1028. Compote Of Pigeons, With Mushrooms

Truss and then braize four pigeons with three quarters of a pound of streaky bacon. Peel half a pint of button onions, and after they have been parboiled in water, drain and fry them in a little butter over a very slow fire without allowing them to acquire any color; they must then be drained upon a sieve, and afterward placed in a small stewpan with half a pottle of mushrooms, and the bacon cut up in square dice. With the broth from the pigeons, make enough brown sauce for the entree, and as soon as it has been sufficiently worked, add this as well as a glass of white wine to the onions, etc, and set the whole to boil very gently by the side of a stove-fire for about ten minutes : then skim off the grease, and place this ragout in a stewpan with the pigeons. When about to send to table, make the compote of pigeons hot, dish up the pigeons with a crouton of fried bread between each, put the pieces of bacon in the cavities formed between the pigeons, group the mushrooms and onions in the centre, pour the sauce over the entree, and serve.

1029. Compote Of Pigeons, With Peas

Truss the pigeons as for boiling. Parboil three quarters of a pound of streaky bacon in water for a quarter of an hour, and then cut it into rather large dice-shaped pieces; put these into a middle-sized stew-pan and fry them of a light color over a stove-fire, remove these on to a plate, and then throw in the pigeons and fry them also, until they acquire a light-brown color, and place them with the bacon. Next, add two table-spoonfuls of flour to the fat in the stewpan, and stir this roux over the fire until it acquires a light color, then gradually mix in with it a quart of broth; stir the sauce over the fire until it boils, add the pigeons, bacon, a quart of green-peas, a faggot of parsley, and green onions, and a little mignionette pepper, and keep the complete. gently boiling by the side of a stove-fire for about three quarters of an hour; then skim off all the grease, and remove the faggot, and if the sauce is not sufficiently reduced, place the pigeons in another stewpan, and with a colander-spoon remove the peas and bacon also ; allow the sauce to boil briskly on the fire, stirring it the while, until reduced to its proper consistency, and then pour it to the compote. When about to send to table, make the compote quite hot, and dish it up in the same way as the foregoing.

1030. Another Method

Braize the pigeons together with a piece of streaky bacon (after it has been parboiled); when these are done, prepare a quart of young peas for stewing in the usual way, to which add about half a pint of the liquor from the pigeons to moisten and flavor them with, and when these have been stewed, and all their moisture boiled down to a glaze, thicken them by adding two ounces of fresh butter kneaded with a dessert-spoonful of flour; cut the bacon into fluted oval scollops, dish up the pigeons, first placing some of the peas in the centre of the dish to support them upright, then place the scollops of bacon in rows between the pigeons, or round them, pile the peas up in the centre; pour some bright Espagnole sauce, worked with some of the liquor from the pigeons, round the entree, glaze the pigeons and the bacon, and serve.