Chapter 31

Then have the tops of boil'd sparagus, mix them with a batter made of flour, salt, and fair water, & set them by.

Next boil'd chesnuts and pistaches, and set them by.

Then have skirrets boil'd, peeled, and laid in batter.

Then have prawns boil'd and picked, and set by in batter also, oysters parboil'd and cockles, eels cut in pieces being flayed, and yolks of hard eggs.

Next have green quodling stuff, mixt with bisket bread and eggs, fry them in little cakes, and set them by also.

Then have artichocks and potatoes ready to fry in batter, being boil'd and cleansed also.

Then have balls of parmisan, as big as a walnut, made up and dipped in batter, and some balls of almond paste.

These aforesaid being finely fryed in clarified butter, and muskefied, mix them in a great charger one amongst another, and make a sauce of strained grape verjuyce, or white-wine, yolks of eggs, cream, beaten butter, cinamon and sugar, set them in an oven to warm; the sauce being boil'd up, pour it over all, and set it again in the oven, ice it with fine sugar, and so serve it.

_Otherways._

Boil ten eggs hard, and part them in halves long ways, take out the yolks, mince them, and put to them some sweet herbs minc'd small, some boil'd currans, salt, sugar, cinamon, the yolks of two or three raw eggs, and some almond paste, (or none) mix all together, and fill again the whites, then lay them in a dish on some butter with the yolks downwards, or in a patty-pan, bake them, and make sauce of verjuyce & sugar, strained with the yolk of an egg and cinamon, give it a walm, and put to it some beaten butter; being dished, serve them with fine carved sippets, slic't orange, and sugar.

_To make a great compound Egg, as big as twenty Eggs._

Take twenty eggs, part the whites from the yolks, and strain the whites by them selves, and the yolks by themselves; then have two bladders, boil the yolks in one bladder, fast bound up as round as a ball, being boil'd hard, put it in another bladder, and the whites round about it, bind it up round like the former, and being boil'd it will be a perfect egg. This serves for grand sallets.

Or you may add to these yolks of eggs, musk, and ambergriece, candied pistaches, grated bisket-bread, and sugar, and to the whites, almond-paste, musk, juyce of oranges, and beaten ginger, and serve it with butter, almond milk, sugar, and juyce of oranges.

_To butter Eggs upon toasts._

Take twenty eggs, beat them in a dish with some salt and put butter to them; then have two large rouls or fine manchets, cut them into toasts, & toast them against the fire with a pound of fine sweet butter; being finely buttered, lay the toasts in a fair clean scowred dish, put the eggs on the toasts, and garnish the dish with pepper and salt. Otherways, half boil them in the shells, then butter them, and serve them on toasts, or toasts about them.

To these eggs sometimes use musk and ambergriece, and no pepper.

_Otherways._

Take twenty eggs, and strain them whites and all with a little salt; then have a skillet with a pound of clarified butter, warm on the fire, then fry a good thick toast of fine manchet as round as the skillet, and an inch thick, the toast being finely fryed, put the eggs on it into the skillet, to fry on the manchet, but not too hard; being finely fried put it on a trencher-plate with the eggs uppermost, and salt about the dish.

_An excellent way to butter Eggs._

Take twenty yolks of new laid or fresh eggs, put them into a dish with as many spoonfuls of jelly, or mutton gravy without fat, put to it a quarter of a pound of sugar, 2 ounces of preserved lemon-peel either grated or cut into thin slices or very little bits, with some salt, and four spoonfuls of rose-water, stir them together on the coals, and being butter'd dish them, put some musk on them with some fine sugar; you may as well eat these eggs cold as hot, with a little cinamon-water, or without.

_Otherways._

Dress them with claret, white-wine, sack, or juyce of oranges, nutmeg, fine sugar, & a little salt, beat them well together in a fine clean dish, with carved sippets, and candied pistaches stuck in them.

_Eggs buttered in the Polonian fashion._

Take twelve eggs, and beat them in a dish, then have steeped bread in gravy or broth, beat them together in a mortar, with some salt, and put it to the eggs, then put a little preserv'd lemon peel into it, either small shred or cut into slices, put some butter into it, butter them as the former, and serve them on fine sippets.

Or with cream, eggs, salt, preserved lemon-peels grated or in slices.

