Boiled Custard

From Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-day Cookery
"CUSTARDS, Boiled Ingredients - 1 pint of milk, 5 eggs, 3 oz of loaf sugar, 3 laurel leaves or the rind of fresh lemon, or a few drops of essence of vanilla, 1 tablespoonful of brandy.
Mode - Put the milk into a lined saucepan with the sugar and whichever of the above flavourings may be preferred, the lemon rind flavours custards most deliciously, and let the milk steep by the side of the fire until it is well flavoured. Bring it to the point of boiling then strain it into a basin, whisk the eggs well and when the milk has cooled a little, stir in the eggs and strain this mixture into a jug. Place this jug in a saucepan of boiling water over the fire keep stirring the custard one way until it thickens, but on no account allow it to reach the boiling point, as it will instantly curdle and be full of lumps. Take it off the fire, stir in the brandy and when this is well mixed with the custard, pour it into glasses which should be rather more than three parts full, grate a little nutmeg over the top and the dish is ready for table To make custards look and eat better, ducks eggs should be used when obtainable, they add very much to the flavour and richness and so many are not required as of the ordinary eggs, 4 ducks eggs to the pint of milk making a delicious custard. When desired extremely rich and good cream should be substituted for the milk and double the quantity of eggs used to those mentioned, omitting the whites.
Time - A hour to infuse the lemon rind about l8 minutes to stir the custard. Average cost fid Sufficient to fill 8 custard glasses Seasonable at any time."

I used a double boiler instead of a jug. I used vanilla and omitted the brandy. The image from the book reminded me of my punch glasses, so I used them.

I put the (2 cups) milk in a saucepan with the sugar and vanilla and brought it to a boil. Once the sugar dissolved, I let it cool while I mixed the eggs. I used 8 egg yolks and 3 strained whites instead of 5 eggs because I'm not very good at keeping the whites from cooking, and making the custard chunky. I mixed a little of the milk in with the beaten eggs and then added it to the pot. I heated and stirred it in a double boiler until it became firm. It filled 7 small glasses, topped with nutmeg. Ours were served chilled since I made them ahead of time.

We liked these very much!

My custards served in punch cups

Tongue

"No 12 A Tongue. This is sliced, not very thin, through the thickest and best part, shown by the letters a b. The fat of the root, when it is liked must be carved by turning the tongue, and cutting in the direction c d."

"HAMBURGH PICKLE FOR BEEF HAMS AND TONGUE Boil together for twenty minutes two gallons of water three pounds of bay salt two pounds of coarse sugar two ounces of saltpetre and two of black pepper bruised and tied in a fold of muslin clear off the scum thoroughly as it rises pour the pickle into a deep earthen pan and when it is quite cold lay in the meat of which every part must be perfectly covered with it A moderate sized round of beef will be ready for table in a fortnight it should be turned occasionally in the brine Five pounds of common salt may be substituted for the quantity of bay salt given above but the meat will not be so finely flavoured Water 2 gallons bay salt 3 lbs saltpetre 2 oz black pepper 2 oz sugar 2 lbs 20 minutes."

"ANOTHER PICKLE FOR TONGUES BEEF AND HAMS To three gallons of spring water add six pounds of common salt two pounds of bay salt two pounds of common loaf sugar and two ounces of saltpetre Boil these over a gentle fire and be careful to take off all the scum as it rises when quite cold it will be fit for use Rub the meat to be cured with fine salt and let it drain for a day in order to free it from the blood then immerse it in the brine taking care that every part of it shall be covered Young pork should not remain more than from three to five days in the pickle but hams for drying may be left in it for a fortnight at least tongues will be ready in rather less time Beef may remain from one week to two according to its size and the degree of saltiness desired for it A little experience will soon teach the exact time required for the different kinds of meat When the pickle has been in use for about three months boil it up again gently and take the scum carefully off Add to it three pounds of common salt four ounces of sugar and one of saltpetre it will remain good for many months Water 3 gallons common salt 6 lbs bay salt 2 lbs loaf sugar 2 lbs saltpetre 2 oz boil 20 to 30 minutes."

"BEEF TONGUES A Suffolk Receipt For each very large tongue mix with half a pound of salt two ounces of saltpetre and three quarters of a pound of the coarsest sugar rub the tongues daily and turn them in the pickle for five weeks when they will be fit to be dressed or to be smoked 1 large tongue salt J lb sugar J lb saltpetre 2 oz 5 weeks."

