Chapter XV: BAKED MINCED MUTTON (Cold Meat Cookery) (2)

_Mode_.--Have the feet cleaned, and the long bone extracted from them. Put the suet into a stewpan, with the onions and carrot sliced, the bay-leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper, and let these simmer for 5 minutes. Add 2 tablespoonfuls of flour and the water, and keep stirring till it boils; then put in the feet. Let these simmer for 3 hours, or until perfectly tender, and take them and lay them on a sieve. Mix together, on a plate, with the back of a spoon, butter, salt, flour (1 teaspoonful), pepper, nutmeg, and lemon-juice as above, and put the feet, with a gill of milk, into a stewpan. When very hot, add the butter, &c., and stir continually till melted. Now mix the yolks of 2 eggs with 5 tablespoonfuls of milk; stir this to the other ingredients, keep moving the pan over the fire continually for a minute or two, but do not allow it to boil after the eggs are added. Serve in a very hot dish, and garnish with croûtons, or sippets of toasted bread.

_Time_.--3 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 4 persons.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

TO DRESS A SHEEP'S HEAD.

742. INGREDIENTS.--1 sheep's head, sufficient water to cover it, 3 carrots, 3 turnips, 2 or 3 parsnips, 3 onions, a small bunch of parsley, 1 teaspoonful of pepper, 3 teaspoonfuls of salt, 1/4 lb. of Scotch oatmeal.

_Mode_.--Clean the head well, and let it soak in warm water for 2 hours, to get rid of the blood; put it into a saucepan, with sufficient cold water to cover it, and when it boils, add the vegetables, peeled and sliced, and the remaining ingredients; before adding the oatmeal, mix it to a smooth batter with a little of the liquor. Keep stirring till it boils up; then shut the saucepan closely, and let it stew gently for 1-1/2 or 2 hours. It may be thickened with rice or barley, but oatmeal is preferable.

_Time_.--1-1/2 or 2 hours. _Average cost_, 8d. each.

_Sufficient_ for 3 persons.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

SINGED SHEEP'S HEAD.--The village of Dudingston, which stands
"within a mile of Edinburgh town," was formerly celebrated for
this ancient and homely Scottish dish. In the summer months,
many opulent citizens used to resort to this place to solace
themselves over singed sheep's heads, boiled or baked. The sheep
fed upon the neighbouring hills were slaughtered at this
village, and the carcases were sent to town; but the heads were
left to be consumed in the place. We are not aware whether the
custom of eating sheep's heads at Dudingston is still kept up by
the good folks of Edinburgh.

TOAD-IN-THE-HOLE (Cold Meat Cookery).

743. INGREDIENTS.--6 oz. of flour, 1 pint of milk, 3 eggs, butter, a few slices of cold mutton, pepper and salt to taste, 2 kidneys.

_Mode_.--Make a smooth batter of flour, milk, and eggs in the above proportion; butter a baking-dish, and pour in the batter. Into this place a few slices of cold mutton, previously well seasoned, and the kidneys, which should be cut into rather small pieces; bake about 1 hour, or rather longer, and send it to table in the dish it was baked in. Oysters or mushrooms may be substituted for the kidneys, and will be found exceedingly good.

_Time_.--Rather more than 1 hour.

_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold meat, 8d.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

BREAST OF LAMB AND GREEN PEAS.

744. INGREDIENTS.--1 breast of lamb, a few slices of bacon, 1/4 pint of stock No. 105, 1 lemon, 1 onion, 1 bunch of savoury herbs, green peas.

_Mode_.--Remove the skin from a breast of lamb, put it into a saucepan of boiling water, and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Take it out and lay it in cold water. Line the bottom of a stewpan with a few thin slices of bacon; lay the lamb on these; peel the lemon, cut it into slices, and put these on the meat, to keep it white and make it tender; cover with 1 or 2 more slices of bacon; add the stock, onion, and herbs, and set it on a slow fire to simmer very gently until tender. Have ready some green peas, put these on a dish, and place the lamb on the top of these. The appearance of this dish may be much improved by glazing the lamb, and spinach may be substituted for the peas when variety is desired.

_Time_.--1-1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 10d. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 3 persons.

_Seasonable_,--grass lamb, from Easter to Michaelmas.

