WRITERS ABROAD MAGAZINE: THE THIRD SPACE
Les Alouettes Sans Têtes
A recipe from LESLEY TRUCHET
This is a popular Provencal
recipe. The name of this dish
translates to ‘larks without
heads’, however the dish is
made with beef. The French
used to eat alouettes (larks) and
the form of the beef parcel
resembles an alouette with its
head missing, hence the name.
Ingredients (4 servings)
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8 slices thinly cut chuck steak (approx 14 cm square and less than 1cm
thick (as thin as your butcher can slice it)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion finely sliced
50 cl of red wine
500 g pack of Passata (Tomato concentrate)
1 Garlic clove, crushed
A generous teaspoon of mixed herbs
1 Bay leaf
1 Beef stock cube
Salt and Pepper
For the filling
• 75g of lardons (finely chopped bacon, smoked or unsmoked can be
substituted)
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
• 1 small onion
• Salt and pepper
Prepare the filling. Chop the onion, parsley and garlic finely, add salt and
pepper.
Lay the beef slices out flat on a working surface, place a spoonful of the onion
and parsley in the centre of the steaks and top with lardons sharing the filling
evenly between the steaks.
To form the alouettes, fold the steak sides towards the centre then roll them. Tie
them securely with string or secure them with cocktail sticks. Make sure the
filling is trapped inside.
40 | MAY 2017