The Cook's Oracle; And Housekeeper's Manual
By William Kitchiner

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682 chapters

16 hour read

THE COOK’S ORACLE; AND HOUSEKEEPER’S MANUAL.

1 minute read

CONTAINING Receipts for Cookery, AND DIRECTIONS FOR CARVING. ALSO, THE ART OF COMPOSING THE MOST SIMPLE AND MOST HIGHLY FINISHED BROTHS, GRAVIES, SOUPS, SAUCES, STORE SAUCES, AND FLAVOURING ESSENCES; PASTRY, PRESERVES, PUDDINGS, PICKLES, &c. WITH A COMPLETE SYSTEM OF COOKERY FOR CATHOLIC FAMILIES. THE QUANTITY OF EACH ARTICLE IS ACCURATELY STATED BY WEIGHT AND MEASURE; BEING THE RESULT OF ACTUAL EXPERIMENTS INSTITUTED IN THE KITCHEN OF WILLIAM KITCHINER, M.D. ADAPTED TO THE AMERICAN PUBLIC BY A MEDICAL GENTLEMAN. FROM THE LAST LONDON EDITION. New-York: PRINTED BY J. & J. HARPER, 82 CLIFF-ST. SOLD BY COLLINS AND HANNAY, COLLINS AND CO., G. AND C. AND H. CARVILL, WILLIAM B. GILLEY, E. BLISS, O. A. ROORBACH, WHITE, GALLAHER, AND WHITE, C. S. FRANCIS, WILLIAM BURGESS, JR., AND N. B. HOLMES;—PHILADELPHIA, E. L. CAREY AND A. HART, AND JOHN GRIGG;—ALBANY, O. STEELE, AND W. C. LITTLE. 1830. SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW-YORK, ss. B...

ADVERTISEMENT.

54 minute read

The publishers have now the pleasure of presenting to the American public, Dr. Kitchiner’s justly celebrated work, entitled “The Cook’s Oracle, and Housekeeper’s Manual,” with numerous and valuable improvements, by a medical gentleman of this city. The work contains a store of valuable information, which, it is confidently believed, will not only prove highly advantageous to young and inexperienced housekeepers, but also to more experienced matrons—to all, indeed, who are desirous of enjoying, in the highest degree, the good things which Nature has so abundantly bestowed upon us. The “Cook’s Oracle” has been adjudged, by connoisseurs in this country and in Great Britain, to contain the best possible instructions on the subject of serving up, beautifully and economically, the productions of the water, land, and air, in such a manner as to render them most pleasant to the eye, and agreeable to the palate. Numerous notices, in commendation of the...

PREFACE TO THE SEVENTH EDITION.

40 minute read

The whole of this Work has, a seventh time , been carefully revised; but this last time I have found little to add, and little to alter. I have bestowed as much attention on each of the 500 receipts as if the whole merit of the book was to be estimated entirely by the accuracy of my detail of one particular process. The increasing demand for “ The Cook’s Oracle ,” amounting in 1824 to the extraordinary number of upwards of 45,000, has been stimulus enough to excite any man to submit to the most unremitting study; and the Editor has felt it as an imperative duty to exert himself to the utmost to render “ The Cook’s Oracle ” a faithful narrative of all that is known of the various subjects it professes to treat....

PREFACE.

10 minute read

Among the multitudes of causes which concur to impair health and produce disease, the most general is the improper quality of our food: this most frequently arises from the injudicious manner in which it is prepared: yet strange, “passing strange,” this is the only one for which a remedy has not been sought; few persons bestow half so much attention on the preservation of their own health, as they daily devote to that of their dogs and horses. The observations of the Guardians of Health respecting regimen, &c. have formed no more than a catalogue of those articles of food, which they have considered most proper for particular constitutions. Some medical writers have, “in good set terms,” warned us against the pernicious effects of improper diet; but not one has been so kind as to take the trouble to direct us how to prepare food properly; excepting only the contributions...

CULINARY CURIOSITIES.

2 hour read

The following specimen of the unaccountably whimsical harlequinade of foreign kitchens is from “La Chapelle” Nouveau Cuisinier, Paris, 1748. “A turkey,” in the shape of “ football ,” or “ a hedge-hog .” A “shoulder of mutton,” in the shape of a “ bee-hive .”—“Entrée of pigeons,” in the form of a “ spider ,” or sun -fashion, or “in the form of a frog ,” or, in “the form of the moon .”—Or, “to make a pig taste like a wild boar;” take a living pig , and let him swallow the following drink, viz. boil together in vinegar and water, some rosemary, thyme, sweet basil, bay leaves, and sage; when you have let him swallow this, immediately whip him to death , and roast him forthwith. How “to still a cocke for a weak bodie that is consumed,—take a red cocke that is not too olde, and beat...

MANNERS MAKE THE MAN.

30 minute read

Good manners have often made the fortune of many, who have had nothing else to recommend them: Ill manners have as often marred the hope of those who have had every thing else to advance them. These regulations may appear a little rigorous to those phlegmatic philosophers, “Who, past all pleasures, damn the joys of sense, With rev’rend dulness and grave impotence,” and are incapable of comprehending the importance (especially when many are invited) of a truly hospitable entertainment: but genuine connoisseurs in the science of good cheer will vote us thanks for our endeavours to initiate well-disposed amateurs ....

CARVING.

12 minute read

Ceremony does not, in any thing, more commonly and completely triumph over comfort, than in the administration of “the honours of the table.” Those who serve out the loaves and fishes seldom seem to understand that he is the best carver who fills the plates of the greatest number of guests, in the least portion of time. To effect this, fill the plates and send them round, instead of asking each individual if they choose soup, fish, &c. or what particular part they prefer; for, as they cannot all be choosers, you will thus escape making any invidious distinctions. A dexterous CARVER 43-* (especially if he be possessed with that determined enemy to ceremony and sauce, a keen appetite,) will help half a dozen people in half the time one of your would-be-thought polite folks wastes in making civil faces, &c. to a single guest. It would save a great...

Giving away Victuals.

3 minute read

Giving away any thing without consent or privity of your master or mistress, is a liberty you must not take; charity and compassion for the wants of our fellow-creatures are very amiable virtues, but they are not to be indulged at the expense of your own honesty, and other people’s property. When you find that there is any thing to spare, and that it is in danger of being spoiled by being kept too long, it is very commendable in you to ask leave to dispose of it while it is fit for Christians to eat: if such permission is refused, the sin does not lie at your door. But you must on no account bestow the least morsel in contradiction to the will of those to whom it belongs. “Never think any part of your business too trifling to be well done.” “Eagerly embrace every opportunity of learning any...

Chacun à son goût.

37 minute read

“ The Irishman loves Usquebaugh , the Scot loves ale call’d Blue-cap , The Welchman he loves toasted cheese , and makes his mouth like a mouse-trap.” Our Italian neighbours regale themselves with macaroni and parmesan , and eat some things which we call carrion .—Vide Ray’s Travels , p. 362 and 406. While the Englishman boasts of his roast beef, plum pudding, and porter , The Frenchman feeds on his favourite frog and soupe-maigre , The Tartar feasts on horse-flesh , The Chinaman on dogs , The Greenlander preys on garbage and train oil ; and each “blesses his stars, and thinks it luxury.” What at one time or place is considered as beautiful, fragrant, and savoury, at another is regarded as deformed and disgustful. 51-* “Ask a toad what is beauty, the supremely beautiful, the ΤΟ ΚΑΛΟΝ ! He will tell you it is my wife ,—with two...

TABLE OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.

1 minute read

To reduce our culinary operations to as exact a certainty as the nature of the processes would admit of, we have, wherever it was needful, given the quantities of each article. The weights are avoirdupois . The measure, the graduated glass of the apothecaries. This appeared the most accurate and convenient; the pint being divided into sixteen ounces, the ounce into eight drachms. A middling-sized tea-spoon will contain about a drachm; four such tea-spoons are equal to a middling-sized table-spoon , or half an ounce; four table-spoons to a common-sized wine-glass . The specific gravities of the various substances being so extremely different, we cannot offer any auxiliary standards 65-* for the weights, which we earnestly recommend the cook to employ, if she wishes to gain credit for accuracy and uniformity in her business: these she will find it necessary to have as small as the quarter of a drachm...

RUDIMENTS OF COOKERY.

9 minute read

This most simple of culinary processes is not often performed in perfection. It does not require quite so much nicety and attendance as roasting; to skim your pot well, and keep it really boiling (the slower the better) all the while, to know how long is required for doing the joint, &c., and to take it up at the critical moment when it is done enough, comprehends almost the whole art and mystery. This, however, demands a patient and perpetual vigilance, of which few persons are capable. The cook must take especial care that the water really boils all the while she is cooking, or she will be deceived in the time; and make up a sufficient fire (a frugal cook will manage with much less fire for boiling than she uses for roasting) at first, to last all the time, without much mending or stirring. When the pot is...

The sauces usually sent to table with boiled meat, &c.

7 minute read

These are to be sent up in boats, and never poured over the meat, &c....

BAKING.

16 minute read

The following observations were written expressly for this work by Mr. Turner, English and French bread and biscuit baker. “Baking is one of the cheapest and most convenient ways of dressing a dinner in small families; and, I may say, that the oven is often the only kitchen a poor man has, if he wishes to enjoy a joint of meat at home with his family. “I don’t mean to deny the superior excellence of roasting to baking; but some joints, when baked, so nearly approach to the same when roasted, that I have known them to be carried to the table, and eaten as such with great satisfaction. “Legs and loins of pork, legs of mutton, fillets of veal, and many other joints, will bake to great advantage, if the meat be good; I mean well-fed, rather inclined to be fat: if the meat be poor, no baker can...

DREDGINGS.

25 minute read

1. Flour mixed with grated bread. 2. Sweet herbs dried and powdered, and mixed with grated bread. 3. Lemon-peel dried and pounded, or orange-peel, mixed with flour. 4. Sugar finely powdered, and mixed with pounded cinnamon, and flour or grated bread. 5. Fennel-seeds, corianders, cinnamon, and sugar, finely beaten, and mixed with grated bread or flour. 6. For young pigs, grated bread or flour, mixed with beaten nutmeg, ginger, pepper, sugar, and yelks of eggs. 7. Sugar, bread, and salt, mixed....

BASTINGS.

7 minute read

1. Fresh butter. 2. Clarified suet. 3. Minced sweet herbs, butter, and claret, especially for mutton and lamb. 4. Water and salt. 5. Cream and melted butter, especially for a flayed pig. 6. Yelks of eggs, grated biscuit, and juice of oranges. 74-* Small families have not always the convenience of roasting with a spit; a remark upon ROASTING BY A STRING is necessary. Let the cook, before she puts her meat down to the fire, pass a strong skewer through each end of the joint: by this means, when it is about half-done, she can with ease turn the bottom upwards; the gravy will then flow to the part which has been uppermost, and the whole joint be deliciously gravyful. A BOTTLE JACK , as it is termed by the furnishing ironmongers, is a valuable instrument for roasting. A Dutch oven is another very convenient utensil for roasting light...

CHAPTER III. FRYING.

4 minute read

Frying is often a convenient mode of cookery; it may be performed by a fire which will not do for roasting or boiling; and by the introduction of the pan between the meat and the fire, things get more equally dressed. The Dutch oven or bonnet is another very convenient utensil for small things, and a very useful substitute for the jack, the gridiron, or frying-pan. A frying-pan should be about four inches deep, with a perfectly flat and thick bottom, 12 inches long and 9 broad, with perpendicular sides, and must be half filled with fat: good frying is, in fact, boiling in fat. To make sure that the pan is quite clean, rub a little fat over it, and then make it warm, and wipe it out with a clean cloth. Be very particular in frying, never to use any oil, butter, lard, or drippings, but what is...

CHAPTER IV. BROILING.

2 minute read

“And as now there is nought on the fire that is spoiling, We’ll give you just two or three hints upon broiling; How oft you must turn a beefsteak, and how seldom A good mutton chop, for to have ’em both well done; And for skill in such cookery your credit ’t will fetch up, If your broils are well-seasoned with good mushroom catchup.” Cleanliness is extremely essential in this mode of cookery. Keep your gridiron quite clean between the bars, and bright on the top: when it is hot, wipe it well with a linen cloth: just before you use it, rub the bars with clean mutton-suet, to prevent the meat from being marked by the gridiron. Take care to prepare your fire in time, so that it may burn quite clear: a brisk and clear fire is indispensable, or you cannot give your meat that browning which constitutes...

CHAPTER V. VEGETABLES.

8 minute read

There is nothing in which the difference between an elegant and an ordinary table is more seen than in the dressing of vegetables, more especially greens. They may be equally as fine at first, at one place as at another; but their look and taste are afterward very different, entirely from the careless way in which they have been cooked. They are in greatest perfection when in greatest plenty, i. e. when in full season. By season, I do not mean those early days, that luxury in the buyers, and avarice in the sellers, force the various vege tables; but that time of the year in which by nature and common culture, and the mere operation of the sun and climate, they are in most plenty and perfection. Potatoes and pease are seldom worth eating before midsummer; unripe vegetables are as insipid and unwholesome as unripe fruits. As to the...

FISH SAUCES.

7 minute read

The melted butter ( No. 256 ) for fish, should be thick enough to adhere to the fish, and, therefore, must be of the thickness of light batter, as it is to be diluted with essence of anchovy ( No. 433 ), soy ( No. 436 ), mushroom catchup ( No. 439 ). Cayenne ( No. 404 ), or Chili vinegar ( No. 405 ), lemons or lemon-juice, or artificial lemon-juice, (see No. 407* ), &c. which are expected at all well-served tables. Cooks, who are jealous of the reputation of their taste, and housekeepers who value their health, will prepare these articles at home: there are quite as many reasons why they should, as there are for the preference usually given to home-baked bread and home-brewed beer, &c. N.B. The liver of the fish pounded and mixed with butter, with a little lemon-juice, &c. is an elegant and inoffensive...

BROTH HERBS, SOUP ROOTS, AND SEASONINGS.

2 minute read

The above materials, wine, and mushroom catchup ( No. 439 ), combined in various proportions, will make an endless variety 93-* of excellent broths and soups, quite as pleasant to the palate, and as useful and agreeable to the stomach, as consuming pheasants and partridges, and the long list of inflammatory, piquante , and rare and costly articles, recommended by former cookery-book makers, whose elaborately compounded soups are like their made dishes; in which, though variety is aimed at, every thing has the same taste, and nothing its own. The general fault of our soups seems to be the employment of an excess of spice, and too small a portion of roots and herbs. 93-† Besides the ingredients I have enumerated, many culinary scribes indiscriminately cram into almost every dish (in such inordinate quantities, one would suppose they were working for the asbestos palate of an Indian fire-eater) anchovies, garlic,...

The crafte to make ypocras.

33 minute read

“Take a quarte of red wyne, an ounce of synamon, and halfe an ounce of gynger; a quarter of an ounce of greynes (probably of paradise) and long pepper, and halfe a pounde of sugar; and brose ( bruise ) all this ( not too small ), and then put them in a bage ( bag ) of wullen clothe, made, therefore, with the wynee; and lete it hange over a vessel, till the wynee be run thorowe.”— An extract from Arnold’s Chronicle. It is a custom which almost universally prevails in the northern parts of Europe, to present a dram or glass of liqueur , before sitting down to dinner: this answers the double purpose of a whet to the appetite, and an announcement that dinner is on the point of being served up. Along with the dram, are presented on a waiter, little square pieces of cheese, slices...

To make bottle-cement.

5 minute read

Half a pound of black resin, same quantity of red sealing-wax, quarter oz. bees’ wax, melted in an earthen or iron pot; when it froths up, before all is melted and likely to boil over, stir it with a tallow candle, which will settle the froth till all is melted and fit for use. Red wax, 10 d. per lb. may be bought at Mr. Dew’s Blackmore-street, Clare-market. N.B. This cement is of very great use in preserving things that you wish to keep a long time, which without its help would soon spoil, from the clumsy and ineffectual manner in which the bottles are corked. 101-* See, in pages 91 , 92 , A CATALOGUE OF THE INGREDIENTS now used in soups, sauces, &c. 102-* “It is the duty of a good sauce,” says the editor of the Almanach des Gourmands (vol. v. page 6), “to insinuate itself all...

CHAPTER IX. MADE DISHES.

2 minute read

Under this general head we range our receipts for HASHES , STEWS , and RAGOUTS , 106-* &c. Of these there are a great multitude, affording the ingenious cook an inexhaustible store of variety: in the French kitchen they count upwards of 600, and are daily inventing new ones. We have very few general observations to make, after what we have already said in the two preceding chapters on sauces , soups , &c., which apply to the present chapter, as they form the principal part of the accompaniment of most of these dishes. In fact, MADE DISHES are nothing more than meat, poultry ( No. 530 ), or fish (Nos. 146 , 158 , or 164 ), stewed very gently till they are tender, with a thickened sauce poured over them. Be careful to trim off all the skin, gristle, &c. that will not be eaten; and shape handsomely,...

THE COOK’S ORACLE.

4 minute read

[Read the first chapter of the Rudiments of Cookery.]...

Leg of Mutton.—(No. 1.)

1 minute read

Cut off the shank bone, and trim the knuckle, put it into lukewarm water for ten minutes, wash it clean, cover it with cold water, and let it simmer very gently , and skim it carefully. A leg of nine pounds will take two and a half or three hours, if you like it thoroughly done, especially in very cold weather. For the accompaniments, see the following receipt. N.B. The tit-bits with an epicure are the “knuckle,” the kernel, called the “ pope’s eye ,” and the “ gentleman’s ” or “ cramp bone ,” or, as it is called in Kent, the “ CAW CAW ,” four of these and a bounder furnish the little masters and mistresses of Kent with their most favourite set of playthings. A leg of mutton stewed very slowly , as we have directed the beef to be ( No. 493 ), will be...

Neck of Mutton.—(No. 2.)

37 minute read

Put four or five pounds of the best end of a neck (that has been kept a few days) into as much cold soft water as will cover it, and about two inches over; let it simmer very slowly for two hours: it will look most delicate if you do not take off the skin till it has been boiled. For sauce, that elegant and innocent relish, parsley and butter ( No. 261 ), or eschalot ( No. 294 or 5 ), or caper sauce ( No. 274 ), mock caper sauce ( No. 275 ), and onion sauce ( No. 298 ), turnips ( No. 130 ), or spinage ( No. 121 ), are the usual accompaniments to boiled mutton....

Lamb.—(No. 3.)

22 minute read

A leg of five pounds should simmer very gently for about two hours, from the time it is put on, in cold water. After the general rules for boiling, in the first chapter of the Rudiments of Cookery, we have nothing to add, only to send up with it spinage ( No. 122 ), broccoli ( No. 126 ), cauliflower ( No. 125 ), &c., and for sauce, No. 261 ....

Veal.—(No. 4.)

33 minute read

This is expected to come to table looking delicately clean; and it is so easily discoloured, that you must be careful to have clean water, a clean vessel, and constantly catch the scum as soon and as long as it rises, and attend to the directions before given in the first chapter of the Rudiments of Cookery. Send up bacon ( No. 13 ), fried sausages ( No. 87 ), or pickled pork, greens, ( No. 118 and following Nos.) and parsley and butter ( No. 261 ), onion sauce ( No. 298 ). N.B. For receipts to cook veal, see from No. 512 to No. 521 ....

Beef bouilli,—(No. 5.)

2 minute read

In plain English, is understood to mean boiled beef; but its culinary acceptation, in the French kitchen, is fresh beef dressed without boiling, and only very gently simmered by a slow fire. Cooks have seldom any notion, that good soup can be made without destroying a great deal of meat; however, by a judicious regulation of the fire, and a vigilant attendance on the soup-kettle, this may be accomplished. You shall have a tureen of such soup as will satisfy the most fastidious palate, and the meat make its appearance at table, at the same time, in possession of a full portion of nutritious succulence. This requires nothing more than to stew the meat very slowly (instead of keeping the pot boiling a gallop, as common cooks too commonly do), and to take it up as soon as it is done enough. See “Soup and bouilli” ( No. 238 ),...

To salt Meat.—(No. 6.)

1 minute read

In the summer season, especially, meat is frequently spoiled by the cook forgetting to take out the kernels; one in the udder of a round of beef, in the fat in the middle of the round, those about the thick end of the flank, &c.: if these are not taken out, all the salt in the world will not keep the meat. The art of salting meat is to rub in the salt thoroughly and evenly into every part, and to fill all the holes full of salt where the kernels were taken out, and where the butcher’s skewers were. A round of beef of 25 pounds will take a pound and a half of salt to be rubbed in all at first, and requires to be turned and rubbed every day with the brine; it will be ready for dressing in four or five days, 111-* if you do...

To pickle Meat.

2 minute read

“Six pounds of salt, one pound of sugar, and four ounces of saltpetre, boiled with four gallons of water, skimmed, and allowed to cool, forms a very strong pickle, which will preserve any meat completely immersed in it. To effect this, which is essential, either a heavy board or a flat stone must be laid upon the meat. The same pickle may be used repeatedly, provided it be boiled up occasionally with additional salt to restore its strength, diminished by the combination of part of the salt with the meat, and by the dilution of the pickle by the juices of the meat extracted. By boiling, the albumen, which would cause the pickle to spoil, is coagulated, and rises in the form of scum, which must be carefully removed.”—See Supplement to Encyclop. Britan. vol. iv. p. 340. Meat kept immersed in pickle gains weight. In one experiment by Messrs. Donkin...

A Round of salted Beef.—(No. 7.)

1 minute read

As this is too large for a moderate family, we shall write directions for the dressing half a round. Get the tongue side. Skewer it up tight and round, and tie a fillet of broad tape round it, to keep the skewers in their places. Put it into plenty of cold water, and carefully catch the scum as soon as it rises: let it boil till all the scum is removed, and then put the boiler on one side of the fire, to keep simmering slowly till it is done. Half a round of 15lbs. will take about three hours: if it weighs more, give it more time. When you take it up, if any stray scum, &c. sticks to it that has escaped the vigilance of your skimmer, wash it off with a paste-brush: garnish the dishes with carrots and turnips. Send up carrots ( No. 129 ), turnips...

H-Bone of Beef,—(No. 8.)

1 minute read

Is to be managed in exactly the same manner as the round, but will be sooner boiled, as it is not so solid. An H-bone of 20lbs. will be done enough in about four hours; of 10lbs. in three hours, more or less, as the weather is hotter or colder. Be sure the boiler is big enough to allow it plenty of water-room: let it be well covered with water: set the pot on one side of the fire to boil gently: if it boils quick at first, no art can make it tender after. The slower it boils, the better it will look, and the tenderer it will be. The same accompanying vegetables as in the preceding receipt. Dress plenty of carrots, as cold carrots are a general favourite with cold beef. Mem. —Epicures say, that the soft , fat-like marrow, which lies on the back, is delicious when...

Ribs of Beef salted and rolled.—(No. 9.)

9 minute read

Briskets, and the various other pieces, are dressed in the same way. “Wow-wow” sauce ( No. 328 ,) is an agreeable companion....

Half a Calf’s Head.—(No. 10.)

3 minute read

Cut it in two, and take out the brains: wash the head well in several waters, and soak it in warm water for a quarter of an hour before you dress it. Put the head into a saucepan, with plenty of cold water: when it is coming to a boil, and the scum rises, carefully remove it. Half a calf’s head (without the skin) will take from an hour and a half to two hours and a quarter, according to its size; with the skin on, about an hour longer. It must be stewed very gently till it is tender: it is then extremely nutritive, and easy of digestion. Put eight or ten sage leaves (some cooks use parsley instead, or equal parts of each) into a small sauce-pan: boil them tender (about half an hour); then chop them very fine, and set them ready on a plate. Wash the...

Pickled Pork,—(No. 11.)

2 minute read

Takes more time than any other meat. If you buy your pork ready salted, ask how many days it has been in salt; if many, it will require to be soaked in water for six hours before you dress it. When you cook it, wash and scrape it as clean as possible; when delicately dressed, it is a favourite dish with almost every body. Take care it does not boil fast; if it does, the knuckle will break to pieces, before the thick part of the meat is warm through; a leg of seven pounds takes three hours and a half very slow simmering. Skim your pot very carefully, and when you take the meat out of the boiler, scrape it clean. Some sagacious cooks (who remember to how many more nature has given eyes than she has given tongues and brains), when pork is boiled, score it in diamonds,...

Pettitoes, or Sucking-Pig’s Feet.—(No. 12.)

1 minute read

Put a thin slice of bacon at the bottom of a stew-pan with some broth, a blade of mace, a few pepper-corns, and a bit of thyme; boil the feet till they are quite tender; this will take full twenty minutes; but the heart, liver, and lights will be done enough in ten, when they are to be taken out, and minced fine. Put them all together into a stew-pan with some gravy; thicken it with a little butter rolled in flour; season it with a little pepper and salt, and set it over a gentle fire to simmer for five minutes, frequently shaking them about. While this is doing, have a thin slice of bread toasted very lightly; divide it into sippets, and lay them round the dish: pour the mince and sauce into the middle of it, and split the feet, and lay them round it. N.B. Pettitoes...

Bacon.—(No. 13.)

1 minute read

Cover a pound of nice streaked bacon (as the Hampshire housewives say, that “has been starved one day, and fed another”) with cold water, let it boil gently for three-quarters of an hour; take it up, scrape the under-side well, and cut off the rind: grate a crust of bread not only on the top, but all over it, as directed for the ham in the following receipt, and put it before the fire for a few minutes: it must not be there too long, or it will dry it and spoil it. Two pounds will require about an hour and a half, according to its thickness; the hock or gammon being very thick, will take more. Obs. —See Nos. 526 and 527 : when only a little bacon is wanted, these are the best ways of dressing it. The boiling of bacon is a very simple subject to comment,...

Ham,—(No. 14.)

1 minute read

Though of the bacon kind, has been so altered and hardened in the curing, that it requires still more care. Ham is generally not half-soaked; as salt as brine, and hard as flint; and it would puzzle the stomach of an ostrich to digest it. Mem. —The salt, seasoning, and smoke, which preserve it before it is eaten, prevent its solution after; and unless it be very long and very gently stewed, the strongest stomach will have a tough job to extract any nourishment from it. If it is a very dry Westphalia ham, it must be soaked, according to its age and thickness, from 12 to 24 hours; for a green Yorkshire or Westmoreland ham, from four to eight hours will be sufficient. Lukewarm water will soften it much sooner than cold, when sufficiently soaked, trim it nicely on the underside, and pare off all the rusty and smoked...

Tongue.—(No. 15.)

54 minute read

A tongue is so hard, whether prepared by drying or pickling, that it requires much more cooking than a ham; nothing of its weight takes so long to dress it properly. A tongue that has been salted and dried should be put to soak (if it is old and very hard, 24 hours before it is wanted) in plenty of water; a green one fresh from the pickle requires soaking only a few hours: put your tongue into plenty of cold water; let it be an hour gradually warming; and give it from three and a half to four hours’ very slow simmering, according to the size, &c. Obs. When you choose a tongue, endeavour to learn how long it has been dried or pickled, pick out the plumpest, and that which has the smoothest skin, which denotes its being young and tender. The roots, &c. make an excellent relish...

Turkeys, Capons, Fowls, Chickens, &c.—(No. 16.)

2 minute read

Are all boiled exactly in the same manner, only allowing time, according to their size. For the stuffing, &c. (Nos. 374 , 375 , and 377 ), some of it made into balls, and boiled or fried, make a nice garnish, and are handy to help; and you can then reserve some of the inside stuffing to eat with the cold fowl, or enrich the hash (Nos. 530 and 533 ). Chickens or fowls should be killed at least one or two days before they are to be dressed. Turkeys (especially large ones) should not be dressed till they have been killed three or four days at least, in cold weather six or eight, or they will neither look white nor eat tender. 120-* Turkeys, and large fowls, should have the strings or sinews of the thighs drawn out. Truss them with the legs outward, they are much easier carved....

Rabbits.—(No. 17.)

1 minute read

Truss your rabbits short, lay them in a basin of warm water for ten minutes, then put them into plenty of water, and boil them about half an hour; if large ones, three quarters; if very old, an hour: smother them with plenty of white onion sauce ( No. 298 ), mince the liver, and lay it round the dish, or make liver sauce ( No. 287 ), and send it up in a boat. Obs. Ask those you are going to make liver sauce for, if they like plain liver sauce, or liver and parsley, or liver and lemon sauce (Nos. 287 and 288 ). N.B. It will save much trouble to the carver, if the rabbits be cut up in the kitchen into pieces fit to help at table, and the head divided, one-half laid at each end, and slices of lemon and the liver, chopped very finely,...

Tripe.—(No. 18.)

1 minute read

Take care to have fresh tripe; cleanse it well from the fat, and cut it into pieces about two inches broad and four long; put it into a stew-pan, and cover it with milk and water, and let it boil gently till it is tender. If the tripe has been prepared as it usually is at the tripe shops, it will be enough in about an hour, (this depends upon how long it has been previously boiled at the tripe shop); if entirely undressed, it will require two or three hours, according to the age and quality of it. Make some onion sauce in the same manner as you do for rabbits ( No. 298 ), or boil (slowly by themselves) some Spanish or the whitest common onions you can get; peel them before you boil them; when they are tender, which a middling-sized onion will be in about three-quarters...

Cow-Heel,—(No. 18.*)

2 minute read

In the hands of a skilful cook, will furnish several good meals; when boiled tender ( No. 198 ), cut it into handsome pieces, egg and bread-crumb them, and fry them a light brown; lay them round a dish, and put in the middle of it sliced onions fried, or the accompaniments ordered for tripe. The liquor they were boiled in will make soups ( No. 229 , 240* , or No. 555 ). N.B. We give no receipts to boil venison, geese, ducks, pheasants, woodcocks, and peacocks, &c. as our aim has been to make a useful book, not a big one (see No. 82 ). 108-* The gigot is the leg with part of the loin. 111-* If not to be cut till cold , two days longer salting will not only improve its flavour, but the meat will keep better. 111-† In the West Indies they can...

Sirloin of Beef.—(No. 19.)

1 minute read

The noble sirloin 122-* of about fifteen pounds (if much thicker, the outside will be done too much before the inside is enough), will require to be before the fire about three and a half or four hours; take care to spit it evenly, that it may not be heavier on one side than the other; put a little clean dripping into the dripping-pan, (tie a sheet of paper over it to preserve the fat, 123-* ) baste it well as soon as it is put down, and every quarter of an hour all the time it is roasting, till the last half hour; then take off the paper, and make some gravy for it ( No. 326 ); stir the fire and make it clear: to brown and froth it, sprinkle a little salt over it, baste it with butter, and dredge it with flour; let it go a...

Ribs of Beef.—(No. 20).

28 minute read

The first three ribs, of fifteen or twenty pounds, will take three hours, or three and a half: the fourth and fifth ribs will lake as long, managed in the same way as the sirloin. Paper the fat, and the thin part, or it will be done too much, before the thick part is done enough. N.B. A pig-iron placed before it on the bars of the grate answers every purpose of keeping the thin part from being too much done. Obs. Many persons prefer the ribs to the sirloin....

Ribs of Beef boned and rolled.—(No. 21.)

43 minute read

When you have kept two or three ribs of beef till quite tender, take out the bones, and skewer it as round as possible (like a fillet of veal): before they roll it, some cooks egg it, and sprinkle it with veal stuffing ( No. 374 ). As the meat is more in a solid mass, it will require more time at the fire than in the preceding receipt; a piece of ten or twelve pounds weight will not be well and thoroughly roasted in less than four and a half or five hours. For the first half hour, it should not be less than twelve inches from the fire, that it may get gradually warm to the centre: the last half hour before it will be finished, sprinkle a little salt over it; and if you wish to froth it, flour it, &c....

MUTTON.124-*—(No. 23.)

41 minute read

As beef requires a large, sound fire, mutton must have a brisk and sharp one. If you wish to have mutton tender, it should be hung almost as long as it will keep; 124-† and then good eight-tooth, i. e. four years old mutton, is as good eating as venison, if it is accompanied by Nos. 329 and 346 . The leg, haunch, and saddle will be the better for being hung up in a cool airy place for four or five days at least; in temperate weather, a week; in cold weather, ten days. If you think your mutton will not be tender enough to do honour to the spit, dress it as a “ gigot de sept heures .” See N.B. to No. 1 and No. 493 ....

A Leg,—(No. 24.)

13 minute read

Of eight pounds, will take about two hours: let it be well basted, and frothed in the same manner as directed in No. 19 . To hash mutton, No. 484 . To broil it, No. 487 , &c....

A Chine or Saddle,—(No. 26.)

46 minute read

( i. e. the two loins) of ten or eleven pounds, two hours and a half: it is the business of the butcher to take off the skin and skewer it on again, to defend the meat from extreme heat, and preserve its succulence; if this is neglected, tie a sheet of paper over it (baste the strings you tie it on with directly, or they will burn): about a quarter of an hour before you think it will be done, take off the skin or paper, that it may get a pale brown colour, then baste it and flour it lightly to froth it. We like No. 346 for sauce. N.B. Desire the butcher to cut off the flaps and the tail and chump end, and trim away every part that has not indisputable pretensions to be eaten. This will reduce a saddle of eleven pounds weight to about...

A Shoulder,—(No. 27.)

14 minute read

Of seven pounds, an hour and a half. Put the spit in close to the shank-bone, and run it along the blade-bone. N.B. The blade-bone is a favourite luncheon or supper relish, scored, peppered and salted, and broiled, or done in a Dutch oven....

A Loin,125-*—(No. 28.)

21 minute read

Of mutton, from an hour and a half to an hour and three quarters. The most elegant way of carving this, is to cut it lengthwise, as you do a saddle: read No. 26 . N.B. Spit it on a skewer or lark spit, and tie that on the common spit, and do not spoil the meat by running the spit through the prime part of it....

A Neck,—(No. 29.)

39 minute read

About the same time as a loin. It must be carefully jointed, or it is very difficult to carve. The neck and breast are, in small families, commonly roasted together; the cook will then crack the bones across the middle before they are put down to roast: if this is not done carefully, they are very troublesome to carve. Tell the cook, when she takes it from the spit, to separate them before she sends them to table. Obs. —If there is more fat than you think will be eaten with the lean, cut it off, and it will make an excellent suet pudding ( No. 551 , or No. 554 ). N.B. The best way to spit this is to run iron skewers across it, and put the spit between them....

A Breast,—(No. 30.)

7 minute read

An hour and a quarter. To grill a breast of mutton, see Obs. to No. 38 ....

A Haunch,—(No. 31.)

18 minute read

( i. e. the leg and part of the loin) of mutton: send up two sauce-boats with it; one of rich mutton gravy, made without spice or herbs ( No. 347 ), and the other of sweet sauce ( No. 346 ). It generally weighs about 15 pounds, and requires about three hours and a half to roast it....

Mutton, venison fashion.—(No. 32.)

1 minute read

Take a neck of good four or five years old Southdown wether mutton, cut long in the bones; let it hang (in temperate weather) at least a week: two days before you dress it, take allspice and black pepper, ground and pounded fine, a quarter of an ounce each; rub them together, and then rub your mutton well with this mixture twice a day. When you dress it, wash off the spice with warm water, and roast in paste, as we have ordered the haunch of venison. ( No. 63 ). Obs. —Persevering and ingenious epicures have invented many methods to give mutton the flavour of venison. Some say that mutton, prepared as above, may be mistaken for venison; others, that it is full as good. The refined palate of a grand gourmand (in spite of the spice and wine the meat has been fuddled and rubbed with) will perhaps...

VEAL.—(No. 33.)

48 minute read

Veal requires particular care to roast it a nice brown. Let the fire be the same as for beef; a sound large fire for a large joint, and a brisker for a smaller; put it at some distance from the fire to soak thoroughly, and then draw it near to finish it brown. When first laid down, it is to be basted; baste it again occasionally. When the veal is on the dish, pour over it half a pint of melted butter ( No. 256 ): if you have a little brown gravy by you, add that to the butter ( No. 326 ). With those joints which are not stuffed, send up forcemeat ( No. 374 , or No. 375 ) in balls, or rolled into sausages, as garnish to the dish, or fried pork sausages ( No. 87 ); bacon ( No. 13 , or No. 526 ,...

Fillet of Veal,—(No. 34.)

50 minute read

Of from twelve to sixteen pounds, will require from four to five hours at a good fire; make some stuffing or forcemeat ( No. 374 or 5 ), and put it in under the flap, that there may be some left to eat cold, or to season a hash; 127-* brown it, and pour good melted butter ( No. 266 ) over it, as directed in No. 33 . Garnish with thin slices of lemon and cakes or balls of stuffing, or No. 374 , or No. 375 , or duck stuffing ( No. 61 ), or fried pork sausages ( No. 87 ), curry sauce ( No. 348 ), bacon ( No. 13 ), and greens, &c. N.B. Potted veal ( No. 533 ). Obs. —A bit of the brown outside is a favourite with the epicure in roasts. The kidney, cut out, sliced, and broiled ( No. 358...

A Loin,—(No. 35.)

28 minute read

Is the best part of the calf, and will take about three hours roasting. Paper the kidney fat, and the back: some cooks send it up on a toast, which is eaten with the kidney and the fat of this part, which is as delicate as any marrow. If there is more of it than you think will be eaten with the veal, before you roast it cut it out; it will make an excellent suet pudding: take care to have your fire long enough to brown the ends; same accompaniments as No. 34 ....

A Shoulder,—(No. 36.)

10 minute read

From three hours to three hours and a half; stuff it with the forcemeat ordered for the fillet of veal, in the under side, or balls made of No. 374 ....

Neck, best end,—(No. 37.)

8 minute read

Will take two hours; same accompaniments as No. 34 . The scrag part is best made into a pie, or broth....

Breast,—(No. 38.)

33 minute read

From an hour and a half to two hours. Let the caul remain till it is almost done, then take it off to brown it; baste, flour, and froth it. Obs. —This makes a savoury relish for a luncheon or supper: or, instead of roasting, boil it enough; put it in a cloth between two pewter dishes, with a weight on the upper one, and let it remain so till cold; then pare and trim, egg, and crumb it, and broil, or warm it in a Dutch oven; serve with it capers ( No. 274 ), or wow wow sauce ( No. 328 ). Breast of mutton may be dressed the same way....

Veal Sweetbread.—(No. 39.)

46 minute read

Trim a fine sweetbread (it cannot be too fresh); parboil it for five minutes, and throw it into a basin of cold water. Roast it plain, or Beat up the yelk of an egg, and prepare some fine bread-crumbs: when the sweetbread is cold, dry it thoroughly in a cloth; run a lark-spit or a skewer through it, and tie it on the ordinary spit; egg it with a paste-brush; powder it well with bread-crumbs, and roast it. For sauce, fried bread-crumbs round it, and melted butter, with a little mushroom catchup ( No. 439 ), and lemon -juice (Nos. 307 , 354 , or 356 ), or serve them on buttered toast, garnished with egg sauce ( No. 267 ), or with gravy ( No. 329 ). Obs. —Instead of spitting them, you may put them into a tin Dutch oven, or fry them (Nos. 88 , 89 ,...

LAMB,—(No. 40.)

1 minute read

Is a delicate, and commonly considered tender meat; but those who talk of tender lamb, while they are thinking of the age of the animal, forget that even a chicken must be kept a proper time after it has been killed, or it will be tough picking. Woful experience has warned us to beware of accepting an invitation to dinner on Easter Sunday, unless commanded by a thorough-bred gourmand ; our incisores , molares , and principal viscera have protested against the imprudence of encountering young, tough, stringy mutton, under the misnomen of grass lamb. The proper name for “Easter grass lamb” is “hay mutton.” To the usual accompaniments of roasted meat, green mint sauce ( No. 303 ), a salad (Nos. 372 and 138* ), is commonly added; and some cooks, about five minutes before it is done, sprinkle it with a little fresh gathered and finely minced parsley,...

Hind-Quarter,—(No. 41).

22 minute read

Of eight pounds, will take from an hour and three-quarters to two hours: baste and froth it in the same way as directed in No. 19 . Obs. —A quarter of a porkling is sometimes skinned, cut, and dressed lamb-fashion, and sent up as a substitute for it. The leg and the loin of lamb, when little, should be roasted together; the former being lean, the latter fat, and the gravy is better preserved....

Fore-Quarter,—(No. 42.)

19 minute read

Of ten pounds, about two hours. N.B. It is a pretty general custom, when you take off the shoulder from the ribs, to squeeze a Seville orange over them, and sprinkle them with a little pepper and salt. Obs. —This may as well be done by the cook before it comes to table; some people are not remarkably expert at dividing these joints nicely....

Leg,—(No. 43.)

4 minute read

Of five pounds, from an hour to an hour and a half....

Shoulder,—(No. 44.)

5 minute read

With a quick fire, an hour. See Obs. to No. 27 ....

Ribs,—(No. 45.)

8 minute read

About an hour to an hour and a quarter: joint it nicely, crack the ribs across, and divide them from the brisket after it is roasted....

Loin,—(No. 46.)

2 minute read

An hour and a quarter....

Neck,—(No. 47.)

1 minute read

An hour....

Breast,—(No. 48.)

2 minute read

Three-quarters of an hour....

PORK.—(No. 49.)

1 minute read

The prime season for pork is from Michaelmas to March. Take particular care it be done enough: other meats under-done are unpleasant, but pork is absolutely uneatable; the sight of it is enough to appal the sharpest appetite, if its gravy has the least tint of redness. Be careful of the crackling; if this be not crisp, or if it be burned, you will be scolded. For sauces, No. 300 , No. 304 , and No. 342 . Obs. —Pease pudding ( No. 555 ) is as good an accompaniment to roasted, as it is to boiled pork; and most palates are pleased with the savoury powder set down in No. 51 , or bread-crumbs, mixed with sage and onion, minced very fine, or zest ( No. 255 ) sprinkled over it. N.B. “The western pigs, from Berks, Oxford, and Bucks, possess a decided superiority over the eastern, of Essex,...

A Leg,—(No. 50.)

39 minute read

Of eight pounds, will require about three hours: score the skin across in narrow stripes (some score it in diamonds), about a quarter of an inch apart; stuff the knuckle with sage and onion, minced fine, and a little grated bread, seasoned with pepper, salt, and the yelk of an egg. See Duck Stuffing, ( No. 61 .) Do not put it too near the fire: rub a little sweet oil on the skin with a paste-brush, or a goose-feather: this makes the crackling crisper and browner than basting it with dripping; and it will be a better colour than all the art of cookery can make it in any other way; and this is the best way of preventing the skin from blistering, which is principally occasioned by its being put too near the fire....

Leg of Pork roasted without the Skin, commonly called Mock Goose.131-*—(No. 51.)

31 minute read

Parboil it; take off the skin, and then put it down to roast; baste it with butter, and make a savoury powder of finely minced, or dried and powdered sage, ground black pepper, salt, and some bread-crumbs, rubbed together through a colander; you may add to this a little very finely minced onion: sprinkle it with this when it is almost roasted. Put half a pint of made gravy into the dish, and goose stuffing ( No. 378 ) under the knuckle skin; or garnish the dish with balls of it fried or boiled....

The Griskin,—(No. 52.)

7 minute read

Of seven or eight pounds, may be dressed in the same manner. It will take an hour and a half roasting....

A Bacon Spare-Rib,—(No. 53.)

1 minute read

Usually weighs about eight or nine pounds, and will take from two to three hours to roast it thoroughly; not exactly according to its weight, but the thickness of the meat upon it, which varies very much. Lay the thick end nearest to the fire. A proper bald spare-rib of eight pounds weight (so called because almost all the meat is pared off), with a steady fire, will be done in an hour and a quarter. There is so little meat on a bald spare-rib, that if you have a large, fierce fire, it will be burned before it is warm through. Joint it nicely, and crack the ribs across as you do ribs of lamb. When you put it down to roast, dust on some flour, and baste it with a little butter; dry a dozen sage leaves, and rub them through a hair-sieve, and put them into the...

Loin,—(No. 54.)

24 minute read

Of five pounds, must be kept at a good distance from the fire on account of the crackling, and will take about two hours; if very fat, half an hour longer. Stuff it with duck stuffing ( No. 378 ). Score the skin in stripes, about a quarter of an inch apart, and rub it with salad oil, as directed in No. 50 . You may sprinkle over it some of the savoury powder recommended for the mock goose ( No. 51 )....

A Chine.—(No. 55.)

11 minute read

If parted down the back-bone so as to have but one side, a good fire will roast it in two hours; if not parted, three hours. N.B. Chines are generally salted and boiled....

A Sucking-Pig,133-*—(No. 56.)

2 minute read

Is in prime order for the spit when about three weeks old. It loses part of its goodness every hour after it is killed; if not quite fresh, no art can make the crackling crisp. To be in perfection, it should be killed in the morning to be eaten at dinner: it requires very careful roasting. A sucking-pig, like a young child, must not be left for an instant. The ends must have much more fire than the middle: for this purpose is contrived an iron to hang before the middle part, called a pig-iron. If you have not this, use a common flat iron, or keep the fire fiercest at the two ends. For the stuffing, take of the crumb of a stale loaf about five ounces; rub it through a colander; mince fine a handful of sage ( i. e. about two ounces), and a large onion (about...

Turkey, Turkey Poults, and other Poultry.—(No. 57.)

3 minute read

A fowl and a turkey require the same management at the fire, only the latter will take longer time. Many a Christmas dinner has been spoiled by the turkey having been hung up in a cold larder, and becoming thoroughly frozen; Jack Frost has ruined the reputation of many a turkey-roaster: therefore, in very cold weather, remember the note in the 5th page of the 3d chapter of the Rudiments of Cookery. Let them be carefully picked, &c. and break the breast-bone (to make them look plump), twist up a sheet of clean writing-paper, light it, and thoroughly singe the turkey all over, turning it about over the flame. Turkeys, fowls, and capons have a much better appearance, if, instead of trussing them with the legs close together, and the feet cut off, the legs are extended on each side of the bird, and the toes only cut off with...