THE LAMB AS A SACRIFICE.--The number of lambs consumed in
sacrifices by the Hebrews must have been very considerable. Two
lambs "of the first year" were appointed to be sacrificed daily
for the morning and evening sacrifice; and a lamb served as a
substitute for the first-born of unclean animals, such as the
ass, which could not be accepted as an offering to the Lord.
Every year, also, on the anniversary of the deliverance of the
children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt, every family was
ordered to sacrifice a lamb or kid, and to sprinkle some of its
blood upon the door-posts, in commemoration of the judgment of
God upon the Egyptians. It was to be eaten roasted, with
unleavened bread and bitter herbs, in haste, with the loins
girded, the shoes on the feet, and the staff in the hand; and
whatever remained until the morning was to be burnt. The sheep
was also used in the numerous special, individual, and national
sacrifices ordered by the Jewish law. On extraordinary
occasions, vast quantities of sheep were sacrificed at once;
thus Solomon, on the completion of the temple, offered "sheep
and oxen that could not be told nor numbered for multitude."

STEWED BREAST OF LAMB.

745. INGREDIENTS.--1 breast of lamb, pepper and salt to taste, sufficient stock, No. 105, to cover it, 1 glass of sherry, thickening of butter and flour.

_Mode_.--Skin the lamb, cut it into pieces, and season them with pepper and salt; lay these in a stewpan, pour in sufficient stock or gravy to cover them, and stew very gently until tender, which will be in about 1-1/2 hour. Just before serving, thicken the sauce with a little butter and flour; add the sherry, give one boil, and pour it over the meat. Green peas, or stewed mushrooms, may be strewed over the meat, and will be found a very great improvement.

_Time_.--1-1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 10d. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 3 persons.

_Seasonable_,--grass lamb, from Easter to Michaelmas.

LAMB CHOPS.

746. INGREDIENTS.--Loin of lamb, pepper and salt to taste.

_Mode_.--Trim off the flap from a fine loin of lamb, aid cut it into chops about 3/4 inch in thickness. Have ready a bright clear fire; lay the chops on a gridiron, and broil them of a nice pale brown, turning them when required. Season them with pepper and salt; serve very hot and quickly, and garnish with crisped parsley, or place them on mashed potatoes. Asparagus, spinach, or peas are the favourite accompaniments to lamb chops.

_Time_.--About 8 or 10 minutes. _Average cost_, 1s. per lb.

_Sufficient_.--Allow 2 chops to each person.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

LAMB CUTLETS AND SPINACH (an Entree).

747. INGREDIENTS.--8 cutlets, egg and bread crumbs, salt and pepper to taste, a little clarified butter.

_Mode_.--Cut the cutlets from a neck of lamb, and shape them by cutting off the thick part of the chine-bone. Trim off most of the fat and all the skin, and scrape the top part of the bones quite clean. Brush the cutlets over with egg, sprinkle them with bread crumbs, and season with pepper and salt. Now dip them into clarified butter, sprinkle over a few more bread crumbs, and fry them over a sharp fire, turning them when required. Lay them before the fire to drain, and arrange them on a dish with spinach in the centre, which should be previously well boiled, drained, chopped, and seasoned.

_Time_.--About 7 or 8 minutes. _Average cost_, 10d. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 4 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

_Note_.--Peas, asparagus, or French beans, may be substituted for the spinach; or lamb cutlets may be served with stewed cucumbers, Soubise sauce, &c. &c.

LAMB'S FRY.

748. INGREDIENTS.--1 lb. of lamb's fry, 3 pints of water, egg and bread crumbs, 1 teaspoonful of chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

_Mode_.--Boil the fry for 1/4 hour in the above proportion of water, take it out and dry it in a cloth; grate some bread down finely, mix with it a teaspoonful of chopped parsley and a high seasoning of pepper and salt. Brush the fry lightly over with the yolk of an egg, sprinkle over the bread crumbs, and fry for 5 minutes. Serve very hot on a napkin in a dish, and garnish with plenty of crisped parsley.

_Time_.-1 hour to simmer the fry, 5 minutes to fry it.

_Average cost_, 10d. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 2 or 3 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

HASHED LAMB AND BROILED BLADE-BONE.

