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Food Timeline FAQs: sauces & dips .....Have questions? Ask!

what is sauce?
first sauces?

aioli
allemande
bechamel
bearnaise
bordelaise
brown deglazing sauce
cheese sauce
chocolate gravy

demi-glace
dips
egg & lemon
espagnole
garum & liquamen
gastrique
gravy
guacamole
hard sauce
hollandaise
honey mustard
Hot-N-Tot sauce
hummus
jezebel
joinville
jus de veau lie
ketchup (catsup)
maple syrup
mayonnaise
mirepoix
mornay
mother
mustard
nantua
newburg
normandy
pancake syrups
pesto
Quin's sauce
ragu
remoulade
Robert
roux
salsa
sawmill gravy
7 layer taco dip
sour cream
soy sauce
sriracha
sugo
sweet & sour
tapenade
tartar
tomato sauce
tomato gravy
veloute
vinaigrette
vodka sauce
Worcestershire sauce

What is sauce?
Food historians tell us sauces were "invented" for many reasons. The three primary reasons are:
1. Cooking medium
2. Meat tenderizer
3. Flavor enhancer

Sauce ingredients, compostion, and preparation methods vary according to culture, cuisine and time period. The history of modern French sauces begins with Francois La Varenne. The French concept of "Mother Sauces" is an 18th century invention. Classification ensued. Careme is credited for this.

Recommended reading
The Saucier's Apprentice/Raymond Sokolov
---introduction traces the history of sauce through time; special emphasis on French sauces
Sauces : Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making / James Peterson, 2nd edition (1998)
--Chapter 1 features the history of sauces from ancient times to the 20th century (15 pages)
A History of Cooks and Cooking, Michael Symons
--Chapter 6: 'On the Physical and Political Consequences of Sauces' (10 pages)
plus numerous references to sauce throughout this book. Also check the index for stock, stew & soup.
Larousse Gastronomique, any recent edition
---Recipes & history notes
Le Guide Cuilinarie, Escoffier
---Recipes and notes
The Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft, David Paul Larousse
---Recipes & notes

First sauces?
Sauce has many defintions & uses, depending upon time & place. One of the oldest sauce-type references (albeit fuzzy) is Ancient Roman
Garum/Liquamen. Classic French Mother sauces were created in the 17th century (La Varenne)& codified in the 18th/19th (Caremen/Escoffier).

"In France, there have alway been sauces, which is to say that the Franks and the Gauls moistened their food with a flavored liquid. These early sauces, spiced and pungent, sweet and sour, do not, however, qualify as ancestors of what we know today as French sauces. Tather, they-- and the sauces served in France until the beginning of the modern period--were a continuation of Roman and Mediterranean practice. Garum, the basic Roman sauce, was made from fermented fish. Typical seasonings were cumin, cardamom, and coriander, as well as honey,perfuem and flower petals. The Crusades reopened commerce with the East and broadened the palette of exotic spices that French chefs injected into their sauces. The first French cookbook, the celebrated Viandier of Taillevent (whose real name was Guillaume Tirel), provides ample proof that the fourteenth century still dotes on Oriental tastes. A typical Taillevent sauce for roasts consisted of mustard, red wine, powdered cinnamon, and sugar. Elsewhere, ginger and saffron crop up frequently. On the other hand, we do detect the beginnings of what we sould call sauce in Taillevent's coulis, broths thickened with cream, butter, and egg yolks, which served as the basis of the soups so popular at the time. Roux was unknown as a thickening agent, and the most commmon liaison was bread or toast. The next three hundred years, at least on the evidence of the leading cookbooks that have survived, was a chaos of invention, but few of the extant sauce recipes look like their modern counterparts. For the first half of the fifteenth century, the best indications of the style and substance of the cuisine come from Francois Rabelais, who catalogues the edible 'sacrifices' made by the Gastrolators to their god, Manduco... They can be assumed to be an accurate rundown of what people ate in the early 1500s. Out of dozens upon dozens of items, only the following came with a sauce: pates with hot sauce...and lampreys with sauce d'Hippocras (a sort of early vermouth). Perhaps we should also include among the sauced dishes the pork chops in oignonnade (a puree of onions?), chicken with blanc-mange, mutton shoulder with capers, loin of veal 'mustardized'...with powdered ginger, and myriad salted fish. in any case, it is clear that the concept of serving food with sauce had not taken hold in Rabelais's time, nor was it usual to build a sauce on a base of stock or coulis...Real change, in the sauce repetory, does not crop up in cookbooks until the following century."
---The Saucier's Apprentice: A Modern Guide to Classic French Sauces for the Home, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 3-4)

Garum & liquamen
"Garum (also known as liquamen) was a powerfully pungent condiment used in ancient Greece and Rome. It was made from small fish such as sardines, anchovies, red mullet, etc. Which were fermented together with the intestines of larger fish such as tuna, and it was included in a wide range of recipes. Its name was derived from a Greek term for a sort of fish, garos."
---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p.138)

"Garum... a fermented fish sauce familiar in the Mediterranean world from the fifth century BC to the end of antiquity. Garum is frequently mentioned in ancient literature. This evidence is amply supported by finds of amphorae that once contained the prdouct and by excavations of salteries, from Portugal and Spain to the Crimea, where it was manufactured. Textual evidence ranges from fragments of satyr plays by Aeschylus and Sophocles...to full-scale recipes supplied in the Byzantine Geoponica...Various fish and parts of fish...were mixed with plentiful salt and allowed to stand in the sun for about two months, after which a liquid (whence the alternate Latin name liquamen) was allowed to flow off. This salty, fishy liquid was garum; the sold residue was allec. Both products had a strong smell, which no authors praise. The best garum was the same colour as amber Falernian wine...Curiously, very little information is forthcoming about how garum was used, until, towards the end of the classical period, the recipes of Apicius give an unambiguous answer. It was a culinary ingredient, called for in almost every dish, including many sweets. It is possible that garum was also used as a table condiment, but the evidence for this is weak."
---Food in the Ancient World From A To Z, Andrew Dalby [Routledge:New York] 2003 (p.156)

Related sauce? Worcestershire sauce.


Aioli
Aioli is what happens when
garlic marries mayonnaise. Simple, delicious, tangy & divine. Originally meant to accompany cod, this traditional Provencal sauce pairs remarkably well with eggs, meats and starchy vegetables. Aioli piqued mainstream American palates after World War II. "True" Spanish/Catalan Allioli is slightly different: it does not contain eggs. Historic notes & vintage recipes here:

"Aioli is one of the classic components of Provencal cuisine. It is essentially a garlic-flavored mayonnaise, made with egg yolks, olive oil, and garlic...The word, like the dish itself, is a compound of ail, 'garlic' and oli, the Provencal word for 'oil'."
---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 2)

"Aioli...is in effect a garlic mayonnaise. But it is not just a sauce; it can take the form of Aioli garni which is a whole dish in itself, traditionally served on Christmas Eve and incorporating beef or a boiled chicken. Among the times which aioli accompanies are potatoes, beetroot, fish and other seafood, and boiled salt cod. It may also be amalgamated with fish stock to make a thinner and pale yellow sauce to be poured over the fish in the famous Provencal dish called Bourride."
---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2nd edition, 2007 (p. 8)

"Among the peoples living around the Mediterranean coasts, the use of garlic dates back to the very beginning of cooking itself. But as Leon Daudet observed, with the aioli it attained its peak of perfection, 'the very highest degree of those truly civilized customs and habits that until health with well-being.' So that we need feel no astonishment at learning that when the poet Mistral founded a Provencal newspaper (this was in 1891), he called it L'Aioli. The sauce had become a symbol. And he wrote of it with justice: 'It concentrates all the warmth, the strength, the sun-loving gaiety of Provence in its essence, but it also has a particular virtue: it keeps flies away. Those who don't like it, those whose stomachs rise at the thought of our oil, won't come buzzing around us wasting our time. There'll just be the family.' And elsewhere again: 'The ailoi goes slightly to the head, impregnates the body with its warmth, and bathes the soul with its enthusiasm...'...The aoili...is a word formed form the dish's two components: garlic (ail) and olive oil (oli in Provencal). This solid sauce is served with fish, with bourride (the fish sauce of Provence), with hard-boiled eggs, with salad, with snails...even with meat,...The aioli de morue is eaten more particularly on Fridays in Provence..."
---The Hundred Glories of French Cooking, Robert Courtine [Farrar, Strause and Giroux:New York] 1973 (p. 137-140)
[NOTE: This book offers a recipe for Aioli de Morue. We can scan/send if you like.]

[1907]
"Aioli, or Beurre de Provence
. Pound 30 g (1 oz) garlic as finely as possible in the mortar, add 1 raw egg yolk and a pinch of salt and gradually mix in 1 1/2 dl (9 fl oz or 1 1/8 U.S. cup) oil allowing it to fall drop by drop to begin with, then faster as a thread as the sauce begins to thicken. The thickening of the sauce takes place by turning the pestle vigorously whilst adding the oil. The consistency of the sauce should be adjusted during its making by adding the juice of 1 lemon and 1;2 tbs cold water little by little. Note: Should the sauce separate it can be reconstituted by working it into 1 egg yolk as for Mayonnaise."
---Le Guide Cuilinaire, Escoffier, first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell & R.J. Kaufmann, 1907 edition [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 29)

[1951]
"Aoili (Provencal sauce for boiled fish)

3 cloves garlic
2 egg yolks
Pepper
Salt or mustard
1 1/3 cups olive oil
Lemon juice
Start by pounding the garlic. Then add the egg yolks, seasonings and, drop by drop, just as you would in making mayonnaise, beat in the olive oil. A few drops of lemon juice are added at the end."
---"Feast-Day Traditions," Jane Nickerson, New York Times, November 11, 1951 (p. SM22)

[1952]
Aoili.
A Provencal olive-oil-cum-garlic cold sauce which may be described as a well-seasoned Mayonnaise with more or less pounded garlic. In Provence, the Aioli is the name of the dish itself, whether it be cod or vegetables or snails, when served with such a sauce."
---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre L. Simon [Harcourt Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 9)

"...in Provence, the southern French province as famous for fish as is Maine, the sauce is the garlicky aioli...'Aoili is not at all complicated...it is only a fine mayonnaise with garlic seasoning...Aoili is best eaten with boiled fish, boiled potatoes and carrots. The fish which we used in France aren't available here, but I would say that your small fresh codfish, haddock or halibut could substitute. But never use fresh water fish with this sauce...First take four garlic clove sections and place them in a heavy stone bowl or crock. Crush to a very fine paste with a round, wooden stick or pestle. Now start the mayonnaise by placing in the bowl with the garlic, the yolk of one egg and salt and pepper. Stir thoroughly with fork or spoon till well blended. Next take the olive oil and pour it into the mixture drop by drop at first, then in a slow trickle, blending all the while. The more oil used...the thicker and more frigid the dressing becomes. When a fork will stand up in the middle of the bowl, enough oil has been added (about one cup of oil in all). To add zest to the mayonnaise, gradually pour in one teaspoon of natural wine vinegar (never cider vinegar) or lemon juice. The acidity of the vinegar or lemon thins the mixture but it should still be very firm. Should the sauce disintegrate, the disaster can be turned into a success with a little patience...You simply start all over again. Pour all of the sauce except two or three tablespoonfuls into a second bowl. To the contents of the second bowl slowly add three or four drops of water and when well blended return to the first bowl, adding more oil if necessary for the desired consistency.' Note: [this] is the traditional and somewhat old-fashioned was of concocting this mayonnaise. We suggest that the vinegar might be added to the bowl at the same time as the egg, salt and pepper. This will eliminate the possibility of the sauce's disintegrating. Also, when the vinegar goes in first, the oil may be added a little more rapidly."
---"News of Food: France's Aioli and Sweden's Skarpsauce: How to Make 2 famous Fish Dressings," New York Times, August 21, 1952 (p. 22)

[1961]
"Aioli
.--Take 4 large cloves of garlic, remove the sprout and with 1 yolk of egg pound into a fine paste in a mortar. Season with a pinch of salt, and continue to pound adding 1 cup...of oil, little by little, as for mayonnaise. Stir this mixture vigorously. When finished, it should have the appearance of a thick smooth mayonnaise. Aoili is served mainly with boiled fish, hot or cold, but can also be served with cold meat, or could be used for seasoning salads and cooked vegetables."
---Larousse Gastronomique [Crown:New York] 1961 (p. 21)

[1961]
Sauce Aioli [Provencal Garlic Mayonnaise]

For: Boiled fish, especially cod, bourride (Provencal fish soup), snails, boiled potatoes, green beans, and hard-boiled eggs. This rich, thick mayonnaise with its fine garlic flavor must be made in a fairly traditional way if it is to have its correct taste and consistency. The garlic should be pounded in a mortar until it is mashed into a very smooth paste. You cannot make it successfully in an electric blender because for some unfortunate reason the garlic acquires a raw and bitter taste, and the egg white required for blend-made sauce does not produce the fine, heavy texture that is characteristic of a proper Mediterranean aioli. For about 2 cups 1 slice--3/8 inch thick-of stale, white homemade-type bread, 3 Tb milk or wine vinegar: Remove crusts and bread bread into a small bowl. Stir in the milk or vinegar and let the bread soak for 5 to 10 minutes into a soft pulp. Twist the bread into a ball in the corner of a towel to extract the liquid. A heavy bowl or mortar, A wooden pestle, 4 to 8 cloves mashed garlic: Place the bread and garlic in the bowl and pound with the pestle for at least 5 minutes to mash the garlic and bread into a very, very smooth paste. 1 egg yolk, 1/4 tsp salt: Pound the egg yolk and salt until the mixture is thick and sticky. 1 1/2 cups good olive oil, A wire whip, 3 to 4 Tb boiling water or fish stock, 2 to 3 Tb lemon juice. Then, drop by drop, pound and blend in the olive oil. When the sauce has thickened into a heavy cream, you may switch form a pestle to a wire whip and add the oil a little bit faster. Thin out the sauce as necessary with drops of water or stock, and lemon juice. Sauce should remain quite heavy, so it holds its shape in a spoon. Correct seasoning....Fish Soup Note: If the aioli is to be stirred into a fish soup, more egg yolks are used, usually one per person."
---Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle and Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1961, 1963 (p. 92-92)

[1964]
"Aioli sauce*Sauce aioli
4 cloves garlic
2 egg yolks
salt and black pepper
1 cup (approximately) olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Aioli, an emulsified sauce, strongly flavored with garlic (hence the name) is a classic in Provence, particularly in Marseilles. A popular regional dish made of boiled salt cod, boiled vegetables (potatoes, carrots, turnips, andso on) molluscs, crustaceans is also called aioli, but the sauce with its pungent odor is used with leftover beef, particularly boiled beef. In a mortar or a wooden bowl, pound the garlic with the salt and pepper to an oily consistency. Mix the egg yolks in well and start adding the oil very slowly as if making mayonnaise, beating constantly. Add a little lemon juice from time to time. If the sauce starts to curdle, add a few drops of likewarm water to it and whisk vigorously. Do not store in the refrigerator. Too cold temperatures separate emusified sauces."
---La Cuisine de France, Mapie, the Countess de Toulouse-Lautrec, edited and translated by Charlotte Turgeon [Orion Press:New York] 1964 (p. 5)

Related sauce? Tapenade. Spanish [Catalan] Allioli

"Allioli (Catalonia) Garlic Mayonnaise
A unique use for garlic was as a base for emulsion condiments and sauces made by pounding the garlic and incorporating olive oil. The first apparent mention of anything resembling allioli is in the writings of Pliny (A.D. 23-79), who was the Roman procurator in Tarragona, on the Catalan coast, for a year and writes that when garlic is 'beaten up in oil and vinegar it swells up in foam to a surprising size.' There is no doubt in my mind that mayonnaise...was an evolutionary development from allioli. Whtether all of the emulsions known throughout the Mediterranean are derived from this usurping is less certain. There is a good possibility of serendipitous culinary invention. Unlike the ailo of Provence and the aillade of Languedoc, the true Catalan allioli...is made without eggs, using only garlic, olive oil, and salt. The garlic is placed in a mortar with salt and pounded until completely mashed and smooth. Then olive oil is slowly drizzled in, almost drop by drop, as the continued pounding incorporates the oil into an emulsion with garlic..."
---A Mediterranean Feast, Clifford A. Wright [William Morrow:New York] 1999 (P. 513)

"Allioli might be called the Catalan catsup...In one form or another, it can go on or into almost anything--seafood, noodle and rice dishes, soups, stews, vegetables, snails. It is all but owith grilled meats, especially pork, rabbit, and chicken... Strictly speaking, the name is the recipe" all (garlic), i (and, oli (oil). The oil, of course is olive oil...Salt...is added, another given...maybe a few drips of lemon juice or vinegar or a combination of the two...And eggs? Never. 'Allioli made with eggs...isn't allioli at all. It's just fancy mayonnaise.' The fact that allioli's closest relative, aioli of Povence and the lesser-known aillade of the Languedoc, always do include eggs--and thus really are 'fancy mayonnaise'--is taken by some Catalans simply as further proof...that the French don't know very much about food after all. Big talk aside,...the plain truth is that the vast majority of the allioli served in Catalonia and visicnity is made with eggs, especially in restaurants...The eggless variety is just too difficult to whip up, and too fragile--capable of instantaneous and capricious breakdown.

Allioli Autentic (Authentic Allioli)
Allioli in its purest form is white and shiny, rather like lemon sorbet in appearance. It is very strong in garlic flavor, and a little goes a long way--except among the garlic-mad, of course. It is, as noted, practically de rigueur in Catalan cooking to accompany grilled meat and fowl (especially chicken, rabbit, and pork), and is traditional as well with snails and with many kinds of fish and shellfish. Fishermen are famous for their mastery of its manufacture, in fact, as are rural mothers and grandmothers--while some of the region's most famous chefs openly admit the can't always get the...thing to work. The tricky part is coaxing an emulsion to form without eggs or other thickeners, and this takes a lot of practice...
To make 1 1/4 cups
6 cloves garlic (or more to taste), peeled 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mld extra-virgin olive oil
Cut each clove of garlic in half lengthwise and discard any green pieces, then mince the garlic finely. Scatter salt in the bowl of a large mortar and add the garlic. Mash the garlic gently with a pestle, mixing it with the salt untl it takes on the consistency of a thick paste. Add the olive oil very slowly, a few drops at a time, while stirring the mixture with the pestle, using slow, even motions and always stirring in the same direction. Continue adding oil until an emulsion forms. Less than a full cup might be sufficient to obtain this result, in which case do not use the rest, as it will 'break' the emulsion. Serve immediately."
---Catalan Cuisine: Europe's Last Great Culinary Secret, Colman Andrews [Atheneum:New YOrk] 1988 (p. 29-31)
[NOTE: This book also offers recipes for Allioli amb Ous (with eggs), Negat ('drowned'), & amb Fruita (with fruit)]

"New World" (Caribbean/West Indies) versions generally feature Seville (bitter) oranges instead of lemon. Think: Mojo de Ajo. Perfectly understandable given the fact early Spanish explorers introduced bitter oranges and they flourished.


Allemande
Our survey of historic cookbooks confirms Sauce Allemande [Allemand is French for "German."] was known by different names in different times: Tournee, German, Almayne, Parisienne, and Blonde. Essentially, it is a classic egg enriched creamy white sauce, flavored with mushrooms and sometimes lemon. Earliest iterations were basic roux concoctions, routinely accompanying fowl. As time progressed Allemande morphed into a veloute-based more complicated presentation. The Allemande moniker was renamed Parisienne in the early 20th century. This reflected shifting political events eventually resulting in WWI. This is nothing new. Think: German toast (aka French Toast) & Freedom Fries (aka French fries). Closely related sauces are
Roux, Veloute & Hollandaise.

Almayne--Allemande
"...Sauce Allemande, or Sauce of Almayne. In old English and in old French cookery there is always a broth of Almayne, but it gives one no idea of what is now understood by the Almayne sauce, which is nothing else than Velvet-down thickened with yolks of eggs, say four to a pint, smoothed with a pat of the freshest butter, and flavoured with lemon-juice; sometimes also, but not always, with essence of mushrooms. How this sauce got its name is not quite clear; but it is plain that, not only have the Hollander and the German long been more or less confounded together as Dutchmen (Deutsch), but also that the sauce Allemande or sauce of Almayne is one of the same character as the well-known Dutch sauce or sauce Hollandaise, and is probably an attempt to improve upon it. Now, Dutch sauce has a reputation among epicures of being at once the best and the most useful of all the sauces, while at the same time it has all the simplicity for which Minheer is renowned. It is nothing but butter and eggs, with a litttle water. Suddenly, now doubt, it entered into some Frenchman's brain to improve upon this simplicity, and refine upon the Dutch. He dismissed the water, and put Velvet-down instead of it, and, finding the result too rich, he reduced the quantity of buttter. Make a note of thsi therefore: that Dutch and Almayne suace are but different forms of the same idea. In Dutch or Holland sauce there is good water; in German or Almayne sauce there is the finest Velvet-down. Note another point: the Poulette sauce is another form of the same idea. If the Almayne may be described as an attempt to improve upon Holland sauce, the Poulette may be described as mock Almayne. In true Holland sauce there is no flour. But mock Almayne, known as Poulette, attempts by means of flour to simulate the effects of the Velvet-down introduced into true Almayne."
---Kettner's Book of the Table, E.S. Dallas, facsimile 1877 edition [Centaur Press:London 1968 (p. 23-24) [NOTE: Hollland sauce=Hollandaise. Velvet-down=Veloute.]

"Allemande, a la. German style. From the French word for German. The name is much used in culinary works--as Sauce Allemande...It goes back to the days when it was spelled 'Almayne', a term that included Holland as well as many German States."
---The Master Dictionary of Food & Cookery, Henry Smith [Philosophical Library:New York] 1951 (p. 5)

Allemande--Parisienne
"Sauce Allemande (German Sauce). Escoffier included this egg-bound veloute among the mother sauces, because it is the basis of many other sauces. If we were to follow him in this decision, it would imply that we would then make up large quantities fo allemande in advance and freeze it...I am also departing form Escoffier's counsel in another matter. He tried to supress the name of the sauce because of hostile feeling to Germany. Since the sauce was German in name only, he proposed renaming it sauce parisienne or sauce blonde. This culinary ripost to the armies of Bismark and Kaiser Wilhelm II did less even than the Maginot Line to keep the Teutonic menace at bay...Allemande...is thickened with egg yolks, but because it has already been thickened with flour at the veloute stage, it can be boiled after the yolks are added. They will not scramble; the flour keeps this from happening. It is essential, however, that all ingredients be cold when you start, since gradual heating of the yolks is also crucial."
---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 194-195) [NOTE: recipe included.] TRACING CULINARY EVOLUTION THROUGH RECIPES

[1828]
"No. 19.--Sauce tournee.
"No. 20.--Sauce a l'Allemande.
This is merely a sauce tournee as above reduced, into which is introduced a thickening well seasoned. This sauce is always used for the following sauces or ragouts, viz. blanquette of all descriptions, a-la-toulouse, loin of veal, a-la-bechamel, white financiere royale, &c. &c."
---The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, facsimile 1828 Englished edition [Arco Publishing:New York] 1978 (p. 10)

[1845]
"Sauce Tournee, or Pale Thickened Gravy

Sauce tournee is nothing more than a rich pale gravy made with veal or poultyr...and thickined with a delicate white roux. The French give it a flavouring of mushrooms and green onions, by boiling some of each in it for about half an hour before the sauce is served: it must then be strained, previously to being dished. Either first dissolve an ounce ob butter, and then dredge gradually to it three-quarters of an ounce of flour, and proceed as for the preceding receipt [White Roux, or French Thickening]; or blend the flour and butter perfectly with a knife before they are thrown into the stewpan, and keep them stirred without ceasing over a clear and gentle fire until they have simmered for some minutes, then place the stewpan high over the fire, and shake it constantly until the roux has lost the raw taste of the flour; next, stir very gradually to it a pint of the gravy, which should be boiling. Set it by the side of the stove for a few minutes skim it thorougly, and serve it without delay. Butter, 1 oz; flour, 3/4 oz,; strong pale gravy, seasoned with mushrooms and green onions, 1 pint.

Obs. 3.--With the addition of three or four yolks of very fresh eggs, mixed with a seasoning of mace, cayenne, and lemon-juice, this becomes German sauce, now much used for fricassess, and other dishes; and minced parsley (boiled) and chili vinegar, each in sufficient quantity to flavour it agreeably, convert it to a good fish sauce."
---Modern Cookery for Private Families, Eliza Acton, fascimile 1845 edition with an introduction by Elizabeth Ray [Southover Press:East Sussex] 1993 (p. 106-107)

[1869]
"Allemande Sauce

Prepare: 1/2 pint of Essence of Chicken
1 gill of Essence of Mushrooms
1 quart of Veloute Sauce
Reduce these over the fire, till the sauce is of sufficient consistence to coat the spoon; thicken with 4 yolks of egg and 1/2 oz. of butter; strain through a tammy cloth, into a bain-marie-pan; put a tablespoonful of Chicken Consomme on the top of the sauce, to prevent a skin forming on the surface."
---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 265)

[1873]
"Allemand Sauce.
---Dictionary of Cuisine, Alexandre Dumas, edited, abridged and translated by Louis Colman [Sime & Schuster:New York] 1958 (p. 216) [1907]
"Sauce Allemande (also known as Sauce Parisienne)

To make 1 litre ( 1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups)
Ingredients:
1 litre (1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups) Ordinary Veloute
5 dl (18 lf oz or 2 1/4 U.S. cups) Ordinary White Stock
2 dl (7 lf oz or 7/8 U.S. cup) mushroom cooking liquor
5 egg yolks
pinch of grated nutmeg
squeeze of lemon juice
pinch of coarsley ground pepper
100 g ( 3/ 1/2 oz.) butter
Preparation: Place the stock, mushroom liquor, yolks of egg, lemon juice, pepper and nutmeg in a heavy shallow pan, mix well together with a whisk and add the Veloute. Bring to a boil and reduce by one-third stirring constantly with a metal spatula; reduce untl the sauce reaches the point where it coats the spatula. Pass through a fine strainer or tammy cloth and coat the surface of the sauce with butter to prevent a skin forming. Keep in a Bain-marie until required then add 100 g ( 3 1/2 oz) butter before using...Notes...(2) This sauce is also known as Sauce Parisienne a name which is more logical and proper than Sauce Allemande. This was pointd out in an article in 'l'Art Culinaire' in 1883 by Mons. Tevenat, a well-known chef. The name 'Parisienne' has been adopted by several chefs but not widely as could be wished."
---Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A Escoffier, [first published in 1907] translated by H.L. Cracknell & R.J. Kaufamnn [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1979 (p. 8-9) [1927]
"Sauce Allemande or "Parisienne"

A classic sauce, this is now alos known a s 'parisienne.' It is used in a number of whimsical culinary creations as wsell as remaining a cornerstone for classic dishes such as vol-au-vent, puff pastries, etc. In the home kitchen, it is used for anhy dishes requiring a basic white sauce (for white foods, such as fowl or veal). To sum up, this is a veloute, or white sauce, with a liaison of egg yolk added. We must stress, once again, the importance of boiling the sauce rapidly after adding the egg yolks. Many people, unaware of this essential point, do not understand the risks. A sauce that is taken off the heat too soon will separate, thin down, and not have the right consistency to coat the food it is supposed to cover."
---La Bonne Cuisine, Madame E. Saint-Ange, translated and with an introduction by Paul Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 2005 (p. 52) [NOTE: recipe follows. Ingredients are veloute, musroom cooking juice, egg yolks, white pepper, ground nutmeg, butter.]

[1952]
"Allemande, Sauce.
One of the classic French sauces, also known as Sauce Blonde or Sauce Parisienne. To make a Sauce Allemande, one requires: 2 cups of Sauce Veloute
2 egg-yolks
Fresh butter or thick cream
A little nutmeg.
Reduce the Veloute upon a slow fire until it is but half the original quantity. Pour into a double-boiler, or, failing this, in a small saucepan which must be set in another larger pan containing hot water. Beat two egg-yolks and add to sauce, stirring gently during addition. Next, add cream or butter sufficeint to enrigh and imnprove the flavour of the sauce; also a light dusting of nutmeg, some essence of mushrooms, or lemon juice to taste. Cook in or over gently boiling water, stirring frequently until the sauce is thick and very creamy."
---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre L. Simon [Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 9)

"Parisienne, Sauce. Another name for a Sauce Blonde."---ibid (p. 38)
"Blonde, Sauce. This is an ordinary Veloute with a binding of egg yolks."---ibid (p. 14)

[1961]
"Allemand Sauce (Careme's recipe)
--This name is given to a classic white sauce, made with veloute blended with yolks of eggs and cream. The recipe for this sauce, which is one of the best in the French Culinary repetoire, as it is made nowadays, is geven in the section devoted to sauces. In spite of its name, this sauce in no way originates in Germany. It is so called, according to Careme, because it is light in colour, to differentiate it form Esapgnole sauce, which is dak...There is, in the French culinary repertoire, a very great number of terms which, although borrowed from other countries, serve to describe dishes of entirely French origin. Modern authors also refer to the Allemande as Parisienne sauce...Careme's recipe.--Careme first of all gives the recipe for preparing Veloute...to prepare Allemande sauce. 'Pour into a saucepan half the veloute and the same quantity of good chicken consomme, in which you will have put a few mushrooms (stalks and peel), and as mcuh salt as can be held on the point of a knife. After having placed on a brisk fire, stir the sauce with a wooden spoon untl it comes to the boil; then put it on the edge of the stove, cover and leave to simmer for about an hour; ehn skim off fat and put back on a high flame stirring with a wooden spoon to prevent it sticking to the bottom of the pan. When this sauce is perfectly cooked, it should coat the surface of a spoon quite thickly. When poured, it should be the same consistency as red-currant jelly, if it has reached the ideal point in its cooking. Then, you remove the saucepan from the fire, preapare a liaison using 4 yolks of egg, mix with two tablespoons of cream and, having passed it through a sieve, add best butter the size of a small egg, in small pieces; then pour it little by little into the veloute, stirring carefully with a wooden spoon to make sure that the liaison is blended in smoothly. When it is all perfectly incorporated, replace the allemande on a moderate fire and keep on stirring. As soon as a few bubbles start to rise, remove from heat; add as much grated nutmeg as can be held on the point of a knife. When well blended, pass through a sieve.'"
---Larousse Gastronomique [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 26-27) Not to be confused with

"Parisian Sauce (for cold asparagus). Sauce Parisienne--Pound in a bowl 2 small Grevaise cheeses (petits suisses or 2 ounces Philadelphia cream cheese). Season with salt and paprika. Beat with ol and lemon juice like a mayonnaise. Add a tablespoon of chopped chervil."
--ibid (p. 861)

[1963]
"White Sauces...Egg Yolk and Cream Enrichment
[Sauce Parisienne--formerly Sauce Allemande]
Sauces enrigched with egg yolks and cream are among the riches and most velvety in all the French repertoire. Sauce parisienne, or sauce allemand, is the generic term, but it invariably goes by another name according to its special flavorings or to the dish it accompanies. The simplest, sauce poulette, has a base of veloute flavored with meat or fish, onions and mushrooms. The most famous Sauce normande is a veloute based on white-wine fish stock and the cooking liquors of mussels, oysters, shrimps, ecrevisses, and mushrooms. The shellfish sauces such as cardinal, Nantua, and Joinville are shellfish veloutes with special trimings and a shellfish butter enrichment beaten in a at the end. As all of these sauces are a basic velote with a final enrichment of egg yolks, cream, and usually butter, if you can make you can make one, you can make all. Success in making the egg yolk liaison is but a realization that egg yolks will curdle and turn granular unless they are beaten with a bit of cold liquid first, before a hot liquid is gradually incorporated into them so that they are slowly heated. Once this preliminary step has been completed, the sauce may be brought to the boil; and because the egg yolks are supported by a flour-based sauce they may boil without danger of curdling. The sauce parisienne described in the following reicpe is used with eggs, fish, poultry, hot hors d'oeuvers, and dishes which are to be gratineed. A heavily buttered sauce parisienne is used principally for fish poached in white wine."
---Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1963 (p. 59-61) [NOTE: ingredients are: bechamel or veloute, egg yolks, whipping cream, salt, white pepper, lemon juice, more cream, & butter. We can sen the complete recipe if you like.]


Bechamel
Food historians tell us the art of reducing cream sauces (aka cream reductions) began in 18th century France. Think: Antonin Careme. Some argue modern bechamel was introduced a century earlier by
La Varenne. Our survey of historic recipes confirms a facinating dichotomy between the "ancienne" formulary and contemporary sauce. The story behind the "invention" of bechamel, and its name continues to fuel intelligent discussion.

Origination stories
"Gastronomique literature is filled with tedious passages and trifling disputes. Bechanel has inspired more than its fair share of this piffle. People will bargue about whether it was invend by the Marquis Louis de Bechameil; whether the correct spelling should not be bechamelle; whether the Italian version, balsamella from the Romagna district, is the original of this best-known and easiest mother sauce. In such matters prejudice will always rule, for there is no evidence one way of the other. We can only point to the appearance of a sauce called bechamel during the reign of Louis XIV. And, as so often, this original sauce bore only a slight resemblance to the modern sauce. While we think of bechamel as an all-purpose white sauce made of scalded milk, roux, and flavorings, Careme made it by enriching veloute with cream. The modern sauce is also in dispute...Some chefs, we know from early cookbooks, have always flavored their bechamels with veal; others have not. The difference in tgaste is minor."
---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 161-162)

Was bechamel sauce (which some people would spell bechamelle) really invented by Marquis Louis de Bechameil? Was this financier a gastronome and a gourmet and was he in any way competent in the culinary art? We do not know this for certain but everything seems to indicate that the bechamel sauce, being a major sauce, must have been, if not invented, at least perfected by one of the queux de semestre--cooks in the six months' service of the royal kitchen. Some dictionaries give quite erroneous definitions of this major sauce. Originally, the bechamel was made by adding a liberal amount of fresh cream to a thick veloute sauce. Nowadays bechamel is made by pouring boiling milk on white roux (blend of butter and flour). When a meat bechamel is wanted, a certain amount of lean veal, diced, and simmered in butter with a minced onion is added."
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 118-119)

17th century/La Varenne connection?
Some sources on the Internet credit La Varenne as the first cuisiner to write about bechamel. None of them share the original print reference. It is true that La Varenne introduced
Roux (Russet) [a white sauce composed of flour and dairy...milk/cream/butter] at that time. Bechamel is more complicated.

We find no bechamel in La Varenne's Cookery/Terence Scully [Prospect Books:UK] 2006 & The French Cook, Englished by I.D.G. 1653, introduced by Philip and Mary Hyman [Southover Press:East Sussex] 2001. Both confirm La Varenne used. La Varenne's recipe below describes a "white sauce" composed of egg yolks and verjuice. The addition of egg yolks and verjuice (acid component, similar to lemon juice) is strikingly similar to some contemporary bechamel recipes. If this is the connection the Internet is perpetuating, we respectfully request reconsideration. La Varenne's sauce is so very different from recipes published in the 19th century. Recipe evolution is generally slow and methodical. It is unlikely any bechamel would skip three generations, much less three centuries. That said, there were many editions of La Varenne's book. It is possible that a later version offered bechamel.


"Pie of breast of veal.
When veal is well blanched, you can stuff it with whatever you like. You can also put it, well-seasoned, into fine dough; or, if you wish, cut it up into small pieces. Make up your pie; bake it. Serve it with a white sauce made of egg yolks and verjuice."
---"XIV. Pasties the Whole Year, no. 10," La Varenne's Cookery, a modern English translation and commentary by Terence Scully [Prospect Books:Totnes] 2006 (p. 233)

This French food historian does not categorically state "bechamel" was a recipe title in the 17th century. He is describing a documented process which was published in the 19th century as "bechamel ancienne."

"A bechamel...in the seventeenth century was a very complicated sauce which contained a number of vegetables and wines as well as old hens and old partridges, and after being strained several times was finished with reduced cream and cooked in the oven. Not so very long ago, a bechamel was cooked in the oven with ham, chopped onions coloured in butter and a bouquet garni. It was turned out and strained through a hair sieve, double cream was added and the sauce was stirred and reduced again..."
---Gastronomy of France, Raymond Oliver [World Publishing Company:London] 1967 (p. 218, 220)

Who was Bechamiel? (Bechameil)
"Bechameil (Louis de)--Marquis de Nointel, a financier who made his fortune during the Fronde (the rising of the aristocracy and the Parliament against Mazarin in 1648- 53) and got himself the post of Lord Steward of the Royal Household to Louis XIV, a job for which only very high-ranking gentlemen were eligible, and which was in no way like the post is nowadays fulfilled by a maitre d'hotel of a big restaurant. The invention of bechamel sauce is attributed to him buy it had, now doubt, been known for a long time under some other name. It is more likely, however, to be the invention of a court chef who must have dedicated it to Bechameil as a compliment. The old Duke d'Escars said: 'That fellow Bechameil has all the luck. I was serving breast of chicken a la creme twenty years before he was born, yet, as you can see, I have never yet had the chance of giving my name to the most insignificant of sauces!"
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 118)

[Careme's recipe (undated)]
"Bechamel sauce
...'When the veloute is thick and just at the moment when you are goint to bind it with a liaison of yolks and cream, pour into the veloute, little by little, thick cream and then you reduce (cook down) this bechamel, taking care to stir with a wooden spoon to make sure the sauce does not stick, to the bottom of the pan. When it is simmered down to th desired consistency, it should just coat lightly the garnish for which it is intended; then you remove it from the fire, add to it a piece of butter the size of a walnut and a few tablespoons of very thick double cream to make it whiter. Then add a pinch of grated nutmeg, pass it through a white tammy and keep hot in a bain-marie. Note. In a marginal note Careme says: 'Boil down 2 pints (about 1 litre) of hot milk by two-thirds and use instead of cream, if the latter cannot be obtained except the day before it is required, which renders it extremely liable to have a sourish taste, whereas by using hot milk no such risk can be incurred. When it is possible to obtain good double cream, it should be used cold, and blended with a veloute a little at a time.'"
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 119)

[1828]
"No. 35.--The Bechamel.

Take aobut half a quarter of a pound of butter, about three pounds of veal, cut into small slices, a quarter of a pound of ham, some trimmings of mshrooms, two small white onions, a bunch of parsley and green onions; put the whole into a stew-pan, and lay it on the fire till the meat may be made firm. Then put three spoonsful of flour; moisten with some boiling hot thin cream. Keep this sauce rather thin, so that whilst you reduce it, the inredient may have time to be stewed thoroughly. Season it with a little salt, and strain it through a tammy, when it retains no taste of flour, and the suace is very palatable."

No. 36.--The Bechamel maigre (This sauce is intended chiefly for those who conform to the Roman Catholic religion)
Is prepared as above, with the exception of the meat, which is to be omitted. If you have made any sauces from fish, put a little of the juice or gravy of the fish with cream. When done, strain it through a tammy, and serve up."
---The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, originally published in 1828, facsimile Englished edition [Arco Publishing:New York] 1978 (p. 15-16)

[1869]
"Bechame Sauce A L'Ancienne

Remove the noix from a fillet of veal, and cut up the remainder in 2-inch dice; put these in a stewpan, with:
3/4 lb. of butter,
2 middle-sized onions,
2 moddle-sized carrots;
Fry, without colouring, for ten minutes; then add 6 oz. of flour; stir over the fire for five minutes; and put in: 1 quart of double cream,
10 oz. of sliced musrhooms,
1 faggot,1/4 oz. of mignonnette pepper;
Stir over the fire till boiling, and simmer for one hour and a half, skimming off the fat occasionally; strain through a tammy cloth; put the sauce in a large glazing stewoan, with 2 gills of cream to each quart of sauce; reduce it over the fire till it coats the spoon; then strian again through a tammy cloth, into a basin; and stir with a spoon till the sauce is cold, to prevent a skin forming on top."

"Chicken Bechamel Sauce
Cut 2 pbs. of fillet of veal in 3-inch dice; take 2 hens, having previously removed the fillets; put the veal and hens in a stewpan, with:
1 oz. of butter,
2 middle sized onions, cut in 8 pieces,
1/2 oz. of salt
1/4 oz. of mignonnette pepper;
Fry, without colouring, for five minutes; add 3/ lb. of lour; stir over the fire for five minutes; then add 5 quarts of General Stock, 1 faggot; and stir till boiling; Simmer for two houts, skimming off the fat frequently; strain the sauce, through a tammy cloth, into a large stewpan; reduce it, adding 1 1 /2 pint of double cream, in three parts; when the sauce coats the spoon, strain it through a tammy cloth into a basin; stir it till quite cold; andy put by for use."

"Bechamel Sauce Maigre(Without Meat)
Cut 3 onions, 1 carrot, and 2 shalots, in large dice; fry them in a stewpan, with 1/2 lb. of butter, for five minutes; add 1/2 lb. of flour; fry for five minutes more; and put it in: 1/2 oz. of salt,
1 faggot,
1/4 oz. of mignonnette pepper;
Stir, and reduce the sauce for fifteen minutes; strain it, through a tammy cloth, into a basin; cover it with a little butter, melted; and put by for use. When the Bechamel is wanted, if should be boiled up, and thickened with 1/4 lb. of butter, to each quart of sauce."
---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated from the French and adapted for English use by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marston:London] 1869(p. 265-266)

[1927]
"Sauce Bechamel

Il fout etre deja au courant des subtilites de la cuisine, pour cavoir que la bechame il n'est pas toujours unce sauce ou le lait soit l'unique liquide employe: il y a aussi la bechamel grasse, et la plus authentique, puisqu'elle porte le nom de celui "qui imagina l'addition de la creme au veloutes", rapporte le grand chef Careme. A cette epoque, la bechamel se comprenait donc ansi du veloute, auquel s'ajoutait une certaine quantite de creme double; let tout reduit a grand feu, sans cesser de emuer, pour revenir a la proportion premiere du veloute. Quoique secondaire par rapport a l'idee initiale de la bechamel, la mechamel maigre n'en est pas moins devenue plus repandue et plus representative de l'appellation que la bechamel grasse. C'est sans doute qu'elle constitue une importante resource pour les apprets maitres; parce qu'aussi la cuisine menagere l'a progressement simplifiee dans sa composition, abregeant temps et soins, et l'a rendue par la popularie. Mais ces simplifications sont souvent au grand detriment de la sauce. La bechamel maigre doit comporter une aromatisation de base, fournie par les elements maigres (qu'on trouve egalement dans la bechamel grasse): soit oignon, carotte, queues de persil, et, si possible, epluchures de champignons, quelquefois un rien de celeri; parfois du blanc de poireau, ne leger note de thym et laurier. Lorsque la bechame. n'est pas destinee a un appret strictement maigre, on peut fair entrer, dans l'ensemble des ingredients enumeres ci-dessus, un peu de lard maigre ou de jambon cru, qui augmente beaucoup sa saveur: a resume, une bonne mirepoix. La proportion de farine pour le roux et de 6 a 7 grammes par delicliter de sauce prete a employer. La proportion des aromates, leur opportunie pareillement, varient suivant la destination de la sauce, ainsi qu'on le constatera au cours des recettes comporant l'emploi de bechamel."
---Le Livere de Cuisine, Mms. E. Saint-Ange [Library Larousse:Paris] 1927 (p. 95-96)

[1952]
"Bechamel, Sauce a la

The name of one of the basic French sauces and one of the creamiest white sauces. It was named after, and believed to have been introduced by, Louis de Bechameil, or Bechamel, Marquis de Nointel, Lord Steward of the Household at the Court of Louis XIV. The flour and water, sticky and lumpy horror so often served under this name is a libellous imitation, but it is not a Bechanel. To make a Bechamel in the old-fashioned and best manner, one should use butter and flour in equal quantities and the best and creamiset milk, as follows: Melt the butter, but do not allow to sizzle, in a small saucepan over a rather low heat. When the butter is melted, add the flour, stirring well into the butter. Have some cold boiled mlk. When the butter and flour mixture begins to bubble gently, add the cold milk, very little at a time, stiring and beating well until the whole amount of milk has beeend added and the sauce is thick and creamy. This is the Sauce Bechamelle. It may be used as a basis for other sauces by adding anything called for by the recipe chosen: mushrooms, chopped parsley, chopped hard-boiled egg, oysters, or what not. If to be served plain, and if a chic sauce be required, add the beaten yolk of an egg--after removing the pan from the fire--and a little lemon juice."
---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre L. Simon, complete and unabridged [Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 13)


Dips
Food historians tell us we have been "dipping" food since the beginning of time. Dips can be sweet or savory, mild or spicy. Texture can be thick (hummus), thin (olive oil), creamy (sour cream based) or soupy (salsa). They are known in many cultures and cuisines. Party dips, as we Americans know them today, are a twentieth century creation. Flavor are generally savory; textures run from soupy to creamy. These cold dips are generally served in the hors d'ouvres course or for party buffets. Most popular dipping items are crackers, chips and bite-sized vegetables. Dips differ from spreads in that the edible receptacle is dipped into the creamy accompaniement.

