1844—Faisan à la Sainte-Alliance

Bone two woodcocks, and put their livers and intestines aside.

Chop up their meat, together with a quarter of its weight of poached and cooled beef-marrow, and as much fresh, fat bacon; salt, pepper, and herbs. Add to this hash six oz. of raw, peeled, and quartered truffles, slightly cooked in butter.

Stuff the pheasant with this preparation; truss it; wrap it in slices of bacon, and keep it in the cool for twenty-four hours, that the aroma of the truffles may be concentrated.

Roast the pheasant on the spit, or, if in the oven, set it on a somewhat high stand in a baking-pan. Cut a large croûton from a sandwich-loaf, and fry it in clarified butter.

Pound the woodcocks’ livers and intestines with an equal weight of grated fresh fat bacon, the well-washed fillets of an anchovy, one oz. of butter, and one-half oz. of raw truffle. When this forcemeat is very smooth and all its ingredients thoroughly mixed, spread it over the fried croûtons.

When the pheasant is two-thirds cooked, set this coated croûton under the bird in such wise as to allow the juices escaping from the latter to drop upon the croûton. Complete the cooking, and dish the pheasant on the croûton. Surround with slices of bitter orange, and send the gravy separately.

When serving, accompany each piece of pheasant with a slice of orange and a small slice of the coated croûton.