Capons or Fowls,—(No. 58.)

2 minute read

Must be killed a couple of days in moderate, and more in cold weather, before they are dressed, or they will eat tough: a good criterion of the ripeness of poultry for the spit, is the ease with which you can then pull out the feathers; when a fowl is plucked, leave a few to help you to ascertain this. They are managed exactly in the same manner, and sent up with the same sauces as a turkey, only they require proportionably less time at the fire. A full-grown five-toed fowl, about an hour and a quarter. A moderate-sized one, an hour. A chicken, from thirty to forty minutes. Here, also, pork sausages fried ( No. 87 ) are in general a favourite accompaniment, or turkey stuffing; see forcemeats (Nos. 374 , 5 , 6 , and 7 ); put in plenty of it, so as to plump out the...

Goose.—(No. 59.)

1 minute read

When a goose is well picked, singed, and cleaned, make the stuffing with about two ounces of onion, 137-* and half as much green sage, chop them very fine, adding four ounces, i. e. about a large breakfast-cupful of stale bread-crumbs, a bit of butter about as big as a walnut, and a very little pepper and salt (to this some cooks add half the liver, 137-† parboiling it first), the yelk of an egg or two, and incorporating the whole well together, stuff the goose; do not quite fill it, but leave a little room for the stuffing to swell; spit it, tie it on the spit at both ends, to prevent its swinging round, and to keep the stuffing from coming out. From an hour and a half to an hour and three-quarters, will roast a fine full-grown goose. Send up gravy and apple sauce with it (see...

Green Goose.—(No. 60.)

18 minute read

Geese are called green till they are about four months old. The only difference between roasting these and a full-grown goose, consists in seasoning it with pepper and salt instead of sage and onion, and roasting it for forty or fifty minutes only. Obs. This is one of the least desirable of those insipid premature productions, which are esteemed dainties....

Duck.—(No. 61.)

1 minute read

Mind your duck is well cleaned, and wiped out with a clean cloth: for the stuffing, take an ounce of onion and half an ounce of green sage; chop them very fine, and mix them with two ounces, i. e. about a breakfast-cupful, of bread-crumbs, a bit of butter about as big as a walnut, a very little black pepper and salt, (some obtuse palates may require warming with a little Cayenne, No. 404 ,) and the yelk of an egg to bind it; mix these thoroughly together, and put into the duck. For another stuffing, see No. 378 . From half to three-quarters of an hour will be enough to roast it, according to the size: contrive to have the feet delicately crisp, as some people are very fond of them; to do this nicely you must have a sharp fire. For sauce, green pease ( No. 134 ),...

Haunch of Venison.—(No. 63.)

1 minute read

To preserve the fat, make a paste of flour and water, as much as will cover the haunch; wipe it with a dry cloth in every part; rub a large sheet of paper all over with butter, and cover the venison with it; then roll out the paste about three-quarters of an inch thick; lay this all over the fat side, and cover it well with three or four sheets of strong white paper, and tie it securely on with packthread: have a strong, close fire, and baste your venison as soon as you lay it down to roast (to prevent the paper and string from burning); it must be well basted all the time. A buck haunch generally weighs from 20 to 25 pounds; will take about four hours and a half roasting in warm, and longer in cold weather: a haunch of from 19 to 18 pounds will...

Neck and Shoulder of Venison,—(No. 64.)

17 minute read

Are to be managed in the same way as the haunch; only they do not require the coat or paste, and will not take so much time. The best way to spit a neck is to put three skewers through it, and put the spit between the skewers and the bones....

A Fawn,—(No. 65.)

42 minute read

Like a sucking-pig, should be dressed almost as soon as killed. When very young, it is trussed, stuffed, and spitted the same way as a hare: but they are better eating when of the size of a house lamb, and are then roasted in quarters; the hind-quarter is most esteemed. They must be put down to a very quick fire, and either basted all the time they are roasting, or be covered with sheets of fat bacon; when done, baste it with butter, and dredge it with a little salt and flour, till you make a nice froth on it. N.B. We advise our friends to half roast a fawn as soon as they receive it, and then make a hash of it like No. 528 . Send up venison sauce with it. See the preceding receipt, or No. 344 , &c....

A Kid.—(No. 65*.)

10 minute read

A young sucking-kid is very good eating; to have it in prime condition, the dam should be kept up, and well fed, &c. Roast it like a fawn or hare....

Hare.—(No. 66.)

2 minute read

“ Inter quadrupedes gloria prima lepus. ”— Martial. The first points of consideration are, how old is the hare? and how long has it been killed? When young, it is easy of digestion, and very nourishing; when old, the contrary in every respect. To ascertain the age, examine the first joint of the forefoot; you will find a small knob, if it is a leveret, which disappears as it grows older; then examine the ears, if they tear easily, it will eat tender; if they are tough, so will be the hare, which we advise you to make into soup ( No. 241 ), or stew or jug it ( No. 523 ). When newly killed, the body is stiff; as it grows stale, it becomes limp. As soon as you receive a hare, take out the liver, parboil it, and keep it for the stuffing; some are very fond...

Mock Hare.—(No. 66.*)

42 minute read

Cut out the fillet ( i. e. the inside lean) of a sirloin of beef, leaving the fat to roast with the joint. Prepare some nice stuffing, as directed for a hare in No. 66 , or 379 ; put this on the beef, and roll it up with tape, put a skewer through it, and tie that on a spit. Obs. If the beef is of prime quality, has been kept till thoroughly tender, and you serve with it the accompaniments that usually attend roast hare (Nos. 329 , 344 , &c.), or stew it, and serve it with a rich thickened sauce garnished with forcemeat balls ( No. 379 ), the most fastidious palate will have no reason to regret that the game season is over. To make this into hare soup, see No. 241 ....

Rabbit.—(No. 67.)

45 minute read

If your fire is clear and sharp, thirty minutes will roast a young, and forty a full-grown rabbit. When you lay it down, baste it with butter, and dredge it lightly and carefully with flour, that you may have it frothy, and of a fine light brown. While the rabbit is roasting, boil its liver 142-* with some parsley; when tender, chop them together, and put half the mixture into some melted butter, reserving the other half for garnish, divided into little hillocks. Cut off the head, and lay half on each side of the dish. Obs. A fine, well-grown (but young) warren rabbit, kept some time after it has been killed, and roasted with a stuffing in its belly, eats very like a hare, to the nature of which it approaches. It is nice, nourishing food when young, but hard and unwholesome when old. For sauces, Nos. 287 ,...

Pheasant.—(No. 68.)

1 minute read

Requires a smart fire, but not a fierce one. Thirty minutes will roast a young bird, and forty or fifty a full-grown pheasant. Pick and draw it, cut a slit in the back of the neck, and take out the craw, but don’t cut the head off; wipe the inside of the bird with a clean cloth, twist the legs close to the body, leave the feet on, but cut the toes off; don’t turn the head under the wing, but truss it like a fowl, it is much easier to carve; baste it, butter and froth it, and prepare sauce for it (Nos. 321 and 329 ). See the instructions in receipts to roast fowls and turkeys, Nos. 57 and 58 . Obs. We believe the rarity of this bird is its best recommendation; and the character given it by an ingenious French author is just as good as...

Mock Pheasant.—(No. 69.)

26 minute read

If you have only one pheasant, and wish for a companion for it, get a fine young fowl, of as near as may be the same size as the bird to be matched, and make game of it by trussing it like a pheasant, and dressing it according to the above directions. Few persons will discover the pheasant from the fowl, especially if the latter has been kept four or five days. The peculiar flavour of the pheasant (like that of other game) is principally acquired by long keeping....

Guinea and Pea Fowls,—(No. 69*.)

4 minute read

Are dressed in the same way as pheasants....

Partridges,—(No. 70.)

30 minute read

Are cleaned and trussed in the same manner as a pheasant (but the ridiculous custom of tucking the legs into each other makes them very troublesome to carve); the breast is so plump, it will require almost as much roasting; send up with them rich sauce ( No. 321* ), or bread sauce ( No. 321 ), and good gravy ( No. 329 ). * * * If you wish to preserve them longer than you think they will keep good undressed, half roast them, they will then keep two or three days longer; or make a pie of them....

Black Cock (No. 71), Moor Game (No. 72), and Grouse, (No. 73.)

16 minute read

Are all to be dressed like partridges; the black cock will take as much as a pheasant, and moor game and grouse as the partridge. Send up with them currant-jelly and fried bread-crumbs ( No. 320 )....

Wild Ducks.—(No. 74.)

30 minute read

For roasting a wild duck, you must have a clear, brisk fire, and a hot spit; it must be browned upon the outside, without being sodden within. To have it well frothed and full of gravy is the nicety. Prepare the fire by stirring and raking it just before the bird is laid down, and fifteen or twenty minutes will do it in the fashionable way; but if you like it a little more done, allow it a few minutes longer; if it is too much, it will lose its flavour. For the sauce, see No. 338 and No. 62 ....

Widgeons and Teal,—(No. 75.)

8 minute read

Are dressed exactly as the wild duck; only that less time is requisite for a widgeon, and still less for a teal....

Woodcock.—(No. 76.)

53 minute read

Woodcocks should not be drawn, as the trail is by the lovers of “ haut goût ” considered a “ bonne bouche ;” truss their legs close to the body, and run an iron skewer through each thigh, close to the body, and tie them on a small bird spit; put them to roast at a clear fire; cut as many slices of bread as you have birds, toast or fry them a delicate brown, and lay them in the dripping-pan under the birds to catch the trail; 144-* baste them with butter, and froth them with flour; lay the toast on a hot dish, and the birds on the toast; pour some good beef gravy into the dish, and send some up in a boat, see Obs. to No. 329 : twenty or thirty minutes will roast them. Garnish with slices of lemon. Obs. —Some epicures like this bird...

Snipes,—(No. 77.)

10 minute read

Differ little from woodcocks, unless in size; they are to be dressed in the same way, but require about five minutes less time to roast them. For sauce, see No. 338 ....

Pigeons.—(No. 78.)

1 minute read

When the pigeons are ready for roasting, if you are desired to stuff them, chop some green parsley very fine, the liver, and a bit of butter together, with a little pepper and salt, or with the stuffing ordered for a fillet of veal ( No. 374 or No. 375 ), and fill the belly of each bird with it. They will be done enough in about twenty or thirty minutes; send up parsley and butter ( No. 261 ,) in the dish under them, and some in a boat, and garnish with crisp parsley ( No. 318 ), or fried bread crumbs ( No. 320 ), or bread sauce ( No. 321 ), or gravy ( No. 329 ). Obs. —When pigeons are fresh they have their full relish; but it goes entirely off with a very little keeping; nor is it in any way so well preserved as...

Larks and other small Birds.—(No. 80.)

36 minute read

These delicate little birds are in high season in November. When they are picked, gutted, and cleaned, truss them; brush them with the yelk of an egg, and then roll them in bread-crumbs: spit them on a lark-spit, and tie that on to a larger spit; ten or fifteen minutes at a quick fire will do them enough; baste them with fresh butter while they are roasting, and sprinkle them with bread-crumbs till they are well covered with them. For the sauce, fry some grated bread in clarified butter, see No. 259 , and set it to drain before the fire, that it may harden: serve the crumbs under the larks when you dish them, and garnish them with slices of lemon....

Wheatears,—(No. 81.)

3 minute read

Are dressed in the same way as larks....

Lobster.—(No. 82.)

16 minute read

See receipt for boiling ( No. 176 ). We give no receipt for roasting lobster, tongue, &c. being of opinion with Dr. King, who says, “By roasting that which our forefathers boiled, And boiling what they roasted, much is spoiled.” 122-* This joint is said to owe its name to king Charles the Second, who, dining upon a loin of beef, and being particularly pleased with it, asked the name of the joint; said for its merit it should be knighted , and henceforth called Sir-Loin . 123-* “In the present fashion of FATTENING CATTLE , it is more desirable to roast away the fat than to preserve it. If the honourable societies of agriculturists, at the time they consulted a learned professor about the composition of manures, had consulted some competent authority on the nature of animal substances, the public might have escaped the overgrown corpulency of the animal...

To clarify Drippings.—(No. 83.)

53 minute read

Put your dripping into a clean sauce-pan over a stove or slow fire; when it is just going to boil, skim it well, let it boil, and then let it stand till it is a little cooled; then pour it through a sieve into a pan. Obs. —Well-cleansed drippings, 147-* and the fat skimmings 147-† of the broth-pot, when fresh and sweet, will baste every thing as well as butter, except game and poultry, and should supply the place of butter for common fries, &c.; for which they are equal to lard, especially if you repeat the clarifying twice over. N.B. If you keep it in a cool place, you may preserve it a fortnight in summer, and longer in winter. When you have done frying, let the dripping stand a few minutes to settle, and then pour it through a sieve into a clean basin or stone pan, and...

To clarify Suet to fry with.—(No. 84.)

46 minute read

Cut beef or mutton suet into thin slices, pick out all the veins and skins, &c., put it into a thick and well-tinned sauce-pan, and set it over a very slow stove, or in an oven, till it is melted; you must not hurry it; if not done very slowly it will acquire a burnt taste, which you cannot get rid of; then strain it through a hair-sieve into a clean brown pan: when quite cold, tie a paper over it, and keep it for use. Hog’s lard is prepared in the same way. Obs. —The waste occasioned by the present absurd fashion of over-feeding cattle till the fat is nearly equal to the lean, may, by good management, be in some measure prevented, by cutting off the superfluous part, and preparing it as above, or by making it into puddings; see Nos. 551 and 554 , or soup, No....

Steaks.—(No. 85.)

28 minute read

Cut the steaks rather thinner than for broiling. Put some butter, or No. 83 , into an iron frying-pan, and when it is hot, lay in the steaks, and keep turning them till they are done enough. For sauce, see No. 356 , and for the accompaniments, No. 94 . Obs. Unless the fire be prepared on purpose, we like this way of cooking them; the gravy is preserved, and the meat is more equally dressed, and more evenly browned; which makes it more relishing, and invites the eye to encourage the appetite....

Beef-steaks and Onions.—(No. 86. See also No. 501.)

14 minute read

Fry the steaks according to the directions given in the preceding receipt; and have ready for them some onions prepared as directed in No. 299 . For stewed rump-steaks, see Nos. 500 and 501 ....

Sausages,—(No. 87.)

1 minute read

Are best when quite fresh made. Put a bit of butter, or dripping ( No. 83 ), into a clean frying-pan; as soon as it is melted (before it gets hot) put in the sausages, and shake the pan for a minute, and keep turning them (be careful not to break or prick them in so doing); fry them over a very slow fire till they are nicely browned on all sides; when they are done, lay them on a hair-sieve, placed before the fire for a couple of minutes to drain the fat from them. The secret of frying sausages is, to let them get hot very gradually; they then will not burst, if they are not stale. The common practice to prevent their bursting, is to prick them with a fork; but this lets the gravy out. You may froth them by rubbing them with cold fresh butter,...

Sweetbreads full-dressed.—(No. 88.)

30 minute read

Parboil them, and let them get cold; then cut them in pieces, about three-quarters of an inch thick; dip them in the yelk of an egg, then in fine bread-crumbs (some add spice, lemon-peel, and sweet herbs); put some clean dripping ( No. 83 ) into a frying-pan: when it boils, put in the sweetbreads, and fry them a fine brown. For garnish, crisp parsley; and for sauce, mushroom catchup and melted butter, or anchovy sauce, or Nos. 356 , 343 , or 343* , or bacon or ham, as Nos. 526 and 527 ....

Sweetbreads plain.—(No. 89.)

40 minute read

Parboil and slice them as before, dry them on a clean cloth, flour them, and fry them a delicate brown; take care to drain the fat well from them, and garnish them with slices of lemon, and sprigs of chervil or parsley, or crisp parsley ( No. 318 ). For sauce, No. 356 , or No. 307 , and slices of ham or bacon, as No. 526 , or No. 527 , or forcemeat balls made as Nos. 375 and 378 . * * * Take care to have a fresh sweetbread; it spoils sooner than almost any thing, therefore should be parboiled as soon as it comes in. This is called blanching, or setting it; mutton kidneys ( No. 95 ) are sometimes broiled and sent up with sweetbreads....

Veal Cutlets.—(No. 90 and No. 521.)

1 minute read

Let your cutlets be about half an inch thick; trim them, and flatten them with a cleaver; you may fry them in fresh butter, or good drippings ( No. 83 ); when brown on one side, turn them and do the other; if the fire is very fierce, they must change sides oftener. The time they will take depends on the thickness of the cutlet and the heat of the fire; half an inch thick will take about fifteen minutes. Make some gravy, by putting the trimmings into a stew-pan with a little soft water, an onion, a roll of lemon-peel, a blade of mace, a sprig of thyme and parsley, and a bay leaf; stew over a slow fire an hour, then strain it; put an ounce of butter into a stew-pan; as soon as it is melted, mix with it as much flour as will dry it up,...

Lamb, or Mutton Chops,—(No. 92.)

12 minute read

Are dressed in the same way, and garnished with crisp parsley ( No. 318 ) and slices of lemon. If they are bread-crumbed and covered with buttered writing-paper, and then broiled, they are called “maintenon cutlets.”...

Pork Chops.—(No. 93.)

3 minute read

Cut the chops about half an inch thick; trim them neatly (few cooks have any idea how much credit they get by this); put a frying-pan on the fire, with a bit of butter; as soon as it is hot, put in your chops, turning them often till brown all over, they will be done enough in about fifteen minutes; take one upon a plate and try it; if done, season it with a little finely-minced onion, powdered sage, and pepper and salt. For gravy and sauce, see Nos. 300 , 304 , 341 , and 356 . Obs. A little powdered sage, &c. strewed over them, will give them a nice relish, or the savoury powder in No. 51 , or forcemeat sausages like No. 378 . Do not have them cut too thick, about three chops to an inch and a quarter; trim them neatly, beat them flat,...

Chops or Steaks.151-*—(No. 94.)

3 minute read

To stew them, see No. 500 , ditto with onions, No. 501 . Those who are nice about steaks, never attempt to have them, except in weather which permits the meat to be hung till it is tender, and give the butcher some days’ notice of their wish for them. If, friendly reader, you wish to entertain your mouth with a superlative beef-steak, you must have the inside of the sirloin cut into steaks. The next best steaks are those cut from the middle of a rump, that has been killed at least four days in moderate weather, and much longer in cold weather, when they can be cut about six inches long, four inches wide, and half an inch thick: do not beat them, which vulgar trick breaks the cells in which the gravy of the meat is contained, and it becomes dry and tasteless. N.B. If your butcher...

Kidneys.—(No. 95.)

48 minute read

Cut them through the long way, score them, sprinkle a little pepper and salt on them, and run a wire skewer through them to keep them from curling on the gridiron, so that they may be evenly broiled. Broil them over a very clear fire, turning them often till they are done; they will take about ten or twelve minutes, if the fire is brisk: or fry them in butter, and make gravy for them in the pan (after you have taken out the kidneys), by putting in a tea-spoonful of flour; as soon as it looks brown, put in as much water as will make gravy; they will take five minutes more to fry than to broil. For sauce, Nos. 318 , 355 , and 356 . Obs. Some cooks chop a few parsley-leaves very fine, and mix them with a bit of fresh butter and a little pepper...

A Fowl or Rabbit, &c.—(No. 97.)

1 minute read

We can only recommend this method of dressing when the fire is not good enough for roasting. Pick and truss it the same as for boiling, cut it open down the back, wipe the inside clean with a cloth, season it with a little pepper and salt, have a clear fire, and set the gridiron at a good distance over it, lay the chicken on with the inside towards the fire (you may egg it and strew some grated bread over it), and broil it till it is a fine brown: take care the fleshy side is not burned. Lay it on a hot dish; pickled mushrooms, or mushroom sauce ( No. 305 ), thrown over it, or parsley and butter ( No. 261 ), or melted butter flavoured with mushroom catchup ( No. 307 ). Garnish it with slices of lemon; and the liver and gizzard slit and notched,...

Pigeons,—(No. 98.)

1 minute read

To be worth the trouble of picking, must be well grown, and well fed. Clean them well, and pepper and salt them; broil them over a clear, slow fire; turn them often, and put a little butter on them: when they are done, pour over them, either stewed ( No. 305 ) or pickled mushrooms, or catchup and melted butter ( No. 307 , or No. 348 or 355 ). Garnish with fried bread-crumbs or sippets ( No. 319 ): or, when the pigeons are trussed as for boiling, flat them with a cleaver, taking care not to break the skin of the backs or breasts. Season them with pepper and salt, a little bit of butter, and a tea-spoonful of water, and tie them close at both ends; so that when they are brought to table, they bring their sauce with them. Egg and dredge them well with grated...

Sixteen Ways of dressing Potatoes.155-*—(No. 102.)

2 minute read

The vegetable kingdom affords no food more wholesome, more easily procured, easily prepared, or less expensive, than the potato: yet, although this most useful vegetable is dressed almost every day, in almost every family, for one plate of potatoes that comes to table as it should, ten are spoiled. Be careful in your choice of potatoes: no vegetable varies so much in colour, size, shape, consistence, and flavour. The reddish-coloured are better than the white, but the yellowish-looking ones are the best. Choose those of a moderate size, free from blemishes, and fresh, and buy them in the mould. They must not be wetted till they are cleaned to be cooked. Protect them from the air and frost, by laying them in heaps in a cellar, covering them with mats, or burying them in sand or in earth. The action of frost is most destructive: if it be considerable, the...

Cold Potatoes fried.—(No. 102*.)

17 minute read

Put a bit of clean dripping into a frying-pan: when it is melted, slice in your potatoes with a little pepper and salt; put them on the fire; keep stirring them: when they are quite hot, they are ready. Obs. —This is a very good way of re-dressing potatoes, or see No. 106 ....

Potatoes boiled and broiled.—(No. 103.)

12 minute read

Dress your potatoes as before directed, and put them on a gridiron over a very clear and brisk fire: turn them till they are brown all over, and send them up dry, with melted butter in a cup....

Potatoes fried in Slices or Shavings.—(No. 104.)

31 minute read

Peel large potatoes; slice them about a quarter of an inch thick, or cut them in shavings round and round, as you would peel a lemon; dry them well in a clean cloth, and fry them in lard or dripping. Take care that your fat and frying-pan are quite clean; put it on a quick fire, watch it, and as soon as the lard boils, and is still, put in the slices of potato, and keep moving them till they are crisp. Take them up, and lay them to drain on a sieve: send them up with a very little salt sprinkled over them....

Potatoes fried whole.—(No. 105.)

28 minute read

When nearly boiled enough, as directed in No. 102 , put them into a stew-pan with a bit of butter, or some nice clean beef-drippings; shake them about often (for fear of burning them), till they are brown and crisp; drain them from the fat. Obs. —It will be an elegant improvement to the last three receipts, previous to frying or broiling the potatoes, to flour them and dip them in the yelk of an egg, and then roll them in fine-sifted bread-crumbs; they will then deserve to be called POTATOES FULL DRESSED ....

Potatoes mashed.—(No. 106. See also No. 112.)

33 minute read

When your potatoes are thoroughly boiled, drain them quite dry, pick out every speck, &c., and while hot, rub them through a colander into a clean stew-pan. To a pound of potatoes put about half an ounce of butter, and a table-spoonful of milk: do not make them too moist; mix them well together. Obs. —After Lady-day, when the potatoes are getting old and specky, and in frosty weather, this is the best way of dressing them. You may put them into shapes or small tea-cups; egg them with yelk of egg, and brown them very slightly before a slow fire. See No. 108 ....

Potatoes mashed with Onions.—(No. 107.)

15 minute read

Prepare some boiled onions by putting them through a sieve, and mix them with potatoes. In proportioning the onions to the potatoes, you will be guided by your wish to have more or less of their flavour. Obs. —See note under No. 555 ....

Potatoes escalloped.—(No. 108.)

24 minute read

Mash potatoes as directed in No. 106 ; then butter some nice clean scollop-shells, patty-pans, or tea-cups or saucers; put in your potatoes; make them smooth at the top; cross a knife over them; strew a few fine bread-crumbs on them; sprinkle them with a paste-brush with a few drops of melted butter, and then set them in a Dutch oven; when they are browned on the top, take them carefully out of the shells and brown the other side....

Colcannon.—(No. 108*.)

15 minute read

Boil potatoes and greens, or spinage, separately; mash the potatoes; squeeze the greens dry; chop them quite fine, and mix them with the potatoes, with a little butter, pepper, and salt; put it into a mould, buttering it well first; let it stand in a hot oven for ten minutes....

Potatoes roasted.—(No. 109.)

24 minute read

Wash and dry your potatoes (all of a size), and put them in a tin Dutch oven, or cheese-toaster: take care not to put them too near the fire, or they will get burned on the outside before they are warmed through. Large potatoes will require two hours to roast them. N.B. To save time and trouble, some cooks half boil them first. This is one of the best opportunities the BAKER has to rival the cook....

Potatoes roasted under Meat.—(No. 110.)

18 minute read

Half boil large potatoes, drain the water from them, and put them into an earthen dish, or small tin pan, under meat that is roasting, and baste them with some of the dripping: when they are browned on one side, turn them and brown the other; send them up round the meat, or in a small dish....

Potato Balls.—(No. 111.)

10 minute read

Mix mashed potatoes with the yelk of an egg; roll them into balls; flour them, or egg and bread-crumb them; and fry them in clean drippings, or brown them in a Dutch oven....

Potato Balls Ragoût,—(No. 112.)

20 minute read

Are made by adding to a pound of potatoes a quarter of a pound of grated ham, or some sweet herbs, or chopped parsley, an onion or eschalot, salt, pepper, and a little grated nutmeg, or other spice, with the yelk of a couple of eggs: they are then to be dressed as No. 111 . Obs. —An agreeable vegetable relish, and a good supper-dish....

Potato Snow.—(No. 114.)

22 minute read

The potatoes must be free from spots, and the whitest you can pick out; put them on in cold water; when they begin to crack strain the water from them, and put them into a clean stew-pan by the side of the fire till they are quite dry, and fall to pieces; rub them through a wire sieve on the dish they are to be sent up in, and do not disturb them afterward....

Potato Pie.—(No. 115.)

36 minute read

Peel and slice your potatoes very thin into a pie-dish; between each layer of potatoes put a little chopped onion (three-quarters of an ounce of onion is sufficient for a pound of potatoes); between each layer sprinkle a little pepper and salt; put in a little water, and cut about two ounces of fresh butter into little bits, and lay them on the top: cover it close with puff paste. It will take about an hour and a half to bake it. N.B. The yelks of four eggs (boiled hard) may be added; and when baked, a table-spoonful of good mushroom catchup poured in through a funnel. Obs. —Cauliflowers divided into mouthfuls, and button onions, seasoned with curry powder, &c. make a favourite vegetable pie....

New Potatoes.—(No. 116.)

47 minute read

The best way to clean new potatoes is to rub them with a coarse cloth or flannel, a or scrubbing-brush, and proceed as in No. 102 . N.B. New potatoes are poor, watery, and insipid, till they are full two inches in diameter: they are not worth the trouble of boiling before midsummer day. Obs. —Some cooks prepare sauces to pour over potatoes, made with butter, salt, and pepper, or gravy, or melted butter and catchup; or stew the potatoes in ale, or water seasoned with pepper and salt; or bake them with herrings or sprats, mixed with layers of potatoes, seasoned with pepper, salt, sweet herbs, vinegar, and water; or cut mutton or beef into slices, and lay them in a stew-pan, and on them potatoes and spices, then another layer of the meat alternately, pouring in a little water, covering it up very close, and slewing slowly. Potato...

Jerusalem Artichokes,—(No. 117.)

10 minute read

Are boiled and dressed in the various ways we have just before directed for potatoes. N.B. They should be covered with thick melted butter, or a nice white or brown sauce....

Cabbage.—(No. 118.)

47 minute read

Pick cabbages very clean, and wash them thoroughly; then look them over carefully again; quarter them if they are very large. Put them into a sauce-pan with plenty of boiling water; if any scum rises, take it off; put a large spoonful of salt into the sauce-pan, and boil them till the stalks feel tender. A young cabbage will take about twenty minutes or half an hour; when full grown, near an hour: see that they are well covered with water all the time, and that no smoke or dirt arises from stirring the fire. With careful management, they will look as beautiful when dressed as they did when growing. Obs. —Some cooks say, that it will much ameliorate the flavour of strong old cabbages to boil them in two waters; i. e. when they are half done, to take them out, and put them directly into another sauce-pan of...

Boiled Cabbage fried.—(No. 119.)

4 minute read

See receipt for Bubble and Squeak ....

Savoys,—(No. 120.)

5 minute read

Are boiled in the same manner; quarter them when you send them to table....

Sprouts and young Greens.—(No. 121.)

9 minute read

The receipt we have written for cabbages will answer as well for sprouts, only they will be boiled enough in fifteen or twenty minutes....

Spinage.—(No. 122.)

1 minute read

Spinage should be picked a leaf at a time, and washed in three or four waters; when perfectly clean, lay it on a sieve or colander, to drain the water from it. Put a sauce-pan on the fire three parts filled with water, and large enough for the spinage to float in it; put a small handful of salt in it; let it boil; skim it, and then put in the spinage; make it boil as quick as possible till quite tender, pressing the spinage down frequently that it may be done equally; it will be done enough in about ten minutes, if boiled in plenty of water: if the spinage is a little old, give it a few minutes longer. When done, strain it on the back of a sieve; squeeze it dry with a plate, or between two trenchers; chop it fine, and put it into a stew-pan...

Asparagus.—(No. 123.)

1 minute read

Set a stew-pan with plenty of water in it on the fire; sprinkle a handful of salt in it; let it boil, and skim it; then put in your asparagus, prepared thus: scrape all the stalks till they are perfectly clean; throw them into a pan of cold water as you scrape them; when they are all done, tie them up in little bundles, of about a quarter of a hundred each, with bass, if you can get it, or tape (string cuts them to pieces); cut off the stalks at the bottom that they may be all of a length, leaving only just enough to serve as a handle for the green part; when they are tender at the stalk, which will be in from twenty to thirty minutes, they are done enough. Great care must be taken to watch the exact time of their becoming tender; take them...

Sea Kale,—(No. 124.)

5 minute read

Is tied up in bundles, and dressed in the same way as asparagus....

Cauliflower.—(No. 125.)

35 minute read

Choose those that are close and white, and of the middle size; trim off the outside leaves; cut the stalk off flat at the bottom; let them lie in salt and water an hour before you boil them. Put them into boiling water with a handful of salt in it; skim it well, and let it boil slowly till done, which a small one will be in fifteen, a large one in about twenty minutes; take it up the moment it is enough, a minute or two longer boiling will spoil it. N.B. Cold cauliflowers and French beans, carrots and turnips, boiled so as to eat rather crisp, are sometimes dressed as a salad ( No. 372 or 453 )....

Broccoli.—(No. 126.)

51 minute read

Set a pan of clean cold water on the table, and a saucepan on the fire with plenty of water, and a handful of salt in it. Broccoli is prepared by stripping off all the side shoots, leaving the top; peel off the skin of the stalk with a knife; cut it close off at the bottom, and put it into the pan of cold water. When the water in the stew-pan boils, and the broccoli is ready, put it in; let it boil briskly till the stalks feel tender, from ten to twenty minutes; take it up with a slice, that you may not break it; let it drain, and serve up. If some of the heads of broccoli are much bigger than the others, put them on to boil first, so that they may get all done together. Obs. —It makes a nice supper-dish served upon a toast,...

Red Beet-roots,—(No. 127.)

24 minute read

Are not so much used as they deserve; they are dressed in the same way as parsnips, only neither scraped nor cut till after they are boiled; they will take from an hour and a half to three hours in boiling, according to their size: to be sent to table with salt fish, boiled beef, &c. When young, large, and juicy, it is a very good variety, an excellent garnish, and easily converted into a very cheap and pleasant pickle....

Parsnips,—(No. 128.)

26 minute read

Are to be cooked just in the same manner as carrots. They require more or less time according to their size; therefore match them in size: and you must try them by thrusting a fork into them as they are in the water; when that goes easily through, they are done enough. Boil them from an hour to two hours, according to their size and freshness. Obs. Parsnips are sometimes sent up mashed in the same way as turnips, and some cooks quarter them before they boil them. 163-*...

Carrots.—(No. 129.)

31 minute read

Let them be well washed and brushed, not scraped. An hour is enough for young spring carrots; grown carrots must be cut in half, and will take from an hour and a half to two hours and a half. When done, rub off the peels with a clean coarse cloth, and slice them in two or four, according to their size. The best way to try if they are done enough, is to pierce them with a fork. Obs. Many people are fond of cold carrot with cold beef; ask if you shall cook enough for some to be left to send up with the cold meat....

Turnips.—(No. 130.)

24 minute read

Peel off half an inch of the stringy outside. Full-grown turnips will take about an hour and a half gentle boiling; if you slice them, which most people do, they will be done sooner; try them with a fork; when tender, take them up, and lay them on a sieve till the water is thoroughly drained from them. Send them up whole; do not slice them. N.B. To very young turnips leave about two inches of the green top. See No. 132 ....

To mash Turnips.—(No. 131.)

18 minute read

When they are boiled quite tender, squeeze them as dry as possible between two trenchers; put them into a saucepan; mash them with a wooden spoon, and rub them through a colander; add a little bit of butter; keep stirring them till the butter is melted and well mixed with them, and they are ready for table....

Turnip-tops,—(No. 132.)

24 minute read

Are the shoots which grow out (in the spring) of the old turnip-roots. Put them into cold water an hour before they are to be dressed; the more water they are boiled in, the better they will look; if boiled in a small quantity of water they will taste bitter: when the water boils, put in a small handful of salt, and then your vegetables; if fresh and young, they will be done in about twenty minutes; drain them on the back of a sieve....

French Beans.—(No. 133.)

55 minute read

Cut off the stalk end first, and then turn to the point and strip off the strings. If not quite fresh, have a bowl of spring-water, with a little salt dissolved in it, standing before you, and as the beans are cleaned and stringed, throw them in. When all are done, put them on the fire in boiling water, with some salt in it; after they have boiled fifteen or twenty minutes, take one out and taste it; as soon as they are tender take them up; throw them into a colander or sieve to drain. To send up the beans whole is much the best method when they are thus young, and their delicate flavour and colour are much better preserved. When a little more grown, they must be cut across in two after stringing; and for common tables they are split, and divided across; cut them all the...

Green Pease.164-*—(No. 134.)

2 minute read

Young green pease, well dressed, are among the most delicious delicacies of the vegetable kingdom. They must be young; it is equally indispensable that they be fresh gathered, and cooked as soon as they are shelled for they soon lose both their colour and sweetness. If you wish to feast upon pease in perfection, you must have them gathered the same day they are dressed, and put on to boil within half an hour after they are shelled. Pass them through a riddle, i. e. a coarse sieve, which is made for the purpose of separating them. This precaution is necessary, for large and small pease cannot be boiled together, as the former will take more time than the latter. For a peck of pease, set on a sauce-pan with a gallon of water in it; when it boils, put in your pease, with a table-spoonful of salt; skim it...

Cucumbers stewed.—(No. 135.)

1 minute read

Peel and cut cucumbers in quarters, take out the seeds, and lay them on a cloth to drain off the water: when they are dry, flour and fry them in fresh butter; let the butter be quite hot before you put in the cucumbers; fry them till they are brown, then take them out with an egg-slice, and lay them on a sieve to drain the fat from them (some cooks fry sliced onions, or some small button onions, with them, till they are a delicate light-brown colour, drain them from the fat, and then put them into a stew-pan with as much gravy as will cover them): stew slowly till they are tender; take out the cucumbers with a slice, thicken the gravy with flour and butter, give it a boil up, season it with pepper and salt, and put in the cucumbers; as soon as they are warm,...

Artichokes.—(No. 136.)

25 minute read

Soak them in cold water, wash them well, then put them into plenty of boiling water, with a handful of salt, and let them boil gently till they are tender, which will take an hour and a half, or two hours: the surest way to know when they are done enough, is to draw out a leaf; trim them and drain them on a sieve; and send up melted butter with them, which some put into small cups, so that each guest may have one....

Stewed Onions.—(No. 137.)

28 minute read

The large Portugal onions are the best: take off the top-coats of half a dozen of these (taking care not to cut off the tops or tails too near, or the onions will go to pieces), and put them into a stew-pan broad enough to hold them without laying them atop of one another, and just cover them with good broth. Put them over a slow fire, and let them simmer about two hours; when you dish them, turn them upside down, and pour the sauce over. Young onions stewed, see No. 296 ....

Salads.—(No. 138*, also No. 372).

5 minute read

Those who desire to see this subject elaborately illustrated, we refer to “ Evelyn’s Acetaria ,” a discourse of Sallets, a 12mo. of 240 pages. London, 1699. Mr. E. gives us “an account of seventy-two herbs proper and fit to make sallet with;” and a table of thirty-five, telling their seasons and proportions. “In the composure of a sallet, every plant should come in to bear its part, like the notes in music: thus the comical Master Cook introduced by Damoxenus, when asked, ‘what harmony there was in meats?’ ‘the very same,’ says he, ‘as the 3d, 5th, and 8th have to one another in music: the main skill lies in this, not to mingle’ (‘ sapores minimè consentientes ’). ‘Tastes not well joined, inelegant,’ as our Paradisian bard directs Eve, when dressing a sallet for her angelical guest, in Milton’s Paradise Lost .” He gives the following receipt for...

Turbot to boil.—(No. 140).

2 minute read

This excellent fish is in season the greatest part of the summer; when good, it is at once firm and tender, and abounds with rich gelatinous nutriment. Being drawn, and washed clean, if it be quite fresh, by rubbing it lightly with salt, and keeping it in a cold place, you may in moderate weather preserve it for a couple of days. 168-* An hour or two before you dress it, soak it in spring-water with some salt in it, then score the skin across the thickest part of the back, to prevent its breaking on the breast, which will happen from the fish swelling, and cracking the skin, if this precaution be not used. Put a large handful of salt into a fish-kettle with cold water, lay your fish on a fish-strainer, put it in, and when it is coming to a boil, skim it well; then set the...

A Brill,—(No. 143.)

3 minute read

Is dressed the same way as a turbot....

Soles to boil.—(No. 144.)

57 minute read

A fine, fresh, thick sole is almost as good eating as a turbot. Wash and clean it nicely; put it into a fish-kettle with a handful of salt, and as much cold water as will cover it; set it on the side of the fire, take off the scum as it rises, and let it boil gently; about five minutes (according to its size) will be long enough, unless it be very large. Send it up on a fish-drainer, garnished with slices of lemon and sprigs of curled parsley, or nicely-fried smelts ( No. 173 ), or oysters ( No. 183 ). Obs. Slices of lemon are a universally acceptable garnish with either fried or broiled fish: a few sprigs of crisp parsley may be added, if you wish to make it look very smart; and parsley, or fennel and butter, are excellent sauces (see Nos. 261 and 265 ),...

Soles, or other Fish, to fry.—(No. 145.)

4 minute read

Soles are generally to be procured good from some part of the coast, as some are going out of season, and some coming in, both at the same time; a great many are brought in well-boats alive, that are caught off Dover and Folkstone, and some are brought from the same places by land-carriage. The finest soles are caught off Plymouth, near the Eddystone, and all the way up the channel, and to Torbay; and frequently weigh eight or ten pounds per pair: they are generally brought by water to Portsmouth, and thence by land; but the greatest quantity are caught off Yarmouth and the Knole, and off the Forelands. Be sure they are quite fresh, or the cleverest cook cannot make them either look or eat well. An hour before you intend to dress them, wash them thoroughly, and wrap them in a clean cloth, to make them perfectly...

Soles to stew.—(No. 146.)

6 minute read

These are half fried, and then done the same as eels, Wiggy’s way. See No. 164 ....

Fillets of Soles, brown or white.—(No. 147.)

20 minute read

Take off the fillets very nicely, trim them neatly, and press them dry between a soft cloth; egg, crumb, and fry them, &c. as directed in No. 145 , or boil them, and serve them with No. 364—2 . N.B. This is one of the best ways of dressing very large soles. See also No. 164 ....

Skate,172-*—(No. 148.)

24 minute read

Is very good when in good season, but no fish so bad when it is otherwise: those persons that like it firm and dry, should have it crimped; but those that like it tender, should have it plain, and eat it not earlier than the second day, and if cold weather, three or four days old it is better: it cannot be kept too long, if perfectly sweet. Young skate eats very fine crimped and fried. See No. 154 ....

Cod boiled.—(No. 149.)

1 minute read

Wash and clean the fish, and rub a little salt in the inside of it (if the weather is very cold, a large cod is the better for being kept a day): put plenty of water in your fish-kettle, so that the fish may be well covered; put in a large handful of salt; and when it is dissolved, put in your fish; a very small fish will require from fifteen to twenty minutes after the water boils, a large one about half an hour; drain it on the fish-plate; dish it with a garnish of the roe, liver, chitterlings, &c. or large native oysters, fried a light brown (see No. 183* ), or smelts ( No. 173 ), whitings ( No. 153 ), the tail 172-† of the cod cut in slices, or bits the size and shape of oysters, or split it, and fry it. Scolloped oysters (...

Salt Fish boiled.—(No. 150.)

54 minute read

Salt fish requires soaking, according to the time it has been in salt; trust not to those you buy it of, but taste a bit of one of the flakes; that which is hard and dry requires two nights’ soaking, changing the water two or three times; the intermediate day, lay it on a stone floor: for barrelled cod less time will do; and for the best Dogger-bank split fish, which has not been more than a fortnight or three weeks in salt, still less will be needful. Put it into plenty of cold water, and let it simmer very gently till it is enough; if the water boils, the fish will be tough and thready. 173-† For egg sauce, see No. 267 ; and to boil red beet-root, No. 127 ; parsnips, No. 128 ; Carrots, No. 129 . Garnish salt fish with the yelks of eggs cut into...

Slices of Cod boiled.—(No. 151.)

40 minute read

Half an hour before you dress them, put them into cold spring-water with some salt in it. Lay them at the bottom of a fish-kettle, with as much cold spring-water as will cover them, and some salt; set it on a quick fire, and when it boils, skim it, and set it on one side of the fire to boil very gently, for about ten minutes, according to its size and thickness. Garnish with scraped horseradish, slices of lemon, and a slice of the liver on one side, and chitterling on the other. Oyster sauce ( No. 278 ), and plain butter. Obs. —Slices of cod (especially the tail, split) are very good, fried like soles ( No. 145 ), or stewed in gravy like eels ( No. 164 , or No. 364—2 ). 174-*...

Fresh Sturgeon.—(No. 152.)

36 minute read

The best mode of dressing this, is to have it cut in thin slices like veal cutlets, and broiled, and rubbed over with a bit of butter and a little pepper, and served very hot, and eaten with a squeeze of lemon-juice. Great care, however, must be taken to cut off the skin before it is broiled, as the oil in the skin, if burned, imparts a disgusting flavour to the fish. The flesh is very fine, and comes nearer to veal, perhaps, than even turtle. Sturgeon is frequently plentiful and reasonable in the London shops. We prefer this mode of dressing it to the more savoury one of stewing it in rich gravy, like carp, &c. which overpowers the peculiar flavour of the fish. 174-†...

Whitings fried.—(No. 153.)

52 minute read

Skin 174-‡ them, preserve the liver (see No. 228 ), and fasten their tails to their mouths; dip them in egg, then in bread-crumbs, and fry them in hot lard (read No. 145 ), or split them, and fry them like fillets of soles ( No. 147 ). A three-quart stew-pan, half full of fat, is the best utensil to fry whitings. They will be done enough in about five minutes; but it will sometimes require a quarter of an hour to drain the fat from them and dry them (if the fat you put them into was not hot enough), turning them now and then with a fish-slice. Obs. —When whitings are scarce, the fishmongers can skin and truss young codlings, so that you can hardly tell the difference, except that a codling wears a beard, and a whiting does not: this distinguishing mark is sometimes cut off; however,...

Skate fried.—(No. 154.)

22 minute read

After you have cleaned the fish, divide it into fillets; dry them on a clean cloth; beat the yelk and white of an egg thoroughly together, dip the fish in this, and then in fine bread-crumbs; fry it in hot lard or drippings till it is of a delicate brown colour; lay it on a hair-sieve to drain; garnish with crisp parsley ( No. 318 ), and some like caper sauce, with an anchovy in it....

Plaice or Flounders, fried or boiled.—(No. 155.)

15 minute read

Flounders are perhaps the most difficult fish to fry very nicely. Clean them well, flour them, and wipe them with a dry cloth to absorb all the water from them; flour or egg and bread-crumb them, &c. as directed in No. 145 ....

To boil Flounders.

24 minute read

Wash and clean them well, cut the black side of them the same as you do turbot, then put them into a fish-kettle, with plenty of cold water and a handful of salt; when they come to a boil, skim them clean, and let them stand by the side of the fire for five minutes, and they are ready. Obs. —Eaten with plain melted butter and a little salt, you have the sweet delicate flavour of the flounder, which is overpowered by any sauce....

Water Souchy,175-*—(No. 156.)

