1495. From the nature of vegetable substances, and chiefly from their not passing so rapidly into the putrescent state as animal bodies, the mode of preserving them is somewhat different, although the general principles are the same. All the means of preservation are put in practice occasionally for fruits and the various parts of vegetables, according to the nature of the species, the climate, the uses to which they are applied, &c. Some are dried, as nuts, raisins, sweet herbs, &c.; others are preserved by means of sugar, such as many fruits whose delicate juices would be lost by drying; some are preserved by means of vinegar, and chiefly used as condiments or pickles; a few also by salting, as French beans; while others are preserved in spirits. We have, however, in this place to treat of the best methods of preserving fruits. Fruit is a most important item in the economy of health; the epicurean can scarcely be said to have any luxuries without it; therefore, as it is so invaluable, when we cannot have it fresh, we must have it preserved. It has long been a desideratum to preserve fruits by some cheap method, yet by such as would keep them fit for the various culinary purposes, as making tarts and other similar dishes. The expense of preserving them with sugar is a serious objection; for, except the sugar is used in considerable quantities, the success is very uncertain. Sugar also overpowers and destroys the sub-acid taste so desirable in many fruits: those which are preserved in this manner are chiefly intended 756 for the dessert. Fruits intended for preservation should be gathered in the morning, in dry weather, with the morning sun upon them, if possible; they will then have their fullest flavour, and keep in good condition longer than when gathered at any other time. Until fruit can be used, it should be placed in the dairy, an ice-house, or a refrigerator. In an ice-house it will remain fresh and plump for several days. Fruit gathered in wet or foggy weather will soon be mildewed, and be of no service for preserves.
1496. Having secured the first and most important contribution to the manufacture of preserves,—the fruit, the next consideration is the preparation of the syrup in which the fruit is to be suspended; and this requires much care. In the confectioner’s art there is a great nicety in proportioning the degree of concentration of the syrup very exactly to each particular case; and they know this by signs, and express it by certain technical terms. But to distinguish these properly requires very great attention and considerable experience. The principal thing to be acquainted with is the fact, that, in proportion as the syrup is longer boiled, its water will become evaporated, and its consistency will be thicker. Great care must be taken in the management of the fire, that the syrup does not boil over, and that the boiling is not carried to such an extent as to burn the sugar.
1497. The first degree of consistency is called the thread, which is subdivided into the little and great thread. If you dip the finger into the syrup and apply it to the thumb, the tenacity of the syrup will, on separating the finger and thumb, afford a thread, which shortly breaks: this is the little thread. If the thread, from the greater tenacity, and, consequently, greater strength of the syrup, admits of a greater extension of the finger and thumb, it is called the great thread. There are half a dozen other terms and experiments for testing the various thickness of the boiling sugar towards the consistency called caramel; but that degree of sugar-boiling belongs to the confectioner. A solution of sugar prepared by dissolving two parts of double-refined sugar (the best sugar is the most economical for preserves) in one of water, and boiling this a little, affords a syrup of the right degree of strength, and which neither ferments nor crystallizes. This appears to be the degree called smooth by the confectioners, and is proper to be used for the purposes of preserves. The syrup employed should sometimes be clarified, which is done in the following manner:—Dissolve 2 lbs. of loaf sugar in a pint of water; add to this solution the white of an egg, and beat it well. Put the preserving-pan upon the fire with the solution; stir it with a wooden spatula, and, when it begins to swell and boil up, throw in some cold water or a little oil, to damp the boiling; for, as it rises suddenly, if it should boil over, it would take fire, being of a very inflammable nature. Let it boil up again; then take it off, and remove carefully the scum that has risen. Boil the solution again, throw in a little more cold water, remove the scum, and so on for three or four times successively; then strain it. It is considered to be sufficiently boiled when some taken up in a spoon pours out like oil.
MODERN MODE OF SERVING DISHES.
S1. Jelly of two colours. T1. Raspberry Cream. U1. Centre Dish of Various Fruits. V1. Trifle. W1. Strawberries au naturel in ornamental Flowerpot.
1498. Although sugar passes so easily into the state of fermentation, and is, in fact, the only substance capable of undergoing the vinous stage of that process, yet it will not ferment at all if the quantity be sufficient to constitute a very strong syrup: hence, syrups are used to preserve fruits and other vegetable substances from the changes they would undergo if left to themselves. Before sugar was in use, honey was employed to preserve many vegetable productions, though this substance has now given way to the juice of the sugar-cane.
1499. The fruits that are the most fit for preservation in syrup are, apricots, peaches, nectarines, apples, greengages, plums of all kinds, and pears. As an example, take some apricots not too ripe, make a small slit at the stem end, and push out the stone; simmer them in water till they are softened and about half done, and afterwards throw them into cold water. When they have cooled, take them out and drain them. Put the apricots into the preserving-pan with sufficient syrup to cover them; let them boil up three or four times, and then skim them; remove them from the fire, pour them into an earthen pan, and let them cool till next day. Boil them up three days successively, skimming each time, and they will then be finished and in a state fit to be put into pots for use. After each boiling, it is proper to examine into the state of the syrup when cold; if too thin, it will bear additional boiling; if too thick, it may be lowered with more syrup of the usual standard. The reason why the fruit is emptied out of the preserving-pan into an earthen pan is, that the acid of the fruit acts upon the copper, of which the preserving-pans are usually made. From this example the process of preserving fruits by syrup will be easily comprehended. The first object is to soften the fruit by blanching or boiling it in water, in order that the syrup by which it is preserved may penetrate through its substance.
1500. Many fruits, when preserved by boiling, lose much of their peculiar and delicate flavour, as, for instance, pine-apples; and this inconvenience may, in some instances, be remedied by preserving them without heat. Cut the fruit in slices about one fifth of an inch thick, strew powdered loaf sugar an eighth of an inch thick on the bottom of a jar, and put the slices on it. Put more sugar on this, and then another layer of the slices, and so on till the jar is full. Place the jar with the fruit up to the neck in boiling water, and keep it there till the sugar is completely dissolved, which may take half an hour, removing the scum as it rises. Lastly, tie a wet bladder over the mouth of the jar, or cork and wax it.
1501. Any of the fruits that have been preserved in syrup may be converted into dry preserves, by first draining them from the syrup, and then drying them in a stove or very moderate oven, adding to them a quantity of powdered loaf sugar, which will gradually penetrate the fruit, while the fluid parts of the syrup gently evaporate. They should be dried in the stove or oven on a sieve, and turned every six or eight hours, fresh powdered sugar being sifted over 758 them every time they are turned. Afterwards, they are to be kept in a dry situation, in drawers or boxes. Currants and cherries preserved whole in this manner, in bunches, are extremely elegant, and have a fine flavour. In this way it is, also, that orange and lemon chips are preserved.
1502. Marmalades, jams, and fruit pastes are of the same nature, and are now in very general request. They are prepared without difficulty, by attending to a very few directions; they are somewhat expensive, but may be kept without spoiling for a considerable time. Marmalades and jams differ little from each other: they are preserves of a half-liquid consistency, made by boiling the pulp of fruits, and sometimes part of the rinds, with sugar. The appellation of marmalade is applied to those confitures which are composed of the firmer fruits, as pineapples or the rinds of oranges; whereas jams are made of the more juicy berries, such as strawberries, raspberries, currants, mulberries, &c. Fruit pastes are a kind of marmalades, consisting of the pulp of fruits, first evaporated to a proper consistency, and afterwards boiled with sugar. The mixture is then poured into a mould, or spread on sheets of tin, and subsequently dried in the oven or stove till it has acquired the state of a paste. From a sheet of this paste, strips may be cut and formed into any shape that may be desired, as knots, rings, &c. Jams require the same care and attention in the boiling as marmalade; the slightest degree of burning communicates a disagreeable empyreumatic taste, and if they are not boiled sufficiently, they will not keep. That they may keep, it is necessary not to be sparing of sugar.
1503. In all the operations for preserve-making, when the preserving-pan is used, it should not be placed on the fire, but on a trivet, unless the jam is made on a hot plate, when this is not necessary. If the pan is placed close on to the fire, the preserve is very liable to burn, and the colour and flavour be consequently spoiled.
1504. Fruit jellies are compounds of the juices of fruits combined with sugar, concentrated, by boiling, to such a consistency that the liquid, upon cooling, assumes the form of a tremulous jelly.
1505. Before fruits are candied, they must first be boiled in syrup, after which they are taken out and dried on a stove, or before the fire; the syrup is then to be concentrated, or boiled to a candy height, and the fruit dipped in it, and again laid on the stove to dry and candy: they are then to be put into boxes, and kept dry.
1506. Conserves consist of fresh vegetable matters beat into a uniform mass with refined sugar, and they are intended to preserve the virtues and properties of recent flowers, leaves, roots, peels, or fruits, unaltered, and as near as possible to what they were when fresh gathered, and to give them an agreeable taste.
7591507. The last-mentioned, but not the least-important preparation of fruit, is the compôte, a confiture made at the moment of need, and with much less sugar than would be ordinarily put to preserves. They are most wholesome things, suitable to most stomachs which cannot accommodate themselves to raw fruit or a large portion of sugar: they are the happy medium, and far better than ordinary stewed fruit.
1508. In speaking of confectionary, it should be remarked that all the various preparations above named come, strictly speaking, under that head; for the various fruits, flowers, herbs, roots, and juices, which, when boiled with sugar, were formerly employed in pharmacy as well as for sweetmeats, were called confections, from the Latin word conficere, ‘to make up;’ but the term confectionary embraces a very large class indeed of sweet food, many kinds of which should not be attempted in the ordinary cuisine. The thousand and one ornamental dishes that adorn the tables of the wealthy should be purchased from the confectioner: they cannot profitably be made at home. Apart from these, cakes, biscuits, and tarts, &c., the class of sweetmeats called confections may be thus classified:—1. Liquid confects, or fruits either whole or in pieces, preserved by being immersed in a fluid transparent syrup; as the liquid confects of apricots, green citrons, and many foreign fruits. 2. Dry confects are those which, after having been boiled in the syrup, are taken out and put to dry in an oven, as citron and orange-peel, &c. 3. Marmalade, jams, and pastes, a kind of soft compounds made of the pulp of fruits or other vegetable substances, beat up with sugar or honey; such as oranges, apricots, pears, &c. 4. Jellies are the juices of fruits boiled with sugar to a pretty thick consistency, so as, upon cooling, to form a trembling jelly; as currant, gooseberry, apple jelly, &c. 5. Conserves are a kind of dry confects, made by beating up flowers, fruits, &c., with sugar, not dissolved. 6. Candies are fruits candied over with sugar after having been boiled in the syrup.
1509. With moderns the dessert is not so profuse, nor does it hold the same relationship to the dinner that it held with the ancients,—the Romans, more especially. On ivory tables they would spread hundreds of different kinds of raw, cooked, and preserved fruits, tarts and cakes, as substitutes for the more substantial comestibles with which the guests were satiated. However, as late as the reigns of our two last Georges, fabulous sums were often expended upon fanciful desserts. The dessert certainly repays, in its general effect, the expenditure upon it of much pains; and it may be said, that if there be any poetry at all in meals, or the process of feeding, there is poetry in the 760 dessert, the materials for which should be selected with taste, and, of course, must depend, in a great measure, upon the season. Pines, melons, grapes, peaches, nectarines, plums, strawberries, apples, pears, oranges, almonds, raisins, figs, walnuts, filberts, medlars, cherries, &c. &c., all kinds of dried fruits, and choice and delicately-flavoured cakes and biscuits, make up the dessert, together with the most costly and recherché wines. The shape of the dishes varies at different periods, the prevailing fashion at present being oval and circular dishes on stems. The patterns and colours are also subject to changes of fashion; some persons selecting china, chaste in pattern and colour; others, elegantly-shaped glass dishes on stems, with gilt edges. The beauty of the dessert services at the tables of the wealthy tends to enhance the splendour of the plate. The general mode of putting a dessert on table, now the elegant tazzas are fashionable, is, to place them down the middle of the table, a tall and short dish alternately; the fresh fruits being arranged on the tall dishes, and dried fruits, bon-bons, &c., on small round or oval glass plates. The garnishing needs especial attention, as the contrast of the brilliant-coloured fruits with nicely-arranged foliage is very charming. The garnish par excellence for dessert is the ice-plant; its crystallized dewdrops producing a marvellous effect in the height of summer, giving a most inviting sense of coolness to the fruit it encircles. The double-edged mallow, strawberry, and vine leaves have a pleasing effect; and for winter desserts, the bay, cuba, and laurel are sometimes used. In town, the expense and difficulty of obtaining natural foliage is great, but paper and composite leaves are to be purchased at an almost nominal price. Mixed fruits of the larger sort are now frequently served on one dish. This mode admits of the display of much taste in the arrangement of the fruit: for instance, a pine in the centre of the dish, surrounded with large plums of various sorts and colours, mixed with pears, rosy-cheeked apples, all arranged with a due regard to colour, have a very good effect. Again, apples and pears look well mingled with plums and grapes, hanging from the border of the dish in a négligé sort of manner, with a large bunch of the same fruit lying on the top of the apples. A dessert would not now be considered complete without candied and preserved fruits and confections. The candied fruits may be purchased at a less cost than they can be manufactured at home. They are preserved abroad in most ornamental and elegant forms. And since, from the facilities of travel, we have become so familiar with the tables of the French, chocolate in different forms is indispensable to our desserts.
1510. Ices are composed, it is scarcely necessary to say, of congealed cream or water, combined sometimes with liqueurs or other flavouring ingredients, or more generally with the juices of fruits. At desserts, or at some evening parties, ices are scarcely to be dispensed with. The principal utensils required for making ice-creams are ice-tubs, freezing-pots, spaddles, and 761 a cellaret. The tub must be large enough to contain about a bushel of ice, pounded small, when brought out of the ice-house, and mixed very carefully with either salt, nitre, or soda. The freezing-pot is best made of pewter. If it be of tin, as is sometimes the case, the congelation goes on too rapidly in it for the thorough intermingling of its contents, on which the excellence of the ice greatly depends. The spaddle is generally made of copper, kept bright and clean. The cellaret is a tin vessel, in which ices are kept for a short time from dissolving. The method to be pursued in the freezing process must be attended to. When the ice-tub is prepared with fresh-pounded ice and salt, the freezing-pot is put into it up to its cover. The articles to be congealed are then poured into it and covered over; but to prevent the ingredients from separating and the heaviest of them from falling to the bottom of the mould, it is requisite to turn the freezing-pot round and round by the handle, so as to keep its contents moving until the congelation commences. As soon as this is perceived (the cover of the pot being occasionally taken off for the purpose of noticing when freezing takes place), the cover is immediately closed over it, ice is put upon it, and it is left in this state till it is served. The use of the spaddle is to stir up and remove from the sides of the freezing-pot the cream, which in the shaking may have washed against it, and by stirring it in with the rest, to prevent waste of it occurring. Any negligence in stirring the contents of the freezing-pot before congelation takes place, will destroy the whole: either the sugar sinks to the bottom and leaves the ice insufficiently sweetened, or lumps are formed, which disfigure and discolour it.
1511. The aged, the delicate, and children should abstain from ices or iced beverages; even the strong and healthy should partake of them in moderation. They should be taken immediately after the repast, or some horns after, because the taking these substances during the process of digestion is apt to provoke indisposition. It is necessary, then, that this function should have scarcely commenced, or that it should be completely finished, before partaking of ices. It is also necessary to abstain from them when persons are very warm, or immediately after taking violent exercise, as in some cases they have produced illnesses which have ended fatally.
[Do ladies know to whom they are indebted for the introduction of ices, which all the fair sex are passionately fond of?—To Catherine de’ Medici. Will not this fact cover a multitude of sins committed by the instigator of St. Bartholomew?]
1512. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow 1½ pint of water.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together for ¼ hour, carefully removing the scum as it rises: the syrup is then ready for the fruit. The articles boiled in this syrup will not keep for any length of time, it being suitable only for dishes intended to be eaten immediately. A larger proportion of sugar must be added for a syrup intended to keep.
Time.—¼ hour.
1513. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow ½ pint of water and ½ the white of an egg.
Mode.—Put the sugar, water, and the white of the egg, which should be well beaten, into a preserving-pan or lined saucepan; and do not put it on the fire till the sugar is dissolved. Then place it on the fire, and when it boils, throw in a teacupful of cold water, and do not stir the sugar after this is added. Bring it to the boiling-point again, and then place the pan by the side of the fire, for the preparation to settle. Remove all the scum, and the sugar will be ready for use. The scum should be placed on a sieve, so that what syrup runs from it may be boiled up again: this must also be well skimmed.
Time.—20 minutes for the sugar to dissolve; 5 minutes to boil.
Note.—The above two recipes are those used in the preparation of dishes usually made at home. There are many degrees of boiling sugar, which process requires great care, attention, and experience. Caramel sugar, which makes an elegant cover for sweetmeats, is difficult to prepare, and is best left to an experienced confectioner. We give the recipe, for those of our readers who care to attempt the operation.
7631514. Ingredients.—To every lb. of lump sugar allow 1 gill of spring water.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together very quickly over a clear fire, skimming it very carefully as soon as it boils. Keep it boiling until the sugar snaps when a little of it is dropped in a pan of cold water. If it remains hard, the sugar has attained the right degree; then squeeze in a little lemon-juice, and let it remain an instant on the fire. Set the pan into another of cold water, and the caramel is then ready for use. The insides of well-oiled moulds are often ornamented with this sugar, which with a fork should be spread over them in fine threads or network. A dish of light pastry, tastefully arranged, looks very prettily with this sugar spun lightly over it. The sugar must be carefully watched, and taken up the instant it is done. Unless the cook is very experienced and thoroughly understands her business, it is scarcely worth while to attempt to make this elaborate ornament, as it may be purchased quite as economically at a confectioner’s, if the failures in the preparation are taken into consideration.
1515. Ingredients.—6 ripe apples, 1 lemon, ½ lb. of lump sugar, ½ pint of water.
COMPÔTE OF APPLES.
Mode.—Select the apples of a moderate size, peel them, cut them in halves, remove the cores, and rub each piece over with a little lemon. Put the sugar and water together into a lined saucepan, and let them boil until forming a thickish syrup, when lay in the apples with the rind of the lemon cut thin, and the juice of the same. Let the apples simmer till tender; then take them out very carefully, drain them on a sieve, and reduce the syrup by boiling it quickly for a few minutes. When both are cold, arrange the apples neatly on a glass dish, pour over the syrup, and garnish with strips of green angelica or candied citron. Smaller apples may be dressed in the same manner: they should not be divided in half, but peeled and the cores pushed out with a vegetable-cutter.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the sugar and water together; from 15 to 25 minutes to simmer the apples.
Average cost, 6d.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable from July to March.
7641516. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of any kind of hard apples, 2 lbs. of loaf sugar, 1½ pint of water, 1 oz. of tincture of ginger.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water until they form a rich syrup, adding the ginger when it boils up. Pare, core, and cut the apples into pieces; dip them in cold water to preserve the colour, and boil them in the syrup until transparent; but be careful not to let them break. Put the pieces of apple into jars, pour over the syrup, and carefully exclude the air, by well covering them. It will remain good some time, if kept in a dry place.
Time.—From 5 to 10 minutes to boil the syrup; about ½ hour to simmer the apples.
Average cost, 2s.
Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons.
Seasonable.—Make this in September, October, or November.
1517. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit weighed after being pared, cored, and sliced, allow ¾ lb. of preserving-sugar, the grated rind of 1 lemon, the juice of ½ lemon.
Mode.—Peel the apples, core and slice them very thin, and be particular that they are all the same sort. Put them into a jar, stand this in a saucepan of boiling water, and let the apples stew until quite tender. Previously to putting the fruit into the jar, weigh it, to ascertain the proportion of sugar that may be required. Put the apples into a preserving-pan, crush the sugar to small lumps, and add it, with the grated lemon-rind and juice, to the apples. Simmer these over the fire for ½ hour, reckoning from the time the jam begins to simmer properly; remove the scum as it rises, and when the jam is done, put it into pots for use. Place a piece of oiled paper over the jam, and to exclude the air, cover the pots with tissue-paper dipped in the white of an egg, and stretched over the top. This jam will keep good for a long time.
Time.—About 2 hours to stew in the jar; ½ hour to boil after the jam begins to simmer.
Average cost, for this quantity, 5s.
Sufficient.—7 or 8 lbs. of apples for 6 pots of jam.
Seasonable.—Make this in September, October, or November.
7651518. Ingredients.—To 6 lbs. of apples allow 3 pints of water; to every quart of juice allow 2 lbs. of loaf sugar;—the juice of ½ lemon.
Mode.—Pare, core, and cut the apples into slices, and put them into a jar, with water in the above proportion. Place them in a cool oven, with the jar well covered, and when the juice is thoroughly drawn and the apples are quite soft, strain them through a jelly-bag. To every quart of juice allow 2 lbs. of loaf sugar, which should be crushed to small lumps, and put into a preserving-pan with the juice. Boil these together for rather more than ½ hour, remove the scum as it rises, add the lemon-juice just before it is done, and put the jelly into pots for use. This preparation is useful for garnishing sweet dishes, and may be turned out for dessert.
Time.—The apples to be put in the oven over-night, and left till morning; rather more than ½ hour to boil the jelly.
Average cost, for this quantity, 3s.
Sufficient for 6 small pots of jelly.
Seasonable.—This should be made in September, October, or November.
1519. Ingredients.—Apples, water; to every pint of syrup allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Pare and cut the apples into pieces, remove the cores, and put them in a preserving-pan with sufficient cold water to cover them. Let them boil for an hour; then drain the syrup from them through a hair sieve or jelly-bag, and measure the juice; to every pint allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar, and boil these together for ¾ hour, removing every particle of scum as it rises, and keeping the jelly well stirred, that it may not burn. A little lemon-rind may be boiled with the apples, and a small quantity of strained lemon-juice may be put in the jelly just before it is done, when the flavour is liked. This jelly may be ornamented with preserved greengages, or any other preserved fruit, and will turn out very prettily for dessert. It should be stored away in small pots.
Time.—1 hour to boil the fruit and water; ¾ hour to boil the juice with the sugar.
Average cost, for 6 lbs. of apples, with the other ingredients in proportion, 3s.
Sufficient for 6 small pots of jelly.
Seasonable.—Make this in September, October, or November.
7661520. Ingredients.—To every lb. of apples allow ¾ lb. of sugar, 1½ oz. of the best white ginger; 1 oz. of ginger to every ½ pint of water.
Mode.—Peel, core, and quarter the apples, and put the fruit, sugar, and ginger in layers into a wide-mouthed jar, and let them remain, for 2 days; then infuse 1 oz. of ginger in ½ pint of boiling water, and cover it closely, and let it remain for 1 day: this quantity of ginger and water is for 3 lbs. of apples, with the other ingredients in proportion. Put the apples, &c., into a preserving-pan with the water strained from the ginger, and boil till the apples look clear and the syrup is rich, which will be in about an hour. The rind of a lemon may be added just before the apples have finished boiling; and great care must be taken not to break the pieces of apple in putting them into the jars. Serve on glass dishes for dessert.
Time.—2 days for the apples to remain in the jar with sugar, &c.; 1 day to infuse the ginger; about 1 hour to boil the apples.
Average cost, for 3 lbs. of apples, with the other ingredients in proportion, 2s. 3d.
Sufficient.—3 lbs. should fill 3 moderate-sized jars.
Seasonable—This should be made in September, October, or November.
1521. Ingredients.—½ pint of syrup No. 1512, 12 green apricots.
Mode.—Make the syrup by recipe No. 1512, and, when it is ready, put in the apricots whilst the syrup is boiling. Simmer them very gently until tender, taking care not to let them break; take them out carefully, arrange them on a glass dish, let the syrup cool a little, pour it over the apricots, and, when cold, serve.
Time.—From 15 to 20 minutes to simmer the apricots.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable in June and July, with green apricots.
1522. Ingredients.—To every lb. of ripe apricots, weighed after being skinned and stoned, allow 1 lb. of sugar.
Mode.—Pare the apricots, which should be ripe, as thinly as possible, break them in half, and remove the stones. Weigh the fruit, and to every lb. allow the same proportion of loaf sugar. Pound the 767 sugar very finely in a mortar, strew it over the apricots, which should be placed on dishes, and let them remain for 12 hours. Break the stones, blanch the kernels, and put them with the sugar and fruit into a preserving-pan. Let these simmer very gently until clear; take out the pieces of apricot singly as they become so, and, as fast as the scum rises, carefully remove it. Put the apricots into small jars, pour over them the syrup and kernels, cover the jam with pieces of paper dipped in the purest salad-oil, and stretch over the top of the jars tissue-paper, cut about 2 inches larger and brushed over with the white of an egg; when dry, it will be perfectly hard and air-tight.
Time.—12 hours sprinkled with sugar; about ¾ hour to boil the jam.
Average cost.—When cheap, apricots may be purchased for preserving at about 1s. 6d. per gallon.
Sufficient,—10 lbs. of fruit for 12 pots of jam.
Seasonable.—Make this in August or September.
1523. Ingredients.—1 pint of syrup No. 1513, barberries.
Mode.—Prepare some small pieces of clean white wood, 3 inches long and ¼ inch wide, and tie the fruit on to these in nice bunches. Have ready some clear syrup, made by recipe No. 1513; put in the barberries, and simmer them in it for 2 successive days, boiling them for nearly ½ hour each day, and covering them each time with the syrup when cold. When the fruit looks perfectly clear, it is sufficiently done, and should be stored away in pots, with the syrup poured over, or the fruit may be candied.
Time.—½ hour to simmer each day.
Seasonable in autumn.
Note.—The berries in their natural state make a very pretty garnishing for dishes, and may even be used for the same purpose, preserved as above, and look exceedingly nice on sweet dishes.
1524. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow ½ pint of water, ½ the white of an egg.
Mode.—Put the sugar into a well-tinned saucepan, with the water, and, when the former is dissolved, set it over a moderate fire, adding the well-beaten egg before the mixture gets warm, and stir it well together. When it boils, remove the scum as it rises, and keep it boiling until no more appears, and the syrup looks perfectly clear; then strain it through a fine sieve or muslin bag, and put it back into the saucepan. Boil it again like caramel, until it is brittle, when 768 a little is dropped in a basin of cold water: it is then sufficiently boiled. Add a little lemon-juice and a few drops of essence of lemon, and let it stand for a minute or two. Have ready a marble slab or large dish, rubbed over with salad-oil; pour on it the sugar, and cut it into strips with a pair of scissors: these strips should then be twisted, and the barley-sugar stored away in a very dry place. It may be formed into lozenges or drops, by dropping the sugar in a very small quantity at a time on to the oiled slab or dish.
Time.—¼ hour.
Average cost, 7d.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 sticks.
1525. Ingredients.—Carrots; to every lb. of carrot pulp allow 1 lb. of pounded sugar, the grated rind of 1 lemon, the strained juice of 2, 6 chopped bitter almonds, 2 tablespoonfuls of brandy.
Mode.—Select young carrots; wash and scrape them clean, cut them into round pieces, put them into a saucepan with sufficient water to cover them, and let them simmer until perfectly soft; then beat them through a sieve. Weigh the pulp, and to every lb. allow the above ingredients. Put the pulp into a preserving-pan with the sugar, and let this boil for 5 minutes, stirring and skimming all the time. When cold, add the lemon-rind and juice, almonds and brandy; mix these well with the jam; then put it into pots, which must be well covered and kept in a dry place. The brandy may be omitted, but the preserve will then not keep: with the brandy it will remain good for months.
Time.—About ¾ hour to boil the carrots; 5 minutes to simmer the pulp.
Average cost, 1s. 2d. for 1 lb. of pulp, with the other ingredients in proportion.
Sufficient to fill 3 pots.
Seasonable from July to December.
1526. Ingredients.—Morella cherries, good brandy; to every lb. of cherries allow 3 oz. of pounded sugar.
Mode.—Have ready some glass bottles, which must be perfectly dry. Ascertain that the cherries are not too ripe and are freshly gathered, and cut off about half of the stalks. Put them into the bottles, with the above proportion of sugar to every lb. of fruit; strew this in between the cherries, and, when the bottles are nearly full, pour in sufficient brandy to reach just below the cork. A few peach or 769 3D apricot kernels will add much to their flavour, or a few blanched bitter almonds. Put corks or bungs into the bottles, tie over them a piece of bladder, and store away in a dry place. The cherries will be fit to eat in 2 or 3 months, and will remain good for years. They are liable to shrivel and become tough if too much sugar be added to them.
Average cost, 1s. to 1s. 6d. per lb.
Sufficient.—1 lb. of cherries and about ¼ pint of brandy for a quart bottle.
Seasonable in August and September.
1527. Cherries may be put in a slow oven and thoroughly dried before they begin to change colour. They should then be taken out of the oven, tied in bunches, and stored away in a dry place. In the winter, they may be cooked with sugar for dessert, the same as Normandy pippins. Particular care must be taken that the oven be not too hot. Another method of drying cherries is to stone them, and to put them into a preserving-pan, with plenty of loaf sugar strewed amongst them. They should be simmered till the fruit shrivels, when they should be strained from the juice. The cherries should then be placed in an oven, cool enough to dry without baking them. About 5 oz. of sugar would be required for 1 lb. of cherries, and the same syrup may be used again to do another quantity of fruit.
1528. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit, weighed before stoning, allow ½ lb. of sugar; to every 6 lbs. of fruit allow 1 pint of red-currant juice, and to every pint of juice 1 lb. of sugar.
Mode.—Weigh the fruit before stoning, and allow half the weight of sugar; stone the cherries, and boil them in a preserving-pan until nearly all the juice is dried up; then add the sugar, which should be crushed to powder, and the currant-juice, allowing 1 pint to every 6 lbs. of cherries (original weight), and 1 lb. of sugar to every pint of juice. Boil all together until it jellies, which will be in from 20 minutes to ½ hour; skim the jam well, keep it well stirred, and, a few minutes before it is done, crack some of the stones, and add the kernels: these impart a very delicious flavour to the jam.
Time.—According to the quality of the cherries, from ¾ to 1 hour to boil them; 20 minutes to ½ hour with the sugar.
Average cost, from 7d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—1 pint of fruit for a lb. pot of jam.
Seasonable.—Make this in July or August.
7701529. Ingredients.—4 lbs. of cherries, 3 lbs. of sugar, 1 pint of white-currant juice.
Mode.—Let the cherries be as clear and as transparent as possible, and perfectly ripe; pick off the stalks, and remove the stones, damaging the fruit as little as you can. Make a syrup with the above proportion of sugar, by recipe No. 1512; mix the cherries with it, and boil them for about 15 minutes, carefully skimming them; turn them gently into a pan, and let them remain till the next day; then drain the cherries on a sieve, and put the syrup and white-currant juice into the preserving-pan again. Boil these together until the syrup is somewhat reduced and rather thick; then put in the cherries, and let them boil for about 5 minutes; take them off the fire, skim the syrup, put the cherries into small pots or wide-mouthed bottles; pour the syrup over, and when quite cold, tie them down carefully, so that the air is quite excluded.
Time.—15 minutes to boil the cherries in the syrup; 10 minutes to boil the syrup and currant-juice; 5 minutes to boil the cherries the second time.
Average cost for this quantity, 3s. 6d.
Seasonable.—Make this in July or August.
1530. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit, weighed before being stripped from the stalks, allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar, 1 gill of water.
Mode.—Let the fruit be very ripe, and gathered on a dry day. Strip it from the stalks, and put it into a preserving-pan, with a gill of water to each lb. of fruit; boil these together for 10 minutes; then add the sugar, and boil the jam again for 30 minutes, reckoning from the time when the jam simmers equally all over, or longer, should it not appear to set nicely when a little is poured on to a plate. Keep stirring it to prevent it from burning, carefully remove all the scum, and when done, pour it into pots. Let it cool, cover the top of the jam with oiled paper, and the top of the jars with a piece of tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg: this, when cold, forms a hard stiff cover, and perfectly excludes the air. Great attention must be paid to the stirring of this jam, as it is very liable to burn, on account of the thickness of the juice.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the fruit and water; 30 minutes with the sugar, or longer.
771Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. for a pot capable of holding 1 lb.
Sufficient.—Allow from 6 to 7 quarts of currants to make 1 dozen pots of jam, each pot to hold 1 lb.
Seasonable.—Make this in July.
1531. Ingredients.—Black currants; to every pint of juice allow ¼ pint of water, 1 lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Strip the currants from the stalks, which may be done in an expeditious manner, by holding the bunch in one hand, and passing a small silver fork down the currants: they will then readily fall from the stalks. Put them into a jar, place this jar in a saucepan of boiling water, and simmer them until their juice is extracted; then strain them, and to every pint of juice allow the above proportion of sugar and water; stir these ingredients together cold until the sugar is dissolved; place the preserving-pan on the fire, and boil the jelly for about ½ hour, reckoning from the time it commences to boil all over, and carefully remove the scum as it rises. If the jelly becomes firm when a little is put on a plate, it is done; it should then be put into small pots, and covered the same as the jam in the preceding recipe. If the jelly is wanted very clear, the fruit should not be squeezed dry; but, of course, so much juice will not be obtained. If the fruit is not much squeezed, it may be converted into a jam for immediate eating, by boiling it with a little common sugar: this answers very well for a nursery preserve.
Time.—About ¾ hour to extract the juice; ½ hour to boil the jelly.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per ½-lb. pot.
Sufficient.—From 3 pints to 2 quarts of fruit should yield a pint of juice.
Seasonable.—Make this in July.
1532. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
JAM-POT.
Mode.—Let the fruit be gathered on a fine day; weigh it, and then strip the currants from the stalks; put them into a preserving-pan with sugar in the above proportion; stir them, and boil them for about ¾ hour. Carefully remove the scum as it rises. Put the jam into pots, and, when cold, cover with oiled papers; over these put a piece of tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg; press the paper round the top of the pot, and, when dry, the covering will be quite hard and air-tight.
772Time.—½ to ¾ hour, reckoning from the time the jam boils all over.
Average cost, for a lb. pot, from 6d. to 8d.
Sufficient.—Allow from 6 to 7 quarts of currants to make 12 1-lb. pots of jam.
Seasonable.—Make this in July.
1533. Ingredients.—Red currants; to every pint of juice allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Have the fruit gathered in fine weather; pick it from the stalks, put it into a jar, and place this jar in a saucepan of boiling water over the fire, and let it simmer gently until the juice is well drawn from the currants; then strain them through a jelly-bag or fine cloth, and, if the jelly is wished very clear, do not squeeze them too much, as the skin and pulp from the fruit will be pressed through with the juice, and so make the jelly muddy. Measure the juice, and to each pint allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar; put these into a preserving-pan, set it over the fire, and keep stirring the jelly until it is done, carefully removing every particle of scum as it rises, using a wooden or silver spoon for the purpose, as metal or iron ones would spoil the colour of the jelly. When it has boiled from 20 minutes to ½ hour, put a little of the jelly on a plate, and if firm when cool, it is done. Take it off the fire, pour it into small gallipots, cover each of the pots with an oiled paper, and then with a piece of tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg. Label the pots, adding the year when the jelly was made, and store it away in a dry place. A jam may be made with the currants, if they are not squeezed too dry, by adding a few fresh raspberries, and boiling all together, with sufficient sugar to sweeten it nicely. As this preserve is not worth storing away, but is only for immediate eating, a smaller proportion of sugar than usual will be found enough: it answers very well for children’s puddings, or for a nursery preserve.
Time.—From ¾ to 1 hour to extract the juice; 20 minutes to ½ hour to boil the jelly.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per ½-lb. pot.
Sufficient.—8 quarts of currants will make from 10 to 12 pots of jelly.
Seasonable.—Make this in July.
Note.—Should the above proportion of sugar not be found sufficient for some tastes, add an extra ¼ lb. to every pint of juice, making altogether 1 lb.
1534. Ingredients.—White currants; to every pint of juice allow ¾ lb. of good loaf sugar.
773Mode.—Pick the currants from the stalks, and put them into a jar; place this jar in a saucepan of boiling water, and simmer until the juice is well drawn from the fruit, which will be in from ¾ to 1 hour. Then strain the currants through a fine cloth or jelly-bag; do not squeeze them too much, or the jelly will not be clear, and put the juice into a very clean preserving-pan, with the sugar. Let this simmer gently over a clear fire until it is firm, and keep stirring and skimming until it is done; then pour it into small pots, cover them, and store away in a dry place.
Time.—¾ hour to draw the juice; ½ hour to boil the jelly.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per ½-lb. pot.
Sufficient.—From 3 pints to 2 quarts of fruit should yield 1 pint of juice.
Seasonable in July and August.
1535. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow 6 oz. of pounded sugar; melted mutton suet.
Mode.—Choose sound fruit, not too ripe; pick off the stalks, weigh it, and to every lb. allow the above proportion of pounded sugar. Put the fruit into large dry stone jars, sprinkling the sugar amongst it; cover the jars with saucers, place them in a rather cool oven, and bake the fruit until it is quite tender. When cold, cover the top of the fruit with a piece of white paper cut to the size of the jar; pour over this melted mutton suet about an inch thick, and cover the tops of the jars with thick brown paper, well tied down. Keep the jars in a cool dry place, and the fruit will remain good till the following Christmas, but not much longer.
Time.—From 5 to 6 hours to bake the damsons, in a very cool oven.
Seasonable in September and October.
1536. Ingredients.—Damsons; to every lb. of fruit pulp allow ½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Pick the stalks from the damsons, and put them into a preserving-pan; simmer them over the fire until they are soft, occasionally stirring them; then beat them through a coarse sieve, and put the pulp and juice into the preserving-pan, with sugar in the above proportion, having previously carefully weighed them. Stir the sugar well in, and simmer the damsons slowly for 2 hours. Skim well; then boil the preserve quickly for ½ hour, or until it looks firm and hard in the spoon; put it quickly into shallow pots, 774 or very tiny earthenware moulds, and, when cold, cover it with oiled papers, and the jars with tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg. A few of the stones may be cracked, and the kernels boiled with the damsons, which very much improves the flavour of the cheese.
Time.—1 hour to boil the damsons without the sugar; 2 hours to simmer them slowly, ½ hour quickly.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per ¼-lb. pot.
Sufficient.—1 pint of damsons to make a very small pot of cheese.
Seasonable.—Make this in September or October.
1537. Ingredients.—1 quart of damsons, 1 pint of syrup No. 1512.
Mode.—Procure sound ripe damsons; pick the stalks from them, and put them into boiling syrup, made by recipe No. 1512. Simmer them gently until the fruit is tender, but not sufficiently soft to break; take them up, boil the syrup for 5 minutes; pour it over the damsons, and serve. This should be sent to table in a glass dish.
Time.—About ¼ hour to simmer the damsons; 5 minutes to boil the syrup.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable in September and October.
1538. Ingredients.—Damsons; to every lb. of fruit allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Have the fruit gathered in dry weather; pick it over, and reject any that is at all blemished. Stone the damsons, weigh them, and to every lb. allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar. Put the fruit and sugar into a preserving-pan; keep stirring them gently until the sugar is dissolved, and carefully remove the scum as it rises. Boil the jam for about an hour, reckoning from the time it commences to simmer all over alike: it must be well stirred all the time, or it will be liable to burn and stick to the pan, which will cause the jam to have a very disagreeable flavour. When the jam looks firm, and the juice appears to set, it is done. Then take it off the fire, put into pots, cover it down, when quite cold, with oiled and egged papers, the same as in recipe No. 1530, and store it away in a dry place.
Time.—1 hour after the jam simmers all over.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient—1½ pint of damsons for a lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in September or October.
7751539. Ingredients.—To every quart of damsons allow ½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Put the damsons (which should be picked from the stalks and quite free from blemishes) into a jar, with pounded sugar sprinkled amongst them in the above proportion; tie the jar closely down, set it in a saucepan of cold water; bring it gradually to boil, and simmer gently until the damsons are soft, without being broken. Let them stand till cold; then strain the juice from them, boil it up well, strain it through a jelly-bag, and pour it over the fruit. Let it cool, cover with oiled papers, and the jars with tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg, and store away in a dry cool place.
Time.—About ¾ hour to simmer the fruit after the water boils; ¼ hour to boil the juice.
Seasonable.—Make this in September or October.
1540. Ingredients.—Damsons or plums; boiling water.
Mode.—Pick the fruit into clean dry stone jars, taking care to leave out all that are broken or blemished. When full, pour boiling water on the plums, until it stands one inch above the fruit; cut a piece of paper to fit the inside of the jar, over which pour melted mutton-suet; cover down with brown paper, and keep the jars in a dry cool place. When used, the suet should be removed, the water poured off, and the jelly at the bottom of the jar used and mixed with the fruit.
Seasonable in September and October.
1541. Ingredients.—1 pint of syrup No. 1512, 1½ pint of green figs, the rind of ½ lemon.
COMPÔTE OF FIGS.
Mode.—Make a syrup by recipe No. 1512, boiling with it the lemon-rind, and carefully remove all the scum as it rises. Put in the figs, and simmer them very slowly until tender; dish them on a glass dish; reduce the syrup by boiling it quickly for 5 minutes; take out the lemon-peel, pour the syrup over the figs, and the compôte, when cold, will be ready 776 for table. A little port wine, or lemon-juice, added just before the figs are done, will be found an improvement.
Time.—2 to 3 hours to stew the figs.
Average cost, figs, 2s. to 3s. per dozen.
Seasonable in August and September.
1542. Ingredients.—Fresh fruits, such as currants, raspberries, cherries, gooseberries, plums of all kinds, damsons, &c.; wide-mouthed glass bottles, new corks to fit them tightly.
Mode.—Let the fruit be full grown, but not too ripe, and gathered in dry weather. Pick it off the stalks without bruising or breaking the skin, and reject any that is at all blemished: if gathered in the damp, or if the skins are cut at all, the fruit will mould. Have ready some perfectly dry glass bottles, and some nice new soft corks or bungs; burn a match in each bottle, to exhaust the air, and quickly place the fruit in to be preserved; gently cork the bottles, and put them into a very cool oven, where let them remain until the fruit has shrunk away a fourth part. Then take the bottles out; do not open them, but immediately beat the corks in tight, cut off the tops, and cover them with melted resin. If kept in a dry place, the fruit will remain good for months; and on this principally depends the success of the preparation; for if stored away in a place that is in the least damp, the fruit will soon spoil.
Time.—From 5 to 6 hours in a very slow oven.
1543. Ingredients.—Any kind of fresh fruit, such as currants, cherries, gooseberries, all kinds of plums, &c.; wide-mouthed glass bottles, new corks to fit them tightly.
Mode.—The fruit must be full-grown, not too ripe, and gathered on a fine day. Let it be carefully picked and put into the bottles, which must be clean and perfectly dry. Tie over the tops of the bottles pieces of bladder; stand the bottles in a large pot, copper, or boiler, with cold water to reach to their necks; kindle a fire under, let the water boil, and as the bladders begin to rise and puff, prick them. As soon as the water boils, extinguish the fire, and let the bottles remain where they are, to become cold. The next day remove the bladders, and strew over the fruit a thick layer of pounded sugar; fit the bottles with corks, and let each cork lie close at hand to its own bottle. Hold for a few moments, in the neck of the bottle, two 777 or three lighted matches, and when they have filled the bottle neck with gas, and before they go out, remove them very quickly; instantly cork the bottle closely, and dip it in bottle cement.
Time.—Altogether about 8 hours.
1544. Ingredients.—Any kind of fresh fruit; to each quart bottle allow ¼ lb. of pounded sugar.
Mode.—Let the fruit be gathered in dry weather. Pick it carefully, and drop it into clean and very dry quart glass bottles, sprinkling over it the above proportion of pounded sugar to each quart. Put the corks in the bottles, and place them in a copper of cold water up to their necks, with small hay-wisps round them, to prevent the bottles from knocking together. Light the fire under, bring the water gradually to boil, and let it simmer gently until the fruit in the bottles is reduced nearly one third. Extinguish the fire, and let the bottles remain in the water until it is perfectly cold; then take them out, make the corks secure, and cover them with melted resin or wax.
Time.—About ½ hour from the time the water commences to boil.
1545.—Ingredients.—Sprigs of holly, oiled butter, coarsely-powdered sugar.
Mode.—Procure some nice sprigs of holly; pick the leaves from the stalks, and wipe them with a clean cloth free from all moisture; then place them on a dish near the fire, to get thoroughly dry, but not too near to shrivel the leaves; dip them into oiled butter, sprinkle over them some coarsely-powdered sugar, and dry them before the fire. They should be kept in a dry place, as the least damp would spoil their appearance.
Time.—About 10 minutes to dry before the fire.
Seasonable.—These may be made at any time; but are more suitable for winter garnishes, when fresh flowers are not easily obtained.
1546. Ingredients.—Syrup made by recipe No. 1512; to 1 pint of syrup allow nearly a quart of gooseberries.
Mode.—Top and tail the gooseberries, which should not be very ripe, and pour over them some boiling water; then take them out, and plunge them into cold water, with which has been mixed a tablespoonful 778 of vinegar, which will assist to keep the fruit a good colour. Make a pint of syrup by recipe No. 1512, and when it boils, drain the gooseberries and put them in; simmer them gently until the fruit is nicely pulped and tender, without being broken; then dish the gooseberries on a glass dish, boil the syrup for 2 or 3 minutes, pour over the gooseberries, and serve cold.
Time.—About 5 minutes to boil the gooseberries in the syrup; 3 minutes to reduce the syrup.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient,—a quart of gooseberries for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable in June.
1547. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar; currant-juice.
Mode.—Select red hairy gooseberries; have them gathered in dry weather, when quite ripe, without being too soft. Weigh them; with a pair of scissors, cut off the tops and tails, and to every 6 lbs. of fruit have ready ½ pint of red-currant juice, drawn as for jelly. Put the gooseberries and currant-juice into a preserving-pan; let them boil tolerably quickly, keeping them well stirred; when they begin to break, add to them the sugar, and keep simmering until the jam becomes firm, carefully skimming and stirring it, that it does not burn at the bottom. It should be boiled rather a long time, or it will not keep. Put it into pots (not too large); let it get perfectly cold; then cover the pots down with oiled and egged papers, as directed for red-currant jelly No. 1533.
Time.—About 1 hour to boil the gooseberries in the currant-juice; from ½ to ¾ hour with the sugar.
Average cost, per lb. pot, from 6d. to 8d.
Sufficient.—Allow 1½ pint of fruit for a lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in June or July.
1548. Ingredients.—To every 8 lbs. of red, rough, ripe gooseberries allow 1 quart of red-currant juice, 5 lbs. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Have the fruit gathered in dry weather, and cut off the tops and tails. Prepare 1 quart of red-currant juice, the same as for red-currant jelly No. 1533; put it into a preserving-pan with the sugar, and keep stirring until the latter is dissolved. Keep it boiling for about 5 minutes; skim well; then put in the gooseberries, and let 779 them boil from ½ to ¾ hour; then turn the whole into an earthen pan, and let it remain for 2 days. Boil the jam up again until it looks clear; put it into pots, and when cold, cover with oiled paper, and over the jars put tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg, and store away in a dry place. Care must be taken, in making this, to keep the jam well stirred and well skimmed, to prevent it burning at the bottom of the pan, and to have it very clear.
Time.—5 minutes to boil the currant-juice and sugar after the latter is dissolved; from ½ to ¾ hour to simmer the gooseberries the first time, ¼ hour the second time of boiling.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—Allow 1½ pint of fruit for a lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in June or July.
1549. Ingredients.—Equal weight of fruit and sugar.
Mode.—Select the gooseberries not very ripe, either white or green, and top and tail them. Boil the sugar with water (allowing ½ pint to every lb.) for about ¼ hour, carefully removing the scum as it rises; then put in the gooseberries, and simmer gently till clear and firm: try a little of the jam on a plate; if it jellies when cold, it is done, and should then be poured into pots. When cold, cover with oiled paper, and tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the unbeaten white of an egg, and store away in a dry place.
Time.—¼ hour to boil the sugar and water, ¾ hour the jam.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—Allow 1½ pint of fruit for a lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in June.
1550. Ingredients.—Gooseberries; to every pint of juice allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Put the gooseberries, after cutting off the tops and tails, into a preserving-pan, and stir them over the fire until they are quite soft; then strain them through a sieve, and to every pint of juice allow ¾ lb. of sugar. Boil the juice and sugar together for nearly ¾ hour, stirring and skimming all the time; and if the jelly appears firm when a little of it is poured on to a plate, it is done, and should then be taken up and put into small pots. Cover the pots with oiled and egged papers, the same as for currant jelly No. 1533, and store away in a dry place.
780Time.—¾ hour to simmer the gooseberries without the sugar; ¾ hour to boil the juice.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per ½-lb. pot.
Seasonable in July.
1551. Ingredients.—1 pint of syrup made by recipe No. 1512, 1 quart of greengages.
Mode.—Make a syrup by recipe No. 1512, skim it well, and put in the greengages when the syrup is boiling, having previously removed the stalks and stones from the fruit. Boil gently for ¼ hour, or until the fruit is tender; but take care not to let it break, as the appearance of the dish would be spoiled were the fruit reduced to a pulp. Take the greengages carefully out, place them on a glass dish, boil the syrup for another 5 minutes, let it cool a little, pour over the fruit, and, when cold, it will be ready for use.
Time.—¼ hour to simmer the fruit, 5 minutes the syrup.
Average cost, in full season, 10d.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable in July, August, and September.
1552. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit, weighed before being stoned, allow ¾ lb. of lump sugar.
Mode.—Divide the greengages, take out the stones, and put them into a preserving-pan. Bring the fruit to a boil, then add the sugar, and keep stirring it over a gentle fire until it is melted. Remove all the scum as it rises, and, just before the jam is done, boil it rapidly for 5 minutes. To ascertain when it is sufficiently boiled, pour a little on a plate, and if the syrup thickens and appears firm, it is done. Have ready half the kernels blanched; put them into the jam, give them one boil, and pour the preserve into pots. When cold, cover down with oiled papers, and, over these, tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg.
Time.—¾ hour after the sugar is added.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—Allow about 1½ pint of fruit for every lb. pot of jam.
Seasonable.—Make this in August or September.
1553. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow 1 lb. of fruit, ¼ pint of water.
781Mode.—For this purpose, the fruit must be used before it is quite ripe, and part of the stalk must be left on. Weigh the fruit, rejecting all that is in the least degree blemished, and put it into a lined saucepan with the sugar and water, which should have been previously boiled together to a rich syrup. Boil the fruit in this for 10 minutes, remove it from the fire, and drain the greengages. The next day, boil up the syrup and put in the fruit again, and let it simmer for 3 minutes, and drain the syrup away. Continue this process for 5 or 6 days, and the last time place the greengages, when drained, on a hair sieve, and put them in an oven or warm spot to dry; keep them in a box, with paper between each layer, in a place free from damp.
