Ingredients for the Known Ground reconstruction
Ingredient amounts shown for 8 servings.
Known Ground reconstruction
- 1young gosling, 8 to 10 pounds
- 12 ozsage-and-onion stuffing, cooled
- 2 tspkosher salt
- 1/4 cupwater, Apple sauce
- 1 tbspsugar, Apple sauce
Apple sauce
- 4tart apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
Known Ground reconstruction — not personally tested
Escoffier's historical formula specifies gosling directly.
The source’s separate sage-and-onion and apple-sauce components are retained. A roasting rack and periodic fat removal suit a modern oven.
Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Fill the gosling loosely with cooled sage-and-onion stuffing, truss, season, and set on a rack over a roasting pan.
2. Roast, periodically removing rendered fat, until the thickest meat and stuffing center reach 165°F (74°C).
3. Simmer the apples with water until soft and mash with only a little sugar.
4. Rest the gosling briefly, carve, and serve very hot with apple sauce separately.
Historical formula
Escoffier says a gosling for roasting should just have reached full growth. In England it is stuffed with sage and onions and always accompanied by apple sauce; he emphasizes that the roast must not wait and should be served very hot.
Source note
Source-preserving summary from Auguste Escoffier, *A Guide to Modern Cookery* (1907), a public-domain English edition. Source location: No. 1962, p. 623; 1903 p. 987.
Published after editorial review
Last revised 8/21/2026. Evidence and limitations should be interpreted as described in the article.
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