Ingredients
2 carrots, mediun peeled & grated in
1/2 cup celery, finely diced
1/4 cup butter, melted
4 cup milk, or 1/2 milk, 1/2 cream
4 cup oysters salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Peel and grate in long thin shreads, the carrots and add finely diced
celery. Melt butter in saucepan and add the vegetables. Stir. Cover
and simmer over very low heat for 20 minutes, without browning the
vegetables. Add milk (or use 1/2 milk, 1/2 cream); bring to a boil.
Heat oysters in enamelled cast iron pan over medium heat; do not
boil. Pour into milk and serve. Uase salt and pepper to taste.
The soup should be served as soon as ready, otherwise it tend to
curdle. The milk and vegetables can be be prepared ahead of time and
the oysters heated and served at the last minute.
To quote Mme. Benoit,"This traditional Quebec dish is still very much
alive. My grandmother's recipe is, as far as I am concerned, the best
there is." Note: from Anne - it seems as oysters were used at
Christmas. My maternal grandmother from the American midwest had a
similar Christmas oyster dish although hers included corn.
Source: _My Grandmother's Kitchen" by Mme. Benoit
Servings: 4 servings
Christmas Oyster Soup (Soupe Aux Huitres De Noel) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Christmas; Fish; Holiday; Seafood; Soup
The History of Recipes
Written recipes as an idea can be tracked way back into history, certainly as far into history as the Egyptians, and maybe further still. However, sadly, these ancient recipes were just simple pictorial instructions for preparing food.
In an interesting twist, the oldest recipe in existence, according to experts is a collection of ancient tablets in ancient Sumerian describing the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made anyone who drank it feel wonderful. Progressing into Roman times 25BC a roman called Apicius compiled a collection of documents describing recipes cooked by wealthy roman citizens. In his publication, Apicius tells us how the meals were divided into appetizers, main meal and desserts, a style of dining still practiced today. Additionally, he informs us how the ancient Romans used a wide range of herbs, including many that are still in use today like thyme, fennel and dill. Over the succeeding few centuries, the upper-class families of the West competed with each other to lay on the best banquets, and as a consequence, the best cooks and their collection of recipes became highly prized. Nevertheless, it was during the 19th century that fine cooking and recipe collections reached a high level of popularity. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Merritt Farmer in the USA, dedicated the best years of their lives to collating, trying out, and publishing the recipes of their peers. By the arrival of the 20th century, cookery books are highly popular mostly as a result of higher levels of literacy, people having more spare time and a general increase in wealth. |
We hope you enjoy this Christmas Oyster Soup (Soupe Aux Huitres De Noel) recipe.
