and one of the best of the spanish soups. It come from southern spain and is almost unknown in the north. It is probably very old and is a peasant soup made from the scraps and odds and ends. In origin, the name probably comes from Gaspa, a roman word meaning leftovers or odds and ends scraps, and acho , which is a pejorative which exists in both spanish and Italian today meaning something bad. Thus Gaspacho would mean miserable little scraps or something of this sort. There are very many ways of making it, and it is now often served abroad in rather smart restaurants and is quite unrecognizable, having been liquefied, pasteurized, purified and metamorphosed into something which is cold, thin and frequently rather nasty. The original Gaspacho and the Gaspacho as it is eaten today in the farmhouses of andalusia is almost a meal in itself. again, there are many variations as one would expect in a soup which is made from available scraps, but here is a recipe which is good, and you can vary it as you will.
1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon wine vinegar 2 large cloves garlic, well crushed 2 tablespoons stale bread crumbs 1 large Spanish onion, finely chopped 5 tomatoes 1 green pepper, deseeded and finely chopped 1/2 cucumber, peeled and chopped, with seeds removed 8 or 9 almonds, peeled and crushed pepper and salt Put the vinegar and oil in a bowl and add the bread crumbs. Soak them for at least an hour. Put all the vegetables in a blender and process until they have become a smooth paste. This can also be done with a pestle and mortar, but it takes a great deal longer.
Now add the crushed almonds, the pepper and salt and mix in well. Remove from the blender and add cold water. Put in the refrigerator and chill for several hours before serving. Do not serve with lumps of ice floating about in it.
The GasPaCho Is serVeD WITh a nuMBer of sMall BoWls ConTaInInG: Chopped hard boiled eggs Toast, diced into small squares (optional) Green peppers, diced Cucumber, diced Onion, finely chopped (Spring onion is the best) Red peppers, diced Tomatoes, cut into small pieces
The guests add a little from each of these to their soup. Gaspacho should always be served with these side dishes which are added to the soup. The soups which are served in many hotels and are called Gaspacho often come from a tin and with ice cubes floating about in them; also without any addition or side dishes. They are not Gaspacho. Ideally this soup should be eaten from wooden bowls with wooden spoons. There is a drink called Gaspacho Blanco which is made from olive oil, vinegar, water, garlic and almonds and comes from Cordoba, but this is a drink rather than a soup. Gaspacho Sevillano is different again but is similar to the recipe given above. The Gaspacho Madrileno (from Madrid) is again different, while the Gaspacho from Estremadura is something else and can contain bits of game. From Malaga, it includes grapes, and the Gaspachuelo which also comes from Malaga has a base of fish, potatoes and eggs but no tomatoes. However, all have this in common, in that they are supposed to be made from leftovers and scraps found in peasant houses in the different districts. 90 Cooking With Class
Paella a al Valenciana
There are as many ways of making a Paella as there are of making Gaspacho and there are no set rules. The ingredients can be largely what you have available and may include pretty well any kind of seafood, as well as chicken, pork, rabbit and other meat. Basically, a Paella is made from meat, seafood and chopped vegetables with rice, which can be added before or after the stock in which the dish is cooked. This is a fairly classic recipe, but you can alter it as you wish.
1 small sherry glass of sherry 1 small sherry glass of olive oil 1 large Spanish onion, finely chopped 4 tomatoes, peeled and chopped 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into small strips 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika 1 roasting chicken, remove the meat from the bones and cut into pieces 2 full cups rice 4 cups strong chicken stock (use cubes or the carcass of the chicken or both) 1 pound ( 500 grams) cooked and shelled prawns 5 ounces (150 grams) shelled peas 18 cleaned and scrubbed mussels 2 large pinches of saffron, toasted and crushed Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the chopped garlic, cook for a few minutes and then remove the garlic from the oil. Add the tomatoes, the pepper strips, the chopped onion and the pieces of chicken to the garlic flavoured oil. Sprinkle on the paprika. Cook stirring well for about 12 minutes over a medium heat. Stir in the rice and continue cooking for another 3 minutes with increased heat. Stir in the saffron. Remove the pan from the heat and add the stock. Replace on the heat and bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Stir in the peas and the prawns, season with salt and pepper and reduce the heat.
Cook on a low heat for 15 minutes when most of the liquid will have been absorbed. Stir in the sherry and put the mussels on top of the dish, covering the pan with a large cover. The mussels should now open and remove any that do not.
Before serving, the dish can be made more attractive by arranging the meat, peas, prawns and strips of red pepper in decorative patterns.
For this dish, a Paella pan is really an essential. This is a large shallow dish, usually made of iron, about 16 inches (40 centimeters) across and with handles on either side. The Paella is made in this dish and served in it. Some paella dishes are, of course much larger, but this is a manageable size and will cook sufficient for 8 or more people, while a smaller size, 12 to 13 inches, is large enough for 6. Other ingredients which may be put into a Paella are: green beans, snails, artichoke hearts, eel, squid, parsley, nutmeg, thyme, bay leaves, cayenne pepper, diced ham, rabbit, pork etc. A good Paella is a delicious dish, and is one of the best meals in Spanish cooking. It is ideal served as an outdoor dish at a barbecue or picnic.
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1 medium sized red pepper 1 medium sized green pepper 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) softened butter 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) Danish Cheese, grated Clean the peppers thoroughly, and slice off the tops. Remove the inside pulp and all the seeds.
Mix the softened butter and the grated cheese very thoroughly and fill the peppers with the mixture. Make sure that the peppers are completely filled and there are no air holes or air pockets. Then put them in the refrigerator until the stuffing mixture hardens. Before serving, slice the peppers with a sharp knife and arrange them in a plate alternatively, one red pepper and one green pepper slice.
To serve the red and green stuffed peppers with other cheese on a cheese board, you can decorate with radishes and pieces of celery.
You may also put chopped watercress into the stuffing. The stuffing can be used for sandwiches.
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We were staying with friends and distant relatives of ours in Austria for the wild boar shooting. They have a marvelous estate in the Burgenland, just on the frontier of Hungary and Yugoslavia. The schloss or great house was occupied by the Russians at the end of the war and they remained there until they left Austria. When they went, there was little more than the shell of the house left. The furniture had been thrown out of the windows or broken up with axes for firewood and the house was uninhabitable. It has taken 25 years to restore the house to what it was and it is now, once again, a marvelous place. The estate itself is very large and there are hundreds of wild boar in the forest. It was a very cold day and we had been shooting since dawn with just a few sandwiches. As dusk came on, the shooting party assembled at a clearing in the heart of the forest, in the center of which stood a thatched roofed cottage. While the keepers were bringing in the dead boars which had been shot during the day, we had a marvelous meal of Hungarian stew washed down with Schnapps and as we were very hungry, this meal remains in my memory as it was really delicious. When it was over, by which time it was quite dark outside, our host, the Count, asked us all to go outside, and there, on a long bed of pine branches, the wild boar had been laid out in a line, more than 30 of them, and behind each one, there stood a forester in the livery of the family holding in one hand a broad bladed boar spear and in the other a flaming resin torch. At the far end of the line, there stood the Head Keeper and behind him 2 buglers. The flames from the torches lit up the clearing, casting grotesque, dancing shadows. It was a scene from 100 or even 500 years ago. At the signal, the 2 buglers first sounded the hunting call of the family and then, after a short pause, they sounded the Mort or Death of the Boars. As the last notes of the bugles died away in the forest, all the foresters suddenly plunged their torches into the ground, and the whole scene was obliterated in swirling smoke. There was absolute silence as the smoke slowly drifted into the trees, and there is an old tradition that this symbolizes the spirits of the dead beasts returning to their lairs deep in the forest. It was a scene which I will never forget.
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Menu No. 20
PICnIC or shooTInG lunCheon Cracker Bread with hungarian Cream Cheese hungarian Porkolt servietten knodel Torta de la sierra Morena
suggested Wine: schnapps or Barack with the first course, red Burgundy type wine with the stew
While the Barbecue menu is a suggestion for a meal round the pool in the summer, the Picnic menu is a suggestion for a Winter or autumn meal, which can be cooked, packed into thermos flasks and taken out for a picnic in the country or to a shooting party.
Yoghurt, 1 pint (20 fluid ounces or 2 cups) Sweet paprika, about 3 teaspoons, more or less dependent on taste. Tarragon, 2 teaspoons, very finely chopped Shallots, 2 finely chopped or put through the garlic press Salt and pepper, to taste Put some butter muslin into a strainer, place the strainer over a basin and put the yoghurt into the strainer so that the liquid dripping from the yoghurt will fall into the basin, leaving the yoghurt dry. This usually takes about 12 hours. Turn the yoghurt cheese into a basin and mix in the paprika and the finely chopped tarragon and shallots which have been put through a garlic press. Add salt and fresh, black pepper to taste, mix very thoroughly and put into a dish. Refrigerate for a few hours.
This recipe can be varied by using chopped chives instead of the tarragon and by adding caraway or poppy seeds.
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3 pounds ( 1 1/2 kilos) lean, chuck steak without any fat or sinew and cut into cubes 2 1/4 pounds (1 kilo) tomatoes, skinned and quartered 3 large onions, sliced 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 sweet peppers, with seeds removed and cut lengthways into pieces or slices 4 ounces (125 grams) lard 5 ounces (140 grams) tinned tomato concentrate 1 tablespoon sweet paprika 1 teaspoon caraway seed 3/4 pint (15 fluid ounces or 450 milliliters or 1 3/4 cup) white wine 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon hot paprika and add more to taste if required (paprikas vary enormously in strength) 1 flat teaspoon marjoram 12 potatoes 2 or 3 tablespoons sour cream (optional) black pepper and salt Melt the lard in a larger skillet and fry the sliced onion and garlic until golden.
Add the meat and fry until it is sealed. Add the wine and a little water. Sprinkle in the paprika, the salt, pepper and marjoram. Cover and braise gently for about 15 minutes over a medium heat. Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Clean the peppers, removing the seeds and cutting them into strips. Cut the tomatoes into quarters. Now add the vegetables, tomatoes and tomato puree concentrate to the meat just as it is becoming tender. Cover again and cook over a low heat for 3/4 to 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Put in the caraway seeds, sugar and season with salt and pepper to taste. When the meat and vegetables are tender, adjust the seasoning and add 2 or 3 tablespoons of sour cream and serve.
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servietten knodel
This dish is also excellent with venison.
375 grams (12 ounces) white bread, cut into small cubes 6 tablespoons milk 4 eggs, well beaten 1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped 75 grams (2 1/2 ounces) butter salt and pepper Melt the butter in a small saucepan, and then add the chopped parsley, heat and mix thoroughly. Put the bread, milk, the well-beaten eggs into a basin, then pour over this the melted butter and parsley, and mix all together very thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste.
note: although it is not the classic way, I personally like some chopped, marjoram or basil in with the knodel but of course, this is a matter of individual taste.
When it is cooked, remove the napkin and cut the roll into slices before serving.
Wring out a napkin dipped in hot water, put the mixture into it and form it into the shape of a Swiss Roll. Then tie up the napkin with the mixture in it very securely, leaving loops at the end so that it can be lifted out of the boiling water easily. Put the napkin containing the roll into a large saucepan of boiling, salted water and cook for one hour.
