Grouse or Prairie Hens Roasted with Gravy, Fried Bread-Crumbs or Apple Sauce

Select some grouse and after picking, singeing and drawing, truss them without barding for roasting (No. 179), run a skewer through and fasten this firmly to the spit, then roast before a good fire or they may be put in a baking pan, smeared over with fat and roasted in the oven, but in either case they need basting frequently with melted butter. When almost done, salt them over and as soon as they are finished (which will take from twenty to twenty-five minutes), like all black meats these should be cooked rare, untruss and dress on a crouton of bread cut so that they stand plumb on it, and serve some clear gravy (No. 404) separately or replace it by apple sauce (No. 428), served the same, or a bread sauce (No. 438), may be substituted or surround with fried bread-crumbs prepared as follows: Brown some slices of bread in the oven and when of a good color and very dry, pound and pass through a fine wire sieve, mix these crumbs with a little butter, put it into a sautoir and set in the oven to fry until of a nice color.