Time.—10 minutes the first time of boiling.
Seasonable.—Make this in August or September.
1554. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow 1 lb. of loaf sugar, ¼ pint of water.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together for about 10 minutes; divide the greengages, take out the stones, put the fruit into the syrup, and let it simmer gently until nearly tender. Take it off the fire, put it into a large pan, and, the next day, boil it up again for about 10 minutes with the kernels from the stones, which should be blanched. Put the fruit carefully into jars, pour over it the syrup, and, when cold, cover down, so that the air is quite excluded. Let the syrup be well skimmed both the first and second day of boiling, otherwise it will not be clear.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the syrup; ¼ hour to simmer the fruit the first day, 10 minutes the second day.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient—Allow about 1 pint of fruit to fill a 1-lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in August or September.
1555. Ingredients.—To every pint of fruit-juice allow 1 pint of cream; sugar to taste.
Mode.—Let the fruit be well ripened; pick it off the stalks, and put it into a large earthen pan. Stir it about with a wooden spoon, breaking it until it is well mashed; then, with the back of the spoon, rub it through a hair sieve. Sweeten it nicely with pounded sugar; whip the cream for a few minutes, add it to the fruit, and whisk the whole again for another 5 minutes. Put the mixture into the freezing-pot, 782 and freeze in the same manner as directed for Ice Pudding, No. 1290, taking care to stir the cream, &c., two or three times, and to remove it from the sides of the vessel, that the mixture may be equally frozen and smooth. Ices are usually served in glasses, but if moulded, as they sometimes are for dessert, must have a small quantity of melted isinglass added to them, to enable them to keep their shape. Raspberry, strawberry, currant, and all fruit ice-creams, are made in the same manner. A little pounded sugar sprinkled over the fruit before it is mashed assists to extract the juice. In winter, when fresh fruit is not obtainable, a little jam may be substituted for it: it should be melted and worked through a sieve before being added to the whipped cream; and if the colour should not be good, a little prepared cochineal or beetroot may be put in to improve its appearance.
Time.—½ hour to freeze the mixture.
Average cost, with cream at 1s. per pint, 4d. each ice.
Seasonable, with fresh fruit, in June, July, and August.
1556. Ingredients.—To every pint of fruit-juice allow 1 pint of syrup made by recipe No. 1513.
DISH OF ICES.
Mode.—Select nice ripe fruit; pick off the stalks, and put it into a large earthen pan, with a little pounded sugar strewed over; stir it about with a wooden spoon until it is well broken, then rub it through a hair sieve. Make the syrup by recipe No. 1513, omitting the white of the egg; let it cool, add the fruit-juice, mix well together, and put the mixture into the freezing-pot. Proceed as directed for Ice Puddings, No. 1290, and when the mixture is equally frozen, put it into small glasses. Raspberry, strawberry, currant, and other fresh-fruit-water ices, are made in the same manner.
Time.—½ hour to freeze the mixture.
Average cost, 3d. to 4d. each.
Seasonable, with fresh fruit, in June, July, and August.
1557. Ingredients.—To every pint of syrup, made by recipe No. 1513, allow ⅓ pint of lemon-juice; the rind of 4 lemons.
Mode.—Rub the sugar on the rinds of the lemons, and with it make the syrup by recipe No. 1513, omitting the white of egg. Strain the lemon-juice, add it to the other ingredients, stir well, and put the mixture into a freezing-pot. Freeze as directed for Ice Pudding, No. 1290, 783 and, when the mixture is thoroughly and equally frozen, put it into ice-glasses.
Time.—½ hour to freeze the mixture.
Average cost, 3d. to 4d. each.
Seasonable at any time.
1558. Ingredients.—¼ pint of water, the whites of 2 eggs, currants, pounded sugar.
Mode.—Select very fine bunches of red or white currants, and well beat the whites of the eggs. Mix these with the water; then take the currants, a bunch at a time, and dip them in; let them drain for a minute or two, and roll them in very fine pounded sugar. Lay them to dry on paper, when the sugar will crystallize round each currant, and have a very pretty effect. All fresh fruit may be prepared in the same manner; and a mixture of various fruits iced in this manner, and arranged on one dish, looks very well for a summer dessert.
Time.—¼ day to dry the fruit.
Average cost, 8d. for a pint of iced currants.
Seasonable in summer.
1559. This fruit is rarely preserved or cooked in any way, and should be sent to table on a dish garnished with leaves or flowers, as fancy dictates. A border of any other kind of small fruit, arranged round the melon, has a pretty effect, the colour of the former contrasting nicely with the melon. Plenty of pounded sugar should be served with it; and the fruit should be cut lengthwise, in moderate-sized slices. In America, it is frequently eaten with pepper and salt.
Average cost,—English, in full season, 3s. 6d. to 5s. each; when scarce, 10s. to 15s.; seasonable, June to August. French, 2s. to 3s. 6d. each; seasonable, June and July. Dutch, 9d. to 2s. each; seasonable, July and August.
Melon.—The melon is a most delicious fruit, succulent, cool, and high-flavoured. With us, it is used only at the dessert, and is generally eaten with sugar, ginger, or pepper; but, in France, it is likewise served up at dinner as a sauce for boiled meats. It grows wild in Tartary, and has been lately found in abundance on the sandy plains of Jeypoor. It was brought originally from Asia by the Romans, and is said to have been common in England in the time of Edward III., though it is supposed that it was lost again, as well as the cucumber, during the wars of York and Lancaster. The best kind, called the Cantaloupe, from the name of a place near Rome where it was first cultivated in Europe, is a native of Armenia, where it grows so plentifully that a horse-load may be bought for a crown.
1560. Ingredients.—To 2 lbs. of fruit and 1 pint of juice allow 2½ lbs. of loaf sugar.
MULBERRY.
Mode.—Put some of the fruit into a preserving-pan, and simmer it gently until the juice is well drawn. Strain it through a bag, measure 784 it, and to every pint allow the above proportion of sugar and fruit. Put the sugar into the preserving-pan, moisten it with the juice, boil it up, skim well, and then add the mulberries, which should be ripe, but not soft enough to break to a pulp. Let them stand in the syrup till warm through, then set them on the fire to boil gently; when half done, turn them carefully into an earthen pan, and let them remain till the next day; then boil them as before, and when the syrup is thick, and becomes firm when cold, put the preserve into pots. In making this, care should be taken not to break the mulberries: this may be avoided by very gentle stirring, and by simmering the fruit very slowly.
Time.—¾ hour to extract the juice; ¼ hour to boil the mulberries the first time, ¼ hour the second time.
Seasonable in August and September.
Mulberry.—Mulberries are esteemed for their highly aromatic flavour, and their sub-acid nature. They are considered as cooling, laxative, and generally wholesome. This fruit was very highly esteemed by the Romans, who appear to have preferred it to every other. The mulberry-tree is stated to have been introduced into this country in 1548, being first planted at Sion House, where the original trees still thrive. The planting of them was much encouraged by King James I. about 1605; and considerable attempts were made at that time to rear silkworms on a large scale for the purpose of making silk; but these endeavours have always failed, the climate being scarcely warm enough.
1561. Ingredients.—To every lb. of cherries allow 1¼ lb. of sugar, 1 gill of water.
Mode.—Select ripe cherries; pick off the stalks, and reject all that have any blemishes. Boil the sugar and water together for 5 minutes; put in the cherries, and boil them for 10 minutes, removing the scum as it rises. Then turn the fruit, &c. into a pan, and let it remain until the next day, when boil it all again for another 10 minutes, and, if necessary, skim well. Put the cherries into small pots; pour over them the syrup, and, when cold, cover down with oiled papers, and the tops of the jars with tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg, and keep in a dry place.
Time.—Altogether, 25 minutes to boil.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in July or August.
The Cherry-tree in Rome.—The Cherry-tree was introduced into Rome by Lucullus, about seventy years before the Christian era; but the capital of the world knew not 785 3E at first how to appreciate this present as it deserved; for the cherry-tree was propagated so slowly in Italy, that more than a century after its introduction it was far from being generally cultivated. The Romans distinguished three principal species of cherries—the Apronian, of a bright red, with a firm and delicate pulp; the Lutatian, very black and sweet; the Cæcilian, round and stubby, and much esteemed. The cherry embellished the third course in Rome and the second at Athens.
1562. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow ¼ pint of water; nectarines.
Mode.—Divide the nectarines in two, take out the stones, and make a strong syrup with sugar and water in the above proportion. Put in the nectarines, and boil them until they have thoroughly imbibed the sugar. Keep the fruit as whole as possible, and turn it carefully into a pan. The next day boil it again for a few, minutes, take out the nectarines, put them into jars, boil the syrup quickly for 5 minutes, pour it over the fruit, and, when cold, cover the preserve down. The syrup and preserve must be carefully skimmed, or it will not be clear.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the sugar and water; 20 minutes to boil the fruit the first time, 10 minutes the second time; 5 minutes to boil the syrup.
Seasonable in August and September, but cheapest in September.
1563. Ingredients.—1 lb. of Normandy pippins, 1 quart of water, ½ teaspoonful of powdered cinnamon, ½ teaspoonful of ground ginger, 1 lb. of moist sugar, 1 lemon.
Mode.—Well wash the pippins, and put them into 1 quart of water with the above proportion of cinnamon and ginger, and let them stand 12 hours; then put these all together into a stewpan, with the lemon sliced thinly, and half the moist sugar. Let them boil slowly until the pippins are half done; then add the remainder of the sugar, and simmer until they are quite tender. Serve on glass dishes for dessert.
Time.—2 to 3 hours.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Seasonable.—Suitable for a winter dish.
1564. Ingredients.—Oranges; to every lb. of pounded loaf sugar allow the whites of 2 eggs.
Mode.—Whisk the whites of the eggs well, stir in the sugar, and beat this mixture for ¼ hour. Skin the oranges, remove as much of the white pith as possible without injuring the pulp of the fruit; pass a thread through the centre of each orange, dip them into the sugar, and tie them to a stick. Place this stick across the oven, and let the 786 oranges remain until dry, when they will have the appearance of balls of ice. They make a pretty dessert or supper dish. Care must be taken not to have the oven too fierce, or the oranges would scorch and acquire a brown colour, which would entirely spoil their appearance.
Time.—From ½ to 1 hour to dry in a moderate oven.
Average cost, 1½d. each.
Sufficient.—½ lb. of sugar to ice 12 oranges.
Seasonable from November to May.
The First Orange-tree in France.—The first Orange-tree cultivated in the centre of France was to be seen a few years ago at Fontainebleau. It was called Le Connétable (the Constable), because it had belonged to the Connétable de Bourbon, and had been confiscated, together with all property belonging to that prince, after his revolt against his sovereign.
COMPÔTE OF ORANGES.
Mode.—Peel the oranges, remove as much of the white pith as possible, and divide them into small pieces without breaking the thin skin with which they are surrounded. Make the syrup by recipe No. 1512, adding the rind of the orange cut into thin narrow strips. When the syrup has been well skimmed, and is quite clear, put in the pieces of orange, and simmer them for 5 minutes. Take them out carefully with a spoon without breaking them, and arrange them on a glass dish. Reduce the syrup by boiling it quickly until thick; let it cool a little, pour it over the oranges, and, when cold, they will be ready for table.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the syrup; 5 minutes to simmer the oranges; 5 minutes to reduce the syrup.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable from November to May.
The Orange in Portugal.—The Orange known under the name of “Portugal Orange” comes originally from China. Not more than two centuries ago, the Portuguese brought thence the first scion, which has multiplied so prodigiously that we now see entire forests of orange-trees in Portugal.
Orange and Cloves.—It appears to have been the custom formerly, in England, to make new year’s presents with oranges stuck full with cloves. We read in one of Ben Jonson’s pieces,—the “Christmas Masque,”—“He has an orange and rosemary, but not a clove to stick in it.”
1566. Ingredients.—Equal weight of fine loaf sugar and Seville oranges; to 12 oranges allow 1 pint of water.
Mode.—Let there be an equal weight of loaf sugar and Seville 787 oranges, and allow the above proportion of water to every dozen oranges. Peel them carefully, remove a little of the white pith, and boil the rinds in water 2 hours, changing the water three times to take off a little of the bitter taste. Break the pulp into small pieces, take out all the pips, and cut the boiled rind into chips. Make a syrup with the sugar and water; boil this well, skim it, and, when clear, put in the pulp and chips. Boil all together from 20 minutes to ½ hour; pour it into pots, and, when cold, cover down with bladders or tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg. The juice and grated rind of 2 lemons to every dozen of oranges, added with the pulp and chips to the syrup, are a very great improvement to this marmalade.
Time.—2 hours to boil the orange-rinds; 10 minutes to boil the syrup; 20 minutes to ½ hour to boil the marmalade.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—This should be made in March or April, as Seville oranges are then in perfection.
1567. Ingredients.—Equal weight of Seville oranges and sugar; to every lb. of sugar allow ½ pint of water.
Mode.—Weigh the sugar and oranges, score the skin across, and take it off in quarters. Boil these quarters in a muslin bag in water until they are quite soft, and they can be pierced easily with the head of a pin; then cut them into chips about 1 inch long, and as thin as possible. Should there be a great deal of white stringy pulp, remove it before cutting the rind into chips. Split open the oranges, scrape out the best part of the pulp, with the juice, rejecting the white pith and pips. Make a syrup with the sugar and water; boil it until clear; then put in the chips, pulp, and juice, and boil the marmalade from 20 minutes to ½ hour, removing all the scum as it rises. In boiling the syrup, clear it carefully from scum before the oranges are added to it.
Time.—2 hours to boil the rinds, 10 minutes the syrup, 20 minutes to ½ hour the marmalade.
Average cost, 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in March or April, when Seville oranges are in perfection.
1568. Ingredients.—To every lb. of pulp allow 1½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Choose some fine Seville oranges; put them whole into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and stew them until 788 they become perfectly tender, changing the water 2 or 3 times; drain them, take off the rind, remove the pips from the pulp, weigh it, and to every lb. allow 1½ of loaf sugar and ½ pint of the water the oranges were last boiled in. Boil the sugar and water together for 10 minutes; put in the pulp, boil for another 10 minutes; then add the peel cut into strips, and boil the marmalade for another 10 minutes, which completes the process. Pour it into jars; let it cool; then cover down with bladders, or tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg.
Time.—2 hours to boil the oranges; altogether ½ hour to boil the marmalade.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in March or April.
1569. Ingredients.—To 1 quart of the juice and pulp of Seville oranges allow 2 lbs. of honey, 1 lb. of the rind.
Mode.—Peel the oranges and boil the rind in water until tender, and cut it into strips. Take away the pips from the juice and pulp, and put it with the honey and chips into a preserving-pan; boil all together for about ½ hour, or until the marmalade is of the proper consistency; put it into pots, and, when cold, cover down with bladders.
Time.—2 hours to boil the rind, ½ hour the marmalade.
Average cost, from 7d. to 9d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Make this in March or April.
1570. Ingredients.—Oranges; to every lb. of juice and pulp allow 2 lbs. of loaf sugar; to every pint of water ½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Wholly grate or peel the oranges, taking off only the thin outside portion of the rind. Make a small incision where the stalk is taken out, squeeze out as much of the juice as can be obtained, and preserve it in a basin with the pulp that accompanies it. Put the oranges into cold water; let them stand for 3 days, changing the water twice; then boil them in fresh water till they are very tender, and put them to drain. Make a syrup with the above proportion of sugar and water, sufficient to cover the oranges; let them stand in it for 2 or 3 days; then drain them well. Weigh the juice and pulp, allow double their weight of sugar, and boil them together until the scum ceases to rise, which must all be carefully removed; put in the 789 oranges, boil them for 10 minutes, place them in jars, pour over them the syrup, and, when cold, cover down. They will be fit for use in a week.
Time.—3 days for the oranges to remain in water, 3 days in the syrup; ½ hour to boil the pulp, 10 minutes the oranges.
Seasonable.—This preserve should be made in February or March, when oranges are plentiful.
1571. Ingredients.—6 oranges, ¼ lb. of muscatel raisins, 2 oz. of pounded sugar, 4 tablespoonfuls of brandy.
Mode.—Peel 5 of the oranges; divide them into slices without breaking the pulp, and arrange them on a glass dish. Stone the raisins, mix them with the sugar and brandy, and mingle them with the oranges. Squeeze the juice of the other orange over the whole, and the dish is ready for table. A little pounded spice may be put in when the flavour is liked; but this ingredient must be added very sparingly.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable from November to May.
1572. Ingredients.—1 pint of syrup No. 1512, about 15 small peaches.
Mode.—Peaches that are not very large, and that would not look well for dessert, answer very nicely for a compôte. Divide the peaches, take out the stones, and pare the fruit; make a syrup by recipe No. 1512, put in the peaches, and stew them gently for about 10 minutes. Take them out without breaking, arrange them on a glass dish, boil the syrup for 2 or 3 minutes, let it cool, pour it over the fruit, and, when cold, it will be ready for table.
Time.—10 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 2d.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable in August and September.
Peach and Nectarine.—The peach and nectarine, which are among the most delicious of our fruits, are considered as varieties of the same species, produced by cultivation. The former is characterized by a very delicate down, while the latter is smooth; but, as a proof of their identity as to species, trees have borne peaches on one part and nectarines on another; and even a single fruit has had down on one side, and on the other none: the trees are almost exactly alike, as well as the blossoms. Pliny states that the peach was originally brought from Persia, where it grows naturally. At Montreuil, a village near Paris, almost the whole population is employed in the cultivation of peaches; and this occupation has maintained the inhabitants for ages, and, in consequence, they raise better peaches than anywhere else in France. In Maryland and Virginia, peaches grow nearly wild in orchards resembling forests; but the fruit is of little value for the table, being employed only in fattening hogs and for the distillation of peach brandy. On the east side of the Andes, peaches grow wild among the cornfields and in the mountains, 790 and are dried as an article of food. The young leaves of the peach are sometimes used in cookery, from their agreeable flavour; and a liqueur resembling the fine noyeau of Martinique may be made by steeping them in brandy sweetened with sugar and fined with milk: gin may also be flavoured in the same manner. The kernels of the fruit have the same flavour. The nectarine is said to have received its name from nectar, the particular drink of the gods. Though it is considered as the same species as the peach, it is not known which of the varieties come from the other: the nectarine is by some considered as the superior fruit.
1573. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit weighed, before being stoned, allow ¼ lb. of finely-pounded loaf sugar; brandy.
Mode.—Let the fruit be gathered in dry weather; wipe and weigh it, and remove the stones as carefully as possible, without injuring the peaches much. Put them into a jar, sprinkle amongst them pounded loaf sugar in the above proportion, and pour brandy over the fruit. Cover the jar down closely, place it in a saucepan of boiling water over the fire, and bring the brandy to the simmering-point, but do not allow it to boil. Take the fruit out carefully, without breaking it; put it into small jars, pour over it the brandy, and, when cold, exclude the air by covering the jars with bladders, or tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg. Apricots may be done in the same manner, and, if properly prepared, will be found delicious.
Time.—From 10 to 20 minutes to bring the brandy to the simmering-point.
Seasonable in August and September.
1574. Ingredients.—12 pears, the rind of 1 lemon, 6 cloves, 10 whole allspice; to every pint of water allow ½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Pare and cut the pears into halves, and, should they be very large, into quarters; leave the stalks on, and carefully remove the cores. Place them in a clean baking-jar, with a closely-fitting lid; add to them the lemon-rind cut in strips, the juice of ½ lemon, the cloves, pounded allspice, and sufficient water just to cover the whole, with sugar in the above proportion. Cover the jar down closely, put it into a very cool oven, and bake the pears from 5 to 6 hours, but be very careful that the oven is not too hot. To improve the colour of the fruit, a few drops of prepared cochineal may be added; but this will not be found necessary if the pears are very gently baked.
Time.—Large pears, 5 to 6 hours, in a very slow oven.
Average cost, 1d. to 2d. each.
Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons.
Seasonable from September to January.
Pear.—The pear, like the apple, is indigenous to this country; but the wild pear is a very unsatisfactory fruit. The best varieties were brought from the East by the Romans, 791 who cultivated them with care, and probably introduced some of their best sorts into this island, to which others were added by the inhabitants of the monasteries. The Dutch and Flemings, as well as the French, have excelled in the cultivation of the pear, and most of the late varieties introduced are from France and Flanders. The pear is a hardy tree, and a longer liver than the apple: it has been known to exist for centuries. There are now about 150 varieties of this fruit. Though perfectly wholesome when ripe, the pear is not so when green; but in this state it is fit for stewing. An agreeable beverage, called perry, is made from pears, and the varieties which are least fit for eating make the best perry.
1575. Ingredients.—Jargonelle pears; to every lb. of sugar allow ½ pint of water.
Mode.—Procure some Jargonelle pears, not too ripe; put them into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and simmer them till rather tender, but do not allow them to break; then put them into cold water. Boil the sugar and water together for 5 minutes, skim well, put in the pears, and simmer them gently for 5 minutes. Repeat the simmering for 3 successive days, taking care not to let the fruit break. The last time of boiling, the syrup should be made rather richer, and the fruit boiled for 10 minutes. When the pears are done, drain them from the syrup, and dry them in the sun, or in a cool oven; or they may be kept in the syrup, and dried as they are wanted.
Time.—½ hour to simmer the pears in water, 20 minutes in the syrup.
Average cost, 1d. to 2d. each.
Seasonable.—Most plentiful in September and October.
1576. Ingredients.—8 large pears, 5 oz. of loaf sugar, 6 cloves, 6 whole allspice, ½ pint of water, ¼ pint of port wine, a few drops of prepared cochineal.
STEWED PEARS.
Mode.—Pare the pears, halve them, remove the cores, and leave the stalks on; put them into a lined saucepan with the above ingredients, and let them simmer very gently until tender, which will be in from 3 to 4 hours, according to the quality of the pears. They should be watched, and, when done, carefully lifted out on to a glass dish without breaking them. Boil up the syrup quickly for 2 or 3 minutes; allow it to cool a little, pour it over the pears, and let them get perfectly cold. To improve the colour of the fruit, a few drops of prepared cochineal may be added, which rather enhances the beauty of this dish. The fruit must not be boiled fast, but only simmered, and watched that it be not too much done.
792Time.—3 to 4 hours.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable from September to January.
The Bon Chretien Pear.—The valuable variety of pear called Bon Chrétien, which comes to our tables in winter, either raw or cooked, received its name through the following incident:—Louis XI., king of France, had sent for Saint François de Paule from the lower part of Calabria, in the hopes of recovering his health through his intercession. The saint brought with him the seeds of this pear; and, as he was called at court Le Bon Chrétien, this fruit obtained the name of him to whom France owed its introduction.
1577. Ingredients.—Pineapples; sugar to taste.
Mode.—Pare and slice the fruit thinly, put it on dishes, and strew over it plenty of pounded sugar. Keep it in a hot closet, or very slow oven, 8 or 10 days, and turn the fruit every day until dry; then put the pieces of pine on tins, and place them in a quick oven for 10 minutes. Let them cool, and store them away in dry boxes, with paper between each layer.
Time.—8 to 10 days.
Seasonable.—Foreign pines, in July and August.
1578. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit, weighed after being pared, allow 1 lb. of loaf sugar; ¼ pint of water.
Mode.—The pines for making this preserve should be perfectly sound but ripe. Cut them into rather thick slices, as the fruit shrinks very much in the boiling. Pare off the rind carefully, that none of the pine be wasted; and, in doing so, notch it in and out, as the edge cannot be smoothly cut without great waste. Dissolve a portion of the sugar in a preserving-pan with ¼ pint of water; when this is melted, gradually add the remainder of the sugar, and boil it until it forms a clear syrup, skimming well. As soon as this is the case, put in the pieces of pine, and boil well for at least ½ hour, or until it looks nearly transparent. Put it into pots, cover down when cold, and store away in a dry place.
Time.—½ hour to boil the fruit.
Average cost, 10d. to 1s. per lb. pot.
Seasonable.—Foreign pines, in July and August.
The Pineapple in Heathendom.—Heathen nations invented protective divinities for their orchards (such as Pomona, Vertumnus, Priapus, &c.), and benevolent patrons for their fruits: thus, the olive-tree grew under the auspices of Minerva; the Muses cherished the palm-tree, Bacchus the fig and grape, and the pine and its cone were consecrated to the great Cybele.
1579. Ingredients.—Pineapple, sugar, water.
Mode.—Cut the pine into slices ¼ inch in thickness; peel them, and remove the hard part from the middle. Put the parings and hard 793 pieces into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and boil for ¼ hour. Strain the liquor, and put in the slices of pine. Stew them for 10 minutes, add sufficient sugar to sweeten the whole nicely, and boil again for another ¼ hour; skim well, and the preserve will be ready for use. It must be eaten soon, as it will keep but a very short time.
Time.—¼ hour to boil the parings in water; 10 minutes to boil the pine without sugar, ¼ hour with sugar.
Average cost.—Foreign pines, 1s. to 3s. each; English, from 2s. to 12s. per lb.
Seasonable.—Foreign, in July and August; English, all the year.
1580. Ingredients.—To every lb. of plums, weighed before being stoned, allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—In making plum jam, the quantity of sugar for each lb. of fruit must be regulated by the quality and size of the fruit, some plums requiring much more sugar than others. Divide the plums, take out the stones, and put them on to large dishes, with roughly-pounded sugar sprinkled over them in the above proportion, and let them remain for one day; then put them into a preserving-pan, stand them by the side of the fire to simmer gently for about ½ hour, and then boil them rapidly for another 15 minutes. The scum must be carefully removed as it rises, and the jam must be well stirred all the time, or it will burn at the bottom of the pan, and so spoil the colour and flavour of the preserve. Some of the stones may be cracked, and a few kernels added to the jam just before it is done: these impart a very delicious flavour to the plums. The above proportion of sugar would answer for Orleans plums; the Impératrice, Magnum-bonum, and Winesour would not require quite so much.
Time.—½ hour to simmer gently, ¼ hour to boil rapidly.
Best plums for preserving.—Violets, Mussels, Orleans, Impératrice, Magnum-bonum, and Winesour.
Seasonable from the end of July to the beginning of October.
Plums.—The Damson, or Damascene plum, takes its name from Damascus, where it grows in great quantities, and whence it was brought into Italy about 114 B.C. The Orleans plum is from France. The Greengage is called after the Gage family, who first brought it into England from the monastery of the Chartreuse, at Paris, where it still bears the name of Reine Claude. The Magnum-bonum is our largest plum, and greatly esteemed for preserves and culinary purposes. The best sorts of plums are agreeable at the dessert, and, when perfectly ripe, are wholesome; but some are too astringent. They lose much of their bad qualities by baking, and are extensively used, from their cheapness, when in full season, in tarts and preserves; but they are not a very wholesome fruit, and should be eaten in moderation.
1581. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar; for the thin syrup, ¼ lb. of sugar to each pint of water.
794Mode.—Select large ripe plums; slightly prick them, to prevent them from bursting, and simmer them very gently in a syrup made with the above proportion of sugar and water. Put them carefully into a pan, let the syrup cool, pour it over the plums, and allow them to remain for two days. Having previously weighed the other sugar, dip the lumps quickly into water, and put them into a preserving-pan with no more water than hangs about them; and boil the sugar to a syrup, carefully skimming it. Drain the plums from the first syrup; put them into the fresh syrup, and simmer them very gently until they are clear; lift them out singly into pots, pour the syrup over, and when cold, cover down to exclude the air. This preserve will remain good some time, if kept in a dry place, and makes a very nice addition to a dessert. The magnum-bonum plums answer for this preserve better than any other kind of plum. Greengages are also very delicious done in this manner.
Time.—¼ hour to 20 minutes to simmer the plums in the first syrup; 20 minutes to ½ hour very gentle simmering in the second.
Seasonable from August to October.
1582. Ingredients.—To every lb. of sugar allow ¼ pint of water.
Mode.—Gather the plums when they are full-grown and just turning colour; prick them, put them into a saucepan of cold water, and set them on the fire until the water is on the point of boiling. Then take them out, drain them, and boil them gently in syrup made with the above proportion of sugar and water; and if the plums shrink, and will not take the sugar, prick them as they lie in the pan; give them another boil, skim, and set them by. The next day add some more sugar, boiled almost to candy, to the fruit and syrup; put all together into a wide-mouthed jar, and place them in a cool oven for 2 nights; then drain the plums from the syrup, sprinkle a little powdered sugar over, and dry them in a cool oven.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes to boil the plums in the syrup.
Seasonable from August to October.
Plums.—The wild sloe is the parent of the plum, but the acclimated kinds come from the East. The cultivation of this fruit was probably attended to very early in England, as Gerrard informs us that, in 1597, he had in his garden, in Holborn, threescore sorts. The sloe is a shrub common in our hedgerows, and belongs to the natural order Amygdaleæ; the fruit is about the size of a large pea, of a black colour, and covered with a bloom of a bright blue. It is one of the few indigenous to our island. The juice is extremely sharp and astringent, and was formerly employed as a medicine, where astringents were necessary. It now assists in the manufacture of a red wine made to imitate port, and also for adulteration. The leaves have been used to adulterate tea; the fruit, when ripe, makes a good preserve.
1583. Ingredients.—1½ lb. of French plums, ¾ pint of syrup No. 1512, 1 glass of port wine, the rind and juice of 1 lemon.
Mode.—Stew the plums gently in water for 1 hour; strain the water, and with it make the syrup. When it is clear, put in the plums with the port wine, lemon-juice, and rind, and simmer very gently for 1½ hour. Arrange the plums on a glass dish, take out the lemon-rind, pour the syrup over the plums, and, when cold, they will be ready for table. A little allspice stewed with the fruit is by many persons considered an improvement.
Time.—1 hour to stew the plums in water, 1½ hour in the syrup.
Average cost,—plums sufficiently good for stewing, 1s. per lb.
Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons.
Seasonable in winter.
1584. Ingredients.—To each lb. of pumpkin allow 1 lb. of roughly-pounded loaf sugar, 1 gill of lemon-juice.
Mode.—Obtain a good sweet pumpkin; halve it, take out the seeds, and pare off the rind; cut it into neat slices, or into pieces about the size of a five-shilling piece. Weigh the pumpkin, put the slices in a pan or deep dish in layers, with the sugar sprinkled between them; pour the lemon-juice over the top, and let the whole remain for 2 or 3 days. Boil altogether, adding ½ pint of water to every 3 lbs. of sugar used until the pumpkin becomes tender; then turn the whole into a pan, where let it remain for a week; then drain off the syrup, boil it until it is quite thick; skim, and pour it, boiling, over the pumpkin. A little bruised ginger and lemon-rind, thinly pared, may be boiled in the syrup to flavour the pumpkin.
Time.—From ½ to ¾ hour to boil the pumpkin tender.
Average cost, 5d. to 7d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable in September and October; but better when made in the latter month, as the pumpkin is then quite ripe.
Note.—Vegetable marrows are very good prepared in the same manner, but are not quite so rich.
1585. Ingredients.—To every pint of juice allow 1 lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Pare and slice the quinces, and put them into a preserving-pan with sufficient water to float them. Boil them until tender, and the fruit is reduced to a pulp; strain off the clear juice, and to each pint 796 allow the above proportion of loaf sugar. Boil the juice and sugar together for about ¾ hour; remove all the scum as it rises, and, when the jelly appears firm when a little is poured on a plate, it is done. The residue left on the sieve will answer to make a common marmalade, for immediate use, by boiling it with ½ lb. of common sugar to every lb. of pulp.
Time.—3 hours to boil the quinces in water; ¾ hour to boil the jelly.
Average cost, from 8d. to 10d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable from August to October.
1586. Ingredients.—To every lb. of quince pulp allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Slice the quinces into a preserving-pan, adding sufficient water for them to float; place them on the fire to stew, until reduced to a pulp, keeping them stirred occasionally from the bottom, to prevent their burning; then pass the pulp through a hair sieve, to keep back the skin and seeds. Weigh the pulp, and to each lb. add lump sugar in the above proportion, broken very small. Place the whole on the fire, and keep it well stirred from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, until reduced to a marmalade, which may be known by dropping a little on a cold plate, when, if it jellies, it is done. Put it into jars whilst hot; let it cool, and cover with pieces of oiled paper cut to the size of the mouths of the jars. The tops of them may be afterwards covered with pieces of bladder, or tissue-paper brushed over on both sides with the white of an egg.
Time.—3 hours to boil the quinces without the sugar; ¾ hour to boil the pulp with the sugar.
Average cost, from 8d. to 9d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 pint of sliced quinces for a lb. pot.
Seasonable in August, September, and October.
1587. Ingredients.—To every lb. of raisins allow ½ lb. of loaf sugar; pounded cinnamon and cloves to taste.
Mode.—Stone the raisins; put them into a stewpan with the sugar, cinnamon, and cloves, and let them boil for 1½ hour, stirring all the time. Let the preparation cool a little, pour it into a glass dish, and garnish with strips of candied lemon-peel and citron. This will remain good some time, if kept in a dry place.
Time.—1½ hour.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient.—1 lb. for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
7971588. Ingredients.—To every lb. of raspberries allow 1 lb. of sugar, ¼ pint of red-currant juice.
Mode.—Let the fruit for this preserve be gathered in fine weather, and used as soon after it is picked as possible. Take off the stalks, put the raspberries into a preserving-pan, break them well with a wooden spoon, and let them boil for ¼ hour, keeping them well stirred. Then add the currant-juice and sugar, and boil again for ½ hour. Skim the jam well after the sugar is added, or the preserve will not be clear. The addition of the currant juice is a very great improvement to this preserve, as it gives it a piquant taste, which the flavour of the raspberries seems to require.
Time.—¼ hour to simmer the fruit without the sugar; ½ hour after it is added.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—Allow about 1 pint of fruit to fill a 1-lb. pot.
Seasonable in July and August.
1589. Ingredients.—To each pint of juice allow ¾ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Let the raspberries be freshly gathered, quite ripe, and picked from the stalks; put them into a large jar, after breaking the fruit a little with a wooden spoon, and place this jar, covered, in a saucepan of boiling water. When the juice is well drawn, which will be in from ¾ to 1 hour, strain the fruit through a fine hair sieve or cloth; measure the juice, and to every pint allow the above proportion of loaf sugar. Put the juice and sugar into a preserving-pan, place it over the fire, and boil gently until the jelly thickens when a little is poured on a plate; carefully remove all the scum as it rises, pour the jelly into small pots, cover down, and keep in a dry place. This jelly answers for making raspberry cream, and for flavouring various sweet dishes, when, in winter, the fresh fruit is not obtainable.
Time.—¾ to 1 hour to draw the juice.
Average cost, from 9d. to 1s. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—From 3 pints to 2 quarts of fruit should yield 1 pint of juice.
Seasonable.—This should be made in July or August.
1590. Ingredients.—To every lb. of rhubarb allow 1 lb. of loaf sugar, the rind of ½ lemon.
798Mode.—Wipe the rhubarb perfectly dry, take off the string or peel, and weigh it; put it into a preserving-pan, with sugar in the above proportion; mince the lemon-rind very finely, add it to the other ingredients, and place the preserving-pan by the side of the fire; keep stirring to prevent the rhubarb from burning, and when the sugar is well dissolved, put the pan more over the fire, and let the jam boil until it is done, taking care to keep it well skimmed and stirred with a wooden or silver spoon. Pour it into pots, and cover down with oiled and egged papers.
Time.—If the rhubarb is young and tender, ¾ hour, reckoning from the time it simmers equally; old rhubarb, 1¼ to 1½ hour.
Average cost, 5d. to 7d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient.—About 1 pint of sliced rhubarb to fill a lb. pot.
Seasonable from February to April.
1591. Ingredients.—1 quart of finely-cut rhubarb, 6 oranges, 1½ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Peel the oranges; remove as much of the white pith as possible, divide them, and take out the pips; slice the pulp into a preserving-pan, add the rind of half the oranges cut into thin strips, and the loaf sugar, which should be broken small. Peel the rhubarb, cut it into thin pieces, put it to the oranges, and stir altogether over a gentle fire until the jam is done. Remove all the scum as it rises, put the preserve into pots, and, when cold, cover down. Should the rhubarb be very old, stew it alone for ¼ hour before the other ingredients are added.
Time.—¾ to 1 hour.
Average cost, from 6d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Seasonable from February to April.
1592. Mode.—Fruit salads are made by stripping the fruit from the stalks, piling it on a dish, and sprinkling over it finely-pounded sugar. They may be made of strawberries, raspberries, currants, or any of these fruits mixed; peaches also make a very good salad. After the sugar is sprinkled over, about 6 large tablespoonfuls of wine or brandy, or 3 tablespoonfuls of liqueur, should be poured in the middle of the fruit; and, when the flavour is liked, a little pounded cinnamon may be added. In helping the fruit, it should be lightly stirred, that the wine and sugar may be equally distributed.
799Sufficient—1½ pint of fruit, with 3 oz. of pounded sugar, for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable in summer.
1593. Ingredients.—To every pint of picked strawberries allow ⅓ pint of cream, 2 oz. of finely-pounded sugar.
Mode.—Pick the stalks from the fruit, place it on a glass dish, sprinkle over it pounded sugar, and slightly stir the strawberries, that they may all be equally sweetened; pour the cream over the top, and serve. Devonshire cream, when it can be obtained, is exceedingly delicious for this dish; and, if very thick indeed, may be diluted with a little thin cream or milk.
Average cost for this quantity, with cream at 1s. per pint, 1s.
Sufficient for 2 persons.
Seasonable in June and July.
1594. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow ½ pint of red-currant juice, 1¼ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Strip the currants from the stalks, put them into a jar; place this jar in a saucepan of boiling water, and simmer until the juice is well drawn from the fruit; strain the currants, measure the juice, put it into a preserving-pan, and add the sugar. Select well-ripened but sound strawberries; pick them from the stalks, and when the sugar is dissolved in the currant juice, put in the fruit. Simmer the whole over a moderate fire, from ½ to ¾ hour, carefully removing the scum as it rises. Stir the jam only enough to prevent it from burning at the bottom of the pan, as the fruit should be preserved as whole as possible. Put the jam into jars, and when cold, cover down.
Time.—½ to ¾ hour, reckoning from the time the jam simmers all over.
Average cost, from 7d. to 8d. per lb. pot.
Sufficient—12 pints of strawberries will make 12 lb. pots of jam.
Seasonable in June and July.
1595. Ingredients.—To every quart bottle allow ¼ lb. of finely-pounded loaf sugar; sherry or Madeira.
Mode.—Let the fruit be gathered in fine weather, and used as soon as picked. Have ready some perfectly dry glass bottles, and some 800 nice soft corks or bungs. Pick the stalks from the strawberries, drop them into the bottles, sprinkling amongst them pounded sugar in the above proportion, and when the fruit reaches to the neck of the bottle, fill up with sherry or Madeira. Cork the bottles down with new corks, and dip them into melted resin.
Seasonable.—Make this in-June or July.
1596. Ingredients.—To every lb. of fruit allow 1½ lb. of good loaf sugar, 1 pint of red-currant juice.
Mode.—Choose the strawberries not too ripe, of a fine large sort and of a good colour. Pick off the stalks, lay the strawberries in a dish, and sprinkle over them half the quantity of sugar, which must be finely pounded. Shake the dish gently, that the sugar may be equally distributed and touch the under-side of the fruit, and let it remain for 1 day. Then have ready the currant-juice, drawn as for red-currant jelly No. 1533; boil it with the remainder of the sugar until it forms a thin syrup, and in this simmer the strawberries and sugar, until the whole is sufficiently jellied. Great care must be taken not to stir the fruit roughly, as it should be preserved as whole as possible. Strawberries prepared in this manner are very good served in glasses and mixed with thin cream.
Time.—¼ hour to 20 minutes to simmer the strawberries in the syrup.
Seasonable in June and July.
1597. Ingredients.—1 lb. of powdered loaf sugar, 1 teacupful of water, ¼ lb. of butter, 6 drops of essence of lemon.
Mode.—Put the water and sugar into a brass pan, and beat the butter to a cream. When the sugar is dissolved, add the butter, and keep stirring the mixture over the fire until it sets, when a little is poured on to a buttered dish; and just before the toffee is done, add the essence of lemon. Butter a dish or tin, pour on it the mixture, and when cool, it will easily separate from the dish. Butter-Scotch, an excellent thing for coughs, is made with brown, instead of white sugar, omitting the water, and flavoured with ½ oz. of powdered ginger. It is made in the same manner as toffee.
Time.—18 to 35 minutes.
Average cost, 10d.
Sufficient to make a lb. of toffee.
801 3F
W1. Strawberries au naturel in ornamental Flowerpot.
1598. The tazza, or dish with stem, the same as that shown in our illustrations, is now the favourite shape for dessert-dishes. The fruit can be arranged and shown to better advantage on these tall high dishes than on the short flat ones. All the dishes are now usually placed down the centre of the table, dried and fresh fruit alternately, the former being arranged on small round or oval glass plates, and the latter on the dishes with stems. The fruit should always be gathered on the same day that it is required for table, and should be tastefully arranged on the dishes, with leaves between and round it. By purchasing fruits that are in season, a dessert can be supplied at a very moderate cost. These, with a few fancy biscuits, crystallized fruit, bon-bons, &c., are sufficient for an ordinary dessert. When fresh fruit cannot be obtained, dried and foreign fruits, compôtes, baked pears, stewed Normandy pippins, &c. &c., must supply its place, with the addition of preserves, bon-bons, cakes, biscuits, &c. At fashionable tables, forced fruit is served growing in pots, these pots being hidden in more ornamental ones, and arranged with the other dishes.—(See coloured plate W1.) A few vases of fresh flowers, tastefully arranged, add very much to the appearance of the dessert; and, when these are not obtainable, a few paper ones, mixed with green leaves, answer very well as a substitute. In decorating a table, whether for luncheon, dessert, or supper, a vase or two of flowers should 802 never be forgotten, as they add so much to the elegance of the tout ensemble. In summer and autumn, ladies residing in the country can always manage to have a few freshly-gathered flowers on their tables, and should never be without this inexpensive luxury. On the continent, vases or epergnes filled with flowers are invariably placed down the centre of the dinner-table at regular distances. Ices for dessert are usually moulded: when this is not the case, they are handed round in glasses with wafers to accompany them. Preserved ginger is frequently handed round after ices, to prepare the palate for the delicious dessert wines. A basin or glass of finely-pounded lump sugar must never be omitted at a dessert, as also a glass jug of fresh cold water (iced, if possible), and two goblets by its side. Grape-scissors, a melon-knife and fork, and nutcrackers, should always be put on table, if there are dishes of fruit requiring them. Zests are sometimes served at the close of the dessert; such as anchovy toasts or biscuits. The French often serve plain or grated cheese with a dessert of fresh or dried fruits. At some tables, finger-glasses are placed at the right of each person, nearly half filled with cold spring water, and in winter with tepid water. These precede the dessert. At other tables, a glass or vase is simply handed round, filled with perfumed water, into which each guest dips the corner of his napkin, and, when needful, refreshes his lips and the tips of his fingers. After the dishes are placed, and every one is provided with plates, glasses, spoons, &c., the wine should be put at each end of the table, cooled or 803 otherwise, according to the season. If the party be small, the wine may be placed only at the top of the table, near the host.
DISH OF NUTS.
1599. These are merely arranged piled high in the centre of the dish, as shown in the engraving, with or without leaves round the edge. Filberts should always be served with the outer skin or husk on them; and walnuts should be well wiped with a damp cloth, and then with a dry one, to remove the unpleasant sticky feeling the shells frequently have.
Seasonable—Filberts from September to March, good; may be had after that time, but are generally shrivelled and dry. Walnuts from September to January.
Hazel Nut and Filbert.—The common Hazel is the wild, and the Filbert the cultivated state of the same tree. The hazel is found wild, not only in forests and hedges, in dingles and ravines, but occurs in extensive tracts in the more northern and mountainous parts of the country. It was formerly one of the most abundant of those trees which are indigenous in this island. It is seldom cultivated as a fruit-tree, though perhaps its nuts are superior in flavour to the others. The Spanish nuts imported are a superior kind, but they are somewhat oily and rather indigestible. Filberts, both the red and the white, and the cob-nut, are supposed to be merely varieties of the common hazel, which have been produced, partly by the superiority of soil and climate, and partly by culture. They were originally brought out of Greece to Italy, whence they have found their way to Holland, and from that country to England. It is supposed that, within a few miles of Maidstone, in Kent, there are more filberts grown than in all England besides; and it is from that place that the London market is supplied. The filbert is longer than the common nut, though of the same thickness, and has a larger kernel. The cob-nut is a still larger variety, and is roundish. Filberts are more esteemed at the dessert than common nuts, and are generally eaten with salt. They are very free from oil, and disagree with few persons.
Walnuts.—The Walnut is a native of Persia, the Caucasus, and China, but was introduced to this kingdom from France. The ripe kernel is brought to the dessert on account of its agreeable flavour; and the fruit is also much used in the green state, before the stone hardens, as a pickle. In Spain, grated walnuts are employed in tarts and other dishes. The walnut abounds in oil, which is expressed, and which, being of a highly drying nature, and very limpid, is much employed for delicate painting. This, on the continent, is sometimes used as a substitute for olive-oil in cooking, but is very apt to turn rancid. It is also manufactured into a kind of soap. The marc, or refuse matter after the oil is extracted, proves very nutritious for poultry or other domestic animals, In Switzerland, this is eaten by poor people under the name of pain amer.
BOX OF FRENCH PLUMS.
1600. If the box which contains them is exceedingly ornamental, it may be placed on the table; if small, on a glass dish; if large, without one. French plums may also be arranged on a glass plate, and garnished with bright-coloured sweetmeats, which make a very good effect. All fancy boxes of preserved and crystallized fruit may be put on the table or not, at pleasure. These little matters of detail must, of course, be left to individual taste.
Seasonable.—May be purchased all the year; but are in greater perfection in the winter, and are more suitable for that season, as fresh fruit cannot be obtained.
804
U1. Centre Dish of Various Fruits.
DISH OF MIXED FRUIT.
1601. For a centre dish, a mixture of various fresh fruits has a remarkably good effect, particularly if a pine be added to the list. A high raised appearance should be given to the fruit, which is done in the following manner. Place a tumbler in the centre of the dish, and, in this tumbler, the pine, crown uppermost; round the tumbler put a thick layer of moss, and, over this, apples, pears, plums, peaches, and such fruit as is simultaneously in season. By putting a layer of moss underneath, so much fruit is not required, besides giving a better shape to the dish. Grapes should be placed on the top of the fruit, a portion of some of the bunches hanging over the sides of the dish in a négligé kind of manner, which takes off the formal look of the dish. In arranging the plums, apples, &c., let the colours contrast well.
Seasonable.—Suitable for a dessert in September or October.
Grapes.—France produces about a thousand varieties of the grape, which is cultivated more extensively in that country than in any other. Hygienists agree in pronouncing grapes as among the best of fruits. The grape possesses several rare qualities: it is nourishing and fattening, and its prolonged use has often overcome the most obstinate cases of constipation. The skins and pips of grapes should not be eaten.
1602. This is served in an ornamental box, placed on a glass plate or dish.
Seasonable.—May be purchased at any time.
BOX OF CHOCOLATE.
ALMONDS AND RAISINS.
1603. The apples should be nicely wiped with a dry cloth, and arranged on a dish, piled high in the centre, with evergreen leaves between each layer. The inferior apples should form the bottom layer, with the bright-coloured large ones at the top. The leaves of the laurel, bay, holly, or any shrub green in winter, are suitable for garnishing dessert dishes. Oranges may be arranged in the same manner; they should also be wiped with a dry cloth before being sent to table.
DISH OF APPLES.
DISH OF MIXED SUMMER FRUIT.
1604. This dish consists of cherries, raspberries, currants, and strawberries, piled in different layers, with plenty of leaves between each layer; so that each fruit is well separated. The fruit should be arranged with a due regard to colour, so that they contrast nicely one with the other. Our engraving shows a layer of white cherries at the bottom, then one of red raspberries; over that a layer of white currants, and at the top some fine scarlet strawberries.
Seasonable in June, July, and August.
8051605. These are usually served on glass dishes, the fruit piled high in the centre, and the almonds blanched, and strewn over. To blanch the almonds, put them into a small mug or teacup, pour over them boiling water, let them remain for 2 or 3 minutes, and the skins may then be easily removed. Figs, dates, French plums, &c., are all served on small glass plates or oval dishes, but without the almonds.
Seasonable at any time, but more suitable in winter, when fresh fruit is not obtainable.
Dates.—Dates are imported into Britain, in a dried state, from Barbary and Egypt, and, when in good condition, they are much esteemed. An inferior kind has lately become common, which are dried hard, and have little or no flavour. They should be chosen large, softish, not much wrinkled, of a reddish-yellow colour on the outside, with a whitish membrane between the fruit and the stone.
DISH OF STRAWBERRIES.
1606. Fine strawberries, arranged in the manner shown in the engraving, look exceedingly well. The inferior ones should be placed at the bottom of the dish, and the others put in rows pyramidically, with the stalks downwards; so that when the whole is completed, nothing but the red part of the fruit is visible. The fruit should be gathered with rather long stalks, as there is then something to support it, and it can be placed more upright in each layer. A few of the finest should be reserved to crown the top.
1607. Ingredients.—To every pint of water allow 1 teaspoonful of salt.
Mode.—Place the walnuts in the salt and water for 24 hours at least; then take them out, and rub them dry. Old nuts may be freshened in this manner; or walnuts, when first picked, may be put into an earthen pan with salt sprinkled amongst them, and with damped hay placed on the top of them, and then covered down with a lid. They must be well wiped before they are put on table.
Seasonable.—Should be stored away in September or October.
1608. Milk is obtained only from the class of animals called Mammalia, and is intended by Nature for the nourishment of their young. The milk of each animal is distinguished by some peculiarities; but as that of the cow is by far the most useful to us in this part of the world, our observations will be confined to that variety.
1609. Milk, when drawn from the cow, is of a yellowish-white colour, and is the most yellow at the beginning of the period of lactation. Its taste is agreeable, and rather saccharine. The viscidity and specific gravity of milk are somewhat greater than that of water; but these properties vary somewhat in the milk procured from different individuals. On an average, the specific gravity of milk is 1.035, water being 1. The small cows of the Alderney breed afford the richest milk.
1610. Milk which is carried to a considerable distance, so as to be much agitated, and cooled before it is put into pans to settle for cream, never throws up so much, nor such rich cream, as if the same milk had been put into pans directly after it was milked.
