Food & Finance, Part 2.

July 7 ...

Last week I puzzled over dishes ‘à la Financière’. The answer has been staring me in the face all this time, thanks to M. Menon, the eighteenth century French author of The Professed Cook. M. Menon gives a recipe for a dish entitled simply Financière, which he explains as ‘Meaning a rich expensive dish.’ It would certainly be that, although perhaps not to modern tastes, being a fantastical melange that would put the average ‘surf and turf’ (or ‘reef and beef’) to inadequate shame.

M. Menon’s recipe for his sort of surf/turf/bird/seafood truffled, larded and be-fricandeaud concoction is:

Financière.
Meaning a rich expensive dish.

Take a head of Salmon, pretty long of about five or six Pound, clean it as for boiling; lard the upper part with fine Lardons, and fill it with a Ragout of Sweet Breads, Truffles, or Mushrooms, and fasten it so as the Ragout don’t get out; put it in a Braizing-pan much of its Bigness, upon thin slices of Lard and Veal, one or two slices of Ham, a Nosegay of Parsley and green Shallots, two Cloves, a Bit of Nutmeg, a Laurel Leaf and Thyme, few sliced Onions and Roots; soak this over a slow Fire about an Hour, then put the Salmon to it well tied; add some good Broth, a Pint of white Wine, Pepper and Salt, simmer it about an Hour; while this is doing, boil six small Pigeons, as many small Fricandeaux, called Grenadins larded, and a Dozen of large Crawfish, as many Truffles peeled; prepare a Glaze with Veal and Ham; when it is all done, dress the Salmon upon the Dish, and the second Preparation intermixed round it, and glaze the Meat, not the Salmon; for sauce, mix some good Consumée and Cullis, a Glass of white Wine, a little Pepper and Salt; give it a boil, and serve it round the Salmon upon the Meat Part.

Tomorrow’s Story …

Humble Pie.

Quotation for the Day …

“I want a dish to taste good, rather than to have been seethed in pig’s milk and served wrapped in a rhubarb leaf with grated thistle root.” Kingsley Amis.