Having provided a calf’s-head, scald off the hair, as you would do off a pig; then clean it, cut off the horny part in thin slices, with as little of the lean as possible; put it in a few chopp’d oysters, and and the brains; have ready between a quart and three pints of strong mutton or veal gravy, with a quart of Madeira wine, a large tea spoonful of Cayan pepper, a large onion chopped very small; peel off half of a large lemon, shred as fine as possible, a little salt, the juice of four lemons, and some sweet-herbs cut small; stew all these together till the meat is very tender, which will be in about an hour and a half; and then have ready the back shell of a turtle, lined with a paste of flour and water, which you must first set into the oven to harden; then put in the ingredients, and set into the oven to brown the top; and when that is done, suit your garnish at the top with the yolks of eggs boiled hard, and forcemeat balls.
This receipt is intended for a large head; if you cannot get the shell of a turtle, a china-soup dish will do as well; and if no oven is at hand, the setting may be omitted; and if no oysters are to be procured, it is very good without.
It is sometimes dressed with but a pint of wine, and the juice of two lemons.
After the horny part is boiled a little tender, put in your white meat.
It will do without the oven, and take a fine knuckle of veal, cut off the skin, and cut some of the fine firm lean into small pieces, as you do the white meat of a turtle, and stew it with the other white meat above.
Take the firm hard fat which grows between the meat, and lay that into the sauce of spinach or sorrel, till half an hour before the above is ready; then take it out, and lay it on a sieve to drain; and put in juice to stew with the above. The remainder of the knuckle will help the gravy.