The Cook's Decameron Part 26

Ingredients: Potatoes, flour, salt, Parmesan and Gruyere cheese, b.u.t.ter, milk, eggs.

Boil two or three big potatoes, and pa.s.s them through a hair sieve, mix in two tablespoonsful of flour, an egg beaten up, and enough milk to form a rather firm paste; stir until it is quite smooth. Roll it into the shape of a German sausage, cut it into rounds about three quarters of an inch thick, and put it into the larder to dry for about half an hour. Then drop the gnocchi one by one into boiling salted water and boil for ten minutes. Take them out with a slice, and put them in a well-b.u.t.tered fireproof dish, add b.u.t.ter between each layer, and strew plenty of grated Parmesan and Cheddar over them. Put them in the oven for ten minutes, brown the top with a salamander, and serve very hot.

No. 199. Frittata di Riso (Savoury Rice Pancake)

Ingredients: Rice, milk, salt, b.u.t.ter, cinnamon, eggs, Parmesan.

Boil quarter of a pound of rice in milk until it is quite soft and pulpy, drain off the milk and add to the rice an ounce of b.u.t.ter, two tablespoonsful of grated Parmesan, and a pinch of cinnamon, and when it has got rather cold, the yolks of four eggs beaten up. Mix all well together, and with this make a pancake with b.u.t.ter in a frying pan.

Omelettes And Other Egg Dishes

No. 200. Uova al Tartufi (Eggs with Truffles)

Ingredients: Eggs, b.u.t.ter, cream, truffles, Velute sauce, croutons.

Beat up six eggs, pa.s.s them through a sieve, and put them into a saucepan with two ounces of b.u.t.ter and two tablespoonsful of cream. Put the saucepan in a bain-marie, and stir so that the eggs may not adhere.

Sautez some slices of truffle in b.u.t.ter, cover them with Velute sauce (No. 2) and a gla.s.s of Marsala, and add them to the eggs. Serve very hot with fried and glazed croutons. Instead of truffles you can use asparagus tips, peas, or cooked ham.

No. 201. Uova al Pomidoro (Eggs and Tomatoes)

Ingredients: Eggs, salt, tomatoes, onion, parsley, b.u.t.ter, pepper.

Cut up three or four tomatoes, and put them into a stewpan with a piece of b.u.t.ter the size of a walnut and a clove of garlic with a cut in it.

Put the lid on the stewpan and cook till quite soft, then take out the garlic, strain the tomatoes through a fine strainer into a bain-marie, beat up two eggs and add them to the tomatoes, and stir till quite thick, then put in two tablespoonsful of grated cheese, and serve on toast.

No. 202. Uova ripiene (Canapes of Egg)

Ingredients: Eggs, b.u.t.ter, salt, pepper, nutmeg, cheese, parsley, mushrooms, Bechamel and Espagnole sauce, stock.

Boil as many eggs as you want hard, and cut them in half lengthwise; take out the yolks and mix them with some fresh b.u.t.ter, salt, pepper, very little nutmeg, grated cheese, a little chopped parsley, and cooked mushrooms also chopped. Then mix two tablespoonsful of good Bechamel sauce (No. 3) with the raw yolk of one or two eggs and add it to the rest. Put all in a saucepan with an ounce of b.u.t.ter and good stock, then fill up the white halves with the mixture, giving them a good shape; heat them in a bain-marie, and serve with a very good clear Espagnole sauce (No. 1).

No. 203. Uova alla Fiorentina (Eggs)

Ingredients: Eggs, b.u.t.ter, Parmesan, cream, flour, salt, pepper, curds.

Boil as many eggs as you require hard, then cut them in half and take out the yolks and pound them in a mortar with equal quant.i.ties of b.u.t.ter and curds, a tablespoonful of grated Parmesan, salt and pepper. Put this in a saucepan and add the yolks of eight eggs and the white of one (this is for twelve people), mix all well together and reduce a little. With this mixture fill the hard whites of the eggs and spread the rest of the sauce on the bottom of the dish, and on this place the whites. Then in another saucepan mix half a gill of cream and an ounce of b.u.t.ter, a dessert-spoonful of flour, salt, and pepper; let this boil for a minute, and then glaze over the eggs in the dish with it, and on the top of each egg put a little bit of b.u.t.ter, and over all a powdering of grated cheese. Put this in the oven, pa.s.s the salamander over the top, and when the cheese is coloured serve at once.

No. 204. Uova in fili (Egg Canapes)

Ingredients: Eggs, b.u.t.ter, mushrooms, onions, flour, white wine, fish or meat stock, salt, pepper, croutons of bread.

Put into a saucepan two ounces of b.u.t.ter, three large fresh mushrooms cut into slices, and an onion cut up, fry them slightly, and when the onion begins to colour add a spoonful of flour, a quarter of a gla.s.s of Chablis, salt and pepper, and occasionally add a spoonful of either fish or meat stock. Let this simmer for half an hour, so as to reduce it to a thick sauce. Then boil as many eggs as you want hard; take out the yolks, but keep them whole. Cut up the whites into slices, and add them to the above sauce, pour the sauce into a dish, and on the top of it place the whole yolks of egg, each on a crouton of bread.

No. 205. Frittata di funghi (Mushroom Omelette)

Ingredients: Mushrooms, b.u.t.ter, eggs, bread crumbs, Parmesan, marjoram, garlic.

Clean four or five mushrooms, cut them up, and put them into a frying-pan with one and a half ounces of b.u.t.ter, a clove of garlic with two cuts in it, and a little salt; fry them lightly till the mushrooms are nearly cooked, and then take out the garlic. In the meantime beat up separately the yolks and the whites of two or three eggs, add a little crumb of bread soaked in water, a tablespoonful of grated Parmesan, and two leaves of marjoram; go on beating all up until the crumb of bread has become entirely absorbed by the eggs, then pour this mixture into the frying-pan with the mushrooms, mix all well together and make an omelette in the usual way.

No. 206. Frittata con Pomidoro (Tomato Omelette)

Ingredients: Eggs, tomatoes, b.u.t.ter, marjoram, parsley, spice.

Peel two tomatoes and take out the seeds; then mix them with an ounce of b.u.t.ter, chopped marjoram, parsley, and a tiny pinch of spice. Add three eggs beaten up (the yolks and whites separately), and make an omelette.

No. 207. Frittata con Asparagi (Asparagus Omelette)

Ingredients: Eggs, asparagus, b.u.t.ter, ham, herbs, cheese.

Blanch a dozen heads of asparagus and cook them slightly, then cut them up and mix with two ounces of b.u.t.ter, bits of cut-up ham, herbs, and a tablespoonful of grated Parmesan. Add them to three beaten-up eggs and make an omelette.

No. 208. Frittata con erbe (Omelette with Herbs)

Ingredients: Eggs, onions, sorrel, mint, parsley, asparagus, marjoram, salt, pepper, b.u.t.ter.