Spreads & meal placement
Spreads tend to be a little thicker and are applied to bread or crackers with a small, blunt knife designed for this purpose. Think: pate, compound butters and deviled ham. Warm dips like
fondue and bagna cauda are generally served for as main course rather than starter or hors d'oeuvre.

Popular American dips

"Dips, Dunks, & Spreads. It's been said that dips originated in the 1950s with that gloppy blend of sour cream and dry onion soup mix known as California Dip. Not so. Barbara Kuck, Director of the Culinary Archives and Museum at Johnson and Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, presides over...culinary memorabilia amassed by her father, the late chef Louis Szathmary...Among these papers is a recipe for clam and cream cheese dip penciled on a 3 X 5 -inch file card by Mrs. Woodrow Wilson. It is said to hae been one of the President's favorites. That would push the advent of dips back to the second decade of this [20th] century...Still, dips did not come into vogue until twenty or twenty-five years later. And the man who popularized them, I'm convinced, was James Beard. In his very first cookbook (Hors d'Oeuvre and Canapes, 1940), Beard wrote: I think it delightful to have large bowls of cheese mixtures which are of a consistency that permits "dunking." Cream cheese mixed with chopped onions, sour cream, and perhaps a little green pepper and a great deal of parsley, is always welcome. Roquefort cheese or Gorgonzola mixed with cream cheese or sour cream, with a flavoring of chopped chives and chopped raw mushrooms, is another good dunker. Cream cheese, sour cream, and grated fresh horseradish and a few chopped chives is another delightful addition to this family. You may have your choice of dunkers--potato chips, pretzels, crackers, Italian bread sticks--any of them.' Dips gained popularity during the 1940s, at least in some parts of the country."
---The American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean Anderson [Clarkson Potter:New York] 1997 (p. 23)
[NOTES: (1) This book contains summary histories and recipes for several popular American dips. (2) James Beard's quote appears on page 44 of his book.]

The 1930s connection made by Ms. Anderson may be explained, in part, by the Great Depression. During this period many people had to rethink their entertaining style. Many middle class people were maidless for the first time. Simple solutions to serving traditional meals filled women's magazines and trendy cookbooks.

"The Depression also changed the way many Americans entertained at home. Except for the upper echelons of society, most families were now maidless, which made grand, formal dinner parties impossible. Instead, hostesses gave luncheons, teas, and cozy Sunday Night Suppers around the chafing dish...The Thirties also ushered in an era of women's clubs--whether dedicated to charitable activities, gardening, or the fine art of bridge--perhaps as a reaction to the individualistic Twenties, perhaps as a kind of atavistic huddling together against the harsh realities of the new age."
---Fashionable Food: Seven Decades of Food Fads, Sylvia Lovegren [Macmillan:New York] 1995 (p. 41-44)

Our survey of popular American cookbooks confirms the popularity of dips in the 1940s and 1950s. They also illustrate the evolution of this item from formal appetizer to informal party fare. It is interesting to note that in these decades, the sauces were called "dunks." The items used to scoop the "dunk" were called "dips."

[1942]
"Dunking Trays.

When a sauce is to be served with hors d'oeuvres, hot or cold, a large platter or tray may be used to hold an assortment of the hors d'oeuvres and a bowl or container of dunking sauce. Each guest helps himself to the hors d'oeuvres and dips them into the sauce.

"Suggestions for hot dunking trays
Hors d'Oeuvres: Codfish balls, hot sea-food hors d'oeuvres, tuna-fish cones, cocktail sausages and frankfurters, corned-beef hash balls. Sauces: For fish and sea-food hors d'oeuvres serve hot savory cocktail sauce or gourmet cocktail sauce or tartar sauce; for meat hors d'oeuvres, mustard cream sauce or hot savory cocktail sauce. Garnish the tray with crisp radish roses, carrot curls, celery curls, stuffed cucumbers, pickle fans, olives.

"Suggestions for cold dunking trays
Hors d'Oeuvres: Raw oysters arranged on cracked ice, cold cooked shrimp and lobster, raw-vegetable hors d'oeurvres, chicken rolls, dried-beef balls, gherkins in blankets, lettuce rolls, stuffed cucumbers, roast beef rolls. Sauces: Russian dressing or Thousand Island dressing, gourmet cocktail sauce or standard cocktail sauce, or tartar sauce...

"Potato-chip scoop tray
Fill a bowl with any soft savory cheese spread or with drained cottage cheese seasoned with salt, pepper and onion juice. Sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and paprika. Surround with crisp potato chips. The guests use the potato chips as scoops to dip into the spread. Crisp crackers may also be used."
---Woman's Home Companion Cook Book [P.F. Collier & Son:New York] 1942 (p. 266)

[1947]
"Gone are the cook and the kitchen maid, the butler and the second man and the upstairs girl. Lacking the butler and the second man, self-service is the word...First...there is the principle of dunk. Give a man a bit of something crisp, and a bowl of something spicy to dip it in, and you don't need the services of the cook and the kitchen girl. Nothing is better to dunk than raw vegetables. Try celery, raw carrot cut in thin strips or very thin long slices curled in ice water, cauliflower broken and sliced into flowerets, turnips or kohlrabi cut paper-thin, zucchini, cucumber, water cress, asparagus tips, French endive. Don't omit radishes, green onions, and cherry tomatoes...Every man his own dunker...With a big platter of vegetables give him a choice of dunks, and let him play."
---The 60 Minute Chef, Lillian Bueno McCue and Carol Truax [Macmillan Company:New York] 1947 (p. 2-3)
[NOTE: Dunk recipes offered in this book are essentially (complete ingredients/recipe available for the asking): Pink Dunk (catusp & mayonnaise), Red Dunk (cocktail sauce & mayonnaise), Paprika Dunk (French dressing & mayonnaise), Tomato Dunk (tomato soup & cream), White Cheese Dunk (cottage cheese & cream), French Dunk (cottage cheese & mayonnaise), Curry Dunk (add curry powder to French recipe), Pink Cheese Dunk (cottage cheese, catchup, cocktail sauce), Deep-Sea Dunk (cocktail sauce, sugar, mayonnaise). Spread recipes follow.]

[1955]
"Dunks

Heap one or more dunks...in attractive bowls. Garnish with paprika, snipped chives or parsley, or a few carrot, celery, or green-pepper strips. Serve dunks on tray, surrounded by 2 or more of these dippers. Guest dunk their own.

Melba toast, Pumpernickel strips, hard-roll chunks, toast fingers, crisp crackers, pickle sticks, conr chips, raw cauliflowerets, pretzel sticks, potato chips, raw carrots sticks or slices, celery chunks, hearts, or sticks...cooked shrimp, avocado chunks...french fries, cucumber fingers...pineapple chunks...radishes, scallions, lobster chunks, chicken chunks, salty-rye slices.

Dunks...Anchovy-celery cocktail, blue-cheese, avocado-cream-cheese, cheesy egg, garlic-cheese, clam and cheese, chili-cheese, tangy salmon, tuna-cheese."
---Good Housekeeping Cook Book, Dorothy B. Marsh [Good Housekeeping:New York] 1955 (p. 28)
[NOTE: This book also contains several suggestions for "spread your owns," which is similar in concept.]

[1967]
"Dips--Cold and Hot

Cheese Whip, Creamy Avocado Dip, Vegetable Dip, Lazy-Suzan Dips (Lusty Italian, TunapCream, Deviled-Ham Dip Piquant, Snappy Crab, Creamy Garlic-Cheese, Calico Relish), Melon Dip, Sea-Food Dips (Curry, Cocktail)"
---Gook Housekeeping's Perfect Parties [Consolidated Book Publishers:Chicago IL] 1967 (p. 20-21)

[1982] "Dips: things mashed up with other things to a harmonious consistency; readily spreadable, or pick-upable with raw vegetables or crackers or chips. Dips as snacks, as hors d'oeuvre...dips as diner. Most of these are very easy to make, and even easier to eat."
---The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Mollie Katzen [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 1982 (p. 145)
[NOTE: This book offers recipes for Almond Orange Dip, Tofu Guacamole, Avocado-Tofu-Egg Dip, Orange Hummus, Mexican Bean Dip, Avocado-Egg Dip, Avocado-Tahini Dip, Tofu-Sesame Dip, Pesto-Bean Dip, Peanut Dip, Tahini Dip, & Pureed Vegetable Dip.]

Bean dip
Tex-Mex style bean dip, like
ancient middle eastern hummus, is flavor-packed and protein-intensive. Bordering between dip and spread, these items, when paired with bread, can be considered a simple meal in itself.

[1958]
Bean dip

"Frijoles Para Sopear...Bean dip, put up in cans, has become very popular of late. Here is a much less expensive, and I think. Thorougly mash 1 cup refried beans...and combine with 1 cup sour cream. Mix well and add as much salsa Jalapena as desired. This makes a delightful dip for tostaditas."
---Elena's Secrets of Mexican Cooking, Elena Zelayeta [Prentice-Hall:Englewood Cliffs NJ] 1958 (p. 10)

Hummus
Hummus, an appetizer primarily composed of ground
chickpeas, has long been associated with Middle Eastern and neighboring cuisines. Bean dip is the "New World" counterpart.

"Hummus/Chickpeas. These hard, round, corn-colored peas, earthy in flavor and aesthetically attractive, lend themselves, as do most ingredients in the hands of Middle Eastern cooks, to an infinite variety of dishes. Mashed and smoothly pureed, they make an excellent base for a tahini cream or a meat soup...Hummus bi Tahini/Chickpeas with Tahini...This tahini salad is the most widely known and appreciated of all outside the Middle East; its aroma blends so well with that of its constant companions, shish kebab and ta'ahia, in Oriental restaurants. Its particular quality is a rich, earthy one. It makes an excellent appetizer served as a dip with bread, fish, eggplant--practically anything-- and can also be used as a dals with a main dish."
---A Book of Middle Eastern Food, Claudia Roden [Knopf:New York] 1972 (p. 44-5)
[NOTE: Ms. Roden includes a recipe for Hummis in her book.]

"Hummus, or hoummos, is an hors d'oeuvre made from crushed or mashed chickpeas with the addition of sesame paste (tahini), garlic, and lemon juice. It is characteristic of the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean (the term entered English via Turkish), but this the explosion of interest in foreign cuisine in Britain over the past forty years (due in no small measure to the writings of Elizabeth David, whose Book of Mediterranean Food (1965) contains the first recorded reference to hummus in English) it has now established a place on the supermarket shelves."
---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 166)

[1965]
"Hummus Bi Tahina

An Egyptian version of an Arab dish. Tahina is a sesame paste...which is mixed with oil and garlic and thinned with water to make a sauce which in Arab countries is eaten as a salad, with bread dipped into it. For this hours d'oeuvre the ingredients are 1/2 lb of chick peas, a teacupful each of tahina and water; a little lemon juice, mint, garlic, and two tablespoons of olive oil. Cook the previously soaked chick peas in plenty of water, slowly, for 3 to 4 hours. They should be very soft for this dish. Strain them, pound them to a fine paste, or if you prefer, put them through the food mill. Pound two or three cloves of garlic into the puree, stir in the tahina, the olive oil, the lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. Add water until the mixture is about the consistency of a thick mayonnaise. Stir in about 2 tablespoons of dried or fresh mint. The mixture is poured either into a large shallow dish, or on to saucers, one for each person, and sets fairly firmly when cold."
---Mediterranean Food, Elizabeth David [Penguin Books:Middlesex], 1965, second revised edition (p. 152-153)

Chickpeas
"Chickpea...known as gabbanzo in Spanish, ceci in Italian, 'gram' in India, and often as just plain 'pulse' across the globe, the chickpea (Cicer arietinum) is an ancient pulse that originated in western Asia and was domesticated there some 7,000 years ago. The tan, hazelnut-sized seeds, with their wrinkled surfaces, nutty flavor, and crisp texture, soon became popular from the Mediterranean to India...and today are practically universal. In the Near East, the chickpea is the basic ingredient for hummus and falafel and is frequently incorporated in couscous. In India, as the country's most important legume, the chickpea is roasted, boiled, and fried, is made into flour, and is part of a dhal. In the Mediterranean region, the chickpea features prominently in the 'poor cuisine'--as a staple in the diet of poor people, as substitute for meat (and sometimes for coffee as well), and an ingredient in the boiled dinner (cocidos) of Iberia. Exactly when the chickpea reached Spain and Portugal is unclear--perhaps with the Phoenicians, certainly with the Romans... From Iberia, chickpeas traveled to the Americas, where they achieved fame in Cuban bean soup and menudo."
---Cambridge World History of Food, Kenneth F. Kiple & Kriemhild Conee Ornelas [Cambridge University Press:Cambridge] 2000, Volume Two (p. 1752)

"Chickpea, one of the oldest cultivated pulses in the Near East. Chickpeas were grown in Palestine by 8000 BC. They had been gathered from the wild in the Mediterranean region even before cultivation began locally; in southern France, for example, by 7,000 BC. Theophrastus says that the chickpea was not grown in India, bu that is incorrect: it had reached India by 2000 BC, the date of the oldest arthaeobotanical finds of chickpea in the subcontinent. In the classical world chickpeas were wserved among tragemata, variousl eaten greenm, or roasted, or dried or boiled. Chickpea soup ...was a common and cheap street food in classical Rome...Anthimus reccomends that chickpease be boiled till soft and seasoned with oil and salt."
---Food in the Ancient World From A to Z, Andrew Dalby [Routledge:London] 2003 (p. 84)

"Chickepea...a small legume which was first grown in the Levant and ancient Egypt, but is now an important food in many parts of the world., especially the broad band of countries extending from India through the Middle East to North Africa, with offshoots of importance in places to which the Arabs took it, e.g. Sicily and Spain...in the 2nd millennium BC according to Achaya, the chickpea was one of the pulses eaten in India, where it is a major foodstuff...Despite its reputation, the chickpea is the basis of some of the most popular Middle Eastern dishes, notably hum(mus), which is the Arabic word for chickpea but also a ubiquitous paste of chickpea and tahini (sesame paste) with garlic and lemon; and felafel."
---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 167)

"Bengal gram. So called because it was first encountered by the British in Bengal, the Bengal gram is chanka in Sanskrit, chana in Hindi, kadalai in Tamil, chickpea in English...The khalva of the Yajurveda 9c. 1000BC) may refer to it, while chanka occurs in early Buddhist writings (c. 400 BC). It has been found in 2500 BC layers in the Indus Valley site of Kalibangan...Thepostulated centre of origin of the chickpea is the Caucasus or Asia Minor and it shows up as early as in 5400 BC in Halicar in Turkey...The Bengal gram is the major pulse of India. The whole pulse is cooked in a gravy or to dryness, or is cooked with gourd in Bengal."
---A Historical Dictionary of Indian Food, K.T. Achaya [Oxford University Press:Delhi] 1998 (p. 28-29)

"The chick-pea is so frequently cultivated in Egypt from the earliest times of the Christan era, that it is supposed to have been also known to the ancient Egyptians. There is no proof to be found in the drawings or stores of grain in their monuments, but it may be supposed that this pea, like the bean and the lentil, was considered common or unclean. Reynier thought that the ketsech, mentioned by Isaiah in the Old Testament was perhaps the chick-pea; but the name is generally attributed though without certainty, to Nigella sativa or Cicia sativa. As the Arabs have a totally different name for the chick-pea, omnos, homos, which recurs in the Kabyl language as hammez, it is not likely that the ketsech of the Jews was the same plant. These details lead me to suspect that the species was unknown to the ancient Egyptians and to the Hebrews. It was perhaps introduced among them from Greece or Italy towards the beginning of our era."
---Origin of Cultivated Plants, Alphonse de Candolle [Hafner Publishing:New York] 1964 (p. 325)

The Encyclopedia Judaica, the ingredients of hummus appear in the Bible and the Mishnah: Chick-pea (Cicer arietinum): Isa. 30:24; Pe'ah 3:3; Kil. 3:2 Sesame (Sesamum orientalis): Shev. 2:7; Hal. 1:4, et al.

Seven layer taco dip
Seven Layer Taco Dip is known by many names. The number of layers range from 5 to 9. Food historian Jean Anderson lists this popular appetizer as Tex-Mex (or Layered) Dip. Her notes here:
"According to Karen Haram, food editor of the San Antonio Express-News, "This dip is served at NEARLY every party in Texas. I don't know the origin of it," she says, "but it started becoming very popular in the early 80s, helped in large part by Jo Anne Vachule. She was food editor at the Forth Worth Star-Telegram, and the recipe ran in one of the big women's magazines [Family Circle, February 3, 1981] as her favorite recipe in a story on food editors' favorites. The recipe was around before then, but it really took off at that time." Haram adds that when making the dip, "make sure that you cover the avocado layer completely with the sour cream layer; if you do, the avocado doesn't darken, even if made the day before." Family Circle editors thought so highly of Tex-Mex Dip, they included it in their anthology, Recipes America Loves Best (1982)."
---The American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean Anderson [Clarkson Potter:New York] 1997 (p. 28)

[1982]
"Tex-Mex Dip

Makes 16 appetizer servings.
3 medium-size ripe avocados
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup (8 ounces) dairy sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 pakcage (1 1/4 ounces) taco seasoning mix
2 cans (10 1/2 ounces each) plain or jalapeno bean dip
1 cup chopped green onions
2 medium-size tomatoes, cored, halved, seeded and coarsely chopped (2 cups)
2 cans (3 1/2 ounces each) pitted black olives, drained and coarely chopped
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 ounces)
Large round tortilla chips. 1. Peel, pit and mash avaocaods in a medium-size bowl with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Combine sour cream, mayonnaise and taco seasonong mix in a bowl.
2. To assemble: Spread bean dip on a large, shallow serving platter; top with seasoned avocado mixture; layer with sourcream taco mixture. Sprinkle with chopped onions, tomatoes and olives; cover with shredded cheese. Serve chilled or at room temperature with round tortilla chips.
---Family Circle Recipes America Loves Best, compiled by Nika Hazelton with the Food Editors of Family Circle Magazine [Times Books:New York] 1982 (p. 14-15)

[1984]
"Great Layered Taco Dip

3 ripe avocados
1 tomato, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons minced onion
Hot pepper sauce to taste
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 package (1 1/2 ounces) taco seasoning
1 can (32 ounces) refried beans
4 tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
8 ounces Cheddar cheese, grated
1 can (4 1/4 ounces) chopped ripe olives
Tostados
Peel and mash avocados. Add 1 chopped tomato, salt, pepper, leomon juice, garlic powder, minced onion and hot pepper sauce and set aside. Mix mayonnaise, sour cream and taco seasoning and set aside. On large platter spread refried beans as first layer of dip. Next, spread the avocado mixture. Cover with sour cream and mayonnaise mixture. Sprinkle with 4 chopped tomatoes, green onions and cheese; top with black olives. Serve with tostados. Serves 10.--Mrs. James Hurlbut (Marsha)"
---Lone Star Legacy II: A Texas Cookbook, Austin Junior Forum [Austin TX] 1985 (p. 131)

Related dishes? Tortilla soup & Taco salad.

Spinach dip
Our survey of newspaper and magazine articles reveals recipes for spinach dip were in popular in the early 1980s. The oldest recipe we find for "Spinach dip" was published in Sunset [magazine], July, 1983 (p. 160). It calls for frozen chopped spinach, green onion, packed parsely, lemon juice, sour cream, pepper, garlic & salt.

"Spinach and artichoke dip. A number of artichoke dips surfaced in the '70s and '80s but none better than this cold one and the hot one that follows on page 34. The cold one is adapted from Phyllis Meras's New Carry-Out Cuisine (1986). it comes from a Providence, Rhode Island, take-out shop called Culinary Capers that's run by Rosalind Rustigian. In her recipe headnote, Meras writes, "This spinach and artichoke dip is popular at faculty cocktail parties at nearby Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design."
---American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean Anderson [Clarkson Potter:new York] 1997 (p. 33)


Espagnole
Food historians generally agree Espagnole first surfaced in the 18th century. It was embraced and codified by Careme (early 19th century).
Demi-glace is the essence of espagnole that begins with roux. In the 20th century demi-glace was generally replaced by simpler "brown sauces." Jus de Veau Lie is a prime example.

What is Espagnole?
"Espagnole. The name given in classical French cuisine to the 'mother sauce' from which are derived many of the sauces described under brown sauces. The name has nothing to do with Spain, any more than the counterpart allemande...has anything to do with Germany. It is generally believed that the terms were chosen because in French eyes Germans are blond and Spaniards are brown. Some authorities prefer to regard demiglace...as the parent of the group of brown sauces, and would say that espagnole is the penultimate stage in producing demi-glace. However, what is certain is that for people outside France as well as inside the term espagnole is widely understood to mean the basic brown sauce, and indeed one which can be used on its own although it normally has added flavourings and a new name. The arduous procedure for making an espagnole on traditionally approved lines is now rarely followed."
---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 283)

"The classical French brown sauce starts ot with a long-simmered brown meat stock that goes into the making of an equally long-simmered, lightly thickened sauce base called espagnbole. The espagnole is simmered and skimmed for several hours more with additional stock and flavorings until it finally develops into the traditional mother of the brown sauces, demi-glace. The may take several days to accomplish, and the result is splended."
---Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle and Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1963 (p. 66)
[NOTE: Three recipes for Brown Sauce follow, including several variations.]

Who was the "inventor?"
"La Chapelle as the inventor of sauce espagnole [Le Cuisinier moderne 1733]...one of the great basic sauces of cuisine...preparing this sauce presupposes the mastery of the basic stocks of 'Grand Cuisine,' to which we shall return later...sauce espagnole (which, despite the name, is totally absent from Spanish cuisine) has as its point of departure three preparations that have been cooked beforehand: a roux for thickening, a brown stock made from beef, veal, vegetables, pork rinds, and so on, and mirepoix...To this is added lean bacon, onions, carrots, thyme, and a bay leaf. This brown preparation, which requires six hours to be skimmed, deacidified, passes through a sieve and reduced to a gelee, serves in turn as the base for a great many common sauces, such as bigarade, bordelaise, bourguignonne, chasseur, etc...When it has reached the point of absolute perfection, sauce espagnole is called demi-glace, a sauce obtained by addding to it clear brown stock and Madeira. As for meat glazes, they are stocks simmered down to a consistency that is almost that of honey or resin."
---Culture and Cuisine: A Journey Through the History of Food, Jean-Francois Revel, translated by Helen R. Lane [Doubleday & Company:Garden City NY] 1979, 1982 (p. 182-183)

Espagnole recipes through time

[1828]
No. 75--Salmi Sauce a l'Espagnole. Cut four shalots, and a carrot into large dice, some parsley roots, a few bits of ham, a clove, two or three leaves of mace, the quarter of a bay-leaf, a little thyme, and get a small bit of butter, with a few mushrooms. Put the whole into a stew-pan over a gentle fire; let fry til you percieve the stew-pan is coloured all round. The moisten with half a pint of Madiera wine, and a very small lump of sugar. Let it reduced to one-half. Put in six spoonsful of Espagnole and the trimmings of our partridges. Let them stew for an hour on the corner of the stove. Skim the fat off, taste whether your sauce be seasoned enough; strain it over the members, make it hot without boiling; dish the salmi, and reduced the sauce, which strain through a tammy. Then cover the salmi with the sauce."
--The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, facsimile reprint 1828 book [Arco Publishing:New York]1978 (p. 35-6)

[1869]
"Espagnole Sauce.

The quantities in this recipe are calculated to make 4 quarts of Espagnole Sauce, which will certainly not be too much when treating of high-class cooking operations. It must be bourne in mind that Espagnole will keep perfectly good for three or four days; so that, in large establishments, even double the quantity I indicate may safely be prepared.

Butter a stewpan, and put in it 3 sliced onions; upon these place 6 lbs of boned fillet of veal, and 2 lbs of gravy-beef; moisten with 1 pint of General Stock, or Grand Bouillon, and set it boiling on a brisk fire; when the Stock is reduced one half, glaze the meat of a bright-brown and even colour, by simmering gently, and turning it frequently. This process requires particular attention; for, if the glaze be over cooked, and of a dark-brown colour, the sauce will have an acrid taste, which no amount of sugar added to it would rectify. When the meat is well glazed, take the stewpan off the fire; cover it, and let it stand five minutes before adding any more broth,--this will facilitate the dissolving of the glaze; then pour in 6 quarts of General Stock; boil; skim; and add:

1 faggot, 2 carrots, 1/2 oz. Of salt, 1/4 oz. Of mignonnette pepper, 1/4 oz. Of sugar; Boil, and simmer; and, when the meat is done, take it out, and strain the Stock through a broth napkin. Make a roux in a stewpan, with 14 oz. of clarified butter, and 14 oz. of flour; when this is cooked, moistened with the Stock; stir over the fire with a wooden spoon till boiling, and simmer for two hours on the stove corner, with the stewpan only three parts closed; skim, and take off the fat twice during that time; and the end of the two hours, skim, and free the sauce from fat once more; strain it through a tammy cloth; and put by for use. Observation.--I do not advise adding a hen or any game to this sauce, as is so often fone,--butcher's meat alone should constitute the basis of Espagnole, which, being intended to add to other preparations, any special flavouring given to it, either by poultry or game, would often be prejudicial."
---Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated and adapted for English by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son & Marston:London] 1869 (p. 263-4)
[NOTE: recipe for Epagnole Sauce Maigre (without meat) follows.]

[1884]
"Espagnole Sauce.
--Boil one quart of strong consomme or rich, highly seasoned brown stock, till reduced to one pint. Then use it as given under the rule for brown sauce, and flavor with wine."
---Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D. A. Lincoln [1884], facismile reprint [Dover:Mineola NY] 1996 (p. 193)

[1907]
"Sauce Espagnole.

To make 5 litres (8 3/4 pt or 1 3/8 U.S. gal)
Ingredients:
625 (1 lb 6 oz) brown Roux--using: 285 g (10 oz) clarified butter and 340 g (12 oz) sifted flour
12 litres (2 5/8 gal or 3 1/4 U.S. gal) brown stock
150 f (5 oz) roughly diced salt belly of pork
250 g (9 oz) roughly diced carrots
150 g. (5 oz) roughly diced onions
2 sprigs thyme
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) tomate puree or 2 kg (4 1.2 lb) fresh tomatoes
2 dl (7 fl oz or 7/8 U.S. cup) white sauce.
Preparation:
1. Place 8 litres (1 3/4 gal or 2/ 1/4 U.S. gal) of the stock in a heavy pan and bring to the boil; add the Roux, previously softened in the oven. Mix well with a wooden spoon or whisk and bring to the boil mixing continuously. Draw the pan to the side of the stove and allow to simmer slowly and evenly.
2. Meanwhile, place the salt pork in a pan and fry to extract the fat, add the vegetables and flavourings and fry until light brown in colour. Carefully drain off the fat and put the ingredients into the sauce; deglaze the pan with the wine, reduce it by half and also add to the sauce. Allow to simmer gently for 1 hour skimming frequently.
3. Pass the sauce through a conical strainer into another pan, pressing lightly. Add another 2 litres ( 3 1/2 pt or 9 U.S. cups) stock, bring to the boil and allow to simmer gently for a further 2 hours. Pass the sauce through a fine strainer and stir occasionally until completely cold.
4. The next day, add the remainder of the stock and the tomato puree.; bring the sauce to the boil stirring continuously with a wooden spatula or whisk, then allow to simmer gently and evenly for 1 hour skimming carefully.
Pass through a fine strainer or tammy cloth and stir occasionally until the sauce is completely cold.
NOTES:
1. The time required for the preparation and refining of this sauce cannot be indicated exactly as it depends to a large extent on the quality of the stock used in its making. The refining of this sauce will be quicker if the stock is of very good quality in which case an excellent Espagnole can be prepared in five hours.
2. Before adding tomato puree to this sauce it is advisable to spread the required quantity on a tray and to cook it in the oven until it turns a light brown colour. This will destroy most of the excess acidity found in tomato purees, and when prepared in this way, the puree assists in clarifying the sauce and at the same time dives it a smoother taste and a more agreeable colour."
---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Auguste Escoffier, [1907] The first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaire in its entirely, [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 7)

[1920]
"Brown, Espagnole or Spanish Sauce (Sauce Brune Espagnole).

Espagnole or Spanish sauce is a leading sauce from which many smaller ones are made. To obtain a good espagnole, it is necessary to have good stock (No. 421); in case there be no stock specially prepared for this purpose, use good clear broth. For four quarts of stock, melt in a saucepan one pound of butter, stir into it the same weight of very dry, good lfour, so as to obtain a clear paste; then let it cook for four or five minutes on the fire, without cerasing to stir, and afterward set it back to a very slow fire, or in a slack oven, to let it get a good dark brown color, being careful to move it about ovten. When the roux is cooked, take it from the oven and dilute with the prepared stock not having it too hot, and stir the lqiuid abian over the fire to brint it to a boil. Should the sauce not be sufficiently smooth--should any lumps appear in it, then strain it through a fine sieve, and put it back into the saucepan; and at the first boil, set it on one side so that it only boils partially, and let it despumate in this way for two or three hours. Skim off well the fat, and strain the broth into a vessel to let get cold, meanwhile stirring frequently."" ---The Epicurean, Charles Ranhofer [Hotel Monthly Press:Evanston IL] 1920 (p. 294)
[NOTE: The Oxford English Dictionary defined the verb "To Depsumate" thusly "To skim; to free (a liquid) of the scum, froth, or other impure part; to clarify by removing the scum." The term dates to 1651.]

[1941]
"Brown sauce.

This sauce is the base of all brown sauces for meat and poultry.
1 cup butter or good fat
2/3 cup flour
6 cups boiling brown gravy or water
1 cup Tomato Sauce
2 or 3 tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
10 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon thyme
3 sprigs parsley
3 stalks celery
2 chopped onions and 2 chopped carrots, browned in butter
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Chicken, veal or beef bones
1 glass dry sherry or Madiera
Melt the butter in a saucepan and brown carrots and onions in it. Mix in the flour and let cook until golden brown. Add the boiling brown gravy or water and mix well with a wire whip. Add the Tomato Sauce, tomatoes, salt, peppercorns, bay leaves, thyme, parsley, celery and garlic. In order to give the sauce a rich brown color, roast some chicken, veal or beef bones in the oven. The add the bones to the sauce and let boil slowly over low heat for 2 or 3 hours. Skim from time to time. Strain the sauce and correct the seasoning. When ready to serve, strain again through a fine strainer and add a glass of dry sherry or Madiera. This sauce will keep for weeks in a refrigerator. N.B. Whenever any good meat of poultry gravy is left over, set it aside as it will be very useful in making all kinds of Brown Sauce."
---Cooking a la Ritz, Louis Diat [J.B. Lippincott Company:Philadelphia] 1941 (p. 87-8)

[1961]
"Espagnole sauce I (based on meat stock)
...For 2 1/2 quarts (litres): 4 quarts (litres) of warm, light brown stock and 3/4 cup (300 grams) of brown roux. Mix and boil over a brisk heat. Reduce the heat, add a mirepoix made up of 1 medium-large carrot 9125 grams) and 1 medium-small onion (75 grams) cut in dice and fried lightly, with 4 strips (75 grams) of streaky (lean) bacon also cut in dice. Put in this mirepoix a sprig of thyme and half a bay leaf, and before adding it to the mirepoix pour off the bacon fat, dilute the pan juices with 1/2 cup (1 decilitre) of white wine and add to the sauce. Cook the Espagnole very gently for 2 1/2 hours, skimming frequently. Cook the Espagnole very gently for 2 1/2 hours, skimming frequently. Put through a fine strainer, pressing the vegetables well to extract their juice. Put back in a pot and add 3 to 4 cups (6 to 8 decilitres) to stock. Cook for 2 1/2 hours, skimming frequently. Strain the sauce into a basin. Stir with a wooden spoon until it is cold. The next day put the Espagnole back to cook again after having added to it a quart (litre) of stock and a pint (1/2 litre) of tomato puree. Mix well, cook very slowly for an hour, skim often, so as to obtain a brilliant textured sauce. Remove all grease, strain through a cloth. Use according to the instructions in the particular recipe."
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 841-842)
[NOTE: (1) Recipe for Espagnole Sauce II (based on fish stock) follows. (2) What is
Mirepoix?]


Demi-glace & brown sauces
Demi-glace descends from
Espagnole. The traditional recipe is complicated and requires much time. Modern chefs sometimes create a Brown deglazing sauce, a quicker way to achieve approximate results. Brown sauces are often flavored with tomatoes, fortified red wine (Madeira, Port), white wine, mushrooms/truffles.

What is demi-glace?
"Glace de viande) and demi-glace, two French culinary terms which are less closely connected than might be supposed but which can be conveniently be treated together. Glace de viande is meat glaze, a greatly reduced meat stock which has a syrupy consistency and can be used to impart its flavour and a shiny surface to appropriate savoury dishes, and to give additional flavour and body to sauces. References to this meat glaze at the beginnning of the 19th century include Viard (1806), who describes how a veal stock which has been reduced to the consistency of a sauce can be used as a seasoning, and Beauvilliers (1814), who uses a little brush of chicken feathers to brush his meat glaze...Demi-glace is not a base of lesser or greater concentration...but a sauce. To be precise, it is an Espagnole sauce which has been reduced by boiling before further dilution with a clear meat stock. The distinction is made quite clear by Escoffier...In the course of the 20th century certain French chefs 'revised' the classic demi-glace, making it in simpler fashion...Guerard's Cuisine minceur (1976) has instructions for glace and demi-glace..."
---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson, 2nd edition Tom Jaine editor [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2006 (p. 340)

"Demi-Espagnole...Careme means what today is called demi-glace. 'Pour half the grande espagnole into a saucepan with the same volume of good clear chicken soup to which has been added the trimmings of mushrooms and truffles.' And Careme adds instructions for the preparation of this soup in a marginal note. 'The consomme is made with the carcases and giblets of two chickens, moistened with good stock (too much salt must be particularly avoided). Next, add a carrot, a couple of onions, and, after having skimmed it carefully, let it simmer. About two hours later, strain it through muslin or sieve without pressure. Leave it to stand, and then strain it thoroughly before using. 'Put the saucepan on a hot fire and stir with a special espagnole wooden spoon until it is bubbling all over. Then move it to the corner of the stove; skim carefully and remove every trace of fat. In this state, leave it for a full three-quarters of an hour. After this, skim off the fat, and put the stock on a hot fire. Stir the espagnole with a wooden spoon, to prevent it from boiling over, which will otherwise happen because of the very rapid boiling necessary to preserve as far as possible the essence which is really the palpable spirit of the sauce. While working the sauce, you will see it gradually taking on that brilliant glaze which delights the eye when it first appears. Finally, when it is suitably reduced, strain through a tammy cloth.."
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 346)

[1907]
"18. Sauce Demi-glace

This sauce, commonly referred to as Demi-glace, is made with Espagnole which is brought to a final stage of perfection by further careful simmering and skimming. It should be finished at the last moment with a little meat or other glaze. Demi-glace can be flavoured with various wines such as sherry, port and Madeira. The additoin of a particualr wine naturally changes the flavour and character of the Demi-glace and will decide its ultimate use. It is avvisable to add the wine being used at the last moment; by boiling the sauce the aroma of the wine will be destroyed by evaporation. ---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Auguste Escoffier, [1907] The first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaire in its entirely, [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 8)

[ 1920]
"413. Half-Glaze Sauce, Clear and Thickened.(Sauce demi-galce Claire et liee).

A half-glaze sauce only differes form an espagnole by its lightness. Thsi sauce is generally made in large quanitites at a time, so as not to begin it so frequently,a s it requires the utmost care in its preparation. Heat in a saucepan one pound of clarified butter, and when it is very hot fill it up with flour so as to obtain a paste rather too light than otherwise; thicken it well while stirring for a few minutes on the fire, and then set it aside in a warm part to cook and brwon very slowly, without adhering to the bottom of the pan, and without letting it get black. Five or six hours after, pour it into a vessel, cover it with paper, abd let this roux stand to get cool. To make the sauce: dilute the roux very slowly, with some beef stock (no. 194a), having it only slightly warm, and preapred for this purpose, and finish it exactly like espagnole, it must be as clear as possible and of a light color; strain and skim it well. Stir the liquid over the fire to thicken the sauce, managing not to have any lumps in it, and should it not be perfectly smooth, then starin it through a fine colander. Pour four ounces of butter in a saucepan, add to it four ounces each of sliced carrots, onions and celery root; the same quantity of lean ham cut in quarter inch squares, a bundh of parsley garnished with bay leaves, thyme and allspice, fry without coloring, pour the sauce over the whole, add four gills of good white, dry wine, and a qaurter of a pound of mushroom parings, and let all boil while stirring, then remove it at once to the side of the range, and continue boiling on one side only, so as to be able to despumate it properly for several hours. Strain and but as much of this as is needed into a reducing saucepan with two gills of meat glaze (No. 401); boil, reduce it to the necessary degree, using a spatula to stir it from the bottom, without leaving it for once instant, incorporate slowly into it a little good veal bond (No. 423) and small quantiy of good white wine. When the sauce is succulent without being too thick, strain it through a tammy and pour it into a vessel, or else into a a saucepan to keep warm in a bain-marie. Clear Half-Glace Thickened.--Have a quart of well-reduced clear gravy (No. 404); put it on the fire to boil add six tablespoonfuls and skim it carefully, adding two tablespoonfuls of fecula, arrowroot, or cornstarch, diluted in a little cold water, pouring it slowly into the stock while stirring it with a whip; boil again, skim and strain through a fine sieve; set it on a bain-marie and cover the top with some Madeira wine."
---The Epicurean, Charles Ranhofer [Hotel Monthly Press:Evanston IL] 1920 (p. 293-294)
[NOTE: The Oxford English Dictionary defined the verb "To Depsumate" thusly "To skim; to free (a liquid) of the scum, froth, or other impure part; to clarify by removing the scum." The term dates to 1651.]

[1961]
"Demi-glace sauce or rich brown sauce
.--Cook down by two-thirds 2 1/2 cups (5 decilitres) of Espagnole sauce...to which 4 cups (8 decilitres) of clear brown stock hae been added. At the last moment remove from heat, add 1/4 cul (1/2 decilitre) of Madeira. Strain through a cloth. Note: A handful of mushroom skins may be added during cooking."
---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 840)

espagnole or, in its more concentrated form, sauce demi-glace. These rich sauce bases used to be prepared in restaurants in quantity so that they would be ready for the sauce chef to use as the essential raw material for creating the so-called small brown sauces such as bordelaise, periguex or Robert. Indeed, before World War II, every restaurant in France that produced classic meals produced espagnole. This, however, forced and employe to spend literally hours at a time skimming the scum off the top of a slowly simmering gigantic pot. Espagnole is a flour-bound (flour –thickened) sauce, and flour throws off scum. Flour also makes and already rich liquid even heavier. After the postwar recover, labor costs rose steeply. It was no longer practical to tie up even an apprentice at this eternal skimming vigil. Diners, moreover, no longer were eating so heavily. They were demanding both elegance and lightness at table. Ergo, espagnole and demi-glace went the ways of the bustle. Today, if you mention these dark, rich gravies to a Paul Bocuse or a Georges Blanc, they smile and say, ‘We don’t do things that way anymore. We just make jus de veau lie.’ Now jus de veau lie was not born yesterday. Escoffier ran a recipe for this highly reduced veal stock too, so that the culinary revolution, or at least this aspect of it, did grow naturally out of the past. The young French chefs fastened on jus de veau lie because it solved both of their major problems. It involved much less labor, and it has no flour in it…
---"How 20 Pounds of Meat and Bones Becomes 2 Quarts of Sauces: Jus De Veau Lie…," Raymond A. Sokolov, New York Times, February 22, 1973 (p. 34)

[1907]
19. Jus de Veau lie--Thickened Veal Gravy.

T make 1 litre (1 3/4 pr or 4 1/2 U.S. cups)
ingredients:
4 litres (7 pt or 8 3/4 U.S. pt) Brown Veal Stock
30 g (1 oz) arrowroot
Preparation:
Bring the stock to the boil then allow it to reduce by three-quarters to yield 1 litre (1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups). Dilute the arrowroot in a little cold stock, stir into the boiling stock and cook for 1 minutes. Pass through a fine strainer.
Note: This gravy which is frequently referred to throughout this book should have a clean taste, be transparent and have a pleasing light brown colour." ---Le Guide Cuilinaire, Escoffier, first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell & R.J. Kaufmann, 1907 edition [John Wiley:New York] 1979

[1973]
Just de Veau Lie

[1973]
Jus de Veau lie 6 pound veal shoulder
2 carrots
4 medium onions
2 medium leeks
½ stalk small celery
6 sprigs parsley
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme
2 cloves
1 tablespoon salt
2 strips arrowroot
½ cup Madeira
Have the butter cut the veal shank into as small pieces as possible. Cut meat away from bones.
Take roughly two-thirds of the shank bones and put them in a large stock pot. Tie up the meat form these bones with two-thirds of the veal shoulder and put it into the pot. Add hot water to cover, bring to a boil (straddling the pot over more than one burner will speed this), skim and add 1 carrot, 2 onions (quartered), 2 leeks, the celery, 3 sprigs parsley, 1 bay leaf, ½ teaspoon thyme, the cloves and the salt.
Reduce heat and simmer very slowly for about 2 ½ hours.
Remove meat and bones from pot and discard. Strain liquid. Clean stock pot. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Cut the remaining carrot and onions into thick rounds and spread them over the bottom of the stock pot. Similarly, cover the bottom with the pork rind strips.
Cut remaining veal shank meat and veal shoulder into rough chunks. Arrange them in the pot along with the remaining bones.
Check volume of liquid produced at Step 4. Add water to it, if necessary, to bring the total up to 6 quarts. pour two cups of this liquid into the stockpot and put stockpot into the oven. As soon as the liquid has completely reduced, add another two cups. Let it reduce completely as well. There will be a residue of fat at the bottom each time.
Remove stock pot from oven. Add to it the rest of the liquid from Step 4, and remaining parsley, bay leaf and 1/2 teaspoon thyme. Bring to a boil, skim and simmer partly covered for 3 hours. Skim occasionally.
Strain through a chinois or other fine strainer, having discarded bones and other solids. It is even better to lay a folded clean dish towel over the strainer. Cool and refrigerate strained stock overnight.
Dicard layer of fat that has formed on top of the stock. Reserve on cup stock and bring rest to a boil. Reduce to 2 quarts of liquid.
Dissolve arrowroot in cup of reserved cold stock and then stir mixture into hot stock. Simmer for one minute longer and pour through a fine strainer.
Pour Madeira into stock and freeze in small containers.
Yield: A little more than 2 quarts."
---"How 20 Pounds of Meat and Bones Becomes 2 Quarts of Sauces: Jus De Veau Lie…," Raymond A. Sokolov, New York Times, February 22, 1973 (p. 34)

Brown deglazing sauce (aka caramelized pan sauce, when method is examined) descends from Sauce Espagnole and demi-glace. Both date to the 17th century. The instructions are modern and less complicated than traditional French cuisine.

