Page:The English housekeeper, 6th.djvu/195

Rh water, or put it in the oven for two or three hours, according to its age. Lay the meat on a dish before the fire, strain the liquor, boil it up, and pour hot over the hare; you may add lemon juice, walnut or mushroom catsup, and another glass of Port wine.—Or: you may put 2 lbs. of coarse beef in, to make the gravy better. This, and especially if the hare be an old one, will require an hour longer.

Cut off the legs and shoulders, cut down the back and divide each side into three. Season these with pepper, salt, and mixed spices, and steep them 4 or 5 hours in eschalot vinegar, and 2 or 3 bay leaves. Make about 1½ pint of good gravy, of beef or mutton stock, the neck, head, liver, heart and trimmings of the hare, 3 onions, a carrot, a bunch of sweet herbs, 12 black peppers, the same of allspice, and a slice of bacon, in small pieces. Strain this into a clean stew-pan, and put the hare and the vinegar into it; let it stew slowly, until done. If required, add salt, more spices, and cayenne; also good sauces, and Port wine if you choose. Thicken with browned flour. An old hare may be larded and stewed in a braise.

Into a pint of gravy put 2 silver onions, 4 cloves, and a very little salt and cayenne, simmer gently till the flavour of the spice and vegetables is extracted, then take them out, add 2 table-spoonsful of red currant jelly, the same of Port wine, and when quite hot, put in the slices of hare, and any stuffing there may be. Serve it hot with sippets and currant jelly.

Joint 2 white young rabbits, and fry the pieces in butter with some rasped bacon, a handful of chopped mushrooms, parsley, eschalot, pepper, salt, and allspice; when of a nice brown put it into a stew-pan, with a tea-cupful of good gravy and a tea-spoonful of flour. Stew slowly till done, skim and strain the sauce, and serve it hot about the