San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-04-06
Easter Lamb.

lamb. have adorned this feast. Ever
year my file on this subject gets som
interesting additions, showing hoy
anc;,Lt Easter customs are continue
to tins day. Last year L added IN
picture of a Roumanian with IAN
in his arms. under which was this le
gend: "Roumanian Turkey am
is the national dish of Roumania o.
feast days. Photo shows peasant
selling the animal on Bucharest street
in preparation for Easter week.
In an old book found the statemen
that whole lamb roasted before al
open fire, basted with lemon juice AM
wild thyme, then served with SALAD
and vegetables was always eaten n
Easter time in Greece. A news lten
of last April telling of the use OF tel
lambs at a Greek dinner said: Greeks
throughout the city celebrated I'M
Easter Sunday of the Greek ORTHODOX
church yesterday with special services
with feasts of roast lamb, and tolt
dances and songs. Services VIII o.
continued today and tomorrow. Th'
feast was the feature of the day, fol
lowing the Lenten fast. The Greel
church DEGREES that every family mus
have a lamb on Easter Sunday spe'
cially fattened and killed for the oe
casion. Many open fires were buii'
to book the lambs whole on wooden
spit, as is prescribed.
Meat With q History.
In Italian communities around us
we see wonderful things in sugar
representing the paschal lamb. All
these survivals from ancient civlllza-
tons seem to ME most interesting
When we eat lamb we are really eat
ing a meat with thousands Of years
Of history behind it, a history leading
us back even to the book of Genesis.
Out of Greece, Persia and the Orient
comes many queer lamb stews, or a
lamb stew varied by having different
vegetables and seasoning ingredients
in it, okra, eggplant, greens, noodles,
etc. Sometimes the principal ingredl-
ent is beans, and the dish, perhaps
1000 years old or more, was probably
adapted by the French into a famous
"haricot."
Within the year D. 81. Lawrence, L
think it was, described an open fire in
Sardinia, as he had seen it. In Soy
er's Culinary Campaign (1SoD he de-
scribes how he was anxious when in
Scutari to see the process of roasting
sheen and lambs whole, which he calls
a sacrifice He also describes how
they use every part of the animal
for a black pudding, which was aroma
tic and had a delicate flavor and sea-
soned the roasting meat. Here is how
he described the roasting OF sheep
and lamb whole:
although a primitive method, it is
far from being a bad one. About one
hundredweight of wood is set on a fire
in an open place, yard, kitchen or
elsewhere, and when burnt the ashes
are piled up pyramidally to about the
length of, the lamb. Four stones, about
a foot high, are then placed at each
end, and about eighteen inches from
the fire; the lambs are spitted, heads
and all, upon q long piece of wood,
with a rough handle similar TO that OF
a barrel organ. They are then put
down; each being turned by one man
who now and then moves the ashes to
revive the fire, at the same time bast
ing the lambs with bunch of reathers
dipped in oil. A pan should be placed
underneath to receive the fat. Each
lamb took about three hours doing by
that slow process; but, I must repeat
they were done to perfection, and
worthy the attention Of the greatest
epicure."
Barbecue Being Revived.
/ hope those of my readers who
are interested in the barbecue will see
this recipe for roasting lambs whole
The business Of cooking meat in this
style is being revived today in many
parts Of the country and by quite high
]y sophisticated persons. l have bu,
recently received an inquiry about it
Our Kentucky barbecues have beer
the roasting Of whole meat creature:
over Goals in a hole in the ground
Some Of the moderns are having 6
sort Of fireplace built. I have seer
whole oxen roasted In Stratford-on.
Avon, England, before q great bricl
wall built I'D five feet or more witt
side pieces on which to rest the grea'
spit Of the trunk of tree which wa
turned By a cart wheel at one end
An iron crate was set up near tn,
brick wan and Goals between the tive
were the fire for the work. Their
was a great dripping pan underneath
and il took six hours to roast an OK.
/ The nearest 1 have come to MAXIM
limb taste somewhat like meats cook
ID In this fashion has been by po
roasting it. But / have rummage,
around a great deal to find how grea
cooks have roasted lamb, and in gen
! erL the information given is bu
meager. Lamb is often ruined in tn
roasting, but by going to the grea
cook Escoffler We get little comfort
for what he says would certainly pre-
vent us from roasting lamb eithe
in oven or in any closed rooster. Blu
first he does say: Mutton an
lamb are the best possible meats t
roast" He would give them no al
tention for any other cooking tina
roasting, but that is exceedingly auto
cratic and wasteful.
Difficulties in Roasting Meat.
So many cooks attempt roast lam
and fail that / have hunted for som
word that might perhaps help, but a
the comfort we get from the gre
Soyer is this: "Recipes may be col
summate in detail and in accurac,
and still they will be found wantin
in the matter of roasts, for experienC
alone can tell the operator whetht
the joint he is treating is old or youn
fresh or stale; whether it must |
cooked quickly or slowly, and all Il
theories 1 might advance on this SUI
ject, though perhaps they might n,
be useless, would at least prove in
practicable nine times out Of ten"
OF course, this great cook prefel
the spit, and says: an spite of ever
possible precaution during the pro
ress Of an oven roast, it is impossib
10 avoid an accumulation Of vapc
around the cooking object in a clost
ovan A nd fhis gfaau is rnora M