The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight Opened Part 11

Or make it with Beef, Mutton and Veal, putting in some Oat-meal, and good pot-herbs, as Parsley, Sorrel, Violet-leaves, etc. And a very little Thyme and Sweet-marjoram, scarce to be tasted: and some Marigold leaves, at last.

You may begin to boil it overnight, and let it stand warm all night; then make an end of boiling it next morning. It is well to put into the pot, at first, twenty or thirty corns of whole Pepper.

POTAGE DE BLANC DE CHAPON

Make first a very good bouillon, seasoned as you like. Put some of it upon the white flesh of a Capon or Hen a little more than half-rosted. Beat them well in a Mortar, and strain out all the juyce that will come. You may put more broth upon what remains in the strainer, and beat again, and strain it to the former. Whiles this is doing, put some of your first plain broth upon some dryed bread to mittonner well. Let there be no more broth, then just to do that. None to swim thin over. When you will serve the potage in, pour the white liquor upon the swelled and gellied-bread, and let them stew together a little upon the Coals. When it is through hot, take it off, and squeese some limon or orange into it, and so send it in presently. It mendeth a Bouillon much, to boil in it some half-rosted Volaille, or other good meat.

TO MAKE SPINAGE-BROTH

Take strong broth, and boil a neck of Mutton, and a Marrow-bone in it, and skim it very well; then put in half a pound of French barley, and a bundle of sweet herbs, and two or three blades of Large-mace. Let these boil very well. Then mince half a peck of Spinage, and two great Onions very small, and let it boil one hour or more; season it with salt as you please, and send the Mutton and the Marrow-bone in a dish with French bread or Manchet to the Table.

ORDINARY POTAGE

Take the fleshy and sinewy part of a leg of Beef, crag-ends of necks of Veal and Mutton. Put them in a ten quarts pot, and fill it up with water.

Begin to boil about six a clock in the Morning, to have your potage ready by Noon. When it is well skimmed, put in two or three large Onions in quarters, and half a loaf (in one lump) of light French bread, or so much of the bottom crust of a Venison Pasty; all which will be at length clean dissolved in the broth. In due time season it with Salt, a little Pepper, and a very few Cloves. Likewise at a fit distance, before it be ended boiling, put in store of good herbs, as in Summer, Borrage, Bugloss, Purslain, Sorel, Lettice, Endive, and what else you like; in Winter, Beetes, Endive, Parsley-roots, Cabbage, Carrots, whole Onions, Leeks, and what you can get or like, with a little Sweet-marjoram and exceeding little Thyme. Order it so that the broth be very strong and good. To which end you may after four hours (or three) boil a Hen or Capon in it; light French-bread sliced, must be taken about noon, and tosted a little before the fire, or crusts of crisp new French-bread; lay it in a dish, and pour some of the broth upon it, and let it stew a while upon a Chafing-dish.

Then pour in more Broth, and if you have a Fowl, lay it upon the bread in the broth, and fill it up with broth, and lay the herbs and roots all over and about it, and let it stew a little longer, and so serve it up covered, after you have squeesed some juyce of Orange or Limon, or put some Verjuyce into it. Or you may beat two or three Eggs, with part of the broth, and some Verjuyce, or juyce of Orange, and then mingle it with the rest of the broth.

BARLEY POTAGE

Take half a pound of French-barley, and wash it in three or four hot-waters; then tye it up in a course linnen-cloth and strike it five or six blows against the table; for this will make it very tender. Put it into such a pot full of meat and water, as is said in the ordinary potage, after it is skimmed; and season this with Salt, Spice, Marjoram and Thyme, as you did the other. An hour before you take it from the fire, put into it a pound of the best Raisins of the Sun well washed; at such a distance of time, that they may be well plumped and tender, but not boiled to mash.

When the broth is enough boiled and consumed, and very strong, pour some of it upon sliced dry bread in a deep potage-dish, or upon crusts, and let it stew a while. Then pour on all the rest of the broth, with the barley and Raisins, upon a Capon or Hen, or piece of Mutton or Veal; and let it mittonner awhile upon the Chafing-dish, then serve it in.

