THE

VIRGINIA

HOUSEWIFE:

OR

METHODICAL COOK.

BY MRS. MARY RANDOLPH.

METHOD IS THE SOUL OF MANAGEMENT

1860

PREFACE.

The difficulties I encountered when I first entered on the duties of a
housekeeping life, from the want of books sufficiently clear and concise to
impart knowledge to a Tyro, compelled me to study the subject, and by
actual experiment to reduce every thing in the culinary line, to proper
weights and measures. This method I found not only to diminish the
necessary attention and labour, but to be also economical: for, when the
ingredients employed were given in just proportions, the article made was
always equally good. The government of a family, bears a Lilliputian
resemblance to the government of a nation. The contents of the Treasury
must be known, and great care taken to keep the expenditures from being
equal to the receipts. A regular system must be introduced into each
department, which may be modified until matured, and should then pass into
an inviolable law. The grand arcanum of management lies in three simple
rules:–“Let every thing be done at a proper time, keep every thing in its
proper place, and put every thing to its proper use.” If the mistress of a
family, will every morning examine minutely the different departments of
her household, she must detect errors in their infant state, when they can
be corrected with ease; but a few days’ growth gives them gigantic
strength: and disorder, with all her attendant evils, are introduced. Early
rising is also essential to the good government of a family. A late
breakfast deranges the whole business of the day, and throws a portion of
it on the next, which opens the door for confusion to enter. The greater
part of the following receipts have been written from memory, where they
were impressed by long continued practice. Should they prove serviceable to
the young inexperienced housekeeper, it will add greatly to that
gratification which an extensive circulation of the work will be likely to
confer.

M. RANDOLPH. Washington, January, 1831.

INTRODUCTION.

Management is an art that may be acquired by every woman of good sense
and tolerable memory. If, unfortunately, she has been bred in a family
where domestic business is the work of chance, she will have many
difficulties to encounter; but a determined resolution to obtain this
valuable knowledge, will enable her to surmount all obstacles. She must
begin the day with an early breakfast, requiring each person to be in
readiness to take their seats when the muffins, buckwheat cakes, &c.
are placed on the table. This looks social and comfortable. When the family
breakfast by detachments, the table remains a tedious time; the servants
are kept from their morning’s meal, and a complete derangement takes place
in the whole business of the day. No work can be done till breakfast is
finished. The Virginia ladies, who are proverbially good managers, employ
themselves, while their servants are eating, in washing the cups, glasses,
&c.; arranging the cruets, the mustard, salt-sellers, pickle vases, and
all the apparatus for the dinner table. This occupies but a short time, and
the lady has the satisfaction of knowing that they are in much better order
than they would be if left to the servants. It also relieves her from the
trouble of seeing the dinner table prepared, which should be done every day
with the same scrupulous regard to exact neatness and method, as if a grand
company was expected. When the servant is required to do this daily, he
soon gets into the habit of doing it well; and his mistress having made
arrangements for him in the morning, there is no fear of bustle and
confusion in running after things that may be called for during the hour of
dinner. When the kitchen breakfast is over, and the cook has put all things
in their proper places, the mistress should go in to give her orders. Let
all the articles intended for the dinner, pass in review before her: have
the butter, sugar, flour, meal, lard, given out in proper quantities; the
catsup, spice, wine, whatever may be wanted for each dish, measured to the
cook. The mistress must tax her own memory with all this: we have no right
to expect slaves or hired servants to be more attentive to our interest
than we ourselves are: they will never recollect these little articles
until they are going to use them; the mistress must then be called out, and
thus have the horrible drudgery of keeping house all day, when one hour
devoted to it in the morning, would release her from trouble until the next
day. There is economy as well as comfort in a regular mode of doing
business. When the mistress gives out every thing, there is no waste; but
if temptation be thrown in the way of subordinates, not many will have
power to resist it; besides, it is an immoral act to place them in a
situation which we pray to be exempt from ourselves.

The prosperity and happiness of a family depend greatly on the order and
regularity established in it. The husband, who can ask a friend to partake
of his dinner in full confidence of finding his wife unruffled by the petty
vexations attendant on the neglect of household duties–who can usher his
guest into the dining-room assured of seeing that methodical nicety which
is the essence of true elegance,–will feel pride and exultation in the
possession of a companion, who gives to his home charms that gratify every
wish of his soul, and render the haunts of dissipation hateful to him. The
sons bred in such a family will be moral men, of steady habits; and the
daughters, if the mother shall have performed the duties of a parent in the
superintendence of their education, as faithfully as she has done those of
a wife, will each be a treasure to her husband; and being formed on the
model of an exemplary mother, will use the same means for securing the
happiness of her own family, which she has seen successfully practised
under the paternal roof.

CONTENTS.

SOUPS.

BEEF.

VEAL.

LAMB.

MUTTON.

PORK.

FISH.

POULTRY, &c.

To roast a goose
To make sauce for a goose
To boil ducks with onion
sauce
To make onion sauce
To roast ducks
To boil a turkey with oyster
sauce
To make sauce for a turkey
To roast a turkey
To make sauce for a turkey
To boil fowls
To make white sauce for
fowls
Fricassee of small chickens
To roast large fowls
To make egg sauce
To boil young chickens
To roast young chickens
Fried chickens
To roast woodcocks or snipes
To roast wild ducks or teal
To boil pigeons
To roast pigeons
To roast partridges or
any small birds
To broil rabbits
To roast rabbits
To stew wild ducks
To dress ducks with juice
of oranges
To dress ducks with onions
To roast a calf’s head
To make a
dish of curry after the East Indian manner
Dish of rice to be served up with the curry, in a dish by itself
Ochra and tomatos
Gumbo–a West India dish
Pepper pot
Spanish method of dressing
giblets
Paste for meat dumplins
To make an ollo–a Spanish
dish
Ropa veija–Spanish
Chicken pudding, a
favourite Virginia dish
To make polenta
Macaroni
Mock macaroni
To make croquets
To make vermicelli
Common patties
Eggs in croquets
Omelette souffle
Fondus
A nice twelve o’clock
luncheon
Eggs a-la-creme
Sauce a-la-creme for the
eggs
Cabbage a-la-creme
To make an omelette
Omelette–another way
Gaspacho–Spanish
Eggs and tomatos
To fricassee eggs

SAUCES.

VEGETABLES.

PUDDINGS, &c.

Observations on puddings and
cakes
Rice milk for a dessert
To make puff paste
To make mince-meat for pies
To make jelly from feet
A sweet-meat pudding
To make an orange pudding
An apple custard
Boiled loaf
Transparent pudding
Flummery
Burnt custard
An English plum pudding
Marrow pudding
Sippet pudding
Sweet potato pudding
An arrow root pudding
Sago pudding
Puff pudding
Rice pudding
Plum pudding
Almond pudding
Quire of paper pancakes
A curd pudding
Lemon pudding
Bread pudding
The Henrietta pudding
Tansey pudding
Cherry pudding
Apple pie
Baked apple pudding
A nice boiled pudding
An excellent and cheap
dessert dish
Sliced apple pudding
Baked Indian meal pudding
Boiled Indian meal pudding
Pumpkin pudding
Fayette pudding
Maccaroni pudding
Potato paste
Compote of apples
Charlotte
Apple fritters
Bell fritters
Bread fritters
Spanish fritters
To make mush

CAKES.

Observations on ice creams

COLD CREAMS

PRESERVES

PICKLING.

CORDIALS, &c

SOUPS

ASPARAGUS SOUP.

Take four large bunches of asparagus, scrape it nicely, cut off one inch
of the tops, and lay them in water, chop the stalks and put them on the
fire with a piece of bacon, a large onion cut up, and pepper and salt; add
two quarts of water, boil them till the stalks are quite soft, then pulp
them through a sieve, and strain the water to it, which must be put back in
the pot; put into it a chicken cut up, with the tops of asparagus which had
been laid by, boil it until these last articles are sufficiently done,
thicken with flour, butter and milk, and serve it up.

BEEF SOUP.

Take the hind shin of beef, cut off all the flesh off the leg-bone,
which must be taken away entirely, or the soup will be greasy. Wash the
meat clean and lay it in a pot, sprinkle over it one small table-spoonful
of pounded black pepper, and two of salt; three onions the size of a hen’s
egg, cut small, six small carrots scraped and cut up, two small turnips
pared and cut into dice; pour on three quarts of water, cover the pot
close, and keep it gently and steadily boiling five hours, which will leave
about three pints of clear soup; do not let the pot boil over, but take off
the scum carefully, as it rises. When it has boiled four hours, put in a
small bundle of thyme and parsley, and a pint of celery cut small, or a
tea-spoonful of celery seed pounded. These latter ingredients would lose
their delicate flavour if boiled too much. Just before you take it up,
brown it in the following manner: put a small table-spoonful of nice brown
sugar into an iron skillet, set it on the fire and stir it till it melts
and looks very dark, pour into it a ladle full of the soup, a little at a
time; stirring it all the while. Strain this browning and mix it well with
the soup; take out the bundle of thyme and parsley, put the nicest pieces
of meat in your tureen, and pour on the soup and vegetables; put in some
toasted bread cut in dice, and serve it up.

GRAVY SOUP.

Get eight pounds of coarse lean beef–wash it clean and lay it in your
pot, put in the same ingredients as for the shin soup, with the same
quantity of water, and follow the process directed for that. Strain the
soup through a sieve, and serve it up clear, with nothing more than toasted
bread in it; two table-spoonsful of mushroom catsup will add a fine flavour
to the soup.

SOUP WITH BOUILLI.

Take the nicest part of the thick brisket of beef, about eight pounds,
put it into a pot with every thing directed for the other soup; make it
exactly in the same way, only put it on an hour sooner, that you may have
time to prepare the bouilli; after it has boiled five hours, take out the
beef, cover up the soup and set it near the fire that it may keep hot. Take
the skin off the beef, have the yelk of an egg well beaten, dip a feather
in it and wash the top of your beef, sprinkle over it the crumb of stale
bread finely grated, put it in a Dutch oven previously heated, put the top
on with coals enough to brown, but not burn the beef; let it stand nearly
an hour, and prepare your gravy thus:–Take a sufficient quantity of soup
and the vegetables boiled in it; add to it a table-spoonful of red wine,
and two of mushroom catsup, thicken with a little bit of butter and a
little brown flour; make it very hot, pour it in your dish, and put the
beef on it. Garnish it with green pickle, cut in thin slices, serve up the
soup in a tureen with bits of toasted bread.

VEAL SOUP.

Put into a pot three quarts of water, three onions cut small, one
spoonful of black pepper pounded, and two of salt, with two or three slices
of lean ham; let it boil steadily two hours; skim it occasionally, then put
into it a shin of veal, let it boil two hours longer; take out the slices
of ham, and skim off the grease if any should rise, take a gill of good
cream, mix with it two table-spoonsful of flour very nicely, and the yelks
of two eggs beaten well, strain this mixture, and add some chopped parsley;
pour some soup on by degrees, stir it well, and pour it into the pot,
continuing to stir until it has boiled two or three minutes to take off the
raw taste of the eggs. If the cream be not perfectly sweet, and the eggs
quite new, the thickening will curdle in the soup. For a change you may put
a dozen ripe tomatos in, first taking off their skins, by letting them
stand a few minutes in hot water, when they may be easily peeled. When made
in this way you must thicken it with the flour only. Any part of the veal
may be used, but the shin or knuckle is the nicest.

OYSTER SOUP.

Wash and drain two quarts of oysters, put them on with three quarts of
water, three onions chopped up, two or three slices of lean ham, pepper and
salt; boil it till reduced one-half, strain it through a sieve, return the
liquid into the pot, put in one quart of fresh oysters, boil it till they
are sufficiently done, and thicken the soup with four spoonsful of flour,
two gills of rich cream, and the yelks of six new laid eggs beaten well;
boil it a few minutes after the thickening is put in. Take care that it
does not curdle, and that the flour is not in lumps; serve it up with the
last oysters that were put in. If the flavour of thyme be agreeable, you
may put in a little, but take care that it does not boil in it long enough
to discolour the soup.

BARLEY SOUP.

Put on three gills of barley, three quarts of water, few onions cut up,
six carrots scraped and cut into dice, an equal quantity of turnips cut
small; boil it gently two hours, then put in four or five pounds of the
rack or neck of mutton, a few slices of lean ham, with pepper and salt;
boil it slowly two hours longer and serve it up. Tomatos are an excellent
addition to this soup.

DRIED PEA SOUP.

Take one quart of split peas, or Lima beans, which are better; put them
in three quarts of very soft water with three onions chopped up, pepper and
salt; boil them two hours; mash them well and pass them through a sieve;
return the liquid into the pot, thicken it with a large piece of butter and
flour, put in some slices of nice salt pork, and a large tea-spoonful of
celery seed pounded; boil it till the pork is done, and serve it up; have
some toasted bread cut into dice and fried in butter, which must be put in
the tureen before you pour in the soup.

GREEN PEA SOUP.

Make it exactly as you do the dried pea soup, only in place of the
celery seed, put a handful of mint chopped small, and a pint of young peas,
which must be boiled in the soup till tender; thicken it with a quarter of
a pound of butter, and two spoonsful of flour.

OCHRA SOUP.

Get two double handsful of young ochra, wash and slice it thin, add two
onions chopped fine, put it into a gallon of water at a very early hour in
an earthen pipkin, or very nice iron pot; it must be kept steadily
simmering, but not boiling: put in pepper and salt. At 12 o’clock, put in a
handful of Lima beans; at half-past one o’clock, add three young cimlins
cleaned and cut in small pieces, a fowl, or knuckle of veal, a bit of bacon
or pork that has been boiled, and six tomatos, with the skin taken off;
when nearly done, thicken with a spoonful of butter, mixed with one of
flour. Have rice boiled to eat with it.

HARE OR RABBIT SOUP.

Cut up two hares, put them into a pot with a piece of bacon, two onions
chopped, a bundle of thyme and parsley, which must be taken out before the
soup is thickened, add pepper, salt, pounded cloves, and mace, put in a
sufficient quantity of water, stew it gently three hours, thicken with a
large spoonful of butter, and one of brown flour, with a glass of red wine;
boil it a few minutes longer, and serve it up with the nicest parts of the
hares. Squirrels make soup equally good, done the same way.

SOUP OF ANY KIND OF OLD
FOWL.

The, only way in which they are eatable. Put the fowls in a coop
and feed them moderately for a fortnight; kill one and cleanse it, cut off
the legs and wings, and separate the breast from the ribs, which, together
with the whole back, must be thrown away, being too gross and strong for
use. Take the skin and fat from the parts cut off which are also gross.
Wash the pieces nicely, and put them on the fire with abort a pound of
bacon, a large onion chopped small, some pepper and salt, a few blades of
mace, a handful of parsley, cut up very fine, and two quarts of water, if
it be a common fowl or duck–a turkey will require more water. Boil it
gently for three hours, tie up a small bunch of thyme, and let it boil in
it half an hour, then take it out. Thicken your soup with a large spoonful
of butter rubbed into two of flour, the yelks of two eggs, and half a pint
of milk. Be careful not to let it curdle in the soup.

CATFISH SOUP.

An excellent dish for those who have not imbibed a needless prejudice
against those delicious fish.

Take two large or four small white catfish that have been caught in deep
water, cut off the heads, and skin and clean the bodies; cut each in three
parts, put them in a pot, with a pound of lean bacon, a large onion cut up,
a handful of parsley chopped small, some pepper and salt, pour in a
sufficient quantity of water, and stew them till the fish are quite tender
but not broken; beat the yelks of four fresh eggs, add to them a large
spoonful of butter, two of flour, and half a pint of rich milk; make all
these warm and thicken the soup, take out the bacon, and put some of the
fish in your tureen, pour in the soup, and serve it up.

ONION SOUP.

Chop up twelve large onions, boil them in three quarts of milk and water
equally mixed, put in a bit of veal or fowl, and a piece of bacon with
pepper and salt. When the onions are boiled to pulp, thicken it with a
large spoonful of butter mixed with one of flour. Take out the meat, and
serve it up with toasted bread cut in small pieces in the soup.

TO DRESS TURTLE.

Kill it at night in winter, and in the morning in summer. Hang it up by
the hind fins, cut off the head and let it bleed well. Separate the bottom
shell from the top, with great care, lest the gall bladder be broken, which
must be cautiously taken out and thrown away. Put the liver in a bowl of
water. Empty the guts and lay them in water; if there be eggs, put them
also in water. It is proper to have a separate bowl of water for each
article. Cut all the flesh from the bottom shell, and lay it in water; then
break the shell in two, put it in a pot after having washed it clean; pour
on as much water as will cover it entirely, add one pound of middling, or
flitch of bacon, with four onions chopped, and set it on the fire to boil.
Open the guts, cleanse them perfectly; take off the inside skin, and put
them in the pot with the shell; let them boil steadily for three hours, and
if the water boils away too much, add more. Wash the top shell nicely after
taking out the flesh, cover it, and set it by. Parboil the fins, clean them
nicely–taking off all the black skin, and put them in water; cut the flesh
taken from the bottom and top shell, in small pieces; cut the fins in two,
lay them with the flesh in a dish; sprinkle some salt over, and cover them
up. When the shell, &c. is done, take out the bacon, scrape the shell
clean, and strain the liquor; about one quart of which must be put back in
the pot; reserve the rest for soup; pick out the guts, and cut them in
small pieces; take all the nice bits that were strained out, put them with
the guts into the gravy; lay in the fins cut in pieces with them, and as
much of the flesh as will be sufficient to fill the upper shell; add to it,
(if a large turtle,) one bottle of white wine; cayenne pepper, and salt, to
your taste, one gill of mushroom catsup, one gill of lemon pickle, mace,
nutmegs and cloves, pounded, to season it high. Mix two large spoonsful of
flour in one pound and a quarter of butter; put it in with thyme, parsley,
marjoram and savory, tied in bunches; stew all these together, till the
flesh and fins are tender; wash out the top shell, put a puff paste around
the brim; sprinkle over the shell pepper and salt, then take the herbs out
of the stew; if the gravy is not thick enough, add a little more flour, and
fill the shell; should there be no eggs in the turtle, boil six new laid
ones for ten minutes, put them in cold water a short time, peel them, cut
them in two, and place them on the turtle; make a rich forcemeat, (see
receipt for forcemeat,) fry the balls nicely, and put them also in the
shell; set it in a dripping pan, with something under the sides to keep it
steady; have the oven heated as for bread, and let it remain in it till
nicely browned. Fry the liver and send it in hot.

FOR THE SOUP.

At an early hour in the morning, put on eight pounds of coarse beef,
some bacon, onions, sweet herbs, pepper and salt. Make a rich soup, strain
it and thicken with a bit of butter, and brown flour; add to it the water
left from boiling the bottom shell; season it very high with wine, catsup,
spice and cayenne; put in the flesh you reserved, and if that is not
enough, add the nicest parts of a well boiled calf’s head; but do not use
the eyes or tongue; let it boil till tender, and serve it up with fried
forcemeat balls in it.

If you have curry powder, (see receipt for it,) it will give a higher
flavour to both soup and turtle, than spice. Should you not want soup, the
remaining flesh may be fried, and served with a rich gravy.

MOCK TURTLE SOUP OF CALF’S
HEAD.

Have a large head cleaned nicely without taking off the skin, divide the
chop from the front of the head, take out the tongue, (which is best when
salted,) put on the head with a gallon of water, the hock of a ham or a
piece of nice pork, four or five onions, thyme, parsley, cloves and nutmeg,
pepper and salt, boil all these together until the flesh on the head is
quite tender, then take it up, cut all into small pieces, take the eyes out
carefully, strain the water in which it was boiled, add half a pint of wine
and a gill of mushroom catsup, let it boil slowly till reduced to two
quarts, thicken it with two spoonsful of browned flour rubbed into four
ounces of butter, put the meat in, and after stewing it a short time, serve
it up. The eyes are a great delicacy.

BEEF.

DIRECTIONS FOR CURING
BEEF.

Prepare your brine in the middle of October, after the following manner:
get a thirty gallon cask, take out one head, drive in the bung, and put
some pitch on it, to prevent leaking. See that the cask is quite tight and
clean. Put into it one pound of saltpetre powdered, fifteen quarts of salt,
and fifteen gallons of cold water; stir it frequently, until dissolved,
throw over the cask a thick cloth, to keep out the dust; look at it often
and take off the scum. These proportions have been accurately
ascertained–fifteen gallons of cold water will exactly hold, in solution,
fifteen quarts of good clean Liverpool salt, and one pound of saltpetre:
this brine will be strong enough to bear up an egg: if more salt be added,
it will fall to the bottom without strengthening the brine, the water being
already saturated. This brine will cure all the beef which a private family
can use in the course of the winter, and requires nothing more to be done
to it except occasionally skimming the dross that rises. It must be kept in
a cool, dry place. For salting your beef, get a molasses hogshead and saw
it in two, that the beef may have space to lie on; bore some holes in the
bottom of these tubs, and raise them on one side about an inch, that the
bloody brine may run off.

Be sure that your beef is newly killed–rub each piece very well with
good Liverpool salt–a vast deal depends upon rubbing the salt into every
part–it is unnecessary to put saltpetre on it; sprinkle a good deal of
salt on the bottom of the tub. When the beef is well salted, lay it in the
tub, and be sure you put the fleshy side downward. Put a great deal of salt
on your beef after it is packed in the tub; this protects it from animals
who might eat, if they could smell it, and does not waste the salt, for the
beef can only dissolve a certain portion. You must let the beef lie in salt
ten days, then take it out, brush off the salt, and wipe it with a damp
cloth; put it in the brine with a bit of board and weight to keep it under.
In about ten days it will look red and be fit for the table, but it will be
red much sooner when the brine becomes older. The best time to begin to
salt beef is the latter end of October, if the weather be cool, and from
that time have it in succession. When your beef is taken out of the tub,
stir the salt about to dry, that it may be ready for the next pieces.
Tongues are cured in the same manner.

TO DRY BEEF FOR SUMMER
USE.

The best pieces for this purpose are the thin briskets, or that part of
the plate which is farthest from the shoulder of the animal, the round and
rib pieces which are commonly used for roasting. These should not be cut
with long ribs and the back-bones must be sawed off as close as possible,
that the piece may lay flat in the dish. About the middle of February,
select your beef from an animal well fatted with corn, and which, when
killed, will weigh one hundred and fifty per quarter–larger oxen are
always coarse. Salt the pieces as directed, let them lie one fortnight,
then put them in brine, where they must remain three weeks: take them out
at the end of the time, wipe them quite dry, rub them over with bran, and
hang them in a cool, dry, and, if possible, dark place, that the flies may
not get to them: they must be suspended, and not allowed to touch any
thing. It will be necessary, in the course of the summer, to look them over
occasionally, and after a long wet season, to lay them in the sun a few
hours. Your tongues may be dried in the same manner: make a little hole in
the root, run a twine through it, and suspend it. These dried meats must be
put in a good quantity of water, to soak, the night before they are to be
used. In boiling it is absolutely necessary to have a large quantity of
water to put the beef in while the water is cold, to boil steadily,
skimming the pot, until the bones are ready to fall out; and, if a tongue,
till the skin peels off with perfect ease: the skin must also be taken from
the beef. The housekeeper who will buy good ox beef, and follow these
directions exactly, may be assured of always having delicious beef on her
table. Ancient prejudice has established a notion, that meat killed in the
decrease of the moon, will draw up when cooked. The true cause of this
shrinking, may be found in the old age of the animal, or in its diseased
state, at the time of killing. The best age is from three to five
years.

Few persons are aware of the injury they sustain, by eating the flesh of
diseased animals. None but the Jewish butchers, who are paid exclusively
for it, attend to this important circumstance. The best rule for judging
that I have been able to discover, is the colour of the fat. When the fat
of beef is a high shade of yellow, I reject it. If the fat of veal, mutton,
lamb or pork, have the slightest tinge of yellow, I avoid it as diseased.
The same rule holds good when applied to poultry.

TO CORN BEEF IN HOT
WEATHER.

Take a piece of thin brisket or plate, cut out the ribs nicely, rub it
on both sides well with two large spoonsful of pounded saltpetre; pour on
it a gill of molasses and a quart of salt; rub them both in; put it in a
vessel just large enough to hold it, but not tight, for the bloody brine
must run off as it makes, or the meat will spoil. Let it be well covered,
top, bottom and sides, with the molasses and salt. In four days you may
boil it, tied up in a cloth with the salt, &c. about it: when done,
take the skin off nicely, and serve it up. If you have an ice-house or
refrigerator, it will be best to keep it there. A fillet or breast of veal,
and a leg or rack of mutton, are excellent done in the same way.

IMPORTANT
OBSERVATIONS ON ROASTING, BOILING, FRYING, &c.