"TO DRESS BEEF TONGUES When taken fresh from the pickle they require no soaking unless they should have remained in it much beyond the usual time or have been cured with a more than common proportion of salt but when they have been smoked and highly dried they should be laid for two or three hours into cold and as much longer into tepid water before they are dressed if extremely dry ten or twelve hours must be allowed to soften them and they should always be brought very slowly to boil Two or three carrots and a large bunch of savoury herbs added after the scum is cleared off will improve them They should be simmered until they are extremely tender when the skin will peel from them easily A highly dried tongue of moderate size will usually require from three and a half to four hours boiling an unsmoked one about an hour less and for one which has not been salted at all a shorter time will suffice."

"BORDYKE RECEIPT FOR STEWING A TONGUE After the tongue has been soaked trimmed and washed with extreme nicety lay it into a vessel of fitting size and place round it three or four pounds of the neck or of any other lean cuttings of beef with some bones of undressed veal and pour in sufficient cold water to keep it covered until it is done or instead of this use strong unseasoned beef broth made with the shin and any odd bits or bones of veal which may be at hand Let the tongue be brought to boil very gradually that it may be plump and tender Remove the scum when it first rises and when it is quite cleared off add a large faggot of parsley thyme and winter savoury three rrots a small onion and one mild turnip After three hours and a half of gentle simmering probe the tongue and if sufficiently done peel off the skin and serve it quickly If not wanted hot for table lay it upon a very clean board or trencher and fasten it down to it by passing a carving fork through the root and a smaller one through the tip drawing the tongue straight with the latter before it is fixed in the board let it remain thus until it is quite cold It is much the fashion at present to glaze hams and tongues but this should never be attempted by a cook not well acquainted with the manner of doing it and the proper flavour and appearance of the glaze For directions to make it see page 104 Where expense is not regarded three or four pounds of veal may be added to the beef in this receipt or the tongue may be stewed in a prepared gravy made with equal parts of beef and veal and vegetables as above but without salt this may afterwards be converted into excellent soup A fresh or an un smoked tongue may be dressed in this way but will require less time for the former salt must be added to the gravy."

From Modern Cookery for Private Families 1860

 

It is mentioned in Every Lady's Cook Book 1856, that "Cold biscuit sliced thin and buttered and a very thin slice of boiled ham, tongue, or beef between each two slices of biscuit is best" for sandwiches. There is also mention of mustard in these. So, I decided to provide tongue and biscuit sandwiches at our next picnic. I have made boiled tongue before and it is good but doesn't really have any taste. I wanted to try a pickle recipe this time and then boil it. So, I needed to pickle/brine the tongue that I picked up from The Family Cow.

 

I used a modified version, combining several of the above listed recipes. I only had one tongue to make so I really didn't need a lot of pickle/brine. I combined 1/2 gallon of water, 1/2 lb of kosher salt and 3/4 lb of raw sugar. I slowly brought this to a boil and then held it for 20 minutes. Once it was cool, I soaked the tongue for 4 days, covered in the fridge.

 

Once the pickling/brining was done, I  boiled it with carrots and herbs until it was tender, about 3 hours, and laid it out to cool. It was then peeled and sliced and arranged on a plate with mustard.

Baked Beans

"Baked Pork and Beans
For a family of six or seven take a quart of white beans, wash them in several waters, and put them into two or three quarts over night. In the morning, when it will be easier to cull out the bad ones than before they were soaked, pick them over and boil them until they begin to crack open, then put them into a brown pan such as are made for the purpose. Pour upon them enough of the water they were boiled in almost to cover them. Cut the rind of about a pound of salt pork into narrow strips, lay it on the top of the beans and press it down so that it will lie more than half its thickness in the water. Bake several hours, four or five is not too much. Where a brick oven is used it is well to let beans remain in it over night. If they are baked in a stove or range more water may be necessary before they are done.

Many persons think it a decided improvement to put in a large spoonful or two of molasses. It is a very good way.

Those who object to the use of pork can have a very good dish of beans by substituting two table spoonfuls of nice beef drippings and adding two teaspoonfuls of salt.