1611. Milk, considered as an aliment, is of such importance in domestic economy as to render all the improvements in its production extremely valuable. To enlarge upon the antiquity of its use is unnecessary; it has always been a 807 favourite food in Britain. “Lacte et carne vivunt,” says Cæsar, in his Commentaries; the English of which is, “the inhabitants subsist upon flesh and milk.” The breed of the cow has received great improvement in modern times, as regards the quantity and quality of the milk which she affords; the form of milch-cows, their mode of nourishment, and progress, are also manifest in the management of the dairy.
1612. Although milk in its natural state be a fluid, yet, considered as an aliment, it is both solid and fluid: for no sooner does it enter the stomach, than it is coagulated by the gastric juice, and separated into curd and whey, the first of these being extremely nutritive.
1613. Milk of the human subject is much thinner than cow’s milk; Ass’s milk comes the nearest to human milk of any other; Goat’s milk is something thicker and richer than cow’s milk; Ewe’s milk has the appearance of cow’s milk, and affords a larger quantity of cream; Mare’s milk contains more sugar than that of the ewe; Camel’s milk is used only in Africa; Buffalo’s milk is employed in India.
1614. From no other substance, solid or fluid, can so great a number of distinct kinds of aliment be prepared as from milk; some forming food, others drink; some of them delicious, and deserving the name of luxuries; all of them wholesome, and some medicinal: indeed, the variety of aliments that seems capable of being produced from milk, appears to be quite endless. In every age this must have been a subject for experiment, and every nation has added to the number by the invention of some peculiarity of its own.
1615. Beckman, in his “History of Inventions,” states that butter was not used either by the Greeks or Romans in cooking, nor was it brought upon their tables at certain meals, as is the custom at present. In England it has been made from time immemorial, though the art of making cheese is said not to have been known to the ancient Britons, and to have been learned from their conquerors.
1616. The taste of butter is peculiar, and very unlike any other fatty substance. It is extremely agreeable when of the best quality; but its flavour depends much upon the food given to the cows: to be good, it should not adhere to the knife.
1617. Butter, with regard to its dietetic properties, may be regarded nearly in the light of vegetable oils and animal fats; but it becomes sooner rancid than most other fat oils. When fresh, it cannot but be considered as very wholesome; 808 but it should be quite free from rancidity. If slightly salted when it is fresh, its wholesomeness is probably not at all impaired; but should it begin to turn rancid, salting will not correct its unwholesomeness. When salt butter is put into casks, the upper part next the air is very apt to become rancid, and this rancidity is also liable to affect the whole cask.
1618. Epping butter is the kind most esteemed in London. Fresh butter comes to London from Buckinghamshire, Suffolk, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire, Devonshire, &c. Cambridge butter is esteemed next to fresh; Devonshire butter is nearly similar in quality to the latter; Irish butter sold in London is all salted, but is generally good. The number of firkins exported annually from Ireland amounts to 420,000, equal to a million of money. Dutch butter is in good repute all over Europe, America, and even India; and no country in the world is so successful in the manufacture of this article, Holland supplying more butter to the rest of the world than any country whatever.
1619. There are two methods pursued in the manufacture of butter. In one, the cream is separated from the milk, and in that state it is converted into butter by churning, as is the practice about Epping; in the other, milk is subjected to the same process, which is the method usually followed in Cheshire. The first method is generally said to give the richest butter, and the latter the largest quantity, though some are of opinion that there is little difference either in quality or quantity.
1620. Cheese is the curd formed from milk by artificial coagulation, pressed and dried for use. Curd, called also casein and caseous matter, or the basis of cheese, exists in the milk, and not in the cream, and requires only to be separated by coagulation. The coagulation, however, supposes some alteration of the curd. By means of the substance employed to coagulate it, it is rendered insoluble in water. When the curd is freed from the whey, kneaded and pressed to expel it entirely, it becomes cheese. This assumes a degree of transparency, and possesses many of the properties of coagulated albumen. If it be well dried, it does not change by exposure to the air; but if it contain moisture, it soon putrefies. It therefore requires some salt to preserve it, and this acts likewise as a kind of seasoning. All our cheese is coloured more or less, except that made from skim milk. The colouring substances employed are arnatto, turmeric, or marigold, all perfectly harmless unless they are adulterated; and it is said that arnatto sometimes contains red lead.
1621. Cheese varies in quality and richness according to the materials of which it is composed. It is made—1. Of entire milk, as in Cheshire; 2. of milk and cream, as at Stilton; 3. of new milk mixed with skimmed milk, as in Gloucestershire; 4. of skimmed milk only, as in Suffolk, Holland, and Italy.
8091622. The principal varieties of cheese used in England are the following:—Cheshire cheese, famed all over Europe for its rich quality and fine piquant flavour. It is made of entire new milk, the cream not being taken off. Gloucester cheese is much milder in its taste than the Cheshire. There are two kinds of Gloucester cheese,—single and double. Single Gloucester is made of skimmed milk, or of the milk deprived of half the cream; Double Gloucester is a cheese that pleases almost every palate: it is made of the whole milk and cream. Stilton cheese is made by adding the cream of one day to the entire milk of the next: it was first made at Stilton, in Leicestershire. Sage cheese is so called from the practice of colouring some curd with bruised sage, marigold-leaves, and parsley, and mixing this with some uncoloured curd. With the Romans, and during the middle ages, this practice was extensively adopted. Cheddar cheese much resembles Parmesan. It has a very agreeable taste and flavour, and has a spongy appearance. Brickbat cheese has nothing remarkable except its form. It is made by turning with rennet a mixture of cream and new milk. The curd is put into a wooden vessel the shape of a brick, and is then pressed and dried in the usual way. Dunlop cheese has a peculiarly mild and rich taste: the best is made entirely from new milk. New cheese (as it is called in London) is made chiefly in Lincolnshire, and is either made of all cream, or, like Stilton, by adding the cream of one day’s milking to the milk that comes immediately from the cow: they are extremely thin, and are compressed gently two or three times, turned for a few days, and then eaten new with radishes, salad, &c. Skimmed Milk cheese is made for sea voyages principally. Parmesan cheese is made in Parma and Piacenza. It is the most celebrated of all cheese: it is made entirely of skimmed cow’s milk. The high flavour which it has, is supposed to be owing to the rich herbage of the meadows of the Po, where the cows are pastured. The best Parmesan is kept for three or four years, and none is carried to market till it is at least six months old. Dutch cheese derives its peculiar pungent taste from the practice adopted in Holland of coagulating the milk with muriatic acid instead of rennet. Swiss cheeses in their several varieties are all remarkable for their fine flavour. That from Gruyère, a bailiwick in the canton of Fribourg, is best known in England. It is flavoured by the dried herb of Melilotos officinalis in powder. Cheese from milk and potatoes is manufactured in Thuringia and Saxony. Cream cheese, although so called, is not properly cheese, but is nothing more than cream dried sufficiently to be cut with a knife.
1623. There is only one opinion as to the nutritive properties of eggs, although the qualities of those belonging to different birds vary somewhat. Those of the common hen are most esteemed as delicate food, particularly when “new-laid.” The quality of eggs depends much upon the food given to the hen. Eggs in general are considered most easily digestible when little subjected to 810 the art of cookery. The lightest way of dressing them is by poaching, which is effected by putting them for a minute or two into brisk boiling water: this coagulates the external white, without doing the inner part too much. Eggs are much better when new-laid than a day or two afterwards. The usual time allotted for boiling eggs in the shell is 3 to 3¾ minutes: less time than that in boiling water will not be sufficient to solidify the white, and more will make the yolk hard and less digestible: it is very difficult to guess accurately as to the time. Great care should be employed in putting them into the water, to prevent cracking the shell, which inevitably causes a portion of the white to exude, and lets water into the egg. Eggs are often beaten up raw in nutritive beverages.
1624. Eggs are employed in a very great many articles of cookery, entrées, and entremets, and they form an essential ingredient in pastry, creams, flip, &c. It is particularly necessary that they should be quite fresh, as nothing is worse than stale eggs. Cobbett justly says, stale, or even preserved eggs, are things to be run from, not after.
1625. The Metropolis is supplied with eggs from all parts of the kingdom, and they are likewise largely imported from various places on the continent; as France, Holland, Belgium, Guernsey, and Jersey. It appears from official statements mentioned in McCulloch’s “Commercial Dictionary,” that the number imported from France alone amounts to about 60,000,000 a year; and supposing them on an average to cost fourpence a dozen, it follows that we pay our continental neighbours above £83,000 a year for eggs.
1626. The eggs of different birds vary much in size and colour. Those of the ostrich are the largest: one laid in the menagerie in Paris weighed 2 lbs. 14 oz., held a pint, and was six inches deep: this is about the usual size of those brought from Africa. Travellers describe ostrich eggs as of an agreeable taste: they keep longer than hen’s eggs. Drinking-cups are often made of the shell, which is very strong. The eggs of the turkey are almost as mild as those of the hen; the egg of the goose is large, but well-tasted. Duck’s eggs have a rich flavour; the albumen is slightly transparent, or bluish, when set or coagulated by boiling, which requires less time than hen’s eggs. Guinea-fowl eggs are smaller and more delicate than those of the hen. Eggs of wild fowl are generally coloured, often spotted; and the taste generally partakes somewhat of the flavour of the bird they belong to. Those of land birds that are eaten, as the plover, lapwing, ruff, &c., are in general much esteemed; but those of sea-fowl have, more or less, a strong fishy taste. The eggs of the turtle are very numerous: they consist of yolk only, without shell, and are delicious.
1627. If it be desired that the milk should be freed entirely from cream, it should be poured into a very shallow broad pan or dish, not more than 1½ inch deep, as cream cannot rise through a great depth of milk. In cold and wet weather, milk is not so rich as it is in summer and warm weather, and the morning’s milk is always richer than the evening’s. The last-drawn milk of each milking, at all times and seasons, is richer than the first-drawn, and on that account should be set apart for cream. Milk should be shaken as little as possible when carried from the cow to the dairy, and should be poured into the pans very gently. Persons not keeping cows, may always have a little cream, provided the milk they purchase be pure and unadulterated. As soon as it comes in, it should be poured into very shallow open pie-dishes, and set by in a very cool place, and in 7 or 8 hours a nice cream should have risen to the surface.
Milk is one of the most complete of all articles of food: that is to say, it contains a very large number of the elements which enter into the composition of the human body. It “disagrees” with fat, heavy, languid people, of slow circulation; and, at first, with many people of sedentary habits, and stomachs weakened by stimulants of different kinds. But, if exercise can be taken and a little patience shown, while the system accommodates itself to a new regimen, this bland and soothing article of diet is excellent for the majority of thin, nervous people; especially for those who have suffered much from emotional disturbances, or have relaxed their stomachs by too much tea or coffee, taken too hot. Milk is, in fact, a nutrient and a sedative at once. Stomachs, however, have their idiosyncrasies, and it sometimes proves an unwelcome and ill-digested article of food. As milk, when good, contains a good deal of respiratory material (fat),—material which must either be burnt off, or derange the liver, and be rejected in other ways, it may disagree because the lungs are not sufficiently used in the open air. But it is very probable that there are really “constitutions” which cannot take to it; and they should not be forced.
1628. When the weather is very warm, and it is very difficult to prevent milk from turning sour and spoiling the cream, it should be scalded, and it will then remain good for a few hours. It must on no account be allowed to boil, or there will be a skin instead of a cream upon the milk; and the slower the process, the safer will it be. A very good plan to scald milk, is to put the pan that contains it into a 812 saucepan or wide kettle of boiling water. When the surface looks thick, the milk is sufficiently scalded, and it should then be put away in a cool place in the same vessel that it was scalded in. Cream may be kept for 24 hours, if scalded without sugar; and by the addition of the latter ingredient, it will remain good double the time, if kept in a cool place. All pans, jugs, and vessels intended for milk, should be kept beautifully clean, and well scalded before the milk is put in, as any negligence in this respect may cause large quantities of it to be spoiled; and milk should never be kept in vessels of zinc or copper. Milk may be preserved good in hot weather, for a few hours, by placing the jug which contains it in ice, or very cold water; or a pinch of bicarbonate of soda may be introduced into the liquid.
Milk, when of good quality, is of an opaque white colour: the cream always comes to the top; the well-known milky odour is strong; it will boil without altering its appearance in these respects; the little bladders which arise on the surface will renew themselves if broken by the spoon. To boil milk is, in fact, the simplest way of testing its quality. The commonest adulterations of milk are not of a hurtful character. It is a good deal thinned with water, and sometimes thickened with a little starch, or coloured with yolk of egg, or even saffron; but these processes have nothing murderous in them.
1629. Ingredients.—A very small piece of rennet, ½ gallon of milk.
Mode.—Procure from the butcher’s a small piece of rennet, which is the stomach of the calf, taken as soon as it is killed, scoured, and well rubbed with salt, and stretched on sticks to dry. Pour some boiling water on the rennet, and let it remain for 6 hours; then use the liquor to turn the milk. The milk should be warm and fresh from the cow: if allowed to cool, it must be heated till it is of a degree quite equal to new milk; but do not let it be too hot. About a tablespoonful, or rather more, would be sufficient to turn the above proportion of milk into curds and whey; and whilst the milk is turning, let it be kept in rather a warm place.
Time.—From 2 to 3 hours to turn the milk.
Seasonable at any time.
1630. The milk should stand 24 hours in the winter, half that time when the weather is very warm. The milkpan is then set on a stove, and should there remain until the milk is quite hot; but it must not boil, or there will be a thick skin on the surface. When it is sufficiently done, the undulations on the surface look thick, and small rings appear. The time required for scalding cream depends on the size of the pan and the heat of the fire; but the slower it is done, the 813 better. The pan should be placed in the dairy when the cream is sufficiently scalded, and skimmed the following day. This cream is so much esteemed that it is sent to the London markets in small square tins, and is exceedingly delicious eaten with fresh fruit. In Devonshire, butter is made from this cream, and is usually very firm.
1631. Ingredients.—To every pint of new milk allow 2 dessertspoonfuls of brandy, 1 dessertspoonful of sugar, and 1½ dessertspoonful of prepared rennet; thick cream, pounded cinnamon, or grated nutmeg.
Mode.—Make the milk blood-warm; put it into a deep dish with the brandy, sugar, and rennet; stir it altogether, and cover it over until it is set. Then spread some thick or clotted cream over the top, grate some nutmeg, and strew some sugar over, and the dish will be ready to serve.
Time.—About 2 hours to set the milk.
Seasonable at any time.
BUTTER-DISH.
1632. Fresh butter should be kept in a dark, cool place, and in as large a mass as possible. Mould as much only as is required, as the more surface is exposed, the more liability there will be to spoil; and the outside very soon becomes rancid. Fresh butter should be kept covered with white paper. For small larders, butter-coolers of red brick are now very much used for keeping fresh butter in warm weather. These coolers are made with a large bell-shaped cover, into the top of which a little cold water should be poured, and in summer time very frequently changed; and the butter must be kept covered. These coolers keep butter remarkably firm in hot weather, and are extremely convenient for those whose larder accommodation is limited.
In choosing fresh butter, remember it should smell deliciously, and be of an equal colour all through: if it smells sour, it has not been sufficiently washed from the buttermilk; and if veiny and open, it has probably been worked with a staler or an inferior sort.
1633. In large families, where salt butter is purchased a tub at a time, the first thing to be done is to turn the whole of the butter out, 814 and, with a clean knife, to scrape the outside; the tub should then be wiped with a clean cloth, and sprinkled all round with salt, the butter replaced, and the lid kept on to exclude the air. It is necessary to take these precautions, as sometimes a want of proper cleanliness in the dairymaid causes the outside of the butter to become rancid, and if the scraping be neglected, the whole mass would soon become spoiled. To choose salt butter, plunge a knife into it, and if, when drawn out, the blade smells rancid or unpleasant, the butter is bad. The layers in tubs will vary greatly, the butter being made at different times; so, to try if the whole tub be good, the cask should be unhooped, and the butter tried between the staves.
It is not necessary to state that butter is extracted from cream, or from unskimmed milk, by the churn. Of course it partakes of the qualities of the milk, and winter butter is said not to be so good as spring butter.
A word of caution is necessary about rancid butter. Nobody eats it on bread, but it is sometimes used in cooking, in forms in which the acidity can be more or less disguised. So much the worse; it is almost poisonous, disguise it as you may. Never, under any exigency whatever, be tempted into allowing butter with even a soupçon of “turning” to enter into the composition of any dish that appears on your table. And, in general, the more you can do without the employment of butter that has been subjected to the influence of heat, the better. The woman of modern times is not a “leech;” but she might often keep the “leech” from the door, if she would give herself the trouble to invent innocent sauces.
DISH OF ROLLED BUTTER.
1634. Butter-moulds, or wooden stamps for moulding fresh butter, are much used, and are made in a variety of forms and shapes. In using them, let them be kept scrupulously clean, and before the butter is pressed in, the interior should be well wetted with cold water; the butter must then be pressed in, the mould opened, and the perfect shape taken out. The butter may be then dished, and garnished with a wreath of parsley, if for a cheese course; if for breakfast, put it into an ornamental butter-dish, with a little water at the bottom, should the weather be very warm.
1635. Tie a strong cloth by two of the corners to an iron hook in the wall; make a knot with the other two ends, so that a stick might pass 815 through. Put the butter into the cloth; twist it tightly over a dish, into which the butter will fall through the knot, so forming small and pretty little strings. The butter may then be garnished with parsley, if to serve with a cheese course; or it may be sent to table plain for breakfast, in an ornamental dish. Squirted butter for garnishing hams, salads, eggs, &c., is made by forming a piece of stiff paper in the shape of a cornet, and squeezing the butter in fine strings from the hole at the bottom. Scooped butter is made by dipping a teaspoon or scooper in warm water, and then scooping the butter quickly and thin. In warm weather, it would not be necessary to heat the spoon.
Butter may be kept fresh for ten or twelve days by a very simple process. Knead it well in cold water till the buttermilk is extracted; then put it in a glazed jar, which invert in another, putting into the latter a sufficient quantity of water to exclude the air. Renew the water every day.
1636. Ingredients.—The yolks of 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1 tablespoonful of orange-flower water, 2 tablespoonfuls of pounded sugar, ¼ lb. of good fresh butter.
Mode.—Beat the yolks of the eggs smoothly in a mortar, with the orange-flower water and the sugar, until the whole is reduced to a fine paste; add the butter, and force all through an old but clean cloth by wringing the cloth and squeezing the butter very hard. The butter will then drop on the plate in large and small pieces, according to the holes in the cloth. Plain butter may be done in the same manner, and is very quickly prepared, besides having a very good effect.
Butter.—White-coloured butter is said not to be so good as the yellow; but the yellow colour is often artificially produced, by the introduction of colouring matter into the churn.
1637. Ingredients.—To every lb. of butter allow 6 anchovies, 1 small bunch of parsley.
Mode.—Wash, bone, and pound the anchovies well in a mortar; scald the parsley, chop it, and rub through a sieve; then pound all the ingredients together, mix well, and make the butter into pats immediately. This makes a pretty dish, if fancifully moulded, for breakfast or supper, and should be garnished with parsley.
Average cost, 1s. 8d.
Sufficient to make 2 dishes, with 4 pats each.
Seasonable at any time.
8161638. In families where much cheese is consumed, and it is bought in large quantities, a piece from the whole cheese should be cut, the larger quantity spread with a thickly-buttered sheet of white paper, and the outside occasionally wiped. To keep cheeses moist that are in daily use, when they come from table a damp cloth should be wrapped round them, and the cheese put into a pan with a cover to it, in a cool but not very dry place. To ripen cheeses, and bring them forward, put them into a damp cellar; and, to check too large a production of mites, spirits may be poured into the parts affected. Pieces of cheese which are too near the rind, or too dry to put on table, may be made into Welsh rare-bits, or grated down and mixed with macaroni. Cheeses may be preserved in a perfect state for years, by covering them with parchment made pliable by soaking in water, or by rubbing them over with a coating of melted fat. The cheeses selected should be free from cracks or bruises of any kind.
Cheese.—It is well known that some persons like cheese in a state of decay, and even “alive.” There is no accounting for tastes, and it may be hard to show why mould, which is vegetation, should not be eaten as well as salad, or maggots as well as eels. But, generally speaking, decomposing bodies are not wholesome eating, and the line must be drawn somewhere.
STILTON CHEESE.
1639. Stilton cheese, or British Parmesan, as it is sometimes called, is generally preferred to all other cheeses by those whose authority few will dispute. Those made in May or June are usually served at Christmas; or, to be in prime order, should be kept from 10 to 12 months, or even longer. An artificial ripeness in Stilton cheese is sometimes produced by inserting a small piece of decayed Cheshire into an aperture at the top. From 3 weeks to a month is sufficient time to ripen the cheese. An additional flavour may also be obtained by scooping out a piece from the top, and pouring therein port, sherry, Madeira, or old ale, and letting the cheese absorb these for 2 or 3 weeks. But that cheese is the finest which is ripened without any artificial aid, is the opinion of those who are judges in these matters. In serving a Stilton cheese, the top of it should be cut off to form a lid, and a napkin or piece of white paper, with a frill at the top, pinned round. When the cheese goes from table, the lid should be replaced.
817 3G
CHEESE-GLASS.
1640. The usual mode of serving cheese at good tables is to cut a small quantity of it into neat square pieces, and to put them into a glass cheese-dish, this dish being handed round. Should the cheese crumble much, of course this method is rather wasteful, and it may then be put on the table in the piece, and the host may cut from it. When served thus, the cheese must always be carefully scraped, and laid on a white d’oyley or napkin, neatly folded. Cream cheese is often served in a cheese course, and, sometimes, grated Parmesan: the latter should be put into a covered glass dish. Rusks, cheese-biscuits, pats or slices of butter, and salad, cucumber, or water-cresses, should always form part of a cheese course.
Smoking Cheeses.—The Romans smoked their cheeses, to give them a sharp taste. They possessed public places expressly for this use, and subject to police regulations which no one could evade.
A celebrated gourmand remarked that a dinner without cheese is like a woman with one eye.
1641. Ingredients.—Slices of brown bread-and-butter, thin slices of cheese.
Mode.—Cut from a nice fat Cheshire, or any good rich cheese, some slices about ½ inch thick, and place them between some slices of brown bread-and-butter, like sandwiches. Place them on a plate in the oven, and, when the bread is toasted, serve on a napkin very hot and very quickly.
Time.—10 minutes in a brisk oven.
Average cost, 1½d. each sandwich.
Sufficient.—Allow a sandwich for each person.
Seasonable at any time.
Cheese.—One of the most important products of coagulated milk is cheese. Unfermented, or cream-cheese, when quite fresh, is good for subjects with whom milk does not disagree; but cheese, in its commonest shape, is only fit for sedentary people, as an after-dinner stimulant, and in very small quantity. Bread and cheese, as a meal, is only fit for soldiers on march or labourers in the open air, who like it because it “holds the stomach a long time.”
1642. Ingredients.—½ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of flour, ½ lb. of grated cheese, a teaspoonful of cayenne, ⅓ teaspoonful of salt; water.
Mode.—Rub the butter in the flour; add the grated cheese, cayenne and salt; and mix these ingredients well together. Moisten with sufficient water to make the whole into a paste; roll out, and cut into 818 fingers about 4 inches in length. Bake them in a moderate oven a very light colour, and serve very hot.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 4d.
Sufficient for 6 or 7 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1643. Ingredients.—4 eggs, the weight of 2 in Parmesan or good Cheshire cheese, the weight of 2 in butter; pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Separate the yolks from the whites of the eggs; beat the former in a basin, and grate the cheese, or cut it into very thin flakes. Parmesan or Cheshire cheese may be used, whichever is the most convenient, although the former is considered more suitable for this dish; or an equal quantity of each may be used. Break the butter into small pieces, add it to the other ingredients, with sufficient pepper and salt to season nicely, and beat the mixture thoroughly. Well whisk the whites of the eggs, stir them lightly in, and either bake the fondue in a soufflé-dish or small round cake-tin. Fill the dish only half full, as the fondue should rise very much. Pin a napkin round the tin or dish, and serve very hot and very quickly. If allowed to stand after it is withdrawn from the oven, the beauty and lightness of this preparation will be entirely spoiled.
Time.—From 15 to 20 minutes.
Average cost, 10d.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1644. Ingredients.—Eggs, cheese, butter, pepper and salt.
Mode.—Take the same number of eggs as there are guests; weigh the eggs in the shell, allow a third of their weight in Gruyère cheese, and a piece of butter one-sixth of the weight of the cheese. Break the eggs into a basin, beat them well; add the cheese, which should be grated, and the butter, which should be broken into small pieces. Stir these ingredients together with a wooden spoon; put the mixture into a lined saucepan, place it over the fire, and stir until the substance is thick and soft. Put in a little salt, according to the age of the cheese, and a good sprinkling of pepper, and serve the fondue on a very hot silver or metal plate. Do not allow the fondue to remain on the fire after the mixture is set, as, if it boils, it will be entirely spoiled. Brillat Savarin recommends that some choice Burgundy should be handed round with this dish. We have given this recipe exactly as he recommends it to be made; but we have tried it with good Cheshire cheese, and found it answer remarkably well.
819Time.—About 4 minutes to set the mixture.
Average cost for 4 persons, 10d.
Sufficient—Allow 1 egg, with the other ingredients in proportion, for one person.
Seasonable at any time.
1645. Ingredients.—½ lb. of pipe macaroni, ¼ lb. of butter, 6 oz. of Parmesan or Cheshire cheese, pepper and salt to taste, 1 pint of milk, 2 pints of water, bread crumbs.
Mode.—Put the milk and water into a saucepan with sufficient salt to flavour it; place it on the fire, and, when it boils quickly, drop in the macaroni. Keep the water boiling until it is quite tender; drain the macaroni, and put it into a deep dish. Have ready the grated cheese, either Parmesan or Cheshire; sprinkle it amongst the macaroni and some of the butter cut into small pieces, reserving some of the cheese for the top layer. Season with a little pepper, and cover the top layer of cheese with some very fine bread crumbs. Warm, without oiling, the remainder of the butter, and pour it gently over the bread crumbs. Place the dish before a bright fire to brown the crumbs; turn it once or twice, that it may be equally coloured, and serve very hot. The top of the macaroni may be browned with a salamander, which is even better than placing it before the fire, as the process is more expeditious; but it should never be browned in the oven, as the butter would oil, and so impart a very disagreeable flavour to the dish. In boiling the macaroni, let it be perfectly tender but firm, no part beginning to melt, and the form entirely preserved. It may be boiled in plain water, with a little salt instead of using milk, but should then have a small piece of butter mixed with it.
Time.—1½ to 1¾ hour to boil the macaroni, 5 minutes to brown it before the fire.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient for 6 or 7 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
Note.—Riband macaroni may be dressed in the same manner, but does not require boiling so long a time,
1646. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of pipe or riband macaroni, ½ pint of milk, ½ pint of veal or beef gravy, the yolks of 2 eggs, 4 tablespoonfuls of cream, 3 oz. of grated Parmesan or Cheshire cheese, 1 oz. of butter.
820Mode.—Wash the macaroni, and boil it in the gravy and milk until quite tender, without being broken. Drain it, and put it into rather a deep dish. Beat the yolks of the eggs with the cream and 2 tablespoonfuls of the liquor the macaroni was boiled in; make this sufficiently hot to thicken, but do not allow it to boil; pour it over the macaroni, over which sprinkle the grated cheese and the butter broken into small pieces; brown with a salamander, or before the fire, and serve.
Time.—1½ to 1¾ hour to boil the macaroni, 5 minutes to thicken the eggs and cream, 5 minutes to brown.
Average cost, 1s. 2d.
Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1647. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of pipe macaroni, ½ pint of brown gravy No. 436, 6 oz. of grated Parmesan cheese.
Mode.—Wash the macaroni, and boil it in salt and water until quite tender; drain it, and put it into rather a deep dish. Have ready a pint of good brown gravy, pour it hot over the macaroni, and send it to table with grated Parmesan served on a separate dish. When the flavour is liked, a little pounded mace may be added to the water in which the macaroni is boiled; but this must always be sparingly added, as it will impart a very strong flavour.
Time.—1½ to 1¾ hour to boil the macaroni.
Average cost, with the gravy and cheese, 1s. 3d.
Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1648. Ingredients.—To every lb. of cheese allow 3 oz. of fresh butter.
Mode.—To pound cheese is an economical way of using it, if it has become dry; it is exceedingly good spread on bread, and is the best way of eating it for those whose digestion is weak. Cut up the cheese into small pieces, and pound it smoothly in a mortar, adding butter in the above proportion. Press it down into a jar, cover with clarified butter, and it will keep for several days. The flavour may be very much increased by adding mixed mustard (about a teaspoonful to every lb.), or cayenne, or pounded mace. Curry-powder is also not unfrequently mixed with it.
1649. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of Cheshire cheese, ¼ lb. of Parmesan cheese, ¼ lb. of fresh butter, 4 eggs, the crumb of a small roll; pepper, salt, and pounded mace to taste.
821Mode.—Boil the crumb of the roll in milk for 5 minutes; strain, and put it into a mortar; add the cheese, which should be finely scraped, the butter, the yolks of the eggs, and seasoning, and pound these ingredients well together. Whisk the whites of the eggs, mix them with the paste, and put it into small pans or saucers, which should not be more than half filled. Bake them from 10 to 12 minutes, and serve them very hot and very quickly. This batter answers equally well for macaroni after it is boiled tender.
Time.—10 to 12 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 4d.
Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1650. Ingredients.—Any pieces of very good light puff-paste; Cheshire, Parmesan, or Stilton cheese.
Mode.—The remains or odd pieces of paste left from large tarts, &c. answer for making these little dishes. Gather up the pieces of paste, roll it out evenly, and sprinkle it with grated cheese of a nice flavour. Fold the paste in three, roll it out again, and sprinkle more cheese over; fold the paste, roll it out, and with a paste-cutter shape it in any way that may be desired. Bake the ramakins in a brisk oven from 10 to 15 minutes, dish them on a hot napkin, and serve quickly. The appearance of this dish may be very much improved by brushing the ramakins over with yolk of egg before they are placed in the oven. Where expense is not objected to, Parmesan is the best kind of cheese to use for making this dish.
Time.—10 to 15 minutes.
Average cost, with ½ lb. of paste, 10d.
Sufficient for 6 or 7 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1651. Ingredients.—A few slices of rich cheese, toast, mustard, and pepper.
HOT-WATER CHEESE-DISH.
Mode.—Cut some nice rich sound cheese into rather thin slices; melt it in a cheese-toaster on a hot plate, or over steam, and, when melted, add a small quantity of mixed mustard and a seasoning of pepper; stir the cheese until it is completely dissolved, then brown it before the fire, or with a salamander. Fill the bottom of the cheese-toaster with hot water, and serve with dry or buttered toasts, whichever may be preferred. Our engraving illustrates a cheese-toaster with hot-water reservoir: the cheese is melted in the upper tin, which is placed in another vessel of boiling water, so keeping the preparation beautifully 822 hot. A small quantity of porter, or port wine, is sometimes mixed with the cheese; and, if it be not very rich, a few pieces of butter may be mixed with it to great advantage. Sometimes the melted cheese is spread on the toasts, and then laid in the cheese-dish at the top of the hot water. Whichever way it is served, it is highly necessary that the mixture be very hot, and very quickly sent to table, or it will be worthless.
Time.—About 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
Average cost, 1½d. per slice.
Sufficient.—Allow a slice to each person.
Seasonable at any time.
1652. Ingredients.—Slices of bread, butter, Cheshire or Gloucester cheese, mustard, and pepper.
Mode.—Cut the bread into slices about ½ inch in thickness; pare off the crust, toast the bread slightly without hardening or burning it, and spread it with butter. Cut some slices, not quite so large as the bread, from a good rich fat cheese; lay them on the toasted bread in a cheese-toaster; be careful that the cheese does not burn, and let it be equally melted. Spread over the top a little made mustard and a seasoning of pepper, and serve very hot, with very hot plates. To facilitate the melting of the cheese, it may be cut into thin flakes or toasted on one side before it is laid on the bread. As it is so essential to send this dish hot to table, it is a good plan to melt the cheese in small round silver or metal pans, and to send these pans to table, allowing one for each guest. Slices of dry or buttered toast should always accompany them, with mustard, pepper, and salt.
Time.—About 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
Average cost, 1½d. each slice.
Sufficient.—Allow a slice to each person.
Seasonable at any time.
Note.—Should the cheese be dry, a little butter mixed with it will be an improvement.
“Cow Cheese.”—It was only fifty years after Aristotle—the fourth century before Christ—that butter began to be noticed as an aliment. The Greeks, in imitation of the Parthians and Scythians, who used to send it to them, had it served upon their tables, and called it at first “oil of milk,” and later, bouturos, “cow cheese.”
1653. Ingredients.—A few slices of hot buttered toast; allow 1 anchovy to each slice. For the sauce,—¼ pint of cream, the yolks of 3 eggs.
Mode.—Separate the yolks from the whites of the eggs; beat the former, stir to them the cream, and bring the sauce to the boiling-point, 823 but do not allow it to boil, or it will curdle. Have ready some hot buttered toast, spread with anchovies pounded to a paste; pour a little of the hot sauce on the top, and serve very hot and very quickly.
Time.—5 minutes to make the sauce hot.
Sufficient.—Allow ½ slice to each person.
Seasonable at any time.
1654. In choosing eggs, apply the tongue to the large end of the egg, and, if it feels warm, it is new, and may be relied on as a fresh egg. Another mode of ascertaining their freshness is to hold them before a lighted candle, or to the light, and if the egg looks clear, it will be tolerably good; if thick, it is stale; and if there is a black spot attached to the shell, it is worthless. No egg should be used for culinary purposes with the slightest taint in it, as it will render perfectly useless those with which it has been mixed. Eggs that are purchased, and that cannot be relied on, should always be broken in a cup, and then put into a basin: by this means stale or bad eggs may be easily rejected, without wasting the others.
Eggs contain, for their volume, a greater quantity of nutriment than any other article of food. But it does not follow that they are always good for weak stomachs; quite the contrary; for it is often a great object to give the stomach a large surface to work upon, a considerable volume of ingesta, over which the nutritive matter is diffused, and so exposed to the action of the gastric juice at many points. There are many persons who cannot digest eggs, however cooked. It is said, however, that their digestibility decreases in proportion to the degree in which they are hardened by boiling.
1655. Have ready a large saucepan, capable of holding 3 or 4 quarts, full of boiling water. Put the eggs into a cabbage-net, say 20 at a time, and hold them in the water (which must be kept boiling) for 20 seconds. Proceed in this manner till you have done as many eggs as you wish to preserve; then pack them away in sawdust. We have tried this method of preserving eggs, and can vouch for its excellence: they will be found, at the end of 2 or 3 months, quite good enough for culinary purposes; and although the white may be a little tougher than that of a new-laid egg, the yolk will be nearly the same. Many persons keep eggs for a long time by smearing the shells with butter or sweet oil: they should then be packed in plenty of bran or sawdust, and the eggs not allowed to touch each other. Eggs for storing should be collected in fine weather, and should not be more than 24 hours old when they are packed away, or their flavour, when used, cannot be relied on. Another simple way of preserving eggs is to immerse them in lime-water soon after they have been laid, and then to put the vessel containing the lime-water in a cellar or cool outhouse.
824Seasonable.—The best time for preserving eggs is from July to September.
Eggs.—The quality of eggs is said to be very much affected by the food of the fowls who lay them. Herbs and grain together make a better food than grain only. When the hens eat too many insects, the eggs have a disagreeable flavour.
EGG-STAND FOR THE
BREAKFAST-TABLE.
1656. Eggs for boiling cannot be too fresh, or boiled too soon after they are laid; but rather a longer time should be allowed for boiling a new-laid egg than for one that is three or four days old. Have ready a saucepan of boiling water; put the eggs into it gently with a spoon, letting the spoon touch the bottom of the saucepan before it is withdrawn, that the egg may not fall, and consequently crack. For those who like eggs lightly boiled, 3 minutes will be found sufficient; 3¾ to 4 minutes will be ample time to set the white nicely; and, if liked hard, 6 to 7 minutes will not be found too long. Should the eggs be unusually large, as those of black Spanish fowls sometimes are, allow an extra ½ minute for them. Eggs for salads should be boiled from 10 minutes to ¼ hour, and should be placed in a basin of cold water for a few minutes; they should then be rolled on the table with the hand, and the shell will peel off easily.
Time.—To boil eggs lightly, for invalids or children, 3 minutes; to boil eggs to suit the generality of tastes, 3¾ to 4 minutes; to boil eggs hard, 6 to 7 minutes; for salads, 10 to 15 minutes.
Note.—Silver or plated egg-dishes, like that shown in our engraving, are now very much used. The price of the one illustrated is £2. 2s., and may be purchased of Messrs. R. & J. Slack, 336, Strand.
Eggs.—When fresh eggs are dropped into a vessel full of boiling water, they crack, because the eggs being well filled, the shells give way to the efforts of the interior fluids, dilated by heat. If the volume of hot water be small, the shells do not crack, because its temperature is reduced by the eggs before the interior dilation can take place. Stale eggs, again, do not crack, because the air inside is easily compressed.
1657. Ingredients.—4 new-laid eggs, 2 oz. of butter.
Mode.—Procure the eggs new-laid if possible; break them into a basin, and beat them well; put the butter into another basin, which place in boiling water, and stir till the butter is melted. Pour that and the eggs into a lined saucepan; hold it over a gentle fire, and, as 825 the mixture begins to warm, pour it two or three times into the basin, and back again, that the two ingredients may be well incorporated. Keep stirring the eggs and butter one way until they are hot, without boiling, and serve on hot buttered toast. If the mixture is allowed to boil, it will curdle, and so be entirely spoiled.
Time.—About 5 minutes to make the eggs hot.
Average cost, 7d.
Sufficient.—Allow a slice to each person.
Seasonable at any time.
1658. Ducks’ eggs are usually so strongly flavoured that, plainly boiled, they are not good for eating; they answer, however, very well for various culinary preparations where eggs are required; such as custards, &c. &c. Being so large and highly-flavoured, 1 duck’s egg will go as far as 2 small hen’s eggs; besides making whatever they are mixed with exceedingly rich. They also are admirable when used in puddings.
Primitive Method of Cooking Eggs.—The shepherds of Egypt had a singular manner of cooking eggs without the aid of fire. They placed them in a sling, which they turned so rapidly that the friction of the air heated them to the exact point required for use.
1659. Ingredients.—4 eggs, ¼ lb. of lard, butter or clarified dripping.
FRIED EGGS ON BACON.
Mode.—Place a delicately-clean frying-pan over a gentle fire; put in the fat, and allow it to come to the boiling-point. Break the eggs into cups, slip them into the boiling fat, and let them remain until the whites are delicately set; and, whilst they are frying, ladle a little of the fat over them. Take them up with a slice, drain them for a minute from their greasy moisture, trim them neatly, and serve on slices of fried bacon or ham; or the eggs may be placed in the middle of the dish, with the bacon put round as a garnish.
Time.—2 to 3 minutes.
Average cost, 1d. each; 2d. when scarce.
Sufficient for 2 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
Veneration for Eggs.—Many of the most learned philosophers held eggs in a kind of respect, approaching to veneration, because they saw in them the emblem of the world and the four elements. The shell, they said, represented the earth; the white, water; the yolk, fire; and air was found under the shell at one end of the egg.
1660. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of fresh butter, 1 tablespoonful of flour, ½ pint of milk, pepper and salt to taste, 1 tablespoonful of minced parsley, the juice of ½ lemon, 6 eggs.
826Mode.—Put the flour and half the butter into a stewpan; stir them over the fire until the mixture thickens; pour in the milk, which should be boiling; add a seasoning of pepper and salt, and simmer the whole for 5 minutes. Put the remainder of the butter into the sauce, and add the minced parsley; then boil the eggs hard, strip off the shells, cut the eggs into quarters, and put them on a dish. Bring the sauce to the boiling-point, add the lemon-juice, pour over the eggs, and serve.
Time.—5 minutes to boil the sauce; the eggs, 10 to 15 minutes.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1661. Ingredients.—4 eggs, 1 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Butter a dish rather thickly with good fresh butter; melt it, break the eggs into it the same as for poaching, sprinkle them with white pepper and fine salt, and put the remainder of the butter, cut into very small pieces, on the top of them. Put the dish on a hot plate, or in the oven, or before the fire, and let it remain until the whites become set, but not hard, when serve immediately, placing the dish they were cooked in on another. To hasten the cooking of the eggs, a salamander may be held over them for a minute; but great care must be taken that they are not too much done. This is an exceedingly nice dish, and one very easily prepared for breakfast.
Time.—3 minutes.
Average cost, 5d.
Sufficient for 2 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1662. Plovers’ eggs are usually served boiled hard, and sent to table in a napkin, either hot or cold. They may also be shelled, and served the same as eggs à la Tripe, with a good Béchamel sauce, or brown gravy, poured over them. They are also used for decorating salads, the beautiful colour of the white being generally so much admired.
1663. Ingredients.—Eggs, water. To every pint of water allow 1 tablespoonful of vinegar.
EGGS POACHED ON TOAST.
TIN EGG-POACHER.
Mode.—Eggs for poaching should be perfectly fresh, but not quite new-laid; those that are about 36 hours old are the best for the purpose. If quite new-laid, the white is so milky it is almost impossible 827 to set it; and, on the other hand, if the egg be at all stale, it is equally difficult to poach it nicely. Strain some boiling water into a deep clean frying-pan; break the egg into a cup without damaging the yolk, and, when the water boils, remove the pan to the side of the fire, and gently slip the egg into it. Place the pan over a gentle fire, and keep the water simmering until the white looks nicely set, when the egg is ready. Take it up gently with a slice, cut away the ragged edges of the white, and serve either on toasted bread or on slices of ham or bacon, or on spinach, &c. A poached egg should not be overdone, as its appearance and taste will be quite spoiled if the yolk be allowed to harden. When the egg is slipped into the water, the white should be gathered together, to keep it a little in form, or the cup should be turned over it for ½ minute. To poach an egg to perfection is rather a difficult operation; so, for inexperienced cooks, a tin egg-poacher may be purchased, which greatly facilitates this manner of dressing eggs. Our illustration clearly shows what it is: it consists of a tin plate with a handle, with a space for three perforated cups. An egg should be broken into each cup, and the machine then placed in a stewpan of boiling water, which has been previously strained. When the whites of the eggs appear set, they are done, and should then be carefully slipped on to the toast or spinach, or with whatever they are served. In poaching eggs in a frying-pan, never do more than four at a time; and, when a little vinegar is liked mixed with the water in which the eggs are done, use the above proportion.
Time.—2½ to 3½ minutes, according to the size of the egg.
Sufficient.—Allow 2 eggs to each person.
Seasonable at any time, but less plentiful in winter.
1664. Ingredients.—1 pint of water, 1 teaspoonful of salt, 4 teaspoonfuls of vinegar, 4 fresh eggs, ½ gill of cream, salt, pepper, and pounded sugar to taste, 1 oz. of butter.
Mode.—Put the water, vinegar, and salt into a frying-pan, and break each egg into a separate cup; bring the water, &c. to boil, and slip the eggs gently into it without breaking the yolks. Simmer them from 3 to 4 minutes, but not longer, and, with a slice, lift them out on 828 to a hot dish, and trim the edges. Empty the pan of its contents, put in the cream, add a seasoning to taste of pepper, salt, and pounded sugar; bring the whole to the boiling-point; then add the butter, broken into small pieces; toss the pan round and round till the butter is melted; pour it over the eggs, and serve. To insure the eggs not being spoiled whilst the cream, &c., is preparing, it is a good plan to warm the cream with the butter, &c., before the eggs are poached, so that it may be poured over them immediately after they are dished.
Time.—3 to 4 minutes to poach the eggs, 5 minutes to warm the cream.
Average cost for the above quantity, 9d.
Sufficient for 2 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1. SWAN’S EGG. 2. TURKEY’S EGG. 3. DUCK’S EGG. 4. PLOVER’S EGG.
1666. Ingredients.—6 eggs, 6 tablespoonfuls of forcemeat No. 417, hot lard, ½ pint of good brown gravy.
Mode.—Boil the eggs for 10 minutes; strip them from the shells, and cover them with forcemeat made by recipe No. 417; or substitute pounded anchovies for the ham. Fry the eggs a nice brown in boiling lard, drain them before the fire from their greasy moisture, dish them, and pour round from ¼ to ½ pint of good brown gravy. To enhance the appearance of the eggs, they may be rolled in beaten egg and sprinkled with bread crumbs; but this is scarcely necessary if they are carefully fried. The flavour of the ham or anchovy in the forcemeat must preponderate, as it should be very relishing.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the eggs, 5 to 7 minutes to fry them.
Average cost, 1s. 4d.
Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
8291667. Ingredients.—8 eggs, ¾ pint of Béchamel sauce No. 368, 1 dessertspoonful of finely-minced parsley.
Mode.—Boil the eggs hard; put them into cold water, peel them, take out the yolks whole, and shred the whites. Make ¾ pint of Béchamel sauce by recipe No. 368; add the parsley, and, when the sauce is quite hot, put the yolks of the eggs into the middle of the dish, and the shred whites round them; pour over the sauce, and garnish with leaves of puff-paste or fried croûtons. There is no necessity for putting the eggs into the saucepan with the Béchamel; the sauce, being quite hot, will warm the eggs sufficiently.
Time.—10 minutes to boil the eggs.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1668. Among the numerous vegetable products yielding articles of food for man, the Cereals hold the first place. By means of skilful cultivation, mankind have transformed the original forms of these growths, poor and ill-flavoured as they perhaps were, into various fruitful and agreeable species, which yield an abundant and pleasant supply. Classified according to their respective richness in alimentary elements, the Cereals stand thus:—Wheat, and its varieties, Rye, Barley, Oats, Rice, Indian Corn. Everybody knows it is wheat flour which yields the best bread. Rye-bread is viscous, hard, less easily soluble by the gastric juice, and not so rich in nutritive power. Flour produced from barley, Indian corn, or rice, is not so readily made into bread; and the article, when made, is heavy and indigestible.
1669. On examining a grain of corn from any of the numerous cereals* used in the preparation of flour, such as wheat, maize, rye, barley, &c., it will be found to consist of two parts,—the husk, or exterior covering, which is generally of a dark colour, and the inner, or albuminous part, which is more or less 831 white. In grinding, these two portions are separated, and the husk being blown away in the process of winnowing, the flour remains in the form of a light brown powder, consisting principally of starch and gluten. In order to render it white, it undergoes a process called “bolting.” It is passed through a series of fine sieves, which separate the coarser parts, leaving behind fine white flour,—the “fine firsts” of the corn-dealer. The process of bolting, as just described, tends to deprive flour of its gluten, the coarser and darker portion containing much of that substance; while the lighter part is peculiarly rich in starch. Bran contains a large proportion of gluten; hence it will be seen why brown bread is so much more nutritious than white; in fact, we may lay it down as a general rule, that the whiter the bread the less nourishment it contains. Majendie proved this by feeding a dog for forty days with white wheaten bread, at the end of which time he died; while another dog, fed on brown bread made with flour mixed with bran, lived without any disturbance of his health. The “bolting” process, then, is rather injurious than beneficial in its result; and is one of the numerous instances where fashion has chosen a wrong standard to go by. In ancient times, down to the Emperors, no bolted flour was known. In many parts of Germany the entire meal is used; and in no part of the world are the digestive organs of the people in a better condition. In years of famine, when corn is scarce, the use of bolted flour is most culpable, for from 18 to 20 per cent. is lost in bran. Brown bread has, of late years, become very popular; and many physicians have recommended it to invalids with weak digestions with great success. This rage for white bread has introduced adulterations of a very serious character, affecting the health of the whole community. Potatoes are added for this purpose; but this is a comparatively harmless cheat, only reducing the nutritive property of the bread; but bone-dust and alum are also put in, which are far from harmless.
* Cereal, a corn-producing plant; from Ceres, the goddess of agriculture.
1670. Bread-making is a very ancient art indeed. The Assyrians, Egyptians, and Greeks, used to make bread, in which oil, with aniseed and other spices, was an element; but this was unleavened. Every family used to prepare the bread for its own consumption, the trade of baking not having yet taken shape. It is said, that somewhere about the beginning of the thirtieth Olympiad, the slave of an archon, at Athens, made leavened bread by accident. He had left some wheaten dough in an earthen pan, and forgotten it; some days afterwards, he lighted upon it again, and found it turning sour. His first thought was to throw it away; but, his master coming up, he mixed this now acescent dough with some fresh dough, which he was working at. The bread thus produced, by the introduction of dough in which alcoholic fermentation had begun, was found delicious by the archon and his friends; and the slave, being summoned and catechised, told the secret. It spread all over Athens; and everybody wanting leavened bread at once, certain persons set up as bread-makers, or bakers. In a short time bread-baking became quite an art, and “Athenian bread” was quoted all over Greece as the best bread, just as the honey of Hymettus was celebrated as the best honey.
8321671. In our own times, and among civilized peoples, bread has become an article of food of the first necessity; and properly so, for it constitutes of itself a complete life-sustainer, the gluten, starch, and sugar, which it contains, representing azotized and hydro-carbonated nutrients, and combining the sustaining powers of the animal and vegetable kingdoms in one product.
1672. Wheaten Bread.—The finest, wholesomest, and most savoury bread is made from wheaten flour. There are, of wheat, three leading qualities,—the soft, the medium, and the hard wheat; the last of which yields a kind of bread that is not so white as that made from soft wheat, but is richer in gluten, and, consequently, more nutritive.
1673. Rye Bread.—This comes next to wheaten bread: it is not so rich in gluten, but is said to keep fresh longer, and to have some laxative qualities.
1674. Barley Bread, Indian-Corn Bread, &c.—Bread made from barley, maize, oats, rice, potatoes, &c. “rises” badly, because the grains in question contain but little gluten, which makes the bread heavy, close in texture, and difficult of digestion; in fact, corn-flour has to be added before panification can take place. In countries where wheat is scarce and maize abundant, the people make the latter a chief article of sustenance, when prepared in different forms.
1675. Panification, or bread-making, consists of the following processes, in the case of Wheaten Flour. Fifty or sixty per cent. of water is added to the flour, with the addition of some leavening matter, and, preferably, of yeast from malt and hops. All kinds of leavening matter have, however, been, and are still used in different parts of the world: in the East Indies, “toddy,” which is a liquor that flows from the wounded cocoa-nut tree; and, in the West Indies, “dunder,” or the refuse of the distillation of rum. The dough then undergoes the well-known process called kneading. The yeast produces fermentation, a process which may be thus described:—The dough reacting upon the leavening matter introduced, the starch of the flour is transformed into saccharine matter, the saccharine matter being afterwards changed into alcohol and carbonic acid. The dough must be well “bound,” and yet allow the escape of the little bubbles of carbonic acid which accompany the fermentation, and which, in their passage, cause the numerous little holes which are seen in light bread.