"Brown deglazing sauce. This sauce is made by dissolving the coagulated cooking juices in a roasting or sauteeing pan with wine or stock after the meat has been removed. The liquid is boiled down until it is syrupy. Off heat a lump of butter is swirled in to give the sauce a slight liaison. It is one of the most delicious, useful, and simple of all brown sauces, and is described in countless recipes."
---Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle and Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1963 (p. 76)

Escoffier uses this method for some of his finer beef dishes.
"2298. Tournedos and Medaillons. The name Medaillion is another term for Tournedos...Whenever Tournedos are cooked by shallow frying (Saute), the pan used should be deglazed with a liquid or gravy which should be in keeping with the sauce required, e.g. red wine, white wine, Madeira, mushroom cooking liquor, truffle essence, etc."
------The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A. Escoffier, originally published in 1907, translated by H.L. Cracknell and R. J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New YOrk] 1997 (p. 280)
[NOTES: (1) Several recipes follow. Many include fortified wine (Madeira), mushrooms & tomatoes. (2) Escoffier's Mediallions are generally served on round Crouton of bread fried in clarified butter.]


Gastrique
Sweet and sour pairings transcend time and place. Recipes reflect time and place. Think:
Ancient Roman inspired Vinaigrette, Duck a l'orange, tangy Chinese dishes and Pennsylvania Dutch tables balancing Seven Sweets with Seven Sours.

Sweet and sour pairings, including sauces, are native to several cuisines. Most notably China, France, and Pennsylvania Dutch. One of the foundations of classic French cuisine is sweetened vinegar dressings. Gastrique, as we Americans know it today, appears to be a relatively new iteration on this culinary theme. Escoffier does not offer a recipe. "Gastrique. A reduced mixture of vinegar and sugar used in the preparation of hot sauces accompanying dishes made with fruit (such as duck with orange). Gastrique is prepared by heating the ingredients together (seasoning as necessary) until the liquid has almost entirely evaporated."
---Larousse Gastronomique, completely revised and updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 545)
[NOTE: This term does not show up in the 1961 USA or UK editions.]

"When it comes to blending savory foods with fruits and berries--duck a l'orange, duck with cherries and the like--there is not much neutral ground. There are those who deplore such combinations and those who find them delightful. I am a member of good standing in this group... In cooking the [Calf's Liver With Grapes] I used a preparation, called a gastrique, that is commonly a part of the preparation of duck a l'orange and related dishes. Made by blending a little vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and cooking until the liquid evaporates and the sugar takes on a la light caramel color, it provides a trace of sweet and sour as well as a bit of color to a sauce."
---"60-Minute Gourmet, Pierre Franey, New York Times, October 17, 1984 (p. C3)


Hard sauce
Culinary evidence confirms cooks have been pairing warm puddings with sweet sauces from Medieval times forward. Then, as now, recipes varied. The general purpose, in some cases, was to make the pudding more palatable and pleasing to the eye. Traditional recipes for bread and rice puddings include these ingredients. These dishes were often served to young, invalids, and aged because they were considered easy to digest and chew. Repurposing restorative properties for holiday steamed puddings makes perfect senese. The sometime addition of alcoholic ingredients (sack, brandy, rum, Madeira) also makes sense. In those days, small amounts of alcohol were considered medicinal . Hard Sauce, as we know it today, descends from these traditions.
Plum Pudding is traditionally served with Hard Sauce.

What is "hard sauce?"
"Hard sauce. A dessert topping made with butter, confectioners' sugar, eggs, and vanilla, dating in print to 1880."
---Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, John F. Mariani [Lebhar-Friedman:New York] 1999 (p. 150)
[NOTE: This explains why early cookbooks don't have recipes with this title. A careful examination of earlier recipes traces the evolution of the practice as well as the names. In the 19th century "Pudding Sauce" was the common name for what we know today as "Hard Sauce."]

Why call it "hard sauce?"
Two possible explanations, the first makes more sense. (1) The sauce, because it is butter based, can be whipped to a standing ("hard") consistency. (2) "Hard" refers to the alcoholic ingredients, as in the opposite of "soft." The fact that hard sauces do not always contain alcohol suggest the appellation was not revering to the liqueur.

[1747]
"A Boiled Rice Pudding...When boiled, turn them in a Dish, and pour melted Butter over them, with a little Sack, and throw Sugar all over."
"A Cheap Rice Pudding...when it is enough, turn it into your Dish, and pour melted Butter and Sugar over it, with a little Nutmeg."
---The Art of Cookery Made Plain & Easy, Hannah Glasse, facsimile 1747 edition [Prospect Books:Devon] 1995 (p. 111)

[1824]
"Curd pudding...turn them out carefully in your dish, stick thin slices of citron in them, and pour on rich melted butter, with sugar and wine." "The Henrietta Pudding...when done, sift some powdered sugar over it."
---Virginia Housewife, Mary Randolph, facsimile 1824 edition, with historical notes and commentaries by Karen Hess [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia SC] 1984 [(p. 150-1)

[1829] "304. Custard-Sauce for rice, bread, sago, or custard puddings, or fruit pies.--Stir in a pint of sweet cream in a very clean sauce-pan till it comes to boil. Mix into it the beat yolks of two eggs with a drop of cold cream, and some fine-powdered sugar; pour backwards and forward from the sauce-pan to a basin to prevent curdling, and let it just come to the ever of boiling, constantly stirring it. Serve the sauce in a china basin, and grate a little nutmeg on the top of it. Butter and flour may be added to thicken it.
"305. Caudle sauce for a plum or marrow pudding. A glass of white wine, a half-glass of brandy or old rum, or rum-shrub, pounded sugar to taste, the trate of a lemon, and a little cinnamon, stirred into a little thickened melted butter; sprinkle a little cinnamon on top.
"306. Pudding-Sauce.-- a store-sauce. A pint of canary, sherry, or Madeira. a quarter-pint of old rum (pine-apple is best,) or of good brandy; a quarter-pint of Curcacao, a half ounce of good lemon-peel, the same quantity of Seville orange-peel, and half an ounce of mace. Strain it, and add a half-pint of rich clarified syrup. Bottle for use. This may be mixed with wine, cream, thin syrup, eau sure, &c., for a sauce to many sorts of puddings and sweet made-dishes."
---Cook and Housewife's Manual, Meg Dods (Mrs. Isobel Christian Johnston 1781-1857), facsimile 1829 4th edition [Rosters Ltd.:London] 1988 (p. 245-246)

[1837]
"Cold Sweet Sauce. Stir together, as for a poundcake, equal quantities of fresh butter and powdered white sugar. When quite light and creamy, add some powdered cinnamon or nutmeg, and the juice of a lemon. Send it to table in a small deep plate with a tea-spoon in it. Eat it with batter pudding, bread pudding, Indian pudding, &c. whether baked or boiled. Also with boiled apple pudding or dumplings, and with fritters and pancakes."
"Cream Sauce Boil a pint and a half of rich cream with four table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar, some powdered nutmeg, and a dozen bitter almonds or peach kernels slightly broken up, or a dozen fresh peach leaves. As soon as it has boiled up, take it off the fire and strain it. If it is to be eaten with boiled pudding or with dumplings send it to table hot, but let it get quite cold if you intend it as an accompaniment to fruit pies or tarts."
"Wine Sauce "Have ready some rich thick melted or drawn butter, and the moment you take it from the fire, stir in two large glasses of white wine, two table-spoonfuls of powdered white sugar, and a powdered nutmeg. Serve it up with plum pudding, or any sort of boiled pudding that is made of a batter."
---Directions for Cookery in its Various Branches, Eliza Leslie [Henry Carey Baird:Philadelphia] 1852 (p. 169-170)

[1853]
"Superior Sauce for Plum Pudding. Beat the yolks of six eggs with four spoonsful of sifted sugar and butter mixed together; have ready a point of boiling cream to mix with your yolks; afterwards put it on the fire and stir it until it is of the consistency of sauce, then add to it a good wineglass of brandy."
"A Rich Wine Sauce Rub to a cream four large spoonsful of good brown sugar, and two large spoonsful of butter; stir it into a tea-cup of hot water; pour this into a very clean sauce pan, and set it on some doals; stir it steadily until it boils, then add either rose water or lemon juice to flavour it; then give it another quick boil, and add a wine-glass of wine and brandy mixed; if stirred properly a rich foam will be on the top; before sending it to table, grate on the sauce a little nutmeg, after it is in the turreen. The reason why the stirring is necessary while cooking, is to prevent the butter becoming oily."
---Cookery as it Should Be, A Practical Housekeeper [Willis P. Hazard:Philadelphia] 1853 (p. 223-225)

[1878]
"Hard Sauce. This is made simply by stirring together to a light cream to cups of pounded loaf sugar to hapf of a large cup of sweet butter. It may be flavored according to taste. For cream and plain batter pudding it may be thinned with a few spoonsgul of boiling water and flavored with vanilla. Nutmeg is the best flavor for apple puddings. For rice puddings a little lemon juice or wine may be added."
---Jennie June's American Cookery Book, Jennie June (Mrs. J.C. Croly) [American News Company:unplaced] 1878 (p. 168)

[1884]
"Hard Sauce (for hard puddings).
1/4 cup butter.
1/2 cup powdered sugar.
1/2 teaspoon lemon or vanilla, or a little nutmeg.
Rub the butter to a cream in a warm bowl; add the sugar gradually, then the flavoring. Pack it smootly in a hard dish, and stamp it with a butter mould or the bottom of a figured glass. Keep it on ice till very hard. Or pile it lightly on a small fancy, dish, and you may call it Snowdrift Sauce."
---Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D.A. Lincoln, facsimile 1884 reprint [Dover Publications:Mineola NY] 1996 (p. 328)
[NOTE: This book offers an entire chapter titled "Pudding Sauces" with 12 recipes, includine "Wine Sauce."]

[1892]
"Sauce for Plum Pudding: Two tablespoonfuls butter, One cup powdered sugar, Half cup boiling water and windeglassful brandy. Cream the butter and sugar, and add the brandy and boiling water, set the vessel containing the sauce in a saucepan of boiling water and beat until very light. If you object to brandy you may substitute the juice of one large or two small lemons."
---"For the Christmas Dinner," Christine Terhune Herrick, Chicago Daily Tribune, December 18, 1892 (p. 44)

[1923]
"A few years ago my brother expressed himself as highly in favor of hard sauce with pudding and I had guessed that this was a favorite sauce with men. There are, of course, hard sauces and hard sauces, although some people think there can be no variation or shadow of turning in this recipe from the mixture sugar, butter and flavor. one-third cup of butter to one cup of sugar is sufficient, although one-half cup is used and some persons use as much as one cup of butter. I prefer granulated sugar, but many prefer powdered, and some use brown. One eminent authority gives as a sauce for English plum pudding this: One-third cup of butter, one cup of brown sugar, two tablespoons of brandy. As always the butter is creamed, the sugar gradually worked into it, the brandy dropped drop by drop. This sauce may be used in a pastry tube, as can most hard sauces. It is used with apple fritters and so forth as well as with puddings. Fresh or preserved fruit may be added to hard sauces. Beaten egg whites may be folded into them, or whipped cream. A hard sauce of interesting character may be made with corn sirup and butter and nothing but the old fashioned nutmeg flavor."
---"Daily Cook Book: sauces for Puddings," Jane Eddington, Washington Post, November 30, 1923 (p. 12)

[1943]
"This year's steamed puddings come to table without their hard sauce. The long popular 'hard' sauce, which is no harder than the butter from which it's made, is extinct. We have less luxurious uses for that precious, 16 point golden stuff. Pudding sauces come sans butter, but now and they may have a tablespoonful of margarine in them, for richness.
Lemon Pudding Sauce
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups boiling water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Grated lemon rind
Margarine [optional]
Mix sugar and cornstarch, add boiling water and salt. Cook and stir until thickened and crear. Add nutmeg, lemon juice and a few gratings of rind. Add from 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon margarine, if you can spare it. Serve warm over steamed pudding. This is a large recipe, but the sauce keeps well. Put what you don't use in a pin jar and keep it in the refrigerator to use with the reheated steamed pudding for a later meal."
---"Top Steamed Puddings with Lemon Sauce," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, November 8, 1943 (p. 19)

[1948]
"For those plum puddings we must have sauce. Hard sauce, lemon sauce, and brandy sauce probably are the three favorites. Some sauces can be made up weeks before they are used, and need only reheating, but any kind containing a large proportion of butter, like hard sauce, egg, or foamy sauce, should not be made too early...
Hard Sauce
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Dash of nutmeg
Cream butter until very plastic, work in sugar, and add flavoring and nutmeg.
Rum or Brandy Hard Sauce
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons brandy
1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
3 or 4 drops of rose water
Beat egg whites with salt until stiff and gradually beat in sugar until mixture forms peaks. Fold in brandy and other flavorings. Rose water may be purchased at a drug store."
---"Plum Pudding Needs a Sauce; Here a Few," Mary Meade, Chicago Tribune, December 22, 1948 (p. A7)


Hollandaise
Food historians generally agree that Hollandaise sauce was a French invention, most likely dating to the mid-18th century. Why the reference to Holland? This country (or more broadly the Netherlands) was famous for its fine butter and good eggs.

"Hollandaise. One of the most prominent suaces in the group of those which are thickened by the use of egg yolk. The fact that such a sauce will curdle if heated beyond a certain point is largely responsible for their reputation of being difficult. McGee (book: Curious Cook)...has investigated both the history and the chemistry of the sauce. He reports that one of the earliest versions which he found, " sauce a la hollandoise", in the 1758 edition of Marin's Dons de Comus, calls only for butter, flour, bouillon, and herbs; no yolks at all'...Sauces which are derived from, or can be regarded as variations of, hollandaise include: sauce aux capres, maltaise, mousseline, moutarde (Dijon mustard)."
---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 383)

It is interesting to note that the classic Dutch cookbook De Verstandige Kock (The Sensible Cook), circa 1683, contains several recipes for sauce meant for fish featuring butter, spices, verjus/lemon juice or wine. Few of these list eggs as an ingredient:

[1683]
"To Make a Sauce for a Boiled Sturgeon.

Take youg Onion cooked in Butter, Chervil, Parsley, Pepper, and Wine vinegar, let it cook together. It is a good sauce." (p. 70)
To stew small Bundles of Young Eels with Herbs.
Split the Eel open and wash clean. Take Sorrel, Chervil, and Parsley, some Rice, a little Mace, tied close [and] boiled in water, some Salt in it. When the Eel floats then take it out and place on an earthenware collander and a sauce of Butter and Vinegar with an Egg is poured over it. Is good." (P. 69)
---The Sensible Cook: Dutch Foodways in the Old and New World, Translated and Edited by Peter G. Rose [Syracuse University Press:Syracuse NY] 1989

[1869]
"Dutch Sauce, or Sauce Hollandaise

Take 4 oz. of the freshest butter;
First reduce, in a quart of stewpan, 2 tablespoonfuls of vinegar, seasoned with 1 pinch of salt, and 1 small pinch of mignonnette pepper; when reduced to a teaspoonful, take it off the fire; add 2 tablespoonfuls of cold water, and 2 yolks of egg, well freed from white; replace on the fire for a minute, stirring well, with a wooden spoon; avoid boiling; take off the fire, and add a sixth part of the cold butter, and stir till melted; then put again on the fire for a minute, and add another sixth part of the butter; repeat this process until all the butter is used, mixing occasionally a tablespoonful of cold water, to prevent the sauce getting too thick or curdling.
Sedason according to taste; and serve.
Observations.--It is often the case that flour, potato-flour, or even melted butter, is mixed with Dutch Sauce; these additions, whilst needlessly increasing the work, only tend to destroy the character of the sauce, which should have not other bases than yolk of egg and butter. To epicures, well-made Hollandaise is the first of the white sauces."
---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marson:London] 1869 (p. 61-62)

[1907]
"119. Sauce Hollandaise

Place 4 tbs water and 2 tbs vinegar in a pan with a pinch each of coarsely ground pepper and salt. Reduce it by two-thirds and remove the pan to the side of the stove or place it in a Bain-marie. Add 1 tbs water and 5 yolks of egg to the reduction and whisk continuously over gentle heat whilst gradually adding 500g (1 lb 2 oz) soft or melted butter, ensuring the cohesion and emulsification of the sauce by the profressive cooking of the yolks. Add a few drops of water occasionally and as necessary during the mixing of the sauce so as to ensure its lightness. Correct the seasoning with salt if necessary and add a few drops of lemon juice. Pass through a fine strainer and keep at a lukewarm temperature so as to prevent the sauce from separating. This sauce is specially suitable for serving with fish and vegetables. Note: It is advisable to increase the amount of water in the reductin if there is any doubt about the quality of the vinegar but it is essential that a reduction is made; the required amount of acidity can be obtained by the addition of more lemon juice."
---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A. Escoffier, originally published in 1907, translated by H.L. Cracknell and R. J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1997 (p. 21)

[1961]
"Hollandaise Sauce I (for vegetables, fish and eggs).

Sauce Hollandaise.--Boil down by two-thirds in a small saucepan 1/2 cup (1 decilitre) of water with a pinch of salt and a pinch of mignonette pepper (coarsely ground pepper). Let the bottom of the saucepan cool a little, then add 5 raw egg yolks, beaten slightly with a tablespoon of water. Beat up the sauce with a whisk over a very gentle heat. As soon as the yolks thicken to a creamy consistency add, little by little and beating all the time. 1 pound (500 grams) of melted butter, just lukewarm. Add 2 tablespoons of water, a few drops at a time. Season the sauce, sharpen it to the desired point with a few drops of lemon juice and strain thorugh a cloth. Keep in a bain-marie (double boiler). Note. The water can be replaced with half water and half vinegar. Hollandaise sauce can be made in a bain-maire (double boiler).

"Hollandaise Sauce II (Old recipe)
...'Put into a saucepan 5 egg yolks, a little fine butter, salt, pepper and grated nutmeg; place the saucepan on a pan with some almost boiling water in it, or simply stand it over a very low heat. Stir the sauce constantly with a wooden spoon, and as it develops more and more body mix in small quantities of Isigny butter. After having added more than half a pound, mix in a spoonful of ordinary vinegar.' (A. Careme, L'Art de la cuisine francaise au XIXe siecle.)

"Hollandaise Sauce supreme (Old recipe)
...'Break 5 egg yolks into a saucepan, blend in a little best butter, salt, fine pepper, grated nutmeg, 2 tablespoons of Allemande sauce and 1 tablespoon of chicken glaze. Stir this sauce over a very low heat, and as it continues to thicken, add to it a little butter in 2 or 3 operations, taking care to stir all the time. At the moment of serving pour in a little good ordinary vinegar and add a good piece of butter.' (A. Careme, L'Art de la cuisine francaise au XIXe siecle.)
---Larousse Gastronomique Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 855-856)

Related sauce: Bearnaise.

Mustard

  • Ancient Greece & Rome
  • China
  • India
  • Europe
  • France & Dijon
  • England
  • America
  • honey mustard
  • What is mustard?
    Mustard is a plant. Mustard is an herb. Mustard is a condiment. Mustard is a sauce. Mustard is a
    green leafy vegetable. Mustard is a natural medicine.

    Here, we address the condiment. Mustard seeds are pulverized to various degrees from course grinds to fine powder (aka mustard flour) and mixed with water, vinegar, milk/cream and spices to achieve the condiment we know today. Recipes vary according to place and taste. Dijon may be the epicenter of fine French mustards, but Ancient Romans, Greeks, Indians and Chinese enjoyed this condiment long before it reached France. Mustard powder first surfaces in the 18th century, creating a demand for "mustard in a minute." Cheap, flavorful, easily transported and universally consumed. Ketchup, the rivaling American condiment, was introduced in the 18th century; tomato ketchup, as we know it today, surfaces in the 19th.

    "Mustard. The name of several species of plant in the cabbage family. The seeds of three of them provide the condiment mustard. Several also have edible leaves...Some yield culinary oil. The thee plants grown for their seed are Sunapis alba, usually known as white or yellow mustard...Brassica nigra, usually called black mustard...and Brassica juncea, known as brown or Chinese mustard. The first two are native to Europe, the third originally Asian though now widely grown. The first and third now provide virtually all the commercial mustard. The sharp taste of mustard is due to the presence of various glycosides..." ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 524)

    Why do we call it mustard?
    "Mustard was originally made by mixing the roughly crushed hot-tasting seeds of various plants of the cabbage family with unfermented grap juice, or 'must'-- hence its name, which comes from Old French moustarde, a derivative of Latin mustrum, 'must.'"
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 221)
    [NOTE: What was
    Must?]

    "Mustard was the most popular condiment in the Middle Ages, and the most ancient and widespread as well...This recipe from Le Menagier de Paris holds the etymological key to the word 'mustard,' or moutard, which literally means mout adent, or 'fiery grape must': and mustard, the condiment, was long made by grinding mustard seed and grape must."
    ---The Medieval Kitchen: Recipes form France and Italy, Odile Redon, Francoise Sabban, and Silvano Serventi, translated by Edward Schneider [University of Chicago Press:Chicago IL] 1998 (p. 177)

    Symbolism & mythology
    "In biblical times, the people of Palestine cultivated black mustard largely for its seeds, which they used to make oil for the ritual purpose of anointing. The ancient Hebrews and other Eastern peoples used large quantities of this oil, so they highly esteemed their mustard seeds. not only did they use the oil for anointing but they used the seeds for healing aliments of all sorts. The ancient Greeks assigned mustard seeds far-ranging healing properties and attributed the discovery of mustard seeds to Asclepious, their highly revered god of medicine. The Greeks also used mustard seeds (because of mustard's 'fiery' nature) as an aphrodisiac...Pythagoras recommended them as an antidote to poison...Early peoples of England and North America also used mustard seeds to counteract poison as well as to cure epilepsy, heart troubles, and toothaches; to cleanse the body; to clarify the blood and to relieve pain of gout...Ancient Middle Eastern legends recount tales of gigantic mustard plants...The mustard plant produced seeds smaller than any other seeds the people knew at the time; so the Hebrews...used the phrase grain of mustard to mean something infinitesimally small..In Hindu myths, mustard seeds enabled people to travel through the air, helped them locate treasures within the earth, and gave them the ability to effect transformations..."
    ---Nectar and Ambrosia: An Encyclopedia of Food in World Mythology, Tamra Andrews [ABC-CLIO:Santa Barbara CA] 2000 (p. 155-156)

    Ancient Greek & Roman mustards
    "Mustard was in use in northern Greece before 2000 BC and was thoroughly familiar in classical Greece and Rome. In ancient sources it is generally listed as herb, not a spice: this reflects its local origin and cheapness...and is generally the seed of mustard that is of most interest to humans. These seeds can be used directly in flavouring cooked dishes, but in Europe, certainly since Roman times, their usual fate is to form the main ingredient of a sauce with an unmistakable yellow colour, a biting taste and a tendency to make the nose smart. The earliest recipes for mustard sauce are given by Columella and Palladius; Columella already describes it as 'brightly coloured'. You ate it with ham, with other meats, and with certain fish including swordfish."
    ---Food in the Ancient World From A to Z, Andrew Dalby [Routledge:London] 2003 (p. 225)

    "Mustard cultivation is ancient; witness remains of seeds at the Mycenaen site in Greece, and in the prehistoric Swiss lake village of Morigin. The Greek writer Herodotus mentioned mustard as a cultivated plant in the 5th century B.C., and around AD 42 the Roman agricultural writer Columella described a method of preparing the condiment which is not unlike modern practice."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 524)

    Ancient Roman recipe sample
    "Mustard seed is carefully cleaned and sieved. Then the seed is washed in cold water and soaked for two hours. It is then taken out and the water is squeezed out by hand. Put the seed into a new, cleaned mortar, and pound it finely with a pestle. Once the mustard is finely ground, put it in the middle of the mortar and press it down with the palm of the hand. Once it has been pressed flat, make some incisions in it. Place a few burning colas on top of it, and pour over soda water, to draw out all the bitterness and pallor from the mustard. Then lift the mortar and pour out the soda water. Add strong vinegar and mix it through the mustard with the mortar. (Col[umella]. XII, 57). "
    ---Around the Roman Table: Food and Feasting in Ancient Rome, Patrick Faas [Palgrave Macmillan:New York] 1994, 2003 (p. 160)

    Chinese mustard
    "In China, white mustard seeds from the West...were being grown by the tenth century, but the hot Chinse mustard and even hotter Japanese mustard (karaschi) are made from brown mustard seed."
    ---Cambridge World History of Food, Kenneth F. Kiple & Kriemhild Conee Ornelas [Cambridge University Press:Cambridge] 2000, Volume Two (p. 1870) (p. 1820)

    Mustard seeds in India
    "Carbonized seeds of rai, Brassica juncea subsp. junea, have been discovered at the Indus Valley site of Chanhudaro dated about 1500 BC. Even today this seed, called mustard in India, is the major Indian brassica psecies...Sanskrit literature used in this context the term sarshapa, believed to be of even earlier aboriginal origin...Two kinds of seeds are mentioned. Rajika is certainly the rai of today, a reddish seed, and siddharta (also called svetasarshapa and gaura-sarshapa) is probably yellow sarson. In Indian rituals, mustard seeds have a connotation of disinfection...Commonly, all over India, the initial baghar operation begins wtih the frying of mustard seeds in hot oil till they cease to splutter, followed by the frying inthe same oil of chopped onions and perhaps other spices; after this comes the frying of meat, fish or vegetables; the mustard pungency is here mostly lost...The second way of using msutard seeds is to crush them into a paste in which meat, fish, or vegetables are marinated before being cooked into distincly spicy dishes. The Naishada Charita (c. AD 1000) describes a bowl of curd spiced so pungently with mistard...There is historic intereset in th fact that a long-standing Indian system of weights, recorded in the Manava Dharmashastra, starts with one peppercorn (likya); this equals one black mustard seed, and three of the latter are equal to one white mustard seed."
    ---A Historical Dictionary of Indian Food, K.T. Achaya [Oxford University Press:Delhi] 1998 (p. 168-169)

    Mustard in Europe
    "The Romans brought S. Alba and S. nigra to Britain, where both now grown in the wild. Mustard has always been important in Europe because it grows locally and is therefore the cheapest of spices. Medieval European courts often employed a mustardarius, an official who supervised the growing and preparation of mustard. The first sizeable commercial mustard businesses grew up in the mid-14th century France, around Dijon. The British mustard industry arose in Tewkesbury in the 16th century...The seed was ground, blended with horseradish, and formed into balls which would keep fairly well until broken up and mixed with vinegar, verjuice, wine, or other liquid...Since the Middle Ages there have been some developments of technology which has affected ways of using mustard, especially in Britain...Until the 18th century no one had found a way of drying the seeds enough for them to milled into a powder. The first successful process was developed by Mrs. Clements of Tewkesbury in 1720. Although this discover paved the way for the dominance in Britain of mustard powder, 'made mustard'...remained popular."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 524-5)

    "The mustard best known in Europe is the seed of white mustard, Brassica hirta (sometimes classified as Sinapis alba), a plant familiar in Greece at least four thousand years ago--a bag of mustard seeds turned up in the excavation of the Bronze Age site or Marmariani. An Egyptian find, of large numbers of mustard seeds in a twelfth-dynasty tomb, is almost as old as this. Until the beginning of the pepper trade, around 400BC, mustard...was certainly the hottest flavour in the Mediterranean. It was so hot, and so cheap, that fine Indian long pepper, hotter than black pepper and a very expensive item in Roman times, was sometimes 'fraudulently mixed with Egyptian mustard' on its way to Rome. European white mustard was attractive enough to others that white mustard had been transplanted to India and China by early medieval times. They had their own native mustards; these were so familiar that the ancient Indian law code Manusmrti names the smallest weight in the scale sarsapa 'one mustard seed'...The old French moustarde, origin of the English word, is first recorded in the thirteenth century. It originally denoted a prepared mustard sauce of just this type, but fruity as well as hot because it was made with 'must' or grape juice. Soon, in both French and English, 'mustard' came to be the new name of the plant as well. The sauce that people prefer varies from country to country, the hottest and the yellowest being the English kind--but some of the yellow comes from adding turmeric, and that is true of American mustard too. The making of moutarde de Dijon, the most popular French type, can be traced in Dijon to the fourteenth century."
    ---Dangerous Tastes: The Story of Spices, Andrew Dalby [University of California Press:Berkeley] 2000 (p. 133-4)

    [14th century Spanish Catalonia]
    "Mustard.
    Mustard our way: grind the mustard [seeds] and crush them, or grind them in a mill. Scald two or three times, and then grind it an mix with cold broth. And put in honey or sugar. If you want to make some in the French way, mix it with vinegar. And you can put in fruit syrup." ---The Book of Swent Sovi: Medieval Recipes from Catalonia, edited by Joan Santanach, translated by Robin Vogelzang [Barcino Tamesis:Barcelona Spain] 2008 (p. 191)
    [NOTE: Original Catalan text appears on p. 80)

    French mustards
    "French mustards are sold in the form of a paste; the main centre for production is Dijon, followed by Meaux, Orelans, and Bordeaux. In France, the term 'mustard' is reserved for the product obtained only from black or brown seeds (or both)...Black mustard then reached Gaul: and early 'recipe' appeared in the 4th century and spread to Burgundy...iIn 1390 the manufactre of mustard was governed by regulations: it had to be made from 'good seed and suitable vinegar,' without any other binder, The corporation of vinegar and mustard manufacterers was founded at the end of the 16th century at Orleans and in about 1630 at Dijon. In the 18th century, a Dijon manufacterer called Naigeon fixed the recipe for 'strong' or 'white' mustard, the production of which was synchronized with the wine harvest, as the black and grown seeds were mixed with verjuice. Today, Dijon mustard is prepared with verjuice and white wine, Orleans mustard with grape must (the French word for mustard is derives from mout adent, i.e. 'piquant must'). Meaux mustard, which owes its flavour and colour to coarsely crushed seeds of various colours, is prepared with vinegar, particularly at Lagny."
    ---Larousse Gastronomnique, edited by Jenifer Harvey Lang [Crown Publishers:New York] 1984 (p. 710-711)

    Medieval French recipe
    "Mustard. If you want to prepare a supply of mustard to keep for a long time, make it from fresh grape must at harvest time. And some say that the must should be boiled. Item: if you want to make mustard in a village [?], in a hurry, crush mustard seed in a mortar and moisten with vinegar, and put through a sieve, and if you want to use it as soon as it has been strained, put it into a pot near the fire. Item: and if you want to make it well, and taking the proper time, put the mustard seed to soak overnight in good vinegar, then crust it in a mill and add vinegar little by little; and if you have spices left over from making aspics, claret, hypocras, or sauces, grind them along with this and let it mature. (MP 229)"
    ---The Medieval Kitchen: Recipes From France and Italy, Odile Redon, Francoise Sabban, and Silvano Serventi, translated by Edward Schneider [University of Chicago Press:Chicago IL] 1998 (p. 177)
    [NOTE: Mustard was key ingredient in medieval French Sauce Robert.]

    [1873]
    "Dijon alone preserved Palladius' recipe, and if mustard was not invented there, at least Dijon restored it. When did the Dijonnais restore the indepensable condiment to the table? It is impossible to say. But under St. Louis the vinegarmakers were accorded the right to make mustard. In the thirteenth-century Cries of Paris, we find: Fine, good vinegar! Mustard vinegar! The sauce peddlers ran through the Paris streets at dinnertime, crying, 'Mustard sauce!...garlic sauce!...Scallion sauce!...Verjuice sauce!...Ravigote sauce!...' Anyone who wanted sauce for his meat opened his window, called the sauce seller, and was served immediately with the sauce of his choice...A manuscript of the thirteenth century refers to Dijon mustard. In the fourteenth century, Jean Millot included in his book of Proverbs: 'There is not town, if not Dijon. There is no mustard but in Dijon....When the Duke of Burgundy entertained King Philip of Valois with public celebrations, one hundred gallons of mustard were consumed at a single dinner...The earliest cookbook to appear in France, Le Viandier, by Taillevent, who was cook to Charles VII, praises mustard highly. His ancient French is difficult to read, but I have done it for you, and here is what he says: 'One evening after a great battle with the English, Charles VII, with his three inseparable companions, Dunois, La Hire, and Xaintrailles, came to lodge in the little town of Sainte-Menehould, of with only five or six houses remained standing, it having been put to the torch. The King and his suite were dying of hunger. there was nothing left in the ravaged countryside. Finally, four pig's feet and three chickens were procured. The King had no cook with him, and the wife of a poor toolmaker was entrusted with the preparation of the chickens. As for the pig's feet, they were simply laid on the grill. The good woman roasted the chickens, dipped them in beaten eggs, rolled them in bread crumbs with fines herbes, and covered them with a mustard sauce. The King and his companions left only bones. King Charles VII often afterward asked for chicken a la Sainte-Menehould. Taillevent understood perfectly what he meant, and prepared it exactly as the toolmaker's wife had done.' Louis XI, who loved to drop in unexpectedly for dinner on his companions, the bourgeois of Paris, nearly always carried his own pot of mustard with him. In the accounts of J. Riboteau, receiver-general of Burgundy, we find an order placed by him with a apothecary at Dijon for twenty pounds of mustard for the King's personal use...Louis XIV granted a coat of arms to mustard: funnel argent on azure."
    ---Alexandre Dumas' Dictionary of Cuisine, edited, abridged and translated by Louis Colman [Simon and Schuster:New York] 1958 (p. 171-173)
    [NOTE: (1) The entry for mustard is headnoted by the editor: "In the original, this article appears at the back of the book as an advertisement for the House of Alexandre Bpornibus 60 Boulevard de la Villette, Paris. It is signed at the head and tail by Alexandre Dumas. Other, more formal advertisements--for caterers, gold- and silversmiths, food purveyors, wines, patent medicines, etc.--do not have this distintion." (p. 169). (2) The entire entry runs from page 169-176).]

    English mustard
    "...it was [the Romans] who introduced [mustard] to Britain. It remained popular during the medieval period and beyond, not the least of its attractions being its cheapness compared with other hot spices that had been imported from far-distant lands. In those days Tewksbury grained a reputation for producing the finest mustard in England. But mustard-eating really took off in a big way in the nineteenth century when Coleman's of Norwich started marketing yellow mustard powder in tins for the masses. Henceforth a dab of made-up mustard sauce became almost as automatic an addition to British main courses as pepper and salt."
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 221)

    "Mustard, in the form which at present prevails in England, was not known before 1729. Its old English name was senvy, from sinapis. The seeds, either whole or coarsely pounded, were boiled in vinegar or must--whence the name, meaning a kind of pickle. The French to this day adhere much to the old form; they grind the seeds to a fine flour, mix them with tarragon vinegar, and prseent tem for use thus moistened. English mustard as we now have it was the invention of an old lady, Mrs. Celements of Durham. She ground the seeds in a mill exactly like wheat, and sold it as a very fine flour. She kept her secret and made a little fortune out of it, trotting about from town to town on a packhourse for orders, and contriving to secure the patronage of George I. From her place of manfactory it came to be called Durham mustard; thorugh in fact it was no longer mustard--that is, something steeped in must."
    ---Kettner's Book of the Table, E.S. Dallas, facsimile 1877 edition, preface by Derek Hudson [Centaur Press:London] 1968 (p. 308)

    [1830]
    "Mustard in a minute.--(No. 369)

    Mix very gradually, and rub together in a mortar, an ounce of flour of mustard, with three table-spoonfuls of milk (cream is better), half a tea-spoonful of salt, and the same of sugar; rub them well together till quite smooth. Mustard made in this manner is not at all bitter, and is therefore instantly ready for the table. N.B. It has been said that flour of mustard is sometiems adulterated with common flour, &c. &c."
    [NOTE: This recipe was copied verbatim, except for the N.B., in this American cook book: The Cook's Own Book, Mrs. N.K.M. Lee, facsimile 1832 edition [Arno Press:New York] 1972 (p. 118)

    "Mustard.--(No. 370) Mix (by degrees, bu rbbing totether in a moratr) the best Durham flour of mustard, with vinegar, white wine, or cold water, in which scraped horseradish has been boiled; rub it well toegher for at least ten minutes, till it is perfectly smooth; it will keep in a stone jar closely stopped, for a fortnight: only put as much into the mustard-pot as will be used in a day or two. The ready-made mustard prepared at the oil shops is mixed with about one-fourth part salt: this is done to preserve it, if it is to be kept long; otherwise, by all means, omit it....Obs. Mustard is the best of all stimulants that are employed to give energy to the digestive organs. It was in high favour with our forefathers; in the Northumberland Household Book for 1512, p. 18, is an oder for an annual supply of 160 gallons of mustard. Some opulent epicures mix it with sherry or Madeira wine, or distilled or flavoured vinegar, instead of horseradish water. The French flavour their mustard wtih Champaigne and other wines, or with vinegar flavored with capers, anchovies, tarragon, elder, basil, burnet, garlic, eschalot, or celery,...warming it with Cayenne, or the various spices; sweet, savoury, fine herbs, truffles, catchup, &c. &c., and seem to consider mustard merely as a vehicle of flavours. N.B. In Mons. Maille et Aclocque's catalohue of Parisian 'Bono Bons,' there is a list of twenty-eight differently flavoured mustards."
    ---The Cook's Oracle and House Keeper's Manual, William Kitchiner, facsimile 1830 edition [Applewood Books:Dedford MA] print on demand, 2010 (p. 259-260)

    [1845]
    "Mustard the Common Way.
    The great art of mixing mustard is to have it perfectly smooth, and of a proper consistency. The liquid with which it is moistened should be added to it in small quantities, and mustard should be well rubbed, and beaten with a spoon. Mix half a teaspoonful of salt with two ounces of the flour of mustard, and stir to them by degrees sufficient boiling water to reduce it to the appearance of a thick batter; do not put it into the mustard-glass until it is cold. Some persons like a half-teaspoonful of sugar in the finest powder mixed with it. It ought to be sufficently diluted alwasy to drop easily from the spoon; and to bring it to this state more thatn a quarter of a pint, and less than half a pint of liquid will be needed for four ounces of the best Durham mustard."
    ---Modern Cookery for Private Families, Eliza Acton, facsimile 1845 edition with an introduction by Elizabeth Ray [Southover Press:East Sussex] 1993 (p. 126)

    [1875?]
    "Mustard Sauce.
    Blend together on a plate three ounces of butter with a dessert-spoonful of browned flour, half the quantity of the best Durham mustard, and a little salt. Stir these ingredients, when smoothly mixed, into a quarter of pint of boiling water, and simmer five minutes, and serve as a sauce for fresh herrings."

    "Mustard, Mixing of.--It should be made with boiling water, and only in sufficient quantity to last a day or two at most; if kept longer, the top of the mustard-pot should be fitted with a glass stopper, but fresh-made mustard is preferable. Put a little salt before mixing, and rub it quite smooth with the back of a spoon. Foreign mustard is to be had of any respecatable grocer, but a particular flavour may be given to mustard but moistening with shallot, tarragon, garlic, or any spiced vinegar, instead of water."
    ---Cassell's Dictionary of Cookery with Numerous Illustrations [Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co.:London] 1875? (p. 438)

    [1894]
    "Mustard.
    --To prepare for table. The secret of having good mustard is to see that it is free from lumps, and to mix it to a proper consistence. It should neither be lumpy nor sloppy. Stir from the centre with the back of a spoon, adding the water by degrees. The mustard should be of a consistence to just drop from the spoon. If cold water be used, fermentaion is likely to result; and if boiling water, the strength of the mustard will be lost. The best thing is to boil the water and use it when cold. A teaspoonful of salt should be added to every three or four ounces of mustard. To reduce the pungency a little sugar may be added. For a very mild mustard, cream or milk is often used in the mixing, in place of half or all the water. When extra puncency is liked, a pinch of cayenne may be added. Pure mustard should be used. Mustard soon discolours, and become very unsightly, as well as disagreeable to the taste, particularly in warm weather, and should be prepared in small quantities as required, and always put into a clean, dry pot."
    ---Cassell's New Universal Cookery Book, Lizzie Heritage [Cassell and Company:London] 1894 (p. 1167)

    Mustard in America
    "Mustard has been manufactured in America since colonial times. The most important American manufacturer of mustard was Robert Timothy French (1823-1893)...In 1883 French and his son, George J. French...moved their operation to Rochester, New York, where they sold spices, including powdered mustard and turmeric. The business became extremely successful after the introduction of their French's cream salad mustard in 1904. Sold as a condiment in glass jars, French's cream salad mustard was milder than other brands and was used mainly as salad dressing and as a condiment for hot dogs, a food commonly served in baseball stadiums. The company's association with baseball was symbolized by the adoption of the pennant as its official logo in 1915."
    ---Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, Andrew F. Smith [Oxford University Press:New York] 2004 (p. 131)

    [1852]
    "Common Mustard.
    --Is best when fresh made. Take good flour of msutard; put it in a plate, add to it a little salt, and mxi it by degrees with boiling water to the usual consistence, rubbing it for a long time with a broad-bladed knife or a wooden spoon. It should be perfectly smooth. The less that is made at a time the better it will be. If you wish it very mild, use sugar instead of salt, and boiling milk instead of water.

    "Keeping Mustard.--Dissolve three ounces of salt in a quart of boiling vinegar, and pour it hot upon two ounces of scraped horseradish. Cover the jar closely and let it stand twenty-four hours. Strain it and then mix it by degrees with the best flour of mustard. Make it of the usual thickness, and beat it till quite smoth. Then put it into wide-mouthed bottles and stop it closely.

    "French Mustard.--Mix together four ounces of the very best mustard powder, four salt-spoons of salt, a large table-spoonful of minced tarragon leaves, and two cloves of garlic chopped fine. Dilute it to the proper consistence by adding alternately equal portions of vinegar and salad oil. It will probably require about four wine-glassfuls or half a pint. Mix it well, using for the purpose a wooden spoon. When done, put it into a wide-mouthed bottle or into little white jars. Cork it very closely, and keep it in a dry place. It will not be for for use in less than two days. This (used as the common mustard) is a very agreeable condiment for beef or mutton. If you cannot procure tarragon leaves, buy at a grocer's a bottle of tarragon vinegar. Mix it with an equal portion of sweetoil, adding a few drops of garlic vinegar. Then stir in mustard powder till sufficently thick."
    ---Miss Leslie's Complete Cookery, Directions for Cookery in its Various Branches, Miss [Eliza] Leslie, 47th edition, thoroughly revised, with additions [Henry Carey Baird:Philadelphia PA] 1852 (p. 181-182)

    [1886]
    "When the condiment now known in the grocery stores as mustard was first manufactured in England it was simply nothing more than the crushed seed. The manipulation gradually developed as it became necessary for the manufactureres to cater to the public taste, and the result is that each manufactuer now has his own receipt for making the condiment. Genuine mustard is easily obtainable, but is found that it does not answer the purposes and supply the wants of the public as well as the preparations made by eminent manufacturers. The duty on ground mustard imported into this country is fourteen cents a pound, and as the whole mustard seed comes duty free it is unquestionably to the interest of the trade and the public to handle good domestic brands, among which Colburn's Philadelphia Mustard is well known."
    ---The Grocers' Hand-Book and Directory, Artemas Ward [Philadelphia Grocer Publishing Co.:Philadelphia PA] 1886 (p. 136-137)

    [1911]
    "The greater part of prepared msutard now enjoying popular use and favor, consists of from 50% to 75% vinegar, flour-thickening and various condiments. U.S. Standard Ground Mustard is mustard containing not more than 2 1/2% of starch by the diastase method and not more than 8% of total ash. U.S. Prepared Mustard, German Mustard, French Mustard, Mustard Paste, is a paste composed of a mixture of ground mustard seed or mustard flour with salt, spices and vinegar, and, calculated free from water, fat and salt, contains not more than 24% of carbohydrates, calculated as starch, deteremined according to the official methods, not more than 12% of crude fibre nor less than 35% of protein, derived soley from the materials used."
    ---The Grocers Encyclopedia, Artemas Ward [National Grocer:Union Square NYC] 1911 (p. 404)

    Compare with: ketchup.


