Goose sauced with Mulberries

“[Lady Tanda] invites you to sup with her again. There’s to be a haunch of venison, she says, a brace of stuffed geese sauced with mulberries, and–” “–her daughter,” Tyrion finished sourly. Since the hour he had arrived in the Red Keep, Lady Tanda had been stalking him, armed with a never-ending arsenal of lamprey pies, wild boars, and savory cream stews.” -A Clash of Kings

Goose sauced with Mulberries

Thoughts:

The goose is rich, somewhat similar to duck, but also much like dark meat on a turkey. Pricking the skin all over allows the extra fat to run off (which can then be used in many amazing dishes), so the meat itself isn’t too fatty. Goose is definitely a win, but a bit on the pricey side. It’s great for wooing potential suitors, or for snazzy holiday feasts.

The sauce is based on a renaissance recipe from Maestro Martino’s “The Art of Cooking”, and is a highlight of this meal. Mulberries are in season in June, so I took full advantage and picked enough to finally finish off this recipe. The fruitiness of the berries is complimented by the vinegar, but as with the honeyed chicken sauce, the vinegar doesn’t overpower the whole. The almond meal provides some thickness and slight texture, while the spices lend it a piquancy that increases the longer the sauce sits. It pairs beautifully with the goose, resulting in a decadent meal.

Recipe for Goose with Mulberry Sauce

Goose:

1 goose, around 10 lb.
4 apples
~3 cups cubed bread
1 cup currants
4 Tbs. melted butter
1 clove garlic, minced
thyme
marjoram
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and wash the goose inside and out. Pat dry with towels, and arrange on a roasting tray. Cut off excess neck fat, then prick the skin all over with a sharp knife or skewer, which will help drain the fat from the bird. Sprinkle liberally with coarse salt.

Combine all the remaining ingredients to make the stuffing, and stuff the bird. Tuck the wings in to keep them from burning. Roast for 2 hours, then check the goose. If the juices run clear from the thigh, then it should be done. The legs often need a little more time than the body, so it’s alright to take the goose out, carve it, then continue to cook the legs until done. Periodically remove fat with a baster, straining and reserving it for future use.

When the goose is done, allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes before carving. Serve with sauce below.

Mulberry Sauce:

2 cups mulberries
1/2 cup ground almonds
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
ginger
pepper
nutmeg
vinegar

Mix together the mulberries, almonds, and breadcrumbs. Grind all the ingredients together, then pour through a sieve. Add spices to taste (a pinch of each should do), plus enough vinegar to make a sauce consistency, then simmer over medium-low heat for around 5 minutes. Serve warm over the goose, and garnish with fresh mulberries, if you like.

Mulberry Sauce for Goose

Mutton Chops sauced with Honey and Cloves

“Such food Bran had never seen; course after course after course, so much that he could not manage more than a bite or two of each dish. There were great joints of aurochs roasted with leeks, venison pies chunky with carrots, bacon, and mushrooms, mutton chops sauced in honey and cloves…” -A Clash of Kings

Lamb Chops sauced with Honey and Cloves

Thoughts:

I sort of winged this particular dish. Having such great results with the mead marinade that I used for the Robert Baratheon meal, I decided to try a similar approach with this dish.

Sometimes a dish doesn’t quite live up to my expectations.

The results, while tasty, were not as mind-boggling as the former instance. The sauce was nice, but lacked a really strong honey-clove flavor. A variation on this sauce, perhaps with some butter and white wine instead of the mead, could be lovely, and is something I’ll probably try: I hate being defeated by a meal.

Honestly, I think that literally pouring some good honey and ground cloves over a nice cut of lamb will give you as rewarding a dish as any more complicated version. Keep the pinch of cinnamon, though: it helps bring out the bite of the clove.

Any suggestions?

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Medieval Black Pepper Sauce

Poivre Noir : Black Pepper Sauce

ORIGINAL RECEIPT:

165. Poivre noir: Black Pepper Sauce. Grind ginger, round pepper and burnt toast, infuse this in vinegar (var.: and a little verjuice) and boil it. – Le Viandier de Taillevent, 14th century

This recipe makes a lovely, rich sauce that pairs well with robust red meats, such as venison, boar, and beef. The quantities of ingredients can be tweaked to make the sauce thicker or thinner to your preference, and you should also feel free to adjust the amount of pepper to taste. The tartness of the vinegar might surprise you on first taste, but after a little acclimation, we think you’ll like it as much as we do. The charred tasted of the bread combined with the bite of the pepper rounds out the flavor sensations that go with this sauce.

Ingredients

1 slice bread, toasted until black
1/3 cup verjuice, or equal parts cider vinegar and water
1 Tbs. wine vinegar
1 Tbs. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Soak the burned bread in the liquid until it has fallen apart; mash with a fork. Stir in the spices and slowly bring to a boil. For a thinner sauce, add more liquid; for a smoother version, press through a sieve.

Honeyed Chicken

“‘Hungry again?’ he asked. There was still half a honeyed chicken in the center of the table. Jon reached out to tear off a leg, then had a better idea. He knifed the bird whole and let the carcass slide to the floor between his legs. Ghost ripped into it in savage silence.” -A Game of Thrones

Thoughts:

Yum. The sauce reduces down to a thick, syrupy consistency, which melts ever so slightly when drizzled over the hot chicken. The raisins soak up the sauce, and become absolutely delicious little morsels. Combine a bite of the chicken, dripping with the juice from the plate, with a plump raisin, and you’re golden.

Bottom line? Omnomnom!

Medieval Roast Chicken Recipe

This was a recipe that gave us some difficulty; Absurd, when it seems so straightforward. However, there appear to be no recipes for “honeyed chicken” from a surviving period cookbook. At last, we found a recipe that we could work with. Thank you Ancient Romans! Now, you say that ancient Rome is not the Middle Ages, and you are correct. However, we use what we can. And really, it’s honeyed chicken. Are you really going to hold that against us?

Our changes: Since this dish is mentioned in The North, we took out a few things that were more Roman than Stark. We started with Apicius’ recipe for Chicken in Honey and Dill Glaze (Apicius, 6.8.2). Instead of white wine vinegar, we substituted apple cider vinegar, and added raisins, assuming that raisins are easier to come by in The North than are grapes. We eliminated the dill and date syrup for the same reason. Also, absolutely no fish sauce with our chicken. This left us with ingredients as follows:

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken for roasting
olive oil/butter (~1 Tbs)
salt

Sauce:

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup honey
Dash of mint, dried or fresh (abt. 1 tsp.)
Small handful of raisins
~1 Tbs. butter

Rub the chicken down with olive oil/butter and salt. This makes the skin crispy and delicious. Cook in an oven at 450 degrees F for approximately an hour, or until the juices run clear, and the thick meat of the breast is no longer pink.

While your chicken is roasting away in the oven, combine all ingredients in saucepan and allow to simmer until the raisins plump and the sauce reduces slightly. Remove from heat, and when the chicken is done, spread the sauce and raisins over the bird.

Enjoy!