More from Dinner With Mr. Darcy: Soused Lamb & Spring Vegetable Pie

This is my third forray into making Regency foods using the book Dinner With Mr. Darcy by Pen Vogler.  As with my previous attempts, I am amazed at how much spice is packed into these recipes!  It makes sense, considering England's involvement with India and the spice trade-- but somehow it's not something that I immediately think of when I think of British cooking.  Boiled meat is.  I was a bit nervous about that part but (second surprise!) the lamb wasn't just boiled, it was in a simmered in an herbed & spiced broth with WINE. 

This makes all the difference. 

Main Dish: Soused Lamb

This dish was adapted from John Nott's The Cook's and Confectioner's Dictionary (1723)

The recipe is pretty straight forward, though my semi-boned lamb still needed to be completely de-boned.  I was only a little terrified, and it turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself.  The bone was saved and boiled with herbs for broth for future meals.

Next, I sprinkled it with all the herbs and spices.  It's actually quite colorful and pretty.  True to form, it required a lot of nutmeg, so I halved the amount.  Also, I only had 1/2 a lemon to zest instead of a whole one--I'd forgotten & used the other half in a cocktail.  I regret nothing.  Other than that, I followed the recipe spot on.

I trussed it up as best I could.  Then, I wrapped the lamb up in cheesecloth, tied "the ends like a Christmas cracker," and boiled it for 2 hours and 15min.  

Copper pot full of herbs & waiting for the roast.

While it was boiling, I got on with prepping ingredients for the pie.  

If I'm being honest, when I tried to slice it up to serve, my beautiful roll fell apart.  I have a feeling my butchery was simply not up to snuff.  Ah well, it was delicious & I still managed to get a couple of lovely pictures.

Side Dish: Summer Vegetable Pie

This recipe was adapted from Mrs. Rundell's A New System of Domestic Cookery (1806)

This recipe, though theoretically simpler, needed a little more adaptation than the last one.  I figure this isn't too heretical, since the recipe basically seems to be 'take whatever veg is available in season & bake in a dish with a crust topping.' 

I decided that I did not want baked lettuce (yes, that's in the recipe) and than opted to skip the turnips, artichoke bottoms, and celery as well.  It would make an odd flavor combo for modern tastes, I think.  Maybe I can experiment later with a mini-pie, but I really couldn't bring myself to cook something that would end up wasted.  

So here's what I used:

In addition, I noticed that the recipe doesn't include a binder, or any gravy inside the pie.  Rather there is a footnote saying, "serve with a good veal, chicken, or onion gravy."  Interestingly, Mrs. Rundell instructs to mix the veg "or any of them you have [. . .] into a nice stew, with some good gravy. [. . .] When baked, open the lid, & pour in the stew." 

In the spirit of the original recipe, I mixed the chopped and prepped veg with a tub of left-over KFC gravy.  Don't judge me.  It was delicious.

I also got to use my pie bird for the first time!  Isn't he adorable?

He did an admirable job venting my pie. 

Despite the lack of binder,  it was remarkable structurally sound.  I didn't get a picture of it sliced, as I was far more interested in eating it.  Oops.

Here is a picture of desert instead: an avocado brownie topped with homemade whipped cream & strawberries.  It has nothing to do with Jane Austen, but I think she would approve. 

 

 

Bon Appetite!