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

sliced mushrooms
2-3 tbsp diced green pepper
¼ cup brandy
cup chicken broth
1 ½ tbsp flour
salt and pepper to taste
     
Sauté the shallots, mushrooms, and green peppers in the butter for about 5 minutes.
Add the kidneys and simmer for another 5 minutes, stirring once or twice.
Heat the brandy in a small saucepan. Light it and then pour over the kidneys and vegetables.
When the flame dies, stir in the chicken broth, cover, turn heat to low, and cook for another 10 minutes.
Mix the flour with the salt, pepper, and 3 tbsp water. Combine this with the kidney mixture and cook until it thickens, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.

Shirred Eggs
     
Melt 2 oz butter in frying pan, add two fresh eggs, cook quickly, flip eggs.
Serve with a spoonful of thick cream on top and chopped parsley.

Garlic Toast
     
    2 loaves French bread
4-6 cloves garlic, halved
     
Slice the bread lengthwise, then in serving-size pieces.
Bake at 350°F for about 10 minutes.
Lightly rub garlic cloves on both sides until it melts on the toast. Serve immediately.

ALEXANDER THE GREAT
     

Babylon, Iraq
June 13, 323 B.C.
     
    Only sex and sleep make me conscious that I am mortal.
     
    —Alexander
     
    Alexander the Great, a name that has inspired generals and common people alike for more than 2,000 years, was born the son of King Phillip and Queen Olympias of Macedonia. The family was a highly militaristic one, and from an early age Alexander was bred for war and the expansion of Macedonian power.
    Tutored as a child in the arts by the great Greek philosopher Aristotle but groomed even harder in military matters by his harsh father, Phillip, Alexander itched for conquest from his youth. Born in the town of Pella, some 50 miles from Thessalonica, the capital of ancient Macedonia, Alexander was brought up by his father and his equally manipulative mother with a vision to incorporate the states of the Greek world with their own dominant Macedonian army. This force could then be used primarily against their hereditary enemy, Persia, and would supposedly avenge all the wrongs done to the country in generations before by the despotic kings ofthe Asian Empire. More importantly, it would expand the aggressive Macedonian Empire.
    While fighting at the side of his father against the forces of Thebes and Athens at the battle of Chae Ronea in 338 B.C., Alexander resolved to incorporate the fragmented Greek states into one united force when he had the chance. For many decades the Greeks had always divided their strength by fighting among themselves; in fact, a constant state of war existed between most Greek cities.
    The opportunity he wanted arrived sooner than expected. Phillip’s wife Olympias was always trying to position her offspring to succeed the ailing king and was constantly plotting his downfall. So it came as little surprise that when attending a local religious ceremony on foot, Phillip was stabbed to death in the streets of his own capital. A furious Alexander, though still a teenager, quickly took control of the army, and anybody he perceived as being unfaithful to him was put to death, including several of his own family. The handsome, eloquent Alexander was immediately revered by the Macedonian troops, especially when he outlined his vision for conquest and spoke to them of the glories and riches to come.
    Constantly modeling himself on Homeric heroes such as his ancestor Achilles, Alexander demanded that the Greek states join him in a war against Persia or be destroyed by the new forces he was assembling. There would be no more squabbling between them. They would either join him or perish.
    Light, fast-moving cavalry, impeccably drilled and supported by a dense mass of heavily armored infantry equipped with long pikes, called a phalanx, were the cornerstones of his new army. Moving quickly and attacking when least expected, the Macedonian-based troops quickly became an irresistible force. The Greeks had no choice but to