LUNCH DISHES

Glazed Ham (211)
Parisian Sole (187)
Truffled Pig's Trotters (212)
Geneva Eggplant (213)
Stir-Fried Chicken (214)
Raspberry Compote (196)

DINNER DISHES

Julienne (184)
Fried Eggs (245)
Chartreuse Sheep's Brains (133)
Tomatoes with Curry (216)
Veal Sleeves (191)
Pistachio Macarons (180)

211. Glazed Ham.
A pound and a half of ham, three liters of water, three bay leaves, one and a half deciliters of vinegar, powdered sugar.

Wash the ham in several cold waters and put it to soak in a large earthenware pot, or in a small wooden tub; change the water every five or six hours, and let it desalinate in this way for at least twenty-four hours.

To cook it, put it in a rather large pot, so that it can swell easily. Put three liters of water, three bay leaves and a deciliter and a half of vinegar. Cook slowly, as for the pot-au-feu and three quarters of an hour. After this time, remove the pot from the heat; cover it and leave the ham in its broth for one or two hours, according to the size of the piece.

Remove the ham: bone it carefully, using a very sharp knife for this, so as not to cut the flesh too much. Then place it on a white cloth, and place it, pressing it well, in a salad bowl; fold the corners of the cloth over it; place a very heavy object on it, such as a marble mortar, and leave it like this for two days, so that it takes shape.

When you remove it, remove a little fat, as well as the rind; sprinkle it heavily with powdered sugar; the more it takes, the better; run a red-hot shovel over it. When the sugar is well caramelized, the ham is perfect to the eye and to the taste. It is generally served with pickles.

212. Truffled pig's feet. -
Two pig's feet, half a liter of broth, a glass of white wine, two onions each studded with a clove, a bouquet garni, ten to twelve peppercorns, chicken breasts, a truffle, a white mushroom.

Wash, scald and clean the feet carefully; after that, put in a braising pan half a liter of broth, a glass of white wine, two onions each studded with a clove, a bouquet garni, ten to twelve peppercorns; no salt, because the broth is salty, and will reduce during cooking. Place the feet in this braising; cover the braising pan well and let it cook very gently for three or four hours. Then remove the feet; let them cool, split them in two lengthwise, and debone them. With chicken breasts, a well-flavored truffle, a very white mushroom, all finely chopped, salted and peppered to perfection, make a hash, with which you will garnish the inside of the feet. Half a foot is enough for one person.

Replace the bones with the hash; close the flesh of the foot well over this stuffing, then wrap each half foot in a caul fat. Ten minutes before serving, heat on the grill; place the four little feet on top; grill over a moderate heat and, when they are well puffed up and golden, serve quickly on a very hot dish with hot plates.

213. Aubergines à la genevoise.

Two aubergines, two nice tomatoes, 150 grams of butter, 150 grams of Gruyere, salt and pepper.

Choose aubergines that are rather long than large and round, hard under the pressure of the fingers. After peeling them, cut them into slices one centimeter thick; crack them very lightly; sprinkle them with salt and leave them for at least half an hour to sweat their water. After that, wipe them and sauté them quickly in butter; set aside on a plate.

Cut the tomatoes in half, in the direction of the roundness; with the handle of a small spoon, sauté the seeds; peel them and fry them in butter over a high heat; salt, pepper.

Butter a pot well, which can appear on the table; place a layer of eggplant slices in the bottom; pepper, do not salt; sprinkle well with grated Gruyere; on this layer of eggplant, place a layer of tomatoes; salt a little, pepper well; sprinkle with Gruyere and continue like this until the pot is filled. Cover the top with a few blades of butter; put in the oven and let brown for about half an hour; if the oven was too hot, cover with buttered paper. Serve in the pot.

214. Country-style sautéed chicken. -
A young chicken of 4 to 5 months, a deciliter of goose fat, a bouquet garni, one or two cloves of garlic, 100 grams of raw ham, a glass of good white wine, two tomatoes, two deciliters of broth, pepper, croutons fried in butter, chopped parsley.

Pluck, skin, flambé with gas or alcohol and very lightly; empty it without bursting the gall and reserve the liver.

Cut it up by first removing the thigh and wing on one side, then the thigh and wing on the other side, taking care not to tear the skin of the fillets, the carcass and the rump.

Cut the fillets; separate the stomach from the carcass and divide it in two, clean the gizzard; cut it in two, as well as the neck.

Put in a sauté pan a deciliter of goose fat, a bouquet garni, one or two cloves of garlic, 100 grams of raw ham, a little fatty and cut into large cubes; add the pieces of chicken; cover and cook over high heat, until everything is nicely browned. Moisten with a glass of good white wine and let the cooking reduce slowly; salt a little.
When the chicken is cooked, remove it and keep it warm.

In the cooking pan, put two nice tomatoes, after having peeled them, emptied of their seeds and cut into large cubes; when they are cooked, almost fried, remove the bouquet; put the pieces of chicken back in the sauce; moisten with two deciliters of broth; add the liver, pepper strongly and let cook for ten minutes. Serve, arranging the chicken limbs on the very hot serving dish: garnish the round with the tomatoes and croutons fried in butter; sprinkle everything with a little chopped parsley. This stir-fry must be with a short and very spicy sauce.

215. Fried eggs.

Four slices of ham, four eggs, 100 grams of olive oil, parsley, salt. The fried egg must be eaten with a dipper, as well as a poached or boiled egg, that is its quality.

To do this, take a small Lyonnaise cup, badly called a frying pan, that is thick and well scrubbed inside and out. This is essential. The soot patches that cover it on the outside prevent the heat from being uniform and the cooking is not regular. Put 100 grams of olive oil in it. When it is smoking, break an egg, fresh especially, on a plate; slide it into the oil; remove the cup from the full heat and hold it to the side; with a wooden spoon, with a slightly long handle and not with iron, which would stick the egg, round the white and turn the egg over and under, immediately; baste with the oil for exactly one minute and the egg is fried.

Remove and place it on a double cloth or white paper, spread on a plate (placed on a higher pan, to prevent the eggs from cooking. Continue the others.

The ham must be cut into triangles or rounds; if it is raw, you make it turn in the oil after the eggs are fried; if it is cooked, it heats enough between the eggs. The parsley washed, dried and the tails cut, throw it in the oil. After taking out the ham, finish the eggs, if the ham is cooked, thirty or forty seconds is enough. Drain it, salt it and put it next to the eggs.

Spread a round tea towel, on a round dish, dress the eggs in a crown, separated by a slice of ham; put the parsley in the middle and serve immediately. This work must be done at the last hour. If the fried eggs wait, they are worthless.

216. Tomatoes with kari. -
Four beautiful red tomatoes, salt, pepper, oil, 100 grams of Caroline rice, pot-au-feu broth, salt, half a teaspoon of kari, veal juice.
Cut tomatoes (well fleshed), in half in the direction of the roundness; empty them of their seeds with the handle of a teaspoon. Place them in a dish going to the fire; season them with salt, pepper, oil, and put them in a moderate oven.
While this is cooking, prepare a good risotto, that is to say, have 100 grams of Caroline rice, wash it well and put it to cook in a little good pot-au-feu broth, wetting it little by little, so that it cooks while remaining firm, the grains well detached and not in mush. Season with salt (very little because of the broth) and the value of half a teaspoon of kari. Remove the eight tomato halves from the oven; fill the inside with the risotto; baste generously with good veal jus; put in a high oven for ten minutes. Serve in the baking dish.

THE FIREPLACE CRICKET.