To heat over baked beans, put them in a spider with a little water heat them slowly at first and cover close. If they are too moist remove the cover and stir them often."

From The Young Housekeeper's Friend 1862

I made this for a picnic. I'm not a fan of molasses but used it anyway.

Modern Translation: Use the modern directions for quick soaking the beans by boiling them in water for 2 minutes, removing them from the heat and covering them for 1 hour. Drain and rinse the beans.  In fresh water, simmer them until they started to crack, about 1 hour. Drain the beans but save the water. Put the beans in a bean pot or casserole dish with 2 tablespoons of molasses, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 tablespoons of beef drippings and enough of the cook water to cover them. Bake at 350 for 3 hours.

They turned out great. I served them in small bean pots and they looked great.

Poached Eggs

In Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-day Cookery there is given a bill of fare for Breakfast. In that list is mentioned poached eggs. Here are directions for preparing them.

"Half fill a bright frying pan with boiling water; add a salt spoonful of salt and two teaspoonfuls of vinegar; break each egg separately into a cup, pour them carefully into the water while boiling; with a small slice throw the white over the yolk; drain for half a minute, then serve either on hot buttered toast, or on spinach or sorrel. Two and a half or three minutes will be sufficient time to give them."

From The Young Housewife's Daily Assistant 1864

Notes: My salt spoon holds just less than 1/2 teaspoon. I used white vinegar, as I found it mentioned in other cook books of the time. I am assuming that a "slice" is a slotted spoon and was able to find a reference; "passing the slice or a spoon". I used a lined copper frypan as cast iron is not good to boil water in.

Over all, it really wasn't hard to do. I just made 2 eggs for myself and they turned out beautifully. The key is to not have the water boiling when you add the eggs and to gently add them to the water. Otherwise, if you add the egg too fast, it will slide to the other side of the pan and stream the white behind it. As I had no spinach or sorrel, I ate my poached eggs on modern toast with salt and pepper.

Mrs. Beeton also gives her own instruction for making poached eggs here along with an explanation of the importance of fresh eggs and an illustrations of a tin egg-poacher .

Radishes

 "Radishes are of three sorts; the long red, the small button or turnip radish, and the winter or white radish.

Radishes should be fresh pulled and tender, to be in perfection for the palate, or to be healthful; to many persons they are positively injurious.

To prepare them for the table cut off all tho leaves, leaving about an inch of the stalk, trim them neatly, and lay them in cold water for an hour, serve the long ones in a tumbler or celery glass half filled with water, serve the small ones on a plate; they are generally eaten with salt only; they may be served cut in thin slices, with vinegar, pepper and salt over."

From The American System of Cookery 1864

June Meals According To Mrs. Beeton

Plain Family Dinners for:
Sunday - 1 Salmon, trout and parsley and butter, new potatoes. 2 fillet of veal, boiled bacon, cheek, spinach, vegetables. 3 Gooseberry tart, custard.
Monday - 1 Light gravy soup, Small meat pie, minced veal with rolled bacon, spinach and potatoes. 2 Raspberry and currant tart.
Tuesday - 1 Baked mackerol, potatoes. 2 Boiled leg of lamb with young carrots. 3 Lemon pudding. Wednesday - 1 Vegetable soup. 2 Calf s liver and bacon, peas hashed lamb from remains of cold joint. 3 Baked gooseberry pudding.
Thursday - 1 Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, peas, potatoes. 2 Stewed rhubarb and boiled rice.
Friday - 1 Cold beef and salad, cutlets and peas. 2 Boiled gooseberry pudding and baked custard pudding.
Saturday - 1 Rump steak pudding, broiled beef bones and cucumber, vegetables. 2 Bread pudding.

~

Sunday - 1 Roast fore-quarter of lamb, mint sauce, peas and new potatoes. 2 Gooseberry pudding, strawberry tartlets, fondue.
Monday - 1 Cold lamb and salad, stowed neck of veal and peas, young carrots and new potatoes. 2 Almond pudding.
Tuesday - 1 Green pea soup,2 Roast ducks stuffed, gravy, peas and new potatoes. 3 Baked ratafia pudding.
Wednesday - Roast leg of mutton, summer cabbage, potatoes. 2 Gooseberry and rice pudding.
Thursday - 1 Fried soles, melted butter, potatoes. 2 Sweetbreads, hashed mutton, vegetables. 3 Bread and butter pudding.
Friday - 1 Asparagus soup. 2 Boiled beef, young carrots and new potatoes, suet dumplings. 3 College puddings.
Saturday - 1 Cold boiled beef and salad, lamb cutlets and green peas. 2 Boiled gooseberry pudding and plain cream.
 