53 minute read

Is made with flounders, whitings, gudgeons, or eels. These must be quite fresh, and very nicely cleaned; for what they are boiled in, is the sauce for them. Wash, gut, and trim your fish, cut them into handsome pieces, and put them into a stew-pan with just as much water as will cover them, with some parsley, or parsley-roots sliced, an onion minced fine, and a little pepper and salt (to this some cooks add some scraped horseradish and a bay leaf); skim it carefully when it boils; when your fish is done enough (which it will be in a few minutes), send it up in a deep dish, lined with bread sippets, and some slices of bread and butter on a plate. Obs. —Some cooks thicken the liquor the fish has been stewing in with flour and butter, and flavour it with white wine, lemon-juice, essence of anchovy, and...

Haddock boiled.—(No. 157.)

28 minute read

Wash it well, and put it on to boil, as directed in No. 149 ; a haddock of three pounds will take about ten minutes after the kettle boils. Haddocks, salted a day or two, are eaten with egg sauce, or cut in fillets, and fried. Or, if small, very well broiled, or baked, with a pudding in their belly, and some good gravy. Obs. A piscivorous epicure protests that “Haddock is the poorest fish that swims, and has neither the delicacy of the whiting, nor the juicyness of the cod.” 176-*...

Findhorn Haddocks.—(No. 157*.)

1 minute read

Let the fish be well cleaned, and laid in salt for two hours; let the water drain from them, and then wet them with the pyroligneous acid; they may be split or not: they are then to be hung in a dry situation for a day or two, or a week or two, if you please; when broiled, they have all the flavour of the Findhorn haddock, and will keep sweet for a long time. The pyroligneous acid, applied in the same way to beef or mutton, gives the fine smoke flavour, and may be kept for a considerable length of time. Scotch way of dressing haddocks. —A haddock is quite like a different fish in London and in Edinburgh, which arises chiefly from the manner in which they are treated: a haddock should never appear at table with its head and skin on. For boiling, they are all the...

To stew Cod’s Skull, Sole, Carp, Trout, Perch, Eel, or Flounder.—No. 158. (See also No. 164.)

1 minute read

When the fish has been properly washed, lay it in a stew-pan, with half a pint of claret or port wine, and a quart of good gravy ( No. 329 ); a large onion, a dozen berries of black pepper, the same of allspice, and a few cloves, or a bit of mace: cover the fish-kettle close, and let it stew gently for ten or twenty minutes, according to the thickness of the fish: take the fish up, lay it on a hot dish, cover it up, and thicken the liquor it was stewed in with a little flour, and season it with pepper, salt, essence of anchovy, mushroom catchup, and a little Chili vinegar; when it has boiled ten minutes, strain it through a tamis, and pour it over the fish: if there is more sauce than the dish will hold, send the rest up in a boat. The...

To dress them maigre.

1 minute read

Put the fish into a stew-pan, with a large onion, four cloves, fifteen berries of allspice, and the same of black pepper; just cover them with boiling water, set it where they will simmer gently for ten or twenty minutes, accord ing to the size of the fish; strain off the liquor in another stew-pan, leaving the fish to keep warm till the sauce is ready. Rub together on a plate as much flour and butter as will make the sauce as thick as a double cream. Each pint of sauce season with a glass of wine, half as much mushroom catchup, a tea-spoonful of essence of anchovy, and a few grains of Cayenne; let it boil a few minutes, put the fish on a deep dish, strain the gravy over it; garnish it with sippets of bread toasted or fried ( No. 319 ). N.B. The editor has paid...

Maigre Fish Pies.

2 minute read

Salt-fish pie. The thickest part must be chosen, and put in cold water to soak the night before wanted; then boil it well, take it up, take away the bones and skin, and if it is good fish it will be in fine layers; set it on a fish-drainer to get cold: in the mean time, boil four eggs hard, peel and slice them very thin, the same quantity of onion sliced thin; line the bottom of a pie-dish with fish forcemeat ( No. 383 ), or a layer of potatoes sliced thin, then a layer of onions, then of fish, and of eggs, and so on till the dish is full; season each layer with a little pepper, then mix a tea-spoonful of made mustard, the same of essence of anchovy, a little mushroom catchup, in a gill of water, put it in the dish, then put on the...

Perch, Roach, Dace, Gudgeons, &c. fried.—(No. 159.)

19 minute read

Wash the fish well, wipe them on a dry cloth, flour them lightly all over, and fry them ten minutes ( No. 145 ) in hot lard or drippings; lay them on a hair-sieve to drain; send them up on a hot dish, garnished with sprigs of green parsley. Anchovy sauce, Nos. 270 and 433 ....

Perch boiled.179-*—(No. 160.)

16 minute read

Clean them carefully, and put them in a fish-kettle, with as much cold spring-water as will cover them, with a handful of salt; set them on a quick fire till they boil; when they boil, set them on one side to boil gently for about ten minutes, according to their size....

Salmon, Herrings, Sprats, Mackerel, &c. pickled.—(No. 161.)

1 minute read

Cut the fish into proper pieces; do not take off the scales; make a brine strong enough to bear an egg, in which boil the fish; it must be boiled in only just liquor enough to cover it; do not overboil it. When the fish is boiled, lay it slantingly to drain off all the liquor; when cold, pack it close in the kits, and fill them up with equal parts of the liquor the salmon was boiled in (having first well skimmed it), and best vinegar ( No. 24 ); let them rest for a day; fill up again, striking the sides of the kit with a cooper’s adze, until the kit will receive no more; then head them down as close as possible. Obs. This is in the finest condition when fresh. Salmon is most plentiful about midsummer; the season for it is from February to September. Some...

Salmon180-* boiled.—(No. 162.)

1 minute read

Put on a fish-kettle, with spring-water enough to well cover the salmon you are going to dress, or the salmon will neither look nor taste well: (boil the liver in a separate saucepan.) When the water boils, put in a handful of salt: take off the scum as soon as it rises; have the fish well washed; put it in, and if it is thick, let it boil very gently. Salmon requires almost as much boiling as meat; about a quarter of an hour to a pound of fish: but practice only can perfect the cook in dressing salmon. A quarter of a salmon will take almost as long boiling as half a one: you must consider the thickness, not the weight: ten pounds of fine full-grown salmon will be done in an hour and a quarter. Lobster Sauce, No. 284 . Obs. The thinnest part of the fish is...

Fresh Salmon broiled.—(No. 163.)

28 minute read

Clean the salmon well, and cut it into slices about an inch and a half thick; dry it thoroughly in a clean cloth; rub it over with sweet oil, or thick melted butter, and sprinkle a little salt over it: put your gridiron over a clear fire, at some distance; when it is hot wipe it clean; rub it with sweet oil or lard; lay the salmon on, and when it is done on one side, turn it gently and broil the other. Anchovy sauce, &c. Obs. An oven does them best....

Soles or Eels,181-* &c. &c. stewed Wiggy’s way.—(No. 164.)

2 minute read

Take two pounds of fine silver 181-† eels: the best are those that are rather more than a half-crown piece in circumference, quite fresh, full of life, and “as brisk as an eel:” such as have been kept out of water till they can scarce stir, are good for nothing: gut them, rub them with salt till the slime is cleaned from them, wash them in several different waters, and divide them into pieces about four inches long. Some cooks, after skinning them, dredge them with a little flour, wipe them dry, and then egg and crumb them, and fry them in drippings till they are brown, and lay them to dry on a hair sieve. Have ready a quart of good beef gravy ( No. 329 ); it must be cold when you put the eels into it: set them on a slow fire to simmer very gently for...

To fry Eels.—(No. 165.)

21 minute read

Skin and gut them, and wash them well in cold water, cut them in pieces four inches long, season them with pepper and salt; beat an egg well on a plate, dip them in the egg, and then in fine bread-crumbs; fry them in fresh, clean lard; drain them well from the fat; garnish with crisp parsley. For sauce, plain and melted butter, sharpened with lemon-juice, or parsley and butter....

Spitchocked Eels.—(No. 166.)

59 minute read

This the French cooks call the English way of dressing eels. Take two middling-sized silver eels, leave the skin on, scour them with salt, and wash them, cut off the heads, slit them on the belly side, and take out the bones and guts, and wash and wipe them nicely; then cut them into pieces about three inches long, and wipe them quite dry; put two ounces of butter into a stew-pan with a little minced parsley, thyme, sage, pepper, and salt, and a very little chopped eschalot; set the stew-pan over the fire; when the butter is melted, stir the ingredients together, and take it off the fire, mix the yelks of two eggs with them, and dip the eel in, a piece at a time, and then roll them in bread-crumbs, making as much stick to them as you can; then rub the gridiron with a bit of...

Mackerel boiled.183-*—(No. 167.)

1 minute read

This fish loses its life as soon as it leaves the sea, and the fresher it is the better. Wash and clean them thoroughly (the fishmongers seldom do this sufficiently), put them into cold water with a handful of salt in it; let them rather simmer than boil; a small mackerel will be done enough in about a quarter of an hour; when the eye starts and the tail splits, they are done; do not let them stand in the water a moment after; they are so delicate that the heat of the water will break them. This fish, in London, is rarely fresh enough to appear at table in perfection; and either the mackerel is boiled too much, or the roe 183-† too little. The best way is to open a slit opposite the middle of the roe, you can then clean it properly; this will allow the water...

Mackerel broiled.—(No. 169.)

28 minute read

Clean a fine large mackerel, wipe it on a dry cloth, and cut a long slit down the back; lay it on a clean gridiron, over a very clear, slow fire; when it is done on one side, turn it; be careful that it does not burn; send it up with fennel sauce ( No. 265 ); mix well together a little finely minced fennel and parsley, seasoned with a little pepper and salt, a bit of fresh butter, and when the mackerel are ready for the table, put some of this into each fish....

Mackerel baked.184-*—(No. 170.)

26 minute read

Cut off their heads, open them, and take out the roes and clean them thoroughly; rub them on the inside with a little pepper and salt, put the roes in again, season them (with a mixture of powdered allspice, black pepper, and salt, well rubbed together), and lay them close in a baking-pan, cover them with equal quantities of cold vinegar and water, tie them down with strong white paper doubled, and bake them for an hour in a slow oven. They will keep for a fortnight....

Pickled Mackerel, Herrings, or Sprats.—(No. 171.)

37 minute read

Procure them as fresh as possible, split them, take off the heads, and trim off the thin part of the belly, put them into salt and water for one hour, drain and wipe your fish, and put them into jars or casks, with the following preparation, which is enough for three dozen mackerel. Take salt and bay-salt, one pound each, saltpetre and lump-sugar, two ounces each; grind and pound the salt, &c. well together, put the fish into jars or casks, with a layer of the preparation at the bottom, then a layer of mackerel with the skin-side downwards, so continue alternately till the cask or jar is full; press it down and cover it close. In about three months they will be fit for use....

Sprats broiled.—(No. 170*—Fried, see No. 173.)

36 minute read

If you have not a sprat gridiron, get a piece of pointed iron wire as thick as packthread, and as long as your gridiron is broad; run this through the heads of your sprats, sprinkle a little flour and salt over them, put your gridiron over a clear, quick fire, turn them in about a couple of minutes; when the other side is brown, draw out the wire, and send up the fish with melted butter in a cup. Obs. That sprats are young herrings, is evident by their anatomy, in which there is no perceptible difference. They appear very soon after the herrings are gone, and seem to be the spawn just vivified....

Sprats stewed.—(No. 170**.)

22 minute read

Wash and dry your sprats, and lay them as level as you can in a stew-pan, and between every layer of sprats put three peppercorns, and as many allspice, with a few grains of salt; barely cover them with vinegar, and stew them one hour over a slow fire; they must not boil: a bay-leaf is sometimes added. Herrings or mackerel may be stewed the same way. To fry sprats, see No. 173 ....

Herrings broiled.—(No. 171*.)

17 minute read

Wash them well, then dry them with a cloth, dust them with flour, and broil them over a slow fire till they are well done. Send up melted butter in a boat. Obs. For a particular account of herrings, see Solas Dodd’s Natural Hist. of Herrings , in 178 pages, 8vo. 1752....

Red Herrings, and other dried Fish,—(No. 172.)

2 minute read

“Should be cooked in the same manner as now practised by the poor in Scotland. They soak them in water until they become pretty fresh; they are then hung up in the sun and wind, on a stick through their eyes, to dry; and then boiled or broiled. In this way they eat almost as well as if they were new caught.” See the Hon. John Cochrane’s Seaman’s Guide , 8vo. 1797, p. 34. “Scotch haddocks should be soaked all night. You may boil or broil them; if you broil, split them in two. “All the different sorts of dried fish, except stock fish, are salted, dried in the sun in prepared kilns, or by the smoke of wood fires, and require to be softened and freshened, in proportion to their bulk, nature, or dryness; the very dry sort, as cod, whiting, &c. should be steeped in lukewarm water, kept...

Smelts, Gudgeons, Sprats, or other small Fish, fried.—(No. 173.)

1 minute read

Clean and dry them thoroughly in a cloth, fry them plain, or beat an egg on a plate, dip them in it, and then in very fine bread-crumbs that have been rubbed through a sieve; the smaller the fish, the finer should be the bread-crumbs—biscuit powder is still better; fry them in plenty of clean lard or drippings; as soon as the lard boils and is still, put in the fish; when they are delicately browned, they are done; this will hardly take two minutes. Drain them on a hair-sieve, placed before the fire, turning them till quite dry. Obs. Read No. 145 . “Smelts are allowed to be caught in the Thames, on the first of November, and continue till May. The Thames smelts are the best and sweetest, for two reasons; they are fresher and richer than any other you can get: they catch them much more plentiful...

Potted Prawns, Shrimps, or Cray-fish.—(No. 175.)

20 minute read

Boil them in water with plenty of salt in it. When you have picked them, powder them with a little beaten mace, or grated nutmeg, or allspice, and pepper and salt; add a little cold butter, and pound all well together in a marble mortar till of the consistence of paste. Put it into pots covered with clarified butter, and cover them over with wetted bladder....

Lobster.187-*—(No. 176.)

1 minute read

Buy these alive; the lobster merchants sometimes keep them till they are starved, before they boil them; they are then watery, have not half their flavour, and like other persons that die of a consumption, have lost the calf of their legs. Choose those that (as an old cook says, are “heavy and lively,” and) are full of motion, which is the index of their freshness. Those of the middle size are the best. Never take them when the shell is incrusted, which is a sign they are old. The male lobster is preferred to eat, and the female (on account of the eggs) to make sauce of. The hen lobster is distinguished by having a broader tail than the male, and less claws. Set on a pot, with water salted in the proportion of a table-spoonful of salt to a quart of water; when the water boils, put it...

Crab.—(No. 177.)

17 minute read

The above observations apply to crabs, which should neither be too small nor too large. The best size are those which measure about eight inches across the shoulders. * * * Crabs appear and disappear about the same time as lobsters. The cromer crabs are most esteemed; but numbers are brought from the Isle of Wight....

Potted Lobster or Crab.188-*—(No. 178).

1 minute read

This must be made with fine hen lobsters, when full of spawn: boil them thoroughly ( No. 176 ); when cold, pick out all the solid meat, and pound it in a mortar: it is usual to add, by degrees, (a very little) finely-pounded mace, black or Cayenne pepper, salt, and, while pounding, a little butter. When the whole is well mixed, and beat to the consistence of paste, press it down hard in a preserving-pot, pour clarified butter over it, and cover it with wetted bladder. Obs. —Some put lobster without pounding it, and only cut it or pull it into such pieces as if it was prepared for sauce, and mince it with the spawn and soft parts and seasoning, and press it together as close as possible; in packing it, place the coral and spawn, &c. in layers, so that it may look regular and handsome when...

OYSTERS.189-*—(No. 181.)

4 minute read

The common 189-† Colchester and Feversham oysters are brought to market on the 5th of August; the Milton, or, as they are commonly called, the melting natives, 189-‡ do not come in till the beginning of October, continue in season till the 12th of May, and approach the meridian of their perfection about Christmas. Some piscivorous gourmands think that oysters are not best when quite fresh from their beds, and that their flavour is too brackish and harsh, and is much ameliorated by giving them a feed. To FEED 189-§ oysters.—Cover them with clean water, with a pint of salt to about two gallons (nothing else, no oatmeal, flour, nor any other trumpery); this will cleanse them from the mud and sand, &c. of the bed; after they have lain in it twelve hours, change it for fresh salt and water, and in twelve hours more they will be in...

Scolloped Oysters.—(No. 182.) A good way to warm up any cold fish.

51 minute read

Stew the oysters slowly in their own liquor for two or three minutes, take them out with a spoon, beard them, and skim the liquor, put a bit of butter into a stew-pan; when it is melted, add as much fine bread-crumbs as will dry it up, then put to it the oyster liquor, and give it a boil up, put the oysters into scollop-shells that you have buttered, and strewed with bread-crumbs, then a layer of oysters, then of bread-crumbs, and then some more oysters; moisten it with the oyster liquor, cover them with bread-crumbs, put about half a dozen little bits of butter on the top of each, and brown them in a Dutch oven. Obs. Essence of anchovy, catchup, Cayenne, grated lemon-peel, mace, and other spices, &c. are added by those who prefer piquance to the genuine flavour of the oyster. Cold fish may be re-dressed the...

Stewed Oysters.—(No. 182*.)

51 minute read

Large oysters will do for stewing, and by some are preferred; but we love the plump, juicy natives. Stew a couple of dozen of these in their own liquor; when they are coming to a boil, skim well, take them up and beard them; strain the liquor through a tamis-sieve, and lay the oysters on a dish. Put an ounce of butter into a stew-pan; when it is melted, put to it as much flour as will dry it up, the liquor of the oysters, and three table-spoonfuls of milk or cream, and a little white pepper and salt; to this some cooks add a little catchup, or finely-chopped parsley, grated lemon-peel, and juice; let it boil up for a couple of minutes, till it is smooth, then take it off the fire, put in the oysters, and let them get warm (they must not themselves be boiled, or they...

Oysters fried.192-*—(No. 183.)

21 minute read

The largest and finest oysters are to be chosen for this purpose; simmer them in their own liquor for a couple of minutes, take them out and lay them on a cloth to drain, beard them and then flour them, egg and bread-crumb them, put them into boiling fat, and fry them a delicate brown. Obs. An elegant garnish for made dishes, stewed rump-steaks, boiled or fried fish, &c.; but they are too hard and dry to be eaten. 168-* “I have ascertained, by many years’ observation, that a turbot kept two or three days is much better eating than a very fresh one.”— Ude’s Cookery , p. 238. “ Turbots. The finest brought to the London market are caught off the Dutch coast, or German Ocean, and are brought in well-boats alive. The commencement of the season is generally about March and April, and continues all the summer. Turbots,...

Beef Broth.193-*—(No. 185.)

1 minute read

Wash a leg or shin of beef very clean, crack the bone in two or three places (this you should desire the butcher to do for you), add thereto any trimmings you have of meat, game, or poultry ( i. e. heads, necks, gizzards, feet, &c.), and cover them with cold water; watch and stir it up well from the bottom, and the moment it begins to simmer, skim it carefully; your broth must be perfectly clear and limpid, on this depends the goodness of the soups, sauces, and gravies, of which it is the basis: then add some cold water to make the remaining scum rise, and skim it again; when the scum is done rising, and the surface of the broth is quite clear, put in one moderate-sized carrot, a head of celery, two turnips, and two onions, it should not have any taste of sweet herbs, spice,...

Beef Gravy.194-*—(No. 186.)

59 minute read

Cover the bottom of a stew-pan that is well tinned and quite clean, with a slice of good ham, or lean bacon, four or five pounds of gravy beef cut into half-pound pieces, a carrot, an onion with two cloves stuck in it, and a head of celery; put a pint of broth or water to it, cover it close, and set it over a moderate fire till the water is reduced to as little as will just save the ingredients from burning; then turn it all about, and let it brown slightly and equally all over; then put in three quarts of boiling water; 194-† when it boils up, skim it carefully, and wipe off with a clean cloth what sticks round the edge and inside of the stew-pan, that your gravy may be delicately clean and clear. Set it by the side of a fire, where it will...

Strong savoury Gravy (No. 188), alias “Brown Sauce,” alias “Grand Espagnol.”

54 minute read

Take a stew-pan that will hold four quarts, lay a slice or two of ham or bacon (about a quarter of an inch thick) at the bottom (undressed is the best), and two pounds of beef or veal, a carrot, a large onion with four cloves stuck in it, one head of celery, a bundle of parsley, lemon-thyme, and savoury, about as big round as your little finger, when tied close, a few leaves of sweet basil (one bay-leaf, and an es chalot, if you like it), a piece of lemon-peel, and a dozen corns of allspice; 195-* pour on this half a pint of water, cover it close, and let it simmer gently on a slow fire for half an hour, in which time it will be almost dry; watch it very carefully, and let it catch a nice brown colour; turn the meat, &c. let it brown on...

Cullis, or thickened Gravy.—(No. 189.)

1 minute read

To a quart of gravy, put a table-spoonful of thickening ( No. 257 ), or from one to two table-spoonfuls of flour, according to the thickness you wish the gravy to be, into a basin, with a ladleful of the gravy; stir it quick; add the rest by degrees, till it is all well mixed; then pour it back into a stew-pan, and leave it by the side of the fire to simmer for half an hour longer, that the thickening may thoroughly incorporate with the gravy, the stew-pan being only half covered, stirring it every now and then; a sort of scum will gather on the top, which it is best not to take off till you are ready to strain it through a tamis. 195-‡ Take care it is neither of too pale nor too dark a colour; if it is not thick enough, let it stew longer,...

Veal Broth.—(No. 191.)

18 minute read

A knuckle of veal is best; manage it as directed in the receipt for beef broth ( No. 185 ), only take care not to let it catch any colour, as this and the following and richer preparation of veal, are chiefly used for white soups, sauces, &c. To make white sauce, see No. 364 ....

Veal Gravy.—(No. 192.)

24 minute read

About three pounds of the nut of the leg of veal, cut into half-pound slices, with a quarter of a pound of ham in small dice; proceed as directed for the beef gravy ( No. 186 ), but watch the time of putting in the water; if this is poured in too soon, the gravy will not have its true flavour, if it be let alone till the meat sticks too much to the pan, it will catch too brown a colour....

Knuckle of Veal, or Shin or Leg of Beef, Soup.—(No. 193.)

1 minute read

A knuckle of veal of six pounds weight will make a large tureen of excellent soup, and is thus easily prepared: cut half a pound of bacon into slices about half an inch thick, lay it at the bottom of a soup-kettle, or deep stew-pan, and on this place the knuckle of veal, having first chopped the bone in two or three places; furnish it with two carrots, two turnips, a head of celery, two large onions, with two or three cloves stuck in one of them, a dozen corns of black, and the same of Jamaica pepper, and a good bundle of lemon-thyme, winter savoury, and parsley. Just cover the meat with cold water, and set it over a quick fire till it boils; having skimmed it well, remove your soup-kettle to the side of the fire; let it stew very gently till it is quite tender, i. e....

Mutton Broth.—(No. 194.)

51 minute read

Take two pounds of scrag of mutton; to take the blood out, put it into a stew-pan, and cover it with cold water; when the water becomes milk-warm, pour it off; then put it in four or five pints of water, with a tea-spoonful of salt, a table-spoonful of best grits, and an onion; set it on a slow fire, and when you have taken all the scum off, put in two or three turnips; let it simmer very slowly for two hours, and strain it through a clean sieve. This usual method of making mutton broth with the scrag, is by no means the most economical method of obtaining it; for which see Nos. 490 and 564 . Obs. You may thicken broth by boiling with it a little oatmeal, rice, Scotch or pearl barley; when you make it for a sick person, read the Obs. on Broths, &c....

Mock Mutton Broth, without Meat, in five minutes.—(No. 195.)

22 minute read

Boil a few leaves of parsley with two tea-spoonfuls of mushroom catchup, in three-quarters of a pint of very thin gruel 197-* ( No. 572 ). Season with a little salt. Obs. This is improved by a few drops of eschalot wine ( No. 402 ), and the same of essence of sweet herbs ( No. 419 ). See also Portable Soup ( No. 252 )....

The Queen’s Morning “Bouillon de Santé,”—(No. 196.)

22 minute read

Sir Kenelm Digby, in his “ Closet of Cookery ,” p. 149, London, 1669, informs us, was made with “a brawny hen, or young cock, a handful of parsley, one sprig of thyme, three of spearmint, a little balm, half a great onion, a little pepper and salt, and a clove, with as much water as will cover them; and this boiled to less than a pint for one good porringerful.”...

Ox-heel Jelly.—(No. 198.)

47 minute read

Slit them in two, and take away the fat between the claws. The proportion of water to each heel is about a quart: let it simmer gently for eight hours (keeping it clean skimmed); it will make a pint and a half of strong jelly, which is frequently used to make calves’ feet jelly ( No. 481 ), or to add to mock turtle and other soups. See No. 240* . This jelly evaporated, as directed in No. 252 , will give about three ounces and a half of strong glaze. An unboiled heel costs one shilling and threepence: so this glaze, which is very inferior in flavour to No. 252 , is quite as expensive as that is. N.B. To dress the heels, see No. 18 . Obs. Get a heel that has only been scalded, not one of those usually sold at the tripe-shops, which have been boiled...

Clear Gravy Soups.—(No. 200.)

2 minute read

Cut half a pound of ham into slices, and lay them at the bottom of a large stew-pan or stock-pot, with two or three pounds of lean beef, and as much veal; break the bones, and lay them on the meat; take off the outer skin of two large onions and two turnips; wash, clean, and cut into pieces a couple of large carrots, and two heads of celery; and put in three cloves and a large blade of mace. Cover the stew-pan close, and set it over a smart fire. When the meat begins to stick to the bottom of the stew-pan, turn it; and when there is a nice brown glaze at the bottom of the stew-pan, cover the meat with hot water: watch it, and when it is coming to boil put in half a pint of cold water; take off the scum; then put in half...

Scotch Barley Broth;—a good and substantial dinner for fivepence per head.—(No. 204.)

2 minute read

Wash three-quarters of a pound of Scotch barley in a little cold water; put it in a soup-pot with a shin or leg of beef, of about ten pounds weight, sawed into four pieces (tell the butcher to do this for you); cover it well with cold water; set it on the fire: when it boils skim it very clean, and put in two onions of about three ounces weight each; set it by the side of the fire to simmer very gently about two hours; then skim all the fat clean off, and put in two heads of celery, and a large turnip cut into small squares; season it with salt, and let it boil an hour and a half longer, and it is ready: take out the meat (carefully with a slice, and cover it up, and set it by the fire to keep warm), and skim the...

Scotch Soups.—(No. 205.)

4 minute read

The three following receipts are the contribution of a friend at Edinburgh....

Winter Hotch-potch.

32 minute read

Take the best end of a neck or loin of mutton; cut it into neat chops; cut four carrots, and as many turnips into slices; put on four quarts of water, with half the carrots and turnips, and a whole one of each, with a pound of dried green pease, which must be put to soak the night before; let it boil two hours, then take out the whole carrot and tur nip; bruise and return them; put in the meat, and the rest of the carrot and turnip, some pepper and salt, and boil slowly three-quarters of an hour; a short time before serving, add an onion cut small and a head of celery....

Cocky-leeky Soup.

21 minute read

Take a scrag of mutton, or shank of veal, three quarts of water (or liquor in which meat has been boiled), and a good-sized fowl, with two or three leeks cut in pieces about an inch long, pepper and salt; boil slowly about an hour: then put in as many more leeks, and give it three-quarters of an hour longer: this is very good, made of good beef-stock, and leeks put in it twice....

Lamb Stove, or Lamb Stew.

27 minute read

Take a lamb’s head and lights; open the jaws of the head, and wash them thoroughly; put them in a pot with some beef-stock, made with three quarts of water, and two pounds of shin of beef, strained; boil very slowly for an hour; wash and string two or three good handfuls of spinach (or spinage); put it in twenty minutes before serving; add a little parsley, and one or two onions, a short time before it comes off the fire; season with pepper and salt, and serve all together in a tureen....

Scotch Brose.—(No. 205*.)

36 minute read

“This favourite Scotch dish is generally made with the liquor meat has been boiled in. “Put half a pint of oatmeal into a porringer with a little salt, if there be not enough in the broth, of which add as much as will mix it to the consistence of hasty-pudding, or a little thicker; lastly, take a little of the fat that swims on the broth, and put it on the crowdie, and eat it in the same way as hasty-pudding.” Obs. —This Scotsman’s dish is easily prepared at very little expense, and is pleasant-tasted and nutritious. To dress a haggies, see No. 488* , and Minced Collops, following it. N.B. For various methods of making and flavouring oatmeal gruel, see No. 572 ....

Carrot Soup.—(No. 212.)

1 minute read

Scrape and wash half a dozen large carrots; peel off the red outside (which is the only part used for this soup); put it into a gallon stew-pan, with one head of celery, and an onion, cut into thin pieces; take two quarts of beef, veal, or mutton broth, or if you have any cold roast-beef bones (or liquor, in which mutton or beef has been boiled), you may make very good broth for this soup: when you have put the broth to the roots, cover the stew-pan close, and set it on a slow stove for two hours and a half, when the carrots will be soft enough (some cooks put in a tea-cupful of bread-crumbs); boil for two or three minutes; rub it through a tamis, or hair-sieve, with a wooden spoon, and add as much broth as will make it a proper thickness, i. e. almost as...

Turnip and Parsnip Soups,—(No. 213.)

6 minute read

Are made in the same manner as the carrot soup ( No. 212 .)...

Celery Soup.—(No. 214.)

46 minute read

Split half a dozen heads of celery into slips about two inches long; wash them well; lay them on a hair-sieve to drain, and put them into three quarts of No. 200 in a gallon soup-pot; set it by the side of the fire to stew very gently till the celery is tender (this will take about an hour). If any scum rises, take it off; season with a little salt. Obs. When celery cannot be procured, half a drachm of the seed, pounded fine, which may be considered as the essence of celery (costs only one-third of a farthing, and can be had at any season), put in a quarter of an hour before the soup is done, and a little sugar, will give as much flavour to half a gallon of soup as two heads of celery weighing seven ounces, and costing 2 d. ; or add a...

Green Pease Soup.—(No. 216.)

1 minute read

A peck of pease will make you a good tureen of soup. In shelling them, put the old ones in one basin, and the young ones in another, and keep out a pint of them, and boil them separately to put into your soup when it is finished: put a large saucepan on the fire half full of water; when it boils, put the pease in, with a handful of salt; let them boil till they are done enough, i. e. from twenty to thirty minutes, according to their age and size; then drain them in a colander, and put them into a clean gallon stew-pan, and three quarts of plain veal or mutton broth (drawn from meat without any spices or herbs, &c. which would overpower the flavour of the soup); cover the stew-pan close, and set it over a slow fire to stew gently for an hour; add...

Plain green Pease Soup without Meat.—(No. 217.)

36 minute read

Take a quart of green pease (keep out half a pint of the youngest; boil them separately, and put them in the soup when it is finished); put them on in boiling water; boil them tender, and then pour off the water, and set it by to make the soup with: put the pease into a mortar, and pound them to a mash; then put them into two quarts of the water you boiled the pease in; stir all well together; let it boil up for about five minutes, and then rub it through a hair-sieve or tamis. If the pease are good, it will be as thick and fine a vegetable soup as need be sent to table....

Pease Soup.—(No. 218.)

3 minute read

The common way of making pease soup 203-* is—to a quart of split pease put three quarts of cold soft water, not more, (or it will be what “Jack Ros-bif” calls “soup maigre,”) notwithstanding Mother Glasse orders a gallon (and her ladyship’s directions have been copied by almost every cookery-book maker who has strung receipts together since), with half a pound of bacon (not very fat), or roast-beef bones, or four anchovies: or, instead of the water, three quarts of the liquor in which beef, mutton, pork, or poultry has been boiled, tasting it first, to make sure it is not too salt. 204-* Wash two heads of celery; 204-† cut it, and put it in, with two onions peeled, and a sprig of savoury, or sweet marjoram, or lemon-thyme; set it on the trivet, and let it simmer very gently over a slow fire, stirring it every quarter of...

Pease Soup and pickled Pork.—(No. 220.)

1 minute read

A couple of pounds of the belly part of pickled pork will make very good broth for pease soup, if the pork be not too salt; if it has been in salt more than two days, it must be laid in water the night before it is used. Put on the ingredients mentioned in No. 218 , in three quarts of water; boil gently for two hours, then put in the pork, and boil very gently till it is done enough to eat; this will take about an hour and a half, or two hours longer, according to its thickness; when done, wash the pork clean in hot water, send it up in a dish, or cut it into mouthfuls, and put it into the soup in the tureen, with the accompaniments ordered in No. 218 . Obs. The meat being boiled no longer than to be done enough to...

Plain Pease Soup.—(No. 221.)

54 minute read

To a quart of split pease, and two heads of celery, (and most cooks would put a large onion,) put three quarts of broth or soft water; let them simmer gently on a trivet over a slow fire for three hours, stirring up every quarter of an hour to prevent the pease burning at the bottom of the soup-kettle (if the water boils away, and the soup gets too thick, add some boiling water to it); when they are well softened, work them through a coarse sieve, and then through a fine sieve or a tamis; wash out your stew-pan, and then return the soup into it, and give it a boil up; take off any scum that comes up, and it is ready. Prepare fried bread, and dried mint, as directed in No. 218 , and send them up with it on two side dishes. Obs. This is an...

Asparagus Soup.—(No. 222.)

44 minute read

This is made with the points of asparagus, in the same manner as the green pease soup ( No. 216 or 17 ) is with pease: let half the asparagus be rubbed through a sieve, and the other cut in pieces about an inch long, and boiled till done enough, and sent up in the soup: to make two quarts, there must be a pint of heads to thicken it, and half a pint cut in; take care to preserve these green and a little crisp. This soup is sometimes made by adding the asparagus heads to common pease soup. Obs. Some cooks fry half an ounce of onion in a little butter, and rub it through a sieve, and add it with the other ingredients; the haut goût of the onion will entirely overcome the delicate flavour of the asparagus, and we protest against all such combinations....

Maigre, or Vegetable Gravy Soup.207-*—(No. 224.)

1 minute read

Put into a gallon stew-pan three ounces of butter; set it over a slow fire; while it is melting, slice four ounces of onion; cut in small pieces one turnip, one carrot, and a head of celery; put them in the stewpan, cover it close, let it fry till they are lightly browned; this will take about twenty-five minutes: have ready, in a sauce-pan, a pint of pease, with four quarts of water; when the roots in the stew-pan are quite brown, and the pease come to a boil, put the pease and water to them; put it on the fire; when it boils, skim it clean, and put in a crust of bread about as big as the top of a twopenny loaf, twenty-four berries of allspice, the same of black pepper, and two blades of mace; cover it close, let it simmer gently for one hour and a...

FISH SOUPS.—(No. 225.) Eel Soup.

1 minute read

To make a tureenful, take a couple of middling-sized onions, cut them in half, and cross your knife over them two or three times; put two ounces of butter into a stew-pan when it is melted, put in the onions, stir them about till they are lightly browned; cut into pieces three pounds of unskinned eels, put them into your stew-pan, and shake them over the fire for five minutes; then add three quarts of boiling water, and when they come to a boil, take the scum off very clean; then put in a quarter of an ounce of the green leaves (not dried) of winter savoury, the same of lemon thyme, and twice the quantity of parsley, two drachms of allspice, the same of black pepper; cover it close, and let it boil gently for two hours; then strain it off, and skim it very clean. To thicken it,...

Cheap Soups.—(No. 229.)

2 minute read

Among the variety of schemes that have been suggested for “bettering the condition of the poor,” a more useful or extensive charity cannot be devised, than that of instructing them in economical cookery: it is one of the most-important objects to which the attention of any real well-wisher to the public interest can possibly be directed. The best and cheapest method of making a nourishing soup, is least known to those who have most need of it; it will enable those who have small incomes and large families to make the most of the little they possess, without pinching their children of that wholesome nourishment which is necessary for the purpose of rearing them up to maturity in health and strength. The labouring classes seldom purchase what are called the coarser pieces of meat, because they do not know how to dress them, but lay out their money in pieces...

Dr. Kitchiner’s Receipt to make a Gallon of Barley Broth for a Groat. See also No. 204.

2 minute read

Put four ounces of Scotch barley (previously washed in cold water), and four ounces of sliced onions, into five quarts of water; boil gently for one hour, and pour it into a pan; then put into the saucepan from one to two ounces of clean beef or mutton drippings, or melted suet, (to clarify these, see No. 83 ) or two or three ounces of fat bacon minced; when melted, stir into it four ounces of oatmeal; rub these together till you make a paste (if this be properly managed, the whole of the fat will combine with the barley broth, and not a particle appear on the surface to offend the most delicate stomach); now add the barley broth, at first a spoonful at a time, then the rest by degrees, stirring it well together till it boils. To season it, put a drachm of finely-pounded celery, or cress-seed,...

Craw-fish Soup.—(No. 235.)

1 minute read

This soup is sometimes made with beef, or veal broth, or with fish, in the following manner: Take flounders, eels, gudgeons, &c., and set them on to boil in cold water; when it is pretty nigh boiling, skim it well; and to three quarts put in a couple of onions, and as many carrots cut to pieces, some parsley, a dozen berries of black and Jamaica pepper, and about half a hundred craw-fish; take off the small claws and shells of the tails; pound them fine, and boil them with the broth about an hour; strain off, and break in some crusts of bread to thicken it, and, if you can get it, the spawn of a lobster; pound it, and put it to the soup; let it simmer very gently for a couple of minutes; put in your craw-fish to get hot, and the soup is ready. Obs. —One...

Lobster Soup.—(No. 237.)

58 minute read

You must have three fine lively 211-* young hen lobsters, and boil them, see No. 176 ; when cold, split the tails; take out the fish, crack the claws, and cut the meat into mouthfuls: take out the coral, and soft part of the body; bruise part of the coral in a mortar; pick out the fish from the chines; beat part of it with the coral, and with this make forcemeat balls, finely-flavoured with mace or nutmeg, a little grated lemon- peel, anchovy, and Cayenne; pound these with the yelk of an egg. Have three quarts of veal broth; bruise the small legs and the chine, and put them into it, to boil for twenty minutes, then strain it; and then to thicken it, take the live spawn and bruise it in a mortar with a little butter and flour; rub it through a sieve, and add it to...

Soup and Bouilli.—(No. 238. See also No. 5.)

1 minute read

The best parts for this purpose are the leg or shin, or a piece of the middle of a brisket of beef, of about seven or eight pounds weight; lay it on a fish-drainer, or when you take it up put a slice under it, which will enable you to place it on the dish entire; put it into a soup-pot or deep stew-pan, with cold water enough to cover it, and a quart over; set it on a quick fire to get the scum up, which remove as it rises; then put in two carrots, two turnips, two leeks, or two large onions, two heads of celery, two or three cloves, and a fagot of parsley and sweet herbs; set the pot by the side of the fire to simmer very gently, till the meat is just tender enough to eat: this will require about four or five hours....

Ox-head Soup,—(No. 239.)

2 minute read

Should be prepared the day before it is to be eaten, as you cannot cut the meat off the head into neat mouthfuls unless it is cold: therefore, the day before you want this soup, put half an ox-cheek into a tub of cold water to soak for a couple of hours; then break the bones that have not been broken at the butcher’s, and wash it very well in warm water; put it into a pot, and cover it with cold water; when it boils, skim it very clean, and then put in one head of celery, a couple of carrots, a turnip, two large onions, two dozen berries of black pepper, same of allspice, and a bundle of sweet herbs, such as marjoram, lemon-thyme, savoury, and a handful of parsley; cover the soup-pot close, and set it on a slow fire; take off the scum, which will rise...

Ox-tail Soup.—(No. 240.)

1 minute read

Three tails, costing about 7 d. each, will make a tureen of soup (desire the butcher to divide them at the joints); lay them to soak in warm water, while you get ready the vegetables. Put into a gallon stew-pan eight cloves, two or three onions, half a drachm of allspice, and the same of black pepper, and the tails; 214-* cover them with cold water; skim it carefully, when and as long as you see any scum rise; then cover the pot as close as possible, and set it on the side of the fire to keep gently simmering till the meat becomes tender and will leave the bones easily, because it is to be eaten with a spoon, without the assistance of a knife or fork; see N.B. to No. 244 ; this will require about two hours: mind it is not done too much: when perfectly tender,...

Ox-heel Soup,—(No. 240*.)

1 minute read

Must be made the day before it is to be eaten. Procure an ox-heel undressed, or only scalded (not one that has been already boiled, as they are at the tripe-shops, till almost all the gelatinous parts are extracted), and two that have been boiled as they usually are at the tripe-shops. Cut the meat off the boiled heels into neat mouthfuls, and set it by on a plate; put the trimmings and bones into a stew-pan, with three quarts of water, and the unboiled heel cut into quarters; furnish a stew-pan with two onions, and two turnips pared and sliced; pare off the red part of a couple of large carrots, add a couple of eschalots cut in half, a bunch of savoury or lemon-thyme, and double the quantity of parsley; set this over, or by the side of a slow, steady fire, and keep it closely covered and...

Hare, Rabbit, or Partridge Soup.—(No. 241.)

1 minute read

An old hare, or birds, when so tough as to defy the teeth in any other form, will make very good soup. Cut off the legs and shoulders; divide the body crossways, and stew them very gently in three quarts of water, with one carrot, about one ounce of onion, with four cloves, two blades of pounded mace, twenty-four black peppers, and a bundle of sweet herbs, till the hare is tender (most cooks add to the above a couple of slices of ham or bacon, and a bay leaf, &c., but my palate and purse both plead against such extravagance; the hare makes sufficiently savoury soup without them): the time this will take depends very much upon its age, and how long it has been kept before it is dressed: as a general rule, about three hours: in the mean time, make a dozen and a half of nice...

Game Soup.—(No. 242.)

51 minute read

In the game season, it is easy for a cook to give her master a very good soup at a very little expense, by taking all the meat off the breasts of any cold birds which have been left the preceding day, and pounding it in a mortar, and beating to pieces the legs and bones, and boiling them in some broth for an hour. Boil six turnips; mash them, and strain them through a tamis-cloth with the meat that has been pounded in a mortar; strain your broth, and put a little of it at a time into the tamis to help you to strain all of it through. Put your soup-kettle near the fire, but do not let it boil: when ready to dish your dinner, have six yelks of eggs mixed with half a pint of cream; strain through a sieve; put your soup on the fire,...

Goose or Duck Giblet Soup.216-*—(No. 244.)

2 minute read

Scald and pick very clean a couple sets of goose, or four of duck giblets (the fresher the better); wash them well in warm water, in two or three waters; cut off the noses and split the heads; divide the gizzards and necks into mouthfuls. If the gizzards are not cut into pieces before they are done enough, the rest of the meat, &c. will be done too much; and knives and forks have no business in a soup-plate. Crack the bones of the legs, and put them into a stew-pan; cover them with cold water: when they boil, take off the scum as it rises; then put in a bundle of herbs, such as lemon-thyme, winter savoury, or marjoram, about three sprigs of each, and double the quantity of parsley, an onion, twenty berries of allspice, the same of black pepper; tie them all up in a muslin bag,...

Mock Mock Turtle,—(No. 245.)

1 minute read

As made by Elizabeth Lister ( late cook to Dr. Kitchiner ), bread and biscuit baker, No. 6 Salcombe Place, York Terrace, Regent’s Park. Goes out to dress dinners on reasonable terms. Line the bottom of a stew-pan that will hold five pints, with an ounce of nice lean bacon or ham, a pound and a half of lean gravy beef, a cow-heel, the inner rind of a carrot, a sprig of lemons-thyme, winter savoury, three times the quantity of parsley, a few green leaves of sweet basil, 218-* and two eschalots; put in a large onion, with four cloves stuck in it, eighteen corns of allspice, the same of black pepper; pour on these a quarter of a pint of cold water, cover the stew-pan, and set it on a slow fire, to boil gently for a quarter of an hour; then, for fear the meat should catch, take...

Mock Turtle,—(No. 247.)

6 minute read

Is the “ bonne bouche ” which “the officers of the mouth” of old England 219-* prepare, when they choose to rival “ les grands cuisiniers de France ” in a “ ragoût sans pareil .” The following receipt is an attempt (and the committee of taste pronounced it a successful one), to imitate the excellent and generally approved mock turtle made by Messrs. Birch, Cornhill. Endeavour to have the head and the broth ready for the soup, 219-† the day before it is to be eaten. It will take eight hours to prepare it properly. Get a calf’s head with the skin on (the fresher the better); take out the brains, wash the head several times in cold water, let it soak for about an hour in spring-water, then lay it in a stew-pan, and cover it with cold water, and half a gallon over; as it becomes warm,...

English Turtle.—(No. 248.)

3 minute read

See No. 502 . “A-la-mode beef.”...

Curry, or Mullaga-tawny222-* Soup.—(No. 249.)

54 minute read

Cut four pounds of a breast of veal into pieces, about two inches by one; put the trimmings into a stew-pan with two quarts of water, with twelve corns of black pepper, and the same of allspice; when it boils, skim it clean, and let it boil an hour and a half, then strain it off; while it is boiling, fry of a nice brown in butter the bits of veal and four onions; when they are done, put the broth to them; put it on the fire; when it boils, skim it clean; let it simmer half an hour; then mix two spoonfuls of curry, and the same of flour, with a little cold water and a tea-spoonful of salt; add these to the soup, and simmer it gently till the veal is quite tender, and it is ready; or bone a couple of fowls or rabbits, and stew...

Turtle223-* Soup.—(No. 250.)

19 minute read

As it is our wish that this work should be given to the public at the lowest possible price, the receipt for dressing a turtle is taken out, as a professed cook is always hired for the purpose of dressing it. The space this long receipt occupied is now filled with directions for making useful pickles. See No. 462 ....

Portable223-† Soup, or Glaze.—(No. 252.)