1676. The yeast must be good and fresh, if the bread is to be digestible and nice. Stale yeast produces, instead of vinous fermentation, an acetous fermentation, which flavours the bread and makes it disagreeable. A poor thin 833 3G yeast produces an imperfect fermentation, the result being a heavy unwholesome loaf.
1677. When the dough is well kneaded, it is left to stand for some time, and then, as soon as it begins to swell, it is divided into loaves; after which it is again left to stand, when it once more swells up, and manifests, for the last time, the symptoms of fermentation. It is then put into the oven, where the water contained in the dough is partly evaporated, and the loaves swell up again, while a yellow crust begins to form upon the surface. When the bread is sufficiently baked, the bottom crust is hard and resonant if struck with the finger, while the crumb is elastic, and rises again after being pressed down with the finger. The bread is, in all probability, baked sufficiently if, on opening the door of the oven, you are met by a cloud of steam which quickly passes away.
1678. One word as to the unwholesomeness of new bread and hot rolls. When bread is taken out of the oven, it is full of moisture; the starch is held together in masses, and the bread, instead of being crusted so as to expose each grain of starch to the saliva, actually prevents their digestion by being formed by the teeth into leathery poreless masses, which lie on the stomach like so many bullets. Bread should always be at least a day old before it is eaten; and, if properly made, and kept in a cool dry place, ought to be perfectly soft and palatable at the end of three or four days. Hot rolls, swimming in melted butter, and new bread, ought to be carefully shunned by everybody who has the slightest respect for that much-injured individual—the Stomach.
1679. Aerated Bread.—It is not unknown to some of our readers that Dr. Dauglish, of Malvern, has recently patented a process for making bread “light” without the use of leaven. The ordinary process of bread-making by fermentation is tedious, and much labour of human hands is requisite in the kneading, in order that the dough may be thoroughly interpenetrated with the leaven. The new process impregnates the bread, by the application of machinery, with carbonic acid gas, or fixed air. Different opinions are expressed about the bread; but it is curious to note, that, as corn is now reaped by machinery, and dough is baked by machinery, the whole process of bread-making is probably in course of undergoing changes which will emancipate both the housewife and the professional baker from a large amount of labour.
1680. In the production of Aërated Bread, wheaten flour, water, salt, and carbonic acid gas (generated by proper machinery), are the only materials employed. We need not inform our readers that carbonic acid gas is the source of the effervescence, whether in common water coming from a depth, or in lemonade, or any aërated drink. Its action, in the new bread, takes the place of fermentation in the old.
8341681. In the patent process, the dough is mixed in a great iron ball, inside which is a system of paddles, perpetually turning, and doing the kneading part of the business. Into this globe the flour is dropped till it is full, and then the common atmospheric air is pumped out, and the pure gas turned on. The gas is followed by the water, which has been aërated for the purpose, and then begins the churning or kneading part of the business.
1682. Of course, it is not long before we have the dough, and very “light” and nice it looks. This is caught in tins, and passed on to the floor of the oven, which is an endless floor, moving slowly through the fire. Done to a turn, the loaves emerge at the other end of the apartment,—and the Aërated Bread is made.
1683. It may be added, that it is a good plan to change one’s baker from time to time, and so secure a change in the quality of the bread that is eaten.
1684. Mixed Breads.—Rye bread is hard of digestion, and requires longer and slower baking than wheaten bread. It is better when made with leaven of wheaten flour rather than yeast, and turns out lighter. It should not be eaten till two days old. It will keep a long time.
1685. A good bread may be made by mixing rye-flour, wheat-flour, and rice-paste in equal proportions; also by mixing rye, wheat, and barley. In Norway, it is said that they only bake their barley bread once a year, such is its “keeping” quality.
1686. Indian-corn flour mixed with wheat-flour (half with half) makes a nice bread; but it is not considered very digestible, though it keeps well.
1687. Rice cannot be made into bread, nor can potatoes; but one-third potato-flour to three-fourths wheaten flour makes a tolerably good loaf.
1688. A very good bread, better than the ordinary sort, and of a delicious flavour, is said to be produced by adopting the following recipe:—Take ten parts of wheat-flour, five parts of potato-flour, one part of rice-paste; knead together, add the yeast, and bake as usual. This is, of course, cheaper than wheaten bread.
1689. Flour, when freshly ground, is too glutinous to make good bread, and should therefore not be used immediately, but should be kept dry for a few weeks, and stirred occasionally, until it becomes dry, and crumbles easily between the fingers.
1690. Flour should be perfectly dry before being used for bread or cakes; if at all damp, the preparation is sure to be heavy. Before mixing it with the other ingredients, it is a good plan to place it for an hour or two before the fire, until it feels warm and dry.
8351691. Yeast from home-brewed beer is generally preferred to any other: it is very bitter, and, on that account, should be well washed, and put away until the thick mass settles. If it still continues bitter, the process should be repeated; and, before being used, all the water floating at the top must be poured off. German yeast is now very much used, and should be moistened, and thoroughly mixed with the milk or water with which the bread is to be made.
1692. The following observations are extracted from a valuable work on Bread-making,* and will be found very useful to our readers:—
* “The English Bread-Book.” By Eliza Acton, London: Longman.
1693. The first thing required for making wholesome bread is the utmost cleanliness; the next is the soundness and sweetness of all the ingredients used for it; and, in addition to these, there must be attention and care through the whole process.
1694. An almost certain way of spoiling dough is to leave it half-made, and to allow it to become cold before it is finished. The other most common causes of failure are using yeast which is no longer sweet, or which has been frozen, or has had hot liquid poured over it.
1695. Too small a proportion of yeast, or insufficient time allowed for the dough to rise, will cause the bread to be heavy.
1696. Heavy bread will also most likely be the result of making the dough very hard, and letting it become quite cold, particularly in winter.
1697. If either the sponge or the dough be permitted to overwork itself, that is to say, if the mixing and kneading be neglected when it has reached the proper point for either, sour bread will probably be the consequence in warm weather, and bad bread in any. The goodness will also be endangered by placing it so near a fire as to make any part of it hot, instead of maintaining the gentle and equal degree of heat required for its due fermentation.
1698. Milk or Butter.—Milk which is not perfectly sweet will not only injure the flavour of the bread, but, in sultry weather, will often cause it to be quite uneatable; yet either of them, if fresh and good, will materially improve its quality.
1699. To keep bread sweet and fresh, as soon as it is cold it should be put into a clean earthen pan, with a cover to it: this pan should be placed at a little distance from the ground, to allow a current of air to pass underneath. Some persons prefer keeping bread on clean wooden shelves, without being covered, that the crust may not soften. Stale bread may be freshened by warming it through in a gentle oven. Stale pastry, cakes, &c., may also be improved by this method.
8361700. The utensils required for making bread, on a moderate scale, are a kneading-trough or pan, sufficiently large that the dough may be kneaded freely without throwing the flour over the edges, and also to allow for its rising; a hair sieve for straining yeast, and one or two strong spoons.
1701. Yeast must always be good of its kind, and in a fitting state to produce ready and proper fermentation. Yeast of strong beer or ale produces more effect than that of milder kinds; and the fresher the yeast, the smaller the quantity will be required to raise the dough.
1702. As a general rule, the oven for baking bread should be rather quick, and the heat so regulated as to penetrate the dough without hardening the outside. The oven door should not be opened after the bread is put in until the dough is set, or has become firm, as the cool air admitted will have an unfavourable effect on it.
1703. Brick ovens are generally considered the best adapted for baking bread: these should be heated with wood faggots, and then swept and mopped out, to cleanse them for the reception of the bread. Iron ovens are more difficult to manage, being apt to burn the surface of the bread before the middle is baked. To remedy this, a few clean bricks should be set at the bottom of the oven, close together, to receive the tins of bread. In many modern stoves the ovens are so much improved that they bake admirably; and they can always be brought to the required temperature, when it is higher than is needed, by leaving the door open for a time.
1704. Eggs should always be broken into a cup, the whites and yolks separated, and they should always be strained. Breaking the eggs thus, the bad ones may be easily rejected without spoiling the others, and so cause no waste. As eggs are used instead of yeast, they should be very thoroughly whisked; they are generally sufficiently beaten when thick enough to carry the drop that falls from the whisk.
1705. Loaf Sugar should be well pounded, and then sifted through a fine sieve.
1706. Currants should be nicely washed, picked, dried in a cloth, and then carefully examined, that no pieces of grit or stone may be left amongst them. They should then be laid on a dish before the fire, to become thoroughly dry; as, if added damp to the other ingredients, cakes will be liable to be heavy.
1707. Good Butter should always be used in the manufacture of cakes; and if beaten to a cream, it saves much time and labour to warm, but not melt, it before beating.
8371708. Less butter and eggs are required for cakes when yeast is mixed with the other ingredients.
1709. The heat of the oven is of great importance, especially for large cakes. If the heat be not tolerably fierce, the batter will not rise. If the oven is too quick, and there is any danger of the cake burning or catching, put a sheet of clean paper over the top. Newspaper, or paper that has been printed on, should never be used for this purpose.
1710. To know when a cake is sufficiently baked, plunge a clean knife into the middle of it; draw it quickly out, and if it looks in the least sticky, put the cake back, and close the oven door until the cake is done.
1711. Cakes should be kept in closed tin canisters or jars, and in a dry place. Those made with yeast do not keep so long as those made without it.
1712. Since the establishment of the large modern biscuit manufactories, biscuits have been produced both cheap and wholesome, in, comparatively speaking, endless variety. Their actual component parts are, perhaps, known only to the various makers; but there are several kinds of biscuits which have long been in use, that may here be advantageously described.
1713. Biscuits belong to the class of unfermented bread, and are, perhaps, the most wholesome of that class. In cases where fermented bread does not agree with the human stomach, they may be recommended: in many instances they are considered lighter, and less liable to create acidity and flatulence. The name is derived from the French bis cuit, “twice-baked,” because, originally, that was the mode of entirely depriving them of all moisture, to insure their keeping; but, although that process is no longer employed, the name is retained. The use of this kind of bread on land is pretty general, and some varieties are luxuries; but, at sea, biscuits are articles of the first necessity.
1714. Sea, or Ship Biscuits, are made of wheat-flour from which only the coarsest bran has been separated. The dough is made up as stiff as it can be worked, and is then formed into shapes, and baked in an oven; after which, the biscuits are exposed in lofts over the oven until perfectly dry, to prevent them from becoming mouldy when stored.
1715. Captains’ Biscuits are made in a similar manner, only of fine flour.
1716. Ingredients.—1½ oz. of hops, 3 quarts of water, 1 lb. of bruised malt, ½ pint of yeast.
Mode.—Boil the hops in the water for 20 minutes; let it stand for about 5 minutes, then add it to 1 lb. of bruised malt prepared as for brewing. Let the mixture stand covered till about lukewarm; then put in not quite ½ pint of yeast; keep it warm, and let it work 3 or 4 hours; then put it into small ½-pint bottles (ginger-beer bottles are the best for the purpose), cork them well, and tie them down. The yeast is now ready for use; it will keep good for a few weeks, and 1 bottle will be found sufficient for 18 lbs. of flour. When required for use, boil 3 lbs. of potatoes without salt, mash them in the same water in which they were boiled, and rub them through a colander. Stir in about ½ lb. of flour; then put in the yeast, pour it in the middle of the flour, and let it stand warm on the hearth all night, and in the morning let it be quite warm when it is kneaded. The bottles of yeast require very careful opening, as it is generally exceedingly ripe.
Time.—20 minutes to boil the hops and water, the yeast to work 3 or 4 hours.
Sufficient.—½ pint sufficient for 18 lbs. of flour.
1717. Ingredients.—2 oz. of hops, 4 quarts of water, ½ lb. of flour, ½ pint of yeast.
Mode.—Boil the hops and water for 20 minutes; strain, and mix with the liquid ½ lb. of flour and not quite ½ pint of yeast. Bottle it up, and tie the corks down. When wanted for use, boil potatoes according to the quantity of bread to be made (about 3 lbs. are sufficient for about a peck of flour); mash them, add to them ½ lb. of flour, 839 and mix about ½ pint of the yeast with them; let this mixture stand all day, and lay the bread to rise the night before it is wanted.
Time.—20 minutes to boil the hops and water.
Sufficient.—½ pint of this yeast sufficient for a peck of flour, or rather more.
1718. Ingredients.—1 quartern of flour, 1 large tablespoonful of solid brewer’s yeast, or nearly 1 oz. of fresh German yeast, 1¼ to 1½ pint of warm milk-and-water.
COTTAGE LOAF.
TIN BREAD.
Mode.—Put the flour into a large earthenware bowl or deep pan; then, with a strong metal or wooden spoon, hollow out the middle; but do not clear it entirely away from the bottom of the pan, as, in that case, the sponge (or leaven, as it was formerly termed) would stick to it, which it ought not to do. Next take either a large tablespoonful of brewer’s yeast which has been rendered solid by mixing it with plenty of cold water, and letting it afterwards stand to settle for a day and night; or nearly an ounce of German yeast; put it into a large basin, and proceed to mix it, so that it shall be as smooth as cream, with ¾ pint of warm milk-and-water, or with water only; though even a very little milk will much improve the bread. Pour the yeast into the hole made in the flour, and stir into it as much of that which lies round it as will make a thick batter, in which there must be no lumps. Strew plenty of flour on the top; throw a thick clean cloth over, and set it where the air is warm; but do not place it upon the kitchen fender, for it will become too much heated there. Look at it from time to time: when it has been laid for nearly an hour, and when the yeast has risen and broken through the flour, so that bubbles appear in it, you will know that it is ready to be made up into dough. Then place the pan on a strong chair, or dresser, or table, of convenient height; pour into the sponge the remainder of the warm milk-and-water; stir into it as much of the flour as you can with the spoon; then wipe it out clean with your fingers, and lay it aside. Next take plenty of the remaining flour, throw it on the 840 top of the leaven, and begin, with the knuckles of both hands, to knead it well. When the flour is nearly all kneaded in, begin to draw the edges of the dough towards the middle, in order to mix the whole thoroughly; and when it is free from flour and lumps and crumbs, and does not stick to the hands when touched, it will be done, and may again be covered with the cloth, and left to rise a second time. In ¾ hour look at it, and should it have swollen very much, and begin to crack, it will be light enough to bake. Turn it then on to a paste-board or very clean dresser, and with a large sharp knife divide it in two; make it up quickly into loaves, and dispatch it to the oven: make one or two incisions across the tops of the loaves, as they will rise more easily if this be done. If baked in tins or pans, rub them with a tiny piece of butter laid on a piece of clean paper, to prevent the dough from sticking to them. All bread should be turned upside down, or on its side, as soon as it is drawn from the oven: if this be neglected, the under part of the loaves will become wet and blistered from the steam, which cannot then escape from them. To make the dough without setting a sponge, merely mix the yeast with the greater part of the warm milk-and-water, and wet up the whole of the flour at once after a little salt has been stirred in, proceeding exactly, in every other respect, as in the directions just given. As the dough will soften in the rising, it should be made quite firm at first, or it will be too lithe by the time it is ready for the oven.
ITALIAN
MILLET.
Time.—To be left to rise an hour the first time, ¾ hour the second time; to be baked from 1 to 1¼ hour, or baked in one loaf from 1½ to 2 hours.
Italian Millet, or Great Indian Millet, is cultivated in Egypt and Nubia, where it is called dhourra, and is used as human food, as well as for the fermentation of beer. It will grow on poor soils, and is extremely productive. It has been introduced into Italy, where they make a coarse bread from it; and it is also employed in pastry and puddings: they also use it for feeding horses and domestic fowls. It is the largest variety, growing to the height of six feet; but it requires a warm climate, and will not ripen in this country. A yellow variety, called Golden Millet, is sold in the grocers’ shops, for making puddings, and is very delicate and wholesome.
1719. Ingredients.—3 lbs. of potatoes, 6 pints of cold water, ½ pint of good yeast, a peck of flour, 2 oz. of salt.
RED
WINTER
WHEAT.
Mode.—Peel and boil the potatoes; beat them to a cream while warm; then add 1 pint of cold water, strain through a colander, and add to it ½ pint of good yeast, which should have been put in water 841 over-night, to take off its bitterness. Stir all well together with a wooden spoon, and pour the mixture into the centre of the flour; mix it to the substance of cream, cover it over closely, and let it remain near the fire for an hour; then add the 5 pints of water, milk-warm, with 2 oz. of salt; pour this in, and mix the whole to a nice light dough. Let it remain for about 2 hours; then make it into 7 loaves, and bake for about 1½ hour in a good oven. When baked, the bread should weigh nearly 20 lbs.
Time.—About 1½ hour.
The Red Varieties of Wheat are generally hardier and more easily grown than the white sorts, and, although of less value to the miller, they are fully more profitable to the grower, in consequence of the better crops which they produce. Another advantage the red wheats possess is their comparative immunity from the attacks of mildew and fly. The best English wheat comes from the counties of Kent and Essex; the qualities under these heads always bearing a higher price than others, as will be seen by the periodical lists in the journals.
1720. Ingredients.—To every lb. of rice allow 4 lbs. of wheat flour, nearly 3 tablespoonfuls of yeast, ¼ oz. of salt.
Mode.—Boil the rice in water until it is quite tender; pour off the water, and put the rice, before it is cold, to the flour. Mix these well together with the yeast, salt, and sufficient warm water to make the whole into a smooth dough; let it rise by the side of the fire, then form it into loaves, and bake them from 1½ to 2 hours, according to their size. If the rice is boiled in milk instead of water, it makes very delicious bread or cakes. When boiled in this manner, it may be mixed with the flour without straining the liquid from it.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
1721. Ingredients.—To 4 lbs. of flour allow 2 lbs. of Indian-corn flour, 2 tablespoonfuls of yeast, 3 pints of warm water, ¼ oz. of salt.
MAIZE PLANT.
EAR OF MAIZE.
Mode.—Mix the two flours well together, with the salt; make a hole in the centre, and stir the yeast up well with ½ pint of the warm water; put this into the middle of the flour, and mix enough of it with the yeast to make a thin batter; throw a little flour over the surface of this batter, cover the whole with a thick cloth, and set it to rise in a warm place. When the batter has nicely risen, work the whole to a nice smooth dough, adding the water as required; knead it well, and mould the dough into loaves; let them rise for nearly 842 ½ hour, then put them into a well-heated oven. If made into 2 loaves, they will require from 1½ to 2 hours’ baking.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Maize.—Next to wheat and rice, maize is the grain most used in the nourishment of man. In Asia, Africa, and America, it is the principal daily food of a large portion of the population, especially of the colonists. In some of the provinces of France, too, it is consumed in large quantities. There are eight varieties of the maize; the most productive is the maize of Cusco. The flour of maize is yellow, and it contains an oily matter, which, when fresh, gives it an agreeable flavour and odour; but the action of the air on it soon develops rancidity. If carried any distance, it should be stored away in air-tight vessels. An excellent soup is prepared with meat and maize-flour. The inhabitants of some countries, where wheat is scarce, make, with maize and water, or milk and salt, a kind of biscuit, which is pleasant in taste, but indigestible. Some of the preparations of maize-flour are very good, and, when partaken in moderation, suitable food for almost everybody.
POLISH WHEAT.
1722. Ingredients.—To every 2 lbs. of flour allow 1 teaspoonful of tartaric acid, 1 teaspoonful of salt, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, 2 breakfast-cupfuls of cold milk.
Mode.—Let the tartaric acid and salt be reduced to the finest possible powder; then mix them well with the flour. Dissolve the soda in the milk, and pour it several times from one basin to another, before adding it to the flour. Work the whole quickly into a light dough, divide it into 2 loaves, and put them into a well-heated oven immediately, and bake for an hour. Sour milk or buttermilk may be used, but then a little less acid will be needed.
Time.—1 hour.
Polish and Pomeranian Wheat are accounted by authorities most excellent. Large raft-like barges convey this grain down the rivers, from the interior of the country to the seaports. This corn is described as being white, hard, and thin-skinned; and it yields a large quantity of flour, having a small proportion of bran.
1723. Ingredients.—To every lb. of flour allow 1 oz. of butter, ¼ pint of milk, 1 large teaspoonful of yeast, a little salt.
843
ROLLS.
Mode.—Warm the butter in the milk, add to it the yeast and salt, and mix these ingredients well together. Put the flour into a pan, stir in the above ingredients, and let the dough rise, covered in a warm place. Knead it well, make it into rolls, let them rise again for a few minutes, and bake in a quick oven. Richer rolls may be made by adding 1 or 2 eggs and a larger proportion of butter, and their appearance improved by brushing the tops over with yolk of egg or a little milk.
Time.—1 lb. of hour, divided into 6 rolls, from 15 to 20 minutes.
1724. This dish, although very unwholesome and indigestible, is nevertheless a great favourite, and eaten by many persons. As soon as the rolls come from the baker’s, they should be put into the oven, which, in the early part of the morning, is sure not to be very hot; and the rolls must not be buttered until wanted. When they are quite hot, divide them lengthwise into three; put some thin flakes of good butter between the slices, press the rolls together, and put them in the oven for a minute or two, but not longer, or the butter would oil; take them out of the oven, spread the butter equally over, divide the rolls in half, and put them on to a very hot clean dish, and send them instantly to table.
1725. To make dry toast properly, a great deal of attention is required; much more, indeed, than people generally suppose. Never use new bread for making any kind of toast, as it eats heavy, and, besides, is very extravagant. Procure a loaf of household bread about two days old; cut off as many slices as may be required, not quite ¼ inch in thickness; trim off the crusts and ragged edges, put the bread on a toasting-fork, and hold it before a very clear fire. Move it backwards and forwards until the bread is nicely coloured; then turn it and toast the other side, and do not place it so near the fire that it blackens. Dry toast should be more gradually made than buttered toast, as its great beauty consists in its crispness, and this cannot be attained unless the process is slow and the bread is allowed gradually to colour. It should never be made long before it is wanted, as it soon becomes tough, unless placed on the fender in front of the fire. As soon as each piece is ready, it should be put into a rack, or stood upon its edges, and sent quickly to table.
8441726. A loaf of household bread about two days old answers for making toast better than cottage bread, the latter not being a good shape, and too crusty for the purpose. Cut as many nice even slices as may be required, rather more than ¼ inch in thickness, and toast them before a very bright fire, without allowing the bread to blacken, which spoils the appearance and flavour of all toast. When of a nice colour on both sides, put it on a hot plate; divide some good butter into small pieces, place them on the toast, set this before the fire, and when the butter is just beginning to melt, spread it lightly over the toast. Trim off the crust and ragged edges, divide each round into 4 pieces, and send the toast quickly to table. Some persons cut the slices of toast across from corner to corner, so making the pieces of a three-cornered shape. Soyer recommends that each slice should be cut into pieces as soon as it is buttered, and when all are ready, that they should be piled lightly on the dish they are intended to be served on. He says that by cutting through 4 or 5 slices at a time, all the butter is squeezed out of the upper ones, while the bottom one is swimming in fat liquid. It is highly essential to use good butter for making this dish.
1727. Ingredients.—To every quart of milk allow 1½ oz. of German yeast, a little salt; flour.
MUFFINS.
Mode.—Warm the milk, add to it the yeast, and mix these well together; put them into a pan, and stir in sufficient flour to make the whole into a dough of rather a soft consistence; cover it over with a cloth, and place it in a warm place to rise, and, when light and nicely risen, divide the dough into pieces, and round them to the proper shape with the hands; place them, in a layer of flour about two inches thick, on wooden trays, and let them rise again; when this is effected, they each will exhibit a semi-globular shape. Then place them carefully on a hot-plate or stove, and bake them until they are slightly browned, turning them when they are done on one side. Muffins are not easily made, and are more generally purchased than manufactured at home. To toast them, divide the edge of the muffin all round, by pulling it open, to the depth of about an inch, with the fingers. Put it on a toasting-fork, and hold it before a very clear fire until one side is nicely browned, but not burnt; turn, and toast it on the other. Do not toast them too quickly, as, if this is done, the middle of the 845 muffin will not be warmed through. When done, divide them by pulling them open; butter them slightly on both sides, put them together again, and cut them into halves: when sufficient are toasted and buttered, pile them on a very hot dish, and send them very quickly to table.
Time.—From 20 minutes to ½ hour to bake them.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 muffin to each person.
CRUMPETS.
1728. These are made in the same manner as muffins; only, in making the mixture, let it be more like batter than dough. Let it rise for about ½ hour; pour it into iron rings, which should be ready on a hot-plate; bake them, and when one side appears done, turn them quickly on the other. To toast them, have ready a very bright clear fire; put the crumpet on a toasting-fork, and hold it before the fire, not too close, until it is nicely brown on one side, but do not allow it to blacken. Turn it, and brown the other side; then spread it with good butter, cut it in half, and, when all are done, pile them on a hot dish, and send them quickly to table. Muffins and crumpets should always be served on separate dishes, and both toasted and served as expeditiously as possible.
Time.—From 10 to 15 minutes to bake them.
Sufficient.—Allow 2 crumpets to each person.
1729. Ingredients.—To every 2 lbs. of flour allow 6 oz. of moist sugar, ½ gill of yeast, ½ pint of milk, ½ lb. of butter, warm milk.
Mode.—Put the flour into a basin, mix the sugar well with it, make a hole in the centre, and stir in the yeast and milk (which should be lukewarm), with enough of the flour to make it the thickness of cream. Cover the basin over with a cloth, and let the sponge rise in a warm place, which will be accomplished in about 1½ hour. Melt the butter, but do not allow it to oil; stir it into the other ingredients, with enough warm milk to make the whole into a soft dough; then mould it into buns about the size of an egg; lay them in rows quite 3 inches apart; set them again in a warm place, until they have risen to double their size; then put them into a good brisk oven, and just before they are done, wash them over with a little milk. From 15 to 20 minutes will be required to bake them nicely. These buns may be varied by adding a few currants, candied peel, or caraway seeds to the other 846 ingredients; and the above mixture answers for hot cross buns, by putting in a little ground allspice; and by pressing a tin mould in the form of a cross in the centre of the bun.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes.
Average cost, 1d. each.
Sufficient to make 18 buns.
1730. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, 6 oz. of good butter, ¼ lb. of sugar, 1 egg, nearly ¼ pint of milk, 2 small teaspoonfuls of baking-powder, a few drops of essence of lemon.
Mode.—Warm the butter, without oiling it; beat it with a wooden spoon; stir the flour in gradually with the sugar, and mix these ingredients well together. Make the milk lukewarm, beat up with it the yolk of the egg and the essence of lemon, and stir these to the flour, &c. Add the baking-powder, beat the dough well for about 10 minutes, divide it into 24 pieces, put them into buttered tins or cups, and bake in a brisk oven from 20 to 30 minutes.
Time.—20 to 30 minutes.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient to make 12 buns.
Seasonable at any time.
1731. Ingredients.—½ teaspoonful of tartaric acid, ½ teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, 1 lb. of flour, 2 oz. of butter, 2 oz. of loaf sugar, ¼ lb. of currants or raisins,—when liked, a few caraway seeds, ½ pint of cold new milk, 1 egg.
BUNS.
Mode.—Rub the tartaric acid, soda, and flour all together through a hair sieve; work the butter into the flour; add the sugar, currants, and caraway seeds, when the flavour of the latter is liked. Mix all these ingredients well together; make a hole in the middle of the flour, and pour in the milk, mixed with the egg, which should be well beaten; mix quickly, and set the dough, with a fork, on baking-tins, and bake the buns for about 20 minutes. This mixture makes a very good cake, and if put into a tin, should be baked 1½ hour. The same quantity of flour, soda, and tartaric acid, with ½ pint of milk and a little salt, will make either bread or teacakes, if wanted quickly.
Time.—20 minutes for the buns; if made into a cake, 1½ hour.
Sufficient to make about 12 buns.
8471732. Ingredients.—2 oz. of pounded loaf sugar, 1 egg, 1½ oz. of ground rice, 2 oz. of butter, 1½ oz. of currants, a few thin slices of candied peel; flour.
Mode.—Whisk the egg, stir in the sugar, and beat these ingredients well together; beat the butter to a cream, stir in the ground rice, currants, and candied peel, and as much flour as will make it of such a consistency that it may be rolled into 7 or 8 balls. Put these on to a buttered tin, and bake them from ½ to ¾ hour. They should be put into the oven immediately, or they will become heavy; and the oven should be tolerably brisk.
Time.—½ to ¾ hour.
Average cost, 6d.
Sufficient to make 7 or 8 buns.
Seasonable at any time.
PANNICLED MILLET.
1733. A stale Savoy or lemon cake may be converted into very good rusks in the following manner. Cut the cake into slices, divide each slice in two; put them on a baking-sheet, in a slow oven, and when they are of a nice brown and quite hard, they are done. They should be kept in a closed tin canister in a dry place, to preserve their crispness.
Pannicled Millet.—This is the smallest-seeded of the corn-plants, being a true grass; but the number of the seeds in each ear makes up for their size. It grows in sandy soils that will not do for the cultivation of many other kinds of grain, and forms the chief sustenance in the arid districts of Arabia, Syria, Nubia, and parts of India. It is not cultivated in England, being principally confined to the East. The nations who make use of it grind it, in the primitive manner, between two stones, and make it into a diet which cannot be properly called bread, but rather a kind of soft thin cake half-baked. When we take into account that the Arabians are fond of lizards and locusts as articles of food, their cuisine, altogether, is scarcely a tempting one.
1734. Ingredients.—To every lb. of flour allow 2 oz. of butter, ¼ pint of milk, 2 oz. of loaf sugar, 3 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of yeast.
RUSKS.
Mode.—Put the milk and butter into a saucepan, and keep shaking it round until the latter is melted. Put the flour into a basin with the sugar, mix these well together, and beat the eggs. Stir them with the yeast to the milk and butter, and with this liquid work the flour into a smooth dough. Cover a cloth over the 848 basin, and leave the dough to rise by the side of the fire; then knead it, and divide it into 12 pieces; place them in a brisk oven, and bake for about 20 minutes. Take the rusks out, break them in half, and then set them in the oven to get crisp on the other side. When cold, they should be put into tin canisters to keep them dry; and, if intended for the cheese course, the sifted sugar should be omitted.
Time.—20 minutes to bake the rusks; 5 minutes to render them crisp after being divided.
Average cost, 8d.
Sufficient to make 2 dozen rusks.
Seasonable at any time.
1735. Ingredients.—To every lb. of finely-pounded loaf sugar allow 1 lb. of sweet almonds, the whites of 4 eggs, a little rose-water.
Mode.—Blanch the almonds, and pound them (a few at a time) in a mortar to a paste, adding a little rose-water to facilitate the operation. Whisk the whites of the eggs to a strong froth; mix them with the pounded almonds, stir in the sugar, and beat altogether. When the cake is sufficiently baked, lay on the almond icing, and put it into the oven to dry. Before laying this preparation on the cake, great care must be taken that it is nice and smooth, which is easily accomplished by well beating the mixture.
1736. Ingredients.—To every lb. of loaf sugar allow the whites of 4 eggs, 1 oz. of fine starch.
Mode.—Beat the eggs to a strong froth, and gradually sift in the sugar, which should be reduced to the finest possible powder, and gradually add the starch, also finely powdered. Beat the mixture well until the sugar is smooth; then with a spoon or broad knife lay the icing equally over the cakes. These should then be placed in a very cool oven, and the icing allowed to dry and harden, but not to colour. The icing may be coloured with strawberry or currant-juice, or with prepared cochineal. If it be put on the cakes as soon as they are withdrawn from the oven, it will become firm and hard by the time the cakes are cold. On very rich cakes, such as wedding, christening cakes, &c., a layer of almond icing, No. 1735, is usually spread over the top, and over that the white icing as described. All iced cakes should be kept in a very dry place.
849 3H1737. This powder may be purchased in tin canisters, and may also be prepared at home. Dry the biscuits well in a slow oven; roll them and grind them with a rolling-pin on a clean board, until they are reduced to powder; sift it through a close hair sieve, and it is fit for use. It should be kept in well-covered tins, and in a dry place.
1738. Ingredients.—½ lb. of butter, 6 eggs, ½ lb. of flour, 6 oz. of arrowroot, ½ lb. of pounded loaf sugar.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; whisk the eggs to a strong froth, add them to the butter, stir in the flour a little at a time, and beat the mixture well. Break down all the lumps from the arrowroot, and add that with the sugar to the other ingredients. Mix all well together, drop the dough on a buttered tin, in pieces the size of a shilling, and bake the biscuits about ¼ hour in a slow oven.
Time.—¼ hour.
Average cost, 2s. 6d.
Sufficient to make from 3 to 4 dozen biscuits.
Seasonable at any time.
1739. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ½ teaspoonful of tartaric acid, ½ teaspoonful of salt, ½ teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, 1½ breakfast-cupful of milk, 1 oz. of sifted loaf sugar, 2 eggs.
Mode.—These cakes are made in the same manner as the soda bread No. 1722, with the addition of eggs and sugar. Mix the flour, tartaric acid, and salt well together, taking care that the two latter ingredients are reduced to the finest powder, and stir in the sifted sugar, which should also be very fine. Dissolve the soda in the milk, add the eggs, which should be well whisked, and with this liquid work the flour, &c. into a light dough. Divide it into small cakes, put them into the oven immediately, and bake for about 20 minutes.
Time.—20 minutes.
1740. Ingredients.—10 oz. of sifted sugar, 3 eggs, 6 oz. of grated cocoa-nut.
Mode.—Whisk the eggs until they are very light; add the sugar gradually; then stir in the cocoa-nut. Roll a tablespoonful of the paste at a time in your hands in the form of a pyramid; place the 850 pyramids on paper, put the paper on tins, and bake the biscuits in rather a cool oven until they are just coloured a light brown.
Time.—About ¼ hour.
Seasonable at any time.
1741. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, the yolk of 1 egg, milk.
Mode.—Mix the flour and the yolk of the egg with sufficient milk to make the whole into a very stiff paste; beat it well, and knead it until it is perfectly smooth. Roll the paste out very thin; with a round cutter shape it into small biscuits, and bake them a nice brown in a slow oven from 12 to 18 minutes.
Time.—12 to 18 minutes.
Average cost, 4d.
Seasonable at any time.
1742. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sifted sugar, the yolks of 6 eggs, flavouring to taste.
Mode.—Put the butter into a basin; warm it, but do not allow it to oil; then with the hand beat it to a cream. Add the flour by degrees, then the sugar and flavouring, and moisten the whole with the yolks of the eggs, which should previously be well beaten. When all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, drop the mixture from a spoon on to a buttered paper, leaving a distance between each cake, as they spread as soon as they begin to get warm. Bake in rather a slow oven from 12 to 18 minutes, and do not let the biscuits acquire too much colour. In making the above quantity, half may be flavoured with ground ginger and the other half with essence of lemon or currants, to make a variety. With whatever the preparation is flavoured, so are the biscuits called; and an endless variety may be made in this manner.
Time.—12 to 18 minutes, or rather longer, in a very slow oven.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient to make from 3 to 4 dozen cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
1743. Ingredients.—1¼ lb. of flour, ¾ lb. of loaf sugar, 6 oz. of fresh butter, 4 eggs, 1 oz. of lemon-peel, 2 dessertspoonfuls of lemon-juice.
Mode.—Rub the flour into the butter; stir in the pounded sugar and very finely-minced lemon-peel, and when these ingredients are thoroughly mixed, add the eggs, which should be previously well 851 whisked, and the lemon-juice. Beat the mixture well for a minute or two, then drop it from a spoon on to a buttered tin, about 2 inches apart, as the cakes will spread when they get warm; place the tin in the oven, and bake the cakes of a pale brown from 15 to 20 minutes.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Seasonable at any time.
1744. Ingredients.—½ lb. of sweet almonds, ½ lb. of sifted loaf sugar, the whites of 3 eggs, wafer-paper.
MACAROONS.
Mode.—Blanch, skin, and dry the almonds, and pound them well with a little orange-flower water or plain water; then add to them the sifted sugar and the whites of the eggs, which should be beaten to a stiff froth, and mix all the ingredients well together. When the paste looks soft, drop it at equal distances from a biscuit-syringe on to sheets of wafer-paper; put a strip of almond on the top of each; strew some sugar over, and bake the macaroons in rather a slow oven, of a light brown colour. When hard and set, they are done, and must not be allowed to get very brown, as that would spoil their appearance. If the cakes, when baked, appear heavy, add a little more white of egg, but let this always be well whisked before it is added to the other ingredients. We have given a recipe for making these cakes, but we think it almost or quite as economical to purchase such articles as these at a good confectioner’s.
Time.—From 15 to 20 minutes, in a slow oven.
Average cost, 1s. 8d. per lb.
1745. Ingredients.—½ lb. of sweet almonds, ¼ lb. of bitter ones, ¾ lb. of sifted loaf sugar, the whites of 4 eggs.
RATAFIAS.
Mode.—Blanch, skin, and dry the almonds, and pound them in a mortar with the white of an egg; stir in the sugar, and gradually add the remaining whites of eggs, taking care that they are very thoroughly whisked. Drop the mixture through a small biscuit-syringe on to cartridge paper, and bake the cakes from 10 to 12 minutes in rather a quicker oven than for macaroons. A very small quantity should be dropped on the paper to form one cake, as, when baked, the ratafias should be about the size of a large button.
Time.—10 to 12 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 8d. per lb.
8521746. Ingredients.—To every ½ lb. of rice-flour allow ¼ lb. of pounded lump sugar, ¼ lb. of butter, 2 eggs.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream, stir in the rice-flour and pounded sugar, and moisten the whole with the eggs, which should be previously well beaten. Roll out the paste, shape it with a round paste-cutter into small cakes, and bake them from 12 to 18 minutes in a very slow oven.
Time.—12 to 18 minutes.
Average cost, 9d.
Sufficient to make about 18 cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
Ground Rice, or rice-flour, is used for making several kinds of cakes, also for thickening soups, and for mixing with wheaten flour in producing Manna Kroup. The Americans make rice-bread, and prepare the flour for it in the following manner:—When the rice is thoroughly cleansed, the water is drawn off, and the rice, while damp, bruised in a mortar: it is then dried, and passed through a hair sieve.
1747. Ingredients.—6 eggs, 1 lb. of sifted sugar, ½ lb. of flour, a few currants.
Mode.—Break the eggs into a basin, beat them well until very light, add the pounded sugar, and when this is well mixed with the eggs, dredge in the flour gradually, and add the currants. Mix all well together, and put the dough, with a fork, on the tins, making it look as rough as possible. Bake the cakes in a moderate oven from 20 minutes to ½ hour; when they are done, allow them to get cool, and store them away in a tin canister, in a dry place.
Time.—20 minutes to ½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 2d.
Seasonable at anytime.
1748. Ingredients.—4 eggs, 6 oz. of pounded sugar, the rind of 1 lemon, 6 oz. of flour.
Mode.—Break the eggs into a basin, separating the whites from the yolks; beat the yolks well, mix with them the pounded sugar and grated lemon-rind, and beat these ingredients together for ¼ hour. Then dredge in the flour gradually, and when the whites of the eggs have been whisked to a solid froth, stir them to the flour, &c.; beat the mixture well for another 5 minutes, then draw it along in strips upon thick cartridge paper to the proper size of the biscuit, and bake them in rather a hot oven; but let them be carefully watched, as they are soon done, and a few seconds over the proper time will scorch and spoil them. These biscuits, or ladies’-fingers, as they are called, are used for making Charlotte russes, and for a variety of fancy sweet dishes.
Time.—5 to 8 minutes, in a quick oven.
Average cost, 1s. 8d. per lb., or ½d. each.
8531749. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ¼ lb. of sifted sugar, ¼ lb. of butter, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, 3 eggs.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; stir in the flour, sugar, and caraway seeds; and when these ingredients are well mixed, add the eggs, which should be well whisked. Roll out the paste, with a round cutter shape out the biscuits, and bake them in a moderate oven from 10 to 15 minutes. The tops of the biscuits may be brushed over with a little milk or the white of an egg, and then a little sugar strewn over.
Time.—10 to 15 minutes.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient to make 3 dozen biscuits.
Seasonable at any time.
1750. Ingredients.—To every lb. of flour allow 2 oz. of butter, about ½ pint of skimmed milk.
Mode.—Warm the butter in the milk until the former is dissolved, and then mix it with the flour into a very stiff paste; beat it with a rolling-pin until the dough looks perfectly smooth. Roll it out thin; cut it with the top of a glass into round biscuits; prick them well, and bake them from 6 to 10 minutes. The above is the proportion of milk which we think would convert the flour into a stiff paste; but should it be found too much, an extra spoonful or two of flour must be put in. These biscuits are very nice for the cheese course.
Time.—6 to 10 minutes.
Seasonable at anytime.
1751. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of pounded loaf sugar, ¼ lb. of fresh butter, 2 eggs, 1 small teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Put the flour (which should be perfectly dry) into a basin; rub in the butter, add the sugar, and mix these ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs, stir them into the mixture, and beat it well, until everything is well incorporated. Quickly stir in the soda, roll the paste out until it is about ½ inch thick, cut it into small round cakes with a tin cutter, and bake them from 12 to 18 minutes in rather a brisk oven. After the soda is added, great expedition is necessary in rolling and cutting out the paste, and in putting the biscuits immediately into the oven, or they will be heavy.
Time.—12 to 18 minutes.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient to make about 3 dozen cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
8541752. Ingredients.—½ lb. of sweet almonds, 1 oz. of bitter almonds, 6 eggs, 8 tablespoonfuls of sifted sugar, 5 tablespoonfuls of fine flour, the grated rind of 1 lemon, 3 oz. of butter.
Mode.—Blanch and pound the almonds to a paste; separate the whites from the yolks of the eggs; beat the latter, and add them to the almonds. Stir in the sugar, flour, and lemon-rind; add the butter, which should be beaten to a cream; and when all these ingredients are well mixed, put in the whites of the eggs, which should be whisked to a stiff froth. Butter a cake-mould, put in the mixture, and bake in a good oven from 1¼ to 1¾ hour.
Time.—1¼ to 1¾ hour.
Average cost, 1s.
Seasonable at any time.
1753. Ingredients.—5 lbs. of the finest flour, 3 lbs. of fresh butter, 5 lbs. of currants, 2 lbs. of sifted loaf sugar, 2 nutmegs, ¼ oz. of mace, half ¼ oz. of cloves, 16 eggs, 1 lb. of sweet almonds, ½ lb. of candied citron, ½ lb. each of candied orange and lemon peel, 1 gill of wine, 1 gill of brandy.
Mode.—Let the flour be as fine as possible, and well dried and sifted; the currants washed, picked, and dried before the fire; the sugar well pounded and sifted; the nutmegs grated, the spices pounded; the eggs thoroughly whisked, whites and yolks separately; the almonds pounded with a little orange-flower water, and the candied peel cut in neat slices. When all these ingredients are prepared, mix them in the following manner. Begin working the butter with the hand till it becomes of a cream-like consistency; stir in the sugar, and when the whites of the eggs are whisked to a solid froth, mix them with the butter and sugar; next, well beat up the yolks for 10 minutes, and, adding them to the flour, nutmegs, mace, and cloves, continue beating the whole together for ½ hour or longer, till wanted for the oven. Then mix in lightly the currants, almonds, and candied peel with the wine and brandy; and having lined a hoop with buttered paper, fill it with the mixture, and bake the cake in a tolerably quick oven, taking care, however, not to burn it: to prevent this, the top of it may be covered with a sheet of paper. To ascertain whether the cake is done, plunge a clean knife into the middle of it, withdraw it directly, and if the blade is not sticky, and looks bright, the cake is sufficiently baked. These cakes are usually spread with a thick layer of almond icing, and over that another layer of sugar icing, and afterwards 855 ornamented. In baking a large cake like this, great attention must be paid to the heat of the oven; it should not be too fierce, but have a good soaking heat.
Time.—5 to 6 hours.
Average cost, 2s. per lb.
1754. Ingredients.—5 teacupfuls of flour, 1 teacupful of melted butter, 1 teacupful of cream, 1 teacupful of treacle, 1 teacupful of moist sugar, 2 eggs, ½ oz. of powdered ginger, ½ lb. of raisins, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, 1 tablespoonful of vinegar.
Mode.—Make the butter sufficiently warm to melt it, but do not allow it to oil; put the flour into a basin; add to it the sugar, ginger, and raisins, which should be stoned and cut into small pieces. When these dry ingredients are thoroughly mixed, stir in the butter, cream, treacle, and well-whisked eggs, and beat the mixture for a few minutes. Dissolve the soda in the vinegar, add it to the dough, and be particular that these latter ingredients are well incorporated with the others; put the cake into a buttered mould or tin, place it in a moderate oven immediately, and bake it from 1¾ to 2¼ hours.
Time.—1¾ to 2¼ hours.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
1755. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of flour, 4 oz. of butter or clarified dripping, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, ¼ oz. of allspice, ½ lb. of pounded sugar, 1 lb. of currants, 1 pint of milk, 3 tablespoonfuls of fresh yeast.
Mode.—Rub the butter lightly into the flour; add all the dry ingredients, and mix these well together. Make the milk warm, but not hot; stir in the yeast, and with this liquid make the whole into a light dough; knead it well, and line the cake-tins with strips of buttered paper: this paper should be about 6 inches higher than the top of the tin. Put in the dough; stand it in a warm place to rise for more than an hour; then bake the cakes in a well-heated oven. If this quantity be divided in two, they will take from 1½ to 2 hours’ baking.
Time.—1¾ to 2¼ hours.
Average cost, 1s. 9d.
Sufficient to make 2 moderate-sized cakes.
1756. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ¼ lb. of sugar, ¼ lb. of butter or lard, ½ lb. of currants, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, the whites of 4 eggs, ½ pint of milk.
856
CAKE-MOULD.
Mode.—In making many sweet dishes, the whites of eggs are not required, and if well beaten and added to the above ingredients, make an excellent cake, with or without currants. Beat the butter to a cream, well whisk the whites of the eggs, and stir all the ingredients together but the soda, which must not be added until all is well mixed, and the cake is ready to be put into the oven. When the mixture has been well beaten, stir in the soda, put the cake into a buttered mould, and bake it in a moderate oven for 1½ hour.
Time.—1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 3d.
1757. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of butter, 6 oz. of currants, ¼ lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of dried flour, 2 teaspoonfuls of baking-powder, 3 eggs, 1 teacupful of milk, 2 oz. of sweet almonds, 1 oz. of candied peel.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; wash, pick, and dry the currants; whisk the eggs; blanch and chop the almonds, and cut the peel into neat slices. When all these are ready, mix the dry ingredients together; then add the butter, milk, and eggs, and beat the mixture well for a few minutes. Put the cake into a buttered mould or tin, and bake it for rather more than 1½ hour. The currants and candied peel may be omitted, and a little lemon or almond flavouring substituted for them: made in this manner, the cake will be found very good.
Time.—Rather more than 1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 9d.
1758. Ingredients.—½ breakfast-cupful of sugar, 1 breakfast-cupful of rich sour cream, 2 breakfast-cupfuls of flour, ½ teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, honey to taste.
Mode.—Mix the sugar and cream together; dredge in the flour, with as much honey as will flavour the mixture nicely; stir it well, that all the ingredients may be thoroughly mixed; add the carbonate of soda, and beat the cake well for another 5 minutes; put it into a buttered tin, bake it from ½ to ¾ hour, and let it be eaten warm.
Time.—½ to ¾ hour.
Average cost, 8d.
Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons.
Seasonable at any time.
1759. Ingredients.—1 lb. of treacle, ¼ lb. of clarified butter, 1 lb. of coarse brown sugar, 2 oz. of ground ginger, 1 oz. of candied orange-peel, 857 1 oz. of candied angelica, ½ oz. of candied lemon-peel, ½ oz. of coriander seeds, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, 1 egg; flour.
Mode.—Put the treacle into a basin, and pour over it the butter, melted so as not to oil, the sugar, and ginger. Stir these ingredients well together, and whilst mixing, add the candied peel, which should be cut into very small pieces, but not bruised, and the caraway and coriander seeds, which should be pounded. Having mixed all thoroughly together, break in an egg, and work the whole up with as much fine flour as may be necessary to form a paste. Make this into nuts of any size, put them on a tin plate, and bake in a slow oven from ¼ to ½ hour.
Time.—¼ to ½ hour.
Average cost, from 1s. to 1s. 4d. per lb.
Seasonable at any time.
1760. Ingredients.—1 lb. of treacle, ¼ lb. of butter, ¼ lb. of coarse brown sugar, 1½ lb. of flour, 1 oz. of ginger, ½ oz. of ground allspice, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, ¼ pint of warm milk, 3 eggs.
GINGERBREAD.
Mode.—Put the flour into a basin, with the sugar, ginger, and allspice; mix these together; warm the butter, and add it, with the treacle, to the other ingredients. Stir well; make the milk just warm, dissolve the carbonate of soda in it, and mix the whole into a nice smooth dough with the eggs, which should be previously well whisked; pour the mixture into a buttered tin, and bake it from ¾ to 1 hour, or longer, should the gingerbread be very thick. Just before it is done, brush the top over with the yolk of an egg beaten up with a little milk, and put it back in the oven to finish baking.
Time.—¾ to 1 hour.
Average cost, 1s. per square.
Seasonable at any time.
1761. Ingredients.—1¾ lb. treacle, 1 lb. of moist sugar, 1 lb. of butter, 2¾ lbs. of flour, 1½ oz. of ground ginger, 1½ oz. of allspice, 1½ oz. of coriander seeds.
Mode.—Let the allspice, coriander seeds, and ginger be freshly ground; put them into a basin, with the flour and sugar, and mix these ingredients well together; warm the treacle and butter together; then with a spoon work it into the flour, &c., until the whole forms a nice smooth paste. Drop the mixture from the spoon on to a piece of 858 buttered paper, and bake in rather a slow oven from 20 minutes to ½ hour. A little candied lemon-peel mixed with the above is an improvement, and a great authority in culinary matters suggests the addition of a little cayenne pepper in gingerbread. Whether it be advisable to use this latter ingredient or not, we leave our readers to decide.
Time.—20 minutes to ½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. to 1s. 4d. per lb.
Seasonable at any time.
1762. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of loaf sugar, the rind of 1 lemon, 1 oz. of ground ginger, 1 nutmeg grated, ½ teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, 1 gill of milk.
Mode.—Rub the butter into the flour; add the sugar, which should be finely pounded and sifted, and the minced lemon-rind, ginger, and nutmeg. Mix these well together; make the milk just warm, stir in the soda, and work the whole into a nice smooth paste; roll it out, cut it into cakes, and bake in a moderate oven from 15 to 20 minutes.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes.
Average cost, 1s. 3d.
Seasonable at any time.