8 ounces (250 grams) butter 2 1/2 cups (American measure) sweet chocolate drinking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons of brandy 8 ounces (250 grams) digestive biscuits 5 1/2 ounces (170 grams) mixed, crystallized orange and lemon peel 1/2 cup (American measure) pine nuts Cream the butter in the blender and add the chocolate powder, the brandy and the vanilla sugar and blend until it becomes a cream. Put the biscuits in a polyethylene bag and break them into small pieces with a rolling pin or a bottle.
Add the pine nuts and the crystallized peel to the broken biscuits and mix thoroughly. Add the creamed chocolate, butter, brandy and vanilla sugar and mix all together very thoroughly. Then, on a sheet of oiled aluminum foil, make the mixture into a roll and cover tightly with the oiled foil. Put the roll in the refrigerator and freeze in the freezing compartment for several hours, or overnight, and until it is hard. However, make sure that it is not too hard, so take it out of the freezer some time before you want to eat it otherwise it will be too hard to cut. Sprinkle tops of the roll with icing sugar (confectioners sugar), cut the roll into slices and serve.
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Menu No. 21
DInner liver Pate Cake Gussing eggs Tomato Mousse Beef Beauceronne sicilian fruit salad Continental Cake
To which can be added; rice Potatoes, Potato salad, a Green lettuce salad, hard Boiled eggs in Mayonnaise, Cold asparagus, Chocolate Mousse and Ice Cream
Serve with a green salad, little onions, gherkins and French bread or toast.
When it is cooked, take it out and unmould it onto a serving dish surrounding the cake with diced aspic and decorating the top of the cake with olives.
Stand the souffl mould in a large bowl of water so that the water comes 1 1/2 inches up the sides of the dish. The water should be warm but not boiling. Cover the top of the mould with butter papers and a second covering of foil. Place the bowl of warm water with the mould containing the mixture in the oven, middle shelf, and cook for 1 1/2 hours at Gas 4, 350 Fahrenheit or 180 Centigrade.
Put the liver into a blender and blend until absolutely smooth. Add the unbeaten egg whites and blend again. Put this mixture into the refrigerator for 2 hours. Add the salt, pepper, brandy and allspice and mix well in with a spoon. Fold in the whipped cream and then turn out the mixture into a buttered souffl dish.
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Gussing eggs
a delicious dish from schloss Draskovich in austria near the hungarian frontier.
12 eggs 10 ounces ( 1 cup or 300 milliliters) sour cream 1 pound (500 grams) ricotta cheese 4 tomatoes 2 to 3 tablespoons pure horseradish (not the cream) 1 teaspoon mustard powder salt and white pepper a little sweet paprika and parsley spring for decoration Hard boil the eggs, remove the shells and cut them into halves. Pass the ricotta cheese through a sieve. Dip the tomatoes into boiling water to remove their skins then cut them into quarters and squeeze out the pips and the juice. Chop the tomato pulp very finely.
When required, transfer to a flat serving dish, surround with sprigs of parsley for decoration and sprinkle a little sweet paprika on top of the dish.
To the soured cream, add first the finely chopped tomato pulp. Then add the hard boiled egg halves. Season with salt and white pepper. Add the horseradish using one or two tablespoons according to taste and the mustard powder. Mix well. Now carefully fold the mixture into the sieved Ricotta cheese. Put the mixture into the refrigerator and chill thoroughly.
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Tomato Mousse
This recipe was given to me by Countess Draskovich of Gussing.
1 pound (500 grams) tomatoes 2 1/2 ounces (70 grams) butter 4 spoons Bchamel 2 ounces (60 grams) gelatin powder 1 cup (250 milliliters) double cream, stiffly whipped juice of 1 lemon salt and white pepper 1 teaspoon sugar Put the tomatoes into boiling water for a moment in order to peel off the skins. Cut the tomatoes in half. Remove the seeds and the juice.
The quantities given here are sufficient for 6 people, so that it can be interchanged with luncheon and dinner dishes given in the previous menus. If you need it for a buffet supper, increase the quantities or make several. noTe: To Make The BChaMel, Take: 1 1/2 cups (30 grams) milk 1 ounce flour 1 ounce (30 grams) butter
When required, turn it onto the serving dish and decorate it with slices of cucumber, tomatoes cut into roses and beetroot cut into shapes. Surround it with parsley.
Now pass all the mixture through a sieve and fold in the whipped cream. Pour the mixture into a well wetted mould and leave it for several hours or preferably overnight in the refrigerator.
Fry the tomato pulp in the butter until it is very soft. Then mix in the Bchamel and add the gelatin, which has been dissolved in a little boiling water. Add the lemon juice, salt, pepper and sugar.
This will make more than you actually require, but it is difficult to make less.
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Beef Beauceronne
This is another of the recipes given to me by my aunt. It is a most unusual and also very delicious dish which would go very well for a buffet supper where a hot dish is required. It would also make another excellent dish in the Winter for a shooting party or lunch. I will not give any quantities as this must depend on the number of people for which the dish is to be made. I rather think that this dish must come from the Pyrenees between france and spain.
Line a large baking dish with rashers of lean bacon and place on them a layer of fairly thinly sliced onions and potatoes, half a shallot, chopped finely, a small bay leaf, a small basil leaf, salt and pepper.
On top of this put another layer of steaks and another onion and potato. On top of the whole dish put a few more rashers of bacon.
Then cover the vegetables with a layer of rump steaks, cut about 1/2 inch thick and from which all the fat has been trimmed. It is best to cut these steaks into pieces about 3 inches by 2 inches. Sprinkle this layer of steaks with a little salt and black pepper and a pinch of thyme. On top of this put another layer of onions and potatoes, 1/2 a shallot, chopped finely, a small bay leaf, a small basil leaf, pepper, i.e.,. exactly like the first layer.
All this can be prepared the day before, and when required fill the dish with a good, meat stock (I use Maggi cubes) so that the liquid just covers the top layer of bacon rashers. Now seal the dish as completely as possible with foil and cover, and cook it in a moderate oven for about 2 hours at Gas 5, 375 Fahrenheit or 190 Centigrade. If it is a very large dish, you may require a little longer.
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Put all the fruit together in a mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. Add 4 or 5 tablespoons of Marsala and mix again. Replace all the fruit in the hollow melon and put in the refrigerator. Serve it well chilled.
Take a bunch of grapes and remove the pips. Skin and slice 2 bananas. Skin, stone and chop up one or more peaches. Peel, core and dice an apple.
Continental Cake
sufficient quantities for 6 to 8 people.
4 ounces (1/2 cup or 125 grams) unsalted and softened butter 1 cup almonds, blanched and very finely ground 1 cup milk 1 egg, separated 1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon dark rum 2 teaspoons coffee essence 1/2 cup castor sugar 2 packets Boudoir Biscuits (sponge fingers) roughly 46 Blend together the butter, 1/4 cup of milk, the egg yolk, the 2 teaspoon of coffee essence, 1 tablespoon of rum, the cup of finely ground almonds and the castor sugar. Blend to a fine cream. Dip the sponge fingers in the remaining 3/4 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of rum. Arrange them, when dipped, in brick-like form on a flat serving dish.
Spoon the cream between each layer of sponge fingers, using half the cream. Put the cake into the refrigerator for 2 or 3 hours. Beat the egg white until stiff, and mix in with the other half of the almond cream. Cover the sides and the top of the cake with the cream and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
Before serving, decorate with walnuts or cherries, or alternatively you can cover the whole top of the cake with whipped cream and sprinkle it with a little coffee powder.
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The end of the dinner sometimes causes complications. There are different customs in different countries and while in Britain, the ladies leave the room to allow the gentlemen to continue to talk, smoke and drink their port, the Continentals generally consider this to be a barbarous habit and at the end of dinner they all leave the table together. It is the hostess who gives the signal to leave. She catches the hosts eye at the other end of the table, and both rise together. Quite frequently this does not work very well and leaves the frantic hostess glaring down the table trying to catch her husbands eye, while he is engaged in some interminable story and refuses to look at her. There is also the problem of how long the men should stay talking over the port before they join the ladies and this has been the cause of not a few domestic rows when the guests have finally gone. I do not know how the British custom started that ladies should leave the dining room first. I suspect that it was a Victorian invention when it was considered that ladies were nauseated by the smell of smoke, and if they remained, would become tight on the port. I dont think that it was the custom in the 18th century, and with the lack of servants, the high cost of port and the prospect that the host and hostess themselves will eventually have to clear the table and do the washing up, the custom is slowly fading even in Britain. There is also the fact that as people live in very much smaller houses, the dining room is also the living room and there is no drawing, or withdrawing, room for the ladies to retire. Not everyone is as forthright as an elderly eccentric, Major Darby Griffiths, who at the end of dinner used to remove his false teeth, put them in a tumbler of water beside his plate, gargle with his port and say, Well, thats that. Now you can all damn well clear out. Strangely enough, this was not the signal for the guests to leave the house forthwith, but rather for the ladies to leave the room while he continued to ply the male guests with the cheapest grocers port that he could buy. He had his own decanter of the very best vintage wine, but this was considered to be far too good for anybody else. As he was very old, very rich, with a vast house filled with marvellous things and with no heirs, his invitations to dinner were usually accepted. A rather distant relative of ours terminated his dinner in a rather more spectacular way; he had had a marvellous life, hunting, fishing, shooting, with a string of racehorses and for 40 years he had kept open house entertaining for all who wished to stay with him or merely come to dine or even for a weekend. He lived in a great, broken down mansion in Ireland, and now he was old, ill and completely broke beyond all possible hope of redemption. He was a great favorite with the local people as he hated the Government and above all tax collectors, excise men and anybody whom he suspected of being a government spy. For a long time the local tradesmen kept the old man going, giving him credit when they knew that there was absolutely no possibility of ever being paid, but there is a limit to all things, and finally this source too had dried up. The estate, once of several thousand acres, had been sold bit by bit, and now nothing remained but the weed grown garden and the great, ramshackled house itself. Water poured through the roof, and as one room had become uninhabitable; the old man had simply moved to another. Now most of it was uninhabitable: there was dry rot and the death watch beetle in the upper storeys, and the Bailiffs man in the ground floor. The old butler still remained on and so did the cook. They were a married couple who had been with the old man and his family for more than 50 years and they had nowhere else to go. Remaining on, at least they had a roof of sorts over their heads, and while they had to cook for themselves, they cooked for the old man too. They had not been paid for years, but they had affection and loyalty to the old man apart from knowing no other way of life. It was a night in Winter and a great gale was blowing in from the West which made Cooking With Class 105
the ruined old house creak and groan in the storm. As was his invariable custom, the old man changed for dinner into his evening clothes and come down into the dining room. Here a couple of candles guttered at one end of the huge table, while the other end was lost in the shadows and darkness. The old man took his place and out of the gloom came Pat, the butler. Ive a good dinner for ye tonight, Sorr. He said. You have, Pat? Aye, Sorr. Didnt Sean Mahoney give us a fine trout and one of those black devils below (he referred to the Bailiffs men) run over a pheasant in his car coming here tonight. The man asked Eileen (the cook) to do it for his supper, but of course she told him to go to the Devil. I went and had a look at the poor creature in the boot of the car and it looked very unhappy there, so I took it in and gave it to Eileen and we have it for your dinner. It was a rare treat and when the meal was over the old man asked Pat to bring him the last bottle of port from the cellar. They had hidden it from the Bailiff and the old man told Pat to bring a glass for himself and Eileen. He then settled down to finish the bottle himself. The wind howled round the house, and nobody knows whether he finished the bottle or not as about half an hour later, Pat heard a most terrible crash. He ran down the long corridor as fast as his old legs would carry him. The dining room was in total darkness. Pat struck a match, shielding it from the draught with his hands. The darkness was thick with dust, but there, in front of him Pat saw a vast gaping hole. The dining table and the old man with it had crashed through the rotten floor down into the great hall below. They found the old man. He had broken his neck and was quite dead. Some say that he had a wry smile on his face, but anyway that was the end of him.
