Braised squab in a mold of vegetables

4 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
4 eaches Squabs, wings and neck removed, reserved
Salt
Pepper
1 pounds Butter, clarified
1 medium Onion, chopped
4 slices Bacon, diced
3 pounds Turnips, large, peeled
2 pounds Carrots, large, peeled
4 smalls Cabbages, quartered cored, and sliced OR
2 larges Cabbages, quartered cored, and sliced
½ quart Stock, veal, thickened with cornstarch
1 each Broccoli, flower, per mold
Salt

Directions

SQUABS AND SAUCE

VEGETABLES AND MOLDS

Squabs and Sauce: ================= Brown pigeon wings and neck in the oven and reserve. This will tend to darken the sauce and bring out the flavor of the squab bones.

Salt and pepper the squab inside and out. In a large saute pan, heat butter (do not use too much butter or birds will deep fry). Add the squabs and brown carefully on every side. Place the birds in warm spot.

Discard the used butter from the pan, and add four tablespoons of fresh clarified butter.

Add bacon and onions to the pan and saute to a blond color.

Add cabbages. Cook over low heat for twenty minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add veal stock to cover the contents of the pan and adjust the seasonings. Bring to a boil.

Place the squabs on the cabbage in the saute pan then brush with clarified butter, and cook in a 450 F for 10 minutes.

Remove the squabs from the pan, bone them and put the bones in the saucepan with the previously cut wings and necks. Reserve the squab meat.

Into the saucepan with the necks, wings and bones, strain the juice from the cabbage mixture. Add veal stock if liquid is needed.

Reserve the cabbage.

Over medium heat, cook the strained cabbage juice and bones for at least one-half hour, then strain through chinois and reserve the sauce.

Vegetables and Molds: ===================== Cook the carrots, turnips, and broccoli in heavily salted water until crisp. Cool the vegetables in a bowl placed in ice water.

Select the largest turnip, slice it at its widest part into 4 slices, about an ⅛-inch thick and about 3½ inches in diameter.

In the middle of each of these turnip slices, cut a round hole about the size of a quarter or slightly larger.

Cut the remaining turnips and carrots into 40 rectangular slices about 1 ½ inch by 1 inch by ⅛ inch.

On the bottom of 4 buttered 4-inch souffle molds, place one each of the large turnip slices. Arrange the remaining vegetables slices around the inside edge of the molds, alternating carrot and turnip slices.

Place a broccoli flower, stem off and head down, into the hole in the bottom of each mold. This will be the centerpiece of your mold when unmolded later.

Cover the broccoli with one layer of cabbage packed well over and between the broccoli and vegetables. Top this cabbage layer with a layer of squab meat.

Add more cabbage, pressing hard to form the mixture at the top of the mold.

Place the molds of squab and cabbage onto a small sheet pan.

Surround the molds with a little water (a ¼-inch in depth or a little more). Put a small sheet of buttered parchment paper on each mold (butter side down). Reheat for 20 minutes in your oven at 450 F.

(Note: If molds are not to be cooked until a later time, they should remain in the oven about 20 minutes on low heat before being cooled and stored away in a refrigerator.) Unmold on serving plates. Spoon warmed sauce around molds and serve.

Source: Great Chefs of San Francisco, Avon Books, 1984 Chef: Jacky Robert, Ernie's, San Francisco, CA

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