749. INGREDIENTS.--The remains of a cold shoulder of lamb, pepper and salt to taste, 2 oz. of butter, about 1/2 pint of stock or gravy, 1 tablespoonful of shalot vinegar, 3 or 4 pickled gherkins.

_Mode_.--Take the blade-bone from the shoulder, and cut the meat into collops as neatly as possible. Season the bone with pepper and salt, pour a little oiled butter over it, and place it in the oven to warm through. Put the stock into a stewpan, add the ketchup and shalot vinegar, and lay in the pieces of lamb. Let these heat gradually through, but do not allow them to boil. Take the blade-bone out of the oven, and place it on a gridiron over a sharp fire to brown. Slice the gherkins, put them into the hash, and dish it with the blade-bone in the centre. It may be garnished with croutons or sippets of toasted bread.

_Time_.--Altogether 1/2 hour. _Average cost_, exclusive of the meat, 4d.

_Seasonable_,--house lamb, from Christmas to March; grass lamb, from Easter to Michaelmas.

ROAST FORE-QUARTER OF LAMB.

750. INGREDIENTS.--Lamb, a little salt.

_Mode_.--To obtain the flavour of lamb in perfection, it should not be long kept; time to cool is all that it requires; and though the meat may be somewhat thready, the juices and flavour will be infinitely superior to that of lamb that has been killed 2 or 3 days. Make up the fire in good time, that it may be clear and brisk when the joint is put down. Place it at a sufficient distance to prevent the fat from burning, and baste it constantly till the moment of serving. Lamb should be very _thoroughly_ done without being dried up, and not the slightest appearance of red gravy should be visible, as in roast mutton: this rule is applicable to all young white meats. Serve with a little gravy made in the dripping-pan, the same as for other roasts, and send to table with it a tureen of mint sauce, No. 469, and a fresh salad. A cut lemon, a small piece of fresh butter, and a little cayenne, should also be placed on the table, so that when the carver separates the shoulder from the ribs, they may be ready for his use; if, however, he should not be very expert, we would recommend that the cook should divide these joints nicely before coming to table.

_Time_.--Fore-quarter of lamb weighing 10 lbs., 1-3/4 to 2 hours.

_Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.

_Seasonable_,--grass lamb, from Easter to Michaelmas.

BOILED LEG OF LAMB A LA BECHAMEL.

751. INGREDIENTS.--Leg of lamb, Béchamel sauce, No. 367.

_Mode_.--Do not choose a very large joint, but one weighing about 5 lbs. Have ready a saucepan of boiling water, into which plunge the lamb, and when it boils up again, draw it to the side of the fire, and let the water cool a little. Then stew very gently for about 1-1/4 hour, reckoning from the time that the water begins to simmer. Make some Béchamel by recipe No. 367, dish the lamb, pour the sauce over it, and garnish with tufts of boiled cauliflower or carrots. When liked, melted butter may be substituted for the Béchamel: this is a more simple method, but not nearly so nice. Send to table with it some of the sauce in a tureen, and boiled cauliflowers or spinach, with whichever vegetable the dish is garnished.

_Time_.--1-1/4 hour after the water simmers.

_Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

ROAST LEG OF LAMB.

752. INGREDIENTS.--Lamb, a little salt.

_Mode_.--Place the joint at a good distance from the fire at first, and baste well the whole time it is cooking. When nearly done, draw it nearer the fire to acquire a nice brown colour. Sprinkle a little fine salt over the meat, empty the dripping-pan of its contents; pour in a little boiling water, and strain this over the meat. Serve with mint sauce and a fresh salad, and for vegetables send peas, spinach, or cauliflowers to table with it.

_Time_.--A leg of lamb weighing 5 lbs., 1-1/2 hour.

_Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb. _Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

BRAISED LOIN OF LAMB.

753. INGREDIENTS.--1 loin of lamb, a few slices of bacon, 1 bunch of green onions, 5 or 6 young carrots, a bunch of savoury herbs, 2 blades of pounded mace, 1 pint of stock, salt to taste.

_Mode_.--Bone a loin of lamb, and line the bottom of a stewpan just capable of holding it, with a few thin slices of fat bacon; add the remaining ingredients, cover the meat with a few more slices of bacon, pour in the stock, and simmer very _gently_ for 2 hours; take it up, dry it, strain and reduce the gravy to a glaze, with which glaze the meat, and serve it either on stewed peas, spinach, or stewed cucumbers.

_Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 11d. per lb.

_Sufficient for_ 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

ROAST SADDLE OF LAMB.

754. INGREDIENTS.--Lamb; a little salt.

_Mode_.--This joint is now very much in vogue, and is generally considered a nice one for a small party. Have ready a clear brisk fire; put down the joint at a little distance, to prevent the fat from scorching, and keep it well basted all the time it is cooking. Serve with mint sauce and a fresh salad, and send to table with it, either peas, cauliflowers, or spinach.

_Time_.--A small saddle, 1-1/2 hour; a large one, 2 hours.

_Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

_Note_.--Loin and ribs of lamb are roasted in the same manner, and served with the same sauces as the above. A loin will take about 1-1/4 hour; ribs, from 1 to 1-1/4 hour.

ROAST SHOULDER OF LAMB.

755. INGREDIENTS.--Lamb; a little salt.

_Mode_.--Have ready a clear brisk fire, and put down the joint at a sufficient distance from it, that the fat may not burn. Keep constantly basting until done, and serve with a little gravy made in the dripping-pan, and send mint sauce to table with it. Peas, spinach, or cauliflowers are the usual vegetables served with lamb, and also a fresh salad.

_Time_.--A shoulder of lamb rather more than 1 hour.

_Average cost_, 10s. to 1s. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

SHOULDER OF LAMB STUFFED.

756. INGREDIENTS.--Shoulder of lamb, forcemeat No. 417, trimmings of veal or beef, 2 onions, 1/2 head of celery, 1 faggot of savoury herbs, a few slices of fat bacon, 1 quart of stock No. 105.

_Mode_.--Take the blade-bone out of a shoulder of lamb, fill up its place with forcemeat, and sew it up with coarse thread. Put it into a stewpan with a few slices of bacon under and over the lamb, and add the remaining ingredients. Stew very gently for rather more than 2 hours. Reduce the gravy, with which glaze the meat, and serve with peas, stewed cucumbers, or sorrel sauce.

_Time_.--Rather more than 2 hours. _Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

LAMB'S SWEETBREADS, LARDED, AND ASPARAGUS (an Entree).

757. INGREDIENTS.--2 or 3 sweetbreads, 1/2 pint of veal stock, white pepper and salt to taste, a small bunch of green onions, 1 blade of pounded mace, thickening of butter and flour, 2 eggs, nearly 1/2 pint of cream, 1 teaspoonful of minced parsley, a very little grated nutmeg.

_Mode_.--Soak the sweetbreads in lukewarm water, and put them into a saucepan with sufficient boiling water to cover them, and let them simmer for 10 minutes; then take them out and put them into cold water. Now lard them, lay them in a stewpan, add the stock, seasoning, onions, mace, and a thickening of butter and flour, and stew gently for 1/4 hour or 20 minutes. Beat up the egg with the cream, to which add the minced parsley and a very little grated nutmeg. Put this to the other ingredients; stir it well till quite hot, but do not let it boil after the cream is added, or it will curdle. Have ready some asparagus-tops, boiled; add these to the sweetbreads, and serve.

_Time_.--Altogether 1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 2s. 6d. to 3s. 6d. each.

_Sufficient_--3 sweetbreads for 1 entrée.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

ANOTHER WAY TO DRESS SWEETBREADS (an Entree).

758. INGREDIENTS.--Sweetbreads, egg and bread crumbs, 1/2 pint of gravy, No. 442, 1/2 glass of sherry.

_Mode_.--Soak the sweetbreads in water for an hour, and throw them into boiling water to render them firm. Let them stew gently for about 1/4 hour, take them out and put them into a cloth to drain all the water from them. Brush them over with egg, sprinkle them with bread crumbs, and either brown them in the oven or before the fire. Have ready the above quantity of gravy, to which add 1/2 glass of sherry; dish the sweetbreads, pour the gravy under them, and garnish with water-cresses.

_Time_.--Rather more than 1/2 hour. _Average cost_, 2s. 6d. to 3s. 6d. each.

_Sufficient_--3 sweetbreads for 1 entrée.

_Seasonable_ from Easter to Michaelmas.

MUTTON AND LAMB CARVING.

HAUNCH OF MUTTON.