In roasting butchers’ meat, be careful not to run the spit through the
nice parts: let the piece lie in water one hour, then wash it out, wipe it
perfectly dry, and put it on the spit. Set it before a clear, steady fire:
sprinkle some salt on it, and when it becomes hot, baste it for a time with
salt and water: then put a good spoonful of nice lard into the
dripping-pan, and when melted, continue to baste with it. When your meat,
of whatever kind, has been down some time, but before it begins to look
brown, cover it with paper and baste on it; when it is nearly done, take
off the paper, dredge it with flour, turn the spit for some minutes very
quick, and baste all the time to raise a froth–after which, serve it up.
When mutton is roasted, after you take off the paper, loosen the skin and
peel it off carefully, then dredge and froth it up. Beef and mutton must
not be roasted as much as veal, lamb, or pork; the two last must be skinned
in the manner directed for mutton. You may pour a little melted butter in
the dish with veal, but all the others must be served without sauce, and
garnished with horse-radish, nicely scraped. Be careful not to let a
particle of dry flour be seen on the meat–it has a very ill appearance.
Beef may look brown, but the whiter the other meats are, the more genteel
are they, and if properly roasted, they may be perfectly done, and quite
white. A loin of veal, and hind quarter of lamb, should be dished with the
kidneys uppermost; and be sure to joint every thing that is to be separated
at table, or it will be impossible to carve neatly. For those who
must have gravy with these meats, let it be made in any way they
like, and served in a boat. No meat can be well roasted except on a spit
turned by a jack, and before a steady clear fire–other methods are no
better than baking. Many cooks are in the habit of half boiling the meats
to plump them as they term it, before they are spitted, but it destroys
their fine flavour. Whatever is to be boiled, must be put into cold water
with a little salt, which will cook them regularly. When they are put in
boiling water, the outer side is done too much, before the inside gets
heated. Nice lard is much better than butter for basting roasted meats, or
for frying. To choose butchers’ meat, you must see that the fat is not
yellow, and that the lean parts are of a fine close grain, a lively colour,
and will feel tender when pinched. Poultry should be well covered with
white fat; if the bottom of the breast bone be gristly, it is young, but if
it be a hard bone, it is an old one. Fish are judged by the liveliness of
their eyes, and bright red of their gills. Dredge every thing with flour
before it is put on to boil, and be sure to add salt to the water.

Fish, and all other articles for frying, after being nicely prepared,
should be laid on a board and dredged with flour or meal mixed with salt:
when it becomes dry on one side, turn it, and dredge the other. For
broiling, have very clear coals, sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the
pieces, and when done, dish them, and pour over some melted butter and
chopped parsley–this is for broiled veal, wild fowl, birds or poultry:
beef-steaks and mutton chops require only a table-spoonful of hot water to
be poured over. Slice an onion in the dish before you put in the steaks or
chops, and garnish both with rasped horse-radish. To have viands served in
perfection, the dishes should be made hot, either by setting them over hot
water, or by putting some in them, and the instant the meats are laid in
and garnished, put on a pewter dish cover. A dinner looks very enticing,
when the steam rises from each dish on removing the covers, and if it be
judiciously ordered, will have a double relish. Profusion is not
elegance–a dinner justly calculated for the company, and consisting for
the greater part of small articles, correctly prepared, and neatly served
up, will make a much more pleasing appearance to the sight, and give a far
greater gratification to the appetite, than a table loaded with food, and
from the multiplicity of dishes, unavoidably neglected in the preparation,
and served up cold.

There should always be a supply of brown flour kept in readiness to
thicken brown gravies, which must be prepared in the following manner: put
a pint of flour in a Dutch oven, with some coals under it; keep constantly
stirring it until it is uniformly of a dark brown, but none of it burnt,
which would look like dirt in the gravy. All kitchens should be provided
with a saw for trimming meat, and also with larding needles.

BEEF A-LA-MODE.

Take the bone from a round of beef, fill the space with a forcemeat made
of the crumbs of a stale loaf, four ounces of marrow, two heads of garlic
chopped with thyme and parsley, some nutmeg, cloves, pepper and salt, mix
it to a paste with the yelks of four eggs beaten, stuff the lean part of
the round with it, and make balls of the remainder; sew a fillet of strong
linen wide enough to keep it round and compact, put it in a vessel just
sufficiently large to hold it, add a pint of red wine, cover it with sheets
of tin or iron, set it in a brick oven properly heated, and bake it three
hours; when done, skim the fat from the gravy, thicken it with brown flour,
add some mushroom and walnut catsup, and serve it up garnished with
forcemeat balls fried. It is still better when eaten cold with sallad.

BRISKET OF BEEF BAKED.

Bone a brisket of beef, and make holes in it with a sharp knife about an
inch apart, fill them alternately with fat bacon, parsley and oysters, all
chopped small and seasoned with pounded cloves and nutmeg, pepper and salt,
dredge it well with flour, lay it in a pan with a pint of red wine and a
large spoonful of lemon pickle; bake it three hours, take the fat from the
gravy and strain it; serve it up garnished with green pickles.

BEEF OLIVES.

Cut slices from a fat rump of beef six inches long and half an inch
thick, beat them well with a pestle; make a forcemeat of bread crumbs, fat
bacon chopped, parsley, a little onion, some shred suet, pounded mace,
pepper and salt; mix it up with the yelks of eggs, and spread a thin layer
over each slice of beef, roll it up tight, and secure the rolls with
skewers, set them before the fire, and turn them till they are a nice
brown; have ready a pint of good gravy, thickened with brown flour and a
spoonful of butter, a gill of red wine, with two spoonsful of mushroom
catsup, lay the rolls in it, and stew them till tender; garnish with
forcemeat balls.

TO STEW A RUMP OF BEEF.

Take out as much of the bone as can be done with a saw, that it may lie
flat on the dish, stuff it with forcemeat made as before directed, lay it
in a pot with two quarts of water, a pint of red wine, some carrots and
turnips cut in small pieces and stewed over it, a head of cellery cut up, a
few cloves of garlic, some pounded cloves, pepper and salt, stew it gently
till sufficiently done, skim the fat off, thicken the gravy, and serve it
up; garnish with little bits of puff paste nicely baked, and scraped
horse-radish.

A FRICANDO OF BEEF.

Cut a few slices of beef six inches long, two or three wide, and one
thick, lard them with bacon, dredge them well, and make them a nice brown
before a brisk fire; stew them half an hour in a well seasoned gravy, put
some stewed sorrel or spinage in the dish, lay on the beef, and pour over a
sufficient quantity of gravy; garnish with fried balls.

AN EXCELLENT METHOD
OF DRESSING BEEF.

Take a rib roasting piece that has been hanging ten days or a fortnight,
bone it neatly, rub some salt over it and roll it tight, binding it around
with twine, put the spit through the inner fold without sticking it in the
flesh, skewer it well and roast it nicely; when nearly done, dredge and
froth it; garnish with scraped horse-radish.

TO COLLAR A FLANK OF BEEF.

Get a nice flank of beef, rub it well with a large portion of saltpetre
and common salt, let it remain ten days, then wash it clean, take off the
outer and inner skin with the gristle, spread it on a board, and cover the
inside with the following mixture: parsley, sage, thyme chopped fine,
pepper, salt and pounded cloves; roll it up, sew a cloth over it, and
bandage that with tape, boil it gently five or six hours, when cold, lay it
on a board without undoing it, put another board on the top, with a heavy
weight on it; let it remain twenty-four hours, take off the bandages, cut a
thin slice from each end, serve it up garnished with green pickle and
sprigs of parsley.

TO MAKE HUNTERS’ BEEF.

Select a fine fat round weighing about twenty-five pounds, take three
ounces saltpetre, one ounce of cloves, half an ounce of alspice, a large
nutmeg, and a quart of salt; pound them all together very fine, take the
bone out, rub it well with this mixture on both sides, put some of it at
the bottom of a tub just large enough to hold the beef, lay it in and strew
the remainder on the top, rub it well every day for two weeks, and spread
the mixture over it; at the end of this time, wash the beef, bind it with
tape, to keep it round and compact, filling the hole where the bone was
with a piece of fat, lay it in a pan of convenient size, strew a little
suet over the top, and pour on it a pint of water, cover the pan with a
coarse crust and a thick paper over that, it will take five hours baking;
when cold take off the tape. It is a delicious relish at twelve o’clock, or
for supper, eaten with vinegar, mustard, oil, or sallad. Skim the grease
from the gravy and bottle it; it makes an excellent seasoning for any made
dish.

A NICE LITTLE DISH OF
BEEF.

Mince cold roast beef, fat and lean, very fine, add chopped onion,
pepper, salt, and a little good gravy, fill scollop shells two parts full,
and fill them up with potatos mashed smooth with cream, put a bit of butter
on the top, and set them in an oven to brown.

BEEF STEAKS.

The best part of the beef for steaks, is the seventh and eighth ribs,
the fat and lean are better mixed, and it is more tender than the rump if
it be kept long enough; cut the steaks half an inch thick, beat them a
little, have fine clear coals, rub the bars of the gridiron with a cloth
dipped in lard before you put it over the coals, that none may drip to
cause a bad smell, put no salt on till you dish them, broil them quick,
turning them frequently; the dish must be very hot, some slices of onion in
it, lay in the steaks, sprinkle a little salt, and pour over them a
spoonful of water and one of mushroom catsup, both made boiling hot,
garnish with scraped horse-radish, and put on a hot dish cover. Every thing
must be in readiness, for the great excellence of a beef steak lies in
having it immediately from the gridiron.

TO HASH BEEF.

Cut slices of raw beef, put them in a stew pan with a little water, some
catsup, a clove of garlic, pepper and salt, stew them till done, thicken
the gravy with a lump of butter rubbed into brown flour. A hash may be made
of any kind of meat that has been cooked, but it is not so good, and it is
necessary to have a gravy prepared and seasoned, and keep the hash over the
fire only a few minutes to make it hot.

BEEF STEAK PIE.

Cut nice steaks, and stew them till half done, put a puff paste in the
dish, lay in the steaks with a few slices of boiled ham, season the gravy
very high, pour it in the dish, put on a lid of paste and bake it.

BEEF A-LA-DAUBE.

Get a round of beef, lard it well, and put it in a Dutch oven; cut the
meat from a shin of beef, or any coarse piece in thin slices, put round the
sides and over the top some slices of bacon, salt, pepper, onion, thyme,
parsley, cellery tops, or seed pounded, and some carrots cut small, strew
the pieces of beef over, cover it with water, let it stew very gently till
perfectly done, take out the round, strain the gravy, let it stand to be
cold, take off the grease carefully, beat the whites of four eggs, mix a
little water with them, put them to the gravy, let it boil till it looks
clear, strain it, and when cold, put it over the beef.

VEAL.

DIRECTIONS FOR THE PIECES IN THE DIFFERENT QUARTERS OF VEAL.

A loin of veal must always be roasted: the fillet or leg may be dressed
in various ways, the knuckle or knee is proper for soup or for boiling;
these are the pieces that compose the hind quarter. In the fore quarter,
the breast and rack admit variety in cooking; the shoulder and neck are
only fit for soup.

VEAL CUTLETS FROM THE
FILLET OR LEG.

Cut off the flank and take the bone out, then take slices the size of
the fillet and half an inch thick, beat two yelks of eggs light, and have
some grated bread mixed with pepper, salt, pounded nutmeg and chopped
parsley; beat the slices a little, lay them on a board and wash the upper
side with the egg, cover it thick with the bread crumbs, press them on with
a knife, and let them stand to dry a little, that they may not fall off in
frying, then turn them gently, put egg and crumbs on in the same manner,
put them into a pan of boiling lard, and fry them a light brown; have some
good gravy ready, season it with a tea-spoonful of curry powder, a large
one of wine, and one of lemon pickle, thicken with butter and brown flour,
drain every drop of lard from the cutlets, lay them in the gravy, and stew
them fifteen or twenty minutes, serve them up garnished with lemon cut in
thin slices.

VEAL CHOPS.

Take the best end of a rack of veal, cut it in chops, with one bone in
each, leave the small end of the bone bare two inches, beat them flat, and
prepare them with eggs and crumbs, as the cutlets, butter some half-sheets
of white paper, wrap one round each chop, skewer it well, leaving the bare
bone out, broil them till done, and take care the paper does not burn; have
nice white sauce in a boat.

VEAL CUTLETS.

Cut them from the fillet, put them in a stew pan with a piece of nice
pork, a clove of garlic, a bundle of thyme and parsley, pepper and salt,
cover them with water and let them stew ten or fifteen minutes, lay them on
a dish, and when cold cover them well with the crumb of stale bread finely
grated, mixed with the leaves of parsley chopped very small, some pepper,
salt and grated nutmeg; press these on the veal with a knife, and when a
little dried, turn it and do the same to the other side; put a good
quantity of lard in a pan, when it boils lay the cutlets in carefully that
the crumbs may not fall; fry them a little brown, lay them on a strainer to
drain off the grease, do the same with the crumbs that have fallen in the
pan: while this is doing, simmer the water they were boiled in to half a
pint, strain it and thicken with four ounces of butter and a little browned
flour; add a gill of wine and one of mushroom catsup, put in the cutlets
and crumbs, and stew till tender; add forcemeat balls.

KNUCKLE OF VEAL.

Boil a half pint of pearl barley in salt and water till quite tender,
drain the water from it and stir in a piece of butter, put it in a deep
dish; have the knuckle nicely boiled in milk and water, and lay it on the
barley, pour some parsley and butter over it.

BAKED FILLET OF VEAL.

Take the bone out of the fillet, wrap the flap around and sew it, make a
forcemeat of bread crumbs, the fat of bacon, a little onion chopped,
parsley, pepper, salt, and a nutmeg pounded, wet it with the yelks of eggs,
fill the place from which the bone was taken, make holes around it with a
knife and fill them also, and lard the top; put it in a Dutch oven with a
pint of water, bake it sufficiently, thicken the gravy with butter and
brown flour, add a gill of wine and one of mushroom catsup, and serve it
garnished with forcemeat balls fried.

SCOTCH COLLOPS OF VEAL.

They may be made of the nice part of the rack, or cut from the fillet,
rub a little salt and pepper on them, and fry them a light brown; have a
rich gravy seasoned with wine, and any kind of catsup you choose, with a
few cloves of garlic, and some pounded mace, thicken it, put the collops in
and stew them a short time, take them out, strain the gravy over, and
garnish with bunches of parsley fried crisp, and thin slices of middling of
bacon, curled around a skewer and boiled.

VEAL OLIVES.

Take the bone out of the fillet and cut thin slices the size of the leg,
beat them flat, rub them with the yelk of an egg beaten, lay on each piece
a thin slice of boiled ham, sprinkle salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, chopped
parsley, and bread crumbs over all, roll them up tight, and secure them
with skewers, rub them with egg and roll them in bread crumbs, lay them on
a tin dripping pan, and set them in an oven; when brown on one side, turn
them, and when sufficiently done, lay them in a rich highly seasoned gravy
made of proper thickness, stew them till tender, garnish with forcemeat
balls and green pickles sliced.

RAGOUT OF A BREAST OF
VEAL.

Separate the joints of the brisket, and saw off the sharp ends of the
ribs, trim it neatly, and half roast it; put it in a stew pan with a quart
of good gravy seasoned with wine, walnut and mushroom catsup, a
tea-spoonful of curry powder, and a few cloves of garlic; stew it till
tender, thicken the gravy, and garnish with sweatbreads nicely broiled.

FRICANDO OF VEAL.

Cut slices from the fillet an inch thick and six inches long, lard them
with slips of lean middling of bacon, bake them a light brown, stew them in
well seasoned gravy, made as thick as rich cream, serve them up hot, and
lay round the dish sorrel stewed with butter, pepper and salt, till quite
dry.

TO MAKE A PIE
OF SWEETBREADS AND OYSTERS.

Boil the sweetbreads tender, stew the oysters, season them with pepper
and salt, and thicken with cream, butter, the yelks of eggs and flour, put
a puff paste at the bottom and around the sides of a deep dish, take the
oysters up with an egg spoon, lay them in the bottom, and cover them with
the sweetbreads, fill the dish with gravy, put a paste on the top, and bake
it. This is the most delicate pie that can be made. The sweetbread of veal
is the most delicious part, and may be broiled, fried, or dressed in any
way, and is always good.

MOCK TURTLE OF CALF’S
HEAD.

Have the head nicely cleaned, divide the chop from the skull, take out
the brains and tongue, and boil the other parts till tender, take them out
of the water and put into it a knuckle of veal or four pounds of lean beef,
three onions chopped, thyme, parsley, a tea-spoonful of pounded cloves, the
same of mace, salt, and cayenne pepper to your taste–boil these things
together till reduced to a pint, strain it, and add two gills of red wine,
one of mushroom and one of walnut catsup, thicken it with butter and brown
flour; the head must be cut in small pieces and stewed a few minutes in the
gravy; put a paste round the edge of a deep dish, three folds, one on the
other, but none on the bottom; pour in the meat and gravy, and bake it till
the paste is done; pick all strings from the brains, pound them, and add
grated bread, pepper and salt, make them in little cakes with the yelk of
an egg, fry them a nice brown, boil six egg’s hard, leave one whole and
divide the others exactly in two, have some bits of paste nicely baked;
when the head is taken from the oven, lay the whole egg in the middle, and
dispose the others, with the brain cakes and bits of paste tastily around
it. If it be wanted as soup, do not reduce the gravy so much, and after
stewing the head, serve it in a tureen with the brain cakes and forcemeat
balls fried, in place of the eggs and paste. The tongue should be salted
and put in brine; they are very delicate, and four of them boiled and
pealed, and served with four small chickens boiled, make a handsome dish,
either cold or hot, with parsley and butter poured over them.

TO GRILL A CALF’S HEAD.

Clean and divide it as for the turtle, take out the brains and tongue,
boil it tender, take the eyes out whole, and cut the flesh from the skull
in small pieces; take some of the water it was boiled in for gravy, put to
it salt, cayenne pepper, a grated nutmeg, with a spoonful of lemon pickle;
stew it till it is well flavoured, take the jowl or chop, take out the
bones, and cover it with bread crumbs, chopped parsley, pepper and salt,
set it in an oven to brown, thicken the gravy with the yelks of two eggs
and a spoonful of butter rubbed into two of flour, stew the head in it a
few minutes, put it in the dish, and lay the grilled chop on it; garnish it
with brain cakes and broiled sweetbreads.

TO COLLAR A CALF’S HEAD.

After cleaning it nicely, saw the bone down the middle of the skull, but
do not separate the head, take out the brains and tongue, boil it tender
enough to remove the bones, which must be taken entirely out; lay it on a
board, have a good quantity of chopped parsley seasoned with mace, nutmeg,
pepper and salt–spread a layer of this, then one of thick slices of ham,
another of parsley and one of ham, roll it up tight, sew a cloth over it,
and bind that round with tape; boil it half an hour, and when cold press
it. It must be kept covered with vinegar and water, and is very delicious
eaten with sallad or oil and vinegar.

CALF’S HEART, A NICE DISH.

Take the heart and liver from the harslet, and cut off the windpipe,
boil the lights very tender, and cut them in small pieces–take as much of
the water they were boiled in as will be sufficient for gravy; add to it a
large spoonful of white wine, one of lemon pickle, some grated nutmeg,
pepper and salt, with a large spoonful of butter, mixed with one of white
flour; let it boil a few minutes, and put in the minced lights, set it by
till the heart and liver are ready, cut the ventricle out of the heart,
wash it well, lard it all over with narrow slips of middling, fill the
cavity with good forcemeat, put it in a pan on the broad end, that the
stuffing may not come out; bake it a nice brown, slice the liver an inch
thick and broil it, make the mince hot, set the heart upright in the middle
of the dish, pour it around, lay the broiled liver on, and garnish with
bunches of fried parsley; it should be served up extremely hot.

CALF’S FEET FRICASSEE.

Boil the feet till very tender, cut them in two and pull out the large
bones, have half a pint of good white gravy, add to it a spoonful of white
wine, one of lemon pickle, and some salt, with a tea-spoonful of curry
powder, stew the feet in it fifteen minutes, and thicken it with the yelks
of two eggs, a gill of milk, a large spoonful of butter, and two of white
flour, let the thickening be very smooth, shake the stew pan over the fire
a few minutes, but do not let it boil lest the eggs and milk should
curdle.

TO FRY CALF’S FEET.

Prepare them as for the fricassee, dredge them well with flour and fry
them a light brown, pour parsley and butter over, and garnish with fried
parsley.

TO PREPARE RENNET.

Take the stomach from the calf as soon as it is killed–do not wash it,
but hang it in a dry cool place for four or five days; then turn it inside
out, slip off all the curd nicely with the hand, fill it with a little
saltpetre mixed with the quantity of salt necessary, and lay it in a small
stone pot, pour over it a small tea-spoonful of vinegar, and sprinkle a
handful of salt over it, cover it closely and keep it for use. You must not
wash it–that would weaken the gastric juice, and injure the rennet. After
it has been salted six or eight weeks, cut off a piece four or five inches
long, put it in a large mustard bottle, or any vessel that will hold about
a pint and a half; put on it five gills of cold water, and two gills of
rose brandy–stop it very close, and shake it when you are going to use it:
a table-spoonful of this is sufficient for a quart of milk. It must be
prepared in very cool weather, and if well done, will keep more than a
year.

TO HASH A CALF’S HEAD.

Boil the head till the meat is almost enough for eating; then cut it in
thin slices, take three quarters of a pint of good gravy, and add half a
pint of white wine, half a nutmeg, two anchovies, a small onion stuck with
cloves, and a little mace; boil these up in the liquor for a quarter of an
hour, then strain it and boil it up again; put in the meat, with salt to
your taste, let it stew a little, and if you choose it, you may add some
sweetbreads, and make some forcemeat balls with veal; mix the brains with
the yelks of eggs and fry them to lay for a garish. When the head is ready
to be sent in, stir in a bit of butter.

TO BAKE A CALF’S HEAD.

Divide the calf’s head, wash it clean, and having the yelks of two eggs
well beaten, wash the outside of the head all over with them, and on that
strew raspings of bread sifted, pepper, salt, nutmeg and mace powdered;
also, the brains cut in pieces and dipped in thick butter, then cover the
head with bits of butter, pour into the pan some white wine and water, with
as much gravy, and cover it close. Let it be baked in a quick oven, and
when it is served up, pour on some strong gravy, and garnish with slices of
lemon, red beet root pickled, fried oysters and fried bread.

TO STUFF AND ROAST A
CALF’S LIVER.

Take a fresh calf’s liver, and having made a hole in it with a large
knife run in lengthways, but not quite through, have ready a forced meat,
or stuffing made of part of the liver parboiled, fat of bacon minced very
fine, and sweet herbs powdered; add to these some grated bread and spice
finely powdered, with pepper and salt. With this stuffing fill the hole in
the liver, which must be larded with fat bacon, and then roasted, flouring
it well, and basting with butter till it is enough. This is to be served up
hot, with gravy sauce having a little wine in it.

TO BROIL CALF’S LIVER.

Cut it in slices, put over it salt and pepper; broil it nicely, and pour
on some melted butter with chopped parsley after it is dished.

Directions
for cleaning Calf’s Head and Feet, for those who live in the country and
butcher their own meats.

As soon as the animal is killed, have the head and feet taken off, wash
them clean, sprinkle some pounded rosin all over the hairs, then dip them
in boiling water, take them instantly out, the rosin will dry immediately,
and they may be scraped clean with ease; the feet should be soaked in water
three or four days, changing it daily; this will make them very white.

LAMB.

TO ROAST THE FORE-QUARTER,
&c.

The fore-quarter should always be roasted and served with mint sauce in
a boat; chop the mint small and mix it with vinegar enough to make it
liquid, sweeten it with sugar.

The hind-quarter may be boiled or roasted, and requires mint sauce; it
may also be dressed in various ways.

BAKED LAMB.

Cut the shank bone from a hind-quarter, separate the joints of the loin,
lay it in a pan with the kidney uppermost, sprinkle some pepper and salt,
add a few cloves of garlic, a pint of water and a dozen large ripe tomatoes
with the skins taken off, bake it but do not let it be burnt, thicken the
gravy with a little butter and brown flour.

FRIED LAMB.

Separate the leg from the loin, cut off the shank and boil the leg;
divide the loin in chops, dredge and fry them a nice brown, lay the leg in
the middle of the dish, and put the chops around, pour over parsley and
butter, and garnish with fried parsley.

The leg cut into steaks and the loin into chops will make a fine
fricassee, or cutlets.

TO DRESS LAMB’S HEAD AND
FEET.

Clean them very nicely, and boil them till tender, take off the flesh
from the head with the eyes, also mince the tongue and heart, which must be
boiled with the head; split the feet in two, put them with the pieces from
the head and the mince, into a pint of good gravy, seasoned with pepper,
salt, and tomato catsup, or ripe tomatoes: stew it till tender, thicken the
gravy, and lay the liver cut in slices and broiled over it–garnish with
crisp parsley and bits of curled bacon.

MUTTON.

The saddle should always be roasted and garnished with scraped
horse-radish. See general observations on roasting. Mutton is in the
highest perfection from August until Christmas, when it begins to decline
in goodness.

BOILED LEG OF MUTTON.

Cut off the shank, wrap the flank nicely round and secure it with
skewers, dredge it well with flour, and put it on the fire in a kettle of
cold water with some salt, and three or four heads of garlic, which will
give it a delicately fine flavour; skin it well, and when nearly done, take
it from the fire and keep it hot and closely covered, that the steam may
finish it; have carrots well boiled to put in the dish under it, or turnips
boiled, mashed smooth and stewed with a lump of butter and salt, lay the
mutton on, and pour over it butter melted with some flour in it, and a cup
full of capers with some of the vinegar; shake them together over the fire
till hot before you pour it on.

ROASTED LEG.

Prepare it as for boiling, be very careful in spitting it, cover it with
paper and follow the directions for roasting, serve it up garnished with
scraped horse-radish.

BAKED LEG OF MUTTON.

Take the flank off, but leave all the fat, cut out the bone, stuff the
place with a rich forcemeat, lard the top and sides with bacon, put it in a
pan with a pint of water, some chopped onion and cellery cut small, a gill
of red wine, one of mushroom catsup and a tea-spoonful of curry powder,
bake it and serve it up with the gravy, garnish with forcemeat balls
fried.

STEAKS OF A LEG OF MUTTON.

Cut off the flank, take out the bone, and cut it in large slices half an
inch thick, sprinkle some salt and pepper, and broil it, pour over it nice
melted butter with capers; a leg cut in the same way and dressed as
directed for veal cutlets, is very fine. It is also excellent when salted
as beef, and boiled, served up with carrots or turnips.

A shoulder of mutton is best when roasted, but may be made into cutlets
or in a harrico.

TO HARRICO MUTTON.

