I had the good fortune in 1997 to make numerous trips to Europe. One of the benefits was to be able to take a week off in October to visit the Hostellerie de Vieux Moulin in Bouilland, France — the home of chef Jean-Pierre Silva. For a fat-filled week, myself and my fellow travellers ate, ate, and then ate some more. Along the way, we also had the opportunity to improve our cooking skills under Jean-Pierre’s direction. The following are my “notes” from these cooking lessons. All of this would not have happened if arrangements had not been made months in advance by Patti Ravenscroft, our able guide and leader. All I had to do was to be at the Dijon-Ville railway station at 1pm, and everything else just seemed to happen.

The recipes in these notes are derived from the English and French versions of the recipes Jean-Pierre presented. Each has been adjusted for the quantity listed in the recipe and tested using ingredients available in California or on one of my trips to Europe. I’ve also included a couple of recipes learned during the same period that expand some of what was taught in Bouilland. (One escargot recipe would not have been enough!) I’ve also included a couple of recipes for dishes served during the week that were not part of the presentations. Luckily, Jean-Pierre provided me with enough detail so I could still create them when I returned home.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

At our first déjeuné, Jean-Pierre served a selection of cold dishes that included Jambon Persillé, a classic Burgundian dish. Preparing the dish in the United States presents certain difficulties when it comes to obtaining the principal ingredient — the ham. In France, it is common to find ham that does not contain water to soften the texture like is typical in the United States. The drier French ham needs the long cooking of the original recipe to soften it. This recipe has been adapted to work with the typical U.S. ham that doesn’t require much cooking before it dries out. If a Smithfield ham, or similar dried ham, is used, it should be added with the pancetta to the simmering liquid.

To serve, remove the entire loaf from the terrine. Trim the ends to square off the loaf. Slice the remainder into 4 slices with a sharp, thin knife.

Jambon Persillé

1. Place pancetta, pig’s foot, wine, water, onion, carrots, leek, peppercorns, thyme, and parsley in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook for about 2 hours.
2. Remove pancetta and pig’s foot from sauce pan, drain, and set aside to cool. Strain the remaining broth, discarding the solid ingredients. Reserve 2 cups of broth.
3. Soften gelatin in cold water. Combine gelatin with egg white and broth. Bring to a simmer, stirring continuously. When the egg congeals, stop stirring. When the egg rises to the top, strain the liquid through 5 layers of cheesecloth.
4. Cut the pancetta into 3/4" cubes and combine with the parsley and ham. Arrange meat mixture tightly in a 2 cup terrine. Pour broth mixture over meat. Pick the meat from the pig’s foot and layer on top of terrine. Add additional broth to cover meat.
5. Refrigerate until firm.

Yield: 4 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Snails were at the top of my list of expectations when I came to Bouilland. It took a while to coax Jean-Pierre into showing us how to prepare this traditional dish, but before the week was out — he relented. This was also the first dish I prepared when I returned home from France. This is by far the simplest dish we learned how to prepare during the week.

Instead of stuffing the mixture into empty snail shells, I prefer to use a ceramic escargot dish or just a simple gratin dish for serving. There is no need for the fancy tongs for holding the shells.

Escargots au Beurre d´Ail

1. Pound parsley, shallot, and garlic in a mortar into a paste. Combine with salt, pepper, wine, cognac, and nutmeg. Combine with butter. Alternately, place parsley, shallot, garlic, salt, pepper, wine, cognac, and nutmeg in the bowl of a mini-food processor and process until minced. Add butter and process to combine.
2. Preheat oven to 450 °F.
3. Arrange snails in individual wells of escargot plates. Top each with one–twelfth of the escargot butter. Bake for 9 minutes, or until snails are warm.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

At the train station in Dijon after the week in Bouilland, Patti and I found a cookbook called Saveurs & Terroirs de Bourgogne. In it are a number of the principal chefs of Burgundy, including Jean-Pierre. Each chef presents a half dozen or so of their signature recipes. Many of Jean-Pierre’s recipes are the same as he presented them during the week.

The book also has many escargot recipes which are different from the traditional butter and garlic preparation. The following example is as far from traditional stuffed cabbage as one can get — as well as traditional escargot.

