A guide to modern cookery by A. Escoffier

SAVOURIES 2298—REMARKS UPON SAVOURIES I have already expressed my opinion in regard to Savouries. I consider their use opposed to gastronomical principles, and that they have no _raison d’être_ on a good menu. But, not wishing to seem didactic, I shall give, hereafter, a few savoury recipes, selected from among those which are gastronomically the best, and which custom has sanctified. I resolved to make these recipes appear after the Vegetables and before the Ices, because I deem that Dessert alone is admissible after the Entremets and Ices. There is much in common between Hors-d’œuvres and Savouries. Many of the former, the recipes for which I have given, may appear as Savouries, once their seasoning has been intensified. Among the latter class may be quoted the various Tartlets (No. 387, &c.); the Barquettes (No. 314); Frivolities (No. 350); Éclairs à la Karoly (No. 344); Allumettes aux Anchois (No. 300); City Toasts (No. 320), &c. 2299—ALLUMETTES Prepare a ribbon of puff-paste three inches wide by one-fifth inch thick, leaving the length to come as it will. Spread on it some very reduced Béchamel sauce, combined with two tablespoonfuls of grated Gruyère cheese per one-half pint, and season with cayenne. Sprinkle the surface with grated Parmesan; press the latter into the sauce by means of the flat of a knife; cut into rectangles one inch wide; set these on a slightly-moistened tray, and bake them in a moderate oven for twelve minutes. 2300—BEIGNETS SOUFFLÉS WITH CHEESE Prepare some ordinary “pâte à choux” without sugar (No. 2375), and combine it, per lb., with five oz. of a _Brunoise_ of Gruyère. Divide up this paste into portions the size of hazel-nut, and fry them in fat like other Beignets _soufflés_. 2301—BEURRECKS A LA TURQUE Reduce the required amount of Béchamel sauce to a thick consistence; mix it with an equal quantity of Gruyère dice; season with cayenne, and spread the preparation on a dish to cool. Then divide it up into portions the size of fine walnuts; shape these like cigars, wrap each portion in a very thin layer of noodle paste; treat them _à l’anglaise_, and fry them at the last moment in very hot fat. 2302—CHOUX AU FROMAGE By means of a piping-bag, form some “choux,” a little larger than the Saint-Honoré ones, from ordinary paste (see No. 2375). _Gild_ them with beaten eggs; bake them in a moderate oven, and keep them dry. When cold, cut them at the top; garnish them with “_Fondue au fromage_” seasoned with cayenne, and complete with some Chantilly cream, combined with grated Parmesan; this should be laid on by means of a piping-bag, as in the case of “choux à la crème.” 2303—CAMEMBERT FRIT Clear the cheese of its crust, and cut it into elongated lozenges. Sprinkle the latter with cayenne, treat them twice _à l’anglaise_, and fry them at the last moment in hot fat. 2304—CANAPES OR TOAST These are nothing more than pieces of toast, _i.e._, slices of bread, trimmed according to fancy, grilled, buttered, and garnished in some way. As the garnishes for toast are innumerable, I shall quote only a few typical examples. _Canapés Garnished with Scrambled Eggs._—Set the scrambled eggs in domes upon the Canapés; sprinkle with grated Parmesan, and set to glaze quickly. _Or_ arrange the scrambled eggs as above, and cover them with a lattice of anchovy fillets. _Canapés de Haddock._—Cook the haddock; rub it through a sieve; add a little butter and Béchamel sauce to the resulting purée, and set the latter in domes on the toast. _For Variety._—Sprinkle the purée with grated Parmesan, and set to glaze. _Or_ garnish the purée with oysters poached in a little Worcestershire sauce. _Or again_: cover the purée with a lattice of anchovy fillets. _Canapés with Kippers or Bloaters._—Grill them and make a purée from them like the haddock. _Canapés with Halved or Filleted Anchovies._—In the case of fillets, set them to form a grill upon the toast; if the anchovies be halved, lay them lengthwise on the toast. _Canapés with Sardines in Oil._—Clear the fish of their skins and bones, and set the fillets on the canapés. _Canapés with Grilled Sprats._—Proceed as for sardines. _Canapés of Salmon._—Toast may be garnished with thin slices of smoked or fresh salmon, or with the latter prepared in a purée like the haddock. _Various Canapés._—Once the pieces of toast or canapés are grilled and buttered, they may be garnished with chopped smoked tongue or ham, cohered with a little butter and mustard, with grilled slices of mushrooms or tomatoes, &c. A few of the preparations have names, while others are only distinguished by the nature of their garnish. 