Now the meat really should be skewered firmly on a turning spit, with a long pan below to catch the juices, and coasted for about 20 minutes to the pound before a good fire. In the Pyrénées, the meal is basted by means of a metal funnel whose nose is heated redhot in the coals, the resultant fusing far penetrating the meat and adding to its savor. But we will forgive you if you use a long-handled spoon or syringe baster to carry the juices from the pan to the surface of the meat.
When cooked, the haunch rests for 20 minutes to gather the juices internally and to become more tender. During this time, add the marinade to the juices in the pan. pour all into a saucepan, and reduce to about one fourth its original quantity over a hot fire. Strain through a fine sieve, add the juice of ¼ lemon and 4 tablespoons black whortleberry (or blackberry or huckleberry) jam, and stir in 1 tablespoon fresh sweet butter.
Slice your beautifully roasted venison (or was it a haunch of mountain chamois?) and serve it with this interesting sauce.
This is the last of the series of articles on French regional cookery which began in the March, 1949, issue of GOURMET. In the twenty-seven chapters which have appeared all of the more gastronomic regions of France have been visited. A few provinces remain undescribed, however. They are indicated in this little map. For one reason or another, they do not seem to justify a separate article. Some are too small or remote or offer a rather forlorn choice for the epicure. Some regions are too industrial to tempi the traveler. Nevertheless, they have their fine regional dishes, their noteworthy restaurants, their famous cities and monuments. It hurts to ornit such celebrated cities as Bourges, Amiens, and Angoulême; such picturesque spots as Saintes, La Rochelle, Arras, and Foix. We promise to do full justice to these provinces, their gastronomic shrines, and their best recipes, when this series blossoms into book form some months from now.
Checklist for French Provinces and Paris Available
For those fortunate gourmets who are sailing or flying to France this winter, we have assembled a handy checklist of the restaurants, inns, and hotels recommended by Samuel Chamberlain in “An Epicurean Tour of the French Provinces”, which began in GOURMET in March, 1949. This does not include Anjou and Maine, from October, 1951, or the current listing for Gascony and Guyenne. These two listings will be included only if you particularly request them when you write for the general checklist.
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