The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight Opened by Sir Kenelm Digby (popular books of all time TXT) 📕

room. When they are sufficiently parboiled to be tender, and well cleansed of their scum, (which will be in about a quarter of an hour,) take them out, and put them into a Colander, that all the moisture may drain from them. In the mean time make your pickle thus: Take a quart of pure sharp white Wine Vinegar (elder-Vinegar is best) put two or three spoonfuls of whole Pepper to it, twenty or thirty Cloves, one Nutmeg quartered, two or three flakes of Mace, three Bay-leaves; (some like Limon-Thyme and Rose-mary; but then it must be a very little of each) boil all these together, till the Vinegar be well impregnated with the Ingredients, which will be in about half an hour. Then take it from the fire, and let it cool. When the pickle is quite cold, and the Mushrooms also quite cold, and drained from all moisture: put them into the Liquor (with all the Ingredients in it) which you must be sure, be enough to cover them. In ten or twelve days, they will have taken into them the full taste of the pickle, and will keep very good half a year. If you have much supernatant Liquor, you may parboil more Mushrooms next day, and put them to the first. If you have not gathered at once enough for a dressing, you may keep them all night in water to preserve them white, and gather more the next day, to joyn to them.


TO STEW WARDENS OR PEARS

Pare them, put them into a Pipkin, with so much Red or Claret Wine and water, ana , as will near reach to the top of the Pears. Stew or boil gently, till they grow tender, which may be in two hours. After a while, put in some sticks of Cinnamon bruised and a few Cloves. When they are almost done, put in Sugar enough to season them well and their Syrup, which you pour out upon them in a deep Plate.


TO STEW APPLES

Pare them and cut them into slices. Stew them with Wine and Water as the Pears, and season them in like manner with Spice. Towards the end sweeten them with Sugar, breaking the Apples into Pap by stirring them. When you are ready to take them off, put in good store of fresh-butter, and incorporate it well with them, by stirring them together. You stew these between two dishes. The quickest Apples are the best.


PORTUGUEZ EGGS

The way that the Countess de Penalva makes the Portuguez Eggs for the Queen, is this. Take the yolks (clean picked from the whites and germ) of twelve new-laid Eggs. Beat them exceedingly with a little (scarce a spoonful) of Orange-flower-water. When they are exceeding liquid, clear, and uniformly a thin Liquor, put to them one pound of pure double refined Sugar (if it be not so pure, it must be clarified before) and stew them in your dish or bason over a very gentle fire, stirring them continually, whiles they are over it, so that the whole may become one uniform substance, of the consistence of an Electuary (beware they grow not too hard; for without much caution and attention, that will happen on a sudden) which then you may eat presently, or put into pots to keep. You may dissolve Ambergreece (if you will, ground first very much with Sugar) in Orange-flower or Rose-water, before hand, and put it (warm and dissolved) to the Eggs, when you set them to stew. If you clarifie your Sugar, do it with one of these waters, and whites of Eggs. The flavor of these sweet-waters goeth almost all away with boiling. Therefore half a spoonful put into the composition, when you take it from the fire, seasoneth it more then ten times as much, put in at the first.


TO BOIL EGGS

A certain and infallible method to boil new-laid Eggs to sup up, and yet that they have the white turned to milk, is thus: Break a very little hole, at the bigger end of the shell, and put it into the water, whiles it boileth. Let it remain boiling, whiles your Pulse beateth two hundred stroaks. Then take it out immediately, and you will find it of an exact temper: others put Eggs into boyling water just as you take it from the fire, and let them remain there, till the water be so cooled, that you may just put in your hand, and take out the Eggs.

Others put the Eggs into cold water, which they set upon the fire, and as soon as the water begins to boil, the Eggs are enough.


TO MAKE CLEAR GELLY OF BRAN

Take two pound of the broadest open Bran of the best Wheat, and put it to infuse in a Gallon of Water, during two or three days, that the water may soak into the pure flower, that sticks to the bran. Then boil it three or four walms, and presently take it from the fire, and strain it through some fine strainer. A milky substance will come out, which let stand to settle about half a day. Pour off the clear water, that swimmeth over the starch or flomery, that is in the bottom (which is very good for Pap, &c.) and boil it up to a gelly, as you do Harts-horn gelly or the like, and season it to your taste.


