Enough of the cookies. Here are some recipes from this old "Vermont Village Cookbook" that Jeri sent me. Beside each recipe is a drawing of the contributor's house.

In this first recipe, please read the second paragraph about the origin of the dish. I would be tempted to garnish this dish with quartered artichoke hearts and maybe sliced olives, but that might be silly.

Chicken Marengo

3 pounds chicken pieces
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp tarragon
1 cup white wine
3 cups canned tomatoes
1 clove garlic
8 mushrooms or 2 small cans

Saute small pieces of chicken. Place in a casserole. Sprinkle with flour, salt, pepper, and tarragon. Add a little flour to the remaining fat in the frying pan and stir in mashed garlic, mushrooms, and tomatoes. Pour all over the chicken, cover, and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.

This dish was created by Dunon, chef to Napoleon I, on the battlefield of Marengo, June 14, 1800. The ingredients were foraged from the ruined farms nearby. Modern efforts to garnish Chicken Marengo with lobster, truffles, and fried eggs seem silly.

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In case you are wondering what sets the above recipe apart from coq au vin, here is the Vermont Village version:

Coq au Vin

2 broilers, quartered
1/2 lb diced salt pork
2 tbsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Garlic to taste
1 can boiled white onions
2 tbsp flour
Red wine (Claret)
Pinch of thyme
1 bay leaf
2 lumps sugar

Cook the diced salt pork slowly until golden. Remove and reserve. Add butter and brown chicken on both sides. Add salt, pepper, and garlic. Add flour and brown. Add wine to almost cover, white onions, salt pork, thyme, bay leaf, and sugar. Cook over low flame for 1 hour. Serves 8. It is better cooked the day before and reheated in a casserole.

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Here's what sounds like a refreshing light dessert. Thanks to globalization we have grapes year-round.

Green Grapes in Brandy Sauce
2 large bunches green seedless grapes
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp honey
2 oz brandy
Sour cream

Remove the grapes from the stem, wash, and put into a serving bowl. Prepare brandy sauce by simmering the brown sugar and water in a saucepan until the sugar is melted, add brandy and honey. Cool, then pour over the grapes. Spoon sour cream over the top of the grapes and sprinkle with brown sugar. Serve chilled.

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What a great cook book. Thanks so much, Jeri!