CookEat Recipe
Prune Sauce with Claret
Whole prunes in a reduced claret and demi-glace sauce with cinnamon.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Preheat a conventional oven to 400°F. Put the ten quarts cold water in a very large stockpot with ample headroom and begin heating. Have a butcher clean and cut the two fresh raw white calf feet into small pieces. Put them in a roasting pan with the half pound raw ham cut into pieces, one pound veal bones, two carrots, two onions and two leeks, all sliced, the three branches parsley root and one celery branch, sliced. Add the ten cloves, four bay leaves, twenty whole allspice berries, two tablespoons whole black peppercorns, one teaspoon thyme and one and a half tablespoons salt. Spread about four tablespoons rendered pork lard over the vegetables and roast until the bones, meat and vegetables are golden, without burning.
Step 2
Transfer the complete roasted mixture to the stockpot and add the one pint canned tomatoes. Bring slowly to a boil and cook for thirty minutes. Cover, lower the heat and keep at a gentle simmer until the liquid has reduced by half. Before proceeding, check that the meat on the feet and the ham have each reached at least 70°C for two minutes, probing away from bone.
Step 3
In a second very large saucepan, heat the three ounces butter, stir in the six tablespoons flour and cook for twenty minutes, stirring regularly, until the roux is thoroughly brown. Carefully pour the hot stock mixture into the roux, mixing well. Keep at a very gentle simmer for twelve hours, stirring regularly and adjusting the heat to prevent catching.
Step 4
Mix in the half pint sherry, then strain through a clean fine conical strainer into clean heat-safe containers, removing all bones and aromatics. Measure one and a half gills of the actual finished demi-glace for this sauce. Loosen that measured portion with a little hot ready-to-use unsalted veal broth until somewhat fluid, and keep all of it hot for immediate use. Rapidly cool the remaining demi-glace in shallow containers and refrigerate at 40°F or below within two hours; use within forty-eight hours or freeze.
Step 5
Weigh the half pound whole dried prunes before removing their stones. Soak in enough cold water to cover for eight hours in the refrigerator. Drain and discard the soaking water, then carefully remove the stones, leaving the softened fruit as whole as possible.
Step 6
Put the prunes in a saucepan with one good gill dry red Bordeaux wine, two ounces sugar and two saltspoons ground cinnamon. Cover and boil slowly for ten minutes. Lift the prunes carefully with a skimmer onto a clean plate.
Step 7
Add all the loosened one-and-a-half-gill demi-glace portion to the syrup and reduce over brisk heat for twenty minutes, stirring to prevent catching. Return the prunes, boil for five minutes more and serve promptly.
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