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I invite you to share in the following pages as they are the best soup recipes gleaned from friends and family and ingenuity.
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1 lb. neck of mutton 2 quarts cold water 1/2 t. pepper 1 carrot 1 turnip 1 leek or onion 1/2 cup barley 1 t. salt 1 T. chopped parsley 2 stalks celery Cut mutton up into small pieces.
Put into a saucepan with water and barley well washed. Add vegetables, diced and salt and pepper.
Let it stand for 1/2 hour and then simmer for 2 hours. Keep well skimmed. Allow to simmer 1/2 hour, then add parsley.
note: Meat may be left in the broth or else taken out before vegetables are added. for Barley and Tomato soup, add 1 cup grated tomatoes with vegetables.
Put them in water (cold) and allow to boil. Wash and cut up onions. Add onions, bones, salt and pepper and salt pork to peas Allow to simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Put butter in a saucepan and stir flour into it Add to soup and boil for a few minutes. Serve with croutons of bread . Remove bones and rub the other contents of the saucepan through a coarse wire sieve
Croutons of Bread
Cut stale bread into slices 1/3-inch thick and remove crust. Spread with butter. Cut slices into 1/3-inch cubes.
Put into soup just before serving or serve separately with soup.
note: Croutons may be dried in deep fat or in just enough butter to keep them from burning.
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2 slices fat salt pork or bacon 1 onion 3 cups diced boiled potatoes 2 cups boiling water 1 cup cooked corn, fresh or canned 4 cups boiled milk salt and pepper Cut the pork or bacon into small pieces, and fry it out. Cook the sliced onion and potatoes in this. Strain the fat off. Add boiling water, corn and hot milk. Season with salt and pepper., Bring to the boil.
Cream soups
Milk basis: 2 T. butter 2 cups milk or 1 cup vegetable or meat stock plus 1 cup milk 2 T. flour salt and pepper Prepare 1 cup vegetable pulpany cooked vegetable or mixture of vegetables may be used with the sauce.
Melt butter and stir in flour, salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes.
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In seattle with his excellency, the abassador from China to the united states.
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I grew up in one of the many little coastal towns that cluster around the big city of Cape Town in South Africa. Growing up in this hushed town cradled between the mountains and the sea, was like a slow awakening through a warm and wide-eyed spring. At night I could hear the heartbeat of the sea, and each morning the sun rose over the water and its rosy glow bounded off my white walls and onto my bed. In the magic hour before school, I would lie and listen to the clip-clop of draught horses hooves against the road on their milk delivery route. Sometimes I would dress hurriedly and pedal my bike through the sleepy town just stretching and stirring into life. The air was new down the avenue of oak trees where bird song greeted the morning; past the files of singing servants, walking to work with baskets on their heads. My school stood at the foot of the mountains, and at times I could see the fisherman on watch signaling to boats where to drop their nets for glistening schools of mackerel. Sometimes a leopard would saunter across the school yard, bounding back into the forest when we would come out for games of Red Rover and Hopscotch. We sang songs like When Its Springtime in the Rockies and Daar kom die wa. Lovingly Mrs.. Botha introduced us to Beethoven and Browning, Rembrandt and Rachmaninoff. We had several servants. There was a cook, who carried dishes such as Lobster Thermidor under a silver dish cover to the dinner table. Jesse, the washerwoman, serviced several homes and carried enormous bundles of laundry on her head (my father once had to punish my brother for riding past Jesse on his bike and pushing her bundle of clean laundry off her head). She smelled of soapsuds and sun-dried sheets, and her pink palms were furrowed with wrinkles. Our housemaid was of the Basuto tribe, and in her spare time she turned everyday objects, such as a discarded bottle, into beaded works of arther designs strongly symmetrical, her colors bold. She told me stories of the tokoloshthe tribal bogeyman, and taught me to knit. Even though she must have weighed close to 300 pounds, I taught her the steps I learned in ballet. When I turned 14, I fell in love with the boy next door. Id stand at the wrought iron gate in the garden wall, smelling the heady fragrance of wisteria, rose, and damp earth, and wait for him to come out of his front door, wearing his high school blazer with its badge that showed he was on the rugby team. Sometimes hed ask me to a Saturday movie and afterwards hed walk me home holding my hand. When I turned off my light and snuggled under my blanket, Id relive every word hed said until the night sounds of a dog barking, the shrill squeak of a fruit bat, the soft rustling of my lace curtains in the breeze would lull me to sleep; warm, happy, secure. I no longer travel the oak lined avenues of the Cape, but the wet, green hills of Oregon. My home in Newport, Oregon serves the fruit of the sea that this sleepy fishing town yields; Dungeness crab and ling cod fresh from the oceans embrace, jostle each other at dinner. In Berkshire, in my picturesque cottage with its intimate English garden, I serve dishes like Fillet of Sole Bonne Femme, eaten in summer under the willow tree. I have spun my memories into a fragile web, but sometimes, something like the sight of grazing sheep catches a thread and brings another world to life again. My heart is in the country, my feet in the city. My loyalties straddle the continents and I find myself in a cultural quandary I cant escape. The disconcerting feeling of always remembering some place else, can only be stilled by the knowledge that the tapestry of my life is so much richer for the many-hued threads with which it has been woven.
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fIsh anD seafooD Villiers lobster Thermidor Crab Cakes with Maitre d'htel sauce Crevette a lIndienne a la Carleton
(Carleton Prawn or Crayfish Curry)
Baked stuffed fish with Vegetable stuffing fillet of sole Bonne femme
Remove meat carefully and reserve shells. Should yield about 2 cup meat. Cook onion and mushrooms in butter until onion is tender.
Stir in flour, salt, pepper and paprika. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture is bubbly.
Stir in cream, chicken broth and Worcestershire sauce. Heat to boiling stirring continuously. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir half the hot mixture into egg yolk. Blend egg mixture into remaining hot mixture. Stir in wine and lobster meat: heat through.
Place shells in baking pan, 13x9x2 inches. Fill shells with lobster mixture. Mix bread crumbs and cheese; sprinkle over mixture.
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1 cup cooked crab 1 cup mashed potatoes 1 Tablespoon parsley, chopped fat for frying 2 Tablespoons butter 2 eggs pepper and salt bread crumbs Mix the crab and potatoes, parsley and butter. Roll into balls and flatten
Season with salt and pepper and moisten with one beaten egg. Dip into bread crumbs, then into beaten egg and again in bread crumbs. Fry in hot fat or oil in a pan or else in hot deep fat or oil.
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Rub cavity with salt and pepper. Stuff with vegetable stuffing.
Brush fish with salad oil and place in open shallow roasting pan.
While baking, baste occasionally with mixture of butter and lemon juice.
Bake at 350 F. for 1 1/2 hours or until fish flakes easily with fork.
Vegetable stuffing
2 medium onions, chopped (about 1 cup) 1/4 cup butter 2 cups dry bread cubes 1 cup shredded carrot 1 cup cut-up fresh mushrooms 1/2 cup snipped parsley 1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice 1 egg 1 clove garlic, minced 2 teaspoons salt 1/4 teaspoon each marjoram and pepper Cook and stir onion in butter until onion is tender. Lightly mix in remaining ingredients.
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In PraIse of BounTY
I am often the object of mildly derogatory humor when visitors to my home find their way to the hub of the house the forty foot kitchen. With eyebrows cocked, they may enquire as to whether or not I intend to feed an army garrison. Homemade jams and jellies, bottled apricots and brandied cherries line up on shelves like strung jewels glistening in the light of the brass chandelier. Braided ropes of garlic, onions and chili peppers dangle on brass hooks from the fourteen foot ceiling amidst the drying sausages and cheeses. Shiny 5-gallon cans of honey and golden syrup stand side by side with barrels and fifty pound bags of staples: white rice, quinoa, millet, sugar and several different types of beans. Gallon cans of olive oil stand in the corner next to the hearth. Next to the fireplace stands a comfortable chair and a collection of cherished cookbooks. This is the place where I greet the morning; a mug of tea in my hand and the aroma of freshly baked bread heavy in the air. It is here where for a few brief moments a day, I can bask in the bounty of my kitchen; the tangible evidence of my own skill and labor in row upon row of jars preserving the seasons produce. I may never use all delicious jams I have prepared, or reach the bottom of the barrels of hazelnuts, raisins or dried apricots. But it reminds me of the bounty of my mothers pantry; the peace of mind reserve supplies provide as a shield against the vicissitudes of life.
The following recipes represent culinary gems from South Africa. The dried meat is some of the best in the world and ideal for camping. The Boerwors sausage dries well too, but its particular forte lies in how suitable it is for a slow outdoor barbecue.
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Malmesburys Boerwors
(Boer sausage)
Venison Biltong
Biltong or dried venison is considered one of south africas national dishes. It may be served sliced or grated at the breakfast or luncheon table, and as a sandwich filling. The meat of the springbuck makes a very delicious biltong; the kudu and impala (red buck) are also very suitable.
MeThoD
The meat should be separated into pieces with as little cutting as possible. This is done by following the muscles of the animal.
To cure the biltong, salt the meat lightly, and place it in a basin for 5 hours.
Turn the meat, to allow the salt to penetrate evenly, and leave for another 4 to 5 hours. Hang the salted meat in the shade, away from the dust and flies, until it is dry. It is then ready for use.
Beef Biltong
Most of the biltong is cut out of the hindquarter and the round is mainly used. A muscle lying along the spine and running through to the fore quarter makes a biltong termed garing biltong. Several flat biltongs can also be cut from the shoulder. The muscle formation is followed and the biltong is cut about 3 inches thick with a layer of fat on one side if possible. When all are cut, they are salted. Salt and pepper with or without spices may be used or a mixture of 1 pound salt, 2 ounces sugar and 1 ounce saltpeter. Rub the mixture in well and then pack into an enamel container or the hide itself. The hide is strung from poles or trees standing in the shade. Leave the meat for 3 days and turn it daily. Then hang in a cool, well ventilated, screened off place. Before hanging the meat may first be wiped with a cloth wrung out in vinegar water, or it may be dipped in diluted vinegar water.
1 leg mutton about 2 pounds fat pork 2 large onions 1 Tablespoon curry powder 2 Tablespoons sugar salt and pepper 2 teaspoons cornflour (cornstarch) 2 to 3 cups vinegar (enough to cover the meat) a few bruised lemon leaves Cut the mutton from the bone, and into small pieces (beef may also be used, but mutton is preferable) Put the meat into a basin, and season well with salt and pepper. Slice the onions, and cook until done, in a cup of water.
Then skewer the pieces of mutton alternatively with pieces of fat pork on thin wooden skewers. Add the curry powder, cornstarch, sugar and 1/2 Tablespoon salt mixed with the vinegar, to the onions.
Grill on a grid iron over clear coals, or fry in the ordinary way. Serve the well heated sauce and chutney with the Sosaties.
