Ortolans

Ortolans have become no more than a mythical delicacy, since they are unobtainable today. Our ancestors took them for granted as delicate small birds, to be served at feasts along with larks and quail. They are a kind of bunting and used to be netted and fattened for the table when they arrived in migration from the north. Mrs Glasse (1747) and Mrs Russell (1819) both give rather casual directions for roasting them on the spit. Other early cookery books imply that any recipe for quails will be even better with ortolans.