How to Roast Stuffed Meat

From Bartolomeo Scappi's Opera, 1570, translated by Terence Scully:

To roast that breast of veal, stuffed, on a spit or on a grill.

Stuff the breast with beaten pork fat, fine herbs, garlic, eggs, and spices, and blanch it in boiling water. When that is done, take it out, let it cool and stick it with fine cardoons of pork fat that have some little sprigs of rosemary insides them. Mount it on a spit and cook it over a low fire. When done, it needs to be served hot with orange juice or lime juice over it.

My Redaction:

2 1-lb boneless steaks

3 T parsley

1 sprig sage

1 sprig rosemary

4 sprigs marjoram

2 T lard

1 egg

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp salt

juice of 1 lime

Flatten out steaks until they are fairly thin, perhaps 1/4". Finely chop herbs with lard, and beat together with egg, pepper, salt, and coriander. Spread this mixture onto the flattened steaks, then fold them over and seal the edges with toothpicks. Place in boiling water for about 1 minute, until outside becomes grey. Put steaks in a roasting pan and broil on low for 10 minutes or to desired doneness, flipping halfway through for even cooking. Remove toothpicks and cut into slices, sprinkling with lime juice to serve.

Notes:

I was not able to obtain veal breast when I made this, so I substituted beef. However, I used porterhouse steaks with bones in, and their poor behavior in being stuffed and parboiled leads me to caution against using bone-in cuts.