7 minute read

Desire the butcher to break the bones of a leg or a shin of beef, of ten pounds weight (the fresher killed the better); put it into a soup-pot (a digester 223-‡ is the best utensil for this purpose) that will well hold it; just cover it with cold water, and set it on the fire to heat gradually till it nearly boils (this should be at least an hour); skim it attentively while any scum rises; pour in a little cold water, to throw up the scum that may remain; let it come to a boil again, and again skim it carefully: when no more scum rises, and the broth appears clear (put in neither roots, nor herbs, nor salt), let it boil for eight or ten hours, and then strain it through a hair-sieve into a brown stone pan; set the broth where it will cool quickly; put...

To clarify Broth or Gravy.—(No. 252*.)

18 minute read

Put on the broth in a clean stew-pan; break the white and shell of an egg, beat them together, put them into the broth, stir it with a whisk; when it has boiled a few minutes, strain it through a tamis or a napkin. Obs. A careful cook will seldom have occasion to clarify her broths, &c. if prepared according to the directions given in No. 200 . 193-* In culinary technicals, is called FIRST STOCK , or long broth; in the French kitchen, “ le grand bouillon .” 193-† A dog was fed on the richest broth, yet could not be kept alive; while another, which had only the meat boiled to a chip (and water), throve very well. This shows the folly of attempting to nourish men by concentrated soups, jellies, &c.— Sinclair , Code of Health , p. 356. If this experiment be accurate, what becomes of...

Melted Butter,

1 minute read

Is so simple and easy to prepare, that it is a matter of general surprise, that what is done so often in every English kitchen, is so seldom done right: foreigners may well say, that although we have only one sauce for vegetables, fish, flesh, fowl, &c. we hardly ever make that good. It is spoiled nine times out of ten, more from idleness than from ignorance, and rather because the cook won’t than because she can’t do it; which can only be the case when housekeepers will not allow butter to do it with. Good melted butter cannot be made with mere flour and water; there must be a full and proper proportion of butter. As it must be always on the table, and is the foundation of almost all our English sauces, we have, I have tried every way of making it; and I trust, at last, that...

Melted Butter.

1 minute read

Keep a pint stew-pan 228-† for this purpose only. Cut two ounces of butter into little bits, that it may melt more easily, and mix more readily; put it into the stew-pan with a large tea-spoonful ( i. e. about three drachms) of flour, (some prefer arrow-root, or potato starch, No. 448 ), and two table-spoonfuls of milk. When thoroughly mixed, add six table-spoonfuls of water; hold it over the fire, and shake it round every minute (all the while the same way), till it just begins to simmer; then let it stand quietly and boil up. It should be of the thickness of good cream. N.B. Two table-spoonfuls of No. 439 , instead of the milk, will make as good mushroom sauce as need be, and is a superlative accompaniment to either fish, flesh, or fowl. Obs. This is the best way of preparing melted butter; milk mixes with...

Thickening.—(No. 257.)

2 minute read

Clarified butter is best for this purpose; but if you have none ready, put some fresh butter into a stew-pan over a slow, clear fire; when it is melted, add fine flour sufficient to make it the thickness of paste; stir it well together with a wooden spoon for fifteen or twenty minutes, till it is quite smooth, and the colour of a guinea: this must be done very gradually and patiently; if you put it over too fierce a fire to hurry it, it will become bitter and empyreumatic: pour it into an earthen pan, and keep it for use. It will keep good a fortnight in summer, and longer in winter. A large spoonful will generally be enough to thicken a quart of gravy. Obs. This, in the French kitchen, is called roux . Be particularly attentive in making it; if it gets any burnt smell or taste,...

Clarified Butter.—(No. 259.)

35 minute read

Put the butter in a nice, clean stew-pan, over a very clear, slow fire; watch it, and when it is melted, carefully skim off the buttermilk, &c. which will swim on the top; let it stand a minute or two for the impurities to sink to the bottom; then pour the clear butter through a sieve into a clean basin, leaving the sediment at the bottom of the stew-pan. Obs. Butter thus purified will be as sweet as marrow, a very useful covering for potted meats, &c., and for frying fish equal to the finest Florence oil; for which purpose it is commonly used by Catholics, and those whose religious tenets will not allow them to eat viands fried in animal oil....

Burnt Butter.—(No. 260.)

15 minute read

Put two ounces of fresh butter into a small frying-pan; when it becomes a dark brown colour, add to it a table-spoonful and a half of good vinegar, and a little pepper and salt. Obs. This is used as sauce for boiled fish, or poached eggs....

Oiled Butter.—(No. 260*.)

18 minute read

Put two ounces of fresh butter into a saucepan; set it at a distance from the fire, so that it may melt gradually, till it comes to an oil; and pour it off quietly from the dregs. Obs. This will supply the place of olive oil; and by some is preferred to it either for salads or frying....

Parsley and Butter.—(No. 261.)

1 minute read

Wash some parsley very clean, and pick it carefully leaf by leaf; put a tea-spoonful of salt into half a pint of boiling water: boil the parsley about ten minutes; drain it on a sieve; mince it quite fine, and then bruise it to a pulp. The delicacy and excellence of this elegant and innocent relish depends upon the parsley being minced very fine: put it into a sauce-boat, and mix with it, by degrees, about half a pint of good melted butter ( No. 256 ); only do not put so much flour to it, as the parsley will add to its thickness: never pour parsley and butter over boiled things, but send it up in a boat. Obs. In French cookery-books this is called “melted butter, English fashion;” and, with the addition of a slice of lemon cut into dice, a little allspice and vinegar, “Dutch sauce.” N.B....

Gooseberry Sauce.—(No. 263.)

18 minute read

Top and tail them close with a pair of scissors, and scald half a pint of green gooseberries; drain them on a hair-sieve, and put them into half a pint of melted butter, No. 256 . Some add grated ginger and lemon-peel, and the French, minced fennel; others send up the gooseberries whole or mashed, without any butter, &c....

Chervil, Basil, Tarragon, Burnet, Cress, and Butter.—(No. 264.)

23 minute read

This is the first time that chervil, which has so long been a favourite with the sagacious French cook, has been introduced into an English book. Its flavour is a strong concentration of the combined taste of parsley and fennel, but more aromatic and agreeable than either; and is an excellent sauce with boiled poultry or fish. Prepare it, &c. as we have directed for parsley and butter, No. 261 ....

Fennel and Butter for Mackerel, &c.—(No. 265.)

16 minute read

Is prepared in the same manner as we have just described in No. 261 . Obs. For mackerel sauce, or boiled soles, &c., some people take equal parts of fennel and parsley; others add a sprig of mint, or a couple of young onions minced very fine....

Mackerel-roe Sauce.—(No. 266.)

19 minute read

Boil the roes of mackerel (soft roes are best); bruise them with a spoon with the yelk of an egg, beat up with a very little pepper and salt, and some fennel and parsley boiled and chopped very fine, mixed with almost half a pint of thin melted butter. See No. 256 . Mushroom catchup, walnut pickle, or soy may be added....

Egg Sauce.—(No. 267.)

45 minute read

This agreeable accompaniment to roasted poultry, or salted fish, is made by putting three eggs into boiling water, and boiling them for about twelve minutes, when they will be hard; put them into cold water till you want them. This will make the yelks firmer, and prevent their surface turning black, and you can cut them much neater: use only two of the whites; cut the whites into small dice, the yelks into bits about a quarter of an inch square; put them into a sauce-boat; pour to them half a pint of melted butter, and stir them together. Obs. The melted butter for egg sauce need not be made quite so thick as No. 256 . If you are for superlative egg sauce, pound the yelks of a couple of eggs, and rub them with the melted butter to thicken it. N.B. Some cooks garnish salt fish with hard-boiled...

Plum-pudding Sauce.—(No. 269.)

20 minute read

A glass of sherry, half a glass of brandy (or “cherry-bounce”), or Curaçoa ( No. 474 ), or essence of punch (Nos. 471 and 479 ), and two tea-spoonfuls of pounded lump sugar (a very little grated lemon-peel is sometimes added), in a quarter of a pint of thick melted butter: grate nutmeg on the top. See Pudding Catchup, No. 446 ....

Anchovy Sauce.—(No. 270.)

52 minute read

Pound three anchovies in a mortar with a little bit of butter; rub it through a double hair-sieve with the back of a wooden spoon, and stir it into almost half a pint of melted butter ( No. 256 ); or stir in a table-spoonful of essence of anchovy, No. 433 . To the above, many cooks add lemon-juice and Cayenne. Obs. Foreigners make this sauce with good brown sauce ( No. 329 ), or white sauce ( No. 364 ); instead of melted butter, add to it catchup, soy, and some of their flavoured vinegars, (as elder or tarragon), pepper and fine spice, sweet herbs, capers, eschalots, &c. They serve it with most roasted meats. N.B. Keep your anchovies well covered; first tie down your jar with bladder moistened with vinegar, and then wiped dry; tie leather over that: when you open a jar, moisten the bladder, and it...

Garlic Sauce.—(No. 272.)

16 minute read

Pound two cloves of garlic with a piece of fresh butter, about as big as a nutmeg; rub it through a double hair-sieve, and stir it into half a pint of melted butter, or beef gravy or make it with garlic vinegar, Nos. 400 , 401 , and 402 ....

Lemon Sauce.—(No. 273.)

17 minute read

Pare a lemon, and cut it into slices twice as thick as a half-crown piece; divide these into dice, and put them into a quarter of a pint of melted butter, No. 256 . Obs. —Some cooks mince a bit of the lemon-peel (pared very thin) very fine, and add it to the above....

Caper Sauce.—(No. 274. See also No. 295.)

46 minute read

To make a quarter of a pint, take a table-spoonful of capers, and two tea-spoonfuls of vinegar. The present fashion of cutting capers is to mince one-third of them very fine, and divide the others in half; put them into a quarter of a pint of melted butter, or good thickened gravy ( No. 329 ); stir them the same way as you did the melted butter, or it will oil. Obs. —Some boil, and mince fine a few leaves of parsley, or chervil, or tarragon, and add these to the sauce; others the juice of half a Seville orange, or lemon. Mem. —Keep the caper bottle very closely corked, and do not use any of the caper liquor: if the capers are not well covered with it, they will immediately spoil; and it is an excellent ingredient in hashes, &c. The Dutch use it as a fish sauce, mixing...

Mock Caper Sauce.—(No. 275, or No. 295.)

12 minute read

Cut some pickled green pease, French beans, gherkins, or nasturtiums, into bits the size of capers; put them into half a pint of melted butter, with two tea-spoonfuls of lemon-juice, or nice vinegar....

Oyster Sauce.—(No. 278.)

1 minute read

Choose plump and juicy natives for this purpose: don’t take them out of their shell till you put them into the stew-pan, see Obs. to No. 181 . To make good oyster sauce for half a dozen hearty fish-eaters, you cannot have less than three or four dozen oysters. Save their liquor; strain it, and put it and them into a stew-pan: as soon as they boil, and the fish plump, take them off the fire, and pour the contents of the stew-pan into a sieve over a clean basin; wash the stew-pan out with hot water, and put into it the strained liquor, with about an equal quantity of milk, and about two ounces and a half of butter, with which you have well rubbed a large table-spoonful of flour; give it a boil up, and pour it through a sieve into a basin (that the sauce may be...

Preserved Oysters.234-*—(No. 280.)

1 minute read

Open the oysters carefully, so as not to cut them except in dividing the gristle which attaches the shells; put them into a mortar, and when you have got as many as you can conveniently pound at once, add about two drachms of salt to a dozen oysters; pound them, and rub them through the back of a hair-sieve, and put them into a mortar again, with as much flour (which has been previously thoroughly dried) as will make them into a paste; roll it out several times, and, lastly, flour it, and roll it out the thickness of a half-crown, and divide it into pieces about an inch square; lay them in a Dutch oven, where they will dry so gently as not to get burnt: turn them every half hour, and when they begin to dry, crumble them; they will take about four hours to dry; then pound...

Shrimp Sauce.—(No. 283.)

37 minute read

Shell a pint of shrimps; pick them clean, wash them, and put them into half a pint of good melted butter. A pint of unshelled shrimps is about enough for four persons. Obs. —Some stew the heads and shells of the shrimps, (with or without a blade of bruised mace,) for a quarter of an hour, and strain off the liquor to melt the butter with, and add a little lemon-juice, Cayenne, and essence of anchovy, or soy, cavice, &c.; but the flavour of the shrimp is so delicate, that it will be overcome by any such additions. Mem. —If your shrimps are not quite fresh, they will eat tough and thready, as other stale fish do. See Obs. to No. 140 ....

Lobster Sauce.—(No. 284.)

1 minute read

Choose a fine spawny hen lobster; 236-* be sure it is fresh, so get a live one if you can, (one of my culinary predecessors says, “let it be heavy and lively,”) and boil it as No. 176 ; pick out the spawn and the red coral into a mortar, add to it half an ounce of butter, pound it quite smooth, and rub it through a hair-sieve with the back of a wooden spoon; cut the meat of the lobster into small squares, or pull it to pieces with a fork; put the pounded spawn into as much melted butter ( No. 256 ) as you think will do, and stir it together till it is thoroughly mixed; now put to it the meat of the lobster, and warm it on the fire; take care it does not boil, which will spoil its complexion, and its brilliant red colour...

Sauce for Lobster, &c.—(No. 285. See also No. 372.)

28 minute read

Bruise the yelks of two hard-boiled eggs with the back of a wooden spoon, or rather pound them in a mortar, with a tea-spoonful of water, and the soft inside and the spawn of the lobster; rub them quite smooth, with a tea-spoonful of made mustard, two table-spoonfuls of salad oil, and five of vinegar; season it with a very little Cayenne pepper, and some salt. Obs. —To this, elder or tarragon vinegar ( No. 396 ), or anchovy essence ( No. 433 ), is occasionally added....

Liver and Parsley Sauce,—(No. 287.) or Liver and Lemon Sauce.

35 minute read

Wash the liver (it must be perfectly fresh) of a fowl or rabbit, and boil it five minutes in five table-spoonfuls of water; chop it fine, or pound or bruise it in a small quantity of the liquor it was boiled in, and rub it through a sieve: wash about one-third the bulk of parsley leaves, put them on to boil in a little boiling water, with a tea-spoonful of salt in it; lay it on a hair-sieve to drain, and mince it very fine; mix it with the liver, and put it into a quarter pint of melted butter, and warm it up; do not let it boil. Or ,...

To make Lemon and Liver Sauce.

1 minute read

Pare off the rind of a lemon, or of a Seville orange, as thin as possible, so as not to cut off any of the white with it; now cut off all the white, and cut the lemon into slices, about as thick as a couple of half-crowns; pick out the pips, and divide the slices into small squares: add these, and a little of the peel minced very fine to the liver, prepared as directed above, and put them into the melted butter, and warm them together; but do not let them boil. N.B. The poulterers can always let you have fresh livers, if that of the fowl or rabbit is not good, or not large enough to make as much sauce as you wish. Obs. —Some cooks, instead of pounding, mince the liver very fine (with half as much bacon), and leave out the parsley; others add the...

Liver Sauce for Fish.—(No. 288.)

24 minute read

Boil the liver of the fish, and pound it in a mortar with a little flour; stir it into some broth, or some of the liquor the fish was boiled in, or melted butter, parsley, and a few grains of Cayenne, a little essence of anchovy ( No. 433 ), or soy, or catchup ( No. 439 ); give it a boil up, and rub it through a sieve: you may add a little lemon-juice, or lemon cut in dice....

Celery Sauce, white.—(No. 289.)

20 minute read

Pick and wash two heads of nice white celery; cut it into pieces about an inch long; stew it in a pint of water, and a tea-spoonful of salt, till the celery is tender; 238-* roll an ounce of butter with a table-spoonful of flour; add this to half a pint of cream, and give it a boil up. N.B. See No. 409 ....

Celery Sauce Purée, for boiled Turkey, Veal, Fowls, &c. (No. 290.)

42 minute read

Cut small half a dozen heads of nice white celery that is quite clean, and two onions sliced; put in a two-quart stew-pan, with a small lump of butter; sweat them over a slow fire till quite tender, then put in two spoonfuls of flour, half a pint of water (or beef or veal broth), salt and pepper, and a little cream or milk; boil it a quarter of an hour, and pass through a fine hair-sieve with the back of a spoon. If you wish for celery sauce when celery is not in season, a quarter of a drachm of celery-seed, or a little essence of celery ( No. 409 ), will impregnate half a pint of sauce with a sufficient portion of the flavour of the vegetable. See Obs. to No. 214 ....

Green or Sorrel Sauce.—(No. 291.)

26 minute read

Wash and clean a large ponnet of sorrel; put it into a stew-pan that will just hold it, with a bit of butter the size of an egg; cover it close, set it over a slow fire for a quarter of an hour, pass the sorrel with the back of a wooden spoon through a hair-sieve, season with pepper, salt, and a small pinch of powdered sugar, make it hot, and serve up under lamb, veal, sweetbreads, &c. &c. Cayenne, nutmeg, and lemon-juice are sometimes added....

Tomata, or Love-apple Sauce.—(No. 292. See also No. 443.)

26 minute read

Have twelve or fifteen tomatas, ripe and red; take off the stalk; cut them in half; squeeze them just enough to get all the water and seeds out; put them in a stew-pan with a capsicum, and two or three table-spoonfuls of beef gravy; set them on a slow stove for an hour, or till properly melted; then rub them through a tamis into a clean stew-pan, with a little white pepper and salt, and let them simmer together a few minutes....

[Love-apple Sauce according to Ude.

26 minute read

Melt in a stew-pan a dozen or two of love-apples (which, before putting in the stew-pan, cut in two, and squeeze the juice and the seeds out); then put two eschalots, one onion, with a few bits of ham, a clove, a little thyme, a bay-leaf, a few leaves of mace, and when melted, rub them through a tamis. Mix a few spoonfuls of good Espagnole or Spanish sauce, and a little salt and pepper, with this purée. Boil it for twenty minutes, and serve up. A.]...

Mock Tomata Sauce.—(No. 293.)

11 minute read

The only difference between this and genuine love-apple sauce, is the substituting the pulp of apple for that of tomata, colouring it with turmeric, and communicating an acid flavour to it by vinegar....

Eschalot Sauce.—(No. 294.)

23 minute read

Take four eschalots, and make it in the same manner as garlic sauce ( No. 272 ). Or , You may make this sauce more extemporaneously by putting two table-spoonfuls of eschalot wine ( No. 403 ), and a sprinkling of pepper and salt, into (almost) half a pint of thick melted butter. Obs. —This is an excellent sauce for chops or steaks; many are very fond of it with roasted or boiled meat, poultry, &c....

Eschalot Sauce for boiled Mutton.—(No. 295.)

36 minute read

This is a very frequent and satisfactory substitute for “caper sauce.” Mince four eschalots very fine, and put them into a small saucepan, with almost half a pint of the liquor the mutton was boiled in: let them boil up for five minutes; then put in a table-spoonful of vinegar, a quarter tea-spoonful of pepper, a little salt, and a bit of butter (as big as a walnut) rolled in flour; shake together till it boils. See ( No. 402 ) Eschalot Wine. Obs. —We like a little lemon-peel with eschalot; the haut goût of the latter is much ameliorated by the delicate aroma of the former. Some cooks add a little finely-chopped parsley....

Young Onion Sauce.—(No. 296.)

21 minute read

Peel a pint of button onions, and put them in water till you want to put them on to boil; put them into a stew-pan, with a quart of cold water; let them boil till tender; they will take (according to their size and age) from half an hour to an hour. You may put them into half a pint of No. 307 . See also No. 137 ....

Onion Sauce.—(No. 297.)

26 minute read

Those who like the full flavour of onions only cut off the strings and tops (without peeling off any of the skins), put them into salt and water, and let them lie an hour; then wash them, put them into a kettle with plenty of water, and boil them till they are tender: now skin them, pass them through a colander, and mix a little melted butter with them. N.B. Some mix the pulp of apples, or turnips, with the onions, others add mustard to them....

White Onion Sauce.—(No. 298.)

57 minute read

The following is a more mild and delicate 240-* preparation: Take half a dozen of the largest and whitest onions (the Spanish are the mildest, but these can only be had from August to December); peel them and cut them in half, and lay them in a pan of spring-water for a quarter of an hour, and then boil for a quarter of an hour; and then, if you wish them to taste very mild, pour off that water, and cover them with fresh boiling water, and let them boil till they are tender, which will sometimes take three-quarters of an hour longer; drain them well on a hair-sieve; lay them on the chopping-board, and chop and bruise them; put them into a clean saucepan, with some butter and flour, half a tea-spoonful of salt, and some cream, or good milk; stir it till it boils; then rub the whole...

Brown Onion Sauces, or Onion Gravy.—(No. 299.)

1 minute read

Peel and slice the onions (some put in an equal quantity of cucumber or celery) into a quart stew-pan, with an ounce of butter; set it on a slow fire, and turn the onion about till it is very lightly browned; now gradually stir in half an ounce of flour; add a little broth, and a little pepper and salt; boil up for a few minutes; add a table-spoonful of claret, or port wine, and same of mushroom catchup, (you may sharpen it with a little lemon-juice or vinegar,) and rub it through a tamis or fine sieve. Curry powder ( No. 348 ) will convert this into excellent curry sauce. N.B. If this sauce is for steaks, shred an ounce of onions, fry them a nice brown, and put them to the sauce you have rubbed through a tamis; or some very small, round, young silver button onions (see...

Sage and Onion, or Goose-stuffing Sauce.—(No. 300.)

32 minute read

Chop very fine an ounce of onion and half an ounce of green sage leaves; put them into a stew-pan with four spoonfuls of water; simmer gently for ten minutes; then put in a tea-spoonful of pepper and salt, and one ounce of fine bread-crumbs; mix well together; then pour to it a quarter of a pint of (broth, or gravy, or) melted butter, stir well together, and simmer it a few minutes longer. Obs. This is a very relishing sauce for roast pork, poultry, geese, or ducks; or green pease on maigre days. See also Bonne Bouche for the above, No. 341 ....

Green Mint Sauce.—(No. 303.)

24 minute read

Wash half a handful of nice, young, fresh-gathered green mint (to this some add one-third the quantity of parsley); pick the leaves from the stalks, mince them very fine, and put them into a sauce-boat, with a tea-spoonful of moist sugar, and four table-spoonfuls of vinegar. Obs. —This is the usual accompaniment to hot lamb; and an equally agreeable relish with cold lamb. If green mint cannot be procured, this sauce may be made with mint vinegar ( No. 398 )....

Apple Sauce.—(No. 304.)

38 minute read

Pare and core three good-sized baking apples; put them into a well-tinned pint saucepan, with two table-spoonfuls of cold water; cover the saucepan close, and set it on a trivet over a slow fire a couple of hours before dinner (some apples will take a long time stewing, others will be ready in a quarter of an hour): when the apples are done enough, pour off the water, let them stand a few minutes to get dry; then beat them up with a fork, with a bit of butter about as big as a nutmeg, and a tea-spoonful of powdered sugar. N.B. Some add lemon-peel, grated, or minced fine, or boil a bit with the apples. Some are fond of apple sauce with cold pork: ask those you serve if they desire it....

Mushroom Sauce.—(No. 305.)

1 minute read

Pick and peel half a pint of mushrooms (the smaller the better); wash them very clean, and put them into a saucepan, with half a pint of veal gravy or milk, a little pepper and salt, and an ounce of butter rubbed with a table-spoonful of flour; stir them together, and set them over a gentle fire, to stew slowly till tender; skim and strain it. Obs. —It will be a great improvement to this, and the two following sauces, to add to them the juice of half a dozen mushrooms, prepared the day before, by sprinkling them with salt, the same as when you make catchup; or add a large spoonful of good double mushroom catchup ( No. 439 ). See Quintessence of Mushrooms, No. 440 . N.B. Much as we love the flavour of mushrooms, we must enter our protest against their being eaten in substance, when the...

Mushroom Sauce, brown.—(No. 306.)

9 minute read

Put the mushrooms into half a pint of beef gravy ( No. 186 , or No. 329 ); thicken with flour and butter, and proceed as above....

Mushroom Sauce, extempore.—(No. 307.)

31 minute read

Proceed as directed in No. 256 to melt butter, only, instead of two table-spoonfuls of milk, put in two of mushroom catchup ( No. 439 or No. 440 ); or add it to thickened broth, gravy, or mock turtle soup, &c. or put in No. 296 . Obs. This is a welcome relish with fish, poultry, or chops and steaks, &c. A couple of quarts of good catchup ( No. 439 ,) will make more good sauce than ten times its cost of meat, &c. Walnut catchup will give you another variety; and Ball’s cavice, which is excellent....

Poor Man’s Sauce.—(No. 310.)

30 minute read

Pick a handful of parsley leaves from the stalks, mince them very fine, strew over a little salt; shred fine half a dozen young green onions, add these to the parsley, and put them into a sauce-boat, with three table-spoonfuls of oil, and five of vinegar; add some ground black pepper and salt; stir together and send it up. Pickled French beans or gherkins, cut fine, may be added, or a little grated horseradish. Obs. —This sauce is in much esteem in France, where people of taste, weary of rich dishes, to obtain the charm of variety, occasionally order the fare of the peasant....

The Spaniard’s Garlic Gravy.—(No. 311. See also No. 272.)

55 minute read

Slice a pound and a half of veal or beef, pepper and salt it, lay it in a stew-pan with a couple of carrots split, and four cloves of garlic sliced, a quarter pound of sliced ham, and a large spoonful of water; set the stew-pan over a gentle fire, and watch when the meat begins to stick to the pan; when it does, turn it, and let it be very well browned (but take care it is not at all burned); then dredge it with flour, and pour in a quart of broth, a bunch of sweet herbs, a couple of cloves bruised, and slice in a lemon; set it on again, and let it simmer gently for an hour and a half longer; then take off the fat, and strain the gravy from the ingredients, by pouring it through a napkin, straining, and pressing it very hard. Obs....

Mr. Michael Kelly’s244-* Sauce for boiled Tripe, Calf-head, or Cow-heel.—(No. 311*.)

10 minute read

Garlic vinegar, a table-spoonful; of mustard, brown sugar, and black pepper, a tea-spoonful each; stirred into half a pint of oiled melted butter....

Mr. Kelly’s Sauce piquante.

27 minute read

Pound a table-spoonful of capers, and one of minced parsley, as fine as possible; then add the yelks of three hard eggs, rub them well together with a table-spoonful of mustard; bone six anchovies, and pound them, rub them through a hair-sieve, and mix with two table-spoonfuls of oil, one of vinegar, one of eschalot ditto, and a few grains of Cayenne pepper; rub all these well together in a mortar, till thoroughly incorporated; then stir them into half a pint of good gravy, or melted butter, and put the whole through a sieve....

Fried Parsley.—(No. 317.)

20 minute read

Let it be nicely picked and washed, then put into a cloth, and swung backwards and forwards till it is perfectly dry; put it into a pan of hot fat, fry it quick, and have a slice ready to take it out the moment it is crisp (in another moment it will be spoiled); put it on a sieve, or coarse cloth, before the fire to drain....

Crisp Parsley.—(No. 318.)

21 minute read

Pick and wash young parsley, shake it in a dry cloth to drain the water from it; spread it on a sheet of clean paper in a Dutch oven before the fire, and turn it frequently until it is quite crisp. This is a much more easy way of preparing it than frying it, which is not seldom ill done. Obs. A very pretty garnish for lamb chops, fish, &c....

Fried Bread Sippets.—(No. 319.)

49 minute read

Cut a slice of bread about a quarter of an inch thick; divide it with a sharp knife into pieces two inches square; shape these into triangles or crosses; put some very clean fat into an iron frying-pan: when it is hot, put in the sippets, and fry them a delicate light brown; take them up with a fish slice, and drain them well from fat, turning them occasionally; this will take a quarter of an hour. Keep the pan at such a distance from the fire that the fat may be hot enough to brown without burning the bread; this is a requisite precaution in frying delicate thin things. Obs. These are a pretty garnish, and very welcome accompaniment and improvement to the finest made dishes: they may also be sent up with pease and other soups; but when intended for soups, the bread must be cut into bits,...

Fried Bread-crumbs.—(No. 320.)

33 minute read

Rub bread (which has been baked two days) through a wire sieve, or colander; or you may rub them in a cloth till they are as fine as if they had been grated and sifted; put them into a stew-pan, with a couple of ounces of butter; place it over a moderate fire, and stir them about with a wooden spoon till they are the colour of a guinea; spread them on a sieve, and let them stand ten minutes to drain, turning them frequently. Obs. Fried crumbs are sent up with roasted sweetbreads, or larks, pheasants, partridges, woodcocks, and grouse, or moor game; especially if they have been kept long enough,...

Bread Sauce.—(No. 321.)

42 minute read

Put a small tea-cupful of bread-crumbs into a stew-pan, pour on it as much milk as it will soak up, and a little more; or, instead of the milk, take the giblets, head, neck, and legs, &c. of the poultry, &c. and stew them, and moisten the bread with this liquor; put it on the fire with a middling-sized onion, and a dozen berries of pepper or allspice, or a little mace; let it boil, then stir it well, and let it simmer till it is quite stiff, and then put to it about two table-spoonfuls of cream or melted butter, or a little good broth; take out the onion and pepper, and it is ready. Obs. This is an excellent accompaniment to game and poultry, &c., and a good vehicle for receiving various flavours from the Magazine of Taste ( No. 462 )....

Rice Sauce.—(No. 321*.)

21 minute read

Steep a quarter of a pound of rice in a pint of milk, with onion, pepper, &c. as in the last receipt; when the rice is quite tender (take out the spice), rub it through a sieve into a clean stew-pan: if too thick, put a little milk or cream to it. Obs. This is a very delicate white sauce; and at elegant tables is frequently served instead of bread sauce....

Browning,—(No. 322.)

3 minute read

Is a convenient article to colour those soups or sauces of which it is supposed their deep brown complexion denotes the strength and savouriness of the composition. Burned sugar is also a favourite ingredient with the brewers, who use it under the name of “essentia bina” to colour their beer: it is also employed by the brandy-makers, in considerable quantity, to colour brandy; to which, besides enriching its complexion, it gives that sweetish taste, and fulness in the mouth, which custom has taught brandy drinkers to admire, and prefer to the finest Cognac in its genuine state. When employed for culinary purposes, this is sometimes made with strong gravy, or walnut catchup. Those who like a goût of acid may add a little walnut pickle. It will hardly be told from what is commonly called “genuine Japanese soy” 246-* (for which it is a very good substitute). Burned treacle or...

Gravy for roast Meat.—(No. 326.)

1 minute read

Most joints will afford sufficient trimmings, &c. to make half a pint of plain gravy, which you may colour with a few drops of No. 322 : for those that do not, about half an hour before you think the meat will be done, mix a salt-spoonful of salt, with a full quarter pint of boiling water; drop this by degrees on the brown parts of the joint; set a dish under to catch it (the meat will soon brown again); set it by; as it cools, the fat will float on the surface; when the meat is ready, carefully remove the fat, and warm up the gravy, and pour it into the dish. The common method is, when the meat is in the dish you intend to send it up in, to mix half a tea-spoonful of salt in a quarter pint of boiling water, and to drop some...

Gravy for boiled Meat,—(No. 327.)

14 minute read

May be made with parings and trimmings; or pour from a quarter to half a pint of the liquor in which the meat was boiled, into the dish with it, and pierce the inferior part of the joint with a sharp skewer....

Wow wow Sauce for stewed or bouilli Beef.—(No. 328.)

59 minute read

Chop some parsley-leaves very fine; quarter two or three pickled cucumbers, or walnuts, and divide them into small squares, and set them by ready: put into a saucepan a bit of butter as big as an egg; when it is melted, stir to it a table-spoonful of fine flour, and about half a pint of the broth in which the beef was boiled; add a table-spoonful of vinegar, the like quantity of mushroom catchup, or port wine, or both, and a tea-spoonful of made mustard; let it simmer together till it is as thick as you wish it; put in the parsley and pickles to get warm, and pour it over the beef; or rather send it up in a sauce-tureen. Obs. If you think the above not sufficiently piquante , add to it some capers, or a minced eschalot, or one or two tea-spoonfuls of eschalot wine ( No....

Beef-gravy Sauce—(No. 329), or Brown Sauce for Ragoût, Game, Poultry, Fish, &c.

2 minute read

If you want gravy immediately, see No. 307 , or No. 252 . If you have time enough, furnish a thick and well-tinned stew-pan with a thin slice of fat ham or bacon, or an ounce of butter, and a middling-sized onion; on this lay a pound of nice, juicy gravy beef, (as the object in making gravy is to extract the nutritious succulence of the meat, it must be beaten to comminute the containing vessels, and scored to augment the surface to the action of the water); cover the stew-pan, and set it on a slow fire; when the meat begins to brown, turn it about, and let it get slightly browned (but take care it is not at all burned): then pour in a pint and a half of boiling water; set the pan on the fire; when it boils, carefully catch the scum, and then put in...

Game Gravy.—(No. 337.)

4 minute read

See Obs. to No. 329 ....

Orange-gravy Sauce, for wild Ducks, Woodcocks, Snipes, Widgeon, and Teal, &c.—(No. 338.)

50 minute read

Set on a saucepan with half a pint of veal gravy ( No. 192 ), add to it half a dozen leaves of basil, a small onion, and a roll of orange or lemon-peel, and let it boil up for a few minutes, and strain it off. Put to the clear gravy the juice of a Seville orange, or lemon, half a tea-spoonful of salt, the same of pepper, and a glass of red wine; send it up hot. Eschalot and Cayenne may be added. Obs. —This is an excellent sauce for all kinds of wild water-fowl. The common way of gashing the breast and squeezing in an orange, cools and hardens the flesh, and compels every one to eat duck that way: some people like wild fowl very little done, and without any sauce. Gravies should always be sent up in a covered boat: they keep hot longer; and...

Bonne Bouche for Goose, Duck, or roast Pork.—(No. 341.)

52 minute read

Mix a tea-spoonful of made mustard, a salt-spoonful of salt, and a few grains of Cayenne, in a large wine-glassful of claret or port wine; 251-* pour it into the goose by a slit in the apron just before serving up; 251-† or, as all the company may not like it, stir it into a quarter of a pint of thick melted butter, or thickened gravy, and send it up in a boat. See also Sage and Onion Sauce, No. 300 . Or , A favourite relish for roast pork or geese, &c. is, two ounces of leaves of green sage, an ounce of fresh lemon-peel pared thin, same of salt, minced eschalot, and half a drachm of Cayenne pepper, ditto of citric acid, steeped for a fortnight in a pint of claret; shake it up well every day; let it stand a day to settle, and decant the clear...

Robert Sauce for roast Pork, or Geese, &c.—(No. 342.)

52 minute read

Put an ounce of butter into a pint stew-pan: when it is melted, add to it half an ounce of onion minced very fine; turn it with a wooden spoon till it takes a light brown colour; then stir in a table-spoonful of flour, a table-spoonful of mushroom catchup (with or without the like quantity of port wine), half a pint of broth or water, and a quarter of a tea-spoonful of pepper, the same of salt; give them a boil; then add a tea-spoonful of mustard, and the juice of half a lemon, or one or two tea-spoonfuls of vinegar or basil ( No. 397 ), or tarragon ( No. 396 ), or burnet vinegar ( No. 399 ). Obs. —The French call this “ Sauce Robert ” (from the name of the cook who invented it), and are very fond of it with many things, which Mary Smith...

Turtle Sauce.—(No. 343.)

48 minute read

Put into your stew-pan a pint of beef gravy thickened ( No. 329 ); add to this some of the following—essence of turtle, ( No. 343* ), or a wine-glassful of Madeira, the juice and peel of half a lemon, a few leaves of basil, 252-* an eschalot quartered, a few grains of Cayenne pepper, or curry powder, and a little essence of anchovy; let them simmer together for five minutes, and strain through a tamis: you may introduce a dozen turtle forcemeat balls. See receipt, No. 380 , &c. Obs. —This is the sauce for boiled or hashed calf’s head, stewed veal, or any dish you dress turtle fashion. The far-fetched and dear-bought turtle owes its high rank on the list of savoury bonne bouches to the relishing and piquante sauce that is made for it; without, it would be as insipid as any other fish is without sauce....

Essence of Turtle.—(No. 343*.)

11 minute read

Steep for a week, to get the flavour of the lemon-peel, &c. Obs. —This is very convenient to extemporaneously turtlefy soup, sauce, or potted meats, ragoûts, savoury patties, pies, &c. &c....

Wine Sauce for Venison or Hare.—(No. 344.)

14 minute read

A quarter of a pint of claret or port wine, the same quantity of plain, unflavoured mutton gravy ( No. 347 ), and a table-spoonful of currant jelly: let it just boil up, and send it to table in a sauce-boat....

Sharp Sauce for Venison.—(No. 345.)

21 minute read

Put into a silver, or very clean and well-tinned saucepan, half a pint of the best white wine vinegar, and a quarter of a pound of loaf-sugar pounded: set it over the fire, and let it simmer gently; skim it carefully; pour it through a tamis or fine sieve, and send it up in a basin. Obs. —Some people like this better than the sweet wine sauces....

Sweet Sauce for Venison or Hare.—(No. 346.)

20 minute read

Put some currant-jelly into a stew-pan; when it is melted, pour it into a sauce-boat. N.B. Many send it to table without melting. To make currant-jelly, see No. 479* . This is a more salubrious relish than either spice or salt, when the palate protests against animal food unless its flavour be masked. Currant-jelly is a good accompaniment to roasted or hashed meats....

Mutton Gravy for Venison or Hare.—(No. 347.)

58 minute read

The best gravy for venison is that made with the trimmings of the joint: if this is all used, and you have no undressed venison, cut a scrag of mutton in pieces; broil it a little brown; then put it into a clean stew-pan, with a quart of boiling water; cover it close, and let it simmer gently for an hour: now uncover the stew-pan, and let it reduce to three-quarters of a pint; pour it through a hair-sieve; take the fat off, and send it up in a boat. It is only to be seasoned with a little salt, that it may not overpower the natural flavour of the meat. You may colour it with a very little of No. 322 . N.B. Some prefer the unseasoned beef gravy, No. 186 , which you may make in five minutes with No. 252 . The queen’s gravy of mutton ,...

Curry Sauce,—(No. 348.)

36 minute read

Is made by stirring a sufficient quantity of curry stuff, ( No. 455 ) into gravy or melted butter, or onion sauce (Nos. 297 , 298 ), or onion gravy ( No. 299 , or No. 339 ). The compositions of curry powder, and the palates of those who eat it, vary so much, that we cannot recommend any specific quantity. The cook must add it by degrees, tasting as she proceeds, and take care not to put in too much. Obs. —The curry powder ( No. 455 ) approximates more nearly to the best Indian curry stuff, and is an agreeable and well-blended mixture of this class of aromatics. N.B. To dress curries, see No. 497 ....

Essence of Ham.—(No. 351.)

14 minute read

Essence of ham and of beef may be purchased at the eating-houses which cut up those joints; the former for half a crown or three shillings a quart: it is therefore a most economical relish for made-dishes, and to give piquance to sauces, &c....

Grill Sauce.—(No. 355.)

39 minute read

To half a pint of gravy ( No. 329 ), add an ounce of fresh butter, and a table-spoonful of flour, previously well rubbed together, the same of mushroom or walnut catchup, two tea-spoonfuls of lemon-juice, one of made mustard, one of minced capers, half a one of black pepper, a quarter of a rind of a lemon grated very thin, a tea-spoonful of essence of anchovies, and a little eschalot wine ( No. 402 ), or a very small piece of minced eschalot, and a little Chili vinegar ( No. 405 ), or a few grains of Cayenne; simmer together for a few minutes; pour a little of it over the grill, and send up the rest in a sauce-tureen. For anchovy toasts, No. 573 , or No. 538 . Or ,...

Sauce à la Tartare.

49 minute read

Pound in a mortar three hard yelks of eggs; put them into a basin, and add half a table-spoonful of made mustard, and a little pepper and salt; pour to it by degrees, stirring it fast all the while, about two wine-glassfuls of salad oil; stir it together till it comes to a good thickness. N.B. A little tarragon or chervil minced very fine, and a little vinegar, may be added; or some of the ingredients enumerated in No. 372 . Obs. —This from the French artist who wrote the receipt for dressing a turtle. Mem. —These are piquante relishes for anchovy toasts ( No. 573 , or No. 538 ); for BROILED DEVILS, &c. “ Véritable sauce d’enfer ,” see No. 538 ; and a refreshing excitement for those idle palates, who are as incessantly mumbling out “piquante, piquante,” as parrots do “pretty Poll, pretty Poll.” “For palates grown...

Sauce for Steaks, or Chops, Cutlets, &c.—(No. 356. See also No. 331.)

53 minute read

Take your chops out of the frying-pan; for a pound of meat keep a table-spoonful of the fat in the pan, or put in about an ounce of butter; put to it as much flour as will make it a paste; rub it well together over the fire till they are a little brown; then add as much boiling water as will reduce it to the thickness of good cream, and a table-spoonful of mushroom or walnut catchup, or pickle, or browning ( No. 322 , or No. 449 ); let it boil together a few minutes, and pour it through a sieve to the steaks, &c. Obs. —To the above is sometimes added a sliced onion, or a minced eschalot, with a table-spoonful of port wine, or a little eschalot wine (Nos. 402 , 423 , or 135 ). Garnish with finely-scraped horseradish, or pickled walnuts, gherkins, &c. Some...

Sauce Piquante for cold Meat, Game, Poultry, Fish, &c. or Salads.—(No. 359. See also No. 372, and Cucumber Vinegar, Nos. 399 and 453.)

46 minute read

Pound in a mortar the yelks of two eggs that have been boiled hard ( No. 547 ), with a mustard-spoonful of made mustard, and a little pepper and salt; add two table-spoonfuls of salad oil; mix well, and then add three table-spoonfuls of vinegar; rub it up well till it is quite smooth, and pass it through a tamis or sieve. Obs. —To the above, some add an anchovy, or a table-spoonful of mushroom catchup, or walnut pickle, some finely-chopped parsley, grated horseradish, or young onions minced, or burnet ( No. 399 ), horseradish ( No. 399* , or No. 402 ), or tarragon, or elder vinegar ( No. 396 ), &c., and Cayenne or minced pickles, capers, &c. This is a piquante relish for lobsters, crabs, cold fish, &c....

Sauce for Hashes of Mutton or Beef.—(No. 360. See also Nos. 451, 485, and to make Plain Hash, No. 486.)

2 minute read

Unless you are quite sure you perfectly understand the palate of those you are working for, show those who are to eat the hash this receipt, and beg of them to direct you how they wish it seasoned. Half the number of the ingredients enumerated will be more than enough: but as it is a receipt so often wanted we have given variety. See also No. 486 . To prepare the meat, see No. 484 . Chop the bones and fragments of the joint, &c., and put them into a stew-pan; cover them with boiling water, six berries of black pepper, the same of allspice, a small bundle of parsley, half a head of celery cut in pieces, and a small sprig of savoury, or lemon-thyme, or sweet marjoram; cover up, and let it simmer gently for half an hour. Slice half an ounce of onion, and put it into...

Sauce for hashed or minced Veal.—(No. 361. See No. 511.)

52 minute read

Take the bones of cold roast or boiled veal, dredge them well with flour, and put them into a stew-pan with a pint and a half of broth or water, a small onion, a little grated or finely-minced lemon-peel, or the peel of a quarter of a small lemon, pared as thin as possible, half a tea-spoonful of salt, and a blade of pounded mace; to thicken it, rub a table-spoonful of flour into half an ounce of butter; stir it into the broth, and set it on the fire, and let it boil very gently for about half an hour; strain through a tamis or sieve, and it is ready to put to the veal to warm up; which is to be done by placing the stew-pan by the side of the fire. Squeeze in half a lemon, and cover the bottom of the dish with toasted bread sippets...

Bechamel, by English Cooks commonly called White Sauce. (No. 364.)

1 minute read

Cut in square pieces, half an inch thick, two pounds of lean veal, half a pound of lean ham; melt in a stew-pan two ounces of butter; when melted, let the whole simmer until it is ready to catch at the bottom (it requires great attention, as, if it happen to catch at the bottom of the stew-pan, it will spoil the look of your sauce); then add to it three table-spoonfuls of flour; when well mixed, add to it three pints of broth or water (pour a little at a time, that the thickening be smooth); stir it until it boil; put the stew-pan on the corner of the stove to boil gently for two hours; season it with four cloves, one onion, twelve pepper-corns, a blade of mace, a few mushrooms and a fagot made of parsley, a sprig of thyme, and a bay-leaf. Let the sauce reduce...

A more economical Method of making a Pint of White Sauce.—(No. 364—2.)

1 minute read

Put equal parts of broth and milk into a stew-pan with an onion and a blade of mace; set it on the fire to boil ten minutes; have ready and rub together on a plate an ounce of flour and butter; put it into the stew-pan; stir it well till it boils up; then stand it near the fire or stove, stirring it every now and then till it becomes quite smooth; then strain it through a sieve into a basin; put it back into the stew-pan; season it with salt and the juice of a small lemon; beat up the yelks of two eggs well with about three table-spoonfuls of milk, strain it through a sieve into your sauce, stir it well and keep it near the fire, but be sure and do not let it boil, for it will curdle. Obs. A convenient veil for boiled fowls, &c....

Poivrade Sauce.—(No. 365.)

31 minute read

This, as its title tells us, is a sauce of French extraction. The following receipt is from “ La Cuisinière Bourgeoise ,” page 408. “Put a bit of butter as big as an egg into a stew-pan with two or three bits of onion, carrot, and turnip, cut in slices, two eschalots, two cloves, a bay-leaf, thyme, and basil; keep turning them in the pan till they get a little colour; shake in some flour, and add a glass of red wine, a glass of water, a spoonful of vinegar, and a little pepper and salt; boil half an hour; skim and strain it.”...