 Things in Season
Fish - Carp, crayfish, herrings, lobsters, mackerel, mullet, pike, prawns, salmon, soles, tench, trout, turbot.
Meat - Beef, lamb, mutton, veal, buck venison.
Poultry - Chickens, ducklings, fowls, green geese, leverets, plovers, pullets, rabbits, turkey poults, wheatears.
Vegetables - Artichokes, asparagus, beans, cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, lettuces, onions, parsnips, peas, potatoes, radishes, small salads, sea kale, spinach, various herbs.
Fruit - Apricots, cherries, currants, gooseberries, melons, nectarines, peaches, pears, pineapples, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries. 

POTATOES

From The Practical Cook Book 1850

"POTATOES

Potatoes are best when perfectly ripe; new potatoes are not fit to eat until fully grown. The water in the boiling pot should always boil before the potatoes are put in. If the potatoes are to be boiled with their skin on, they should have a bit cut from each end to allow the steam to escape when taken from the pot.

New potatoes require but twenty minutes to boil; when they have been long out of the ground, a longer time will be required to boil them; when boiled enough, turn off the water, sprinkle salt upon them, shake the pot, place it close to the fire for two or three minutes, to dry the potatoes, and then dish up. They should never be sent to the table with their skins on. Old potatoes should be pared and soaked in water for an hour before boiling.

Potatoes may be served in various forms. When boiled tender put two or three - according to their size - in a cloth, and pound them with a wooden spoon; then squeeze them tightly, and drop them upon your dish in a white ball.

Or you may make them up in the form of a pear, egg them over, and brown in the oven.

Or you may mash them with a little milk, butter, and salt, and make them into any form you prefer.

Or you may slice them, and warm them in a soup of milk, butter and salt.

Or you may slice them, and fry them with a little salt sprinkled over them.

Potatoes are essential to every dinner, and an ingenious cook will vary the manner of serving them indefinitely. To eat with roast pork, they should be baked or roasted in the ashes."

ONION SOUP

From Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-day Cookery 1865

"ONION SOUP Cheap
Ingredients: 8 middling sized onions, 3 oz of butter, a tablespoonful of rice flour, salt and pepper to taste, 1 tea spoonful of powdered sugar, thickening of butter and flour, 2 quarts of water.
Mode: Cut the onions small, put them into the stewpan with the butter and fry them well, mix the rice flour smoothly with the water, add the onions, seasoning, and sugar and simmer till tender. Thicken with butter and flour and serve.
Time: 2 hours 
Sufficient for 8 persons"

This recipe was very simple. The only change that I made was in using top setting onions that were in my garden. They were fresh and green, no having been dried for storage. These onions have a smaller bulb than regular onions, so many times more onions were used.

As a side note about the onions: I researched my top setting onions and they were mentioned in a book on growing onions as Top Onions. The modern name would be Egyptian, Walking, Tree or Topsetting onions. I am so glad that they were used in Mid-Century as I have an abundance of them. 

May Meals According to Mrs. Beeton

MAY
Plain Family Dinners for:
Sunday - 1 Vegetable soup. 2 Saddle of mutton, asparagus and potatoes. 3 Gooseberry tart custards. Monday - 1 Fried whitings, anchovy sauce. 2 Cold mutton, mashed potatoes, stewed veal. 3 Fig pudding.
Tuesday - 1 Haricot mutton made from remains of cold mutton rump steak, pie. 2 Macaroni.
Wednesday - 1 Roast loin of veal and spinach, boiled bacon, mutton cutlets and tomato sauce. 2 Gooseberry pudding and cream.
Thursday - 1 Spring soup. 2 Roast leg of lamb, mint sauce, spinach curried veal and rice. 3 Lemon pudding.
Friday - 1 Boiled mackerel and parsley and butter. 2 Stewed rump steak, cold lamb and salad. 3 Baked gooseberry pudding.
Saturday - 1 Vermicelli. 2 Rump steak pudding, lamb cutlets, and cucumbers. 3 Macaroni

