Glorious French Food

If you’re boiling down broth for a gelatinous sauce base such as glace de viande; see page 221, you must make your own broth because the salt in canned broth becomes too concentrated and

J O H N W I L E Y & S O N S , I N C

GLORIOUS FRENCH FOOD

A F R E S H A P P R O A C H

T O T H E C L A S S I C S

J A M E S P E T E R S O N

G L O R I O U S F R E N C H F O O D

J O H N W I L E Y & S O N S , I N C

GLORIOUS FRENCH FOOD

A F R E S H A P P R O A C H

T O T H E C L A S S I C S

J A M E S P E T E R S O N

Cover Photographs by Michael Donnelly and James Peterson

Fashion Styling by Lori Alpert Design by Vertigo Design, NYC This book is printed on acid-free paper

Copyright © 2002 by James Peterson All rights reserved Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

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L I B R A R Y O F C O N G R E S S C A T A L O G I N G - I N - P U B L I C A T I O N D A T A :

ISBN: 0-471-44276-3 Printed in the United States of America

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B A L E A R I C

S E A

VV S

1

G R E E N S A L A D S | Salades Vertes 46

C O M P O S E D S A L A D S | Salade Composeés 57

Crayfish, Asparagus, Fava Bean, Artichoke Bottoms, and Morel Salad

| Salade aux Queues D’Écrevisses, Asperges, Fèves, Fonds d’Artichauts, et Morilles 63

A S S O R T E D C O O K E D V E G E TA B L E S , H A R D - B O I L E D E G G S , A N D

S A LT C O D W I T H G A R L I C M A YO N N A I S E | Grand Aioli 72

C O U N T R Y- S T Y L E P O R K P Â T É | Terrine de Campagne 85

2

3

4

5

H A M A N D P A R S L E Y T E R R I N E | Jambon Persillé 101

P O A C H E D E G G S W I T H R E D W I N E S A U C E | Oeufs en Meurette 112

O M E L E T S | Omelettes 121

C H E E S E S O U F F L É | Soufflé au Fromage 130

C H E E S E F O N D U E | Fondue de Fromage 141

T R A D I T I O N A L B A C O N A N D C H E E S E Q U I C H E | Quiche Lorraine 153

N I Ç O I S E O N I O N, O L I V E , A N D A N C H O V Y TA R T | Pissaladière 167

C O L D L E E K A N D P O TA T O S O U P | Vichyssoise 177

F R E N C H O N I O N S O U P | Soupe à l’Oignon 187

Garlic, Duck Confit, Fava Bean, and Fresh Chard Soup

| Soupe à l’Ail aux Confit de Canard, aux Fèves Fraîches, et aux Blettes 195

Sautéed Chicken Breasts in Garlic Broth with Tomatoes, Spinach, Saffron, and Basil

| Poulet Sauté à la Soupe à l’Ail, et aux Tomates, Safran, et Basilic 196

12

13

14 11

O X TA I L S O U P | Potage de Queue de Boeuf 198

aux Herbes et à la Sauce Tomate Crèmée 201

C H I C K E N C O N S O M M É W I T H S H R E D D E D C R È P E S | Consommé Célestine 206

F R E N C H C O U N T R Y V E G E TA B L E S O U P W I T H B A S I L A N D G A R L I C P A S T E

| Soupe au Pistou 222

M E D I T E R R A N E A N F I S H S O U P | Bouillabaisse 233

15

16

17

18

O Y S T E R S | Huîtres 250

S T E A M E D M U S S E L S W I T H W H I T E W I N E , S H A L L O T S , A N D P A R S L E Y

| Moules à la Marinière 265

Broiled Mussels with Onions and Mussel-flavored White Wine Sauce

| Moules Gratinées aux Oignons et à la Sauce Vin Blanc 270

S E A S C A L L O P S P O A C H E D I N V E G E TA B L E B R O T H | Coquilles Saint-Jacques à la Nage 277

S O L E W I T H H O T B U T T E R A N D L E M O N | Sole Meunière 292

de Cèpes et au Vinaigre Balsamique 299

S O L E B R A I E D W I T H S H A L L O T S A N D W H I T E W I N E | Sole Bercy 307

M E D I T E R R A N E A N S E A B A S S G R I L L E D W I T H F E N N E L

| Loup de Mer Grillé au Fenouil 318

Whole Grilled or Baked Boneless Striped Bass Scented with Fresh Herbs

| Bar Américan Désossé, Parfumé aux Herbes Fraîches 328

L O B S T E R W I T H T O M A T O A N D C O G N A C S A U C E

| Homard à l’Américaine 331

R O A S T C H I C K E N | Poulet Rôti 347

Roast Chicken Stuffed under the Skin with Spinach and Ricotta

| Poulet Rôti, Farci sous sa Peau avec Épinards et Fromage Frais 353

23

25 24

26

R O O S T E R I N R E D W I N E S A U C E | Coq au Vin 362

D U C K À L ’ O R A N G E | Caneton à l’Orange 379

F R I C A S S E E O F YO U N G R A B B I T W I T H P E A R L O N I O N S ,

B A C O N, A N D M U S H R O O M S | Lapereau en Gibelotte 395

V E A L S T E W W I T H C R E A M A N D M U S H R O O M S | Blanquette de Veau 408

27

28

29

30

F R E N C H - S T Y L E P O T R O A S T | Boeuf à la Mode 419

Braised Veal Shanks (Osso Buco) with Vegetable “Confiture”

| Jarrets de Veau Braisés avec Leur Confiture de Légumes 433

B E E F S T E W W I T H P E A R L O N I O N S , M U S H R O O M S , A N D B A C O N

| Boeuf à la Bourguignonne 435

F A R M H O U S E - S T Y L E P O A C H E D B E E F W I T H V E G E TA B L E S | Pot-au-feu 454

B A K E D B E A N A N D D U C K C A S S E R O L E | Cassoulet 466

32

33

34 31

S T E A K W I T H R E D W I N E S A U C E | Entrecôte à la Bordelaise 477

P O R K N O I S E T T E S W I T H P R U N E S | Noisettes de Porc aux Pruneaux 496

