Piccione al crostone

Name: Piccione al crostone (Pigeon on grilled bread)
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: about 10 sage leaves; 250 ml (1 cup) red wine; 2 garlic cloves, peeled; 5 tablespoons olive oil; 250 ml (1 cup) vegetable stock or water; 60 g (½ cup) good-quality olives, drained of any liquid; 6 thick slices of country-style white bread; 2 sprigs rosemary; 3 Italian sausages, about 80 g (3 oz) each; 3 medium-sized pigeons, about 400 g (14 oz) each, cleaned and insides removed

Pigeon on grilled bread

Preparation info

Serves
6

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Twelve

By Tessa Kiros

Published 2003

About

Pigeon is considered a rare and precious treat for its flavourful dark meat. Pigeon is also often made with risotto, or roasted together with a variety of other meats. Here, the pigeons are stuffed with a simple mix of sausage and sage, and simmered on the stovetop. You may use any stuffing you like.

Ingredients

3 medium-sized pigeons, about 400 g (14 oz) each, cleaned and insides removed
about 10 sage leaves
2 sprig

Europe
Italy
Starter
December
Tuscany
Mediterranean

Method

Clean the pigeons well. Rinse, drain away the water and pat dry with paper towel. Lightly season the insides of the pigeon with salt and pepper, then the outsides. Finely chop up six of the sage leaves. Remove the rosemary from its stem and chop up finely. Mix the sausage meat together with the chopped sage and rosemary, and divide this between the pigeons, stuffing it into their cavity.