Roast for 2 ½ hours in 325°F oven, covering with foil after breasts brown.
Garnish with fresh sage.
Tomato, Avocado, and Jicama Salad (4)
Jicama is a Mexican potato, which can grow to the size of an American football. It is dark brown in color and when peeled has a consistency similar to that of the water chestnut.
1 large jicama, peeled and thinly sliced
3 tsp balsamic vinegar
3 large avocados, peeled and sliced
3 large tomatoes, sliced
6 tbsp olive oil
1 finely chopped white onion
salt and pepper to taste
Whisk together the oil, vinegar, and seasoning; add the lime juice and jicama.
Lay alternating slices of avocados and tomatoes on a plate and spoon the jicama dressing on top. Finish with a sprinkling of chopped onions.
Guacamole (4)
2 large avocados, roughly chopped
1 chopped, seeded habanera chili
2 finely chopped spring onions
1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil juice
1 fresh lime
salt and pepper to taste
Combine all the ingredients gently in a glass bowl; refrigerate for 2 hours.
Serve with jicama salad and roast turkey.
Spicy Hot Chocolate
Montezuma reportedly drank up to 50 goblets of this a day. He considered it a great aphrodisiac.
12 oz finely ground chocolate
12 tsp drinking chocolate
2 pints water
8 tsp honey
4 tsp vanilla flavor
1 tsp red chili, finely chopped
Blend all ingredients for 1 minute.
Add 6 shots of tequila for nonvirgin version.
The only real alcoholic drink the Aztecs had was called pulque, which was made from the pulp of the maguey cactus. For these dishes I recommend Dos Equis or Tecate, excellent Mexican beers, and of course tequila.
RASPUTIN
St. Petersburg, Russia
December 20, 1916
I write and leave behind me this letter at St. Petersburg. I feel that I shall leave life before 1 January. If I am killed by common assassins, and especially by my brothers the Russian peasants, you, Tsar of Russia, have nothing to fear, remain on your throne and govern and you, Russian Tsar, will have nothing to fear for your children. They will reign for hundreds of years in Russia. If it be your relations who wrought my death, then no one will remain alive for more than two years.
—Letter from Rasputin to Tsar Nicolas II, 1915
(delivered posthumously)
Within months of Rasputin’s death his prophecy was fulfilled: The Russian Revolution of 1917 wiped the Russian imperial family from the pages of history.
Born in Torboisk, Siberia, in 1872, Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin led the typical life of many peasants of the day, uneducated and scrabbling for a living on his feudal lord’s land with little apparent future. One day, without any warning, he thrust his shovel into the grain he was threshing and marched off.
Walking from village to village for more than a year, he claimed he had a vision to seek religious enlightenment. When he returned to his home town he was a changed man. He took to living in a cave, often beating his head against the floor with his newfound zeal. Seemingly from out of nowhere, he claimed he had developed the power of prophecy and healing, also instructing himself in the art of hypnosis.
He began to cross the country on long pilgrimages, using his talents to heal the peasantry and simultaneously using them for his growing sexual appetites. He developed a reputation as a mystic. Expounding the belief that it was necessary to sin in order to obtain forgiveness, he began to build a national name until finally his outrageous behavior brought him to the attention of the Russian rulers, Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra.
On arriving at the imperial court, Rasputin immediately used all his charms and cunning to ingratiate himself with the royal couple. Settling into his role as a devout holy man, he cultivated a meek and radiant demeanor as he sought to develop his influence with his royal benefactors.
Almost immediately, he found the ideal opportunity: Crown Prince Alexei had hemophilia. Even the slightest injury caused the prince to bleed profusely, and no doctor of the court was able to stop it. Each little incident weakened the prince even more, and his despairing parents saw that his end could not be far away. However, Rasputin was somehow able to use his powers of hypnosis to immediately stop the bleeding. A delighted Alexandra took him into her closest circle of advisors and kept him near her at all times. He had saved her son. This was the opening Rasputin needed. With the tsar now concentrating on the upcoming world war, Rasputin was able, through the tsarina, to place all his followers in the highest positions of church and state. Jealous rivals simply “disappeared” or “retired.”
His sinister power and advocacy of sexual ecstasy as a means of religious salvation horrified the nobles of St. Petersburg, who saw their own influence slipping away. The tsarina would hear no words against her new favorite. Even when the head of the Secret Police compiled a report detailing Rasputin’s excesses, the tsar ignored it, and Alexandra dismissed it as jealousy.