R O A S T R A C K O F L A M B W I T H P A R S L E Y A N D G A R L I C C R U S T

| Carré d’Agneau Persillé 506

S A U E R K R A U T W I T H S A U S A G E S , B A C O N, A N D P O R K S H O U L D E R

| Choucroute Garnie à l’Alsacienne 525

Pork Chops with Red Cabbage Flavored with Vinegar, Apples, and Bacon

| Côtes de Porc au Chou Rouge à l’Ardennaise 537

V E A L K I D N E Y S W I T H M U S H R O O M S , M U S TA R D, A N D P O R T

| Rognons de Veau aux Champignons, à la Moutarde et au Porto 541

37

38

39 35

36

Calves’ Brains Fritters | Cervelles de Veau en Beignets 546

G L A Z E D S L I C E D C A R R O T S | Carottes à la Vichy 556

B A K E D C R E A M E D P O TA T O G R A T I N | Gratin Dauphinois 569

P R O V E N Ç A L V E G E TA B L E S T E W | Ratatouille 582

Baby Artichokes, Fennel, Leeks, Garlic, and Peas with Watercress Sauce

| Petite Fricassèe d’Artichauts, Fenouil, Poireaux, Ail, et Petits Pois au Cresson 589

42 41 40

B A K E D W H O L E T R U F F L E S | Truffes sous la Cendre 593

A P P L E TA R T | Tarte aux Pommes 606

C H O C O L A T E M O U S S E | Mousse au Chocolat 621

C A R A M E L - G L A Z E D C R E A M C U S TA R D | Crème Brûlée 632

45

46 44 43

H O T C R Ê P E S W I T H O R A N G E B U T T E R S A U C E | Crêpes Suzette 646

Cherry Clafoutis | Clafoutis aux Cerises 651

Pear Clafoutis | Clafoutis aux Poires 652

F L O A T I N G I S L A N D S | Îles Flottantes 661

S T R A W B E R R Y P R E S E R V E S | Confiture de Fraises 673

Clementines or Mandarin Oranges in Sweetened Vodka

| Clementines ou Mandarines à l’Eau-de-vie 685

48

49 47

C O O K I E S A N D C A N D I E S | Petits-fours Secs 687

S O U R C E S 699

I N D E X 703

50

P R E F A C E

F R I E N D S A N D C O L L E A G U E S S E E M P E R P L E X E D W H E N I T E L L T H E M I ’ V E

written a book about French cooking They’re gentle and discreet, and instead of just comingout with, “Why yet another book about French food?” they ask how my book differs fromother books about French cooking and why I would put so much energy into such a thing.The more chauvinistic among them imply that I’m wasting my time, since cooking in America

is now better and more inventive than cooking in France and French cuisine is too rich, plicated, expensive, and pretentious These are the same people who tell me that Californiawines are the best in the world and who react to any contrary statement with annoyance

com-I write about French food not because com-I think it’s intrinsically better than food where else in the world, but for reasons that have to do with more than just how foodtastes We all have the French to thank for encouraging a culture that takes a more thanhedonistic interest in eating and drinking In our current era of star chefs and TV cookingpersonalities, it’s hard to remember America’s attitude toward food in the 1960s and 1970s,when I was in my late teens and early twenties When at that age I developed a fascinationwith fine food and wine, I was eyed with suspicion Being a gourmet meant being at best aneccentric and at worst a hedonist intent only on sensual gratification Mentioning the vin-

any-xxi

tage of a bottle of wine was considered pure snobbery Pursuing a career as a cook was considered far beneath the potential of anyone with even the lowest IQ The idea of cui-sine as an art form, or even a worthwhile craft, was laughable.

But the first day I set foot in France, on a Sunday afternoon in Strasbourg (I had

hitch-hiked from Munich), I knew I had found home Food and drink seemed to be all that

people were interested in, people who spent hours in restaurants and cafés, and who werealways ready to strike up a conversation about their favorite dishes and wines And theseconversations weren’t limited to any one social class; I could talk about food with truckdrivers, bankers, shoe salesmen, and families on a Sunday outing who would pick me upwhen I hitchhiked

A couple of years later, after I had settled in Paris to apprentice in restaurants, theFrench fascination with food and wine followed me wherever I went The barber, straightrazor in hand, would offer me tips for making his favorite crêpes; the woman at the drycleaner would banter about the best bakeries in the neighborhood; the guy who pumpedthe kerosene mixture into my ancient moped would talk wine Best of all, parents offriends were eager to have me taste their best bottles

Late one summer night I was arrested Some friends of mine from a Parisian mimeschool had learned about a network of tunnels, deep underground, where we could wanderundetected anywhere in Paris Well, we got lost Worse, someone had reported us climbingdown a manhole in the middle of the night and the police arrived just when we happened

to be directly under the German embassy Since the Red Brigade had just killed an tant minister, this was no laughing matter We were marched out at gunpoint to a waiting

impor-paddy wagon (known in Parisian slang as a panier à salade, a salad shaker) and taken to

police headquarters for interrogation My tiny hotel room was sacked for weapons, and this

event improved my status immensely in the eyes of la propriétaire, whose hatred of the

police was hardly surprising, since her rooms were for the most part rented by the hour tolocal prostitutes Finally we were released But I was detained somewhat longer than my

friends because I had declared my métier as that of cuisinier, and so my interrogation

involved discussion of favorite dishes and, as I remember, an exchange of tips about where

to get the best andouillettes (tripe sausages) I was asked where I cooked and what my cialties were, and I was treated with sudden respect by my interrogateurs, who fortunately

spe-never asked to see my working papers

My interest in French cooking is about far more than a love of food and drink It islinked to an affection for an independent (and often irascible) people, their culture, theirlanguage, and their past The history of French cooking reveals itself in dishes that are stillserved in various guises in restaurants and in some homes, in much the same way as thehistory of other arts is present in the gallery or concert hall A particular dish or meal canevoke the past and, in some of us, a poignant, bittersweet nostalgia French food also has aspecial place in my heart, or perhaps more accurately my liver, because it is enjoyed withwine There have been periods in my life, best forgotten, in which I’ve experimented withnot drinking wine and during which I lost all pleasure in eating, experiencing only a vaguesatisfaction in fulfilling a biological need Of course, wine does all sorts of good things Ithelps us digest our food by relaxing the stomach It cleans out our blood vessels, and I atleast am convinced that it helps us metabolize fats and in general makes us more fit andhealthy But it is in the realm of the psyche that wine brings real pleasure Every bottle of

wine is different; if it’s a good wine, every glass is different; and if it’s a great wine, every

sip is different This keeps the relationship between the flavors of the food and the aroma

of the wine in constant flux, and while for many the process goes on unconsciously, it

pro-longs the pleasure of a particular dish and of a whole meal because each bite is

experienced differently from the one before But beyond wine’s health benefits and its

contribution to our gustatory titillation, its aroma and flavor are inextricably caught up

with memory I never stick my nose in a glass of Chianti without reliving for a short

moment a wonderful month spent in Tuscany or sip a glass of Sancerre without tasting the