Or grated cheese in buttered eggs and salt.

_Otherways._

Boil herbs, as spinage, sage, sweet marjoram, and endive, butter the eggs amongst them with some salt, and grated nutmeg.

Or dress them with sugar, orange juyce, salt, beaten cinamon, and grated nutmeg, strain the eggs with the juyce of oranges, and let the juyce serve instead of butter; being well soaked, put some more juyce over them and sugar.

_To make minced Pies of Eggs according to these forms._

Boil them hard, then mince them and mix them with cinamon, raw currans, carraway-seed, sugar, and dates, minced lemon peel, verjuyce, rose-water, butter, and salt; fill your pie or pies, close them, and bake them, being baked, liquor them with white-wine, butter, and sugar, and ice them.

_Eggs or Quelque shose._

Break forty eggs, and beat them together with some salt, fry them at four times, half, or but of one side; before you take them out of the pan, make a composition or compound of hard eggs, and sweet herbs minced, some boil'd currans, beaten cinamon, almond-paste, sugar, and juyce of orange, strow all over these omlets, roul them up like a wafer, and so of the rest, put them in a dish with some white-wine, sugar, and juyce of lemon; then warm and ice them in an oven, with beaten butter and fine sugar.

_Otherways._

Set on a skillet, either full of milk, wine, water, verjuyce, or sack, make the liquor boil, then have twenty eggs beaten together with salt, and some sweet herbs chopped, run them through a cullender into the boiling liquor, or put them in by spoonfuls or all together; being not too hard boil'd, take them up and dish them with beaten butter, juice of orange, lemon, or grape-verjuyce, and beaten butter.

_Blanch Manchet in a frying-Pan._

Take six eggs, a quart of cream, a penny manchet grated, nutmeg grated, two spoonfuls of rose-water, and 2 ounces of sugar, beat it up like a pudding, and fry it as you fry a tansie; being fryed turn it out on a plate, quarter it, and put on the juyce of an orange and sugar.

_Quelque shose otherways._

Take ten eggs, and beat them in a dish with a penny manchet grated, a pint of cream, some beaten cloves mace, boil'd currans, some rose-water, salt, and sugar; beat all together, and fry it either in a whole form of a tansie, or by spoonfuls in little cakes, being finely fried, serve them on a plate with juyce of orange and scraping sugar.

_Other Fricase or Quelque shose._

Take twenty eggs, and strain them with a quart of cream, some nutmeg, salt, rose-water, and a little sugar, then have sweet butter in a clean frying-pan, and put in some pieces of pippins cut as thick as a half crown piece round the apple being cored; when they are finely fried, put in half the eggs, fry them a little, and then pour on the rest or other half, fry it at two times, stir the last, dish the first on a plate, and put the other on it with juyce of orange and sugar.

_Other Fricase of Eggs._

Beat a dozen of eggs with cream, sugar, nutmeg, mace, and rose-water, then have two or three pippins or other good apples, cut in round slices through core and all, put them in a frying-pan, and fry them with sweet butter; when they be enough, take them up and fry half the eggs and cream in other fresh butter, stir it like a tansie, and being enough put it out into a dish, put in the other half of the eggs and cream, lay the apples round the pan, and the other eggs fried before, uppermost; being finely fried, dish it on a plate, and put to it the juyce of an orange and sugar.

* * * * * * * * *

SECTION XXII.

_The best Ways for the Dressing of Artichocks._

_To stew Artichocks._

The artichocks being boil'd, take out the core, and take off all the leaves, cut the bottoms into quarters splitting them in the middle; then have a flat stewing-pan or dish with manchet toasts in it, lay the artichocks on them, then the marrow of two bones, five or six large maces, half a pound of preserved plumbs, with the sirrup, verjuyce, and sugar; if the sirrup do not make them sweet enough, let all these stew together 2 hours, if you stew them in a dish, serve them up in it, not stirring them, only laying on some preserves which are fresh, as barberries, and such like, sippet it, and serve it up.

Instead of preserved, if you have none, stew ordinary plumbs which will be cheaper, and do nigh as well.

_To fry Artichocks._

Boil and sever all from the bottoms, then slice them in the midst, quarter them, dip them in batter, and fry them in butter. For the sauce take verjuyce, butter, and sugar, with the juyce of an orange, lay marrow on them, garnish them with oranges, and serve them up.