Take the nicest part of the rack, divide it into chops, with one bone in
each, beat them flat, sprinkle salt and pepper on them, and broil them
nicely; make a rich gravy out of the inferior parts, season it well with
pepper, a little spice, and any kind of catsup you choose; when
sufficiently done, strain it, and thicken it with butter and brown flour,
have some carrots and turnips cut into small dice and boiled till tender,
put them in the gravy, lay the chops in and stew them fifteen minutes;
serve them up garnished with green pickle.

MUTTON CHOPS.

Cut the rack as for the harrico, broil them, and when dished, pour over
them a gravy made with two large spoonsful of boiling water, one of
mushroom catsup, a small spoonful of butter and some salt, stir it till the
butter is melted, and garnish with horse-radish scraped.

BOILED BREAST OF MUTTON.

Separate the joints of the brisket, and saw off the sharp ends of the
ribs, dredge it with flour, and boil it; serve it up covered with
onions–see onion sauce.

BREAST OF MUTTON IN
RAGOUT.

Prepare the breast as for boiling, brown it nicely in the oven, have a
rich gravy well seasoned and thickened with brown flour, stew the mutton in
it till sufficiently done, and garnish with forcemeat balls fried.

TO GRILL A BREAST OF
MUTTON.

Prepare it as before, score the top, wash it over with the yelk of an
egg, sprinkle some salt, and cover it with bread crumbs, bake it, and pour
caper sauce in the dish. It may also be roasted, the skin taken off and
frothed nicely, serve it up with good gravy, and garnish with current jelly
cut in slices.

The neck of mutton is fit only for soup, the liver is very good when
broiled.

BOILED SHOULDER OF MUTTON.

Put it in cold water with some salt, and boil it till tender; serve it
up covered with onion sauce.

SHOULDER OF MUTTON
WITH CELERY SAUCE.

Wash and clean ten heads of celery, cut off the green tops and take off
the outside stalks, cut the heads in thin slices, boil them tender in a
little milk, just enough for gravy, add salt, and thicken it with a
spoonful of butter and some white flour; boil the shoulder and pour the
sauce over it.

ROASTED LOIN OF MUTTON.

Cut the loin in four pieces, take off the skin, rub each piece with
salt, wash them with the yelk of an egg, and cover them thickly with bread
crumbs, chopped parsley, pepper and salt; wrap them up securely in paper,
put them on a bird spit, and roast them; put a little brown gravy in the
dish, and garnish with pickle.

PORK.

TO CURE BACON.

Hogs are in the highest perfection, from two and a half to four years
old, and make the best bacon, when they do not weigh more than one hundred
and fifty or sixty at farthest; they should be fed with corn, six weeks at
least, before they are killed, and the shorter distance they are driven to
market, the better will their flesh be. To secure them against the
possibility of spoiling, salt them before they get cold; take out the chine
or back-bone from the neck to the tail, cut the hams, shoulders and
middlings; take the ribs from the shoulders and the leaf fat from the hams:
have such tubs as are directed for beef, rub a large table spoonful of
saltpetre on the inside of each ham, for some minutes, then rub both sides
well with salt, sprinkle the bottom of the tub with salt, lay the hams with
the skin downward, and put a good deal of salt between each layer; salt the
shoulders and middlings in the same manner, but less saltpetre is
necessary; cut the jowl or chop from the head, and rub it with salt and
saltpetre. You should cut off the feet just above the knee joint; take off
the ears and nose, and lay them in a large tub of cold water for souse.
When the jowls have been in salt two weeks, hang them up to smoke–do so
with the shoulders and middlings at the end of three weeks, and the hams at
the end of four. If they remain longer in salt they will be hard. Remember
to hang the hams and shoulders with the hocks down, to preserve the juices.
Make a good smoke every morning, and be careful not to have a blaze; the
smoke-house should stand alone, for any additional heat will spoil the
meat. During the hot weather, beginning the first of April, it should be
occasionally taken down, examined–rubbed with hickory ashes, and hung up
again.

The generally received opinion that saltpetre hardens meat, is entirely
erroneous:–it tends greatly to prevent putrefaction, but will not make it
hard; neither will laying in brine five or six weeks in cold weather, have
that effect, but remaining in salt too long, will certainly draw off the
juices, and harden it. Bacon should be boiled in a large quantity of water,
and a ham is not done sufficiently, till the bone on the under part comes
off with ease. New bacon requires much longer boiling than that which is
old.

TO MAKE SOUSE.

Let all the pieces you intend to souse, remain covered with cold water
twelve hours; then wash them out, wipe off the blood, and put them again in
fresh water; soak them in this manner, changing the water frequently, and
keeping it in a cool place, till the blood is drawn away; scrape and clean
each piece perfectly nice, mix some meal with water, add salt to it, and
boil your souse gently, until you can run a straw into the skin with ease.
Do not put too much in the pot, for it will boil to pieces and spoil the
appearance. The best way is to boil the feet in one pot, the ears and nose
in another, and the heads in a third; these should be boiled till you can
take all the bones out; let them get cold, season the insides with pepper,
salt, and a little nutmeg; make it in a tight roll, sew it up close in a
cloth, and press it lightly. Mix some more meal and cold water, just enough
to look white; add salt, and one-fourth of vinegar; put your souse in
different pots, and keep it well covered with this mixture, and closely
stopped. It will be necessary to renew this liquor every two or three
weeks. Let your souse get quite cold after boiling, before you put it in
the liquor, and be sure to use pale coloured vinegar, or the souse will be
dark. Some cooks singe the hair from the feet, etcetera, but this
destroys the colour: good souse will always be white.

TO ROAST A PIG.

The pig must be very fat, nicely cleaned, and not too large to lie in
the dish; chop the liver fine and mix it with crumbs of bread, chopped
onion and parsley, with pepper and salt, make it into a paste with butter
and an egg, stuff the body well with it, and sew it up, spit it, and have a
clear fire to roast it; baste with salt and water at first, then rub it
frequently with a lump of lard wrapped in a piece of clean linen; this will
make it much more crisp than basting it from the dripping pan. When the pig
is done, take off the head, separate the face from the chop, cut both in
two and take off the ears, take out the stuffing, split the pig in two
parts lengthways, lay it in the dish with the head, ears, and feet, which
have been cut off, placed on each side, put the stuffing in a bowl with a
glass of wine, and as much dripping as will make it sufficiently liquid,
put some of it under the pig, and serve the rest in a boat.

TO BARBECUE SHOTE.[1]

This is the name given in the southern states to a fat young hog, which,
when the head and feet are taken off, and it is cut into four quarters,
will weigh six pounds per quarter. Take a fore-quarter, make several
incisions between the ribs, and stuff it with rich forcemeat; put it in a
pan with a pint of water, two cloves of garlic, pepper, salt, two gills of
red wine, and two of mushroom catsup, bake it, and thicken the gravy with
batter and brown flour; it must be jointed, and the ribs cut across before
it is cooked; or it cannot be carved well; lay it in the dish with the ribs
uppermost; if it be not sufficiently brown, add a little burnt sugar to the
gravy, garnish with balls.

TO ROAST A FORE-QUARTER
OF SHOTE.

Joint it for the convenience of carving, roast it before a brisk fire;
when done, take the skin off, dredge and froth it, put a little melted
butter with some caper vinegar over it, or serve it with mint sauce.

TO MAKE SHOTE CUTLETS.

Take the skin from the hind-quarter, and cut it in pieces, prepare them
in the way directed for veal cutlets, make a little nice gravy with the
skin and the scraps of meat left, thicken it with butter and brown flour,
and season it in any way you like.

TO CORN SHOTE.

Rub a hind-quarter with saltpetre and common salt, let it lie ten days,
then boil it, and put either carrots or parsnips under it.

SHOTE’S HEAD.

Take out the brains, and boil the head till quite tender, cut the heart
and liver from the harslet, and boil the feet with the head; cut all the
meat from the head in small pieces, mince the tongue and chop the brains
small, take some of the water the head was boiled in, season it with onion,
parsley and thyme, all chopped fine, add any kind of catsup–thicken it
with butter and brown flour, stew the whole in it fifteen minutes, and put
it in the dish: have the heart roasted to put in the middle, lay the
broiled liver around, and garnish it with green pickle.

LEG OF PORK WITH PEASE
PUDDING.

Boil a small leg of pork that has been sufficiently salted, score the
top and serve it up; the pudding must be in a separate dish; get small
delicate pease, wash them well, and tie them in a cloth, allowing a little
room for swelling, boil them with the pork, then mash and season them, tie
them up again and finish boiling it; take care not to break the pudding in
turning it out.

STEWED CHINE.

Take the neck chine, rub it well with salt, lay it in a pan, put it in a
pint of water, and fill it up with sweet potatos nicely washed, but not
peeled, cover it close and bake it till done; serve it up with the potatos,
put a little of the gravy in the dish.

TO TOAST A HAM.

Boil it well, take off the skin, and cover the top thickly with bread
crumbs, put it in an oven to brown, and serve it up.

TO STUFF A HAM.

Take a well smoked ham, wash it very clean, make incisions all over the
top two inches deep, stuff them quite full with parsley chopped small and
some pepper, boil the ham sufficiently; do not take off the skin. It must
be eaten cold.

SOUSED FEET IN RAGOUT.

Split the feet in two, dredge them with flour and fry them a nice brown;
have some well seasoned gravy thickened with brown flour and butter; stew
the feet in it a few minutes.

TO MAKE SAUSAGES.

Take the tender pieces of fresh pork, chop them exceedingly fine–chop
some of the leaf fat, and put them together in the proportion of three
pounds of pork to one of fat, season it very high with pepper and salt, add
a small quantity of dried sage rubbed to a powder, have the skins nicely
prepared, fill them and hang them in a dry place. Sausages are excellent
made into cakes and fried, but will not keep so well as in skins.

TO MAKE BLACK PUDDINGS.

Catch the blood as it runs from the hog, stir it continually till cold
to prevent its coagulating; when cold thicken it with boiled rice or
oatmeal, add leaf fat chopped small, pepper, salt, and any herbs that are
liked, fill the skins and smoke them two or three days; they must be boiled
before they are hung up, and prick them with a fork to keep them from
bursting.

A SEA PIE.

Lay at the bottom of a small Dutch oven some slices of boiled pork or
salt beef, then potatos and onions cut in slices, salt, pepper, thyme and
parsley shred fine, some crackers soaked, and a layer of fowls cut up, or
slices of veal; cover them with a paste not too rich, put another layer of
each article, and cover them with paste until the oven is full; put a
little butter between each layer, pour in water till it reaches the top
crust, to which you must add wine, catsup of any kind you please, and some
pounded cloves; let it stew until there is just gravy enough left; serve it
in a deep dish and pour the gravy on.

TO MAKE PASTE FOR THE PIE.

Pour half a pound of butter or dripping, boiling hot, into a quart of
flour, add as much water as will make it a paste, work it and roll it well
before you use it. It is quite a savoury paste.

BOLOGNA SAUSAGES.

Take one pound of bacon–fat and lean, one ditto veal, do., pork, do.,
suet, chop all fine, season highly: fill the skins, prick and boil them an
hour, and hang them to dry–grated bread or boiled rice may be added: clean
the skins with salt and vinegar.

FISH.

TO CURE HERRINGS.

The best method for preserving herrings, and which may be followed with
ease, for a small family, is to take the brine left of your winter stock
for beef, to the fishing place, and when the seine is hauled, to pick out
the largest herrings, and throw them alive into the brine; let them remain
twenty-four hours, take them out and lay them on sloping planks, that the
brine may drain off; have a tight barrel, put some coarse alum salt at the
bottom, then put in a layer of herrings–take care not to bruise them;
sprinkle over it alum salt and some saltpetre, then fish, salt, and
saltpetre, till the barrel is full; keep a board over it. Should they not
make brine enough to cover them in a few weeks, you must add some, for they
will be rusty if not kept under brine. The proper time to salt them is when
they are quite fat: the scales will adhere closely to a lean herring, but
will be loose on a fat one–the former is not fit to be eaten. Do not be
sparing of salt when you put them up. When they are to be used, take a few
out of brine, soak them an hour or two, scale them nicely, pull off the
gills, and the only entrail they have will come with them; wash them clean
and hang them up to dry. When to be broiled, take half a sheet of white
paper, rub it over with butter, put the herring in, double the edges
securely, and broil without burning it. The brine the herrings drink before
they die, has a wonderful effect in preserving their juices: when one or
two years old, they are equal to anchovies.

TO BAKE STURGEON.

Get a piece of sturgeon with the skin on, the piece next to the tail,
scrape it well, cut out the gristle, and boil it about twenty minutes to
take out the oil; take it up, pull off the large scales, and when cold,
stuff it with forcemeat, made of bread crumbs, butter, chopped parsley,
pepper and salt, put it in a Dutch oven just large enough to hold it, with
a pint and a half of water, a gill of red wine, one of mushroom catsup,
some salt and pepper, stew it gently till the gravy is reduced to the
quantity necessary to pour over it; take up your sturgeon carefully,
thicken the gravy with a spoonful of butter rubbed into a large one of
brown flour;–see that it is perfectly smooth when you put it in the
dish.

TO MAKE STURGEON CUTLETS.

The tail piece is the best; skin it and cut off the gristle, cut it into
slices about half an inch thick, sprinkle over them pepper and salt, dredge
them with flour, and fry them a nice light brown; have ready a pint of good
gravy, seasoned with catsup, wine, and a little pounded cloves, and
thickened with brown flour and butter; when the cutlets are cold, put them
into the gravy and stew them a few minutes; garnish the dish with nice
forcemeat balls and parsley fried crisp.

STURGEON STEAKS.

Cut them as for the cutlets, dredge them, and fry them nicely; dish them
quickly lest they get cold; pour over melted butter with chopped parsley,
and garnish with fried parsley.

TO BOIL STURGEON.

Leave the skin on, which must be nicely scraped, take out the gristle,
rub it with salt, and let it lie an hour, then put it on in cold water with
some salt and a few cloves of garlic; it must be dredged with flour before
it is put into the water, skim it carefully, and when dished, pour over it
melted butter with chopped parsley, a large spoonful of mushroom catsup,
one of lemon pickle, and one of pepper vinegar; send some of it to table in
a sauce boat;–the sturgeon being a dry fish, rich sauce is necessary.

TO BAKE A SHAD.

The shad is a very indifferent fish unless it be large and fat; when you
get a good one, prepare it nicely, put some forcemeat inside, and lay it at
full length in a pan with a pint of water, a gill of red wine, one of
mushroom catsup, a little pepper, vinegar, salt, a few cloves of garlic,
and six cloves: stew it gently till the gravy is sufficiently reduced;
there should always be a fish-slice with holes to lay the fish on, for the
convenience of dishing without breaking it; when the fish is taken up, slip
it carefully into the dish; thicken the gravy with butter and brown flour,
and pour over it.

TO BOIL A SHAD.

Get a nice fat shad, fresh from the water, that the skin may not crack
in boiling, put it in cold water on a slice, in a kettle of proper length,
with a wine glass of pale vinegar, salt, a little garlic, and a bundle of
parsley; when it is done, drain all the water from the fish, lay it in the
dish, and garnish with scraped horse-radish; have a sauce boat of nice
melted butter, to mix with the different catsups, as taste shall
direct.

TO ROAST A SHAD.

Fill the cavity with good forcemeat, sew it up, and tie it on a board of
proper size, cover it with bread crumbs, with some salt and pepper, set it
before the fire to roast; when done on one side, turn it, tie it again, and
when sufficiently done, pull out the thread, and serve it up with butter
and parsley poured over it.

TO BROIL A SHAD.

Separate one side from the back-bone, so that it will lie open without
being split in two; wash it clean, dry it with a cloth, sprinkle some salt
and pepper on it, and let it stand till you are ready to broil it; have the
gridiron hot and well greased, broil it nicely, and pour over it melted
butter.

TO BOIL ROCK FISH.

The best part of the rock is the head and shoulders–clean it nicely,
put it into the fish kettle with cold water and salt, boil it gently and
skim it well; when done, drain off the water, lay it in the dish, and
garnish with scraped horse-radish; have two boats of tatter nicely melted
with chopped parsley, or for a change, you may have anchovy butter; the roe
and liver should be fried and served in separate dishes. If any of the rock
be left, it will make a delicious dish next day;–pick it in small pieces,
put it in a stew pan with a gill of water, a good lump of butter, some
salt, a large spoonful of lemon pickle, and one of pepper vinegar–shake it
over the fire till perfectly hot, and serve it up. It is almost equal to
stewed crab.

TO FRY PERCH.

Clean the fish nicely, but do not take out the roes, dry them on a
cloth, sprinkle some salt, and dredge them with flour, lay them separately
on a board; when one side is dry, turn them, sprinkle salt and dredge the
other side; be sure the lard boils when you put the fish in, and fry them
with great care; they should be a yellowish brown when done. Send melted
butter or anchovy sauce in a boat.

TO PICKLE OYSTERS.

Select the largest oysters, drain off their liquor, and wash them in
clean water; pick out the pieces of shells that may be left, put them in a
stew pan with water proportioned to the number of oysters, some salt,
blades of mace, and whole black pepper; stew them a few minutes, then put
them in a pot, and when cold, add as much pale vinegar as will give the
liquor an agreeable acid.

TO MAKE A CURRY OF
CATFISH.

Take the white channel catfish, cut off their heads, skin and clean
them, cut them in pieces four inches long, put as many as will be
sufficient for a dish into a stew pan with a quart of water, two onions,
and chopped parsley; let them stew gently till the water is reduced to half
a pint, take the fish out and lay them on a dish, cover them to keep them
hot, rub a spoonful of butter into one of flour, add a large tea-spoonful
of curry powder, thicken the gravy with it, shake it over the fire a few
minutes, and pour it over the fish; be careful to have the gravy
smooth.

TO DRESS A COD’S HEAD
AND SHOULDERS.

Take out the gills and the blood from the bone, wash the head very
clean, rub over it a little salt, then lay it on your fish plate; throw in
the water a good handful of salt, with a glass of vinegar, then put in the
fish, and let it boil gently half an hour; if it is a large one, three
quarters; take it up very carefully, strip the skin nicely off, set it
before a brisk fire, dredge it all over with flour, and baste it well with
butter; when the froth begins to rise, throw over it some very fine white
bread crumbs; you must keep basting it all the time to make it froth well;
when it is a fine light brown, dish it up, and garnish it with a lemon cut
in slices, scraped horse-radish, barberries, a few small fish fried and
laid around it, or fried oysters–cut the roe and liver in slices, and lay
over it a little of the lobster out of the sauce in lumps, and then serve
it up.

TO MAKE SAUCE FOR THE
COD’S HEAD.

Take a lobster, if it be alive, stick a skewer in the rent of the tail,
(to keep the water out,) throw a handful of salt in the water; when it
boils, put in the lobster, and boil it half an hour; if it has spawn on it,
pick them off, and pound them exceedingly fine in a marble mortar, and put
them into half a pound of good melted butter, then take the meat out of the
lobster, pull it in bits, and put it in your butter, with a meat spoonful
of lemon pickle, and the same of walnut catsup, a slice of lemon, one or
two slices of horse-radish, a little beaten mace, salt and cayenne to your
taste; boil them one minute, then take out the horse-radish and lemon, and
serve it up in your sauce boat.

N.B. If you cannot get lobsters, you may make shrimp, cockle, or muscle
sauce, the same way; if there can be no shell fish got, you then may add
two anchovies cut small, a spoonful of walnut liquor, a large onion stuck
with cloves–strain and put it in the sauce boat.

TO DRESS A SALT COD.

Steep your salt fish in water all night, with a glass of vinegar; it
will take out the salt, and make it taste like fresh fish; the next day
boil it; when it is enough take off the skin, pull it in fleaks into your
dish, then pour egg sauce over it, or parsnips boiled and beat fine, with
butter and cream; send it to the table on a water plate, for it will soon
grow cold.

MATELOTE OF ANY KIND OF
FIRM FISH.

Cut the fish in pieces six inches long, put it in a pot with onion,
parsley, thyme, mushrooms, a little spice, pepper and salt–add red wine
and water enough for gravy, set it on a quick fire and reduce it one-third,
thicken with a spoonful of butter and two of flour; put it in a dish with
bits of bread fried in butter, and pour the gravy over it.

CHOWDER, A SEA DISH.

Take any kind of firm fish, cut it in pieces six inches long, sprinkle
salt and pepper over each piece, cover the bottom of a small Dutch oven
with slices of salt pork about half boiled, lay in the fish, strewing a
little chopped onion between; cover with crackers that have been soaked
soft in milk, pour over it two gills of white wine, and two of water; put
on the top of the oven, and stew it gently about an hour; take it out
carefully, and lay it in a deep dish; thicken the gravy with a little flour
and a spoonful of butter, add some chopped parsley, boil it a few minutes,
and pour it over the fish–serve it up hot.

TO PICKLE STURGEON.

The best sturgeons are the small ones, about four feet long without the
head, and the best part is the one near the tail. After the sturgeon is
split through the back bone, take a piece with the skin on, which is
essential to its appearance and goodness, cut off the gristle, scrape the
skin well, wash it, and salt it–let it lie twenty-four hours, wipe off the
salt, roll it, and tie it around with twine, put it on in a good deal of
cold water, let it boil till you can run a straw easily into the skin, take
it up, pull off the large scales, and when cold, put it in a pot, and cover
it with one part vinegar, and two of salt and water; keep it closely
stopped, and when served, garnish with green fennel.

TO CAVEACH FISH.

Cut the fish in pieces the thickness of your hand, wash it and dry it in
a cloth, sprinkle on some pepper and salt, dredge it with flour, and fry it
a nice brown; when it gets cold, put it in a pot with a little chopped
onion between the layers, take as much vinegar and water as will cover it,
mix with it some oil, pounded mace, and whole black pepper, pour it on, and
stop the pot closely. This is a very convenient article, as it makes an
excellent and ready addition to a dinner or supper. When served up, it
should be garnished with green fennel, or parsley.

TO DRESS COD FISH.

Boil the fish tender, pick it from the bones, take an equal quantity of
Irish potatos, or parsnips boiled and chopped, and the same of onions well
boiled; add a sufficiency of melted butter, some grated nutmeg, pepper, and
salt, with a little brandy or wine; rub them in a mortar till well mixed;
if too stiff, liquify it with cream or thickened milk, put paste in the
bottom of a dish, pour in the fish, and bake it. For change, it may be
baked in the form of patties.

COD FISH PIE.

Soak the fish, boil it and take off the skin, pick the meat from the
bones, and mince it very fine; take double the quantity of your fish, of
stale bread grated; pour over it as much new milk, boiling hot, as will wet
it completely, add minced parsley, nutmeg, pepper, and made mustard, with
as much melted butter as will make it sufficiently rich; the quantity must
be determined by that of the other ingredients–beat these together very
well, add the minced fish, mix it all, cover the bottom of the dish with
good paste, pour the fish in, put on a lid and bake it.

TO DRESS ANY KIND OF
SALTED FISH.

Take the quantity necessary for the dish, wash them, and lay them in
fresh water for a night; then put them on the tin plate with holes, and
place it in the fish kettle–sprinkle over it pounded cloves and pepper,
with four cloves of garlic; put in a bundle of sweet herbs and parsley, a
large spoonful of tarragon, and two of common vinegar, with a pint of wine;
roll one quarter of a pound of butter in two spoonsful of flour, cut it in
small pieces, and put it over the fish–cover it closely, and simmer it
over a slow fire half an hour; take the fish out carefully, and lay it in
the dish, set it over hot water, and cover it till the gravy has boiled a
little longer–take out the garlic and herbs, pour it over the fish, and
serve it up. It is very good when eaten cold with salad, garnished with
parsley.

TO FRICASSEE COD
SOUNDS AND TONGUES.

Soak them all night in fresh water, take off the skins, cut them in two
pieces, and boil them in milk and water till quite tender, drain them in a
colander, and season with nutmeg, pepper, and a little salt–take as much
new milk as will make sauce for it, roll a good lump of butter in flour,
melt it in the milk, put the fish in, set it over the fire, and stir it
till thick enough, and serve it up.

AN EXCELLENT WAY TO DRESS
FISH.

Dredge the fish well with flour, sprinkle salt and pepper on them, and
fry them a nice brown; set them by to get cold; put a quarter of a pound of
butter in a frying pan; when it boils, fry tomatos with the skins taken
off, parsley nicely picked, and a very little chopped onion; when done, add
as much water as will make sauce for the fish–season it with pepper, salt,
and pounded cloves; add some wine and mushroom catsup, put the fish in, and
when thoroughly heated, serve it up.

FISH A-LA-DAUB.

Boil as many large white perch as will be sufficient for the dish; do
not take off their heads, and be careful not to break their skins; when
cold, place them in the dish, and cover them with savoury jelly broken. A
nice piece of rock-fish is excellent done in the same way.

FISH IN JELLY.

Fill a deep glass dish half full of jelly–have as many small
fish-moulds as will lie conveniently in it fill them with blanc mange; when
they are cold, and the jelly set, lay them on it, as if going in different
directions; put in a little more jelly, and let it get cold, to keep the
fish in their places–then fill the dish so as to cover them. The jelly
should be made of hog’s feet, very light coloured, and perfectly
transparent.

TO MAKE EGG SAUCE FOR A
SALT COD.

Boil four eggs hard, first half chop the white, then put in the yelks,
and chop them both together, but not very small; put them into half a pound
of good melted butter, and let it boil up–then pour it on the fish.

TO DRESS COD SOUNDS.

Steep your sounds as you do the salt cod, and boil them in a large
quantity of milk and water; when they are very tender and white, take them
up, and drain the water out and skin them; then pour the egg sauce boiling
hot over them, and serve them up.

TO STEW CARP.

