Monet's other palette The French Impressionist ate as well as he lived
- author John Edward Young, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
- publication The Christian Science Monitor
- issn 0882-7729
- published December 16, 1998
- start page 15
- added
Claude Monet is know for his style of entertaining about as much as Hulk Hogan is for his interpretation of Swan Lake.
But Monet, the Impressionist French master, with his second wife, Alice, regularly received guests at their home at Giverny, a simple, maison bourgeois they purchased in 1883, and where Monet lived for the next 43 years.
Being of the "early to bed, early to rise" school, Monet often shared breakfast with his step‑daughter Blanche, who was also a painter. The simple, hearty meal would consisted of eggs, bacon, tripe sausage, and English and Dutch cheeses toast and marmalade, all washed down with copious amounts of milk and tea.
Monet insisted lunch be served at exactly 11:30 each day, thereby leaving the afternoon open for strolling the vast gardens with his guests, or, especially for painting.
Heide Michels writes in "Monet's House, an Impressionist Interior," (Clarkson Potter, 1997),"So insistent was {Monet} on eating at 11:30 a.m. precisely that he would advise visitors to forget their passion for cars and travel by train so that they could be sure of arriving on time..."
This was when he and Alice preferred to entertain. The Monets never considered inviting company for dinner. The guest list rivaled that of Gertrude Stein's Paris salon. Artists came,of course; Auguste Rodin, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley, Eugene Boudin, Edgar Degas, the American painter, James Abbott McNeill Whistler, Paul Cezanne, and one of Monet's closest friends, statesman Georges Clemenceau.
Some guests not only ate, but shared their favorite recipes; Cezanne's recipe for salt cod bouillabaisse and Jean Francois Millet's petits pains are included in Claire Joyes's "Monet'sTable ‑ The cooking journals of Claude Monet," (Simon & Schuster, 1989)
Meals were usually served in the two‑tone, chrome‑yellow dining room, which embarrassed the sun with its golden brilliance. Monet chose the colors and furniture throughout the house indistinct departure from the tastes of the day. While the ornate Louis XVI was making its dazzling revival, and heavy, overstuffed furnishings were all the rage, Monet chose mostly simple, painted furniture more Scandinavian in style. (He even designed the blue, yellow, and white dinnerware photographed here.)
Although Monet rarely made an appearance in the kitchen, he and Alice meticulously plannedthe meals. The Monets had many cooks during their years at Giverny, but Marguerite was their favorite. Paul, her husband served as butler and general handyman. Marguerite, with one or two kitchen maids at her service, would work deftly and usually in silence preparing the meals for the fastidious master of the house.
"For duck {Monet} ... would remove the wings, sprinkle them with nutmeg, freshly ground pepper and coarse salt, and hand them over to Paul, who would take them into the kitchen to grill ...."
"Monet never lingered over his food. The service was quick and he even gave the order never to hand dishes around twice when his American step‑son‑in‑law, Theodore Earl Butler, was lunching with them, because his slow eating habits drove Monet crazy."
Dinner was served punctually at 7 p.m. As with lunch, a dinner gong was sounded andlateness was not tolerated.
Only on Christmas did Monet allow lunch to be held at midday. Ms. Joyes writes of the feast: "{Christmas lunch} began with eggs scrambled with truffles, or monkfish cookedAmerican‑style. Traditionally, Strasbourg truffled foie gras in pastry was served before thetruffled, stuffed capons were presented on a bed of chestnuts and Perigord truffles, servedwith a chestnut puree. A light salad of lamb's lettuce would offset the heaviness of thesedishes, followed by a Roqufort or Gorgonzola cheese."
I very much enjoyed adapting the recipes, and have carefully checked them to make sure thatyou will have no difficulty in making these dishes.
In order to get to know the artist better and discover his personality through his lavish cuisine,I read a great deal, and this enabled me to get to know this giant among men... .
His friends and biographers relate that he had a hearty appetite, but that he was discerningand even extremely fussy about food. For his many guests ... and for his family, he carvedgame, roasts, and poultry himself at the table. He ... adored fish, especially the pike from hisown pond. He had a kitchen‑garden which was scrupulously maintained, and in which hegrew herbs, aromatics, vegetables ... and field mushrooms which were carefully picked atdawn.
I was delighted by the discovery of the recipes, because they are a real palette of tastes, yetfull of common sense.... Some of them are extremely simple, others more difficult.... It shouldnot be forgotten that none of the equipment was available which we find indispensible today.Giverny did not even possess an ice‑box!
For your inventiveness, for your great generosity, for all these beautiful and great recipes, forthese precious journals, the evidence of the great cooking of the past, for this wonderfullifestyle,
1/2 pound mixed wild mushrooms (chanterelles, morels, oyster, portabello, crimini, shiitake,for example)
Trim any soil from mushroom stems and wipe mushrooms with a dry cloth. Chop mushroomsinto large pieces.
Add mushrooms to butter and pour flour, combined with cream over them. Cook, stirring, for 5minutes. Season with salt and pepper and pour mushrooms into ovenproof dish.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a covered casserole. Add the veal (or turkey) and brown allover. (Boned veal or turkey are usually purchased enclosed in a cotton, net bag. Do notremove it until serving).
Add salt and pepper, to taste, hot stock, and onions. Cover and cook until onions begin tosoften when pierced with a sharp knife ‑ about 5 minutes. Add olives and simmer until heatedthrough, or until onions are cooked to your liking. (Add a bit of water, or more stock, if younotice stock has evaporated. You will want enough liquid to serve with the meat.)
Removed veal, onions, and olives to a warm serving platter. Scrape casserole and pourliquid into gravy boat.
Trim green top, from leeks and discard, or freeze for making stock. Cut leeks lengthwise,almost to root end. Shake them vigorously in cold water to remove any grit; trim and discardroot ends, and cut leeks into 1/2‑inch slices.
Heat 1/4‑cup butter in a large sauce pan, add leeks and sautee until soft. While leeks arecooking, bring a quart of water, with the salt, to a boil. Add water, all at once, to leeks. Cover;simmer 45 minutes. Add potatoes, cover and cook for 20 minutes. Stir in remaining butterbefore serving.
PHOTOS: 1)START TO FINISH: Monet was fond of fresh seafood, including steamed mussel2) and of French, Dutch, and English cheeses with fruit from his garden. 3) LUNCH AT 11:30:A meal might include Veal with Olives, Glazed Carrots, and Baked Field Mushrooms. Monetate early to take advantage of the afternoon sun to paint. 4) LEEK AND POTATO SOUP: Ameal at Giverny usually included soup. PHOTOS BY ARI DENISON ‑ STAFF 5)MONUMENTAL MONET: The artist in his studio. The exhibit, 'Monet in the 20th Century' runsthrough Dec. 27 at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, before traveling to the Royal Academyof Arts in London (from Jan. 21 to April 18, 1999). BY COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OFFINE ARTS, BOSTON
No comments:
Post a Comment