759. A deep cut should, in the first place, be made quite down to the bone, across the knuckle-end of the joint, along the line 1 to 2. This will let the gravy escape; and then it should be carved, in not too thick slices, along the whole length of the haunch, in the direction of the line from 4 to 3.

LEG OF MUTTON.

760. This homely, but capital English joint, is almost invariably served at table as shown in the engraving. The carving of it is not very difficult: the knife should be carried sharply down in the direction of the line from 1 to 2, and slices taken from either side, as the guests may desire, some liking the knuckle-end, as well done, and others preferring the more underdone part. The fat should be sought near the line 3 to 4. Some connoisseurs are fond of having this joint dished with the under-side uppermost, so as to get at the finely-grained meat lying under that part of the meat, known as the Pope's eye; but this is an extravagant fashion, and one that will hardly find favour in the eyes of many economical British housewives and housekeepers.

LOIN OF MUTTON.

761. There is one point in connection with carving a loin of mutton which includes every other; that is, that the joint should be thoroughly well jointed by the butcher before it is cooked. This knack of jointing requires practice and the proper tools; and no one but the butcher is supposed to have these. If the bones be not well jointed, the carving of a loin of mutton is not a gracious business; whereas, if that has been attended to, it is an easy and untroublesome task. The knife should be inserted at fig. 1, and after feeling your way between the bones, it should be carried sharply in the direction of the line 1 to 2. As there are some people who prefer the outside cut, while others do not like it, the question as to their choice of this should be asked.

SADDLE OF MUTTON.

762. Although we have heard, at various intervals, growlings expressed at the inevitable "saddle of mutton" at the dinner-parties of our middle classes, yet we doubt whether any other joint is better liked, when it has been well hung and artistically cooked. There is a diversity of opinion respecting the mode of sending this joint to table; but it has only reference to whether or no there shall be any portion of the tail, or, if so, how many joints of the tail. We ourselves prefer the mode as shown in our coloured illustration "O;" but others may, upon equally good grounds, like the way shown in the engraving on this page. Some trim the tail with a paper frill. The carving is not difficult: it is usually cut in the direction of the line from 2 to 1, quite down to the bones, in evenly-sliced pieces. A fashion, however, patronized by some, is to carve it obliquely, in the direction of the line from 4 to 3; in which case the joint would be turned round the other way, having the tail end on the right of the carver.

SHOULDER OF MUTTON.

763. This is a joint not difficult to carve. The knife should be drawn from the outer edge of the shoulder in the direction of the line from 1 to 2, until the bone of the shoulder is reached. As many slices as can be carved in this manner should be taken, and afterwards the meat lying on either side of the blade-bone should be served, by carving in the direction of 3 to 4 and 3 to 4. The uppermost side of the shoulder being now finished, the joint should be turned, and slices taken off along its whole length. There are some who prefer this under-side of the shoulder for its juicy flesh, although the grain of the meat is not so fine as that on the other side.

FORE-QUARTER OF LAMB.

764. We always think that a good and practised carver delights in the manipulation of this joint, for there is a little field for his judgment and dexterity which does not always occur. The separation of the shoulder from the breast is the first point to be attended to; this is done by passing the knife lightly round the dotted line, as shown by the figures 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, so as to cut through the skin, and then, by raising with a little force the shoulder, into which the fork should be firmly fixed, it will come away with just a little more exercise of the knife. In dividing the shoulder and breast, the carver should take care not to cut away too much of the meat from the latter, as that would rather spoil its appearance when the shoulder is removed. The breast and shoulder being separated, it is usual to lay a small piece of butter, and sprinkle a little cayenne, lemon-juice, and salt between them; and when this is melted and incorporated with the meat and gravy, the shoulder may, as more convenient, be removed into another dish. The, next operation is to separate the ribs from the brisket, by cutting through the meat on the line 5 to 6. The joint is then ready to be served to the guests; the ribs being carved in the direction of the lines from 9 to 10, and the brisket from 7 to 8. The carver should ask those at the table what parts they prefer-ribs, brisket, or a piece of the shoulder.

LEG OF LAMB, LOIN OF LAMB, SADDLE OF LAMB, SHOULDER OF LAMB,

are carved in the same manner as the corresponding joints of mutton. (_See_ Nos. 760, 761, 762, 763.)