Herbed terrine

1 terrine

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2¼ pounds Fresh spinach
2¼ pounds Boneless pork; with the fat from the shoulder
1 Pork liver
3 tablespoons Chopped garlic
Beef aspic
1 tablespoon Chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon Fresh thyme
1 pinch Grated nutmeg
Salt and fresh ground pepper
¼ pounds Pork fat; thinly sliced
Cornichons

Directions

GARNISHES

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Wash spinach thoroughly, remove the tough stems, and place in a saucepan with a tight lid. Cover and cook in the water clinging to the leaves for 5 minutes. Drain and chop.

Chop the pork and pork liver in a food processor or put them through the medium or fine blade of a meat grinder. In a bowl, mix the meat, chopped spinach, garlic, herbs and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper.

Pack the mixture into a terrine and top with a few slices of pork fat.

Place the terrine in the oven and cook until the juices are clear, about 2 hours. Cool and serve at room temperature; garnish with beef aspic, if desired.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings.

The authors write: "Eugene Mayard grew up in a family where serving people good food was a way of life. As a child he watched farmers bring grain to his parents' mill in the morning. While it was ground into flour, they played boule and drank pastis. When the wait was long enough, they also enjoyed food cooked and served by Eugene's grandmother, and, later, his mother, in a small home restaurant. As Eugene grew up, he knew he wanted to continue this tradition, but on a grander scale. His first undertaking, a hotel in Beaumes-de-Venise, was an enormous success that soon became a demanding way of life.

"Nearly thirty-five years ago, Eugene sold the hotel and moved to Gordes in order to live more simply. At that time running water, electricity, telephones, and tourists were far from commonplace, and many buildings were still unrestored. Eugene was able to buy a splendid place that is now La Mayanelle, a small hotel perched on the side of the hill, with a long terrace that overlooks red tile roofs and the rugged Provencal countryside. 'I wanted to create a family atmosphere,' he says, 'not a commercial hotel. Something like a family pension, only better. It is best to stay simple but offer people a good ambience, a chance to sample the 'art de vivre francais,' which all the world tries to copy.' "A Provencal sensibility, and his instinct for making people comfortable and feeding them well, has brought many people to La Mayanelle. But in spite of his success and a Cordon Bleu given him as an ambassador of French cuisine, Eugene Mayard wants nothing more than to stay himself. 'You have to remain honest, what you are,' he says. His cooking reflects this honesty. Regional in character, it centers on the splendid local produce seasoned with local herbs.

'Cooking with herbs is an art. Each person has his own touch, like an artist with colors. It's a very human activity that can't be done by machine.'"

From Eugene Mayard of La Mayanelle hotel in Gordes, France. In "Cooking with Herbs" by Emelie Tolley and Chris Mead. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1989. Pg. 223. Posted by Cathy Harned.

Submitted By CATHY HARNED On 10-04-94

Related recipes