    Honey mustard sauce
    Creamy
    mustard preparations have been relished from ancient times forward. Recipes and applications vary according to culture and cuisine. Modern honey-mustard, as we Americans know it today, descends from this tradition. This versatile, tangy combination works equally well as dipping sauce, salad dressing, sandwich condiment, barbecue sauce, and baking glaze.

    We were hoping a survey of recipes published in WWII--present American newspapers would confirm a single explanation for modern popularity. No such luck. What we found? Honey-mustard recipes have been promoted as economical & efficient (quickie glazes/sauces for home kitchens), healthy & nutritious (natural sugar alternative), gourmet product (upscale purveyors promoting holiday gifts), down-home slathering sauce (barbeque), trendy fare (specialty salad dressing) and dipping sauce (fast food). We find no evidence confirming modern American taste for honey-mustard was inspired by a specific culture or cuisine. This surprised us. We would have guessed an Asian influence.

    [1942: fruit salad dressing]
    "Peach Nectar Salad Dressing. 1/3 cup honey, 1/3 tsp. prepared mustard, few drops Tabasso sauce, 1/3 cup salad oil, 1/2 cup lemon juice, 1 1/2 cups chilled peach nectar. Combine honey, mustard, Tabasco sauce, salt and oil and beat. Add lemon juice slowly, beatuing continuously. Add nectar and beat. Chill. Serve over fruit salad."---"Variations in Salads Aid Appetite Appeal," Marian Manners, Los Angles Times, July 6, 1942 (p. A8)

    [1956: barbecue sauce associated with Wisconsin]
    "In Madison, Wis., the board's culinary experts were served a honey-mustard sauce and warned to brush it on the chicken only five minutes before it's one to avoid overbrowning. Golden Glow Sauce: One-half cup honey, one-half cup prepared mustard, two tablespoons lemon juice, two teaspoons salt."---"Barbecue Sauce Depends on Geographical Location," Virginia Kachan, [Chicago] Daily Defender, May 31, 1956 (p. 19)

    [1958: fruit salad dressing for dieters]
    "Diet-conscious folks watch their menus just as carefully for too many calories as for the few vitamins. Into prominence with the calorie counter has come the salad. Often neglected as an unnecessary part of the meal, the salad is a good way to back many vitamins but few calories into a meal. New emphasis has been placed on the use of honey and lemon juice for fruit salads. This can be stored in the refrigerator and needs only to be stirred for instant use. here are two choice dressings. A French Dressing and a honey Mustard Dressing which no one will turn down if you make it...Honey Mustard Dressing: 1/2 cup whipping cream, chilled, 1 tablespoon prepared mustard, 2 tablespoons strained honey. Whip cream until stiff; add other ingredients while whipping. Chill. Serve on fruit salads. Makes 1 cup."---"Honey Dressing Glamorizes Fruit Salads," Steubensville Herald Star, August 28, 1958 (p. 31) [NOTE: in the summer of 1958 this recipe circulated widely in USA newspapers.]

    [1969: glaze for baked chicken, home recipe]
    "Honey Glazed Chicken. 1 2 1/2 to 3-lb frying chicken, disjointed, or 3 lb. pieces, 1 tsp. seasoned salt, 1/4 cup butter, 6 tbsp. honey, 3 tbsp. prepared mustard, 2 tsp. curry powder or more to taste, shredded lettuce. Season chicken with salt and set aside. Place butter in 9 X 13-in. roasting pan on 375 deg. oven. Let stand until melted. Remove from oven. Add honey, mustard and curry powder. Stir until well blended. Turn chicken in sauce and coat evenly. Arrange in one layer and return to oven. Bake 45 mins. or until tender. Baste and turn the pieces several times while baking. Spread a thick bed of shredded lettuce on serving platter and arrange chicken on it. Makes 4 servings."---"Countdown Cooking Gets Meals to the Table on Time," Los Angeles Times, November 13, 1969 (p. K28D) [NOTE: recipe was published in the Countdown Cookbook/Florence Kerr Hirschfeld. The 'countdown' was 60 minutes or less.]

    [1972: sauce for baked chicken, milder than above]
    "Honey-Mustard Baked Chicken. Broiler-fryer chicken 9 (cut up) or chicken parts (2 1/2 to 3 lbs), 1/2 cup honey, 1/3 cup prepared mustard, 2 tbsp. lemon juice, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 cup butter, melted. Place chicken, skin side down, in a 3-qt. oblong glass baking dish (13 1/2 by 8 3/4 by 1 3/4 in.) or similar utensil. In a small mixing bowl mix together the honey, mustard, lemon juice and salt: spoon 1/2 cup of the mixture over chicken. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. or overnight. Pour butter over chicken. Bake in a preheated 350 deg. oven for 30 min,; turn skin side up and bake until tender--another 30 min. Remove chicken from baking dish and keep warm. Stir remaining honey mixture into drippings in baking dish; return to oven to heat--about 5 min. Return chicken to baking dish and spoon sauce over it. Makes 4 servings."---"Honey-Mustard Sauce for Chicken--And Rice," Los Angeles Times, May 18, 1972 (p. L24) [NOTE: this recipe surfaced again, per reader request, in January 10, 1980 (p. I12)

    [1974: fried seafood dipping sauce, New York]
    "Fried Jumbo Gulf Shrimp, Honey Mustard Dip, $6.25."---Cattleman [restaurant] restaurant menu, New York Times, March 12, 1974 (p. 12)

    [1976: upscale gourmet gift, meant for meat, from Texas]
    "Another unusual and specialized mustard at [Crabtree and Eveyln] include honey mustard sauce from Texas ($4.95 for a 10-ounce preserving jar), good with ham or barbecued meats..."---"100 Holiday Gifts for Food Lovers," Mimi Sheraton, New York Times, December 1, 1976 (p. 53)

    [1977: trendy gourmet French-style restaurant salad dressing, Los Angeles]
    "People are quick to tell you about their favorite salads. But frequently, what they really mean is the salad dressing they like...We went searching for restaurants that make a salad dressing above and beyond the call of Roquefort, thousand island and oil and vinegar (or herb). We came up with what we think are some of the Southland's best and most original dressings. All the eateries are understandably possessive about their recipes, but we did get the chefs to at least divulge most ingredients...Orange Hill Restaurant--19912 E. Chapman Ave., Orange [CA]... Spanish-flavored continental restaurant while enjoying its special honey-mustard dressing. A 'joint effort' blended this old French gourmet recipe into its delectable current self. Oil, vinegar, honey and mustard are combined to create a texture similar to light creamy French. But don't get too emotionally involved--you can't take it with you."---"Dressing in Public," Michele Willens & Wendy Hiller, Los Angeles Times, February 28, 1978 (p. G4)

    [1980: McDonald's Chicken McNuggets introduced]
    The first dipping sauces were barbecue, sweet 'n' sour, hot mustard and honey (not honey-mustard): http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodmeats.html#nuggets

    [1981: sweet French-type dressing, Los Angeles]
    "Dear SOS: I would love the recipe for the house dressing that is used for salads at the Proud Bird restaurant in Los Angeles....Honey Mustard Dressing. 3 cups mayonnaise, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup honey, 1/4 cup prepared mustard, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1/4 onion, minced, 1/4 bunch parsley, chopped, 1 cup oil. Combine mayonnaise, sugar, honey, mustard, vinegar, onion, and parsley. Blend in oil. Chill about 1 hour before serving. Makes 4 cups dressing."---"Chef's Spicy and Unusual Chile Recipe for Those With Universal Taste," Rose Dosti, Los Angeles Times, November 12, 1981 (p. M9)

    [1991: sandwich condiment, grilled chicken]
    "Grilled chicken, grilled pineapple and peaches and grilled country bread spread with honey mustard: this recipe is an excuse to invest in the new stovetop grill from Max Barton. Oblong rather than round, and twice the size of the original, it covers two burners and has enough space to cook four, or to make a dish like this chicken sandwich that has four grilled components."---"Grill it All: Chicken, Fruit and Bread: Then Add Mustard," Marian Burros, New York Times, July 21, 1991 (p. 32)

    [1999: barbecue sauce, South Carolina]
    "Not everyone sees red as the color of barbecue sauce. Just as barbecue is defined as pork in some states and beef in others, the liquid used for basting and flavoring can vary from region to region. And ketchup is not at all as common as one may think. The vinegar-based sauces of North Carolina and are well known. But in South Carolina and parts of Georgia, barbecue sauce is often yellow-brown, based on mustard, not ketchup... The mustard sauce found farther south--sweet and tangy-- can be varied infinitely. The basic ingredients are mustard (preferably that cheap lurid yellow ball park variety, but sometimes two or three classier kinds), vinegar and some sort of sweetener, like honey, molasses, brown sugar or cane syrup or a combination. Local cooks change the vinegar, sweetener and mustard to put their own imprint on the sauce...South Carolina-Style Mustard Sauce. Time: 15 minutes. 3/4 cup distilled white vinegar, 1/2 cup beef or chicken stock, 1/2 cup finely chopped onion, 1/2 cup seeded minced jalapeno chilies, 1/2 cup yellow mustard of Dijon-style mustard, 1/4 cup honey mustard or brown deli-style mustard, 1/4 cup light corn syrup (or to taste), 2 tablespoons molasses, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper. Combine all ingredients in saucepan, and bring to boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until thick and richly flavored, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste for seasoning, adding additional salt or corn syrup as desired. This sauce goes great with just about anything. Yield: 3 cups."---"Have Barbecue, Will Travel: Tracking Sauces Down South," Steven Raichlen, New York Times, June 30, 1999 (p. F5) [NOTE: our South Carolina cookbooks also contain several recipes for tomato/kethcup-based barbecue sauces.]

    Compare with Sauce Robert.


    Hot-N-Tot sauce
    Wizard of Oz movie trivia: When the Cowardly Lion gave his famous speech with the line "What makes the Hottentot so hot?" was he referencing the Hottentot African peoples? Maybe not, speculate some food historians.

    Wright's commercial Hot-N-Tot sauce was a popular condiment sold about the same time as the movie was produced. While we do not have exact dates on the product's introduction, it is possible that Los Angeles based screenwriters, producers, and actors were familiar with this sauce. The earliest print reference we find for Wright's Hot-N-Tot sauce is an ad published in the Los Angeles Times (June 22, 1941 p. 17). The last print reference we find is an ad from the same paper (April 15, 1965 p. D4). The clincher for some? Wright's 1931 trademarked slogan "Puts the Barb in Bar-B-Q," is similar in construction to the Lion's speech structure. The connection, albeit undocumented, merits consideration.

    "Word Mark PUTS THE BARB IN BAR-B-Q Goods and Services IC 030. US 046. G & S: BARBECUE SAUCE. FIRST USE: 19310416. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19310416 Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS Design Search Code 26.03.01 - Ovals as carriers and single line borders Serial Number 71651872 Filing Date February 8, 1954 Current Filing Basis 1A Original Filing Basis 1A Registration Number 0600551 Registration Date January 4, 1955 Owner (REGISTRANT) E. H. WRIGHT COMPANY, LTD., THE PARTNERSHIP 2435 MCGEE ST. KANSAS CITY MISSOURI Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED Type of Mark TRADEMARK Register SUPPLEMENTAL Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 19750324 Live/Dead Indicator DEAD"

    Records filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office confirm the Wright Company was based in Kansas City, Missouri. The earliest product in the database is condensed smoke, introduced to the American public January 1, 1896.


    Jezebel sauce
    Cooks have been pairing spicy fruit sauces with meat for hundreds of years. Vitamin C-rich fruits pack a delicious punch of flavor. Think:
    Pork & applesauce and Turkey & cranberry sauce. Combinations of sweet fruit or wine jellies and savory components (mustard, horseradish) are found in several cuisines throughout the world.

    Jezebel Sauce, combining apple jelly, pineapple preserves, mustard and horseradish, presumably descends from this tradition. While most of the ingredient are traditional *old world* flavors, the addition of pineapple places it (most likely) in the 20th century.

    Where exactly did Jezebel Sauce originate? Print sources generally point to the Mississippi gulf region, from Florida to Texas. Late 19th-mid 20th century Creole cookbooks contain peppered jellies and creamy horseradish mustard sauces but nothing remotely approximating Jezebel. The use of canned commercial products might suggest Jezebel was developed in corporate kitchens. We cannot verify this in print.

    Early recipes recommend Jezebel Sauce as an exotic twist to traditional ham glaze. Pairing it with cream cheese and crackers happened later. The earliest print reference we find to a recipe for Jezebel Sauce was published by Clementine Paddleford, a popular newspaper columnist, in 1958. The location? Kansas, of all places. In 1967 this recipe went viral in local USA newspapers during the winter holidays. None of these articles offered historic notes or locus of origin. This recipe was also listed by other names; most notably "Fruit Horseradish sauce." The earliest print reference we find for this item is 1939. Sadly, there is no description to confirm its composition.

    [1939]
    "SUNDAY Dinner. Radish Hors d'Oeuvres, Roast Saddle of Lamb, Whipped Potatoes, Fruit Horseradish Sauce, 'Green Peas, Fresh Pineapple Sherbet..."
    ---"Appetizing Menus for the Week," Mary Lee Swan, San Antonio Light, May 21, 1939 (p. 80) [NOTE: no recipe or description provided.]

    [1958]
    "Jezebel Sauce

    1 cup apple jelly
    1/2 cup pineapple preserves
    1/4 cup mustard
    1 to 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
    Salt and freshly ground pepper.
    Blend first 4 ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with baked ham or meat loaf. Yield: about 2 cups sauce."
    ---"'Mrs. Kansas' is a Cooking Whiz," Clementine Paddleford, Los Angeles Times, October 26, 1958 (p. TW32) [NOTE: this recipe is headed "Treats from the Sunflower State." The recipe's author was Mrs. Robert E Bogue of Wichita. She does not provide any scope notes or historic context for this sauce. We do ]

    [1967]
    "Fruit and Horseradish Sauce

    1 small jar prepared horseradish
    1 6-ounce jar horseradish mustard
    1 10-ounce jar pineapple preserves
    1 10-ounce jar apple jelly
    Strain horseradish by mashing through small strainer until dry. Combine with remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put in glass container and keep in refrigerator. Use with warm or cold ham. Also good on cold cuts. -Mrs Taylor W. Hamilton."
    ---Huntsville Heritage Cookbook, Junior League of Huntsville Alabama [Hicklin Printing Company:Huntsville AL] 1967 (p. 32)

    [1967]
    "Sometimes it's fun to change the Christmas dinner. If your family is tired of turkey and would prefer ham, we have found an old Southern recipe for the sauce (or glaze if you insist) that's genuinely superb...The sauce can be prepared anytime and refrigerated indefinitely. It does not have to be cooked on the ham.
    "Jezebel Sauce
    1 jar pineapple preserves
    1 jar apple jelly
    1 jar Bahama or Coleman Mustard
    1 bottle freshly horseradish (or less to taste)
    Salt and pepper to taste
    Mix well in electric mixer."
    ---"New Zest in Ham for the Holiday," Willie Steinfort, Carroll Daily Times Herald [IA], November 16, 1967 (p. 38) [NOTE: This article was published in local newspapers, concentrating in the midwest, Nov.- & Dec. 1967.]

    [1975]
    "Patty Leonards' Jezebel Sauce

    10-oz jar pineapple preserves
    10-oz jar apple jelly
    6 oz jar horseradish
    1 ½ oz dry mustard
    1 tsp ground black pepper
    Mix all ingredients. Let sit in refrigerator at least 1 hour. Serve on sliced ham, meats or as a sauce poured over a block of Philadelphia cream cheese and served with crackers. This recipe makes well over a quart of sauce and keeps indefinitely. Men love this!"
    ---Jennings Daily News (LA), December 26, 1975 (p. 3)

    [1981]
    "Jezebel Sauce.

    1 jar (6 ounces) prepared mustard
    1 jar (6 ounces) prepared horseradish
    1 jar (8 or 10 ounces) apple jelly
    1 jar (8 or 10 ounces) pineapple preserves
    Combine all ingredients. Serve as sauce with ham or pour over cream cheese and serve with crackers. Also good as an egg roll sauce.-Mrs. Jim Schultz (Mary Kay)"
    ---Lone Star Legacy: A Texas Cookbook, Austin Junior Forum [Austin Junior Forum Publications:Austin TX] 1981 (p. 331)

    [1986]
    "Jezebel Sauce.
    This is an institution in South Louisiana. No respectable home would be without a supply in the refrigerator for unexpected guests. Serve over cream cheese to be spread on crackers.
    1 (10-oz.) jar pineapple preserves (1 cup)
    1 (10-oz.) jar apple jelly (1 cup)
    1/4 cup dry mustard
    1/2 cup prepared horseradish
    1 1/2 teaspoon finely ground pepper.
    In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process all ingredients until blended. Spoon into jars. Cover and refrigerate until needed, up to 2 weeks. Makes about 2-1/2 cups."
    ---Cajun-Creole Cooking, Terry Thompson [HP Books:Tucson AZ] 1986 (p. 22)

    [1993]
    "Jezebel Sauce and Cream Cheese.

    You can fix this treat faster than Coach Darrell Royal snapped up three hundred-pound recruits for the University of Texas. Some versions of this sauce--sometimes referred to as Jeff Davis Sauce--are more potent than this one, but you can increase the firepower easily by adding an extra tablespoon of horseradish.
    Sauce
    1 cup orange marmalade or peach or apricot preserves, or a combination
    2/3 cup apple jelly
    5 tablespoons Creole mustard or prepared brown mustard
    1/4 cup prepared horseradish
    1 teaspoon coarse-ground black pepper
    1 pound cream cheese.
    Makes about 2 cups sauce.
    Combine all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, and mix well. Refrigerate for a day or two for the best flavor, although the sauce is tasty from the start. It keeps indefinitely. Serve the sauce over the cream cheese. We use about a cup with 8 ounces of cheese. Accompany with crackers. Jezebel sauce enhances smoked meats, too. We especially like mini-sandwiches of turkey or ham with sharp cheddar on split biscuits topped with a dollop of the sauce."
    --- Texas Home Cooking, Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison [Harvard Common Press:Boston MA] 1993 (p. 468)


    Ketchup
    Mustard was known to the ancients. Ketchup surfaces in the early 18th century. Food historians generally agree the predecessor of our ubiquitous All-American tomato-based condiment may have originated in Southeast Asia. Some believe the English word 'ketchup' was borrowed from Chinese, too. How is this possible when tomatoes are a "New World" food? Original recipes for this pungent condiment were flavored with Asian ingredients. When tomatoes were introduced to China (circa 16th century), they were eventually incorporated. 18th and 19th century British and American cookbooks offer dozens of ketchup recipes featuring a wide variety of tangy fruits, vegetables, nuts, and fish. By the end of the 19th century, American tomato ketchup, as we know it today, was commercially bottled and widely consumed by a hungry public. In 1981, the USA federal government proposed ketchup be classed as a vegetable to satisfy school lunch nutrition requirements.

    What is ketchup?
    "When the term ketchup first entered the English language, at the end of the seventeenth century, it stood for something very different from the bottled tomato sauce of today. At that time tomatoes were an expensive rarity, and the ketchups were long-keeping, often vinegar-based sauces flavoured with mushrooms, anchovies, onions, lemons, oysters, pickled walnuts, etc. They formed the essential ingredients of the proprietary sauces so popular with the Victorians, of which Worcester sauce is virtually the only survival..."
    ---An A to Z of Food and Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 177)

    Why call it ketchup (catsup)?
    "The etymological origin of the word ketchup is a matter of confusion. For almost two centuries speculation has raged regarding the origin of the word and what it signifies...Elizabeth David suggests in her Spice, Salt and Aromatics in the English Kitchen that the word 'derived form caveach, a form of spiced-vinegar pickle in which cooked fish was preserved.' She announced that the word in different forms manifested itself throughout European cookery...E.N. Anderson believed that ketchup was cognate with the French escaveche, 'meaning food in sauce.' Similarly, others have speculated that ketchup was related to the Spanish and Portuguese words escabeche or escaveach, meaning 'a marinade or sauce for pickling.'... American culinary historian reports, escabeche derived from the Arabic word iskeby and specifically referred to pickling with vinegar. The term was Anglicized to caveach, and it appeared in print almost simultaneously with ketchup in English cookery books. Still others have claimed that the word ketchup originated in East Asia. In 1877 Eneas Dallas speculated that the true Japanese word was kitjap...However, if anything is clear in this etymological confustion, it is that the word kitjap is not of Japanese origin. Concurring in this opinion, the editor of the Oxford English Dictionary suggested that 'Japanese' cited by many was possibly an error for 'Javanese.' This speculation was based on the presumption that some observers believed that ketchup derived form the Malay language...Culinary historian Alan Davidson...believed that the term specifically derived from the Indonesian word kecap. Owen presumed that retired British colonial servants brought the word back home with them from Malaya. However, ketchup was entrenched in Britain well before the British possessed a colony in Malaya...Indeed, Malay dictionaries claim that ketchup is of Chinese origin...The editors of the Oxford English Dictionary, citing Douglas's Chinese Dictionary, presented a different Chinese-origins theory, reporting that ketchup really derived from ke-tsiap, a word from the Amoy dialect of Chinese meaning 'the brine of pickled fish.'"
    ---Pure Ketchup: A History of America's National Condiment, Andrew F. Smith [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia] 1996 (p. 4-5)
    [NOTE: We highly recommend Mr. Smith's book. It is thoroughly researched, historically documented, intelligently presented and a fun read.]

    What is the correct spelling?
    "...ketchup is among the few commonly eaten products with no agreed upon spelling. Ketchup, catchup, or catsup continue to be used today, but other similar spellings have been employed for years...Over the past two centuries food commentators have presented cases for particular 'correct' spellings of the word...In America, Isaac Riley, editor of the 1818 edition of The Universal Receipt Book, believed that ketchup was the correct spelling. According to Riley, catchup was a vulgarization, and catsup was simply an affectation...Until a few decades ago, catsup was the preferred spelling in many dictionaries. Today ketchup clearly is in the ascendancy, and is the clear choice of lexicographers and manufacturers."
    ---Pure Ketchup: A History of America's National Condiment, Andrew F. Smith [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia] 1996 (p. 6)

    What is American ketchup?
    "The word 'ketchup' conjures up an image of the thick, sweet, tomato-based condiment...Americans did not invent ketchup, which was not thick, sweet, or made from tomatoes...British explorers, colonists, and traders came into contact with the sauce in Southeast Asia, and upon their return to Europe they attempted to duplicate it. As soybeans were not grown in Europe, British cooks used such substitutes as anchovies, mushrooms, walnuts, and oysters. British colonists brought ketchup to North Ameirca, and Americans continued experimenting, using a variety of additional ingredients, including beans and apples. Tomato ketchup may have originated in America. It was widely used throughout the United States in the early nineteenth century, and small quantities of it were first bottled in the 1850s. After the Civil War commercial production of ketchup rapidly increased...tomato ketchup became the most important version...In 1896 the New York Tribune reported that tomato ketchup was America's national condiment...Up until 1900, ketchup was mainly used as an ingredient for savory pies and sauces, and to enhance the flavor of meat, poultry, and fish. It then became famous as a condiment following the appearance of three major host foods: hamburgers, hot dogs, and french fries."
    ---Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, Andrew F. Smith [Oxford University Press:New York] 2004, volume 2(p. 5-6)

    [1747]
    "To make English catchup.

    Take the largest flaps of mushrooms, wipe them dry, but don't peel them, break them to pieces, and salt them very well; let them stand so in an earthen pan for nine days, stirring them once or twice a day, then put then into a jugg close stopp'd set into water over a fire for three hours; then strain it through a sieve, and to every quart of the juice put a pint of strong stale mummy beer, not bitter, a quarter of a pound of anchovies, a quarter of an ounce of mace, the same of cloves, half an ounce of pepper, a race of ginger, half a pound of shalots; then boil them altogether over a slow fire till half the liquor is wastged, keeping the pot close covered; then strain it through a flannel bag. If the anchovies don't make it salt enough, add a little salt."
    ---First Catch Your Hare: The Art of Cookery Made Plain & Easy, Hannah Glasse, facsimile 1747 edition [Prospect Books:Devon] 1995 (p. 169)

    [1824]
    "Tomata Catsup.

    Gather a peck of tomatas, pick out the stems, and wash them; put them in the fire without water, sprinkle on a few spoonsful of salt, let them boil steadily an hour, stirring them frequently, strain them through a colander, and then through a sieve; put the liquid on the fire with half a pint of chopped onions, a quarter of an ounce of mace broke into small pieces, and if not sufficiently salty, add a little more, one tablespoonful of whole black pepper, boil all together until just enough to fill two bottles; cork it tight.-- Make it in August."
    ---The Virginia Housewife, Mary Randolph, facsimile 1824 edition with historical notes and commentaries by Karen Hess [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia SC] 1984 (p. 201)

    [1885]
    Tomato Catsup

    Take enough ripe tomatoes to fill a jar, put them in a moderate oven, and bake them until they are thoroughly soft; then strain them through a coarse cloth or sieve, and to every pint of juice put a pint of vinegar, half an ounce of garlic sliced, a quarter of an ounce of salt, and the same of white pepper finely ground. Boil it for one hour, then rub it through a sieve, boil it again to the consistency of cream; when cold, bottle it, put a teaspoonful of sweet oil in each bottle; cork them tight, and keep in a dry place." ---La Cuisine Creole, Lafcadio Hearn

    Related foods: Salsa, tomato sauce & sriracha.


    Tomato soy
    Food historians confirm the relationship between tomato soy,
    ketchup (catsup), pickles and sauce were complicated and sometimes interchangeable in the 19th century. Andrew F. Smith, reigning tomato expert, states these fruits were highly prized for their ability to stay preserved for long periods. Karen Hess, early American culinary expert confirmed the fact that soy, sauce and catsup sometimes produced similar products. Our survey of recipes in historic cookbooks bears this out. Below please find selected examples. Tomato soy (catsup) was used in sauces for meat and vegetables, not unlike today.

    "Soy...in early American cookery, soy and catsup were not well differentiated, as seen in Mrs. Randolph's soy and catsup recipes for tomatoes."
    ---The Virginia Housewife, Mary Randolph, facsimile 1824 edition with historical notes and commentaries by Karen Hess [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia SC] 1984 (p. 293)

    [1824]
    "Tomata Soy.

    Take a bushel of full ripe tomatoes, cut them in slices without skinning--sprinkle the bottom of a large tub with salt, strew in the tomatas, and over each layer of about two inches thick, sprinkle half a pint of salt, and three onions sliced without taking off the skins. When the bushel of tomatas is thus prepared, let them remain for three days, then put them into a large iron pot, in which they must boil from early in the morning 'till night, constantly stirring to prevent their sticking and mashing them. The next morning, pass the mixture through a sieve, pressing it to obtain all the liquor you can; and add to it one ounce of cloves, quarter of a pound of allspice, quarter of a pound of whole black pepper, and a small wine glass of Cayenne; let it boil slowly and constantly during the whole of the day--in the evening, put it into a suitable vessel to cool, and the day after bottle and cork it well: place it in a cool situation during warm weather, and it will keep for many years, provided it has been boiled very slowly and sufficiently in the prepraration. Should it ferment, it must be boiled a second time." ---The Virginia Housewife, Mary Randolph, facsimile 1824 edition with historical notes and commentaries by Karen Hess [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia SC] 1984 (p. 241)

    [1840]
    "TOMATA SOY.
    --For this purpose you must have the best and ripest tomatas, and they must be gathered on a dry day. Do not peel them, but merely cut them into slices. Having strewed some salt over the bottom of a tub, put in the tomatas in layers; sprinkling between each layer (which should be about two inches in thickness) a half a pint of salt. Repeat this till you have put in eight quarts or one peck of tomatas. Cover the tub and let it set fot three days. Then early in the morning, put the tomatas into a large porcelain kettle, and boil it slowly and steadily till ten at night, frequently mashing and stirring the tomatas. Then put it out to cool. Next morning strain and press it through a sieve, and when no more liquid will pass through, put it into a clean kettle with two ounces of cloves, one ounce of mace, two ounces of black pepper, and two table-spoonfuls of cayenne, all powdered. Again let it boil slowly and steadily all day, and put it to cool in the evening in a large pan. Cover it, and let it set all night. Next day put it into small bottles, securing the corks by dipping them in melted rosin, and tying leathers over them. If made exactly to these directions, and slowly and thoroughly boiled, it will keep for years in a cool dry place, and may be used for many purposes when fresh tomatas are not to be had."
    --- Directions for Cookery, Eliza Leslie

    [1870]
    "Tomato Soy

    To a peck of green tomatoes put a tea-cup of fine salt and a dozen green peppers. Chop tomatoes and peppers fine, work the salt well through the whole. Let stand twenty-four hours; then drain the brine off, spice to taste with cinnamon and cloves, pack down in a jar, and just cover with vinegar, in which the spice has been boiled, while it is hot."
    --- Jennie June's American Cookery Book, Jennie June

    [1885]
    "Green Tomato Soy, or Sauce

    Slice a peck of green tomatoes thin, salt them thoroughly, using a pint of salt. Let them stay in this all night, and in the morning drain them from the salt, wash them in cold water, and put them in a kettle with a dozen cut-up raw onions, two tablespoonfuls of black pepper, same of allspice, a quarter of a spoonful of ground mustard, half a pound of white mustard seed, and a tablespoonful of red pepper. Cover all with strong vinegar, and boil it until it becomes like jam. Stir it frequently while it is boiling or it will scorch. Superior Tomato Catsup Get a bushel of ripe tomatoes, scald them until they are soft enough to squeeze through a sieve. When strained, add to the pulp a pint and a half of salt, four tablespoonfuls of ground cloves, same of cayenne pepper, a quarter of a pound of allspice and a tablespoonful of black pepper, a head of garlic skinned and separated, and a half gallon of vinegar. Boil until it is reduced one-half, then bottle."
    ---La Cuisine Creole, Lafcadio Hearn


    Mayonnaise
    How many theories are there on the origin of mayonnaise? At least four! The fifth is generally overlooked. Some early recipes indicate mayonnaise sauces accompanied jellied fish, in the traditional of aspic.

    What is mayonnaise?
    "Mayonnaise, a famous sauce which is, essentially, an emulsion of olive oil and vinegar (or lemon juice) stablized with egg yolk and seasoned to taste...As a French word mayonnaise, meaning the sauce, first appeared in print in 1808. However, an interesting curiousity is its appearance in the phrase 'mayonnaise de poulet' in a German cookbook of 1804."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2nd edition, 2007 (p. 488)

    How did mayonnaise get its name?
    "The derivation of the word mayonnaise has always been a matter of some controversy. Among suggestions put forward in the past are that it is an alteration of bayonnaise, as if the sauce originated in the town of Bayonne, in southwestern France; that it was derived from the French verb manier, 'stir' (this was the chef Careme's theory); and that it could be traced back to Old French moyeu, 'egg yolk'. But the explanation that it originally meant literaly 'of mahon' and that the sauce was so named to commemorate the taking of Port Mahon, capital of the island of Minorca, by the duc de Richelieu in 1756 (presumably Richelieu's chef, or perhaps even the duke himself, created the sauce). English borrowed the word from French in the 1840s..."
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 208)

    Larousse Gastronomique explores name origin theories:
    "Mayonnise--A cold sauce of which the basic ingredients are egg yolks and oil blended into an emulsion...'Culinary purists,' writes Careme in his Cuisinier parisien: Traite des entrees froides, 'are not in agreement regarding the name. Some say mayonnaise, others mahonnaise and others bayonnaise. 'I will admit that these words may be current among common cooks, but for my part, I protest that never in our great kitchens (and that is where the pursit are to be found) are these three words ever pronounced. We always refer to this sauce by the name of magnonaise. 'But how is it that M. Griomod-de-la-Reyniere, a man of logic and wit, could not see at first glance that magnonnaise, derived from the verb manier (to stir), was the most appropriate name for this sauce, which owes its veyr being to the unremitting stirring shich it undergoes in the course of preparation? I am more than ever convinced of this when I consider that it is only by working the liquid ingredients together (as may easily be seen from the detailed recipe for this sauce) that a very smooth, creamy sauce is finally produced; a sauce which is very appetising and unique of its kind, since it is totally unlike all other sauces, which are produced by reduction over heat.' However logical Careme's justification for the exclusive use of the term magnonaise may seem, we are not by any means convinced that it shold take the place of the usual form, mayonnaise. Mayonnaise, in our view, is a popular corruption of moyeunaise, derived from the very old French word moyeau, which means yolk of egg. For, when all is said, this sauce is nothing but an emulsion of egg yolks and oil. If all sauces stirred for a longer or shorter period, on or off the stove, reuqired a name deriving from the word manier, then a great many many would come under this heading, for instance, Bernaise and Hollandaise."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 613)

    Expanding on Grimod's notes:
    "Grimod praised the city of Bayonne for more than just its ham. In the controversy which still flares up form time to time, the writer firmly decided that it was there that originated the mayonnaise sauce:'...Mayonnaise, Mahonaise, Bayonniase...the first of these words is not French, the second points to a town with no reputation in gastronomic terms, all of which leads us to plump for Bayonnaise, for which the etymology derives form a city which is inhabited by a large numnber of inventive gourmands, and whic, moreover, gives birth evey hear to the best hams in Europe.' Grimod's seeming levity, however, conceals a just grievance on the part of Bayonnais. The traditional interpretation for the name comes form the Siege of Port-Mahon, where, it has been suggested, the beseibers were so lacking in spplies that they were reduced to eggs and oil, hence the invention of the sauce. The first recorded reference to this sauce does come from a dinner offered to the Duc de Richelieu, the victor of Port-Mahon in 1756, by the people of Marseille. But it is perhaps not for nothing that than histoire de Marseille is a synonym for an untruth; certainly in Bayonne, the 'golden sauce' is throught to have an older history. Grimpd was fond of chicken bayonnaise as a cold entree."A Palate in Revolution: Grimod de la Reyniere and the Almoach des Gourmands, Giles MacDonogh [Robin Clark:London] 1987 (p. 136)

    Raymond Sokolov weighs in:
    "The Eighteenth Century...Members of the royal court invented new dishes, or tather they appropriated the glory for their discovery from helpless chefs...The greatest of these noble discoveries, if in fact occurred, was the world premiere of mayonnaise, said to have taken place at the table of the Duc de Richelieu, second cousin of the cardinal, after the capture of Port Mahon in 1759. This is the most disputed of all sauce origins. Some people are persuaded that mahonnaise was indeed transformed into mayonnaise. Others find a more appealing etymology in the old-fashioned word for egg yolk: moyeu. Careme insisted on yet a third alternative: "Some people," he wrote, "say mayonnaise, others mahonnaise, still others bayonnaise. It makes no difference that vulgar cooks should use these words, but I urge that these three terms never be uttered in our great kitchens (where the purists are to be found) and that we should always denominate this sauce with the epithet, magnonaise." Careme was convinced that his etymology made the most sense: magnonaise came from the verb "manier," to handle or work, which, he argued, was exactly what one did to produce a good mayonnaise...If I may further add to the confusion, it seems to me improbably that no one has yet proposed a fourth solution to the problem. Since most sauces are named after places (bearnaise, venitienne, italienne, africaine), it is logical that mayonnaise refer to one also. Unfortunately, there is no town of Mayonne; however, there is a city in France, at the western edge of Normandy, called Mayenne. Who is to day that mayonnaise did not begin as mayennaise?"
    ---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 6-7)

    A sampler of historic mayonnaise recipes

    [1828]
    "NO. 60.--Mayonnaise.

    Take three spoonsful of Allemande, six of aspic, and two of oil. Add a little tarragon vinegar that has not boiled, some pepper and salt, and chopped ravigotte, or some chopped parsley only. Set the whole over some ice, and when the mayonnaise begins to freeze, then put in the members of fowl, or fillets of soles, &c. The mayonnaise must be put into ice: but the members must not be put into the sauce till it begins to freeze. Dish up the meat or fish, cover it with the sauce before it be quite frozen, and garnish the dish with whatever you think proper, as beet-root, jelly, naturtiums, &c."
    ---The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, facsimile Englished edition of book originally published in French, 1828 [Arco Publishing:New York] 1978 (p. 20)

    [1869]
    "White Mayonnaise Sauce

    Put, in a small basin: the yolk of 1 egg, well freed from white; 1 pinch of salt; and a small pinch of pepper; stir with a wooden spoon, and pour in, by drops at first, then by teaspoonfuls, about 4 oz. of oil,--being careful to mix the oil well before adding any more; at every eighth teapsoonful of oil, add 1 teaspoonful of vinegar, till all the oil is used; taste the seasoning; and serve. Mayonnaise should, as a rule, be of rather high seasoning."

    "Green Mayonnaise Sauce
    Prepare a white mayonnaise, as just indicated; Cop 3 tablespoonfuls of ravigote, i.e. a mixture of chervil, tarragon, cress, and burnet;--if tarragon is scarce, chervil alone, with a tablespoonful of tarragon vinegar added to the sauce, will do as well. Mix the herbs, in the sauce; and serve."
    ---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marson:London] 1869

    [1907]
    "Sauce Mayonnaise

    Many composed cold sauces are derived from Mayonnaise and it is therefore classified as a basic sauce in the same way as Espagnole and Veloute. Its preparation is very simple provided note is take of the principles outlined in the following recipe:
    Ingredients
    6 egg yolks (these must be unblemished)
    1 litre (1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups) oil
    10 g (1/3 oz) fine salt
    pinch of ground white pepper
    1 1/2 tbls vinegar (or its equivalent in lemon juice if the cause is required to be very white)
    Method
    1. Whisk the yolks of egg in a basin with the salt, pepper and a little of the vinegar or a few drops of lemon juice.
    2. Add and whisk in the oil, drop by drop to begin with, then faster in a thread as the sauce begins to thicken.
    3. Adjust the consistency occasionally by adding the vinegar or lemon juice.
    4. Lastly add 2 tbs boiling water which is added to ensure that the emulsification holds if the sauce is to be reserved for later use.
    ---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, A. Escoffier, originally published in 1907, translated by H.L. Cracknell and R. J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1997 (p. 30)
    [NOTE: Escoffier also includes recipes for: Sauce Mayonnaise Collee (Jellied Mayonnaise), Sauce Mayonnaise Fouette a la Russe (Whipped Mayonnaise, Russian Style), and Various Mayonnaise Sauces (generally including creamy parts of large shellfish).

    [1949]
    "17. Mayonnaise

    1 egg yolk 1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 teaspoon white pepper
    1 teaspoon wine vinegar (or lemon juice)
    1 cup olive oil
    Combine egg yok, salt, pepper, and vinegar or lemon juice in a deep bowl. Add the olive oil drip by drop, beating constantly until the sauce is thick and all the oil has been used. If the sauce tastes too oily, add more vinegar or lemon juice. Tante Marie recommends the use of a silver fork or spoon. It is more easily and quickly made, however, with a rotary (had or electric) beater. The secret is in adding the oil very slowly."
    ---Tante Marie's French Kitchen, translated and adapted by Charlotte Turgeon [Oxford University Press:New York] 1949 (p. 9)

    [1967]
    "Blender Mayonnaise
    1 tablespoon hot vinegar
    1 egg
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon prepared mustard
    1/8 teaspoon white pepper
    1 cup salad oil
    1. Have all ingredients at room temperature.
    2. Put vinegar in small saucepan and bring to a boil.
    3. Put egg, salt, mustard and pepper in blender container; cover and run on low speed. While blender is running, slowly add the salad oil. Increase the speed when more power is necesssary. Add vinegar and blend on high speed just until mixed."
    ---White House Chef Cookbook, Rene Verdon [Doubleday & Company:Garden City NY] 1967 (p. 188)

    Related recipes: Tartar sauce, Remoulade & Aioli, Avgolomeno & Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake.


    Mirepoix
    The definition of Mirepoix is a study in culinary evolution. Notes here:

    "Mirepoix: A culinary preparation created in the 18th century by the cook of the Duc de Levis-Mirepoix, a French field marshal and ambassador of Louis XV. It consists of a mixture of diced vegetables (carrot, onion, celery); raw ham or lean bacon is added when the preparation is with meat. A mirepoix is used to enhance the flavour of meat, game and fish, in the preparation of sauces (notably espagnole sauce) and as a garnish for such dishes as frog's legs, artichokes and macaroni. When a mirepoix is used in braised or pot-roasted dishes, it should be simmered gently in a covered pan until all the vegetables are very tender and can impart their flavour to the dish. Mirepoix without meat is mainly used in the preparation of shellfish, for braised vegetable dishes and in certain white sauces."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, completely revised and updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 751)

    "A mirepoix is a mixture of finely chopped vegetables, typically onion, carrot, and celery, fried in butter and used for flavouring stews and other meat dishes, as a base for sauces, and as a garnish. It was reputedly devised in the eighteenth century by the cook to the Duc de Levis-Mirepoix, a French field marshal."
    ---An A to Z of Food and Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 215)

    "Mireopoix, Charles-Pierre-Gaston Francois de Levis, Duke of (1699-1757). Mirepoix was an incompetent and mediocre individual', writes Pierre Larousse at the end of the 19th century, who owed his vast fortune to the affection Louis XV felt toward his wife'. This same author informs us that the unfortunate Mirepoix had one claim to fame: he gave his name to a sauce made of all kinds of meat and a variety of seasonings'...But what exactly, in the 18th century, constituted a dish a la Mirepoix? The answer is hard to supply since it is not until the 19th century that the term is encountered regularly in French culinary texts. Beauvilliers, for instance, in 1814, gives a short recipe for a Sauce a la Mirepoix which is buttery, wine-laced stock garnished with an aromatic mixture of carrots, onions, and a bouquet garni. Careme, in the 1830s, gives a similar recipe calling it simply Mire-poix and, but the mid-19th century, Gouffe refers to a Mirepoix as a term in use for such a long time that I do not hesitate to use it here'. His mirepoix is listed among essences' and, indeed, is a meaty concoction (laced with two bottles of Madeira!) Which, like all other essences, was used to enrich many a classic sauce. By the end of the 19th century, the mirepoix had taken on its modern meaning and Favre in his Dictionnaire universel de cuisine (c. 1895, reprinted 1978) uses the term to describe a mixture of ham, carrots, onions, and herbs used as an aromatic condiment when making sauces or braising meat."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 509)

    Compare these recipes:

    [1869] Gouffe
    "Mirepoix, or Essence of Meat and Vegetables.

