The black stockings you kept smelled of wet cigarette torn of lust that you could not keep.

-Goliath

Part One

• About thirty larks
• ½ bottle of dry white wine
• Gelatin
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 good-size onions
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ½ teaspoon cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• Juice of one lemon
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Part Two

1. Feather and cut the tongue out of each lark.
2. Half-fill a dutch oven with water and bring to a boil. Add the larks (sans tongues), onions (chopped), one glass of wine, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper.
3. Boil for thirty minutes, then remove larks, add tongues, and boil for two hours.
4. Remove tongues and refrigerate for at least four hours.
5. In a saucepan over low flame, add a glass of wine and gelatin, two heavy pinches of salt, and lemon juice.
6. Stir over low flame until well-combined.
7. Remove from flame and refrigerate until aspic takes the consistency of an unbeaten egg white.
8. Spread aspic over tongue, forming a good glaze. Rest in refrigerator after glazing, reglaze several times until tongue is well-glazed.