A Large Fat Goose Pie

The Experienced English Housekeeper · Elizabeth Raffald · 1784
Source
The Experienced English Housekeeper
Time
Cook: 240 min Total: 240 min
Status
success · extracted 12 days ago
Not a recipe
No
Ingredients (17)
For the pie filling
For the pie crust
For finishing and serving
Instructions (30)
  1. Take a large fat goose, split it down the back, and take all the bones out.
  2. Bone a turkey and two ducks the same way.
  3. Season the goose, turkey, and ducks very well with pepper and salt.
  4. Prepare six woodcocks.
  5. Lay the goose down on a clean dish, with the skin-side down.
  6. Lay the turkey into the goose with the skin down.
  7. Prepare a large hare: clean well, cut in pieces, and stew in the oven with 1 pound of butter, 1/4 ounce of mace beat fine, 1/4 ounce of white pepper, and salt to taste, until the meat will leave the bones.
  8. Skim the butter off the gravy from the stewed hare.
  9. Pick the meat clean off the hare and beat it in a marble mortar very fine, with the butter taken from the gravy.
  10. Lay the beaten hare meat in the turkey.
  11. Make the paste: combine 24 pounds of the finest flour, 6 pounds of butter, and 1/2 pound of fresh rendered suet. Make the paste pretty thick.
  12. Shape the pie oval.
  13. Roll out a lump of paste and cut it into vine leaves or other desired shapes for decoration.
  14. Rub the pie with the yolks of eggs.
  15. Place the paste ornaments on the walls of the pie.
  16. Turn the hare, turkey, and goose upside-down and lay them in your pie.
  17. Place the ducks at each end of the pie.
  18. Place the woodcocks on the sides of the pie.
  19. Make the lid pretty thick and put it on the pie.
  20. You may lay flowers or paste shapes of fowls on the lid.
  21. Make a hole in the middle of your lid.
  22. Ensure the walls of the pie are one and a half inches higher than the lid.
  23. Rub the entire pie all over with the yolks of eggs.
  24. Bind the pie round with three-fold paper, and lay the same paper over the top.
  25. Bake in a brown bread oven for four hours.
  26. When the pie comes out, melt 2 pounds of butter in the gravy that comes from the hare.
  27. Pour the melted butter and gravy hot into the pie through a tun-dish.
  28. Close the hole in the lid well up.
  29. Let the pie be eight or ten days before cutting.
  30. If sending the pie any distance, make up the hole in the middle with cold butter to prevent air from getting in.
Original Text
TAKE a large fat gooſe, ſplit it down the back, and take all the bones out, bone a turkey and two ducks the ſame way, ſeaſon them very well with pepper and ſalt, with ſix woodcocks, lay the gooſe down on a clean diſh, with the ſkin-ſide down, and lay the turkey into the gooſe with the ſkin down, have ready a large hare cleaned well, cut in pieces, and ſtewed in the oven, with a pound of butter, a quarter of an ounce of mace beat fine, the ſame of white pepper, and ſalt to your taſte, till the meat will leave the bones, and ſcum the butter off the gravy, pick the meat clean off, and beat it in a marble mortar very fine, with the butter you took off, and lay it in the turkey ; take twenty-four pounds of the fineſt flour, ſix pounds of butter, half a pound of freſh rendered ſuet, make the paſte pretty thick, and raiſe the pie oval, roll out a lump of paſte, and cut it in vine leaves, or what form you pleaſe, rub the pie with the yolks of eggs, and put your ornaments on the walls, then turn the hare, turkey, and gooſe upſide-down, and lay them in your pie, with the ducks at each end, and the woodcocks on the ſides, make your lid pretty thick and put it on ; you may lay flowers, or the ſhape of the fowls in paſte, on the lid, and make a hole in the middle of your lid ; the walls of the pie are to be one inch and a half higher than the lid, then rub it all over with the yolks of eggs, and bind it round with three fold paper, and lay the ſame over the top ; it will take four hours baking in a brown bread oven ; when it comes out, melt two pounds of butter in the gravy that comes from the hare, and pour it hot in the pie through a tun-diſh, cloſe it well up, and let it be eight or ten days before you cut it ; if you ſend it any diſtance, make up the hole in the middle with cold butter, to prevent the air from getting in.
Notes