Roasted Rabbits
Take a pair of fine well-fed young rabbits, and having drawn or emptied them, lay them, for about ten minutes, in a pan of warm water. Then dry them inside with a clean cloth, carefully wiping them out. Truss them short, and neatly, having removed the heads. Line the inside with very thin slices of fat bacon that has had most of the salt soaked out. Make a plentiful stuffing or forcemeat of bread steeped in milk, some fresh butter mixed with a very little flour; or, instead of butter, some beef suet finely minced; some chopped sweet herbs; and some crumbled yolks of hard-boiled eggs. Season with mace and nutmeg, and grated lemon rind. Fill the rabbits well with this—or, you may stuff them entirely with boiled potatos, mashed with plenty of nice butter, or the drippings of roast veal or pork. Or (if liked) you may make the stuffing entirely of minced onion, (previously boiled,) and minced sage leaves, moistened with a very little lard or sweet oil, and seasoned with powdered mace, nutmeg, and pepper. Having put in plenty of stuffing, sew up the bodies of the rabbits, flour them well, and put them on the spit and set them before a clear fire. Baste them with milk, or with fresh butter, tied up in thin muslin. They will be done in an hour or more. Thicken the gravy with flour, and pour it over them in the dish. Roasted rabbits make a good second dish at a small dinner. Take the livers of the rabbits, and chop them, to put into the gravy.