    Observation.--Mirepoix is such a common term in cookery that I cannot help using it, although I have thought it well to indicate its composition in the title itself. It is an extract of meat and vegetables;--the word mirepoix alone would certainly not make this fact as clear as desirable. To make mirepoix: Cut 2 lbs of fillet of veal, 1 lb. Of fat bacon, and 2 lbs. Of raw ham, half lean, half fat, in 1 1/2 inch pieces, and put these into a stewpan with: 4 sliced carrots, 4 middle-sized onions, 4 bay leaves, 1 sprig of thyme, 4 shallots; Fry till the meat is of a light brown colour, and pour in 2 bottles of Madeira, and 5 quarts of General Stock; add 1/2 oz. Of mignonnette pepper; boil; then simmer gently for two hours; strain through a broth napkin; and put by for use, --without taking off the fat."
    ---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated from the French and adapted for English use by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 269)

    [1903] Escoffier
    "322. Mirepoix

    The ingredients are the same as those for Matignon with the following differences: the vegetables are cut into large or small Bruinoise according to how the Mirepoix is to be used and the raw ham is replaced by lean salt belly of pork cut in dice and blanched. Lightly brown all the ingredients in a little butter.

    "321. Matignon
    Cut 125 g (4 1/2 oz) red of carrot, 125 g (. 1/2 ox) onion, 50 g (2 oz) celery and 100 g (3 1/2 oz) raw ham all into thin Paysanne; add 1 bayleaf and a sprig of thyme. Stew together in a little butter and deglaze with a little white wine."
    ---Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Escoffier [1903], the first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaire in its entirety [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 50)

    [1996] CIA
    "Mirepoix

    Yield: 1 pound (450 grams)
    Onions, chopped, 8 ounces (225 grams)
    Carrots, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    Celery, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    1. Cut the vegetables into an appropriate size based on the cooking time of the dish.
    2. Add mirepoix to the recipe as directed.

    "White Mirepoix
    Yield: 1 pound (450 grams)
    Onions, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    Leeks, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    Celery, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    Parsnips, chopped, 4 ounces (115 grams)
    Mushroom trimmings (optional), 2 to 3 ounces (60 to 85 grams)
    1. Cut the vegetables into an appropriate size, based on the cooking time of the dish.
    2. Add mirepoix to the recipe as directed."
    ---The Professional Chef, Culinary Institute of America, 6th edition, 1996 (p. 420)


    Mother
    In the French culinary tradition "Mother Sauces" are those from which all others are derived. Contemporary classic French cuisine generally rests upon five mother sauces.

    Which are the mother sauces?
    Easier asked than answered. There is no single definative list of "Mother Sauces." Candidates vary according to period and culinary perspective. Most often listed are:
    espagnole, mayonnaise, tomato, bechamel, veloute, & hollandaise (similar to allemande).

    19th century Careme & 20th century Escoffier: compare & contrast
    "Sauces, like all else, are continually changing in details whilst the foundations upon which they are built change but little if at all. There are five foundation sauces or basic sauces, called in French Grandes Sauces or Sauces Meres [mother]. Two of them have a record of two hundred years between them; they are the Bechamelle and the Mayonnaise. They have lasted so long, not only because they are very good, but because they are so adaptable and provide a fine basis for a considerable number of other sauces. The other three, which also date back to the eighteenth century, are the Veloute, the Brune and the Blonde; Careme called these last two Notre Espagnole and Notre Allemande, to emphasize that both were French sauces and that their names were due to their dark and fair complexions. These five sauces still provide the basis for the making of many modern sauces, but no longer of most of them. Modern sauces may be divided into two classes: the Careme and Escoffier classes. Among the faithful, in the great kitchens of the world, Escoffier is to Careme what the New Testament is to the Old. Careme and his disciples produced sauces that were works of art: beautiful and delicious, but complicated. Their chief concern might have been--and probably was--to camouflage as much as possible the meat, game or fish served with some sauce. Many of sauces which Careme used or introduced were strong and spicy... Escoffier took a different view: he was the apostle of simplicity; he wanted his sauces to help and not to hide the flavour of whatever dish they adorned. He introduced...fumets and essences...evaporated stock obtained by allowing the water, milk or wine in which meat, fish or vegetables happen to be cooked, to steam away slowly so as to leave behind a fragrant concentrate as a basis for whatever sauce will be served with them."
    ---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre L. Simon [Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 4-5)

    [1869]
    "Fundamental sauces...Espagnole...Veloute...Allemande...Bechamel..."
    ---Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson, Low, Son and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 262-266)

    [1902]
    "The Mother Sauce Matrix: As formulated by Auguste Escoffier in his Guide Culinaire (1902): Espagnole, Veloute, Bechamel, Hollandaise, Tomate."
    ---The Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft, David Paul Larousse [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1993 (p. 58)

    [1927]
    "As numerous and diverse as French sauces are, they all originate from the same basic sauces: espagnole and demi-glace, which, in good home cooking are replaced by what are known as 'boureois sauces' and which we call 'brown sauce' ...or whaite sauces such as veoulte...parisienne; and bechamel. The primary function of these sauces is to provide--in strictly anonymous fashion...the fundamental elements of any sauce: concentrated flavors from extracts of meat, fish, or similar; liquid; and liaison. In other words...starting from a basic sauce, any number of ingredients can be added to give to each a particular sauce its own distinctive flavor...The difference between the basic sauces of haute cuisine and those of the home cook is not necessarily in the ingredients used. For all intents and purposes, they are about the same. The difference is in the quantity of these ingredients, and, more important, in the time and care taken for the preparation..."
    ---La Bonne Cuisine, Madame E. Saint-Ange, originally published in 1927, translated with an introduction by Paul Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkely CA] 2005 (p. 49) [NOTE: We own the original French text, if you question the translation.]

    [1963]
    "Sauces are the splendor and glory of French cooking...For while the roster of French sauces is stupendous, the individual sauces divide themselves into a half a dozen definite groups and each one in a particular group is amde in the same general way...
    The French Family of Sauces
    White Sauces: These stem from the two cousins, bechamel and veloute. Both use a flour and butter roux as thickening agent. Bechamel is moistened with milk; veloute, with white stock is made from poultry, veal, or fish.
    Brown Sauces: For the brown sauces, the butter and flour roux is cooked slowly untilit turns a nut brown. Then a brown stock is added.
    Tomato Sauce
    Egg Yolk and Butter Sauces: Hollaindaise is the mother of this family.
    Egg Yolk and Oil Sauces: These are all variations of mayonnaise.
    Oil and Vinegar Sauces: Vinaigrette--French dressing--heads this family.
    Flavored Butters: These include the hot butter sauces, and butters creamed with various herbs, seasonings or purees."
    ---Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1963 (p. 54-55)

    [1993]
    "As it is now practised in present-day cookery...Sauce demi-glace, Sauce veloute, Sauce bechamel, Sauces aux beurre, Sauce Hollandaise, Sauce blanc, Sauce Tomate."
    ---The Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft, David Paul Larousse [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1993 (p. 58)

    Backstory, courtesy of the food historians:
    Careme's original scheme contained five foundation sauces: veloute, bechamel, espagnol, mayonnaise and allemande. Escoffier is generally credited for elevating tomato sauce to this lofty position.

    "It was Careme who began to classify sauces. The hot sauces, which are by far the more numerous, are subdivided into brown sauces and white sauces....and they too, have innumerable derivatives. Cold sauces are usually based on mayonnaise or vinaigrette, and they also have many variations."
    ---Larousse Gastonomique, Completely revised and updated edition [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 1042)

    "In addition to stocks, the repertoire of French haute cuisine contains a multitude of sauces, in which different ingredients are added to stocks and cooked in a number of ways. They all tend, however, to be variations on the them of several basic, or "mother" sauces: espagnole, veloute, bechamel, tomato, and hollandaise."
    --- Haute Cusine: How the French Invented the Culinary Profession, Amy B. Trubek [University of Pennsylvania Press:Philadelphia PA] 2000 (p. 18)

    "French sauces are the height of culinary technique...They are also part of a structure so orderly and Cartesian that it could only be French...French sauces are not just a group of randomly assembled essences and emulsions. They come in families, each one which descends from one basic sauce known appropriately as sauce mere or mother sauce. Once you have made the mother sauce (which is rarely served by itself), you can make all the small or compound sauces (the ones that are served) in a matter of minutes by adding the appropriate special ingredients that make up the particualr sauce...The sauce system is like a group of family trees that evolved over centuries and reached their fullest elaboration in the late nineteenth century. The system was codified by Escoffier after World War I, and it is still the basis for what is called haute cuisine or classic cuisine in France today. Not it is a fact that younger chefs in France have radically "simplified" their menus and no longer cook precisely in the manner of Escoffier...as far as sauces are concerned, they have eliminated or virtually emliminated flour as a thickening agent for the mother sauces. Instead, they reduce their stocks further and use other liaisons: cream, butter, hollandaise and egg yolks, as well as arrowroot. This amounts to a fundamental change in direction. Its proponents assert that flour muddied the taste of the (now) old-fashioned espagnoles and veloutes. They go on to say the streamlined nature of modern life demands lighter sauces that do not overwhelm the basic elements of the dish which the sauce accompanies. These arguments are persuasive up to a point. Flour-bound sauces do tend to be more present as a complex taste and a texture than do sauces based on pure reductions of veal stock. On the other hand, in my opinion it is a slander on the past and an error to dismiss 150 years of professional saucemaking as a muddy, glutinous botch."
    ---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov, [Alfred A Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. xiv-xv)
    [NOTE: Mr. Sokolov's book serves an excellent course in the contributions La Varenne, Massaliot, Careme, Ude and others. If you are a culinary student this book is in your school's library. If not? Your public librarian can help you find a copy. Use this book to trace connection between demi glace (Espagnole in its most refined stage) and sauce Robert, Duxelles, Poivrade, Piquante, Chasseur, Perigoudine, etc.


    Nantua sauce
    Sauce Nantua combines
    bechamel & crayfish. Originating in the Jura mountains, this delicious 19th century sauce pairs perfectly with fellow crustaceans, white fish and light white meat.

    "Nantua. Any dish cooked a la Nantua, or served with a sauce Nantua, contains crayfish or crayfish tails as its chief flavouring element. Perhaps the one most often found on menus today is filets de cole Nantua, sole fillets garnished with a ragout of crayfish tails and covered with sauce Nantua, a bechamel flavoured with crayfish. Nantua is a small French town to the northeast of Lyon, near the Swiss border."
    ---An A-Z of Food and Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 224)

    "Nantua, a la. The name given to various dishes containing crayfish or crayfish tails, either whole or in the form of a savory butter, a puree, a mousse or a thick sauce. These dishes often contain truffles as well. Nantua is a town in Bugey, with a centuries-old reputation for gastronomy."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Completely revised and updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 784) ?

    When was Sauce Nantua introduced?
    Jules Gouffe's Royal Cookery Book [Englished in 1869 by Jules Gouffe] does not contain a recipe for Sauce Nantua. It does, however, contain recipes for Bechamel Sauce a L'Ancienne, Chicken Bechamel Sauce, and Bechamel Sauce Maigre (without meat) on pages 265-6. None of these list crayfish as an ingredient. Mr. Gouffe is aware of crayfish, providing recipes for Crayfish a la Bordelaise (which uses Espagnole sauce), crayfish butter, crayfish for garnish, crayfish tails canapes and crayfish en coquilles.

    [1897]
    "294. Sauce ecrevisses (Dit Nantua).
    ---La Cuisinier Provencale, J.B. Reboul, facsimile 27th/1897 edition [Tacussel:France] 2000 (p. 163)
    [NOTE: (1) "Ecrevisse" means crawfish. "Crevettes" are shrimp. The preceding recipes are for "Sauce Crevettes." Happy to scan send if you like.]

    [1907]
    "135. Sauce Nantua.

    Add 2 dl (7 fl oz or 7/8 U.S. cup) cream to 1 litre (1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups) Sauce Bechamel and reduce by one-third. Pass through a fine strainer and add 1 1/2 dl (5 fl oz or 5/8 U.S. cup) cream to bring the sauce back to its normal consistency. Finish it with 125 g (4 1/2 oz) very fine Crayfish Butter and the addition of 20 small cooked crayfish tails."
    ---Escoffier: The Comlete Guie to the Art of Modern Cookery, reprint of 1907 edition, the first translation in English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann [Wiley:New York] 1997 (p. 22)

    [1927]
    "Crayfish Sauce (Sauce Nantua)

    One of the best and most desired sauces, to serve as an accompaniment to tubot, brill, salmon, or trout, cooked in a court bouillon. This preparation, a little more complicated than most sauces served with fish, can be described as follows: a bechamel sauce base, reduced with creme fraiche, and to which crayfish butter and crayfish tails are added at the last moment. Time: A good hour. Serves 10.
    For the bechamel: 30 grams (1 ounce, 2 tablespoons) of butter and 35 grams (1 1/4 ounces) of flour for the roux blanc; 3/4 litre (generous 3 cups) of boiled milk; a half onion, finely minced; a bunch of parsley sprigs and a sprig of thyme tied together with kitchen string; 8 grams (1/3 ounce) of salt; pinch of pepper, a hint of grated nutmeg; 2 decilitres (6 3/4 fluid ounces, 7/8 cup) of very fresh thick cream.
    8-10 medium crayfish or 15 smaller ones; 100 grams (3 1/3 ounces, 7 tablespoons) of butter; a few drops of red food coloring. Procedure. The bechame sauce: Prepare it in a 1 1/4-litre (5-cup) capacity, heavy-bottomed pot. First, color the onion in the butter for 2 minutes, before adding the flour; follow the directions already given for preparing this sauce...
    The crayfish: For the quantity of crayfish suggested, put in a saute pan: 30 grams (1 ounce), 2 tablespoons) of butter; 30 grams (1 ounce) of finely minced onion; 2 parsley stems, rougly chopped; a sprig of thyme; a portion of bay leaf almost the size of a fingernail; a deciliter (3 1/3 fluid ounces, scant 1/2 cup) of white wine; a pinch of salt and pepper. Heat without boiling, then add the crayfish, properly trimmed as directed in their section...Saute over high heat; cover; cook over low heat for a good 10 minutes.
    Next, remove the carapaces one by one. Put them on a plate. On another plate, gather all the debris, the shells, and heads. With a knife, remove the 'string' in the tail. Cut them in half lenghtwise. Put them in a small pan or other utensil that can withstand high heat, because the tails must be reheated before being added to the sauce, although they must absolutely not boil. Pour over the liquid from cooking though a fine linen cloth to strain; add a teaspoon of fine champagne (cognac) and a tablespoon of mushroom cooking liquid, if possible, or add some water. Cover. Set aside. With the remaining 70 grams (2 1/2 ounces, 1/3 cup) of butter, prepare the crayfish butter...as directed, straining through the sieve into a double boiler. Set aside at room temperature. To finish the sauce: Strain the bechamel sauce thorugh a chinois into a small saute pan. Add some cream, but reserve 4 good tablespoons. Put the pan over high heat and redce the suace, stirring constantly, until it has thickened and is no more than about 4 1/2 deciliters (scant 2 cups).
    Remove the sauce from the heat. Mix in the reserved cream, which thus retains its flavor. Again, strain through a chinois into a double boiler. Gradually, add the crayfish butter, in pieces about the size of a walnut, mixing with a whisk. Next, add the food coloring, drop by drop, until the sauce becomes a good pink color. Set the pan over the double boiler pan. Just before serving, add the crayfish tails."
    ---La Bonne Cuisine, Madame E. Saint-Ange, translated and with an introduction by Paul Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkely CA] 2005 (p. 67-68)
    [NOTE: We have an original 1927 French edition of this book. Recipe appeares on page 122; measurements are in grammes. Happy to scan/send recipe if you like.]

    [1948]
    "Nantua Sauce

    To each cup Hot Bechamel Sauce (No. 259) add 1/4 cup of scalded heavy cream; blend well, then strian through a fine sieve. When ready to serve, taste fo seasoning and stir in 2 tablespoons fo Crayfish Butter (No. 985) and 2 tablespoons of finely chopped, cooked crayfish. Appropriate for any kind of fish, crustacean, or shellfish cooked in any style."
    ---The Gold Book Book, Louis P. De Gouy [Galahad Books:New York] 1948 (p. 578)

    [1952]
    "Sauce Nantua

    12-15 cooked crawfish or 1 small lobster
    1/2 cup butter
    1 pint milk
    Beurre manie (2 tabeslpoons flour and 3 tablespoons butter)
    Salt, pepper and cayenne
    2 ounces Cognac
    Remove the meat from the tails of the crawfish (or the lobster) and pound the shells and bodies in a mortar or crush them with a rolling pin. Place in a saucepan with the butter and heat over a low flame until the butter is melted. Add the milk and let it come to the boiling point. Strain and return to the stove. Thicken, stirring constantly, with beurre manie. Season with salt, pepper and a few garins of cayenne. Add the Cognac and the crawfish tails or lobster meat. Pour over the quenelles."
    ---Paris Cuisine, James A. Beard and Alexander Watt [Little, Brown and Company:Boston] 1952 (p. 128)
    [NOTE: The preceding recipe is for Quenelles de Brochet a la Nantua. These recipes were supplied by Nos Provinces, 129, Boulevard Montparnasse, Paris.]

    [1961]
    "Nantua sauce I
    (for eggs, fish, crustaceans). Sauce Nantua--Boil down by half 1/2 cup (1 decilitre) of Bechamel sauce to which the cooking liquor of crayfish and 1/2 cup (1 decilitre) of cream have been added. Finish off with 3 tablespoons (50 grams) of crayfish butter ...a few drops of brandy and a pinch of cayenne; strain.
    Nantua sauce II ..Heat 3/4 cup (1 1/2 declitres) of crayfish puree and dilute to the desired consistency with 4 tablespoons (60 grams) of butter and a few tablespoons of cream. Heighten the seasoning with a pinch of cayenne; strain."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 857)

    [1972]
    "Sauce Nantua

    (White Wine Shrimp Sauce with Shrimp Butter)
    For 1 1/2 cups
    The shrimp shell debris
    The shrimp-cooking stock
    Fish stock, chicken broth, or milk
    A small saucepan
    1 Tb butter
    1 Tb flour
    A 2-quart emanmeled or stainless-steel saucepan
    1 egg yolk
    1/3 to 1/2 cup heavy cream
    The cooked, peeled shrimp (about 2 cups)
    Salt, pepper, and lemon juice
    3 or more Tb shrimp butter
    Scrape the shrimp peelings into the cooking stock, simmer 5 minutes, then strain into a measure. Add fish stock, chicken broth, or milk to make 1 cup; pour into a small saucepan and heat to simmer. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, blend in the flour, and stir over moderate heat for 2 minutes without browning. Remove form heat, let cool a moment, then beat in the hot cooking stock with a wire whip. Boil, stirring, for 1 minutes; remove from heat. You now have a thick seuce veloute. Blend the egg yolk and 1/3 cup of cream in a bowl with your wire whip; beat in the hot sauce by driblets. Stir over moderately high heat until sauce comes to a boil; simmer for a moment, adding more cream by spoonfuls to thin out sauce--it should coat a spoon nicely. Taste carefully for seasoning, adding salt, pepper, and drops of lemon juice as you feel it necessary. This is now a sauce parisienne. Fold in the cooked shrimp. If you are not serving immediately, float a spoonful of cream over top to prevent crusting, and refrigerate. Just before serving, bring to the simmer for a minute or two, to warm the shrimp and blend flavors. Immediately before serving, remove from heat and fold in as much shrimp butter as you wish, added by spoonfuls. With the addition of the butter you now have shrimp in sauce Nantua; do not bring near the simmer again or sauce will thin out. Serve in a rign of boiled rice, in a vol-au-vent, in patty shells, or in the following toast cases."
    ---"The Eighty-fourth Show: The Shrimp Show," The French Chef Cookbook, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1972 (p. 230-231)
    [NOTE: This recipe echoes Reboul's 1897 formula.]


    Normandy sauce
    Normandy sauce derives from
    Veloute, one of the classic French Mother sauces. This sauce reflects the rich dairy and seafood dishes famous in this region of France. Joinville sauce descends from Normandy.

    "Sauce Normande. Normandy cream is justly famous; thick and rich, it is the basis, along with Normandy butter and apples and seafood, of a great regional cuisine. Sauce Normande...is the classic, but that is to say national, version of a somewhat different regional sauce. Basically, it is a reduction of fish fumet, veloute, and heavy cream. Serve it with sole, other delicate fish and oysters.
    ---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 152)

    "Dishes in the Normandy style typically contain butter, cream, seafood, apples, apple cider, and Calavdos, an apple-derived brandy. Sole a la Normande, one of the earliest precursors for a host of dishes braised in white wine, was actually created by Langlais, a Parisian native, in 1837, while chef at Rocher de Cancale, a celebrated restaurant in Paris which operated from 1795 until 1860. Normandy sauce is typically served with croustades; omelettes; and braised or baked with fish. It is also a base for the following sauces...Anchovy Sauce, Diplomat, Lobster Sauce, Oyster Sauce, Veron Sauce, Orleans Sauce, Parsley Sauce, Pondicherry Sauce."
    ---The Sauce Bible, David Paul Larousse [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1993 (p. 122-125)
    [NOTE: recipes for these sauces are included in this book. Your librarian can help you obtain a copy.]

    [1907]
    "Sauce Normande

    To 7 1/2 dl (1 1/3 pt or 3 1/4 U.S. cups) fish Veloute add 1 dl (3 1/2 fl oz or 1/2 U.S. cup) each of mushroom cooking liquor and cooking liquor from mussels, 2 ds (7 fl oz or 7/8 U.S. cups) fish stock made form sole bones, a few drops of lemon juice and a thickening of 5 egg yolks mixed with 2 dl (7 fl oz or 7/8 U.S. cup) cream. Reduce it quickly by one-third over an open fire, using a metal spatula, to give approximately 8 dl (1 2/5 pt or 3 1/2 U.S. cups) of sauce. Pass through a fine strainer and finish with 1 dl (3 1/2 fl oz or 1/2 U.S. cup) double cream and 125 g (4 1/2 oz) butter. This sauce is special for serving with Sole Normande but also has a wide range of applications as a basis for other fish sauces. NOTE: Contrary to general usage it is advisable not to include cooking liquor from oysters in those preparations which appear to call for it, as this is simply a salty liquid devoid of almost all flavour. It is preferable to use cooking liquor form mussels where this is possible."
    ---Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Le Guide Culinaire [1907], first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1979 (p. 23)

    [1961]
    "Normandy sauce I
    (for fish)
    Mix in a saucepan 1 cup (2 deciliters) of Veloute sauce based on fish stock. 1/2 cup (1 deciliter) of fish fumet and 1/2 cup (1 deciliter) of mushroom cooking liquor. Boil down by one-third over a good heat. Add 2 egg yolks mixed with 2 tablespoons of cream. Finish off with 3 tablespoons (50 grams) of butter and 3 tablespoons of cream; strain through a cloth.
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 857)

    [1976]
    "Sauce Normande

    1 cup fish fumet or strained poaching liquid from Filets de Sole a la Normande
    3 tablespoons finely chopped mushroom stems
    1 cup fish veloute
    1/2 cup plus 5 tablespoons heavy cream
    4 tablespoons unsalted butter
    Salt
    1. Combine the fumet or poaching liquid with chopped mushroom stems in a nonaluminum saucepan and reduce by half.
    2. Add fish veloute and 1/2 cup of the cream. Reduce by half, stirring.
    3. Off heat, whisk in the remaining heavy cream, the butter, and a little salt, if necessary. Strain through a chinois."
    ---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 152)


    Joinville sauce
    Joinville sauce decends from
    Normandy sauce. Recipes surface in the early 20th century.
    [1907]
    "Sauce Joinville.

    Prepare 1 litre 1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups) Sauce Normande finishing it with 60 g (2 oz) each of Crayfish Butter and Shrimp Butter instead of the cream and butter. This sauce should not contain an garnish if it is to be served with a garnished fish dish. If it is to be served with an ungarnished large boiled fish, 2 tbs Julienne of very black truffle should be added to it. Note: It is the completion of the sauce with Crayfish Butter and Shrimp Butter which differentiates this sauce from other similar sauces."
    ---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Escoffier, 1907 edition, translation by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1979(p. 21-22)

    [1914]
    "Joinville.
    --Normande sauce with crayfish and shrimps culis, garnished with julienne of truffles."
    ---Le Repertoire de La Cuisine, Louis Saulnier, translated form the original French edition by E. Brunet, with introductory remarks and Jacques Pepin...and George Lang [Barron's Educational Series:New York] (p. 21)

    [1935]
    "Sauce Joinville.
    Pi[nk]. and Wh[ite]. Normande sa[uce]. and normande sa[uce]. w[ith]. crawfish or lobster butter."
    ---Gancel's Culinary Encyclopedia of Modern Cooking, M. Gancel, 8th edition revised and augmented [Van Rees Press:New York] 1920, 1935 (p. 106)

    [1952]
    "Joinville
    (Granitue pour poissons.) Salpicon of cooked mushrooms, shrimps and truffles... Joinville, Sauce. A Sauce Normande with a coulis of ecrevisses and shrimps. A julienne of truffles is optional."
    ---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre Simon, complete and unabridged [Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 31)

    [1961]
    "Sauce Joinville.

    Add to 1 cup (2 deiliters) of Shrimp sauce a tablespoon of truffles cut in a fine julienne (thin strips). Note: If the Joinville sauce is intended to coat braised fish, the julienne of truffles is not added to it because these must figure in the garnish. This sauce is also prepared with crayfish butter, and sometimes with mixed shrimp and crayfish butter." (p. 856)
    "Joinville (A LA). The name of a special dish made with fillets of sole."(p. 552)
    "Fillets of sole Joinville...
    Poach the fillets, folded, in fumet that is scarcely boiling. Drain and arrange them in a circle on a round dish, placing them with the points upwards instead of in the usual way. Fix on the tip of each fillet a peeled pink shrimp. Put in the middle of the circle a Joinville garnish composed of shrimps, mushrooms and diced truffles, all bound with Joinville sauce...Coat the fillets with Joinville sauce to which has been added some of the concentrated cooking liquor. Put on each fillet a slice of truffle glazed with fish jelly. Note: Formerly, fillets of sole prepared a la Joinville instead of being set in a circle directly on the plate as described here, were arranged in a circle on a moulded border of pike or other fish forecemeat. These fillets, instead of being coated with Joinville sauce, were left as they were, but each one was decorated with a large slice of truffle. The garnish was put into the middle of the moulded border." (p. 890)
    ---Larousse Gatronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961
    [NOTE: This book also offers a recipe for Gateau De Joinville (galette & raspberry jam) (p. 552).]


    Pesto
    Food historians generally trace the origin of the concept of pesto to ancient condiments made by grinding spices with mortar and pestle and combining them with oil. The word 'pesto' literally means 'pounded'. These types of foods were known in the Persia and ancient Rome. The key to understanding pesto is basil, the primary ingredient. Pounded basil products were noted in Italy in Medieval times. Today, pesto is a popular accompaniment to many dishes served in restaurants and at home. The French call this sauce
    Pistou, with a nod to Italian origin.

    About basil
    "Basil., aromatic plant. Basil was already being eaten by slugs in ancient Greek gardens, but why it was grown there is uncertain. In the modern Near East basil is grown for its aroma by not traditionally used in food. In the ancient world it was controversial whether basil should be taken as fod, though according to Galen some ate it as a salad, dressed with olive oil and garum. Its medicial qualities are recorded from the Hippocratic Regimen onwards. The basil of the Mediterranean is Ocimum americanum. The ancient name was okimon in Greek, ocimum in Latin; the now-familiar name basilikon appears first in early medieval texts, and the two are equated in Byzantine sources such as the manuscripts of Simeon Seth's dietary manual, but some scholars, including Laufer, have doubted that the ancient okimon is realy basil."
    ---Food in the Ancient World from A to Z, Andrew Dalby [Routledge:London] 2003 (p. 48)

    Basil, A Modern Herbal, M. Grieve, 1931:

    About pesto

    "Genoa is closely associated with its basil and pesto. Pesto is said to be of Persian origin, and although the pounding of coriander and garlic into a pesto is quite old in the Middle East, I believe the origins of Genoese-style pesto may be Roman, as they were known to have made pounded condiments. Although we can't be sure of the first use of pesto, we do know that Genoa was associated with basil the star ingredient of this pesto, as early as the mid-fifteenth century, from the story of the humanist ambassador and lawyer Francesco Marchese, who won his fame on the basis of a remark he made to the Duke of Milan upon presenting him a tub of basil; if treated well, basil gave off a very nice scent, if dealt with harshly, it produced serpents and scorpions."
    ---A Mediterranean Feast, Clifford A. Wright [William Morris:New York] 1999 (p. 351)

    "In Genoa, the birthplace of basil, and all along the Ligurian coast, the air is redolent of basil...The most famous Genovese sauce, pesto, is made of basil which has been worked to form a durable, portable sauce, perfectly suited to long, hazardous voyages of discovery. It had been suggested that during the crusades, the Genovese contingent could be easily identified even as far afield as Jerusalem, by the characteristic aroma of pesto that surrounded them...Originally, [making pesto] was a slow, laborious procedure since the basil, garlic and nuts had to be pounded by hand with a pestle and mortar-hence the name 'pesto'."
    ---The Top One Hundred Pasta Sauces, Diane Seed [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 1987 (p. 9-10)

    "Pasta al Pesto...In the late 70s/early'80s, when fresh basil could be had at most farmer's markets, pesto became the pasta sauce of choice."
    ---The American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean Anderson [Clarkson Potter:New York] 1997 (p. 214)

    [1893]
    "Salsa Verde (Green sauce)

    To prepare green sauce, squeeze the brin out of some capers and then, using a mezzaluna, finely chop them together wtih an anchovy, a little onion, and very little garlic. Mash the mixture with a knife blade and make it into a fine paste which you will place in a gravy dish. Add a fair amount of parsley chopped with a few basil leaves. Blend everything in fine olive oil and lemon juice. This sauce goes well with boiled chicken, cold fish, hard-boiled or poached eggs. if you have no capers, brine-cured pepper may be used instead."
    ---Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well, Pellegrino Artusi, Translated by Murtha Baca and Stephoen Sartalli [Marsilio Publshers:New York] 1997 (p. 117-118)

    Pesto infiltrated American culinary conscious during the 1930s; blossomed in the 1950s & went mainstream in the early 1980s.

    [1935]
    "In Liguria you must try the minestrone col pesto, a soup in which oil, cheese, garlic and basil are used."
    ---"Italy Richly Endowed with Foods Renowned," Darrell Preston Aub, The Washington Post, September 8, 1935 (p. F1)

    [1944]
    "Italian Spaghetti Paste
    . Those who are fond of spaghetti may be interested in learning of an Italian paste which, though not new, is relatively little known. Called Pesto Genovese, it is dark green in color and is made of finely chopped parsley, anise, basil, garlic, cheese, olive oil and seasoning. it needs only to be added to oil or margarine to make a delicious sauce. The kind we have in mind is Poggiolo brand. The paste, which is especially popular with Italians, has a pungent anise flavor, in which a trace of basil is also apparent. For this reason, a linking for anise is a prerequisite to its use. Although the directions on the tin call for two tablespoons of the paste to be mixed with oil as desired, those with conservative tastes will find one tablespoon sufficient for each serving of spaghetti. Mix it with one tablespoon of oil, or with one and a half tablespoons of fortified margarine. The sauce should then be heated, added to the spaghetti and sprinkled generously with an Italian-type grated cheese. One six-ounce tin of the paste will serve twelve persons. If all of the package is not used at once, the remainder may be kept in a glass jar in the refrigerator. Pesto Genovese, which is often referred to simply as green paste, may be found at most Italian grocery stores, and, specifically at Manganato's, 488 Ninth Avenue, where it sells for 28 cents."
    ---"News of Food," Jane Holt, New York Times, October 24, 1944 (p. 20)

    [1946]
    "Pasta al Pesto (pesto means "pounded," and refers to the mode of preparation) is the distinctive contribution of the Northern Italians to the culinary art. Into a mortar placed generous quantiteis of fresh basil--the dry will not do--and a few cloves of garlic. Pound vigorously with a pestle, adding small quantities of olive oil from time to time, until garlic and basi merge into a fine paste. Complete the process as described for pasta al burro, adding this paste and butter to the pasta. Pestle and mortar are stock kitchen equipment in many Italian homes; if they are not avialable, the ingredients may be minced on a cutting board with a heavy, straight-edges knife. If a knife is used, the mincing must be continued until garlic and basil are thoroughly fused. This seasonal dish--it can be prepared only when fresh basil is available--is an extraordinary pleasant experience both for the nostrils and the palate. Its only disadvantage is that it may unduly whet the appetite. I once knew a man in Florence who wagered that he could eat two pounds of pasta al pesto--six ounces in a generous portion for the average man --after a normal dinner. The prize was a barrel of Chianti. He won the wager and lived to drink the wine!"
    ---"Spaghetti: The fine points of preparing it in the native manner," Sunset, January 1946 (p. 30-31)

    [1952]
    "Pesto Sauce, Genoise Style.

    1 large bunch fresh sweet basil
    Parsely, about a s much as basil
    4 cloves garlic
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    Freshly ground pepper
    4 tablespoon Romana cheese.
    1. Chop to a paste basil, parsley and garlic, using a chopping bowl or mortar and pestle. Do not prepare this sauce too far ahead of serving time or the green color will be lost.
    2. Add salt and pepper. Add oil about drop by drop, beating and rubbing continuously until mixture is of sauce consistency. Stir in cheese. Serve by mixing about one-half the sauce with cooked fine spaghetti or noodles and use the remaining sauce as garnish on top. The sauce also may be added to minestrone soup, a spoonful to each serving. Yield: four servings."
    ---"News of Food," New York Times, May 10, 1952 (p. 24)

    [1955]
    "Basil--once called the herb of kings--is becoming more common in American cookery
    . The sweet, fragrant plant is well known to European epicureans, who use it for flavoring soups, meats and sauces...Lucky Americans returning from an Italian vacation will speak fondly of having eaten a fresh-basil spaghetti sauce called "pesto." This delicacy may be prepared as follows:
    Chop very fine one large buch fresh sweet basil with an equal amount of parsley and four cloves of garlic. Better still, mash all all together in a mortar with a pestle. Add olive oil drop by drop until mixture is of sauce consistency. Season to taste. Stir in four tablespoons grated Romano cheese. Mix about one-half the sauce with cooked fine spaghetti or noodles and use remaining portion as garnish."
    ---"Basil Brings Soupor Meat a Novel Tang," New York Times, August 24, 1955 (p. 30)

    [1970]
    Ada Boni's Talisman Italian Cook Book, sponsored by Ronzoni Macaroni [Crown Publishers:New York] defines pesto but does not offer a recipe for it. "Pesto (PAT-stoe)--'mashed.' A Genoese green sauce for macaroni, made with oil, garlic, herbs, anchovies, etc." (p. 266)

    [1981]
    "Noodles with Pesto Sauce.

    Noodles
    3 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
    Salt
    2 eggs
    2 tablespoon lukewarm water
    1 tablespoon olive or salad oil

    Pesto Sauce
    1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
    1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
    1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
    1 clove garlic, crushed
    1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
    or 1 tablespoon dried marjoram leaves
    1/4 cup olive oil
    1/4 cup chopped pine nuts or walnuts.

    1. Make noodles: Sift four with 1/2 teaspoon salt into medium bowl. Make well in center. Add eggs and water; beat with for until well combined. Dough will be stiff. Turn out on wooden board. Knead dough until it is smooth and elastic--about 12 minutes. 2. Cover with bowl; let rest at least 30 minutes. Divide dough into four parts. Keep covered with bowl until ready to roll out. On lightly floured pastry cloth or board, roll each part into a rectangle, about 16 by 14 inches. The dough should be aobut 1 1/6 inch thick. 3. Work quickly, because dough dries out. From long side, roll up loosely as for jelly roll. With thin, charp knife, cut roll crosswise, 18 inch wide for fine noodles, 13 inch wide for broad. Unwind noodles, stretching slightly, and wind loosely around fingers. 4. Arrange on ungreased cookie sheets. let dry overnight. Makes 1 pound. Next day, about 1/2 hour before serving, make pesto sauce: In bowl, with spoon or with mortar and pestle, blend butter with Parmesan, parsley, garlic, basil and marjoram. 5. Gradually add 1/4 cup oil, beating constantly. Add nuts, mix well. Makes enough sauce for 8 ounces cooked noodles. meanwhile, cook half of the noodles (8 ounces). In large kettle, bring 3 quarts water, 1 tabelspoon each of salt and olive oil to rapid boil. 6. Add noodles. Bring back to boiling, cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally with long fork to prevent sticking, just until tender--7 to 10 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well, do not rinse. Toss with sauce in heated dish, to coat well. Serves 4."
    ---"McCall's Cooking School: The Perfect Pasta Dish," McCall's, May 1981(p. 159-160)

    [1982]
    "Pesto
    If you never had a cause to be glad ou have a nose, pesto might lift you to new realms of nasal appreciation. One of the most aromatic of human concoctions, pesto is to your kitchen as the first hyacinth of spring is to your garden. Pesto is a powerful mash of fresh basil and garlic, moistened with olive oil, sparked by sharp cheese, and subtly textured by pulverized nuts. It is commonly used as a sauce for pasta, yet its thick, pastelike consistency makes it readily usable as a seasoning in the preparation of other dishes...It stores well in the refrigerator or freezer, so you can keep it on hand for a quick pasta dinner--or for whatever other special dish you might want it for. Thsi recipe makes about 2 1/2-3 cup--plenty for 6-8 servings of pasta.

    3 packed sups fresh basil leaves (no stems)
    3-4 healthy cloves of garlic
    1/4-1/2 tsp. salt
    3/4 cup freshly-grated parmean cheese
    1/4 cup pulverized nots
    1/2 cup olive oil
    Optional: 1/2 cup (packed) fresh parsley, 1/4 cup melted butter, freshly-ground black pepper.
    1. Puree everything together in a blender or a food processor fitted with the steel blade-until it becomes a uniform paste, OR
    2. Use a mortar and psetle, and coarse salt to pound the basil and garlic together. Stir in remaining ingredients.
    FOR PASTA: Toss room temperature pesto wtih hot, drained pasta (about 1/4 cup pesto per serving--more or less, to taste).
    Store in a tightly-lidded jar."
    ---The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Mollie Katzen [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 1982 (p. 161)

    [1982]
    "Pistou

    The pistou can be used to enhance other types of soups in addition to this one and is also very good tossed with steamed vegetables, sauteed potatoes or cooked pasta.
    1 cup basil leaves or parsley leaves, or a mxiture or both
    4 cloves garlic, peeled
    1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
    1/4 cup olive oil or vegetable oil
    1. Puree all the ingredeints in the bowl of a food processor until smooth.
    2. Stir the pistou into the soup and bring to a boil. Serve with corn dumplings."
    ---Everyday Cooking With Jacques Pepin, Jacques Pepin [Harper & Row:New York] 1982 (p. 23)


    Remoulade
    Food historians generally place the genesis of Remoulade in the 19th century. They do not attribute this recipe to a specific person or place. Nor do they agree on one specific *original* recipe. Our survey of historic French and American cookbooks confirms several variations. Most (with the exception of the Cajun/Creole version) descend from a
    mayonnaise base.

    "Remoulade...a French culinary term which usually refers to a mayonnaise-like dressing with mustard. It is thought to have been derived in the 17th century from a name used in Picardy for the black radish, whose piquancy is not unlike that of mustard. In the past, the term designated a broth flovoured with chopped anchovies, capers, parsley, spring onions, garlic and a little oil. Its modern sense (a mayonnaise-like emulsion) seems to have evolved in the 19th century. It is now rarely encountered in France except as an element of celeri remoulade, a popular salad made of grated celeriac...and mayonnaise..that has been highly seasoned with Dijon mustard."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2nd edition, 2007 (p. 660)

    "Remoulade is a piquant mayonnaise-based sauce used as a dressing for salads, cold meats, etc. Authorities differ on precisely which additions are necessary to turn mayonnaise into remoulade: the classic French ingredients are chopped gherkins, capers, and herbs, but simpler versions are made containing only a touch of mustard, while to nineteenth-century English cooks, who were quite keen on remoulade (Mrs. Beeeton makes it clear that it was often called simply French salad dressing), cold hard-boiled egg yolks were a sine qua non. French remoulade appears to derive from ramolas, a word in the northern dialect of Picardy for 'horseradish' which came ultimately from Latin armoracea."
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:London] 2002 (p.280)

    [1817] (en francais)
    Remoulade
    ---Le Cuisinier Royal , Alexandre Viard (Paris: Barba), 1817. First Edition, Thus (9th edition)

    [1828]
    "Common Remoulade, and Green Remoulade

    Take two or four eggs, boil them hard, then pound the yolks in a mortar, add a spoonful of mustard, pepper, and salt, three spoonsful of oil, one spoonful of vinegar, and break the yolk of the raw egg into it: if you have good sauce in your larder, in preference to the raw egg, put in one spoonful of it to prevent the remoulade from curdling; rub it through a hair sieve, and serve it up. The remoulade verte is the same as the other, only you have a ravigotte, composed of chervil, burnet, tarragon, and parsley. Pound all these, and rub the remoulade and ravigotte, in the state of a puree, through a tammy. Throw a little verd de persil into the remoulade, to make it look quite green. Add likewise a little Cayenne pepper. If approved of, you may put a few chopped shalots. Should you want more sauce, double the quantity of your ingredients. N.B. If you can not procure all these herbs, a little parsley will do, provided you put into the suace, half a teas-spoonful of each of the following sauces, Chili vinegar, tarragon, Harvey's sauce, carice, and elder vinegar, all of which ingredients give exquisite flavour to the ravigotte."
    ---The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, facisimle Englished edition 1828 [Arco Publishing Company:New York] 1978 (p. 28-29)

    [1869]
    "Remoulade Sauce

    Same process as for White Mayonnaise Sauce; add:
    1 tablespoonful of chopped capers,
    1 tablespoonful of chopped gherkins,
    3 shalots, say 1/2 oz., chopped, and washed,
    2 anchovies, well cleaned and chopped,
    1 tablespoonful of French mustard;
    Mix, in the sauce; and serve."
    ---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 67)

    [1873]
    "Remoulade.
    A sauce composed of anchovies, capers, chopped parsely and scallions, all heated in a good gravy with a drop of oil, a clove of garlic, and the usual seasonings. Remoulade a la Provencale. Chop parsley, 2 shallots, and a little onion and press in a cloth to extract the juices. Chop gherkins, capers, and an anchovy. Crush completely in a mortar with four hard-cooked egg yolks, a little blanched parsley, and some garlic. When well crushed, add 1 raw egg yolk. Drop by drop, stirring, pour 1 good glass of oil into the mortar. Season with salt, pepper, mustard, 1 tablespoonful of good tarragon vinegar, and the juice of 1 lemon. Stir the whole well together."
    ---Dictionary of Cuisine, Alexandre Dumas, edited, abridged and tranlsated by Louis Colman [Simon and Schuster:New York] 1958 (p. 208-9)

    [1886]
    Remoulade (3 recipes), Juliet Corson, USA Remoulade
    ---Miss Corson's Practical American Cookery

    [1901]
    "Sauce Remoulade.

