To Coller A Breast Of Veal To Eat Hot

This recipe hails from the English Restoration era, penned around 1675 by Lettice Pudsey, a gentlewoman with access to both fresh veal and imported spices. Cookbooks and kitchen manuscripts from this time reflect a fascinating transition from medieval to modern taste, blending rich, spiced meats with the growing influence of French techniques and lighter sauces. The "collared" method—rolling and boiling meats, often for special gatherings—was a fashionable way to display both culinary finesse and wealth, since veal and spices were luxury items for most. Pudsey’s manuscript, like many kept by women of her class, is written in brisk, practical prose. It offers a window into the domestic kitchens of the gentry, where recipes were closely guarded family treasures passed through generations.

The original cook would have used a sturdy wooden board, a hefty cleaver (for both boning and flattening the meat), sharp knives, and a coarse cloth (often linen). For the lengthy boil, a large iron or copper cauldron sat over the hearth. The tying was done with fabric tape or clean string. Sauce was finished in wide, shallow pans, whisked by hand over gentle coals to avoid curdling the eggs. Presentation, all-important, required precision slicing and careful laying out on platters.