Mustard in a minute.—(No. 369.)

23 minute read

Mix very gradually, and rub together in a mortar, an ounce of flour of mustard, with three table-spoonfuls of milk (cream is better), half a tea-spoonful of salt, and the same of sugar; rub them well together till quite smooth. Obs. Mustard made in this manner is not at all bitter, and is therefore instantly ready for the table. N.B. It has been said that flour of mustard is sometimes adulterated with common flour, &c. &c....

Mustard.—(No. 370.)

1 minute read

Mix (by degrees, by rubbing together in a mortar) the best Durham flour of mustard, with vinegar, white wine, or cold water, in which scraped horseradish has been boiled; rub it well together for at least ten minutes, till it is perfectly smooth; it will keep in a stone jar closely stopped, for a fortnight: only put as much into the mustard-pot as will be used in a day or two. The ready-made mustard prepared at the oil shops is mixed with about one-fourth part salt: this is done to preserve it, if it is to be kept long; otherwise, by all means, omit it. The best way of eating salt is in substance. * * * See also recipe No. 427 . Obs. Mustard is the best of all the stimulants that are employed to give energy to the digestive organs. It was in high favour with our forefathers;...

Salt,—(No. 371.)

31 minute read

Is (“ aliorum condimentorum condimentum ,” as Plutarch calls it,) sauce for sauce. Common salt is more relishing than basket salt; it should be prepared for the table by drying it in a Dutch oven before the fire; then put it on a clean paper, and roll it with a rolling pin; if you pound it in a mortar till it is quite fine, it will look as well as basket salt. Malden salt is still more piquante . * * * Select for table-use the lumps of salt. Obs. Your salt-box must have a close cover, and be kept in a dry place....

Salad mixture.—(No. 372. See also Nos. 138* and 453.)

1 minute read

Endeavour to have your salad herbs as fresh as possible; if you suspect they are not “morning gathered,” they will be much refreshed by lying an hour or two in spring-water; then carefully wash and pick them, and trim off all the worm-eaten, slimy, cankered, dry leaves; and, after washing, let them remain a while in the colander to drain: lastly, swing them gently in a clean napkin: when properly picked and cut, arrange them in the salad dish, mix the sauce in a soup plate, and put it into an ingredient bottle, 260-* or pour it down the side of the salad dish, and don’t stir it up till the mouths are ready for it. If the herbs be young, fresh gathered, trimmed neatly, and drained dry, and the sauce-maker ponders patiently over the following directions, he cannot fail obtaining the fame of being a very accomplished salad-dresser. Boil...

Boiled Salad.

1 minute read

This is best compounded of boiled or baked onions (if Portugal the better), some baked beet-root, cauliflower, or broccoli, and boiled celery and French beans, or any of these articles, with the common salad dressing; added to this, to give it an enticing appearance, and to give some of the crispness and freshness so pleasant in salad, a small quantity of raw endive, or lettuce and chervil, or burnet, strewed on the top: this is by far more wholesome than the raw salad, and is much eaten when put on the table. N.B. The above sauce is equally good with cold meat, cold fish, or for cucumbers, celery, radishes, &c. and all the other vegetables that are sent to table undressed: to the above, a little minced onion is generally an acceptable addition. Obs. Salad is a very compound dish with our neighbours the French, who always add to the...

Forcemeat Stuffings.—(No. 373.)

2 minute read

Forcemeat is now considered an indispensable accompaniment to most made dishes, and when composed with good taste, gives additional spirit and relish to even that “sovereign of savouriness,” turtle soup. It is also sent up in patties, and for stuffing of veal, game, poultry, &c. The ingredients should be so proportioned, that no one flavour predominates. To give the same stuffing for veal, hare, &c. argues a poverty of invention; with a little contrivance, you may make as great a variety as you have dishes. I have given receipts for some of the most favourite compositions, and a table of materials, a glance at which will enable the ingenious cook to make an infinite variety of combinations: the first column containing the spirit, the second the substance of them. The poignancy of forcemeat should be proportioned to the savouriness of the viands, to which it is intended to give an...

Stuffing for Veal, roast Turkey, Fowl, &c.—(No. 374.)

1 minute read

Mince a quarter of a pound of beef suet (beef marrow is better), the same weight of bread-crumbs, two drachms of parsley-leaves, a drachm and a half of sweet marjoram or lemon-thyme, and the same of grated lemon-peel and onion chopped as fine as possible, a little pepper and salt; pound thoroughly together with the yelk and white of two eggs, and secure it in the veal with a skewer, or sew it in with a bit of thread. Make some of it into balls or sausages; flour them, and boil, or fry them, and send them up as a garnish, or in a side dish, with roast poultry, veal, or cutlets, &c. N.B. This is about the quantity for a turkey poult: a very large turkey will take nearly twice as much. To the above may be added an ounce of dressed ham; or use equal parts of the...

Veal Forcemeat.—(No. 375.)

33 minute read

Of undressed lean veal (after you have scraped it quite fine, and free from skin and sinews), two ounces, the same quantity of beef or veal suet, and the same of bread-crumbs; chop fine two drachms of parsley, one of lemon-peel, one of sweet herbs, one of onion, and half a drachm of mace, or allspice, beaten to fine powder; pound all together in a mortar; break into it the yelk and white of an egg; rub it all up well together, and season it with a little pepper and salt. Obs. —This may be made more savoury by the addition of cold boiled pickled tongue, anchovy, eschalot, Cayenne or curry powder, &c....

Stuffing for Turkeys or Fowls, &c.—(No. 377.)

23 minute read

Take the foregoing composition for the roast turkey, or add the soft part of a dozen oysters to it: an anchovy, or a little grated ham, or tongue, if you like it, is still more relishing. Fill the craw of the fowl, &c.; but do not cram it so as to disfigure its shape. Pork sausage meat is sometimes used to stuff turkeys and fowls; or fried, and sent up as a garnish....

Goose or Duck Stuffing.—(No. 378.)

26 minute read

Chop very fine about two ounces of onion, of green sage-leaves about an ounce (both unboiled), four ounces of bread-crumbs, a bit of butter about as big as a walnut, &c., the yelk and white of an egg, and a little pepper and salt: some add to this a minced apple. For another, see roasted goose and duck (Nos. 59 and 61 ), which latter we like as forcemeat-balls for mock turtle; then add a little lemon-peel, and warm it with Cayenne....

Stuffing for Hare.—(No. 379.)

31 minute read

Two ounces of beef suet chopped fine; three ounces of fine bread-crumbs; parsley, a drachm; eschalot, half a drachm; a drachm of marjoram, lemon-thyme, or winter savoury; a drachm of grated lemon-peel, and the same of pepper and salt: mix these with the white and yelk of an egg; do not make it thin—it must be of cohesive consistence: if your stuffing is not stiff enough, it will be good for nothing: put it in the hare, and sew it up. * * * If the liver is quite sound, you may parboil it, and mince it very fine, and add it to the above....

Forcemeat-Balls for Turtle, Mock Turtle, or Made Dishes. (No. 380. See also No. 375.)

38 minute read

Pound some veal in a marble mortar; rub it through a sieve with as much of the udder as you have veal, or about a third of the quantity of butter: put some bread-crumbs into a stew-pan, moisten them with milk, add a little chopped parsley and eschalot, rub them well together in a mortar till they form a smooth paste; put it through a sieve, and, when cold, pound, and mix all together, with the yelks of three eggs boiled hard; season it with salt, pepper, and curry powder, or Cayenne; add to it the yelks of two raw eggs; rub it well together, and make small balls: ten minutes before your soup is ready, put them in....

Egg Balls.—(No. 381.)

22 minute read

Boil four eggs for ten minutes, and put them into cold water; when they are quite cold, put the yelks into a mortar with the yelk of a raw egg, a tea-spoonful of flour, same of chopped parsley, as much salt as will lie on a shilling, and a little black pepper, or Cayenne; rub them well together, roll them into small balls (as they swell in boiling); boil them a couple of minutes....

Brain Balls.

6 minute read

See No. 247 , or beat up the brains of a calf in the way we have above directed the egg....

Curry Balls for Mock Turtle, Veal, Poultry, Made Dishes, &c. (No. 382.)

17 minute read

Are made with bread-crumbs, the yelk of an egg boiled hard, and a bit of fresh butter about half as big, beaten together in a mortar, and seasoned with curry powder ( No. 455 ): make and prepare small balls, as directed in No. 381 ....

Fish Forcemeat.—(No. 383.)

28 minute read

Take two ounces of either turbot, sole, lobster, shrimps, or oysters; free from skin, put it in a mortar with two ounces of fresh butter, one ounce of bread-crumbs, the yelk of two eggs boiled-hard, and a little eschalot, grated lemon-peel, and parsley, minced very fine; then pound it well till it is thoroughly mixed and quite smooth; season it with salt and Cayenne to your taste; break in the yelk and white of one egg, rub it well together, and it is ready for use. Oysters parboiled and minced fine, and an anchovy, may be added....

Zest Balls.—(No. 386. See No. 255.)

6 minute read

Prepared in the same way as No. 381 ....

Orange or Lemon-peel, to mix with Stuffing.—(No. 387.)

27 minute read

Peel a Seville orange, or lemon, very thin, taking off only the fine yellow rind (without any of the white); pound it in a mortar with a bit of lump sugar; rub it well with the peel; by degrees add a little of the forcemeat it is to be mixed with: when it is well ground and blended with this, mix it with the whole: there is no other way of incorporating it so well. Forcemeats, &c. are frequently spoiled by the insufficient mixing of the ingredients....

Clouted or Clotted Cream.—(No. 388.)

41 minute read

The milk which is put into the pans one morning stands till the next; then set the pan on a hot hearth, or in a copper tray 267-* half full of water; put this over a stove; in from ten to twenty minutes, according to the quantity of the milk and the size of the pan, it will be done enough; the sign of which is, that bladders rise on its surface; this denotes that it is near boiling, which it must by no means do; and it must be instantly removed from the fire, and placed in the dairy till the next morning, when the fine cream is thrown up, and is ready for the table, or for butter, into which it is soon converted by stirring it with the hand. N.B. This receipt we have not proved....

Raspberry Vinegar.—(No. 390.)

54 minute read

The best way to make this, is to pour three pints of the best white wine vinegar on a pint and a half of fresh-gathered red raspberries in a stone jar, or China bowl (neither glazed earthenware, nor any metallic vessel, must be used); the next day strain the liquor over a like quantity of fresh raspberries; and the day following do the same. Then drain off the liquor without pressing, and pass it through a jelly bag (previously wetted with plain vinegar) into a stone jar, with a pound of pounded lump sugar to each pint. When the sugar is dissolved, stir it up, cover down the jar, and set it in a saucepan of water, and keep it boiling for an hour, taking off the scum; add to each pint a glass of brandy, and bottle it: mixed in about eight parts of water, it is a very...

Syrup of Lemons.—(No. 391.)

40 minute read

The best season for lemons is from November to March. Put a pint of fresh lemon-juice to a pound and three-quarters of lump sugar; dissolve it by a gentle heat; skim it till the surface is quite clear; add an ounce of thin-cut lemon-peel; let them simmer (very gently) together for a few minutes, and run it through a flannel. When cold, bottle and cork it closely, and keep it in a cool place. Or , Dissolve a quarter of an ounce (avoirdupois) of citric, i. e. crystallized lemon acid, in a pint of clarified syrup ( No. 475 ); flavour it with the peel, with No. 408 , or dissolve the acid in equal parts of simple syrup ( No. 475 ), and syrup of lemon-peel, as made No. 393 ....

The Justice’s Orange Syrup for Punch or Puddings.—(No. 392.)

21 minute read

Squeeze the oranges, and strain the juice from the pulp into a large pot; boil it up with a pound and a half of fine sugar to each point of juice; skim it well; let it stand till cold; then bottle it, and cork it well. Obs. —This makes a fine, soft, mellow-flavoured punch; and, added to melted butter, is a good relish to puddings....

Syrup of Orange or Lemon-peel.—(No. 393.)

33 minute read

Of fresh outer rind of Seville orange or lemon-peel, three ounces, apothecaries’ weight; boiling water a pint and a half; infuse them for a night in a close vessel; then strain the liquor: let it stand to settle; and having poured it off clear from the sediment, dissolve in it two pounds of double-refined loaf sugar, and make it into a syrup with a gentle heat. Obs. —In making this syrup, if the sugar be dissolved in the infusion with as gentle a heat as possible, to prevent the exhalation of the volatile parts of the peel, this syrup will possess a great share of the fine flavour of the orange, or lemon-peel....

Vinegar for Salads.—(No. 395.)

24 minute read

“Take of tarragon, savoury, chives, eschalots, three ounces each; a handful of the tops of mint and balm, all dry and pounded; put into a wide-mouthed bottle, with a gallon of best vinegar; cork it close, set it in the sun, and in a fortnight strain off, and squeeze the herbs; let it stand a day to settle, and then strain it through a filtering bag.” From Parmentier’s Art de faire les Vinaigres , 8vo. 1805, p. 205....

Tarragon Vinegar.—(No. 396.)

54 minute read

This is a very agreeable addition to soups, salad sauce ( No. 455 ), and to mix mustard ( No. 370 ). Fill a wide-mouthed bottle with fresh-gathered tarragon-leaves, i. e. between midsummer and Michaelmas (which should be gathered on a dry day, just before it flowers), and pick the leaves off the stalks, and dry them a little before the fire; cover them with the best vinegar; let them steep fourteen days; then strain through a flannel jelly bag till it is fine; then pour it into half-pint bottles; cork them carefully, and keep them in a dry place. Obs. You may prepare elder-flowers and herbs in the same manner; elder and tarragon are those in most general use in this country. Our neighbours, the French, prepare vinegars flavoured with celery, cucumbers, capsicums, garlic, eschalot, onion, capers, chervil, cress-seed, burnet, truffles, Seville orange-peel, ginger, &c.; in short, they impregnate...

Basil Vinegar or Wine.—(No. 397.)

52 minute read

Sweet basil is in full perfection about the middle of August. Fill a wide-mouthed bottle with the fresh green leaves of basil (these give much finer and more flavour than the dried), and cover them with vinegar, or wine, and let them steep for ten days: if you wish a very strong essence, strain the liquor, put it on some fresh leaves, and let them steep fourteen days more. Obs. This is a very agreeable addition to sauces, soups, and to the mixture usually made for salads. See Nos. 372 and 453 . It is a secret the makers of mock turtle may thank us for telling; a table-spoonful put in when the soup is finished will impregnate a tureen of soup with the basil and acid flavours, at very small cost, when fresh basil and lemons are extravagantly dear. The flavour of the other sweet and savoury herbs, celery,...

Cress Vinegar.—(No. 397*.)

31 minute read

Dry and pound half an ounce of cress-seed (such as is sown in the garden with mustard), pour upon it a quart of the best vinegar, let it steep ten days, shaking it up every day. Obs. This is very strongly flavoured with cress; and for salads and cold meats, &c. it is a great favourite with many: the quart of sauce costs only a half-penny more than the vinegar. Celery vinegar is made in the same manner. The crystal vinegar ( No. 407* ), which is, we believe, the pyroligneous acid, is the best for receiving flavours, having scarcely any of its own....

Green Mint Vinegar,—(No. 398.)

13 minute read

Is made precisely in the same manner, and with the same proportions as in No. 397 . Obs. —In the early season of housed lamb, green mint is sometimes not to be got; the above is then a welcome substitute....

Burnet or Cucumber Vinegar.—(No. 399.)

18 minute read

This is made in precisely the same manner as directed in No. 397 . The flavour of burnet resembles cucumber so exactly, that when infused in vinegar, the nicest palate would pronounce it to be cucumber. Obs. —This is a very favourite relish with cold meat, salads, &c. Burnet is in best season from midsummer to Michaelmas....

Horseradish Vinegar.—(No. 399*.)

22 minute read

Horseradish is in highest perfection about November. Pour a quart of best vinegar on three ounces of scraped horseradish, an ounce of minced eschalot, and one drachm of Cayenne; let it stand a week, and you will have an excellent relish for cold beef, salads, &c. costing scarcely any thing. N.B. A portion of black pepper and mustard, celery or cress-seed, may be added to the above. Obs. —Horseradish powder ( No. 458* )....

Garlic Vinegar.—(No. 400.)

44 minute read

Garlic is ready for this purpose from midsummer to Michaelmas. Peel and chop two ounces of garlic, pour on them a quart of white wine vinegar, stop the jar close, and let it steep ten days, shaking it well every day; then pour off the clear liquor into small bottles. Obs. —The cook must be careful not to use too much of this; a few drops of it will give a pint of gravy a sufficient smack of the garlic, the flavour of which, when slight and well blended, is one of the finest we have; when used in excess, it is the most offensive. The best way to use garlic, is to send up some of this vinegar in a cruet, and let the company flavour their own sauce as they like. N.B. The most elegant preparation of the onion tribe is the eschalot wine, No. 402 ....

Eschalot Vinegar,—(No. 401.)

17 minute read

Is made in the same manner, and the cook should never be without one of these useful auxiliaries; they cost scarcely any thing but the little trouble of making, and will save a great deal of trouble in flavouring soups and sauces with a taste of onion. N.B. Eschalots are in high perfection during July, August, and September....

Eschalot Wine.—(No. 402.)

38 minute read

Peel, mince, and pound in a mortar, three ounces of eschalots, and infuse them in a pint of sherry for ten days; then pour off the clear liquor on three ounces more eschalots, and let the wine stand on them ten days longer. Obs. —This is rather the most expensive, but infinitely the most elegant preparation of eschalot, and imparts the onion flavour to soups and sauces, for chops, steaks, or boiled meats, hashes, &c. more agreeably than any: it does not leave any unpleasant taste in the mouth, or to the breath; nor repeat, as almost all other preparations of garlic, onion, &c. do. N.B. An ounce of scraped horseradish may be added to the above, and a little thin-cut lemon-peel, or a few drops of No. 408 ....

Camp Vinegar.—(No. 403.)

10 minute read

Steep all for a month in a pint of the best vinegar, frequently shaking the bottle: strain through a tamis, and keep it in small bottles, corked as tightly as possible....

Cayenne Pepper.—(No. 404.)

2 minute read

Mr. Accum has informed the public (see his book on Adulterations) that from some specimens that came direct to him from India, and others obtained from respectable oil shops in London, he has extracted lead! “Foreign Cayenne pepper is an indiscriminate mixture of the powder of the dried pods of many species of capsicums, especially of the bird pepper, which is the hottest of all. As it comes to us from the West Indies, it changes the infusion of turnsole to a beautiful green, probably owing to the salt, which is always added to it, and the red oxide of lead, with which it is said to be adulterated.” Duncan’s New Edinburgh Dispensary , 1819, Article Capsicum , p. 81. The Indian Cayenne is prepared in a very careless manner, and often looks as if the pods had lain till they were decayed, before they were dried: this accounts for...

Essence of Cayenne.—(No. 405.)

28 minute read

Put half an ounce of Cayenne pepper ( No. 404 ) into half a pint of brandy or wine; let it steep for a fortnight, and then pour off the clear liquor. This is nearly equal to fresh Chili juice. Obs. —This or the Chili vinegar ( No. 405* ,) is extremely convenient for the extempore seasoning and finishing of soups, sauces, &c., its flavour being instantly and equally diffused. Cayenne pepper varies so much in strength, that it is impossible to season soup any other way to the precise point of piquance ....

Chili Vinegar.—(No. 405*.)

23 minute read

This is commonly made with the foreign bird pepper; but you will obtain a much finer flavour from infusing fifty fresh red English Chilies (cut in half, or pounded) in a pint of the best vinegar for a fortnight, or a quarter of an ounce of Cayenne pepper, No. 404 . Obs. —Many people cannot eat fish without the addition of an acid, and Cayenne pepper: to such palates this will be an agreeable relish....

Chili, or Cayenne Wine.—(No. 406.)

23 minute read

Pound and steep fifty fresh red Chilies, or a quarter of an ounce of Cayenne pepper, in half a pint of brandy, white wine, or claret, for fourteen days. Obs. —This is a “ bonne bouche ” for the lovers of Cayenne, of which it takes up a larger proportion of its flavour than of its fire; which being instantly diffused, it is a very useful auxiliary to warm and finish soups and sauces, &c....

Essence of Lemon-peel.—(No. 407.)

38 minute read

Wash and brush clean the lemons; let them get perfectly dry: take a lump of loaf sugar, and rub them till all the yellow rind is taken up by the sugar: scrape off the surface of the sugar into a preserving pot, and press it hard down; cover it very close, and it will keep for some time. In the same way you may get the essence of Seville orange-peel. Obs. This method of procuring and preserving the flavour of lemon-peel, by making an oleo-saccharum , is far superior to the common practice of paring off the rind, or grating it, and pounding, or mixing that with sugar: by this process you obtain the whole of the fine, fragrant, essential oil, in which is contained the flavour....

Artificial Lemon-juice.—(No. 407*.)

37 minute read

If you add a drachm of lump sugar, pounded, and six drops of No. 408 , to three ounces of crystal vinegar, which is the name given to the pyroligneous vinegar, you will have an excellent substitute for lemon-juice—for fish sauces and soups, and many other culinary purposes. The flavour of the lemon may also be communicated to the vinegar by infusing some lemon-peel in it. N.B. The pyroligneous vinegar is perfectly free from all flavour, save that of the pure acid; therefore, it is a very valuable menstruum for receiving impregnations from various flavouring materials. The pyroligneous acid seems likely to produce quite a revolution in the process of curing hams, herrings, &c. &c. See Tilloch’s Philosophical Magazine , 1821, No. 173, p. 12....

Quintessence of Lemon-peel.—(No. 408.)

33 minute read

Best oil of lemon, one drachm, strongest rectified spirit, two ounces, introduced by degrees till the spirit kills, and completely mixes with the oil. This elegant preparation possesses all the delightful fragrance and flavour of the freshest lemon-peel. Obs. A few drops on the sugar you make punch with will instantly impregnate it with as much flavour as the troublesome and tedious method of grating the rind, or rubbing the sugar on it. It will be found a superlative substitute for fresh lemon-peel for every purpose that it is used for: blanc mange, jellies, custards, ice, negus, lemonade, and pies and puddings, stuffings, soups, sauces, ragoûts, &c. See also No. 393 ....

Tincture of Lemon-peel.—(No. 408*.)

18 minute read

A very easy and economical way of obtaining, and pre serving the flavour of lemon-peel, is to fill a wide-mouthed pint bottle half full of brandy, or proof spirit; and when you use a lemon, pare the rind off very thin, and put it into the brandy, &c.: in a fortnight it will impregnate the spirit with the flavour very strongly....

Essence of Celery.—(No. 409.)

15 minute read

Let it steep for a fortnight. Obs. —A few drops will immediately flavour a pint of broth, and are an excellent addition to pease, and other soups, and the salad mixture of oil, vinegar, &c. ( No. 392 .) N.B. To make celery sauce, see No. 289 ....

Aromatic Essence of Ginger.—(No. 411.)

25 minute read

Three ounces of fresh-grated 275-* ginger, and two ounces of thin-cut lemon-peel, into a quart of brandy, or proof spirit (apothecaries’ measure); let it stand for ten days, shaking it up each day. Obs. —The proper title for this would be “tincture of ginger:” however, as it has obtained the name of “essence,” so let it be called. N.B. If ginger is taken to produce an immediate effect, to warm the stomach, or dispel flatulence, this is the best preparation....

Essence of Allspice for mulling of Wine.—(No. 412.)

21 minute read

Oil of pimento, a drachm, apothecaries’ measure, strong spirit of wine, two ounces, mixed by degrees: a few drops will give the flavour of allspice to a pint of gravy, or mulled wine, or to make a bishop. Mulled wine made with Burgundy is called bishop; with old Rhenish wine, cardinal; and with Tokay, Pope. Ritter‘s Weinlehres , p. 200....

Tincture275-† of Allspice.—(No. 413.)

20 minute read

Let it steep a fortnight, occasionally shaking it up; then pour off the clear liquor: it is a most grateful addition in all cases where allspice is used, for making a bishop, or to mulled wine extempore, or in gravies, &c., or to flavour and preserve potted meats ( No. 503 ). See Sir Hans Sloane‘s Obs. on Allspice , p. 96....

Tincture of Nutmeg.—(No. 413*.)

8 minute read

Is made with the same proportions of nutmeg and brandy, as ordered for allspice. See Obs. to No. 415 ....

Tincture of Clove.—(No. 415.)

7 minute read

Let it steep ten days: strain it through a flannel sieve. Obs. —Excellent to flavour “bishop,” or “mulled wine.”...

Tincture of Cinnamon.—(No. 416*.)

50 minute read

This exhilarating cordial is made by pouring a bottle of genuine cognac ( No. 471 ,) on three ounces of bruised cinnamon (cassia will not do). This restorative was more in vogue formerly than it is now: a tea-spoonful of it, and a lump of sugar, in a glass of good sherry or Madeira, with the yelk of an egg beat up in it, was called “ balsamum vitæ .” “ Cur moriatur homo, qui sumit de cinnamomo? ”—“Cinnamon is verie comfortable to the stomacke, and the principall partes of the bodie.” “ Ventriculum, jecur, lienem, cerebrum, nervosque juvat et roborat. ”—“I reckon it a great treasure for a student to have by him in his closet, to take now and then a spoonful.”— Cogan’s Haven of Health , 4to. 1584, p. 111. Obs. —Two tea-spoonfuls in a wine-glass of water, are a present and pleasant remedy in nervous languors,...

Vegetable Essences.—(No. 417*.)

24 minute read

The flavour of the various sweet and savoury herbs may be obtained by combining their essential oils with rectified spirit of wine, in the proportion of one drachm of the former to two ounces of the latter, or by picking the leaves, and laying them for a couple of hours in a warm place to dry, and then filling a large-mouthed bottle with them, and pouring on them wine, brandy, proof spirit, or vinegar, and letting them steep for fourteen days....

Soup-herb277-* Spirit.—(No. 420.)

15 minute read

Prepare them as directed in No. 461 ; and infuse them in a pint of brandy, or proof spirit, for ten days: they may also be infused in wine or vinegar, but neither extract the flavour of the ingredients half so well as the spirit....

Spirit of Savoury Spice.—(No. 421.)

11 minute read

Infuse in a pint of brandy, or proof spirit, for ten days; or, infuse the ingredients enumerated in No. 457 , in a quart of brandy, or proof spirit, for the like time....

Soup-herb and Savoury Spice Spirit.—(No. 422.)

16 minute read

Mix half a pint of soup-herb spirit with a quarter of a pint of spirit of savoury spice. Obs. —These preparations are valuable auxiliaries to immediately heighten the flavour, and finish soups, sauces, ragoûts, &c., will save much time and trouble to the cook, and keep for twenty years....

Relish for Chops, &c.—(No. 423.)

27 minute read

Pound fine an ounce of black pepper, and half an ounce of allspice, with an ounce of salt, and half an ounce of scraped horseradish, and the same of eschalots, peeled and quartered; put these ingredients into a pint of mushroom catchup, or walnut pickle, and let them steep for a fortnight, and then strain it. Obs. —A tea-spoonful or two of this is generally an acceptable addition, mixed with the gravy usually sent up for chops and steaks (see No. 356 ); or added to thick melted butter....

Fish Sauce.—(No. 425.)

24 minute read

Two wine-glasses of port, and two of walnut pickle, four of mushroom catchup, half a dozen anchovies, pounded, the like number of eschalots sliced and pounded, a table-spoonful of soy, and half a drachm of Cayenne pepper; let them simmer gently for ten minutes; strain it, and when cold, put it into bottles; well corked, and sealed over, it will keep for a considerable time. Obs. —This is commonly called Quin’s sauce, and was given to me by a very sagacious sauce-maker....

Keeping Mustard.—(No. 427.)

23 minute read

Dissolve three ounces of salt in a quart of boiling water, or rather vinegar, and pour it hot upon two ounces of scraped horseradish; closely cover down the jar, and let it stand twenty-four hours: strain, and mix it by degrees with the best Durham flour of mustard, beat well together till quite smooth, and of the proper thickness; put into a wide-mouthed bottle, and stop it closely. For the various ways to flavour mustard, see No. 370 ....

Sauce Superlative.278-*—(No. 429.)

1 minute read

Put these into a wide-mouthed bottle, stop it close, shake it up every day for a fortnight, and strain it (when some think it improved by the addition of a quarter of a pint of soy, or thick browning, see No. 322 ), and you will have a “delicious double relish.” * * * This composition is one of the “chefs d’œuvre” of many experiments I have made, for the purpose of enabling the good housewives of Great Britain to prepare their own sauces: it is equally agreeable with fish, game, poultry, or ragoûts, &c., and as a fair lady may make it herself, its relish will be not a little augmented, by the certainty that all the ingredients are good and wholesome. Obs. —Under an infinity of circumstances, a cook may be in want of the substances necessary to make sauce: the above composition of the several articles from...

Quintessence of Anchovy.—(No. 433.)

3 minute read

The goodness of this preparation depends almost entirely on having fine mellow fish, that have been in pickle long enough ( i. e. about twelve months) to dissolve easily, yet are not at all rusty. Choose those that are in the state they come over in, not such as have been put into fresh pickle, mixed with red paint, 280-* which some add to improve the complexion of the fish; it has been said, that others have a trick of putting anchovy liquor on pickled sprats; 280-† you will easily discover this by washing one of them, and tasting the flesh of it, which in the fine anchovy is mellow, red, and high-flavoured, and the bone moist and oily. Make only as much as will soon be used, the fresher it is the better. Put ten or twelve anchovies into a mortar, and pound them to a pulp; put this...

Anchovy Paste, or le Beurre d’Anchois.—(No. 434.)

52 minute read

Pound them in a mortar; then rub it through a fine sieve; pot it, cover it with clarified butter, and keep it in a cool place. N.B. If you have essence of anchovy, you may make anchovy paste extempore, by rubbing the essence with as much flour as will make a paste. Mem. —This is merely mentioned as the means of making it immediately; it will not keep. Obs. —This is sometimes made stiffer and hotter by the addition of a little flour of mustard, a pickled walnut, spice ( No. 460 ), curry powder ( No. 455 ), or Cayenne; and it then becomes a rival to “ la véritable sauce d’enfer ” ( No. 528 ), or pâté à la diable for deviling biscuits ( No. 574 ), grills ( No. 538 ), &c. It is an excellent garnish for fish, put in pats round the edge of...

Anchovy Powder.—(No. 435.)

27 minute read

Pound the fish in a mortar, rub them through a sieve, and make them into a paste with dried flour, roll it into thin cakes, and dry them in a Dutch oven before a slow fire; pounded to a fine powder, and put into a well-stopped bottle, it will keep for years; it is a very savoury relish, sprinkled on bread and butter for a sandwich, &c. See Oyster Powder ( No. 280 ). Obs. —To this may be added a small portion of Cayenne pepper, grated lemon-peel, and citric acid....

Walnut Catchup.—(No. 438.)

1 minute read

Take six half-sieves of green walnut-shells, put them into a tub, mix them up well with common salt, (from two to three pounds,) let them stand for six days, frequently beating and mashing them; by this time the shells become soft and pulpy; then by banking it up on one side of the tub, and at the same time by raising the tub on that side, the liquor will drain clear off to the other; then take that liquor out: the mashing and banking-up may be repeated as often as liquor is found. The quantity will be about six quarts. When done, let it be simmered in an iron boiler as long as any scum arises; then bruise a quarter of a pound of ginger, a quarter of a pound of allspice, two ounces of long pepper, two ounces of cloves, with the above ingredients; let it slowly boil for...

Mushroom Catchup.—(No. 439.)

3 minute read

If you love good catchup, gentle reader, make it yourself, 283-* after the following directions, and you will have a delicious relish for made-dishes, ragoûts, soups, sauces, or hashes. Mushroom gravy approaches the nature and flavour of meat gravy, more than any vegetable juice, and is the superlative substitute for it: in meagre soups and extempore gravies, the chemistry of the kitchen has yet contrived to agreeably awaken the palate, and encourage the appetite. A couple of quarts of double catchup, made according to the following receipt, will save you some score pounds of meat, besides a vast deal of time and trouble; as it will furnish, in a few minutes, as good sauce as can be made for either fish, flesh, or fowl. See No. 307 . I believe the following is the best way of extracting and preparing the essence of mushrooms, so as to procure and preserve...

Quintessence of Mushrooms.—(No. 440.)

29 minute read

This delicate relish is made by sprinkling a little salt over either flap or button mushrooms; three hours after, mash them; next day, strain off the liquor that will flow from them; put it into a stew-pan, and boil it till it is reduced to half. It will not keep long, but is preferable to any of the catchups, which, in order to preserve them, must have spice, &c., which overpowers the flavour of the mushrooms. An artificial mushroom bed will supply this all the year round. To make sauce with this, see No. 307 ....

Oyster Catchup.—(No. 441.)

42 minute read

Take fine fresh Milton oysters; wash them in their own liquor; skim it; pound them in a marble mortar; to a pint of oysters add a pint of sherry; boil them up, and add an ounce of salt, two drachms of pounded mace, and one of Cayenne; let it just boil up again; skim it, and rub it through a sieve, and when cold, bottle it, cork it well, and seal it down. Obs. —See also No. 280 , and Obs. to No. 278 . N.B. It is the best way to pound the salt and spices, &c. with the oysters. Obs. —This composition very agreeably heightens the flavour of white sauces, and white made-dishes; and if you add a glass of brandy to it, it will keep good for a considerable time longer than oysters are out of season in England....

Cockle and Muscle Catchup,—(No. 442.)

6 minute read

May be made by treating them in the same way as the oysters in the preceding receipt....

Pudding Catchup.—(No. 446.)

27 minute read

Half a pint of brandy, “essence of punch” ( No. 479 ), or “Curaçoa” ( No. 474 ), or “Noyeau,” a pint of sherry, an ounce of thin-pared lemon-peel, half an ounce of mace, and steep them for fourteen days, then strain it, and add a quarter of a pint of capillaire, or No. 476 . This will keep for years, and, mixed with melted butter, is a delicious relish to puddings and sweet dishes. See Pudding Sauce, No. 269 , and the Justice’s Orange Syrup, No. 392 ....

Potato286-* Starch.—(No. 448.)

1 minute read

Peel and wash a pound of full-grown potatoes, grate them on a bread-grater into a deep dish, containing a quart of clear water; stir it well up, and then pour it through a hair-sieve, and leave it ten minutes to settle, till the water is quite clear: then pour off the water, and put a quart of fresh water to it; stir it up, let it settle, and repeat this till the water is quite clear; you will at last find a fine white powder at the bottom of the vessel. (The criterion of this process being completed, is the purity of the water that comes from it after stirring it up.) Lay this on a sheet of paper in a hair-sieve to dry, either in the sun or before the fire, and it is ready for use, and in a well-stopped bottle will keep good for many months. If...

Of the Flour of Potatoes.

1 minute read

“A patent has been recently obtained at Paris, a gold medal bestowed, and other honorary distinctions granted, for the discovery and practice, on a large scale, of preparing from potatoes a fine flour; a sago, a flour equal to ground rice; and a semolina or paste, of which 1 lb. is equal to 1   1 / 2 lbs. of rice, 1   3 / 4 lbs. of vermicelli, or, it is asserted, 8 lbs. of raw potatoes. “These preparations are found valuable to mix with wheaten flour for bread, to make biscuits, pastry, pie-crusts, and for all soups, gruels, and panada. “Large engagements have been made for these preparations with the French marine, and military and other hospitals, with the approbation of the faculty. “An excellent bread, it is said, can be made of this flour, at half the cost of wheaten bread. “Heat having been applied in these...

Salad or piquante Sauce for cold Meat, Fish, &c.—(No. 453.) See also No. 372.

15 minute read

Pound together Adding gradually a pint of burnet ( No. 399 ), or tarragon vinegar ( No. 396 ), and let it stand in a jar a week, and then pass it through a sieve....

Curry Powder.—(No. 455.)

1 minute read

Put the following ingredients in a cool oven all night, and the next morning pound them in a marble mortar, and rub them through a fine sieve. Thoroughly pound and mix together, and keep them in a well-stopped bottle. Those who are fond of curry sauces, may steep three ounces of the powder in a quart of vinegar or white wine for ten days, and will get a liquor impregnated with all the flavour of the powder. Obs. —This receipt was an attempt to imitate some of the best Indian curry powder, selected for me by a friend at the India house: the flavour approximates to the Indian powder so exactly, the most profound palaticians have pronounced it a perfect copy of the original curry stuff. The following remark was sent to the editor by an East Indian friend. “The ingredients which you have selected to form the curry powder,...

Savoury ragoût Powder.—(No. 457.)

1 minute read

Pound them patiently, and pass them through a fine hair-sieve; bottle them for use. The above articles will pound easier and finer, if they are dried first in a Dutch oven 288-† before a very gentle fire, at a good distance from it; if you give them much heat, the fine flavour of them will be presently evaporated, and they will soon get a strong, rank, empyreumatic taste. N.B. Infused in a quart of vinegar or wine, they make a savoury relish for soups, sauces, &c. Obs. The spices in a ragoût are indispensable to give it a flavour, but not a predominant one; their presence should be rather supposed than perceived; they are the invisible spirit of good cookery: indeed, a cook without spice would be as much at a loss as a confectioner without sugar: a happy mixture of them, and proportion to each other and the other...

Pease Powder.—(No. 458.)

27 minute read

Pound together in a marble mortar half an ounce each of dried mint and sage, a drachm of celery-seed, and a quarter of a drachm of Cayenne pepper; rub them through a fine sieve. This gives a very savoury relish to pease soup, and to water gruel, which, by its help, if the eater of it has not the most lively imagination, he may fancy he is sipping good pease soup. Obs. —A drachm of allspice, or black pepper, may be pounded with the above as an addition, or instead of, the Cayenne....

Horseradish Powder.—(No. 458*.)

16 minute read

The time to make this is during November and December; slice it the thickness of a shilling, and lay it to dry very gradually in a Dutch oven (a strong heat soon evaporates its flavour); when dry enough, pound it and bottle it. Obs. See Horseradish Vinegar ( No. 399* )....

Soup-herb Powder, or Vegetable Relish.—(No. 459.)

51 minute read

* * * Some add to the above bay-leaves and celery-seed, a drachm each. Dry them in a warm, but not too hot Dutch oven: when quite dried, pound them in a mortar, and pass them through a double hair-sieve; put them in a bottle closely stopped, they will retain their fragrance and flavour for several months. N.B. These herbs are in full perfection in July and August (see No. 461* ). An infusion of the above in vinegar or wine makes a good relishing sauce, but the flavour is best when made with fresh-gathered herbs, as directed in No. 397 . Obs. This composition of the fine aromatic herbs is an invaluable acquisition to the cook in those seasons or situations when fresh herbs cannot be had; and we prefer it to the ragoût powder, No. 457 : it impregnates sauce, soup, &c. with as much relish, and renders...

Soup-herb and Savoury Powder, or Quintessence of Ragoût.—(No. 460.)

27 minute read

Take three parts of soup-herb powder ( No. 459 ) to one part of savoury powder, No. 457 . Obs. This agreeable combination of the aromatic spices and herbs should be kept ready prepared: it will save a great deal of time in cooking ragoûts, stuffings, forcemeat-balls, soups, sauces, &c.; kept dry, and tightly corked down, its fragrance and strength may be preserved undiminished for some time. N.B. Three ounces of the above will impregnate a quart of vinegar or wine with a very agreeable relish....

To Dry sweet and savoury Herbs.—(No. 461.)

2 minute read

For the following accurate and valuable information, the reader is indebted to Mr. Butler , herbalist and seedsman (opposite Henrietta Street), Covent Garden market. “It is very important to those who are not in the constant habit of attending the markets to know when the various seasons commence for purchasing sweet herbs. “All vegetables are in the highest state of perfection, and fullest of juice and flavour, just before they begin to flower: the first and last crop have neither the fine flavour, nor the perfume of those which are gathered in the height of the season; that is, when the greater part of the crop of each species is ripe. “Take care they are gathered on a dry day, by which means they will have a better colour when dried. Cleanse your herbs well from dirt and dust; 291-* cut off the roots; separate the bunches into smaller ones,...

THE MAGAZINE OF TASTE.—(No. 462.)

48 minute read

This is a convenient auxiliary to the cook: it may be arranged as a pyramidical epergne for a dormant in the centre of the table, or as a travelling store-chest. The following sketch will enable any one to fit up an assortment of flavouring materials according to their own fancy and palate; and, we presume, will furnish sufficient variety for the amusement of the gustatory nerves of a thorough-bred grand gourmand of the first magnitude (if Cayenne and garlic have not completely consumed the sensibility of his palate), and consists of a “ Sauce-box ,” containing four eight-ounce bottles, 292-* sixteen four ounce, and eight two-ounce bottles:— In a drawer under. N.B. The portable magazine of taste, alluded to in page 44 , may be furnished with a four-ounce bottle for Cognac ( No. 471 ), a ditto for Curaçoa ( No. 474 ), an ounce bottle for essence of...

Toast and Water.—(No. 463.)

1 minute read

Cut a crust of bread off a stale loaf, about twice the thickness toast is usually cut: toast it carefully until it be completely browned all over, but not at all blackened or burnt; pour as much boiling water as you wish to make into drink, into the jug; put the toast into it, and let it stand till it is quite cold: the fresher it is the better. Obs. —A roll of thin fresh-cut lemon, or dried orange-peel, or some currant-jelly ( No. 475* ), apples sliced or roasted, &c. infused with the bread, are grateful additions. N.B. If the boiling water be poured on the bread it will break it, and make the drink grouty. N.B. This is a refreshing summer drink; and when the proportion of the fluids is destroyed by profuse perspiration, may be drunk plentifully. Let a large jug be made early in the day,...

Cool Tankard, or Beer Cup.—(No. 464.)

15 minute read

A quart of mild ale, a glass of white wine, one of brandy, one of capillaire, the juice of a lemon, a roll of the peel pared thin, nutmeg grated at the top (a sprig of borrage 294-* or balm), and a bit of toasted bread....

Cider Cup,—(No. 465.)

3 minute read

Is the same, only substituting cider for beer....

Flip.—(No. 466.)

35 minute read

Keep grated ginger and nutmeg with a little fine dried lemon-peel, rubbed together in a mortar. To make a quart of flip:—Put the ale on the fire to warm, and beat up three or four eggs, with four ounces of moist sugar, a tea-spoonful of grated nutmeg or ginger, and a quartern of good old rum or brandy. When the ale is near to boil, put it into one pitcher, and the rum and eggs, &c. into another; turn it from one pitcher to another till it is as smooth as cream. N.B. This quantity I styled one yard of flannel . Obs. —The above is set down in the words of the publican who gave us the receipt....

Tewahdiddle.—(No. 467.)

39 minute read

A pint of table beer (or ale, if you intend it for a supplement to your “night cap”), a table-spoonful of brandy, and a tea-spoonful of brown sugar, or clarified syrup ( No. 475 ); a little grated nutmeg or ginger may be added, and a roll of very thin-cut lemon-peel. Obs. —Before our readers make any remarks on this composition, we beg of them to taste it: if the materials are good, and their palate vibrates in unison with our own, they will find it one of the pleasantest beverages they ever put to their lips; and, as Lord Ruthven says, “this is a right gossip’s cup that far exceeds all the ale that ever Mother Bunch made in her life-time.” See his Lordship’s Experiments in Cookery , &c. 18mo. London, 1654, p. 215....

Sir Fleetwood Shepherd’s Sack Posset.—(No. 467*.)

45 minute read

“From famed Barbadoes, on the western main, Fetch sugar, ounces four—fetch sack from Spain, A pint,—and from the eastern Indian coast Nutmeg, the glory of our northern toast; O’er flaming coals let them together heat, Till the all-conquering sack dissolve the sweet; O’er such another fire put eggs just ten, New-born from tread of cock and rump of hen: Stir them with steady hand and conscience pricking To see the untimely end of ten fine chicken: From shining shelf take down the brazen skillet,— A quart of milk from gentle cow will fill it. When boiled and cold, put milk and sack to eggs, Unite them firmly like the triple league, And on the fire let them together dwell Till Miss sing twice—you must not kiss and tell— Each lad and lass take up a silver spoon, And fall on fiercely like a starved dragoon.”...

To bottle Beer.—(No. 468.)

54 minute read

When the briskness and liveliness of malt liquors in the cask fail, and they become dead and vapid, which they generally do soon after they are tilted; let them be bottled. Be careful to use clean and dried bottles; leave them unstopped for twelve hours, and then cork them as closely as possible with good and sound new corks; put a bit of lump sugar as big as a nutmeg into each bottle: the beer will be ripe, i. e. fine and sparkling, in about four or five weeks: if the weather is cold, to put it up the day before it is drunk, place it in a room where there is a fire. Remember there is a sediment, &c. at the bottom of the bottles, which you must carefully avoid disturbing; so pour it off at once, leaving a wine-glassful at the bottom. * * * If beer becomes...

Rich Raspberry Wine or Brandy.—(No. 469.)

30 minute read

Bruise the finest ripe raspberries with the back of a spoon; strain them through a flannel bag into a stone jar, allowing a pound of fine powdered loaf sugar to each quart of juice; stir it well together, and cover it down; let it stand for three days, stirring it up each day; pour off the clear, and put two quarts of sherry, or one of Cognac brandy, to each quart of juice; bottle it off: it will be fit for the glass in a fortnight. N.B. Or make it with the jelly, No. 479 ....

Liqueurs.—(No. 471.)