    Remoulade (Cold).
    3 Hard Boiled Eggs. 1 Raw Yolk of Egg.
    1 Tablespoonful of Tarragon Vinegar.
    3 Tablespoonfuls Olive Oil.
    1/2 Clove of Garlic, Minced Very Fine.
    1/2 Teaspoonful Prepared Mustard.
    Salt and Cayenne to Taste.
    A Remouloade is a cold sauce, and is always served with cold meats. Boil the eggs till hard. Remove the shells, and set aside the whites, which you will have crumbled fine for a garnish. Put the yolks into a bowl, and mash very fine, till perfectly smooth. Add the mustard, and mix well, and the seasonings of vinegar and salt an Cayenne to taste. Then add the olive oil, drop by drop, working in the egg all the time, and then add the yolk of the raw egg, and work in thorougly, till light. Then add the juice of half a lemon. Mix well, increasing the quantities of oil or vinegar, according to taste, very slightly. If the sauce is not thorougly mixed, it will curdle. It is now ready to be served with cold meats, fish or salads."
    ---The Picayune's Creole Cook Book, facsimile 2nd edition 1901 [Dover Publications:New York] 1971 (p. 168)

    [1907]
    "210. Sauce Remoulade.

    To 1 litre (1 3/4 pt or 4 1/2 U.S. cups) Mayonnaise add and mix in 1 1/2 tbs mustard, 100g (3 1/2 oz)choped gherkins, 50 g (2 oz) capers chopped and squeezed to remove the liquid, 1 tbs mixed chopped parsley, tarragon and chervil, and 1/2 tbs anchovy essence. This sauce can be suitable served with various items of cold food."
    ---The Complete Guide to te Art of Modern Cookery, Escoffier, first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaire [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 31)

    [1946]
    "Remoulade Sauce

    2 sour pickles, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
    2 tablespoons capers, finely chopped
    1 tablespoon prepared mustard
    1 tablespoon mixed, chopped parsley, tarragon and chervil
    2 cups mayonnaise
    The pickles and capers must be very finely chopped and all moisture pressed out of them. Combine all ingredients and mix well."
    ---Louis Diat's Home Cookbook: French Cooking for Americans, Louis Diat [J.B. Lippincott:Phipadelphia] 1946 (p. 35)

    [1949]
    "23. Remoulade Sauce

    8 tarragon leaves
    5 tablespoons watercress leaves
    2 teaspoons chopped chives
    1 small clove garlic
    2 teaspoons chopped parsley
    1/2 teaspoon strong prepared mustard
    1 cup Mayonnaise
    Pound the tarragon, watercress, chives, garlic, and parsley to a smooth paste. Combine the paste with the mustard and mayonnaise."
    ---Tante Marie's French Kitchen, translated and adapted by Charlotte Turgeon [Oxford University Press:New York] 1949 (p. 11)

    [1952]
    "Sauce Remoulade

    1 cup mayonnaise
    1 teaspoon chopped tarragon
    1 clove garlic, finely chopped
    1 teaspoon dry mustard
    1 teaspoon French mustard
    1 teaspoon capers
    1 tablespoon chopped parsley
    2 gherkins, finely chopped
    Blend all ingredients together and taste for seasoning. It is much better if made several hours befor serving."Paris Cuisine, James A. Beard and Alexander Watt [Little, Brown and Company:Boston MA] 1952 (p. 240)

    [1967]
    "Remoulade Sauce
    (1 cup)
    1 cup Blender Mayonnaise
    1 teaspoon French mustard
    1/2 teaspoon fresh chopped tgarragonb, or 1/4 teaspoon dried tarragon.
    ---White House Chef Cookbook, Rene Verdon [Doubleday & Company:Garden City NY] 1952 (p. 196)

    [1975]
    "Remoulade Sauce.

    About 1 1/3 Cups
    For cold meat and poultry--also shellfish, with which it is especially appropriate. Combine:
    1 cup Mayonnaise
    1 tablespoon drained, finely chopped cucumber pickle
    1 tablespoon drained, chopped capers
    2 teaspoons French mustard
    1 teaspoon finely chopped parsely
    1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
    1/2 teaspoon chervil
    (1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste)"
    ---Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker [Bobbls-MerrillCo.:New York] 1975 (p. 364)


    Robert
    What is Sauce Robert?
    "The barbe Robert is essentially a 'fortified mustard sauce'--that is, a boiled mustard with additional spicing. As Recipe 163, the Vatican copy of the Viandier shows only the name of this sauce: La barbe Robert, autrement appelee la Taillamaslee. No recipe is offered there. In a sixteenth-century printed cookbook that is rooted in the Viandier tradition, we find a recipe for Sauce barbe Robert which is at least related to our text--the name suggests that. However, apart from being a spicy, hot mustard mixture, it has clearly been modified rather freely over the intervening generations. We may note in the Viviendier, though, that the direction to use des epices teles et si fortez dque bvour y avez vo goust, seems to give the cook considerable latitude in elaborating this sauce. The later, printed version additionally includes fried onions and vinegar; and, rather than a cooking sauce for chicken, it is to be used to dress roast rabbit or fried fish. At least the sauce's name appears to have been durable."
    ---The Vivendier, a critical edition with English translation by Terence Scully [Prospect Books:Devon] 1997 (p. 31-32)

    Who was "Robert?"
    "According to certain culinary authors, this sauce, which is an accompaniment to pork chops and which is seasoned with vinegar, onions and mustard, was invented by a certain Robert Vinot, who, according to the legend on a print which bears his portrait, was a celebrated sauce maker at the beginning of the seventeenth century."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 812)
    [NOTES: (1) Sauce Robert predates this Mr. Vinod by at least 200 years. (2) Later editions of Larousse Gastronomique omit this factoid. ]

    [15th century]
    "1. Barbe Robert

    ...Firstly to make a Barbe Robert. Get a little clear water and set it to boil with some butter; then add in wine, mustard, verjuice and such spices and as strong as you like, and let everything boil together. The get your pieces of chicken, put them in and let them boil only briefly; then roast them. Watch that there is a reasonable amount of broth. It should be coloured with a little saffron."
    ---The Vivendier, a critical edition with English translation by Terence Scully [Prospect Books:Devon] 1997 (p. 31)

    [1653] "56. Loin of Pork with a sauce Robert
    Lard it with great lard, then rost it, and baste it with verjuice and vinegar, with a bundle of sage. After the fat is fallen, take it for to fry an onion with, which being fried, you shall put under the loin with the sauce wherewith you have basted it. All being al little stoved together, lest it may harden, serve. This sauce is called sauce Robert."
    ---The French Cook, Francois Pierre, La Varenne, Englished by I.D.G., introduced by Philip and Mary Hyman [Southover Press:East Sussex] 2001 (p. 55)

    [1828]
    "No. 79.--La Sauce Robert.

    Cut some onions into small dice, fry them of a fine brown, moisten them with some Espagnole or singrez, and moisten with some gravy of veal. Skim, it, then the sauce may look bright put in a little pepper and salt, and just before you send up, mix a spoonful of mustard."
    ---The French Cook, Louis Eustache Ude, facsimile 1828 Englished edition [Arco Publishing:New York] 1978 (p. 37) [NOTE: Ude's Espagnole
    here.] ADD JUMP TAG TO THIS RECIPE

    [1879]
    "289. Sauce Robert.
    —Hachez finement un oignon, gaites-le revenir au saindoux; lorsqu’il est de bonne couleur, ajoutez une bonne cuilleree de farine; ne laissex plus roussir et mouillex avec quelques cuillerees de bouillon; assaisonnex et laissex bouillir quelques minutes; au moment de dervir, ajoutez le jus d’un citron et une cuilleree de moutarde."
    ---La Cuisiniere Provencale, J,-B. Reboul, facsimile 27eme edition, 3e triage, 1897 [Ruat et Tacussel:Marseille] (p. 161-162)

    [1907]
    "74. Sauce Robert

    Heat 75 g (2 1/2 oz) butter in a pan, add 300g (11 oz) finely chopped onion and cook without colour. Moisten with 4 dl (14 fl oz or 1 ¾ U.S. cups) white wine and reduced by two-thirds. Add 6 dl (1 pt or 2 5/8 U.S. cups) Sauce Demi-glace and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Pass the sauce through a fine strainer and finish away from the heat with a pinch of sugar and 2 tsp of English mustard diluted with a little water. This sauce is usually served to accompany grilled pork. Notes: 1. This sauce must not be boiled once the mustard has been added. 2. It may be passed, or not, as required.
    "75. Sauce Robert Escoffier
    This sauce may be obtained commercially under the brand name of Escoffier. It can be used either hot or cold; if used hot an equal quantity of excellent quality brown veal stock whould be added. It is specially suitable for serving with grilled pork, veal or chicken and grilled fish."
    ---Le Guide Cuilinaire, Escoffier, first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell & R.J. Kaufmann, 1907 edition [John Wiley:New York] 1979 (p. 15-16) [NOTE: Esoffier's Demi-glace
    here.]

    [1949]
    "16. Robert Sauce (Sauce Robert

    2 tablespoons butter
    2 onions, chopped fine
    1 tablespoon strong prepared mustard
    2 tablespoons flour
    1 cup stock (or consomme)
    1 teaspoon wine vinegar
    salt and pepper
    Fry the onions in the buitter until they are pale yhellow. Add the flour adn stir in well. Stir in teh liquid and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes or longer. Just before servicng add mustard and finegar and season with salt and pepper. This sauce is excellent with left-over meat and poutlry and with lamb or mutton chops."Tante Marie's French Kitchen, translated and adapted by Charlotte Turgeon [Oxford Univeristy Press:New York] 1949 (p. 9)

    [1961]
    "Robert sauce I
    (for grilled meat, mostly grilled pork)....Cook till soft 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion in a tablespoon of butter (or lard). Moisten with 1/2 cup (1 decilitre) of white wine. Boil down and add 1 cup (2 deciliters ) of Demi-glace sauce ...Simmer for a few seconds. At the last moment add a teaspoon of mustard. Strain or serve as it is, according to taste.
    Robert sauce II.--Sprinkle the cooked onion with a spoonful of flour, allow to colour lightly, moisten with white wine and add stock. Finish off with mustard.
    Robert sauce III (Old recipe)...'Cut 3 onions into small dice, cook till they are golden in clarified butter, drain and mix with some consomme and 1/4 cut of Espagnole sauce. Boil down the suace to the desired consistency, mix in a little sugar, a little pepper, a little viengar and a spoonful of fine mustard.' (A. Careme, L'Art de la cuisine franciase au XIXe seicle.)
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne, edited by Charlotte Turgeon and Nina Froud [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 849-850)

    [1968]
    "Sauce Robert

    ¼ cup dry white wine
    1 bay leaf
    2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots or green onions
    1 ½ teaspoons chopped onion
    1 small clove garlic, minced
    2 sprigs fresh thyme or one-half teaspoon dried
    ½ cup tomato puree
    ½ cup chicken stock
    ½ cup brown sauce or canned beef gravy
    ½ cup thinly sliced conrichons (see note)
    2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
    Beef stock (optional)
    1 tablespoon Dijon or Dusseldorf mustard
    2 tablespoons butter
    1. Combine the wine, bay leaf, shallots, onion, garlic and thyme in a saucepan and simmer until wine is reduced to about two tablespoons. Add the tomato puree, chicken stock and brown sauce and cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
    2. Remove the thyme and bay leaf and add the cornichons and parsley. If the sauce seems too thick, thin it with a little beef stock. Bring the sauce to a boil and remove it from the heat.
    2. Stir in the mustard and swirl in the butter. Do not cook further but serve hot.
    Yield: About one cup sauce.
    Note: Cornichons, small sour pickles, are available at Bloomingdale’s, Stern’s and Charles & Co."
    ---"Four Favorites," Craig Claiborne, New York Times, January 7, 1968 (p. AM86)

    How does this comaper with Honey mustard sauce?


    Roux
    "Roux. The various kinds of roux are used as thickening agents for basic sauces, and their preparation, which appears to be of little importance, should actually be carried out with a great deal of care and attention.' So begins August Escoffier's article on Roux in his monumental Guide culinaire; almost an entire page is devoted to roux brun, though only short paragraphs deal with the preparation of roux blond and blanc. Etymologically, and historically, all this makes perfect sense. Roux in French literally means 'reddish' (or 'orange') hence the first roux were made by cooking flour and butter together until a reddish tint was obtained then using this to thicken a souce or broth. Its widespread use in French cooking seems to date from the mid-17th century. At that time, La Varenne (1651) described the preparation of a liaison de farine (flour thickener) made by cooking flour in lard and, by the end of the century, cooks are referring to this mixture either as farine frit or roux. By the mid-18th century cookbooks authors are advising that roux de farine'...be cooked until the butter and flour are a nice yellow' and recommend that the resulting paste be stored for later use...The roux had its critics...and some French gastronomes began complaining about the over-use of roux in sauces as the 19th century approached. Careme came to its defence in the 1830s calling those who dared criticize the use of roux ignorant men'...A roux, writes Careme, is an indespensible to cooks as ink to writers but, he warns, just as a poor scribbler cannot produce a masterpiece simply by dipping his pen into that black liquid, a sauce is not necessarily impoved if the roux has not been simmered with sufficient care. In recent years the roux has once again come under heavy criticism and, with the advent of nouvelle cuisine in the early 1970s, many chefs abandoned its use...But, despite its chequered history, the roux remains one of the cornerstones of French cuisine..."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford Univeristy Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 674)

    La Varenne's original recipe:

    "Thickening of flowre
    Melt some lard, take out the mammocks; put your flowre into your melted lard, seeth it well, but have a care it stick not to the pan, mix some onion with it proportionably. When it is enough, put all with good broth, mushrums and a drop of vinegar. Then after it hath boiled with its seasoning, pass all through the strainer and put it in a pot. When you will use it, you shall set it upon warm embers for to thicken or allay your sauces."
    ---The French Cook, Francois Pierre La Varenne, Englished by I.D.G. 1653, Introduced by Philip and Mary Hyman [Southover Press:East Sussex] 2001 (p. 105)

    NOTE: Escoffier's Guide Culinare has recently been reissued in English. Your librarian can help you find a copy or obtain the pages you need: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, translated by H. L. Cracknell and R. J. Kaufman [John Wiley:New York] 1997. In this edition, his notes and recipes for roux appear on pages 6-7.

    ABOUT CAJUN ROUX

    "The Creoles, like their French ancestors, hold that the three mother sauces, or "Sauces Meres," are Brown Sauce, or "Sauce Espagnole"; the White Sauce, or "Sauce Allemande," and the "Glace," or "Glaze." These are the foundation of all sauces, and upon their successful making depends upon the taste and piquancy of the numberless variety of fancy sauces that give to even the most commonplace dish an elegance all its own. The Creoles are famous for their spendid sauces, and the perfect making of a good sauce is considered an indispensable part of culinary art and domestic economy. The first thing to learn in making sauces of every kind is how to make a good "Roux," or the foundtion mixture of flour and butter, or flour and lard. We have the Brown Roux and the White Roux. In making a brown Roux, this unfailing rule must be the guide: Never, under any consideration, use burnt or over-browned flour."
    ---The Picayune Creole Cook Book, facsimile 1901 2nd edition [Dover Publications:New York] 1971 (p. 158)

    Here is the recipe from this book (circa 1901):

    "Brown roux.
    1 Tablespoonful Butter. 1 Tablespoonful Flour.
    In making the roux, which is the foundation of fancy sauce, melt the tablespoonful of butter slowly, and add gradually the flour, sprinking it in and stirring constantly, till every portion is a nice, delicate brown. Never make it too brown, because it must continue browning as the other ingredients are added in the order given in every recipe in this book. It is a great mistake to pile all ingredients, one after another, pell-mell, into a dish, in the course of preparation. The secret of good cooking lies in following implicity the gradual introduction of the component parts in the order specified.

    In making a roux for cooking gravies or smothering meats, the proportions are one tablespoonful of lard and two of flour, butter always making a richer gravy than lard, and sometimes being too rich for delicate stomachs. It is a great fad among many in our day to use nothing but butter in cooking. The Creoles hold that butter should be used its proper place, and lard in its own. The lard is not only less expensive, but is far preferable to an inferior quality of butter, and in many cases preferable to the best butter, according to the dish in course of preparation. Properly made, the taste of lard can never be detected, and it is feared that butter is used by many to cover up, by its taste, the deficiencies of having made the roux improperly. If there is the slightest indication of burnt odor or over-browning, throw the roux away and wash the utensil before proceeding to make another. Remember that even a slighly burnt sauce will spoil the most savory dish."
    ---(p. 159)

    "White roux.
    1 tablespoonful Butter. 1 Tablespoonful Flour.
    The White Roux is made exactly like the Brown Roux, only that the butter and flour are put simultaneously into the saucepan, and not allowed to brown. It is then moistened with a little broth or boiling water, and allowed to boil a few minutes, till thick. The White Roux is the foundation of all white sauces, or those containing milk and cream. It is also used in nearly all purees. In the Sauce Veloute it should be colored."
    ---(p. 159)

    Related sauce?
    Allemande.

    Sour cream
    The first sour [cultured] creams were probably made by accident...it's what happens naturally to cream that is left too long in the heat. Food historians do not seem to have fixed an exact date or place to this event.
    Yogurt, sour milk, buttermilk & mayonnaise present similar history. Countries/cuisines which have incorporated sour cream into traditional fare are generally located in central and northern Europe. Sour cream was introduced to the New World by immigrants from these regions.

    "Sour cream An example of a dairy product in motion; its use has been steadily spreading westwards. It is a traditional and important ingredient in Russian, E. European, German, and C. European cooking, both in savoury and in sweet dishes. In the second half of the 20th century...it has started to become a staple in the western parts of Europe, N. America, and elsewhere...Russian smetana and Polish smietana are often taken by translators to be 'sour cream', although the dictionaries give the meaning of the words simply as 'cream'...Traditionally, sour cream was made by letting fresh cream sour naturally. Lactic (and to a small extent, acetic) acid-producting bacteria in a cream could normally be relied upon to give an acceptable taste...Modern cultured sour cream is made by pasteurizing and homogenizing light (English 'single') cream and inoculating it with a pure culture of selected bacteria."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 736)

    "'Sour' cream as distinct from 'soured' or 'cultured' is fresh cream which has been kept long enough to sour naturally. This may produce a pleasant or unpleasant flavor depending on the bacteria present in the cream. In countries where cooking with sour cream has long been a tradition, the kind used is that allowed to sour naturally but 'cultured' or 'soured' cream can be substituted successfully. Northern and Central Europe are the countries where sour cream is an important ingredient in cooking, and many of the recipes I include here have their origins in Russian, German, Hungarian, Polish and Czechoslovakian cooking. In Britain, particularly in farmhouse cooking, sour cream is traditionally used in baking in place of milk for making scones and similar goods."
    ----Cooking with Yogurt, Cultured Cream and Soft Cheese, Bee Wilson [Hippocrene Books:New York] 1973 (p. 69)

    Semtana

    "Smetana (or smitane, the French version of its name) is sour cream. Until recently it was familiar in Western gastronomy only in smetana sauce, a savoury sauce made with sour cream, onions, and white wine, but over the past two decades it has become relatively widely available in its own rights in British supermarkets. The term is of Russian origin."
    ---An A-Z of Food and Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 314)

    "Smetana. A soured (sour) cream, used extensively in central and eastern Europe. Produced by bacterial fermentation, it does not keep well. It is mainly used with fish, borsch, and as a sauce for stuffed cabbage leaves, sauerkraut and Hungarian meat stews. The similar sauere Sahne of Germany has a milder taste but is used in the same ways and also in horseradish sauce with herrings."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Completely Revised and Updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 1096)

    Popular Amreican uses

    Mexican-American food & sour cream: tradition or convergence?
    Food historians confirm traditional Central American recipes do not include sour cream. Cheesemaking was introduced by European settlers. They were not immediately co-mingled with native fare. Which begs the question: why is sour cream a 'staple' of contemporary Mexican-American cuisine?

    "Joe Valdez Caballero, who helped adapt Mexican food to American taste buds by creating a crisp taco shell and smothering his enchiladas in sour cream, has died at age 81. Caballero, considered a pioneer of Tex-Mex cuisine, died Friday, his family said. During a 37-year career at El Chico Restaurant in Dallas, Caballero was apparently the first restaurateur to put sour cream on chicken enchiladas, and thought up the idea of the hard taco shell, said Fred Cavazos, who worked many years with Caballero."
    ---"Joe Valdez Caballero, Inventor of Hard Taco Shell, Dead at 81," The Associated Press, May 13, 1989
    [NOTE: There is a large German population in Texas; influence on local cuisine was inevitable.]

    About California dip.


    Sriracha
    Originally sriracha was a
    chile-based condiment from a seaside town in Thailand. How to spell sriracha? Our survey of American newspapers confirms 'sriracha' (122 mentions) is more popuar than 'siracha' (26 mentions) which may be caused by transliterating from a different alphabet. According to the New York Times, the correct pronunciation is siracha. While the first Thai-American restaurants popped up in 1960s Los Angeles, it was not until recently that the cuisine was known to mainstream Americans. The commercial sriracha most Americans know today was created in the greater Los Angeles area during the 1980s. It was concocted by a Vietmamese refugee who used some of the proceeds to help his family & friends immigrate to America. By the 2000s, sriracha joined the ranks of designer condiments and trendy mash-up ethnic foods. By 2015, the condiment/sauce has become a staple in many American homes. Here's the story...

    Thai chiles
    "Thai food is extensively spiced with chiles but, contrary to popular belief, there is not just one 'Thai chile', but rather many different varieties that are used in cooking...a total of seventy-nine different varieties have been collected in Thailand from three species: Capsicum annuum, C. chinense, and C. frutescens...the Kashmiri chiles are also called Sriracha or Sriracha chiles. They are so named because a sauce made from these chiles originated in the Thai seaside town of Sriracha as an accompaniment to fish, and it became so popular that it has been bottled and sold around the world. However, the chiles used in Sriracha sauce now are red serranos. In agricutural terminology, the two types of chiles grown commercially in Thailand are 'bird pepper' (prik khee nu) and 'chile'' (prik khee fah)...The same trade routes that introduced the chile pepper into Thailand also spread the concept of curries from India to all parts of the globe."
    ---The Chile Pepper Encyclopedia, Dave Dewitt [William Morrow:New York] 1999 (p. 285-287)

    [1981]
    "Chilli Sauce, Saus Prik. Usually a smooth mixture of the following ingredients: chillies, water, vinegar, salt, sugar. Three are many bottled Thai varieties. One of the best known and widely sold brands in Thailand and overseas is Siracha sauce. This was originally a chilli sauce make and sold locally in the little seaside town of Siracha. It was sold on the beachfront seafood stands to accompany the fish. Because of its regional popuarity it was subsequently bottled and sold commercially throughout Thailand. Siracha is available here in Thai stores and some supermarkets. It comes in both red and yellow colorings and mild, medium and hot flavorings. Some other Thai chilli sauces are sweeter and have whole seeds and chilli fragments."
    ---The Original Thai Cookbook, Jennifer Brennan [Richard Marek Publishers:New York] 1981 (p. 283-284)
    [NOTE: Americanized recipe appears on p. 224.]

    [1997]
    "Ketchup, believe it or not, was once elegant, diversely flavored and in vogue...Now, to make the most of the condimment's true potential, chefs around the country have started creating their own ketchups...At the Asia de Cuba in midtown, there is a tongue-tingling sauce in tall green flasks called 'siracha ketchup' on every table. The uncooked condiment is a variation of Thai ketchup, which fuses roasted peppers, chili, lime, honey, ginger and white vinegar."
    ---"Adventurous Chefs Pour the Glory Back Into the Ketchup Bottle," Amanda Hesser, New York Times, October 22, 1997 (p. F1)

    [2009]
    "Some American consumers believe sriaracha (properly pronounced SIR-ratch-ah) to be a Thai sauce. Others think it is Vietnamese. The truth is that sriracha, as manufactured by Huy Fong Foods, many be best understood as ab American sauce, a poyglot puree with roots in different places and peoples. It's become a sleeve trick for chefs...Sriarcha has proved relevant beyond the epicurean realm. Walmart sells the stuff. So do mom-and-pop stores...Sriracha is a key ingredient in street food: The two kogi trucks that travel the streets of Los Angeles, vending kimchi-garnished tacos to the young, hip and hungry, provide customers with just one condiment, Huy Fong sriracha. Recently, Huy Fong's sriracha found its place in the suburbs. Applebee's has begun serving fried shrimp with a mix of mayonnaise and...sriracha. Then followed F.F. Chang's...What Mr. Tran [founder of Huy Fong Foods in 1983] developed in Los Angeles in the early 1980s was his own take on the traditional Asia chili sauce. In Sriracha, a town in Chonburi Province, Thailand, where homemade chili pastes are favored, natives do not recognize Mr. Tran's puree as their own. Multicutural appeal appeal was engineered into the product: the ingredient list on the back of the bottle is written in Vietnamese, Chinese, English, French and Spanish. And serving suggestions include pizzas, hot dogs, hamburgers and...pates. 'I know it's not a Thai siracha,' Mr. Tran said. 'It's my srircha.'" Like manny immigrants of his generation, David Tran's journey from Vietnam to America was epic. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Mr. Tran's travel...was fueled by chili sauces. From 1975 onward, Mr. Tran make sauces from peppers grown by his older brother...Though he never devised a formal name for his products, Mr. Tran decorated each cap with a rooster, his astrological sign. Production was family focused...By 1979, many of the Tran family's friends were leaving Vietnam. 'I had enough money saved to buy our way out,' he said...Mr. Tran did not anticipate the popularity of his take on sriracha...He figured that immigrants of Vietnamese ancestry would stock his sriracha at pho [noodle] shops. He hoped that the occasional American connsumer might squirt it on hot dogs ad hamburgers. He could never have expected what he found...Over the last decade, a number of imitators have entered the sriracha category...Demand has continued to build."
    ---"A Chili Sauce to Crow Something About," John T. Edge, New York Times, May 20, 2009 (p. D1)

    Related foods? Ketchup & salsa.


    Soy
    "Soy sauce. The universal condiment of China and Japan, is also widely used throughout SE Asia. It is the main condiment of Indonesia, where soya beans are grown extensively...Although soya beans have been grown in China for at least 3500 years, the sauce is a slightly more recent invention. It was developed during the Zhou dynasty (1134-246 BC) , and probably evolved in conjunction with the fermented fish sauces, many of which involved both fish and rice. The moulds Aspergillus oryzae and A. soyae are the principal agents in producing soy sauce, and the enzymes which they provide are similar to those which ferment fish sauce. These organisms are common and could accidentally have got to work on soya beans, with results which would have been recognized as a fishless fish sauce'. Early soy sauce was a solid paste known as sho or mesho. This developed into two products, liquid shoyu and solid miso. In China the liquid sauce is used more than the paste, while in Japan both are of equal importance. The European name soy' (similar in all lnaguages) originates with the 17th-century Dutch traders who brought the sauce back to Europe, where it became popular despite its high price."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 740)

    About soy.


    Tapenade
    Ingredients suggest tapenade, a robust Provencal sauce featuring capers, anchovies, olives, and lemon juice, dates to ancient times. Food historians generally agree this delicious convergence of Mediterranean flavors is a relatively new creation. J. B. Reboul [1897] names the restaurant and the chef (a friend of his) but does not share when or how Tapenade came to be. Tapenade first surfaces in USA print in the 1960s. This make sense in context. Until recently, most French-American restaurants, culinary educators, and publications focused on a niched world where "French" and "Parisian" were synonymous. Tapenade's original purpose was to accompany eggs in appetizer format. Today we graze a different table filled with tapenade dips, toast toppers, and pairings with mild fish or beef. USA cooks are world famous for creative interprations. Tapenade on warm broiled salmon, anyone?

    "La tapenade est une creation de notre ami Meynier a la Maison Doree a Marseille, sous la direction Peyrard. Cette maison est aujourd'hui disparue."
    ---La Cuisiniere Provencale, J.-B. Reboul, facsimile 27th edition, 3rd printing, Ruat et Tacussel:Marseille, in French [Tacussel:Paris] 2000 (p. 75)
    [NOTES: (1) My very rough translation: "The tapenade is a creation of our friend Meynier at the Maison (food establishment? literally "house") Doree in Marseille, under the direction of Peyrard. This establishment no longer exists today." (2) Recipe transcribed below.)

    "The curious thing about this sauce is that it has a kind of ancient, powerful flavour about it, as if it were something which might perhaps have been eaten by the Romans. Well, it was invented less than a hundred years ago by the chef at the Maison Doree in Marseille, although it must certainly have been based on some already existing sauce. The original method was to stuff the eggs with the tapenade, plus the pounded yolks. At la Mere Germain's beautiful restaurant at Chateauneuf du Paper the tapenade is served pressed down into little deep yellow earthenware pots, like a pate, and comes as part of the mixed hors-d'oeuvre."
    ---French Provincial Cooking, Elizabeth David [Grub Street:London] 1960, 2007 (p. 142)

    "Tapenade. A condiment from Provence, made with capers (from Toulon), desalted anchovies and stoned black (pitted ripe) olives, pounded in a mortar and seasoned with olive oil, lemon juice, aromatics and possibly a drop of marc brandy. Tapenade is sometimes augmented by small pieces of tuna, mustard, garlic, thyme or bay leaf. It accompanies crudites (in particular, celery, fennel and tomato), meat or grilled (broiled) fish, is spread on slices of toast, and can garnish hard-boiled (hard-cooked) eggs (mixed with yolk)."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, completely revised and updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 1190)
    [NOTE: 1938 and 1961 editions do not contain entries for Tapenade.]

    [1897]
    "52. Demis Oeufs Durs Garnis de Tapenade...

    La compostion de ce dondiment est cell-ci: 200 g. de pulpe d'olives noires piles au mortier avec 100 g de filets d'anchois et qautant de thon marine, une cuilleree de moutarde anglais et 200 g de capres. Ce sont ces derniers qui se nomment tapeno en provencal qui donnent leur nom a la composition. Le tout bien broye, passez-le au tamis et cinproproex-lui en travaillant avc le fouet 2 decilitres d'huile d'olive fine, une pincee d'epices, pas mal de poivre et un ou deux petits verres de cognac. Cette composition se conserve en vase clos. Les oeufes durs sont rafrachis, ecales et coupes en deux longitudinalement. Le jaune est enleve et broye au mortier avec la tapenade necessaire et l'adjonction d'un peu d'huile fine pour mettre l'appareil a point, pour le rendre onctueux. Garnissez les moities d'oeufs avec cet appareil, soit avec une poche ou en lissant en dome avec la lame d'une petit couteau."
    ---La Cuisiniere Provencale, (p. 75-76)
    [NOTE: This recipe is offered in Chapitre II: Hors-D'oeuvre]

    [1960]
    "Oeufs Durs en Tapenade

    An interesting Provencal hors-d'oeuvre.
    To make tapenade, called after the capers (tapeno in Provencal) which go into it, the ingredients are 24 stoned black olives, 8 anchovy fillets, 2 heaped tablespoons of capers, 2 oz. of tunny fish, olive oil, lemon juice. Pound all the solid ingredients together into a thick puree. Add the olive oil (about a coffee-cupful, after-dinner size) gradually, as for a mayonnaise, then squeeze in a little lemon juice. It is an improvement also to add a few drops of cognac or other spirit, and sometimes a little mustard is included in the seasoning. No salt, of course. Spread the prepared sauce in a little flat hors-d'oeuvre dish, and put 6 to 7 hard-boiled eggs, sliced in half lengthways, on the top."
    ---French Provincial Cooking, Elizabeth David [Grub Street:London] 1960, 2007 (p. 142)

    [1962]
    "Tapenade

    1/4 cup capers
    3 two-ounce cans flat anchovy fillets
    1 seven-ounce an tuna fish
    1 clove garlic, or more to taste
    18 black olives (preferably Greek or Italian), pitted
    Juice of two lemons
    1/2 cup olive oil
    2 tablespoons cognac
    Pepper to taste
    (Traditionally in Provence this sauce is made by pounding the ingredients in a large mortar and pestle. An electric blender is more effective, producing a smoother but other wise similar sauce.]
    1. Place the capers, anchovies and tuna fish, with the oil in which they were packed, and the garlic, olives and lemon juice in the container of an electric blender.
    2. Blend on medium speed, stopping the motor to stir down occasionally with a rubber spatula. (It may be stirred with the motor running, but care must be taken not to touch the blades).
    3. Gradually add the olive oil. When all the oil is blended, the sauce should be like medium-thick mayonnaise.
    4. Blend in the cognac and pepper. Serve at room temperature over hard-cooked eggs, cold poached fish or cold boiled beef.
    Yield: About two and one-half cups of sauce."
    ---"Mediterranean Flavor," Craig Claiborne, New York Times, March 18, 1962 (p. 261)

    [1965]
    "Tapenade

    1 cup bland mayonnaise (made with 1 egg and 1 cup oil, no seasonings
    1/2 cup finely chopped capers
    Juice and finely chopped rind of 1 lemon
    1 clove garlic, crushed
    Chopped parsley
    6 anchovy fillets, chopped.
    Blend all together thoroughly and chill in the refrigerator."
    ---James Beard's Menus for Entertaining, James Beard [Dell Trade Paperback:New York] 1965, 1986 (p. 277-278)
    [NOTE: Mr. Bears suggests this tapenade to accompany a raw vegetable plate. Think: crudites & dip.]

    "Tapenade is a Provencal sauce. The name comes form the word tapena, Provencal for capers. It is a simple sauce and excellent for hard-boiled eggs, cold fish, or a salad of cold boiled beef. Pound 2 tablespoons of capers in a mortar with half a dozen fillets of anchovies; add olive oil little by little as form mayonnaise, until you have about a cup of sauce. Add the juice of a lemon and a little black pepper, but no salt, as the anchovies will probably be salty."
    ---Mediterranean Food, Elizabeth David, second revised edition [Penguin Books:New York] 1965 (p. 189)

    [1975]
    "Another Provencal specialty is a unique sauce cum dip condiment called tapenade, a mixture of tuna, anchovies, capers, olives and cognac either blended or pounded to a paste in a mortar. It is served with raw vegetables as a dip, spooned over hard-boiled e eggs as a first course, or put on cold fish... Tapenade is most easily made in a blender or food processor. Put in the container 24 to 30 soft black olives (not the California ripe olives, but the soft wrinkled black Italian or Greek olives sold in foreign markets. They must be pitted first). Add 3 or 4 garlic cloves, according to taste, 1 1/2 tablespoons capers and enough olive oil (about 1/4 cup or more) to make a paste. Blend until smooth and remove to a bowl. Put some more olive oil in the blender with 14 to 16 anchovy fillets and a 4-ounce can of tuna packed in olive oil (if you can't get a small can, use 1/2 to 2/3 of 7-ounce can). Blend these ingredients to a paste, then blend in the olive-garlic-caper mixture. I also like to add 1 to 2 tablespoons cognac and sometimes a tablespoon of Dijon mustard. Blend everything together well until you have a thick puree. Taste for seasoning. It will not need any salt, I can assure you, because of the anchovies, but it may need more cognac, a gew grinds of black pepper, a dash or two of Tabasco, or you may want to add a touch of thyme or summer savory. This delicious sauce for vegetables, eggs or fish will keep for quite a long time."
    ---"Tuna Straight From the Sea," James Beard, Los Angeles Times, February 20, 1975 (p. J12)

    Related sauce"
    Aioli.


    Tartar sauce
    Yes, tartar(e) sauce was named for the Tatar peoples of Mongolia. No, it is not a traditional Tartar recipe. The word 'tatar' refers to the Turkic-speaking people [Tatars] who settled in Mongolia sometime during the 5th Century AD. In the food world, 'tatar' takes on the French spelling 'tartare' and is most often associated with tartar(e) sauce. Poultry and fish tartare recipes are fully cooked dishes accompanied by tartare sauce.
    Chicken Tartare, a Creole favorite, is a prime example. Steak tartare, composed of raw ground beef, is an entirely different dish saddled with the same appelation. No wonder there is confusion!

    Why is this recipe called tartar sauce? And when was it first referred to a such? This is hard to say. According to Rare Bits: Unusual Origins of Popular Recipes, Patricia Bunning Stevens (p. 156) "Beef Tartare--finely minced lean raw beef--became fashionable in France in the nineteenth century. It was named for the Tartars (Originally "Tatars") or Mongols who had terrorized eastern Europe in the days of Gengis Kahn....Beef Tartare was usually served as it is now, with a bevy of garnishes, including a piquant sauce with a mayonnaise base that came to be called sauce Tartare or Tartar Sauce. Today, at least in the United States, it is more often served with fish."

    The first step in dating modern tartar sauce is dating the origin of this recipe's major component: mayonnaise. There are many variations on the recipe for tartar sauce; the simplest being a mix of mayonnaise and chopped pickles. Elaborate recipes give instructions for making one's own mayonnaise and include chopped onions, scallions and a mix of spicy herbs.

    [1845] "Tartar Sauce.
    Add to the preceding remoulade, or to any other sauce of the same nature, a teaspoonful or more of made mustard, one of finely-minced shalots, one of parsley or tarragon, and one of capers or of pickled gherkins, with a rather high seasoning of cayenne, and some salt if needed. The tartar-mustard of the previous chapter, or good French mustard, is to be preferred to English for this sauce, which is usually made very pungent, and for which any ingredients can be used to the taste which will serve to render it so. Tarragon vinegar, minced tarragon and eschalots, and plenty of oil, are used for it in France, in conjunction with the yolks of one or two eggs, and chopped capers, or gherkins, to which olives are sometimes added."
    ---Modern Cookery for Private Families, Eliza Acton, originally printed in 1845, with an introduction by Elizabeth Ray [Southover Press:East Sussex] 1993 (p. 137) ,p> [1869]
    "Tartar Sauce

    Prepare White Mayonnaise Sauce...add:
    1 tablespoonful of dry mustard
    3 shalots, say 1/2 oz., chopped fine, and well washed,
    6 gherkins, say 1/2 oz., also chopped fine,
    1 tablespoonful of ravigote (chervil, tarragon, and burnet, chopped).
    1 teaspoonful of Chili vinegar,
    or, 1 small pinch of Cayenne pepper;
    Mix all together; and serve."
    ---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 67-68)

    [1879] "Morcan's Tartar Sauce--To Mix Mustard
    Yolk of one raw egg, sweet-oil added very slowly, until the quantity is made that is desired; thin with a little vinegar. Take two small cucumber pickles, two full teaspoonfuls of capers, three small sprigs parsley, and one small shalot or leek. Chop all fine, and stir into the sauce about an hour before serving. If very thick, add a tablespoonful cold water. This quantity will serve eight persons--is good with trout, veal cutlets, and oysters."
    ---Housekeeping in Old Virginia, Marion Cabell Tyree [1879] (p. 303)

    [1884] Tartar Sauce & Sauce Tartare
    Boston Cooking School Cook Book, Mrs. D. A. Lincoln [1884]

    [1890?] "Tartar sauce
    Place a round-bottomed basin in a deep sauta-pan containing some pounded ice, put two raw yelks [yolks] of eggs into the basin with a little pepper and salt, and with a wooden spoon proceed, with the back part of the bowl, to work the yelk of eggs, dropping in, at intervals, very small quantities of salad-oil, and a little tarragon-vinegar, until a sufficient quantity of sauce is produced; bearing in mind, that the relative quantity of oil to be used in proportion to the vinegar is as five to one. When the sauce is finished, add some chopped tarragon and chervil, and half a shalot. In making this sauce, should it decompose through inattention, it may instantly be restored to its proper consistency by mixing in it a good spoonful of cold white sauce."
    ---Francatelli's Modern Cook, C. E. Francatelli, 26th London Edition [1890?] (recipe 96, p. 55)

    [1901]
    "Sauce Tartare, Sauce a la Tartare

    A Mayonnaise Sauce
    6 Shallots
    1/2 Clove of Garlic
    1 Pickle
    A Handful of Parsley, Minced Fine
    1 Teaspoonful Mustard
    Prepare the Mayonnaise as directed above. Put in a bowl a half dozen shallots, greens and all, and chop fine, and the half-minced clove, and one whole pickle, well chopped. Mix all this together and put in a cloth and strain out the juice by pressing. Add this juice to the Mayonnaise, and add one teaspoonful of mustard, salt, Cayenne and black pepper to taste. This is served with filet of trout, etc."
    ---The Picayune Creole Cook Book, facsimile 2nd edition, 1901 [Dover Publications:New York] 1971 (p. 169)

    Related sauce: Remoulade.


    Tomato sauce
    Tomatoes are a "new world" fruit. The first tomato sauces were made by ancient South Americans. These spicy sauces/salsas also employed chilies, peppers, and other finely diced vegetables. About salsa. The practice of combining pasta and tomato sauce originated in the late 18th century. Ragus, sugos and tomato gravies proliferated. By the middle of the 19th century, tomato ketchup became America's favorite condiment. Italian-American pasta dishes (Spaghetti and meatballs ) slathered with tomato sauce gained popularity in the 20th century. Then came Vodka sauce.

    When were tomatoes first combined with pasta?
    "Not until...1790, with the publication of the Neapolitan chef Francesco Leonardi's L'Apicio Moderno (The Modern Apicius) does the spaghetti and tomato sauce of today begin to emerge."
    ---A Mediterranean Feast, Clifford A. Wright [William Morrow:New York] 1999 (p. 32)

    "How and when the tomato-as-condiment was first put on pasta is a mystery. The first mention of using tomatoes in a pasta dish is actually French. In L'Almanach des gourmands (1807), Alexandre-Balthazar-Laurent Grimod de la Reyniere recommended that in the autumn, tomatoes be substituted for the purees and cheese usually mixed into vermicelli before serving. He justified this practice by noting that 'the juice of this fruit or vegetable...gives a rather agreeable acidity to the soups into which it is put, which is generally pleasing to those who have become accustomed to it.' Using tomatoes in soups was a long-standing practice in Italy...by Grimod's time, tomatoes were also consumed in Paris...The marriage between pasta and the tomato is usually said to have taken place in Naples. La cucina casereccia...has a recipe for macceroni alla napolitana, in which the pasta is boiled in a meat broth in which tomatoes have been cooked...The recipe for macceroni alla napolitana is not a tomato sauce. it was not until 1837 that Cavalcanti write that the secret of the successful dish of baked vermicelli with tomatoes...was to make the tomato sauce dense, to cook the pasta just until firm, and to toss everything together in a pan. As for the accompanying tomato sauce, Cavalcanti wrote that whether it was made from fresh, dried, or preserved tomatoes, there was no point describing its preparation, since everyone knew how to make it... A recipe for 'macaroni a la napolitana,' combining pasta and tomatoes, first appeared in an American cookbook just a few years later, in 1847. By the 1880s, the tomato had been established as the condiment of choice for pasta for the peasants of the Campania region, and pasta itself had become a staple."
    ---Pomodoro: A History of the Tomato in Italy, David Gentilcore [Columbia University Press:New York] 2010 (p. 89-90)

    [1692]
    Latini's 1692 recipe would have produced something quite similar modern salsa:
    "Spanish Tomato Sauce.
    Take a half dozen tomatoes that are mature and put them over the coals and turn them until they are charred, then carefully peel off the skin. Cut them up finely with a knife, and add onions finely cut up, at your discretion, finely chopped peppers, a small quantity of thyme or pepperwort. Mix everything together and add a bit of salt, oil and vinegar. It will be a very tasty sauce for boiled meats or whatever."
    ---Food in Early Modern Europe, Ken Albala [Greenwood Press:Westport CT] 2003 (p. 138)

    [1839]
    "Tomato Sauce

    Roll a pound of fresh butter in flour, break it up, and put it in a sauce-pan, with eight table-spoonfuls of vinegar. Take fine ripe tomatoes, peel them, chop them small, season them with salt and pepper, and stir enough of them into the butter to make it as thick as you desire it. Just let it boil up, and serve it in a boat. It will be found very fine for beef, veal or mutton."
    ---The Kentucky Housewife, Lettice Bryan, facsimile 1939 edition stereotyped by Shepard & Stearns [Image Graphics:Paducah KY] (p. 168)
    [NOTE: a "boat" is a gravy boat, special china serving piece made to pour sauces.]

