Having plucked and prepared the birds, put them in a stewpan with sufficient clear stock to cover, and boil slowly until tender. When cooked drain and cut them up into convenient pieces. Season some grated breadcrumbs with moderate quantities of finely-chopped thyme, parsley and lemon peel and a little cayenne pepper. Dip the pieces of pigeon in beaten egg and roll them in seasoned breadcrumbs, giving them a good coating. Put a large lump of lard or fat into a deep fryingpan, place it on the fire, and when the blue smoke arises put in the pieces of pigeon and fry them till nicely browned. Put one ounce of butter and a tablespoonful of flour into a stewpan, stir them over the fire till mixed and browned, then strain in the liquor in which the pigeons were boiled, season to taste, and stir till boiling. Form a pyramid of potatoes on a hot dish, arrange the pieces of pigeons in an upright position all round them, pour the sauce round the pigeons, and serve.

Fried Pigeon Cutlets

Remove the wing-bones from four pigeons and tuck the leg-bones inside. Cut them in halves, sprinkle over salt and pepper, put them in a sautepan with a little butter, and fry them. When done press them between two plates with a weight on top till cold. Dip them first in butter and then in breadcrumbs and broil over a good fire to color them. Place them in a circle on a dish, fill the cavity in the center either with string beans, asparagus, peas, sliced mushrooms or with a macedoine of various vegetables.

Pigeons, Duchess

Clean the pigeons, cut them into quarters, pour boiling water over the claws, and when sufficiently soaked trim off the skin and nails. Sprinkle over them a little black pepper and allspice, rubbing it in slightly with the hand; lay them in a basin, pour some red wine over them, cover and leave them for several hours or over night. Then put them with the wine into a stewpan, pour in enough brown stock to cover, and boil them for an hour over a slow fire. When well cooked drain and pound their livers in a mortar. Boil the cooking stock quickly till reduced to half its original quantity, then mix with it the pounded livers and one tablespoonful of desiccated cocoanut. Arrange the wings and claws of the birds together to form a center piece for the dish, putting a piece of watercress in each claw. Put it in the middle of a hot dish, lay the quarters of birds round it, putting between each quarter a small roll of fried bacon, pour round the thickened gravy, garnish the edge of the dish with a fringe of watercress, on which lay quarters of lemon, and serve.

Epigrammes Of Pigeons

Cut the fillets off four pigeons and remove the skin and minion fillets. Beat the minion fillets lightly, and put them on the other fillets. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over them, arrange them on the bottom of a flat stewpan with some clarified butter, and cover over with a sheet of buttered paper. Cut the meat off the legs of the pigeons, and with that, the trimmings of the fillets and an equal quantity of poultry flesh, prepare some quenelle forcemeat; take up six tablespoonfuls of it, put them on a floured table, and shape each spoonful of it like the fillets of the pigeons. Place them side by side in a buttered sautepan, stand it in the bain-marie and poach them; when done, drain, and leave till cool. Dip the forcemeat fillets in beaten eggs and roll them in breadcrumbs seasoned with sweet herbs. Fry the fillets of pigeons, and at the same time the fillets of forcemeat, in a flat stewpan with a piece of butter. When nicely browned on both sides, drain the fat off the fillets, pour over two tablespoonfuls of melted glaze and one tablespoonful of Madeira, boil and move the pan off the fire. Put the fillets on a hot dish in a circle, alternating them with the fillets of forcemeat, fill the center with a puree of vegetables or chestnuts, pour a little rich, brown gravy over them and serve with a sauceboatful of the same.