HORS D’OEUVRES
Radishes—Clean thoroughly. Remove all traces of root and leaves, except two or three short stalks. Wash in 2 waters, dry and arrange attractively on hors d’oeuvres platter.
Anchovies—These delicious spiced fish are sold in tins by provision merchants. Serve them on a butter dish separated by slices of hard boiled eggs garnished with chopped parsley.
Sardines—Remove sardines from tin and drain off the olive oil. Place them separately on your platter of hors d’oeuvres.
Gherkins—These tiny pickles together with small white pickled onions add to the appetizing variety of hors d’oeuvres.
Caviar—Caviar (sturgeon roe) is an expensive Russian delicacy which is highly esteemed by many. Serve it on small buttered soda crackers or rounds of buttered toast about 2 inches in diameter. Season with lemon juice.
Shrimps—Serve them garnished with sprigs of parsley.
Tuna—Provision merchants sell this delicious fish in tins in oil. When serving do not drain off all the oil.
Sausages—Cut up ordinary cooked sausages into very thin slices. Serve cold.
Olives—Select plump, large olives and scatter them among the other appetizers on the hors d’oeuvres platter.
The above painting is by Gustave Caillebotte. The Hors D’Oeuvre list is from a historic Familex product catalog, [reddit] undated, 1930s.
Familex was founded by a pharmacist, Roméo Parent and his wife, Laurence Bissonnette in 1928. The company was located in Montreal, Canada. Up until the 1980s salespeople sold the products door-to-door! In the food category, Familex sold finely-packaged spices, flavorings, baking powder, olive oil and more. Caroline, a grandchild of the founding owners, posted on this Familex website. If anyone needs source information on the Familex company, perhaps we can ask there. But regardless, please enjoy this sample of their recipe booklet on reddit!