    [1845]
    "253. Tomato Sauce, for present Use

    Pour boiling water on the tomatoes, take the skin off, cut them up in pieces, and cover them all over with loaf sugar. No more should be prepared than you wish to use at once, as they will not keep good."
    ---The New England Economical Housekeeper and Family Receipt Book, Mrs. E. A. Howland [E.P. Walton and Sons:Montpelier VT] 1845 (p. 66)

    Related foods? Ragu, sugo, tomato gravy & tomato juice.

    About Ragu:
    Although ragu variations are enjoyed in many regions of Italy, our research indicates the orignal recipe belongs to Bologna. Notes here:

    "Ragu...Meat sauce, usually referring to the long-simmered Bolognese classic, ragu alla bolognese, made with vegetables, tomatoes, heavy cream, and beef."
    ---The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink, John Mariani [Broadway Books:New York] 1998 (p. 211)

    "Bolognese pasta is almost always served with a ragu (the word is a corruption of the French ragout, or stew). This is a thick sauce made from such ingredients as onions, carrots, finely chopped pork and beef, celery, butter and tomatoes."
    ---The Cooking of Italy, Waverley Root [Time-Life Books:New York] revised 1972 (p. 86)

    "Ragu can be the dense concentrated meaty sauce made in Bologna to accompany the egg tagliatelle of the region, or a dish of a slow-cooked beef or pork from Naples, whose thick dark cooking juices season ridge short pasta, the meat making a delicious second course. This Neapolitan recipe used to be made by the portinai, or doormen, who sat watchfully observing both the comings and goings of tenants and the murmurings of the barely simmering pot. Both recipes have nothing in common with that Anglo-Saxon abomination Spag Bol, spaghetti bolognese, a recipe loved the world over but quite unknown in Italy."
    ---Oxford Companion to Italian Food, Gillian Riley, with a forward by Mario Batali [Oxford Univeristy Press:New York] 2007 (p. 433)

    Related foods? Tomato sauce, sugo & tomato gravy.

    About Sugo:

    ""Juice." Both fruit juice and the juices that seep from meats being cooked. Italians may use the terms sugo (plural, sughi) and salsa interchangeably, but some cooks distinguish between the two--without agreeing on what those distinctions are. In his cookbook La Scienca in cucina e l'arte di mangiar bene (1891), Pellegrino Artusi insisted that a sugo di omodoro (tomato sauce) is "simple, i.e., made from tomatoes that are simply cooked and run through a food mill. At the most, you may add a small rib of celery and a few leaves of parsely and basil to tomato sugo, if you must." Salses, he contended, as accompaniments like greens auce...to other dishes. Yet sugo di carne, a suace made with meat juices (if with beef alone, it is called sugo di manzo), was well known among wealthy families of the 19th century, and sugo finto (fake sauce) is a common term used by poor people for a pasta sauce made to taste like a sugo di carne by using the same ingredients, but without the meat. And meat sauces are also termed salse. To further complicate matters the words ragu, and in Tuscany, tocco, are often used for a meat sauce...It would appear...that the two terms sugo and salsa are often interchangeable, with sugo reserved for a pasta sauce while salsa may be used to describe sauces that may or may not accompany pasta."
    ---The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink, John Mariani [Broadway Books:New York] 1998 (p. 249-250)

    "Sugo di Umido de Maiale (Campania) Rich Pork Stew Sauce. This rich sauce is typical of Naples and is used to sauce various lasagne, macaroni dishes, and timapny...The finished sauce will contain a substantial amount of fat, traditionally a prized source of calories for the poorer population."
    ---A Mediterranean Feast, Clifford A. Wright [William Morrow:New York] 1995 (p. 280)

    Artusi's 1891 recipe translated here:

    "6. Sugo Di Pomodoro [Tomato Sauce]
    Later, I shall speak about another kind of tomato sauce that we call "salsa," as opposed to "sugo." Sugo must be simple and therefore compoased only of cooked, pureed tomatoes. At the most you can add a few chunks of celery or some parsley or basil leaves, when you think these flavors will suit your needs." Editor's NB: "As Artusi points out, there is an important difference between "sugo di pomodoro" (which is described here) and "salsa di pomodoro" (which will be described in recipe 125). Unfortunately, English does not allow for this distinction and both dishes are therefore called tomato sauce. To avoid confusion, whenever the 'sugo" (rather than the "salsa") appars in a recipe the text will include a parenthetical reference to this recipe."
    ---Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well, Pellegrino Artusi, orginally published in Italian, 1891, translated by Murtha Baca and Stephen Sartarelli [Marsilio Publishers:New York] 1997 (p. 35)
    [NOTE: Artusi's book also contains recipes for (4) Sugo di Carne (Brown Stock) and (5) Sugo di Carne Che I Francesi Chiamano Salsa Spagnuola (The Meat sauce The French Call Spanish Sauce)

    Recommended reading
    Pomodoro: A History of the Tomato in Europe, David Gentilcore
    The Tomato in America, Andrew F. Smith

    Related foods? Tomato sauce, ragu & tomato gravy.

    Tomato Gravy
    Technically, tomato sauce can't be a gravy. Why? Because gravies (by traditional culinary definition) are meat-based:
    "gravy A sauce made from meat juices, usually combined with a liquid such as chicken or beef broth, wine or milk and thickened with flour, cornstarch or some other thickening agent. A gravy may also be the simple juices left in the pan after meat, poultry or fish has been cooked."
    "sauce n. In the most basic terms, a sauce is a thickened, flavored liquid designed to accompany food in order to enhance and bring out its flavor.
    ---
    Food Lover's Companion

    "Q. Is there a difference between tomato sauces and tomato gravies?
    A. That is indeed an interesting question in semantics. But let it first be said that the word "sauce" has a lot more class than does the word "gravy." Where hot, savory sauces are concerned--those that accompany meat or poultry, for example--the words are generally interchangeable. Gravies, for the most part, have been thickened, generally with flour. But that is not invariably true. I have known many first, second and third generation families of Italian origin who invariable referred to their tomato sauces as tomato gravies, although they were unthickened with any any form of starch."
    ---"Q&A," New York Times, January 18, 1978 (p. C6)

    "I recently offered the opinion that there was essentially no difference between the words 'sauce' and gravy.' I averred that term sauce had, to my ears at any rate, a much more sophisticated ring to it. Two readers who live in Manhattan had quite definate thoughts. One, Anne Mendleson, wrote: 'If I may amend your reply to the reader who wondered by her mother always spoke of tomato 'gravy,' the reason undoubtedly lies in the existence of two Italian words for 'sauce.': sugo and salsa. Authorities on Italian food invariably say that the distinction is untranslatable, and in Italian-language cookbooks it is not always consistently maintained. But roughly speaking, sugo (from latin sucus) means 'juice, gravy, essence,' and salsa corresponds to our word 'sauce.' 'The family of salsa includes mayonnaise, roux-based preparations, salad dressings and other vinegar- or lemon-based sauces, and in general most of the sauces that might be used with meat dishes. Sughi are almost invariably served with pasta, and usually involved bringing out the essence or juice of their main ingredients through long or brief cooking. Sughi are intrinsic to the identity of the dish--in other words, they are not just mixtures of ingredients intended to gracer it. An Ada Boni's wonderful Il Talismano della Felicita, there is an entire chapter devoted to salse, but sughi are scracely even mentioned by name, being subsumed under the identities of such classic pasta dishes as spaghetti alla amatriciana and tagliatelle alla bolognese. Your correspondent's Italian mother was unquestionably making a literal translation of sugo di pomodoro.' And Joseph Duome stated: 'You replied to a listener that 'a sauce may be more sophisitcated sounding,' etc. However, there is a diference to us of Italian origin who have had the ecstatic pleasure of smelling Mom or Grandma's gravy slowly simmering for yours on a Sunday morning. (You know, Sundays and Thursdays were traditional pasta days; not Wednesdays.) Gravy, as we learned was that sauce that had been highly elevated in taste by sauteing of the braciole, and subsequently, meatalls. (Some Italian families sometimes added sausages or pork chops for a slightly different tasting gravy.) Thus without meat we knew it as tomato sauce and with meats, gravy. yes, there is a difference despite the fancy marketing of the various brands of 'sauces,' Some to my house sometime and take in the wondrous aroma of a real gravy!'"
    ---"Sauces and Gravies: There's a Difference," Craig Claiborne, New York Times, November 12, 1979 (p. D10

    So why call it gravy?
    According to I Grandi Dizionari Sansoni (1979), the Italian word sugo has two definitions: (1) sauce (salsa) and (2) gravy (sauce with meat). Indeed, Italian-American cookbooks confirm meat-based tomato sauces are sometimes referred to as "gravy." In Southern and Appalachian regions, milk-based tomato gravies sometimes accompanies biscuits.

    The earliest reference we find for "tomato gravy," meaning meat sauce, in an American cookbook is this one from 1905. It contains ground beef. Note: the fact it is labled a "Spanish" recipe. This was a common moniker at that time for anything containing tomatoes.

    [1955]
    Food companies introduced the term to mainstream America:
    "15-Minute Meat Loaf...When Hunt's home economist developed this recipe she said, "Busy homemakers and career girls will appreciate this one!" And you will! Because, besides being a "quickie"--just fifteen minutes cooking item--it is truly delicious with its savoury tomato gravy!"
    ---"Quick Stunts with Hunts Tomato Sauce," New York Times, May 22, 1955 (p. 265)

    [1962]
    "Generals and colonels became mess sergeants--but only very temporarily--yesterday at Governors Island. They were particiapting in the first semi-public demonstration of new combat rations that are pre-cooked and dehydrated. The officers took turns adding either hot or cold water to produce such G.I. delicacies-of-the-future as chili con carne with apple sauce, beef loaf with tomato gravy, instant mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, hot tea, coffee and lumpy cocoa."
    ---"New Dehydrated G.I. Rations Prove Satisfactory (to Officers)," John C. Devlin, New York Times, November 9, 1962 (p. 37)

    [1971]
    "I grew up in the Italian section of South Philadelphia, and there were set dishes in that neighborhood--four blocks in every direction families cooked the same things. On Monday there was soup, pasta on Tuesday, veal or beef on Wednesday, pasta on Thursday, fish on Friday, pot luck on Saturday and an elaborate feast on Sunday. Everybody made tomato gravy once a week." (Like what would seem to be a majority of first, second or third generation Italians in America, Mr. Paone speaks of tomato sauce as gravy.)"
    ---"When His Painting Goes Badly, He Turns to the Art of Cooking," Craig Claiborne, New York Times, March 18, 1971 (p. 34)

    [2002]
    "There are many different opinons on what to call Italian red tomato sauce. When Italians make a meatless tomato sauce, we call it sauce or marinara sauce. When we make tomato sauce with pork, beef, sausage, and meatballs, or with any meat, we call it gravy. Our mothers and millions of other Italians called in gravy and it was probably because there was meat in it."
    ---Cooked to Perfection, Andrew Corella and Phyllis Petito Corella [iUniverse] 2002 ISBN 0-595-26122-1 (p. 23)

    [2004]
    "Stories of Italian grandmothers simmering their tomato sauces for hours are familiar but probably untrue. Tomatoes that are cooked for too long lose their sweetness, and the resulting sauce tastes old and tired. Most likely those beloved none were actually cooking a ragu or sugo, that is, a meat sauce, which may or may not have included tomatoes. Meat sauces generally call for beef, veal, pork, or a combination...The term sugo is used for a sauce, a gravy, pan juices..."
    ---Italian Slow and Savory: A Cookbook, Joyce Esersky Goldstein [Chronicle Books:San Francisco] 2004 (p. 48)

    Recommended reading: Gravy Wars: South Philly Foods, Feuds & Attytudes/Lorraine Ranalli (includes historic notes & several recipes)

    What about milk-based tomato gravies & biscuits?
    Biscuits & gravy is a popular traditional combination in Southern and Appalachian cuisine. Most gravies are based on milk, butter, fat & flour. Combinations are endless. One of these combinations is Tomato Gravy. This is a very different recipe and application from the Italian-inspired Tomato Gravies destined for macaroni, pizza & meat. This particular gravy is paired with biscuits.

    Our tomato expert (Andrew F. Smith) suggested the origin might have been inspired by late 19th century health advocates. The earliest recipe he identified (see below, 1892) titled Tomato Gravy, combining this fruit with cream, was published by Ella Eaton Kellogg, of Battle Creek. Note: this recipe is actually a sauce, as it does not use any fat drippings. Our survey of Southern cookbooks (current & historic) returned several tomato recipes; mostly sauces and ketchups. None of these combined milk/cream or were suggested to accompany biscuits.

    "Tomato Gravy. Pervasive in Appalachia, where frugal cookery is foundational, this gravy is chunkier and more countrified than a New Orleans red graby. It's also more likely to be poured atop biscuits or fried chicken than pasta. Leftovers of tomato gravy make the beginnings of tomato soup."
    ---The Southern Foodways Alliance Community Cookbook, Sara Roahen & John T. Edge editors [University of Georgia Press: Athens GA] 2010(p. 19)[NOTE: recipe for Tomato Gravy is included in this book. We can send if you like.]

    TOMATO GRAVY=VEGETARIAN/HEALTH FOOD

    [1892]
    "Tomato Gravy.
    --Heat to boiling one pint of strained stewed tomatoes, either canned or fresh, and thicken with a tablespoonful of flour rubbed smooth in a little water; add salt and when thickened, if desired, a half cup of hot cream. Boil together for a minute or two and serve at once."
    ---Science in the Kitchen, Ella Eaton Kellogg [Modern Medicine Publishing Company:Battle Creek MI] 1892 (p. 261)

    [1976]
    "Tomato Gravy (Alabama)

    2 tablespoons bacon drippings
    3 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
    2 tablespoons flour
    1/2 teaspoon sugar
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    2 cups milk
    1. Heat the bacon drippings in a skillet and cook the tomatoes in it until tender. Sprinkle with the flour, sugar, salt and pepper and stir to mix well. Cook two minutes.
    2. Add the baking soda to the milk and stir in the tomato mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring. Spoon over hot biscuits or grits.
    Yield: Three cups."
    ---New York Times Southern Heritage Cookbook, Jean Hewitt [G.P. Putnam Sons:New York] 1976

    TENNESSEE STYLE
    [1998]
    "Tomato Gravy (Tennessee)
    Tomato gravy is a hill country favorite.. This particular recipe adaptation comes from...The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook. The tomato gravy can be cooked after frying salt pork, bacon, pork chops or ham.
    Tennessee Tomato Gravy
    1/4 finely chopped onion
    2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
    2 cups tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
    Chicken stock and water as required
    1/2 teaspoon powdered thyme
    1 1/4 teaspoons sugar
    Salt and pepper to taste
    In a fry pan containing around 2 tablespoons of drippings, saute onion until tender. Mix in flour and cook several minutes. Add tomatoes; stir well. Water or chicken stock may be required here, depending on the liquid available from the tomatoes. Season with the thyme, sugar, and salt and pepper. Cook over low heat, stirring periodically until gravy thickens. Yields 2 cups of gravy."
    ---Smokehouse Ham, Spoon Bread, & Scuppernong Wine: The Folklore and Art of Southern Appalachian Cooking, Joseph E. Dabney [Cumberland House:Nashville TN] 1998 (p. 209)

    Related sauces? Tomato sauce, ragu & sugo.


    Veloute
    Veloute is considered by some to be the most practical of all
    Mother sauces. Ordinary veloute is a based on basic white stock. Chicken and fish veloute inspired their own cadre of flavorful descendents.

    "A veloute is a basic white sauce made from veal, chicken, or fish stock and a flour-and-butter roux. In French the word means literally " velvety," and it seems to have been introduced into English in the early nineteenth century. It should not be confused with the fairly similar bechemel sauce, which is made with milk or cream rather than stock."
    ---An A-Z of Food and Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 357)

    "Veloute...is the term used for a basic French sauce which is made with stock...First of all roux is made with butter and flour; then plenty of stick is blended in and flavouring added. After prolonged simmering, the sauce will have acquired its velevety texture. A liaison of egg yolk and/or a little cream can be added at the end to enrich it and make it even more velvety. Veloute, with the addition of various other ingredients, acquires new names..."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999 (p. 842)

    Related sauces? Allemande & Normandy.


    Vodka sauce
    Several traditional Italian sauces incorporate native wines. Vodka??? Intriguing, but decidedly un-Italian. A survey of newspaper/magazine articles places the genesis of vodka sauce in the 1980s. Nuevo Cucina a la Russe. The Smirnoff Bruch Book (c. 1971) offers several sauce recipes but none combining vodka and tomatoes.

    "Pasta with vodka-enhanced sauce was another trendy food in the mid-Eighties. Although cooks later devised such dishes as pasta with vodka, sour cream, and two caviars, the first and probably best was a simple dish of penne (a thick, tubular pasta), vodka, tomatoes, and cream. According to Barbara Kafka in Food for Friends (1984), it was fashionable in Italy before Joanna's Restaurant in New York put it on the menu and made it a fad in the United States."
    ---Fashionable Food: Seven Decades of Food Fads, Sylvia Lovegren [MacMillan:New York] 1995 (p. 401)

    Vodka sauce surfaces in American print in the early 1980s. By the end of the decade, Vodka sauce reigned supreme.

    "Pasta with sweet red pepper sauce, pasta with salmon, pasta with sage sauce, pasta with vodka sauce--and this is just the beginning..."
    ---"Diner's Choice," Bryan Miller, New York Times, October 7, 1983 (p. C18)

    "The wives of two American Diplomats who met in Rome five years ago have written a cookbook with recipes that include pasta with vodka sauce and rice with strawberries. Both are examples of nuova cucina, Italian for new cuisine. What the authors have not included among the more than 250 recipes in "Pasta and Rice Italian Style" (Scribner's, $16.95) is pasta with flavors such as chili peppers and carrots. Tomatoes and spinach are used in Italy to color some pasta, but not to flavor it, Efrem Funghi Calingaert and Jacquelyn Days Serwer said in an interview during a trip to New York. They said the fad for unusual flavored pastas in the United States has not caught on in Italy. "Italians like to experiment with the sauces, not the pasta," Mrs. Calingaert said."
    ---"Two American Diplomat's Wives Tackle Italy's Nuova Cucina'," Jean Lesem, United Press International, November 29, 1983 (unpaged)

    "With farm markets and produce stands in full bloom, I am always experimenting with new recipes to take advantage of the seasonal bounty. The recipe given here is a variation on pasta primavera, a dish that has countless incarnations, although the classic version calls for a wide assortment of vegetables and a cream-based sauce. The major twist is adding a dash of flavored vodka to the sauce. You do not really taste the alcohol, most of which evaporates in cooking, but a kind of peppery flavor does come through. Many herb-flavored vodkas are available, and it can be fun experimenting with them."
    ---"Flavored Vodka Toasts This Pasta Primavera With a Twist," Pierre Franey, New York Times, June 29, 1988 (p. C2)
    [NOTE: Recipe for Spaghetti with Vegetables and Pepper Vodka Sauce follows.]


    Bearnaise sauce
    Food historians tell us Sauce Bearnaise descended from
    Hollandaise. It surfaces in the 19th century.

    "A bernaise is a hot creamy sauce made from butter, egg yolks, and vinegar or lemon juice, flavoured with shallots, tarragon, chervil, thyme, bay leaves, etc. it is generally served with grilled meat of fish. It takes its name from Bearn, a region in southwestern France."
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 23) Mo< "Sauce Bearnaise. A relatively new sauce...bearnaise is now a universal favorite, almost everyone's choice for the greatest of all sauces. Indeed, this sophisticated, thickish combination of vinegar-shallot-tarragon-chervil reduction, egg yolk, and butter is a wonderful thing, and not a Sisyphean labor, although it cannot be stored. It requires no costly advance preparation--it has no mother--and it is the preeminent sauce for the preeminent contemporary dish: grilled meat. Bearnaise also goes beautifully with grilled fish, especially salmon."
    ---The Saucier's Aprpentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 175)
    [NOTE: Variations on Beranaise listed in this book include: Sauce Arlesienne, Sauce Choron, Sauce Foyot, Sauce Paloise and Sauce Tyrolienne.]

    "Bearnaise and Veron were both nineteenth-century creations. The former was made for the first time at the Pavillon Henri IV at Saint-Germain-en-Laye outside Paris and was named for the antive province of the long-dead king."
    ---ibid (p. 11-12)

    "The association between the name of this sauce and the birhtplace of Henri IV had probably arisen because it was first made by Collinet in the 1830s in a restaurant in Saint-Germain-en-laye called the Pavillon Henri IV. But a similar recipe appears in La Cuisine des villes et des campanes published in 1818."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, complete revised and updated [Clarkson Potter:New York] 2001 (p. 91)
    "Bernaise was created in the 1830s by Collinet at the restaurant Pavillon Henri VI, in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in honor of Henri VI (the "great Bearnaise"). Montmireil, chef to the Vicomte de Chateaubriand, created a dish of a thick slice from the middle of a beef fillet, which he broiled and served with large turned potatoes cooked in butter and a brown sauce seasoned with white wine and lemon juice, and garnished with parsley and tarragon. In modern times, chateaubriand is exclusively served with Sauce Bernaise, as is any grilled, fried, or roasted meat."
    ---The Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft, David Paul Larousse [John Wiley:New York] 1993 (p. 186)
    [NOTE: Most sources confirm the restaurant was Pavillon Henri IV, NOT VI.]

    [1869]
    "Bernaise Sauce

    Put the following in a stewpan:
    5 yolks of egg,
    1 oz. of butter,
    1 pinch of salt,
    1 small pinch of pepper;
    Stir over the fire, till the yolks begin to thicken; take off the fire, and add 1 oz. of butter; Stir over the fire for two minutes; then take off the fire, and add 1 oz. of butter;--this process should be repeated twice, using 5 oz. of butter in all; taste for seasoning, and put in 1 tablespoonful of chopped tarragon, and 1 teaspoonful of Tarragon Vinegar. This sauce should be of about the same consistency as Mayonnaise Sauce."
    ---Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 284-5)

    [1907]
    "Sauce Baernaise

    Place 2 dl (7 lf oz or 7/8 U.S. cup) each of white wine and tarragon vinegar in a small pan with 4 tbls chopped shallots., 20 g (2/3 oz) chipped tarragon leaves, 10 g (1/3 oz) chopped chervil, 5 g (1/6 oz) crushed peppercorns and a pinch of salt. Reduce by two- thirds and allow to cool. Add 6 egg yolks to the redution and prepare the sauce over a gentle heat by whisking in 500g (1 lb 2 oz) of ordinary or melted butter. The cohesion and emulsification of the sauce is effected by the progressive cooking of the egg yolks which depends to a great extent on its preparation over a slow heat. When the butter has been completely incorproated, pass the sauce through a fine strainer; correct the seasoning, add a littel Cayenne and finish by mixing in 1 tbs chopped tarragon and 1/2 tbs chopped chervil. This sauce is specially suitable for serving with grilled meats. Note: Sauce Bernaise which is rather like a Mayonnaise but made with butter, cannot be served very hot as this will result in the sauce separating; it should be served lukewarm. if the sauce should become too hot and separate, it can be reconstituted by whisking in a few drops of cold water."
    ---Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, the first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culiniare in its entirety [John Wiley:New York] 1997 (p. 18)

    [1927]
    "Bearnaise Sauce

    In sum, this is a hollandaise with a consistency thick enough to be picked up with a spoon, like a very firm mayonnaise, and in which the flavorings, much stronger than for hollandaise, include an infusion of shallot and tarragon. The shallot, as well as the thickness of the sauce, are the constants. Sauce bearnaise best accompanies any kind of grilled food, including meat and fish. For all the details of the techniques, see those for hollandaise sauce (page 72), the skill and the risks being identical. Time: 15 minutes. Serves 6.
    4 tablespoons of good tarragon vinegar; 4 tablespoons of white wine; 15 grams (1/2 ounce) of shallots; a sprig of tarragon; 2 sprigs of chervil; a pinch of coarse ground white pepper; 3 small egg yolks; 175 grams (6 ounces, 3/4 cup) of butter; a hgood teaspoonful of minced tarragon and chervil.
    Procedure. The infusion must be made without haste so that the ingredients have time to impart their flavor. It can be prepared well in adv ance and kept in a cup untilyu are ready to make the sauce. In a small pan, combine: white wine, vinegar, coarse ground pepper, minced shallot, minced tarragon, and chervil. Slowly bring to a boil, uncovered, so that the liquid is thoroughly impregnated with the flavor of the aromatics, reducing it gradually, until there are only 2 full tablespoons. strain through a fine strainer, pressing on the herbs to extract all their essence. If it is to be used immediately, let it cool
    The sauce: Same cholice of pan and same technique as for the holandaise. Use a double boiler if you are inexperienced, which will permit you to understand by instinct, so to speak, the degree of heat that is dangerous to exceed. Put the infusion in the pan with the egg yolks. Mix it with a whisk, Add a pinch of salt and about 15 grams (1/2 ounce, 1 tabnlespoon) of butter divided into pieces. Set it on the double boiler. Stir continuously. When you notice it beginning to thicken, add some butter, the size of a walnut, and whisk, stirring vigorously. Do not add more butter until the preceding piece is compeltely mixed into the sauce. With all the butter added, the sauce must have, as previously stated, the consistency of a very thick mayonnaise. The sauce need only be warm for serving and, in any case, it cannot be served too warm without separating. Just before serving, add the teaspoon of minced chervil and tarragon."
    ---La Bonne Cuisine, de Madame E. Saint-Ange, trranslated and with an introduction by Paul Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkely CA] 2005 (p. 74-75)
    [NOTE: FT library owns original French edition of this book. Happy to scan/send upon request.]

    [1949]
    "30. Bearnaise Sauce
    Sauce Bearnaise
    3 tablespoons wine vinegar
    2 tablespoons water
    1 scallion, chopped fine
    1/8 teasspoon black pepper
    3 egg yolks
    4 teablspoons butter
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon chopped parsley
    1 teaspoon chopped tarragon leaves
    Combine the vinegar, water, scallion, parsely, and pepper. Simmer 5 minutes. Meanwhile melt the butter in the top of a double boiler. Add the egg yolks and stir until the mixture thickens. Gradually add the hot vinegar, which has been strained, stirring constantly so that the eggs will not curdle. Season with salt. Just before serving, add chopped parsley and tarragon leaves. This is delicious with steak."
    ---Tante Marie's French Kitchen, translated and adapted by Charlotte Turgeon [Oxford University Press:New York] 1949 (p. 15)

    [1961]
    "Bearnaise sauce
    (for grilled or sauteed meat, grilled fish).
    Put into a saucepan a good tablespoon of chopped shallot, 2 tablesooons of tarragon and chopped chervil, a sprig of thye, and a fragment of bay leaf. Moisten with 1/2 cup (1/2 decilitre) of vinegar and 1/4 cup (1/2 decilitre) of white wine; season with a pinch of salt and a pinch of mignonette pepper. Boil down by two-thirds. Allow to cool. Put into the pan 2 raw eggs yolks mixed with a tablespoon of water. Beat the sauce with a whisk over very low heat. As soon as the yolks begin to thicken, incorporate little by little and whisking all the time, 1/4 pound (125 grams) of fresh butter. Season the suace, sharpen it if necessary with a squeeze of lemon juice and heighten the seasoning with a pinch of cayenne. Strain. Finish off with a tablespoon of chopped tarragon and chervil. Keep warm i a bain-marie (double boiler).
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 852)

    [1972]
    "Sauce Bearnaise.

    For about 1 cup
    1/4 cup wine vinegar
    1/4 cup dry white wine or vermouth
    1 Tb minced shallots or scallions
    1/2 tsp dried tarragon
    1/4 tsp salt 3 egg yolks
    1 to 1 1/2 sticks (4 to 6 ounces) butter
    Boil the vinegar, wine and herbs, and seasonings in a small saucepan untl liquid has reduced to about 2 tablespoons. Let cool, then proceed as for hollandaise sauce, making the bearnaise either by hand or in the blender; the vinegar mixture takes the place of the lemon falvoring. Bearnaise usually has less butter than hollandaise, but you may add 1/2 stick more if you wish...
    Serve Bearnaise Sauce with Steaks, broiled fish, broiled chicken, egg dishes."
    ---The French Chef Cookbook, Julia Child [Alfred A. Knowp:New YOrk] 1972 (p. 281)


    Bordelaise sauce
    What is "bordelaise?" In the broadest culinary sense it is food, or a style of food, or dishes made with ingredients originating from the Bordeaux region of France. Bordeaux is famous for its wines, most notably red.

    Prosper Montagne's original Larousse Gastronomique [1938] attributes Sauce Bordelaise to Careme (19th century). Curiously? It is Jules Gouffe (mid-19th century)'s recipe that is reproduced, not Careme's. Kettner, a self-styled British gastronome of the late 19th century includes an entry for Bordelaise sauce, informing his readers the sauce does not exist. Raymond Sokolov revisits Kettner's hypothesis in the 1970s.

    Historic culinary texts confirm the existence of sauce recipes titled Bordelaise. Early ones call for white wine. Around the turn of the 20th century red wine became the recommended ingredient. We are not told why. Escoffier's Bordelaise uses red wine. His Bonnefoy sauce is a white wine counterpart.

    Why call it Bordelaise?
    "Sauce Bordelaise. Culinary etymologies are fun to try one's had at, but it often turns out to be impossible to fathom what strange connections occurred in the mind of the chef who first name the recipe you are interested in tracing to its origins. Bordelaise, for example, means 'the sauce from Bordeaux.' It begins with a red-wine reduction. Bordeaux is...the capital of red wine. A sauce with red wine logically should be dubbed bordelaise. The trouble is that bordelaise was originally made with white wine (also produced around Bordeaux, but that isn't the point) and the key ingredient in the sauce seems to have been the marrow, because dishes called bordelaise are customarily garnished with rounds of poached marrow. Figure that one out."
    ---The Saucier's Apprentice, Raymond Sokolov [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1976 (p. 47-48)
    [NOTE: Recipe for Bordelaise sauce follows.]

    [1869]
    "Bordelaise Sauce

    Reduce 2 gills of Sauterne to half the quantity, with 1 pinch of mignonnette pepper, and 1 tablespoonful of shalots, previously blanched, and chopped; then add 1 pint of Espagnole Sauce; reduce for five minutes, and put in 1 tablespoonful of chopped parsley; skim; and pour into a bain-marie-pan."
    ---The Royal Cookery Book, Jules Gouffe, translated from the French and adapted for English use by Alphonse Gouffe [Sampson Low, Son, and Marston:London] 1869 (p. 278)

    [1877]
    "Sauce Bordelaise.

    Properly speaking, there is no such sauce, and very few of the books care to describe it. What is so called is a variety of the Genevese Sauce, and got its name probably because of the Bordeaux wine in it. Take a good brown sauce, Spanish if possible, boil it down with a tumblerful of red Bordeaux, with one or two shalots chopped small, and by rights also with a clove of garlic crushed."
    ---Kettner's Book of the Table, E.S. Dallas, facsimile 1877 edition, prefaced by Derrek Hudson [Centaur Press Ltd.:London 1968] (p. 80)

    "Entrecote a la Bordelaise
    One would imagine that this must be a ribsteak with Bordelese sauce. It is nothing of the kind, for, as we have said, there is, strictly speaking, no such sauce. It is a ribsteak grilled in the ordinary way and served with (either upon it or under it) a pieces of cold maitre d'hotel butter, into which has been wrought some chopped shalot. To those who love onion flavours the idea seems good, but many persons regret the order...for the Entrecote a la Bordelasie, from not taking into account that the shalot is raw."
    ---ibid (p. 80)

    "Genevese Sauce.
    Take half a bottle of red wine (the Genevese generally stuck to Burgundy), a chopped onion, two chopped shalots, a clove og garlic curshed (they prefer two in the Sounth), two cloves of spice and a faggot of sweet-herbs. Put them into a saucepan, and let them simmer till the onions are done. Then add the ladleful of Spanish or good brown sauce. Reduce all to the thickness of a cullis, skim it, and pass it through a tammy. Lastly, boil it up again, add a pinch of sugar and (largely for salt) a good lump of anchovy butter...Variation Second is the so-called Bordelese Sauce, make with Bordeaux wine, with no onion, nor sweet-herbs, nor anchovy butter, and not strained."
    ---ibid (p. 218) [NOTES: (1) Kettner is British. (1) Kettner hypothesizes the only difference between Bordelaise (which doesn't exist, but he includes entry anyhow?). (2) According to Kettner, the only difference between Bordelaise and Bourguignonne sauce is the region supplying the wine.] ?

    [1897]
    "301. Sauce Bordelaise.

    Mettze dans une petite casserole 2 eschalots finement havees, un bouquet garni, une pincee de poivre et un verre de vin de Bordeaux. Posez sur le feur et faites reduire de moitie; ajoutez une cuilleree ou deux de cause coulis un peu epaisse, laissez bouillir quelques minutes, sortex ensuite le bouquet barni; incorporez gros comme un oeuf de beurre, ajoutex le jus d'citron, verifier l'assaisonnement et servez."
    ---La Cuisiniere Provencale, JB Reboule, facsimile 27th edition, 3rd printing [Editions Tacussel:Marseille] 2000 (p. 164)
    [NOTES: (1) This recipe calls for a "verre" of Bordeaux wine but does not specify white or red. (2) Recipe 302 is Sauce Bordelaise a Cru et a la Moelle (marrow).]

    [1907]
    "28. Sauce Bordelaise.

    Place 3 dl (1/2 pint or 1 1/4 US cups) of red wine into a small pan with 30 g (1 oz) finely chopped shallot; a little coarsley ground pepper; 1/2 a bay-leaf; and a sprig of thyme; reduce by three-quarters. Add 5 dl (18 fl oz or 2 1/4 US cups) of Espagnole and allow to simmer gently for 15 minutes skimming as necessary. Pass through a fine strainer and finish the sauce with 1 tbs melted meat glaze; the juice of 1/4 lemon; and 50 g (2 oz) bone marrow cut into small dice or slices and poached. This sauce is specially suitable for serving with grilled red meat. NOTE: Originally this sauce was made with white wine but nowadays red wine is always use. (See Sauce Bonefoy for Sauce Bordelaise made with white wine."
    ---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Escoffier, the first translation into English by H.L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Culinaraire in its entirety [John Wiley & Sons:New York] 1979 (p. 10)

    "94. Sauce Bonnefoy or Sauce Bordelaise au Vin Blanc--White Bordelaise Sauce.
    This sauce is prepared in the smae way and with the same proportions as Sauce Bordelaise (28) using white wine--a Graves or Sauternes for preference--instead of red wine, and Ordinary Veloute instead of Espagnole. Finish the sauce with a little chopped tarragon. This sauce is suitable for serving with grilled fish and grilled white meats."
    ---ibid (p. 182)
    [NOTE: The Sauce Bible/David Paul Larousse, states: "Bonnefoy sauce...is named after a Parisian restaurant of the same name, circa 1850." (p. 69)

    [1908]
    "Bordelaise Sauce.

    Chop fine four shallots, boil them for a few minutes, then strain off the water and put them into a saucepan with one-half pint of white wine. Boil the wine for twenty minutes; then add one pint of Spanish sauce, a small quantity of chopped parsley and pepper. Let the sqauce simmer gently by the edge of the fire for twenty minutes longer, the boil it up and serve at once."
    ---The Cook Book by "Oscar" of the Waldorf, Oscar Tschirky [Saalfield Publishing Co.:Chicago] 1908 (p. 508)

    [1927]
    "Red Wine and Shallot Sauce (Sauce Bordelaise)

    This is characterized by shallots infused in, of course, Bordeaux wine. The acclaimed French chef Gouffe and his contemporaries used white wine, Sauternes, or Graves...These days, it's mostly red Bordeaux that is used to make the infusion. In home cooking, the infusion is added to the sauce brune, for which a good veal jus is absolutely essential. Ordinary bouillon does not have the intensity of flavor required to give the sauce the necessary degree of succulence. If using bouillon, you will need to supplement it with a meat glaze (glace de viande). In this case, make sure that the bouillon is not too salty since the sauce will be reduced by half for use. When you need only a small quantity of sauce--to serve with steak, for example--you can replace the sauce brune with a very good jus that has been reduced, to which you add an equally reduced infusion of shallot. Thicken with arrowroot. For the final buttering, you will needd a larger quantity of butter, adding it off the heat. Sauce bordelaise is most often accompanied by beef marrow, which is either cut into rounds and placed on top of the steak before it is sauced, or is cut into small cubes and mixed into the sauce just before serving. In the following recipe, we repeat the preparpation of the sauce brune (page 50), slighly shortening the preparation time. But it is always preferable, when possible, to includce the waiting times suggested. Time: 2 hours. Makes 1/2 liter (generous 2 cups).

    "4 deciliters (1 2/3 cups) of prepared sauce-brune, or a mirepoix with 30 grams (1 ounce, 2 tablespoons) of butter; 40 grams (1 3/8 ounces, 3/8 stick) of carrots and the same of onion; parsley stems; a sprig of thume; bit of bay; 20-25 grams (2/3-1 ounce) of flour for the roux; 6 deciliters (2 1/2 cups) of veal jus.

    "For the infusion: 40 grams (1 3/8 ounces) of finely chopped shallots; 3 deciliters (1 1/4 cups) of good white or red wine; a pinch of white pepper; a fragment of thyme and bay (very little of the latter); 75 grams (2 2/3 ounces, 1/3 cup) of butter to finish the sauce; if used, 80 grams (2 3/4 ounces) of beef marrow.

    "Procedure: The sauce: in a 1-liter (4 cup) pot, lightly color the mirepoix. Add the flour and cook it as for roux brun. Dilute with the just, proceeding just as directed for sauce brune (page 50). Allow 40 minutes of gentle boiling for the first stage of cooking. Strain and skim the sauce. The infusion: Meanwhile, put the ingredients for the infusion in a small sautee pan. Boil, uncovered, until the wine is reduced to a good deciliter (3 1/2 fluid ounces, 1/2 cup). Pour everything, just as it is, into the sauce. Continue with the skimming for a good 15 minutes. The final quantity of the sauce must be reduced to 4 good decliliters (1 2/3 cups). Strain again through the chinois and keep warm in a double boiler. Just before serving, add the butter, which will complete the sauce up to the right cantity, and depending on the dish, also add the poached marrow, as directed above. The beef marrow: With a good knife dipped in warm water, cut the marrow into small cubes. Throw them into boiling water. Cover and keep the water barely simmering for 8-10 minutes. Dry thoroughly on a cloth before adding the marrow cubes to the sauce."
    ---La Bonne Cuisine, Madame E. Saint-Ange, translated and with an introduction by Paul Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 2005 (p. 57-58)
    [NOTE: If you prefer the original French, please let us know.]

    [1952]
    "Bordelaise, Sauce.

    The generally accepted manner of making this sauce is as follows:
    Streaky salt pork or mild bacon
    2 or 3 carrots
    2 onions
    1 shalk thyme
    1 small bay leaf
    1 cup red wine
    2 or 3 whole shallots
    6 whole peppercorns
    Dash cayenne pepper
    1 clove garlic
    1 tablespoon Espagnole sauce
    A sufficiency of stock
    Have a heavy iron pan or an earthenware casserole, not too large. Cover the bottom with thin slices of salt pork or bacon, cover these with diced carrots and onions, add thyme and bayleaf and place pan over a low heat to allow ingredients to sweat gently--that is, to bring out their juices slowly. When this is accomplished, add the wine, the whole shallots, peppercorns, a dash of cayenne, salt if needed, and the garlic, finely minced. Cook this very gently until the gravy produced is brown and sticky (technically this is now known as reduit a blace); then add some Sauce Espagnloe and enough stock for your requirements. Boil up gently, skim to remove surface fat, and strain the sauce through a fine strainer. Return to pan and again reduce sauce by slow cooking; add a small piece of specially good butter when serving. Ecxcellent with roast meat. If preferred, red Bordeaux may be used instead of white. In this case, add a little lemon juice and some chopped parsely when serving. This sauce must be rather highly seasoned. The Sauce Bordelaise can be improved by adding at a time of serving some poached beef marrow, cut into cubes, and a squeeze of lemon."
    ---A Concise Encyclopedia of Gastronomy, Andre Simon [Harcourt, Brace and Company:New York] 1952 (p. 14-15)

    [1961]
    "Bordelaise (A La)

    Culinary term which applies to a great number of different dishes which belong to four categories. The first is characterized by Sauce Bordelaise, with white or red wine and marrowbone fat; the second by the addition of cepes; the third by the Mirepoix and the fourth by a garnish consisting of artichokes and potatoes. These basic principle can be varied by the incorporation of different other ingredients. This term also applies to various sweet course (desserts), cakes, etc."
    ---Larousse Gastronomique, Prosper Montagne [Crown Publishers:New York] 1961 (p. 156)

    Garnish: "A la bordelaise I--For large joints; cepes sauted a la bordelaise (see Musrhooms); potatoes cut to look like olives and cooked slowly in clarified butter. Sauce: Gravy of the roast. A la bordelaise II--Small quartered artichokes stewed in butter; potatoes thinly sliced when raw and sauteed in butter; fried onion rings; fried parsley. Sauce: Pan juices of main dish diluted with white wine and veal or chicken stock. Uses.-For jointed (cut up) poultry."
    ---ibid(p. 449)

    Sauce "Bordelaise sauce I (for grilled meat). Sauce Bordelaise.--Boil down by two-thirds 1 cup (2 decilitres) of red wine with a tablespoon of chopped shallot, a sprig of thyme, a piece of bay leaf and a pinch of salt. Pour in 1 cup (2 decilitres) of Demi-glace sauce...Boil down by one-third, remove from heat, add 2 tablespoons (25 grams) of butter and strain through a cloth. Add at the last moment 2 ounces (35 grams) of beef marrow cut up in dice, poached and drained, a 2 teaspoons of chopped parsley. note. Grilled meats served with Bordelaise sauce are usually garnihsed with round slices of beef marrow, poached and drained.

    "Bordelaise sauce II. Sauce Bordelaise.--Prepare sone concentrated red wine as in the preceding recipe, but cook it down by only half. Thicken with 2 1/2 tablespoons (40 grams) of Kneaded butter (see: Butter, Compound butters). Boil for a few moments. Add meat glaze or meat extract equal in buk to a walnut. Finish as in the preceding recipe.

    "Bordelaise sauce III (Old recipe). Sauce a la Bordelaise.--'Put in a saucepan 2 cloves of garlic a pinch of tarragon leaves, the seeded flesh of lemon, a little bay leaf and 2 cloves, a glass of Sauternes and 2 teaspoons of Aix oil (Province olive oil), simmer all together over a low heat. Skim off all fat from this seasoning, add enough very smooths Espagnole to sauce an entree, and 3 to 4 tablespoons of light veal stock. Boil down, add half a glass of Sauternes, still simmering. When the sauce reaches the right consistency, strain through a cloth. Just before serving, add a little butter and the juice of half a lemon'. (A. Careme, L'Art de la cuisine francaise au XIXe siecle."
    ---ibid (p. 843)

    [1972]
    "Sauce Bordelaise

    (Red Wine and Marrow Sauce for Hamburgers or Steak)
    For 6 servings
    A 4-inch piece of beef marrow
    2 Tb minced shallots or scallions
    1 tsp. cornstarch blended with 1 tsp water
    1/2 cup beef bouillion
    2/3 cup red wine
    Salt and pepper
    2 Tb minced parsley
    Stand bone on one end and split with a clever to expose marrow. Dig out marrow in one piece using a small knife. Then dipping knife in hot water for each cut, slice or dice marrow. Bring bouillon and wine to the boil in a small saucepan, remove from heat, add marrow, and set aside. When meat is done, remove to hot platter and pour fat out of frying pan. Stir in shallots or scallions, drain marrow and reserve; add liquid to pan. Boil rapidly, scraping up coagulated... juices with a wooden spoon. When reduced to about 1/2 cup, remove from heat and stir in cornstarch. Simmer 1 minutes; add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat, fold in marrow and parsley, and pour over meat."
    ---The French Chef Cookbook, Julia Child, 27th show [Alfred A. Knopf:New York] 1972 (p. 49-50)

    Relate recipes: Espagnole & Mirepoix & Marrow bones.