Because Alexei’s illness had to be kept from the public, everyone assumed Rasputin was the tsarina’s lover, an illusion he did nothing to dispel. He began calling the tsar “Papa” and his wife “Mama,” so sure was he of his power over them and his permanent place in the royal court.
As much as the nobility hated him, he was curiously loved by most of the Russian peasantry, who viewed him as their champion and as the last hope they had of influencing the imperial family to change the wretched lives they led. But his constant meddling with the tsar’s decisions began to cripple the imperial government, and with war approaching with Germany, many nobles suspected that he might even be a German spy.
Alexandra refused to listen to anyone, looking only at the fact that she believed without him her darling little son would surely die. There were many examples of Rasputin’s uncanny ability to perform his “miracles.” In 1914, when the royal train was involved in a wreck, the lady Anya Vyrvlova sustained life-threatening injuries. As she lay unconscious in the guardroom with both legs broken, a fractured skull, and numerous other injuries, Rasputin, his eyes bulging out of their sockets with strain, whispered gently in her ear, “Anyushka, wake up, look at me.” She did, quickly revived, and was healed in a very short time.
The damage he was doing to the state could not be ignored, however, and two of Nicholas’s own cousins devised a solution to the nation’s problems. Princes Dmitri Pavlovich and Felix Yusupov decided to put their plan into effect on the cold winter night of December 20.
Rasputin made no attempt to hide his sexual obsessions, often sitting in taverns with his trousers unzipped while he groped anyone within reach before dragging them to his drunken orgies, safe in the knowledge that no one could touch him. So they decided that sex would be the bait for the princes’ trap.
Rasputin had long coveted the wife of one of the princes, the Lady Irina Yusupov, and luring him to the Yusupov palace where Irina was promised to him as a “dessert,” they sat in the wine cellar with others for a drunken banquet.
Rasputin had a prodigious appetite for food and drink, and that night was no exception. Unaware that his wine and cakes were heavily laced with poison he drank on, constantly asking, “When will I get Irina?” Eventually a frustrated Felix, seeing that the poison had no effect, shot him at close range, and Rasputin collapsed to the floor, lying as if dead. The princes went upstairs to organize the disposal of the body and celebrate a good night’s work and the salvation of the royal couple.
Deciding to return to the cellar to look for any documents that Rasputin might have on him, Felix was horrified to find himself seized with incredible strength by a suddenly revived Rasputin. Breaking away, he raced up the stairs, shouting for Dmitri to come and hel
p him, but when they returned to the cellar Rasputin was gone. Frantically they followed a blood trail outside, where they found him crawling to a side gate. Kicking, beating, and shooting him repeatedly, they at last believed him dead, so binding his arms and legs, they rolled him in a carpet and threw him into the freezing Neva River, which ran along the side of the palace.
Incredibly, Rasputin’s body was found the next day on the banks of the river with his restraints broken, and the ensuing autopsy showed his lungs were full of water, meaning that after all they did to him that night, he actually died of drowning.
Although the nobility of the country enjoyed their liberation from “the monster,” the common people mourned him. The revolution quickly gathered pace, and within months the whole Romanov family was murdered by Stalin and his revolutionists. The prophecies of Rasputin were fulfilled to the letter.
MENUS
Last Meal
Honeyed Cakes
Madeira Wine
Zakuski
Russian Black Bread
The range of Zakuski is infinite, from simple smoked sprats to Beluga caviar, savory stuffed eggs, or tender kidneys in Madeira sauce; they are an integral part of any Russian gathering.
Favorite Foods
Codfish Soup
Pickled Cabbage
Borscht
Sturgeon in Champagne Sauce
Zakuski
Honeyed Cakes
To make 24 2-inch cakes. This recipe dates from 1872.
8 tbsp butter
4 cups flour
3 tbsp superfine sugar
2 tbsp honey
1½ tbsp baking powder
1 egg yolk
1 whole egg + one white of the egg, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
salt
For honey topping:
1 cup heather honey
3 tbsp almonds, blanched and ground
In a bowl, rub the butter into the flour. In another bowl add the milk.
In a saucepan over low heat, gently heat the sugar and honey until well mixed. Then stir in the baking powder. Alternatively, add the honey mixture, the eggs, and the milk to the flour, mixing the ingredients very well. Add a pinch of salt and put the resulting dough on a floured board; roll it very lightly to about ½ inch.