fresh goat cheese nibbled (with Sancerre, of course) on a hill overlooking the vineyards

of the Loire valley

Because many of us have been exposed to French cooking in only a limited number of

restaurants, we miss out on many of the traditions that make French food French Though

this is beginning to change, the food we encounter in the more expensive of these

restau-rants is representative of only one tradition, what the French call la grande cuisine or la

cuisine classique La grande cuisine was developed in the courts of royalty and in noble homes

until the French revolution, when the royal chefs were put out of work (at least they still

had their heads) and opened restaurants Today, despite much talk about the death of la

cuisine classique, its traditions are alive and well, although in a somewhat different guise, in

restaurants in France, in the United States, and in countries all over the world But other,

less familiar cooking traditions have evolved, or at least persisted, simultaneously with

those found in fine French restaurants What the French call la cuisine bourgeoise, the cooking

of well-run households, far more common in homes before the Second World War, is now

most likely to be found in a good bistro Cookbooks describing la cuisine bourgeoise date back

to the seventeenth century and culminate in the wonderful cookbook La Cuisine de Madame

Saint-Ange, published in the 1920s Madame Saint-Ange describes many of the same

tech-niques that Auguste Escoffier outlined twenty years earlier in Le Guide Culinaire, a book

written for professionals, but explains them in better detail and with far less superfluity, as

though the bourgeois cook and diner wanted to get to the heart and soul of the matter

without needless chichi There is also la cuisine du terroir, hearty regional cooking made

with local products and reflective of centuries of eating habits in various parts of France

In France, and to some degree in other places, the distinctions between classic cuisine,

nouvelle cuisine, cuisine bourgeoise, and regional cooking are beginning to break down as chefs

trained in the techniques of classic cooking apply their savoir faire and finesse to dishes

once served only at home or in the least expensive restaurants While in the 1970s, nouvelle

cuisine chefs were eager to invent dishes, often by using baroque juxtapositions of

ingredi-ents, contemporary cooks are turning to French regional and bourgeois cooking and are

bringing back cooking rooted in solid tradition and common sense

I call this book Glorious French Food: A Fresh Approach to the Classics, a confusing title

for French readers for whom la cuisine classique has a very specific meaning, while for

Americans the term means simply familiar or traditional French cooking Because I want

the reader to have at least heard of most of the dishes or to have tasted them in restaurants

or perhaps even made them at home, I’ve taken a very un-French approach and combined

every style of French cooking, drawing from refined and extravagant lunches, meals in

truck stops and in people’s homes (both poor and not so poor), and my houseful of old

cookbooks

As Americans we have certain advantages and disadvantages Most of us weren’t raisedwith a solid cooking tradition that we can use as a point of reference in our own cooking.

As time moves on, fewer of us have grandmothers who can teach us traditional recipes and

“little secrets.” On the other hand, as Americans we’re open to new combinations andapproaches because we’re not trying to duplicate something we’ve never even tasted When

I was studying cooking at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, a student raised his hand and had theaudacity to ask if we could substitute raspberries for strawberries in a particular dessert.The answer was a simple no When the student pressed further, the chef retorted, “Everydish was already invented by the end of the nineteenth century There’s no room for any-thing new.” My own encounter with the rigidity of French tradition occurred in a Parisianrestaurant where I, the chef, was often coming up with logically conceived combinations ofingredients dictated by what I found at the market One evening I served some lovely littlestring beans with a red wine beef stew The customer complained that such a combinationwas not classic For me the contrast of the bright fresh beans with the deep color and flavor

of the stew was delightful; for my customer it bordered on the bizarre

But back to the book I’ve organized it in a somewhat unorthodox way and have drawn

on my own experience, experiments, whims, and reading to give logic and context to therecipes Despite parallel traditions and a cuisine that has evolved over the centuries inmany economic milieus, there is an interrelatedness in French cooking that makes it possi-ble for the thoughtful or creative cook to prepare a wide variety of French dishes startingwith only a few recipes If the cook understands what’s going on in a dish and how itrelates to other similar (or not-so-similar) dishes, he or she can cook from principles ratherthan from recipes Cooking from recipes is much like painting by numbers: You may pro-duce a few dishes or come up with a decent canvas, but you won’t learn how to cook orpaint So each of the fifty chapters is about a dish, one that I hope you have heard of andthat will entice you; but this is a ruse designed to lead you into a series of cooking lessonsthat use the dish as a point of reference A cassoulet made from scratch (really fromscratch—you make your own sausages and confit, stew lamb, soak and simmer dried beans)

is something most of us aren’t likely to undertake very often I’ve made a lot of thembecause I’ve had to teach them, not because I wanted to spend too many weekends simmer-ing things in duck fat But if you understand what a cassoulet really is, that it’s the

culmination of many techniques, traditions, and ways of using ingredients that have longbeen available in a particular region, you have access to something far more valuable than arecipe for cassoulet Instead you have its logic and context and you understand the tech-niques needed to prepare it, and so you are able to invent your own variations or tosimplify the recipe to suit your schedule or energy level The curtain is pulled back andthe daunting and mysterious cassoulet is suddenly revealing it for what it is, a casserole ofbaked beans Very special baked beans, of course

Paradoxically, French cooking can no longer be left to the French Modern society haschanged the way we eat, cook, and learn to cook The great dishes of French cooking,ranging from rustic peasant dishes to refined derivatives of a cuisine once served to kingsand queens, are no longer maintained in a day-to-day unself-conscious way in farmhouses,wealthy homes, or Paris apartments It is now left to restaurant chefs and us home cooks topreserve and, at times, to reinterpret these traditions And while restaurants thrive, theirdishes will always be those of the restaurant and no matter how well prepared will lack thesoul of food cooked at home Though I don’t expect to change America’s eating habits

overnight, I hope to give, to those who enjoy cooking, access to traditions and techniques

and to the intuition and spontaneity that inhabit the heart and stomach of any good cook

Though I’ve made no attempt to simplify the traditional French dish (unless simplification

improves it), many of the dishes in this book are almost absurdly straightforward Also, a

relatively large number are made with leftovers, so if you’ve spent more time than usual in

the kitchen preparing a Sunday dinner or getting ready for a dinner party, you can use the

remnants to make an array of salads, gratins, or even pasta dishes in very little time, with

recipes in this book a guidelines rather than as dictates

It has long been my dream to write a cookbook with no recipes at all This would save

me a lot of time, energy, and money, since there would be no recipes to test It would

relieve a lot of frustration, too, because as soon as I write down a recipe I think of dozens

of different things I’d like to try or say But since I’ve written a book with lots of recipes, I

suggest that you read around in them so you’ll understand how they work and then just use

the recipe itself when you’re making your shopping list, for helpful tips, or if you get stuck

somewhere It still makes me happiest when someone comes up to me and says, “Well, I

didn’t follow your recipe exactly .” That makes me feel I’ve accomplished my goal of

genuinely giving people a metaphorical hand in the kitchen

A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S

gourmets, and lovers of good food who’ve helped me over the course of the last 25 years to

have a rich experience with French cooking More specifically, it has been the great cooks—