    Cheese sauce & Mornay
    Our examination of historic UK, USA & French sources (cookbooks, newspapers) appears to confirm "cheese sauce" (aka Sauce Mornay) first surfaces in the late 19th century. The original/classic pairing was fish. Eggs come second. Vegetables appear to be an afterthought inspired by classic white sauce. Think: asparagus and Hollandaise and
    Creamed Onions. USA food companies creatively promoted cheese sauces from the 1930s forward as quick economical options for creating family meals. Think: Velveeta & Cheez Whiz. Possible progenitors? Fondue (cheese dip), and Welsh rarebit (chafing dish cheese sauce). 19th century cheese soup recipes are generally composed of similar ingredients; they are a tad creamier and serve a different place in the meal. In the 1950s casseroles were sometimes "glued" with cream cheese sauces.

    What is Mornay? "Sauce Mornay, a bechamel sauce flavoured with cheese, seems to have been created at the end of the nineteenth century. There are conflicting accounts as to whom its name commemorates. Some give the honor to the seventeenth-century French Huguenot writer Phillipe de Mornay, others to the son of its inventor, Joseph Voiron of the restaurant Durand in Paris, who was supposedly called Mornay."
    ---An A-Z of Food & Drink, John Ayto [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2002 (p. 217)

    [1882]
    "Cheese Soup

    One and a half cupfuls of flour, one pint of rich cream, four table-spoonfuls of butter, four of grated Parmesan cheese, a speck of cayenne, two eggs, three quarts of clear soup stock. Mix flour, cream, butter, cheese and pepper together. Place the basin in another of hot water and stir until the mixture becomes a smooth, firm paste. Break into it the two eggs, and mix quickly and thoroughly. Cook two minutes longer, and set away to cool. When cold, roll into little balls about the size of an American walnut. When the balls are all formed drop them into boiling water and cook gently five minutes; then put them in the soup tureen and pour the boiling stock on them. Pass a plate of finely grated Parmesan cheese with the soup."
    ---Miss Parloa's New Cook Book, Maria Parloa =90

    [1883]
    "Cauliflowers, With Cheese.

    Add plenty of grated cheese (say a cupful to a pint of sauce) to the usual white sauce made for cauliflowers. Heat the sauce well, to melt the cheese thoroughly, and pour it over the cauliflowers."
    ---Practical Cooking and Dinner Giving, Mrs. Mary F. Henderson [Harper & Brothers: New York] 1883(p. 198)

    [1894]
    "Cheese Sauce.
    --Required: a tablespoonful of any good dry English cheese, twice that measure of grated Parmesan cheese; half a pint each of milk and medium white stock, a dash of cayenne, white pepper, and salt; a few drops of lemon-juice, the yolk of an egg, two ounces of flour, and one ounce of butter. Melt the butter, stir in the flour, add the stock and milk, and boil up; put in the seasoning and cheese, and beat well. Beat up the egg with a tablespoonful of warm stock very thoroughly; add the hot sauce gradually, and continue the beating for aa minute or two; serve at once, without reheating. For a rich sauce, add another ounce of butter and a half gill of cream. This is very delicious with plainly boiled macaroni or rice, or with various white vegetables."
    ---Cassell's New Universal Cookery Book, Lizzie Heritage [Cassell and Company:London] 1984 (p.93-94)

    [1906]
    "Cheese sauce.
    --Mix two tablespoonfuls of butter, and one tabelspoonful of flour, add one cup of cream, and stir over the fire until all begins to thicken. Stir in three tablespoonfuls of Swiss cheese, a little white pepper and salt."
    ---"In the Kitchen," Chicago Daily Tribune, May 6, 1906 (p. 16)

    [1907]
    "131. Sauce Mornay--Mornay Sauce.
    ---The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery, Escoffier, first translation into English by H. L. Cracknell and R.J. Kaufmann of Le Guide Cuilinaire, 1907 edition [John Wiley:New York] 1997 (p. 22)

    [1909]
    "Cheese Sauce

    Ingredients.--3/4 pint of milk, 3/4 oz. of butter, 3/4 oz. of flour, 1 tablespoonful of finely-grated cheese, salt and pepper. Method.--Melt the butter in a stewpan, add the flour, stir and cook the mixture for 5 minutes without browning, and add the milk. Season to taste, simmer gently for 10 minutes, then stir in the cheese, and use as required. Time.--20 minutes. Average Cost, 5d. or 6d."
    ---Mrs. Beeton's Every-Day Cookery, new edition [Ward, Lock & Co.:London] 1909 (p. 262-263)

    "Cream of Cheese Soup
    Heat, but not boil, in a double boiler, one full quart of milk, one blade of mace, one teaspoon of minced onion, one tablespoon of carrot. Blend together one-fourth cup of butter and two level tablespoons of flour. To this add the hot milk, half a cup at a time, stirring constantly and cooking between each addition. Strain back into the double boiler, add three-fourths cup of grated cheese and stir till melted. Season with salt and white pepper and pour over the beaten yolks of two eggs. Cook a moment, remove from the bath and beat with an egg beater till covered with a fine froth. Serve at once in hot cups." --Anne Warner."
    --- Good Housekeeping Woman's Home Cook Book, Isabel Gordon Curtis (p. 276)

    [1911]
    "Fried Halibut, Cheese Sauce.
    --Roll fish in flour before frying, put in basket and fry until done, which will be a short time. Cheese Sauce: One-half cup of water, one-half cup of milk, dash of red pepper. Stir over fire until hot, and then add one-half cup of American cheeses which has been run through the meat grinder or mashed up with a fork. Stir until creamy and the cheese is entirely dissolved. Serve in gravy boat."
    ---"Economical Housekeeping: Fish Sauces," Jane Eddingon, Chicago Daily Tribune, March 23, 1911 (p. 6)

    "Cream of Cheese Soup I--Put in a double boiler one quart of milk and half an onion. When at scalding point remove onion and thicken milk with two level tablespoons of butter and two of flour rubbed together. Season with salt and pepper and stir in two-thirds of a cup of finely grated cheese and an egg beaten light. Serve immediately."
    ---"Economical Housekeeping: Cheese Things," Jane Eddington, Chicago Daily Tribune, March 31, 1911 (p. 8)

    [1914]
    "Mornay Sauce.
    --Make a sauce of three tablespoonfuls each of butter and flour, scant half a tablespoonful each of salt and pepper and one cup and a half of consomme, chicken, or veal broth. Add one-fourth cup each of grated Gruyere and Parmesan cheese and stir until melted."
    ---"Economical Housekeeping: Eggs with Sauces," Jane Eddington, Chicago Daily Tribune, February 25, 1914 (p. 11)

    [1915]
    "Cheese Sauce.
    This sauce has many names, but is simply a white sauce made by cooking together a large tablespoon of butter with one of flour, and then adding to it, stirring all the time, a cup of hot milk. When this is well blended, cooked, and seasoned, add a half a cup to a cup of grated cheese. Too strong a cheese taste with fish is not liked by some people. If the sauce should happen to be lumpy, by any accident, put it through a strainer before adding the cheese."
    ---"The Tribune Cook Book," Jane Eddington, Chicago Daily Tribune, January 10, 1915 (p. C4)

    [1927]
    "Cheese Sauce (Sauce Mornay)

    This has a lean bechamel as the base. When you add grated cheese, it becomes sauce Mornay. This sauce is not served in a sauceboat. Unctuous and very much thicker than an ordinary sauce, it must completely coat the food over which it is spread. It is used for fish in particular. But it is also appropriate for some white meats, as well as certain vegetables: cauliflower, Chinese artichokes (chirogi), endive, cardoons, celery,e tc. Depending on how it is used, several modifications are made. Time: About 1 hour, 15 minutes. Makes 1/2 liter (generous 2 cups) of sauce Mornay. 4 tablespoons of lean bechamel sauce; 60 grams (2 1/4 ounces) of grated Gruyere and Parmesan, half of each (in other words, 3 medium tablespoons); 50 grams ( 1/3/4 tablespoons) of butter to finish the sauce. Procedure. The Gruyere must be a bit dry, because if it is too fresh it will make the sauce stringy. Make sure the Parmesan does not have too strong a flavor, which would overpower the sauce. It would be better, if that is the case, to replace it with the same quantity of Gruyere. If the sauce is intended for fish, add the cooking liquid from the fish. A fish served with Mornay sauce should be cooked in only a small amount of liquid--in other words, poached, depending on the case, with a little fish bouillon, white wine, or water mixed with lemon juice. Using this cooking liquid in the sauce will give it a stronger fish flavor. If the sauce is intended for use with white meat, poultry, or sweetbreads, do the same with the cooking juices from these dishes. When you add the cooking liquid from the fish or from the white meat, allow 1 deciliter (3 1/3 fluid ounces, scant 1 cup) of liquid for the above proportions...For vegetables, the sauce is simply finished with butter, added off the heat. For other dishes, you can add mushroom cooking liquid. And, no matter how the sauce is used, you can always refine it by adding a bit of creme fraiche and then continuing to reduce it until it reaches the correct consistency. In fact, the creme graiche addition enhances the basic bechamel sauce. Do not forget that the seasoning of sauce Mornay, whether it be for fish, meat, or vegetables, is most important. It must be verified very carefully, mainly due to the saltiness of the cheese itself. So, at the very last moment, when the butter has been added, taste the sauce to check if a little more salt is needed. You can spice it up with a point of cayenne (as much as can be held on the tip of a knife.)/ Procedure. Prepare the necessary quantity of bechamel sauce...Strain it into a small pan. If using cream, or any cooking liquid, this is the moment to add it, as directed below, before any other ingredient. Otherwise, simply bring the sauce to a boil for a few seconds. Add the cheese. Cook, stirring, until it is completely melted. Remove from the heat; it will not be returned again in the course of this dish. Finish with the butter, mixed in as pieces about the size of a walnut. The sauce is now ready for use, and is equally good for vegetable dishes."
    ---La Bonne Cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange: The Original Companion for French Cooking, originally published in French/France 1927, translated and with an introduction by Paul. Aratow [Ten Speed Press:Berkeley CA] 2005 (p. 64)
    [NOTE: FoodTimeline library owns original French edition; happy to scan/share text upon request]

    [1938]
    "Asparagus Supreme.

    1/2 lb Kraft Velveeta
    1/3 cup milk
    Salt, Pepper
    Cooked Fresh Asparagus
    Toast
    Slowly heat the Velveeta and the milk in the top of a double boiler. Stir occasionally until Velveeta is melted. Season to taste. For each serving, place several stalks of hot cooked asparagus on fresh toast, and pour over it a generous amount of the hot cheese sauce. For the main dish of a substantial meal, serve the asparagus (or hot cooked broccoli as a variation) on slices of hot baked or boiled ham."
    ---Favorite Recipes form Marye Dahnke's File [Kraft-Phenix Cheese Corporation:Chicago IL] 1938 (p. 14)

    [1939]
    "Cheese Sauce for Vegetables

    1 tablespoon butter
    1 1/2 tablespoons flour
    1 cup milk
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/2 teaspoon paprika
    1/2 cup grated or thinly sliced American cheese
    Melt butter, add flour, and blend. Add milk and seasonings and cook over hot water until thickened and smooth, stirring constantly. Add cheese and stir until melted. Heat cooked or canned vegetables. This sauce also may be poured over a casserole of vegetables, or meat and vegetables, which are to be baked for a short time in a moderate oven."
    --- Cheddar Leads in Popularity Among Cheese," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, February 14, 1939 (p. 17)

    [1940]
    "Melt Pabst-ette slowly in double boiler, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth. Serve on each slice of apple pie... But adding a little milk to the mixture, you can make a delicious cheese sauce for vegetables and fish."
    ---display ad, Pabst-ett canned cheese product, Chicago Daily Tribune, October 31, 1940 (p. 21)
    [NOTE: This product was made by the Pabst Brewing Company. During prohibition the company diverisfied into dairy products in order to survive.]

    [1944]
    "Cheese; in fondue and souffle, as stuffing for frankfurters, in macaroni and cheese, in rarebit, in noodle ring, in baked rise with cheese, in baked eggs with cheese, baked onions with cheese and bread stuffing, scalloped cabbage with cheese, cheese sauce for vegetables, topping for baked dishes."
    ---"Try Those Tasty Dishes 2nd Day in Left-Overs: Ration Roundup," Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, December 8, 1944 (p. 23)

    [1962]
    "Cheese Sauce for Vegetables.

    Mornay sauce, Continental version of cheese sauce, lends elegance to hot vegetable platter. Snippets of fresh parsley fleck sauce at left for color and flavor accent. Almond slivers, bits of green onion or diced pimiento may bare cheese sauces. Try cheese sauce on fish, hot sandwiches, too...
    Parsley Mornay Sauce 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
    2 tablespoons flour
    1 cup chicken broth (may use half white table wine)
    2/3 cup light cream or milk
    2 eggs, beaten
    1 cup grated Cheddar or Swiss cheese
    3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
    Melt butter. Add flour and blend well. Gradually stir in broth and cream. Cook, stirring constantly until smooth and thickened. Turn heat low. Pour a small amount of mixture into beaten eggs, then gradually add egg mixture to sauce. Add grated cheese and parsley. Stir just until cheese is melted. Serve hot over cooked vegetables, baked or broiled fish or on grilled ham sandwiches. makes 2 cups, 4 to 6 servings."
    ---"Slice of History: Don't Overcook-The Rule in Cheese Cookery," Marian Manners, Los Angeles Times, October 4, 1962 (p. D1)


    Chocolate gravy
    Chocolate gravy is a specialty of the American south and Appalachian regions. This flour-thickened sauce is served with biscuits for breakfast. There are (at least) two theories regarding the origin of this recipe:

    "Spanish Louisiana had a trading network in to the Tennessee valley. This trade may have introduced Mexican-style breakfast chocolate to the Appalachians, where it is called "chocolate gravy." (Another possibility is that the very old population of mixed-race Appalachian Melungeons has preserved the dish from the sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spanish colonies on the East Coast.)"
    ---Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, Andrew F. Smith editor [Oxford University Press:New York] 2004, Volume 1 (p. 699)

    "Chocolate gravy in the Appalachians? Yes, say Mark Sohn of Pikefill, Kentucky, who says this recipe has been handed down over the years by mountain families in his region of eastern Kentucky and West Virginia...It's a milk-and-flour-based sauce that should be cooked thick enough to stick well on open biscuits."
    ---Smokehouse Ham, Spoon Bread, & Scuppernong Wine: The Folklore and Art of Southern Appalachian Cooking, Joseph E. Dabney [Cumberland House:Nashville] 1998 (p. 210)

    "Chocolate Gravy. This gravy, once served by isolated Highlander families as a treat for children, is now a treat for adults. Why? Because while adults have hond memories of chocolate gravy, children don't know it. They don't see it advertised on TV, and they can't buy it...When I first heard about this sauce, the name did not appeal to me. Later when I tasted its smooth chocolately sweetness, when I lifted it with butter and biscuit to my mouth, when I first smelled the chocolate and saw it shine, then its flavor filled my chocolate-craving taste buds and it entered my long-term memory. I will never forget that moment. As badly as an itinerant preacher seeks converts, I want you to taste this gravy! Our elderly mountain cooks make chocolate gravy with canned "cream," a product that manufactureres call evaporated milk. To this "cream," they add enough water so the gravy will flow and spread, but not so much that it runs over the plate...Chocolate gravy is a milk and flour-based sauce, a white sauce or a bechamel. It is low in fat--spoon for spoon, it has fewer calories than butter, cream cheese, chocolate sauce, marmalade, or strawberry jelly--and it is low-cost and easy to prepare. It is thick, full, smooth, and chocolatey. And when the gravy is cold, it cane be used as a cake filling--it softens as it warms." ---Mountain Country Cooking, Mark F. Sohn [St. Martins Press:New York] 1996 (p. 10-11)

    ABOUT CHOCOLATE SAUCE & PUDDINGS IN AMERICA
    Mid-19th American century cookbooks contain recipes for hot chocolate drinks (shaved from unsweetened block chocolate), cocoa and chocolate puddings. Late 19th century American cookbooks also contain recipes for chocolate cakes, frostings, candy, and fudge. This coincides with the mass-marketing of chocolate to the American people (the Hershey company was founded around this time). Creamy chocolate products (puddings, especially) were promoted in the late 19th century by food companies and domestic scientists as healthful foods for their milk content. Typical early thickeners included corn starch, arrowroot, and gelatine.

    SO WHERE DOES CHOCOLATE GRAVY FIT IN?
    The taste for breakfast chocolate is hundreds of years old. Modern recipes for chocolate gravy may have evolved from popular 19th century combinations of cocoa and pudding. Many of the articles we find (1980-present) referencing chocolate gravy attribute it to "grandmother's recipe" without noting dates or author's ages. None of the standard American cook books we have suggest combining chocolate with biscuits. Presumably this combination can be found in community cookbooks published by churches, women's clubs etc. Up "North," chocolate chip pancakes are consumed with gusto. Same basic idea; different presentation.

    SELECTED CREAMY CHOCOLATE RECIPES

    [1863]
    "Cocoa.

    Put in a tea or coffee cup, one or two tablespoonfuls of ground cocoa, pour boiling water or boiling milk on it while stirring with a spoon, and sweeten it to your liking. A few drops of essence of vanilla may be added, according to taste."
    ---What to Eat and How to Cook It, Pierre Blot [D. Appleton and Company:New York] 1863 (p. 17)

    [1879]
    "Cocoa.

    To one pint milk and one pint cold water add three tablespoonfuls grated cocoa. Boil fifteen or twenty minutes, milling or whipping as directed in foregoing recipe. Sweeten to taste, at the table. Some persons like a piece of orange-peel boiled with it."
    ---Housekeeping in Old Virginia, Marion Cabell Tyree [John P. Morton and Company:Louisville] 1879 (p. 6)

    [1912]
    "Chocolate sauce.

    1 cup milk
    2 egg yolks
    1/4 cup sugar
    1/8 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon butter
    2 ounces Lowney's Premium Chocolate or 1/4 cup Lowney's Cocoa.
    Cook all ingredients in double boiler, stirring constantly until the spoon in coated. Serve hot or cold."
    ---Lowney's Cook Book Illustrated, revised edition, Maria Willett Howard [Walter M. Lowney Co.:Boston] 1912 (p. 207)

    [1934]
    "Cocoa Fudge Sauce.

    1/4 cupful Hershey's Cocoa...3/4 cupful granulated sugar...1/2 teaspoonful salt...1 tablespoonful cornstarch...1/2 cupful light corn syrup...1/2 cupful milk...2 tablespoonfuls butter...2 teaspoonfuls vanilla. Combine dry ingredients in saucepan. Add corn syrup and milk, and blend thoroughly. Bring to a boil, boil 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Cool, without stiring, until pan feels warm to hand. Serve. Yield: 1 1/2 cupfuls sauce."
    ---Hershey's 1934 Cookbook, revised and expanded with chocolate recipes brought up to date for use in today's kitchen, Hershey Chocolate Company [Hershey PA] 1971 (p. 38)
    [NOTE: this would produce something similar to the the recipes for chocolate gravy found on the Internet. Cornstarch would produce the same thickening properties as flour. This book does not offer written serving suggestions but it does have a picture showing this sauce on plain (pound?) cake.]

    [1996]
    Steps
    In a medium saucepan, combine the dry ingredients: sugar, flour, and cocoa. Mix fully. Mix until the lumps of flour and cocoa are gone. Gradually mix in the milk. Bring the mixture to a boil, simmer 1 minute, and stir in the vanilla. Remove from the heat."
    ---Mountain Country Cooking (p. 11)

    [1998]
    Kentucky Chocolate Gravy

    1 cup European-style cocoa
    3/4 cup sugar
    1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    2 cups milk
    1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
    In a saucepan, combine the dry ingredients: cocoa, flour, and sugar. Stir until well mixed and flour and cocoa lumps disappear. Pour in the milk gradually. Turn the heat up to bring mixture to boiling, simmer 1 minutes, and stir in the vanilla. Remove from the heat. The yield is 6 servings."
    ---Smokehouse Ham...(p. 210)

    If you have an old family recipe for chocolate gravy we'd love to hear from you!

    Related food? Chocolate fondue.

    Where did tomatoes originate?
    Food historians generally agree the ancestors of the fruits we now call tomatoes originated in the Andes.

    "Sophie Coe and others explain that the tomato originated in north-western S. America, where the ancestor of our edible tomato was most likely L. cerasiforme, S. pimpinellifolium, or currant tomato, which bears a long spray of tiny red fruits which split on the plant is another candidate, but L. cerasiforme has greater genetic similarity to the cultivated variety than any other. The edible descendant traveled north to Mexico and was one of the Solanaceae cultivated by the Aztec. There is no evidence that the wild varieties were ever eaten in their lands of origin, and all tomatoes consumed in S. America were reintroduced after the Spanish Conquest."
    ---Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 2nd edition, 2007 (p. 802)

    "The tomato (lycopersicon esculentum) is an American plant with an American name. In Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, tomatl indicates something round and plump, and this fruit (rather than vegetable) was almost certainly domesticated in Mexico, even though the presence of its numerous wild relatives (consisting of at least seven species) in South America suggests that it originated there. Apparently, however, tomatoes were not much used in the Andes region."
    ---Cambridge World History of Food, Kenneth F. Kiple & Kriemhild Conee Ornelas [Cambridge University Press:Cambridge] 2000, Volume Two (p. 1870) [NOTE: This book contains far more information than can be paraphrased here. Check with your university to see if they can supply you with pages.]

    Tomatoes in Europe
    Tomatoes were introduced to Europe from the New World by explorers in the 16th century. They were not immediately embraced because they were considered poisonous. Tomatoes were grown as "botanical curiosities," not as food. Tomatoes grew easily in the Spain and Italy and were widely used in Southern European dishes by the 17th century. Tomatoes slowly spread throughout Northern Europe, then back to the American colonies.

    "The first description of the tomato in the Mediterranean was in 1544, by the Italian botanist Pierandrea Mattioli. He was desribing the yellow-fruited varity, and it has been suggested that the Italian word for tomato, pomodoro (apple of gold), derived from this variety...Another theory of the origin of pomme d'amour is that it is a corruption of pomme des mours, "apple of the Moors," in recognition that two important members of the Solanaceae family, the egglant and the tomato, were favorite Arab vegetables. At first the tomato was used only as an ornamental plant in Mediterranean gardens because growers recognized it as a member of the nightshade family, then only known as comprising only poisonous members such as mandrake."
    ---A Mediterranean Feast, Clifford A. Wright [William Morrow:New York] 1999 (p. 213)

    "The tomato, initially regarded as an ornamental fruit and later adopted as a food, was an exotic curiousity that first appears in the writings of P.A. Mattioli and Jose de Acosta, travelers and naturalists. Apart from these sources, allusions to its consumption are very rare. Costanzo Felici tell us...that the usual "gluttons and pople greedy for new things" did not realize they could eat the tomato as they would eat mushrooms or eggplants, fried in oil and flavored with salt and pepper. Although we must not exclude the possibility that tomatoes were consumed at an earlier date by the common people, it is only at the end of the seventeenth century that we observe their inclusion in elite cuisine, thanks to the Neapolitan recipe collection of Antonio Latini. Iberian influences may be detected in their adoption for culinary purposes, since various recipes that call for tomatoes are designated as "in the Spanish style." Among these is a recipe for "tomato sauce," which is flavored with onions and wild thyme "or piperna" and subsequently adjusted to taste by adding salt, oil, and vinegar. With a few modifications, this preparation was to enjoy a remarkable future in Italian cuisine and in the industry of preserved foods. The custom observed in ancient and medieval times, as well as during the Renaissance, of serving sauces as accompaniments to "boiled foods or other dishes"--as Latini expresses it in this instance--facilitated the acceptance of the tomato by integrating it into an established gastronomic tradition. For the same reason, it gained widespread ocurrence in Italian cooking in the eighteenth and nineteenth cneturies. Panunto in Tuscany, Vincenzo Corrado in Naples, and Francesco Leonardi in Rome all include it in their recipe books."
    ---Italian Cuisine: A Cultural History, Alberto Capatti & Massimo Montanari [Columbia University Press:New York] 1999 (p. 42-3)

    "Despite the current enthusiasm for tomatoes in Italy, Spain and the rest of southern Europe, they were not well received upon arrival from the New World in the sixteenth century. Looking and smelling much like their poisonous relatives in the Solanaceae family it is not surprising that few people tried to eat them. They were usually grown as ornamental flowers, and only described botanically in Mattioli's Commentaries on Dioscordes in 1544. Although wealthy diners would not eat tomatoes, it does appear that their poorer neighbors had begun to eat them out of necessity. Good evidence of this can be found in 1650 in Melchior Sebizius' On the Faculty of Foods in which he writes that they are so cold and moist that they must be cooked with pepper, salt and oil, but "our cooks abosolutely reject them, even though they grow easily and copiously in gardens." The first published cookbook recipes including tomatoes appeared in Naples at the very end of the seventeenth century in Antonio Latini's Lo Scalo all a Moderna."
    ---Food in Early Modern Europe, Ken Albala [Greenwood Press:Westport CT] 2003 (p. 32)

    Recommended reading: Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy/David Gentilcore

    Tomatoes in North America
    "...English herbalist William Salmon...In 1687...he left for the New World...He traveled to New England and the Caribbean and practiced medicione in South Carolina...During the early years of the eighteenth century, he began working on his major work, Botanologia; he completed it in 1710. In an early section of the herbal, Salmon revealed that he had seen tomatoes growing in Carolina, which was in 'the South-East part of Florida.' As strange as this may seem today, his geography was accurate because the term Florida then referred to what is now the eastern part of the United States. This is the first known reference to the tomato in the British North American colonies. Several different theories have been espoused to account for the presence of tomatoes in the Carolinas. The most likely explanation is that there were multiple introductions by different peoples at different times for different purposes. The Spanish, who had probably cultivated and consumed tomatoes in their settlements in Florida earlier in the seventeenth century, had established colonies and missions...It is probable that the Spanish introduced tomatoes into what is today Georgia and the Carolinas. Alternatively, as gardeners grew tomatoes in Europe, French Huguenot refugees and British colonists may have brought seeds directly from the Caribbean...Whatever the initial source, tomatoes were cultivated in the Carolinas by the mid-eighteenth century...Only one colonial cookery manuscript is known to have contained a tomato recipe...author
    Harriott Pinckney Horry...From the southern states, tomatoes spread northward...Beginning in the late eighteenth century, cookbooks and agricultural books published in Philadelphia contained references to tomatoes...the earliest primary source pinpointing the tomato in New Jersey was George Perot Macculloch's farm journal, which noted the planting of tomatoes from 1829 onward in Morristown...In Massachusetts, tomatoes were introduced in the late eighteenth century."
    ---The Tomato in America: Early History, Culture, and Cookery, Andrew F. Smith [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia] 1994 (p. 25-32)

    First mention of tomatoes in an American cook book?
    According to notes supplied by food historian Richard J. Hooker, "This could well be the earliest reference to tomatoes in any American cookbook."

    "To Keep Tomatoos for Winter use
    Take ripe Tomatas, peel them, and cut them in four and put them into a stew pan, strew over them a great quantity of Pepper and Salt; cover it up close and let it stand an Hour, then put it on the fire and let it stew quick till the liquor is into pint Potts, and when cold pour melted butter over them about an inch thick They comonly take a whole day to stew. Each pot will make two Soups. N. B. if you do them before the month of October they will not keep."
    ---A Colonial Plantation Cookbook: The Receipt Book of Harriott Pinckney Horry 1770, Edited with an Introduction by Richard J. Hooker [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia SC] 1984 (p. 89)
    [NOTE: Harriott Pinckney Horry lived in South Carolina.]

    About tomatoes in China
    "Solanaceous fruits are in part a natural group in Chinese. Eggplant...has the most respectable antiquity, introduced from India at some obscure time in the past...Tomatoes...were introduced from the West in the 1500s and promptly named fan chieh (barbarian eggplant), their similarity to eggplants noted from the start. At first tomatoes were grown only for Westerners near the coastal enclaves where they stayed, but its taste and ease of growth achieved popularity for the tomato eventually, and it continues to spread and become more widely accepted in cooking. At present, however, it is still primarily a part of urbanized Cantonese cuisine--the area that has been longest and most intimately in contact with foreigners."
    ---Food in China, E.N. Anderson [Yale University Press:New Haven CT] 1988 (p. 160)

    Grape tomatoes
    Grape tomatoes were introduced to the American market in the late 1990s. The "Santa" variety is most popular. Grape tomatoes are popular because (unlike the cherry tomato) they are truly "bite sized." This convenience appeals to efficient salad makers.

    Who introduced grape tomatoes to the USA?
    The brand name "Grape tomato" is generally attributed to Andrew Chu, Chu Farms, Wimauma Florida. Origin accounts differ slightly:

    "The grape tomato landed in Chu's lap in 1996 when a Taiwanese friend gave him some seeds and challenged him to grow the uniquely sweet crop. He planted 2 acres and sold the produce in the farmer's market on Hillsborough Avenue. Word spread. The next year he planted 40 acres. In 1998, he abandoned the Chinese greens and filled all 200 acres in Wimauma with grape tomatoes."
    ---"From a Tiny Tomato A Giant Success," Janet Zink, St. Petersburg Times [FL], November 7, 2003 (p. 6)

    "Andrew Chu, a vegetable grower in Wimauma, Fla., first heard about a grape-shaped variety of cherry tomato in 1996. A Taiwanese friend and specialty produce wholesaler in New York asked Chu to try them, thinking they might appeal to Asian shoppers; they were already being grown in mainland China. So Chu sent away for the hybrid seeds from Known-You Seed Co., Ltd., in Taiwan. He planted his first crop in the fall of 1996. Asians bought the grape-shaped tomatoes, but the market was limited, says Chu. "I started thinking about taking them mainstream," he says. So in 1997, Chu Farms packed them up in pint-size plastic clamshells, and shipped them through its regular distributors to the East Coast."
    ---"Attack of the Grape Tomatoes," Carole Sugarman, Washington Post, September 12, 2001 (p. F1)

    "The short history of grape tomatoes starts in 1994, when Florida farmer Andrew Chu began experimenting with the seed--received from a friend in Taiwan--on his Chu Farms in Wimauma, south of St. Petersburg. The seeds, from the Known-You Co., consistently produced tomatoes with a high level of sugar. With their crimson color, oval shape and size--slightly smaller than cherry tomatoes--they were like nothing else on the market."
    ---"Growers Sour Over Grape Tomatoes," Associated Press, Daily News-Record [Hrrisonburg VA] July 29, 2004 (p. 20)

    "We talked by phone to Andy Chu of Chu Farms at Wimauma, Fla. (south of Tampa), who grows, packages and sells "the original grape tomatoes." He has 160 acres of the Santa variety. He discovered the tomatoes in Mexico, got a Chinese wholesaler to get the seeds for him and began growing them in 1997. "Many people are growing them now," he says. Chu Farms ships the grape tomatoes by truck all over the country. The plants are easy to grow, he says. When he couldn't get seeds, he had a laboratory, West Winds Technology in Athens, Tenn., do tissue cultures to start plants for him, so East Tennessee is a location he's visited frequently. Asked about their popularity, he says they are sweeter, less watery and easier to eat in one bite than cherry tomatoes. His favorite way of eating them is as a snack."
    ---"Grape shape; Tiny tomatoes take center stage in salads," Louise Durman, News-Sentinel [Knoxville TN], May 17, 2000 (p. C1)

    U.S. Patent and Trademark Office records confirm grape tomatoes were registerd by Mr. Chu and introduced to the American public November 15, 1997:

    "Word Mark GRAPE TOMATOES Goods and Services IC 031. US 001 046. G & S: Small fresh red cherry tomatoes shaped like grapes. FIRST USE: 19971115. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19971115 Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS Design Search Code 050902 051104 200310 261121 Serial Number 75425179 Filing Date January 29, 1998 Supplemental Register Date October 26, 1999 Registration Number 2336840 Registration Date March 28, 2000 Owner (REGISTRANT) Chu Farms, Inc. CORPORATION FLORIDA 4770 Saffold Road Wimmauma FLORIDA 33598"

    Compteting claims
    "Before long commercial growers such as Six L's and Procacci Bros. got a taste of the fruit and realized Chu was on to something. "I've been in business 53 years and I recognized their potential," says Joe Procacci, chief executive officer of Procacci Bros., who first saw the sweet tomatoes at Chu's initial three-acre plot. He and other growers imported the seeds -- a variety called Santa -- and started planting. In 1998, Chu applied for a federal trademark for the name "grape tomatoes." He says he figured that if his product gained name recognition, it would be harder for other growers to enter the market: They'd be at a disadvantage if they had to call the tomatoes something else. Procacci says he applied for a trademark for the term even before Chu -- and that both of them were rejected by the Patent and Trademark Office. Chu then applied and received what's called a "supplemental registration" for the name, meaning that he acquired some limited trademark rights and got a leg up on getting full trademark protection. But it did not prevent other companies from using the term; in fact, by that time, it was being used on at least 25 labels in the United States, according to the Packer, a trade industry newspaper that covered the controversy."
    ---"Attack of the Grape Tomatoes," Carole Sugarman, Washington Post, September 12, 2001 (p. F1)

    Early market strategy
    Bite sized, sweet, convenient and delicious. Welcome relief to the awkward "tomato squirt" associated with cherry tomatoes.

    "Fresh Grape Tomatoes, new taste sensation...eat as candy or add to a green salad, pint $1.59"
    ---dispay ad, Frederick News Post [MD], July 8, 1998 (p. 44)

    "Grape tomatoes are the hot item in the supermarket produce section. They're roughly the size of seedless green grapes-hence their name-and are sold by the pint for $1.99 or more. Many folks agree they're pretty tasty. So why not grow your own? That may be difficult, at least this year. For one thing, there's no tomato variety called "grape." (In catalogs that word typically refers to how some tomatoes grow in clusters.) Ag-Mart Produce of Plant City, Fla., one of the largest suppliers of grape tomatoes in stores, says the seed variety it uses is called Santa. Also, Santa tomato seeds are scarceand relatively pricey when you can find them."
    ---"Growing Trendy Tomatoes," Consumer Reports, May 2000 (p. 9)

    Grape tomatoes in Australia
    "Size and shape are a distinct advantage for Australia's first grape tomatoes, The Original grape tomatoes, which live up to their fresh eating credentials to stand out from the tomato pack. Specially bred to resemble a grape in both size and shape, The Original grape tomatoes weigh between 12g and 20g each and are perfect for popping whole, one delicious, fun mouthful at a time. The Original grape tomatoes' low water content means these tiny fruits retain their juicy flesh when halved either across or lengthways. A cross between roma and cherry tomatoes, The Original grape tomatoes feature the best flavor attributes of both. In 1999, Perfection Fresh Australia's The Original grape tomatoes were the first grape tomatoes to appear on Australian supermarket shelves."
    ---"The Original grape toamtoes--fabulous finger food," Retail World, September 6, 2011 (p. 38)


    Worcestershire sauce
    Spicy sauces based on anchovies date to Ancient Roman
    garum & liquamen. English sauces expanded on this culinary tradition, offering dozens of variations through the years. Most notably: anchovy sauce, essence of anchovy, fish sauce, Quin's sauce and Worcester/Worcestershire sauce. The components are generally the same: anchovies, shallots, ketchups, and cayenne. Proportions vary slightly.

    Commerical Worcestershire sauce first surfaces in 1830. The original company also produced "Quinine Wine," and anti-malarial.Quin's Sauce surfaces the same year. Who or what was Quin? Dr. John Kitchener's notes posit "Quin" as an epciure and wise sauce maker. The Oxford English Dictionary confirms the word "quins" (no apostrophy) could mean queen or strumpet. Was this piquant sauce named for a saucy woman? Or, was it a shortened version of "Quintessence of Anchovy?"

    [1747]
    "To make Anchovy Sauce.

    Take a pint of Gravy, put in an Anchovy, take a Quarter of a Pound of Butter rolled in a little Flour, stir all together until it boils. You may add a little Juice of Lemon, Ketchup, Red Wine, and Wallnut Liquor, just as you please. Plain Butter melted thick, with a Spoonful of Walnut-Pickle, or Ketchup, is good Sauce, or Anchovy: In short, if you put as many Things as you fancy into Sauce; all other Sauces for Fish you have in the Lent Chapter."
    ---The Art of Cookery Made Plain & Easy, Hannah Glasse, facsimile 1747 edition [Prospect Books:Devon] 1995 (p. 61)

    [1830]
    "Fish Sauce.--(No. 425.)

    Two wine-glasses of port, and two of walnut pickle, four of mushroom catsup, half a dozen anchovies, pounded, the like number of eschalots sliced and pounded, a table-spoonful of soy, and half a drachm of Cayenne pepper; let them simmer gently for ten minutes; strain it, and when cold, put it into bottles; well corked, and sealed over, it will keep for a considerable time. Obs.--This is commonly called Quin's sauce, and was given to me by a very sagacious sauce-maker."
    ---The Cook's Oracle and House Keeper's Manual, Dr. William Kitchiner, facsimile 1830 7th edition [Applewood Books:Bedford MA] undated (p. 278)
    [NOTE: Kitchener appends this note to his recipe for Quintessense of Anchovy (No. 433) "Epicure Quin used to say, 'Of all the banns of marriage I ever heard, none gave me half such pleasure as the union of delicate Ann-Chovy with good John-Dory." (p. 281), see next.]

    "Quintessence of Anchovy.—(No. 433.)
    The goodness of this preparation depends almost entirely on having fine mellow fish, that have been in pickle long enough (i. e. about twelve months) to dissolve easily, yet are not at all rusty. Choose those that are in the state they come over in, not such as have been put into fresh pickle, mixed with red paint,280-* which some add to improve the complexion of the fish; it has been said, that others have a trick of putting anchovy liquor on pickled sprats;280-† you will easily discover this by washing one of them, and tasting the flesh of it, which in the fine anchovy is mellow, red, and high-flavoured, and the bone moist and oily. Make only as much as will soon be used, the fresher it is the better. Put ten or twelve anchovies into a mortar, and pound them to a pulp; put this into a very clean iron, or silver, or very well tinned saucepan; then put a large table-spoonful of cold spring-water (we prefer good vinegar) into the mortar; shake it round, and pour it to the pounded anchovies, set them by the side of a slow fire, very frequently stirring them together till they are melted, which they will be in the course of five minutes. Now stir in a quarter of a drachm of good Cayenne pepper (No. 404). and let it remain by the side of the fire for a few minutes longer; then, while it is warm, rub it through a hair-sieve,280-‡ with the back of a wooden spoon. The essence of anchovy, which is prepared for the committee of taste, is made with double the above quantity of water, as they are of opinion that it ought to be so thin as not to hang about the sides of the bottle; when it does, the large surface of it is soon acted upon by the air, and becomes rancid and spoils all the rest of it. A roll of thin-cut lemon-peel infused with the anchovy, imparts a fine, fresh, delicate, aromatic flavour, which is very grateful; this is only recommended when you make sauce for immediate use; it will keep much better without: if you wish to acidulate it, instead of water make it with artificial lemon-juice (No. 407*), or add a little of Coxwell’s concrete acid to it. [281]Obs.—The above is the proper way to perfectly dissolve anchovy,281-* and to incorporate it with the water; which, if completely saturated, will continue suspended. To prevent the separation of essence of anchovy, and give it the appearance of being fully saturated with fish, various other expedients have been tried, such as dissolving the fish in thin water gruel, or barley-water, or thickening it with mucilage, flour, &c.: when any of these things are added, it does not keep half so well as it does without them; and to preserve it, they overload it with Cayenne pepper. Mem.—You cannot make essence of anchovy half so cheap as you can buy it. Thirty prime fish, weighing a pound and a quarter, and costing 4s. 6d., and two table-spoonfuls of water, made me only half a pint of essence; you may commonly buy that quantity ready-made for 2s., and we have seen an advertisement offering it for sale as low as 2s. 6d. per quart. It must be kept very closely stopped; when you tap a bottle of sauce, throw away the old perforated cork, and put in a new taper velvet cork; if the air gets to it, the fish takes the rust,281-† and it is spoiled directly. Essence of anchovy is sometimes coloured281-‡ with bole armeniac, Venice red, &c.; but all these additions deteriorate the flavour of the sauce, and the palate and stomach suffer for the gratification of the eye, which, in culinary concerns, will never be indulged by the sagacious gourmand at the expense of these two primum mobiles of his pursuits. *** Essence of anchovy is sometimes made with sherry or Madeira wine, or good mushroom catchup (No. 439), instead of water. If you like the acid flavour, add a little citric acid, or dissolve them in good vinegar. N.B. This is infinitely the most convenient way of using anchovy, as each guest may mix sauce for himself, and make it strong or weak, according to his own taste. It is also much more economical, as plain melted butter (No. 256) serves for other purposes at table."
    ---
    The Cooks Oracle, William Kitchener

    [1875]
    "Quin's Sauce
    (An old-fashioned fish sauce.)--Put a quarter of a pint of walnut pickle into a saucepan, with a quarter of a pint of port, half a pint of mushroom ketchup, a dozen anchovies, boned and pounded, a dozen sliced shallots, a half tea-spoonful of cayenne, and two table-spoonfuls of soy, Simmer all gently for ten minutes, strain the sauce, and, when cold, bottle for use. Securely corked and stored in a cool place, the sauce will keep for some time.

    Quin's Sauce (another way). --To a quart of walnut pickle add six anchovies, six bay leaves, six shallots, three cloves, a blade of mace, half a tea-spoonful of cayenne, and a dozen peppercorns. Boil the whole until the anchovies are dissolved. Take it off the fire; when cold, add half a pint of red wine, and bottle the cause, corking the bottles well.

    "Quin's Sauce (another way).--To half a pint of mushroom ketchup add a quarter of a pint of walnut pickle, three anchovies, two cloves of garlic pounded, and as much cayenne pepper as will cover a shilling. Put it into a bottle and shake it well; it is then fit for use. It must be kept in a well-corked bottle." ---Cassell's Dictionary of Cookery With Numerous Illustrations, [Cassell, Petter, Galpin and Co.:London] 1875 (p. 682)
    [NOTE: Dr. Kitchener's 1830 recipe is also published in this source, author attribution, provided.]

    Worcester Sauce, to Make.
    Mince two cloves of shallot, put the mince into a dry bottle, and pour over it a pint of Bordeaux vinegar. Add three table-spoonfuls of essence of anchovy, three table-spoonfuls of walnut ketchup, two table-spoonfuls of soy, and as much cayenne as is approved; the quantity cannot be given, as cayenne varies so much in quality. Cork the bottle, keep it in a cool place, and shape it well twice a day for a fortnight. Strain the sauce, put it in small bottles, cork closely, and store for use."
    ---Cassell's Dictionary of Cookery With Numerous Illustrations, [Cassell, Petter, Galpin and Co.:London] 1875 (p. 1150)


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    23 January 2015