STEWED BROTH

Take a like quant.i.ty of water and flesh, as in the others, adding two Marrow bones: which tie at the ends with pieces of Linnen, that the Marrow may not melt out, and make the broth too fat. A while after it is skimmed, put into it a loaf of French bread very thin sliced, (which is better than grated) and this will be all dissolved in the broth. Season it in due time with salt, four or five flakes of Mace, and five or six Cloves; as also with sweet herbs: And an hour, or better, before you take it off, put in Raisins of the Sun, Prunes, and Currants, of each one Pound, well picked and washed. When it is boiled enough, pour the broth into a bason, that if it be too fat, you may take it off. There season it with a little Sugar, and four or five spoonfuls of White-wine or Sack. Then pour it upon sliced-bread, and stew it a while. Then squeese an Orange or Limon (or both) upon it, and serve it up with the Marrow-bones in it.

AN ENGLISH POTAGE

Make a good strong broth of Veal and Mutton; then take out the meat, and put in a good Capon or Pullet: but first, if it be very fat, parboil it a little to take away the Oyleness of it, and then put it into the broth; and when it hath boiled a little therein, put in some grated bread, a bundle of sweet herbs, two or three blades of Mace, and a peeled Onion. When it is ready to be dished up take the yolks of six Eggs, beat them very well with two or three spoonfuls of White-wine. Then take the Capon out of the broth, and thicken it up with the Eggs, and so dish it up with the Capon, and tostes of White-bread or slices, which you please; and have ready boiled the Marrow of two or three bones with some tender boiled white Endive, and strew it over the Capon.

ANOTHER POTAGE

A good Potage for dinner is thus made: Boil Beef, Mutton, Veal, Volaille, and a little piece of the Lean of a Gammon of the best Bacon, with some quartered Onions, (and a little Garlick, if you like it) you need no salt, if you have Bacon, but put in a little Pepper and Cloves. If it be in the Winter, put in a Bouquet of Sweet-herbs, or whole Onions, or Roots, or Cabbage. If season of Herbs, boil in a little of the broth apart, some Lettice, Sorrel, Borage, and Bugloss, &c. till they be only well mortified.

If you put in any gravy, let it boil or stew a while with the broth; put it in due time upon the tosted-bread to Mittoner, &c. If you boil some half rosted meat with your broth, it will be the better.

PORTUGAL BROTH, AS IT WAS MADE FOR THE QUEEN

Make very good broth with some lean of Veal, Beef and Mutton, and with a brawny Hen or young c.o.c.k. After it is sc.u.mmed, put in an Onion quartered, (and, if you like it, a Clove of Garlick,) a little Parsley, a sprig of Thyme, as much Minth, a little balm; some Coriander-seeds bruised, and a very little Saffron; a little Salt, Pepper and a Clove. When all the substance is boiled out of the meat, and the broth very good, you may drink it so, or, pour a little of it upon tosted sliced-bread, and stew it, till the bread have drunk up all that broth, then add a little more, and stew; so adding by little and little, that the bread may imbibe it and swell: whereas if you drown it at once, the bread will not swell, and grow like gelly: and thus you will have a good potage. You may add Parsley-roots or Leeks, Cabbage or Endive in the due time before the broth is ended boiling, and time enough for them to become tender. In the Summer you may put in Lettice, Sorrel, Purslane, Borage and Bugloss, or what other pot-herbs you like. But green herbs do rob the strength and vigor and Cream of the Potage.

The Queen's ordinary _Bouillon de sante_ in a morning was thus. A Hen, a handful of Parsley, a sprig of Thyme, three of Spear-minth, a little balm, half a great Onion, a little Pepper and Salt, and a Clove, as much water as would cover the Hen; and this boiled to less then a pint, for one good Porrenger full.

NOURISSANT POTAGE DE SANTe

Fill a large earthen pot with water, and make it boil; then take out half the water, and put in Beef and Mutton (fit pieces) and boil and skim: and as soon as it boils, season it with Salt and Pepper. After an hour and half, or two hours, put in a Capon, and four or five Cloves; when it is within a good half hour of being boiled enough, put in such herbs, as you intend, as Sorrel, Lettice, Purslane, Borage and Bugloss, or Green-pease; and in the Winter, Parsley-roots and White-endive, or Navets, &c. so pour the broth upon tosted light bread, and let it stew a while in the dish covered. You should never put in fresh water. And if you should through the consuming of the water by long boiling, it must be boiling hot. The less broth remains, the better is the Potage, were it but a Porrenger full, so that it would be stiff gelly when it is cold. It is good to put into the water, at the first, a whole Onion or two; and if you will, a spoonful of well-beaten _orge monde_ or bottom crust of bread, or some of the bottom of a Venison Pasty.

