Roast Hare

Ingredients

• Hare
• forcemeat No. 417
• a little milk
• butter

Instructions

1. _Choosing and Trussing_.--Choose a young hare; which may be known by its smooth and sharp claws, and by the cleft in the lip not being much spread.
2. To be eaten in perfection, it must hang for some time; and, if properly taken care of, it may be kept for several days.
3. It is better to hang without being paunched; but should it be previously emptied, wipe the inside every day, and sprinkle over it a little pepper and ginger, to prevent the musty taste which long keeping in the damp occasions, and which also affects the stuffing.
4. After it is skinned, wash it well, and soak for an hour in warm water to draw out the blood;
5. if old, let it lie in vinegar for a short time, but wash it well afterwards in several waters.
6. Make a forcemeat by recipe No. 417, wipe the hare dry, fill the belly with it, and sew it up.
7. Bring the hind and fore legs close to the body towards the head, run a skewer through each, fix the head between the shoulders by means of another skewer, and be careful to leave the ears on.
8. Pat a string round the body from skewer to skewer, and tie it above the back.
9. [Illustration: ROAST HARE.] _Mode_.--The hare should be kept at a distance from the fire when it is first laid down, or the outside will become dry and hard before the inside is done.
10. Baste it well with milk for a short time, and afterwards with butter; and particular attention must be paid to the basting, so as to preserve the meat on the back juicy and nutritive.
11. When it is almost roasted enough, flour the hare, and baste well with butter.
12. When nicely frothed, dish it, remove the skewers, and send it to table with a little gravy in the dish, and a tureen of the same.
13. Red-currant jelly must also not be forgotten, as this is an indispensable accompaniment to roast hare.
14. For economy, good beef dripping may be substituted for the milk and butter to baste with; but the basting, as we have before stated, must be continued without intermission.
15. If the liver is good, it maybe parboiled, minced, and mixed with the stuffing; but it should not be used unless quite fresh.--See coloured plate, E1.