Cook for 2 to 30 minutes, and leave until cold. Pour the sauce over the meat, and mix thoroughly. Allow to remain in this sauce for 2 to 3 days.
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10 pounds beef 2 pounds pork or mutton fat (sheep tail) 2 to 3 Tablespoons coriander seed (ground) 1/2 grated nutmeg 4 to 6 Tablespoons salt 2 Tablespoons ground cloves 2 Tablespoons allspice 2 Tablespoons pepper Mince beef, and cut fat into small cubes. Mix ingredients well. Cover for 1 hour.
Fill the large sized sausage skins, and tie the ends. Make a twist in the skins to divide each sausage. To PrePare sausaGe skIns Turn skins inside out. Rinse in cold water several times.
Place skins into a basin with about 2 cups bran or mealiemeal (corn meal).
Knead the skins with bran to remove the mucous adhering to the skins. If all the mucous has not yet been removed, repeat the process until the skins are quite clean or scrape with blunt side of knife or small piece of plank. Wash again in cold water.
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Traveling is like effective surrealistic art: it alters the travelers perspective on life and brings the senses vibrantly alive. It sweeps away the cobwebs of an emotional rut and broadens the scope of perceived reality. Southwest Africa, 1900: My grandfather gives an account of an expedition during the Boer War that could have been the time he was required to transport a wagon filled with gold bullion to be hidden from the British. But whatever his mission, the awe the majestic surroundings inspired in him is apparent. We journeyed many sweltering miles along the canyons of the Orange River, where 30 foot pythons bask in the sun, given away by the stench of their lairs. We finally reached the Skeleton Coast; the coast of dead ships; the coast where a hundred jackals will attack a huge bull seal and leave only the bones. The coast of death and gems, where tourmalines in reds and greens and amethysts can be found. We traveled as far north as the Kuene River, where sheer cliffs shut in part of the muddy, treacherous river. Here hippos, crocodiles, malaria and heat claimed some of the men. Every evening brings fog here, and between the periods of fog and burning east winds come the sandstorms. The sand storms cost us many days of lying in semidarkness under the tents listening to the sand raining down mercilessly. Even the sea birds cry out in pain when they are driven before these storms that pick up the sand at low tide, sending it inland to join the enormous, moving dunes. We have lost more men and supplies to quicksand. To avoid this, we stay close to the edge of the sea where the sand is hard, a hazardous journey at high tide when the sea beats against unscalable dunes. Herds of gems buck visit the coast to lick the salt and scratch for water with their hooves, finding nourishment in wild melons. Jackals visit the beach to prey on the sea birds and we often hear them baying at the moon. Wild ostriches find their way here from the interior. In this world of sand where only birds and insects are truly at home, whale bones lie whitening under the cauldron of the sun. Yet, somehow this bare land fires the imagination. Excerpt from my journal: England, 1988 Today, Monique and I cycled through Cambridge, and we felt more like friends than mother and daughter. Cycling was not easy for one as rusty as I, my teeth rattling over cobblestone streets: threading through crowded alleys and narrow gates that brought to mind the biblical admonition about rich men and camels! We had planned to punt on the River Cam, but decided against it when another hopeful punter fell into the river. The crowds kept a discreet silence, lending aid to the drenched unfortunate as Monique succumbed to raucous peels of laughter. Monique, for heavens sake! At least try to be polite! Were in England now! She laughed even louder, pausing just long enough to point out that she wasnt English at all and therefore at liberty to laugh! We visited a street market and climbed to the top of Great St. Marys Cathedral for a splendid view of the architecture of the various colleges, immaculate lawns and rose and lilac filled gardens. In the distance, verdant green fields undulated in all directions. England, 1989: I had lunch with my friend Juan Manuel, the magnificent Spanish singer, and his producer at a Spanish club, and I almost forgot it was in London! An aura of tense anticipation prevailed as the men huddled around the television, discussing excitedly the upcoming football match in Madrid between the Barcelona Drags and the Doblenou Bufals. I munched on whatever it was Juan had ordered: 7 different dishes that ranged from flaccid sea creatures with suction cups, to fierce looking boiled crustaceans and other exotic fare. What an enriching way to spend an hour! When Matisse summed up his career, he said that he had worked his whole life to learn to paint like a child again. When we travel, we do much the same: Travel is only successful if we learn to see as a child again: to make fresh discoveries and enjoy new experiences that deepen the wonderful adventure of life. The following recipes have been gathered during some of my travels.
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Crme de Volaille
Chicken a la king
Soak the bread in the milk and squeeze out the milk again until the bread is dry. Fry the onion in the butter or fat. Mix all the ingredients except one of the eggs and bay leaves. Beat this egg with a little extra milk. Put the mixture into a buttered baking dish and pour the milk and egg over it.
Insert a few fresh lemon or bay leaves into the meat and bake in a slow oven for 1/2 hour if cooked meat is used or l hour if uncooked meat is used. Serve with boiled rice and chutney.
Add the bacon cut in small pieces. Cover and bring to boiling point.
Add the spices in a small muslin bag; salt and pepper to taste. Place the chicken, ready trussed, in the center, and allow to simmer until tender. Test for tenderness by piercing the leg muscle, not the breast, with a fork.
Remove spices and allow the pilau to cook a little longer, uncovered, if rice appears very moist. Serve with the rice around the chicken and garnish with slices of hard boiled eggs.
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Chicken a la king
Prepare same as Crme de Volaille (Australian Creamed Chicken). When adding the chicken, add also:
1 sweet red pepper 1 sweet green pepper (capsicum) finely chopped and seeds removed 2 cups chopped cleaned mushrooms 1 Tablespoon chopped onion Fry these first of all in 2 Tablespoons melted butter in a pan for 15 minutes, moving them constantly with a fork to prevent burning.
Allow to cook with the chicken in the milk mixture for 10 minutes.
Serve on toast or in patty shells, or arrange in the center of meat platter ring of white or brown rice.
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laZY DaYs
The first leaves were turning scarlet on the viny maple tree. The day was bathed in a hushed silence of anticipation: Winter was approaching. The intoxicating smell of wood smoke drifted through my window and in the distance, a flock of pelicans ungainly flight carried them south to sunnier shores. I stared with resentment at the stack of papers on my desk. The day was calling; adventure was afoot. I could feel my will to work begin to drag across the sands of my life like a kite that refuses to fly. I decided to soak in a bath, sipping a cup of comforting tea and pouring over a quaint little book of Victorian household hints. I avoided facing the duties of my day as long as possible until the book was soaked and I was dry. Reluctantly I dressed myself when the doorbell rang. An officious-looking man resembling an undertaker, stood on the porch. He solemnly asked if I would take a two-minute survey. I looked at him irritably. Couldnt the man see I was busy? He stared back smugly. Well, since it would get rid of him in two minutes Too late I realized that it was a survey by a local church to determine whether in their estimation I was a suitable candidate for heaven! Since I failed miserably, the undertakers expression changed from self-righteous smugness to open disdain. He offered condescendingly to save me, but I refused, fleeing before his accusatory stare by closing the door in his face. I cannot honestly claim that the rest of the day improved. I felt neither better, nor enriched. I became no wiser, nor did my environment become more organized or improved. It was simply a day in which precious hours sifted through my hands like sand a thoroughly lazy day!
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laZY DaY reCIPes for one DIsh Meals stellenbosch eggs De luxe oeufs a la Piemontaise Vegetable Mould with eggs Cheese souffl and Variations Tomato sauce
Arrange peas in a layer in the bottom of the baking dish with the sliced hard boiled eggs on top. An attractive effect may be secured by placing the center slices of the eggs around the sides of the dish. Pour the sauce over the eggs and bake in a cool oven until firm. Garnish and serve hot with or without a sauce. Allow to stand in dish for several minutes and unmould onto a plate.
The day I unveiled the escarpment in Big Ben Tower, Palace of Westminster, as presented by the royal horological society.
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Tomato sauce
2 large ripe tomatoes 1 onion, sliced 1 celery stalk 1 bay or lemon leaf 1 Tablespoon butter or fat 1 Tablespoon flour 1 cup water 1 Tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper Wash and chop the tomato into large pieces.
Stew gently with onion, celery, bay leaf and water until soft. Press through a sieve to eliminate pips and skins. Add flavorings and serve. Mix flour and butter to a smooth paste. Stir into hot tomato juice. Allow to boil for 3 minutes
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Looking backwards at the winding journey of our life, moments of triumph that beckon like beacons, stand delineated. If only there could be more of those. How gratifying life would be! Similarly the humiliation, losses and tears are looked at with a different type of regret: If only we had been more insightful; hadnt lost a benefit or a loved one, life would be much more beneficial now! But would it? The journey of our lives climbs ever upwards. With each step of a life well-lived, the vistas grow more magnificent: the view more breath-taking. If we were for an instant to stand on the rocky ledge of triumph where we had felt such exhilaration years ago, we would find that it has lost its charm. As experience deepened and horizons expanded, our criteria for the extraordinary did too. The stain of past experience spoken of by Emerson in his essays, refers to the selfcritical way in which we view painful experiences of the past. But the very wisdom we now possess was birthed by the folly of the past. The lofty vantage point from which we look back so censoriously, was achieved not all at once, but step by sometimes painful step. The occlusions in our vision when looking at the past must be taken into consideration. Why then is there a rosy glow of nostalgia transforming past events? Perhaps it is a contributing factor that retrospectively the outcome of events is known. This predictability and singular outcome gives an appearance of simplicity to the past. The human heart yearns for the simplicity mind would deny it. The mind complicates, whereas the heart lives in the simplicity of innocence. Power is found in the present, not the past. When choices are made from the dictates of our heart, simplicity returns to the present. There is only one choice: That which makes our heart sing. The saying goes, In order to succeed one must try and try again. In other words there is no success without many seeming failures. It takes 18 years to raise a child into adulthood and self-sufficiency; this never takes place without many failures. How many a parent and child spend a lifetime lamenting the failures of those years because of not being taught that there is no such thing as failure. There are either lessons, or gift, and in the long run those are seen to be the same. When we take a moment to scan our lives and look to see where we can apply this attitude, we will notice a dramatic shift in awareness and sense of freedom such an attitude can bring.
a look BaCkWarDs
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oignons farcis
Remove and cut a slice lengthwise from each.. Scoop out inside.
Refill skins, heaping the mixture lightly in the center. Sprinkle a little cheese on top.
note: The cheese and egg may be omitted if plain stuffed potatoes are desired.
Place in greased baking dish and bake in moderate oven till onions are tender.
note: Cucumber, eggplant, sweet peppers and tomatoes may substitute the onions. remove all the pips of the peppers. Do not parboil tomatoes.
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2 cups cooked chopped spinach 1/2 cup white sauce 3 eggs (separated) 1/2 cup grated cheese Beat egg yolks
Place in greased baking dish and bake in moderate oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
notes: a souffl must be served immediately as it falls, which however, does not detract from the flavour. any vegetable may substitute the spinach.
