812—Truite à la Cambacérès

Select a male trout in preference; clean it, and remove its gills without opening it in the region of the belly.

Skin it on one side, starting at a distance of one inch from the head and finishing within two and one-half inches of the root of the tail.

Lard the bared portions with truffles and the red part only of carrots cut into rods.

This done, spread out a napkin, lay the trout thereon, belly under, and, with a sharp knife, separate the two fillets from the bones, beginning in the region of the head and proceeding straight down to where the body converges towards the tail.

The spine being thus liberated, sever it at both ends; i.e., from the tail and the head, and withdraw it, together with all the adhering ventral bones. The intestines are then removed, the inside of the fish is well cleaned, the fillets are seasoned on their insides, and the trout is stuffed with a mousseline forcemeat of raw crayfish. The two fillets are drawn together, and the trout, thus reconstructed, is covered with thin slices of bacon and laid on the drainer of the fish-kettle and braised in Sauterne wine.

When the fish is done, remove the slices of bacon, glaze it, and dish it up. Surround it with alternate heaps of morels tossed in butter and milt à la Meunière.

Send to the table, separately, a fine Béchamel sauce, combined with the braising-liquor of the trout, strained and reduced, and finished with crayfish butter.