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Goose is at its best during midwinter and was the traditional holiday centrepiece before turkey arrived to dominate Christmas tables. Its rich fattiness is best complemented by sharp and sweet fruit flavours as in Germany where goose is served with apples, prunes and sweet-sour red cabbage.
1 bouquet garni: parsley, bay leaf, thyme 2tbsp/ 25g butter 1lb/ 450g chopped onions 3 large celery stalks with tops, chopped 1lb/ 450g cooking apples 2lb/ 1kg cooked mashed potato grated rind of a lemon 8oz/ 225g softened prunes, chopped 1tsp ground mace salt and pepper 1-2tbsp/ 15-30ml flour
Clean goose and scrub inside and out with salt. Put neck and giblets into a pan with water and bouquet garni simmer for 11/2 hours to make stock. To make stuffing, melt butter in a large pan and sauté onions, celery and apples until soft. Combine with mashed potato, lemon rind and chopped prunes. Season with mace, salt and pepper When mixture is cold, stuff loosely into goose cavity. Prick goose skin all over with a sharp fork or skewer, place on rack in an uncovered pan and put into oven pre-heated to gas mark 8/ 450°F/ 230°C and cook for 15 minutes per pound, including stuffing weight. Test by pricking thickest part of thigh near the body and making sure the juices have no tinge of pink. When goose is cooked, make gravy by pouring off all but 2tbsp of fat from roasting pan and stirring in flour. Blend in strained stock from giblets, heat until thickened and season to taste. |
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