2305—CANAPES A LA CADOGAN Take oval and slightly hollowed pieces of toast, fried in butter and garnished with spinach prepared with butter. Lay two oysters on the spinach of each piece of toast; cover with Mornay sauce, and glaze quickly. 2306—CANAPES DES GOURMETS Prepare some very thin pieces of toast; fry them in butter, and garnish them with a cheese _fondue_. Pair them off, and sandwich a piece of grilled bacon between each pair. 2307—CANAPES IVANHOE Take some round, buttered pieces of toast, garnished with haddock purée, and set a very small, grilled mushroom on the purée of each piece of toast. 2308—CANAPES A L’ÉCOSSAISE Take some round, buttered pieces of toast, garnished with haddock purée, and glazed. N.B.—I see no use in extending this list any further; the above directions should suffice to show the variety to which these preparations lend themselves. 2309—CARCASSE DE VOLAILLE (Chicken Carcasses) Take in preference the carcasses of fowls cooked without colouration. After having trimmed them, coat them with mustard and cayenne, and grill them. 2310—CHAMPIGNONS SOUS CLOCHE Trim the mushrooms; season them with salt and pepper, and garnish the hollow of each with a piece of Maître-d’hôtel butter, the size of a hazel-nut, and one-half coffeespoonful of cream. Set a mushroom on each piece of toast, which should be two inches in diameter and fried in butter. Dish them on an egg-tray, and cover them with a special, small, glass bell, four inches in diameter and two inches high, the rim of which must rest on the bottom of a dish, the diameter of which should be such as to fit the bell. Put the dishes on the side of the stove, and cook in moderate heat for about twenty-five minutes. 2311—CONDÉS AU FROMAGE Prepare a ribbon from puff-paste trimmings, as in the case of No. 2299. Spread thereon a thick layer of very reduced Béchamel sauce, flavoured with cayenne, and combined, when cold, with very small dice of Gruyère and Parmesan. Cut up and cook as for No. 2299. 2312—CRÈME FRITE AU FROMAGE Mix together four oz. of flour, two and one-half oz. of rice cream, three eggs, and two egg-yolks. Dilute with one pint of milk; season with salt, cayenne, and nutmeg; boil, and cook for five minutes over an open fire, stirring incessantly the while. Add four oz. of grated Gruyère; spread this preparation on a buttered tray; leave it to cool, and then cut it into elongated lozenges. Roll the latter in beaten egg and bread-crumbs mixed with grated cheese, and fry them at the last moment. Dish them on a napkin. 2313—CROQUETTES DE CAMEMBERT Dilute two oz. of flour and two oz. of rice cream with one-third pint of milk. Add one lb. of cleaned camembert, cut into dice, five oz. of butter, salt, cayenne, and nutmeg. Cook the preparation, stirring it the while; cool it; spread it on a tray; mould it to the shape of small quoits; treat these twice _à l’anglaise_, and fry them. 2314—DELICES DE FOIE GRAS Take some fresh, well-seasoned foie gras, studded with truffles, and covered with slices of bacon, and poach it in a basin with good aspic jelly flavoured with dry champagne or Rhine wine. Leave to cool for twenty-four hours; clear the jelly of grease, first by means of a spoon, and then with boiling water. Serve the preparation as it stands, very cold, and accompany it with grilled, crisp, and very hot slices of bread-crumb. 2315—DIABLOTINS These are very small, poached Gnochi, sprinkled with grated cheese, flavoured with a very little cayenne, and set for their _gratin_ to form at the last moment. 2316—FONDANTS AU CHESTER Moisten one-half lb. of flour, an equal quantity of butter and grated cheese, a pinch of salt, and a very little cayenne, with a few tablespoonfuls of water. Cut the paste into small galettes, two inches in diameter; _gild_ them with beaten eggs; streak them with a fork, and bake them in a moderate oven. When cold, pair the _galettes_ off, and stick them together with a tablespoonful of fondant cream, prepared thus:— Mix six egg-yolks with two-thirds pint of cream; season with salt and cayenne; leave to set on moderate fire, like an English custard, and, when the preparation is almost cold, finish it with five oz. of best butter and as much grated cheese. 2317—ANGES A CHEVAL Wrap some fine oysters, each in a thin slice of bacon. Impale them on a skewer; season and grill them, and dish them on small pieces of toast. Sprinkle with bread-crumbs and cayenne when about to serve. 2318—BROCHETTES D’HUÎTRES LUCIFER Poach some fine native oysters in their own liquor; clear them of their beards; dry them, and dip them in thin mustard. Impale them, six at a time, on skewers, and treat them _à l’anglaise_. Fry them at the last moment, and dish them on a napkin. 