Cochonnailles à la Bourgeoise

In traditional cookery, the Savoie does not offer many terrines or pâtés. Cooks in upper-class households prepared them as party fare, but in the kitchens of common folks they were almost nonexistent and replaced by the Gelée. They have always been served at inns and restaurants to the tourist trade and at weddings and other ceremonies.

The following terrine is the specialty of Monsieur and Madame Mahaut, owners and wonderful hosts of the delightful tiny Hôtel du Col du Cucheron in Saint Pierre de Chartreuse. Saint Pierre is in the Dauphiné, not in the Savoie, but so close to the border that some of the mushrooms in the terrine are bound to be picked in the nearby Savoie forest. The terrine is always the first course of a lunch that continues with trout from the outside pond, a gratin of potatoes, a nice walnut salad, and the best fresh white cheese with cream from the Saint Pierre Laiterie and the walnut tart.