Gut and scale your fish, wash and dry them well with a clean cloth,
dredge them with flour, fry them in lard until they are a light brown, and
then put them in a stew pan with half a pint of water, and half a pint of
red wine, a meat spoonful of lemon pickle, the same of walnut catsup, a
little mushroom powder and cayenne to your taste, a large onion stuck with
cloves, and a slick of horse-radish; cover your pan close up to keep in the
steam; let them stew gently over a stove fire, till the gravy is reduced to
just enough to cover your fish in the dish; then take the fish out, and put
them on the dish you intend for the table, set the gravy on the fire, and
thicken it with flour, and a large lump of butter; boil it a little, and
strain it over your fish; garnish them with pickled mushrooms and scraped
horse-radish, and send them to the table.

TO BOIL EELS.

Clean the eels, and cut off their heads, dry them, and turn them round
on your fish plate, boil them in salt and water, and make parsley sauce for
them.

TO PITCHCOCK EELS.

Skin and wash your eels, then dry them with a cloth, sprinkle them with
pepper, salt, and a little dried sage, turn them backward and forward, and
skewer them; rub a gridiron with beef suet, broil them a nice brown, put
them on a dish with good melted butter, and lay around fried parsley.

TO BROIL EELS.

When you have skinned and cleansed your eels as before, rub them with
the yelk of an egg, strew over them bread crumbs, chopped parsley, sage,
pepper, and salt; baste them well with butter, and set them in a dripping
pan; serve them up with parsley and butter for sauce.

TO SCOLLOP OYSTERS.

When the oysters are opened, put them in a bowl, and wash them out of
their own liquor; put some in the scollop shells, strew over them a few
bread crumbs, and lay a slice of butter on them, then more oysters, bread
crumbs, and a slice of butter on the top; put them into a Dutch oven to
brown, and serve them up in the shells.

TO FRY OYSTERS.

Take a quarter of a hundred of large oysters, wash them and roll them in
grated bread, with pepper and salt, and fry them a light brown; if you
choose, you may add a little parsley, shred fine. They are a proper garnish
for calves’ head, or most made dishes.

TO MAKE OYSTER LOAVES.

Take little round loaves, cut off the tops, scrape out all the crumbs,
then put the oysters into a stew pan with the crumbs that came out of the
loaves, a little water, and a good lump of butter; stew them together ten
or fifteen minutes, then put in a spoonful of good cream, fill your loaves,
lay the bit of crust carefully on again, set them in the oven to crisp.
Three are enough for a side dish.

POULTRY, &c.

TO ROAST A GOOSE.

Chop a few sage leaves and two onions very fine, mix them with a good
lump of butter, a tea-spoonful of pepper, and two of salt, put it in the
goose, then split it, lay it down, and dust it with flour; when it is
thoroughly hot, baste it with nice lard; if it be a large one, it will
require an hour and a half, before a good clear fire; when it is enough,
dredge and baste it, pull out the spit, and pour in a little boiling
water.

TO MAKE SAUCE FOR A GOOSE.

Pare, core and slice some apples; put them in a sauce pan, with as much
water as will keep them from burning, set them over a very slow fire, keep
them closely covered till reduced to a pulp, then put in a lump of butter,
and sugar to your taste, beat them well, and send them to the table in a
china bowl.

TO BOIL DUCKS WITH ONION
SAUCE.

Scald and draw your ducks, put them in warm water for a few minutes,
then take them out and put them in an earthen pot; pour over them a pint of
boiling milk, and let them lie in it two or three hours; when you take them
out, dredge them well with flour, and put them in a copper of cold water;
put on the cover, let them boil slowly twenty minutes, then take them out,
and smother them with onion sauce.

TO MAKE ONION SAUCE.

Boil eight or ten large onions, change the water two or three times
while they are boiling; when enough, chop them on a board to keep them a
good colour, put them in a sauce pan with a quarter of a pound of butter
and two spoonsful of thick cream; boil it a little, and pour it over the
ducks.

TO ROAST DUCKS.

When you have drawn the ducks, shred one onion and a few sage leaves,
put them into the ducks with pepper and salt, spit and dust them with
flour, and baste them with lard; if your fire be very hot, they will roast
in twenty minutes; and the quicker they are roasted, the better they will
taste. Just before you take them from the spit, dust them with flour and
baste them. Get ready some gravy made of the gizzards and pinions, a large
blade of mace, a few pepper corns, a spoonful of catsup, a tea-spoonful of
lemon pickle; strain it and pour it on the ducks, and send onion sauce in a
boat.

TO BOIL A TURKEY WITH
OYSTER SAUCE.

Grate a loaf of bread, chop a score or more of oysters fine, add nutmeg,
pepper and salt to your taste, mix it up into a light forcemeat with a
quarter of a pound of butter, a spoonful or two of cream, and three eggs;
stuff the craw with it, and make the rest into balls and boil them; sew up
the turkey, dredge it well with flour, put it in a kettle of cold water,
cover it, and set it over the fire; as the scum begins to rise, take it
off, let it boil very slowly for half an hour, then take off your kettle
and keep it closely covered; if it be of a middle size, let it stand in the
hot water half an hour, the steam being kept in, will stew it enough, make
it rise, keep the skin whole, tender, and very white; when you dish it,
pour on a little oyster sauce, lay the balls round, and serve it up with
the rest of the sauce in a boat.

N.B. Set on the turkey in time, that it may stew as above; it is the
best way to boil one to perfection. Put it over the fire to heat, just
before you dish it up.

TO MAKE SAUCE FOR A
TURKEY.

As you open the oysters, put a pint into a bowl, wash them out of their
own liquor, and put them in another bowl; when the liquor has settled, pour
it off into a sauce pan with a little white gravy, and a tea-spoonful of
lemon pickle–thicken it with flour and a good lump of butter; boil it
three or four minutes, put in a spoonful of good cream, add the oysters,
keep shaking them over the fire till they are quite hot, but don’t let them
boil, for it will make them hard and appear small.

TO ROAST A TURKEY.

Make the forcemeat thus: take the crumb of a loaf of bread, a quarter of
a pound of beef suet shred fine, a little sausage meat or veal scraped and
pounded very fine, nutmeg, pepper, and salt to your taste; mix it lightly
with three eggs, stuff the craw with it, spit it, and lay it down a good
distance from the fire, which should be clear and brisk; dust and baste it
several times with cold lard; it makes the froth stronger than basting it
with the hot out of the dripping pan, and makes the turkey rise better;
when it is enough, froth it up as before, dish it, and pour on the same
gravy as for the boiled turkey, or bread sauce; garnish with lemon and
pickles, and serve it up; if it be of a middle size, it will require one
hour and a quarter to roast.

TO MAKE SAUCE FOR A
TURKEY.

Cut the crumb of a loaf of bread in thin slices, and put it in cold
water with a few pepper corns, a little salt and onion–then boil it till
the bread is quite soft, beat it well, put in a quarter of a pound of
butter, two spoonsful of thick cream, and put it in the dish with the
turkey.

TO BOIL FOWLS.

Dust the fowls well with flour, put them in a kettle of cold water,
cover it close, set it on the fire; when the scum begins to rise, take it
off, let them boil very slowly for twenty minutes, then take them off,
cover them close, and the heat of the water will stew them enough in half
an hour; it keeps the skin whole, and they will be both whiter and plumper
than if they had boiled fast; when you take them up, drain them, and pour
over them white sauce or melted butter.

TO MAKE WHITE SAUCE FOR
FOWLS.

Take a scrag of veal, the necks of fowls, or any bits of mutton or veal
you have; put them in a sauce pan with a blade or two of mace, a few black
pepper corns, one anchovy, a head of celery, a bunch of sweet herbs, a
slice of the end of a lemon; put in a quart of water, cover it close, let
it boil till it is reduced to half a pint, strain it, and thicken it with a
quarter of a pound of butter mixed with flour, boil it five or six minutes,
put in two spoonsful of pickled mushrooms, mix the yelks of two eggs with a
tea cup full of good cream and a little nutmeg–put it in the sauce, keep
shaking it over the fire, but don’t let it boil.

FRICASSEE OF SMALL
CHICKENS.

Take off the legs and wings of four chickens, separate the breasts from
the backs, cut off the necks and divide the backs across, clean the
gizzards nicely, put them with the livers and other parts of the chicken,
after being washed clean, into a sauce pan, add pepper, salt, and a little
mace, cover them with water, and stew them till tender–then take them out,
thicken half a pint of the water with two table spoonsful of flour rubbed
into four ounces of butter, add half a pint of new milk, boil all together
a few minutes, then add a gill of white wine, stirring it in carefully that
it may not curdle; put the chickens in, and continue to shake the pan until
they are sufficiently hot, and serve them up.

TO ROAST LARGE FOWLS.

Take the fowls when they are ready dressed, put them down to a good
fire, dredge and baste them well with lard; they will be near an hour in
roasting; make a gravy of the necks and gizzards, strain it, put in a
spoonful of brown flour; when you dish them, pour on the gravy, and serve
them up with egg sauce in a boat.

TO MAKE EGG SAUCE.

Boil four eggs for ten minutes, chop half the whites, put them with the
yelks, and chop them both together, but not very fine; put them into a
quarter of a pound of good melted butter, and put it in a boat.

TO BOIL YOUNG CHICKENS.

Put the chickens in scalding water; as soon as the feathers will slip
off, take them out, or it will make the skin hard and break: when you have
drawn them, lay them in skimmed milk for two hours, then truss and dust
them well with flour, put them in cold water, cover them close, set them
over a very slow fire, take off the scum, let them boil slowly for five or
six minutes, take them off the fire, keep them closely covered in the water
for half an hour, it will stew them enough; when you are going to dish
them, set them over the fire to make them hot, drain them, and pour over
white sauce made the same way as for the boiled fowls.

TO ROAST YOUNG CHICKENS.

When you kill young chickens, pluck them very carefully, truss and put
them down to a good fire, dredge and baste them with lard; they will take a
quarter of an hour in roasting; froth them up, lay them on the dish, pour
butter and parsley on, and serve them up hot.

FRIED CHICKENS.

Cut them up as for the fricassee, dredge them well with flour, sprinkle
them with salt, put them into a good quantity of boiling lard, and fry them
a light brown; fry small pieces of mush and a quantity of parsley nicely
picked, to be served in the dish with the chickens; take half a pint of
rich milk, add to it a small bit of butter, with pepper, salt, and chopped
parsley; stew it a little, and pour it over the chickens, and then garnish
with the fried parsley.

TO ROAST WOODCOCKS OR
SNIPES.

Pluck, but do not draw them, put them on a small spit, dredge and baste
them well with lard, toast a few slices of bread, put them on a clean
plate, and set it under the birds while they are roasting; if the fire be
good, they will take about ten minutes; when you take them from the spit,
lay them upon the toasts on the dish, pour melted butter round them, and
serve them up.

TO ROAST WILD DUCKS OR
TEAL.

When the ducks are ready dressed, put in them a small onion, pepper,
salt, and a spoonful of red wine; if the fire be good, they will roast in
twenty minutes; make gravy of the necks and gizzards, a spoonful of red
wine, half an anchovy, a blade or two of mace, one onion, and a little
cayenne pepper; boil it till it is wasted to half a pint, strain it through
a hair sieve, and pour it on the ducks–serve them up with onion sauce in a
boat; garnish the dish with raspings of bread.

TO BOIL PIGEONS.

Scald the pigeons, draw them, take the craw out, wash them in several
waters, cut off the pinions, turn the legs under the wings, dredge them,
and put them in soft cold water; boil them slowly a quarter of an hour,
dish them up, pour over them good melted butter, lay round a little brocoli
in bunches, and send butter and parsley in a boat.

TO ROAST PIGEONS.

When you have dressed your pigeons as before, roll a good lump of butter
in chopped parsley, with pepper and salt, put it in your pigeons, spit,
dust and baste them; if the fire be good, they will roast in twenty
minutes; when they are through, lay round them bunches of asparagus, with
parsley and butter for sauce.

TO ROAST
PARTRIDGES OR ANY SMALL BIRDS.

Lard them with slips of bacon, put them on a skewer, tie it to the spit
at both ends, dredge and baste them, let them roast ten minutes, take the
grated crumb of half a loaf of bread, with a piece of butter, the size of a
walnut, put it in a stew pan, and shake it over a gentle fire till it is of
a light brown, lay it between your birds, and pour over them a little
melted butter.

TO BROIL RABBITS.

When you have cased the rabbits, skewer them with their heads straight
up, the fore-legs brought down, and the hind-legs straight; boil them three
quarters of an hour at least, then smother them with onion sauce, made the
same as for boiled ducks, and serve them up.

TO ROAST RABBITS.

When you have cased the rabbits, skewer their heads with their mouths
upon their backs, stick their fore-legs into their ribs, skewer the
hind-legs doubled, then make a pudding for them of the crumb of half a loaf
of bread, a little parsley, sweet marjoram and thyme, all shred fine,
nutmeg, salt and pepper to your taste, mix them up into a light stuffing,
with a quarter of a pound of butter, a little good cream, and two eggs; put
it into the body, and sew them up; dredge and baste them well with lard,
roast them near an hour, serve them up with parsley and butter for sauce,
chop the livers, and lay them in lumps round the edge of the dish.

TO STEW WILD DUCKS.

Having prepared the fowls, rub the insides with salt, pepper, and a
little powdered cloves; put a shallot or two with a lump of butter in the
body of each, then lay them in a pan that will just hold them, putting
butter under and over them, with vinegar and water, and add pepper, salt,
lemon peel, and a bunch of sweet herbs; then cover the pan close, and let
them stew till done–pass the liquor through a sieve, pour it over the
ducks, and serve them up hot, with a garnish of lemon sliced, and raspings
of bread fried. The same way may teal, &c. be dressed.

TO DRESS DUCKS WITH
JUICE OF ORANGES.

The ducks being singed, picked, and drawn, mince the livers with a
little scraped bacon, some butter, green onions, sweet herbs and parsley,
seasoned with salt, pepper, and mushrooms; these being all minced together,
put them into the bodies of the ducks, and roast them, covered with slices
of bacon, and wrapped up in paper; then put a little gravy, the juice of an
orange, a few shallots minced, into a stew pan, and shake in a little
pepper; when the ducks are roasted, take off the bacon, dish them, and pour
your sauce with the juice of oranges over them, and serve them up hot.

TO DRESS DUCKS WITH
ONIONS.

Stuff the ducks as before, cut the roots off small onions, blanch them
in scalding water, then pick and put them into a stew pan with a little
gravy, set them over a gentle fire, and let them simmer; when they are
done, thicken them with cream and flour, and when the ducks are roasted,
dish them, pour the ragout of onions over, and serve them up hot.

TO ROAST A CALF’S HEAD.

Wash and pick the head very nicely; having taken out the brains and
tongue, prepare a good quantity of forced meat, with veal and suet well
seasoned; fill the hole of the head with this forced meat, skewer and tie
it together upon the spit, and roast it for an hour and a half. Beat up the
brains with a little sage and parsley shred fine, a little salt, and the
yelks of two or three eggs; boil the tongue, peel, and cut it into large
dice, fry that with the brains, also some of the forced meat made up into
balls, and slices of bacon. Let the sauce be strong gravy, with oysters,
mushrooms, capers, and a little white wine thickened.

TO
MAKE A DISH OF CURRY AFTER THE EAST INDIAN MANNER.

Cut two chickens as for fricassee, wash them clean, and put them in a
stew pan with as much water as will cover them; sprinkle them with a large
spoonful of salt, and let them boil till tender, covered close all the
time, and skim them well; when boiled enough, take up the chickens, and put
the liquor of them into a pan, then put half a pound of fresh butter in the
pan, and brown it a little; put into it two cloves of garlic, and a large
onion sliced, and let these all fry till brown, often shaking the pan; then
put in the chickens, and sprinkle over them two or three spoonsful of curry
powder; then cover the pan close, and let the chickens do till brown, often
shaking the pan; then put in the liquor the chickens were boiled in, and
let all stew till tender; if acid is agreeable squeeze the juice of a lemon
or orange in it.

DISH OF RICE TO BE SERVED UP WITH THE CURRY, IN A DISH BY ITSELF.

Take half a pound of rice, wash it clean in salt and water–then put it
into two quarts of boiling water, and boil it briskly twenty minutes;
strain it through a colander and shake it into a dish, but do not touch it
with your fingers nor with a spoon.

Beef, veal, mutton, rabbits, fish, &c. may be curried and sent to
table with or without the dish of rice.

Curry powder is used as a fine flavoured seasoning for fish, fowls,
steaks, chops, veal cutlets, hashes, minces, alamodes, turtle soup, and in
all rich dishes, gravies, sauce, &c. &c.

OCHRA AND TOMATOS.

Take an equal quantity of each, let the ochra be young, slice it, and
skin the tomatos; put them into a pan without water, add a lump of butter,
an onion chopped fine, some pepper and salt, and stew them one hour.

GUMBO–A WEST INDIA DISH.

Gather young pods of ochra, wash them clean, and put them in a pan with
a little water, salt and pepper, stew them till tender, and serve them with
melted butter. They are very nutritious, and easy of digestion.

PEPPER POT.

Boil two or three pounds of tripe, cut it in pieces, and put it on the
fire with a knuckle of veal, and a sufficient quantity of water; part of a
pod of pepper, a little spice, sweet herbs according to your taste, salt,
and some dumplins; stew it till tender, and thicken the gravy with butter
and flour.

SPANISH METHOD OF
DRESSING GIBLETS.

Take the entrails of fat full grown fowls, empty them of their
contents–open them with a sharp knife, scrape off the inner coat; wash
them clean, and put them on to boil with the liver, gizzard, and other
giblets; add salt, pepper, and chopped onion–when quite tender, set them
by to cool; put some nice dripping or butter in a pan, when it boils put
the giblets, add salt, fry them a nice brown; when nearly done, break six
eggs in a bowl, beat them a little, pour them over the giblets, stir them
for a few minutes, and serve them up.

PASTE FOR MEAT DUMPLINS.

Chop half a pound of suet very fine–add one and a quarter pound of
flour, and a little salt–mix it up with half a pint of milk, knead it till
it looks light; take a bowl of proper size, rub the inside with butter,
roll out the paste and lay it in; parboil beef steaks, mutton-chops, or any
kind of meat you like; season it and lay it in the bowl–fill it with rich
gravy, close the paste over the top–get a very thick cloth that will keep
out the water; wet and flour it, place it over the top of the bowl–gather
it at bottom and tie it very securely; the water must boil when you put it
in–when done, dip the top in cold water for a moment, that the cloth may
not stick to the paste; untie and take it off carefully–put a dish on the
bowl and turn it over–if properly made, it will come out without breaking;
have gravy in a boat to eat with it.

TO MAKE AN OLLO–A
SPANISH DISH.

Take two pounds beef, one pound mutton, a chicken, or half a pullet, and
a small piece of pork; put them into a pot with very little water, and set
it on the fire at ten o’clock, to stew gently; you must sprinkle over it an
onion chopped small, some pepper and salt, before you pour in the water; at
half after twelve, put into the pot two or three apples or pears, peeled
and cut in two, tomatos with the skin taken off, cimblins cut in pieces, a
handful of mint chopped, lima beans, snaps, and any kind of vegetable you
like; let them all stew together till three o’clock; some cellery tops cut
small, and added at half after two, will improve it much.

ROPA VEIJA–SPANISH.

Peel the skin from ripe tomatos, put them in a pan with a spoonful of
melted butter, some pepper and salt, shred cold meat or fowl; put it in,
and fry it sufficiently.

CHICKEN
PUDDING, A FAVOURITE VIRGINIA DISH.

Beat ten eggs very light, add to them a quart of rich milk, with a
quarter of a pound of butter melted, and some pepper and salt; stir in as
much flour as will make a thin good batter; take four young chickens, and
after cleaning them nicely, cut off the legs, wings, &c. put them all
in a sauce pan, with some salt and water, and a bundle of thyme and
parsley, boil them till nearly done, then take the chicken from the water
and put it in the batter pour it in a dish, and bake it; send nice white
gravy in a boat.

TO MAKE POLENTA.

Put a large spoonful of butter in a quart of water, wet your corn meal
with cold water in a bowl, add some salt, and make it quite smooth, then
put it in the buttered water when it is hot, let it boil, stirring it
continually till done; as soon as you can handle it, make it into a ball,
and let it stand till quite cold–then cut it in thin slices, lay them in
the bottom of a deep dish so as to cover it, put on it slices of cheese,
and on that a few bits of butter; then mush, cheese and butter, until the
dish is full; put on the top thin slices of cheese and butter, put the dish
in a quick oven; twenty or thirty minutes will bake it.

MACARONI.

Boil as much macaroni as will fill your dish, in milk and water, till
quite tender; drain it on a sieve sprinkle a little salt over it, put a
layer in your dish then cheese and butter as in the polenta, and bake it in
the same manner.

MOCK MACARONI.

Break some crackers in small pieces, soak them in milk until they are
soft; then use them as a substitute for macaroni.

TO MAKE CROQUETS.

Take cold fowl or fresh meat of any kind, with slices of ham, fat and
lean–chop them together very fine, add half as much stale bread grated,
salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, a tea-spoonful of made mustard, a
table-spoonful of catsup, and a lump of butter; knead all well together
till it resembles sausage meat, make them in cakes, dip them in the yelk of
an egg beaten, cover them thickly with grated bread, and fry them a light
brown.

TO MAKE VERMECELLI.

Beat two or three fresh eggs quite light, make them into a stiff paste
with flour, knead it well, and roll it out very thin, cut it in narrow
strips, give them a twist, and dry them quickly on tin sheets. It is an
excellent ingredient in most soups, particularly those that are thin.
Noodles are made in the same manner, only instead of strips they should be
cut in tiny squares and dried. They are also good in soups.

COMMON PATTIES.

Take some veal, fat and lean, and some slices of boiled ham, chop them
very fine, and season it with salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, and a small
quantity of parsley and thyme minced very fine; with a little gravy make
some paste, cover the bottoms of small moulds, fill them with the meat, put
thin lids on, and bake them crisp; five is enough for a side dish.

EGGS IN CROQUETS.

Boil eighteen eggs, separate the yelks and whites, and cut them in dice;
pour over them a sauce a-la-creme, (see sauce a-la-creme,) add a
little grated bread, mix all well together, and let it get cold; put in
some salt and pepper, make them into cakes, cover them well on both sides
with grated bread, let them stand an hour, and fry them a nice brown; dry
them a little before the fire, and dish them while quite hot.

OMELETTE SOUFFLE.

Break six eggs, beat the yelks and whites separately till very light,
then mix them, add four table spoonsful of powdered sugar, and a little
grated lemon peel; put a quarter of a pound of butter in a pan; when
melted, pour in the eggs and stir them; when they have absorbed the butter,
turn it on a plate previously buttered, sprinkle some powdered sugar, set
it in a hot Dutch oven, and when a little brown, serve it up for a
desert.

FONDUS.

Put a pint of water, and a lump of butter the size of an egg, into a
sauce pan; stir in as much flour as will make a thick batter, put it on the
fire, and stir it continually till it will not stick to the pan; put it in
a bowl, add three quarters of a pound of grated cheese, mix it well, then
break in two eggs, beat them well, then two more until you put in six; when
it looks very light, drop it in small lumps on buttered paper, bake it in a
quick oven till of a delicate brown; you may use corn meal instead of flour
for a change.

A NICE TWELVE O’CLOCK
LUNCHEON.

Cut some slices of bread tolerably thick, and toast them slightly; bone
some anchovies, lay half of one on each toast, cover it well with grated
cheese and chopped parsley mixed; pour a little melted butter on, and brown
it with a salamander; it must be done on the dish you send it to table
in.

EGGS A-LA-CREME.

Boil twelve eggs just hard enough to allow you to cut them in
slices–cut some crusts of bread very thin, put them in the bottom and
round the sides of a moderately deep dish, place the eggs in, strewing each
layer with the stale bread grated, and some pepper and salt.

SAUCE A-LA-CREME, FOR THE
EGGS.

Put a quarter of a pound of butter, with a large table-spoonful of flour
rubbed well into it in a sauce pan; add some chopped parsley, a little
onion, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and a gill of cream; stir it over the fire
until it begins to boil, then pour it over the eggs, cover the top with
grated bread, set it in a Dutch oven with a heated top, and when a light
brown, send it to table.

CABBAGE A-LA-CREME.

Take two good heads of cabbage, cut out the stalks, boil it tender, with
a little salt in the water–have ready one large spoonful of butter, and a
small one of flour rubbed into it, half a pint of milk, with pepper and
salt; make it hot, put the cabbage in after pressing out the water, and
stew it till quite tender.

TO MAKE AN OMELETTE.

Break six or eight eggs in a dish, beat them a little, add parsley and
chives chopped small, with pepper and salt; mix all well together, put a
piece of butter in a pan, let it melt over a clear fire till nearly brown;
pour in the eggs, stir it in, and in a few minutes it will be done
sufficiently; double it, and dish it quite hot.

OMELETTE–ANOTHER WAY.

Break six eggs, leave out half the whites–beat them with a fork, and
add some salt and chopped parsley; take four ounces of fresh butter, cut
half of it in small pieces, put them in the omelette, put the other half in
a small frying pan; when melted, pour in the eggs; stir till it begins to
set, then turn it up round the edges; when done, put a plate on and turn
the pan up, that it may not break–the omelette must be thick, and great
care must be taken in frying; instead of parsley, you may use any kind of
sweet herb or onion chopped fine, anchovy minced, rasped beef, ham or
tongue.

GASPACHO–SPANISH

Put some soft biscuit or toasted bread in the bottom of a sallad bowl,
put in a layer of sliced tomatos with the skin taken off, and one of sliced
cucumbers, sprinkled with pepper, salt, and chopped onion; do this until
the bowl is full; stew some tomatos quite soft, strain the juice, mix in
some mustard, oil, and water, and pour over it; make it two hours before it
is eaten.

EGGS AND TOMATOS.