Cut out about 24 rounds. Place the rounds on a buttered baking tray in a preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until they are brown. Remove the cakes to a rack. Put the rack of cakes in a 250°F oven for no longer than 5 minutes to set. The cakes can be served either hot or cold.
Baked Sturgeon
1 sturgeon
1 oz sour cream
salt and pepper
¼ oz shredded cheese
½ oz fat
For garnish:
2 oz fresh or pickled cucumbers
2 oz tomatoes
sliced lemon
½ oz greens
Preheat the oven to 480 to 540°F.
Cut the fish into pieces. Grease the frying pan with fat.
Spread sour cream over the fish and sprinkle with cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bake the fish until it is ready.
Serve with vegetables and greens.
Codfish Soup
2 small whole cod
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste
Cut fish into 2-inch pieces; add milk and cream. Simmer gently, without boiling, until the fish is tender. Season and serve with toasted bread.
Pickled Cabbage
1 cabbage, shredded
1 squash, cubed
For marinade:
2 quarts water
3 cups sugar
2 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp oil
4 tbsp salt
Blanch vegetables for 5 minutes and cool them in cold water. Drain and put in a sterilized jar and then pour in the marinade.
Allow to cool and then refrigerate.
Borscht (10)
1 cup navy beans, dry
2½ lb lean beef
½ lb slab bacon
10 cups water
1 bay leaf
8 whole peppercorns
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp dried parsley
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1 large red onion
1 tsp salt, optional
8 large beets for soup
2 small beets
2 cups green cabbage, shredded
2 large leeks, sliced
3 medium potatoes, cut into eighths
1 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp wine vinegar
4 tbsp sugar
1 lb kielbasa, optional
2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp butter, melted
½ cup sour cream, optional
Cover the beans with water and allow them to soak overnight, then cook them until tender and drain before setting aside. Place the beef, bacon, and water in a large soup pot and bring to a boil. Skim any fat from the surface. Add the bay leaf, peppercorns, garlic, parsley, carrot, celery, onion, and salt. Cover and simmer over a low heat for about 1 to 1½ hours.
Scrub the large beets for the soup and cook them in boiling water until tender, about 45 minutes. Drain and discard water and let them cool. Peel and cut each beet into eighths. Scrub the small beets, grate them, and cover with cold water to soak.
Remove the meat from the soup and set aside. Strain the soup into another pot and add the cooked beets, cabbage, leeks, potatoes, tomato paste, vinegar, sugar, beef, and bacon. Bring to a boil and simmer for 45 minutes.
Cut kielbasa into chunks and add along with the navy beans to the soup. Simmer 20 minutes.
Mix flour and butter together to form a paste. Stir into soup to thicken it slightly. Strain the raw beets, saving the liquid and discarding the beets. Add the beet liquid to soup.
Additional sugar or vinegar may be added for sweeter or sourer flavor. Slice the meats and arrange in individual soup bowls. Pour the hot soup with vegetables over the meat. Garnish each serving with a dollop of sour cream, if desired.
Zakuski (Zesty Eggplant Slices) (6)
1 ¾ lb long, narrow eggplants, cut into ½-inch slices
1 tbsp coarse kosher salt
4 large cloves garlic, crushed in a garlic press
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
½ cup olive oil, or as needed
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste
Place the eggplant slices in a colander and toss with the salt. Let stand for 30 minutes. Rinse the eggplant well under cold running water and pat dry with a kitchen towel.
In a small bowl, combine the garlic and vinegar and let stand while you cook the eggplant.
Divide the oil between 2 large skillets and heat until it sizzles. Add eggplant slices to both skillets, without overcrowding, and fry until a deep golden on both sides, 12 to 15 minutes. Repeat with any remaining slices.
Transfer the fried slices to a large bowl, without draining. Let cool.
Place the cooled eggplant slices in a serving dish in layers, sprinkling each layer with vinegar and garlic mixture, pepper, salt if needed, and cilantro.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Russian Pickled Whitefish (4)
4 pieces whitefish fillet, about 6 oz each
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp mustard
1 tsp whole coriander seed
1 tsp minced garlic
1 cup white wine
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup water
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Place the whitefish in a baking dish just large enough to hold the fillets, then spread the onions over the top and set aside.
Combine the mustard, coriander, garlic, wine, vinegar, water, dill, salt, and pepper in a small pan. Place over high heat, quickly bring to a boil, and pour over
the whitefish fillets.
Their Last Suppers: Legends of History and Their Final Meals Page 7