Read Online Their Last Suppers: Legends of History and Their Final Meals by Andrew Caldwell - Free Book Online

roof that evening to plead with the people massed below.
    They listened quietly for a while, then a rock hit Montezuma, and then another; the Spanish rushed him below, where he was garroted along with thirty of his nobles, and his broken body was thrown to the crowd. The reign of Montezuma II was over. That night Cortés elected to make a dash for the mainland. Loading themselves with as much gold as they could carry, the Spanish army and its allies tried to quietly exit the city.
    Within minutes thousands of waiting Aztec warriors, wearing cotton armor and headdresses of eagles and jaguars, swarmed over them. Many Spaniards jumped into the lake, only to be drowned by the weight of their plunder, and many others were hacked apart by the obsidian-edged weapons of the Aztecs. A weeping Cortés staggered from the city at fearful cost.
    In what is known as the Noche Triste (“Sorrowful Night”), all Cortés’s native allies were slain, along with more than 1,000 Spanish troops, more than two thirds of his command. It was the largest defeat ever suffered by European armies in the Americas. Some 270 Spaniards in another part of the city were never even told of the escape attempt and joined other captured troops nightly on the sacrificial stones of the great pyramids.
    The Aztecs, who were not used to fighting wars of extermination, let Cortés and his survivors retreat to the coast, where he eventually rebuilt his forces and moved once again on their capital. By now smallpox, brought in by Cortés’s troops from Cuba, had hit the Aztec population and killed many thousands of the warriors and citizens, who had no immunity to it. But even without an emperor they fought on, forcing Cortés to reduce the city block by block to defeat them. Today Mexico City is built on the remains of that fabulous empire.
    MENUS
     
    Even in the days before his death on June 30, 1520, Montezuma was still being treated as a deity. Although his Spanish captors were being subjected to ever-increasing hostility by the Aztecs, the daily ritual of court life for Montezuma went on. He drank chocolate from golden goblets and enjoyed his favorite seafoods, brought every day by runners from the Gulf of Mexico.

Seviche of Red Snapper (6)
     
    2 lb red snapper, skinned, filleted, cut in thin lozenge shapes
12 fresh limes, juiced
2 tomatoes, blanched, skinned, and diced
2 stalks finely chopped celery
1 green pepper, seeded, finely chopped
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
     
Rinse the snapper well, then place it in an earthenware or glass bowl, pour the lime juice over the fish, and stir. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 12 hours.
Drain off about half the juice from the bowl, stir in all the other ingredients gently. Serve with a background of limes, avocados, tomatoes, and tortilla chips. Eat with lime and chili salsa.

Lime and Chili Salsa (6)
     
    18 limes, peeled and segmented
8 large garlic cloves, chopped
6 large Ancho chilis
1 large white onion
1 bunch chopped cilantro
18 tomatillos, chopped
     
Place the chilis in a warm oven for a few minutes until they expand, then chop finely. Leaving the seeds in makes it hotter, so be careful.
Combine all the other ingredients in a bowl with 1 tbsp vinegar, adding the chilis a little at a time to get the correct taste. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours before serving.

Roasted Turkey Breast with Sage and Apricots (6)
     
    2 turkey breasts with skin on
2 tsp chopped rosemary
salt and pepper to taste
6 large apricots, sliced thickly
6 figs
large bunch fresh sage; chop half
     
Remove skin from the turkey breasts and rub them well with the chopped sage, the rosemary, salt, and pepper.
Place slices of apricot and figs over the breasts, attaching them with cocktail sticks. Place skin back on, over cocktail sticks, or omit skin if preferred.
Roast for 2 ½ hours in 325°F oven, covering with foil after breasts brown.
Garnish with fresh