Peel the skins from a dozen large tomatos, put four ounces of butter in
a frying pan, add some salt, pepper, and a little chopped onion; fry them a
few minutes, add the tomatos, and chop them while frying; when nearly done,
break in six eggs, stir them quickly, and serve them up.

TO FRICASSEE EGGS.

Boil six eggs for five minutes, lay them in cold water, peel them
carefully, dredge them lightly with flour, beat one egg light, dip the hard
eggs in, roll them in bread crumbs, seasoned with pepper, salt, and grated
nutmeg; cover them well with this, and let them stand some time to dry–fry
them in boiling lard, and serve them up with any kind of rich, well
seasoned gravy, and garnish with crisped parsley.

SAUCES.

FISH SAUCE, TO KEEP A
YEAR.

Chop twenty-four anchovies, bones and all, two shallots, a handful of
scraped horse radish, four blades of mace, one quart of white wine, one
pint of anchovy liquor, one pint of claret, twelve cloves, and twelve
pepper corns; boil them together till reduced to a quart, then strain it
off into a bottle for use Two spoonsful will be sufficient for a pound of
butter.

SAUCE FOR WILD FOWL.

Take a gill of claret, with as much water, some grated bread, three
heads of shallots, a little whole pepper, mace, grated nutmeg, and salt;
let them stew over the fire, then beat it up with butter, and put it under
the wild fowl, which being a little roasted, will afford gravy to mix with
this sauce.

SAUCE FOR BOILED RABBITS.

Boil the livers, and shred them very small, chop two eggs not boiled
very hard, a large spoonful of grated white bread, some broth, sweet herbs,
two spoonsful of white wine, one of vinegar, a little salt, and some
butter; stir all together, and take care the butter does not oil.

GRAVY.

Take a rasher or two of bacon, and lay it at the bottom of a stew pan,
putting either veal, mutton, or beef, cut in slices, over it; then add some
sliced onions, turnips, carrots, celery, a little thyme, and alspice. Put
in a little water, and set it on the fire, stewing till it be brown at the
bottom, which you will know from the pan’s hissing; then pour boiling water
over it, and stew it an hour and a half; but the time must be regulated by
the quantity. Season it with salt and pepper.

FORCEMEAT BALLS.

Take half a pound of veal, and half a pound of suet cut fine, and beat
in a marble mortar or wooden bowl; add a few sweet herbs shred fine, a
little mace pounded fine, a small nutmeg grated, a little lemon peel, some
pepper and salt, and the yelks of two eggs; mix them well together, and
make them into balls and long pieces–then roll them in flour, and fry them
brown. If they are for the use of white sauce, do not fry them, but put
them in a sauce-pan of hot water and let them boil a few minutes.

SAUCE FOR BOILED DUCKS
OR RABBITS.

Pour boiled onions over your ducks, or rabbits, prepared in this manner:
peel some onions, and boil them in plenty of water; then change the first
water, and boil them two hours: take them up and put them in a colander to
drain, and afterwards chop them on a board; then put them in a sauce-pan,
sprinkle a little flour over them, and put in a large piece of butter, with
a little milk or cream. Set them over the fire, and when the butter is
melted, they will be done enough. This is a good sauce for mutton also.

LOBSTER SAUCE.

Boil a little mace, and whole pepper, long enough to take out the strong
taste of the spice; then strain it off, and melt three quarters of a pound
of butter in it. Cut the lobster in very small pieces, and stew it till it
is tender.

SHRIMP SAUCE.

Wash half a pint of shrimps very clean–mince and put them in a
stew-pan, with a spoonful of anchovy liquor, and a pound of thick melted
butter; boil it up for five minutes, and squeeze in half a lemon. Toss it
up, and put it in a sauce-boat.

OYSTER SAUCE FOR FISH.

Scald a pint of oysters, and strain them through a sieve; then wash some
more in cold water, and take off their beards; put them in a stew-pan, and
pour the liquor over them; then add a large spoonful of anchovy liquor,
half a lemon, two blades of mace, and thicken it with butter rolled in
flour. Put in half a pound of butter, and boil it till it is melted–take
out the mace and lemon, and squeeze the lemon juice into the sauce; boil
it, and stir it all the time, and put it in a boat.

CELERY SAUCE.

Wash and pare a large bunch of celery very clean cut it into little
bits, and boil it softly till it is tender; add half a pint of cream, some
mace, nutmeg, and a small piece of butter rolled in flour; then boil it
gently. This is a good sauce for roasted or boiled fowls, turkeys,
partridges, or any other game.

MUSHROOM SAUCE.

Clean and wash one quart of fresh mushrooms, cut them in two, and put
them into a stew-pan, with a little salt, a blade of mace, and a little
butter; stew them gently for half an hour, and then add half a pint of
cream, and the yelks of two eggs beat very well–keep stirring it till it
boils up. Put it over the fowls or turkies–or you may put it on a dish
with a piece of fried bread first buttered–then toasted brown, and just
dipped into boiling water. This is very good sauce for white fowls of all
kinds.

COMMON SAUCE.

Plain butter melted thick, with a spoonful of walnut pickle or catsup,
is a very good sauce; but you may put as many things as you choose into
sauces.

TO MELT BUTTER.

Nothing is more simple than this process, and nothing so generally done
badly. Keep a quart tin sauce-pan, with a cover to it, exclusively for this
purpose; weigh one quarter of a pound of good butter; rub into it two
tea-spoonsful of flour; when well mixed, put it in the sauce-pan with one
table-spoonful of water, and a little salt; cover it, and set the sauce-pan
in a larger one of boiling water; shake it constantly till completely
melted, and beginning to boil. If the pan containing the butter be set on
coals, it will oil the butter and spoil it. This quantity is sufficient for
one sauce-boat. A great variety of delicious sauces can be made, by adding
different herbs to melted butter, all of which are excellent to eat with
fish, poultry, or boiled butchers’ meat. To begin with parsley–wash a
large bunch very clean, pick the leaves from the stems carefully, boil them
ten minutes in salt and water, drain them perfectly dry, mince them
exceedingly fine, and stir them in the butter when it begins to melt. When
herbs are added to butter, you must put two spoonsful of water instead of
one. Chervil, young fennel, burnet, tarragon, and cress, or pepper-grass,
may all be used, and must be prepared in the same manner as the
parsley.

CAPER SAUCE.

Is made by mixing a sufficient quantity of capers, and adding them to
the melted butter, with a little of the liquor from the capers; where
capers cannot be obtained, pickled nasturtiums make a very good substitute,
or even green pickle minced and put with the butter.

OYSTER CATSUP.

Get fine fresh oysters, wash them in their own liquor, put them in a
marble mortar with salt, pounded mace, and cayenne pepper, in the
proportions of one ounce salt, two drachms mace, and one of cayenne to each
pint of oysters; pound them together, and add a pint of white wine to each
pint; boil it some minutes, and rub it through a sieve; boil it again, skim
it, and when cold, bottle, cork, and seal it. This composition gives a fine
flavour to white sauces, and if a glass of brandy be added, it will keep
good for a considerable time.

CELERY VINEGAR.

Pound two gills of celery seed, put it into a bottle ind fill it with
strong vinegar; shake it every day for a fortnight, then strain it, and
keep it for use. It will impart a pleasant flavour of celery to any thing
with which it is used. A very delicious flavour of thyme may be obtained,
by gathering it when in full perfection; it must be picked from the stalks,
a large handful of it put into a jar, and a quart of vinegar or brandy
poured on it; cover it very close–next day, take all the thyme out, put in
as much more; do this a third time; then strain it, bottle and seal it
securely. This is greatly preferable to the dried thyme commonly used,
during the season when it cannot be obtained in a fresh state. Mint may be
prepared in the same way. The flavour of both these herbs must be preserved
by care in the preparation: if permitted to stand more than twenty hours in
the liquor they are infused in, a coarse and bitter taste will be
extracted, particularly from mint.

VEGETABLES.

TO DRESS SALAD.

To have this delicate dish in perfection, the lettuce, pepper grass,
chervil, cress, &c. should be gathered early in the morning, nicely
picked, washed, and laid in cold water, which will be improved by adding
ice; just before dinner is ready to be served, drain the water from your
salad, cut it into a bowl, giving the proper proportions of each plant;
prepare the following mixture to pour over it: boil two fresh eggs ten
minutes, put them in water to cool, then take the yelks in a soup plate,
pour on them a table spoonful of cold water, rub them with a wooden spoon
until they are perfectly dissolved; then add two spoonsful of oil: when
well mixed, put in a tea-spoonful of salt, one of powdered sugar, and one
of made mustard; when all these are united and quite smooth, stir in two
table spoonsful of common, and two of tarragon vinegar; put it over the
salad, and garnish the top with the whites of the eggs cut into rings, and
lay around the edge of the bowl young scallions, they being the most
delicate of the onion tribe.

TO BOIL POTATOS.

Wash them, but do not pare or cut them, unless they are very large; fill
a sauce-pan half full of potatos of equal size, (or make them so by
dividing the large ones,) put to them as much cold water as will cover them
about an inch; they are sooner boiled, and more savoury, than when drowned
in water; most boiled things are spoiled by having too little water, but
potatos are often spoiled by having too much; they must merely be covered,
and a little allowed for waste in boiling, so that they must be just
covered when done. Set them on a moderate fire till they boil, then take
them off, and set them by the fire to simmer slowly, till they are soft
enough to admit a fork; (place no dependence on the usual test of their
skin’s cracking, which, if they are boiled fast, will happen to some
potatos when they are not half done, and the inside is quite hard,) then
pour off the water, (if you let the potatos remain in the water a moment
after they are done enough, they will become waxy and watery,) uncover the
sauce-pan, and set it at such a distance from the fire as will secure it
from burning; their superfluous moisture will evaporate, and the potatos
will be perfectly dry and mealy. You may afterwards place a napkin, folded
up to the size of the sauce-pan’s diameter, over the potatos, to keep them
dry and mealy till wanted, this method of managing potatos, is, in every
respect, equal to steaming them, and they are dressed in half the time.

TO FRY SLICED POTATOS.

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

POTATOS MASHED.

When the potatos are thoroughly boiled, drain and dry them perfectly,
pick out every speck, and rub them through a colander into a clean
stew-pan; to a pound of potatos put half an ounce of butter, and a
table-spoonful of milk; do not make them too moist; mix them well together.
When the potatos are getting old and specked, and in frosty weather, this
is the best way of dressing them–you may put them into shapes, touch them
over with yelk of egg, and brown them very slightly before a slow fire.

POTATOS MASHED WITH
ONIONS.

Prepare some onions by putting them through a sieve, and mix them with
potatos; in proportioning the onions to the potatos, you will be guided by
your wish to have more or less of their flavour.

TO ROAST POTATOS.

Wash and dry your potatos, (all of a size,) and put them in a tin Dutch
oven, or cheese toaster; take care not to put them too near the fire, or
they will get burned on the outside before they are warmed through. Large
potatos, will require two hours to roast them. To save time and trouble,
some cooks half boil them first.

TO ROAST POTATOS UNDER
MEAT.

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

POTATO BALLS.

Mix mashed potatos with the yelk of an egg, roll them into balls, flour
them, or cover them with egg and bread crumbs, fry them in clean dripping,
or brown them in a Dutch oven. They are an agreeable vegetable relish, and
a supper dish.

JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES.

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

CABBAGE.

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

SAVOYS.

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

SPROUTS AND YOUNG GREENS.

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

ASPARAGUS.

Set a stew-pan with plenty of water on the fire, sprinkle a handful of
salt in it, let it boil, and skim it; then put in the asparagus prepared
thus: scrape all the stalks till they are perfectly clean; throw them into
a pan of cold water as you scrape them; when they are all done, tie them in
little bundles, of a quarter of a hundred each, with bass, if you can get
it, or tape; cut off the stalks at the bottom, that they may be all of a
length; when they are tender at the stalk, which will be in from twenty to
thirty minutes, they are done enough. Great care must be taken to watch the
exact time of their becoming tender; take them just at that instant, and
they will have their true flavour and colour; a minute or two more boiling
destroys both. While the asparagus is boiling, toast a slice of a loaf of
bread, about a half an inch thick; brown it delicately on both sides; dip
it lightly in the liquor the asparagus was boiled in, and lay it in the
middle of a dish; pour some melted butter on the toast, and lay the
asparagus upon it; let it project beyond the asparagus, that the company
may see there is a toast. Do not pour butter over them, but send some in a
boat.

SEA-KALE.

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

TO SCOLLOP TOMATOS.

Peel off the skin from large, full, ripe tomatos–put a layer in the
bottom of a deep dish, cover it well with bread grated fine; sprinkle on
pepper and salt, and lay some bits of butter over them–put another layer
of each, till the dish is full–let the top be covered with crumbs and
butter–bake it a nice brown.

TO STEW TOMATOS.

Take off the skin, and put them in a pan with salt, pepper, and a large
piece of butter–stew them till sufficiently dry.

CAULIFLOWER.

Choose those that are close and white, and of a middle size–trim off
the outside leaves, cut off the stalk flat at the bottom, let them lie in
salt and water an hour before you boil them. Put them in boiling water,
with a handful of salt in it–skim it well, and let it boil slowly till
done, which a small one will be in fifteen minutes, a large one in
twenty–and take it up the moment it is enough: a few minutes longer
boiling will spoil it.

RED BEET ROOTS.

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

PARSNIPS.

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

CARROTS.

Let them be well washed and scraped–an hour is enough for young spring
carrots; grown carrots will take from an hour and a half to two hours and a
half. The best way to try if they are done enough, is to pierce them with a
fork.

TURNIPS.

Peel off half an inch of the stringy outside–full grown turnips will
take about an hour and a half gentle boiling; try them with a fork, and
when tender, take them up, and lay them on a sieve till the water is
thoroughly drained from them; send them up whole; to very young turnips,
leave about two inches of green top; the old ones are better when the water
is changed as directed for cabbage.

TO MASH TURNIPS.

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

TURNIP TOPS.

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

FRENCH BEANS.

Cut off the stalk end first, and then turn to the point and strip off
the strings; if not quite fresh, have a bowl of spring water, with a little
salt dissolved in it, standing before you; as the beans are cleansed and
trimmed, throw them in; when all are done, put them on the fire in boiling
water, with some salt in it; when they have boiled fifteen or twenty
minutes, take one out and taste it; as soon as they are tender, take them
up, and throw them into a colander to drain. To send up the beans whole,
when they are young, is much the best method, and their delicate flavour
and colour is much better preserved. When a little more grown, they must be
cut lengthwise in thin slices after stringing; and for common tables, they
are split, and divided across; but those who are nice, do not use them at
such a growth as to require splitting.

ARTICHOKES.

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

BROCOLI.

The kind which bears flowers around the joints of the stalks, must be
cut into convenient lengths for the dish; scrape the skin from the stalk,
and pick out any leaves or flowers that require to be removed; tie it up in
bunches, and boil it as asparagus; serve it up hot, with melted butter
poured over it. The brocoli that heads at the top like cauliflowers, must
be dressed in the same manner as the cauliflower.

PEAS.

To have them in perfection, they must be quite young, gathered early in
the morning, kept in a cool place, and not shelled until they are to be
dressed; put salt in the water, and when it boils, put in the peas; boil
them quick twenty or thirty minutes, according to their age; just before
they are taken up, add a little mint chopped very fine; drain all the water
from the peas, put in a bit of butter, and serve them up quite hot.

PUREE OF TURNIPS.

Pare a dozen large turnips, slice them, and put them into a stew-pan,
with four ounces of butter and a little salt; set the pan over a moderate
fire, turn them often with a wooden spoon; when they look white, add a
ladle full of veal gravy, stew them till it becomes thick; skim it, and
pass it through a sieve; put the turnips in a dish, and pour the gravy over
them.

RAGOUT OF TURNIPS.

Peel as many small turnips as will fill a dish; put them into a stew pan
with some butter and a little sugar, set them over a hot stove, shake them
about, and turn them till they are a good brown; pour in half a pint of
rich high seasoned gravy; stew the turnips till tender, and serve them with
the gravy poured over them.

RAGOUT OF
FRENCH BEANS, SNAPS, STRING BEANS.

Let them be young and fresh gathered, string them, and cut them in long
thin slices; throw them in boiling water for fifteen minutes; have ready
some well seasoned brown gravy, drain the water from the beans, put them in
the gravy, stew them a few minutes, and serve them garnished with forcemeat
balls; there must not be gravy enough to float the beans.

MAZAGAN BEANS.

This is the smallest and most delicate species of the Windsor bean.
Gather them in the morning, when they are full grown, but quite young, and
do not shell them till you are going to dress them. Put them into boiling
water, have a small bit of middling, (flitch,) of bacon, well boiled–take
the skin off, cover it with bread crumbs, and toast it; lay this in the
middle of the dish, drain all the water from the beans–put a little butter
with them, and pour them round the bacon. When the large Windsor beans are
used, it is best to put them into boiling water until the skins will slip
off, and then make them into a puree as directed for turnips–they are very
coarse when plainly dressed.

LIMA, OR SUGAR BEANS.

Like all other spring and summer vegetables, they must be young and
freshly gathered: boil them till tender, drain them, add a little butter,
and serve them up. These beans are easily preserved for winter use, and
will be nearly as good as fresh ones. Gather them on a dry day, when full
grown, but quite young: have a clean and dry keg, sprinkle some salt in the
bottom, put in a layer of pods, containing the beans, then a little
salt–do this till the keg is full; lay a board on with a weight, to press
them down; cover the keg very close, and keep it in a dry, cool place–they
should be put up as late in the season, as they can be with convenience.
When used, the pods must be washed, and laid in fresh water all night;
shell them next day, and keep them in water till you are going to boil
them; when tender, serve them up with melted butter in a boat. French beans
(snaps) may be preserved in the same manner.

TURNIP ROOTED CABBAGE.

The cabbage growing at the top is not good; cut the root in slices an
inch thick, peel off the rind, and boil the slices in a large quantity of
water, till tender, serve it up hot, with melted butter poured over it.

EGG PLANT.

The purple ones are best; get them young and fresh; pull out the stem,
and parboil them to take off the bitter taste; cut them in slices an inch
thick, but do not peel them; dip them in the yelk of an egg, and cover them
with grated bread, a little salt and pepper–when this has dried, cover the
other side the same way–fry them a nice brown. They are very delicious,
tasting much like soft crabs. The egg plant may be dressed in another
manner: scrape the rind and parboil them; cut a slit from one end to the
other, take out the seeds, fill the space with a rich forcemeat, and stew
them in well seasoned gravy, or bake them, and serve up with gravy in the
dish.

POTATO PUMPKIN.

Get one of a good colour, and seven or eight inches in diameter; cut a
piece off the top, take out all the seeds, wash and wipe the cavity, pare
the rind off, and fill the hollow with good forcemeat–put the top on, and
set it in a deep pan, to protect the sides; bake it in a moderate oven, put
it carefully in the dish without breaking, and it will look like a handsome
mould. Another way of cooking potato pumpkin is to cut it in slices, pare
off the rind, and make a puree as directed for turnips.

SWEET POTATO.

Take those that are nearly of the same size, that they may be done
equally–wash them clean, but do not peel them–boil them till tender,
drain the water off, and put them on tin sheets in a stove for a few
minutes to dry.

SWEET POTATOS STEWED.

Wash and wipe them, and if they be large, cut them in two lengths; put
them at the bottom of a stew pan, lay over some slices of boiled ham; and
on that, one or two chickens cut up with pepper, salt, and a bundle of
herbs; pour in some water, and stew them till done, then take out the
herbs, serve the stew in a deep dish–thicken the gravy, and pour over
it.

SWEET POTATOS BROILED.

Cut them across without peeling, in slices half an inch thick, broil
them on a griddle, and serve them with butter in a boat.

SPINACH.

Great care must be used in washing and picking it clean; drain it, and
throw it into boiling water–a few minutes will boil it sufficiently: press
out all the water, put it in a stew pan with a piece of butter, some pepper
and salt–chop it continually with a spoon till it is quite dry: serve it
with poached eggs or without, as you please.

SORREL.

Is dressed as the spinach; and if they be mixed in equal proportions,
improve each other.

CABBAGE PUDDING.

Get a fine head of cabbage, not too large; pour boiling water on, and
cover it till you can turn the leaves back, which you must do carefully;
take some of those in the middle of the head off, chop them fine, and mix
them with rich forcemeat; put this in, and replace the leaves to confine
the stuffing–tie it in a cloth, and boil it–serve it up whole, with a
little melted butter in the dish.

SQUASH OR CIMLIN.

Gather young squashes, peel, and cut them in two; take out the seeds,
and boil them till tender; put them into a colander, drain off the water,
and rub them with a wooden spoon through the colander; then put them into a
stew pan, with a cup full of cream, a small piece of butter, some pepper
and salt–stew them, stirring frequently until dry. This is the most
delicate way of preparing squashes.

WINTER SQUASH.

The crooked neck of this squash is the best part. Cut it in slices an
inch thick, take off the rind, and boil them with salt in the water; drain
them well before they are dished, and pour melted butter over–serve them
up very hot.

The large part, containing the seeds, must be sliced and pared–cut it
in small pieces, and stew it till soft, with just water enough to cover it;
pass it through a sieve and stew it again, adding some butter, pepper, and
salt; it must be dry, but not burnt. It is excellent when stewed with pork
chops.

FIELD PEAS.

There are many varieties of these peas; the smaller kind are the most
delicate. Have them young and newly gathered, shell and boil them tender;
pour them in a colander to drain; put some lard in a frying pan; when it
boils, mash the peas, and fry them in a cake of a light brown; put it in
the dish with the crust uppermost–garnish with thin bits of fried bacon.
They are very nice when fried whole, so that each pea is distinct from the
other; but they must be boiled less, and fried with great care. Plain
boiling is a very common way of dressing them.

CABBAGE WITH ONIONS.

Boil them separately, and mix them in the proportions you like; add
butter, pepper, and salt, and either stew them, or fry them in a cake.

SALSIFY.

Scrape and wash the roots, put them into boiling water with salt; when
done, drain them, and place them in the dish without cutting them up. They
are a very excellent vegetable, but require nicety in cooking; exposure to
the air, either in scraping, or after boiling, will make them black.

STEWED SALSIFY.

Half boil it, cut it up, and put it in a stew pan, with a very little
water, and a spoonful of butter; stew them dry, and serve them up. For
change, you may, after stewing, cut them in scollop shells with grated
bread, and bake them; or make them into cakes, and fry them. They are
delicious in whatever way they can be dressed.

STEWED MUSHROOMS.

Gather grown mushrooms, but such as are young enough to have red gills;
cut off that part of the stem which grew in the earth–wash them carefully,
and take the skin from the top; put them into a stew pan with some salt,
but no water–stew them till tender, and thicken them with a spoonful of
butter, mixed with one of brown flour; red wine may be added, but the
flavour of the mushroom is too delicious to require aid from any thing.

BROILED MUSHROOMS.

Prepare them as above directed–broil them on a griddle, and when done,
sprinkle pepper and salt on the gills, and put a little butter on them.

TO BOIL RICE.

Put two cups full of rice in a bowl of water, rub it well with the hand,
and pour off the water; do this until the water ceases to be discoloured;
then put the rice into two and a half cups of cold water; add a
tea-spoonful of salt, cover the pot close, and set it on a brisk fire; let
it boil ten minutes, pour off the greater part of the water, and remove the
pot to a bed of coals, where it must remain a quarter of an hour to soak
and dry.

RICE JOURNEY, OR JOHNNY
CAKE.

Boil a pint of rice quite soft, with a tea-spoonful of salt; mix with it
while hot a large spoonful of butter, and spread it on a dish to cool; when
perfectly cold, add a pint of rice flour and half a pint of milk–beat them
all together till well mingled. Take the middle part of the head of a
barrel, make it quite clean, wet it, and put on the mixture about an inch
thick, smooth with a spoon, and baste it with a little milk; set the board
aslant before clear coals; when sufficiently baked, slip a thread under the
cake and turn it: baste and bake that side in a similar manner, split it,
and butter while hot. Small homony boiled and mixed with rice flour, is
better than all rice; and if baked very thin, and afterwards toasted and
buttered, it is nearly as good as cassada bread.

PUDDINGS, &c.

OBSERVATIONS ON
PUDDINGS AND CAKES.

The salt should always be washed from butter, when it is to be used in
any thing that has sugar for an ingredient, and also from that which is
melted to grease any kind of mould for baking–otherwise, there will be a
disagreeable salt taste on the outer side of the article baked. Raisins
should be stoned and cut in two, and have some flour sifted over them–stir
them gently in the flour, and take them out free from lumps; the small
quantity that adheres to them, will prevent their sticking together, or
falling in a mass to the bottom. Eggs must be fresh, or they will not heal
well: it is better to separate the yelks from the whites always, though it
is a more troublesome process; but for some things it is essential to do
so: when they are to be mixed with milk, let it cool after boiling, or the
eggs will poach; and only set it on the fire a few minutes, to take off the
raw taste of the eggs, stirring it all the time. Currants require washing
in many waters to cleanse them; they must be picked and well dried, or they
will stick together. Almonds should be put in hot water till the skins will
slip off, which is called blanching; they must always be pounded with rose
or orange flower water, to prevent their oiling. When cream is used, put it
in just before the mixture is ready; much beating will decompose it. Before
a pudding or cake is begun, every ingredient necessary for it must be
ready; when the process is retarded by neglecting to have them prepared,
the article is injured. The oven must be in a proper state, and the paste
in the dishes or moulds, ready for such things as require it. Promptitude
is necessary in all our actions, but never more so than when engaged in
making cakes and puddings. When only one or two eggs are to be used, cooks
generally think it needless to beat them–it is an error: eggs injure every
thing, unless they are made light before they are used. Cloths for boiling
puddings should be made of German sheeting; an article less thick, will
admit the water, and injure the pudding.

RICE MILK FOR A DESSERT.

