On Count Rostov's Plate

Much of my leisure reading involves recipes, whether in cookbooks or online.  I was reading various online recipes one day when I came across one for Latvian Stew. The short introduction tied this recipe to a work of historical fiction entitled, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. As someone who generally likes to read historical non-fiction, I was skeptical about the book. I still kept the recipe on my "to-do" list just to try at some point in the future. 

As it turned out, I have had to travel a lot for work. Anticipating sitting in airports, along with the long flights, I decided that I would take a chance with Towles' work. I bought a copy and read it (faster than I have ever ready any non-fiction book).  I became engaged immediately in the story of Count Alexander Rostov, "an unrepentant aristocrat" sentenced by the Bolsheviks to house arrest at the stately Metropol Hotel, as well as the characters around him. As the story unfolds, Towles weaves in various dishes that Count Rostov enjoys either at the Boyarsky, the high-end restaurant on the second floor, or the Piazza, the more down-to-earth restaurant on the main floor of the hotel. 

As I continued to read the book, I became determined to try to prepare the dishes that graced Count Rostov's plate. That determination has led to this project ... On Count Rostov's Plate. Each post will feature one of the dishes that Count Rostov ate at the Boyarsky or the Piazza, along with some context from the book. The order of the dishes will not follow the book, because, as with the conditions that faced chef Emile Zhukovsky, I will prepare the dishes when the ingredients become available and/or based upon the time that I have. 

The blog posts that comprise this project include the following: 

1.   An Introduction. A brief overview of A Gentleman in Moscow and a look ahead at what I hope to prepare in the style of the Boyarsky and the Piazza.

2.    Chicken Saltimbocca. The first dish described in the book and one that demonstrated the shortages of ingredients, as well as the creativity of cooks and chefs, to prepare dishes. 

Please check back often as I will continue to post new recipes as they are completed. Until then,

PEACE.