39 minute read

We have very little to tell from our own experience, and refer our reader to “ Nouvelle Chimie du Goût et de l’Odorat, ou l’Art du Distillateur, du Confiseur, et du Parfumeur, mis à la portée de tout le Monde .” Paris, 2 tom. 8vo. 1819. Next to teaching how to make good things at home, is the information where those things may be procured ready made of the best quality. It is in vain to attempt to imitate the best foreign liqueurs, unless we can obtain the pure vinous spirit with which they are made. Johnson and Co., foreign liqueur and brandy merchants to his majesty and the royal family, No. 2, Colonnade, Pall Mall, are justly famous for importing of the best quality, and selling in a genuine state, seventy-one varieties of foreign liqueurs, &c....

Curaçoa.—(No. 474.)

22 minute read

Put five ounces of thin-cut Seville orange-peel, that has been dried and pounded, or, which is still better, of the fresh peel of a fresh shaddock, which may be bought at the orange and lemon shops in the beginning of March, into a quart of the finest and cleanest rectified spirit; after it has been infused a fortnight, strain it, and add a quart of syrup ( No. 475 ), and filter. See the following receipt:...

To make a Quart of Curaçoa.

33 minute read

To a pint of the cleanest and strongest rectified spirit, add two drachms and a half of the sweet oil of orange-peel; shake it up: dissolve a pound of good lump sugar in a pint of cold water; make this into a clarified syrup ( No. 475 ): which add to the spirit: shake it up, and let it stand till the following day: then line a funnel with a piece of muslin, and that with filtering-paper, and filter it two or three times till it is quite bright. This liqueur is an admirable cordial; and a tea-spoonful in a tumbler of water is a very refreshing summer drink, and a great improvement to punch....

Clarified Syrup.—(No. 475.)

53 minute read

Break into bits two pounds (avoirdupois) of double refined lump sugar, and put it into a clean stew-pan (that is well tinned), with a pint of cold spring-water; when the sugar is dissolved, set it over a moderate fire: beat about half the white of an egg, put it to the sugar before it gets warm, and stir it well together. Watch it; and when it boils take off the scum; keep it boiling till no scum rises, and it is perfectly clear; then run it through a clean napkin: put it into a close stopped bottle; it will keep for months, and is an elegant article on the sideboard for sweetening. Obs. —The proportion of sugar ordered in the above syrup is a quarter pound more than that directed in the Pharmacopœia of the London College of Physicians. The quantity of sugar must be as much as the liquor...

Capillaire.—(No. 476.)

12 minute read

To a pint of clarified syrup add a wine-glass of Curaçoa ( No. 474 ); or dissolve a drachm of oil of Neroli in two ounces of rectified spirit, and add a few drops of it to clarified syrup....

Lemonade in a Minute.—(No. 477.)

46 minute read

Pound a quarter of an ounce (avoirdupois) of citric, i. e. crystallized lemon acid, 297-* with a few drops of quintessence of lemon-peel ( No. 408 ), and mix it by degrees with a pint of clarified syrup ( No. 475 ), or capillaire. For superlative syrup of lemons, see No. 391 . Obs. —The proportion of acid to the syrup, was that selected (from several specimens) by the committee of taste. We advise those who are disposed to verify our receipt, to mix only three quarters of a pint of syrup first, and add the other quarter if they find it too acid. If you have none of No. 408 , flavour your syrup with thin-cut lemon-peel, or use syrup of lemon-peel ( No. 393 ). A table-spoonful of this in a pint of water will immediately produce a very agreeable sherbet; the addition of rum or brandy will...

Punch directly.—(No. 478.) Shrub, or Essence of Punch.—(No. 479.)

24 minute read

Brandy or rum, flavoured with No. 477 , will give you very good extempore “essence of punch.” Obs. —The addition of a quart of Sherry or Madeira makes “punch royal;” if, instead of wine, the above quantity of water be added, it will make “punch for chambermaids,” according to Salmon’s Cookery , 8vo. London, 1710. See page 405; and No. 268 in Nott’s Cook’s Dictionary , 8vo. 1724....

White, Red, or Black Currant, Grape, Raspberry, &c. Jelly.298-*—(No. 479*.)

1 minute read

Are all made precisely in the same manner. When the fruit is full ripe, gather it on a dry day: as soon as it is nicely picked, put it into a jar, and cover it down very close. Set the jar in a saucepan about three parts filled with cold water; put it on a gentle fire, and let it simmer for about half an hour. Take the pan from the fire, and pour the contents of the jar into a jelly-bag: pass the juice through a second time; do not squeeze the bag. To each pint of juice add a pound and a half of very good lump sugar pounded; when it is dissolved, put it into a preserving-pan; set it on the fire, and boil gently; stirring and skimming it the whole time (about thirty or forty minutes), i. e. till no more scum rises, and it is...

Mock Arrack.—(No. 480.)

8 minute read

Dissolve two scruples of flowers of benjamin in a quart of good rum, and it will immediately impart to it the inviting fragrance of “Vauxhall nectar.”...

Calves’-Feet Jelly.—(No. 481.)

17 minute read

Take four calves’ feet (not those which are sold at tripe-shops, which have been boiled till almost all the gelatine is extracted; but buy them at the butcher’s), slit them in two, take away the fat from between the claws, wash them well in lukewarm water; then put them in a large stew-pan, and cover them with water: when the liquor boils, skim it well, and let it boil gently six or seven hours, that it may be reduced to about two quarts; then strain it through a sieve, and skim off all the oily substance which is on the surface of the liquor. If you are not in a hurry, it is better to boil the calves’ feet the day before you make the jelly; as when the liquor is cold, the oily part being at the top, and the other being firm, with pieces of kitchen paper applied...

Receipts for economical Made Dishes, written for the Cook’s Oracle, by an accomplished English Lady.—(No. 483.)

7 minute read

These experiments have arisen from my aversion to cold meat, and my preference for what are termed French dishes; with which, by a certain management, I think I can furnish my table at far less expense than is generally incurred in getting up a plain dinner. Gravy or soup meats I never buy; and yet am seldom without a good provision of what is technically denominated stock. When, as it frequently happens, we have ham dressed; if the joint be above the weight of seven pounds, I have it cut in half, and prepared in the following manner: first, ensure that it has been properly soaked, scraped, and cleaned to a nicety; then put it into an earthen vessel, as near its own size as possible, with just as much water as will cover it; to which add four onions, a clove of garlic, half a dozen eschalots, a bay-leaf,...

To hash Mutton, &c.—(No. 484.)

46 minute read

Cut the meat into slices, about the thickness of two shillings, trim off all the sinews, skin, gristle, &c.; put in nothing but what is to be eaten, lay them on a plate, ready; prepare your sauce to warm it in, as receipt ( No. 360 , or No. 451 , or No. 486 ), put in the meat, and let it simmer gently till it is thoroughly warm: do not let it boil, as that will make the meat tough and hard, 303-* and it will be, as Joan Cromwell 303-† has it, a harsh. Obs. —Select for your hash those parts of the joint that are least done. Mem. —Hashing is a mode of cookery by no means suited to delicate stomachs: unless the meat, &c. be considerably under-done the first time, a second dressing must spoil it, for what is done enough the first time, must be...

To warm Hashes,304-* Made Dishes, Stews, Ragoûts, Soups, &c.—(No. 485.)

12 minute read

Put what you have left into a deep hash-dish or tureen; when you want it, set this in a stew-pan of boiling water: let it stand till the contents are quite warm....

To hash Beef, &c.—(No. 486.)

57 minute read

Put a pint and a half of broth, or water, with an ounce of No. 252 , or a large table-spoonful of mushroom catchup, into a stew-pan with the gravy you have saved that was left from the beef, and put in a quarter ounce of onion sliced very fine, and boil it about ten minutes; put a large table-spoonful of flour into a basin, just wet it with a little water, mix it well together, and then stir it into the broth, and give it a boil for five or ten minutes; rub it through a sieve, and it is ready to receive the beef, &c.; let it stand by the side of the fire till the meat is warm. N.B. A tea-spoonful of parsley chopped as fine as possible and put in five minutes before it is served up, is a great addition; others like half a wine-glass...

Cold Meat broiled, with Poached Eggs.—(No. 487.)

44 minute read

The inside of a sirloin of beef is best for this dish, or a leg of mutton. Cut the slices of even and equal thickness, and broil and brown them carefully and slightly over a clear smart fire, or in a Dutch oven; give those slices most fire that are least done; lay them in a dish before the fire to keep hot, while you poach the eggs, as directed in No. 546 , and mashed potatoes ( No. 106 ). Obs. —This makes a savoury luncheon or supper, but is more relishing than nourishing, unless the meat was under-done the first time it was dressed. No. 307 for sauce, to which some add a few drops of eschalot wine or vinegar. See No. 402 , or No. 439 , or No. 359 , warmed; or Grill Sauce ( No. 355 .)...

Mrs. Phillips’s Irish Stew.—(No. 488.)

52 minute read

Take five thick mutton chops, or two pounds off the neck or loin; two pounds of potatoes; peel them, and cut them in halves; six onions, or half a pound of onions; peel and slice them also: first put a layer of potatoes at the bottom of your stew-pan, then a couple of chops and some of the onions; then again potatoes, and so on, till the pan is quite full; a small spoonful of white pepper, and about one and a half of salt, and three gills of broth or gravy, and two tea-spoonfuls of mushroom catchup; cover all very close in, so as to prevent the steam from getting out, and let them stew for an hour and a half on a very slow fire. A small slice of ham is a great addition to this dish. The cook will be the best judge when it is done,...

To make an Irish Stew, or Hunter’s Pie.

27 minute read

Take part of a neck of mutton, cut it into chops, season it well, put it into a stew-pan, let it brase for half an hour, take two dozen of potatoes, boil them, mash them, and season them, butter your mould, and line it with the potatoes, put in the mutton, bake it for half an hour, then it will be done, cut a hole in the top, and add some good gravy to it. N.B. The above is the contribution of Mr. Morrison, of the Leinster hotel, Dublin....

A good Scotch Haggis.—(No. 488*.)

1 minute read

Make the haggis-bag perfectly clean; parboil the draught; boil the liver very well, so as it will grate; dry the meal before the fire; mince the draught and a pretty large piece of beef very small; grate about half of the liver; mince plenty of the suet and some onions small; mix all these materials very well together, with a handful or two of the dried meal; spread them on the table, and season them properly with salt and mixed spices; take any of the scraps of beef that are left from mincing, and some of the water that boiled the draught, and make about a choppin ( i. e. a quart) of good stock of it; then put all the haggis meat into the bag, and that broth in it; then sew up the bag; but be sure to put out all the wind before you sew it quite...

Minced Collops.

33 minute read

“This is a favourite Scotch dish; few families are without it: it keeps well, and is always ready to make an extra dish. “Take beef, and chop and mince it very small; to which add some salt and pepper. Put this, in its raw state, into small jars, and pour on the top some clarified butter. When intended for use, put the clarified butter into a frying-pan, and slice some onions into the pan, and fry them. Add a little water to it, and then put in the minced meat. Stew it well, and in a few minutes it will be fit to serve up.”—The Hon. John Cochrane’s Seaman’s Guide , 8vo. 1797, page 42....

Haricot306-* Mutton.—(No. 489.)

2 minute read

Cut the best end of a neck or loin of mutton, that has been kept till tender, into chops of equal thickness, one rib to each (“ les bons hommes de bouche de Paris ” cut two chops to one bone, but it is more convenient to help when there is only one; two at a time is too large a dose for John Bull), trim off some of the fat, and the lower end of the chine bone, and scrape it clean, and lay them in a stew-pan, with an ounce of butter; set it over a smart fire; if your fire is not sharp, the chops will be done before they are coloured: the intention of frying them is merely to give them a very light browning. While the chops are browning, peel and boil a couple of dozen of young button onions in about three pints of...

Mutton-Chops delicately stewed, and good Mutton Broth,—(No. 490.)

35 minute read

Put the chops into a stew-pan with cold water enough to cover them, and an onion: when it is coming to a boil, skim it, cover the pan close, and set it over a very slow fire till the chops are tender: if they have been kept a proper time, they will take about three quarters of an hour’s very gentle simmering. Send up turnips with them ( No. 130 ); they may be boiled with the chops; skim well, and then send all up in a deep dish, with the broth they were stewed in. N. B. The broth will make an economist one, and the meat another, wholesome and comfortable meal....

Shoulder of Lamb grilled.—(No. 491.)

43 minute read

Boil it; score it in checkers about an inch square, rub it over with the yelk of an egg, pepper and salt it, strew it with bread-crumbs and dried parsley, or sweet herbs, or No. 457 , or No. 459 , and Carbonado , i. e. grill, i. e. broil it over a clear fire, or put it in a Dutch oven till it is a nice light brown; send up some gravy with it, or make a sauce for it of flour and water well mixed together with an ounce of fresh butter, a table-spoonful of mushroom or walnut catchup, and the juice of half a lemon. See also grill sauce ( No. 355 ). N.B. Breasts of lamb are often done in the same way, and with mushroom or mutton sauce ( No. 307 )....

Lamb’s Fry.—(No. 492.)

13 minute read

Fry it plain, or dip it in an egg well beaten on a plate, and strew some fine stale bread-crumbs over it; garnish with crisp parsley ( No. 389 ). For sauce, No. 355 , or No. 356 ....

Shin of Beef308-* stewed.—(No. 493.)

3 minute read

Desire the butcher to saw the bone into three or four pieces, put it into a stew-pan, and just cover it with cold water; when it simmers, skim it clean; then put in a bundle of sweet herbs, a large onion, a head of celery, a dozen berries of black pepper, and the same of allspice: stew very gently over a slow fire till the meat is tender; this will take from about three hours and a half, to four and a half. Take three carrots, peel and cut them into small squares; peel and cut ready in small squares a couple of turnips, with a couple of dozen of small young round silver button onions; boil them, till tender; the turnips and onions will be enough in about fifteen minutes; the carrots will require about twice as long: drain them dry. When the beef is quite tender, take it...

Brisket of Beef stewed.—(No. 494.)

9 minute read

This is prepared in exactly the same way as “soup and bouilli.” See Nos. 5 , 238 , or 493 ....

Haricot of Beef.—(No. 495.)

12 minute read

A stewed brisket cut in slices, and sent up with the same sauce of roots, &c., as we have directed for haricot of mutton ( No. 489 ), is a most excellent dish, of very moderate expense....

Savoury Salt Beef baked.—(No. 496.)

1 minute read

The tongue side of a round of beef is the best bit for this purpose: if it weighs fifteen pounds, let it hang two or three days; then take three ounces of saltpetre, one ounce of coarse sugar, a quarter of an ounce of black pepper, and the same of allspice (some add a quarter of an ounce of ginger, or No. 457 ), and some minced sweet and savoury herbs ( No. 459 ), and three quarters of a pound of common salt; incorporate these ingredients by pounding them together in a mortar; then take the bone out, and rub the meat well with the above mixture, turning it and rubbing it every day for a fortnight. When you dress it, put it into a pan with a quart of water; cover the meat with about three pounds of mutton suet 310-* shredded rather thick, and an onion or...

Curries.—(No. 497; see also No. 249.)

1 minute read

Cut fowls or rabbits into joints, and wash them clean: put two ounces of butter into a stew-pan; when it is melted, put in the meat, and two middling-sized onions sliced, let them be over a smart fire till they are of a light brown, then put in half a pint of broth; let it simmer twenty minutes. Put in a basin one or two table-spoonfuls of curry powder ( No. 455 ), a tea-spoonful of flour, and a tea-spoonful of salt; mix it smooth with a little cold water, put it into the stew-pan, and shake it well about till it boils: let it simmer twenty minutes longer; then take out the meat, and rub the sauce through a tamis or sieve: add to it two table spoonfuls of cream or milk; give it a boil up; then pour it into a dish, lay the meat over it: send...

Stewed Rump-Steaks.—(No. 500.)

1 minute read

The steaks must be a little thicker than for broiling: let them be all the same thickness, or some will be done too little, and others too much. Put an ounce of butter into a stew-pan, with two onions; when the butter is melted, lay in the rump-steaks, let them stand over a slow fire for five minutes, then turn them and let the other side of them fry for five minutes longer. Have ready boiled a pint of button onions; they will take from half an hour to an hour; put the liquor they were boiled in to the steaks; if there is not enough of it to cover them, add broth or boiling water, to make up enough for that purpose, with a dozen corns of black pepper, and a little salt, and let them simmer very gently for about an hour and a half, and then strain...

Broiled Rump-Steak with Onion Gravy.—(No. 501.) See also No. 299.

41 minute read

Peel and slice two large onions, put them into a quart stew-pan, with two table-spoonfuls of water; cover the stew-pan close, and set it on a slow fire till the water has boiled away, and the onions have got a little browned; then add half a pint of good broth, 312-* and boil the onions till they are tender; strain the broth from them, and chop them very fine, and season it with mushroom catchup, pepper, and salt: put the onion into it, and let it boil gently for five minutes; pour it into the dish, and lay over it a broiled rump-steak. If instead of broth you use good beef gravy, it will be superlative. * * * Stewed cucumber ( No. 135 ) is another agreeable accompaniment to rump-steaks....

Alamode Beef, or Veal.—(No. 502.)

2 minute read

In the 180 volumes on Cookery, we patiently pioneered through, before we encountered the tremendous labour and expense of proving the receipts of our predecessors, and set about recording these results of our own experiments, we could not find one receipt that approximated to any thing like an accurate description of the way in which this excellent dish is actually dressed in the best alamode beef shops; from whence, of course, it was impossible to obtain any information: however, after all, the whole of the secret seems to be the thickening of the gravy of beef that has been very slowly 313-* stewed, and flavouring it with bay-leaves and allspice. Take about eleven pounds of the mouse buttock, or clod of beef, or a blade-bone, or the sticking-piece, or the like weight of the breast of veal; cut it into pieces of three or four ounces each; put three or...

To pot Beef, Veal, Game, or Poultry, &c.—(No. 503.)

3 minute read

Take three pounds of lean gravy beef, rub it well with an ounce of saltpetre, and then a handful of common salt; let it lie in salt for a couple of days, rubbing it well each day; then put it into an earthen pan or stone jar that will just hold it; cover it with the skin and fat that you cut off, and pour in half a pint of water; cover it close with paste, and set it in a very slow oven for about four hours; or prepare it as directed in No. 496 . When it comes from the oven, drain the gravy from it into a basin; pick out the gristles and the skins; mince it fine; moisten it with a little of the gravy you poured from the meat, which is a very strong consommé (but rather salt), and it will make excellent pease soup,...

Sandwiches,—(No. 504.)

28 minute read

Properly prepared, are an elegant and convenient luncheon or supper, but have got out of fashion, from the bad manner in which they are commonly made: to cut the bread neatly with a sharp knife seems to be considered the only essential, and the lining is composed of any offal odds and ends, that cannot be sent to table in any other form. Whatever is used must be carefully trimmed from every bit of skin, gristle, &c. and nothing introduced but what you are absolutely certain will be acceptable to the mouth. MATERIALS FOR MAKING SANDWICHES....

Meat Cakes.—(No. 504*.)

33 minute read

If you have any cold meat, game, or poultry (if under-done, all the better), mince it fine, with a little fat bacon or ham, or an anchovy; season it with a little pepper and salt; mix well, and make it into small cakes three inches long, half as wide, and half an inch thick: fry these a light brown, and serve them with good gravy, or put it into a mould and boil or bake it. N.B. Bread-crumbs, hard yelks of eggs, onions, sweet herbs, savoury spices, zest, or curry-powder, or any of the forcemeats. See Nos. 373 to 382 . Fish cakes for maigre days, may be made in like manner....

Bubble and Squeak, or fried Beef or Mutton and Cabbage.—(No. 505.)

44 minute read

“When ’midst the frying pan, in accents savage, The beef, so surly, quarrels with the cabbage.” For this, as for a hash, select those parts of the joint that have been least done; it is generally made with slices of cold boiled salted-beef, sprinkled with a little pepper, and just lightly browned with a bit of butter in a frying-pan: if it is fried too much it will be hard. Boil a cabbage, squeeze it quite dry, and chop it small; take the beef out of the frying-pan, and lay the cabbage in it; sprinkle a little pepper and salt over it; keep the pan moving over the fire for a few minutes; lay the cabbage in the middle of a dish, and the meat round it. For sauce, see No. 356 , or No. 328 ....

Hashed Beef, and roast Beef bones boiled.—(No. 506.)

58 minute read

To hash beef, see receipt, Nos. 484 , 5 , 6 , and Nos. 360 , 484 , and 486 . The best part to hash is the fillet or inside of the sirloin, and the good housewife will always endeavour to preserve it entire for this purpose. See Obs. to No. 19 , and mock hare, No. 66* . Roast beef bones furnish a very relishing luncheon or supper, prepared in the following manner, with poached eggs ( No. 546 ), or fried eggs ( No. 545 ), or mashed potatoes ( No. 106 ), as accompaniments. Divide the bones, leaving good pickings of meat on each; score them in squares, pour a little melted butter on them, and sprinkle them with pepper and salt: put them in a dish; set them in a Dutch oven for half or three quarters of an hour, according to the thickness of...

Ox-Cheek stewed.—(No. 507.)

1 minute read

Prepare this the day before it is to be eaten; clean it, and put it into soft water just warm; let it lie three or four hours, then put it into cold water, and let it soak all night; next day wipe it clean, put it into a stew-pan, and just cover it with water; skim it well when it is coming to a boil, then put two whole onions, stick two or three cloves into each, three turnips quartered, a couple of carrots sliced, two bay-leaves, and twenty-four corns of allspice, a head of celery, and a bundle of sweet herbs, pepper, and salt; to these, those who are for a “haut goût” may add Cayenne and garlic, in such proportions as the palate that requires them may desire. Let it stew gently till perfectly tender, i. e. about three hours; then take out the cheek, divide it into...

Ox-Tails stewed.—(No. 508.)

15 minute read

Divide them into joints; wash them; parboil them; set them on to stew in just water enough to cover them,—and dress them in the same manner as we have directed in No. 531 , Stewed Giblets, for which they are an excellent substitute. N.B.—See Ox-Tail Soup, No. 240 ....

Potted Ham, or Tongue.—(No. 509.)

34 minute read

Cut a pound of the lean of cold boiled Ham or Tongue, and pound it in a mortar with a quarter of a pound of the fat, or with fresh butter (in the proportion of about two ounces to a pound), till it is a fine paste (some season it by degrees with a little pounded mace or allspice): put it close down in pots for that purpose, and cover it with Clarified Butter, No. 259 , a quarter of an inch thick; let it stand one night in a cool place. Send it up in the pot, or cut out in thin slices. See Obs. on No. 503 ....

Hashed Veal.—(No. 511.)

7 minute read

Prepare it as directed in No. 484 ; and to make sauce to warm Veal, see No. 361 ....

Hashed or minced Veal.—(No. 511*.)

48 minute read

To make a hash 318-* cut the meat into slices;—to prepare minced veal, mince it as fine as possible (do not chop it); put it into a stew-pan with a few spoonfuls of veal or mutton broth, or make some with the bones and trimmings, as or dered for veal cutlets (see No. 80 , or No. 361 ), a little lemon-peel minced fine, a spoonful of milk or cream; thicken with butter and flour, and season it with salt, a table-spoonful of lemon pickle, or Basil wine, No. 397 , &c., or a pinch of curry powder. * * * If you have no cream, beat up the yelks of a couple of eggs with a little milk: line the dish with sippets of lightly toasted bread. Obs. —Minced veal makes a very pretty dish put into scollop shells, and bread crumbed over, and sprinkled with a little butter,...

To make an excellent Ragoût of Cold Veal.—(No. 512.)

1 minute read

Either a neck, loin, or fillet of veal, will furnish this excellent ragoût with a very little expense or trouble. Cut the veal into handsome cutlets; put a piece of butter or clean dripping into a frying-pan; as soon as it is hot, flour and fry the veal of a light brown: take it out, and if you have no gravy ready, make some as directed in the note to No. 517 ; or put a pint of boiling water into the frying-pan, give it a boil up for a minute, and strain it into a basin while you make some thickening in the following manner: put about an ounce of butter into a stew-pan; as soon as it melts, mix with it as much flour as will dry it up; stir it over the fire for a few minutes, and gradually add to it the gravy you made in...

Breast of Veal stewed.—(No. 515.)

11 minute read

A breast of veal stewed till quite tender, and smothered with onion sauce, is an excellent dish; or in the gravy ordered in the note to No. 517 ....

Breast of Veal Ragoût.—(No. 517.)

2 minute read

Take off the under bone, and cut the breast in half lengthways; divide it into pieces, about four inches long, by two inches wide, i. e. in handsome pieces, not too large to help at once: put about two ounces of butter into a frying-pan, and fry the veal till it is a light brown, 320-* then put it into a stew-pan with veal broth, or as much boiling water as will cover it, a bundle of sweet marjoram, common or lemon-thyme, and parsley, with four cloves, or a couple of blades of pounded mace, three young onions, or one old one, a roll of lemon-peel, a dozen corns of allspice bruised, and a tea-spoonful of salt; cover it close, and let it all simmer very gently till the veal is tender, i. e. for about an hour and a half, if it is very thick, two hours; then strain...

Scotch Collops.—(No. 517*.)

39 minute read

The veal must be cut the same as for cutlets, in pieces about as big as a crown-piece; flour them well, and fry them of a light brown in fresh butter; lay them in a stew-pan; dredge them over with flour, and then put in as much boiling water as will well cover the veal; pour this in by degrees, shaking the stew-pan, and set it on the fire; when it comes to a boil, take off the scum, put in one onion, a blade of mace, and let it simmer very gently for three quarters of an hour; lay them on a dish, and pour the gravy through a sieve over them. N.B. Lemon-juice and peel, wine, catchup, &c., are sometimes added; add curry powder, No. 455 , and you have curry collops....

Veal Olives.—(No. 518.)

45 minute read

Cut half a dozen slices off a fillet of veal, half an inch thick, and as long and square as you can; flat them with a chopper, and rub them over with an egg that has been beat on a plate; cut some fat bacon as thin as possible, the same size as the veal; lay it on the veal, and rub it with a little of the egg; make a little veal forcemeat, see receipt, No. 375 , and spread it very thin over the bacon; roll up the olives tight, rub them with the egg, and then roll them in fine bread-crumbs; put them on a lark-spit, and roast them at a brisk fire: they will take three quarters of an hour. Rump-steaks are sometimes dressed this way. Mushroom sauce, brown (Nos. 305 or 306 ), or beef gravy ( No. 329 ). Vide chapter on sauces, &c....

Cold Calf’s Head hashed.—(No. 519.)

5 minute read

See Obs. to boiled calf’s head, No. 10 ....

Calf’s Head hashed, or Ragoût.—(No. 520.) See No. 247.

2 minute read

Wash a calf’s head, which, to make this dish in the best style, should have the skin on, and boil it, see No. 10 ; boil one half all but enough, so that it may be soon quite done when put into the hash to warm, the other quite tender: from this half take out the bones: score it superficially; beat up an egg; put it over the head with a paste-brush, and strew over it a little grated bread and lemon-peel, and thyme and parsley, chopped very fine, or in powder, then bread-crumbs, and put it in the Dutch oven to brown. Cut the other half-head into handsome slices, and put it into a stew-pan with a quart of gravy ( No. 329 ), or turtle sauce ( No. 343 ), with forcemeat balls (Nos. 376 , 380 ), egg-balls, a wine-glass of white wine, and some catchup, &c.;...

Veal Cutlets broiled plain, or full-dressed.—(No. 521.)

46 minute read

Divide the best end of a neck of veal into cutlets, one rib to each; broil them plain, or make some fine bread-crumbs; mince a little parsley, and a very little eschalot, as small as possible; put it into a clean stew-pan, with two ounces of butter, and fry it for a minute; then put on a plate the yelks of a couple of eggs; mix the herbs, &c. with it, and season it with pepper and salt: dip the cutlets into this mixture, and then into the bread; lay them on a gridiron over a clear slow fire, till they are nicely browned on both sides; they will take about an hour: send up with them a few slices of ham or bacon fried, or done in the Dutch oven. See Nos. 526 and 527 , and half a pint of No. 343 , or No. 356 ....

Knuckle of Veal, to ragoût.—(No. 522.)

44 minute read

Cut a knuckle of veal into slices about half an inch thick; pepper, salt, and flour them; fry them a light brown; put the trimmings into a stew-pan, with the bone broke in several places; an onion sliced, a head of celery, a bunch of sweet herbs, and two blades of bruised mace: pour in warm water enough to cover them about an inch; cover the pot close, and let it stew very gently for a couple of hours; strain it, and then thicken it with flour and butter; put in a spoonful of catchup, a glass of wine, and juice of half a lemon; give it a boil up, and strain into a clean stew-pan; put in the meat, make it hot, and serve up. Obs. —If celery is not to be had, use a carrot instead or flavour it with celery-seed, or No. 409 ....

Knuckle of Veal stewed with Rice.—(No. 523.)

45 minute read

As boiled knuckle of veal cold is not a very favourite relish with the generality, cut off some steaks from it, which you may dress as in the foregoing receipt, or No. 521 , and leave the knuckle no larger than will be eaten the day it is dressed. Break the shank-bone, wash it clean, and put it in a large stew-pan with two quarts of water, an onion, two blades of mace, and a tea-spoonful of salt: set it on a quick fire; when it boils, take off all the scum. Wash and pick a quarter of a pound of rice; put it into the stew-pan with the meat, and let it stew very gently for about two hours: put the meat, &c. in a deep dish, and the rice round it. Send up bacon with it, parsnips, or greens, and finely minced parsley and butter, No. 261 ....

Mr. Gay’s Receipt to stew a Knuckle of Veal.—(No. 524.)

51 minute read

Take a knuckle of veal; You may buy it or steal; In a few pieces cut it, In a stewing-pan put it; Salt, pepper, and mace, Must season this knuckle, Then, what’s joined to a place 323-* With other herbs muckle; That which kill’d King Will, 324-* And what never stands still 324-† Some sprigs of that bed, 324-‡ Where children are bred. Which much you will mend, if Both spinach and endive, And lettuce and beet, With marigold meet. Put no water at all, For it maketh things small, Which lest it should happen, A close cover clap on; Put this pot of Wood’s metal 324-§ In a boiling hot kettle; And there let it be, (Mark the doctrine I teach,) About, let me see, Thrice as long as you preach. 324-‖ So skimming the fat off, Say grace with your hat off, O! then with what rapture Will...

Slices of Ham or Bacon.—(No. 526.)

47 minute read

Ham, or bacon, may be fried, or broiled on a gridiron over a clear fire, or toasted with a fork: take care to slice it of the same thickness in every part. If you wish it curled, cut it in slices about two inches long (if longer, the outside will be done too much before the inside is done enough); roll it up, and put a little wooden skewer through it: put it in a cheese-toaster, or Dutch oven, for eight or ten minutes, turning it as it gets crisp. This is considered the handsomest way of dressing bacon; but we like it best uncurled, because it is crisper, and more equally done. Obs. —Slices of ham or bacon should not be more than half a quarter of an inch thick, and will eat much more mellow if soaked in hot water for a quarter of an hour, and then...

Relishing Rashers of Bacon.—(No. 527.)

34 minute read

If you have any cold bacon, you may make a very nice dish of it by cutting it into slices about a quarter of an inch thick; grate some crust of bread, as directed for ham (see No. 14 ), and powder them well with it on both sides; lay the rashers in a cheese-toaster, they will be browned on one side in about three minutes, turn them and do the other. Obs. —These are a delicious accompaniment to poached or fried Eggs: the bacon having been boiled 325-* first, is tender and mellow. They are an excellent garnish round veal cutlets, or sweet-breads, or calf’s-head hash, or green pease, or beans, &c....

Hashed Venison.—(No. 528.)

43 minute read

If you have enough of its own gravy left, it is preferable to any to warm it up in: if not, take some of the mutton gravy ( No. 347 ), or the bones and trimmings of the joint (after you have cut off all the handsome slices you can to make the hash); put these into some water, and stew them gently for an hour; then put some butter into a stew-pan; when melted, put to it as much flour as will dry up the butter, and stir it well together; add to it by degrees the gravy you have been making of the trimmings, and some red currant jelly; give it a boil up; skim it; strain it through a sieve, and it is ready to receive the venison: put it in, and let it just get warm: if you let it boil, it will make the meat...

Hashed Hare.—(No. 529.)

44 minute read

Cut up the hare into pieces fit to help at table, and divide the joints of the legs and shoulders, and set them by ready. Put the trimmings and gravy you have left, with half a pint of water (there should be a pint of liquor), and a table-spoonful of currant jelly, into a clean stew-pan, and let it boil gently for a quarter of an hour: then strain it through a sieve into a basin, and pour it back into the stew-pan; now flour the hare, put it into the gravy, and let it simmer very gently till the hare is warm (about twenty minutes); cut the stuffing into slices, and put it into the hash to get warm, about five minutes before you serve it; divide the head, and lay one half on each side the dish. For hare soup, see No. 241 , mock hare, No. 66.*...

Jugged Hare.—(No. 529*.)

1 minute read

Wash it very nicely; cut it up into pieces proper to help at table, and put them into a jugging-pot, or into a stone jar, 325-† just sufficiently large to hold it well; put in some sweet herbs, a roll or two of rind of a lemon, or a Seville orange, and a fine large onion with five cloves stuck in it,—and if you wish to preserve the flavour of the hare, a quarter of a pint of water; if you are for a ragoût , a quarter of a pint of claret, or port wine, and the juice of a Seville orange, or lemon: tie the jar down closely with a bladder, so that no steam can escape; put a little hay in the bottom of the saucepan, in which place the jar, and pour in water till it reaches within four inches of the top of the jar;...

Dressed Ducks, or Geese hashed.—(No. 530.)

1 minute read

Cut an onion into small dice; put it into a stew-pan with a bit of butter; fry it, but do not let it get any colour; put as much boiling water into the stew-pan as will make sauce for the hash; thicken it with a little flour; cut up the duck, and put it into the sauce to warm; do not let it boil; season it with pepper and salt, and catchup. N.B. The legs of geese, &c. broiled, and laid on a bed of apple sauce, are sent up for luncheon or supper. Or , Divide the duck into joints; lay it by ready; put the trimmings and stuffing into a stew-pan, with a pint and a half of broth or water; let it boil half an hour, and then rub it through a sieve; put half an ounce of butter into a stew-pan; as it melts, mix a...

Ragoûts of Poultry, Game, Pigeons, Rabbits, &c.—(No. 530*.)

1 minute read

Half roast it, then stew it whole, or divide it into joints and pieces proper to help at table, and put it into a stew-pan, with a pint and a half of broth, or as much water, with any trimmings or parings of meat you have, one large onion with cloves stuck in it, twelve berries of allspice, the same of black pepper, and a roll of lemon-peel; when it boils, skim it very clean; let it simmer very gently for about an hour and a quarter, if a duck or fowl—longer if a larger bird; then strain off the liquor, and leave the ducks by the fire to keep hot; skim the fat off; put into a clean stew-pan two ounces of butter; when it is hot stir in as much flour as will make it of a stiff paste; add the liquor by degrees; let it boil up;...

Stewed Giblets.—(No. 531.)

1 minute read

Clean two sets of giblets (see receipt for giblet soup, No. 244 ); put them into a saucepan, just cover them with cold water, and set them on the fire; when they boil, take off the scum, and put in an onion, three cloves, or two blades of mace, a few berries of black pepper, the same of allspice, and half a tea-spoonful of salt; cover the stew-pan close, and let it simmer very gently till the giblets are quite tender: this will take from one hour and a half to two and a half, according to the age of the giblets; the pinions will be done first, and must then be taken out, and put in again to warm when the gizzards are done: watch them that they do not get too much done: take them out and thicken the sauce with flour and butter; let it boil half...

Hashed Poultry, Game, or Rabbit.—(No. 533.)

52 minute read

Cut them into joints, put the trimmings into a stew-pan with a quart of the broth they were boiled in, and a large onion cut in four; let it boil half an hour; strain it through a sieve: then put two table-spoonfuls of flour in a basin, and mix it well by degrees with the hot broth; set it on the fire to boil up, then strain it through a fine sieve: wash out the stew-pan, lay the poultry in it, and pour the gravy on it (through a sieve); set it by the side of the fire to simmer very gently (it must not boil) for fifteen minutes; five minutes before you serve it up, cut the stuffing in slices, and put it in to warm, then take it out, and lay it round the edge of the dish, and put the poultry in the middle; carefully skim the...

Pulled Turkey, Fowl, or Chicken.—(No. 534.)

40 minute read

Skin a cold chicken, fowl, or turkey; take off the fillets from the breasts, and put them into a stew-pan with the rest of the white meat and wings, side-bones, and merry-thought, with a pint of broth, a large blade of mace pounded, an eschalot minced fine, the juice of half a lemon, and a roll of the peel, some salt, and a few grains of Cayenne; thicken it with flour and butter, and let it simmer for two or three minutes, till the meat is warm. In the mean time score the legs and rump, powder them with pepper and salt, broil them nicely brown, and lay them on, or round your pulled chicken. Obs. —Three table-spoonfuls of good cream, or the yelks of as many eggs, will be a great improvement to it....

To dress Dressed Turkey, Goose, Fowl, Duck, Pigeon, or Rabbit.—(No. 535.)

35 minute read

Cut them in quarters, beat up an egg or two (according to the quantity you dress) with a little grated nutmeg, and pepper and salt, some parsley minced fine, and a few crumbs of bread; mix these well together, and cover the fowl, &c. with this batter; broil them, or put them in a Dutch oven, or have ready some dripping hot in a pan, in which fry them a light brown colour; thicken a little gravy with some flour, put a large spoonful of catchup to it, lay the fry in a dish, and pour the sauce round it. You may garnish with slices of lemon and toasted bread. See No. 355 ....

Devil.—(No. 538.)

3 minute read

The gizzard and rump, or legs, &c. of a dressed turkey, capon, or goose, or mutton or veal kidney, scored, peppered, salted, and broiled, sent up for a relish, being made very hot, has obtained the name of a “devil.” Obs. —This is sometimes surrounded with No. 356 , or a sauce of thick melted butter or gravy, flavoured with catchup ( No. 439 ), essence of anchovy, or No. 434 , eschalot wine ( No. 402 ), curry stuff. ( No. 455 , &c.) See turtle sauce ( No. 343 ), or grill sauce ( No. 355 ), which, as the palates of the present day are adjusted, will perhaps please grands gourmands as well as “ véritable sauce d’Enfer .”—Vide School for the Officers of the Mouth , p. 368, 18mo. London, 1682. “Every man must have experienced, that when he has got deep into his third bottle,...

Crusts of Bread for Cheese, &c.—(No. 538.)

25 minute read

It is not uncommon to see both in private families and at taverns a loaf entirely spoiled, by furious epicures paring off the crust to eat with cheese: to supply this, and to eat with soups, &c. pull lightly into small pieces the crumb of a new loaf; put them on a tin plate, or in a baking dish; set it in a tolerably brisk oven till they are crisp, and nicely browned, or do them in a Dutch oven....

Toast and Cheese.—(No. 539.)

1 minute read

“Happy the man that has each fortune tried, To whom she much has giv’n, and much denied; With abstinence all delicates he sees, And can regale himself on toast and cheese.” King’s Art of Cookery . Cut a slice of bread about half an inch thick; pare off the crust, and toast it very slightly on one side so as just to brown it, without making it hard or burning it. Cut a slice of cheese (good fat mellow Cheshire cheese, or double Gloster, is better than poor, thin, single Gloster) a quarter of an inch thick, not so big as the bread by half an inch on each side: pare off the rind, cut out all the specks and rotten parts, 331-* and lay it on the toasted bread in a cheese-toaster; carefully watch it that it does not burn, and stir it with a spoon to prevent a...

Toasted Cheese, No. 2.—(No. 540.)

43 minute read

We have nothing to add to the directions given for toasting the cheese in the last receipt, except that in sending it up, it will save much time in portioning it out at table, if you have half a dozen small silver or tin pans to fit into the cheese-toaster, and do the cheese in these: each person may then be helped to a separate pan, and it will keep the cheese much hotter than the usual way of eating it on a cold plate. Mem. Send up with it as many cobblers 331-† as you have pans of cheese. Obs. —Ceremony seldom triumphs more completely over comfort than in the serving out of this dish; which, to be presented to the palate in perfection, it is imperatively indispensable that it be introduced to the mouth as soon as it appears on the table....

Buttered Toast and Cheese.—(No. 541.)

9 minute read

Prepare a round of toast; butter it; grate over it good Cheshire cheese about half the thickness of the toast, and give it a brown....

Pounded Cheese.—(No. 542.)

39 minute read

Cut a pound of good mellow Chedder, Cheshire, or North Wiltshire cheese into thin bits; add to it two, and if the cheese is dry, three ounces of fresh butter; pound, and rub them well together in a mortar till it is quite smooth. Obs. —When cheese is dry, and for those whose digestion is feeble, this is the best way of eating it; and spread on bread, it makes an excellent luncheon or supper. N.B. The piquance of this is sometimes increased by pounding with it curry powder ( No. 455 ), ground spice, black pepper, cayenne, and a little made mustard; and some moisten it with a glass of sherry. If pressed down hard in a jar, and covered with clarified butter, it will keep for several days in cool weather....

Macaroni.—(No. 543.) See Macaroni Pudding for the Boiling of it.

45 minute read

The usual mode of dressing it in this country is by adding a white sauce, and parmesan or Cheshire cheese, and burning it; but this makes a dish which is proverbially unwholesome: its bad qualities arise from the oiled and burnt cheese, and the half-dressed flour and butter put into the white sauce. Macaroni plain boiled, and some rich stock or portable soup added to it quite hot, will be found a delicious dish and very wholesome. Or, boil macaroni as directed in the receipt for the pudding, and serve it quite hot in a deep tureen, and let each guest add grated parmesan and cold butter, or oiled butter served hot, and it is excellent; this is the most common Italian mode of dressing it. Macaroni with cream, sugar, and cinnamon, or a little varicelli added to the cream, makes a very nice sweet dish....

English way of dressing Macaroni.

38 minute read

Put a quarter of a pound of riband macaroni into a stew-pan, with a pint of boiling milk, or broth, or water; let it boil gently till it is tender, this will take about a quarter of an hour; then put in an ounce of grated cheese, and a tea-spoonful of salt; mix it well together, and put it on a dish, and stew over it two ounces of grated Parmesan or Cheshire cheese, and give it a light brown in a Dutch oven. Or put all the cheese into the macaroni, and put bread-crumbs over the top. Macaroni is very good put into a thick sauce with some shreds of dressed ham, or in a curry sauce. Riband macaroni is best for these dishes, and should not be done so much....

Macaroni Pudding.

1 minute read

One of the most excellent preparations of macaroni is the Timbale de Macaroni. Simmer half a pound of macaroni in plenty of water, and a table-spoonful of salt, till it is tender; but take care not to have it too soft; though tender, it should be firm, and the form entirely preserved, and no part beginning to melt (this caution will serve for the preparation of all macaroni). Strain the water from it; beat up five yelks and the white of two eggs; take half a pint of the best cream, and the breast of a fowl, and some thin slices of ham. Mince the breast of the fowl with the ham; add them with from two to three table-spoonfuls of finely-grated parmesan cheese, and season with pepper and salt. Mix all these with the macaroni, and put into a pudding-mould well buttered, and then let it steam in a...

Omelettes and various ways of dressing Eggs.—(No. 543*.)

3 minute read

There is no dish which in this country may be considered as coming under the denomination of a made dish of the second order, which is so generally eaten, if good, as an omelette; and no one is so often badly dressed: it is a very faithful assistant in the construction of a dinner. When you are taken by surprise, and wish to make an appearance beyond what is provided for the every-day dinner, a little portable soup melted down, and some zest ( No. 255 ), and a few vegetables, will make a good broth; a pot of the stewed veal of Morrison’s, warmed up; an omelette; and some apple or lemon fritters, can all be got ready at ten minutes’ notice, and with the original foundation of a leg of mutton, or a piece of beef, will make up a very good dinner when company unexpectedly arrives, in...

Receipt for the common Omelette.

3 minute read

Five or six eggs will make a good-sized omelette; break them into a basin, and beat them well with a fork; and add a salt-spoonful of salt; have ready chopped two drachms of onion, or three drachms of parsley, a good clove of eschalot minced very fine; beat it well up with the eggs; then take four ounces of fresh butter, and break half of it into little bits, and put it into the omelette, and the other half into a very clean frying-pan; when it is melted, pour in the omelette, and stir it with a spoon till it begins to set, then turn it up all round the edges, and when it is of a nice brown it is done: the safest way to take it out is to put a plate on the omelette, and turn the pan upside-down: serve it on a hot dish; it should...

Marrow-Bones.—(No. 544.)

15 minute read

Saw the bones even, so that they will stand steady; put a piece of paste into the ends: set them upright in a saucepan, and boil till they are done enough: a beef marrow-bone will require from an hour and a half to two hours; serve fresh-toasted bread with them....

Eggs fried with Bacon.—(No. 545.)

1 minute read

Lay some slices of fine streaked bacon (not more than a quarter of an inch thick) in a clean dish, and toast them before the fire in a cheese-toaster, turning them when the upper side is browned; first ask those who are to eat the bacon, if they wish it much or little done, i. e. curled and crisped, see No. 526 , or mellow and soft ( No. 527 ): if the latter, parboil it first. Well-cleansed (see No. 83 ) dripping, or lard, or fresh butter, are the best fats for frying eggs. Be sure the frying-pan is quite clean; when the fat is hot, break two or three eggs into it; do not turn them, but, while they are frying, keep pouring some of the fat over them with a spoon; when the yelk just begins to look white, which it will in about a couple of...

Ragoût of Eggs and Bacon.—(No. 545*.)