Paul Bocuse, Claude Peyrot, George Blanc, Thomas Keller, the late Richard Olney, and

many others—who have expressed their own vision of French food in an inimitable way

I’d like to thank those at Wiley who transformed an enormous manuscript into

some-thing manageable, especially Pam Chirls, my editor Others at Wiley who’ve helped with

publication and promotion are, Fred Bernardi, Diana Cisek, Kate Fisher, Adrianne Maher,

Valerie Peterson, Michele Sewell, and Aditi Shah

I’d also like to thank my friend and former editor, Maria Guarnaschelli, for helping me

generate the original idea for this book

A number of people have helped me test and edit recipes Geraldine Cresci (to whom

this book is dedicated) has helped me on this book and many others Allison Fishman,

Ste-fanie Shapiro, and Susan Ryan Ackell also devoted their time and attention to the recipes and

the manuscript I’d like to thank Erica Marcus for editing the manuscript to make sure I was

making sense

Thanks to food stylist Ann Disrude for her amazing eye and for making food look great

and to Betty Alfenito for letting us use her amazing collection of props Thanks also Maggie

Ruggiero, for assisting Ann during the styling

Many thanks to my tenacious agents Elise and Arnold Goodman for their help and

encouragement over what is now becoming a rather large number of years Thank you to my

friends, Paul Geltner and Debré DeMers (Debré helped style the photographs), for being my

friends and for encouraging me when I’m racked with self doubt Special thanks to my

part-ner Zelik for putting up with various culinary experiments (sauerkraut in the bathroom, ham

curing in the bedroom) and for just being there

B A C O N : My favorite bacon is Schaller & Weber (see Sources), a brand of smoked” bacon that comes in a slab with the rind already removed Not only is this baconlean and flavorful, but its being in a single slab allows you to slice it to whatever thicknessyou want Once you open the package, wrap the bacon in a clean kitchen towel and put it

“double-in the refrigerator, where it will keep for several weeks (You can keep it even longer, but itgets hard.) Most slab bacon, however, is sold with the rind attached To remove it, slide along, thin knife between the fat and the rind before slicing the bacon Leave the rindattached to that part of the slab you’re not slicing and then fold the flap over the rest of thebacon to keep the bacon moist Presliced bacon is easier to find than slab bacon, and there

are several good brands Use thick-sliced bacon for cooking; it makes more substantial

lar-dons and has more texture Inspect it carefully and select the brand with the most lean Be

sure the package says “naturally smoked” and not “smoke-flavored.” flavored” bacon has an unpleasant soapy taste

“Smoke-B R E A D C R U M “Smoke-B S : When most of us think of bread crumbs we think of the store-boughtvariety or our own version, made with stale or lightly toasted bread But French cooks usestale, crunchy bread crumbs only as a layer for a gratin or in some dish—cassoulet comes

to mind—in which the bread crumbs provide a needed contrast in texture For breading

sautéed or fried foods, the French use fresh bread crumbs—which they call chapelure—

because they absorb less fat and form a more delicate coating Making your own freshbread crumbs is easy Cut the crusts off slices of dense-crumbed white bread—I use Pepperidge Farm sandwich bread—and pulse the slices in a food processor for about

30 seconds For very fine bread crumbs, which will absorb the least fat and make the mostdelicate layer of breading, work the crumbs through a large strainer (or better yet, a drumsieve: see page 15) with your fingers

B O U Q U E T G A R N I : Few cooking terms cause more needless confusion than “bouquetgarni.” French cookbooks are casual in calling for a bouquet garni in just about any long-simmered dish, be it soup, stew, or sauce, but rarely go into any detail about how to makeone American cooks, probably as a result of having had to rely on chopped or grounddried herbs, go through the laborious process of making little packets of herbs tied up incheesecloth Much of the time there’s no need for a bouquet garni If, for example, you’remaking a soup that doesn’t require skimming or that’s going to be strained, just throw theherbs into the pot But in many dishes, stew, for instance, loose herbs can be hard to strainout, and even when finely chopped they leave a distracting feel in the mouth In otherpreparations, such as broth, loose herbs may float to the top and interfere with the skim-ming off of fat and froth

While making a bouquet garni by tying up herbs in cheesecloth is still necessary whenthe herbs have been dried and chopped, when using sprigs of fresh herbs, just tie the sprigstogether in a bundle with a couple of loops of string The standard ingredients for a bou-quet garni are imported bay leaves (don’t use California bay leaves, they’re too pungent),thyme, and parsley You can vary the herbs depending on your whim and what you have

around I often include fresh tarragon in a bouquet garni to be used in chicken broth and,following Provençal tradition, an orange rind and a sprig of marjoram in a beef daube.

Most bouquets garnis are too small I’ve seen students add a single bouquet garni thethickness of a thumb to a 25-quart [25 l] stockpot The size of the bouquet garni should beproportional to the amount of liquid in which it’s being simmered and to the robustness ofthe liquid and the final dish Here are some approximate sizes for a standard bouquet garnimade with both fresh and dried herbs:

powdered thyme)

B R O T H S , S T O C K S , B O U I L L O N , C O N S O M M É , C O N C E N T R A T E D B R O T H S , G L A C E

classes is, “Is it all right to use canned broth?” If you’re using broth for a simple soup inwhich the broth acts as a backdrop for flavor instead of as the principal source of flavor, goahead and use canned broth If you’re boiling down broth for a gelatinous sauce base (such

as glace de viande; see page 221), you must make your own broth because the salt in canned

broth becomes too concentrated and because canned broth contains very little natural tin (notice how canned broth never sets in the fridge, while homemade does) If you’re brais-ing meats, say for a pot roast or stew, you can use half canned broth and half some otherliquid such as wine, water, or homemade broth, so that when you simmer down the braisingliquid it isn’t too salty If you’re using canned broth for a soup, liven it up by simmering 2quarts [2 l] of low-sodium beef or chicken broth with half a stalk of celery, a finely choppedmedium-size carrot, a chopped onion, a crushed garlic clove, and a small bouquet garni, orany combination of the above, for 20 minutes and strain Skip the onion or any of the othervegetables if you’re using the broth in a soup that contains that vegetable

gela-The second most often asked question is, “What is the difference between stock andbroth?” Well, there is none “Stock” is the word used in restaurants and implies that it’sgoing to be used for something else, such as sauce or soup, rather than as an end in itself

Bouillon is just the French name for broth A consommé is a double-strength (or

triple-strength) broth that’s made by cooking meat in broth instead of water When care is taken

in its preparation, a consommé should be perfectly clear with no trace of fat on its surface,but most recipes call for clarifying consommé with egg whites (see also Chapter 16)

In addition to needing broth for stews, soups, and braised or poached meats, you also

need it to make concentrated sauce bases such as glace de viande (meat glaze) or demi-glace (“half ” meat glaze) Glace de viande is a simple reduction of full-flavored gelatinous broth to

about one-tenth its original volume Demi-glace, rarely called for in modern recipes,involves less reduction after first thickening the broth with roux.