1763. Ingredients.—1½d. worth of Borwick’s German baking-powder, 2 lbs. of flour, 6 oz. of butter, ¼ lb. of lard, 1 lb. of currants, ½ lb. of stoned and cut raisins, ¼ lb. of mixed candied peel, ½ lb. of moist sugar, 3 eggs, ¾ pint of cold milk.
Mode.—Mix the baking-powder with the flour; then rub in the butter and lard; have ready the currants, washed, picked, and dried, the raisins stoned and cut into small pieces (not chopped), and the peel cut into neat slices. Add these with the sugar to the flour, &c., and mix all the dry ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs, stir to them the milk, and with this liquid moisten the cake; beat it up well, that all may be very thoroughly mixed; line a cake-tin with buttered paper, put in the cake, and bake it from 2¼ to 2¾ hours in a good oven. To ascertain when it is done, plunge a clean knife into the middle of it, and if, on withdrawing it, the knife looks clean, and not sticky, the cake is done. To prevent its burning at the top, a piece of clean paper may be put over whilst the cake is soaking, or being thoroughly cooked in the middle. A steamer, such as is used for steaming potatoes, makes a very good cake-tin, if it be lined at the bottom and sides with buttered paper.
Time.—2¼ to 2¾ hours.
Average cost, 2s. 6d.
Seasonable at any time.
8591764. Ingredients.—10 eggs, 3 tablespoonfuls of orange-flower water, ¾ lb. of pounded loaf sugar, 1 lemon, ¾ lb. of flour.
CAKE-MOULD.
Mode.—Separate the whites from the yolks of the eggs; whisk the former to a stiff froth; add the orange-flower water, the sugar, grated lemon-rind, and mix these ingredients well together. Then beat the yolks of the eggs, and add them, with the lemon-juice, to the whites, &c.; dredge in the flour gradually; keep beating the mixture well; put it into a buttered mould, and bake the cake about an hour, or rather longer. The addition of a little butter, beaten to a cream, we think, would improve this cake.
Time.—About 1 hour.
Average cost, 1s. 4d.
Seasonable at any time.
1765. Ingredients.—½ lb. of butter, 1 lb. of flour, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, ¼ lb. of currants, 6 oz. of moist sugar, 1 oz. of candied peel, 3 eggs, ½ pint of milk, 1 small teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Rub the butter into the flour until it is quite fine; add the caraway seeds, currants (which should be nicely washed, picked, and dried), sugar, and candied peel cut into thin slices; mix these well together, and moisten with the eggs, which should be well whisked. Boil the milk, and add to it, whilst boiling, the carbonate of soda, which must be well stirred into it, and, with the milk, mix the other ingredients. Butter a tin, pour the cake into it, and bake it in a moderate oven from ¾ to 1 hour.
Time.—1 to 1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 8d.
Seasonable at any time.
Carbonate of Soda.—Soda was called the mineral alkali, because it was originally dug up out of the ground in Africa and other countries: this state of carbonate of soda is called natron. But carbonate of soda is likewise procured from the combustion of marine plants, or such as grow on the sea-shore. Pure carbonate of soda is employed for making effervescing draughts, with lemon-juice, citric acid, or tartaric acid. The chief constituent of soda, the alkali, has been used in France from time immemorial in the manufacture of soap and glass, two chemical productions which employ and keep in circulation an immense amount of capital. A small pinch of carbonate of soda will give an extraordinary lightness to puff pastes; and, introduced into the teapot, will extract the full strength of the tea. But its qualities have a powerful effect upon delicate constitutions, and it is not to be used incautiously in any preparation.
1766. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, 1 teaspoonful of Borwick’s baking-powder, ¼ lb. of good dripping, 1 teacupful of moist sugar, 860 3 eggs, 1 breakfast-cupful of milk, 1 oz. of caraway seeds, ¼ lb. of currants.
Mode.—Put the flour and baking-powder into a basin; stir these together; then rub in the dripping, add the sugar, caraway seeds, and currants; whisk the eggs with the milk, and beat all together very thoroughly until the ingredients are well mixed. Butter a tin, put in the cake, and bake it from 1½ to 2 hours. Let the dripping be quite clean before using: to insure this, it is a good plan to clarify it. Beef dripping is better than any other for cakes, &c., as mutton dripping frequently has a very unpleasant flavour, which would be imparted to the preparation.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 1s.
Seasonable at any time.
1767. Ingredients.—1 quartern of dough, ¼ lb. of moist sugar, ¼ lb. of butter or good beef dripping, ¼ pint of warm milk, ½ grated nutmeg or ½ oz. of caraway seeds.
Mode.—If you are not in the habit of making bread at home, procure the dough from the baker’s, and, as soon as it comes in, put it into a basin near the fire; cover the basin with a thick cloth, and let the dough remain a little while to rise. In the mean time, beat the butter to a cream, and make the milk warm; and when the dough has risen, mix with it thoroughly all the above ingredients, and knead the cake well for a few minutes. Butter some cake-tins, half fill them, and stand them in a warm place, to allow the dough to rise again. When the tins are three parts full, put the cakes into a good oven, and bake them from 1¾ to 2 hours. A few currants might be substituted for the caraway seeds when the flavour of the latter is disliked.
Time.—1¾ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 1s. 2d.
Seasonable at any time.
1768. Ingredients.—3 lbs. of flour, 6 oz. of butter or good dripping, 6 oz. of moist sugar, 6 oz. of currants, ½ oz. of pounded allspice, 2 tablespoonfuls of fresh yeast, 1 pint of new milk.
Mode.—Rub the butter into the flour; add the sugar, currants, and allspice; warm the milk, stir to it the yeast, and mix the whole into a dough; knead it well, and put it into 6 buttered tins; place them near the fire for nearly an hour for the dough to rise, then bake the cakes in a good oven from 1 to 1¼ hour. To ascertain when they are done, 861 plunge a clean knife into the middle, and if on withdrawal it comes out clean, the cakes are done.
Time.—1 to 1¼ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 8d.
Sufficient to make 6 small cakes.
1769. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ¼ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of sugar, ½ lb. of currants, 2 oz. of candied lemon-peel, ½ pint of milk, 1 teaspoonful of ammonia or carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Put the flour into a basin with the sugar, currants, and sliced candied peel; beat the butter to a cream, and mix all these ingredients together with the milk. Stir the ammonia into 2 tablespoonfuls of milk; add it to the dough, and beat the whole well, until everything is thoroughly mixed. Put the dough into a buttered tin, and bake the cake from 1½ to 2 hours.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 1s. 3d.
Seasonable at any time.
1770. Ingredients.—1 lb. of butter, 1¼ lb. of flour, 1 lb. of pounded loaf sugar, 1 lb. of currants, 9 eggs, 2 oz. of candied peel, ½ oz. of citron, ½ oz. of sweet almonds; when liked, a little pounded mace.
POUND CAKE.
Mode.—Work the butter to a cream; dredge in the flour; add the sugar, currants, candied peel, which should be cut into neat slices, and the almonds, which should be blanched and chopped, and mix all these well together; whisk the eggs, and let them be thoroughly blended with the dry ingredients. Beat the cake well for 20 minutes, and put it into a round tin, lined at the bottom and sides with a strip of white buttered paper. Bake it from 1½ to 2 hours, and let the oven be well heated when the cake is first put in, as, if this is not the case, the currants will all sink to the bottom of it. To make this preparation light, the yolks and whites of the eggs should be beaten separately, and added separately to the other ingredients. A glass of wine is sometimes added to the mixture; but this is scarcely necessary, as the cake will be found quite rich enough without it.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 3s. 6d.
Sufficient.—The above quantity divided in two will make two nice-sized cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
8621771. Ingredients.—½ lb. of flour, ½ lb. of ground rice, ½ lb. of raisins stoned and cut into small pieces, ¼ lb. of currants, ¼ lb. of butter, 2 oz. of sweet almonds, ¼ lb. of sifted loaf sugar, ½ nutmeg grated, 1 pint of milk, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Stone and cut the raisins into small pieces; wash, pick, and dry the currants; melt the butter to a cream, but without oiling it; blanch and chop the almonds, and grate the nutmeg. When all these ingredients are thus prepared, mix them well together; make the milk warm, stir in the soda, and with this liquid make the whole into a paste. Butter a mould, rather more than half fill it with the dough, and bake the cake in a moderate oven from 1½ to 2 hours, or less time should it be made into 2 cakes.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 1s. 8d.
Seasonable at any time.
1772. Ingredients.—½ lb. of ground rice, ½ lb. of flour, ½ lb. of loaf sugar, 9 eggs, 20 drops of essence of lemon, or the rind of 1 lemon, ¼ lb. of butter.
CAKE-MOULD.
Mode.—Separate the whites from the yolks of the eggs; whisk them both well, and add to the latter the butter beaten to a cream. Stir in the flour, rice, and lemon (if the rind is used, it must be very finely minced), and beat the mixture well; then add the whites of the eggs, beat the cake again for some time, put it into a buttered mould or tin, and bake it for nearly 1½ hour. It may be flavoured with essence of almonds, when this is preferred.
Time.—Nearly 1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Seasonable at any time.
1773. Ingredients.—1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of pounded loaf sugar, 3 eggs, 1 teacupful of cream, ½ lb. of currants, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, essence of lemon or almonds to taste.
Mode.—Work the butter to a cream; dredge in the flour, add the sugar and currants, and mix the ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs, mix them with the cream and flavouring, and stir these to the flour; add the carbonate of soda, beat the paste well for 10 minutes, put it into small buttered pans, and bake the cake from ¼ to ½ hour. 863 Grated lemon-rind may be substituted for the lemon and almond flavouring, which will make the cakes equally nice.
Time. ¼ to ½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 9d.
Seasonable at any time.
1774. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of flour, ¼ lb. of tous-les-mois, ¼ lb. of pounded white sugar, ¼ lb. of butter, 2 eggs, 1 oz. of candied orange or lemon-peel.
Mode.—Mix the flour and tous-les-mois together; add the sugar the candied peel cut into thin slices, the butter beaten to a cream, and the eggs well whisked. Beat the mixture for 10 minutes, put it into a buttered cake-tin or mould, or, if this is not obtainable, a soup-plate answers the purpose, lined with a piece of buttered paper. Bake the cake in a moderate oven from 1 to 1¼ hour, and when cold, put it away in a covered canister. It will remain good some weeks, even if it be cut into slices.
Time.—1 to 1¼ hour.
Average cost, 1s.
Seasonable at any time.
1775. Ingredients.—½ quartern of dough, ¼ lb. of good dripping, 6 oz. of moist sugar, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, 1 egg.
Mode.—If the dough is sent in from the baker’s, put it in a basin covered with a cloth, and set it in a warm place to rise. Then with a wooden spoon beat the dripping to a liquid; add it, with the other ingredients, to the dough, and beat it until everything is very thoroughly mixed. Put it into a buttered tin, and bake the cake for rather more than 2 hours.
Time.—Rather more than 2 hours.
Average cost, 8d.
Seasonable at any time.
1776. Ingredients.—1 lb. of butter, 6 eggs, ¾ lb. of sifted sugar, pounded mace and grated nutmeg to taste, 1 lb. of flour, ¾ oz. of caraway seeds, 1 wineglassful of brandy.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; dredge in the flour; add the sugar, mace, nutmeg, and caraway seeds, and mix these ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs, stir to them the brandy, and beat the cake again for 10 minutes. Put it into a tin lined with buttered 864 paper, and bake it from 1½ to 2 hours. This cake would be equally nice made with currants, and omitting the caraway seeds.
Time.—1½ to 2 hours.
Average cost, 2s. 6d.
Seasonable at any time.
Bread-making in Spain.—The bread in the south of Spain is delicious: it is white as snow, close as cake, and yet very light; the flavour is most admirable, for the wheat is good and pure, and the bread well kneaded. The way they make this bread is as follows:—From large round panniers filled with wheat they take out a handful at a time, sorting it most carefully and expeditiously, and throwing every defective grain into another basket. This done, the wheat is ground between two circular stones, as it was ground in Egypt 2,000 years ago (see No. 117), the requisite rotary motion being given by a blindfolded mule, which paces round and round with untiring patience, a bell being attached to his neck, which, as long as he is in movement, tinkles on; and when it stops, he is urged to his duty by the shout of “Arre, mula,” from some one within hearing. When ground, the wheat is sifted through three sieves, the last of these being so fine that only the pure flour can pass through it: this is of a pale apricot-colour. The bread is made in the evening. It is mixed with only sufficient water, with a little salt in it, to make it into dough: a very small quantity of leaven, or fermenting mixture, is added. The Scripture says, “A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump;” but in England, to avoid the trouble of kneading, many put as much leaven or yeast in one batch of household bread as in Spain would last them a week for the six or eight donkey-loads of bread they send every night from their oven. The dough made, it is put into sacks, and carried on the donkeys’ backs to the oven in the centre of the village, so as to bake it immediately it is kneaded. On arriving there, the dough is divided into portions weighing 3 lbs. each. Two long narrow wooden tables on trestles are then placed down the room; and now a curious sight may be seen. About twenty men (bakers) come in and range themselves on one side of the tables. A lump of dough is handed to the nearest, which he commences kneading and knocking about with all his might for about 3 or 4 minutes, and then passes it on to his neighbour, who does the same; and so on successively until all have kneaded it, when it becomes as soft as new putty, and ready for the oven. Of course, as soon as the first baker has handed the first lump to his neighbour, another is given to him, and so on till the whole quantity of dough is successively kneaded by them all. The bakers’ wives and daughters shape the loaves for the oven, and some of them are very small, and they are baked immediately. The ovens are very large, and not heated by fires under them; but a quantity of twigs of the herbs of sweet marjoram and thyme, which cover the hills in great profusion, are put in the oven and ignited. They heat the oven to any extent required; and, as the bread gets baked, the oven gets gradually colder; so the bread is never burned. They knead the bread in Spain with such force, that the palm of the hand and the second joints of the fingers of the bakers are covered with corns; and it so affects the chest, that they cannot work more than two hours at a time.
1777. Ingredients.—½ lb. of tous-les-mois, ¼ lb. of white pounded sugar, ¼ lb. of fresh or washed salt butter, 1 egg, the juice of 1 lemon.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; then add the egg, previously well beaten, and then the other ingredients; if the mixture is not light, add another egg, and beat for ¼ hour, until it turns white and light. Line a flat tin, with raised edges, with a sheet of buttered paper; pour in the cake, and put it into the oven. It must be rather slow, and the cake not allowed to brown at all. If the oven is properly heated, 1 to 1¼ hour will be found long enough to bake it. Let it cool a few minutes, then with a clean sharp knife cut it into small square pieces, which should be gently removed to a large flat dish to cool before putting away. This will keep for several weeks.
Time.—1 to 1¼ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 3d.
Seasonable at any time.
865 3K1778. Ingredients.—1 lb. of arrowroot, ½ lb. of pounded white sugar, ½ lb. of butter, the whites of 6 eggs; flavouring to taste, of essence of almonds, or vanilla, or lemon.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; stir in the sugar and arrowroot gradually, at the same time beating the mixture. Whisk the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, add them to the other ingredients, and beat well for 20 minutes. Put in whichever of the above flavourings may be preferred; pour the cake into a buttered mould or tin, and bake it in a moderate oven from 1 to 1½ hour.
Time.—1 to 1½ hour.
Average cost, with the best Bermuda arrowroot, 4s. 6d.; with St. Vincent ditto, 2s. 9d.
Sufficient to make a moderate-sized cake.
Seasonable at any time.
1779. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of leaf, or the inside fat of a pig; 1½ lb. of flour, ¼ lb. of moist sugar, ½ lb. of currants, 1 oz. of candied lemon-peel, ground allspice to taste.
Mode.—Cut the leaf, or flead, as it is sometimes called, into small pieces; put it into a large dish, which place in a quick oven; be careful that it does not burn, and in a short time it will be reduced to oil, with the small pieces of leaf floating on the surface; and it is of these that the cakes should be made. Gather all the scraps together, put them into a basin with the flour, and rub them well together. Add the currants, sugar, candied peel, cut into thin slices, and the ground allspice. When all these ingredients are well mixed, moisten with sufficient cold water to make the whole into a nice paste; roll it out thin, cut it into shapes, and bake the cakes in a quick oven from 15 to 20 minutes. These are very economical and wholesome cakes for children, and the lard, melted at home, produced from the flead, is generally better than that you purchase. To prevent the lard from burning, and to insure its being a good colour, it is better to melt it in a jar placed in a saucepan of boiling water; by doing it in this manner, there will be no chance of its discolouring.
Time.—15 to 20 minutes.
Sufficient to make 3 or 4 dozen cakes.
Seasonable from September to March.
866
Wheat is liable to several diseases, which affect the flour made from it, and render it unfit for good bread. The principal of these are the blight, mildew, and smut, which are occasioned by microscopic fungi, which sow themselves and grow upon the stems and ears, destroying the nutritive principles, and introducing matter of a deleterious kind. The farmer is at the utmost pains to keep away these intruders. Wheat, as well as all kinds of corn, is also very liable to be injured by being stacked before it is quite dry; in which case it will heat, and become musty in the ricks. In wet harvests it is sometimes impossible to get it sufficiently dried, and a great deal of corn is thus often spoiled. It is generally reckoned that the sweetest bread is made from wheat threshed out before it is stacked; which shows the importance of studying the best modes of preserving it.
The erudite are not agreed as to the aboriginal country of corn: some say it is Egypt, others Tartary; and the learned Bailly, as well as the traveller Pallas, affirms that it grows spontaneously in Siberia. Be that as it may, the Phocians brought it to Marseilles before the Romans had penetrated into Gaul. The Gauls ate the corn cooked or bruised in a mortar: they did not know, for a long time, how to make fermented bread.
1780. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, ¼ lb. of pounded loaf sugar, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, 1 oz. of sweet almonds, a few strips of candied orange-peel.
SHORTBREAD.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream, gradually dredge in the flour, and add the sugar, caraway seeds, and sweet almonds, which should be blanched and cut into small pieces. Work the paste until it is quite smooth, and divide it into six pieces. Put each cake on a separate piece of paper, roll the paste out square to the thickness of about an inch, and pinch it upon all sides. Prick it well, and ornament with one or two strips of candied orange-peel. Put the cakes into a good oven, and bake them from 25 to 30 minutes.
Time.—25 to 30 minutes.
Average cost, for this quantity, 2s.
Sufficient to make 6 cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
Note.—Where the flavour of the caraway seeds is disliked, omit them, and add rather a larger proportion of candied peel.
1781. Ingredients.—¼ lb. of butter, 1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of currants, ½ lb. of moist sugar, 1 teacupful of milk, 3 eggs, 1 teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Rub the butter into the flour, add the currants and sugar, and mix these ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs well, stir them to the flour, &c., with the milk, in which the soda should be previously dissolved, and beat the whole up together with a wooden spoon or beater. Divide the dough into two pieces, put them into buttered 867 moulds or cake-tins, and bake in a moderate oven for nearly an hour. The mixture must be extremely well beaten up, and not allowed to stand after the soda is added to it, but must be placed in the oven immediately. Great care must also be taken that the cakes are quite done through, which may be ascertained by thrusting a knife into the middle of them: if the blade looks bright when withdrawn, they are done. If the tops acquire too much colour before the inside is sufficiently baked, cover them over with a piece of clean white paper, to prevent them from burning.
Time.—1 hour.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient to make 2 small cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
1782. Ingredients.—The weight of 4 eggs in pounded loaf sugar, the weight of 7 in flour, a little grated lemon-rind, or essence of almonds, or orange-flower water.
Mode.—Break the 7 eggs, putting the yolks into one basin and the whites into another. Whisk the former, and mix with them the sugar, the grated lemon-rind, or any other flavouring to taste; beat them well together, and add the whites of the eggs, whisked to a froth. Put in the flour by degrees, continuing to beat the mixture for ¼ hour, butter a mould, pour in the cake, and bake it from 1¼ to 1½ hour. This is a very nice cake for dessert, and may be iced for a supper-table, or cut into slices and spread with jam, which converts it into sandwiches.
Time.—1¼ to 1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient for 1 cake.
Seasonable at any time.
1783. Ingredients.—The weight of 8 eggs in pounded loaf sugar, the weight of 5 in flour, the rind of 1 lemon, 1 tablespoonful of brandy.
SPONGE-CAKE.
Mode.—Put the eggs into one side of the scale, and take the weight of 8 in pounded loaf sugar, and the weight of 5 in good dry flour. Separate the yolks from the whites of the eggs; beat the former, put them into a saucepan with the sugar, and let them remain over the fire until milk-warm, keeping them well stirred. Then put them into a basin, add the grated lemon-rind mixed with the brandy, and stir these well together, dredging in the flour very gradually. 868 Whisk the whites of the eggs to a very stiff froth, stir them to the flour, &c., and beat the cake well for ¼ hour. Put it into a buttered mould strewn with a little fine sifted sugar, and bake the cake in a quick oven for 1½ hour. Care must be taken that it is put into the oven immediately, or it will not be light. The flavouring of this cake may be varied by adding a few drops of essence of almonds instead of the grated lemon-rind.
EGYPTIAN WHEAT.
Time.—1½ hour.
Average cost, 1s. 3d.
Sufficient for 1 cake.
Seasonable at any time.
The Egyptian, or Mummy Wheat, is not grown to any great extent, owing to its inferior quality; but it is notable for its large produce, and is often cultivated on allotment grounds and on small farms, where quantity rather than quality is desired. At Wix, in Essex, the seed of this wheat has produced, without artificial assistance, four thousandfold; some of the ears have had eleven offshoots, and have contained, altogether, eleven grains in one ear.
1784. Ingredients.—½ lb. of loaf sugar, not quite ¼ pint of water, 5 eggs, 1 lemon, ½ lb. of flour, ¼ teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together until they form a thick syrup; let it cool a little, then pour it to the eggs, which should be previously well whisked; and after the eggs and syrup are mixed together, continue beating them for a few minutes. Grate the lemon-rind, mix the carbonate of soda with the flour, and stir these lightly to the other ingredients; then add the lemon-juice, and, when the whole is thoroughly mixed, pour it into a buttered mould, and bake in rather a quick oven for rather more than 1 hour. The remains of sponge or Savoy cakes answer very well for trifles, light puddings, &c.; and a very stale one (if not mouldy) makes an excellent tipsy-cake.
Time.—Rather more than 1 hour.
Average cost, 10d.
Sufficient to make 1 cake.
Seasonable at any time.
1785. Ingredients.—The weight of 5 eggs in flour, the weight of 8 in pounded loaf sugar; flavouring to taste.
Mode.—Let the flour be perfectly dry, and the sugar well pounded and sifted. Separate the whites from the yolks of the eggs, and beat the latter up with the sugar; then whisk the whites until they become rather stiff, and mix them with the yolks, but do not stir them more than is just necessary to mingle the ingredients well together. 869 Dredge in the flour by degrees, add the flavouring; butter the tins well, pour in the batter, sift a little sugar over the cakes, and bake them in rather a quick oven, but do not allow them to take too much colour, as they should be rather pale. Remove them from the tins before they get cold, and turn them on their faces, where let them remain until quite cold, when store them away in a closed tin canister or wide-mouthed glass bottle.
Time.—10 to 15 minutes in a quick oven.
Average cost, 1d. each.
Seasonable at any time.
1786. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of flour, ½ teaspoonful of salt, ¼ lb. of butter or lard, 1 egg, a piece of German yeast the size of a walnut, warm milk.
Mode.—Put the flour (which should be perfectly dry) into a basin; mix with it the salt, and rub in the butter or lard; then beat the egg well, stir to it the yeast, and add these to the flour with as much warm milk as will make the whole into a smooth paste, and knead it well. Let it rise near the fire, and, when well risen, form it into cakes; place them on tins, let them rise again for a few minutes before putting them into the oven, and bake from ¼ to ½ hour in a moderate oven. These are very nice with a few currants and a little sugar added to the other ingredients: they should be put in after the butter is rubbed in. These cakes should be buttered, and eaten hot as soon as baked; but, when stale, they are very nice split and toasted; or, if dipped in milk, or even water, and covered with a basin in the oven till hot, they will be almost equal to new.
Time.—¼ to ½ hour.
Average cost, 10d.
Sufficient to make 8 tea-cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
TEA-CAKES.
1787. Cut each tea-cake into three or four slices, according to its thickness; toast them on both sides before a nice clear fire, and as each slice is done, spread it with butter on both sides. When a cake is toasted, pile the slices one on the top of the other, cut them into quarters, put them on a very hot plate, and send the cakes immediately to table. As they are wanted, send them in hot, one or two at a time, as, if allowed to stand, they spoil, unless kept in a muffin-plate over a basin of boiling water.
8701788. Ingredients.—1½ lb. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, ½ pint of milk, 1½ tablespoonful of good yeast, 3 eggs, ¾ lb. of currants, ½ lb. of white moist sugar, 2 oz. of candied peel.
Mode.—Put the milk and butter into a saucepan, and shake it round over a fire until the butter is melted, but do not allow the milk to get very hot. Put the flour into a basin, stir to it the milk and butter, the yeast, and eggs, which should be well beaten, and form the whole into a smooth dough. Let it stand in a warm place, covered with a cloth, to rise, and, when sufficiently risen, add the currants, sugar, and candied peel cut into thin slices. When all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, line 2 moderate-sized cake-tins with buttered paper, which should be about six inches higher than the tin; pour in the mixture, let it stand to rise again for another ½ hour, and then bake the cakes in a brisk oven for about 1½ hour. If the tops of them become too brown, cover them with paper until they are done through. A few drops of essence of lemon, or a little grated nutmeg, may be added when the flavour is liked.
Time.—From to 1¼ to 1½ hour.
Average cost, 2s.
Sufficient to make 2 moderate-sized cakes.
Seasonable at any time.
1789. Beverages are innumerable in their variety; but the ordinary beverages drunk in the British isles, may be divided into three classes:—1. Beverages of the simplest kind not fermented. 2. Beverages, consisting of water, containing a considerable quantity of carbonic acid. 3. Beverages composed partly of fermented liquors. Of the first class may be mentioned,—water, toast-and-water, barley-water, eau sucré, lait sucré, cheese and milk whey, milk-and-water, lemonade, orangeade, sherbet, apple and pear juice, capillaire, vinegar-and-water, raspberry vinegar and water.
1790. Of the common class of beverages, consisting of water impregnated with carbonic acid gas, we may name soda-water, single and double, ordinary effervescing draughts, and ginger-beer.
1791. The beverages composed partly of fermented liquors, are hot spiced wines, bishop, egg-flip, egg-hot, ale posset, sack posset, punch, and spirits-and-water.
1792. We will, however, forthwith treat on the most popular of our beverages, beginning with the one which makes “the cup that cheers but not inebriates.”
1793. The beverage called tea has now become almost a necessary of life. Previous to the middle of the 17th century it was not used in England, and it was wholly unknown to the Greeks and Romans. Pepys says, in his Diary,—“September 25th, 1661.—I sent for a cup of tea (a China drink), of which I had never drunk before.” Two years later it was so rare a commodity in 872 England, that the English East-India Company bought 2 lbs. 2 oz. of it, as a present for his majesty. In 1666 it was sold in London for sixty shillings a pound. From that date the consumption has gone on increasing from 5,000 lbs. to 50,000,000 lbs.
1794. Linnæus was induced to think that there were two species of tea-plant, one of which produced the black, and the other the green teas; but later observations do not confirm this. When the leaves of black and green tea are expanded by hot water, and examined by the botanist, though a difference of character is perceived, yet this is not sufficient to authorize considering them as distinct species. The tea-tree flourishes best in temperate regions; in China it is indigenous. The part of China where the best tea is cultivated, is called by us the “tea country.” The cultivation of the plant requires great care. It is raised chiefly on the sides of hills; and, in order to increase the quantity and improve the quality of the leaves, the shrub is pruned, so as not to exceed the height of from two to three feet, much in the same manner as the vine is treated in France. They pluck the leaves, one selecting them according to the kinds of tea required; and, notwithstanding the tediousness of the operation, each labourer is able to gather from four to ten or fifteen pounds a day. When the trees attain to six or seven years of age, the produce becomes so inferior that they are removed to make room for a fresh succession, or they are cut down to allow of numerous young shoots. Teas of the finest flavour consist of the youngest leaves; and as these are gathered at four different periods of the year, the younger the leaves the higher flavoured the tea, and the scarcer, and consequently the dearer, the article.
1795. The various names by which teas are sold in the British market are corruptions of Chinese words. There are about a dozen different kinds; but the principal are Bohea, Congou, and Souchong, and signify, respectively, inferior, middling, and superior. Teas are often perfumed and flavoured with the leaves of different kinds of plants grown on purpose. Different tea-farms in China produce teas of various qualities, raised by skilful cultivation on various soils.
1796. Tea, when chemically analyzed, is found to contain woody fibre, mucilage, a considerable quantity of the astringent principle, or tannin, a narcotic principle, which is, perhaps, connected with a peculiar aroma. The tannin is shown by its striking a black colour with sulphate of iron, and is the cause of the dark stain which is always formed when tea is spilt upon buff-coloured cottons dyed with iron. A constituent called Theine has also been discovered in tea, supposed to be identical with Caffeine, one of the constituents of coffee. Liebig says, “Theine yields, in certain processes of decomposition, a series of most remarkable products, which have much analogy with those derived from uric acid in similar circumstances. . . . The infusion of tea differs from that of coffee, by containing iron and manganese. . . . We have in tea, of many kinds, a beverage which contains the active constituents of the most powerful mineral springs, and, however small the amount of iron 873 may be which we daily take in this form, it cannot be destitute of influence on the vital processes.”
1797. Chinese tea has frequently been adulterated in this country, by the admixture of the dried leaves of certain plants. The leaves of the sloe, white thorn, ash, elder, and some others, have been employed for this purpose; such as the leaves of the speedwell, wild germander, black currants, syringa, purple-spiked willow-herb, sweet-brier, and cherry-tree. Some of these are harmless, others are to a certain degree poisonous; as, for example, are the leaves of all the varieties of the plum and cherry tribe, to which the sloe belongs. Adulteration by means of these leaves is by no means a new species of fraud; and several acts of parliament, from the time of George II., have been passed, specifying severe penalties against those guilty of the offence, which, notwithstanding numerous convictions, continues to the present time.
1798. In the purchase of tea, that should be chosen which possesses an agreeable odour and is as whole as possible, in order that the leaf may be easily examined. The greatest care should be taken that it has not been exposed to the air, which destroys its flavour.
1799. It would be impossible, in the space at our command, to enumerate the various modes adopted in different countries for “making coffee;” that is, the phrase commonly understood to mean the complete preparation of this delicious beverage for drinking. For performing this operation, such recipes or methods as we have found most practical will be inserted in their proper place; but the following facts connected with coffee will be found highly interesting.
1800. The introduction of coffee into this country is comparatively of recent date. We are assured by Bruce that the coffee-tree is a native of Abyssinia, and it is said to have been cultivated in that country from time immemorial.
1801. It appears that coffee was first introduced into England by Daniel Edwards, a Turkey merchant, whose servant, Pasqua, a Greek, understood the manner of roasting it. This servant, under the patronage of Edwards, established the first coffee-house in London, in George Yard, Lombard Street. Coffee was then sold at four or five guineas a pound, and a duty was soon afterwards laid upon it of fourpence a gallon, when made into a beverage. In the course of two centuries, however, this berry, unknown originally as an article of food, except to some savage tribes on the confines of Abyssinia, has made its way through the whole of the civilized world. Mahommedans of all ranks drink coffee twice a day; it is in universal request in France; and the demand for it throughout the British isles is daily increasing, the more especially since so much attention has been given to mechanical contrivances for roasting and grinding the berry and preparing the beverage.
1802. Of the various kinds of coffee the Arabian is considered the best. It is grown chiefly in the districts of Aden and Mocha; whence the name of our 874 Mocha coffee. Mocha coffee has a smaller and rounder bean than any other, and likewise a more agreeable smell and taste. The next in reputation and quality is the Java and Ceylon coffee, and then the coffees of Bourbon and Martinique, and that of Berbice, a district of the colony of British Guiana. The Jamaica and St. Domingo coffees are less esteemed.
1803. A considerable change takes place in the arrangement of the constituents of coffee by the application of heat in roasting it. Independently of one of the objects of roasting, namely, that of destroying its toughness and rendering it easily ground, its tannin and other principles are rendered partly soluble in water; and it is to the tannin that the brown colour of the decoction of coffee is owing. An aromatic flavour is likewise developed during torrefaction, which is not perceived in the raw berry, and which is not produced in the greatest perfection until the heat has arrived at a certain degree of temperature; but, if the heat be increased beyond this, the flavour is again dissipated, and little remains but a bitter and astringent matter with carbon.
1804. The roasting of coffee in the best manner requires great nicety, and much of the qualities of the beverage depends upon the operation. The roasting of coffee for the dealers in London and Paris has now become a separate branch of business, and some of the roasters perform the operation on a great scale, with considerable skill. Roasted coffee loses from 20 to 30 per cent. by sufficient roasting, and the powder suffers much by exposure to the air; but, while raw, it not only does not lose its flavour for a year or two, but improves by keeping. If a cup of the best coffee be placed upon a table boiling hot, it will fill the room with its fragrance; but the coffee, when warmed again after being cold, will be found to have lost most of its flavour.
1805. To have coffee in perfection, it should be roasted and ground just before it is used, and more should not be ground at a time than is wanted for immediate use, or, if it be necessary to grind more, it should be kept closed from the air. Coffee readily imbibes exhalations from other substances, and thus often acquires a bad flavour: brown sugar placed near it will communicate a disagreeable flavour. It is stated that the coffee in the West Indies has often been injured by being laid in rooms near the sugar-works, or where rum is distilled; and the same effect has been produced by bringing over coffee in the same ships with rum and sugar. Dr. Moseley mentions that a few bags of pepper, on board a ship from India, spoiled a whole cargo of coffee.
1806. With respect to the quantity of coffee used in making the decoction, much depends upon the taste of the consumer. The greatest and most common fault in English coffee is the too small quantity of the ingredient. Count Rumford says that to make good coffee for drinking after dinner, a pound of good Mocha coffee, which, when roasted and ground, weighs only thirteen ounces, serves to make fifty-six full cups, or a little less than a quarter of an ounce to a coffee-cup of moderate size.
1807. Ingredients.—Allow ½ oz. of chocolate to each person; to every oz. allow ½ pint of water, ½ pint of milk.
MILL.
Mode.—Make the milk-and-water hot; scrape the chocolate into it, and stir the mixture constantly and quickly until the chocolate is dissolved; bring it to the boiling-point, stir it well, and serve directly with white sugar. Chocolate prepared with in a mill, as shown in the engraving, is made by putting in the scraped chocolate, pouring over it the boiling milk-and-water, and milling it over the fire until hot and frothy.
Sufficient.—Allow ½ oz. of cake chocolate to each person.
Chocolate and Cocoa.—Both these preparations are made from the seeds or beans of the cacao-tree, which grows in the West Indies and South America. The Spanish, and the proper name, is cacao, not cocoa, as it is generally spelt. From this mistake, the tree from which the beverage is procured has been often confounded with the palm that produces the edible cocoa-nuts, which are the produce of the cocoa-tree (Cocos nucifera), whereas the tree from which chocolate is procured is very different (the Theobroma cacao). The cocoa-tree was cultivated by the aboriginal inhabitants of South America, particularly in Mexico, where, according to Humboldt, it was reared by Montezuma. It was transplanted thence into other dependencies of the Spanish monarchy in 1520; and it was so highly esteemed by Linnæus as to receive from him the name now conferred upon it, of Theobroma, a term derived from the Greek, and signifying “food for gods.” Chocolate has always been a favourite beverage among the Spaniards and Creoles, and was considered here as a great luxury when first introduced, after the discovery of America; but the high duties laid upon it, confined it long almost entirely to the wealthier classes. Before it was subjected to duty, Mr. Bryan Edwards stated that cocoa plantations were numerous in Jamaica, but that the duty caused their almost entire ruin. The removal of this duty has increased their cultivation. (For engraving of cocoa-bean, see No. 1816.)
1808. Ingredients.—To every ¼ lb. of ground coffee allow 1 small teaspoonful of powdered chicory, 3 small teacupfuls, or 1 pint, of water.
Mode.—Let the coffee be freshly ground, and, if possible, freshly roasted; put it into a percolater, or filter, with the chicory, and pour slowly over it the above proportion of boiling water. When it has all filtered through, warm the coffee sufficiently to bring it to the 876 simmering-point, but do not allow it to boil; then filter it a second time, put it into a clean and dry bottle, cork it well, and it will remain good for several days. Two tablespoonfuls of this essence are quite sufficient for a breakfast-cupful of hot milk. This essence will be found particularly useful to those persons who have to rise extremely early; and having only the milk to make boiling, is very easily and quickly prepared. When the essence is bottled, pour another 3 teacupfuls of boiling water slowly on the grounds, which, when filtered through, will be a very weak coffee. The next time there is essence to be prepared, make this weak coffee boiling, and pour it on the ground coffee instead of plain water: by this means a better coffee will be obtained. Never throw away the grounds without having made use of them in this manner; and always cork the bottle well that contains this preparation, until the day that it is wanted for making the fresh essence.
Time.—To be filtered once, then brought to the boiling-point, and filtered again.
Average cost, with coffee at 1s. 8d. per lb., 6d.
Sufficient.—Allow 2 tablespoonfuls for a breakfast-cupful of hot milk.
1809. It being an acknowledged fact that French coffee is decidedly superior to that made in England, and as the roasting of the berry is of great importance to the flavour of the preparation, it will be useful and interesting to know how they manage these things in France. In Paris, there are two houses justly celebrated for the flavour of their coffee,—La Maison Corcellet and La Maison Royer de Chartres; and to obtain this flavour, before roasting they add to every 3 lbs. of coffee a piece of butter the size of a nut, and a dessertspoonful of powdered sugar: it is then roasted in the usual manner. The addition of the butter and sugar develops the flavour and aroma of the berry; but it must be borne in mind, that the quality of the butter must be of the very best description.
1810. Ingredients.—Allow ½ oz., or 1 tablespoonful, of ground coffee to each person; to every oz. of coffee allow ⅓ pint of water.
LOYSEL’S HYDROSTATIC URN.
Mode.—To make coffee good, it should never be boiled, but the boiling water merely poured on it, the same as for tea. The coffee should always be purchased in the berry,—if possible, freshly roasted; and it should never be ground long before it is wanted for use. There are very many new kinds of coffee-pots, but the method of making the 877 coffee is nearly always the same; namely, pouring the boiling water on the powder, and allowing it to filter through. Our illustration shows one of Loysel’s Hydrostatic Urns, which are admirably adapted for making good and clear coffee, which should be made in the following manner:—Warm the urn with boiling water, remove the lid and movable filter, and place the ground coffee at the bottom of the urn. Put the movable filter over this, and screw the lid, inverted, tightly on the end of the centre pipe. Pour into the inverted lid the above proportion of boiling water, and when all the water so poured has disappeared from the funnel, and made its way down the centre pipe and up again through the ground coffee by hydrostatic pressure, unscrew the lid and cover the urn. Pour back direct into the urn, not through the funnel, one, two, or three cups, according to the size of the percolater, in order to make the infusion of uniform strength; the contents will then be ready for use, and should run from the tap strong, hot, and clear. The coffee made in these urns generally turns out very good, and there is but one objection to them,—the coffee runs rather slowly from the tap. This is of no consequence where there is a small party, but tedious where there are many persons to provide for. A remedy for this objection may be suggested; namely, to make the coffee very strong, so that not more than ⅓ of a cup would be required, as the rest would be filled up with milk. Making coffee in filters or percolaters does away with the necessity of using isinglass, white of egg, and various other preparations to clear it. Coffee should always be served very hot, and, if possible, in the same vessel in which it is made, as pouring it from one pot to another cools, and consequently spoils it. Many persons may think that the proportion of water we have given for each oz. of coffee is rather small; it is so, and the coffee produced from it will be very strong; ⅓ of a cup will be found quite sufficient, which should be filled with nice hot milk, or milk and cream mixed. This is the café au lait for which our neighbours over the Channel are so justly celebrated. Should the ordinary method of making coffee be preferred, use double the quantity of water, and, in pouring it into the cups, put in more coffee and less milk.
Sufficient.—For very good coffee, allow ½ oz., or 1 table-spoonful, to each person.
8781811. Ingredients.—Allow ½ oz., or 1 tablespoonful, of coffee to each person; to every oz. allow ½ pint of water.
Mode.—Have a small iron ring made to fit the top of the coffee-pot inside, and to this ring sew a small muslin bag (the muslin for the purpose must not be too thin). Fit the bag into the pot, pour some boiling water in it, and, when the pot is well warmed, put the ground coffee into the bag; pour over as much boiling water as is required, close the lid, and, when all the water has filtered through, remove the bag, and send the coffee to table. Making it in this manner prevents the necessity of pouring the coffee from one vessel to another, which cools and spoils it. The water should be poured on the coffee gradually, so that the infusion may be stronger; and the bag must be well made, that none of the grounds may escape through the seams, and so make the coffee thick and muddy.
COFFEE.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 tablespoonful, or ½ oz., to each person.
The Coffee Plant grows to the height of about twelve or fifteen feet, with leaves not unlike those of the common laurel, although more pointed, and not so dry and thick. The blossoms are white, much like those of jasmine, and issue from the angles of the leaf-stalks. When the flowers fade, they are succeeded by the coffee-bean, or seed, which is inclosed in a berry of a red colour, when ripe resembling a cherry. The coffee-beans are prepared by exposing them to the sun for a few days, that the pulp may ferment and throw off a strong acidulous moisture. They are then gradually dried for about three weeks, and put into a mill to separate the husk from the seed.
1812. This is merely very strong coffee added to a large proportion of good hot milk; about 6 tablespoonfuls of strong coffee being quite sufficient for a breakfast-cupful of milk. Of the essence No. 1808, which answers admirably for café au lait, so much would not be required. This preparation is infinitely superior to the weak watery coffee so often served at English tables. A little cream mixed with the milk, if the latter cannot be depended on for richness, improves the taste of the coffee, as also the richness of the beverage.
Sufficient.—6 tablespoonfuls of strong coffee, or 2 tablespoonfuls of the essence, to a breakfast-cupful of milk.
Tea and Coffee.—It is true, says Liebig, that thousands have lived without a knowledge of tea and coffee; and daily experience teaches us that, under certain circumstances, they may be dispensed with without disadvantage to the merely animal functions; but it is an error, certainly, to conclude from this that they may be altogether dispensed with in reference to their effects; and it is a question whether, if we had no tea and no coffee, the popular instinct would not seek for and discover the means of replacing them. Science, which accuses us of so much in these respects, will have, in the first 879 place to ascertain whether it depends on sensual and sinful inclinations merely, that every people of the globe have appropriated some such means of acting on the nervous life, from the shore of the Pacific, where the Indian retires from life for days in order to enjoy the bliss of intoxication with koko, to the Arctic regions, where Kamtschatdales and Koriakes prepare an intoxicating beverage from a poisonous mushroom. We think it, on the contrary, highly probable, not to say certain, that the instinct of man, feeling certain blanks, certain wants of the intensified life of our times, which cannot be satisfied or filled up by mere quantity, has discovered, in these products of vegetable life the true means of giving to his food the desired and necessary quality.
1813. This is usually handed round after dinner, and should be drunk well sweetened, with the addition of a little brandy or liqueurs, which may be added or not at pleasure. The coffee should be made very strong, and served in very small cups, but never mixed with milk or cream. Café noir may be made of the essence of coffee No. 1808, by pouring a tablespoonful into each cup, and filling it up with boiling water. This is a very simple and expeditious manner of preparing coffee for a large party, but the essence for it must be made very good, and kept well corked until required for use.
1814. There is very little art in making good tea; if the water is boiling, and there is no sparing of the fragrant leaf, the beverage will almost invariably be good. The old-fashioned plan of allowing a teaspoonful to each person, and one over, is still practised. Warm the teapot with boiling water; let it remain for two or three minutes for the vessel to become thoroughly hot, then pour it away. Put in the tea, pour in from ½ to ¾ pint of boiling water, close the lid, and let it stand for the tea to draw from 5 to 10 minutes; then fill up the pot with water. The tea will be quite spoiled unless made with water that is actually boiling, as the leaves will not open, and the flavour not be extracted from them; the beverage will consequently be colourless and tasteless,—in fact, nothing but tepid water. Where there is a very large party to make tea for, it is a good plan to have two teapots instead of putting a large quantity of tea into one pot; the tea, besides, will go farther. When the infusion has been once completed, the addition of fresh tea adds very little to the strength; so, when more is required, have the pot emptied of the old leaves, scalded, and fresh tea made in the usual manner. Economists say that a few grains of carbonate of soda, added before the boiling water is poured on the tea, assist to draw out the goodness: if the water is very hard, perhaps it is a good plan, as the soda softens it; but care must be taken to use this ingredient sparingly, as it is liable to give the tea a soapy taste if added in too large a quantity. For 880 mixed tea, the usual proportion is four spoonfuls of black to one of green; more of the latter when the flavour is very much liked; but strong green tea is highly pernicious, and should never be partaken of too freely.
TEA.
Time.—2 minutes to warm the teapot, 5 to 10 minutes to draw the strength from the tea.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 teaspoonful to each person, and one over.
Tea.—The tea-tree or shrub belongs to the class and order of Monadelphia polyandria in the Linnæan system, and to the natural order of Aurantiaceæ in the system of Jussieu. Lately it has been made into a new order, the Theasia, which includes the Camellia and some other plants. It commonly grows to the height of from three to six feet; but it is said, that, in its wild or native state, it reaches twenty feet or more. In China it is cultivated in numerous small plantations. In its general appearance, and the form of its leaf, it resembles the myrtle. The blossoms are white and fragrant, not unlike those of the wild rose, but smaller; and they are succeeded by soft green capsules, containing each from one to three white seeds. These capsules are crushed for oil, which is in general use in China.
1815. Ingredients.—Allow 1 new-laid egg to every large breakfast-cupful of tea or coffee.
Mode.—Beat up the whole of the egg in a basin, put it into a cup (or a portion of it, if the cup be small), and pour over it the tea or coffee very hot. These should be added very gradually, and stirred all the time, to prevent the egg from curdling. In point of nourishment, both these beverages are much improved by this addition.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 egg to every large breakfast-cupful of tea or coffee.
COCOA-BEAN.
1816. Ingredients.—Allow 2 teaspoonfuls of the prepared cocoa to 1 breakfast-cup; boiling milk and boiling water.
Mode.—Put the cocoa into a breakfast-cup, pour over it sufficient cold milk to make it into a smooth paste; then add equal quantities of boiling milk and boiling water, and stir all well together. Care must be taken not to allow the milk to get burnt, as it will entirely spoil the flavour of the preparation. The above directions are usually given for making the prepared cocoa. The rock cocoa, or that bought in a solid piece, should be scraped, and made in the same manner, taking care to rub down all the lumps before the boiling liquid is added.
881 3LSufficient—2 teaspoonfuls of prepared cocoa for 1 breakfast-cup, or ¼ oz. of the rock cocoa for the same quantity.
1817. Ingredients.—To every gallon of water allow 3 lbs. of lump sugar, the rind of 2 lemons, the juice of 1, the rind and juice of 1 Seville orange, 1 gallon of cowslip pips. To every 4½ gallons of wine allow 1 bottle of brandy.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together for ½ hour, carefully removing all the scum as it rises. Pour this boiling liquor on the orange and lemon-rinds, and the juice, which should be strained; when milk-warm, add the cowslip pips or flowers, picked from the stalks and seeds; and to 9 gallons of wine 3 tablespoonfuls of good fresh brewers’ yeast. Let it ferment 3 or 4 days; then put all together in a cask with the brandy, and let it remain for 2 months, when bottle it off for use.
Time.—To be boiled ½ hour; to ferment 3 or 4 days; to remain in the cask 2 months.
Average cost, exclusive of the cowslips, which may be picked in the fields, 2s. 9d. per gallon.
Seasonable.—Make this in April or May.
1818. Ingredients.—To every 3 gallons of water allow 1 peck of elderberries; to every gallon of juice allow 3 lbs. of sugar, ½ oz. of ground ginger, 6 cloves, 1 lb. of good Turkey raisins; ¼ pint of brandy to every gallon of wine. To every 9 gallons of wine 3 or 4 tablespoonfuls of fresh brewer’s yeast.
Mode.—Pour the water, quite boiling, on the elderberries, which should be picked from the stalks, and let these stand covered for 24 hours; then strain the whole through a sieve or bag, breaking the fruit to express all the juice from it. Measure the liquor, and to every gallon allow the above proportion of sugar. Boil the juice and sugar with the ginger, cloves, and raisins for 1 hour, skimming the liquor the whole time; let it stand until milk-warm, then put it into a clean dry cask, with 3 or 4 tablespoonfuls of good fresh yeast to every 9 gallons of wine. Let it ferment for about a fortnight; then add the brandy, bung up the cask, and let it stand some months before it is bottled, when it will be found excellent. A bunch of hops suspended to a string from the bung, some persons say, will preserve the wine good for several years. Elder wine is usually mulled, and served with sippets of toasted bread and a little grated nutmeg.
882Time.—To stand covered 24 hours; to be boiled 1 hour.
Average cost, when made at home, 3s. 6d. per gallon.
Seasonable.—Make this in September.
ELDER-BERRIES.
Elder-berry Wine.—The elder-berry is well adapted for the production of wine; its juice contains a considerable portion of the principle necessary for a vigorous fermentation, and its beautiful colour communicates a rich tint to the wine made from it. It is, however, deficient in sweetness, and therefore demands an addition of sugar. It is one of the very best of the genuine old English wines; and a cup of it mulled, just previous to retiring to bed on a winter night, is a thing to be “run for,” as Cobbett would say: it is not, however, agreeable to every taste.
1819. Ingredients.—To 9 gallons of water allow 27 lbs. of loaf sugar, 9 lemons, 12 oz. of bruised ginger, 3 tablespoonfuls of yeast, 2 lbs. of raisins stoned and chopped, 1 pint of brandy.
Mode.—Boil together for 1 hour in a copper (let it previously be well scoured and beautifully clean) the water, sugar, lemon-rinds, and bruised ginger; remove every particle of scum as it rises, and when the liquor is sufficiently boiled, put it into a large tub or pan, as it must not remain in the copper. When nearly cold, add the yeast, which must be thick and very fresh, and, the next day, put all in a dry cask with the strained lemon-juice and chopped raisins. Stir the wine every day for a fortnight; then add the brandy, stop the cask down by degrees, and in a few weeks it will be fit to bottle.
Average cost, 2s. per gallon.
Sufficient, to make 9 gallons of wine.
Seasonable.—The best time for making this wine is either in March or September.
Note.—Wine made early in March will be fit to bottle in June.