TO BAKE VENISON

Boil the bones (well broken) and remaining flesh of the Venison, from whence the meat of the Pasty is cut, in the Liquor, wherein Capons and Veal, or Mutton have been boiled, so to make very strong broth of them. The bones must be broken, that you may have the Marrow of them in the Liquor; and they must stew a long time (covering the pot close:) that you may make the broth as strong as you can; and if you put some gravy of Mutton or Veal to it, it will be the better. When the Pasty is half baked, pour some of this broth into it, by the hole at the top; and the rest of it, when it is quite baked, and wanteth but standing in the oven to soak. Or put it all in at once, when the Pasty is sufficiently baked, and afterwards let it remain in the oven a good while soaking.

You may bake the bones (broken) with the broth and gravy, or for want thereof, with only water in an earthen pot close stopped, till you have all the substance in the Liquor; which you may pour into the Pasty an hour before it is baked enough.

If you are in a Park, you may soak the Venison a night in the blood of the Deer; and cover the flesh with it, clotted together when you put it in paste. Mutton blood also upon Venison, is very good. You may season your blood a little with Pepper and Salt.


TO BAKE VENISON TO KEEP

After you have boned it, and cut away all the sinews, then season it with Pepper and Salt pretty high, and divide a Stag into four pots; then put about a pound of Butter upon the top of each pot, and cover it with Rye-past pretty thick. Your oven must be so hot, that after a whole night it maybe baked very tender, which is a great help to the keeping of it. And when you draw it, drain all the Liquor from it, and turn your pot upon a pie plate, with the bottom upwards, and so let it stand, until it is cold; Then wipe your pot, that no gravy remain therein, and then put your Venison into the same pot again; then have your Butter very well clarified, that there be no dross remaining; Then fill up your pot about two Inches above the meat with Butter, or else it will mould. And so the next day binde it up very close, with a piece of sheeps Leather so that no air can get in. After which you may keep it as long as you please.

Master Adrian May put's up His Venison in pots, to keep long, thus: Immediately as soon as He hath killed it, he seasoneth and baketh it as soon as He can, so that the flesh may never be cold. And this maketh that the fat runneth in among the lean, and is like calvered Salmon, and eats much more mellow and tender. But before the Deer be killed, he ought to be hunted and chafed as much as may be. Then seasoned and put in the oven before it be cold. Be sure to pour out all the gravy, that settleth to the bottom, under the flesh after the baking, before you put the Butter to it, that is to lie very thick upon the meat, to keep it all the year.


ABOUT MAKING OF BRAWN

It must be a very large oven, that so it may contract the stronger heat, and keep it the longer. It must be at least eight hours heating with wood, that it be as hot as is possible. If the Brawn be young, it will suffice eight hours or a little more in the oven. But if old, it must be ten or eleven. Put but two Collars into each pot, for bigger are unwieldy. Into every pot, put twelve corns of whole Pepper, four Cloves, a great Onion peeled and quartered, and two bay-leaves, before you put them into the oven. Before they are set in, you do not fill them with water to the top, least any should spill in sliding them in; but fill them up by a bowl fastned to a long Pole. No water must be put in, after the oven is closed (nor the oven ever be opened, till after all is throughly baked) and therefore you must put in enough at first to serve to the last; you must rowl your Collars as close as may be, that no air may be left in the folds of them: and sow them up in exceeding strong cloth, which a strong man must pull as hard as He can in the sowing. Their cloths must not be pulled off, till the Collars have been three or four days out of the oven, least you pull off part of the Brawn with them. You may put the same proportion of Pepper, Cloves, &c. into the Souce drink as you did in the baking them; which at either time (especially at first) give them a fine taste. The Souce-drink is made of six shillings Beer, and Thames or River-water, of each an equal quantity, well boiled with Salt. When boiled and cold, put in to it two or three quarts of skimmed Milk, only to colour it; and so change it once in three Weeks. Tender Brawn sliced thin, and laid Sallet-wise in a dish as the sliced Capon, and seasoned with Pepper, Salt and Vinegar and Oyl, with a little Limon, is a very good Sallet.


SALLET OF COLD CAPON ROSTED

It is a good Sallet, to slice a cold Capon thin; mingle with it some Sibbolds, Lettice, Rocket and Tarragon sliced small. Season all with Pepper, Salt, Vinegar and Oyl, and sliced Limon. A little Origanum doth well with it.


MUTTON BAKED LIKE VENISON, SOAKING EITHER IN THEIR BLOOD

Take a large fat loin of Mutton (or two) boned after the manner of Venison. Season it well to your taste with Pepper and Salt. Then lay it to steep all night in enough of the sheep's blood, to cover it over, and soak well into it. Then lay it into the past,