Venison and mutton are so similar in texture and taste that even an experienced gourmet has trouble in telling them apart after marinating—a necessary step for large cuts of wild meats like venison and boar, which will spoil if not put in an acid (vinegar) solution. So if you don’t have a friend who hunts, buy a large leg of mutton or lamb; marinate it in an enamel, glass, pottery, or stainless-steel container in a solution of four bottles of dark beer or porter, one cup of malt vinegar, garlic, and spices; cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, sea salt, peppercorns, juniper berry, bay leaf, fennel, rosemary; thyme, sage, and just about any dried herb you’ve got. Marinate for about three days. The morning of your feast remove it, dry it, and stick it full of cloves. Roast it just like the goose—again about twenty minutes to the pound—basting it with its own juices and with a reduction of the marinade. The cut can be roasted bone in or out; both methods were popular in 1620. If you do take the bone out, make sure to stuff the roast with bacon, as the loss of its bone tends to dry it out. And the smoky bacon taste is a positive addition, especially if you are oven-roasting your lamb. It can also be imparted to a bone-in roast if you make a dozen half-inch cuts in the tough surface skin and stuff raw bacon in each. [Illustration: ADRIAEN VAN OSTADE] Stuffing Elizabethans were fond of a rich, sweet stuffing that was more like a bread pudding than the dry, herbed variety we commonly prepare today. It was used in all sorts of roasts, from boned venison to goose, and when eaten with a gravy made with vinegar and the roast’s juices, a savory, sweet-sour dish resulted. It is made by beating a cup of heavy cream (the Pilgrims used goat’s milk) and two egg yolks together. Add cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, and salt to taste (about a half-teaspoon to mine). Thicken with grated rye or cornbread crumbs (about two cups) and currants (one cup). A little sugar or honey can be mixed, but as the Pilgrims had neither, it would be better to add a tablespoon or two of dark beer or porter, which they did have and used for sweetening. A little spinach juice or saffron will give it a green or yellow color, but this is optional; it looks creamy and good just the way it is. Stuff the goose or butterflied venison with it, making sure you tie or sew up your roast carefully. Stewed Pumpkin Simply clean out, peel, and dice a medium pumpkin—a recycled jack-o-lantern is fine. Simmer the diced flesh in a heavy casserole with a cup of dark beer or porter, two or three tablespoons of malt vinegar, salt, pepper, and spices to taste. It will take a couple of hours over a low heat. As a tart “spoon meat” stewed pumpkin balances the fatty goose and bacon-larded mock venison. Similar sweet-sour side dishes can be made with squash, turnips, and parsnips, all common crops in Plymouth that October 1621. Ale