In recent years, packaged concentrated broths and glazes have become available ingourmet stores and even in supermarkets There are several brands of concentrated broths

My favorite is manufactured by More Than Gourmet (see Sources), whose original uct, Demi-Glace Gold, contains flour, but in such small amounts that it’s hardly detectable.Demi-Glace Gold, which is claimed to be ten times as concentrated as demi-glace, is very

prod-much like glace de viande and can be used in its place in recipes or when improvising brown sauces (see below) More Than Gourmet also markets a glace de viande, very close to one you would make yourself, as well as a duck glaze, glace de canard In addition to their use in

sauces, when thinned these concentrates provide an excellent broth, the concentration ofwhich is easy to control by adding more or less water In many recipes, especially those forstews where additional flavorful liquid is needed to supply enough sauce, I call for a cup[250 ml] of broth or even a cup [250 ml] of concentrated broth The difference betweenbroth and concentrated broth is somewhat arbitrary, but I usually think of concentratedbroth as broth that has been reduced to one-fourth its original volume If you want to use

Demi-Glace Gold or glace de viande to make concentrated broth, dissolve 4 tablespoons

(60ml) in 1 cup [250 ml] of hot water

When reduced down by three-quarters, 30 fluid ounces (900 ml) good-quality made broth yields 7 fluid ounces (200 ml)—about a cup—concentrated broth Whenreduced to one-tenth its original volume, 30 fluid ounces yield 3 fluid ounces (about

home-6 tablespoons/90 ml) glace de viande Commercial demi-glace or glace de viande (specifically the More Than Gourmet brand) is roughly the equivalent to homemade glace de viande To make concentrated broth with commercial demi-glace or glace de viande, combine 4 to 6 tablespoons glace de viande or demi-glace with 8 tablespoons water.

A jus is the liquid released by a roast (see Chapter 26); it is usually passed at the table

as a pure natural sauce to accompany slices of meat A jus has a full, meaty aroma and

intense flavor that for centuries cooks have tried to duplicate without having to make a

whole roast to get a cup [250 ml] or so of jus Many cooks incorrectly assume that a

con-centrated broth, one that has been slowly simmered to a fraction of its original volume,

will have the same vibrant, authentic flavor as a natural jus Well-made concentrated broth

does have body and a lightly syrupy consistency (because of the natural gelatin it tains), but the fresh, aromatic flavor of meat will have dissipated after long cooking.Concentrated broths taste flat, but since they’re usually flavored with other ingredients, as

in a sauce, this isn’t important; they provide a backdrop for the sauce’s flavor and

con-tribute to its saucelike consistency To make a light sauce that tastes a lot like a natural jus,

brown pieces of meat and bones with a little onion, carrot, and celery (mirepoix) until thejuices caramelize on the bottom of the pan; deglaze the pan with a little broth or whitewine; caramelize the juices a second time; and deglaze again with just a little broth Sim-

mer the mixture for only 5 minutes or so, so the fresh direct flavor of the jus doesn’t have

time to cook off (See also “Caramelization,” page 16.)

B R O W N S A U C E S : Made from foods, usually meats, that have been browned before beingsimmered in liquid, brown sauces are based on broth, which in traditional farmhouse cook-ing is taken from the ever-present pot-au-feu and nowadays more likely is taken out of acan or made with a bouillon cube In classic French restaurants up until a generation ago,

brown sauces were based on demi-glace, which is reduced and concentrated sauce espagnole,

a rich veal or beef bone broth with tomatoes added and lightly thickened with brown roux

In modern French restaurants, most brown sauces are based on glace de viande, a very

con-centrated veal broth (more often than not made with bones) that contains no flour

While it is possible to make demi-glace or glace de viande at home, very few of us are

willing to spend the time, on a regular basis, to ensure us a steady supply Because reliable

brands of commercially made demi-glace and glace de viande are now available (see above,

page 221, and Sources) it’s now possible to make brown sauces at home that rival those made

in the best restaurants It is also possible when making your own brown sauce to simply duce homemade veal or chicken broth (canned is too salty) in a deglazed roasting or sautépan, concentrating the flavor of the broth at the last minute Cooking down a well-madebroth also concentrates its gelatin, which gives body to the sauce (See page 484 for moreabout brown sauces.)

re-Though classic brown sauces are intimidating to beginning cooks, a little analysisreveals that most of them are made in a somewhat formulaic way Once you’ve mastered afew, you can make others, as well as improvising your own sauces, by plugging in differentingredients Often, a brown sauce is made by gently cooking aromatic ingredients such asmirepoix (onions, carrots, and celery), onions (alone), shallots, garlic, or prosciutto in asmall amount of fat A liquid is then added, often red or white wine or a fortified wine such

as port or Madeira In a classic poivrade sauce, vinegar is used at this stage Usually the

sauce is reduced and demi-glace (in traditional sauces) or glace de viande (in modern sauces)

added to give the sauce body and a meaty flavor Some sauces are then strained to take outthe aromatic ingredients that have surrendered their flavor to the surrounding liquid

Cream is sometimes added at this point and lightly reduced to thicken the sauce, unify itsflavors, and give it body Other, more delicate flavorings, such as finely chopped fines herbes(chervil, parsley, chives, and tarragon) alone or in combination; mustard (not so delicate,but it will separate if added earlier); chopped or sliced mushrooms; truffles; or delicatespirits such as Cognac are then often added Last, the sauce is finished with a swirl of but-ter to give it a satiny texture and, like cream, to unify the flavors In more homespun red

wine sauces, a paste of flour and butter (beurre manié) may be whisked in as a thickener.