_To fry young Artichocks otherways._

Take young artichocks or suckets, pare off all the outside as you pare an apple, and boil them tender, then take them up, and split them through the midst, do not take out the core, but lay the split side downward on a dry cloth to drain out the water; then mix a little flour with two or three yolks of eggs, beaten ginger, nutmeg & verjuyce, make it into batter and roul them well in it, then get some clarified butter, make it hot and fry them in it till they be brown. Make sauce with yolks of eggs, verjuyce or white-wine, cinamon, ginger, sugar, and a good piece of butter, keep it stirring upon the fire till it be thick, then dish them on white-bread toasts, put the caudle on them, and serve them up.

* * * * * * * * *

SECTION XXIII.

_Shewing the best way of making Diet for the Sick._

_To make a Broth for a Sick body._

Take a leg of veal, and set it a boiling in a gallon of fair water, scum it clean, and when you have so done put in three quarters of a pound of currans, half a pound of prunes, a handful of borrage, as much mint, and as much harts-tongue; let them seeth together till all the strength be sodden out of the flesh, then strain it as clean as you can. If you think the party be in any heat, put in violet leaves and succory.

_To stew a Cock against a Consumption._

Cut him in six pieces, and wash him clean, then take prunes, currans, dates, raisins, sugar, three or four leaves of gold, cinamon, ginger, nutmeg, and some maiden hair, cut very small; put all these foresaid things into a flaggon with a pint of muskadine, and boil them in a great brass pot of half a bushel; stop the mouth of the flaggon with a piece of paste, and let it boil the space of twelve hours; being well stewed, strain the liquor, and give it to the party to drink cold, two or three spoonfuls in the morning fasting, and it shall help him. _This is an approved Medicine._

_Otherways._

Take a good fleshy cock, draw him and cut him to pieces, wash away the blood clean, and take away the lights that lie at his back, wash it in white-wine, and no water, then put the pieces in a flaggon, and put to it two or three blades of large mace, a leaf of gold, ambergriece, some dates, and raisins of the Sun; close up the flaggon with a piece of paste, and set it in a pot a boiling six hours; keep the pot filled up continually, with hot water; being boil'd strain it, and when it is cold give of it to the weak party the bigness of a hazelnut.

_Stewed Pullets against a Consumption._

Take two pullets being finely cleansed, cut them to pieces, and put them in a narrow mouthed pitcher pot well glazed, stop the mouth of it with a piece of paste and set it a boiling in a good deep brass pot or vessel of water, boil it eight hours, keep it continually boiling, and still filled up with warm water; being well stewed, strain it, and blow off the fat; when you give it to the party, give it warm with the yolk of an egg, dissolved with the juyce of an orange.

_To distill a Pig good against a Consumption._

Take a pig, flay it and cast away the guts; then take the liver, lungs, and all the entrails, and wipe all with a clean cloth; then put it into a Still with a pound of dates, the stones taken out, and sliced into thin slices, a pound of sugar, and an ounce of large mace. If the party be hot in the stomach, then take these cool herbs, as violet leaves, strawberry leaves, and half a handful of bugloss, still them with a soft fire as you do roses, and let the party take of it every morning and evening in any drink or broth he pleases.

You may sometimes add raisins and cloves.

_To make Broth good against a Consumption._

Take a cock and a knuckle of veal, being well soaked from the blood, boil them in an earthen pipkin of five quarts, with raisins of the sun, a few prunes, succory, lang de-beef roots, fennil roots, parsley, a little anniseed, a pint of white-wine, hyssop, violet leaves, strawberry-leaves, bind all the foresaid roots, and herbs, a little quantity of each in a bundle, boil it leisurely, scum it, and when it is boil'd strain it through a strainer of strong canvas, when you use it, drink it as often as you please blood-warm.

Sometimes in the broth, or of any of the meats aforesaid, use mace, raisins of the sun, a little balm, endive, fennel and parsley roots.

Sometimes sorrel, violet leaves, spinage, endive, succory, sage, a little hyssop, raisins of the sun, prunes, a little saffron, and the yolk of an egg, strained with verjuyce or white-wine.

