The Petticoat Rebellion
Page 12
Royal Saucissons
“Having provided Flesh of Partridges and of a fat Pullet or Capon, a little Gammon and other Bacon, and a piece of a Leg of Veal, all raw, with Parsly and Chibbols, let them be well chopt with Mushrooms and Truffles, and season'd with Pepper, Salt, beaten Spice, and a Clove of Garlick; adding also two whole Eggs, three or four Yolks and a little Milk-cream. Then roll up this Farce into thick pieces, according to the quantity that you have of it, and to the end that it may be dress'd, without breaking it, let it be wrapt up in very thin Slices cut out of a Fillet of Veal, and beaten flat upon the Dresser, for that purpose; so as the Sausages may be made at least as thick as a Man's Arm, and of a convenient length. When they are thus order'd, they must be put into an oval Stew-pan, with a great many Bards or thin Slices of Bacon at the bottom, and stopt up close; covering them with Beef-stakes, and other Bacon-Bards. Afterwards, the Pan must be set between two Fires, taking care that they be not too quick, and the Sausages must be bak'd or stew'd in this manner about eight or ten Hours. As soon as they are ready, let them be remov'd from the Fire, and left to cool in the same Pan: Then they must be carefully taken out so as none be broken, and all the Meat round about must be taken away, with the Fat:
At last you may cut the Sausages into Slices with a sharp Knife, and set them in good order in a Dish or Plate, to be serv'd up cold to Table. If there be occasion to make a Galantine at the same time, with the Royal Sausages, it may be dress'd in the same Stew-pan.”
This translation was found on a colleague’s website at
http://18thccuisine.blogspot.com/2013/12/royal-saucissons-or-thick-sausages.html
Here you may also purchase a translation of M. Massialot’s entire work.
A HISTORICAL ADDENDUM
La Côte des Allemands or The Saga of Alsace-Lorraine
One of Louis XIV’s diplomatic goals was the extension of France’s boundaries to it’s “natural” frontiers. In the east, those natural boundaries were the Rhine and the Alps. For most of the Sun King’s reign, the Rhine was, indeed, France’s northeastern boundary, at least until it entered the Low Countries. The achievement of this boundary line was to have an important effect on the development of the Louisiana colony. Thus born of seventeenth century European geopolitics, a phenomenon that echoes down through Louisiana genealogies is “The Saga of Alsace-Lorraine”. Perhaps the best way to capture the “je ne c’est quois” or ambience of Alsace-Lorraine is through a quotation from a book about wine that attempts to characterize the region;
“A traveler at the time of the French Revolution found it incredible that this land, so clearly intended by nature to be part of Germany, was actually annexed to France.” As with wine, the culture of the region can be understood as a blend of German Weltanschaung and French sensibilities. These people were far enough away from either the French or (various) German seats of power, that they were able to live out their lives in relative peace and security. When John Law, in the midst of his infamous Mississippi Bubble, transported a “great number of Germans” to settle in the Louisiana country, it was these people from which he drew the
hardworking farmers that would become crucial to the survival of new capital at New Orleans. There is much discussion among historians about the precise number of Germans who traveled to New Orleans and Louisiana in those first decades. We probably will never know how many shipped out, how many died in French ports, or on the trip over. Once landed on the Gulf Coast, the German mortalities continued. For the purposes of this study precise numbers really do not matter. Germans and Swiss immigrants DID arrive and, what is more important, stay in Louisiana and settle along the Mississippi.
In 1717 John Law’s Mississippi Company, (later called the Company of the West, later called the Company of the Indies) took over the management of the Louisiana colony. It then proceeded to perform several actions which directly or indirectly affected the development of Louisiana’s Creole Cuisine. First, it ordered Bienville to build New Orleans. Then, under Company direction, a group of Capuchins was sent to the colony to build the church and function as the parish and colonial leaders of the new city. To continue to populate the country the Company then recruited a few thousand Germans from the Rhineland to transport to New Orleans and build farming communities. Those that survived the trip were sent upiver a few miles to what later became called the German Coast. Later, again under the Company direction, the Ursuline nuns were sent to take care the hospital and the educational needs of the new capital. Also, the Company arranged for many thousands of Africans to be brought from it’s holdings in West Africa to New Orleans to be sold throughout the colony. All of these factors taken together provided the population, the demography, and the means to begin feeding itself. Without these actions by the Company of the Indies, the Creole Cuisine that we know and love today would never have come into existence. In this context, as our fictional friend, Frére Gerard prepares to make his sausage to bring back to the presbytere, we consider the Germans who settled on the river, and began to provide the city with a steady stream of produce and fresh meat.