~

Sunday - 1 Boiled salmon and lobster or caper sauce. 2 Roast lamb, mint sauce, asparagus, potatoes. 3 Plum pudding, gooseberry tart
Monday - 1 Salmon warned in remains of lobster sauce and garnished with croutons. 2 Stewed knuckle of veal and rice, cold lamb and dressed cucumber. 3 Slices of pudding warmed and served with sugar sprinkled over Baked rice pudding.
Tuesday - 1 Roast ribs of beef, horseradish sauce, Yorkshire pudding, spinach and potatoes. 2 Boiled lemon pudding.
Wednesday - 1 Fried soles, melted butter. 2 Cold beef and dressed cucumber or salad, veal cutlets and bacon. 3 Baked plum pudding.
Thursday - 1 Spring soup. 2 Calfs liver and bacon, broiled beef bones, spinach and potatoes. 3 Gooseberry tart.
Friday - 1 Roast shoulder of mutton, baked potatoes, onion sauce, spinach. 2 Currant dumplings.
Saturday - 1 Broiled mackerel, fennel sauce or plain melted butter. 2 Rump steak pie, hashed mutton, vegetables. 3 Baked arrowroot pudding.
  
Things in Season
Fish - Carp, chub, crabs, crayfish, dory, herrings, lobsters, mackerel, red and gray mullet, prawns, salmon, shad, smelts, soles, trout, turbot.
Meat - Beef, lamb, mutton, veal.
Poultry - Chickens, ducklings, fowls, green geese, leverets, pullets, rabbits.
Vegetables - Asparagus, beans, early cabbages, carrots, cauliflowers, cresses, cucumbers, lettuces, pease, early potatoes, salads, sea kale, various herbs.
Fruit Apples - green apricots, cherries, currants for tarts, gooseberries, melons, pears, rhubarb, strawberries."


I am assuming that the 1, 2 and 3 are shortened and mean 1st course, 2nd course and 3rd course.

There are several things that I find very interesting about these lists. The first thing that struck me was the lack of vegetables in the weekly meal plan. I am wondering if people in rural communities ate more greens than those in the city simply because they had more access to it or if this list is accurate of the diet of the average person.

My second realization is the large variety of meat cuts and fish that are listed. In modern life, we eat a select few types and cuts of meat. While we eat fish, most that are listed are new to me entirely.

At the end, I was completely surprised that rabbit is listed in with poultry. We have domestic rabbits and I know that people eat rabbit, but I would have listed it with game or lamb.

Gardening In May

From The Kitchen and Fruit Gardener 1847

May

Let all the coverings that may have been used to protect either winter or early spring crops, be now cleared away. Rough dig all vacant ground, and hoe and rake all the small borders. Use the hoe freely amongst crops of onions, spinach, &c. Destroy all weeds as they appear. Have all roots, docks, dandelions, and similar weeds, carefully dug up with a fork, and immediately removed from the garden. Be careful to destroy all snails and slugs.

After a shower of rain, draw the earth up to the stems of cabbages and cauliflower plants. Birds being very destructive to the seeds of all the cabbage tribe, it will therefore be necessary to guard them by covering the beds with mats, or with old fishing nets, until the seeds begin to vegetate.

Sow and plant all sorts of cabbages, and earth and clear from weeds the crops already planted. Take advantage of dry weather to stir the surface about the stems of all the forward crops of cabbages, by which they will be greatly strengthened. Sow full crops of savoys both at the beginning and end of the month.

Peas should be sown twice this month, or in succession, as the previous sowing appears above ground. Beans likewise, at similar intervals of time, when frequent crops are required. Of the dwarf kidney or bush beans, there are many varieties; among the better and more productive kinds, are the red and brown valentine, and China red eye.

The Lima and the Carolina, or Servee beans, may now be planted.

Rhubarb may be sown or planted. The large giant rhubarb is the most productive in the open ground, and Buck's scarlet for forcing.

Carrots should now be sown, - the long orange and the early horn, are the finest for table use. A full crop of parsneps should also be sown.

The celery plants which were sown in March or April, for an early crop, should be pricked out about the middle or latter end of this month, into a nursery bed of rich light earth.