1820. Ingredients.—2 pecks of crystal gooseberries, 6 gallons of water, 12 lbs. of foots sugar of the coarsest brown quality.
Mode.—Mash the gooseberries (which should be quite ripe) in a tub with a mallet; put to them the water nearly milk-warm; let this stand 24 hours; then strain it through a sieve, and put the sugar to it; mix it well, and tun it. These proportions are for a 9-gallon cask; and if it be not quite full, more water must be added. Let the mixture be stirred from the bottom of the cask two or three times daily for three or four days, to assist the melting of the sugar; then paste a piece of linen cloth over the bunghole, and set the cask in a warm place, but not in the sun; any corner of a warm kitchen is the best 883 situation for it. The following spring it should be drawn off into stone bottles, and the vinegar will be fit for use twelve months after it is made. This will be found a most excellent preparation, greatly superior to much that is sold under the name of the best white wine vinegar. Many years’ experience has proved that pickle made with this vinegar will keep, when bought vinegar will not preserve the ingredients. The cost per gallon is merely nominal, especially to those who reside in the country and grow their own gooseberries; the coarse sugar is then the only ingredient to be purchased.
Time.—To remain in the cask 9 months.
Average cost, when the gooseberries have to be purchased, 1s. per gallon; when they are grown at home, 6d. per gallon.
Seasonable.—This should be made the end of June or the beginning of July, when gooseberries are ripe and plentiful.
1821. Ingredients.—To every gallon of water allow 6 lbs. of green gooseberries, 3 lbs. of lump sugar.
Mode.—This wine should be prepared from unripe gooseberries, in order to avoid the flavour which the fruit would give to the wine when in a mature state. Its briskness depends more upon the time of bottling than upon the unripe state of the fruit, for effervescing wine can be made from fruit that is ripe as well as that which is unripe. The fruit should be selected when it has nearly attained its full growth, and consequently before it shows any tendency to ripen. Any bruised or decayed berries, and those that are very small, should be rejected. The blossom and stalk ends should be removed, and the fruit well bruised in a tub or pan, in such quantities as to insure each berry being broken without crushing the seeds. Pour the water (which should be warm) on the fruit, squeeze and stir it with the hand until all the pulp is removed from the skin and seeds, and cover the whole closely for 24 hours; after which, strain it through a coarse bag, and press it with as much force as can be conveniently applied, to extract the whole of the juice and liquor the fruit may contain. To every 40 or 50 lbs. of fruit one gallon more of hot water may be passed through the marc, or husks, in order to obtain any soluble matter that may remain, and be again pressed. The juice should be put into a tub or pan of sufficient size to contain all of it, and the sugar added to it. Let it be well stirred until the sugar is dissolved, and place the pan in a warm situation; keep it closely covered, and let it ferment for a day or two. It must then be drawn off into clean casks, placed a little on one side for the scum that 884 arises to be thrown out, and the casks kept filled with the remaining “must,” that should be reserved for that purpose. When the active fermentation has ceased, the casks should be plugged upright, again filled, if necessary, the bungs be put in loosely, and, after a few days, when the fermentation is a little more languid (which may be known by the hissing noise ceasing), the bungs should be driven in tight, and a spile-hole made, to give vent if necessary. About November or December, on a clear fine day, the wine should be racked from its lees into clean casks, which may be rinsed with brandy. After a month, it should be examined to see if it is sufficiently clear for bottling; if not, it must be fined with isinglass, which may be dissolved in some of the wine: 1 oz. will be sufficient for 9 gallons. In March or April, or when the gooseberry bushes begin to blossom, the wine must be bottled, in order to insure its being effervescing.
Seasonable.—Make this the end of May or beginning of June, before the berries ripen.
1822. Ingredients.—2 lbs. of loaf sugar, 2 pints of water, 1 oz. of citric acid, ½ drachm of essence of lemon.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together for ¼ hour, and put it into a basin, where let it remain till cold. Beat the citric acid to a powder, mix the essence of lemon with it, then add these two ingredients to the syrup; mix well, and bottle for use. Two tablespoonfuls of the syrup are sufficient for a tumbler of cold water, and will be found a very refreshing summer drink.
Sufficient—2 tablespoonfuls of syrup to a tumbler-ful of cold water.
1823. Ingredients.—To 4½ gallons of water allow the pulp of 50 lemons, the rind of 25, 16 lbs. of loaf sugar, ½ oz. of isinglass, 1 bottle of brandy.
Mode.—Peel and slice the lemons, but use only the rind of 25 of them, and put them into the cold water. Let it stand 8 or 9 days, squeezing the lemons well every day; then strain the water off and put it into a cask with the sugar. Let it work some time, and when it has ceased working, put in the isinglass. Stop the cask down; in about six months put in the brandy and bottle the wine off.
Seasonable.—The best time to make this is in January or February, when lemons are best and cheapest.
8851824. Ingredients.—5 gallons of water, 28 lbs. of sugar, 6 quarts of sweet-wort, 6 quarts of tun, 3 lbs. of raisins, ½ lb. of candy, 1 pint of brandy.
Mode.—Boil the sugar and water together for 10 minutes; skim it well, and put the liquor into a convenient-sized pan or tub. Allow it to cool; then mix it with the sweet-wort and tun. Let it stand for 3 days, then put it into a barrel; here it will work or ferment for another three days or more; then bung up the cask, and keep it undisturbed for 2 or 3 months. After this, add the raisins (whole), the candy, and brandy, and, in 6 months’ time, bottle the wine off. Those who do not brew, may procure the sweet-wort and tun from any brewer. Sweet-wort is the liquor that leaves the mash of malt before it is boiled with the hops; tun is the new beer after the whole of the brewing operation has been completed.
Time.—To be boiled 10 minutes; to stand 3 days after mixing; to ferment 3 days; to remain in the cask 2 months before the raisins are added; bottle 6 months after.
Seasonable.—Make this in March or October.
1825. Ingredients.—2 oz. of bitter almonds, 1 oz. of sweet ditto, 1 lb. of loaf sugar, the rinds of 3 lemons, 1 quart of Irish whiskey or gin, 1 tablespoonful of clarified honey, ½ pint of new milk.
Mode.—Blanch and pound the almonds, and mix with them the sugar, which should also be pounded. Boil the milk; let it stand till quite cold; then mix all the ingredients together, and let them remain for 10 days, shaking them every day. Filter the mixture through blotting-paper, bottle off for use in small bottles, and seal the corks down. This will be found useful for flavouring many sweet dishes.
Average cost, 2s. 9d.
Sufficient to make about 2½ pints of Noyeau.
Seasonable.—May be made at any time.
1826. Ingredients.—To every ½ gallon of brandy allow ¾ pint of Seville orange-juice, 1¼ lb. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—To bring out the full flavour of the orange-peel, rub a few lumps of the sugar on 2 or 3 unpared oranges, and put these lumps to 886 the rest. Mix the brandy with the orange-juice, strained, the rinds of 6 of the oranges pared very thin, and the sugar. Let all stand in a closely-covered jar for about 3 days, stirring it 3 or 4 times a day. When clear, it should be bottled and closely corked for a year; it will then be ready for use, but will keep any length of time. This is a most excellent stomachic when taken pure in small quantities; or, as the strength of the brandy is very little deteriorated by the other ingredients, it may be diluted with water.
Time.—To be stirred every day for 3 days.
Average cost, 7s.
Sufficient to make 2 quarts.
Seasonable.—Make this in March.
1827. Ingredients.—90 Seville oranges, 32 lbs. of lump sugar, water.
Mode.—Break up the sugar into small pieces, and put it into a dry, sweet 9-gallon cask, placed in a cellar or other storehouse, where it is intended to be kept. Have ready close to the cask two large pans or wooden keelers, into one of which put the peel of the oranges pared quite thin, and into the other the pulp after the juice has been squeezed from it. Strain the juice through a piece of double muslin, and put it into the cask with the sugar. Then pour about 1½ gallon of cold spring water on both the peels and pulp; let it stand for 24 hours, and then strain it into the cask; add more water to the peels and pulp when this is done, and repeat the same process every day for a week: it should take about a week to fill up the cask. Be careful to apportion the quantity as nearly as possible to the seven days, and to stir the contents of the cask each day. On the third day after the cask is full,—that is, the tenth day after the commencement of making,—the cask may be securely bunged down. This is a very simple and easy method, and the wine made according to it will be pronounced to be most excellent. There is no troublesome boiling, and all fermentation takes place in the cask. When the above directions are attended to, the wine cannot fail to be good. It should be bottled in 8 or 9 months, and will be fit for use in a twelvemonth after the time of making. Ginger wine may be made in precisely the same manner, only, with the 9-gallon cask for ginger wine, 2 lbs. of the best whole ginger, bruised, must be put with the sugar. It will be found convenient to tie the ginger loosely in a muslin bag.
Time.—Altogether, 10 days to make it.
887Average cost, 2s. 6d. per gallon.
Sufficient for 9 gallons.
Seasonable.—Make this in March, and bottle it the following January.
1828. Ingredients.—To every 3 pints of the best vinegar allow 4½ pints of freshly-gathered raspberries; to each pint of liquor allow 1 lb. of pounded loaf sugar, 1 wineglassful of brandy.
Mode.—Let the raspberries be freshly gathered; pick them from the stalks, and put 1½ pint of them into a stone jar; pour 3 pints of the best vinegar over them, and let them remain for 24 hours; then strain the liquor over another 1½ pint of fresh raspberries. Let them remain another 24 hours, and the following day repeat the process for the third time; then drain off the liquor without pressing, and pass it through a jelly-bag (previously wetted with plain vinegar), into a stone jar. Add to every pint of the liquor 1 lb. of pounded loaf sugar; stir them together, and, when the sugar is dissolved, cover the jar; set it upon the fire in a saucepan of boiling water, and let it boil for an hour, removing the scum as fast as it rises; add to each pint a glass of brandy, bottle it, and seal the corks. This is an excellent drink in cases of fevers and colds: it should be diluted with cold water, according to the taste or requirement of the patient.
Time.—To be boiled 1 hour.
Average cost, 1s. per pint.
Sufficient to make 2 quarts.
Seasonable.—Make this in July or August, when raspberries are most plentiful.
1829. Ingredients.—To every 5 lbs. of rhubarb pulp allow 1 gallon of cold spring water; to every gallon of liquor allow 3 lbs. of loaf sugar, ½ oz. of isinglass, the rind of 1 lemon.
Mode.—Gather the rhubarb about the middle of May; wipe it with a wet cloth, and, with a mallet, bruise it in a large wooden tub or other convenient means. When reduced to a pulp, weigh it, and to every 5 lbs. add 1 gallon of cold spring water; let these remain for 3 days, stirring 3 or 4 times a day; and, on the fourth day, press the pulp through a hair sieve; put the liquor into a tub, and to every gallon put 3 lbs. of loaf sugar; stir in the sugar until it is quite dissolved, and add the lemon-rind; let the liquor remain, and, in 4, 5, or 6 days, the fermentation will begin to subside, and a crust or head will be formed, which should be skimmed off, or the liquor drawn from it, when the crust begins to crack or separate. Put the wine into a cask, and if, after that, it ferments, rack it off into 888 another cask, and in a fortnight stop it down. If the wine should have lost any of its original sweetness, add a little more loaf sugar, taking care that the cask is full. Bottle it off in February or March, and in the summer it should be fit to drink. It will improve greatly by keeping; and, should a very brilliant colour be desired, add a little currant-juice.
Seasonable.—Make this about the middle of May.
1830. Ingredients.—1 lb. of raisins, 3 lemons, 2 lbs. of loaf sugar, 2 gallons of boiling water.
Mode.—Cut the peel of the lemons very thin, pour upon it the boiling water, and, when cool, add the strained juice of the lemons, the sugar, and the raisins, stoned and chopped very fine. Let it stand 4 or 5 days, stirring it every day; then strain it through a jelly-bag, and bottle it for present use.
Time.—4 or 5 days.
Average cost, 1s. 9d.
Sufficient to make 2 gallons.
1831. Ingredients.—1 bottle of claret, 1 bottle of soda-water, about ½ lb. of pounded ice, 4 tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar, ¼ teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, 1 liqueur-glass of Maraschino, a sprig of green borage.
CLARET-CUP.
Mode.—Put all the ingredients into a silver cup, regulating the proportion of ice by the state of the weather: if very warm, a larger quantity would be necessary. Hand the cup round with a clean napkin passed through one of the handles, that the edge of the cup may be wiped after each guest has partaken of the contents thereof.
Seasonable in summer.
Clarets.—All those wines called in England clarets are the produce of the country round Bordeaux, or the Bordelais; but it is remarkable that there is no pure wine in France known by the name of claret, which is a corruption of clairet, a term that is applied there to any red or rose-coloured wine. Round Bordeaux are produced a number of wines of the first quality, which pass under the name simply of vins de Bordeaux, or have the designation of the particular district where they are made; as Lafitte, Latour, &c. The clarets brought to the English market are frequently prepared for it by the wine-growers by mixing together several Bordeaux wines, or by adding to them a portion of some other wines; but in France the pure wines are carefully preserved distinct. The genuine wines of Bordeaux are of great variety, that part being one of the most distinguished in France; and the principal vineyards are those of Medoc, Palus, Graves, and Blanche, the product of each having characters considerably different.
1832. Ingredients.—1 quart bottle of champagne, 2 bottles of soda-water, 1 liqueur-glass of brandy or Curaçoa, 2 tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar, 1 lb. of pounded ice, a sprig of green borage.
Mode.—Put all the ingredients into a silver cup; stir them together, and serve the same as claret-cup No. 1831. Should the above proportion of sugar not be found sufficient to suit some tastes, increase the quantity. When borage is not easily obtainable, substitute for it a few slices of cucumber-rind.
Seasonable.—Suitable for pic-nics, balls, weddings, and other festive occasions.
Champagne.—This, the most celebrated of French wines, is the produce chiefly of the province of that name, and is generally understood in England to be a brisk, effervescing, or sparkling white wine, of a very fine flavour; but this is only one of the varieties of this class. There is both red and white champagne, and each of these may be either still or brisk. There are the sparkling wines (mousseux), and the still wines (non-mousseux). The brisk are in general the most highly esteemed, or, at least, are the most popular in this country, on account of their delicate flavour and the agreeable pungency which they derive from the carbonic acid they contain, and to which they owe their briskness.
1833. Ingredients.—2½ lbs, of loaf sugar, 1½ oz. of bruised ginger, 1 oz. of cream of tartar, the rind and juice of 2 lemons, 3 gallons of boiling water, 2 large tablespoonfuls of thick and fresh brewer’s yeast.
Mode.—Peel the lemons, squeeze the juice, strain it, and put the peel and juice into a large earthen pan, with the bruised ginger, cream of tartar, and loaf sugar. Pour over these ingredients 3 gallons of boiling water; let it stand until just warm, when add the yeast, which should be thick and perfectly fresh. Stir the contents of the pan well, and let them remain near the fire all night, covering the pan over with a cloth. The next day skim off the yeast, and pour the liquor carefully into another vessel, leaving the sediment; then bottle immediately, and tie the corks down, and in 3 days the ginger beer will be fit for use. For some tastes, the above proportion of sugar may be found rather too large, when it may be diminished; but the beer will not keep so long good.
Average cost for this quantity, 2s.; or ½d. per bottle.
Sufficient to fill 4 dozen ginger-beer bottles.
Seasonable.—This should be made during the summer months.
1834. Ingredients.—The rind of 2 lemons, the juice of 3 large or 4 small ones, ½ lb. of loaf sugar, 1 quart of boiling water.
890Mode.—Rub some of the sugar, in lumps, on 2 of the lemons until they have imbibed all the oil from them, and put it with the remainder of the sugar into a jug; add the lemon-juice (but no pips), and pour over the whole a quart of boiling water. When the sugar is dissolved, strain the lemonade through a fine sieve or piece of muslin, and, when cool, it will be ready for use. The lemonade will be much improved by having the white of an egg beaten up in it; a little sherry mixed with it, also, makes this beverage much nicer.
Average cost, 6d. per quart.
Lemonade.—“There is a current opinion among women,” says Brillat Savarin, “which every year causes the death of many young women,—that acids, especially vinegar, are preventives of obesity. Beyond all doubt, acids have the effect of destroying obesity; but they also destroy health and freshness. Lemonade is, of all acids, the most harmless; but few stomachs can resist it long. I knew, in 1776, at Dijon, a young lady of great beauty, to whom I was attached by bonds of friendship, great, almost, as those of love. One day, when she had for some time gradually grown pale and thin (previously she had a slight embonpoint), she told me in confidence, that, as her young friends had ridiculed her for being fat, she had, to counteract the tendency, been in the habit every day of drinking a large glass of vinaigre. She died at eighteen years of age, from the effect of these potions.”
1835. Ingredients.—To every pint of port wine allow 1 quart of boiling water, ¼ lb. of sugar, 1 lemon, grated nutmeg to taste.
Mode.—As this beverage is more usually drunk at children’s parties than at any other, the wine need not be very old or expensive for the purpose, a new fruity wine answering very well for it. Put the wine into a jug, rub some lumps of sugar (equal to ¼ lb.) on the lemon-rind until all the yellow part of the skin is absorbed, then squeeze the juice, and strain it. Add the sugar and lemon-juice to the port wine, with the grated nutmeg; pour over it the boiling water, cover the jug, and, when the beverage has cooled a little, it will be fit for use. Negus may also be made of sherry, or any other sweet white wine, but is more usually made of port than of any other beverage.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 pint of wine, with the other ingredients in proportion, for a party of 9 or 10 children.
1836. Ingredients.—To every 1½ pint of good ale allow 1 bottle of ginger beer.
Mode.—For this beverage the ginger beer must be in an effervescing state, and the beer not in the least turned or sour. Mix them together, and drink immediately. The draught is refreshing and wholesome, as the ginger corrects the action of the beer. It does not deteriorate by standing a little, but, of course, is better when taken fresh.
8911837. Ingredients.—The juice of 1 lemon, a tumbler-ful of cold water, pounded sugar to taste, ½ small teaspoonful of carbonate of soda.
Mode.—Squeeze the juice from the lemon; strain, and add it to the water, with sufficient pounded sugar to sweeten the whole nicely. When well mixed, put in the soda, stir well, and drink while the mixture is in an effervescing state.
1838. Ingredients.—To every pint of wine allow 1 large cupful of water, sugar and spice to taste.
Mode.—In making preparations like the above, it is very difficult to give the exact proportions of ingredients like sugar and spice, as what quantity might suit one person would be to another quite distasteful. Boil the spice in the water until the flavour is extracted, then add the wine and sugar, and bring the whole to the boiling-point, when serve with strips of crisp dry toast, or with biscuits. The spices usually used for mulled wine are cloves, grated nutmeg, and cinnamon or mace. Any kind of wine may be mulled, but port and claret are those usually selected for the purpose; and the latter requires a very large proportion of sugar. The vessel that the wine is boiled in must be delicately clean, and should be kept exclusively for the purpose. Small tin warmers may be purchased for a trifle, which are more suitable than saucepans, as, if the latter are not scrupulously clean, they will spoil the wine, by imparting to it a very disagreeable flavour. These warmers should be used for no other purposes.
1839. Ingredients.—½ pint of rum, ½ pint of brandy, ¼ lb. of sugar, 1 large lemon, ½ teaspoonful of nutmeg, 1 pint of boiling water.
PUNCH-BOWL AND LADLE.
Mode.—Rub the sugar over the lemon until it has absorbed all the yellow part of the skin, then put the sugar into a punchbowl; add the lemon-juice (free from pips), and mix these two ingredients well together. Pour over them the boiling water, stir well together, add the rum, brandy, and nutmeg; mix thoroughly, and the punch will be ready to serve. It is very important in making good punch that all the ingredients are thoroughly 892 incorporated; and, to insure success, the processes of mixing must be diligently attended to.
Sufficient.—Allow a quart for 4 persons; but this information must be taken cum grano salis; for the capacities of persons for this kind of beverage are generally supposed to vary considerably.
Punch is a beverage made of various spirituous liquors or wine, hot water, the acid juice of fruits, and sugar. It is considered to be very intoxicating; but this is probably because the spirit, being partly sheathed by the mucilaginous juice and the sugar, its strength does not appear to the taste so great as it really is. Punch, which was almost universally drunk among the middle classes about fifty or sixty years ago, has almost disappeared from our domestic tables, being superseded by wine. There are many different varieties of punch. It is sometimes kept cold in bottles, and makes a most agreeable summer drink. In Scotland, instead of the Madeira or sherry generally used in its manufacture, whiskey is substituted, and then its insidious properties are more than usually felt. Where fresh lemons cannot be had for punch or similar beverages, crystallized citric acid and a few drops of the essence of lemon will be very nearly the same thing. In the composition of “Regent’s punch,” champagne, brandy, and veritable Martinique are required; “Norfolk punch” requires Seville oranges; “Milk punch” may be extemporized by adding a little hot milk to lemonade, and then straining it through a jelly-bag. Then there are “Wine punch,” “Tea punch,” and “French punch,” made with lemons, spirits, and wine, in fantastic proportions. But of all the compounds of these materials, perhaps, for a summer drink, the North-American “mint julep” is the most inviting. Captain Marryat gives the following recipe for its preparation:—“Put into a tumbler about a dozen sprigs of the tender shoots of mint; upon them put a spoonful of white sugar, and equal proportions of peach and common brandy, so as to fill up one third, or, perhaps, a little less; then take rasped or pounded ice, and fill up the tumbler. Epicures rub the lips of the tumbler with a piece of fresh pineapple; and the tumbler itself is very often encrusted outside with stalactites of ice. As the ice melts, you drink.” The Virginians, says Captain Marryat, claim the merit of having invented this superb compound; but, from a passage in the “Comus” of Milton, he claims it for his own country.
1840. Ingredients.—1 lb. of ripe white currants, the rind of 2 lemons, ¼ oz. of grated ginger, 1 quart of whiskey, 1 lb. of lump sugar.
Mode.—Strip the currants from the stalks; put them into a large jug; add the lemon-rind, ginger, and whiskey; cover the jug closely, and let it remain covered for 24 hours. Strain through a hair sieve, add the lump sugar, and let it stand 12 hours longer; then bottle, and cork well.
Time.—To stand 24 hours before being strained; 12 hours after the sugar is added.
Seasonable.—Make this in July.
1841. Let all the kitchen utensils used in the preparation of invalids’ cookery be delicately and scrupulously clean; if this is not the case, a disagreeable flavour may be imparted to the preparation, which flavour may disgust, and prevent the patient from partaking of the refreshment when brought to him or her.
1842. For invalids, never make a large quantity of one thing, as they seldom require much at a time; and it is desirable that variety be provided for them.
1843. Always have something in readiness; a little beef tea, nicely made and nicely skimmed, a few spoonfuls of jelly, &c. &c., that it may be administered as soon almost as the invalid wishes for it. If obliged to wait a long time, the patient loses the desire to eat, and often turns against the food when brought to him or her.
1844. In sending dishes or preparations up to invalids, let everything look as tempting as possible. Have a clean tray-cloth laid smoothly over the tray; let the spoons, tumblers, cups and saucers, &c., be very clean and bright. Gruel served in a tumbler is more appetizing than when served in a basin or cup and saucer.
1845. As milk is an important article of food for the sick, in warm weather let it be kept on ice, to prevent its turning sour. Many other delicacies may also be preserved good in the same manner for some little time.
1846. If the patient be allowed to eat vegetables, never send them up undercooked, or half raw; and let a small quantity only be temptingly arranged on a dish. This rule will apply to every preparation, as an invalid is much more likely to enjoy his food if small delicate pieces are served to him.
1847. Never leave food about a sick room; if the patient cannot eat it when brought to him, take it away, and bring it to him in an hour or two’s time. Miss Nightingale says, “To leave the patient’s untasted food by his side, from meal to meal, in hopes that he will eat it in the interval, is simply 894 to prevent him from taking any food at all.” She says, “I have known patients literally incapacitated from taking one article of food after another by this piece of ignorance. Let the food come at the right time, and be taken away, eaten or uneaten, at the right time, but never let a patient have ‘something always standing’ by him, if you don’t wish to disgust him of everything.”
1848. Never serve beef tea or broth with the smallest particle of fat or grease on the surface. It is better, after making either of those, to allow them to get perfectly cold, when all the fat may be easily removed; then warm up as much as may be required. Two or three pieces of clean whity-brown paper laid on the broth will absorb any greasy particles that may be floating at the top, as the grease will cling to the paper.
1849. Roast mutton, chickens, rabbits, calves’ feet or head, game, fish (simply dressed), and simple puddings, are all light food, and easily digested. Of course, these things are only partaken of, supposing the patient is recovering.
1850. A mutton chop, nicely cut, trimmed, and broiled to a turn, is a dish to be recommended for invalids; but it must not be served with all the fat at the end, nor must it be too thickly cut. Let it be cooked over a fire free from smoke, and sent up with the gravy in it, between two very hot plates. Nothing is more disagreeable to an invalid than smoked food.
1851. In making toast-and-water, never blacken the bread, but toast it only a nice brown. Never leave toast-and-water to make until the moment it is required, as it cannot then be properly prepared,—at least, the patient will be obliged to drink it warm, which is anything but agreeable.
1852. In boiling eggs for invalids, let the white be just set; if boiled hard, they will be likely to disagree with the patient.
1853. In Miss Nightingale’s admirable “Notes on Nursing,” a book that no mother or nurse should be without, she says,—“You cannot be too careful as to quality in sick diet. A nurse should never put before a patient milk that is sour, meat or soup that is turned, an egg that is bad, or vegetables underdone.” Yet often, she says, she has seen these things brought in to the sick, in a state perfectly perceptible to every nose or eye except the nurse’s. It is here that the clever nurse appears,—she will not bring in the peccant article; but, not to disappoint the patient, she will whip up something else in a few minutes. Remember, that sick cookery should half do the work of your poor patient’s weak digestion.
1854. She goes on to caution nurses, by saying,—“Take care not to spill into your patient’s saucer; in other words, take care that the outside bottom rim of his cup shall be quite dry and clean. If, every time he lifts his cup to his lips, he has to carry the saucer with it, or else to drop the liquid upon and to soil his sheet, or bedgown, or pillow, or, if he is sitting up, his dress, you have no idea what a difference this minute want of care on your part makes to his comfort, and even to his willingness for food.”
1855. Ingredients.—Two teaspoonfuls of arrowroot, 3 tablespoonfuls of cold water, ½ pint of boiling water.
Mode.—Mix the arrowroot smoothly in a basin with the cold water, then pour on it the boiling water, stirring all the time. The water must be boiling at the time it is poured on the mixture, or it will not thicken; if mixed with hot water only, it must be put into a clean saucepan, and boiled until it thickens; but this is more trouble, and quite unnecessary if the water is boiling at first. Put the arrowroot into a tumbler, sweeten it with lump sugar, and flavour it with grated nutmeg or cinnamon, or a piece of lemon-peel, or, when allowed, 3 tablespoonfuls of port or sherry. As arrowroot is in itself flavourless and insipid, it is almost necessary to add the wine to make it palatable. Arrowroot made with milk instead of water is far nicer, but is not so easily digested. It should be mixed in the same manner, with 3 tablespoonfuls of cold water, the boiling milk then poured on it, and well stirred. When made in this manner, no wine should be added, but merely sugar, and a little grated nutmeg or lemon-peel.
Time.—If obliged to be boiled, 2 minutes.
Average cost, 2d. per pint.
Sufficient to make ½ pint of arrowroot.
Miss Nightingale says, in her “Notes on Nursing,” that arrowroot is a grand dependence of the nurse. As a vehicle for wine, and as a restorative quickly prepared, it is all very well, but it is nothing but starch and water; flour is both more nutritive and less liable to ferment, and is preferable wherever it can be used.
1856. Ingredients.—2 oz. of Scotch or pearl barley, ½ pint of port wine, the rind of 1 lemon, 1 quart and ½ pint of water, sugar to taste.
Mode.—After well washing the barley, boil it in ½ pint of water for ¼ hour; then pour this water away; put to the barley the quart of fresh boiling water, and let it boil until the liquid is reduced to half; then strain it off. Add the wine, sugar, and lemon-peel; simmer for 896 5 minutes, and put it away in a clean jug. It can be warmed from time to time, as required.
Time.—To be boiled until reduced to half.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient with the wine to make 1½ pint of gruel.
1857. Ingredients.—2 oz. of pearl barley, 2 quarts of boiling water, 1 pint of cold water.
Mode.—Wash the barley in cold water; put it into a saucepan with the above proportion of cold water, and when it has boiled for about ¼ hour, strain off the water, and add the 2 quarts of fresh boiling water. Boil it until the liquid is reduced one half; strain it, and it will be ready for use. It may be flavoured with lemon-peel, after being sweetened, or a small piece may be simmered with the barley. When the invalid may take it, a little lemon-juice gives this pleasant drink in illness a very nice flavour.
Time.—To boil until the liquid is reduced one half.
Sufficient to make 1 quart of barley-water.
1858. Ingredients.—1 lb. of lean gravy-beef, 1 quart of water, 1 saltspoonful of salt.
Mode.—Have the meat cut without fat and bone, and choose a nice fleshy piece. Cut it into small pieces about the size of dice, and put it into a clean saucepan. Add the water cold to it; put it on the fire, and bring it to the boiling-point; then skim well. Put in the salt when the water boils, and simmer the beef tea gently from ½ to ¾ hour, removing any more scum should it appear on the surface. Strain the tea through a hair sieve, and set it by in a cool place. When wanted for use, remove every particle of fat from the top; warm up as much as may be required, adding, if necessary, a little more salt. This preparation is simple beef tea, and is to be administered to those invalids to whom flavourings and seasonings are not allowed. When the patient is very low, use double the quantity of meat to the same proportion of water. Should the invalid be able to take the tea prepared in a more palatable manner, it is easy to make it so by following the directions in the next recipe, which is an admirable one for making savoury beef tea. Beef tea is always better when made the day before it is wanted, and then warmed up. It is a good plan to put the tea into a small cup or basin, and to place this basin in a saucepan of boiling water. When the tea is warm, it is ready to serve.
897 3MTime.—½ to ¾ hour.
Average cost, 6d. per pint.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 lb. of meat for a pint of good beef tea.
Miss Nightingale says, one of the most common errors among nurses, with respect to sick diet, is the belief that beef tea is the most nutritive of all articles. She says, “Just try and boil down a lb. of beef into beef tea; evaporate your beef tea, and see what is left of your beef; you will find that there is barely a teaspoonful of solid nourishment to ½ pint of water in beef tea. Nevertheless, there is a certain reparative quality in it,—we do not know what,—as there is in tea; but it may be safely given in almost any inflammatory disease, and is as little to be depended upon with the healthy or convalescent, where much nourishment is required.”
1859. Ingredients.—1 lb. of solid beef, 1 oz. of butter, 1 clove, 2 button onions or ½ a large one, 1 saltspoonful of salt, 1 quart of water.
Mode.—Cut the beef into very small dice; put it into a stewpan with the butter, clove, onion, and salt; stir the meat round over the fire for a few minutes, until it produces a thin gravy; then add the water, and let it simmer gently from ½ to ¾ hour, skimming off every particle of fat. When done, strain it through a sieve, and put it by in a cool place until required. The same, if wanted quite plain, is done by merely omitting the vegetables, salt, and clove; the butter cannot be objectionable, as it is taken out in skimming.
Time.—½ to ¾ hour.
Average cost, 8d. per pint.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 lb. of beef to make 1 pint of good beef tea.
Note.—The meat left from beef tea may be boiled a little longer, and pounded, with spices, &c., for potting. It makes a very nice breakfast dish.
Dr. Christison says that “every one will be struck with the readiness with which certain classes of patients will often take diluted meat juice, or beef tea repeatedly, when they refuse all other kinds of food.” This is particularly remarkable in cases of gastric fever, in which, he says, little or nothing else besides beef tea, or diluted meat juice, has been taken for weeks, or even months; and yet a pint of beef tea contains scarcely ¼ oz. of anything but water. The result is so striking, that he asks, “What is its mode of action? Not simple nutriment; ¼ oz. of the most nutritive material cannot nearly replace the daily wear and tear of the tissue in any circumstances.” Possibly, he says, it belongs to a new denomination of remedies.
1860. Ingredients.—1 lb. of fleshy beef, 1½ pint of water, ½ saltspoonful of salt.
Mode.—Cut the beef into small square pieces, after trimming off all the fat, and put it into a baking-jar, with the above proportion of water and salt; cover the jar well, place it in a warm, but not hot oven, and bake for 3 or 4 hours. When the oven is very fierce in the daytime, it is a good plan to put the jar in at night, and let it remain till the next morning, when the tea will be done. It should be strained, 898 and put by in a cool place until wanted. It may also be flavoured with an onion, a clove, and a few sweet herbs, &c., when the stomach is sufficiently strong to take these.
Time.—3 or 4 hours, or to be left in the oven all night.
Average cost, 6d. per pint.
Sufficient.—Allow 1 lb. of meat for 1 pint of good beef tea.
1861. Ingredients.—1 calf’s foot, 1 pint of milk, 1 pint of water, 1 blade of mace, the rind of ½ lemon, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Well clean the foot, and either stew or bake it in the milk-and-water with the other ingredients from 3 to 4 hours. To enhance the flavour, an onion and a small quantity of celery may be added, if approved; ½ a teacupful of cream, stirred in just before serving, is also a great improvement to this dish.
Time.—3 to 4 hours.
Average cost, in full season, 9d. each.
Sufficient for 1 person.
Seasonable from March to October.
1862. Ingredients.—1 calf’s foot, 3 pints of water, 1 small lump of sugar, nutmeg to taste, the yolk of 1 egg, a piece of butter the size of a nut.
Mode.—Stew the foot in the water, with the lemon-peel, very gently, until the liquid is half wasted, removing any scum, should it rise to the surface. Set it by in a basin until quite cold, then take off every particle of fat. Warm up about ½ pint of the broth, adding the butter, sugar, and a very small quantity of grated nutmeg; take it off the fire for a minute or two, then add the beaten yolk of the egg; keep stirring over the fire until the mixture thickens, but do not allow it to boil again after the egg is added, or it will curdle, and the broth will be spoiled.
Time.—To be boiled until the liquid is reduced one half.
Average cost, in full season, 9d. each.
Sufficient to make 1½ pint of broth.
Seasonable from March to October.
1863. Ingredients.—½ fowl, or the inferior joints of a whole one; 1 quart of water, 1 blade of mace, ½ onion, a small bunch of sweet herbs, salt to taste, 10 peppercorns.
Mode.—An old fowl not suitable for eating may be converted into very good broth, or, if a young one be used, the inferior joints may be 899 put in the broth, and the best pieces reserved for dressing in some other manner. Put the fowl into a saucepan, with all the ingredients, and simmer gently for 1½ hour, carefully skimming the broth well. When done, strain, and put by in a cool place until wanted; then take all the fat off the top, warm up as much as may be required, and serve. This broth is, of course, only for those invalids whose stomachs are strong enough to digest it, with a flavouring of herbs, &c. It may be made in the same manner as beef tea, with water and salt only; but the preparation will be but tasteless and insipid. When the invalid cannot digest this chicken broth with the flavouring, we would recommend plain beef tea in preference to plain chicken tea, which it would be without the addition of herbs, onions, &c.
Time.—1½ hour.
Sufficient to make rather more than 1 pint of broth.
1864. Ingredients.—½ oz. of ground coffee, 1 pint of milk.
Mode.—Let the coffee be freshly ground; put it into a saucepan, with the milk, which should be made nearly boiling before the coffee is put in, and boil both together for 3 minutes; clear it by pouring some of it into a cup, and then back again, and leave it on the hob for a few minutes to settle thoroughly. This coffee may be made still more nutritious by the addition of an egg well beaten, and put into the coffee-cup.
Time.—5 minutes to boil, 5 minutes to settle.
Sufficient to make 1 large breakfast-cupful of coffee.
Our great nurse Miss Nightingale remarks, that “a great deal too much against tea is said by wise people, and a great deal too much of tea is given to the sick by foolish people. When you see the natural and almost universal craving in English sick for their ‘tea,’ you cannot but feel that Nature knows what she is about. But a little tea or coffee restores them quite as much as a great deal; and a great deal of tea, and especially of coffee, impairs the little power of digestion they have. Yet a nurse, because she sees how one or two cups of tea or coffee restore her patient, thinks that three or four cups will do twice as much. This is not the case at all; it is, however, certain that there is nothing yet discovered which is a substitute to the English patient for his cup of tea; he can take it when he can take nothing else, and he often can’t take anything else, if he has it not. Coffee is a better restorative than tea, but a greater impairer of the digestion. In making coffee, it is absolutely necessary to buy it in the berry, and grind it at home; otherwise, you may reckon upon its containing a certain amount of chicory, at least. This is not a question of the taste, or of the wholesomeness of chicory; it is, that chicory has nothing at all of the properties for which you give coffee, and, therefore, you may as well not give it.”
1865. Ingredients.—1 nice cutlet from a loin or neck of mutton, 2 teacupfuls of water, 1 very small stick of celery, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Have the cutlet out from a very nice loin or neck of 900 mutton; take off all the fat; put it into a stewpan, with the other ingredients; stew very gently indeed for nearly 2 hours, and skim off every particle of fat that may rise to the surface from time to time. The celery should be cut into thin slices before it is added to the meat, and care must be taken not to put in too much of this ingredient, or the dish will not be good. If the water is allowed to boil fast, the cutlet will be hard.
Time.—2 hours’ very gentle stewing.
Average cost, 6d.
Sufficient for 1 person.
Seasonable at any time.
1866. Ingredients.—½ lb. of eels, a small bunch of sweet herbs, including parsley; ½ onion, 10 peppercorns, 3 pints of water, 2 cloves, salt and pepper to taste.
Mode.—After having cleaned and skinned the eel, cut it into small pieces, and put it into a stewpan, with the other ingredients; simmer gently until the liquid is reduced nearly half, carefully removing the scum as it rises. Strain it through a hair sieve; put it by in a cool place, and, when wanted, take off all the fat from the top, warm up as much as is required, and serve with sippets of toasted bread. This is a very nutritious broth, and easy of digestion.
Time.—To be simmered until the liquor is reduced to half.
Average cost, 6d.
Sufficient to make 1½ pint of broth.
Seasonable from June to March.
1867. Ingredients.—1 egg, 1 tablespoonful and ½ glass of cold water, 1 glass of sherry, sugar and grated nutmeg to taste.
Mode.—Beat the egg, mixing with it a tablespoonful of cold water; make the wine-and-water hot, but not boiling; pour it on the egg, stirring all the time. Add sufficient lump sugar to sweeten the mixture, and a little grated nutmeg; put all into a very clean saucepan, set it on a gentle fire, and stir the contents one way until they thicken, but do not allow them to boil. Serve in a glass with sippets of toasted bread or plain crisp biscuits. When the egg is not warmed, the mixture will be found easier of digestion, but it is not so pleasant a drink.
Sufficient for 1 person.
1868. Ingredients.—1 tablespoonful of Robinson’s patent groats, 2 tablespoonfuls of cold water, 1 pint of boiling water.
901Mode.—Mix the prepared groats smoothly with the cold water in a basin; pour over them the boiling water, stirring it all the time. Put it into a very clean saucepan; boil the gruel for 10 minutes, keeping it well stirred; sweeten to taste, and serve. It may be flavoured with a small piece of lemon-peel, by boiling it in the gruel, or a little grated nutmeg may be put in; but in these matters the taste of the patient should be consulted. Pour the gruel in a tumbler and serve. When wine is allowed to the invalid, 2 tablespoonfuls of sherry or port make this preparation very nice. In cases of colds, the same quantity of spirits is sometimes added instead of wine.
Time.—10 minutes.
Sufficient to make a pint of gruel.
1869. Ingredients.—12 shanks of mutton, 3 quarts of water, a bunch of sweet herbs, pepper and salt to taste, 3 blades of mace, 1 onion, 1 lb. of lean beef, a crust of bread toasted brown.
Mode.—Soak the shanks in plenty of water for some hours, and scrub them well; put them, with the beef and other ingredients, into a saucepan with the water, and let them simmer very gently for 5 hours. Strain the broth, and, when cold, take off all the fat. It may be eaten either warmed up or cold as a jelly.
Time.—5 hours.
Average cost, 1s.
Sufficient to make from 1½ to 2 pints of jelly.
Seasonable at any time.
1870. Ingredients.—½ lemon, lump sugar to taste, 1 pint of boiling water.
Mode.—Pare off the rind of the lemon thinly; cut the lemon into 2 or 3 thick slices, and remove as much as possible of the white outside pith, and all the pips. Put the slices of lemon, the peel, and lump sugar into a jug; pour over the boiling water; cover it closely, and in 2 hours it will be fit to drink. It should either be strained or poured off from the sediment.
Time.—2 hours.
Average cost, 2d.
Sufficient to make 1 pint of lemonade.
Seasonable at any time.
1871. Ingredients.—1½ pint of boiling water, the juice of 4 lemons, the rinds of 2, ½ pint of sherry, 4 eggs, 6 oz. of loaf sugar.
Mode.—Pare off the lemon-rind thinly, put it into a jug with the 902 sugar, and pour over the boiling water. Let it cool, then strain it; add the wine, lemon-juice, and eggs, previously well beaten, and also strained, and the beverage will be ready for use. If thought desirable, the quantity of sherry and water could be lessened, and milk substituted for them. To obtain the flavour of the lemon-rind properly, a few lumps of the sugar should be rubbed over it, until some of the yellow is absorbed.
Time.—Altogether 1 hour to make it.
Average cost, 1s. 8d.
Sufficient to make 2½ pints of lemonade.
Seasonable at any time.
1872. Ingredients.—1 lb. of the scrag end of the neck of mutton, 1 onion, a bunch of sweet herbs, ½ turnip, 3 pints of water, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Put the mutton into a stewpan; pour over the water cold, and add the other ingredients. When it boils, skim it very carefully, cover the pan closely, and let it simmer very gently for an hour; strain it, let it cool, take off all the fat from the surface, and warm up as much as may be required, adding, if the patient be allowed to take it, a teaspoonful of minced parsley which has been previously scalded. Pearl barley or rice are very nice additions to mutton broth, and should be boiled as long as the other ingredients. When either of these is added, the broth must not be strained, but merely thoroughly skimmed. Plain mutton broth without seasoning is made by merely boiling the mutton, water, and salt together, straining it, letting the broth cool, skimming all the fat off, and warming up as much as is required. This preparation would be very tasteless and insipid, but likely to agree with very delicate stomachs, whereas the least addition of other ingredients would have the contrary effect.
Time.—1 hour.
Average cost, 7d.
Sufficient to make from 1½ to 2 pints of broth.
Seasonable at any time.
Note.—Veal broth may be made in the same manner; the knuckle of a leg or shoulder is the part usually used for this purpose. It is very good with the addition of the inferior joints of a fowl, or a few shank-bones.
1873. Ingredients.—1 or 2 chops from a neck of mutton, 1 pint of water, a small bunch of sweet herbs, ¼ of an onion, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Cut the meat into small pieces; put it into a saucepan with the bones, but no skin or fat; add the other ingredients; cover the 903 saucepan, and bring the water quickly to boil. Take the lid off, and continue the rapid boiling for 20 minutes, skimming it well during the process; strain the broth into a basin; if there should be any fat left on the surface, remove it by laying a piece of thin paper on the top: the greasy particles will adhere to the paper, and so free the preparation from them. To an invalid nothing is more disagreeable than broth served with a quantity of fat floating on the top; to avoid this, it is always better to allow it to get thoroughly cool, the fat can then be so easily removed.
Time.—20 minutes after the water boils.
Average cost, 5d.
Sufficient to make ½ pint of broth.
Seasonable at any time.
1874. Ingredients.—2 very young rabbits, not nearly half grown; 1½ pint of milk, 1 blade of mace, 1 dessertspoonful of flour, a little salt and cayenne.
Mode.—Mix the flour very smoothly with 4 tablespoonfuls of the milk, and when this is well mixed, add the remainder. Cut up the rabbits into joints, put them into a stewpan, with the milk and other ingredients, and simmer them very gently until quite tender. Stir the contents from time to time, to keep the milk smooth and prevent it from burning. ½ hour will be sufficient for the cooking of this dish.
Time.—½ hour.
Average cost, from 1s. to 1s. 6d. each.
Sufficient for 3 or 4 meals.
Seasonable from September to February.
1875. Ingredients.—3 tablespoonfuls of rice, 1 quart of milk, sugar to taste; when liked, a little grated nutmeg.
Mode.—Well wash the rice, put it into a saucepan with the milk, and simmer gently until the rice is tender, stirring it from time to time to prevent the milk from burning; sweeten it, add a little grated nutmeg, and serve. This dish is also very suitable and wholesome for children; it may be flavoured with a little lemon-peel, and a little finely-minced suet may be boiled with it, which renders it more strengthening and more wholesome. Tapioca, semolina, vermicelli, and macaroni, may all be dressed in the same manner.
Time.—From ¾ to 1 hour.
Seasonable at any time.
1876. Ingredients.—A slice of bread, 1 quart of boiling water.
Mode.—Cut a slice from a stale loaf (a piece of hard crust is better than anything else for the purpose), toast it of a nice brown on every 904 side, but do not allow it to burn or blacken. Put it into a jug, pour the boiling water over it, cover it closely, and let it remain until cold. When strained, it will be ready for use. Toast-and-water should always be made a short time before it is required, to enable it to get cold: if drunk in a tepid or lukewarm state, it is an exceedingly disagreeable beverage. If, as is sometimes the case, this drink is wanted in a hurry, put the toasted bread into a jug, and only just cover it with the boiling water; when this is cool, cold water may be added in the proportion required,—the toast-and-water strained; it will then be ready for use, and is more expeditiously prepared than by the above method.
1877. Ingredients.—Thin cold toast, thin slices of bread-and-butter, pepper and salt to taste.
Mode.—Place a very thin piece of cold toast between 2 slices of thin bread-and-butter in the form of a sandwich, adding a seasoning of pepper and salt. This sandwich may be varied by adding a little pulled meat, or very fine slices of cold meat, to the toast, and in any of these forms will be found very tempting to the appetite of an invalid.
1878. Besides the recipes contained in this chapter, there are, in the previous chapters on cookery, many others suitable for invalids, which it would be useless to repeat here. Recipes for fish simply dressed, light soups, plain roast meat, well-dressed vegetables, poultry, simple puddings, jelly, stewed fruits, &c. &c., all of which dishes may be partaken of by invalids and convalescents, will be found in preceding chapters.
1879. Man, it has been said, is a dining animal. Creatures of the inferior races eat and drink; man only dines. It has also been said that he is a cooking animal; but some races eat food without cooking it. A Croat captain said to M. Brillat Savarin, “When, in campaign, we feel hungry, we knock over the first animal we find, cut off a steak, powder it with salt, put it under the saddle, gallop over it for half a mile, and then eat it.” Huntsmen in Dauphiny, when out shooting, have been known to kill a bird, pluck it, salt and pepper it, and cook it by carrying it some time in their caps. It is equally true that some races of men do not dine any more than the tiger or the vulture. It is not a dinner at which sits the aboriginal Australian, who gnaws his bone half bare and then flings it behind to his squaw. And the native of Terra-del-Fuego does not dine when he gets his morsel of red clay. Dining is the privilege of civilization. The rank which a people occupy in the grand scale may be measured by their way of taking their meals, as well as by their way of treating their women. The nation which knows how to dine has learnt the leading lesson of progress. It implies both the will and the skill to reduce to order, and surround with idealisms and graces, the more material conditions of human existence; and wherever that will and that skill exist, life cannot be wholly ignoble.
1880. Dinner, being the grand solid meal of the day, is a matter of considerable importance; and a well-served table is a striking index of human ingenuity and resource. “Their table,” says Lord Byron, in describing a dinner-party given by Lord and Lady Amundeville at Norman Abbey,—
“Their table was a board to tempt even ghosts
To pass the Styx for more substantial feasts.
I will not dwell upon ragoûts or roasts,
Albeit all human history attests
That happiness for man—the hungry sinner!—
Since Eve ate apples, much depends on dinner.”
And then he goes on to observe upon the curious complexity of the results produced by human cleverness and application catering for the modifications which occur in civilized life, one of the simplest of the primal instincts:—
“The mind is lost in mighty contemplation
Of intellect expended on two courses;
And indigestion’s grand multiplication
Requires arithmetic beyond my forces.
Who would suppose, from Adam’s simple ration,
That cookery could have call’d forth such resources,
As form a science and a nomenclature
From out the commonest demands of nature?”
And we may well say, Who, indeed, would suppose it? The gulf between the Croat, with a steak under his saddle, and Alexis Soyer getting up a great dinner at the Reform Club, or even Thackeray’s Mrs. Raymond Gray giving “a little dinner” to Mr. Snob (with one of those famous “roly-poly puddings” of hers),—what a gulf it is!
1881. That Adam’s “ration,” however, was “simple,” is a matter on which we have contrary judgments given by the poets. When Raphael paid that memorable visit to Paradise,—which we are expressly told by Milton he did exactly at dinner-time,—Eve seems to have prepared “a little dinner” not wholly destitute of complexity, and to have added ice-creams and perfumes. Nothing can be clearer than the testimony of the poet on these points:—
“And Eve within, due at her home prepared
For dinner savoury fruits, of taste to please
True appetite, and not disrelish thirst
Of nectarous draughts between. . . . .
. . . With dispatchful looks in haste
She turns, on hospitable thoughts intent,
What choice to choose for delicacy best,
What order so contrived as not to mix
Tastes not well join’d, inelegant, but bring
Taste after taste, upheld with kindliest change—
* * * * *
She tempers dulcet creams . . . . .
. . . . . . then strews the ground
With rose and odours.”
It may be observed, in passing, that the poets, though they have more to say about wine than solid food, because the former more directly stimulates the intellect and the feelings, do not flinch from the subject of eating and drinking. There is infinite zest in the above passage from Milton, and even more in the famous description of a dainty supper, given by Keats in his “Eve of Saint Agnes.” Could Queen Mab herself desire to sit down to anything nicer, both as to its appointments and serving, and as to its quality, than the collation served by Porphyro in the lady’s bedroom while she slept?—
“There by the bedside, where the faded moon
Made a dim silver twilight, soft he set
A table, and, half-anguish’d, threw thereon
A cloth of woven crimson, gold, and jet.
* * * * *
While he, from forth the closet, brought a heap
Of candied apple, quince, and plum, and gourd;
With jellies smoother than the creamy curd,
And lucent syrups tinct with cinnamon;
Manna and dates, in argosy transferr’d
From Fez; and spicèd dainties, every one,
From silken Samarcand to cedar’d Lebanon.”