Petits Choux Verts Farcis aux Escargots

1. Put garlic cloves in a small sauce pan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes and drain. Repeat three more times.
2. Peel garlic and go through previous cooking process four more times. Rinse in cold water.
3. Purée garlic and combine with milk. Set aside.
4. Carefully remove the cabbage leaves from the head. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the cabbage leaves for 4 minutes. Drain and carefully rinse in cold water. “Dry” carefully between paper towels. Set aside.
5. Melt butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat and sauté shallots until soft. Set aside to cool.
6. Arrange a cabbage leaf on a flat surface. Place an escargot and 1/14 of the shallots in the center of the cabbage piece. Carefully fold the cabbage around the escargot. Using the palm of one hand loosely as a form, press the seam into the center of the palm to shape the stuffed cabbage into a ball. Set the finished cabbage ball, seam side down, on a plate. Repeat with the remaining escargots.
7. Preheat oven to 175 °F. Bring 2 tablespoons of chicken broth to a boil in a small sauté pan. Remove from heat, arrange stuffed cabbages in the pan, and place in the oven to warm.
8. Put 1/2 cup chicken broth in a small sauce pan over high heat and reduce by 60 percent. Add a fourth of the garlic purée and all the herbs to the reduced broth and mix. Remove from heat and whisk in the chilled butter. Set aside.
9. Reheat garlic purée quickly in a microwave. Combine with cream and set aside.
10. Drain cabbages and arrange 7 each in a circle on 2 warmed plates. Pour sauce over cabbages. Divide garlic purée in 2 small mounds in the center of the cabbage arrangements. Serve immediately.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Also in Saveurs & Terroirs de Bourgogne. was an escargot dish that resembles a traditional, thick oyster stew. The golden puff pastry top makes an impressive presentation. This is not a dish to serve as part of a heavy meal since it could be used in the dictionary as the definition of rich.

Petits Escargots en Cocotte Lutée

1. Preheat oven to 400 °F
2. In a heavy sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Sweat shallots and garlic for 5 minutes. Add lemon juice and white wine. Reduce by three-fourths. Add mushrooms, salt and pepper. Cook on high heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Add cream, bring to a boil and set aside.
3. Divide tomato, escargots and herbs into two deep, ovenproof soup bowls. Divide mushroom mixture into the same bowls.
4. Roll out puff pastry large enough to make two rounds, 1" larger in diameter than the soup bowls. Brush a 1/2" border of egg wash on the rounds and carefully place, egg-side down, over the bowls. Seal well. Brush pastry dough with egg wash.
5. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes until the dough is puffed and brown. Serve warm.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Sometimes the simplest dishes are the most memorable. Jean-Pierre prepared a salmon tartar, but did not provide the recipe for it. He did tell us that the “secret” was grapefruit juice. The following recipe is my attempt at recreating what I ate that day at the winery. (I have to admit that I did pig-out on it!)

To get the right texture, mince the salmon into fine cubes (about 1/8") by hand. Do not use a food processor or the salmon will turn to paste. A small fillet, such as from a farm-raised coho salmon, is easier to work with than a thick piece of ocean salmon. It will also be less fatty. Trim the fillet well so the meat has a consistent look.

Tartares de Saumon

1. Combine fresh salmon, grapefruit juice and oil. Set aside for 15 minutes.
2. Add remaining ingredients, mix well, and set aside for an additional hour.
3. Arrange on serving dishes and serve.

Note: Arrange in a cylindrical shape on blanched snap peas or snow peas. Serve each serving with 2 toasted baguette slices brushed with olive oil.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

This is a dish that’s almost impossible to prepare in the United States. The guest of honor, le coq, is very different from the largest roasting chickens available here. As an alternative to Jean-Pierre’s recipe, as shown below, use dark meat pieces for the stew portion of the dish and white meat portions for the sausage portion.

Le Coq au Vin de Bourgogne, Son Filet en Crepinette,
Nouilles au Beurre

1. Place the bacon in a small sauce pan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, drain well, and set aside.
2. Skin and debone chicken. Reserve liver, tenderloins, and small pieces for sausage. Cut large pieces into 1 ounce portions. Dice sausage meat into 1/4" pieces. Mince liver.
3. Preheat oven to 225 °F.
4. Melt 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons goose fat in a large oven-proof pan over high heat. Brown the large chicken pieces until golden. Add reserved bacon and sauté a couple of minutes. Add onions, carrots, and garlic. Continue cooking for 2 minutes more. Incorporate the flour into the pan. Add wine and broth. Use more if the meat is not completely covered. Adjust seasoning, add thyme and bay, and bring to a boil. Cover and place in oven for 3 hours.
5. When cooked, remove meat from sauce pan and reserve. Strain bacon and vegetables from sauce and reserve. Degrease sauce and reduce over high heat by two-thirds until thickened.
6. Heat 1 tablespoon goose fat in a sauté pan and briefly sauté diced chicken until barely cooked. Remove from heat and add liver. Mix well. Add shallots, chives, parsley, salt, and pepper and mix. Set aside to cool.
7. Preheat oven to 225 °F.
8. Divide sausage mixture into 6 portions. Wrap each in a 4 to 5" square of caul fat. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Saute sausage patties until brown on both sides. Place pan in oven for 10 minutes to heat all the way through.
9. Cook noodles in salted water. Drain and mix with butter and cream.
10. Reheat large chicken pieces in the thickened sauce. Add some of the bacon and vegetable mixture back into the sauce.
11. Divide large pieces with sauce into 6 portions and plate. Add a sausage patty to each plate. Accompany with noodles.

