Beef’s Heart
Wash the heart well, and soak it in a pan of tepid water till all the blood is drawn out of the ventricles, and it is made very clean and dry. Next par-boil it a quarter of an hour. Then stuff the cavities with a forcemeat made of minced veal, bread-crumbs, butter or minced suet, and sweet herbs, seasoned with a little pepper and nutmeg; or it may be stuffed simply with sage and onions. Sew up the openings with coarse brown thread, lest the forcemeat should fall out. Put the heart on a spit, and roast it before a clear fire, for near two hours; basting it well with nice fresh butter. Thicken the gravy with a little flour, and stir into it a glass of port wine, or of tarragon vinegar. Have ready a hot dish and a heated cover. Serve up the heart as hot as possible, for it soon chills, and pour the gravy around it. The gravy should be heated to a boil in a small sauce-pan.
Calves’ Hearts are cooked in the same manner. As they are small, it takes four calves’ hearts to make a dish.
Hearts may be sliced and stewed with onions and sweet herbs, adding to the stew a little salad oil.