Stewed Marmot, etc.

Civet de Marmottes

Having killed some marmots sunning themselves belly up on the sun with their noses in the air one sunrise in September, skim them and carefully put aside the mass of fat which is excellent for rubbing into the bellies of pregnant women, into the knees, ankles, and painful joints of sprains, and into the leather of shoes.

Cut up the marmot and treat it like stewed hare which has a perfume that is unique and wild.

Écureuil

Having killed some squirrels in autumn, skin them the same day and empty them.  Roll them up in a piece of lard and let them brown with some good quality butter in a copper saucepan. When they are a good golden color, salt them, cover, and let them cook on a very gentle fire. One must use no spice of any kind which might entail the risk of taking away from the animal its exquisite nutty flavor.

 Poulets a Devenire Tendre

In order to make chickens immediately edible, take them out of the hen-run, pursue them into open country, and when you have made them run, kill them with a gun loaded with very small shot.

The meat of the chicken, gripped with fright, will become tender.  This method used in the country of  the Fangs (Gabon) seems infallible even for the oldest and toughest bird.

 All from Toulouse-Lautrec and Maurice Joyant, The Art of Cuisine (Trans. Margery Weiner, 1966), found by the other David this afternoon at Back Alley Books in a basement in on the square in Chardon, Ohio