Yield: 6 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

This dish is simple and popular with guests. Since pike is unavailable, farm-raised catfish fillets have proven to be a suitable substitute. Be sure to use the small green lentils imported from France for the right flavor and consistency.

Photo from the kitchen of Jean-Pierre Silva

Mijotée de Lentilles au Lardon, dos de Brochet Rôti,
au Vinaigre d´Herbes

1. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sauté onion until soft. Add bacon and mix. Add wine, lentils, bouquet garni, demi-glace, salt and pepper. Cover and cook for about 45 minutes until lentils are tender.
2. When lentils are ready, melt 1 tablespoon butter and fat in a sauté pan. Fry fish, skin side down, until mostly cooked. Turn fish over and cook until surface is just cooked. Remove fish to a warm plate and tent with foil.
3. Pour off grease from sauté pan and deglaze with vinegar. Reduce greatly.
4. Divide lentils on serving plates. Place fish fillets on top of lentils and drizzle reduced vinegar over fish.

Note: Garnish with caramelized baby vegetables such as onions, carrots or turnips.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

This dish takes a bit of planning to complete properly, but it is well worth it. It certainly is different from traditional beef stews. The flavor is intense, complex, and rich.

Photo from the kitchen of Jean-Pierre Silva

Paqueton de Queue de Boeuf et Carottes, Confit au Vin Rouge

1. Preheat oven to 230 °F.
2. Melt 2 tablespoons each butter and fat in an ovenproof sauce pan over high heat. The pan should be just large enough to hold the meat in a single layer. Add meat, salt and pepper, and brown on all sides. Remove meat. Add onions and bacon. Stir until golden brown. Add carrots and continue cooking for 2 minutes more.
3. Add thyme and bay leaf. Return meat to pan and add demi-glace. Pour enough red wine in the pan to cover the meat. Cover pan and place in oven for 3 to 4 hours. When done, the meat should be soft.
4. Remove meat from pan and set aside to cool. Strain vegetable mixture from sauce; set aside to cool. Discard thyme and bay leaf. Strain sauce and cool in refrigerator to separate fat.
5. When meat is cool, debone. Remove any remaining fat from the meat. Shred meat into small pieces and combine with vegetables and a few tablespoons of the sauce.
6. Divide meat mixture into 4 portions. Spread out caul fat. Place a portion of the meat mixture in the center of 6" square piece and fashion into a 1" thick packet. Repeat with the other 3 portions. Cool in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
7. Remove fat from sauce and reduce substantially. Set aside until needed.
8. Preheat oven to 250 °F.
9. Melt 1 tablespoon each butter and goose fat in an ovenproof sauté pan over medium heat. Brown meat packets, ending with the seam-side down.
10. Continue to heat in an oven for 15 minutes.
11. Plate meat packets and top with sauce. Top with chives.

Yield: 4 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Jean-Pierre did not provide an actual recipe for this dish, but under a bit of pressure he described to me the elements of the recipe. The hardest ingredient to find is the small, dried morels. I finally found some in France.

Rather than leaving the sauce with a light consistency, as was done in the original preparation, reducing the sauce to a syrup allows a small essence of flavor to be napped over each scallop.

As an alternative, this dish can be prepared with thin strips of dried ceps tied into small bundles with a sprig of blanched chive. The flavor is different than with morels, but still quite acceptable.

Jean-Pierre uses a red wine sauce for the Daube d´Endives, but in my opinion, that makes the dish too rich. I found that a small amount of balsamic vinegar brings out the flavor of the endives without fighting the flavor of the mushroom sauce.

Noix de Coquilles Saint-Jacques à l´Infusion
de Morilles Séché, Petite Daube d´Endives

1. Soak mushrooms in hot water until soft. Remove from water. Strain water through a coffee filter and combine with stock. Reduce until almost a syrup. Adjust salt and pepper, and set aside.
2. Thoroughly wash morels in running water. In a small sauce pan, simmer morels in just enough water to cover until soft. Set aside, but keep warm.
3. Sauté bacon until crisp. Drain and set aside.
4. Melt butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Sauté endive until cooked. Add cooked bacon and season with salt and pepper. Splash on a small amount of vinegar.
5. In the meantime, heat a nonstick sauté pan over high heat. Sauté scallops on one side until browned and almost cooked through. Turn over to barely cook the opposite side.
6. Place half the endive mixture in a small mound in the center of warm plate. Arrange 6 scallops, brown side up, around the endive. Drain mushrooms and place 1 morel in between each scallop. Reheat sauce, remove from heat, and whisk in chilled butter. Drizzle sauce over scallops and mushrooms.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

After many attempts, this recipe was finally somewhat successful. The meringue portion of the dish is still not as firm as I remember eating in Bouilland, but the flavor is good. Jean-Pierre cooks the dish in a salamander. The oven preparation is barely acceptable, but usually the only alternative available in a home kitchen. Because of the sweetness of the meringue, consider serving the dish without the sauce or the sorbet.

