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Cygnet, to Roast

Truss this bird in the same way as a goose. Make a stuffing of three pounds of beef, fat and lean together, chop it small with three boiled onions, a quarter of a pound of butter, a table-spoonful of salt, a tea-spoonful of pepper, and a whole nutmeg grated. Pound it smoothly in a mortar, stuff the cygnet, and sew it up securely, to prevent the gravy escaping. It is generally cooked in the same way as haunch of venison, with a thick crust over it, but this is unnecessary. The gravy may be kept in by covering the bird with paper from the outset: heat it gradually through, baste it patiently and thoroughly, and when it is nearly finished, bring it near the fire to brown, removing the paper. Send it to table with a sauce made of equal quantities of strong beef gravy and port wine. Red currant jelly, hot and cold, should also be served with it. Cygnets should be roasted at or before Christmas, after which time they decidedly deteriorate in quality. They make a very handsome and delicious dish. Time to roast, from two to three hours. Probable cost, uncertain, the birds not being often offered for sale. Sufficient for eight or nine persons. D