Plant the main crop of potatos. This is the best month in the year for the purpose. Sets should now be used, cut to two or three eyes only.

Continue to sow and transplant lettuces of all sorts. Sow each sort separately, and repeat the sowings and plantings once every fortnight or three weeks, that a regular supply may be obtained. Sow radishes of different sorts every week during the summer. Give plenty of water in dry weather: if this be not attended to, they will be hard, and unfit for use. Thin the crops already sown.

Peppers or capsicums, and tomatos, may be sown for transplanting; cucumbers, squashes, nasturtiums, and other tender vegetables, may now be safely planted. All pot herbs such as thyme, sage, mint, balm, &c., should now be planted.

Spinach, Toast and Eggs

To prepare the spinach:
"Cut off all the roots, and put it in boiling water with a tea-spoonful of salt; let it boil ten or fifteen minutes according to its age and size; when done, drain through a colander, and serve with coddled eggs laid on top, a spoonful of butter, and a little salt.

Or, when the spinach is boiled, you may chop it, and dish it in snippets of buttered toast, seasoned with pepper and salt."         

The Practical Cook Book pg 97

Coddled Eggs:

"Break the eggs and slip them separately, so as not to break the yolks, into a stew-pan of boiling water; let the whites just set, then take them up in a skimmer, drain off the water, and serve on slices of buttered toast."

         The Practical Cook Book pg 86

Gardening In April

From The Kitchen and Fruit Gardener 1847

April

This is the month in which most seeds are sown, and garden operations performed in the climate of Philadelphia. The weather has usually become, by the first fortnight in April, comparatively settled; severe frost may no longer be expected; therefore, if the earth be sufficiently dry, and the weather mild, the various branches of cropping should be attended to with diligence. No time should be lost in committing to the soil the requisite seeds and roots of plants.

In light dry soils, it will be an advantage to sow and plant early, whereby the plants will gain sufficient strength to resist the droughts of summer, but in such as are cold, wet, and late, the state of the weather must determine the time of sowing. It is always better to wait until the ground be in a fit state to receive the seed, than to sow too early, as many of the less hardy seeds will not vegetate freely, indeed, scarcely at all, if sown at this early period of the year, when the ground is wet. Rough dig all ground not immediately required.

The gravel walks should now be put in order for the season.

Plant beans of any kind, for all sorts succeed well from this time of planting. Now plant full supplies of the best sorts for principal crops. The Windsor and long podded beans may still be planted, if not previously done.

Sow marrowfat or other late peas, once a fortnight, or three weeks at farthest, particularly some dwarf green imperial marrowfats. All the sorts should now be sown in open situations, not under low spreading trees. Cover the peas that are a little above ground to within an inch of their whole height with light mould. If the weather be dry, give a little water to settle the mould about them; if frosty, protect them for a few nights with branches, or any other slight covering.

Remove the cauliflower plants which have been in frames, or in warm borders, during the winter. Raise some earth to the stems of the plants, which are under bell or hand glasses: it will strengthen them, and assist their growth.

The glasses may still be kept over the plants, but must be continually raised at least a hand's breadth high, or in fine days, the glasses may be taken off, and let the plants have the benefit of warm showers of rain.

The New Zealand spinach should be sown in a slight hot bed; it will spread, and afford an abundant supply.

It will be early enough, towards the middle or the end of the month, to sow broccoli; for if sown earlier, the plants are apt to start or button. The "purple cape" succeeds best in this climate.

Both red and white celery seed should be sown. If the seed be sown in rich vegetable mould, and kept rather moist, it will thrive the better. Water the bed frequently in dry weather.

Drumhead, Flat Dutch, and Savoy Cabbage seed, for the principal winter crop, should be sown about the middle or towards the latter end of the month, in an open situation.

Transplant cabbage plants of all kinds into the places where they are to remain to cabbage. It may be done the beginning or middle of this month, but if the plants be strong, the sooner it is now done, the better. Sow the seeds of cabbages of any kind for autumn and winter use. Red cabbage seed should also be sown towards the latter end of this month, to raise some plants for winter use.

Sow radishes, both the earlier sorts and the yellow turnip rooted, for a succession.

Continue to protect mushroom beds from frost and rain, either of which would destroy the spawn.

Onions should be sown for a general crop.