Boil half a pint of rice in water till tender, pour off the water, and
add a pint of milk with two eggs beaten well, stirred into it; boil all
together two or three minutes; serve it up hot, and eat it with butter,
sugar, and nutmeg. It may be sweetened and cooled in moulds, turned out in
a deep dish, and surrounded with rich milk, with raspberry marmalade
stirred into it, and strained to keep back the seeds–or the milk may be
seasoned with wine and sugar.

TO MAKE PUFF PASTE.

Sift a quart of flour, leave out a little for rolling the paste, make up
the remainder with cold water into a stiff paste, knead it well, and roll
it out several times; wash the salt from a pound of butter, divide it into
four parts, put one of them on the paste in little bits, fold it up, and
continue to roll it till the butter is well mixed; then put another portion
of butter, roll it in the same manner; do this till all the butter is
mingled with the paste; touch it very lightly with the hands in
making–bake it in a moderate oven, that will permit it to rise, but will
not make it brown. Good paste must look white, and as light as a
feather.

TO MAKE MINCEMEAT FOR
PIES.

Boil either calves or hogs’ feet till perfectly tender, rub them through
a colander; when cold, pass them through again, and it will come out like
pearl barley; take one quart of this, one of chopped apples, the same of
currants, washed and picked, raisins stoned and cut, of good brown sugar,
suet nicely chopped, and cider, with a pint of brandy; add a tea-spoonful
of pounded mace, one of cloves and of nutmegs; mix all these together
intimately. When the pies are to be made, take out as much of this mixture
as may be necessary; to each quart of it, add a tea-spoonful of pounded
black pepper, and one of salt; this greatly improves the flavour, and can
be better mixed with a small portion than with the whole mass. Cover the
moulds with paste, put in a sufficiency of mince-meat, cover the top with
citron sliced thin, and lay on it a lid garnished around with paste cut in
fanciful shapes. They may be eaten either hot or cold, but are best when
hot.

TO MAKE JELLY FROM FEET.

Boil four calfs’ feet, that have been nicely cleaned, and the hoofs
taken off; when the feet are boiled to pieces, strain the liquor through a
colander, and when cold, take all the grease off, and put the jelly in a
skillet, leaving the dregs which will be at the bottom. There should be
from four feet, about two quarts of jelly: pour into it one quart of white
wine, the juice of six fresh lemons strained from the seeds, one pound and
a half of powdered loaf sugar, a little pounded cinnamon and mace, and the
rind thinly pared from two of the lemons; wash eight eggs very clean, whip
up the whites to a froth, crush the shells and put with them, mix it with
the jelly, set it on the fire, stir it occasionally till the jelly is
melted, but do not touch it afterwards. When it has boiled till it looks
quite clear on one side, and the dross accumulates on the other, take off
carefully the thickest part of the dross, and pour the jelly in the bag;
put back what runs through, until it becomes quite transparent–then set a
pitcher under the bag, and put a cover all over to keep out the dust: the
jelly looks much prettier when it is broken to fill the glasses. The bag
should be made of cotton or linen, and be suspended in a frame made for the
purpose. The feet of hogs make the palest coloured jelly; those of sheep
are a beautiful amber-colour, when prepared.

A SWEETMEAT PUDDING.

Make a quart of flour into puff paste; when done, divide it into three
parts of unequal size; roll the largest out square and moderately thin,
spread over it a thin layer of marmalade, leaving a margin all round about
an inch broad; roll the next largest in the same manner, lay it on, cover
that with marmalade, leaving a margin; then roll the smallest, and put it
on the other two, spreading marmalade; fold it up, one fold over the other,
the width of your hand–press the ends together, tie it in a cloth
securely, and place it in a kettle of boiling water, where it can lie at
length without doubling; boil it quickly, and when done, pour melted butter
with sugar and wine in the dish.

TO MAKE AN ORANGE PUDDING.

Put two oranges and two lemons, into five quarts of water–boil them
till the rinds are quite tender; take them out, and when cold, slice them
thin, and pick out the seeds; put a pound of loaf sugar into a pint of
water–when it boils, slice into it twelve pippins pared and cored–lay in
the lemons and oranges, stew them tender, cover the dish with puff paste,
lay the fruit in carefully, in alternate layers–pour on the syrup, put
some slips of paste across, and bake it.

AN APPLE CUSTARD.

Pare and core twelve pippins, slice them tolerably thick, put a pound of
loaf sugar in a stew pan, with a pint of water and twelve cloves: boil and
skim it, then put in the apples, and stew them till clear, and but little
of the syrup remains–lay them in a deep dish, and take out the cloves;
when the apples are cold, pour in a quart of rich boiled custard–set it in
water, and make it boil till the custard is set–take care the water does
not get into it.

BOILED LOAF.

Pour a quart of boiling milk over four little rolls of bread–cover them
up, turning them occasionally till saturated with the milk; tie them very
tight in cloths, and boil them an hour; lay them in the dish, and pour a
little melted butter over them; for sauce, have butter in a boat, seasoned
with wine, sugar, and grated nutmeg.

TRANSPARENT PUDDING.

Beat eight eggs very light, add half a pound of pounded sugar, the same
of fresh butter melted, and half a nutmeg grated; sit it on a stove, and
keep stirring till it is as thick as buttered eggs–put a puff paste in a
shallow dish, pour in the ingredients, and bake it half an hour in a
moderate oven; sift sugar over it, and serve it up hot.

FLUMMERY.

One measure of jelly, one of cream, and half a one of wine; boil it
fifteen minutes over a slow fire, stirring all the time; sweeten it, and
add a spoonful of orange flower or rose water; cool it in a mould, turn it
in a dish, and pour around it cream, seasoned in any way you like.

BURNT CUSTARD.

Boil a quart of milk–and when cold, mix with it the yelks of eight
eggs; stir them together over the fire a few minutes; sweeten it to your
taste, put some slices of savoy cake in the bottom of a deep dish, and pour
on the custard; whip the whites of the eggs to a strong froth, lay it
lightly on the top, sift some sugar over it, and hold a salamander over it
until it is a light brown; garnish the top with raspberry marmalade, or any
kind of preserved fruit.

AN ENGLISH PLUM PUDDING.

Beat eight eggs very light, add to them a pound of flour sifted, and a
pound of powdered sugar; when it looks quite light, put in a pound of suet
finely shred, a pint of milk, a nutmeg grated, and a gill of brandy; mix
with it a pound of currants, washed, picked, and dried, and a pound of
raisins stoned and floured–tie it in a thick cloth, and boil it steadily
eight hours.

MARROW PUDDING.

Grate a large loaf of bread, and pour on the crumbs a pint of rich milk
boiling hot; when cold, add four eggs, a pound of beef marrow sliced thin,
a gill of brandy, with sugar and nutmeg to your taste–mix all well
together, and either bake or boil it; when done, stick slices of citron
over the top.

SIPPET PUDDING.

Cut a loaf of bread as thin as possible, put a layer of it in the bottom
of a deep dish, strew on some slices of marrow or butter, with a handful of
currants or stoned raisins; do this till the dish is full; let the currants
or raisins be at the top; beat four eggs, mix with them a quart of milk
that has been boiled a little and become cold, a quarter of a pound of
sugar, and a grated nutmeg–pour it in, and bake it in a moderate oven–eat
it with wine sauce.

SWEET POTATO PUDDING.

Boil one pound of sweet potatos very tender, rub them while hot through
a colander; add six eggs well beaten, three quarters of a pound of powdered
sugar, three quarters of butter, and some grated nutmeg and lemon peel,
with a glass of brandy; put a paste in the dish, and when the pudding is
done, sprinkle the top with sugar, and cover it with bits of citron. Irish
potato pudding is made in the same manner, but is not so good.

AN ARROW ROOT PUDDING.

Boil a quart of milk, and make it into a thick batter, with arrow root;
add six eggs, half a pound of butter, the same of pounded sugar, half a
nutmeg, and a little grated lemon peel; put a paste in the dish, and bake
it nicely; when done, sift sugar over it, and stick slips of citron all
over the top.

SAGO PUDDING.

Wash half a pound of sago in several waters; put it on to boil in a
quart of milk, with a stick of cinnamon; stir it very frequently, for it is
apt to burn: when it becomes quite thick, take out the cinnamon, stir it in
half a pound of butter, and an equal quantity of sugar, with a gill of
wine; when cold, add six eggs and four ounces of currants that have been
plumped in hot water–bake it in a paste.

PUFF PUDDING.

Beat six eggs, add six spoonsful of milk, and six of flour, butter some
cups, pour in the batter, and bake them quickly; turn them out, and eat
them with butter, sugar and nutmeg.

RICE PUDDING.

Boil half a pound of rice in milk, until it is quite tender; beat it
well with a wooden spoon to mash the grains; add three quarters of a pound
of sugar, and the same of melted butter; half a nutmeg, six eggs, a gill of
wine, and some grated lemon peel; put a paste in the dish, and bake it. For
change, it may be boiled, and eaten with butter, sugar, and wine.

PLUM PUDDING.

Take a pound of the best flour, sift it, and make it up before sunrise,
with six eggs beaten light; a large spoonful of good yeast, and as much
milk as will make it the consistence of bread; let it rise well, knead into
it half a pound of butter, put in a grated nutmeg, with one and a half
pounds of raisins stoned and cut up; mix all well together, wet the cloth,
flour it, and tie it loosely, that the pudding may have room to rise.
Raisins for puddings or cakes, should be rubbed in a little flour, to
prevent their settling to the bottom–see that it does not stick to them in
lumps.

ALMOND PUDDING.

Put a pound of sweet almonds in hot water till the skin will slip off
them; pound them with a little orange flower or rose water, to keep them
from oiling; mix with them four crackers, finely pounded, or two gills of
rice flour; six eggs, a pint of cream, a pound of sugar, half a pound of
butter, and four table-spoonsful of wine; put a nice paste in the bottom of
your dish, garnish the edges, pour in the pudding bake it in a moderate
oven.

QUIRE OF PAPER PANCAKES.

Beat sixteen eggs, add to them a quart of milk, a nutmeg, half a pound
of flour, a pound of melted butter, a pound of sugar, and two gills of
wine; take care the flour be not in lumps; butter the pan for the first
pancake, run them as thin as possible, and when coloured, they are done; do
not turn them, but lay them carefully in the dish, sprinkling powdered
sugar between each layer–serve them up hot. This quantity will make four
dozen pancakes.

A CURD PUDDING.

Put two quarts of milk on the fire; when it boils, pour in half a pint
of white wine, strain the curd from the whey, and pound it in a mortar,
with six ounces of butter, half a pound of loaf sugar, and half a pint of
rice flour, or as much crackers beaten as fine as flour; six eggs made
light, and half a grated nutmeg–beat all well together, and bake them in
saucers in a moderate oven; turn them out carefully in your dish, stick
thin slices of citron in them, and pour on rich melted butter, with sugar
and wine.

LEMON PUDDING.

Grate the rind from six fresh lemons, squeeze the juice from three, and
strain it; beat the yelks of sixteen eggs very light, put to them sixteen
table-spoonsful of powdered loaf sugar, not heaped up–the same of melted
butter; add the grated rind, and the juice, four crackers finely pounded,
or an equal quantity of rice flour; or for change, six ounces of corn meal
which is excellent–beat it till light, put a puff paste in your dish, pour
the pudding in, and bake it in a moderate oven–it must not be very
brown.

BREAD PUDDING.

Grate the crumb of a stale loaf, and pour on it a pint of boiling
milk–let it stand an hour, then beat it to a pulp; add six eggs, well
beaten, half a pound of butter, the same of powdered sugar, half a nutmeg,
a glass of brandy, and some grated lemon peel–put a paste in the dish, and
bake it.

THE HENRIETTA PUDDING.

Beat six eggs very light, sift into them a pound of loaf sugar powdered,
and a light pound of flour, with half a grated nutmeg, and a glass of
brandy; beat all together very well, add a pint of cream, pour it in a deep
dish, and bake it–when done, sift some powdered sugar over it.

TANSEY PUDDING.

Beat seven eggs very light, mix with them a pint of cream, and nearly as
much spinach juice, with a little juice of tansey; add a quarter of a pound
of powdered crackers or pounded rice made fine, a glass of wine, some
grated nutmeg and sugar; stir it over the fire to thicken, pour it into a
paste and bake it, or fry it like an omelette.

CHERRY PUDDING.

Beat six eggs very light, add half a pint of milk, six ounces flour,
eight ounces grated bread, twelve ounces suet, chopped fine, a little salt;
when it is beat well, mix in eighteen ounces preserved cherries or damsins;
bake or boil it. Make a sauce of melted butter, sugar and wine.

APPLE PIE.

Put a crust in the bottom of a dish, put on it a layer of ripe apples,
pared and sliced thin–then a layer of powdered sugar; do this alternately
till the dish is full; put in a few tea-spoonsful of rose water and some
cloves–put on a crust and bake it.

BAKED APPLE PUDDING.

Take well flavoured apples, bake, but do not burn them, rub them through
a sieve, take one pound of the apples so prepared, mix with it, while hot,
half a pound of butter, and half a pound of powdered sugar; the rinds of
two lemons grated–and when cold, add six eggs well beaten; put a paste in
the bottom of a dish, and pour in the apples–half an hour will bake it;
sift a little sugar on the apples when baked.

A NICE BOILED PUDDING.

Make up a pint of flour at sun rise, exactly as you do for bread; see
that it rises well–have a large pot of water boiling; and half an hour
before the puddings are to go to table, make the dough in balls, the size
of a goose egg; throw them in the water, and boil them quickly, keeping the
pot covered: they must be torn asunder, as cutting will make them heavy;
eat them with powdered sugar, butter, and grated nutmeg.

AN EXCELLENT AND
CHEAP DESSERT DISH.

Wash a pint of small homony very clean, and boil it tender; add an equal
quantity of corn meal, make it into a batter with eggs, milk, and a piece
of butter; bake it like batter cakes on a griddle, and eat it with butter
and molasses.

SLICED APPLE PUDDING.

Beat six eggs very light, add a pint of rich milk, pare some apples or
peaches–slice them thin, make the eggs and milk into a tolerably thick
batter with flour, add a small cup of melted butter, put in the fruit, and
bake it in a deep dish–eat with sugar, butter, and nutmeg.

BAKED INDIAN MEAL PUDDING.

Boil one quart of milk, mix in it two gills and a half of corn meal very
smoothly, seven eggs well beaten, a gill of molasses, and a good piece of
butter, bake it two hours.

BOILED INDIAN MEAL
PUDDING.

Mix one quart of corn meal, with three quarts of milk; take care it be
not lumpy–add three eggs and a gill of molasses; it must be put on at sun
rise, to eat at three o’clock; the great art in this pudding is tying the
bag properly, as the meal swells very much.

PUMPKIN PUDDING.

Stew a fine sweet pumpkin till soft and dry; rub it through a sieve, mix
with the pulp six eggs quite light, a quarter of a pound of butter, half a
pint of new milk, some pounded ginger and nutmeg, a wine glass of brandy,
and sugar to your taste. Should it be too liquid, stew it a little drier,
put a paste round the edges, and in the bottom of a shallow dish or
plate–pour in the mixture, cut some thin bits of paste, twist them, and
lay them across the top, and bake it nicely.

FAYETTE PUDDING.

Slice a loaf of bread tolerably thick–lay the slices in the bottom of a
dish, cutting them so as to cover it completely; sprinkle some sugar and
nutmeg, with a little butter, on each layer; when all are in, pour on a
quart of good boiled custard sweetened–serve it up cold.

MACCARONI PUDDING.

Simmer half a pound of maccaroni in a plenty of water, with a
table-spoonful of salt, till tender, but not broke–strain it, beat five
yelks, two whites of eggs, half a pint of cream–mince white meat and
boiled ham very fine, add three spoonsful of grated cheese, pepper and
salt; mix these with the maccaroni, butter the mould, put it in, and steam
it in a pan of boiling water for an hour–serve with rich gravy.

POTATO PASTE.

Boil mealy potatos quite soft, first taking off the skins; rub them
while hot through a sieve, put them in a stew pan over the fire, with as
much water as will make it the consistence of thick mush; sift one quart of
flour, and make it into a paste; with this mush, knead it till light, roll
it out thin, make the dumplins small–fill them with apples, or any other
fruit–tie them up in a thick cloth, and boil them nicely–eat them with
butter, sugar, and nutmeg.

COMPOTE OF APPLES.

Pare and core the apples, and if you prefer it, cut them in four, wash
them clean, and put them in a pan with water and sugar enough to cover
them; add cinnamon and lemon peel, which has been previously soaked,
scraped on the inside, and cut in strings; boil them gently until the
apples are done, take them out in a deep dish, boil the syrup to a proper
consistency, and pour it on them: it will take a pound of sugar for a large
dish.

CHARLOTTE.

Stew any kind of fruit, and season it in any you like best; soak some
slices of bread in butter; them while hot, in the bottom and round the
sides of a dish, which has been rubbed with butter–put in your fruit, and
lay slices of bread prepared in the same manner on the top: bake it a few
minutes, turn it carefully into another dish, sprinkle on some powdered
sugar, and glaze it with a salamander.

APPLE FRITTERS.

Pare some apples, and cut them in thin slices–put them in a bowl, with
a glass of brandy, some white wine, a quarter of a pound of pounded sugar,
a little cinnamon finely powdered, and the rind of a lemon grated; let them
stand some time, turning them over frequently; beat two eggs very light,
add one quarter of a pound of flour, a table-spoonful of melted butter, and
as much cold water as will make a thin batter; drip the apples on a sieve,
mix them with the batter, take one slice with a spoonful of batter to each
fritter, fry them quickly of a light brown, drain them well, put them in a
dish, sprinkling sugar over each, and glaze them nicely.

BELL FRITTERS.

Put a piece of butter the size of an egg into a pint of water; let it
boil a few minutes–thicken it very smoothly with a pint of flour; let it
remain a short time on the fire, stir it all the time that it may not stick
to the pan, pour it in a wooden bowl, add five or six eggs, breaking one
and beating it in–then another, and so on till they are all in, and the
dough quite light–put a pint of lard in a pan, let it boil, make the
fritters small, and fry them of a fine amber colour.

BREAD FRITTERS.

Cut your bread of a convenient size, pour on it some white wine, and let
it stand a few minutes–drain it on a sieve, beat four eggs very light, add
four spoonsful of wine, beat all well together–have your lard boiling, dip
the bread in the egg, and fry it a light brown; sprinkle sugar on each, and
glaze them.

SPANISH FRITTERS.

Make up a quart of flour, with one egg well beaten, a large spoonful of
yeast, and as much milk as will make it a little softer than muffin dough;
mix it early in the morning; when well risen, work in two spoonsful of
melted butter, make it in balls the size of a walnut, and fry them a light
brown in boiling lard–eat them with wine and sugar, or molasses.

TO MAKE MUSH.

Put a lump of butter the size of an egg into a quart of water, make it
sufficiently thick with corn meal and a little salt; it must be mixed
perfectly smooth–stir it constantly till done enough.

CAKES.

JUMBALS.

Put one pound of nice sugar into two pounds of flour, add pounded spice
of any kind, and pass them through a sieve; beat four eggs, pour them on
with three quarters of a pound of melted butter, knead all well together,
and bake them.

MACAROONE.

Blanch a pound of sweet almonds, pound them in a mortar with rose water;
whip the whites of seven eggs to a strong froth, put in one pound of
powdered sugar, beat it some time, then put in the almonds–mix them well,
and drop them on sheets of paper buttered; sift sugar over, and bake them
quickly. Be careful not to let them get discoloured.

TO MAKE DROP BISCUIT.

Beat eight eggs very light, add to them twelve ounces of flour, and one
pound of sugar; when perfectly light, drop them on tin sheets, and bake
them in a quick oven.

TAVERN BISCUIT.

To one pound of flour, add half a pound of sugar, half a pound of
butter, some mace and nutmeg powdered, and a glass of brandy or wine; wet
it with milk, and when well kneaded, roll it thin, cut it in shapes, and
bake it quickly.

RUSK.

Rub half a pound of sugar into three pounds of flour–sift it, pour on
half a pint of good yeast, beat six eggs, add half a pint of milk–mix all
together, knead it well: if not soft enough, add more milk-it should be
softer than bread; make it at night–in the morning, if well risen, work in
six ounces of butter, and bake it in small rolls; when cold, slice it, lay
it on tin sheets, and dry it in the oven.

GINGER BREAD.

Three quarts of flour, three quarters of a pound of brown sugar, a large
spoonful of pounded ginger, one tea-spoonful of powdered cloves–sift it,
melt half a pound of butter in a quart of rich molasses, wet the flour with
it, knead it well, and bake it in a slack oven.

PLEBEIAN GINGER BREAD.

Mix three large spoonsful of pounded ginger, with three quarts of
flour–sift it, dissolve three tea-spoonsful of pearl-ash in a cup of
water, and pour it on the flour; melt half a pound of butter in a quart of
molasses, mix it with the flour, knead it well, cut it in shapes, and bake
it.

SUGAR GINGER BREAD.

Take two pounds of the nicest brown sugar, dry and pound it, put it into
three quarts of flour, add a large cup full of powdered ginger, and sift
the mixture; wash the salt out of a pound of butter, and cream it; have
twelve eggs well beaten; work into the butter first, the mixture, then the
froth from the eggs, until all are in, and it is quite light; add a glass
of brandy butter shallow moulds, pour it in, and bake in a quick oven.

DOUGH NUTS–A YANKEE CAKE.

Dry half a pound of good brown sugar, pound it and mix it with two
pounds of flour, and sift it; add two spoonsful of yeast, and as much new
milk as will make it like bread: when well risen, knead in half a pound of
butter, make it in cakes the size of a half dollar, and fry them a light
brown in boiling lard.

RISEN CAKE.

Take three pounds of flour, one and a half of pounded sugar, a
tea-spoonful of cloves, one of mace, and one of ginger, all finely
powdered–pass the whole through a sieve, put to it four spoonsful of good
yeast, and twelve eggs–mix it up well, and if not sufficiently soft, add a
little milk: make it up at night, and set it to rise–when well risen,
knead into it a pound of butter, and two gills of brandy; have ready two
pounds of raisins stoned, mix all well together, pour it into a mould of
proper size, and bake it in an oven heated as for bread; let it stand till
thoroughly done, and do not take it from the mould until quite cold.

POUND CAKE.

Wash the salt from a pound of butter, and rub it till it is soft as
cream–have ready a pound of flour sifted, one of powdered sugar, and
twelve eggs well beaten; put alternately into the butter, sugar, flour, and
the froth from the eggs–continuing to beat them together till all the
ingredients are in, and the cake quite light: add some grated lemon peel, a
nutmeg, and a gill of brandy; butter the pans, and bake them. This cake
makes an excellent pudding, if baked in a large mould, and eaten with sugar
and wine. It is also excellent when boiled, and served up with melted
butter, sugar and wine.

SAVOY OR SPUNGE CAKE.

Take twelve fresh eggs, put them in the scale, and balance them with
sugar: take out half, and balance the other half with flour; separate the
whites from the yelks, whip them up very light, then mix them, and sift in,
first sugar, then flour, till both are exhausted; add some grated lemon
peel; bake them in paper cases, or little tin moulds. This also makes an
excellent pudding, with butter, sugar, and wine, for sauce.

A RICH FRUIT CAKE.

HAVE the following articles prepared, before you begin the cake: four
pounds of flour dried and sifted, four pounds of butter washed to free it
from salt, two pounds of loaf sugar pounded, a quarter of a pound of mace,
the same of nutmegs powdered; wash four pounds of currants clean, pick and
dry them; blanch one pound of sweet almonds, and cut them in very thin
slices; stone two pounds of raisins, cut them in two, and strew a little
flour over to prevent their sticking together, and two pounds of citron
sliced thin; break thirty eggs, separating the yelks and whites; work the
butter to a cream with your hand-put in alternately, flour, sugar, and the
froth from both whites and yelks, which must be beaten separately, and
only the froth put in. When all are mixed and the cake looks very
light, add the spice, with half a pint of brandy, the currants and almonds;
butter the mould well, pour in part of the cake, strew over it some raisins
and citron–do this until all is in: set it in a well heated oven: when it
has risen, and the top is coloured, cover it with paper; it will require
three hours baking–it must be iced.

NAPLES BISCUIT.

Beat twelve eggs light, add to them one pound of flour, and one of
powdered sugar; continue to beat all together till perfectly light; bake it
in long pans, four inches wide, with divisions; so that each cake, when
done, will be four inches long, and one and a half wide.

SHREWSBURY CAKES.

Mix a pound of sugar, with two pounds of flour, and a large spoonful of
pounded coriander seeds; sift them, add three quarters of a pound of melted
butter, six eggs, and a gill of brandy; knead it well, roll it thin, cut it
in shapes, and bake without discolouring it.

LITTLE PLUM CAKES.

Prepare them as directed for pound cake, add raisins and currants, bake
them in small tin shapes, and ice them.

SODA CAKES.

Dissolve half a pound of sugar in a pint of milk, add a tea-spoonful of
soda; pour it on two pounds of flour–melt half a pound of butter, knead
all together till light, put it in shallow moulds, and bake it quickly in a
brisk oven.

TO MAKE BREAD.

When you find the barrel of flour a good one, empty it into a chest or
box, made for the purpose, with a lid that will shut close: it keeps much
better in this manner than when packed in a barrel, and even improves by
lying lightly; sift the quantity you intend to make up–put into a bowl two
gills and a half of water for each quart, with a tea-spoon heaped up with
salt, and a large spoonful of yeast for each quart; stir this mixture well,
put into another bowl one handful of flour from every quart; pour a little
of the mixture on to wet it, then more, until you get it all in, taking
great care that it be smooth, and quite free from lumps; beat it some
minutes, take one-third of the flour out of the kettle, pour on the batter,
and sprinkle over it the dry flour; stop the kettle, and set it where it
can have a moderate degree of warmth: when it has risen well, turn it into
a bowl, mix in the dry flour, and knead it on a board till it looks quite
light; return it to the kettle, and place it where it can have proper heat:
in the morning, take the dry crust carefully from the top, put the dough on
a board, knead it well, make it into rolls, set them on tin sheets, put a
towel over, and let them stand near the fire till the oven is ready. In
winter, make the bread up at three o’clock, and it will be ready to work
before bed time. In summer, make it up at five o’clock. A quart of flour
should weigh just one pound and a quarter. The bread must be rasped when
baked.

