1148—Pièce de Bœuf à la Flamande

Lard the piece of beef, and braise it as explained under No. 247, Ordinary Braisings.

Meanwhile prepare the following garnish:—(1) Cut a nice firm cabbage into four, remove the heart, and parboil it for seven or eight minutes. Drain it; cool it; divide up the quarters, leaf by leaf, so as to remove the hard ribs, and season with salt and pepper.

Mould them to the shape of balls by pressing them in the corner of a towel into balls weighing about three oz. each, or simply put them into a saucepan with a quartered carrot, an onion stuck with a clove, a faggot, six oz. of No. 273, Blanchings breast of pork, and a little raw sausage with garlic, which latter must be withdrawn after cooking has gone on for one and one-half hours.

Moisten the cabbage with just sufficient consommé to cover it; add a few tablespoonfuls of good stock-fat; set to boil, and cook gently in the oven for one and one-half hours.

(2) Cut the required quantity of carrots and turnips to the shape of olives; cook them in consommé, and reduce the latter for the purpose of glazing.

(3) Prepare some potatoes à l’anglaise.

Set the piece of beef on a dish large enough to allow of the former being surrounded with the moulded or plainly-heaped cabbages, the glazed carrots and turnips, and the potatoes à l’anglaise. The last two vegetables should be set in alternate heaps with the cabbages and the bacon (cut into small rectangles) and the sausage (cut into roundels) should be distributed all round.

Serve separately the gravy of the piece of beef, cleared of all grease, reduced to a half-glaze and strained.