But Tennyson has ventured beyond dates, and quinces, and syrups, which may be thought easy to be brought in by a poet. In his idyl of “Audley Court” he gives a most appetizing description of a pasty at a pic-nic:—
“There, on a slope of orchard, Francis laid
A damask napkin wrought with horse and hound;
Brought out a dusky loaf that smelt of home,
And, half cut down, a pasty costly made,
Where quail and pigeon, lark and leveret, lay
Like fossils of the rock, with golden yolks
Imbedded and injellied.”
We gladly quote passages like these, to show how eating and drinking may be surrounded with poetical associations, and how man, using his privilege to turn any and every repast into a “feast of reason,” with a warm and plentiful “flow of soul,” may really count it as not the least of his legitimate prides, that he is “a dining animal.”
1882. It has been said, indeed, that great men, in general, are great diners. This, however, can scarcely be true of any great men but men of action; and, in that case, it would simply imply that persons of vigorous constitution, who work hard, eat heartily; for, of course, a life of action requires a vigorous constitution, even though there may be much illness, as in such cases as William III. and our brave General Napier. Of men of thought, it can scarcely be true that they eat so much, in a general way, though even they eat more than they are apt to suppose they do; for, as Mr. Lewes observes, “nerve-tissue is very expensive.” Leaving great men of all kinds, however, to get their own dinners, let us, who are not great, look after ours. Dine we must, and we may as well dine elegantly as well as wholesomely.
1883. There are plenty of elegant dinners in modern days, and they were not wanting in ancient times. It is well known that the dinner-party, or symposium, was a not unimportant, and not unpoetical, feature in the life of the sociable, talkative, tasteful Greek. Douglas Jerrold said that such is the British humour for dining and giving of dinners, that if London were to be destroyed by an earthquake, the Londoners would meet at a public dinner to consider the subject. The Greeks, too, were great diners: their social and religious polity gave them many chances of being merry and making others merry on good eating and drinking. Any public or even domestic sacrifice to one of the gods, was sure to be followed by a dinner-party, the remains of the slaughtered “offering” being served up on the occasion as a pious pièce de résistance; and as the different gods, goddesses, and demigods, worshipped by the community in general, or by individuals, were very numerous indeed, and some very religious people never let a day pass without offering up something or other, the dinner-parties were countless. A birthday, too, was an excuse for a dinner; a birthday, that is, of any person long dead and buried, as well as of a living person, being a member of the family, or otherwise esteemed. Dinners were, of course, eaten on all occasions of public rejoicing. Then, among the young people, subscription dinners, very much after the manner of modern times, were always being got up; only that they would be eaten not at an hotel, but probably at the house of one of the heteræ. A Greek dinner-party was a handsome, well-regulated affair. The guests came in elegantly dressed and crowned with flowers. A slave, approaching each person as he entered, took off his sandals and washed his feet. During the repast, the guests reclined on couches with pillows, among and along which were set small tables. After the solid meal came the “symposium” proper, a scene of music, merriment, and dancing, the two latter being supplied chiefly by young girls. There was a chairman, or symposiarch, appointed by the 908 company to regulate the drinking; and it was his duty to mix the wine in the “mighty bowl.” From this bowl the attendants ladled the liquor into goblets, and, with the goblets, went round and round the tables, filling the cups of the guests.
1884. The elegance with which a dinner is served is a matter which depends, of course, partly upon the means, but still more upon the taste of the master and mistress of the house. It may be observed, in general, that there should always be flowers on the table, and as they form no item of expense, there is no reason why they should not be employed every day.
1885. The variety in the dishes which furnish forth a modern dinner-table, does not necessarily imply anything unwholesome, or anything capricious. Food that is not well relished cannot be well digested; and the appetite of the over-worked man of business, or statesman, or of any dweller in towns, whose occupations are exciting and exhausting, is jaded, and requires stimulation. Men and women who are in rude health, and who have plenty of air and exercise, eat the simplest food with relish, and consequently digest it well; but those conditions are out of the reach of many men. They must suit their mode of dining to their mode of living, if they cannot choose the latter. It is in serving up food that is at once appetizing and wholesome that the skill of the modern housewife is severely tasked; and she has scarcely a more important duty to fulfil. It is, in fact, her particular vocation, in virtue of which she may be said to hold the health of the family, and of the friends of the family, in her hands from day to day. It has been said that “the destiny of nations depends on the manner in which they are fed;” and a great gastronomist exclaims, “Tell me what kind of food you eat, and I will tell you what kind of man you are.” The same writer has some sentences of the same kind, which are rather hyperbolical, but worth quoting:—“The pleasures of the table belong to all ages, to all conditions, to all countries, and to all eras; they mingle with all other pleasures, and remain, at last, to console us for their departure. The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness upon humanity than the discovery of a new star.”
1886. The gastronomist from whom we have already quoted, has some aphorisms and short directions in relation to dinner-parties, which are well deserving of notice:—
* We have seen this varied by saying that the number should never exceed that of the Muses or fall below that of the Graces.
909First Course.
Mock Turtle Soup, removed by Cod’s Head and Shoulders.
Stewed Eels.
Vase of Flowers.
Red Mullet.
Clear Oxtail Soup, removed by Fried Filleted Soles.
Entrées.
Riz de Veau aux Tomates.
Ragoût of Lobster.
Vase of Flowers.
Cotelettes de Porc à la Robert.
Poulet à la Marengo.
Second Course.
Roast Turkey.
Pigeon Pie.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Ham.
Tongue, garnished.
Saddle of Mutton.
Third Course.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Pheasants, removed by Plum-pudding.
Apricot-Jam Tartlets.
Jelly.
Cream.
Vase of Flowers.
Cream.
Jelly.
Mince Pies.
Snipes, removed by Pommes à la Condé.
Maids of Honour.
We have given above the plan of placing the various dishes of the 1st Course, Entrées, 2nd Course, and 3rd Course. Following this will be found bills of fare for smaller parties; and it will be readily seen, by studying the above arrangement of dishes, how to place a less number for the more limited company. Several menus for dinners à la Russe, are also included in the present chapter.
910Carrot Soup à la Crécy.
Oxtail Soup.
Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Smelts, with Dutch Sauce.
Mutton Cutlets, with Soubise Sauce.
Sweetbreads.
Oyster Patties.
Fillets of Rabbits.
Roast Turkey.
Stewed Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Boiled Ham, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Boiled Chickens and Celery Sauce.
Roast Hare.
Teal.
Eggs à la Neige.
Vol-au-Vent of Preserved Fruit.
1 Jelly.
1 Cream.
Potatoes à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Grilled Mushrooms.
Soup à la Reine.
Whitings au Gratin.
Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Tendrons de Veau.
Curried Fowl and Boiled Rice.
Turkey, stuffed with Chestnuts, and Chestnut Sauce.
Boiled Leg of Mutton, English Fashion, with Capers Sauce and Mashed Turnips.
Woodcocks or Partridges.
Widgeon.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Cabinet Pudding.
Orange Jelly.
Blancmange.
Artichoke Bottoms.
Macaroni, with Parmesan Cheese.
Mulligatawny Soup.
Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Fried Whitings.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Pork Cutlets, with Tomato Sauce.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Boiled Tongue, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Roast Pheasants.
Meringues à la Crême.
Compôte of Apples.
Orange Jelly.
Cheesecakes.
Soufflé of Rice.
Julienne Soup.
Soles à la Normandie.
Sweetbreads, with Sauce Piquante.
Mutton Cutlets, with Mashed Potatoes.
Haunch of Venison.
Boiled Fowls and Bacon, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Plum-pudding.
Custards in Glasses.
Apple Tart.
Fondue à la Brillat Savarin.
Vermicelli Soup.
Fried Slices of Codfish and Anchovy Sauce.
John Dory.
Stewed Rump-steak à la Jardinière.
Rissoles.
Oyster Patties.
Leg of Mutton.
Curried Rabbit and Boiled Rice.
Partridges.
Apple Fritters.
Tartlets of Greengage Jam.
Orange Jelly.
Plum-pudding.
Pea-soup.
Baked Haddock.
Soles à la Crême.
Mutton Cutlets and Tomato Sauce.
Fricasseed Rabbit.
Roast Pork and Apple Sauce.
Breast of Veal, Rolled and Stuffed.
Vegetables.
Jugged Hare.
Whipped Cream.
Blancmange.
Mince Pies.
Cabinet Pudding.
Palestine Soup.
Fried Smelts.
Stewed Eels.
Ragoût of Lobster.
Broiled Mushrooms.
Vol-au-Vent of Chicken.
Sirloin of Beef.
Boiled Fowls and Celery Sauce.
Tongue, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Wild Ducks.
Charlotte aux Pommes.
Cheesecakes.
Transparent Jelly, inlaid with Brandy Cherries.
Blancmange. Nesselrode Pudding.
1895. Sunday.—1. Boiled turbot and oyster sauce, potatoes. 2. Roast leg or griskin of pork, apple sauce, brocoli, potatoes. 3. Cabinet pudding, and damson tart made with preserved damsons.
1896. Monday.—1. The remains of turbot warmed in oyster sauce, potatoes. 2. Cold pork, stewed steak. 3. Open jam tart, which should have been made with the pieces of paste left from the damson tart; baked arrowroot pudding.
1897. Tuesday.—1. Boiled neck of mutton, carrots, mashed turnips, suet dumplings, and caper sauce: the broth should be served first, and a little rice or pearl barley should be boiled with it along with the meat. 2. Rolled jam pudding.
1898. Wednesday.—1. Roast rolled ribs of beef, greens, potatoes, and horseradish sauce. 2. Bread-and-butter pudding, cheesecakes.
1899. Thursday.—1. Vegetable soup (the bones from the ribs of beef should be boiled down with this soup), cold beef, mashed potatoes. 2. Pheasants, gravy, bread sauce. 3. Macaroni.
1900. Friday.—1. Fried whitings or soles. 2. Boiled rabbit and onion sauce, minced beef, potatoes. 3. Currant dumplings.
1901. Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pudding or pie, greens, and potatoes. 2. Baked custard pudding and stewed apples.
1902. Sunday.—1. Codfish and oyster sauce, potatoes. 2. Joint of roast mutton, either leg, haunch, or saddle; brocoli and potatoes, red-currant jelly. 3. Apple tart and custards, cheese.
1903. Monday.—1. The remains of codfish picked from the bone, and warmed through in the oyster sauce; if there is no sauce left, order a few oysters and make a little fresh; and do not let the fish boil, or it will be watery. 2. Curried rabbit, with boiled rice served separately, cold mutton, mashed potatoes. 3. Somersetshire dumplings with wine sauce.
1904. Tuesday.—1. Boiled fowls, parsley-and-butter; bacon garnished with Brussels sprouts, minced or hashed mutton. 2. Baroness pudding.
1905. Wednesday.—1. The remains of the fowls cut up into joints and fricasseed; joint of roast pork and apple sauce, and, if liked, sage-and-onion, served on a dish by itself; turnips and potatoes. 2. Lemon pudding, either baked or boiled.
1906. Thursday.—1. Cold pork and jugged hare, red-currant jelly, mashed potatoes. 2. Apple pudding.
1907. Friday.—1. Boiled beef, either the aitchbone or the silver side of the round; carrots, turnips, suet dumplings, and potatoes: if there is a marrow-bone, serve the marrow on toast at the same time. 2. Rice snowballs.
1908. Saturday.—1. Pea-soup made from liquor in which beef was boiled; cold beef, mashed potatoes. 2. Baked batter fruit pudding.
914First Course.
Hare Soup, removed by Turbot and Oyster Sauce.
Fried Eels.
Vase of Flowers.
Fried Whiting.
Oyster Soup, removed by Crimped Cod à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Entrées.
Lark Pudding.
Lobster Patties.
Vase of Flowers.
Filets de Perdrix.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Second Course.
Braised Capon.
Boiled Ham, garnished.
Roast Fowls, garnished with water-cresses.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Fowls and White Sauce.
Pâté Chaud.
Haunch of Mutton.
Third Course.
Meringues.
Ducklings, removed by Ice Pudding.
Cheesecakes.
Coffee Cream.
Orange-Jelly.
Vase of Flowers.
Clear Jelly.
Blancmange.
Victoria Sandwiches.
Partridges, removed by Cabinet Pudding.
Gâteau de Pommes.
Soup à la Reine.
Clear Gravy Soup.
Brill and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Smelts.
Lobster Rissoles.
Beef Palates.
Pork Cutlets à la Soubise.
Grilled Mushrooms.
Braised Turkey.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Capon and Oysters.
Tongue, garnished with tufts of Brocoli.
Vegetables and Salads.
Wild Ducks.
Plovers.
Orange Jelly.
Clear Jelly.
Charlotte Russe.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Gâteau de Riz.
Sea-kale.
Maids of Honour.
Palestine Soup.
John Dory, with Dutch Sauce.
Red Mullet, with Sauce Génoise.
Sweetbread Cutlets, with Poivrade Sauce.
Fowl au Béchamel.
Roast Saddle of Mutton.
Boiled Capon and Oysters.
Boiled Tongue, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Guinea-Fowls.
Ducklings.
Pain de Rhubarb.
Orange Jolly.
Strawberry Cream.
Cheesecakes.
Almond Pudding.
Fig Pudding.
Mock Turtle Soup.
Fillets of Turbot à la Creme.
Fried Filleted Soles and Anchovy Sauce.
Larded Fillets of Rabbits.
Tendrons de Veau with Purée of Tomatoes.
Stewed Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Roast Fowls.
Boiled Ham.
Roast Pigeons or Larks.
Rhubarb Tartlets.
Meringues.
Clear Jelly.
Cream.
Ice Pudding.
Soufflé.
Rice Soup.
Red Mullet, with Génoise Sauce.
Fried Smelts.
Fowl Pudding.
Sweetbreads.
Roast Turkey and Sausages.
Boiled Leg of Pork.
Pease Pudding.
Lemon Jelly.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Maids of Honour.
Plum-pudding, removed by Ice Pudding.
Spring Soup.
Boiled Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Fricasseed Rabbit.
Oyster Patties.
Boiled Round of Beef and Marrow-bones.
Roast Fowls, garnished with Water-cresses and rolled Bacon.
Vegetables.
Marrow Pudding.
Cheesecakes.
Tartlets of Greengage Jam.
Lemon Cream.
Rhubarb Tart.
Vermicelli Soup.
Fried Whitings.
Stewed Eels.
Poulet à la Marengo.
Breast of Veal stuffed and rolled.
Roast Leg of Pork and Apple Sauce.
Boiled Capon and Oysters.
Tongue, garnished with tufts of Brocoli.
Wild Ducks.
Lobster Salad.
Charlotte aux Pommes.
Pain de Rhubarb.
Vanilla Cream.
Orange Jelly.
Ox-tail Soup.
Cod à la Crême.
Fried Soles.
Lark Pudding.
Fowl Scollops.
Roast Leg of Mutton.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Pigeon Pie.
Small Ham, boiled and garnished.
Vegetables.
Game, when liked.
Tartlets of Raspberry Jam.
Vol-au-Vent of Rhubarb.
Swiss Cream. Cabinet Pudding.
Brocoli and Sea-kale.
1917. Sunday.—1. Ox-tail soup. 2. Roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, brocoli, and potatoes. 3. Plum-pudding, apple tart. Cheese.
1918. Monday.—1. Fried soles, plain melted butter, and potatoes. 2. Cold roast beef, mashed potatoes. 3. The remains of plum-pudding cut in slices, warmed, and served with sifted sugar sprinkled over it. Cheese.
1919. Tuesday.—1. The remains of ox-tail soup from Sunday. 2. Pork cutlets with tomato sauce; hashed beef. 3. Rolled jam pudding. Cheese.
1920. Wednesday.—1. Boiled haddock and plain melted butter. 2. Rump-steak pudding, potatoes, greens. 3. Arrowroot blancmange, garnished with jam.
1921. Thursday.—1. Boiled leg of pork, greens, potatoes, pease pudding. 2. Apple fritters, sweet macaroni.
1922. Friday.—1. Pea-soup made with liquor that the pork was boiled in. 2. Cold pork, mashed potatoes. 3. Baked rice pudding.
1923. Saturday.—1. Broiled herrings and mustard sauce. 2. Haricot mutton. 3. Macaroni, either served as a sweet pudding or with cheese.
1924. Sunday.—1. Carrot soup. 2. Boiled leg of mutton and caper sauce, mashed turnips, roast fowls, and bacon. 3. Damson tart made with bottled fruit, ratafia pudding.
1925. Monday.—1. The remainder of fowl curried and served with rice; rump-steaks and oyster sauce, cold mutton. 2. Rolled jam pudding.
1926. Tuesday.—1. Vegetable soup made with liquor that the mutton was boiled in on Sunday. 2. Roast sirloin of beef, Yorkshire pudding, brocoli, and potatoes. 3. Cheese.
1927. Wednesday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter. 2. Cold beef and mashed potatoes: if there is any cold boiled mutton left, cut it into neat slices and warm it in a little caper sauce. 3. Apple tart.
1928. Thursday.—1. Boiled rabbit and onion sauce, stewed beef and vegetables, made with the remains of cold beef and bones. 2. Macaroni.
1929. Friday.—1. Roast leg of pork, sage and onions and apple sauce; greens and potatoes. 2. Spinach and poached eggs instead of pudding. Cheese and water-cresses.
1930. Saturday.—1. Rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding, cold pork and mashed potatoes. 2. Baked rice pudding.
918First Course.
Turtle or Mock Turtle Soup, removed by Salmon and dressed Cucumber.
Red Mullet.
Vase of Flowers.
Fillets of Whitings.
Spring Soup, removed by Boiled Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Entrées.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Vol-au-Vent.
Vase of Flowers.
Compôte of Pigeons.
Larded Sweetbreads.
Second Course.
Fore-quarter of Lamb.
Braised Capon.
Boiled Tongue, garnished.
Vase of Flowers.
Ham.
Roast Fowls.
Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Third Course.
Apricot Tartlets.
Guinea-Fowls, larded, removed by Cabinet Pudding.
Rhubarb Tart.
Wine Jelly.
Custards.
Vase of Flowers.
Jelly, in glasses.
Italian Cream.
Damson Tart.
Ducklings, removed by Nesselrode Pudding.
Cheesecakes.
White Soup.
Clear Gravy Soup.
Boiled Salmon, Shrimp Sauce, and dressed Cucumber.
Baked Mullets in paper cases.
Filet de Bœuf and Spanish Sauce.
Larded Sweetbreads.
Rissoles.
Chicken Patties.
Roast Fillet of Veal and Béchamel Sauce.
Boiled Leg of Lamb.
Roast Fowls, garnished with Water-cresses.
Boiled Ham, garnished with Carrots and mashed Turnips.
Vegetables—Sea-kale, Spinach, or Brocoli.
Two Ducklings.
Guinea-Fowl, larded.
Orange Jelly.
Charlotte Russe.
Coffee Cream.
Ice Pudding.
Macaroni with Parmesan Cheese.
Spinach, garnished with Croûtons.
Macaroni Soup.
Boiled Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Salmon Cutlets.
Compôte of Pigeons.
Glutton Cutlets and Tomato Sauce.
Roast Lamb.
Boiled Half Calf’s Head, Tongue, and Brains.
Boiled Bacon-cheek, garnished with spoonfuls of Spinach.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Plum-pudding.
Ginger Cream.
Trifle.
Rhubarb Tart.
Cheesecakes.
Fondues, in cases.
Calf’s-Head Soup.
Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Broiled Mackerel à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Lobster Cutlets.
Calf’s Liver and Bacon, aux fines herbes.
Roast Loin of Veal.
Two Boiled Fowls à la Béchamel.
Boiled Knuckle of Ham.
Vegetables—Spinach or Brocoli.
Wild Ducks.
Apple Custards.
Blancmange.
Lemon Jelly.
Jam Sandwiches.
Ice Pudding.
Potatoes à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Vermicelli Soup.
Soles à la Crême.
Veal Cutlets.
Small Vols-au-Vent.
Small Saddle of Mutton.
Half Calf’s Head.
Boiled Bacon-cheek, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Cabinet Pudding.
Orange Jelly.
Custards, in glasses.
Rhubarb Tart.
Lobster Salad.
Julienne Soup.
Baked Mullets.
Chicken Cutlets.
Oyster Patties.
Roast Lamb and Mint Sauce.
Boiled Leg of Pork.
Pease Pudding.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Swiss Cream.
Lemon Jelly.
Cheesecakes.
Rhubarb Tart.
Macaroni.
Oyster Soup.
Boiled Salmon and dressed Cucumber.
Rissoles.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Boiled Leg of Mutton, Caper Sauce.
Roast Fowls, garnished with Water-cresses.
Vegetables.
Charlotte aux Pommes.
Orange Jelly.
Lemon Cream.
Soufflé of Arrowroot.
Sea-kale.
Ox-tail Soup.
Boiled Mackerel.
Stewed Mutton Kidneys.
Minced Veal and Oysters.
Stewed Shoulder of Veal.
Roast Ribs of Beef and Horseradish Sauce.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Tartlets of Strawberry Jam.
Cheesecakes.
Gâteau de Riz.
Carrot Pudding.
Sea-kale.
1939. Sunday.—1. Boiled ½ calf’s head, pickled pork, the tongue on a small dish with the brains round it; mutton cutlets and mashed potatoes. 2. Plum tart made with bottled fruit, baked custard pudding, Baroness pudding.
1940. Monday.—1. Roast shoulder of mutton and onion sauce, brocoli, baked potatoes. 2. Slices of Baroness pudding warmed, and served with sugar sprinkled over. Cheesecakes.
1941. Tuesday.—1. Mock turtle soup, made with liquor that calf’s head was boiled in, and the pieces of head. 2. Hashed mutton, rump-steaks and oyster sauce. 3. Boiled plum-pudding.
1942. Wednesday.—1. Fried whitings, melted butter, potatoes. 2. Boiled beef, suet dumplings, carrots, potatoes, marrow-bones. 3. Arrowroot blancmange, and stewed rhubarb.
1943. Thursday.—1. Pea-soup made from liquor that beef was boiled in. 2. Stewed rump-steak, cold beef, mashed potatoes. 3. Rolled jam pudding.
1944. Friday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter, potatoes. 2. Roast loin of mutton, brocoli, potatoes, bubble-and-squeak. 3. Rice pudding.
1945. Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pie, haricot mutton made with remains of cold loin. 2. Pancakes, ratafia pudding.
1946. Sunday.—1. Roast fillet of veal, boiled ham, spinach and potatoes. 2. Rhubarb tart, custards in glasses, bread-and-butter pudding.
1947. Monday.—1. Baked soles, potatoes. 2. Minced veal and rump-steak pie. 3. Somersetshire dumplings with the remains of custards poured round them; marmalade tartlets.
1948. Tuesday.—1. Gravy soup. 2. Boiled leg of mutton, mashed turnips, suet dumplings, caper sauce, potatoes, veal rissoles made with remains of fillet of veal. 3. Cheese.
1949. Wednesday.—1. Stewed mullets. 2. Roast fowls, bacon, gravy, and bread sauce, mutton pudding, made with a few slices of the cold meat and the addition of two kidneys. 3. Baked lemon pudding.
1950. Thursday.—1. Vegetable soup made with liquor that the mutton was boiled in, and mixed with the remains of gravy soup. 2. Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, horseradish sauce, brocoli and potatoes. 3. Apple pudding or macaroni.
1951. Friday.—1. Stewed eels, pork cutlets and tomato sauce. 2. Cold beef, mashed potatoes. 3. Plum tart made with bottled fruit.
1952. Saturday.—1. Rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding, broiled beef-bones, greens and potatoes. 2. Jam tartlets made with pieces of paste from plum tart, baked custard pudding.
922First Course.
Spring Soup, removed by Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Fillets of Mackerel.
Vase of Flowers.
Fried Smelts.
Soles à la Creme.
Entrées.
Lamb Cutlets and Asparagus Peas.
Curried Lobster.
Vase of Flowers.
Oyster Patties.
Grenadines de Veau.
Second Course.
Roast Ribs of Lamb.
Larded Capon.
Stewed Beef à la Jardinière.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Ham.
Spring Chickens.
Braised Turkey.
Third Course.
Raspberry-Jam Tartlets.
Ducklings, removed by Cabinet Pudding.
Rhubarb Tart.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Clear Jelly.
Vase of Flowers.
Orange Jelly.
Raspberry Cream.
Victoria Sandwiches.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Cheesecakes.
Soup à la Reine.
Julienne Soup.
Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Slices of Salmon à la Genévése.
Croquettes of Leveret.
Fricandeau de Veau.
Vol-au-Vent.
Stewed Mushrooms.
Fore-quarter of Lamb.
Saddle of Mutton.
Boiled Chickens and Asparagus Peas.
Boiled Tongue garnished with Tufts of Brocoli.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Larded Guinea-Fowls.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Orange Jelly.
Meringues.
Ratafia Ice Pudding.
Lobster Salad.
Sea-kale.
Gravy Soup.
Salmon and Dressed Cucumber.
Shrimp Sauce.
Fillets of Whitings.
Lobster Cutlets.
Chicken Patties.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Boiled Leg of Lamb.
Ham, garnished with Brocoli.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Compôte of Rhubarb.
Custards.
Vanilla Cream.
Orange Jelly.
Cabinet Pudding.
Ice Pudding.
Spring Soup.
Slices of Salmon and Caper Sauce.
Fried Filleted Soles.
Chicken Vol-au-Vent.
Mutton Cutlets and Tomato Sauce.
Roast Loin of Veal.
Boiled Fowls à la Béchamel.
Tongue.
Vegetables.
Guinea-Fowl.
Sea-kale.
Artichoke Bottoms.
Cabinet Pudding.
Blancmange.
Apricot Tartlets.
Rice Fritters.
Macaroni and Parmesan Cheese.
Tapioca Soup.
Boiled Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Sweetbreads.
Oyster Patties.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Capon and White Sauce.
Tongue.
Vegetables.
Soufflé of Rice.
Lemon Cream.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Rhubarb Tart.
Julienne Soup.
Pried Whitings.
Red Mullet.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Rissoles.
Roast Ribs of Beef.
Neck of Veal à la Béchamel.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Lemon Pudding.
Rhubarb Tart.
Custards.
Cheesecakes.
Vermicelli Soup.
Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Fricandeau of Veal.
Lobster Cutlets.
Roast Fore-quarter of Lamb.
Boiled Chickens.
Tongue.
Vegetables.
Goslings.
Sea-kale.
Plum-pudding.
Whipped Cream.
Compôte of Rhubarb.
Cheesecakes.
Ox-tail Soup.
Crimped Salmon.
Croquettes of Chicken.
Mutton Cutlets and Soubise Sauce.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Boiled Bacon-cheek garnished with Sprouts.
Boiled Capon.
Vegetables.
Sea-kale.
Lobster Salad.
Cabinet Pudding.
Ginger Cream.
Raspberry Jam Tartlets.
Rhubarb Tart.
Macaroni.
1961. Sunday.—1. Clear gravy soup. 2. Roast haunch of mutton, sea-kale, potatoes. 3. Rhubarb tart, custards in glasses.
1962. Monday.—1. Crimped skate and caper sauce. 2. Boiled knuckle of veal and rice, cold mutton, mashed potatoes. 3. Baked plum-pudding.
1963. Tuesday.—1. Vegetable soup. 2. Toad-in-the-hole, made from remains of cold mutton. 3. Stewed rhubarb and baked custard pudding.
1964. Wednesday.—1. Fried soles, anchovy sauce. 2. Boiled beef, carrots, suet dumplings. 3. Lemon pudding.
1965. Thursday.—1. Pea-soup made with liquor that beef was boiled in. 2. Cold beef, mashed potatoes, mutton cutlets and tomato sauce. 3. Macaroni.
1966. Friday.—1. Bubble-and-squeak, made with remains of cold beef. Roast shoulder of veal stuffed, spinach, potatoes. 2. Boiled batter pudding and sweet sauce.
1967. Saturday.—1. Stewed veal with vegetables, made from the remains of the shoulder. Broiled rump-steaks and oyster sauce. 2. Yeast-dumplings.
1968. Sunday.—1. Boiled salmon and dressed cucumber, anchovy sauce. 2. Roast fore-quarter of lamb, spinach, potatoes, mint sauce. 3. Rhubarb tart, cheesecakes.
1969. Monday.—1. Curried salmon, made with remains of salmon, dish of boiled rice. 2. Cold lamb, rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding, potatoes. 3. Spinach and poached eggs.
1970. Tuesday.—1. Scotch mutton broth with pearl barley. 2. Boiled neck of mutton, caper sauce, suet dumplings, carrots. 3. Baked rice-pudding.
1971. Wednesday.—1. Boiled mackerel and melted butter or fennel sauce, potatoes. 2. Roast fillet of veal, bacon, and greens. 3. Fig pudding.
1972. Thursday.—1. Flemish soup. 2. Roast loin of mutton, brocoli, potatoes; veal rolls made from remains of cold veal. 3. Boiled rhubarb pudding.
1973. Friday.—1. Irish stew or haricot, made from cold mutton, minced veal. 2. Half-pay pudding.
1974. Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pie, broiled mutton-chops. 2. Baked arrowroot pudding.
926First Course.
Asparagus Soup, removed by Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Filleted Soles.
Vase of Flowers.
Fillets of Mackerel, à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Ox-tail Soup, removed by Brill & Shrimp Sauce.
Entrées.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Lobster Pudding.
Vase of Flowers.
Curried Fowl.
Veal Ragoût.
Second Course.
Saddle of Lamb.
Raised Pie.
Roast Fowls.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Capon and White Sauce.
Braised Ham.
Roast Veal.
Third Course.
Almond Cheesecakes.
Goslings, removed by College Puddings.
Lobster Salad.
Noyeau Jelly.
Italian Cream.
Vase of Flowers.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Inlaid Jelly.
Plovers’ Eggs.
Ducklings, removed by Nesselrode Pudding.
Tartlets.
White Soup.
Asparagus Soup.
Salmon Cutlets.
Boiled Turbot and Lobster Sauce.
Chicken Vol-au-Vent.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Fricandeau of Veal.
Stewed Mushrooms.
Roast Lamb.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled and Roast Fowls.
Vegetables.
Ducklings.
Goslings.
Charlotte Russe.
Vanilla Cream.
Gooseberry Tart.
Custards.
Cheesecakes.
Cabinet Pudding and Iced Pudding.
Spring Soup.
Salmon à la Genévése.
Red Mullet.
Chicken Vol-au-Vent.
Calf’s Liver and Bacon aux Fines Herbes.
Saddle of Mutton.
Half Calf’s Head, Tongue, and Brains.
Braised Ham.
Asparagus.
Roast Pigeons.
Ducklings.
Sponge-cake Pudding.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Gooseberry Tart.
Cream.
Cheesecakes.
Apricot-jam Tart.
Julienne Soup.
Brill and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Fillets of Mackerel.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Lobster Patties.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Boiled Leg of Lamb.
Asparagus.
Ducklings.
Gooseberry Tart.
Custards.
Fancy Pastry.
Soufflé.
Vermicelli Soup.
Boiled Salmon and Anchovy Sauce.
Fillets of Beef and Tomato Sauce.
Sweetbreads.
Roast Lamb.
Boiled Capon.
Asparagus.
Ducklings.
Cabinet Pudding.
Compôte of Gooseberries.
Custards in Glasses.
Blancmange.
Lemon Tartlets.
Fondue.
Macaroni Soup.
Boiled Mackerel à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Fried Smelts.
Scollops of Fowl.
Lobster Pudding.
Boiled Leg of Lamb and Spinach.
Roast Sirloin of Beef and Horseradish Sauce.
Vegetables.
Roast Leveret.
Salad.
Soufflé of Rice.
Ramakins.
Strawberry-jam Tartlets.
Orange Jelly.
Julienne Soup.
Trout with Dutch Sauce.
Salmon Cutlets.
Lamb Cutlets and Mushrooms.
Vol-au-Vent of Chicken.
Roast Lamb.
Calf’s Head à la Tortue.
Vegetables.
Spring Chickens.
Iced Pudding.
Vanilla Cream.
Clear Jelly.
Tartlets.
Cheesecakes.
Soup à la Reine.
Crimped Trout and Lobster Sauce.
Baked Whitings aux Fines Herbes.
Braised Mutton Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Stewed Pigeons.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Bacon-cheek and Greens.
Fillet of Beef à la Jardinière.
Ducklings.
Soufflé à la Vanille.
Compôte of Oranges.
Meringues.
Gooseberry Tart.
Fondue.
1983. Sunday.—1. Vegetable soup. 2. Saddle of mutton, asparagus and potatoes. 3. Gooseberry tart, custards.
1984. Monday.—1. Fried whitings, anchovy sauce. 2. Cold mutton, mashed potatoes, stewed veal. 3. Fig pudding.
1985. Tuesday.—1. Haricot mutton, made from remains of cold mutton, rump-steak pie. 2. Macaroni.
1986. Wednesday.—1. Roast loin of veal and spinach, boiled bacon, mutton cutlets and tomato sauce. 2. Gooseberry pudding and cream.
1987. Thursday.—1. Spring soup. 2. Roast leg of lamb, mint sauce, spinach, curried veal and rice. 3. Lemon pudding.
1988. Friday.—1. Boiled mackerel and parsley-and-butter. 2. Stewed rump-steak, cold lamb and salad. 3. Baked gooseberry pudding.
1989. Saturday.—1. Vermicelli. 2. Rump-steak pudding, lamb cutlets, and cucumbers. 3. Macaroni.
1990. Sunday.—1. Boiled salmon and lobster or caper sauce. 2. Roast lamb, mint sauce, asparagus, potatoes. 3. Plum-pudding, gooseberry tart.
1991. Monday.—1. Salmon warmed in remains of lobster sauce and garnished with croûtons. 2. Stewed knuckle of veal and rice, cold lamb and dressed cucumber. 3. Slices of pudding warmed, and served with sugar sprinkled over. Baked rice pudding.
1992. Tuesday.—1. Roast ribs of beef, horseradish sauce, Yorkshire pudding, spinach and potatoes. 2. Boiled lemon pudding.
1993. Wednesday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter. 2. Cold beef and dressed cucumber or salad, veal cutlets and bacon. 3. Baked plum-pudding.
1994. Thursday.—1. Spring soup. 2. Calf’s liver and bacon, broiled beef-bones, spinach and potatoes. 3. Gooseberry tart.
1995. Friday.—1. Roast shoulder of mutton, baked potatoes, onion sauce, spinach. 2. Currant dumplings.
1996. Saturday.—1. Broiled mackerel, fennel sauce or plain melted butter. 2. Rump-steak pie, hashed mutton, vegetables. 3. Baked arrowroot pudding.
930First Course.
Asparagus Soup, removed by Crimped Salmon.
Fillets of Gurnets.
Vase of Flowers.
Soles aux fines herbes.
Vermicelli Soup, removed by Whitebait.
Entrées.
Lamb Cutlets and Peas.
Lobster Patties.
Vase of Flowers.
Tendrons de Veau à la Jardinière.
Larded Sweetbreads.
Second Course.
Saddle of Lamb.
Tongue.
Roast Spring Chickens.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Capon.
Ham.
Boiled Calf’s Head.
Third Course.
Prawns.
Leveret, removed by Ice Pudding.
Tartlets.
Wine Jelly.
Vol-au-Vent of Strawberries and Cream.
Vase of Flowers.
Custards, in glasses.
Blancmange.
Cheesecakes.
Goslings, removed by Fondues, in cases.
Plovers’ Eggs.
Green-Pea Soup.
Rice Soup.
Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Trout à la Genévése.
Whitebait.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Stewed Veal and Peas.
Lobster Rissoles.
Roast Quarter of Lamb and Spinach.
Filet de Bœuf à la Jardinière.
Boiled Fowls.
Braised Shoulder of Lamb.
Tongue.
Vegetables.
Goslings.
Ducklings.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Gooseberry Tartlets.
Strawberry Cream.
Raspberry-and-Currant Tart.
Custards.
Julienne Soup.
Salmon Trout and Parsley-and-Butter.
Red Mullet.
Stewed Breast of Veal and Peas.
Mutton Cutlets à la Maintenon.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Boiled Leg of Lamb, garnished with young Carrots.
Boiled Bacon-cheek.
Vegetables.
Roast Ducks.
Leveret.
Gooseberry Tart.
Strawberry Cream.
Strawberry Tartlets.
Meringues.
Cabinet Pudding.
Iced Pudding.
Vermicelli Soup.
Trout à la Genévése.
Salmon Cutlets.
Lamb Cutlets and Peas.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Roast Ribs of Beef.
Half Calf’s Head, Tongue, and Brains.
Boiled Ham.
Vegetables.
Roast Ducks.
Compôte of Gooseberries.
Strawberry Jelly.
Pastry.
Iced Pudding.
Cauliflower with Cream Sauce.
Spring Soup.
Boiled Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Veal Cutlets and Endive.
Ragoût of Duck and Green Peas.
Roast Loin of Veal.
Boiled Leg of Lamb and White Sauce.
Tongue, garnished.
Vegetables.
Strawberry Cream.
Gooseberry Tartlets.
Almond Pudding.
Lobster Salad.
Calf’s-Head Soup.
Mackerel à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Whitebait.
Chicken Cutlets.
Curried Lobster.
Fore-quarter of Lamb and Salad.
Stewed Beef à la Jardinière.
Vegetables.
Goslings.
Green-Currant Tart.
Custards, in glasses.
Strawberry Blancmange.
Soufflé of Rice.
Green-Pea Soup.
Baked Soles aux fines herbes.
Stewed Trout.
Calf’s Liver and Bacon.
Rissoles.
Roast Saddle of Lamb and Salad.
Calf’s Head à la Tortue.
Vegetables.
Roast Ducks.
Vol-au-Vent of Strawberries and Cream.
Strawberry Tartlets.
Lemon Blancmange.
Baked Gooseberry Pudding.
Spinach Soup.
Soles à la Creme.
Red Mullet.
Roast Fillet of Veal.
Braised Ham and Spinach.
Boiled Fowls and White Sauce.
Vegetables.
Leveret.
Strawberry Jelly.
Swiss Cream.
Cheesecakes.
Iced Pudding.
2005. Sunday.—1. Salmon trout and parsley-and-butter, new potatoes. 2. Roast fillet of veal, boiled bacon-cheek and spinach, vegetables. 3. Gooseberry tart, custards.
2006. Monday.—1. Light gravy soup. 2. Small meat pie, minced veal, garnished with rolled bacon, spinach and potatoes. 3. Raspberry-and-currant tart.
2007. Tuesday.—1. Baked mackerel, potatoes. 2. Boiled leg of lamb, garnished with young carrots. 3. Lemon pudding.
2008. Wednesday.—1. Vegetable soup. 2. Calf’s liver and bacon, peas, hashed lamb from remains of cold joint. 3. Baked gooseberry pudding.
2009. Thursday.—1. Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, peas, potatoes. 2. Stewed rhubarb and boiled rice.
2010. Friday.—1. Cold beef and salad, lamb cutlets and peas. 2. Boiled gooseberry pudding and baked custard pudding.
2011. Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pudding, broiled beef-bones and cucumber, vegetables. 2. Bread pudding.
2012. Sunday.—1. Roast fore-quarter of lamb, mint sauce, peas, and new potatoes. 2. Gooseberry pudding, strawberry tartlets. Fondue.
2013. Monday.—1. Cold lamb and salad, stewed neck of veal and peas, young carrots, and new potatoes. 2. Almond pudding.
2014. Tuesday.—1. Green-pea soup. 2. Roast ducks stuffed, gravy, peas and new potatoes. 3. Baked ratafia pudding.
2015. Wednesday.—1. Roast leg of mutton, summer cabbage, potatoes. 2. Gooseberry and rice pudding.
2016. Thursday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter, potatoes. 2. Sweetbreads, hashed mutton, vegetables. 3. Bread-and-butter pudding.
2017. Friday.—1. Asparagus soup. 2. Boiled beef, young carrots and new potatoes, suet dumplings. 3. College puddings.
2018. Saturday.—1. Cold boiled beef and salad, lamb cutlets and green peas. 2. Boiled gooseberry pudding and plain cream.
934First Course.
Green-Pea Soup, removed by Salmon and dressed Cucumber.
Whitebait.
Vase of Flowers.
Stewed Trout.
Soup à la Reine, removed by Mackerel à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Entrées.
Lamb Cutlets and Peas.
Lobster Curry en Casserole.
Vase of Flowers.
Scollops of Chickens.
Chicken Patties.
Second Course.
Haunch of Venison.
Pigeon Pie.
Boiled Capons.
Vase of Flowers.
Spring Chickens.
Braised Ham.
Saddle of Lamb.
Third Course.
Prawns.
Roast Docks, removed by Vanilla Soufflé.
Custards.
Raspberry Cream.
Cherry Tart.
Vase of Flowers.
Raspberry-and-Currant Tart.
Strawberry Cream.
Creams.
Green Goose, removed by Iced Pudding.
Tartlets.
Soup à la Jardinière.
Chicken Soup.
Crimped Salmon and Parsley-and-Butter.
Trout aux fines herbes, in cases.
Tendrons de Veau and Peas.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Loin of Veal à la Béchamel.
Roast Fore-quarter of Lamb.
Salad.
Braised Ham, garnished with Broad Beans.
Vegetables.
Roast Ducks.
Turkey Poult.
Stewed Peas à la Française.
Lobster Salad.
Cherry Tart.
Raspberry-and-Currant Tart.
Custards, in glasses.
Lemon Creams.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Marrow Pudding.
Green-Pea Soup.
Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Crimped Perch and Dutch Sauce.
Stewed Veal and Peas.
Lamb Cutlets and Cucumbers.
Haunch of Venison.
Boiled Fowls à la Béchamel.
Braised Ham.
Vegetables.
Roast Ducks.
Peas à la Française.
Lobster Salad.
Strawberry Cream.
Blancmange.
Cherry Tart.
Cheesecakes.
Iced Pudding.
Soup à la Jardinière.
Salmon Trout and Parsley-and-Butter.
Fillets of Mackerel à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Lobster Cutlets.
Beef Palates à la Italienne.
Roast Lamb.
Boiled Capon and White Sauce.
Boiled Tongue, garnished with small Vegetable Marrows.
Bacon and Beans.
Goslings.
Whipped Strawberry Cream.
Raspberry-and-Currant Tart.
Meringues.
Cherry Tartlets.
Iced Pudding.
Julienne Soup.
Crimped Salmon and Caper Sauce.
Whitebait.
Croquettes à la Reine.
Curried Lobster.
Roast Lamb.
Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Larded Turkey Poult.
Raspberry Cream.
Cherry Tart.
Custards, in glasses.
Gâteaux à la Genévése.
Nesselrode Pudding.
2024. Sunday.—1. Salmon trout and parsley-and-butter. 2. Roast fillet of veal, boiled bacon-cheek, peas, potatoes. 3. Raspberry-and-currant tart, baked custard pudding.
2025. Monday.—1. Green-pea soup. 2. Roast fowls garnished with water-cresses; gravy, bread sauce; cold veal and salad. 3. Cherry tart.
2026. Tuesday.—1. John dory and lobster sauce. 2. Curried fowl with remains of cold fowls, dish of rice, veal rolls with remains of cold fillet. 3. Strawberry cream.
2027. Wednesday.—1. Roast leg of mutton, vegetable marrow, and potatoes, melted butter. 2. Black-currant pudding.
2028. Thursday.—1. Fried soles, anchovy sauce. 2. Mutton cutlets and tomato sauce, hashed mutton, peas, potatoes. 3. Lemon dumplings.
2029. Friday.—1. Boiled brisket of beef, carrots, turnips, suet dumplings, peas, potatoes. 2. Baked semolina pudding.
2030. Saturday.—1. Cold beef and salad, lamb cutlets and peas. 2. Rolled jam pudding.
2031. Sunday.—1. Julienne soup. 2. Roast lamb, half calf’s head, tongue and brains, boiled ham, peas and potatoes. 3. Cherry tart, custards.
2032. Monday.—1. Hashed calf’s head, cold lamb and salad. 2. Vegetable marrow and white sauce, instead of pudding.
2033. Tuesday.—1. Stewed veal, with peas, young carrots, and potatoes. Small meat pie. 2. Raspberry-and-currant pudding.
2034. Wednesday.—1. Roast ducks stuffed, gravy, peas, and potatoes; the remains of stewed veal rechauffé. 2. Macaroni served as a sweet pudding.
2035. Thursday.—1. Slices of salmon and caper sauce. 2. Boiled knuckle of veal, parsley-and-butter, vegetable marrow and potatoes. 3. Black-currant pudding.
2036. Friday.—1. Roast shoulder of mutton, onion sauce, peas and potatoes. 2. Cherry tart, baked custard pudding.
2037. Saturday.—1. Minced mutton, rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding. 2. Baked lemon pudding.
937First Course.
Mock-Turtle Soup, removed by Broiled Salmon and Caper Sauce.
Red Mullet.
Vase of Flowers.
Perch.
Soup à la Julienne, removed by Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Entrées.
Fricandeau de Veau à la Jardinière.
Curried Lobster.
Vase of Flowers.
Lamb Cutlets à la Purée de Pommes de Terre.
Fillets of Ducks and Peas.
Second Course.
Haunch of Venison.
Ham, garnished.
Capon à la Financière.
Vase of Flowers.
Roast Fowls.
Leveret Pie.
Saddle of Mutton.
Third Course.
Lobster Salad.
Grouse, removed by Cabinet Pudding.
Cheesecakes.
Fruit Jelly.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Vase of Flowers.
Custards.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Raspberry Tartlets.
Larded Peahen, removed by Iced Pudding.
Prawns.
Vermicelli Soup.
Soup à la Reine.
Boiled Salmon.
Fried Flounders.
Trout en Matelot.
Stewed Pigeons.
Sweetbreads.
Ragoût of Ducks.
Fillets of Chickens and Mushrooms.
Quarter of Lamb.
Cotelette de Bœuf à la Jardinière.
Roast Fowls and Boiled Tongue.
Bacon and Beans.
Grouse.
Wheatears.
Greengage Tart.
Whipped Cream.
Vol-au-Vent of Plums.
Fruit Jelly.
Iced Pudding.
Cabinet Pudding.
Julienne Soup.
Fillets of Turbot and Dutch Sauce.
Red Mullet.
Riz de Veau aux Tomates.
Fillets of Ducks and Peas.
Haunch of Venison.
Boiled Capon and Oysters.
Ham, garnished.
Vegetables.
Leveret.
Fruit Jelly.
Compôte of Greengages.
Plum Tart.
Custards, in glasses.
Omelette soufflée.
Macaroni Soup.
Crimped Salmon and Sauce Hollandaise.
Fried Fillets of Trout.
Tendrons de Veau and Stewed Peas.
Salmi of Grouse.
Roast Loin of Veal.
Boiled Bacon, garnished with French Beans.
Stewed Beef à la Jardinière.
Vegetables.
Turkey Poult.
Plum Tart.
Custard Pudding.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Strawberry Cream.
Ratafia Soufflé.
Vegetable-Marrow Soup.
Stewed Mullet.
Fillets of Salmon and Ravigotte Sauce.
Curried Lobster.
Fricandeau de Veau à la Jardinière.
Roast Saddle of Mutton.
Stewed Shoulder of Veal,
Vegetables.
Roast Grouse and Bread Sauce.
Vol-au-Vent of Greengages.
Fruit Jelly.
Raspberry Cream.
Custards.
Fig Pudding.
2043. Sunday.—1. Vegetable-marrow soup. 2. Roast quarter of lamb, mint sauce, French beans and potatoes. 3. Raspberry-and-currant tart, custard pudding.
2044. Monday.—1. Cold lamb and salad, small meat pie, vegetable marrow and white sauce. 2. Lemon dumplings.
2045. Tuesday.—1. Boiled mackerel. 2. Stewed loin of veal, French beans and potatoes. 3. Baked raspberry pudding.
2046. Wednesday.—1. Vegetable soup. 2. Lamb cutlets and French beans; the remains of stewed shoulder of veal, mashed vegetable marrow. 3. Black-currant pudding.
2047. Thursday.—1. Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, French beans and potatoes. 2. Bread-and-butter pudding.
2048. Friday.—1. Fried soles and melted butter. 2. Cold beef and salad, lamb cutlets and mashed potatoes. 3. Cauliflowers and white sauce instead of pudding.
2049. Saturday.—1. Stewed beef and vegetables, with remains of cold beef; mutton pudding. 2. Macaroni and cheese.
2050. Sunday.—1. Salmon pudding. 2. Roast fillet of veal, boiled bacon-cheek garnished with tufts of cauliflowers, French beans and potatoes. 3. Plum tart, boiled custard pudding.
2051. Monday.—1. Baked soles. 2. Cold veal and bacon, salad, mutton cutlets and tomato sauce. 3. Boiled currant pudding.
2052. Tuesday.—1. Rice soup. 2. Roast fowls and water-cresses, boiled knuckle of ham, minced veal garnished with croûtons; vegetables. 3. College puddings.
2053. Wednesday.—1. Curried fowl with remains of cold fowl; dish of rice, stewed rump-steak and vegetables. 2. Plum tart.
2054. Thursday.—1. Boiled brisket of beef, carrots, turnips, suet dumplings, and potatoes. 2. Baked bread pudding.
2055. Friday.—1. Vegetable soup, made from liquor that beef was boiled in. 2. Cold beef and dressed cucumber, veal cutlets and tomata sauce. 3. Fondue.
2056. Saturday.—1. Bubble-and-squeak, made from remains of cold beef; cold veal-and-ham pie, salad. 2. Baked raspberry pudding.
940First Course.
Julienne Soup, removed by Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Red Mullet & Italian Sauce.
Vase of Flowers.
Fried Eels.
Giblet Soup, removed by Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Entrées.
Lamb Cutlets and French Beans.
Fillets of Chicken and Truffles.
Vase of Flowers.
Oysters au gratin.
Sweetbreads and Tomata Sauce.
Second Course.
Saddle of Mutton.
Veal-and-Ham Pie.
Chickens à la Béchamel.
Vase of Flowers.
Braised Goose.
Broiled Ham, garnished with Cauliflowers.
Fillet of Veal.
Third Course.
Custards.
Partridges, removed by Plum-pudding.
Apple Tart.
Compôte of Greengages.
Noyeau Jelly.
Vase of Flowers.
Lemon Cream.
Pastry Sandwiches.
Plum Tart.
Grouse & Bread Sauce, removed by Nesselrode Pudding.
Custards.
Mock-Turtle Soup.
Soup à la Jardinière.
Salmon and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Whitings.
Stewed Eels.
Veal Cutlets.
Scalloped Oysters.
Curried Fowl.
Grilled Mushrooms.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Calf’s Head à la Béchamel.
Braised Ham.
Roast Fowls aux Cressons.
Leveret.
Grouse.
Cabinet Pudding.
Iced Pudding.
Compôte of Plums.
Damson Tart.
Cream.
Fruit Jelly.
Prawns.
Lobster Salad.