TO MAKE NICE BISCUIT.

Rub a large spoonful of butter into a quart of risen dough, knead it
well, and make it into biscuit, either thick or thin: bake them
quickly.

RICE BREAD.

Boil six ounces of rice in a quart of water, till it is dry and
soft–put it into two pounds of flour, mix it in well; add two
tea-spoonsful of salt, two large spoonsful of yeast, and as much water as
will make it the consistence of bread: when well risen, bake it in
moulds.

MIXED BREAD.

Put a tea-spoonful of salt, and a large one of yeast, into a quart of
flour; make it sufficiently soft, with corn meal gruel; when well risen,
bake it in a mould. It is an excellent bread for breakfast. Indifferent
flour will rise much better, when made with gruel, than with fair
water.

PATENT YEAST.

Put half a pound of fresh hops into a gallon of water, and boil it away
to two quarts; then strain it, make it a thin batter with flour; add half a
pint good yeast, and when well fermented, pour it in a bowl, and work in as
much corn meal as will make it the consistency of biscuit dough; set it to
rise, and when quite light, make it into little cakes, which must be dried
in the shade, turning them very frequently; keep them securely from damp
and dust. Persons who live in town, and can procure brewer’s yeast, will
save trouble by using it: take one quart of it, add a quart of water, and
proceed as before directed.

TO PREPARE THE CAKES.

Take one or more cakes, according to the flour you are to make; pour on
a little warm water; when it is dissolved, stir it well, thicken with a
little flour, and set it near the fire, to rise before it is used. The best
thing to keep yeast in, is a small mug or pitcher, with a close stopper,
under which must be placed a double fold of linen, to make it still closer.
This is far preferable to a bottle, and more easily cleaned.

ANOTHER METHOD FOR MAKING
YEAST.

Peel one large Irish potato, boil it till soft, rub it through a sieve;
add an equal quantity of flour, make it sufficiently liquid with hop tea;
and when a little warmer than new milk, add a gill of good yeast; stir it
well, and keep it closely covered in a small pitcher.

NICE BUNS.

Put four ounces of sugar with three quarters of a pound of flour; make
it up with two spoonsful of yeast, and half a pint of milk; when well
risen, work into it four ounces of butter, make it into small buns, and
bake them in a quick oven–do not burn them.

MUFFINS.

Sift a quart of flour, put to it a little salt, and a large spoonful of
yeast–beat the white of a fresh egg to a strong froth, add it, and make
the flour up with cold water, as soft as you can to allow it to be handled;
set it in a moderately warm place. Next morning, beat it well with a spoon,
put it on the griddle in a round form, and bake it nicely, turning them
frequently till done.

FRENCH ROLLS.

Sift a quart of flour, add a little salt, a spoonful of yeast, two eggs
well beaten, and half a pint of milk–knead it, and set it to rise: next
morning, work in an ounce of butter, make the dough into small rolls, and
bake them. The top crust should not be hard.

CRUMPETS.

Take a quart of dough from your bread at a very early hour in the
morning; break three fresh eggs, separating the yelks from the whites–whip
them both to a froth, mix them with the dough, and add gradually milk-warm
water, till you make a batter the thickness of buckwheat cakes: beat it
well, and set it to rise till near breakfast time; have the griddle ready,
pour on the batter to look quite round: they do not require turning.

APOQUINIMINC CAKES.

Put a little salt, one egg beaten, and four ounces of butter, in a quart
of flour–make it into a paste with new milk, beat it for half an hour with
a pestle, roll the paste thin, and cut it into round cakes; bake them on a
gridiron, and be careful not to bum them.

BATTER CAKES.

Boil two cups of small homony very soft; add an equal quantity of corn
meal with a little salt, and a large spoonful of butter; make it in a thin
batter with three eggs, and a sufficient quantity of milk–beat all
together some time, and bake them on a griddle, or in woffle irons. When
eggs cannot be procured, yeast makes a good substitute; put a spoonful in
the batter, and let it stand an hour to rise.

BATTER BREAD.

Take six spoonsful of flour and three of corn meal, with a little
salt–sift them, and make a thin batter with four eggs, and a sufficient
quantity of rich milk; bake it in little tin moulds in a quick oven.

CREAM CAKES.

Melt as much butter in a pint of milk, as will make it rich as
cream–make the flour into a paste with this, knead it well, roll it out
frequently, cut it in squares, and bake on a griddle.

SOUFLE BISCUITS.

Rub four ounces of butter into a quart of flour, make it into paste with
milk, knead it well, roll it as thin as paper, and bake it to look
white.

CORN MEAL BREAD.

Rub a piece of butter the size of an egg, into a pint of corn meal–make
it a batter with two eggs, and some new milk–add a spoonful of yeast, set
it by the fire an hour to rise, butter little pans, and bake it.

SWEET POTATO BUNS.

Boil and mash a potato, rub into it as much flour as will make it like
bread–add spice and sugar to your taste, with a spoonful of yeast; when it
has risen well, work in a piece of butter, bake it in small rolls, to be
eaten hot with butter, either for breakfast or tea.

RICE WOFFLES.

Boil two gills of rice quite soft, mix with it three gills of flour, a
little salt, two ounces melted butter, two eggs beaten well, and as much
milk as will make it a thick batter–beat it till very light, and bake it
in woffle irons.

VELVET CAKES.

Make a batter of one quart of flour, three eggs, a quart of milk, and a
gill of yeast; when well risen, stir in a large spoonful of melted butter,
and bake them in muffin hoops.

CHOCOLATE CAKES.

Put half a pound of nice brown sugar into a quart of flour, sift it, and
make it into a paste, with four ounces of butter melted in as much milk as
will wet it; knead it till light, roll it tolerably thin, cut it in strips
an inch wide, and just long enough to lay in a plate; bake them on a
griddle, put them in the plate in rows to checker each other, and serve
them to eat with chocolate.

WAFERS.

Beat six eggs, add a pint of flour, two ounces of melted butter, with as
much milk as will make a thin batter–put in pounded loaf sugar to your
taste, pour it in the wafer irons, bake them quickly without browning, and
roll them while hot.

BUCKWHEAT CAKES.

Put a large spoonful of yeast and a little salt, into a quart of
buckwheat meal; make it into a batter with cold water; let it rise well,
and bake it on a griddle–it turns sour very quickly, if it be allowed to
stand any time after it has risen.

OBSERVATIONS ON ICE
CREAMS.

It is the practice with some indolent cooks, to set the freezer
containing the cream, in a tub with ice and salt, and put it in the ice
house; it will certainly freeze there; but not until the watery particles
have subsided, and by the separation destroyed the cream. A freezer should
be twelve or fourteen inches deep, and eight or ten wide. This facilitates
the operation very much, by giving a larger surface for the ice to form,
which it always does on the sides of the vessel; a silver spoon with a long
handle should be provided for scraping the ice from the sides as soon as
formed: and when the whole is congealed, pack it in moulds (which must be
placed with care, lest they should not be upright,) in ice and salt, till
sufficiently hard to retain the shape–they should not be turned out till
the moment they are to be served. The freezing tub must be wide enough to
leave a margin of four or five inches all around the freezer, when placed
in the middle–which must be filled up with small lumps of ice mixed with
salt–a larger tub would waste the ice. The freezer must be kept constantly
in motion during the process, and ought to be made of pewter, which is less
liable than tin to be worn in holes, and spoil the cream by admitting the
salt water.

ICE CREAMS.

When ice creams are not put into shapes, they should always be served in
glasses with handles.

VANILLA CREAM.

Boil a Vanilla bean in a quart of rich milk, until it has imparted the
flavour sufficiently–then take it out, and mix with the milk, eight eggs,
yelks and whites beaten well; let it boil a little longer; make it very
sweet, for much of the sugar is lost in the operation of freezing.

RASPBERRY CREAM.

Make a quart of rich boiled custard–when cold, pour it on a quart of
ripe red raspberries; mash them in it, pass it through a sieve, sweeten,
and freeze it.

STRAWBERRY CREAM

Is made in the same manner–the strawberries must be very ripe, and the
stems picked out. If rich cream can be procured, it will be infinitely
better–the custard is intended as a substitute, when cream cannot be
had.

COCOA NUT CREAM.

Take the nut from its shell, pare it, and grate it very fine; mix it
with a quart of cream, sweeten, and freeze it. If the nut be a small one,
it will require one and a half to flavour a quart of cream.

CHOCOLATE CREAM.

Scrape a quarter of a pound of chocolate very fine, put it in a quart of
milk, boil it till the chocolate is dissolved, stirring it
continually–thicken with six eggs. A Vanilla bean boiled with the milk,
will improve the flavour greatly.

OYSTER CREAM.

Make a rich soup, (see directions for oyster soup,) strain it from the
oysters, and freeze it.

ICED JELLY.

Make calf’s foot jelly not very stiff, freeze it, and serve it in
glasses.

PEACH CREAM.

Get fine soft peaches perfectly ripe, peel them, take out the stones,
and put them in a China bowl: sprinkle some sugar on, and chop them very
small with a silver spoon–if the peaches be sufficiently ripe, they will
become a smooth pulp; add as much cream or rich milk as you have peaches;
put more sugar, and freeze it.

COFFEE CREAM.

Toast two gills of raw coffee till it is a light brown, and not a grain
burnt; put it hot from the toaster without grinding it, into a quart of
rich, and perfectly sweet milk; boil it, and add the yelks of eight eggs;
when done, strain it through a sieve, and sweeten it; if properly done, it
will not be discoloured. The coffee may be dried, and will answer for
making in the usual way to drink, allowing more for the quantity of water,
than if it had not gone through this process.

QUINCE CREAM.

Wash ripe quinces and boil them whole till quite tender–let them stand
to drain and cool–then rub them through a hair sieve; mix with the pulp as
much cochineal finely powdered, as will make it a pretty colour; then add
an equal quantity of cream, and sweeten it. Pears or apples may be used,
prepared in the same manner.

CITRON CREAM.

Cut the finest citron melons when perfectly ripe–take out the seeds,
and slice the nicest part into a China bowl in small pieces, that will lie
conveniently; cover them with powdered sugar, and let them stand several
hours–then drain off the syrup they have made, and add as much cream as it
will give a strong flavour to, and freeze it. Pine apples may be used in
the same way.

ALMOND CREAM.

Pour hot water on the almonds, and let them stand till the skins will
slip off, then pound them fine, and mix them with cream: a pound of almonds
in the shells, will be sufficient for a quart of cream–sweeten and freeze
it. The kernels of the common black walnut, prepared in the same way, make
an excellent cream.

LEMON CREAM.

Pare the yellow rind very thin from four lemons–put them in a quart of
fresh cream, and boil it; squeeze and strain the juice of one lemon,
saturate it completely with powdered sugar; and when the cream is quite
cold, stir it in–take care that it does not curdle–if not sufficiently
sweet, add more sugar.

LEMONADE ICED.

Make a quart of rich lemonade, whip the whites of six fresh eggs to a
strong froth–mix them well with the lemonade, and freeze it. The juice of
morello cherries, or of currants mixed with water and sugar, and prepared
in the same way, make very delicate ices.

TO MAKE CUSTARD.

Make a quart of milk quite hot, that it may not whey when baked; let it
stand to get cold, and then mix six eggs with it; sweeten it with loaf
sugar, and fill the custard cups–put on the covers, and set them in a
Dutch oven with water, but not enough to risk its boiling into the cups; do
not put on the top of the oven. When the water has boiled ten or fifteen
minutes, take out a cup, and if the custard be the consistence of jelly; it
is sufficiently done; serve them in the cups with the covers on, and a
tea-spoon on the dish between each cup–grate nutmeg on the tops when
cold.

TO MAKE A TRIFLE.

Put slices of Savoy cake or Naples biscuit at the bottom of a deep dish;
wet it with white wine, and fill the dish nearly to the top with rich
boiled custard; season half a pint of cream with white wine and sugar; whip
it to a froth–as it rises, take it lightly off, and lay it on the custard;
pile it up high and tastily–decorate it with preserves of any kind, cut so
thin as not to bear the froth down by its weight.

RICE BLANC MANGE.

Boil a tea-cup full of rice in a very small of water, till it is near
bursting–then add half a pint of milk, boil it to a mush, stirring all the
time; season it with sugar, wine, and nutmeg; dip the mould in water, and
fill it; when cold, turn it in a dish, and surround it with boiled custard
seasoned, or syllabub–garnish it with marmalade.

FLOATING ISLAND.

Have the bowl nearly full of syllabub, made with milk, white wine, and
sugar; beat the whites of six new laid eggs to a strong froth–then mix
with it raspberry or strawberry marmalade enough to flavour and colour it;
lay the froth lightly on the syllabub, first putting in some slices of
cake; raise it in little mounds, and garnish with something light.

SYLLABUB.

Season the milk with sugar and white wine, but not enough to curdle it;
fill the glasses nearly full, and crown them with whipt cream seasoned.

COLD CREAMS.

LEMON CREAM.

Pare the rind very thin from four fresh lemons, squeeze the juice, and
strain it–put them both into a quart of water, sweeten it to your taste,
add the whites of six eggs, beat to a froth; set it over the fire, and keep
stirring until it thickens, but do not let it boil–then pour it in a bowl;
when cold, strain it through a sieve, put it on the fire, and add the yelks
of the eggs–stir it till quite thick, and serve it in glasses.

ORANGE CREAM.

Is made in the same manner, but requires more juice to give a
flavour.

RASPBERRY CREAM.

Stir as much raspberry marmalade into a quart of cream, as will be
sufficient to give a rich flavour of the fruit–strain it, and fill your
glasses, leaving out a part to whip into froth for the top.

TEA CREAM.

Put one ounce of the best tea in a pitcher, pour on it a table spoonful
of water, and let it stand an hour to soften the leaves; then put to it a
quart of boiling cream, cover it close, and in half an hour strain it; add
four tea-spoonsful of a strong infusion of rennet in water, stir it, and
set it on some hot ashes, and cover it; when you find by cooling a little
of it, that it will jelly, pour it into glasses, and garnish with thin bits
of preserved fruit.

SAGO CREAM.

Wash the sago clean, and put it on the fire with a stick of cinnamon,
and as much water as will boil it thick and soft; take out the cinnamon,
and add rich boiled custard till it is of a proper thickness; sweeten it,
and serve in glasses or cups, with grated nutmeg on the top.

BARLEY CREAM.

Is made the same way–you may add a little white wine to both; it will
give an agreeable flavour.

GOOSEBERRY FOOL.

Pick the stems and blossoms from two quarts of green gooseberries; put
them in a stew pan, with their weight in loaf sugar, and a very little
water–when sufficiently stewed, pass the pulp through a sieve; and when
cold, add rich boiled custard till it is like thick cream; put it in a
glass bowl, and lay frothed cream on the top.

TO MAKE SLIP.

Make a quart of rich milk moderately warm: then stir into it one large
spoonful of the preparation of rennet, (see receipt to prepare rennet,) set
it by, and when cold, it will be as stiff as jelly. It should be made only
a few hours before it is used, or it will be tough and watery; in summer,
set the dish in ice after it has jellied–it must be eaten with powdered
sugar, cream, and nutmeg.

CURDS AND CREAM.

Turn one quart of milk as for the slip–let it stand until just before
it is to be served: then take it up with a skimming dish, and lay it on a
sieve–when the whey has drained off, put the curds in a dish, and surround
them with cream–use sugar and nutmeg. These are Arcadian dishes; very
delicious, cheap, and easily prepared.

BLANC MANGE.

Break one ounce of isinglass into very small pieces; wash it well, and
pour on a pint of boiling water; next morning, add a quart of milk, boil it
till the isinglass is dissolved, strain it, put in two ounces sweet
almonds, blanched and pounded; sweeten it, and put it in the mould–when
stiff, turn them into a deep dish, and put raspberry cream around them. For
a change, stick thin slips of blanched almonds all over the blanc mange,
and dress round with syllabub, nicely frothed. Some moulds require
colouring–for an ear of corn, mix the yelk of an egg with a little of the
blanc mange; fill the grains of the corn with it–and when quite set, pour
in the white, but take care it is not warm enough to melt the yellow: for a
bunch of asparagus, colour a little with spinach juice, to fill the green
tops of the heads. Fruit must be made the natural colour of what it
represents. Cochineal and alkanet root pounded and dissolved in brandy,
make good colouring; but blanc mange should never be served, without
raspberry cream or syllabub to eat with it.

TO MAKE A HEN’S NEST.

Get five small eggs, make a hole at one end, and empty the shells–fill
them with blanc mange: when stiff and cold, take off the shells, pare the
yellow rind very thin from six lemons, boil them in water till tender, then
cut them in thin strips to resemble straw, and preserve them with sugar;
fill a small deep dish half full of nice jelly–when it is set, put the
straw on in form of a nest, and lay the eggs in it. It is a beautiful dish
for a dessert or supper.

Little Dishes
for a Second Course, or Supper.

PHEASANTS A-LA-DAUB.

Roast two pheasants in the nicest manner–get a deep dish, the size and
form of the one you intend to serve the pheasants in–it must be as deep as
a tureen; put in savoury jelly about an inch and a half at the bottom; when
that is set, and the pheasants cold, lay them on the jelly with their
breasts down; fill the dish with jelly up to their backs; take care it is
not warm enough to melt the other, and that the birds are not
displaced–just before it is to be served, set it a moment in hot water to
loosen it; put the dish on the top, and turn it out carefully.

PARTRIDGES A-LA-DAUB.

Truss six partridges neatly, cover them with thin slices of fat bacon
taken from the top of a middling; this keeps them white, and gives a good
flavour; they must be wrapped entirely in it–roast them, and when done,
take off the bacon; let them get cold, and use jelly as for the
pheasants.

CHICKENS A-LA-DAUB.

Roast two half grown chickens, cut off the legs and wings, pull the
breast from each side entire, take the skin from all the pieces, lay it in
the dish, and cover it with jelly.

TO MAKE SAVOURY JELLY.

Put eight or ten pounds of coarse lean beef, or the same quantity of the
inferior parts of the fore quarter of veal, into a pot with two gallons of
water, a pound of lean salt pork, three large onions chopped, three
carrots, a large handful of parsley, and any sweet herb that you choose,
with pepper and salt; boil it very gently till reduced to two quarts;
strain it through a sieve–next day, take off the fat, turn out the jelly,
and separate it from the dregs at the bottom; put it on the fire with half
a pint of white wine, a large spoonful of lemon pickle, and the whites and
shells of four eggs beaten: when it boils clear on one side, run it through
the jelly bag.

TURKEY A-LA-DAUB.

Bone a small turkey, put pepper and salt on the inside, and cover it
with slices of boiled ham or tongue; fill it with well seasoned forcemeat,
sew it up and boil it–cover it with jelly.

SALMAGUNDI.

Turn a bowl on the dish, and put on it in regular rings, beginning at
the bottom, the following ingredients, all minced:–anchovies with the
bones taken out, the white meat of fowls without the skin, hard boiled
eggs, the yelks and whites chopped separately, parsley, the lean of old ham
scraped, the inner stalks of celery; put a row of capers round the bottom
of the bowl, and dispose the others in a fanciful manner; put a little
pyramid of butter on the top, and have a small glass with egg mixed as for
sallad, to eat with the salmagundi.

AN EXCELLENT RELISH
AFTER DINNER.

Put some soup or gravy from any of the dishes on the table, into the
stew dish; add a good portion of pepper, vinegar, wine, catsup and salt;
let it be very highly seasoned; broil the legs, liver, and gizzard of a
turkey, the kidney of veal, or any thing you fancy; cut it up in small
pieces: when broiled, put it in the gravy, and stew it at table.

TO STEW PERCH.

Lay the perch in a deep pan with the heads on; sprinkle salt, pepper,
and a little chopped onion over each layer; when they are all in, take as
much water as will be sufficient to fill the pan less than half full; add a
gill of wine, one of catsup, a little lemon pickle and spice; cover the
pan, and let it stew gently till done; take out the fish without breaking,
put them in a deep dish, pour the gravy on, and neatly turn them out.

PRESERVES.

DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING
PRESERVES.

The preserving pan should be made of bell metal, flat at the bottom,
very large in diameter, but not deep. It should have a cover to fit
closely, and handles at the sides of the pan, for taking it off with ease
when the syrup boils too fast. There should also be a large chafing-dish
with long legs, for the convenience of moving it to any part of the room.
The process is a tedious one; and if the superintendent be not comfortably
situated, the preserves cannot be properly managed. A ladle the size of a
saucer, pierced and having a long handle, will be necessary for taking up
the fruit without syrup. When a chafing-dish cannot be procured, the best
substitute is a brick stove, with a grating, to burn charcoal. The sugar
should be the best double refined; but if the pure amber coloured sugar
house syrup from the West Indies can be got, it is greatly superior; it
never ferments, and the trouble is very much lessened by having ready made
syrup, in which it is only necessary to boil the fruit till clear. All
delicate fruit should be done gently, and not allowed to remain more than
half an hour after it begins to stew, before it is laid on dishes to cool;
it must be put into the syrup again for the same time; continue this until
it is sufficiently transparent. The advantage of this method is that the
preserves are less liable to boil to pieces, than when done all at one
time. It is injudicious to put more in the pan at once, than can lie on the
bottom without crowding. The pan must be made bright, and nothing permitted
to cool in it, lest it should canker. Delicate preserves should be kept in
small glasses or pots, that will not hold more than one or two pounds, for
the admission of air injures them; put letter paper wet with brandy on the
preserves, and cover the tops with many folds of soft paper, that will tie
round closely; keep them in a dry place, and expose them constantly to the
sun to check fermentation. Fruit for preserving should be in full
perfection, but not too ripe.

TO PRESERVE CLING-STONE
PEACHES.

Get the finest yellow cling-stones, pare them, and lay them in a bowl;
have their weight of sugar pounded, and sprinkle it over them as they are
put in; let them stand two or three hours, put them together with the sugar
into the pan, add a little water, and let the peaches remain till
thoroughly scalded; take them out with the ladle, draining off the syrup;
should there not be enough to cover the peaches, add more Water, boil it
and skim it, return the fruit, and do them gently till quite clear. Have
some stones cracked, blanch the kernels, and preserve them with the
peaches.

CLING-STONES SLICED.

Pare the peaches, and cut them in as large slices as possible; have
their weight in sugar, and preserve them as the others.

SOFT PEACHES.

Get yellow soft peaches that are not quite ripe, pare and divide them,
scrape the places where the stones lay with a tea-spoon, and follow the
former directions.

PEACH MARMALADE.

Take the ripest soft peaches, (the yellow ones make the prettiest
marmalade,) pare them, and take out the stones; put them in the pan with
one pound of dry light coloured brown sugar to, two of peaches: when they
are juicy, they do not require water: with a silver or wooden spoon, chop
them with the sugar; continue to do this, and let them boil gently till
they are a transparent pulp, that will be a jelly when cold. Puffs made of
this marmalade are very delicious.

PEACH CHIPS.

Slice them thin, and boil them till clear in a syrup made with half
their weight of sugar; lay them on dishes in the sun, and turn them till
dry; pack them in pots with powdered sugar sifted over each layer; should
there be syrup left, continue the process with other peaches. They are very
nice when done pure honey instead of sugar.

PEARS.

The small pears are better for preserving than large ones. Pare them,
and make a syrup, with their weight of sugar, and a little water–leave the
stem on, and stick a clove in the blossom end of each; stew them till
perfectly transparent.

PEAR MARMALADE.

Boil the pears till soft–when cold, rub the pulp through a sieve, and
boil it to a jelly, allowing one pound of sugar to two of pears.

QUINCES.

Select the finest and most perfect quinces, lay them on shelves, but do
not let them touch each other; keep them till they look yellow and have a
fragrant smell; put as many in the preserving pan as can lie conveniently,
cover them with water, and scald them well: then take out the cores, and
put them in water; cover the pan and boil them some time; strain the water,
add to it the weight of the quinces in pounded loaf sugar, dissolve and
skim it, pare the quinces, put them in the pan, and should there not be
syrup enough to cover them, add more water–stew them till quite
transparent. They will be light coloured if kept covered during the
process, and red if the cover be taken off. Fill the space the cores
occupied with quince jelly, before they are put into the pots–and cover
them with syrup.

CURRANT JELLY.

Pick full ripe currants from the stem, and put them in a stone pot; then
set it in an iron pot of water–take care that no water gets in: when the
currants have yielded their juice, pour them into a jelly bag–let it run
as long as it will without pressing, which must be reserved for the best
jelly; you may then squeeze the bag to make inferior kind. To each pint of
this juice, put one pound of loaf sugar powdered–boil it fifteen or twenty
minutes–skim it clean, and put it in glasses; expose them daily to the sun
to prevent fermentation.

QUINCE JELLY.

Prepare the quinces as before directed, take off the stems and blossoms,
wash them clean, and cut them in slices without paring; fill the pan, and
pour in water to cover them–stew them gently, putting in a little water
occasionally till they are soft; then pour them into a jelly bag; let all
the liquor run through without pressing it, which must be set aside for the
best jelly; to each pint of this, put a pound of loaf sugar pounded, and
boil it to a jelly. The bag may be squeezed for an inferior, but a very
nice jelly.

QUINCE MARMALADE.