43 minute read

Boil half a dozen eggs for ten minutes; throw them into cold water; peel them and cut them into halves; pound the yelks in a marble mortar, with about an equal quantity of the white meat of dressed fowl, or veal, a little chopped parsley, an anchovy, an eschalot, a quarter of an ounce of butter, a table-spoonful of mushroom catchup, a little Cayenne, some bread-crumbs, and a very little beaten mace, or allspice; incorporate them well together, and fill the halves of the whites with this mixture; do them over with the yelk of an egg, and brown them in a Dutch oven, and serve them on relishing rashers of bacon or ham, see No. 527 . For sauce, melted butter, flavoured to the fancy of the eaters, with mushroom catchup, anchovy, curry-powder ( No. 455 ), or zest ( No. 255 )....

To poach Eggs.—(No. 546.)

1 minute read

The cook who wishes to display her skill in poaching, must endeavour to procure eggs that have been laid a couple of days—those that are quite new-laid are so milky that, take all the care you can, your cooking of them will seldom procure you the praise of being a prime poacher; you must have fresh eggs, or it is equally impossible. The beauty of a poached egg is for the yelk to be seen blushing through the white, which should only be just sufficiently hardened, to form a transparent veil for the egg. Have some boiling water 337-* in a tea-kettle; pass as much of it through a clean cloth as will half fill a stew-pan; break the egg into a cup, and when the water boils, remove the stew-pan from the stove, and gently slip the egg into it; it must stand till the white is set; then...

To boil Eggs to eat in the Shell, or for Salads.—(No. 547.)

52 minute read

The fresher laid the better: put them into boiling water; if you like the white just set, 338-† about two minutes boiling is enough; a new-laid egg will take a little more; if you wish the yelk to be set, it will take three, and to boil it hard for a salad, ten minutes. See No. 372 . Obs. —A new-laid egg will require boiling longer than a stale one, by half a minute. Tin machines for boiling eggs on the breakfast table are sold by the ironmongers, which perform the process very regularly: in four minutes the white is just set. N.B. “Eggs may be preserved for twelve months, in a sweet and palatable state for eating in the shell, or using for salads, by boiling them for one minute; and when wanted for use let them be boiled in the usual manner: the white may be a little...

Eggs poached with Sauce of minced Ham.—(No. 548.)

22 minute read

Poach the eggs as before directed, and take two or three slices of boiled ham; mince it fine with a gherkin, a morsel of onion, a little parsley, and pepper and salt; stew all together a quarter of an hour; serve up your sauce about half boiling; put the eggs in a dish, squeeze over the juice of half a Seville orange, or lemon, and pour the sauce over them....

Fried Eggs and minced Ham or Bacon.—(No. 549.)

55 minute read

Choose some very fine bacon streaked with a good deal of lean; cut this into very thin slices, and afterward into small square pieces; throw them into a stew-pan, and set it over a gentle fire, that they may lose some of their fat. When as much as will freely come is thus melted from them, lay them on a warm dish. Put into a stew-pan a ladle-full of melted bacon or lard; set it on a stove; put in about a dozen of the small pieces of bacon, then stoop the stew-pan and break in an egg. Manage this carefully, and the egg will presently be done: it will be very round, and the little dice of bacon will stick to it all over, so that it will make a very pretty appearance. Take care the yelks do not harden; when the egg is thus done, lay it carefully...

Tea.339-*—(No. 550.)

46 minute read

“The Jesuit that came from China, A.D. 1664, told Mr. Waller, that to a drachm of tea they put a pint of water, and frequently take the yelks of two new-laid eggs, and beat them up with as much fine sugar as is sufficient for the tea, and stir all well together. He also informed him, that we let the hot water remain too long soaking upon the tea, which makes it extract into itself the earthy parts of the herb; the water must remain upon it no longer than while you can say the ‘ Miserere ’ psalm very leisurely; you have then only the spiritual part of the tea, the proportion of which to the water must be about a drachm to a pint.”—Sir Kenelm Digby’s Cookery , London, 1669, page 176. Obs. —The addition of an egg makes the “ Chinese Soup ,” a more nutritious and...

Coffee.340-*

51 minute read

Coffee, as used on the Continent, serves the double purpose of an agreeable tonic, and an exhilarating beverage, without the unpleasant effects of wine. Coffee, as drunk in England, debilitates the stomach, and produces a slight nausea. In France and in Italy it is made strong from the best coffee, and is poured out hot and transparent. In England it is usually made from bad coffee, served out tepid and muddy, and drowned in a deluge of water, and sometimes deserves the title given it in “the Petition against Coffee,” 4to. 1674, page 4, “a base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking puddle water.” To make Coffee fit for use, you must employ the German filter,—pay at least 4 s. the pound for it,—and take at least an ounce for two breakfast-cups. No coffee will bear drinking with what is called milk in London. London people should either take their coffee...

Suet Pudding, Wiggy’s way.—(No. 551.)

30 minute read

Suet, a quarter of a pound; flour, three table-spoonfuls; eggs, two; and a little grated ginger; milk, half a pint. Mince the suet as fine as possible, roll it with the rolling-pin so as to mix it well with the flour; beat up the eggs, mix them with the milk, and then mix all together; wet your cloth well in boiling water, flour it, tie it loose, put it into boiling water, and boil it an hour and a quarter. Mrs. Glasse has it, “when you have made your water boil, then put your pudding into your pot.”...

Yorkshire Pudding under roast Meat, the Gipsies’ way.—(No. 552.)

46 minute read

This pudding is an especially excellent accompaniment to a sir-loin of beef,—loin of veal,—or any fat and juicy joint. Six table-spoonfuls of flour, three eggs, a tea-spoonful of salt, and a pint of milk, so as to make a middling stiff batter, a little stiffer than you would for pancakes; beat it up well, and take care it is not lumpy; put a dish under the meat, and let the drippings drop into it till it is quite hot and well greased; then pour in the batter;—when the upper surface is brown and set, turn it, that both sides may be brown alike: if you wish it to cut firm, and the pudding an inch thick, it will take two hours at a good fire. N.B. The true Yorkshire pudding is about half an inch thick when done; but it is the fashion in London to make them full twice...

Plum Pudding.—(No. 553.)

44 minute read

Suet, chopped fine, six ounces; Malaga raisins, stoned, six ounces; currants, nicely washed and picked, eight ounces; bread-crumbs, three ounces; flour, three ounces; eggs, three; sixth of a nutmeg; small blade of mace; same quantity of cinnamon, pounded as fine as possible; half a tea-spoonful of salt; half a pint of milk, or rather less; sugar, four ounces: to which may be added, candied lemon, one ounce; citron, half an ounce. Beat the eggs and spice well together; mix the milk with them by degrees, then the rest of the ingredients; dip a fine close linen cloth into boiling water, and put it in a hair-sieve; flour it a little, and tie it up close; put it into a saucepan containing six quarts of boiling water: keep a kettle of boiling water along side of it, and fill up your pot as it wastes; be sure to keep it boiling...

My Pudding.—(No. 554.)

1 minute read

Beat up the yelks and whites of three eggs; strain them through a sieve (to keep out the treddles), and gradually add to them about a quarter of a pint of milk,—stir these well together; rub together in a mortar two ounces of moist sugar, and as much grated nutmeg as will lie on a sixpence,—stir these into the eggs and milk; then put in four ounces of flour, and beat it into a smooth batter; by degrees stir into it seven ounces of suet (minced as fine as possible), and three ounces of bread-crumbs; mix all thoroughly together at least half an hour before you put the pudding into the pot; put it into an earthenware pudding-mould that you have well buttered; tie a pudding-cloth over it very tight; put it into boiling water, and boil it three hours. Put one good plum into it, and Moost-Aye says, you...

Maigre Plum Pudding.

39 minute read

Simmer half a pint of milk with two blades of mace, and a roll of lemon-peel, for ten minutes; then strain it into a basin; set it away to get cold: in the mean time beat three eggs in a basin with three ounces of loaf-sugar, and the third of a nutmeg: then add three ounces of flour; beat it well together, and add the milk by degrees: then put in three ounces of fresh butter broken into small pieces, and three ounces of bread-crumbs; three ounces of currants washed and picked clean, three ounces of raisins stoned and chopped: stir it all well together. Butter a mould; put it in, and tie a cloth tight over it. Boil it two hours and a half. Serve it up with melted butter, two table-spoonfuls of brandy, and a little loaf-sugar....

A Fat Pudding.

21 minute read

Break five eggs in a basin; beat them up with a tea-spoonful of sugar and a table-spoonful of flour; beat it quite smooth; then put to it a pound of raisins, and a pound of suet; it must not be chopped very fine; butter a mould well; put in the pudding; tie a cloth over it tight, and boil it five hours. N.B. This is very rich, and is commonly called a marrow pudding....

Pease Pudding.—(No. 555.)

1 minute read

Put a quart of split pease into a clean cloth; do not tie them up too close, but leave a little room for them to swell; put them on in cold water, to boil slowly till they are tender: if they are good pease they will be boiled enough in about two hours and a half; rub them through a sieve into a deep dish, adding 343-* to them an egg or two, an ounce of butter, and some pepper and salt; beat them well together for about ten minutes, when these ingredients are well incorporated together; then flour the cloth well, put the pudding in, and tie it up as tight as possible, and boil it an hour longer. It is as good with boiled beef as it is with boiled pork; and why not with roasted pork? Obs. —This is a very good accompaniment to cold pork or...

Plain Bread Pudding.—(No. 556.)

29 minute read

Make five ounces of bread-crumbs; put them in a basin; pour three quarters of a pint of boiling milk over them; put a plate over the top to keep in the steam; let it stand twenty minutes, then beat it up quite smooth with two ounces of sugar and a salt-spoonful of nutmeg. Break four eggs on a plate, leaving out one white; beat them well, and add them to the pudding. Stir it all well together, and put it in a mould that has been well buttered and floured; tie a cloth over it, and boil it one hour....

Bread and butter Pudding.—(No. 557.)

31 minute read

You must have a dish that will hold a quart: wash and pick two ounces of currants; strew a few at the bottom of the dish; cut about four layers of very thin bread and butter, and between each layer of bread and butter strew some currants; then break four eggs in a basin, leaving out one white; beat them well, and add four ounces of sugar and a drachm of nutmeg; stir it well together with a pint of new milk; pour it over about ten minutes before you put it in the oven; it will take three quarters of an hour to bake....

Pancakes and Fritters.—(No. 558.)

51 minute read

Break three eggs in a basin; beat them up with a little nutmeg and salt; then put to them four ounces and a half of flour, and a little milk; beat it of a smooth batter; then add by degrees as much milk as will make it of the thickness of good cream: the frying-pan must be about the size of a pudding plate, and very clean, or they will stick; make it hot, and to each pancake put in a bit of butter about as big as a walnut: when it is melted, pour in the batter to cover the bottom of the pan; make them the thickness of half a crown; fry them of a light brown on both sides. The above will do for apple fritters, by adding one spoonful more of flour; peel your apples, and cut them in thick slices; take out the core, dip...

Tansy Pancakes.

12 minute read

The batter for the preceding may be made into tansy pancakes by cutting fine a handful of young green tansy, and beating it into the batter. It gives the cakes a pleasant aromatic flavour, and an agreeable, mild bitter taste. A....

No. 560

29 minute read

The following receipts are from Mr. Henry Osborne, cook to Sir Joseph Banks, the late president of the Royal Society: Soho Square, April 20, 1820. Sir,—I send you herewith the last part of the Cook’s Oracle. I have attentively looked over each receipt, and hope they are now correct, and easy to be understood. If you think any need further explanation, Sir Joseph has desired me to wait on you again. I also send the receipts for my ten puddings, and my method of using spring fruit and gourds. I am, Sir, Your humble servant, Henry Osborne ....

Boston Apple Pudding.

33 minute read

Peel one dozen and a half of good apples; take out the cores, cut them small, put into a stew-pan that will just hold them, with a little water, a little cinnamon, two cloves, and the peel of a lemon; stew over a slow fire till quite soft, then sweeten with moist sugar, and pass it through a hair sieve; add to it the yelks of four eggs and one white, a quarter of a pound of good butter, half a nutmeg, the peel of a lemon grated, and the juice of one lemon: beat all well together; line the inside of a pie-dish with good puff paste; put in the pudding, and bake half an hour....

Spring Fruit Pudding.

20 minute read

Peel, and well wash four dozen sticks of rhubarb: put into a stew-pan with the pudding a lemon, a little cinnamon, and as much moist sugar as will make it quite sweet; set it over a fire, and reduce it to a marmalade; pass through a hair-sieve, and proceed as directed for the Boston pudding, leaving out the lemon-juice, as the rhubarb will be found sufficiently acid of itself....

Nottingham Pudding.

19 minute read

Peel six good apples; take out the core with the point of a small knife, or an apple corer, if you have one; but be sure to leave the apples whole; fill up where you took the core from with sugar; place them in a pie-dish, and pour over them a nice light batter, prepared as for batter pudding, and bake an hour in a moderate oven....

Butter Pudding.

19 minute read

Take six ounces of fine flour, a little salt, and three eggs; beat up well with a little milk, added by degrees till the batter is quite smooth; make it the thickness of cream; put into a buttered pie-dish, and bake three quarters of an hour; or into a buttered and floured basin, tied over tight with a cloth: boil one and a half hour, or two hours....

Newmarket Pudding.

30 minute read

Put on to boil a pint of good milk, with half a lemon-peel, a little cinnamon, and a bay-leaf; boil gently for five or ten minutes; sweeten with loaf sugar; break the yelks of five, and the whites of three eggs, into a basin; beat them well, and add the milk: beat all well together, and strain through a fine hair-sieve, or tamis: have some bread and butter cut very thin; lay a layer of it in a pie-dish, and then a layer of currants, and so on till the dish is nearly full; then pour the custard over it, and bake half an hour....

Newcastle, or Cabinet Pudding.

12 minute read

Butter a half melon mould, or quart basin, and stick all round with dried cherries, or fine raisins, and fill up with bread and butter, &c. as in the above; and steam it an hour and a half....

Vermicelli Pudding.

17 minute read

Boil a pint of milk, with lemon-peel and cinnamon; sweeten with loaf-sugar; strain through a sieve, and add a quarter of a pound of vermicelli; boil ten minutes; then put in the yelks of five, and the whites of three eggs; mix well together, and steam it one hour and a quarter: the same may be baked half an hour....

Bread Pudding.

19 minute read

Make a pint of bread-crumbs; put them in a stew-pan with as much milk as will cover them, the peel of a lemon, a little nutmeg grated, and a small piece of cinnamon; boil about ten minutes; sweeten with powdered loaf-sugar; take out the cinnamon, and put in four eggs; beat all well together, and bake half an hour, or boil rather more than an hour....

Custard Pudding.

31 minute read

Boil a pint of milk, and a quarter of a pint of good cream; thicken with flour and water made perfectly smooth, till it is stiff enough to bear an egg on it; break in the yelks of five eggs; sweeten with powdered loaf-sugar; grate in a little nutmeg and the peel of a lemon: add half a glass of good brandy; then whip the whites of the five eggs till quite stiff, and mix gently all together: line a pie-dish with good puff paste, and bake half an hour. N.B. Ground rice, potato flour, panada, and all puddings made from powders, are, or may be, prepared in the same way....

Boiled Custards.

50 minute read

Put a quart of new milk into a stew-pan, with the peel of a lemon cut very thin, a little grated nutmeg, a bay or laurel-leaf, and a small stick of cinnamon; set it over a quick fire, but be careful it does not boil over: when it boils, set it beside the fire, and simmer ten minutes; break the yelks of eight, and the whites of four eggs into a basin; beat them well; then pour in the milk a little at a time, stirring it as quick as possible to prevent the eggs curdling; set it on the fire again, and stir it well with a wooden spoon; let it have just one boil; pass it through a tamis, or fine sieve: when cold, add a little brandy, or white wine, as may be most agreeable to the eater’s palate. Serve up in glasses, or cups. Custards for...

TO DRESS SPRING FRUIT. Spring Fruit Soup.

30 minute read

Peel and well wash four dozen sticks of rhubarb; blanch it in water three or four minutes; drain it on a sieve, and put it into a stew-pan, with two onions sliced, a carrot, an ounce of lean ham, and a good bit of butter; let it stew gently over a slow fire till tender; then put in two quarts of good consommé , to which add two or three ounces of bread-crumbs; boil about fifteen minutes; skim off all the fat; season with salt and Cayenne pepper; pass it through a tamis, and serve up with fried bread....

Spring Fruit Pudding.

31 minute read

Clean as above three or four dozen sticks of rhubarb; put it in a stew-pan, with the peel of a lemon, a bit of cinnamon, two cloves, and as much moist sugar as will sweeten it; set it over a fire, and reduce it to a marmalade; pass it through a hair-sieve; then add the peel of a lemon, and half a nutmeg grated, a quarter of a pound of good butter, and the yelks of four eggs and one white, and mix all well together; line a pie-dish, that will just contain it, with good puff paste; put the mixture in, and bake it half an hour....

Spring Fruit—A Mock Gooseberry Sauce for Mackerel, &c.

9 minute read

Make a marmalade of three dozen sticks of rhubarb, sweetened with moist sugar; pass it through a hair-sieve, and serve up in a sauce-boat....

Spring Fruit Tart.

13 minute read

Prepare rhubarb as above: cut it into small pieces into a tart-dish; sweeten with loaf-sugar pounded; cover it with a good short crust paste; sift a little sugar over the top, and bake half an hour in a rather hot oven: serve up cold....

Spring Cream, or mock Gooseberry Fool.

22 minute read

Prepare a marmalade as directed for the pudding: to which add a pint of good thick cream; serve up in glasses, or in a deep dish. If wanted in a shape, dissolve two ounces of isinglass in a little water; strain it through a tamis, and when nearly cold put it to the cream; pour it into a jelly mould, and when set, turn out into a dish, and serve up plain....

Spring Fruit Sherbet.

15 minute read

Boil six or eight sticks of rhubarb (quite clean) ten minutes in a quart of water; strain the liquor through a tamis into a jug, with the peel of a lemon cut very thin, and two table-spoonfuls of clarified sugar; let it stand five or six hours, and it is fit to drink....

Gourds (now called vegetable Marrow) stewed.

18 minute read

Take off all the skin of six or eight gourds, put them into a stew-pan, with water, salt, lemon-juice, and a bit of butter, or fat bacon, and let them stew gently till quite tender, and serve up with a rich Dutch sauce, or any other sauce you please that is piquante ....

Gourd Soup,

29 minute read

Should be made of full-grown gourds, but not those that have hard skins; slice three or four, and put them in a stew-pan, with two or three onions, and a good bit of butter; set them over a slow fire till quite tender (be careful not to let them burn); then add two ounces of crust of bread, and two quarts of good consommé ; season with salt and Cayenne pepper: boil ten minutes, or a quarter of an hour; skim off all the fat, and pass it through a tamis; then make it quite hot, and serve up with fried bread....

Fried Gourds.

19 minute read

Cut five or six gourds in quarters; take off the skin and pulp; stew them in the same manner as for table: when done, drain them quite dry; beat up an egg, and dip the gourds in it, and cover them well over with bread-crumbs; make some hog’s-lard hot, and fry them a nice light colour; throw a little salt and pepper over them, and serve up quite dry....

Another Way.

22 minute read

Take six or eight small gourds, as near of a size as possible; slice them with a cucumber-slice; dry them in a cloth, and then fry them in very hot lard; throw over a little pepper and salt, and serve up on a napkin. Great attention is requisite to do these well; if the fat is quite hot they are done in a minute, and will soon spoil; if not hot enough, they will eat greasy and tough....

To make Beef, Mutton, or Veal Tea.—(No. 563.)

40 minute read

Cut a pound of lean gravy meat into thin slices; put it into a quart and half a pint of cold water; set it over a very gentle fire, where it will become gradually warm; when the scum rises, let it continue simmering gently for about an hour; then strain it through a fine sieve or a napkin; let it stand ten minutes to settle, and then pour off the clear tea. N.B. An onion, and a few grains of black pepper, are sometimes added. If the meat is boiled till it is thoroughly tender, you may mince it and pound it as directed in No. 503 , and make potted beef. To make half a pint of beef tea in five minutes for three halfpence, see No. 252 ....

Mutton Broth for the Sick.—(No. 564.)

1 minute read

Have a pound and a half of a neck or loin of mutton; take off the skin and the fat, and put it into a saucepan; cover it with cold water, (it will take about a quart to a pound of meat,) let it simmer very gently, and skim it well; cover it up, and set it over a moderate fire, where it may stand gently stewing for about an hour; then strain it off. It should be allowed to become cold, when all the greasy particles will float on the surface, and becoming hard, can be easily taken off, and the settlings will remain at the bottom. See also Nos. 490 and 252 . N.B. We direct the meat to be done no more than just sufficiently to be eaten; so a sick man may have plenty of good broth for nothing; as by this manner of producing it,...

Barley Water.350-*—(No. 565.)

58 minute read

Take a couple of ounces of pearl barley, wash it clean with cold water, put it into half a pint of boiling water, and let it boil for five minutes; pour off this water, and add to it two quarts of boiling water: boil it to two pints, and strain it. The above is simple barley water. To a quart of this is frequently added Boil it till it is reduced to a quart, and strain. Obs. —These drinks are intended to assuage thirst in ardent fevers and inflammatory disorders, for which plenty of mild diluting liquor is one of the principal remedies: and if not suggested by the medical attendant, is frequently demanded by honest instinct, in terms too plain to be misunderstood: the stomach sympathizes with every fibre of the human frame, and no part of it can be distressed without in some degree offending the stomach: therefore...

Whey.—(No. 566.)

28 minute read

Make a pint of milk boil; put to it a glass or two of white wine; put it on the fire till it just boils again; then set it on one side till the curd has settled; pour off the clear whey, and sweeten it as you like. Cider is often substituted for wine, or half the quantity of vinegar that we have ordered wine. Obs. —When there is no fire in the sick room, this may be put hot into a bottle, and laid between the bed and mattress; it will keep warm several hours....

Toothache and anti-rheumatic Embrocation.—(No. 567.)

43 minute read

In no branch of the practice of physic is there more dangerous quackery, than in the dental department. To all people the toothache is an intolerable torment; not even a philosopher can endure it patiently; what an overcoming agony then must it be to a grand gourmand! besides the mortification of being deprived of the means of enjoying that consolation which he looks to as the grand solace for all sublunary cares. When this affliction befalls him, we recommend the following specific for it;— ℞ Sal volatile, three parts. Laudanum, one part. Mix, and rub the part affected frequently, or if the tooth which aches be hollow, drop some of this on a bit of cotton, and put it into the tooth. For a general faceache, or sore throat, moisten a bit of flannel with it, and put it at night to the part affected....

Stomachic Tincture—(No. 569.)—is

51 minute read

Let these ingredients steep for ten days, shaking the bottle every day; let it remain quiet two days, and then decant the clear liquor. Dose—a tea-spoonful in a wineglass of water, twice a day, when you feel languid, i. e. when the stomach is empty, about an hour before dinner, and in the evening. This agreeable aromatic tonic is an effective help to concoction; and we are under personal obligations to it, for frequently restoring our stomach to good temper, and procuring us good appetite and good digestion. In low nervous affections arising from a languid circulation, and when the stomach is in a state of debility from age, intemperance, or other causes, this is a most acceptable restorative. N.B. Tea made with dried and bruised Seville orange-peel, in the same way as common tea, and drank with milk and sugar, has been taken by nervous and dyspeptic persons with...

Paregoric Elixir.—(No. 570.)

32 minute read

A drachm of purified opium, same of flowers of benjamin, same of oil of aniseed, camphor, two scruples; steep all in a pint of brandy or proof spirit; let it stand ten days, occasionally shaking it up: strain. A tea-spoonful in half a pint of White wine whey ( No. 562 ), tewahdiddle ( No. 467 ), or gruel ( No. 572 ), taken the last thing at night, is an agreeable and effectual medicine for coughs and colds. It is also excellent for children who have the hooping-cough, in doses of from five to twenty drops in a little water, or on a little bit of sugar....

Dr. Kitchiner’s Receipt to make Gruel.—(No. 572.)

2 minute read

Ask those who are to eat it, if they like it thick or thin; if the latter, mix well together by degrees, in a pint basin, one table-spoonful of oatmeal, with three of cold water; if the former, use two spoonfuls. Have ready in a stew-pan, a pint of boiling water or milk; pour this by degrees to the oatmeal you have mixed; return it into the stew-pan; set it on the fire, and let it boil for five minutes; stirring it all the time to prevent the oatmeal from burning at the bottom of the stew-pan; skim and strain it through a hair-sieve. 2d. To convert this into caudle, add a little ale, wine, or brandy, with sugar; and if the bowels are disordered, a little nutmeg or ginger, grated. Obs. Gruel may be made with broth ( No. 490 , or No. 252 , or No. 564 ),...

Scotch Burgoo.—(No. 572*.)

45 minute read

“This humble dish of our northern brethren forms no contemptible article of food. It possesses the grand qualities of salubrity, pleasantness, and cheapness. It is, in fact, a sort of oatmeal hasty pudding without milk; much used by those patterns of combined industry, frugality, and temperance, the Scottish peasantry; and this, among other examples of the economical Scotch, is well worthy of being occasionally adopted by all who have large families and small incomes.” It is made in the following easy and expeditious manner:— “To a quart of oatmeal add gradually two quarts of water, so that the whole may smoothly mix: then stirring it continually over the fire, boil it together for a quarter of an hour; after which, take it up, and stir in a little salt and butter, with or without pepper. This quantity will serve a family of five or six persons for a moderate meal.”—Oddy’s...

Anchovy Toast.—(No. 573.)

26 minute read

Bone and wash the anchovies, pound them in a mortar with a little fresh butter; rub them through a sieve, and spread them on a toast, see Nos. 434 and 435 , and No. 355 . Obs. You may add, while pounding the anchovies, a little made mustard and curry powder ( No. 455 ) or a few grains of Cayenne, or a little mace or other spice. It may be made still more savoury, by frying the toast in clarified butter....

Deviled Biscuit,—(No. 574.)

17 minute read

Is the above composition spread on a biscuit warmed before the fire in a Dutch oven, with a sufficient quantity of salt and savoury spice ( No. 457 ), zest ( No. 255 ), curry powder ( No. 455 ), or Cayenne pepper sprinkled over it. Obs. This ne plus ultra of high spiced relishes, and No. 538 , frequently make their appearance at tavern dinners, when the votaries of Bacchus are determined to vie with each other in sacrificing to the jolly god. 300-* This may be still longer preserved by the process directed in No. 252 . 303-* Hashes and meats dressed a second time, should only simmer gently till just warm through; it is supposed they have been done very nearly, if not quite enough, already; select those parts of the joint that have been least done. In making a hash from a leg of mutton, do...

MEAT.

1 minute read

The Nos. refer to the receipts for dressing. In the foregoing table, we have given the proportions of bone to meat ,—the former not being weighed till cooked, by which, of course, its weight was considerably diminished. These proportions differ in almost every animal,—and from the different manner in which they are cut. Those who pay the highest, do not always pay the dearest price. In fact, the best meat is the cheapest ; and those who treat a tradesman liberally, have a much better chance of being well served, than those who are for ever bargaining for the market penny. In dividing the joints, there is always an opportunity of apportioning the bones, fat, flaps, &c., so as to make up a variation of much more than a penny per pound in most pieces; and a butcher will be happy to give the turn of his knife in favour...

POULTRY.

59 minute read

Cocks’ combs, fat livers, eggs, &c. are dearest in April and May, and cheapest in August. Fowls’ heads may be had three for a penny; a dozen will make a very good pie or soup , like No. 244 . Turkey heads, about a penny each. Duck giblets, about three half-pence a set; four sets will make a tureen of good soup for sixpence . See No. 244 . Obs. —Poultry is in greatest perfection when in greatest plenty. The price of it varies as much as the size and quality of it, and the supply at market, and the demand for it. It is generally dearest from March to July, when the town is fullest; and cheapest about September, when the game season commences, and the weather being colder, allows of its being brought from more distant parts, and the town becoming thin, there is less demand for it....

VEGETABLES.

16 minute read

The public are frequently, from want of regular information when the proper seasons arrive for vegetables, put to much inconvenience in attending the markets, taking unnecessary inquiries, &c. The following list, it is presumed, will afford much useful information to the reader:—...

Puff Paste.—(No. 1.)

27 minute read

To a pound and a quarter of sifted flour rub gently in with the hand half a pound of fresh butter; mix up with half a pint of spring water; knead it well, and set it by for a quarter of an hour; then roll it out thin, lay on it, in small pieces, three quarters of a pound more of butter, throw on it a little flour, double it up in folds, and roll it out thin three times, and set it by for an hour in a cold place....

Paste for Meat or Savoury Pies.—(No. 2.)

22 minute read

Sift two pounds of fine flour to one and a half of good salt butter, break it into small pieces, and wash it well in cold water; rub gently together the butter and flour, and mix it up with the yelk of three eggs, beat together with a spoon; and nearly a pint of spring-water; roll it out, and double it in folds three times, and it is ready....

Tart Paste for Family Pies.—(No. 3.)

11 minute read

Rub in with the hand half a pound of butter into one pound and a quarter of flour, mix it with half a pint of water, and knead it well....

Sweet, or short and crisped Tart Paste.—(No. 4.)

18 minute read

To one pound and a quarter of fine flour add ten ounces of fresh butter, the yelks of two eggs beat, and three ounces of sifted loaf sugar; mix up together with half a pint of new milk, and knead it well. See No. 30 . N.B. This crust is frequently iced....

Raised Pies.—(No. 5.)

1 minute read

Put two pounds and a half of flour on the pasteboard; and put on the fire, in a saucepan, three quarters of a pint of water, and half a pound of good lard; when the water boils, make a hole in the middle of the flour, pour in the water and lard by degrees, gently mixing the flour with it with a spoon; and when it is well mixed, then knead it with your hands till it becomes stiff: dredge a little flour to prevent its sticking to the board, or you cannot make it look smooth: do not roll it with the rolling-pin, but roll it with your hands, about the thickness of a quart pot; cut it into six pieces, leaving a little for the covers; put one hand in the middle, and keep the other close on the outside till you have worked it either in an...

Paste for boiled Puddings.—(No. 6.)

15 minute read

Pick and chop very fine half a pound of beef suet, add to it one pound and a quarter of flour, and a little salt: mix it with half a pint of milk or water, and beat it well with the rolling-pin, to incorporate the suet with the flour....

Paste for stringing Tartlets, &c.—(No. 7.)

20 minute read

Mix with your hands a quarter of a pound of flour, an ounce of fresh butter, and a little cold water; rub it well between the board and your hand till it begins to string; cut it into small pieces, roll it out, and draw it into fine strings, lay them across your tartlets in any device you please, and bake them immediately....

Paste for Croquants or Cut Pastry.—(No. 8.)

11 minute read

To half a pound of fine flour put a quarter of a pound of sifted loaf sugar; mix it well together with yelks of eggs till of a good stiffness....

Venison Pasty.—(No. 9.)

1 minute read

Take a neck, shoulder, or breast of venison, that has not hung too long; bone them, trim off all the skin, and cut it into pieces two inches square, and put them into a stew-pan, with three gills of Port wine, two onions, or a few eschalots sliced; some pepper, salt, three blades of mace, about a dozen allspice, and enough veal broth to cover it; put it over a slow fire, and let it stew till three parts done; put the trimmings into another saucepan, cover it with water, and set it on a fire. Take out the pieces you intend for the pasty, and put them into a deep dish with a little of their liquor, and set it by to cool; then add the remainder of the liquor to the bones and trimmings, and boil it till the pasty is ready; then cover the pasty with paste...

Mutton or Veal Pie.—(No. 10.)

36 minute read

Cut into chops, and trim neatly, and cut away the greatest part of the fat of a loin, or best end of a neck of mutton (the former the best), season them, and lay them in a pie dish, with a little water and half a gill of mushroom catchup (chopped onion and potatoes, if approved); cover it with paste ( No. 2 ), bake it two hours; when done, lift up the crust from the dish with a knife, pour out all the gravy, let it stand, and skim it clean; add, if wanted, some more seasoning; make it boil, and pour it into the pie. Veal pie may be made of the brisket part of the breast; but must be parboiled first....

Hare Pie.—(No. 11.)

54 minute read

Take the hare skinned and washed, cut it into pieces, and parboil it for two minutes to cleanse it; wash it well, and put it in a stew-pot with six eschalots chopped, a gill of Port wine, a small quantity of thyme, savoury, sweet marjoram, and parsley, tied in a bunch, four cloves, and half a dozen allspice; cover it with veal broth, and stew it till half done; pick out the prime pieces, such as the back, legs, &c. (leaving the remainder to stew till the goodness is quite extracted); take the parts preserved, and fill them into a dish with some water, and cover it with paste as No. 2 ; bake it an hour; strain the gravy from the trimmings, thicken it a little, and throw in half a gill of Port, the juice of half a lemon, and pour it into the pie boiling hot; line...

Savoury Pies, Pasties, and Patties.—(No. 12.)

54 minute read

The piquance of pies may be regulated ad libitum , by sprinkling the articles with zest ( No. 255 ), curry powder ( No. 455 , and see Nos. 457 and 459 ), or by covering the bottom of the dish with any of the forcemeats enumerated in Nos. 373 to 385 , and making it into balls; lay one ring of these, and another of hard-boiled eggs cut in halves, round the top of the pie; and instead of putting in water, put strong gravy. After the pies are baked, pour in through a funnel any of the various gravies, sauces, &c.: truffles, mushrooms, wine, spices, pickles, &c. are also added. See also Nos. 396 to 402 . Mem. These are dishes contrived rather to excite appetite than to satisfy it. Putting meat or poultry into a pie is certainly the very worst way of cooking it; it is...

Pigeon or Lark Pie.—(No. 13.)

43 minute read

Truss half a dozen fine large pigeons as for stewing, season them with pepper and salt; lay at the bottom of the dish a rump-steak of about a pound weight, cut into pieces and trimmed neatly, seasoned, and beat out with a chopper: on it lay the pigeons, the yelks of three eggs boiled hard, and a gill of broth or water, and over these a layer of steaks; wet the edge of the dish, and cover it over with puff paste ( No. 1 ), or the paste as directed for seasoned pies ( No. 2 ); wash it over with yelk of egg, and ornament it with leaves of paste and the feet of the pigeons; bake it an hour and a half in a moderate-heated oven: before it is sent to table make an aperture in the top, and pour in some good gravy quite hot....

Giblet Pie.—(No. 14.)

1 minute read

Clean well, and half stew two or three sets of goose giblets: cut the legs in two, the wing and neck into three, and the gizzard into four pieces; preserve the liquor, and set the giblets by till cold, otherwise the heat of the giblets will spoil the paste you cover the pie with: then season the whole with black pepper and salt, and put them into a deep dish; cover it with paste as directed in No. 2 , rub it over with yelk of egg, ornament and bake it an hour and a half in a moderate oven: in the meantime take the liquor the giblets were stewed in, skim it free from fat, put it over a fire in a clean stew-pan, thicken it a little with flour and butter, or flour and water, season it with pepper and salt, and the juice of half a lemon;...

Rump-Steak Pie.—(No. 15.)

42 minute read

Cut three pounds of rump-steak (that has been kept till tender) into pieces half as big as your hand, trim off all the skin, sinews, and every part which has not indisputable pretensions to be eaten, and beat them with a chopper: chop very fine half a dozen eschalots, and add them to half an ounce of pepper and salt mixed; strew some of the mixture at the bottom of the dish, then a layer of steak, then some more of the mixture, and so on till the dish is full; add half a gill of mushroom catchup, and the same quantity of gravy, or red wine; cover it as in the preceding receipt, and bake it two hours. N.B. Large oysters, parboiled, bearded, and laid alternately with the steaks, their liquor reduced and substituted instead of the catchup and wine, will be a variety....

Chicken Pie.—(No. 16.)

42 minute read

Parboil, and then cut up neatly two young chickens; dry them; set them over a slow fire for a few minutes; have ready some veal stuffing or forcemeat ( No. 374 or No. 375 ), lay it at the bottom of the dish, and place in the chickens upon it, and with it some pieces of dressed ham; cover it with paste ( No. 1 ). Bake it from an hour and a half to two hours; when sent to table, add some good gravy, well seasoned, and not too thick. Duck pie is made in like manner, only substituting the duck stuffing ( No. 378 ), instead of the veal. N.B. The above may be put into a raised French crust (see No. 18 ) and baked; when done, take off the top, and put a ragoût of sweetbread to the chickens....

Rabbit Pie.—(No. 17.)

26 minute read

Made in the same way; but make a forcemeat to cover the bottom of the dish, by pounding a quarter of a pound of boiled bacon with the livers of the rabbits; some pepper and salt, some pounded mace, some chopped parsley, and an eschalot, thoroughly beaten together; and you may lay some thin slices of ready-dressed ham or bacon on the top of your rabbits. “This pie will ask two hours baking,” says Mrs. Mary Tillinghast, in page 29 of her 12mo. vol. of rare receipts, 1678....

Raised French Pie.—(No. 18.)

51 minute read

Make about two pounds of flour into a paste, as directed ( No. 5 ); knead it well, and into the shape of a ball; press your thumb into the centre, and work it by degrees into any shape (oval or round is the most general), till about five inches high; put it on a sheet of paper, and fill it with coarse flour or bran; roll out a covering for it about the same thickness as the sides; cement its sides with the yelk of egg; cut the edges quite even, and pinch it round with the finger and thumb, yelk of egg it over with a paste-brush, and ornament it in any way fancy may direct, with the same kind of paste. Bake it of a fine brown colour, in a slow oven; and when done, cut out the top, remove the flour or bran, brush it quite...

Raised Ham Pie.—(No. 19.)

55 minute read

Soak a small ham four or five hours; wash and scrape it well; cut off the knuckle, and boil it for half an hour; then take it up and trim it very neatly; take off the rind and put it into an oval stew-pan, with a pint of Madeira or sherry, and enough veal stock to cover it. Let it stew for two hours, or till three parts done; take it out and set it in a cold place; then raise a crust as in the foregoing receipt, large enough to receive it; put in the ham, and round it the veal forcemeat; cover and ornament; it will take about an hour and a half to bake in a slow oven: when done, take off the cover, glaze the top, and pour round the following sauce, viz. take the liquor the ham was stewed in; skim it free from fat;...

Veal and Ham Pie.—(No. 20.)

30 minute read

Take two pounds of veal cutlet, cut them in middling-sized pieces, season with pepper and a very little salt; likewise one of raw or dressed ham cut in slices, lay it alternately in the dish, and put some forced or sausage meat ( No. 374 , or No. 375 ) at the top, with some stewed button mushrooms, and the yelks of three eggs boiled hard, and a gill of water; then proceed as with rump-steak pie. N.B. The best end of a neck is the fine part for a pie, cut into chops, and the chine bone taken away....

Raised Pork Pie.—(No. 21.)

36 minute read

Make a raised crust, of a good size, with paste (as directed in No. 5 ), about four inches high; take the rind and chine bone from a loin of pork, cut it into chops, beat them with a chopper, season them with pepper and salt, and fill your pie; put on the top and close it, and pinch it round the edge; rub it over with yelk of egg, and bake it two hours with a paper over it, to prevent the crust from burning. When done, pour in some good gravy, with a little ready-mixed mustard (if approved). N.B. As the above is generally eaten cold, it is an excellent repast for a journey, and will keep for several days....

Eel Pie.—(No. 22.)

38 minute read

Take eels about half a pound each; skin, wash, and trim off the fin with a pair of scissors, cut them into pieces three inches long, season them with pepper and salt, and fill your dish, leaving out the heads and tails. Add a gill of water or veal broth, cover it with paste ( No. 2 ), rub it over with a paste-brush dipped in yelk of egg, ornament it with some of the same paste, bake it an hour; and when done, make a hole in the centre, and pour in the following sauce through a funnel: the trimmings boiled in half a pint of veal stock, seasoned with pepper and salt, a table-spoonful of lemon-juice, and thickened with flour and water, strained through a fine sieve: add it boiling hot....

Raised Lamb Pies.—(No. 23.)

34 minute read

Bone a loin of lamb, cut into cutlets, trim them very nicely, and lay them in the bottom of a stew or frying-pan, with an ounce of butter, a tea-spoonful of lemon-juice, and some pepper and salt: put them over a fire, and turn them and put them to cool; then raise four or five small pies with paste (as No. 6 ), about the size of a tea-cup; put some veal forcemeat at the bottom, and the cutlets upon it; roll out the top an eighth of an inch thick, close and pinch the edges, bake them half an hour, and when done take off the top, and pour in some good brown sauce....

Beef-Steak Pudding.—(No. 24.)

59 minute read

Get rump-steaks, not too thick, beat them with a chopper, cut them into pieces about half the size of your hand, and trim off all the skin, sinews, &c.; have ready an onion peeled and chopped fine, likewise some potatoes peeled and cut into slices a quarter of an inch thick; rub the inside of a basin or an oval plain mould with butter, sheet it with paste as directed for boiled puddings ( No. 7 ); season the steaks with pepper, salt, and a little grated nutmeg; put in a layer of steak, then another of potatoes, and so on till it is full, occasionally throwing in part of the chopped onion; add to it half a gill of mushroom catchup, a table-spoonful of lemon-pickle, and half a gill of water or veal broth; roll out a top, and close it well to prevent the water getting in; rinse...

Vol au Vent.—(No. 25.)

48 minute read

Roll off tart paste ( No. 3 ) till about the eighth of an inch thick: then, with a tin cutter made for that purpose (about the size of the bottom of the dish you intend sending to table), cut out the shape, and lay it on a baking-plate, with paper; rub it over with yelk of egg; roll out good puff paste ( No. 1 ) an inch thick, stamp it with the same cutter, and lay it on the tart paste; then take a cutter two sizes smaller, and press it in the centre nearly through the puff paste; rub the top with yelk of egg, and bake it in a quick oven about twenty minutes, of a light brown colour: when done, take out the paste inside the centre mark, preserving the top, put it on a dish in a warm place, and when wanted, fill it...

Oyster Patties.—(No. 26.)

58 minute read

Roll out puff paste a quarter of an inch thick, cut it into squares with a knife, sheet eight or ten patty pans, put upon each a bit of bread the size of half a walnut; roll out another layer of paste of the same thickness, cut it as above, wet the edge of the bottom paste, and put on the top, pare them round to the pan, and notch them about a dozen times with the back of the knife, rub them lightly with yelk of egg, bake them in a hot oven about a quarter of an hour: when done, take a thin slice off the top, then, with a small knife or spoon, take out the bread and the inside paste, leaving the outside quite entire; then parboil two dozen of large oysters, strain them from their liquor, wash, beard, and cut them into four, put them...

Lobster Patties.—(No. 27.)

25 minute read

Prepare the patties as in the last receipt. Take a hen lobster already boiled; pick the meat from the tail and claws, and chop it fine; put it into a stew-pan, with a little of the inside spawn pounded in a mortar till quite smooth, an ounce of fresh butter, half a gill of cream, and half a gill of veal consommé, Cayenne pepper, and salt, a tea-spoonful of essence of anchovy, the same of lemon-juice, and a table-spoonful of flour and water: stew it five minutes....

Veal and Ham Patties.—(No. 28.)

22 minute read

Chop about six ounces of ready-dressed lean veal, and three ounces of ham very small; put it into a stew-pan with an ounce of butter rolled into flour, half a gill of cream; half a gill of veal stock; a little grated nutmeg and lemon-peel, some Cayenne pepper and salt, a spoonful of essence of ham and lemon-juice, and stir it over the fire some time, taking care it does not burn....

Chicken and Ham Patties.—(No. 29.)

7 minute read

Use the white meat from the breast of chickens or fowls, and proceed as in the last receipt....

Ripe Fruit Tarts.—(No. 30.)

40 minute read

Gooseberries, damsons, morrello cherries, currants mixed with raspberries, plums, green gages, white plums, &c. should be quite fresh picked, and washed: lay them in the dish with the centre highest, and about a quarter of a pound of moist or loaf sugar pounded to a quart of fruit (but if quite ripe they will not require so much); add a little water; rub the edges of the dish with yelk of egg; cover it with tart paste ( No. 4 ), about half an inch thick; press your thumb round the rim, and close it well; pare it round with a knife; make a hole in the sides below the rim; bake it in a moderate-heated oven; and ten minutes before it is done, take it out and ice it, and return it to the oven to dry....

Icing for Fruit Tarts, Puffs, or Pastry.—(No. 31.)

22 minute read

Beat up in a half-pint mug the white of two eggs to a solid froth; lay some on the middle of the pie with a paste-brush; sift over plenty of pounded sugar, and press it down with the hand; wash out the brush, and splash by degrees with water till the sugar is dissolved, and put it in the oven for ten minutes, and serve it up cold....

Apple Pie.—(No. 32.)

19 minute read

Take eight russetings, or lemon pippin apples; pare, core, and cut not smaller than quarters; place them as close as possible together into a pie-dish, with four cloves; rub together in a mortar some lemon-peel, with four ounces of good moist sugar, and, if agreeable, add some quince jam; cover it with puff paste; bake it an hour and a quarter. (Generally eaten warm.)...

Apple Tart creamed.—(No. 33.)

17 minute read

Use green codlings, in preference to any other apple, and proceed as in the last receipt. When the pie is done, cut out the whole of the centre, leaving the edges; when cold, pour on the apple some rich boiled custard, and place round it some small leaves of puff paste of a light colour....

Tartlets, such as are made at the Pastry Cooks.—(No. 34.)