_Otherways._

Fennil-roots, colts foot, agrimony, betony, large mace, white sander slic't in thin slices the weight of six pence, made with a chicken and a crust of manchet, take it morning and evening.

_Otherways._

Violet leaves, wild tansie, succory-roots, large mace, raisins, and damask prunes boil'd with a chicken and a crust of bread.

Sometimes broth made of a chop of mutton, veal, or chicken, French barley, raisins, currans, capers, succory root, parsley roots, fennil-roots, balm, borrage, bugloss, endive, tamarisk, harts-horn, ivory, yellow sanders, and fumitory, put to these all (or some) in a moderate quantity.

Otherways, a sprig of rosemary, violet-leaves, tyme, mace, succory, raisins, and a crust of bread.

_To make a Paste for a Consumption._

Take the brawn of a roasted capon, the brawn of two partridges, two rails, two quails, and twelve sparrows all roasted; take the brawns from the bones, and beat them in a stone mortar with two ounces, of the pith of roast veal, a quarter of a pound of pistaches, half a dram of ambergriece, a grain of musk, and a pound of white sugar-candy beaten fine; beat all these in a mortar to a perfect paste, now and then putting in a spoonful of goats milk, also two or three grains of bezoar; when you have beaten all to a perfect paste, make it into little round cakes, and bake them on a sheet of white paper.

_To make a Jelly for a Consumption of the Lungs._

Take half a pound of ising glass, as much harts-horn, an ounce of cinamon, an ounce of nutmegs, a few cloves, a pound of sugar, a stick of liquoras, four blades of large mace, a pound of prunes, an ounce of ginger, a little red sanders, and as much rubarb as will lie on a six pence, boil the foresaid in a gallon of water, and a pint of claret till a pint be wasted or boil'd away, boil them on a soft fire close covered, and slice all your spices very thin.

_ An excellent Water for a Consumption._

Take a pint of new milk, and a pint of good red wine, the yolks of twenty four new laid eggs raw, and dissolved in the foresaid liquors; then have as much fine slic't manchet as will drink up all this liquor, put it into a fair rose-still with a soft fire, and being distilled, take this water in all drinks and pottages the sick party shall eat, or the quantity of a spoonful at a draught in beer, in one month it will recover any Consumption.

_Other drink for a Consumption._

Take a gallon of running water of ale measure, put to it an ounce of cinamon, an ounce of cloves, an ounce of mace, and a dram of acter-roots, boil this liquor till it come to three quarts, and let the party daily drink of it till he mends.

_To make an excellent Broth or Drink for a Sick Body._

Take a good fleshy capon, take the flesh from the bones, or chop it in pieces very small, and not wash it; then put them in a rose still with slics of lemon-peel, wood-sorrel, or other herbs according to the _Physitians_ direction; being distilled, give it to the weak party to drink.

Or soak them in malmsey and some capon broth before you distill them.

_To make a strong Broth for a Sick Party._

Roast a leg of mutton, save the gravy, and being roasted prick it, and press out the gravy with a wooden press; put all the gravy into a silver porrenger or piece, with the juyce of an orange and sugar, warm it on the coals, and give it the weak party.

Thus you may do a roast or boil'd capon, partridge, pheasant, or chicken, take the flesh from the bones, and stamp it in a stone or wooden mortar, with some crumbs of fine manchet, strained with capon broth, or without bread, and put the yolk of an egg, juyce of orange, lemon, or grape verjuyce and sugar.

_To make China Broth._

Take an ounce of China thin slic't, put it in a pipkin of fair water, with a little veal or chicken, stopped close in pipkin, let it stand 4 and twenty hours on the embers but not boil; then put to it colts foot, scabious-maiden-hair, violet leaves half a handful, candied eringo, and 2 or 3 marsh mallows, boil them on a soft fire till the third part be wasted, then put in a crust of manchet, a little mace, a few raisins of the sun stoned, and let it boil a while longer. Take of this broth every morning half a pint for a month, then leave it a month, & use it again.