Flowing past modern-day Baton Rouge, the Mississippi snakes it’s way down to the Gulf past New Orleans. Striving ever south, a 1000 years ago, the mighty river punched a hole in its natural levee (at modern-day Donaldsonville) to create a direct route to the Gulf which we now call Bayou Lafourche. From this point the serpentine river flattens out a bit and flows almost west-to-east until turning south once more immediately past New Orleans. During the French century of the 1700s, this stretch of river was populated by the German immigrants as they arrived in Louisiana. At that time there was literally nothing between the Tchoupitoulas plantation immediately to the west of New Orleans and the settlement at Pointe Coupée, right above modern-day Baton Rouge. Nothing, that is, except the rich alluvial lands on either side of the mighty river. This area was and is some of the richest farmland in the Louisiana.
Unlike the French colonists, of uncertain repute, sent from the homeland in the early years of settlement, the Germans were industrious farmers and soon began producing large amounts of good food for the colony. This Côte des Allemands (German Coast) was a haven for the German and Alsatian immigrants who arrived in Louisiana during the 18th-century. Under the command of D’Arensbourg, in late 1721 and early 1722 the German farmers established three villages along the river banks and began their work of feeding the colony. To this day, those contributions are remembered in the geographical names of Bayou des Allemands and Lac des Allemands which commemorates their settlement and cultivation of the lands between the river and the marshes that are today’s River Parishes.
“The immigrants originated essentially from the south and west of the so-called Holy Roman Empire, essentially along the Rhine, where they had since Roman times served as the “garden spot” of the empire.”
Those regions “were known for cattle and dairy farms; wheat, grain, and white wine fields; and barley grown for breweries to make beer.” On their farms in the Rhineland, “chestnuts, peaches, apricots, figs, almonds, and lemons flourished.” “The {German} settlers cultivated vegetables they had known in Germany, but grew new ones as well. The . . . gardens LIKELY (my emphasis) included leaf lettuce, onions, radishes, cabbage, beans, ?tomatoes?, corn, peppers, celery, endive and a variety of root vegetables. . . . they quickly adapted to rice and sweet potato crops in Louisiana. Mint and herbs grew in the kitchen gardens and were used fresh {or dried}. Important herbs MAY HAVE INCLUDED garlic, horseradish, thyme, sweet marjoram, coriander, caraway, fennel, and rosemary.
(Folse, 2005, p.85 - 86)
Continued food lists on pages 86 and 87 include:
Mustard greens, collards, turnip tops, beet tops, parsley, spinach, and purslane;
Venison, sausage, beef, and hams; rabbit pie, roasted duck or squab;
Red boudin, pork cuts, and bacon, pork cracklings, fat rendered into lard;
Butter, cream, cheese, and eggs;
Pies made from cherries, apples,
plums, peaches, strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, elderberry, custard, cheese, crookneck squash, and mincemeat;
The Mardi Gras Fassnachts – doughnuts sprinkled with sugar (beignet-like);
“Only at Christmas were precious items such as almonds, raisins, currants, citron, and orange peel used in baking.”
Coming from the Rhenish regions famous for wine and beer, the German Coast also produced, “cherry bounce, beer, fruit wines made from persimmons, Muscadines, black cherries, blackberries, strawberries, and peaches.”
“Additionally, coffee was a popular beverage and is still served in many German homes with every meal.”
(Again, John Folse, 2005)
Some more interesting points, from Wikipedia, with references.
When the Company folded in 1731, the Germans became independent land-owners.