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a ThInG of BeauTY
My enchantment with all things beautiful started as a child: Instead of the usual first words a baby utters, I graduated from Mama and Dadda to Pragtig which means beautiful in my native tongue and includes two guttural sounds most adults cant master. The inspiration for this verbal accomplishment was the full moon in the black sky. Since then Ive found beauty everywhere to lighten the burden of life and fill my heart with joy. I echo the words of the great naturalist, John Burroughs, who wrote at the end of his life: I am in love with this worldI have tilled its soil, I have gathered its harvest, I have waited upon its seasons and always have I reaped what I have sown. While I gathered its bread and meat for my body, I did not neglect to gather its bread and meat for my soul. I have felt the sting of its frost, the oppression of its heat, the fury of its winds, and always have beauty and joy waited upon my goings and comings. When Im frightened, ill or sad, I think of moments of great beauty Ive experienced: One afternoon, as I cycled down a lane through a field of purple heather in the countryside of Holland, I came upon a large dike (a dirt wall used to keep water at bay). Climbing to the top, I saw on the other side, against the background of a dark gray lake, thousands of white swans. I sat enchanted, listening to the soft voices of the wind in the heather and watching the graceful movements of the swans against the iridescent gray of the water. My ancestors believed the important ends of life include the creation and enjoyment of beauty, both natural and man made: that it increases comprehension and provides a more assured sense of significance. They went to great lengths to find and preserve that. My great grandparents dug a large hole in their backyard to preserve their grand pianos, wrapped in blankets, from the British during the Boer War. Grandma Hilda lived in poverty with her children after the death of her husband. But hours of hard labour and delicate stitchery turned a scrap of cloth into an exquisite little girls dress. Wildflowers were turned into artistic floral arrangements to grace her humble home. The day the goat ate her handmade lace curtains through the window, Grandma Hilda sobbed, knowing that she couldnt afford to replace them. In the white washed house with its gleaming yellow wood floors, thatched roof and exquisite Cape Dutch gable among the vineyards that gently sloped down to the banks of the river, my paternal Grandfather grew up among art and music and books. It was this environment that fostered the imagination and inspired his brother to compose South Africas national anthem. Grandfather was asked to perform on the organ for King Georges visit to South Africa. Picasso said that Art cleanses the soul from the dust of everyday life. My mother believed, like Schopenhauer, that not only philosophy, but art and beauty combine to solve the mystery of life. As a child she taught me that God is the Author of beauty, as He is of truth and goodness. Beauty is part of my personal religion: With happiness in my heart at the sight of a red winged blackbird shaking the raindrops from a branch, there is no room for hate. There is no time to despair, when I search out the beauty of the arching sky and the moving clouds and the constellations on high. Like Walter Rauschenbusch, I want say: Grant us, we pray thee, a heart wide open to all this joy and beauty, and save our souls from being so steeped in care or so darkened by passion that we pass heedless and unseeing when even the thorn bush by the wayside is aflame with the Glory of God.
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BeauTIful salaDs
(especially suitable for a Cold Buffet)
German Dressing avocado and Vegetable salad Mayonnaise Dressing Tongue in aspic
Put a layer of potatoes into a glass dish adding a little of the parsley, walnuts, onion and chopped hard boiled eggs on top. Cover with dressing. Repeat until all the ingredients are used.
note: reserve an egg yolk to decorate the top. Press yolk through a wire sieve and sprinkle over salad.
Boiled Dressing
1/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon mustard 1 Tablespoon sugar few grains of cayenne pepper l teaspoon flour yolks of 2 eggs 11/2 Tablespoon butter l cups milk 1/4 cup vinegar Mix dry ingredients until well blended.
Add yolks of eggs, slightly beaten butter and milk. Cook over boiling water until mixture thickens. Add vinegar slowly, stirring all the time.
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Mix chicken, celery, chopped eggs and peas. Moisten with dressing.
German Dressing
1/2 cup thick cream 3 Tablespoons vinegar 1/4 teaspoon salt few grains of pepper 1 Tablespoon sugar Whip the cream. As cream thickens, add salt and pepper, sugar and vinegar very slowly. Beat until the mixture is thick.
note: sour cream may be used.
In the charming little town of Bray in england. Cooking With Class 145
Remove peels from avocado pears, and cut into pieces 1 inch by 2 inches. Serve with Mayonnaise Dressing
Remove skins from tomatoes. Cut tomatoes in quarters lengthwise. (On outside of each quarter, make an incision with a sharp knife and insert a strip of uncooked onion).
Arrange potato mixture on a bed of lettuce. Surround with tomato and avocado pieces, alternately.
Mayonnaise Dressing
1 teaspoon mustard 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon sugar few grains of cayenne pepper yolks of 2 eggs 2 Tablespoons lemon juice 2 Tablespoons vinegar 1 1/2 cup olive oil Mix dry ingredients. Add egg yolks and mix well.
Add 1 Tablespoon lemon juice and 1 Tablespoon vinegar and mix well. If desired, the rest of the acid can now be added to thin down mixture.
Add oil gradually at first, and beating well after each addition. Continue adding oil until it is all used.
note: The secret of success in mixing this dressing is to have the ingredients cool, but not chilled, to beat continuously, and to add the oil very slowly in the beginning.
Tongue in aspic
1 Tablespoon sugar 3 1/2 cups cold water 1/2 cup sherry 2 Tablespoons white vinegar 1/4 cup lemon juice 1 carrot, turnip and onion 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 sprig parsley rind of 1 lemon 2 1/2 Tablespoons gelatin whites and shell of 2 eggs peppercorns tongue Boil tongue until tender. Skin and allow to cool.
Soak gelatin in 1/2 cup of the water. Boil rest of water, vegetables and seasoning. Clarify with whites of eggs and shells. Let boil for 5 minutes. Remove and add gelatin. Cool for 5 minutes and strain.
Put tongue in mould and pour jelly mixture over it. When set, unmould and decorate.
note: an easy method of unmoulding jellies is to put the mould into hot water for a few seconds, and then turn it out onto a wet dish.
In Brighton during the Brighton run with h.r.h. Prince Michael of kent. Cooking With Class 147
The rose
All sages have whispered their message, that beneath the overlay of tragedy, a reality exists that is inherently true and good and pure. The rose has lingered throughout the ages of history like a half-forgotten dream a symbol of the perfection underlying appearances. A token of affection; a herald of spring, the rose is the emblem of love that having endured all, rises to triumph above all. The rose in its full-blown glory of summer, falls in a fragrant scattering of petals upon the earth. Only the bare and gaunt branches will remain, like hands making a supplication for alms from the merciless winter sky. Love too can be pared to the bone, scattered before the winds of time like the petals of the rose. But it is as perennial as the grass rising out of the ashes of a burnt field. Lifes disillusionments are admittedly painful. But they are simply the breaking away of the man-made reality of engendered belief systems, yielding to the pristine perfection that awaits behind the appearances. The rose symbolizes the promise that the birth pains of spiritual evolution are not in vain; that like a rose unfurling in exquisite beauty, we too can emerge from the hardships of life with the grace of perfection.
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In seattle, Washington
Cut eggs through the center lengthwise, and remove yolks. Mix yolks with dressing and refill whites. Season tomato with salt and pepper. Cut center of tomato out to make space large enough to hold the stuffed eggs.
Add seasonings and vinegar, mix well and cook boiling water until thickened. Beat occasionally.
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PerPlexInG DIfferenCes
In the movie My Fair Lady Professor Higgins asks, Why cant a woman be more like a man? There are times when communication breaks down between males in my life and me, and I find myself in opposition to a logic more formidable than that of Einstein. I share the consternation felt by Professor Higgins over the differences between the sexes. A predominantly male characteristic seems to be the telling of tall stories. None of the females of my acquaintance have the same flair for the exaggerated or the absurd. Especially when it comes to hunting and fishing stories. One fellow I know claims he was so young when he shot his first deer, he went hunting on his bicycle, his gun slung across this back. It was the first day of hunting season and many of the hunters were making camp as he rode up the hill behind town. He cycled to the top of the hill and was just getting off his bike when a deer peered inquisitively from behind a tree trunk. They stared at each other before he remembered to take the gun off his back. But just then the deer disappeared behind a tree. He waited patiently and when the deer decided to take another look at the boy and the bike, he shot him.
He wondered why everyone thought it was such a big accomplishment to shoot a deer. It seemed easy enough. He couldnt find the wound where the bullet had struck, but struggling under the weight of the deer he was in no mood to give it a second thought. With great difficulty he heaved the animal onto his back and tied the front legs over his shoulders onto the handlebars. But halfway down the hill the deer, apparently only stunned by the bullet that had hit his horn, came to and started kicking wildly, the bike careening from side to side. If only I had thought to tie his hind legs down too, my friend said sadly. Just in front of a camp of astonished hunters the animal managed to free itself and was gone. I am prepared to concede that men are generally more mechanically minded. Perhaps the experience gained as little boys by taking every workable appliance apart and rendering it unworkable gives them an unfair advantage. But the air of superiority that accompanies this knowledge I find insufferable. If you complain to a mechanic that something is rattling in your car, he informs you smugly that he knows just what the problem is. When you pick up your car after leaving it in his capable hands for many days, there is no sign of the rattle as you test it around his parking lot. But like the childs cough that disappears when you take him to the doctor, the rattle returns as soon as you leave. Another area of controversy arises over the culinary art of making sandwiches. Women labour with care to produce exquisitely delicate finger sandwiches only to have the men stare at them balefully. Within a matter of a few bites, they are still staring balefully but now at the empty plate. The following recipes do equally well at the tea table or in a fishermans lunch box.
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BreaDs anD sanDWIChes ThaT Please eVerYone Banana loaf soft Gingerbread Date Bread Doughnuts american Popovers sandwich fillings
Banana loaf
1/2 cup shortening 1 cup brown sugar 2 cups flour 1 egg 1 cup mashed banana (3 or 4 bananas) 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon vinegar Cream butter and sugar well. Add beaten egg. Add a little milk if mixture appears too stiff.
Sift dry ingredients and add to mixture with bananas and vinegar. Put into lined, greased, loaf pan and bake for 1 1/2 hours.
soft Gingerbread
1 egg 1/2 cup yellow sugar 1/2 cup sour milk 1/2 cup honey or treacle 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 2 teaspoons ground ginger 1 teaspoon mixed spices 2 Tablespoons lard or butter 1 1/2 cup flour Sift dry ingredients together.
Beat egg and sugar together until light. Add sour milk, honey and melted butter. Bake 25 minutes in a moderate oven.
Sift dry ingredients into this mixture. Beat until smooth. Pour into greased baking tin.
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Date Bread
1 pound dates, chopped 2 cups boiling water 2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda 3 cups flour 2 Tablespoons butter 2 eggs 1 cup sugar Pour boiling water over dates and bicarbonate of soda. Allow to cool. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one by one.
Add sifted flour and date mixture. Pour into greased bread tin and bake in a moderate oven (350 F.) for 1 1/2 hours.
note: Wrap tin in 2 layers of paper before putting in the oven to prevent it from burning.
Doughnuts
4 1/2 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon baking powder 3 eggs fat for deep fat frying 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 1 cup milk (sour) 2 Tablespoons melted butter 1/2 teaspoon salt Sift dry ingredients together. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients.
Cut with a round biscuit cutter. The center may be cut out with a very small cutter, if desired, to make a ring doughnut. Roll in sugar. Cook to a golden brown in deep hot fat. Drain on crumpled paper.
Mix beaten eggs, vanilla, sugar, butter and milk, add flour, and gradually work into a dough, stiff enough to handle. Roll on a floured board until 1/2 inch thick.
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american Popovers
1 1/4 cup flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 teaspoon sugar 1 cup milk Mix flour, salt and sugar gradually add milk and well beaten eggs. Beat thoroughly.