_China Broth otherways._

Take 2 ounces of China root thin sliced, and half an ounce of long pepper bruised; then take of balm, tyme, sage, marjoram, nepe, and smalk, of each two slices, clary, a hanful of cowslips, a pint of cowslip water, and 3 blades of mace; put all into a new and well glazed pipkin of 4 quarts, & as much fair water as will fill the pipkin, close it up with paste and let it on the embers to warm, but not to boil; let it stand thus soaking 4 and twenty hours; then take it off, and put to it a good big cock chickens, calves foot, a knuckle of mutton, and a little salt; stew all with a gentle fire to a pottle, scum it very clean & being boil'd strain the clearest from the dregs & drink of it every morning half a pint blood-warm.

_To make Almond Milk against a hot Disease._

Boil half a pound of French barley in 3 several waters, keep the last water to make your milk of, then stamp half a pound of almonds with a little of the same water to keep them from oyling; being finely beaten, strain it whith the rest of the barley water, put some hard sugar to it, boil it a little, and give it the party warm.

_An excellent Restorative for a weak back._

Take clary, dates, the pith of an oxe, and chop them together, put some cream to them, eggs, grated bread, and a little white saunders, temper them all well together fry them, and eat it in the morning fasting.

Otherways, take the leaves of clary and nepe, fry them with yolks of eggs, and eat them to break fast.

* * * * * * * * *

SECTION XXIV.

_Excellent Ways for Feeding of Poultrey._

_To feed Chickens._

If you will have fat crammed chickens, coop them up when the dam hath forsaken them, the best cramming for them is wheat-meal and milk made into dough the crams steeped in milk, and so thrust down their throats; but in any case let the crams be small and well wet, for fear you choak them. Fourteen days will feed a chicken sufficiently.

_To feed Capons._

Either at the barn doors with scraps of corn and chavings of pulse, or else in pens in the house, by cramming them, which is the most dainty. The best way to cram a capon (setting all strange inventions apart) is to take barley meal, reasonably sifted, and mixing it with new milk, make it into good stiff dough; than make it into long crams thickest in the middle, & small at both ends, then wetting them in luke-warm milk, giue the capon a full gorge thereof three times a day morning noon, and night, and he will in a fortnight or three weeks be as fat as any man need to eat.

_The ordering of Goslings._

After they are hatched you shall keep them in the house ten or twelve days, and feed them with curds, scalded chippins, or barley meal in milk knodden and broken, also ground malt is exceeding good, or any bran that is scalded in water, milk, or tappings of drink. After they have got a little strength, you may let them go abroad with a keeper five or six hours in a day, and let the dam at her leisure entice them into the water; then bring them in, and put them up, and thus order them till they be able to defend themselves from vermine. After a gosling is a month or six weeks old you may put it up to feed for a green goose, & it will be perfectly fed in another month following; and to feed them, there is no better meat then skeg oats boil'd, and given plenty thereof thrice a day, morning, noon, and night, with good store of milk, or milk and water mixt together to drink.

_For fatting of elder Geese._

For elder geese which are five or six months old, having been in the stubble fields after harvest, and got into good flesh, you shall then choose out such geese as you would feed, and put them in several Pens which are close and dark, and there feed them thrice a day with good store of oats, or spelted beans, and give them to drink water and barly meal mixt together, which must evermore stand before them. This will in three weeks feed a goose so fat as is needfull.

_The fatting of Ducklings._

You may make them fat in three weeks giving them any kind of pulse or grain, and good store of water.

_Fatting of Swans and Cygnets._

For Swans and their feeding, where they build their nests, you shall suffer them to remain undisturbed, and it will be sufficient because they can better order themselves in that business than any man.

Feed your Cygnets in all sorts as you feed your Geese, and they will be through fat in seven or eight weeks. If you will have them sooner fat, you shall feed them in some pond hedged, or placed in for that purpose.

_Of fatting Turkies._

For the fatting of turkies sodden barley is excellent, or sodden oats for the first fortnight, and then for another fortnight cram them in all sorts as you cram your capon, and they will be fat beyond measure. Now for their infirmities, when they are at liberty, they are so good _Physitians_ for themselves, that they will never trouble their owners; but being coopt up you must cure them as you do pullets. Their eggs are exceeding wholesome to eat, and restore nature decayed wonderfully.

Having a little dry ground where they may sit and prune themselves, place two troughs, one full of barley and water, and the other full of old dried malt wherein they may feed at their pleasure. Thus doing, they will be fat in less than a month: but you must turn his walks daily.

_Of nourishing and fatting Herns, Puets, Gulls, and Bitterns._