Their Last Suppers: Legends of History and Their Final Meals Read Online Free

temperature, then reduce the heat after a minute or two. This seals in the moisture and the flour, and then helps cook it through.

Collard Greens
     
    2 lb fresh green collards
1-2 gallons water
1 or 2 ham hocks
1 tbsp salt
2 dried red peppers
1 cup chopped onion
     
In a large pot, boil the water with the ham hocks and salt; ham is very salty, so salt is optional.
* Clean and add the greens a few at a time along with the other ingredients. Cover and boil for about 1 hour. Serve immediately.

Cornbread
     
    2-4 tbsp shortening or bacon drippings
1 ½ cups white self-rising cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
½ cup buttermilk or sweet milk
½ tsp baking soda if using buttermilk
water
     
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Put the shortening in a cast iron skillet and place in the oven.
Combine the cornmeal and flour, then mix in the egg and milk, add the water slowly until the mixture is like a thick pancake batter.
Place mixture in skillet and bake 20 to 25 minutes in oven until golden brown.

Louisiana Hot Sauce and Vinegar
     
    3 cups distilled white vinegar
2 tsp salt
2 lb seeded and chopped cayenne or jalapeño peppers
     
Simmer the vinegar, salt, and peppers for at least 5 minutes.
Blend the mix in a food processor.
Store in glass bottles in a dark place for at least 3 months to bring out optimum flavor.
Strain when ready to use; serve chilled or hot.

Black-Eyed Peas
     
    1 ½ cups dried black-eyed peas
½ tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp chopped onion
1 small piece salt pork
     
Soak the peas overnight in enough water to cover them.
Drain them, put in a pan, and then cover with about 2 ½ cups of hot water. Add the other ingredients, then simmer for about 1 ½ hours, or until the peas are soft.

Catfish Creole
     
    1 lb catfish fillets
1 cup sliced celery
cup olive oil
1 chopped bell pepper, red or green
½ cup water
2 cloves crushed garlic
¼ cup flour
1 lb tomatoes chopped
1 tsp brown sugar
1 ½ tsp sea salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 bay leaves
½ cup chopped parsley
½ tsp thyme
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 dashes Tabasco sauce
2 cups hot cooked rice
     
Cut the fish into 1- to 2-inch pieces. Heat the oil in a large flat pan; add the flour, stirring gently with a wooden spatula until brown. Remove from heat and slowly add water until thoroughly blended.
Add all the other ingredients, except the catfish and rice. Cover the pot and simmer for about 20 minutes.
Remove bay leaves, add the catfish, and simmer for another 8 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately over hot rice in soup bowls.

NAPOLEON BONAPARTE
     

Defeated at Waterloo, Belgium
June 18, 1815
     
    Give me night, or give me Blücher.
     
    —Duke of Wellington, Waterloo, June 18, 1815
     
    Born in the humble town of Ajaccio in Corsica in 1769, Napoleon Bonaparte became one of the greatest adventurers the world had ever seen. Inspiring the people of France to follow him on a whirlwind trip to glory, he rode the wave of the French Revolution until his own overambition and the combined forces of Europe aligned to bring about his total defeat.
    A short but extremely dynamic person, Napoleon was always questioning the old methods of warfare throughout his education at the military schools of Brienne and Paris. With the advent of the New Republic, his talents as an innovative and driven artillery officer in the French war with Italy heralded a spectacular rise to power. Adored and supported from the first by the army, he became First Consul of France on November 9, 1799, at the age of only 30, then attaining autocratic power for life only 3 years later, in 1802.
    Wasting no time in consolidating power, he had himself declared emperor in 1804 in front of the Pope in Paris. This was a deliberate ploy to gain recognition of his authority, with a title that would expand the French borders. Simultaneously he combined a detailed reorganization of all aspects of French life with an almost constant succession of campaigns abroad, defeating the