Pour into well greased, piping hot, shallow cake mould or muffin pans, about half full.
Bake in a hot oven (450 F.), for 20 minutes. Lower to 350 F. and bake 15 minutes longer.
sandwich fillings
DrIeD fruIT: 1/4 cup dried figs 1/4 cup seeded raisins 2 Tablespoons honey 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup peanut butter 2 Tablespoons lemon juice Chop fruit and mix with other ingredients. PeanuT BuTTer anD Banana (or aPPle): 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup banana sliced 1 Tablespoon lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon salt Mix and spread. CreaM Cheese anD ToMaTo: 1/2 cup cream cheese 2 tomatoes parsley salt and pepper Spread bread with cream cheese. Put slices of tomato on top. CaBBaGe anD ToMaTo: 1/2 cup grated cabbage and salad dressing tomato slices Mix cabbage with salad dressing. Put slices of tomato on bread. Green BuTTer: Chopped parsley or watercress and butter.
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aVoCaDo-Pear: Avocado pear Lemon juice Salt and pepper eGG: Hard boiled egg Parsley Lettuce Salad dressing fruIT BuTTer: Wash sour apples or other fruit. Cut and cover with water. Simmer until tender: rub through a sieve. Add 1/4 cup sugar for every cup of pulp, and 2 cloves. Boil slowly until thick. Bottle and seal. CreaM Cheese anD Banana: Cream cheese and mashed banana and a dash of lemon juice. sarDInes anD eGG Yolk: Sardines, salt and pepper, lemon juice and hard boiled yolk of egg. Mash sardines and yolk of egg. Add rest of ingredients and mix. Moisten with little butter. ChICken anD haM: Add mixture of minced chicken and ham to creamed butter. Add chopped parsley. ChICken MaYonnaIse anD ToMaTo: Moisten minced chicken with mayonnaise. Spread on bread with tomato slices, and chopped parsley.
a lIGhTness of hearT
When my father and I traveled abroad, I noticed with what enthusiasm he studied passersby in the airport. Every now and then he would saunter up to someone to borrow a newspaper and start chatting happily. The man seated next to him in the airplane was soon treated like a long lost friend. Finally, I could stand it no longer. I reached over and tugged at his sleeve. What on earth do you find interesting about the fellow next to you? He stared at me in amazement for a minute and then replied, It is important to study personality in others. If we can identify a harmful trait in someone else, we can more easily eliminate a similar trait from our own personality, he said. When we love good qualities, we can more easily produce them in ourselves. Probably the greatest power in the world, either negative or positive, is the power of example. For the next few days I thought quite a bit about my fathers enviable ability to turn contact with another personality into an effective learning experience. I acknowledge freely there have been some very important personalities in my life who have influenced me beneficially.
My aunt Mathilda was one of those who have helped shape my life with their love of truth and life. She too, like my father, greeted strangers on the bus. When I asked her why she did this, she said, Remember always that the few words you say to someone may be the only kind words they hear all day. Once, in church, when her grandson asked her why some people lit candles, she explained they lit them in remembrance of loved ones. Will many people light candles for you when you die? He asked. No dear, I prefer to light my candles along the way, she replied. On occasion she would call and say Invite your friends and lets make some ice cream. The flowers are growing, the birds are singing, what a perfectly good reason for having a party! Long after her death, her radiant personality and spiritual beauty still inspired her loved ones. All of life was a celebration to her, and when she died, those who knew her felt not so much the sadness of having lost her as gratitude for having known her. It is one of the most startling and thought provoking paradoxes of our day of wonders and scientific enlightenment that discouragement still abounds. The one supreme gift the inhabitants of our world need is the gift of light. Perhaps that is why we cherish the memory of those inspiring personalities who chose to light their candles along the way.
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DesserTs ThaT ProVIDe a PerfeCTlY GooD reason for haVInG a ParTY aunt Mathildas Vanilla Custard Ice Cream Chocolate sauce Pineapple Bavarian Cream Marshmallow sauce Vanilla souffl and Variations lemon sauce My Mothers Plum Pudding Brandy sauce
Chocolate sauce
1/4 cup cocoa 1/2 cup sugar pinch of salt 1 cup boiling water
Mix all the ingredients and bring to the boil. (My mother likes to add a teaspoon of vinegar or brandy.)
left: opening shannon Court right: Inspecting shannon Court. 160 Cooking With Class
Heat pineapple, add sugar, lemon juice, soaked gelatin, and stir until the gelatin has dissolved. Chill and, when beginning to set, fold in whipped cream. Place in a wet or buttered pudding mould and chill.
When set, unmould and garnish with whipped cream and sliced pineapple or cherries.
Marshmallow sauce
1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup water 8 marshmallows white of 1 egg Boil sugar and water to thin syrup.
Cut marshmallows in pieces and add to syrup. Beat egg white till stiff but not dry. Pour syrup on to egg white, beating all the time.
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VarIaTIons: Add to vanilla souffl, 2 ounces grated chocolate. Replace the milk in vanilla souffl with coffee and omit vanilla. for leMon souffl use: 5 eggs 3 Tablespoons sugar grated rind 1/2 lemon 1/4 teaspoons salt 3 Tablespoons lemon juice Beat egg yolks well. Add lemon juice and rind. Add sugar and beat thoroughly. Beat egg whites until stiff, and add salt.
Fold the first mixture into the beaten egg whites and bake like vanilla souffl.
lemon sauce
2 Tablespoons butter 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1/2 cup lemon juice Melt butter over boiling water. Stir in sugar. Beat egg slightly. Add to butter and sugar. Add lemon juice gradually, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to thicken.
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Beat eggs thoroughly, add the brandy, syrup and rind, then gradually add to the sugar and butter mixture, alternately with the flour, mixed with spices, and the bread crumbs. Add the soda dissolved in the orange juice. Add the prepared fruit and mix well. BranDY sauCe 1/4 cup butter 1 cup castor sugar 2 Tablespoons brandy 2 eggs 1/2 cups cream or milk Cream butter. Add sugar gradually. Add brandy very slowly. Add well beaten yolks and milk or cream
Pour into a buttered tin (only 2/3 full) and steam for 3 hours. Serve with brandy sauce.
Cook over hot water until it thickens as a custard. Fold in the beaten whites of eggs.
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It happened recently at a Christmas party when a white haired judge of my acquaintance asked me to dance. I tried to make polite conversation as he led me onto the dance floor. Everyone seems to be having a good time, I said. But he payed no attention to my chit chat. But then the band started the old Beatles song, Rock and Roll Music, and he lost all interest in conversation. Right before my eyes His Honor changed into John Travolta: The blue eyes under the bushy brows widened with an inner ecstasy that compelled him into a primordial rhythm. I was swept along like a cork in a whirlpool, my feet more airborne than not, never knowing from one dizzy turn to the next where I was. What dance we were doing, I had no idea. But I knew for sure it wasnt anything my limited experience had prepared me for! I skipped and I whirled and I twisted and turned and in some miraculous way I remained on my feet! Above the large arrangements of bright red poinsettias, the band progressed to Twist and Shout, and I knew by his change of pace that he was prepared to heed the call! We twisted and rocked and disco'd and tangoed. On the final curve I lost my shoes, one flying south, the other one north. The music ended and with a masterful display of strength he lifted me triumphantly into the air, breathless and shoeless, but right side up and in one piece! I stumbled dizzily back to my seat, every nerve tingling, my face flushed with exuberance! As I waited for my heartbeats to slow down, I remembered the words of Sir Walter Scott: One hour of life, crowded to the full with glorious action, and filled with noble risks, is worth whole years of those mean observances of paltry decorum in which men steal through existence, like sluggish waters through a marsh. I looked at the other dancers moving across the floor like sluggish waters through a marsh,: and knew that my dancing partner had given me a new perspective: Parties are for having rip roaring, pull out the stops, all out fun! He taught me too that joy can be contagious. It had bolstered my spirits and for a few minutes I had felt totally triumphant over the incapacities of the body, and the self imposed limitations of the mind. Henry Thoreau said, It is something to be able to paint a particular picture or carve a statue and make a few objects beautiful; but it is far more glorious to carve and paint the very atmosphere and medium through which we look, to affect the quality of the day. That is the highest of art.
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Cakes anD ParTY fare Villiers Christmas Cake angel or silver sponge Cake Butter Icing Wonderful lemon Pie short Pie Crust rhubarb Punch Mixed fruit Punch (25 servings)
Sprinkle a little of the weighed flour over the fruit. Add the fruit and marmalade.
Add the eggs 2 at a time, alternately with the sifted flour. Lastly add the salt, baking powder and the brandy. Put into a well lined and greased baking tin. Bake in a slow oven (250 F.) for 6 hours. Leave to cool then turn out of tin.
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Bake in a slow oven (300 F.) for 1 1/4 hours. Reverse cake tin onto a cake cooler and allow to stand until cold. Loosen carefully with a knife and shake gently onto cooler.
Butter Icing
2 cups icing sugar 4 Tablespoons melted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla pinch salt milk Mix all ingredients.
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Beat egg yolks and add the hot mixture slowly. Cook the mixture over slow heat until it thickens. Remove from range and add lemon juice and butter. Pour into a baked crust.
Add water gradually, tossing the moistened lumps of dough aside so that the water may reach the dry material. Press the lumps of dough together with a few firm strokes of the fork or spoon. Roll out lightly to desired thickness. Place on a lightly floured board and shape a little with the hands to form a round ball.
Cut in fat with two knives and then mix with tips of fingers, until mixture is the consistency of coarse cornmeal.
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rhubarb Punch
1 1/2 pounds rhubarb 1 quart water 1 1/2 cups sugar 1/2 cup orange juice 4 Tablespoons lemon juice crushed ice charged water or ginger ale salt Cut rhubarb into small pieces. Add water and cook until soft. Rub through sieve, add sugar, stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to boiling; add fruit juices and salt.
Bottle or chill, and serve with crushed ice, or an equal amount of charged water or ginger ale.
on the ferry, crossing the english Channel to france. Cooking With Class 169
The search for elegance is an integral part of the human soul and when denied finds expression in deviant ways. Elegance, though endlessly multi-faceted is not based on arbitrary standards. Its based on the creations of nature and when our connection with nature becomes severed; our innate understanding of elegant expression does also. Throughout the ages, whenever a society bogs down under social strictures and conditioning, divorcing itself from natural life, excesses ensue. In polite Victorian society, the burden of the supposed elegant life became so consuming that its excesses left hardly any room for individual expression. The care of man-made elegance required an infrastructure that served it, rather than it serving man. Many servants and trades people bolstered this ballooning materialism that set the tone for the industrialism of the twentieth century. The delicate balance of nature was ruthlessly pillaged and destroyed as its resources were used to feed the mounting urgency for elegance. The work of mans hands though often praiseworthy and exquisite, cannot compensate for a loss of the multi-layered balance, grace and elegant expression of nature. In fact, great art that feeds the soul and inspires the mind is that which for brief, captured moments lifts the veil from the face of the physical; exposing the indwelling divinity that animates all life. It is that which is commonly found in what might be called the lowliest weed in a forgotten corner of our garden. Enjoying with gratitude the comforts and elegance of our environment is representative of a well-rounded character. When they become more than a means to an end; more than tools that enhance freedom and learning it is time to return to nature - the place of solace and that which mirrors the elegance within our souls.