POTAGE DE SANTe

Make strong broth with a piece of Beef, Mutton and Veal, adding a piece of the sinews of the leg of Beef, seasoning it with two great Onions quartered, some Cloves, and White-pepper. In due time put in a Capon, or take some broth out to boil it in. But before you put in the Capon, take out some of the Broth, in which boil and stew Turneps first prepared thus.

Fry them in scalding b.u.t.ter, till they be tender; then take them out with a holed skimmer, and lay them in a holed dish warmed, set in another whole dish. When all the b.u.t.ter is quite drained out, stew them in a Pipkin in the broth, as is said above. When you will make up your potage, put some Ladlefuls of the broth of the great pot (driving away the fat with the ladle) upon slices of scorched bread in a deep dish. Let this mittonner a while. Then lay the Capon upon it, and pour the Turneps and broth of them over all. A Duck in lieu of a Capon will make very good potage. But then it is best, to fry that first, as the Turneps, then boil it.

POTAGE DE SANTe

Make a good and well-seasoned bouillon with lean Beef, Mutton and Veal, in which boil a Capon. Boil with it either Cabbage, or Turneps, or whole Onions. The first two you put into the broth all over the dish; but the Onions you lay all round about the brim, when you serve it in. Whiles the meat is boiling to make the bouillon, you rost a fleshy piece of Beef (without fat) of two or three pound; and when it is half rosted, squeese out all the juyce, and put the flesh into the pot with the rest of the meat to boil, which will both colour and strengthen it. When you find your Bouillon good, pour it into the dish, where your bread lieth sliced (which must be very light and spungy, and dryed first, after it is sliced) and let it mittonner a little. Then pour your gravy of beef upon it, (or of mutton) and lay your Capon upon it, and lay in your roots round about it. It is best to boil by themselves in some of the bouillon in a pot a part, the roots or Onions.

POTAGE DE SANTe

Mounsieur De S. Euremont makes thus his potage de sante and boiled meat for dinner, being very Valetudinary. Put a knuckle of Veal and a Hen into an earthen Pipkin with a Gallon of water (about nine of the Clock forenoon) and boil it gently till you have skimmed it well. When no more sc.u.m riseth (which will be in about a quarter of an hour), take out the Hen (which else would be too much boiled,) and continue boiling gently till about half an hour past ten. Then put in the Hen again, and a handful of white Endive uncut at length, which requireth more boiling then tenderer herbs. Near half hour after eleven, put in two good handfuls of tender Sorrel, Borage, Bugloss, Lettice, Purslane (these two come later then the others, therefore are not to be had all the winter) a handful a piece, a little Cersevil, and a little Beet-leaves. When he is in pretty good health, that he may venture upon more savoury hotter things, he puts in a large Onion stuck round with Cloves, and sometimes a little bundle of Thyme and other hot savoury herbs; which let boil a good half hour or better, and take them out, and throw them away, when you put in the tender herbs. About three quarters after eleven, have your slice dried bread ready in a dish, and pour a ladleful of the broth upon it. Let it stew covered upon a Chafing-dish.

When that is soaked in, put on more. So continue till it be well _mittonee_, and the bread grown spungy, and like a gelly. Then fill up the dish with broth, and put the Hen and Veal upon it, and cover them over with herbs, and so serve it in. He keeps of this broth to drink at night, or make a _Pan-cotto_, as also for next morning. I like to adde to this, a rand of tender brisket Beef, and the Cragg-end of a neck of Mutton. But the Beef must have six hours boiling. So put it on with all the rest at six a Clock. When it is well sc.u.mmed, take out all the rest. At nine, put in the Veal and Mutton, and thenceforwards, as is said above. But to so much meat, and for so long boiling, you must have at least three Gallons of water.

Either way you must boil always but leisurely, and the pot covered as much as is convenient, and season it in due time with a little salt, as also with Pepper, if you like it; and if you be in vigorous health, you may put a greater store of Onions quartered. The beets have no very good taste, peradventure it were best leave them out. In health you may season the potage with a little juyce of Orange. In season green Pease are good, also Cuc.u.mbers. In winter, Roots, Cabbage, Poix chiches, Vermicelli at any time.

You may use yolks of Eggs beaten with some of the broth and juyce of Oranges or Verjuyce, then poured upon the whole quant.i.ty.

