Leeks (Poireaux)

The "Queen" Cookery Books. No.10. Veg... · S. Beaty-Pownall · 1902
Source
The "Queen" Cookery Books. No.10. Vegerable
Status
success · extracted 4 days ago
Not a recipe
No
Ingredients (46)
For preparing leeks
For serving
For finishing in milk or stock
For simmering in sauce
For enriching sauce
For stewed leeks
For purée
For gratin
For salad dressing
For fancy salad
For garnish
For soup
For garnish as julienne strips
Instructions (29)
Basic Preparation
  1. Boil and wash the leeks.
  2. Cut the green off close to the white.
  3. Trim them neatly.
  4. Tie them up into small bundles.
  5. Blanch them in salted water.
  6. Drain this off.
  7. Finish their cooking in more absolutely boiling acidulated and salted water.
  8. Drain them well.
Serving Suggestions
  1. Serve with melted or oiled butter, or any white sauce handed separately.
  2. After blanching, finish off either in milk or stock, to which you add a bouquet, but be careful to keep them as white as possible.
  3. Cut up blanched leeks and put them in a sauce pan with a large pat of butter, a dust of flour, pepper and salt to taste, and just sufficient milk or stock to moisten them, and allow to simmer till done.
  4. Just as you serve them, work into them either a spoonful or two of rich cream, or the yolk of an egg beaten up with the juice of a lemon.
Stewed Leeks
  1. Trim and boil the leeks in acidulated salted water till three-parts cooked.
  2. Place them in a pan with a good pat of butter, half a pint of cream or new milk, and a teaspoonful each of caster sugar and flour stewed over all.
  3. Stir it over the fire till the sauce is reduced and thickened.
  4. Adding just at the last the yolks of one or two eggs mixed with a spoonful or so of cream.
  5. Serve on a hot vegetable dish.
Purée
  1. If after boiling till tender, the leeks are served, finished off with the butter, cream, etc., as above, and served with fried croutons, or cheese pastry fleurons, they make an extremely nice purée.
Cold Cooked Leeks
  1. Cold cooked leeks are also very good if finished off au gratin, or served with a French oil and vinegar salad dressing.
Fancy Salad
  1. Cut the leeks into neat, even pieces.
  2. Dip a large tomato for a minute into boiling water, remove the peel, and when it is cold and firm, slice it.
  3. Break up a well-washed lettuce into small pieces.
  4. Arrange these on a glass dish, then lay on it the sliced tomato and the leeks alternately.
  5. Season with a vinaigrette, or mayonnaise sauce.
  6. Sprinkle with minced tarragon and chives.
  7. Serve garnished with filleted anchovies, picked shrimps, or prawns, olives, etc., as you please.
  8. Small tomatoes seeded and the flesh well pressed back with a spoon, then filled with the prawns, etc., form a very pretty garnish for this dish.
Soup and Garnish
  1. Leeks are specially good in soups, as they impart a richness and a velvety substance given by no other vegetable.
  2. If three parts cooked in boiling salted water, dried, and cut into julienne strips, and finished off in either milk or stock, with a dust of caster sugar, they make a very effective garnish.
Original Text · last edited 4 days ago
Leeks (Poireaux).—Well boil and wash the leeks, cutting the green off close to the white, and trimming them neatly. Tie them up into small bundles, and blanch them in salted water, draining this off, and finishing their cooking in more absolutely boiling acidulated and salted water, drain them well, and serve with melted or oiled butter, or any white sauce handed separately. They may also, after blanching, be finished off either in milk or stock, to which you add a bouquet, but be careful to keep them as white as possible, as this is a great point about leeks. They may also, when blanched, be cut up and put in a sauce pan with a large pat of butter, a dust of flour, pepper and salt to taste, and just sufficient milk or stock to moisten them, and allowed to simmer till done. Work into them just as you serve them either a spoonful or two of rich cream, or the yolk of an egg beaten up with the juice of a lemon. Leeks, stewed.—Trim and boil the leeks in acidulated salted water till three-parts cooked, then place them in a pan with a good pat of butter, half a pint of cream or new milk, and a teaspoonful each of caster sugar and flour stewed over all. Stir it over the fire till the sauce is reduced and thickened, adding just at the last the yolks of one or two eggs mixed with a spoonful or so of cream, and serve on a hot vegetable dish. If after boiling till tender, the leeks are served, finished off with the butter, cream, etc., as above, and served with fried croutons, or cheese pastry fleurons, they make an extremely nice purée. Cold cooked leeks are also very good if finished off au gratin, or served with a French oil and vinegar salad dressing; whilst the following makes an extremely pretty fancy salad: Cut the leeks into neat, even pieces; dip a large tomato for a minute into boiling water, remove the peel, and when it is cold and firm, slice it. Break up a well-washed lettuce into small pieces, arrange these on a glass dish, then lay on it the sliced tomato and the leeks alter nately, season with a vinaigrette, or mayonnaise sauce, sprinkle with minced tarragon and chives, and serve garnished with filleted anchovies, picked shrimps, or prawns, olives, etc., as you please. Small tomatoes seeded and the flesh well pressed back with a spoon, then filled with the prawns, etc., form a very pretty garnish for this dish. Leeks are specially good in soups, as they impart a richness and a velvety substance given by no other vegetable; whilst if three parts cooked in boiling salted water, dried, and cut into julienne strips, and finished off in either milk or stock, with a dust of caster sugar, they make a very effective garnish.
Notes
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