2319—OMELETTE A L’ÉCOSSAISE Take some fresh herring milts; salt them; sprinkle them with cayenne and chopped chives, parsley, and chervil; wrap each in a thin slice of smoked salmon, and poach them gently in butter. Set them aslant in the centre of an “omelette aux fines herbes”; cover them well with the latter, and roll it up. 2320—OMELETTE AUX FINES HERBES See No. 502. 2321—GRILLED BONES Take the trimmed bones of a roast sirloin, and let there be still some meat upon them. Sprinkle them with cayenne; coat them with mustard, and grill them. 2322—PAILLETTES AU PARMESAN Prepare some puff-paste with two-thirds lb. of butter; roll it out ten times, dusting it and the table well the while with grated Parmesan and a little cayenne, that the paste may absorb as much as possible of these. Then roll it into square layers of four-inch sides and one-eighth inch thick; cut these up into ribbons one-eighth inch wide; set them on buttered trays; bake them in a very hot oven, and serve them on a napkin. 2323—PANNEQUETS A LA MOSCOVITE Take some ordinary, unsugared Pannequets; cut them into rectangles three inches long by one and one-half inches wide. Coat them with caviare, flavoured with cayenne; roll them into cigarettes, and serve them on crystal hors-d’œuvre dishes. 2324—PUDDING DE FROMAGE AU PAIN Set some thin slices of stale, buttered and cheese-sprinkled bread in a pie-dish. Having three-parts filled the dish with it, cover the slices with a preparation consisting of the yolks of four eggs mixed with one-quarter pint of broth—which quantities are suited to a pint dish. Sprinkle copiously with grated cheese; bake in the oven, and glaze at the last moment. 2325—SARDINES A LA DIABLE Take fresh sardines, if possible. Skin and bone them; coat them with mustard and cayenne; treat them _à l’anglaise_; fry them at the last moment, and dish them on small fried _croûtons_, the shape of sardines. N.B.—Fresh anchovies and smelts may be prepared in the same way. 2326—SCOTCH WOODCOCK Toast some large slices of bread, one-third inch thick, and cover them with a very thick English butter sauce, combined with plenty of capers and anchovy purée. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan; glaze quickly at the salamander; speedily cut up into small rectangles, and serve very hot. 2327—TARTELETTES AGNÈS Line some grooved tartlet moulds with good paste, and garnish them with a preparation of Quiche with cheese, flavoured with cayenne. Cook them at the last moment, and, on taking them out of the oven, set a roundel of poached marrow rolled in pale melted meat glaze and chopped parsley on each tartlet. 2328—TARTELETTES A L’ÉCOSSAISE Take some tartlet crusts, baked without colouration, and garnish them at the last moment with a haddock purée, cohered with Béchamel sauce. 2329—TARTELETTES DE HADDOCK Garnish some colourlessly-baked tartlet crusts with a _salpicon_ of poached haddock, mixed with curry sauce. Sprinkle the surface of each with fine raspings, and dish them on a napkin. 2330—TARTELETTES A LA FLORENTINE Garnish some colourlessly-baked tartlet crusts with Soufflé with Parmesan, combined with grated truffles and crayfishes’ tails cut into dice, and strongly seasoned with mignonette. Bake in the oven for about three minutes. 2331—TARTELETTES MARQUISE Line some tartlets with good paste; garnish their bottom and sides with a thread of gnochis preparation, laid by means of a piping-bag fitted with an even pipe, the orifice of which should be equal in diameter to macaroni. Fill up the tartlets with Mornay sauce flavoured with cayenne; sprinkle with grated cheese, and bake in a fierce oven. 2332—TARTELETTES A LA RAGLAN Garnish the bottom of some colourlessly-baked tartlets with a smoked herring-milt purée. Cover the latter with haddock _soufflé_, shaped like a hive by means of a piping-bag fitted with a small, grooved pipe. Place in the oven for six minutes, and serve instantly. 2333—TARTELETTES A LA TOSCA Garnish some tartlet crusts with crayfishes’ tails, prepared “à l’Américaine.” Cover with Soufflé with Parmesan, and place in the oven for three minutes. 2334—TARTELETTES A LA VENDOME Line some tartlet moulds with good paste; prick the bottom of each, and garnish them with the following preparation. For twelve tartlets:—One and one-half oz. of chopped shallots, heated in butter; three oz. of _sautéd_ and finely chopped _cèpes_; one and one-half oz. of raw marrow in dice; one small hard-boiled and chopped egg; one oz. of bread-crumbs, salt, cayenne, a few drops of lemon juice, and three tablespoonfuls of melted meat glaze. Set a large slice of marrow on each tartlet, and cook at the last moment. 2335—WELSH RABBIT This may be prepared in two ways, but always on square or rectangular pieces of buttered toast, one-third inch thick.