Traditional sauces, based on demi-glace, contain relatively little cream and butter

com-pared to sauces made with glace de viande, because the flour added to the demi-glace acts as

a thickener Here are some ideas for improvising your own brown sauces:

Aromatic ingredients, chopped fine and gently sweated in a small amount of fat before liquid is added

MIREPOIX onions, carrots, celery (see meurette sauce, page 115) ONIONS

SHALLOTS (see Bordelaise Sauce, page 483) GARLIC

(see Lamb Chops with Garlic and Marjoram, page 503) MUSHROOMS

(see Poulet Sauté Chasseur, page 370)

CUBES OF PROSCIUTTO, PANCETTA the closest equivalent to French unsmoked bacon, or meat trimmings (see meurette sauce, page 115)

Flavorful liquids added to the aromatic ingredients already in the pan and cooked down to varying degrees

WINES red or white, Madeira, port, marsala, Sauternes (see Tournedos Rossini, page 494)

VINEGAR (see Sauce Poivrade, page 406)

such as orange juice for duck à l’orange

Meat base to give body to the sauce

DEMI-GLACE commercial or homemade

GLACE DE VIANDE

(homemade, see recipe, page 221; or commercial) GOOD-QUALITY VEAL, BEEF, OR CHICKEN BROTH the more concentrated the better, so you’re not reducing at the last minute

Enricheners/thickeners

HEAVY CREAM BUTTER HERB BUTTER (see recipes, page 490) CRUSTACEAN BUTTER (see recipe, page 335, and Lobster Newburg, page 337) BUTTER FLAVORED WITH AROMATIC

INGREDIENTS such as reduced tomato purée, chopped truffles, or cèpes (porcini)

BEURRE MANIÉ (butter-and-flour paste, see page 116; see also recipe, page 115)

Final aromatic ingredients and flavorings

COGNAC (or other spirits such as dry fruit brandies; see below, page 10, for more about using spirits in cooking) DELICATE HERBS

tarragon, chervil, parsley, chives CHOPPED OR SLICED MUSHROOMS CHOPPED, JULIENNED, OR SLICED TRUFFLES MUSTARD

(see Veal Kidneys with Mushrooms, Mustard, and Port, page 541)

DICED CARAMELIZED ROOT VEGETABLES such as carrots, celeriac, and onions DICED CARAMELIZED MEATS such as prosciutto (see Roast Top Round of Veal with Diced Aromatic Vegetables, page 52)

B U T T E R : Waverley Root, in his marvelous work The Food of France, divides France into

four regions based on the principal cooking fat used in each In the southwest it’s goose fat;

in the southeast, olive oil; in the northeast, lard; and in the northwest, butter While the tinctions among the cooking styles of France’s many regions have blurred a great dealsince the Second World War, these divisions are still applicable to traditional regionalcooking For most of us, French cooking is almost synonymous with cooking with butter

dis-This is because classic French cooking—the cooking that evolved in the French court andlater in fine restaurants—has been based on butter since the seventeenth century (Inmedieval cooking, lard was more common.)

Butter is used in French cooking in many ways: for sautéing all manner of foods; for

thickening sauces (see beurre blanc, page 281, and monter au beurre, page 20); for giving

them a silky texture and unifying flavors; for pouring over cooked fish or poultry (see the

recipe for sole meunière, page 294); as a sauce unto itself; and for baking into pastries.

Butter is used to sauté foods because of its delicious flavor, but since it burns at a tively low temperature, it is often clarified—its water and milk solids removed—so that it can

rela-be heated to a high temperature If you’re sautéing foods over medium heat, regular wholebutter works fine and in fact is tastier than clarified butter because the milk solids in the buttercling to the food and caramelize When foods like chicken are cut into pieces and cooked inbutter entirely in a sauté pan, they are flavored with butter but end up containing very littlefat because it’s largely the caramelized milk solids—which are proteins—that impart the but-tery flavor, not the fat, which is poured off But if you need to sauté on high heat, for examplewhen sautéing something thin, like a veal cutlet, which must be browned quickly so it doesn’tovercook, the milk solids in whole butter will burn Don’t brown foods over high heat in amixture of butter and oil, as suggested in many recipes, because the oil will not keep the milksolids from burning And last, don’t try to clarify salted butter; it froths up and is almost im-possible to work with (See page 296 for information about clarified butter.)

There are two methods for taking the milk solids out of butter to clarify it If you’re fying more than a couple of pounds, do what they do in restaurants: Melt the butter in a pot

clari-on the stove, let it sit, and skim off the froth with a ladle (Ideally, the pot should be tall andnarrow to make skimming easier.) Discard the froth and ladle out the pure golden clarifiedbutter Don’t reach too far down in the pot with the ladle or you’ll bring up water and milksolids that have settled to the bottom It’s worth making more than you need, since clarifiedbutter keeps for months in the fridge and forever in the freezer But if you’re clarifying only

1 or 2 pounds [450 or 900 g] of butter, cook the butter over medium heat in a heavy-bottomedsaucepan The butter will froth and bubble as the water in it (butter contains about 30 percentwater) boils away After about 5 minutes, keep a close eye on the butter Tilt the pan and look

at the bottom, where some of the milk solids will cling When the milk solids coagulate, firstinto white specks, and then into lightly brown ones, remove the butter from the heat and setthe bottom of the saucepan in a bowl of cold water for a few seconds to stop the cooking Pourthe butter into another container, leaving the golden-brown milk solids clinging to thesaucepan Or if you really want to be fastidious, strain the butter through a fine-mesh strainer,

a triple layer of cheesecloth, or a coffee filter This second method produces a tastier version

of clarified butter than the first method because the milk solids have caramelized, producing

what French cooks called beurre noisette and Indian cooks call ghee Beurre noisette is used in

the same way as clarified butter but can also be used in butter sauces (such as hollandaise) or

in pastries to give a more pronounced butter flavor

C A U L F A T: In French called crépine, caul fat is a thin, veil-like sheet of fat that lines the

inside of a pig’s abdominal wall Pork caul fat is useful for making sausages because it ders away as the sausages cook It can also be used to line terrines for making pâtés instead

ren-of the usual sheets ren-of fatback (see Chapter 5), which can be harder to slice and work with.Caul fat is also used to wrap fragile foods such as braised oxtails to keep them from fallingapart as they’re being reheated A butcher should be able to order caul fat for you—it’srarely in stock—and you may have to take more than you need Because it freezes well and

is inexpensive, I never hesitate If you get a large batch, divide it into easier-to-manageportions and wrap them individually before freezing them