(http://www.acadian-cajun.com/germanc.htm)
Most of the German Coast settlers hailed from the Rhineland region of Germany, the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland, and other places . . . Many Germans came from the German-speaking region of Alsace-Lorraine in France, and some from Belgium.
(http://www.gachgs.com or German-Acadian Coast Historical & Genealogical Society, Inc.)
From the time of their arrival, the German immigrants began speaking French and intermarried with the early French settlers. Over the subsequent decades they intermarried with the descendants of the latter as well as the Acadians. Together with other settlers, they helped create Cajun culture. For example, German settlers introduced the diatonic accordion to the region, which become the main instrument in Cajun music by 1900.
Twenty
NEW ORLEANS COFFEE
It was going to be a good day, the smell of freshly roasted coffee beans was drifting from the levée market into my kitchen on Ursuline St. behind the family home on Chartres. One nice thing about the central location of Louisiana is that coffee is usually not too hard to obtain. While, officially, shipments from France and our French Islands are the primary source of this delightful beverage, they do not arrive with any regularity - if they arrive at all! But supplies from the Caribbean are copious and arrive with regularity though contacts in Spanish Pensacola as well as up the western waterways of Lafourche and Barataria. As such, I always have plenty for my kitchen and to share with my good friend, Frére Gerard, and his Presbytere. I first met Gerard over a mess of shrimp and fish, fresh caught from the river. Dressed in his splotched and stained kitchen habit partly covered by his apron, he hardly looked like a monk. Over the next few seasons, our shared vocation, profession, and passion for cooking and kitchen management had fused us in a remarkable friendship. He loved to interrogate me about the "fancy" and "special" dishes and desserts that I would prepare for the Famille Marigny for whom I worked. On my part, hearing about his stews, bouillabaisse, sagamites, and breads he made for his brothers at the church taught me many ways to stretch my resources in the kitchen.
We spent many market days and pleasant sunsets over SEVERAL pots of coffee discussing herbs, gardens, spices, recipes, local gossip, politics, import/export, and food supplies. Of course, we never solved anything but we came up with all sorts of variations on the recipes we shared. Of course, we both engaged in many experiments both separately and apart as to the best way to brew a pot of coffee. While Frére Gerard’s goal was to keep available a rather large pot for most of the day without letting it go stale, I did not have to create such a large amount of coffee for my family. While there have been many developments in the brewing of coffee over the years, our experiments showed that after all is said and done, there remains only two “tried and true” brewing methods to produce a good cup. The first is the simple boiling method, while the second is the so-called French drip method.
Boiling coffee is as simple as it gets. Put a pot of water on the fire to boil. Grind as much coffee as you plan to use. When the pot is bubbling merrily, spoon in as much coffee as you desire. The most common ratio is about one cooking spoon per quart of water. The major objection to boiling coffee is that the method itself leaves the coffee grounds suspended in the finished coffee. this leaves three options; (1) let the grounds settle, (egg shells help) (2) strain the coffee through a sieve or cloth, and (3) consume the grounds with the beverage.
The French method is to place the ground coffee in a cloth of some sort in a sieve and then place the sieve over an empty pot, then slowly pour the boiling water through the coffee and let it drain through the sieve into the pot. This method requires a little more patience and skill, you want to let the grounds and the water steep as long as possible before draining into the pot as a finished beverage.
Both of these methods are refined with experience, as you figure out the particular grind of the coffee between fine and course as well as the amount of the grounds to use in relation to the amount of the water to produce your perfect cup.
TO BREW THE PERFECT CUP:
Directions for a 21st Century Pot of New Orleans Coffee
Everyone says to start with a clean pot and fresh clear cold water. Well, if your cold water isn't clear, I think you better take care of that before you continue cooking and preparing any of the dishes in this cookbook. As to the pot, that is an open question. Using a drip pot, one cleans it every time you wash the dishes. A percolator (do we even have those anymore?) is usually just rinsed out every morning before the morning coffee is brewed. My own Mr. Coffee™ decanter is also only rinsed every morning, but washed with the dishes every week or so. After I clean the whole pot, i.e. the heater, hose, reservoir, basket, etc. the coffee always tastes funny. But, it's really up to you.
