7 DECEMBER 1991, Page 51

Beguiling Burgundy

I WAS trying to think up some nice pink dishes for Gaudete Sunday, mid-Advent Sunday, one of the only two times in the year when the priests' vestments are pink with pleasure. I thought I had come up with a brilliant idea, beetroot and fresh ginger soufflé with gruyere. I made it last night and it was the most disgusting thing I have ever tasted. I can't imagine why, but there you are. Hard cheese and wasteful, too. I was on a lovely barge in Burgundy last week, which I hope to tell you about next month. The food was sublime: one of the first courses was that splendid dish of eggs poached in wine. I love it, and it is pinkish. `Meurette' combines four typical Burgundi- an ingredients — red wine, mushrooms, bacon and onions — and is used for brains and fish as well as eggs. These follow the school of Varenne method.

Cervelles en meurette (Brains poached in red wine) 2 sets of calves' brains or 4 of sheep's (1 1/2 lbs)

2 tablespoons wine vinegar 2 oz butter 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced 1 clove of garlic, crushed

1.'/, pints red wine (pinot noir or the like)

1 pint good stock — chicken or veal Bouquet garni — 6 black peppercorns Salt and pepper

1'/2 oz butter kneaded with 31, oz plain flour

4 croutes

Soak the brains in a bowl of water mixed with the vinegar for two to three hours, changing the water once or twice to remove the blood. Remove any membrane or skin from the calves' brains but not the sheep's. Heat one tablespoon of butter in a saucepan and melt the vegetables and gar- lic for four minutes until softened. Add the wine, stock, bouquet garni, peppercorns and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Put in the brains, cover and poach for 15-20 minutes until quite firm to the touch. On no account let them boil or they will disintegrate. Transfer them to a warm plate, • cover while you make the sauce. Boil the wine mixture until reduced by half. Whisk enough of the kneaded flour and butter bit by bit into the boiling wine to thicken the sauce to a light coating consis- tency. Simmer for three minutes, season to taste, maybe a pinch of sugar is needed. Strain, return to the pan and stir in the remaining butter a piece at a time. Make 4

oval croittes cut from a French loaf and fried in oil and butter. Put one sheep's brain or half a calf's brain on each crane, coat with some of the sauce. Serve immedi- ately with the rest of the sauce separately.

Oeufs poches en meurette (Eggs poached in red wine) Bring the wine and stock (as above) to the boil in a good heavy frying pan. In two batches, poach eight very fresh eggs for about three minutes until the yolks are firming but still soft. Carefully transfer the eggs on a slotted spoon to paper towels. Trim off any white strings. Cover with a damp cloth. Cook the vegetables in the but- ter, add the poaching liquid with the herbs and seasonings and make sauce as above.

Prepare a garnish of:

5 oz lardons of bacon, blanched 1/4 lb mushrooms, quartered

16-20 baby onions or shallots, peeled

Sauté this little lot in butter until brown, add the thickened sauce and simmer for three minutes. Meanwhile, reheat the eggs in a bowl of hot water for 30 seconds. Drain on towels. Set the eggs on croutes and spoon the sauce and garnish over them. Sprinkle with parsley and serve at once. I missed out Memories with Food at Gypsy House by Felicity and Roald Dahl (Viking £16.99) in my round-up (page 40) but it is full of good things, and all the roy- alties go to the Roald Dahl foundation for Epilepsy, Illiteracy, Haematology and Neu- rology. Here is one of their sumptious but dead-easy-to-make puddings.

Chocolat St Emilion

8 oz Amaretti biscuits, crushed 3 fluid oz Cointreau or any orange liqueur

1 lb Chocolat Menier '/4 lb unsalted butter

2 egg yolks 1 pint double cream

Soak the Amaretti in the Cointreau. Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie, remove from the heat and gradually beat in the butter and egg yolks. Leave to cool. Whip the cream until semi-stiff and gently fold into the chocolate mixture. Place in a lightly oiled 8in. x 2'/tin. cake tin alternate layers of the chocolate mixture and the Amaretti. Chill until set. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

Jennifer Paterson