To seeth Gourdes after the Catalonian fashion
Take the juice of the Gourd and make it very clean, then put it into a pipkin with good larde or oyle, and set the pipkin on the coales upon a soft fire, and make it to boile, stirring it with a spoone: it should seeth for the space of foure houres, then take fat broth coloured with saffron, & put into the Gourdes, adding thereto sugar, spice, and a little Verjuice according to the tast. You may also put to it a few yokes of egges beaten together with a little old cheese.
(from Epulario, a 1596 English translation of the original Italian text)
- One large squash (or gourd, if you can find them)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1L beef, chicken or vegetable stock
- pinch of saffron
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon mixed spices (cinnamon, ginger, cloves, mace, pepper)
- 2 tablespoons verjuice (or substitute vinegar or lemon juice)
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons grated cheese (parmesan, romano, aged cheddar, etc)
Serves 8 as a side vegetable.
Remove the seeds from the squash or gourds, then chop them into smallish pieces (mine were about 1/2 inch cubes). Put them in a flattish pan with the olive oil, and stir them around so the oil covers them.
Put the pan over a low heat on the stove, or in the oven, and let the vegetables cook for up to 4 hours. What you're trying to do is soften the vegetables so that they are almost falling apart. If you can't afford 4 hours, you can add a little liquid to the pan and increase the heat a bit, and the results will be about the same.
When they're done, you may wish to strain off any excess oil, then add the stock, saffron, sugar, spices and verjuice and simmer until it all starts to go mushy (about 15 minutes).
Mix the egg yolks and cheese together in a bowl. A few minutes before serving, add the egg/cheese mixture, and stir over a low heat until it thickens up.
Adjust the sugar or verjuice to taste, and serve.