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| What You Need: |
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2 tablespoons butter, softened, plus 2 tablespoons butter
2 one-pound partridges, quartered, or substitute 2 one-pound grouse, pheasant, woodcock or other game birds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1¼ cups chicken stock, fresh or canned
¾ pound veal scallops, cut ¼ inch thick
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 slices lean bacon
¼ pound mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped shallots, or substitute 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped scallions
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
½ recipe Rough puff pastry
1 egg lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
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| How To Cook: |
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1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Using a pastry brush, coat the bottom and sides of a 1½-quart casserole or baking dish at least 2 inches deep with the 2 tablespoons of softened butter and set aside.
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2. Wash the partridges under cold running water and pat the pieces completely dry with paper towels. In a heavy 10- to 12-inch skillet, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in the 2 tablespoons of oil over moderately high heat.
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3. When the foam begins to subside, brown the partridges a few pieces at a time, starting them skin side down and turning them with tongs. As the pieces become a deep golden brown, remove them to a plate.
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4. Pour the stock into the skillet and bring it to a boil over high heat, meanwhile scraping in any brown particles clinging to the bottom and sides of the pan. Boil briskly for a minute or so; set the skillet aside off the heat.
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5. Line the bottom of the baking dish with the veal scallops, sprinkle them with salt and a few grindings of pepper, and lay the bacon slices side by side over the veal.
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6. Arrange the partridge pieces skin side up on top. Mix the mushrooms, shallots, parsley, lemon peel, ¼ teaspoon of salt and a few grindings of pepper together in a bowl and spread the mixture evenly over the partridge. Pour in the stock that you had set aside.
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7. On a lightly floured surface roll the pastry out into a rough rectangle no more than 1/8 inch thick. Then cut two strips, each about 12 inches long and ½ inch wide, from the ends.
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8. Lay the strips end to end around the rim of the baking dish and press them firmly into place. Moisten them lightly with a pastry brush dipped in cold water.
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9. Drape the remaining pastry over the rolling pin, lift it up, and unfold it over the baking dish. Trim off the excess with a small, sharp knife and, with the tines of a fork or your fingers, crimp the pastry to secure it to the rim of the dish.
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10. Gather the scraps of pastry into a ball, reroll and cut them into simple leaf and flower shapes; moisten one side with the egg-and-milk mixture and arrange them decoratively on the pie. Then brush the entire pastry surface with the remaining egg-and-milk mixture, and cut a 1-inch round hole in the center of the pie.
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11. Bake the pie in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, reduce the heat to 375°F and bake for 40 minutes longer, or until the crust is golden brown. Serve at once directly from the baking dish.
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