Flemish Soup.
Turbot, garnished with Fried Smelts.
Red Mullet and Italian Sauce.
Tendrons de Veau and Truffles.
Lamb Cutlets and Sauce Piquante.
Loin of Veal à la Béchamel.
Roast Haunch of Venison.
Braised Ham.
Grouse Pie.
Vegetables.
Roast Hare.
Plum Tart.
Whipped Cream.
Punch Jelly.
Compôte of Damsons.
Marrow Pudding.
Game Soup.
Crimped Skate.
Slices of Salmon à la Genévése.
Fricasseed Sweetbreads.
Savoury Rissoles.
Sirloin of Beef and Horseradish Sauce.
Boiled Leg of Mutton and Caper Sauce.
Vegetables.
Roast Partridges.
Charlotte Russe.
Apricots and Rice.
Fruit Jelly.
Cabinet Pudding.
Thick Gravy Soup.
Fillets of Turbot à la Crême.
Stewed Eels.
Vol-au-Vent of Lobster.
Salmi of Grouse.
Haunch of Venison.
Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Hare, boned and larded, with Mushrooms.
Roast Grouse.
Apricot Blancmange.
Compôte of Peaches.
Plum Tart.
Custards.
Plum-pudding.
2062. Sunday.—1. Julienne soup. 2. Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, horseradish sauce, French beans, and potatoes. 3. Greengage pudding, vanilla cream.
2063. Monday.—1. Crimped skate and crab sauce. 2. Cold beef and salad, small veal-and-ham pie. 3. Vegetable marrow and white sauce.
2064. Tuesday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter. 2. Boiled fowls, parsley-and-butter; bacon-cheek, garnished with French beans; beef rissoles, made from remains of cold beef. 3. Plum tart and cream.
2065. Wednesday.—1. Boiled round of beef, carrots, turnips, and suet dumplings; marrow on toast. 2. Baked damsons and rice.
2066. Thursday.—1. Vegetable soup, made from liquor that beef was boiled in. 2. Lamb cutlets and cucumbers, cold beef and salad. 3. Apple pudding.
2067. Friday.—1. Baked soles. 2. Bubble-and-squeak, made from cold beef; veal cutlets and rolled bacon. 3. Damson tart.
2068. Saturday.—1. Irish stew, rump-steaks and oyster sauce. 2. Somersetshire dumplings.
2069. Sunday.—1. Fried filleted soles and anchovy sauce. 2. Roast leg of mutton, brown onion sauce, French beans, and potatoes; half calf’s head, tongue, and brains. 3. Plum tart; custards, in glasses.
2070. Monday.—1. Vegetable-marrow soup. 2. Calf’s head à la maître d’hôtel, from remains of cold head; boiled brisket of beef and vegetables. 3. Stewed fruit and baked rice pudding.
2071. Tuesday.—1. Roast fowls and water-cresses; boiled bacon, garnished with tufts of cauliflower; hashed mutton, from remains of mutton of Sunday. 2. Baked plum-pudding.
2072. Wednesday.—1. Boiled knuckle of veal and rice, turnips, potatoes; small ham, garnished with French beans. 2. Baked apple pudding.
2073. Thursday.—1. Brill and shrimp sauce. 2. Roast hare, gravy, and red-currant jelly; mutton cutlets and mashed potatoes. 3. Scalloped oysters, instead of pudding.
2074. Friday.—1. Small roast loin of mutton; the remains of hare, jugged; vegetable marrow and potatoes. 2. Damson pudding.
2075. Saturday.—1. Rump-steaks, broiled, and oyster sauce, mashed potatoes; veal-and-ham pie,—the ham may be cut from that boiled on Wednesday, if not all eaten cold for breakfast. 2. Lemon pudding.
943First Course.
Mock-Turtle Soup, removed by Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Soles à la Normandie.
Vase of flowers.
Red Mullet.
Julienne Soup, removed by John Dory and Dutch Sauce.
Entrées.
Sweetbreads and Tomata Sauce.
Oyster Patties.
Vase of Flowers.
Stewed Mushrooms.
Fricandeau de Veau and Celery Sauce.
Second Course.
Roast Saddle of Mutton.
Grouse Pie.
Roast Goose.
Vase of Flowers.
Boiled Fowls and Oyster Sauce.
Ham.
Larded Turkey.
Third Course.
Custards.
Pheasants, removed by Cabinet Pudding.
Prawns.
Italian Cream.
Gâteau de Pommes.
Vase of Flowers.
Compôte of Plums.
Peach Jelly.
Lobster Salad.
Roast Hare, removed by Iced Pudding.
Apple Tart.
Carrot Soup à la Créci.
Soup à la Reine.
Baked Cod.
Stewed Eels.
Riz de Veau and Tomata Sauce.
Vol-au-Vent of Chicken.
Pork Cutlets and Sauce Robert.
Grilled Mushrooms.
Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Roast Goose.
Boiled Fowls and Celery Sauce.
Tongue, garnished.
Vegetables.
Grouse.
Pheasants.
Quince Jelly.
Lemon Cream.
Apple Tart.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Cabinet Pudding.
Compôte of Peaches.
Scalloped Oysters.
Calf’s-Head Soup.
Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Stewed Eels.
Stewed Mutton Kidneys.
Curried Sweetbreads.
Boiled Leg of Mutton, garnished with Carrots and Turnips.
Roast Goose.
Partridges.
Fruit Jelly.
Italian Cream.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Apple Tart.
Cabinet Pudding.
Hare Soup.
Broiled Cod à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Haddocks and Egg Sauce.
Veal Cutlets, garnished with French Beans.
Haricot Mutton.
Roast Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Capon and Rice.
Vegetables.
Pheasants.
Punch Jelly.
Blancmange.
Apples à la Portugaise.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Marrow Pudding.
Mock-Turtle Soup.
Brill and Lobster Sauce.
Fried Whitings.
Fowl à la Béchamel.
Oyster Patties.
Roast Sucking-Pig.
Stewed Rump of Beef à la Jardinière.
Vegetables.
Grouse.
Charlotte aux Pommes.
Coffee Cream.
Cheesecakes.
Apricot Tart.
Iced Pudding.
2081. Sunday.—1. Roast sucking-pig, tomata sauce and brain sauce; small boiled leg of mutton, caper sauce, turnips, and carrots. 2. Damson tart, boiled batter pudding.
2082. Monday.—1. Vegetable soup, made from liquor that mutton was boiled in. 2. Sucking-pig en blanquette, small meat pie, French beans, and potatoes. 3. Pudding, pies.
2083. Tuesday.—1. Roast partridges, bread sauce, and gravy; slices of mutton warmed in caper sauce; vegetables. 2. Baked plum-pudding.
2084. Wednesday.—1. Roast ribs of beef, Yorkshire pudding, vegetable marrow, and potatoes. 2. Damson pudding.
2085. Thursday.—1. Fried soles, melted butter. 2. Cold beef and salad; mutton cutlets and tomata sauce. 3. Macaroni.
2086. Friday.—1. Carrot soup. 2. Boiled fowls and celery sauce; bacon-cheek, garnished with greens; beef rissoles, from remains of cold beef. 3. Baroness pudding.
2087. Saturday.—1. Curried fowl, from remains of cold ditto; dish of rice, rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding, vegetables. 2. Stewed pears and sponge cakes.
2088. Sunday.—1. Crimped cod and oyster sauce. 2. Roast haunch of mutton, brown onion sauce, and vegetables. 3. Bullace pudding, baked custards in cups.
2089. Monday.—1. The remains of codfish, flaked, and warmed in a maître d’hôtel sauce. 2. Cold mutton and salad, veal cutlets and rolled bacon, French beans and potatoes. 3. Arrowroot blancmange and stewed damsons.
2090. Tuesday.—1. Roast hare, gravy, and red-currant jelly; hashed mutton, vegetables. 2. Currant dumplings.
2091. Wednesday.—1. Jugged hare, from remains of roast ditto; boiled knuckle of veal and rice; boiled bacon-cheek. 2. Apple pudding.
2092. Thursday.—1. Roast leg of pork, apple sauce, greens, and potatoes. 2. Rice snowballs.
2093. Friday.—1. Slices of pork, broiled, and tomata sauce, mashed potatoes; roast pheasants, bread sauce, and gravy. 2. Baked apple pudding.
2094. Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pie, sweetbreads. 2. Ginger pudding.
946First Course.
Thick Grouse Soup, removed by Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Baked Whitings.
Vase of Flowers.
Fried Smelts.
Clear Ox-tail Soup, removed by Fillets of Turbot à la Creme.
Entrées.
Poulet à la Marengo.
Fillets of Leveret.
Vase of Flowers.
Ragoût of Lobster.
Mushrooms sautés.
Second Course.
Haunch of Mutton.
Cold Game Pie.
Lark Pudding.
Vase of Flowers.
Roast Fowls.
Boiled Ham.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Third Course.
Apple Tart.
Partridges, removed by Plum-pudding.
Shell-Fish.
Wine Jelly.
Pommes à la Condé.
Vase of Flowers.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Blancmange.
Prawns.
Snipes, removed by Charlotte glacée.
Apricot Tartlets.
Hare Soup.
Julienne Soup.
Baked Cod.
Soles à la Normandie.
Riz de Veau aux Tomates.
Lobster Patties.
Mutton Cutlets and Soubise Sauce.
Croûtades of Marrow aux fines herbes.
Roast Sirloin of Beef.
Braised Goose.
Boiled Fowls and Celery Sauce.
Bacon-cheek, garnished with Sprouts.
Wild Ducks.
Partridges.
Apples à la Portugaise.
Bavarian Cream.
Apricot-jam Sandwiches.
Cheesecakes.
Charlotte à la Vanille.
Plum-pudding.
Mulligatawny Soup.
Fried slices of Codfish and Oyster Sauce.
Eels en Matelote.
Broiled Pork Cutlets and Tomata Sauce.
Tendrons de Veau à la Jardinière.
Boiled Leg of Mutton and Vegetables.
Roast Goose.
Cold Game Pie.
Snipes.
Teal.
Apple Soufflé.
Iced Charlotte.
Tartlets.
Champagne Jelly.
Coffee Cream.
Mince Pies.
Oyster Soup.
Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Fried Perch and Dutch Sauce.
Pigs’ Feet à la Béchamel.
Curried Rabbit.
Roast Sucking-Pig.
Boiled Fowls and Oyster Sauce.
Vegetables.
Jugged Hare.
Meringues à la Creme.
Apple Custard.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Whipped Cream.
Cabinet Pudding.
Game Soup.
Slices of Codfish and Dutch Sauce.
Fried Eels.
Kidneys à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Oyster Patties.
Saddle of Mutton.
Boiled Capon and Rice.
Small Ham.
Lark Pudding.
Roast Hare.
Apple Tart.
Pineapple Cream.
Clear Jelly.
Cheesecakes.
Marrow Pudding.
Nesselrode Pudding.
2100. Sunday.—1. White soup. 2. Roast haunch of mutton, haricot beans, potatoes. 3. Apple tart, ginger pudding.
2101. Monday.—1. Stewed eels. 2. Veal cutlets garnished with rolled bacon; cold mutton and winter salad. 3. Baked rice pudding.
2102. Tuesday.—1. Roast fowls, garnished with water-cresses; boiled bacon-cheek; hashed mutton from remains of haunch. 2. Apple pudding.
2103. Wednesday.—1. Boiled leg of pork, carrots, parsnips, and pease-pudding; fowl croquettes made with remainder of cold fowl. 2. Baroness pudding.
2104. Thursday.—1. Cold pork and mashed potatoes; roast partridges, bread sauce and gravy. 2. The remainder of pudding cut into neat slices, and warmed through, and served with sifted sugar sprinkled over; apple fritters.
2105. Friday.—1. Roast hare, gravy, and currant jelly; rump-steak and oyster sauce; vegetables. 2. Macaroni.
2106. Saturday.—1. Jugged hare; small mutton pudding. 2. Fig pudding.
2107. Sunday.—1. Crimped cod and oyster sauce. 2. Roast fowls, small boiled ham, vegetables; rump-steak pie. 3. Baked apple pudding, open jam tart.
2108. Monday.—1. The remainder of cod warmed in maître d’hôtel sauce. 2. Boiled aitchbone of beef, carrots, parsnips, suet dumplings. 3. Baked bread-and-butter pudding.
2109. Tuesday.—1. Pea-soup, made from liquor in which beef was boiled. 2. Cold beef, mashed potatoes; mutton cutlets and tomata sauce. 3. Carrot pudding.
2110. Wednesday.—1. Fried soles and melted butter. 2. Roast leg of pork, apple sauce, vegetables. 3. Macaroni with Parmesan cheese.
2111. Thursday.—1. Bubble-and-squeak from remains of cold beef; curried pork. 2. Baked Semolina pudding.
2112. Friday.—1. Roast leg of mutton, stewed Spanish onions, potatoes. 2. Apple tart.
2113. Saturday.—1. Hashed mutton; boiled rabbit and onion sauce; vegetables. 2. Damson pudding made with bottled fruit.
949First Course.
Mock-Turtle Soup, removed by Cod’s Head and Shoulders and Oyster Sauce.
Stewed Eels.
Vase of Flowers.
Fried Whitings.
Julienne Soup, removed by Soles aux fines herbes.
Entrées.
Fillets of Grouse and Sauce Piquante.
Curried Lobster.
Vase of Flowers.
Mutton Cutlets and Soubise Sauce.
Sweetbreads.
Second Course.
Haunch of Mutton.
Ham and Brussels Sprouts.
Roast Goose.
Vase of Flowers.
Stewed Beef à la Jardinière.
Game Pie.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Third Course.
Apricot Tourte.
Pheasants, removed by Plum-pudding.
Victoria Sandwiches.
Vanilla Cream.
Lemon Jelly.
Vase of Flowers.
Champagne Jelly.
Blancmange.
Tipsy Cake.
Wild Ducks, removed by Iced Pudding.
Mince Pies.
Game Soup.
Clear Vermicelli Soup.
Codfish au gratin.
Fillets of Whitings à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Filet de Bœuf and Sauce Piquante.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Oyster Patties.
Curried Rabbit.
Roast Turkey and Sausages.
Boiled Leg of Pork and Vegetables.
Roast Goose.
Stewed Beef à la Jardinière.
Widgeon.
Partridges.
Charlotte aux Pommes.
Mince Pies.
Orange Jelly.
Lemon Cream.
Apple Tart.
Cabinet Pudding.
Mulligatawny Soup.
Fried Slices of Codfish.
Soles à la Crême.
Croquettes of Fowl.
Pork Cutlets and Tomata Sauce.
Roast Ribs of Beef.
Boiled Turkey and Celery Sauce.
Tongue, garnished.
Lark Pudding.
Vegetables.
Roast Hare.
Grouse.
Plum-pudding.
Mince Pies.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.
Cheesecakes.
Apple Tart.
Nesselrode Pudding.
Carrot Soup.
Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Baked Soles.
Mutton Kidneys à la Française.
Oyster Patties.
Boiled Beef and Vegetables.
Marrow-bones.
Roast Fowls and Water-cresses.
Tongue, garnished.
Game Pie.
Partridges.
Blancmange.
Compôte of Apples.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Almond Cheesecakes.
Lemon Pudding.
Rabbit Soup.
Brill and Shrimp Sauce.
Curried Fowl.
Oyster Patties.
Roast Turkey and Sausages.
Boiled Leg of Pork.
Vegetables.
Hunters’ Pudding.
Lemon Cheesecakes.
Apple Tart.
Custards, in glasses.
Raspberry Cream.
Ox-tail Soup.
Crimped Cod and Oyster Sauce.
Savoury Rissoles.
Fowl Scollops à la Béchamel.
Haunch of Mutton.
Boiled Chickens and Celery Sauce.
Bacon-cheek, garnished with Brussels Sprouts.
Vegetables.
Snipes.
Orange Jelly.
Cheesecakes.
Apples à la Portugaise.
Apricot-jam Tartlets.
Soufflé of Rice.
Vermicelli Soup.
Soles à la Maître d’Hôtel.
Fried Eels.
Pork Cutlets and Tomata Sauce.
Ragoût of Mutton à la Jardinière.
Roast Goose.
Boiled Leg of Mutton and Vegetables.
Pheasants.
Whipped Cream.
Meringues.
Compôte of Normandy Pippins.
Mince Pies.
Plum-pudding.
Carrot Soup.
Baked Cod.
Fried Smelts.
Stewed Rump-steak à la Jardinière.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Roast Leg of Mutton, boned and stuffed.
Boiled Turkey and Oyster Sauce.
Vegetables.
Wild Ducks.
Fancy Pastry.
Lemon Cream.
Damson Tart, with bottled fruit.
Custards, in glasses.
Cabinet Pudding.
2122. Sunday.—1. Carrot soup. 2. Roast beef, horseradish sauce, vegetables. 3. Plum-pudding, mince pies.
2123. Monday.—1. Fried whitings, melted butter. 2. Rabbit pie, cold beef, mashed potatoes. 3. Plum-pudding cut in slices and warmed; apple tart.
2124. Tuesday.—1. Hashed beef and broiled bones, pork cutlets and tomata sauce; vegetables. 2. Baked lemon pudding.
2125. Wednesday.—1. Boiled neck of mutton and vegetables; the broth served first with a little pearl barley or rice boiled in it. 2. Bakewell pudding.
2126. Thursday.—1. Roast leg of pork, apple sauce, vegetables. 2. Rice snowballs.
2127. Friday.—1. Soles à la Crême. 2. Cold pork and mashed potatoes, broiled rump-steaks and oyster sauce. 3. Rolled jam pudding.
2128. Saturday.—1. The remains of cold pork curried, dish of rice, mutton cutlets, and mashed potatoes. 2. Baked apple dumplings.
2129. Sunday.—1. Roast turkey and sausages, boiled leg of pork, pease pudding, vegetables. 2. Baked apple pudding, mince pies.
2130. Monday.—1. Hashed turkey, cold pork, mashed potatoes. 2. Mincemeat pudding.
2131. Tuesday.—1. Pea-soup made from liquor in which pork was boiled. 2. Boiled fowls and celery sauce, vegetables. 3. Baked rice pudding.
2132. Wednesday.—1. Roast leg of mutton, stewed Spanish onions, potatoes. 2. Baked rolled jam pudding.
2133. Thursday.—1. Baked cod’s head. 2. Cold mutton, roast hare, gravy and red-currant jelly. 3. Macaroni.
2134. Friday.—1. Hare soup, made with stock and remains of roast hare. 2. Hashed mutton, pork cutlets, and mashed potatoes. 3. Open tarts, rice blancmange.
2135. Saturday.—1. Rumpsteak-and-kidney pudding, vegetables. 2. Mince pies, baked apple dumplings.
953First Course.
Hare Soup.
Purée of Grouse.
Vase of Flowers.
Pheasant Soup.
Soup à la Reine.
Entrées.
Salmi of Widgeon.
Fillets of Hare en Chevreuil.
Salmi of Woodcock.
Perdrix aux Choux.
Lark Pudding.
Vase of Flowers.
Game Patties.
Curried Rabbit.
Salmi of Woodcock.
Fillet of Pheasant and Truffles.
Salmi of Widgeon.
Second Course.
Larded Pheasants.
Leveret, larded and stuffed.
Cold Pheasant Pie à la Périgord.
Vase of Flowers.
Hot raised Pie of mixed Game.
Grouse.
Larded Partridges.
Third Course.
Snipes.
Pintails.
Ortolans.
Quails.
Golden Plovers.
Vase of Flowers.
Widgeon.
Teal.
Wild Duck.
Woodcocks.
Snipes.
Entremets and Removes.
Apricot Tart.
Boudin à la Nesselrode.
Maids of Honour.
Dantzic Jelly.
Vol-au-Vent of Pears.
Vase of Flowers.
Gâteau Génoise glacé.
Charlotte Russe.
Maids of Honour.
Plum-pudding.
Compôte of Apples.
Dessert.
Olives.
Strawberry-Ice Cream.
Figs.
Preserved Cherries.
Pineapples.
Dried Fruit.
Grapes.
Pears.
Ginger-Ice Cream.
Filberts.
Wafers.
Vase of Flowers.
Walnuts.
Biscuits.
Orange-Water Ice.
Apples.
Grapes.
Dried Fruit.
Pears.
Preserved Cherries.
Figs.
Lemon-Water Ice.
Olives.
Note.—Dinners à la Russe differ from ordinary dinners in the mode of serving the various dishes. In a dinner à la Russe, the dishes are cut up on a sideboard, and handed round to the guests, and each dish may be considered a course. The table for a dinner à la Russe should be laid with flowers and plants in fancy flowerpots down the middle, together with some of the dessert dishes. A menu or bill of fare should be laid by the side of each guest.
955Note.—Dinners à la Russe are scarcely suitable for small establishments; a large number of servants being required to carve, and to help the guests; besides there being a necessity for more plates, dishes, knives, forks, and spoons, than are usually to be found in any other than a very large establishment. Where, however, a service à la Russe is practicable, there is, perhaps, no mode of serving a dinner so enjoyable as this.
9562139. Much may be done in the arrangement of a supper-table, at a very small expense, provided taste and ingenuity are exercised. The colours and flavours of the various dishes should contrast nicely; there should be plenty of fruit and flowers on the table, and the room should be well lighted. We have endeavoured to show how the various dishes may be placed; but of course these little matters entirely depend on the length and width of the table used, on individual taste, whether the tables are arranged round the room, whether down the centre, with a cross one at the top, or whether the supper is laid in two separate rooms, &c. &c. The garnishing of the dishes has also much to do with the appearance of a supper-table. Hams and tongues should be ornamented with cut vegetable flowers, raised pies with aspic jelly cut in dice, and all the dishes garnished sufficiently to be in good taste without looking absurd. The eye, in fact, should be as much gratified as the palate. Hot soup is now often served at suppers, but is not placed on the table. The servants fill the plates from a tureen on the buffet, and then hand them to the guests: when these plates are removed, the business of supper commences.
2140. Where small rooms and large parties necessitate having a standing supper, many things enumerated in the following bill of fare may be placed on the buffet. Dishes for these suppers should be selected which may be eaten standing without any trouble. The following list may, perhaps, assist our readers in the arrangement of a buffet for a standing supper.
2141. Beef, ham, and tongue sandwiches, lobster and oyster patties, sausage rolls, meat rolls, lobster salad, dishes of fowls, the latter all cut up; dishes of sliced ham, sliced tongue, sliced beef, and galantine of veal; various jellies, blancmanges, and creams; custards in glasses, compôtes of fruit, tartlets of jam, and several dishes of small fancy pastry; dishes of fresh fruit, bonbons, sweetmeats, two or three sponge cakes, a few plates of biscuits, and the buffet ornamented with vases of fresh or artificial flowers. The above dishes are quite sufficient for a standing supper; where more are desired, a supper must then be laid and arranged in the usual manner.
957
Boar’s Head, garnished with Aspic Jelly.
Lobster Salad.
Fruited Jelly.
Mayonnaise of Fowl.
Charlotte Russe.
Lobster Salad.
Small Pastry.
Small Ham, garnished.
Iced Savoy Cake.
Biscuits.
Two Roast Fowls, cut up.
Vanilla Cream.
Epergne, with Fruit.
Fruited Jelly.
Two Roast Fowls, cut up.
Prawns.
Two Boiled Fowls, with Béchamel Sauce.
Prawns.
Biscuits.
Tongue, ornamented.
Small Pastry.
Custards, in glasses.
Trifle, ornamented.
Custards, in glasses.
Raised Chicken Pie.
Lobster Salad.
Fruited Jelly.
Tipsy Cake.
Roast Pheasant.
Swiss Cream.
Lobster Salad.
Meringues.
Epergne, with Fruit.
Meringues.
Raspberry Cream.
Galantine of Veal.
Tipsy Cake.
Fruited Jelly.
Two Roast Fowls, cut up.
Small Pastry.
Raised Game Pie.
Biscuits.
Two Roast Fowls, cut up.
Custards, in glasses.
Trifle, ornamented.
Custards, in glasses.
Prawns.
Tongue, ornamented.
Prawns.
Biscuits.
Two Boiled Fowls, with Béchamel Sauce.
Small Pastry.
Epergne, with Fruit.
Lobster Salad.
Fruited Jelly.
Iced Savoy Cake.
Small Ham, garnished.
Blancmange.
Lobster Salad.
Charlotte Russe.
Mayonnaise of Fowl.
Larded Capon.
Fruited Jelly.
Note.—When soup is served from the buffet, Mock Turtle and Julienne may be selected. Besides the articles enumerated above, Ices, Wafers, Biscuits, Tea, Coffee, Wines, and Liqueurs will be required. Punch à la Romaine may also be added to the list of beverages.
958
Left side of table, from outside to inside:
3 Compôtes of Fruit. 3 English Pines. 20 Small Dishes of various Summer Fruits.
3 Dishes of Small Pastry. 3 Fruit Tarts. 3 Cheesecakes.
4 Blancmanges, to be placed down the table. 4 Jellies, to be placed down the table.
Right side of table, from outside to inside:
3 Compôtes of Fruit. 3 English Pines. 20 Small Dishes of various Summer Fruits.
3 Dishes of Small Pastry. 3 Fruit Tarts. 3 Cheesecakes.
4 Jellies, to be placed down the table. 4 Blancmanges, to be placed down the table.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Tongue.
Ribs of Lamb.
Two Roast Fowls.
Mayonnaise of Salmon.
Veal-and-Ham Pie.
Charlotte Russe à la Vanille.
Lobster Salad.
Epergne, with Flowers.
Lobster Salad.
Savoy Cake.
Pigeon Pie.
Mayonnaise of Trout.
Tongue, garnished.
Boiled Fowls and Béchamel Sauce.
Collared Eel.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Lobster Salad.
Ham.
Raised Pie.
Two Roast Fowls.
Shoulder of Lamb, stuffed.
Mayonnaise of Salmon.
Lobster Salad.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Larded Capon.
Epergne, with Flowers.
Boar’s Head.
Pigeon Pie.
Lobster Salad.
Mayonnaise of Trout.
Tongue.
Boiled Fowls and Béchamel Sauce.
Raised Pie.
Lobster Salad.
Pigeon Pie.
Ham, decorated.
Shoulder of Lamb, stuffed.
Two Roast Fowls.
Mayonnaise of Salmon.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Savoy Cake.
Lobster Salad.
Epergne, with Flowers.
Lobster Salad.
Charlotte Russe à la Vanille.
Veal and Ham Pie.
Mayonnaise of Trout.
Tongue, garnished.
Boiled Fowls and Béchamel Sauce.
Collared Eel.
Dish of Lobster, cut up.
Note.—The length of the page will not admit of our giving the dishes as they should be placed on the table; they should be arranged with the large and high dishes down the centre, and the spaces filled up with the smaller dishes, fruit, and flowers, taking care that the flavours and colours contrast nicely, and that no two dishes of a sort come together. This bill of fare may be made to answer three or four purposes, placing a wedding cake or christening cake in the centre on a high stand, if required for either of these occasions. A few dishes of fowls, lobster salads, &c. &c., should be kept in reserve to replenish those that are most likely to be eaten first. A joint of cold roast and boiled beef should be placed on the buffet, as being something substantial for the gentlemen of the party to partake of. Besides the articles enumerated in the bill of fare, biscuits and wafers will be required, cream-and-water ices, tea, coffee, wines, liqueurs, soda-water, ginger-beer, and lemonade.
9592144. It will not be necessary to give here a long bill of fare of cold joints, &c., which may be placed on the side-board, and do duty at the breakfast-table. Suffice it to say, that any cold meat the larder may furnish, should be nicely garnished, and be placed on the buffet. Collared and potted meats or fish, cold game or poultry, veal-and-ham pies, game-and-rumpsteak pies, are all suitable dishes for the breakfast-table; as also cold ham, tongue, &c. &c.
2145. The following list of hot dishes may perhaps assist our readers in knowing what to provide for the comfortable meal called breakfast. Broiled fish, such as mackerel, whiting, herrings, dried haddocks, &c.; mutton chops and rump-steaks, broiled sheep’s kidneys, kidneys à la maître d’hôtel, sausages, plain rashers of bacon, bacon and poached eggs, ham and poached eggs, omelets, plain boiled eggs, œufs-au-plat, poached eggs on toast, muffins, toast, marmalade, butter, &c. &c.
2146. In the summer, and when they are obtainable, always have a vase of freshly-gathered flowers on the breakfast-table, and, when convenient, a nicely-arranged dish of fruit: when strawberries are in season, these are particularly refreshing; as also grapes, or even currants.
2147. The remains of cold joints, nicely garnished, a few sweets, or a little hashed meat, poultry or game, are the usual articles placed on the table for luncheon, with bread and cheese, biscuits, butter, &c. If a substantial meal is desired, rump-steaks or mutton chops may be served, as also veal cutlets, kidneys, or any dish of that kind. In families where there is a nursery, the mistress of the house often partakes of the meal with the children, and makes it her luncheon. In the summer, a few dishes of fresh fruit should be added to the luncheon, or, instead of this, a compete of fruit or fruit tart or pudding.
2148. Of suppers we have little to say, as we have already given two bills of fare for a large party, which will answer very well for a smaller number, by reducing the quantity of dishes and by omitting a few. Hot suppers are now very little in request, as people now generally dine at an hour which precludes the possibility of requiring supper; at all events, not one of a substantial kind. Should, however, a bill of fare be required, one of those under the head of Dinners, with slight alterations, will be found to answer for a hot supper.
9602149. A joint of cold roast beef, a joint of cold boiled beef, 2 ribs of lamb, 2 shoulders of lamb, 4 roast fowls, 2 roast ducks, 1 ham, 1 tongue, 2 veal-and-ham pies, 2 pigeon pies, 6 medium-sized lobsters, 1 piece of collared calf’s head, 18 lettuces, 6 baskets of salad, 6 cucumbers.
2150. Stewed fruit well sweetened, and put into glass bottles well corked; 3 or 4 dozen plain pastry biscuits to eat with the stewed fruit, 2 dozen fruit turnovers, 4 dozen cheesecakes, 2 cold cabinet puddings in moulds, 2 blancmanges in moulds, a few jam puffs, 1 large cold plum-pudding (this must be good), a few baskets of fresh fruit, 3 dozen plain biscuits, a piece of cheese, 6 lbs. of butter (this, of course, includes the butter for tea), 4 quartern loaves of household bread, 3 dozen rolls, 6 loaves of tin bread (for tea), 2 plain plum cakes, 2 pound cakes, 2 sponge cakes, a tin of mixed biscuits, ½ lb. of tea. Coffee is not suitable for a picnic, being difficult to make.
2151. A stick of horseradish, a bottle of mint-sauce well corked, a bottle of salad dressing, a bottle of vinegar, made mustard, pepper, salt, good oil, and pounded sugar. If it can be managed, take a little ice. It is scarcely necessary to say that plates, tumblers, wine-glasses, knives, forks, and spoons, must not be forgotten; as also teacups and saucers, 3 or 4 teapots, some lump sugar, and milk, if this last-named article cannot be obtained in the neighbourhood. Take 3 corkscrews.
2152. Beverages.—3 dozen quart bottles of ale, packed in hampers; ginger-beer, soda-water, and lemonade, of each 2 dozen bottles; 6 bottles of sherry, 6 bottles of claret, champagne à discrétion, and any other light wine that may be preferred, and 2 bottles of brandy. Water can usually be obtained; so it is useless to take it.
1586. or tissue-paper brushed over
text has “tisssue”
1667. 1 dessertspoonful
[The number is invisible, but can hardly be anything other than a 1 (one). A fraction, such as “½ dessertspoonful”, would have been expressed in teaspoons instead.]
1753. half ¼ oz. of cloves
printed as shown; the 1906 edition has the same
pounded with a little orange-flower water
text has “litte”
1764. put it into a buttered mould
“i” in “it” invisible
1770. when liked, a little pounded mace.
text has “litttle”
1806. to make good coffee for drinking after dinner
text has “coffeee”
1807. Chocolate prepared with in a mill
text unchanged; the words “with in” come at a line break
1810. which should be made in the following manner:
text has superfluous comma after “following”
this is probably because the spirit, being partly sheathed
punctuated as shown [Webster omits the comma, which makes more sense.]
1847. prevent him from taking any food at all.”
close quote missing
1873. skimming it well during the process
text has “procees”
The chapter head (“Chapter XL.”) is missing from printed book; I supplied one to agree with other chapters. It is “Chapter XL” in the General Contents.
1879. the native of Terra-del-Fuego [sic]
spelling unchanged
1881. Eve seems to have prepared “a little dinner”
text has single for double close quote
1883. gods, goddesses, and demigods, worshipped by the community
word “by” invisible
the house of one of the heteræ
text unchanged; expected hetæræ (ἑταῖραι).
1917. 2. Roast beef, Yorkshire pudding
. in “2.” missing
1920. Arrowroot blancmange
text has superfluous comma after “Arrowroot”
1947. the remains of custards poured round
text has “cutsards”
1968. 3. Rhubarb tart, cheesecakes.
text has “2.”
2021. DINNER FOR 8 PERSONS (July).
final . missing
2022. Beef Palates à la Italienne.
text unchanged; expected “à l’Italienne”
2040. Omelette soufflée.
text unchanged [Either it’s a mistake, or “soufflée” is here an adjective.]
Almost all of this chapter is adapted from Webster’s Encyclopædia.
1495. Until fruit can be used, it should be placed in the dairy, an ice-house, or a refrigerator.
[This is the only occurrence of the word “refrigerator” (meaning what we now call an icebox) in the BOHM.]
1510. congealed cream
[Sounds revolting, doesn’t it? Fortunately the original, underlying meaning of “congeal” is “freeze”.]
a bushel of ice
[In the 19th century, people on both sides of the Atlantic were persnickety about distinguishing between dry and liquid measures, even though both involved volume. A bushel is equivalent to 4 pecks or 8 gallons.]
1511. children should abstain from ices
[Fat chance, Isabella.]
Will not this fact cover a multitude of sins committed by the instigator of St. Bartholomew?
[Interesting question. Considering all the circumstances, weighing the arguments, trying to envision a life without ice cream, I’d have to say . . . No. Nice try, though. ]
Unless otherwise noted, you can assume the informational passages are from Webster’s Encyclopædia again.
1515. [Illustration] COMPÔTE OF APPLES
[Ha! I’ve detected your trick, Mr. Beeton. You’ve sneaked in a lower-case ô among the small capitals, so it looks as if your illustration captions have the required diacritics. The same trick is used for Figs and Oranges, further along in the chapter.]
1526. Ingredients.—Morella cherries, good brandy
[Or, if you prefer, indifferent vodka. The generic recipe for cheap fruit liqueur goes like this: Fill a glass container with dried fruit. Slowly pour in white sugar until the fruit is covered. Slowly pour in vodka until the sugar is covered. Cover, and leave it alone for at least a month.]
1533. using a wooden or silver spoon for the purpose, as metal or iron ones would spoil the colour
[For a given definition of “metal”, apparently.]
pour it into small gallipots
[Again with the gallipots. This recipe doesn’t seem to be from Webster, though.]
1559. In America, it is frequently eaten with pepper and salt.
[I suspect the Editress has got her sources garbled. Anything other than watermelon—which does not seem to be the type of melon she has in mind here—would be decidedly nasty if eaten with salt and pepper.]
1560. introduced into this country in 1548
[As were garlic (sec. 392) and spinach (sec. 1155). Mrs. Beeton lets us off easy; in Webster’s Encyclopædia, at least seven plants are said to have been introduced to England in 1548.]
1561. about seventy years before the Christian era
[Oh, well done, Isabella. The source, Soyer’s Pantropheon, says that the introduction of cherries “was accomplished 300 years before the Christian era, whereas the introduction of cherry trees by Lucullus took place 228 years later.”]
1564. The First Orange-tree in France
[This and the two passages in sec. 1565 are all from Pantropheon.]
1565. Not more than two centuries ago, the Portuguese brought
[In Pantropheon, this passage—quoted verbatim—is footnoted “Annee Litter. 1755”. So by mid-19th century it should really say “three centuries ago”.]
1572. The peach and nectarine, which are among the most delicious of our fruits
[If this sounds familiar, it’s because we previously read it in sec. 1469 (page 740, one pamphlet back) under “Peach” alone.]
1576. The Bon Chretien Pear.
[This and the following passage (“The Pineapple in Heathendom”) are again from Pantropheon.]
1582. Gerrard informs us
[In The Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes, whose first edition you can currently pick up for $17,500. The writer’s name is now conventionally spelled “Gerard”, as Webster has it. In fairness to Mrs. Beeton, or to her copy editors, the Herball’s own title page spells it “Gerarde“.]
a red wine made to imitate port
[Otherwise known as sloe gin. Gin—of any kind—didn’t get fully gentrified until later in the century. ]
1584. about the size of a five-shilling piece
[The 5-shilling coin was 39mm, making it about the size of a modern 5-pound coin—or an old-style U.S. silver dollar.]
1598. DESSERT DISHES.
[For the next few pages, the ebook will depart from my usual policy of matching the original page layout as closely as possible. Here’s why:]
All the dishes are now usually placed down the centre of the table
[Reminder: Throughout the book, service is normally à la Française (multiple dishes arranged on the table at the same time) rather than the newfangled à la Russe (multiple courses served sequentially). The latter was less practical for middle-class households, since it required more servants—and far more dishes; see pg. 955. It also meant that, since not everyone eats at the same pace, the time required for a full dinner could easily double. But Mrs. Beeton concedes that, where available, service à la Russe is very pleasant for the diner.]
1599. the common nut
[Until I got to this passage, I was not absolutely certain what “the size of a nut” referred to. I was pretty sure she didn’t mean a coconut, though.]
1601. The skins and pips of grapes should not be eaten.
[Peel me a grape, Isabella.]
1615. Beckman . . . states
[Like everything else in the chapter, this passage—with attribution—is in Webster.]
Most of this chapter is cherry-picked from Webster’s Encyclopædia.
1620. Cheese is the curd formed from milk by artificial coagulation
[Unless we are talking about whey cheese, which our Editress doesn’t seem to have heard of.]
1622. muriatic acid
[Otherwise known as hydrochloric acid]
1623. Cobbett justly says
[The surrounding passages, including the rest of this paragraph, are lifted straight from Webster. But along the way Isabella must have remembered that she’d read something very similar in Cobbett.]
1627. But it is very probable that there are really “constitutions” which cannot take to it
[A magnanimous admission, since “milk emotionalism” was just coming into its own.]
1628. it should be scalded
[Otherwise known as pasteurizing. To this day, cookbooks will routinely specify “scalded and cooled” milk, even though the directive has been superfluous for generations. (On the other hand, Mrs. Beeton does not need to instruct her readers to “preheat the oven”. It was obvious to even the most inexperienced housewife that you had to get the fire going before starting to prepare your soufflé.)]
1632. it should smell deliciously
[Or, as we say in English, delicious. Is this a ghost of some 18th-century source, when this linguistic abomination was in vogue?]
1635. Butter may be kept fresh
[Surprisingly, this practical bit of information also appears in Pantropheon, though the wording is different:
“One of the great means of preserving butter fresh for any length of time is, first to press all the buttermilk completely out, then to keep it under water (renewing the water frequently), and to abstract it from influence of heat and air by wrapping it in a wet cloth.”]
1638. decomposing bodies are not wholesome eating
[Unless we are in the Game chapter.]
1640. Smoking Cheeses.
[The first paragraph is from Pantropheon. The second appears in Brillat-Savarin, though he may not have made it up: “A dessert without cheese is like a beautiful woman who has lost an eye.”.]
1644. Brillat Savarin recommends that some choice Burgundy should be handed round with this dish.
[In the Philadelphia translation, the recipe ends, “Serve it hot, with good wine, of which one should drink much. The feast will see sights.” (Or possibly the feaster. The French says “faites apporter le meilleur vin, qu’on boira rondement; on verra merveilles.”) Is it possible Isabella Beeton has confused this recipe with Brillat-Savarin’s earlier recipe for roast pheasant (see Sources for sec. 1042), which really does say “Drink burgundy after this dish”?]
1645–1647. 1½ to 1¾ hour to boil the macaroni
[Say what now? Macaroni may have been a little heavier in 1861, but I’ve yet to meet a pasta that takes longer than 10–12 minutes at the very outside. To make matters worse, the macaroni in no. 1645 is to be boiled in a total of three pints (less than an Imperial quart) of liquid; no. 1646 has an even lower proportion (half as much macaroni to one-third as much liquid).]
1648. POUNDED CHEESE.
[Fun fact: Cheez Whiz was introduced in Britain in 1952, a year before its U.S. debut.]
1652. silver or metal pans
[Back in section 1533, we met the similar “metal or iron”.]
”Cow Cheese.”
[From Pantropheon. Surprisingly—considering the source—the etymology of bouturos is correct.]
1656. and may be purchased of Messrs. R. & J. Slack
[The Hughes biography confirms that Slack & Co. was a major advertiser in S. O. Beeton publications.]
1658. Primitive Method of Cooking Eggs; 1659. Veneration for Eggs.
[Both are from Pantropheon.]
Isabella Beeton is forthright about her source for this and the following chapter: Eliza Acton’s English Bread Book.
Both chapters have several references to a “quartern loaf”. Eliza Acton helpfully explains that a quartern is two quarts, or half a gallon, and that a quartern of flour weighs three and a half pounds. (She also tells us that a peck—i.e. 2 gallons—or “stone” of flour weighs 14 pounds. That explains that.) By this measure, a pound of flour is about 2¼ cups. By all other measures, it’s closer to 3 or 3½ cups. All the sifting in the world won’t bring these numbers into alignment.
1670. It is said, that somewhere about the beginning of the thirtieth Olympiad, the slave of an archon, at Athens
[At least that’s what Athenian sources say. Your mileage may vary.]
1678. Bread should always be at least a day old before it is eaten
[Modern cookbooks encourage the baker to let bread sit for five or ten minutes before attempting to slice it. This seems a sufficient demand to place upon the bread-lover’s willpower.]
1685. In Norway, it is said that they only bake their barley bread once a year, such is its “keeping” quality.
[If this is a reference to flatbrød, I am perfectly prepared to believe that it keeps not only for months but for decades.]
1687. one-third potato-flour to three-fourths wheaten flour
[text unchanged. Total, thirteen twelfths, giving new meaning to the term “baker’s dozen”.]
1718. Miss Acton’s Recipe.
[In Eliza Acton’s Bread Book, this recipe spans several pages, under the head “VERY PLAIN DIRECTIONS TO A QUITE INEXPERIENCED LEARNER FOR MAKING BREAD”.]
Italian Millet
[With this, we return to Webster.]
1727. MUFFINS.
[Known in the U.S. as “English muffins”. But even Mrs. Beeton concedes that it’s easier to buy them.]
1733. the Arabians are fond of lizards and locusts as articles of food
[Sez you, anyway. (The first half of this paragraph is from Webster. The second half is anyone’s guess. It may even be Isabella Beeton’s own editorializing.)]
1746. Ground Rice
[Webster again]
1754. 5 teacupfuls of flour, 1 teacupful of melted butter . . . 1 teacupful of moist sugar
[This and Honey Cake (no. 1758) are the only recipes that measure dry ingredients by volume rather than by weight.]
1755. Time.—1¾ to 2¼ hours.
[Either the printer made a mistake and repeated the cooking time from the previous recipe, or this is how long it takes if the dough is not divided into two loaves (the recipe’s “1½ to 2 hours’ baking”).]
1761. a great authority in culinary matters suggests the addition of a little cayenne pepper in gingerbread
[For what it’s worth, the 1842 (66th!) edition of Maria Rundell’s Domestic Cookery includes gingerbread recipes with cayenne in them. These are not the work of Mrs. Rundell herself, however—she died in 1828—but of the new editor, a woman identified only as “E.R.”]
The addition of a little butter, beaten to a cream, we think, would improve this cake.
[Isabella, have you forgotten that this is your own cookbook? If you think something would be an improvement, just add it to the recipe.]
1765. Carbonate of Soda.
[The beginning of the description is from Webster.]
1776. Bread-making in Spain.
[In the 19th century, some texts seemed to have “Steal Me” written all over them. I don’t know who originally wrote “Bread-Making in Spain”, or even whether it began life as a free-standing article or as a passage in a travel book. I can only say that it was widely reprinted in magazines on both sides of the Atlantic. Most came out in 1860, but the English Once a Week was first out of the gate in September 1859, just in time to catch Isabella Beeton’s eye. In that magazine, the article is attributed, with exquisite helpfulness, to “Soy Yo”. Some versions include a picture:]
1779. Wheat.
[Here a bit of Webster, there a snippet from Pantropheon . . .]
1783. The Egyptian, or Mummy Wheat.
[The earliest match I could find was an American book from 1860, The Wheat Plant by John Hancock Klippart. I am inclined to doubt that Mr. Klippart of Cincinnati was in correspence with the Rev. Wilkins of Wix. More likely, he swiped the whole section from some English publication.]
1793. Pepys says, in his Diary
[Rhetorical question: Of all the writers who have ever cited this entry, how many have read it in the actual diary, as opposed to finding it quoted in some intermediate source? Alongside Webster—Mrs. Beeton’s source for much of this section—Knight’s Encyclopædia quotes the same words.]
1800. We are assured by Bruce
[As usual, “We” means Webster.]
Most informational passages in this chapter are, once again, from Webster’s Encyclopædia.
1807. Chocolate prepared with in a mill
[The words “with in” come at a line break; “with” alone, “in” alone, or “within” as one word all seem equally wrong. Whatever the author intended, it has nothing to do with what is now called a chocolate mill—a special grinder reserved for chocolate—let alone the Dutch work of edible art.]
1811. The Coffee Plant . . . not unlike those of the common laurel . . . much like those of jasmine . . . resembling a cherry.
[Poor coffee plant! It must be suffering serious identity problems.]
1812. It is true, says Liebig
[This time, Isabella Beeton may even be quoting Liebig directly. The passage occurs in Letter XXXII of the 3rd (1851) or 4th (1859) edition. Allowing for changes in punctuation, the BOHM text is a verbatim quote.]
intoxication with koko
[Spelling unchanged. The reference is more obvious with Liebig’s spelling, koka.]
1814. There is very little art in making good tea
[Unless you are an American restaurant, in which case tea-making is the blackest mystery.]
the class and order of Monadelphia polyandria in the Linnæan system
[Linnaeus’s overall system of plant classification was based on the number of male and female sexual organs (stamens and pistils), to the exclusion of all other factors. This is really true.]
Lately it has been made into a new order, the Theasia, which includes the Camellia and some other plants.
[I looked it up so you won’t have to. Tea is currently Camellia sinensis, which certainly does sound like a close relative of the camellia. Order Theales, family Theaceae.]
1818. a thing to be “run for,” as Cobbett would say
[It is safe to interpret this as “Cobbett did say”—but I couldn’t find where he said it.]
1834. Lemonade.—“There is a current opinion among women,” says Brillat Savarin
[It is not perfectly clear to me how this passage is intended to increase the reader’s desire to indulge in lemonade. The original is even less appealing; see Sources.]
1839. [Illustration] PUNCH-BOWL AND LADLE.
[Pause over this picture. It will be the last one for almost 100 pages.]
the North-American “mint julep” is the most inviting
[The editorial comment seems to be Isabella’s own. The rest of the paragraph is adapted from Webster, where each of the named drinks—“Regent’s punch”, “Norfolk punch” and so on—is a separate recipe. By the time the Editress reached the Marryatt passage, which she quotes verbatim, she was probably quite thirsty.]
That’s INvalid, a person who is unwell, not inVALid, worthless.
This chapter introduces a new source, Florence Nightingale’s Notes on Nursing. First published in 1859, the book was already on its second, greatly expanded 1860 edition by the time Isabella Beeton reached this part of the BOHM. All passages prefaced with “Miss Nightingale says” are from Notes on Nursing.
1859. Dr. Christison says
[That is: Florence Nightingale says that Dr. Christison says. Robert Christison (1797–1882) was a Scottish physician and toxicologist. Notes on Nursing is not the only one of Isabella Beeton’s sources that considers him worth quoting.]
1872. if the patient be allowed to take it, a teaspoonful of minced parsley
[Reminder: People really believed this. A sick person could load up on beef, milk and starches, but Heaven forbid you introduce any fresh fruits or vegetables without close medical supervision. In fairness to Florence Nightingale, she herself saw nothing wrong with letting sick people have vegetables if they wanted them.]
1878. some races of men
[The next few sentences were not lifted from any of Isabella Beeton’s ordinary sources. I am perfectly happy not knowing where she swiped them.]
The rank which a people occupy in the grand scale may be measured by . . . their way of treating their women
[This does not, of course, refer to the degree of economic or political power held by women in various societies, nor yet to the amount of physical labor in the respective sexes’ workday, but purely to the social niceties subsumed under “ladies first”. —Ed.]
1879. Man, it has been said,
[The story about the Croat captain is from Brillat-Savarin, as advertised—and so is the part about huntsmen in Dauphiny.]
1880. says Lord Byron
[In “Don Juan”, Cantos XIII and XV.]
intellect expended on two courses
[Reminder: In Isabella Beeton’s time, Service à la Russe—featuring up to eighteen courses—had not yet reached the middle classes. In Lord Byron’s time, it had not even reached the upper classes.]
1881. due at her home prepared
[Printed as shown; the line is really “due at her hour”]
1882. as Mr. Lewes observes
[At some time in the past year (600 pages in monthly installments), Isabella must have noticed that it isn’t spelled “Lewis”. His actual words are: “Nerve-tissue is inordinately expensive.”.]
1885. It has been said
[This and the following paragraph are cherry-picked from Brillat-Savarin; see Sources.]
1886. The gastronomist from whom we have already quoted
[Quoted, yes. Named, not so much. It’s still Brillat-Savarin; see Sources.]
the number should never exceed that of the Muses or fall below that of the Graces
[It’s been a long book; the Editress may have forgotten that she said the same thing way back in Sec. 35 of Chapter I. If we can believe Pantropheon, it was not only custom but law: “In the year of Rome 570 (182 b.c.), the tribune of the people, C. Orchius, was the prime mover of the first sumptuary law, which enacted
that the number of guests were not to exceed that of the Muses, nor be
less than that of the Graces.”.]
At least 28 menus include soups or meats à la Jardinière. The term also crops up in the Bills of Fare section of Bishop’s Illustrated London Cookery Book, one of Mrs. Beeton’s known sources. Neither Bishop nor Mrs. Beeton ever gets around to explaining what it means (basically, “with vegetables”).
2055. veal cutlets and tomata sauce
[Throughout the book, our Editress has been content to spell it “tomato”. But some earlier writers—including Eliza Acton—preferred “tomata”. The spelling will recur several times in the Bills of Fare section.]
The original of this text is in the public domain—at least in the U.S.
My notes are copyright, as are all under-the-hood elements.
If in doubt, ask.