29 minute read

Roll out puff paste ( No. 1 ,) of a quarter of an inch thick, cut it into pieces, and sheet pans about the size of a crown piece, pare them round with a knife, and put a small quantity of apricot, damson, raspberry, strawberry, apple, marmalade, or any other kind of jam ( No. 92 ), in the centre; take paste ( No. 7 ), and string them crossways; bake them from six to ten minutes in a quick oven: they should be of a very light brown colour....

French Tart of preserved Fruit.—(No. 35.)

45 minute read

Cover a flat dish, or tourte pan, with tart paste ( No. 4 ), about an eighth of an inch thick; roll out puff paste ( No. 1 ), half an inch thick, and cut it out in strips an inch wide; wet the tart paste, and lay it neatly round the pan by way of a rim; fill the centre with jam or marmalade of any kind, ornament it with small leaves of puff paste, bake it half an hour, and send it to table cold. N.B. The above may be filled before the puff paste is laid on, neatly strung with paste, as No. 7 , and the rim put over after. Obs. —The most general way of sending tourtes to table, is with a croquante of paste ( No. 86 ), or a caramel of spun sugar ( No. 85 ), put over after it is baked....

Small Puffs of preserved Fruit.—(No. 36.)

24 minute read

Roll out, a quarter of an inch thick, good puff paste ( No. 1 ), and cut it into pieces four inches square; lay a small quantity of any kind of jam on each, double them over, and cut them into square, triangle, or, with a tin cutter, half moons; lay them with paper on a baking-plate; ice them (as at No. 31 ), bake them about twenty minutes, taking care not to colour the icing....

Cranberry Tart.—(No. 37.)

29 minute read

Take Swedish, American, or Russian cranberries, pick and wash them in several waters, put them into a dish, with the juice of half a lemon, a quarter of a pound of moist or pounded loaf sugar, to a quart of cranberries. Cover it with puff ( No. 1 ) or tart paste ( No. 4 ), and bake it three quarters of an hour; if tart paste is used, draw it from the oven five minutes before it is done, and ice it as No. 31 , return it to the oven, and send it to table cold....

Mince Pies.—(No. 38.)

24 minute read

Sheet with tart paste ( No. 4 ), half a dozen of tin pans of any size you please; fill them with mince meat ( No. 39 ), and cover with puff paste, a quarter of an inch thick; trim round the edges with a knife, make an aperture at the top with a fork, bake them in a moderate-heated oven, and send them to table hot, first removing the tin. N.B. Some throw a little sifted loaf sugar over....

Mince Meat.—(No. 39.)

1 minute read

Two pounds of beef suet, picked and chopped fine; two pounds of apple, pared, cored, and minced; three pounds of currants, washed and picked; one pound of raisins, stoned and chopped fine; one pound of good moist sugar; half a pound of citron, cut into thin slices; one pound of candied lemon and orange-peel, cut as ditto; two pounds of ready-dressed roast beef, free from skin and gristle, and chopped fine; two nutmegs, grated; one ounce of salt, one of ground ginger, half an ounce of coriander seeds, half an ounce of allspice, half an ounce of cloves, all ground fine; the juice of six lemons, and their rinds grated; half a pint of brandy, and a pint of sweet wine. Mix the suet, apples, currants, meat-plums, and sweetmeats, well together in a large pan, and strew in the spice by degrees; mix the sugar, lemon-juice, wine, and brandy, and...

Cheesecakes.—(No. 40.)

1 minute read

Put two quarts of new milk into a stew-pan, set it near the fire, and stir in two table-spoonfuls of rennet: let it stand till it is set (this will take about an hour); break it well with your hand, and let it remain half an hour longer; then pour off the whey, and put the curd into a colander to drain; when quite dry, put it in a mortar, and pound it quite smooth; then add four ounces of sugar, pounded and sifted, and three ounces of fresh butter; oil it first by putting it in a little potting-pot, and setting it near the fire; stir it all well together: beat the yelks of four eggs in a basin, with a little nutmeg grated, lemon-peel, and a glass of brandy; add this to the curd, with two ounces of currants, washed and picked; stir it all well together; have...

Lemon Cheesecakes.—(No. 41.)

24 minute read

Grate the rind of three, and take the juice of two lemons, and mix them with three sponge biscuits, six ounces of fresh butter, four ounces of sifted sugar, a little grated nutmeg and pounded cinnamon, half a gill of cream, and three eggs well beaten; work them with the hand, and fill the pans, which must be sheeted as in the last receipt with puff paste, and lay two or three slices of candied lemon-peel, cut thin, upon the top....

Orange Cheesecakes.—(No. 42.)

5 minute read

To be made in the same way, omitting the lemons, and using oranges instead....

Almond Cheesecakes.—(No. 43.)

37 minute read

Blanch six ounces of sweet, and half an ounce of bitter almonds; let them lie half an hour in a drying stove, or before the fire; pound them very fine in a mortar, with two table-spoonfuls of rose or orange-flower water, to prevent them from oiling; set into a stew-pan half a pound of fresh butter; set it in a warm place, and cream it very smooth with the hand, and add it to the almonds, with six ounces of sifted loaf sugar, a little grated lemon-peel, some good cream, and four eggs; rub all well together with the pestle; cover a patty-pan with puff paste; fill in the mixture; ornament it with slices of candied lemon-peel and almonds split, and bake it half an hour in a brisk oven....

Mille Feuilles, or a Pyramid of Paste.—(No. 44.)

50 minute read

Roll out puff paste ( No. 1 ,) half an inch thick; cut out with a cutter made for the purpose, in the shape of an oval, octagon, square, diamond, or any other form, (and to be got of most tinmen,) observing to let the first piece be as large as the bottom of the dish you intend sending it to table on: the second piece a size smaller, and so on in proportion, till the last is about the size of a shilling; lay them with paper on a baking-plate, yelk of egg the top, and bake them of a light brown colour: take them from the paper, and when cold put the largest size in the dish, then a layer of apricot jam; then the next size, a layer of raspberry jam, and so on, varying the jam between each layer of paste to the top, on which...

Brunswick Tourte.—(No. 45.)

26 minute read

Make a crust as for vol au vent ( No. 25 ); pare and core with a scoop eight or ten golden pippins; put them into a stew-pan, with a gill of sweet wine, and four ounces of sifted loaf sugar, a bit of lemon-peel, a small stick of cinnamon, and a blade of mace; stew them over a slow fire till the apples are tender; set them by: when cold, place them in the paste, and pour round them some good custard ( No. 53 )....

Blancmange.—(No. 46.)

47 minute read

Boil for a few minutes a pint and a half of new milk, with an ounce of picked isinglass (if in summer, one ounce and a quarter), the rind of half a lemon, peeled very thin, a little cinnamon, and a blade of mace, and two and a half ounces of lump sugar: blanch and pound eight or ten bitter, and half an ounce of sweet almonds very fine, with a spoonful of rose water, and mix them with the milk; strain it through a lawn sieve or napkin into a basin, with half a pint of good cream. Let it stand half an hour; pour it into another basin, leaving the sediment at the bottom, and when nearly cold fill it into moulds: when wanted, put your finger round the mould; pull out the blancmange; set it in the centre of a dish, and garnish with slices of orange....

Orange Jelly.—(No. 47.)

40 minute read

Boil in a pint of water one ounce and a quarter of picked isinglass, the rind of an orange cut thin, a stick of cinnamon, a few corianders, and three ounces of loaf-sugar, till the isinglass is dissolved; then squeeze two Seville oranges or lemons, and enough China oranges to make a pint of juice: mix all together, and strain it through a tamis or lawn sieve into a basin; set it in a cold place for half an hour; pour it into another basin free from sediment; and when it begins to congeal, fill your mould: when wanted, dip the mould into lukewarm water; turn it out on a dish, and garnish with orange or lemon cut in slices, and placed round. N.B. A few grains of saffron put in the water will add much to its appearance....

Italian Cream.—(No. 48.)

38 minute read

Rub on a lump of sugar the rind of a lemon, and scrape it off with a knife into a deep dish or china bowl, and add half a gill of brandy, two ounces and a half of sifted sugar, the juice of a lemon, and a pint of double cream, and beat it up well with a clean whisk; in the meantime, boil an ounce of isinglass in a gill of water till quite dissolved; strain it to the other ingredients; beat it some time, and fill your mould; and when cold and set well, dish it as in the foregoing receipt. N.B. The above may be flavoured with any kind of liqueur, raspberry, strawberry, or other fruits, coloured with prepared cochineal, and named to correspond with the flavour given....

Trifle.—(No. 49.)

49 minute read

Mix in a large bowl a quarter of a pound of sifted sugar, the juice of a lemon, some of the peel grated fine, half a gill of brandy, and ditto of Lisbon or sweet wine, and a pint and a half of good cream; whisk the whole well, and take off the froth as it rises with a skimmer, and put it on a sieve; continue to whisk it till you have enough of the whip; set it in a cold place to drain three or four hours; then lay in a deep dish six or eight sponge biscuits, a quarter of a pound of ratafia, two ounces of Jordan almonds blanched and split, some grated nutmeg and lemon-peel, currant jelly and raspberry jam, half a pint of sweet wine, and a little brandy; when the cakes have absorbed the liquor, pour over about a pint of custard, made...

Whip Syllabub.—(No. 50.)

16 minute read

Make a whip as in the last receipt; mix with a pint of cream, half a pint of sweet wine, a glass of brandy, the juice of a lemon, grated nutmeg, six ounces of sifted loaf sugar: nearly fill the custard-glasses with the mixture, and lay on with a spoon some of the whip....

Chantilly Basket.—(No. 51.)

29 minute read

Dip into sugar boiled to a caramel (See No. 85 ) small ratafias, stick them on a dish in what form you please, then take ratafias one size larger, and having dipped them into the sugar, build them together till about four or five inches high; make a rim of York drops or drageas of gum paste, likewise a handful of sugar or ratafia, and set it over the basket; line the inside with wafer-paper, and a short time before it is wanted, fill it with a mixture the same as for trifle, and upon that plenty of good whip....

Baked Custard.—(No. 52.)

28 minute read

Boil in a pint of milk, a few coriander seeds, a little cinnamon and lemon-peel; sweeten with four ounces of loaf sugar, and mix with it a pint of cold milk; beat well eight eggs for ten minutes, and add the other ingredients; pour it from one pan into another six or eight times, strain it through a sieve, and let it stand some time; skim off the froth from the top, fill it in earthen cups, and bake them immediately in a hot oven, give them a good colour; about ten minutes will do them....

Boiled Custard.—(No. 53.)

28 minute read

Boil in a pint of milk, five minutes, lemon-peel, corianders, and cinnamon, a small quantity of each, half a dozen of bitter almonds, blanched and pounded, and four ounces of loaf sugar: mix it with a pint of cream, the yelks of ten eggs, and the whites of six, well beaten; pass it through a hair-sieve, stir it with a whisk over a slow fire till it begins to thicken, remove it from the fire, and continue to stir it till nearly cold; add two table-spoonfuls of brandy, fill the cups or glasses, and grate nutmeg over....

Almond Custards.—(No. 54.)

34 minute read

Blanch and pound fine, with half a gill of rose water, six ounces of sweet, and half an ounce of bitter almonds; boil a pint of milk as No. 52 ; sweeten it with two ounces and a half of sugar; rub the almonds through a fine sieve, with a pint of cream; strain the milk to the yelks of eight eggs, and the whites of three well-beaten; stir it over a fire till it is of a good thickness; take it off the fire, and stir it till nearly cold, to prevent its curdling. N.B. The above may be baked in cups, or in a dish, with a rim of puff paste put round....

Twelfth Cake.—(No. 55.)

1 minute read

Two pounds of sifted flour, two pounds of sifted loaf sugar, two pounds of butter, eighteen eggs, four pounds of currants, one half pound of almonds blanched and chopped, one half pound of citron, one pound of candied orange and lemon-peel cut into thin slices, a large nutmeg grated, half an ounce of ground allspice; ground cinnamon, mace, ginger, and corianders, a quarter of an ounce of each, and a gill of brandy. Put the butter into a stew-pan, in a warm place, and work it into a smooth cream with the hand, and mix it with the sugar and spice in a pan (or on your paste board) for some time; then break in the eggs by degrees, and beat it at least twenty minutes; stir in the brandy, and then the flour, and work it a little; add the fruit, sweetmeats, and almonds, and mix all together lightly;...

Bride, or Wedding Cake.—(No. 56.)

8 minute read

The only difference usually made in these cakes is, the addition of one pound of raisins, stoned and mixed with the other fruit....

Plain Pound Cake.—(No. 57.)

27 minute read

Cream, as in No. 55 , one pound of butter, and work it well together with one pound of sifted sugar till quite smooth; beat up nine eggs, and put them by degrees to the butter, and beat them for twenty minutes; mix in lightly one pound of flour; put the whole into a hoop, cased with paper, on a baking-plate, and bake it about one hour in a moderate oven. An ounce of caraway-seeds added to the above, will make what is termed a rich seed cake....

Plum Pound Cake.—(No. 58.)

12 minute read

Make a cake as No. 57 , and when you have beaten it, mix in lightly half a pound of currants, two ounces of orange, and two ounces of candied lemon-peel cut small, and half a nutmeg grated....

Common Seed Cake.—(No. 59.)

48 minute read

Sift two and a half pounds of flour, with half a pound of good Lisbon or loaf sugar, pounded into a pan or bowl; make a cavity in the centre, and pour in half a pint of lukewarm milk, and a table-spoonful of thick yest; mix the milk and yest with enough flour to make it as thick as cream (this is called setting a sponge); set it by in a warm place for one hour; in the meantime, melt to an oil half a pound of fresh butter, and add it to the other ingredients, with one ounce of caraway-seeds, and enough of milk to make it of a middling stiffness; line a hoop with paper, well rubbed over with butter; put in the mixture; set it some time to prove in a stove, or before the fire, and bake it on a plate about an hour, in rather...

Rich Yest Cake.—(No. 60.)

30 minute read

Set a sponge as in the foregoing receipt, with the same proportions of flour, sugar, milk, and yest: when it has lain some time, mix it with three quarters of a pound of butter oiled, one pound and a quarter of currants, half a pound of candied lemon and orange-peel cut fine, grated nutmeg, ground allspice and cinnamon, a quarter of an ounce of each: case a hoop as stated No. 59 , bake it in a good-heated oven one hour and a half. N.B. It may be iced with No. 84 , and ornamented as a twelfth cake....

Queen, or Heart Cakes.—(No. 61.)

38 minute read

One pound of sifted sugar, one pound of butter, eight eggs, one pound and a quarter of flour, two ounces of currants, and half a nutmeg grated. Cream the butter as at No. 55 , and mix it well with the sugar and spice, then put in half the eggs and beat it ten minutes, add the remainder of the eggs, and work it ten minutes longer, stir in the flour lightly, and the currants afterward, then take small tin pans of any shape (hearts the most usual), rub the inside of each with butter, fill and bake them a few minutes in a hot oven, on a sheet of matted wire, or on a baking-plate; when done, remove them as early as possible from the pans....

Queen’s Drops.—(No. 62.)

22 minute read

Leave out four ounces of flour from the last receipt, and add two ounces more of currants, and two ounces of candied peel cut small; work it the same as in the last receipt, and when ready put the measure into a biscuit-funnel, 378-* and lay them out in drops about the size of half a crown, on white paper; bake them in a hot oven, and, when nearly cold, take them from the paper....

Shrewsbury Cakes.—(No. 63.)

22 minute read

Rub well together one pound of pounded sugar, one pound of fresh butter, and one pound and a half of sifted flour, mix it into a paste, with half a gill of milk or cream, and one egg, let it lie half an hour, roll it out thin, cut it out into small cakes with a tin cutter, about three inches over, and bake them on a clean baking-plate in a moderate oven....

Banbury Cakes.—(No. 64.)

44 minute read

Set a sponge with two table-spoonfuls of thick yest, a gill of warm milk, and a pound of flour; when it has worked a little, mix with it half a pound of currants, washed and picked, half a pound of candied orange and lemon peel cut small, one ounce of spice, such as ground cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and grated nutmeg: mix the whole together with half a pound of honey; roll out puff paste ( No. 1 ,) a quarter of an inch thick, cut it into rounds with a cutter, about four inches over, lay on each with a spoon a small quantity of the mixture; close it round with the fingers in the form of an oval; place the join underneath; press it flat with the hand; sift sugar over it, and bake them on a plate a quarter of an hour, in a moderate oven, and of...

Bath Buns.—(No. 65.)

29 minute read

Rub together with the hand one pound of fine flour, and half a pound of butter; beat six eggs, and add them to the flour, &c. with a table-spoonful of good yest; mix them all together, with about half a tea-cupful of milk; set it in a warm place for an hour, then mix in six ounces of sifted sugar, and a few caraway seeds; mould them into buns with a table-spoon, on a clean baking-plate; throw six or eight caraway comfits on each, and bake them in a hot oven about ten minutes. This quantity should make about eighteen....

Sponge Biscuits.—(No. 66.)

39 minute read

Break into a round-bottomed preserving-pan 379-* nine good-sized eggs, with one pound of sifted loaf sugar, and some grated lemon-peel; set the pan over a very slow fire, and whisk it till quite warm (but not too hot to set the eggs); remove the pan from the fire, and whisk it till cold, which may be a quarter of an hour; then stir in the flour lightly with a spattle; previous to which, prepare the sponge frame as follows:—Wipe them well out with a clean cloth, rub the insides with a brush dipped in butter, which has been cla rified, and sift loaf sugar over; fill the frames with the mixture; throw pounded sugar over; bake them five minutes in a brisk oven: when done, take them from the frames, and lay them on a sieve....

Savoy Cake, or Sponge Cake in a Mould.—(No. 67.)

40 minute read

Take nine eggs, their weight of sugar, and six of flour, some grated lemon, or a few drops of essence of lemon, and half a gill of orange-flower water, work them as in the last receipt; put in the orange-flower water when you take it from the fire; be very careful the mould is quite dry; rub it all over the inside with butter; put some pounded sugar round the mould upon the butter, and shake it well to get it out of the crevices: tie a slip of paper round the mould; fill it three parts full with the mixture, and bake it one hour in a slack oven; when done, let it stand for a few minutes, and take it from the mould, which may be done by shaking it a little....

Biscuit Drops.—(No. 68.)

21 minute read

Beat well together in a pan one pound of sifted sugar with eight eggs for twenty minutes; then add a quarter of an ounce of caraway seeds, and one pound and a quarter of flour: lay wafer-paper on a baking-plate, put the mixture into a biscuit-funnel, and drop it out on the paper about the size of half a crown; sift sugar over, and bake them in a hot oven....

Savoy Biscuits.—(No. 69.)

23 minute read

To be made as drop biscuits, omitting the caraways, and quarter of a pound of flour: put it into the biscuit-funnel, and lay it out about the length and size of your finger, on common shop paper; strew sugar over, and bake them in a hot oven; when cold, wet the backs of the paper with a paste-brush and water: when they have lain some time, take them carefully off, and place them back to back....

Italian Macaroons.—(No. 70.)

51 minute read

Take one pound of Valentia or Jordan almonds, blanched, pound them quite fine with the whites of four eggs; add two pounds and a half of sifted loaf sugar, and rub them well together with the pestle; put in by degrees about ten or eleven more whites, working them well as you put them in; but the best criterion to go by in trying their lightness is to bake one or two, and if you find them heavy, put one or two more whites; put the mixture into a biscuit-funnel, and lay them out on wafer-paper, in pieces about the size of a small walnut, having ready about two ounces of blanched and dry almonds cut into slips, put three or four pieces on each, and bake them on wires, or a baking-plate, in a slow oven. Obs. —Almonds should be blanched and dried gradually two or three days before...

Ratafia Cakes.—(No. 71.)

33 minute read

To half a pound of blanched bitter, and half a pound of sweet, almonds, put the whites of four eggs; beat them quite fine in a mortar, and stir in two pounds and a quarter of loaf sugar, pounded and sifted; rub them well together with the whites (by degrees) of nine eggs (try their lightness as in the last receipt); lay them out from the biscuit-funnel on cartridge-paper, in drops about the size of a shilling, and bake them in a middling-heated oven, of a light brown colour, and take them from the papers as soon as cold. N.B. A smaller pipe must be used in the funnel than for other articles....

Almond Sponge Cake.—(No. 72.)

29 minute read

Pound in a mortar one pound of blanched almonds quite fine, with the whites of three eggs; then put in one pound of sifted loaf sugar, some grated lemon-peel, and the yelks of fifteen eggs—work them well together: beat up to a solid froth the whites of twelve eggs, and stir them into the other ingredients with a quarter of a pound of sifted dry flour: prepare a mould as at No. 67 ; put in the mixture, and bake it an hour in a slow oven: take it carefully from the mould, and set it on a sieve....

Ratafia Cake.—(No. 73.)

8 minute read

To be made as above, omitting a quarter of a pound of sweet, and substituting a quarter of a pound of bitter almonds....

Diet Bread Cake.—(No. 74.)

26 minute read

Boil, in half a pint of water, one pound and a half of lump sugar; have ready one pint of eggs, three parts yelks, in a pan; pour in the sugar, and whisk it quick till cold, or about a quarter of an hour; then stir in two pounds of sifted flour; case the inside of square tins with white paper; fill them three parts full; sift a little sugar over, and bake it in a warm oven, and while hot remove them from the moulds....

Orange Gingerbread.—(No. 75.)

48 minute read

Sift two pounds and a quarter of fine flour, and add to it a pound and three quarters of treacle, six ounces of candied orange-peel cut small, three quarters of a pound of moist sugar, one ounce of ground ginger, and one ounce of allspice: melt to an oil three quarters of a pound of butter; mix the whole well together, and lay it by for twelve hours; roll it out with as little flour as possible, about half an inch thick; cut it into pieces three inches long and two wide; mark them in the form of checkers with the back of a knife; put them on a baking-plate about a quarter of an inch apart; rub them over with a brush dipped into the yelk of an egg beat up with a tea-cupful of milk; bake it in a cool oven about a quarter of an hour: when...

Gingerbread Nuts.—(No. 76.)

28 minute read

To two pounds of sifted flour, put two pounds of treacle, three quarters of a pound of moist sugar, half a pound of candied orange-peel cut small, one ounce and a half of ground ginger, one ounce of ground caraways, and three quarters of a pound of butter oiled: mix all well together, and set it by some time; then roll it out in pieces about the size of a small walnut; lay them in rows on a baking-plate; dress them flat with the hand, and bake them in a slow oven about ten minutes....

Plain Buns.—(No. 77.)

48 minute read

To four pounds of sifted flour put one pound of good moist sugar; make a cavity in the centre, and stir in a gill of good yest, a pint of lukewarm milk, with enough of the flour to make it the thickness of cream; cover it over, and let it lie two hours; then melt to an oil (but not hot) one pound of butter, stir it into the other ingredients, with enough warm milk to make it a soft paste; throw a little flour over, and let them lie an hour; have ready a baking-platter rubbed over with butter; mould with the hand the dough into buns, about the size of a large egg; lay them in rows full three inches apart; set them in a warm place for half an hour, or till they have risen to double their size; bake them in a hot oven of a...

Cross Buns.—(No. 78.)

13 minute read

To the above mixture put one ounce and a half of ground allspice, cinnamon, and mace, mixed; and when half proved, press the form of a cross with a tin mould (made for the purpose) in the centre, and proceed as above....

Seed Buns.—(No. 79.)

26 minute read

Take two pounds of plain bun dough ( No. 77 ), and mix in one ounce of caraway seeds; butter the insides of small tart-pans; mould the dough into buns, and put one in each pan; set them to rise in a warm place; and when sufficiently proved, ice them with the white of an egg beat to a froth, and laid on with a paste-brush; some pounded sugar upon that, and dissolve it with water splashed from the brush: bake them in a warm oven about ten minutes....

Plum Buns.—(No. 80.)

19 minute read

To two pounds of No. 77 mixture, put half a pound of currants, a quarter of a pound of candied orange-peel cut into small pieces, half a nutmeg grated, half an ounce of mixed spice, such as allspice, cinnamon, &c.: mould them into buns; jag them round the edge with a knife, and proceed as with plain buns, No. 77 ....

Orgeat.—(No. 81.)

55 minute read

Pound very fine one pound of Jordan, and one ounce of bitter, almonds, in a marble mortar, with half a gill of orange-flower water to keep them from oiling; then mix with them one pint of rose and one pint of spring-water; rub it through a tamis cloth or lawn sieve, till the almonds are quite dry, which will reduce the quantity to about a quart: have ready three pints of clarified sugar or water, and boil it to a crack (which may be known by dipping your fingers into the sugar, and then into cold water; and if you find the sugar to crack in moving your finger, it has boiled enough); put in the almonds; boil it one minute, and when cold put it into small bottles close corked; a table-spoonful of which will be sufficient for a tumbler of water: shake the bottle before using. Obs. —If...

Baked Pears.—(No. 82.)

41 minute read

Take twelve large baking pears; pare and cut them into halves, leaving the stem about half an inch long; take out the core with the point of a knife, and place them close together in a block-tin saucepan, the inside of which is quite bright, with the cover to fit quite close; put to them the rind of a lemon cut thin, with half its juice, a small stick of cinnamon, and twenty grains of allspice; cover them with spring-water, and allow one pound of loaf-sugar to a pint and a half of water: cover them up close, and bake them for six hours in a very slow oven: they will be quite tender, and of a bright colour. Obs. —Prepared cochineal is generally used for colouring the pears; but if the above is strictly attended to, it will be found to answer best....

To dry Apples.—(No. 83.)

36 minute read

Take biffins, or orange or lemon-pippins; the former are the best; choose the clearest rinds, and without any blemishes; lay them on clean straw on a baking-wire; cover them well with more straw; set them into a slow oven; let them remain for four or five hours; draw them out and rub them in your hands, and press them very gently, otherwise you will burst the skins; return them into the oven for about an hour; press them again; when cold, if they look dry, rub them over with a little clarified sugar. Obs. —By being put into the oven four or five times, pressing them between each time, they may be brought as flat, and eat as well, as the dried biffins from Norfolk....

Icing, for Twelfth or Bride Cake.—(No. 84.)

43 minute read

Take one pound of double-refined sugar, pounded and sifted through a lawn sieve; put into a pan quite free from grease; break in the whites of six eggs, and as much powder blue as will lie on a sixpence; beat it well with a spattle for ten minutes; then squeeze in the juice of a lemon, and beat it till it becomes thick and transparent. Set the cake you intend to ice in an oven or warm place five minutes; then spread over the top and sides with the mixture as smooth as possible. If for a wedding-cake only, plain ice it; if for a twelfth cake, ornament it with gum paste, or fancy articles of any description. Obs. —A good twelfth cake, not baked too much, and kept in a cool dry place, will retain its moisture and eat well, if twelve months old....

To boil Sugar to Caramel.—(No. 85.)

50 minute read

Break into a small copper or brass pan one pound of refined sugar; put in a gill of spring-water; set it on a fire; when it boils skim it quite clean, and let it boil quick, till it comes to the degree called crack; which may be known by dipping a tea-spoon or skewer into the sugar, and letting it drop to the bottom of a pan of cold water; and if it remains hard, it has attained that degree: squeeze in the juice of half a lemon, and let it remain one minute longer on the fire; then set the pan into another of cold water: have ready moulds of any shape; rub them over with sweet oil; dip a spoon or fork into the sugar, and throw it over the mould in fine threads, till it is quite covered: make a small handle of caramel, or stick on...

A Croquante of Paste.—(No. 86.)

33 minute read

Roll out paste, as No. 8 , about the eighth of an inch thick; rub over a plain mould with a little fresh butter; lay on the paste very even, and equally thin on both sides; pare it round the rim; then with a small penknife cut out small pieces, as fancy may direct, such as diamonds, stars, circles, sprigs, &c.; or use a small tin cutter of any shape: let it lie to dry some time, and bake it a few minutes in a slack oven, of a light colour: remove it from the mould, and place it over a tart, or any other dish of small pastry....

Derby or Short Cakes.—(No. 87.)

21 minute read

Rub in with the hand one pound of butter into two pounds of sifted flour; put one pound of currants, one pound of good moist sugar, and one egg; mix all together with half a pint of milk: roll it out thin, and cut them into round cakes with a cutter; lay them on a clean baking-plate, and put them into a middling-heated oven for about five minutes....

Egg and Ham Patties.—(No. 88.)

41 minute read

Cut a slice of bread two inches thick, from the most solid part of a stale quartern loaf: have ready a tin round cutter, two inches diameter; cut out four or five pieces, then take a cutter two sizes smaller, press it nearly through the larger pieces, then remove with a small knife the bread from the inner circle: have ready a large stew-pan full of boiling lard; fry them of a light-brown colour, drain them dry with a clean cloth, and set them by till wanted; then take half a pound of lean ham, mince it small; add to it a gill of good brown sauce; stir it over the fire a few minutes, and put a small quantity of Cayenne pepper and lemon-juice: fill the shapes with the mixture, and lay a poached egg ( No. 546 ) upon each....

Damson, or other Plum Cheese.—(No. 89.)

27 minute read

Take damsons that have been preserved without sugar; pass them through a sieve, to take out the skins and stones. To every pound of pulp of fruit put half a pound of loaf sugar, broke small; boil them together till it becomes quite stiff; pour it into four common-sized dinner plates, rubbed with a little sweet oil; put it into a warm place to dry, and when quite firm, take it from the plate, and cut it into any shape you choose. N.B. Damson cheese is generally used in desserts....

Barley Sugar.—(No. 90.)

41 minute read

Clarify, as No. 475 , three pounds of refined sugar; boil it to the degree of cracked (which may be ascertained by dipping a spoon into the sugar, and then instantly into cold water, and if it appears brittle, it is boiled enough); squeeze in a small tea-spoonful of the juice, and four drops of essence of lemon, and let it boil up once or twice, and set it by a few minutes: have ready a marble slab, or smooth stone, rubbed over with sweet oil; pour over the sugar; cut it into long stripes with a large pair of scissors; twist it a little, and when cold, keep it from the air in tin boxes or canisters. N.B. A few drops of essence of ginger, instead of lemon, will make what is called ginger barley sugar....

Barley Sugar Drops.—(No. 91.)

24 minute read

To be made as the last receipt. Have ready, by the time the sugar is boiled sufficiently, a large sheet of paper, with a smooth layer of sifted loaf sugar on it; put the boiled sugar into a ladle that has a fine lip; pour it out, in drops not larger than a shilling, on to the sifted sugar; when cold, fold them up separately in white paper. N.B. Some use an oiled marble slab instead of the sifted sugar....

Raspberry Jam.—(No. 92.)

29 minute read

Rub fresh-gathered raspberries, taken on a dry day, through a wicker sieve; to one pint of the pulp put one pound of loaf sugar, broke small; put it into a preserving-pan over a brisk fire; when it begins to boil, skim it well, and stir it twenty minutes; put into small pots; cut white paper to the size of the top of the pot; dip them in brandy, and put them over the jam when cold, with a double paper tied over the pot. Strawberry jam is made the same way, and the scarlets are most proper for that purpose....

Apricot, or any Plum Jam.—(No. 93.)

39 minute read

After taking away the stones from the apricots, and cutting out any blemishes they may have; put them over a slow fire, in a clean stew-pan, with half a pint of water; when scalded, rub them through a hair-sieve: to every pound of pulp put one pound of sifted loaf-sugar; put it into a preserving-pan over a brisk fire, and when it boils skim it well, and throw in the kernels of the apricots, and half an ounce of bitter almonds, blanched; boil it a quarter of an hour fast, and stirring it all the time; remove it from the fire, and fill it into pots, and cover them as at No. 92 . N.B. Green gages or plums may be done in the same way, omitting the kernels or almonds....

Lemon Chips.—(No. 94.)

1 minute read

Take large smooth-rinded Malaga lemons; race or cut off their peel into chips with a small knife (this will require some practice to do it properly); throw them into salt and water till next day; have ready a pan of boiling water, throw them in and boil them tender. Drain them well: after having lain some time in water to cool, put them in an earthen pan, pour over enough boiling clarified sugar to cover them, and then let them lie two days; then strain the syrup, put more sugar, and reduce it by boiling till the syrup is quite thick; put in the chips, and simmer them a few minutes, and set them by for two days: repeat it once more; let them be two days longer, and they will be fit to candy, which must be done as follows: take four pints of clarified sugar, which will be...

Dried Cherries.—(No. 95.)

38 minute read

Take large Kentish cherries, not too ripe; pick off the stalks, and take out the stones with a quill, cut nearly as for a pen: to three pounds of which take three pounds or pints of clarified sugar—(see No. 475 ,) boil it to the degree of blown (for which see last receipt); put in the cherries, give them a boil, and set them by in an earthen pan till the next day; then strain the syrup, add more sugar, and boil it of a good consistence; put the cherries in, and boil them five minutes, and set them by another day: repeat the boiling two more days, and when wanted, drain them some time, and lay them on wire sieves to dry in a stove, or nearly cold oven....

Green Gages preserved in Syrup.—(No. 96.)

54 minute read

Take the gages when nearly ripe; cut the stalks about half an inch from the fruit; put them into cold water, with a lump of alum about the size of a walnut; and set them on a slow fire till they come to a simmer: take them from the fire, and put them into cold water; drain, and pack them close into a preserving-pan; pour over them enough clarified sugar to cover them; simmer them two or three minutes; set them by in an earthen pan till next day, when drain the gages, and boil the syrup with more sugar, till quite thick; put in the gages, and simmer them three minutes more, and repeat it for two days; then boil clarified sugar to a blow, as at No. 94 , place the gages into glasses, and pour the syrup over, and, when cold, tie over a bladder, and upon...

To preserve Ginger.—(No. 97.)

1 minute read

Take green ginger, pare it neatly with a sharp knife; throw it into a pan of cold water as it is pared, to keep it white; when you have sufficient, boil it till tender, changing the water three times; each time put it into cold water to take out the heat or spirit of the ginger; when tender, throw it into cold water: for seven pounds of ginger, clarify eight pounds of refined sugar, see No. 475 ; when cold, drain the ginger, and put it in an earthen pan, with enough of the sugar, cold, to cover it, and let it stand two days; then pour the syrup from the ginger to the remainder of the sugar; boil it some time, and when cold, pour it on the ginger again, and set it by three days at least. Then take the syrup from the ginger; boil it, and put...

To preserve Cucumbers.—(No. 98.)

36 minute read

Take large and fresh-gathered cucumbers; split them down and take out all the seeds; lay them in salt and water that will bear an egg, three days; set them on a fire with cold water, and a small lump of alum, and boil them a few minutes, or till tender; drain them, and pour on them a thin syrup; let them lie two days; boil the syrup again, and put it over the cucumbers; repeat it twice more; then have ready some fresh clarified sugar, boiled to a blow (see No. 94 ); put in the cucumbers, and simmer it five minutes; set it by till next day; boil the syrup and cucumbers again, and set them in glasses for use....

Preserved Fruit, without Sugar.—(No. 99.)

49 minute read

Take damsons when not too ripe; pick off the stalks, and put them into wide-mouthed glass bottles, taking care not to put in any but what are whole, and without blemish; shake them well down (otherwise the bottles will not be half full when done); stop the bottles with new soft corks, not too tight; set them into a very slow oven (nearly cold) four or five hours; the slower they are done the better; when they begin to shrink in the bottles, it is a sure sign that the fruit is thoroughly warm: take them out, and before they are cold, drive in the corks quite tight; set them in a bottle-rack or basket, with the mouth downwards, and they will keep good several years. Green gooseberries, morello cherries, currants, green gages, or bullace, may be done the same way. Obs. —If the corks are good, and fit well,...

Bread.—(No. 100.)

42 minute read

Put a quartern of flour into a large basin, with two tea-spoonfuls of salt; make a hole in the middle; then put in a basin four table-spoonfuls, of good yest; stir in a pint of milk, lukewarm; put it in the hole of the flour; stir it just to make it of a thin batter; then strew a little flour over the top; then set it on one side of the fire, and cover it over: let it stand till the next morning; then make it into dough; add half a pint more of warm milk; knead it for ten minutes, and then set it in a warm place by the fire for one hour and a half; then knead it again, and it is ready either for loaves or bricks: bake them from one hour and a half to two hours, according to the size....

French Bread and Rolls.—(No. 100*.)

35 minute read

Take a pint and a half of milk; make it quite warm; half a pint of small-beer yest; add sufficient flour to make it as thick as batter; put it into a pan; cover it over, and keep it warm: when it has risen as high as it will, add a quarter of a pint of warm water, and half an ounce of salt,—mix them well together;—rub into a little flour two ounces of butter; then make your dough, not quite so stiff as for your bread; let it stand for three quarters of an hour, and it will be ready to make into rolls, &c.: let them stand till they have risen, and bake them in a quick oven....

Sally Lunn.—Tea Cakes.—(No. 101.)

54 minute read

Take one pint of milk quite warm, a quarter of a pint of thick small-beer yest; put them into a pan with flour sufficient to make it as thick as batter,—cover it over, and let it stand till it has risen as high as it will, i. e. about two hours: add two ounces of lump sugar, dissolved in a quarter of a pint of warm milk, 391-* a quarter of a pound of butter rubbed into your flour very fine; then make your dough the same as for French rolls, &c.; and let it stand half an hour; then make up your cakes, and put them on tins: when they have stood to rise, bake them in a quick oven. Care should be taken never to put your yest to water or milk too hot, or too cold, as either extreme will destroy the fermentation. In summer it should...

Muffins.—(No. 102.)

34 minute read

Take one pint of milk quite warm, and a quarter of a pint of thick small-beer yest; strain them into a pan, and add sufficient flour to make it like a batter; cover it over, and let it stand in a warm place until it has risen; then add a quarter of a pint of warm milk, and one ounce of butter rubbed in some flour quite fine; mix them well together: then add sufficient flour to make it into dough, cover it over, and let it stand half an hour; then work it up again, and break it into small pieces: roll them up quite round, and cover them over for a quarter of an hour; then bake them....

Crumpets.—(No. 103.)

21 minute read

The same: instead of making the mixture into dough, add only sufficient flour to make a thick batter, and when it has stood a quarter of an hour it will be ready to bake. Muffins and crumpets bake best on a stove with an iron plate fixed on the top; but they will also bake in a frying-pan, taking care the fire is not too fierce, and turning them when lightly browned....

Yorkshire Cakes.—(No. 104.)

3 minute read

Take a pint and a half of milk quite warm, and a quarter of a pint of thick small-beer yest; mix them well together in a pan with sufficient flour to make a thick batter; let it stand in a warm place covered over until it has risen as high as it will; rub six ounces of butter into some flour till it is quite fine; then break three eggs into your pan with the flour and butter; mix them well together; then add sufficient flour to make it into a dough, and let it stand a quarter of an hour; then work it up-again, and break it into pieces about the size of an egg, or larger, as you may fancy; roll them round and smooth with your hand, and put them on tins, and let them stand covered over with a light piece of flannel. 376-* The goodness...

OBSERVATIONS ON PUDDINGS AND PIES.

5 minute read

The quality of the various articles employed in the composition of puddings and pies varies so much, that two puddings, made exactly according to the same receipt, will be so different 392-* one would hardly suppose they were made by the same person, and certainly not with precisely the same quantities of the (apparently) same ingredients. Flour fresh ground, pure new milk, fresh laid eggs, fresh butter, fresh suet, &c. will make a very different composition, than when kept till each article is half spoiled. Plum puddings, when boiled, if hung up in a cool place in the cloth they are boiled in, will keep good some months; when wanted, take them out of the cloth, and put them into a clean cloth, and as soon as warmed through, they are ready. Mem. —In composing these receipts, the quantities of eggs, butter, &c. are considerably less than are ordered in...

College Puddings.—(No. 105.)

42 minute read

Beat four eggs, yelks and whites together, in a quart basin, with two ounces of flour, half a nutmeg, a little ginger, and three ounces of sugar; pounded loaf sugar is best. Beat it into a smooth batter; then add six ounces of suet, chopped fine, six of currants, well washed and picked; mix it all well together; a glass of brandy or white wine will improve it. These puddings are generally fried in butter or lard; but they are much nicer baked in an oven in patty-pans; twenty minutes will bake them: if fried, fry them till they are of a nice light brown, and when fried, roll them in a little flour. You may add one ounce of orange or citron, minced very fine; when you bake them, add one more egg, or two spoonfuls of milk. Serve them up with white wine sauce....

Rice Puddings baked, or boiled.—(No. 106.)

1 minute read

Wash in cold water and pick very clean six ounces of rice, put it in a quart stew-pan three parts filled with cold water, set it on the fire, and let it boil five minutes; pour away the water, and put in one quart of milk, a roll of lemon peel, and a bit of cinnamon; let it boil gently till the rice is quite tender; it will take at least one hour and a quarter; be careful to stir it every five minutes; take it off the fire, and stir in an ounce and a half of fresh butter, and beat up three eggs on a plate, a salt-spoonful of nutmeg, two ounces of sugar; put it into the pudding, and stir it till it is quite smooth; line a pie-dish big enough to hold it with puff paste, notch it round the edge, put in your pudding, and...

Ground Rice Pudding.—(No. 107.)

43 minute read

Put four ounces of ground rice into a stew-pan, and by degrees stir in a pint and a half of milk; set it on the fire, with a roll of lemon and a bit of cinnamon; keep stirring it till it boils; beat it to a smooth batter; then set it on the trivet, where it will simmer gently for a quarter of an hour; then beat three eggs on a plate, stir them into the pudding with two ounces of sugar and two drachms of nutmeg, take out the lemon-peel and cinnamon, stir it all well together, line a pie-dish with thin puff paste ( No. 1 of receipts for pastry), big enough to hold it, or butter the dish well, and bake it half an hour; if boiled, it will take one hour in a mould well buttered; three ounces of currants may be added....

Rice Snow Balls.—(No. 108.)

24 minute read

Wash and pick half a pound of rice very clean, put it on in a saucepan with plenty of water; when it boils let it boil ten minutes, drain it on a sieve till it is quite dry, and then pare six apples, weighing two ounces and a half each. Divide the rice into six parcels, in separate cloths, put one apple in each, tie it loose, and boil it one hour; serve it with sugar and butter, or wine sauce....

Rice Blancmange.—(No. 109.)

43 minute read

Put a tea-cupful of whole rice into the least water possible, till it almost bursts; then add half a pint of good milk or thin cream, and boil it till it is quite a mash, stirring it the whole time it is on the fire, that it may not burn; dip a shape in cold water, and do not dry it; put in the rice, and let it stand until quite cold, when it will come easily out of the shape. This dish is much approved of; it is eaten with cream or custard, and preserved fruits; raspberries are best. It should be made the day before it is wanted, that it may get firm. This blancmange will eat much nicer, flavoured with spices, lemon-peel, &c., and sweetened with a little loaf sugar, add it with the milk, and take out the lemon-peel before you put in the mould....

Save-all Pudding.—(No. 110.)

29 minute read

Put any scraps of bread into a clean saucepan; to about a pound, put a pint of milk; set it on the trivet till it boils; beat it up quite smooth; then break in three eggs, three ounces of sugar, with a little nutmeg, ginger, or allspice, and stir it all well together. Butter a dish big enough to hold it, put in the pudding, and have ready two ounces of suet chopped very fine, strew it over the top of the pudding, and bake it three quarters of an hour; four ounces of currants will make it much better....

Batter Pudding, baked or boiled.—(No. 111.)

40 minute read

Break three eggs in a basin with as much salt as will lie on a sixpence; beat them well together, and then add four ounces of flour; beat it into a smooth batter, and by degrees add half a pint of milk: have your saucepan ready boiling, and butter an earthen mould well, put the pudding in, and tie it tight over with a pudding-cloth, and boil it one hour and a quarter. Or, put it in a dish that you have well buttered, and bake it three quarters of an hour. Currants washed and picked clean, or raisins stoned, are good in this pudding, and it is then called a black cap: or, add loaf sugar, and a little nutmeg and ginger without the fruit,—it is very good that way; serve it with wine sauce....

Apple Pudding boiled.—(No. 112.)

57 minute read

Chop four ounces of beef suet very fine, or two ounces of butter, lard, or dripping; but the suet makes the best and lightest crust; put it on the paste-board, with eight ounces of flour, and a salt-spoonful of salt, mix it well together with your hands, and then put it all of a heap, and make a hole in the middle; break one egg in it, stir it well together with your finger, and by degrees infuse as much water as will make it of a stiff paste: roll it out two or three times, with the rolling-pin, and then roll it large enough to receive thirteen ounces of apples. It will look neater if boiled in a basin, well buttered, than when boiled in a pudding-cloth, well floured; boil it an hour and three quarters: but the surest way is to stew the apples first in a stew-pan,...

Apple Dumplings.—(No. 113.)

25 minute read

Make paste the same as for apple pudding, divide it into as many pieces as you want dumplings, peel the apples and core them, then roll out your paste large enough, and put in the apples; close it all round, and tie them in pudding-cloths very tight; one hour will boil them: and when you take them up, just dip them in cold water, and put them in a cup the size of the dumpling while you untie them, and they will turn out without breaking....

Suet Pudding or Dumplings.—(No. 114.)

56 minute read

Chop six ounces of suet very fine: put it in a basin with six ounces of flour, two ounces of bread-crumbs, and a tea-spoonful of salt; stir it all well together: beat two eggs on a plate, add to them six table-spoonfuls of milk, put it by degrees into the basin, and stir it all well together; divide it into six dumplings, and tie them separate, previously dredging the cloth lightly with flour. Boil them one hour. This is very good the next day fried in a little butter. The above will make a good pudding, boiled in an earthenware mould, with the addition of one more egg, a little more milk, and two ounces of suet. Boil it two hours. N.B. The most economical way of making suet dumplings, is to boil them without a cloth in a pot with beef or mutton; no eggs are then wanted, and...