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CookIes for all oCCasIons Christmas rocks spice Cookies Marmalade Drop Cookies Date squares German Chocolate Biscuits Crunchies Jaylene's special oatmeal and raisin Cookies a Variety of Meringues
Christmas rocks
1 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon cloves 1 cup chopped nuts 3 cups pitted dates, chopped 3 cups raisins, chopped 2/3 cup shortening 1/2 cup sugar 2 eggs Mix and sift dry ingredients. Stir in flour mixture.
Cream shortening; gradually beat in sugar, eggs, nuts and fruit. Drop from teaspoon on greased baking sheet, and bake in moderate oven about 12 minutes.
spice Cookies
1/2 cup syrup 1/4 cup sugar 1 1/2 Tablespoons butter 1 1/2 Tablespoons lard 1 Tablespoon milk 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 2 cups flour 1/2 teaspoon soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon cloves ground 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon Mix dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients.
Mix heated syrup, shortening and milk. Chill, roll, and bake in moderate oven.
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Cream shortening, gradually beat in sugar and egg. Stir in dry ingredients, then marmalade. Drop from teaspoon on greased baking sheet. Bake in moderate oven, about 13 minutes.
Date squares
1 1/4 cups oatmeal 1 1/4 cup flour 1/2 cup sugar 2 eggs, well beaten 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 6 ounces butter 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt Rub butter into flour; add sugar, spices and salt.
Make into a soft dough with beaten eggs (and a little milk, if necessary). Roll out to an 1/4 inch thickness and cut to fit a square pan. Brush over with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. When cold, cut into squares. Put a date filling on this layer and another dough layer on top.
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Date filling 1/2 pound stoned dates, finely chopped 1/2 cup water
grated rind and juice of 1 orange 1/2 cup sugar
Add sugar gradually, and continue the beating. Add chocolate, grated. Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon and add it together with lemon rind and almonds to the first mixture. Drop from tip of spoon onto a greased pan. Bake in a moderate oven.
note: 6 Tablespoons cocoa mixed with 1 1/2 Tablespoons melted butter may be substituted for the 2 ounces chocolate.
Crunchies
1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup sugar 1 egg, well beaten 1 cup flour 1 cup dates 1/4 cup walnuts 1 1/2 cups corn flakes 1 Tablespoon milk 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Cream butter and sugar. Add well beaten egg. Add nuts and dates.
Mix dry ingredients and add. Add flakes and milk lastly. Press into greased baking sheet. Bake 15 to 20 minutes at 400 F. Cut into bars.
for an afternoon function at the Palace of Westminster Cooking With Class 175
at a splendid Druid feast with a large outdoor reception. Delicacies such as those given here spilled across the table from large baskets with edible flowers. 176 Cooking With Class
a Variety of Meringues
egg whites and sugar are the only essential ingredients required for the making of meringues. Cream and other ingredients are used for the filling and for finishing off. The meringues can be very neatly shaped by using 2 tablespoons, and fancy shapes can be obtained by squeezing the mixture through tubes. The meringue mixture must be beaten very thoroughly and must be baked in a very cool oven. The success of meringues depends chiefly upon this.
4 egg whites 1 cup castor or other sugar pinch of salt 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or 1/2 Tablespoon lemon juice Add the sugar to the egg whites and beat until stiff.
Shape as desired on unwaxed paper on a board or baking sheet. A board prevents the meringues from becoming easily scorched, but care should be taken that the wood does not impart any taint.
Add half the sugar gradually and beat continuously until the mixture retains its shape. Add the essence and the remaining sugar and beat until the mixture is stiff enough not to lose shape when moulded.
Fill and press together in pairs with sweetened, flavored castor sugar.
Remove carefully from the paper. Should the meringues stick, the paper may be moistened on the outside.
The folloWInG are InTeresTInG VarIaTIons: ICe CreaM MerInGues: Fill meringues with any kind of ice cream, press together in pairs and serve immediately. CherrY CreaM MerInGues: Chop crystallized cherries and mix with whipped cream. Fill meringues with this mixture, press together in pairs and serve immediately. ChoColaTe MerInGues: Mix 1 Tablespoon cocoa with 2 Tablespoons of the castor sugar given in the recipe; fold this into the meringue mixture as soon as it has been beaten sufficiently. CoConuT MerInGues: Fold in 1/2 cup desiccated coconut. alMonD MerInGues: 1 to 2 ounces finely chopped almonds may be folded into the meringue mixture. Coffee MerInGues: Add 1 teaspoon coffee essence to sweetened whipped cream. Use this for filling and pressing the meringues together.
note: Meringues may be tinted delicately. This is done by adding 1 to 2 drops of coloring.
Through the years I have given a considerable amount of thought to the concept of feeling at home during life on Earth. A dear friend bought me a Christmas ornament of a silver recreational vehicle; a trailer pulled behind a car. On it was written: Home is where you hook up.
I spend a lot of time in airplanes, airports and hotels. The inelegance of this man-made reality is at strong variance with the grace and splendor of the human soul; it chafes like an ill-fitting shoe until either a callous builds up, or the pain of it, makes this life-style impossible to sustain. To become calloused to the discomfort found in the alienation from the harmonious co-existence with the natural world, is to become hardened and insensitive to what feeds the soul as well. The poetry and beauty of life goes unnoticed. We pass heedlessly by the small acts of heroism of human life uninspired the praises of the worthy things of life unsung. A family dwelling is not necessarily a home. In many residences blaring televisions and constant cell-phone interruptions fill the vacuous gaps in personal interactions and mask the lack of knowledge about what constitutes deep, meaningful living. The core relationship with the self suffers and successful aloneness becomes impossible.
I adopted my beautiful little Plains Cree Native American daughter when she was nine months old. Recently, at nine years old, she had to leave the small private school she had been attending and transition to a large public school. As a single working mother, my success at parenting her has not always been apparent to me until now. She spends her school recesses alone, not yet having gathered a peer group for herself. Happy with her own company, examining trails of ants on the playground or swinging with her hair blowing in the wind. Somehow the proper value systems have been instilled. She has accomplished what most adults have not being at home with herself. She has found the home that can never be taken away.
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a VarIeTY of sWeeTs To GIVe as eleGanT GIfTs easy to Make Chocolate fudge My sisters Vanilla opera fudge Pimms nougat
Chocolate fudge
2 cups sugar 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup cocoa 2 Tablespoon golden syrup 1 cup walnuts or mixed nuts and fruits 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 Tablespoons butter Mix sugar, milk, cocoa and syrup. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Boil until a soft ball can be formed when tested in water (238 F. at sea level). Remove and add butter but do not stir. When partly cooled, beat until thick and creamy. Add vanilla and nuts. Pour into buttered pan. Cut into squares.
2 cups sugar 1 cup cream or b cups milk 2 Tablespoons butter 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Put sugar and cream or milk into saucepan. Stir until sugar is dissolved.
Add cream of tartar. Boil, stirring carefully if cream is used, to 238 F. at sea level. Or until mixture forms a soft ball in cold water. Pour onto a buttered marble slab, tray or platter. If milk is used instead of cream, the butter is added now on top of the mixture but not stirred.
When cool, work with a spatula or butter paddle until creamy. Cover with a damp cloth for 1/2 hour. Add vanilla, working it in well with the hands. Let it stand to harden.
Press into small box or tin, 6 inches by 4 inches, lined with white, buttered paper.. Remove paper, slice and cut into squares.
note: other flavours may be added and colors used to correspond. sometimes this fudge is divided into several portions, each flavoured and colored differently, pressed into a box in thin layers, and then cut when set.
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Pimms nougat
I simply love the cozy 15th century cottage that is home to me when in Berkshire. Pimms Cottage with its thick walls stands firm against winter storms and offers a cool retreat in summer. Many happy hours in front of the hearth or teas under the willow tree have refined recipes like these.
2 cups sugar 1/2 cup honey, glucose or golden syrup 1 cup water 4 egg whites 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 1/2 cups chopped nuts 1/2 cup glace cherries Mix half the sugar, water and syrup. Stir until dissolved and do likewise with the other half. Cook the first mixture to the very stiff ball stage (246 to 250 F. at sea level). Beat egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Add the hot syrup slowly, beating continuously.
While beating, cook the remaining half of the ingredients to the stiff ball stage. Remove and add to the first mixture, beating while adding. When cool, add vanilla, nuts and cherries. Pour into buttered pans or pans lined with rice paper.
Smooth the upper surface, cover with rice paper if desired, and allow to stand overnight before cutting. Cut and wrap in waxed paper.
Pimm's cottage, my 15th century Berkshire home. Cooking With Class 181
It was during one of my earliest visit to Castlemartyr town that I was introduced to an elderly resident who claimed to remember well the time when my grandfather lived there. During his reminiscences he made more than one reference to the party, although admitting that it was many years before his time. Being at a loss to know to what party he referred, I asked him what this event was. He was evidently appalled that I, as a member of the family, should not know to what he referred, especially as it was still a legend amongst the residents of the town. He then proceeded to repair my lamentable ignorance as follows: It was long ago (the date he could not quantify but was most probably in the early 19th century) that the then Earl of Shannon and another Noble Lord were attending a dinner when the latter observed in conversation that in his garden in England he had by far the widest bridge over a river in the whole Kingdom. The Earl of Shannon protested that at Castlemartyr he had in his garden a bridge so wide that all of King Georges army could march in line abreast with room to spare. Immediately it was inevitable that a wager should be struck as to the relative merits of width of the two bridges. From the sound of it the dinner could well have taken place at Whites club. Therefore, a suitable day was arranged for a party to visit Castlemartyr to check the veracity of the claim regarding its bridge to decide the bet; the other bridge evidently being well known to those present. In laying out the vast landscaped gardens then popular at that time, the Earl of Shannon had been disenchanted with a small river which flowed through his garden in what he considered was an inappropriate course. He therefore had the river diverted to a more suitable route which involved taking it by means of a culvert underground for a distance of the better part of a mile. The Earl claimed that, as the river flowed in at one end and out the other also that one could walk across the top, the result therefore must be a bridge. This was grudgingly conceded but the objection was raised that was it really the same river coming out as that which flowed in so far away? At Castlemartyr and after, no doubt, a suitable repast such as might have been compiled from recipes in this book and fortified by many bottles of choice vintages, it was decided to settle the question by re-corking some of the empty bottles and each member of the party would seal one with his personal signet. This was accordingly done and the party repaired to the upper end of the culvert where they threw their bottles into the river. The party then took horse and made for the lower end to wait until all of their bottles emerged, which they did. Thus the wager was won and however many golden guineas were at stake were devoted to a marathon party for all the inhabitants of Castlemartyr, leaving an indelible memory most probably of the whole town being dead drunk for the better part of a week. This memory has lasted as a legend amongst their descendants for over a century.
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The rt. hon. earl of shannon during the years of World War II. Cooking With Class
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ChuTneYs, JaMs anD ConserVes Pineapple, rhubarb and orange Conserve Prince Michael obelenskys Gooseberry and Pineapple Conserve Quince honey Castle Martyr Plum Conserve Pineapple-rhubarb Jam fresh Pear Chutney
Cut the peel of the orange fine, and leave in water overnight. Boil until soft and add to the other fruit.
4 quarts gooseberries 1 large pineapple 1 1/4 cups sugar to each 2 cups fruit Remove the stems and calyx of the gooseberries; pare the pineapples and remove the eyes, then chop or grate the flesh.
Strawberries may replace the gooseberries, but no water should be used in this case.