I use the Mr Coffee™ 12 cup machine as mentioned above for everyday use. To make strong "New Orleans" coffee, use 14 tsp. or 6 to 7 tbsp. of your favorite coffee/chicory blend to the 12 cup decanter. On special occasions, I will use my Dad's three cup (24 oz.) porcelain drip pot with 8 tsp. of coffee & chicory (i.e. the French Drip method)
Mr. Coffee™ measures: 1 cup of coffee = 5 oz. therefore a 12 cup decanter = 60 oz. or 7.5 measuring cups.
Your coffee cup = pretty much any amount depending on size. A classic demitasse is 2 oz., a standard coffee cup is 6 oz., a coffee mug is
anywhere from 9 ounces on up.
To blend your own "New Orleans" coffee use a standard 6.5 oz. (1 pre-pack) of ground chicory to one pound of ground coffee (normally a dark roast or a French roast of arabica beans) OR a three to one blend.
Cafe' au Lait is a half 'n half mix of "New Orleans" coffee and scalded milk. Vary the proportions to taste.
A HISTORICAL ADDENDUM:
The thing that makes New Orleans coffee unique is the chicory. I have as yet found any firm documentation that this blend was used in the early days of New Orleans, but the circumstantial evidence for this is overwhelming. Chicory (endive) was grown in French gardens as early as 1650, but exactly when the root became a staple in New Orleans coffee is an open question. We know that the French used it to stretch coffee during the 18th century. Even Napoleon's quartermasters used it . We know the French in Louisiana drank coffee from the beginning, as it is listed in all the ships' food and trade records as a regular import. We also know that French Louisiana was chronically short of food supplies. So… its not rocket science to put these facts together and say they probably had coffee and chicory in Louisiana by the 1730's. It was certainly known and used by 1800.
While Seattle may claim to be the “Coffee Capital of the Country” and have a lot of coffee houses, the coffee culture of New Orleans far outshines it in antiquity and ubiquity. The inhabitants of Southeast Louisiana were drinking coffee 154 years before Seattle was even founded! The Cafe' du Monde began serving its world-famous Coffee and Beignets when Seattle was only 9 years' old and hadn't even become a town. In 2006 (the year after Katrina) the Port of New Orleans handled 206,000 tons of Coffee giving it 20% of the US market share. The Port of Seattle doesn't even come close. People travel from all of the world to drink New Orleans coffee. Not only does Ne
w Orleans have its fair share of coffee houses, but virtually EVERY house in the city and region is a Coffee House (certainly every house inhabited by someone of Creole or Cajun descent!) Today, New Orleans is THE largest coffee port in the USA (http://www.worldportsource.com); and I quote "As the country's major coffee-handling port, the Port of New Orleans has 14 warehouses covering over 51 hectares of storage space and six roasting facilities." So why the big secret? I honestly do not know,
maybe we just want to keep it all for ourselves. It is also an ancient and time-honored tradition in New Orleans that coffee is NOT just reserved for breakfast or "coffee breaks". Creoles and Cajuns drink coffee all day long. Another New Orleans tradition poses the question, when did coffee become an adult beverage? Mamere used to fix us a glass of “coffee-milk” with a splash of coffee and some sugar in it whenever we would visit. In any event, there is nothing so sublime as sitting out on the veranda on a cool spring morning with a hot cup of cafe au lait and your favorite pastry.
The Port of New Orleans' first citizens were a diverse mix of back-woodsmen from Canada, craftsmen and troops from John Law's Company, convicts, prostitutes, slaves, and wanderers. In 1721, a census revealed a population of 470 people that included 277 whites, 172 blacks, and 21 Indian slaves. In 1722, the Port of New Orleans became the Louisiana colony's capital. After 1731, more reputable colonists started coming to the Port of New Orleans. By 1740, even though the city still suffered many difficulties, this population melange was blending into the unique Creole culture that is New Orleans to this day. It is pleasant to note that our unique blended beverage was the leveler.