F E E T: French recipes for stews and braised dishes often call for pigs’ or calves’ feet to ply additional natural gelatin Unless you live in the right ethnic neighborhood, you mayhave to order your feet in advance They’re not expensive and they can be kept frozenalmost indefinitely When ordering feet, have the butcher saw them lengthwise in half Ifyou’re ordering calves’ feet, have them cut in half crosswise, too, so the pieces—you’ll nowhave 4 from each foot—aren’t too large for the pot Before using pigs’ or calves’ feet, youmust boil them, starting with just enough cold water to cover, for 5 minutes to rid them ofthe scum they throw off After the boiling, drain them in a colander and rinse thoroughlywith cold water

sup-F E N N E L : In some recipes I call for one or more of the three parts of the fennel plant:the bulb; the tough, fibrous stalks; and the fronds When I don’t specify the part, I’m refer-ring to the bulb

M U S H R O O M C O O K I N G L I Q U I D : Because mushrooms have an almost meaty flavorthat’s both subtle and robust, mushroom cooking liquid is often called for in French cookingfor making sauces I sometimes use it as a substitute for meat broth or concentrated brothwhen I’m cooking for vegetarians You can make mushroom cooking liquid as strong or light

as you like by steaming mushrooms with more or less liquid I use the cooked mushrooms tomake the crudité salad on page 40 Here’s a recipe for 1 cup (250 ml) of liquid

1 pound [450 g] cultivated mushrooms, preferably cremini

1 cup [250 ml] water

turn down the heat to maintain at a gentle simmer Simmer gently for 15 minutes Most ofthe mushrooms won’t be submerged in liquid, but don’t worry; you’re actually steaming, notpoaching, them

P A R M E S A N C H E E S E : Despite having more than four hundred cheeses of their own,French cooks often use Parmesan because of its forthright flavor and because it is dry andwon’t become stringy when cooked Unfortunately, most of what’s called Parmesan cheese

in the United States is not authentic and in fact barely resembles the original AuthenticParmesan cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, is produced only in three Italian provinces, Parma,Mantova, and Bologna Parmigiano is aged from 18 months to 5 years, becoming dryer and

more aromatic as it gets older Grana padana, sometimes called simply grana, a less

expen-sive but very similar cheese from north of the Po River, makes a suitable substitute Grana

is usually aged 1 to 2 years Always grate Parmesan cheese shortly before you use it; it losesits aroma when grated in advance

P O R K : F R E N C H P R O D U C T S A N D T H E I R A M E R I C A N A N D I TA L I A N E Q U I VA L E N T S :

French pork products are rarely imported into the United States and often don’t have exactAmerican equivalents Italian ingredients and Italian-style products made in the UnitedStates and Canada often make closer substitutes than traditional American ingredients such

as salt pork French terminology is also confusing because the same words in English maymean something different For example, in English, “lard” refers to unsalted fresh pork fat

that has been rendered In French, rendered pork fat is called saindoux, while unsalted pork fat, which we call fatback, is called lard gras or simply lard The French equivalent to Amer- ican bacon (smoked pork belly) is called lard maigre or lard fumé, while fresh unsmoked bacon is called poitrine fraîche The French also have salt pork, called lard salé, which is leaner than our salt pork (which has no lean at all), and demi-sel, which is pork, usually pork breast (unsmoked bacon), that’s been partially cured with salt (see recipe, page 528) Jambon

de Paris is much like our cooked ham and Italy’s prosciutto cotto (cotto means cooked), which

have been rubbed with salt and saltpeter (see recipe, page 106) or soaked in a salt, sugar,and saltpeter brine There are dozens of other regional pork products, made from different

parts of the animal and involving various degrees of salting, brining, or smoking Ventrêche,

from the southwest, is lean pork breast (brisket) that has been cured with salt but notalways smoked, and is roughly the equivalent, when unsmoked, of the Italian pancetta The

French also have a variety of hams, both raw cured ( jambon cru, the equivalent of Italy’s

prosciutto crudo) and cooked ( jambon cuit, the equivalent of Italy’s prosciutto cotto) The best

known French raw cured ham is jambon de Bayonne, from the southwest Jambon de Bayonne is

served raw and thinly sliced, in the same way as Italian prosciutto

The obvious substitute for saindoux would be lard, but because I find that American

lard has a soapy taste and smell, I prefer to render the fat from pancetta or the outside of a

prosciutto, the closest equivalents I can find to poitrine fraîche French recipes calling for lard

maigre or lard fumé (both smoked) aren’t a problem, because they are exact equivalents to

American bacon Because I can’t find jambon de Bayonne in the United States, for cooking I use the less expensive end piece of Italian prosciutto di Parma, which isn’t as assertive but,

once cooked, is pretty close

FRENCH, AMERICAN, AND ITALIAN EQUIVALENTS

R O O T V E G E TA B L E S : B U Y I N G T U R N I P S A N D C E L E R I A C ( C E L E R Y R O O T ) : Somevegetables are easy to avoid when they get too old, because they wilt, develop soft spots, orsmell funny But turnips and celeriac may look fine, but still be old and stale Buy thosethat feel heavy If they are light, they are spongy in the middle and will probably be bitter.Another thing to look out for: Don’t mistake tiny leaves coming out of the top for the cut-off greens Tiny leaves mean that the turnip or celeriac has been sitting around for a goodwhile and is sprouting

W H I T E S A U C E S : Traditional white sauces are based on either béchamel sauce or veloutésauce A béchamel is essentially milk that’s been thickened with roux (see page 577 formore about béchamel) and a velouté is white broth—made from veal, chicken, or fish—that’s been thickened with roux All of the classic French white sauces are made by addingvarious ingredients to one or the other of these two “mother” sauces Modern white sauces,made without flour, are based on white veal stock that is reduced and given body withcream (which is usually reduced) and/or egg yolks (cooked gently, like a crème anglaise;see page 641) or butter

W I N E S A N D S P I R I T S F O R C O O K I N G : French recipes have an annoying way of beingcavalier about using expensive wines Some insist that you pour a bottle of Burgundy over

an old rooster to make an authentic coq au vin, others call for a wine that’s at least 10 years

old; and some have you simmering a bunch of little fish in a good bottle of Champagne.Better to crack open the Champagne and, while sipping, use something else for the fish

I do admit to having once made a red wine sauce—a beurre rouge, I think—with a bottle

of Échézeaux and, yes, I could taste a difference—a very slight difference But the sauce wasn’t any better than when made with my usual cooking zinfandel

The things that make expensive wines expensive—subtle nuances of perfume and flavor—are for the most part lost when the wine is exposed to heat And qualities thatmake wine connoisseurs scoff, such as low acidity, too high an alcohol content, fatness, orclumsiness, are often the qualities that make wine good in a sauce or a stew Red wines forcooking should be full-bodied and deeply colored, with low acidity and little or no tannin.Alcohol content makes no difference, since the alcohol cooks off anyway Lighter-colored

wines (such as Burgundy, in fact) give sauce an insipid, unappetizing milk of magnesia–likecolor, and red wines with high acidity (essential in the glass but not in the pot) make overlytart sauces because the acid is concentrated during reduction Tannin (the stuff that makesyour mouth pucker when you take a sip) in a red wine can cause the wine to separate whenit’s cooked with proteins such as those from fish, meat, or bones; the liquid ends up almostcolorless and the pigment from the wine clings to the fish, meat, or bones My favoritecooking red wines are California zinfandels (they’re soft and full-bodied and not tooexpensive), Côtes-du-Rhône from a good maker (but these are starting to get too dear),Rioja (again, getting expensive), and cabernets, malbecs, and merlots from Chile orArgentina.