Photo from the kitchen of Jean-Pierre Silva

Gratin de Poires aux Épices en Chaud Froid,
Sorbet Chocolat Noir, Sauce Miel et Oranges

1. For créme pâtissière: in a large bowl, whisk together egg yolk and sugar. Add flour and mix until smooth. Bring milk to a boil. Whisk into egg mixture. Return to heat and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool completely before using.
2. For meringue Italian: Heat sugar and water over low heat until dissolved. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Boil without stirring until the syrup reaches 248 °F. Meanwhile, beat egg white until stiff. Gradually add sugar syrup and continue whisking until meringue is completely cool.
3. For sauce: Combine orange juice and honey in a small sauce pan. Reduce until thicken. Set aside. Reheat before using.
4. Preheat oven to 350 °F. Butter and sugar 2 or 3 metal rings, 3.9" diameter by 1.2" tall, and set aside on a baking sheet.
5. Melt butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Saute pears and curry powder until pears are cooked and start to caramelize. Divide pears into metal rings. Height of pears should be about one-thrid the height of the rings.
6. Combine créme pâtissière and meringue and place a large serving spoon-size dollop into the rings. The amount should be approximately equal to the height of the pears. Top evenly with chopped almonds. Bake for about 10 minutes until the top starts to brown. Carefully remove from the oven — the gratin will fall slightly.
7. Divide sauce on serving plates. Carefully place a gratin in the center of the sauce and remove the ring. Place a quenelle of sorbet on top of or next to the gratin. Serve immediately.

Yield: 2 or 3 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Since cassis are not available in the United States, blueberries have been substituted in this dish. The flavor does not seem to suffer. Frozen blueberries seem to work just as well as fresh for this dish.

Photo from the kitchen of Jean-Pierre Silva

Poêlée de Myrtilles, Glace au Poivre et Brioche Chaude

1. Warm dessert plates. Toast brioche.
2. Melt butter in sauté pan over high heat. Sauté blueberries a couple minutes. Add sugar and cream. Reduce until cream is incorporated into a thick sauce.
3. Divide cooked blueberries on plates. Place a large spoonful of ice cream next to berries. Cut brioche slices diagonally and arrange on ice cream. Garnish with mint sprigs.

Yield: 2 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

The carp recipe that Jean-Pierre presented with the following sauce recipe is not included in this collection. The fresh water carp common to France is generally not available in the United States. This is a basic wine sauce typical to many traditional French preparations.

Sauce au Vin Rouge

1. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a sauce pan. Sweat carrots and leeks. Add thyme, bay, wine, and demi-glace. Reduce substantially. Strain.
2. Finish with 1 tablespoon butter.

Yield: 1/4 cup.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Both this ice cream and the following sorbet can easily be made in a Donvier-style ice cream freezer. If made just before the guests arrive, dessert will be ready and still firm when needed without having to place the ice cream in a freezer for preservation.

Jean-Pierre uses a special pepper from Central Africa — which I have not been able to locate, but I have subsequently learned is really graines de paradis — a member of the ginger family that produces a mild peppery taste. Standard finely grown white pepper seems to work just fine.

Glace au Poivre

1. Whisk the eggs together. Add milk and continue to whisk until smooth. Add sugar and whisk until dissolved. Transfer to a sauce pan and cook over low heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture starts to thicken.
2. Cool mixture in ice bath. Add cream and pepper. Chill thoroughly.
3. Freeze mixture in ice cream maker until firm but not hard.

Yield: 2 large or 4 small servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

Jean-Pierre did not provide a recipe for his chocolate sorbet. This substitute is loosely adapted on one found in Le Cordon Bleu Classic French Cookbook.

Sorbet Chocolat Noir

1. Combine water, sugar, and corn syrup in a sauce pan. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring continually. Remove from heat and gradually add cocoa powder while stirring. Continue stirring over heat until totally dissolved.
2. Meanwhile, melt chocolate in a double boiler and add to the cocoa mixture.
3. Cool mixture in ice bath. Chill thoroughly.
4. Freeze mixture in ice cream maker until firm but not hard.

Yield: 6 servings.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.

©1999, 2014 Peter Hertzmann. All rights reserved.