Cook the gooseberries and pineapple in about 1 1/2 cups of water for 15 minutes; then add the sugar, and cook until thick, stirring frequently.
Quince honey
Peel and grate 5 large quinces (remove the hard portion). Take l pound of sugar for every 1 pound of fruit and 1 cup of water for every 2 1/2 pounds of sugar.
Make a syrup, add the grated quinces, and boil for about 20 minutes. The mixture should have the color and consistency of honey.
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Pineapple-rhubarb jam
1 pineapple 1 orange 7 1/2 cups cut rhubarb 7 1/2 cups sugar Remove top from pineapple and cut into wedges. Cut rind and eyes from wedges. Remove core. Cut unpeeled orange and lemon into quarters discarding seeds. Combine rhubarb fruit and sugar. Cover and refrigerate 5 hours. Grind pineapple, orange and lemon in food chopper using medium blade.
Pour fruit mixture into large kettle; heat to boiling. Stirring frequently, boil over medium heat 25 minutes or until jam thickens. Fill jars, cool and store.
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Tie cloves, allspice and cinnamon sticks in double thickness squares of cheesecloth. Place in kettle and heat to boiling, stirring frequently. Remove spice bag and store in jars. Reduce heat. Simmer 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until chutney is dark and syrupy.
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Morning sunshine in the breakfast room in the oregon Coast home, The united states.
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household hints
To clean decanters or water bottles: Fill halfway with equal volumes of water and vinegar and a few pieces of raw potatoes. Shake or stir well. Tough chicken: Cover with water and 1 cup vinegar and leave overnight. Tough meat: Add 2 teaspoons ground ginger when boiling or stewing. To keep poultry fresh before cooking: Place a large, peeled onion inside and rub lemon juice (rub with half a lemon) into the poultry to keep it soft and white. To prevent eggs from cracking when boiling, add 1 teaspoon salt and vinegar to the water. It is always recommended to place eggs in cold water and then bring to boil. To make it easier to cream butter, first rinse the bowl with hot water and dry thoroughly. Dry cheese in an oven that is barely on, before grating. Not only will it go so much further, but the recipe it is used in will yield a much lighter result. Macaroni is often a failure due to over soft cheese. When chocolate is to be melted either in the microwave or double boiler, the least messy way is to melt it wrapped in wax paper. To clean windows without streaks, use newspaper dampened with white vinegar. Then wipe with dry newspaper. To loosen an obstinate lid, place a hot iron on the lid for about 10 seconds. To restore the colors of a carpet, grate 1 or 2 potatoes, pour hot water over and set aside for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Pour off the water and use it to brush the carpet with. Tights or stockings can be quickly dried by wrapping them around a hot water bottle. save unused hotel soaps for preventing bathroom mirrors from steaming up. Rub the previously unused cake of soap over the mirror, then rub well with a dry, soft cloth. Beetroot stains can be removed from a tablecloth by placing a shallow dish of cold water under the stain and a thick slice of white bread on top. The bread will absorb the color.
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4 fluid ounces 5 fluid ounces 10 fluid ounces 2 pints 1 pint 8 fluid ounces
1 fluid ounce
English
Measurements
American
2 cups 5 cups
Courgettes
Cornflour
Whipping Cream
Plain Flour
Streaky Bacon
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Soups
Mousses
Andalusian Gaspacho Soup .................................................. 90 Barley Broth (Potage Crme dOrge) ..................................110 . Corn Chowder ........................................................................112 Cream Soups...........................................................................113 Cucumber Soup ...................................................................... 31 Fish Soup with Pasta .............................................................. 66 Jerusalem Artichoke Soup..................................................... 13 Pea Soup with Croutons (Puree de Pois aux Croutons) ..111 Potato and Watercress Soup .................................................. 78 Russian Borsch Soup .............................................................. 41
Assorted Entrees
Game
Asparagus with Parmesan ...................................................... 9 Cracker Bread with Hungarian Cheese .............................. 95 Parma Ham with Melon .........................................................18 Queen Annes Mushrooms ....................................................61 Stuffed Vine Leaf Dolmas ......................................................74
Eggs
Ham .......................................................................................... 22 Liver Pate Cake ......................................................................101 Smoked Salmon ...................................................................... 36 Tomato .....................................................................................102 Eggs De Luxe ......................................................................... 134 Flemish Eggs............................................................................ 48 Gussing Eggs ..........................................................................101 Ham and Eggs ......................................................................... 28 Oeufs en Cocotte a ma Facon ............................................... 66 . Oeufs Murette ......................................................................... 84 Vegetable Mould with Eggs (Oeufs a la Piemontaise) .... 135 Baked Stuffed Fish ............................................................... 120 . Crab Cakes ..............................................................................117 Fillet of Sole Bonne Femme ..................................................118 Gambas alla Plancha (Prawns) ............................................. 57 Lobster Thermidor .................................................................116 Lotte Thermidor ...................................................................... 52 Paella a la Valenciana (Prawns and Chicken) .................... 91 Prawn or Crayfish Curry (Crevette a lIndienne a la Carleton) ...................................................................118 . Salmon Trout (Salmon) .......................................................... 62 Salmon Trout Fish Cakes ....................................................... 67 Scallops Bantry Bay .................................................................10 Scampi alla Plancha (Prawns) ............................................. 69 .
Poultry
Pheasant, roasted Ormerod ..................................................14 Pheasant Risotto ......................................................................18 Quail, roasted with White Grapes ....................................... 23 Venison, roasted and larded ................................................. 85 Venison Biltong ................................................................... 122 Australian Creamed Chicken (Crme de Volaille) .......... 130 Chicken, Circassian with Walnuts ...................................... 53 . Chicken A La King ............................................................... 130 Chicken Stuffed Tomatoes (Salade de Volaille et Tomates) .151 Duck, roasted with Black Cherry Sauce.............................. 42
Meat
Vegetables
Beef Beauceronne .......................................................................103 Beef Olives ........................................................................... 37 Beef Biltong ........................................................................ 122 Hamburgers with Madeira Sauce .................................... 46 Hungarian Porkolt .............................................................. 96 Steaks alla Diavola ............................................................. 32 . Bobotee ............................................................................... 128 Boerwors (Boer Sausage) ..................................................... 124 Indian Pilau ........................................................................... 129 Lamb, Ibithenco Leg, roasted ............................................... 75 Pork, Venetian with Cinnamon ............................................ 79 Pork Chops with Cherry sauce ............................................. 46 Sosaties (kebabs or skewered meat) ................................... 123 Veal, Escallops Hesperides ................................................. 69 Beans Broad with Summer Savoury ........................................... 70 French ................................................................................... 57 Broccoli ..................................................................................... 49 Carrots, sliced ...........................................................................76 Carrots and Turnips ............................................................... 67 Cauliflower, Polonaise ........................................................... 24 Cucumber, Yoghourt .............................................................. 55 Fennel, Buttered ...................................................................... 15 Leeks, creamed ....................................................................... 33 . Onions Stuffed (Oignons farcis) ....................................................140 Roasted ................................................................................. 86 Peas, Mangetout ...................................................................... 19
Salads
Avocado Salad ......................................................................... 46 Avocado and Vegetable Salad ..............................................146 Chicken Salad (Salade de Volaille) ......................................145 Green Salad .............................................................................. 63 Potato Salad (Salade de Pommes de Terre) ........................144 Tomato and Egg Salad (Salade aux Oeufs et Tomates) ... 150 Tongue in Aspic .....................................................................147 Tuna Fish Salad ....................................................................... 27
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Potatoes
Rice
Baked ........................................................................................ 46 Duchesse .................................................................................. 70 Fondant .................................................................................... 25 . French Fried, Game Chips .................................................... 28 . Fried Potato Balls .................................................................... 38 Irish Stuffed (Pommes de Terre a lIrlandaise) .................140 With marjoram ........................................................................ 86 Mashed ..................................................................................... 46 New with Mint ........................................................................ 63
Hot Chocolate Sauce ............................................................... 19 Lemon Sauce ...........................................................................162 Marshmallow Sauce ..............................................................161
Cookies
Angel or Silver Sponge Cake ...............................................167 Bernstein Walnut .................................................................... 72 Christmas Cake......................................................................166 Continental ............................................................................ 104 Lemon Pie\Short Pie Crust ..................................................168 . Christmas Rocks ................................................................... 172 Crunchies ................................................................................175 Date Squares ...........................................................................173 Date Filling ........................................................................174 German Chocolate Biscuits ..................................................174 Marmalade Drop Cookies ....................................................173 Meringues .............................................................................. 177 Oatmeal and Raisin Cookies ...............................................176 Spice Cookies ......................................................................... 172 Sweets (Candy) Chocolate Fudge .............................................................. 180 Vanilla Opera Fudge ....................................................... 180 Nougat ................................................................................181 Cheese Souffl and Variation ............................................. 135 Stuffed Peppers with Cheese ................................................ 92
Servietten Knodel ................................................................... 97 With Parmesan .........................................................................18 Vegetable Mould with Eggs ................................................ 135 Vegetable Stuffing .................................................................119 Zucchini, fried ......................................................................... 28 Banana Loaf .......................................................................... 154 Soft Gingerbread ................................................................... 154 Date Bread .............................................................................. 155 Doughnuts ............................................................................. 155 American Popovers .............................................................. 156 Sandwich Fillings .............................................................. 156-7
Desserts
Cheese
Fruit
Apricots, Al Zahras ................................................................76 . Autumn Mousse ......................................................................16 Bananas Caramelled .......................................................................... 28 Trinidad ................................................................................ 81 Crepes with Marmalade and Grand Marnier................ 64 Greek Honey Sweet ................................................................ 44 Pineapple Bavarian Cream ..................................................161 . Plum Pudding ........................................................................163 Ricotta Barack ......................................................................... 86 . Compote of............................................................................... 39 Fresh .......................................................................................... 34 Salad, Sicilian......................................................................... 104 Sorbet, orange .......................................................................... 55
Mixed Fruit Punch (25 servings) .........................................169 Rhubarb Punch ......................................................................169 All-I-oli (Ajiaceite) ................................................................... 27 Black Cherry Sauce ................................................................. 42 Espagnol ................................................................................... 43 Horseradish and Cucumber.................................................. 63 Madeira .................................................................................... 46 Maitre dHotel Sauce .............................................................117 Tomato .................................................................................... 136 N.B. The other sauces mentioned are integral parts of the dishes mentioned. Boiled Dressing ..................................................................... 150 German Dressing ...................................................................145 Mayonnaise Dressing ...........................................................146 Chutneys, Jams and Conserves Fresh Pear Chutney ......................................................... 188 Gooseberry and Pineapple Conserve ...........................186 Pineapple-Rhubarb Jam ..................................................187 Pineapple, Rhubarb and Orange Conserve .................186 Plum Conserve .................................................................187 Quince Honey ...................................................................186 Cooking With Class
Souffl
Castle Martyr's Spinach ........................................................141 Cold with Grand Marnier ..................................................... 57 Vanilla and Variations ..........................................................162 Supreme de Chocolate ............................................................11 Syllabub, Creole (with rum) .................................................. 25 Torta de la Sierra Morena ...................................................... 98 Vanilla Custard Ice Cream ...................................................160 Brandy Sauce ........................................................................... 42 Butter Icing .............................................................................167 Chocolate Sauce .....................................................................160
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The rt. hon. earl of shannon during the years of World War II.