White wines are another story In most sauces or soups based on white wine, the wineprovides a welcome tart acidity So whereas I’m likely to choose one of the “New World”

red wines (wines from places other than Europe), which tend to have less acid, I almostalways use more highly acidic European white wines Muscadet used to be my old standby,and in fact it’s the traditional wine used for making beurre blanc But it has gotten toopricey, so I often use a nondescript French sauvignon blanc (usually just labeled “sauvi-gnon”), a pinot grigio from the Veneto (buy a cheap one, they can be expensive), or aSylvaner or pinot blanc from Alsace There are occasional dishes, such as sorbets, granités,and sabayon sauces, in which the wine is exposed only to gentle heat or to no heat at all Inthese situations it’s sometimes worth using a somewhat special wine with a distinct charac-

ter If you can stand the extravagance, a sauce sabayon (made by whisking together sugar, egg

yolks, and white wine over medium heat until the mixture stiffens into a frothy sauce) ismarvelous made with Champagne, French Chablis, Gewürtztraminer, or a decent Riesling

Most of the fortified wines used in cooking have a nutty sweetness that adds a ful complexity to sauces and stewing liquids Madeira is a particularly useful wine to havearound, but keep in mind that it comes in different degrees of sweetness Until recently,Madeira was named according to the original grape varieties used to make it Since many

delight-of these vines were wiped out by disease in the nineteenth century, the names ended upreferring to degrees of sweetness rather than actual grape varieties Since 1993, the lawsgoverning Madeira have changed; they now require that any Madeira labeled after a grapemust actually contain at least 85 percent of that grape Today, much Madeira is simplylabeled “dry,” “semidry,” “semisweet,” or “sweet” instead of after the traditional grapenames: sercial, which is dry; verdelho, which is dry to semidry; bual, which is sweeter still;

and malmsey, which is the sweetest of all and should be used in very small amounts forcooking A Madeira labeled “semidry,” “Verdelho,” or “Rainwater” (a brand name, whichimplies a blend) is best for cooking

Ruby port is the least expensive of ports and because of this is the most practical forcooking, but a good tawny port will have more nuttiness and complexity, and if not tooexpensive is worth paying a bit more for

Spirits are often called for in French cooking and are often misused or poorly chosen

in a misguided effort to save money—it’s better to use less of something good than a lot ofsomething cheap Cheap brandy is often substituted in recipes calling for Cognac or Arma-gnac There’s nothing wrong with substituting a well-made brandy from another place;

there are some very good ones from California and Spain But using a generic brandy(they’re usually called something like “old Napoleon brandy”) at best will do nothing forthe dish and at worst will give it an unpleasant medicinal taste On the other hand, using

the best Cognac is a waste because its delicate perfumes are lost when it is exposed to heat.

I opt for inexpensive but authentic Cognac, which doesn’t have a lot of complexity but isfull of honest fruit flavor Just remember that it must say “Cognac” on the label

Other fruit brandies, such as kirsch (cherries), framboise (raspberries), mirabelle low plums), and Poire William (pears), are sometimes called for in recipes, especiallydesserts They vary in quality; the best capture the delicate essence of fruit, others theessence of kerosene French and Swiss brands of these clear fruit brandies are reliable, andexpensive Don’t confuse these clear and sugarless brandies, called eaux-de-vie, with fruit-

(yel-flavored brandies made by adding a very sweet fruit syrup to grape brandy, with a result

more like cough medicine than anything you’d want to put into a sauce Marc, a brandymade from the stems and grape pits left over from pressing the juice for wine making, has adistinctive earthy flavor that’s delicious in game sauces and with chocolate Again, marc can

be marvelously complex and nuanced or it can smell like medicine Grappa, originally theItalian equivalent of marc, is now often made with wine instead of grape pressings andmuch of the time is really an eau-de-vie with the distinctive varietal character of specificgrapes, such as muscat You can use these grappas as you would a clear fruit brandy—as afinish for a meat sauce or dessert sauce But beware, they can be very expensive

Equipment

B A K I N G D I S H E S : Many recipes call for baking in one sort of container or another nately, you don’t need a collection of all types of containers in various sizes, since you canoften substitute one for the other Here are some of those most often called for in this book:

Fortu-Charlotte Molds: Usually metal, shaped like a fez with heart-shaped handles on either side,

charlotte molds are used for baking apple charlottes (see recipe, page 614) and for servingvarious mousses and Bavarian creams In older recipes, the inside walls of the charlottemold are lined with ladyfingers before mousse mixture is poured in and allowed to set.Charlotte molds are available in 3-cup [750-ml], 4-cup [1-l], and 2-quart [2-l] sizes

Dariole Molds: These metal molds are straight-sided little cups with slightly sloping

sides Most hold 2 to 3 fluid ounces [60 to 90 ml] They are used for baking both sweetand savory custards and mousses, and for babas (see variations, page 655) If you’reshopping for dariole molds, buy nonstick ones

Gratin Dishes: A gratin is really just the French equivalent of a casserole, but when

bak-ing a gratin the emphasis should be on the crust that forms on the top (In somegratins, such as cassoulet, the crust is folded into the mixture to allow a second or eventhird crust to form.) For most gratins the dish should be large enough to hold the mix-ture so that it is ½ inch to 2 inches [1.5 to 5 cm] deep Gratin dishes come in differentsizes and shapes (although they’re usually oval) and are made out of materials such asporcelain, enameled cast iron, or copper, all of which are interchangeable For therecipes in this book I used two oval copper gratin dishes, one 9 inches wide by 13inches long [23 by 33 cm] and the other 10 by 17 inches [25.5 by 43 cm] For smaller