The pigeons must be seasoned with pepper, salt, cloves, mace and sweet herbs. Wrap the seasoning up in a piece of butter and put it in the pigeon. Then tie up the neck and vest and half roast the pigeons. Then put them in a stewpan with a quart of good gravy, a little white wine, some pickled mushrooms, a few peppercorns, three or four blades of mace, a bit of lemon peel, a bit of onion and a bunch of sweet herbs. Stew until done, then thicken with butter and yolks of eggs. Garnish with lemon.
Pigeon Pie.
Take six young pigeons. After they are drawn, trussed, and singed, stuff them with the chopped livers mixed with parsley, salt, pepper, and a small piece of butter. Cover the bottom of the dish with rather small pieces of beef. On the beef, place a thin layer of chopped parsley and mushrooms, seasoned with pepper and salt. Over this place the pigeons, between each putting the yolk of a hard-boiled egg. Add some brown sauce or gravy. Cover with puff paste and bake the pie for an hour and a half.—Mrs. C. C.
To Dress Reed Birds.
Pick open and carefully wash one dozen or more birds. Place them between the folds of a towel, and with a rolling-pin mash the bones quite flat. Season with salt and a little cayenne and black pepper. Either fry or broil on a gridiron made for broiling oysters. This must be done over a clear fire. When done, season, put a lump of butter on each bird and serve hot.—Mrs. A. M. D.
To Cook Sora, Ortolans, and Other Small Birds.
Prepare as you would a chicken for roasting. Lay in a pan and pour boiling water over them or, if convenient, steam them. Scald a few large fresh oysters till just plump, season them with cayenne pepper, salt and butter. Pour into the cavity of each bird a few drops of pepper-sauce and then put a large oyster in each. Broil a short time, frequently turning that they may not become dry. If not ready to serve them as soon as they are done, lay in a tin bucket, butter them and sprinkle them again with black pepper, cover the bucket and set it over boiling water till wanted. When laid in the dish, sift browned cracker over the birds, and pour gravy into the dish.—Mrs. T.
To Cook Sora, Ortolans, and Other Small Birds.
After they are split open in the back and dressed, lay them in weak salt and water for a short time. Then lay them on a board and roll with a rolling-pin to flatten the breastbone. Put butter, pepper, and salt on them. Lay them on a gridiron and broil slowly. When just done, add more butter and pepper, lay in a flat tin bucket, which set over a vessel of boiling water to keep the birds hot, juicy, and tender till wanted.—Mrs. T.
Sora, Ortolans, Robins, and Other Small Birds.