ESCARGOTS IN YOUR GARDEN

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The Great Payoff

Some cooks find it convenient to both bake snails and serve them in the same grooved platters, but it's far more elegant to heat them in a baking pan and transfer them to clean, preheated platters. When you use a baking pan, pack the snails closely so they won't roll around, or line the pan with crumpled foil shaped into a series of depressions to hold each shell in place. Pour a spoonful of broth or press a bit of herb butter into each shell, stuff in one snail (two if they're small), and pack the opening with herb butter. Then the snails may be wrapped tightly and stored in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. Preparing them ahead of time will give them a chance to absorb extra herb flavor.

When you're ready to serve them, pop the baking pan into a 425°F oven for 10 minutes or until the butter begins to bubble. Escargots are traditionally served with specially shaped tongs to grasp shells and narrow, close-tined forks. Fondue forks work fine, too. Don't use the fork to put the snail into your mouth—that's uncouth. Instead, place the snail on a bit of French bread, pour broth and butter from the shell onto the bread, and pop it into your mouth. If you don't care for all this protocol, don't give up yet. Snails are closely related to clams and oysters, and may be prepared in many of the same ways.

You might, for example, remove the cooled snails from their broth, pat them dry, and sauté them in butter flavored with shallots, garlic, and a dash of nutmeg. Or dip them in batter and deep fry. For appetizers, fill sauteed mushroom caps with one or two boiled snails, top with herb butter, and broil. Snails are traditionally served as an appetizer or first course, but they also make a terrific summery entrée served with a fresh-picked garden salad tossed with oil and vinegar. Add a loaf of crusty French bread and a bottle of white or young red wine, and bon appetit!

A Word on Insect Cuisine

Believe it or not, insects are finding their way onto the best American tables. To satisfy a growing demand for information, in 1988 the University of Wisconsin began publishing The Food Insects Newsletter. According to entomologist and editor Gene DeFoliart,

cultural bias is the only thing stopping more Americans from enjoying insect cuisine. He sees the outlook changing, though, due in part to a need to meet the world's burgeoning food requirements and in part to an increasing concern about the environment and the overuse of pesticides. Collecting insects as food for humans is the ultimate form of biological pest control, says DeFoliart, and an enterprise that's made to order for low-input, smallfarm production.

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