Pheasant à la CROIX DE BERNY

Known Ground modern adaptation

Quantities, yield, timings, and home-kitchen sequencing below are a Known Ground modern, untested adaptation. They are practical estimates informed by the named historical preparation and are not original Escoffier measurements or firsthand testing.

Ingredients

• 2 whole pheasants — patted dry; substitute comparable dressed game birds by size
• 2 tbsp butter or neutral oil
• 1 shallot — finely chopped
• 1 cup game stock or unsalted chicken stock
• 1 tsp kosher salt — plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 oz foie gras — optional, diced

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Season the pheasants inside and out; tuck the shallot into the cavity or scatter it in a roasting pan.

2. Brown the birds breast-side down in butter or oil for 3 to 4 minutes, then turn them breast-side up.

3. Add stock to the pan, roast until the thickest portion reaches 165°F, and baste once or twice during cooking.

4. Rest 10 minutes, strain the pan juices, and serve the birds with the reduced juices and the named garnish.

Historical formula

Method

Roast the pheasant and keep it underdone. When it is quite cold, raise its fillets and leave the legs and the wings attached to the carcass.

By means of scissors, completely bone the carcass; garnish its inside with a truffled foie-gras Parfait, and cover it with a thin coat of foie-gras _Mousse_.

Replace the fillets upon this _Mousse_, after having sliced them, and fill any gaps that may exist between the slices with some of the same _Mousse_: thus reconstructing the bird.

Let the _Mousse_ set thoroughly, and glaze with aspic jelly.

Meanwhile, coat eight boned, stuffed, poached and cold larks with brown chaud-froid sauce. Decorate them with pieces of truffle and salted tongue, and glaze them with aspic jelly.

Dish the pheasant on a low cushion; surround it with the larks, and garnish the gaps between the latter with chopped and very clear aspic.

Source

A Guide to Modern Cookery — Recipe no. 1855.