SC - Swan!

[linneah at erols.com]

>   Its DUCK season!...No RABBIT season!.....Duck season!!.....RABBIT season!!
> 
> Oh what the hell......SWAN season!!!!!
>    Check with your local council first, I'm still a bit iffy as to whether
> they are legal or not.
> 
> How to make a swan look decent.........Well, you stuff them for one thing.
> Otherwise they cook up scrawnier than before, which is NOT a good look.
> The necks were a problem.  We thought about sticking wire, not period, but
> practical down it to support it, but the weight of the head was almost too
> much.  We ended up cooking it with the neck sort of curled into a
> manageable position and thenstraightened it out a bit.  (Hindsight, arrange
> it first)  The most practical idea was to coat it with marchepane (don't
> know if I spelt it right, but cooked swan doesn't like being co-operative
> with feastocrats.  We ended up serving the neck curled around the body when
> the wire finally decided that it wanted to bend.  and didn't do much else.
> 
>    We probable could have used the necks to make a soup stock, I'll keep it
> in mind for next time I guess.  Noone really liked it so lots of leftovers.
> 
> -Sianan

I have a reproduction of a wonderful painting by a Dutch painter whose name 
escapes me, that is just out of period.  It's entitled "The Threatened Swan" and 
depicts a swan with wings outspread, neck arched and hissing.  Could it be that 
he was being eyed for that night's entree?

Playfully,
Linneah