TEA WITH EGGS

The Jesuite that came from China, Ann. 1664, told Mr. Waller, That there they use sometimes in this manner. To near a pint of the infusion, take two yolks of new laid-eggs, and beat them very well with as much fine Sugar as is sufficient for this quant.i.ty of Liquor; when they are very well incorporated, pour your Tea upon the Eggs and Sugar, and stir them well together. So drink it hot. This is when you come home from attending business abroad, and are very hungry, and yet have not conveniency to eat presently a competent meal. This presently discusseth and satisfieth all rawness and indigence of the stomack, flyeth suddainly over the whole body and into the veins, and strengthneth exceedingly, and preserves one a good while from necessity of eating. Mr. Waller findeth all those effects of it thus with Eggs. In these parts, He saith, we let the hot water remain too long soaking upon the Tea, which makes it extract into it self the earthy parts of the herb. The water is to remain upon it, no longer that whiles you can say the _Miserere_ Psalm very leisurely. Then pour it upon the sugar, or sugar and Eggs. Thus you have only the spiritual parts of the Tea, which is much more active, penetrative and friendly to nature. You may from this regard take a little more of the herb; about one dragm of Tea, will serve for a pint of water; which makes three ordinary draughts.

NOURIs.h.i.+NG BROTH

Make a very good gelly-broth of Mutton, Veal, joynt-bones of each, a Hen, and some bones (with a little meat upon them) of rosted Veal or Mutton, breaking the bones that the marrow may boil out. Put to boil with these some barley (first boiled in water, that you throw away) some Harts-horn rasped, and some stoned raisins of the Sun. When the broth is thoroughly well boiled, pour it from the Ingredients, and let it cool and harden into a gelly: then take from it the fat on the top, and the dregs in the bottom.

To a porrenger full of this melted, put the yolk of a new-laid egg beaten with the juyce of an Orange (or less if you like it not so sharp) and a little Sugar; and let this stew gently a little while altogether, and so drink it. Some flesh of rosted Veal or Mutton, or Capon, besides the rosted-bones, that have marrow in them, doth much amend the broth.

The Joynts I have mentioned above, are those, which the Butchers cut off, and throw to their dogs, from the ends of shoulders, legs, and other bare long parts, and have the sinews sticking to them.

GOOD NOURIs.h.i.+NG POTAGE

Take any bones of rosted or boiled Beef, from which the meat is never so clean eaten and picked; as the Ribs, the Chine-bones, the buckler plate-bone, marrow-bones, or any other, that you would think never so dry and insipid. Break them into such convenient pieces, as may lie in your pipkin or pot; also you may bruise them. Put with them a good piece of the b.l.o.o.d.y piece of the throat of the Beef, where he is sticked, and store of water to these. Boil and sc.u.m them, till the first foul sc.u.m is risen and taken away; afterwards sc.u.m no more, but let the blood boil into the broth.

You may put a quartered Onion or two to them, if you like them. After four or five hours boyling, put in a good knuckle with some of the leg of Veal; and, if you please, a crag-end or two of necks of Mutton. Let these boil very well with the rest. You may put in what herbs you please, in due time, as Lettice, Sorrel, Borage and Bugloss, Spinage and Endive, Purslane, &c.

and a bundle of sweet herbs: In winter, Cabbage, or Turneps, or Parsley-roots, or Endive, &c. It will be done in two or three hours after the Veal and Mutton are in. Pour out the broth, and boil it a little by it self over a Chafing-dish, in some deep vessel, to sc.u.m off the superfluous fat. Then pour it upon tosted bread (by degrees, if you will, stewing it, to gelly it) to serve it in (after it hath stewed a little,) you must remember to season it with salt, Pepper and Cloves, in the due time. You will do well to quicken it with some Verjuyce, or juyce of Orange; or with some yolks of Eggs and the juyces, if the broth be not over-strong.

Green-pease in the season do well with the Potage. You may put in, near the beginning, some bottom of a Peppered Pasty, or of a loaf of bread.

WHEATEN FLOMMERY

In the West-country, they make a kind of Flomery of wheat flower, which they judge to be more harty and pleasant then that of Oat-meal, Thus; Take half, or a quarter of a bushel of good Bran of the best wheat (which containeth the purest flower of it, though little, and is used to make starch,) and in a great woodden bowl or pail, let it soak with cold water upon it three or four days. Then strain out the milky water from it, and boil it up to a gelly or like starch. Which you may season with Sugar and Rose or Orange-flower-water, and let it stand till it be cold, and gellied.

Then eat it with white or Rhenish-wine, or Cream, or Milk, or Ale.