Boil the quinces in water until soft, let them cool, and rub all the
pulp through a sieve: put two pounds of it to one of sugar, pound a little
cochineal, sift in through fine muslin, and mix it with the quince to give
a colour; pick out the seeds, tie them in a muslin bag, and boil them with
the marmalade: when it is a thick jelly, take out the seeds, and put it in
pots.

CHERRIES.

The most beautiful cherries to preserve, are the carnation and common
light red, with short stems; select the finest that are not too ripe; take
an equal weight with the cherries of double refined sugar, make it into a
syrup, and preserve them without stoning, and with the stems on; if they be
done carefully, and the “Directions for preserving” closely attended to,
the stems will not come off, and they will be so transparent that the
stones may be seen.

MORELLO CHERRIES.

Take out the stones with a quill over a deep dish, to save the juice
that runs from them; put to the juice a pound of sugar for each pound of
cherries, weighed after they are stoned; boil and skim the syrup, then put
in the fruit, and stew till quite clear.

TO DRY CHERRIES.

Stone them, and save the juice: weigh the cherries, and allow one pound
of good brown sugar to three of the fruit; boil it with the juice, put the
cherries in, stew them fifteen or twenty minutes, take them out, drain off
the syrup, and lay the cherries in dishes to dry in the sun; keep the syrup
to pour over a little at a time, as it dries on the cherries, which must be
frequently turned over; when all the syrup is used, put the cherries away
in pots, sprinkling a little powdered loaf sugar between the layers. They
make excellent pies, puddings, and charlottes.

RASPBERRY JAM.

To each pound of ripe red or English raspberries, put one pound of loaf
sugar–stir it frequently, and stew till it is a thick jelly.

TO PRESERVE STRAWBERRIES.

Get the largest strawberries before they are too ripe; have the best
loaf sugar, one pound to each of strawberries–stew them very gently,
taking them out to cool frequently, that they may not be mashed; when they
look clear, they are done enough.

STRAWBERRY JAM.

Is made in the same manner as the raspberry, and is very fine to mix
with cream for blanc mange, puffs, sweet-meat puddings, &c. &c.

GOOSEBERRIES.

Select young gooseberries, make a syrup with one pound of loaf sugar to
each of fruit; stew them till quite clear and the syrup becomes thick, but
do not let them be mashed. They are excellent made into tarts–do not cover
the pan while they are stewing.

APRICOTS IN BRANDY.

Take freshly gathered apricots not too ripe; to half their weight of
loaf sugar, add as much water as will cover the fruit; boil and skim it:
then put in the apricots, and let them remain five or six minutes: take
them up without syrup, and lay them on dishes to cool; boil the syrup till
reduced one half; when the apricots are cold, put them in bottles, and
cover them with equal quantities of syrup and French brandy. If the
apricots be cling-stones, they will require more scalding.

PEACHES IN BRANDY.

Get yellow soft peaches, perfectly free from defect and newly gathered,
but not too ripe; place them in a pot, and cover them with cold weak lye;
turn over those that float frequently, that the lye may act equally on
them; at the end of an hour take them out, wipe them carefully with a soft
cloth to get off the down and skin, and lay them in cold water; make a
syrup as for the apricots, and proceed in the same manner, only scald the
peaches more.

CHERRIES IN BRANDY.

Get the short stemmed bright red cherries in bunches–make a syrup, with
equal quantities of sugar and cherries; scald the cherries, but do not let
the skins crack, which they will do if the fruit be too ripe.

MAGNUM BONUM PLUMS IN
BRANDY.

Select those that are free from blemish–make a syrup with half their
weight of sugar, and preserve them in the same manner directed for
apricots–green gages. The large amber, and the blue plums, are also
excellent, done in the same way.

PICKLING.

LEMON PICKLE.

Grate the yellow rind from two dozen fine fresh lemons, quarter them but
leave them whole at the bottom; sprinkle salt on them, and put them in the
sun every day until dry; then brush off the salt, put them in a pot with
one ounce of nutmegs, and one of mace pounded; a large handful of horse
radish scraped and dried two dozen cloves of garlic, and a pint of mustard
seed; pour on one gallon of strong vinegar, tie the pot close, put a board
on, and let it stand three months–strain it, and when perfectly clear,
bottle it.

TOMATO CATSUP.

Gather a peck of tomatos, pick out the stems, and wash them; put them on
the fire without water, sprinkle on a few spoonsful of salt, let them boil
steadily an hour, stirring them frequently; strain them through a colander,
and then through a sieve; put the liquid on the fire with half a pint of
chopped onions, half a quarter of an ounce of mace broke into small pieces;
and if not sufficiently salt, add a little more–one table-spoonful of
whole black pepper; boil all together until just enough to fill two
bottles; cork it tight. Make it in August, in dry weather.

TOMATO MARMALADE.

Gather full grown tomatos while quite green; take out the stems, and
stew them till soft; rub them through a sieve, put the pulp on the fire
seasoned highly with pepper, salt, and pounded cloves; add some garlic, and
stew all together till thick: it keeps well, and is excellent for seasoning
gravies, &c. &c.

TOMATO SWEET MARMALADE.

Prepare it in the same manner, mix some loaf sugar with the pulp, and
stew until it is a stiff jelly.

TOMATO SOY.

Take a bushel of full ripe tomatos, cut them in slices without
skinning–sprinkle the bottom of a large tub with salt, strew in the
tomatos, and over each layer of about two inches thick, sprinkle half a
pint of salt, and three onions sliced without taking off the skins.

When the bushel of tomatos is thus prepared, let them remain for
three days, then put them into a large iron pot, in which they must
boil from early in the morning till night, constantly stirring to prevent
their sticking and mashing them.

The next morning, pass the mixture through a sieve, pressing it to
obtain all the liquor you can; and add to it one ounce of cloves, quarter
of a pound of allspice, quarter of a pound of whole black pepper, and a
small wine glass of Cayenne; let it boil slowly and constantly during the
whole of the day–in the evening, put it into a suitable vessel to cool;
and the day after, bottle and cork it well: place it in a cool situation
during warm weather, and it will keep for many years, provided it has been
boiled very slowly and sufficiently in the preparation. Should it ferment
it must be boiled a second time.

PEPPER VINEGAR.

Get one dozen pods of pepper when ripe, take out the stems, and cut them
in two; put them in a kettle with three pints of vinegar, boil it away to
one quart, and strain it through a sieve. A little of this is excellent in
gravy of every kind, and gives a flavour greatly superior to black pepper;
it is also very fine when added to each of the various catsups for fish
sauce.

MUSHROOM CATSUP.

Take the flaps of the proper mushrooms from the stems–wash them, add
some salt, and crush them; then boil them some time, strain them through a
cloth, put them on the fire again with salt to your taste, a few cloves of
garlic, and a quarter of an ounce of cloves pounded, to a peck of
mushrooms; boil it till reduced to less than half the original
quantity–bottle and cork it well.

TARRAGON OR ASTRAGON
VINEGAR.

Pick the tarragon nicely from the stem, let it lie in a dry place
forty-eight hours; put it in a pitcher, and to one quart of the leaves put
three pints of strong vinegar; cover it close, and let it stand a
week–then strain it, and after standing in the pitcher till quite clear,
bottle it, and cork it closely.

CURRY POWDER.

One ounce turmeric, one do. coriander seed, one do. cummin seed, one do.
white ginger, one of nutmeg, one of mace, and one of Cayenne pepper; pound
all together, and pass them through a line sieve; bottle and cork it
well–one tea-spoonful is sufficient to season any made dish.

TO PICKLE CUCUMBERS.

Gather them full grown, but quite young–take off the green rind, and
slice them tolerably thick; put a layer in a deep dish, strew over it some
chopped onion and salt; do this until they are all in; sprinkle salt on the
top, let them stand six hours, put them in a colander–when all the liquor
has run off, put them in a pot; strew a little cayenne pepper over each
layer, and cover them with strong cold vinegar; when the pot is full, pour
on some sweet oil, and tie it, up close; at the end of a fortnight, pour
off the first vinegar, and put on fresh.

OIL MANGOS.

Gather the melons a size larger than a goose egg–put them in a pot,
pour boiling salt and water made strong upon them, and cover them up; next
day, cut a slit from the stem to the blossom end, and take out the seeds
carefully–return them to the brine, and let them remain in it eight days;
then put them in strong vinegar for a fortnight, wipe the insides with a
soft cloth, stuff them and tie them, pack them in a pot with the slit
uppermost; strew some of the stuffing over each layer, and keep them
covered with the best vinegar.

TO MAKE THE
STUFFING FOR FORTY MELONS.

Wash a pound of white race ginger very clean; pour boiling water on it,
and let it stand twenty-four hours; slice it thin, and dry it; one pound of
horse-radish scraped and dried, one pound of mustard seed washed and dried,
one pound of chopped onion, one ounce of mace, one of nutmeg pounded fine,
two ounces of turmeric, and a handful of whole black pepper; make these
ingredients into a paste, with a quarter of a pound of mustard, and a large
cup full of sweet oil; put a clove of garlic into each mango.

TO MAKE YELLOW PICKLE.

Put all the articles intended for the yellow pickle in a pot, and pour
on them boiling salt and water–let them stand forty-eight hours, take
advantage of a clear hot day, press the water from the articles, and lay
them to dry in full sunshine, on a table covered with a thick soft cloth,
with the corners pinned securely, that they may not blow up over the
things–the cloth absorbs the moisture; and by turning them frequently on a
dry place, they become white, and receive the colour of the turmeric more
readily–one day of clear sunshine is enough to prepare them for the first
vinegar. When dried, put them in a pot of plain cold vinegar, with a little
turmeric in it–let them remain in it two weeks to draw off the water from
them, and to make them plump–then put them in a clean pot, and pour on the
vinegar, prepared by the following directions–this is the most economical
and best way of keeping them–mix the turmeric very smoothly, before you
add it to your pickles.

TO MAKE GREEN PICKLES.

Put the articles you intend to pickle, in a pot–and cover them with
boiling salt and water: put a thick cloth on the top, and then a plate that
will fit it–let it stand till the next morning, then pour off the salt and
water, boil it again, and cover them as before; do this until your pickles
are a good green–then put them in plain cold vinegar, with some turmeric
in it; and at the end of a fortnight, put them up, as you do the yellow
pickle.

TO PREPARE
VINEGAR FOR GREEN OR YELLOW PICKLE.

One pound of ginger sliced and dried, one of horse-radish scraped and
dried, one of mustard seed washed and dried, one ounce long pepper, an
ounce of mace, and one of nutmegs finely pounded; put all these ingredients
in a pot, pour two gallons of strong vinegar on, and let it stand twelve
months, stirring it very frequently. When this vinegar is used for the
pickles, put two gallons more vinegar, with some mace and nutmegs, and keep
it for another year. When the prepared vinegar is poured from the
ingredients, do it very carefully, that it may be quite clear. Pickles keep
much better when the vinegar is not boiled. Should the green pickles at any
time lose their colour, it may be restored by adding a little more
turmeric. All pickles are best, when one or two years old.

TO PICKLE ONIONS.

Get white onions that are not too large, cut the stem close to the root
with a sharp knife, put them in a pot, pour on boiling salt and water to
cover them, stop the pot closely, let them stand a fortnight, changing the
salt and water every three days; they must be stirred daily, or those that
float will become soft; at the end of this time, take off the skin and
outer shell, put them in plain cold vinegar with a little turmeric. If the
vinegar be not very pale, the onion will not be of a good colour.

TO PICKLE NASTERTIUMS.

Gather the berries when full grown but young, put them in a pot, pour
boiling salt and water on, and let them stand three or four days; then
drain off the water, and cover them with cold vinegar; add a few blades of
mace, and whole grains of black pepper.

TO PICKLE RADISH PODS.

Cut them in nice bunches as soon as they are fully formed; they must be
young and tender–pour boiling salt and water on them, cover with a thick
cloth, and pewter plate, to keep in the steam; repeat this every day till
they are a good green; then put them in cold vinegar, with mace and whole
pepper; mix a little turmeric, with a small portion of oil, and stir it
into the vinegar; it will make the pods of a more lively green. They are
very pretty for garnishing meats.

TO PICKLE ENGLISH WALNUTS.

The walnuts should be gathered when the nut is so young that you can run
a pin into it easily; pour boiling salt and water on, and let them be
covered with it nine days, changing it every third day–take them out, and
put them on dishes in the air for a few minutes, taking care to turn them
over; this will make them black much sooner–put them in a pot, strew over
some whole pepper, cloves, a little garlic, mustard seed, and horse-radish
scraped and dried; cover them with strong cold vinegar.

TO PICKLE PEPPERS.

Gather the large bell pepper when quite young, leave the seeds in and
the stem on, cut a slit in one side between the large veins, to let the
water in; pour boiling salt and waler on, changing it every day for three
weeks–you must keep them closely stopped; if at the end of this time, they
be a good green, put them in pots, and cover them with cold vinegar and a
little turmeric; those that are not sufficiently green, must be continued
under the same process till they are so. Be careful not to cut through the
large veins, as the heat will instantly diffuse itself through the pod.

TO MAKE WALNUT CATSUP.

Gather the walnuts as for pickling, and keep them in salt and water the
same time; then pound them in a marble mortar–to every dozen walnuts, put
a quart of vinegar; stir them well every day for a week, then put them in a
bag, and press all the liquor through; to each quart, put a tea-spoonful of
pounded cloves, and one of mace, with six cloves of garlic–boil it fifteen
or twenty minutes, and bottle it.

TO PICKLE GREEN
NECTARINES OR APRICOTS.

Gather them while the shell is soft–green them with salt and water as
before directed; when a good green, soak them in plain vinegar for a
fortnight, and put them in the yellow pickle pot.

TO PICKLE ASPARAGUS.

Pour boiling salt and water on, and cover them close–next day, take
them out, dry them, and after standing in vinegar, put them with the yellow
pickle.

OBSERVATIONS ON PICKLING.

The vessels for keeping pickles should be made of stone ware, straight
from the bottom to the top, with stone covers to them; when the mouth is
very wide, the pickles may be taken out without breaking them The motive
for keeping all pickles in plain vinegar, previous to putting them in the
prepared pot, is to draw off the water with which they are saturated, that
they may not weaken the vinegar of the pot. Pickles keep much better when
the vinegar is not boiled.

CORDIALS, &c.

GINGER WINE.

To three gallons of water, put three pounds of sugar, and four ounces of
race ginger, washed in many waters to cleanse it; boil them together for
one hour, and strain it through a sieve; when lukewarm, put it in a cask
with three lemons cut in slices, and two gills of beer yeast; shake it
well, and stop the cask very tight; let it stand a week to ferment; and if
not clear enough to bottle, it must remain until it becomes so; it will be
fit to drink in ten days after bottling.

ORGEAT.

A Necessary Refreshment at all Parties.

Boil two quarts of milk with a stick of cinnamon and let it stand to be
quite cold, first taking out the cinnamon; blanch four ounces of the best
sweet almonds, pound them in a marble mortar with a little rose-water; mix
them well with the milk, sweeten it to your taste, and let it boil a few
minutes only, lest the almonds should be oily; strain it through a very
fine sieve till quite smooth, and free from the almonds, serve it up either
cold or lukewarm, in glasses with handles.

CHERRY SHRUB.

Gather ripe morello cherries, pick them from the stalk, and put them in
an earthen pot, which must be set into an iron pot of water; make the water
boil, but take care that none of it gets into the cherries; when the juice
is extracted, pour it into a bag made of tolerably thick cloth, which will
permit the juice to pass, but not the pulp of your cherries; sweeten it to
your taste, and when it becomes perfectly clear, bottle it–put a gill of
brandy into each bottle, before you pour in the juice–cover the corks with
rosin. It will keep all summer, in a dry cool place, and is delicious mixed
with water.

CURRANT WINE.

Gather full ripe currants on a dry day, pick them from the stalks, and
weigh them; then crush them with your hands, leaving none whole; for every
two pounds of currants put one quart of water; stir all well together, and
let it stand three hours, and strain the liquor through a sieve; then, for
every three pounds of currants, put one pound of powdered loaf sugar; stir
it till the sugar is dissolved, boil it, and keep skimming it, as long as
any scum will rise; let it stand sixteen hours to cool, before you put it
in the cask–stop it very close. If the quantity be twenty gallons, let it
stand three weeks before you bottle it; if it be thirty gallons, it must
remain a month; it should be perfectly clear when drawn off–put a lump of
sugar in each bottle, cork it well, and keep it in a cool place, or it will
turn sour. This is a pleasant and cheap wine–and if properly made, will
keep good for many years. It makes an agreeable beverage for the sick, when
mixed with water.

TO MAKE CHERRY BRANDY.

Get equal quantities of morello and common black cherries; fill your
cask, and pour on (to a ten gallon cask) one gallon of boiling water; in
two or three hours, fill it up with brandy–let it stand a week, then draw
off all, and put another gallon of boiling water, and fill it again with
brandy–at the end of the week, draw the whole off, empty the cask of the
cherries, and pour in your brandy with water, to reduce the strength; first
dissolving one pound of brown sugar in each gallon of your mixture. If the
brandy be very strong, it will bear water enough to make the cask full.

ROSE BRANDY.

Gather leaves from fragrant roses without bruising, fill a pitcher with
them, and cover them with French brandy; next day, pour off the brandy,
take out the leaves, and fill the pitcher with fresh ones, and return the
brandy; do this till it is strongly impregnated, then bottle it; keep the
pitcher closely covered during the process. It is better than distilled
rose water for cakes, &c.

PEACH CORDIAL.

Gather ripe cling-stone peaches, wipe off the down, cut them to the
stone in several places, and put them in a cask; when filled with peaches,
pour on as much peach brandy as the cask will hold; let it stand six or
eight weeks, then draw it off, put in water until reduced to the strength
of wine; to each gallon of this, add one pound of good brown
sugar–dissolve it, and pour the cordial into a cask just large enough to
hold it–when perfectly clear, it is fit for use.

RASPBERRY CORDIAL.

To each quart of ripe red raspberries, put one quart of best French
brandy; let it remain about a week, then strain it through a sieve or bag,
pressing out all the liquid; when you have got as much as you want, reduce
the strength to your taste with water, and put a pound of powdered loaf
sugar to each gallon–let it stand till refined. Strawberry cordial is made
the same way. It destroys the flavour of these fruits to put them on the
fire.

RASPBERRY VINEGAR.

Put a quart of ripe red raspberries in a bowl; pour on them a quart of
strong well flavoured vinegar–let them stand twenty-four hours, strain
them through a bag, put this liquid on another quart, of fresh raspberries,
which strain in the same manner–and then on a third quart: when this last
is prepared, make it very sweet with pounded loaf sugar; refine and bottle
it. It is a delicious beverage mixed with iced water.

MINT CORDIAL.

Pick the mint early in the morning while the dew is on it, and be
careful not to bruise it; pour some water over it, and drain it–put two
handsful into a pitcher, with a quart of French brandy, cover it, and let
it stand till next day; take the mint carefully out, and put in as much
more, which must be taken out next day–do this the third time: then put
three quarts of water to the brandy, and one pound of loaf sugar powdered;
mix it well together–and when perfectly clear, bottle it.

HYDROMEL, OR MEAD.

Mix your mead in the proportion of thirty-six ounces of honey to four
quarts of warm water; when the honey is completely held in solution, pour
it into a cask. When fermented, and become perfectly clear, bottle and cork
it well. If properly prepared, it is a pleasant and wholesome drink; and in
summer particularly grateful, on account of the large quantity of carbonic
acid gas which it contains. Its goodness, however, depends greatly on the
time of bottling, and other circumstances, which can only be
acquired by practice.

TO MAKE A SUBSTITUTE FOR
ARRACK.

Dissolve two scruples flowers of Benzoin, in one quart of good rum.

LEMON CORDIAL.

Cut six fresh lemons in thin slices, put them into a quart and a half of
milk, boil it until the whey is very clear, then pass it through a sieve;
put to this whey, one and a half quarts of French brandy, and three pounds
of powdered loaf sugar; stir it till the sugar is dissolved–let it stand
to refine, and bottle it; pare some of the yellow rind of the lemons very
thin, and put a little in each bottle.

GINGER BEER.

Pour two gallons of boiling water on two pounds brown sugar, one and a
half ounce of cream of tartar, and the same of pounded ginger; stir them
well, and put it in a small cask; when milk warm, put in half a pint of
good yeast, shake the cask well, and stop it close–in twenty-four hours it
will be fit to bottle–cork it very well, and in ten days it will sparkle
like Champaigne–one or two lemons cut in slices and put in, will improve
it much. For economy, you may use molasses instead of sugar–one quart in
place of two pounds. This is a wholesome and delicious beverage in warm
weather.

SPRUCE BEER.

Boil a handful of hops, and twice as much of the chippings of sassafras
root, in ten gallons of water; strain it, and pour in, while hot, one
gallon of molasses, two spoonsful of the essence of spruce, two spoonsful
of powdered ginger, and one of pounded allspice; put it in a cask–when
sufficiently cold, add half a pint of good yeast; stir it well, stop it
close, and when fermented and clear, bottle and cork it tight.

MOLASSES BEER.

Put five quarts of hops, and five of wheat bran, into fifteen gallons of
water; boil it three or four hours, strain it, and pour it into a cask with
one head taken out; put in five quarts of molasses, stir it till well
mixed, throw a cloth over the barrel; when moderately warm, add a quart of
good yeast, which must be stirred in; then stop it close with a cloth and
board. When it has fermented and become quite clear, bottle it–the corks
should be soaked in boiling water an hour or two, and the bottles perfectly
clean, and well drained.

TO KEEP LEMON-JUICE.

Get lemons quite free from blemish, squeeze them, and strain the juice;
to each pint of it, put a pound of good loaf sugar pounded; stir it
frequently until the sugar is completely dissolved, cover the pitcher
closely, and let it stand till the dregs have subsided, and the syrup is
transparent; have bottles perfectly clean and dry, put a wine glass full of
French brandy into each bottle, fill it with syrup, cork it, and dip the
neck into melted rosin or pitch; keep them in a cool dry cellar–do not put
it on the fire–it will destroy the fine flavour of the juice.

Pour water on the peels of the lemons, let them soak till you can scrape
all the white pulp off, then boil the peel till soft; preserve them with
half their weight of sugar, and keep them for mince pies, cakes, &c.
They are a very good substitute for citron.

SUGAR VINEGAR.

To one measure of sugar, put seven measures of water moderately warm;
dissolve it completely–put it into a cask, stir in yeast in the proportion
of a pint to eight gallons: stop it close, and keep it in a warm place till
sufficiently sour.

HONEY VINEGAR.

To one quart of clear honey, put eight quarts of warm water, mix it well
together: when it has passed through the acetous fermentation, a white
vinegar will be formed, in many respects better than the ordinary
vinegar.

SYRUP OF VINEGAR.

Boil two pounds of sugar with four quarts of vinegar, down to a syrup,
and bottle it. This makes an excellent beverage when mixed with water,
either with or without the addition of brandy. It is nearly equal a flavour
to the syrup of lime juice, when made with superior vinegar.

AROMATIC VINEGAR.

Put a portion of acetate of potash, (sal diureticus,) into a smelling
bottle; mix gradually with it half its weight of sulphuric acid, and add a
few drops of oil of lavender.

VINEGAR OF THE FOUR
THIEVES.

Take lavender, rosemary, sage, wormwood, rue, and mint, of each a large
handful; put them in a pot of earthen ware, pour on them four quarts of
very strong vinegar, cover the pot closely, and put a board on the top;
keep it in the hottest sun two weeks, then strain and bottle it, putting in
each bottle a clove of garlic. When it has settled in the bottle and become
clear, pour it off gently; do this until you get it all free from sediment.
The proper time to make it is when the herbs are in full vigour, in June.
This vinegar is very refreshing in crowded rooms, in the apartments of the
sick; and is peculiarly grateful, when sprinkled about the house in damp
weather.

LAVENDER WATER.

Put a pint of highly rectified spirits of wine, to one ounce of
essential oil of lavender, and two drachms of ambergris; shake them well
together, and keep it closely stopped.

HUNGARIAN WATER.

One pint spirits of wine, one ounce oil of rosemary, and two drachms
essence of ambergris.

TO PREPARE
COSMETIC SOAP FOR WASHING THE HANDS.

Take a pound of castile, or any other nice old soap; scrape it in small
pieces, and put it on the fire with a little water–stir it till it becomes
a smooth paste, pour it into a bowl, and when cold, add some lavender
water, or essence of any kind–beat it with a silver spoon until well
mixed, thicken it with corn meal, and keep it in small pots closely
covered–for the admission of air will soon make the soap hard.

COLOGNE WATER.

Three quarts spirits of wine, six drachms oil of lavender, one drachm
oil of rosemary, three drachms essence of lemon, ten drops oil of
cinnamon–mix them together very well.

SOFT POMATUM.

Get nice sweet lard that has no salt in it–put in any agreeable
perfume, beat it to a cream, and put it in small pots.

TO MAKE SOAP.

Put on the fire any quantity of lye you choose that is strong enough to
bear an egg–to each gallon, add three quarters of a pound of clean grease:
boil it very fast, and stir it frequently–a few hours will suffice to make
it good soap. When you find by cooling a little on a plate that it is a
thick jelly, and no grease appears, put in salt in the proportion of one
pint to three gallons–let it boil a few minutes, and pour it in tubs to
cool–(should the soap be thin, add a little water to that in the plate,
stir it well, and by that means ascertain how much water is necessary for
the whole quantity; very strong lye will require water to thicken it, after
the incorporation is complete; this must be done before the salt is added.)
Next day, cut out the soap, melt it, and cool it again; this takes out all
the lye, and keeps the soap from shrinking when dried. A strict conformity
to these rules, will banish the lunar bugbear, which has so long annoyed
soap makers. Should cracknels be used, there must be one pound to each
gallon. Kitchen grease should be clarified in a quantity of water, or the
salt will prevent its incorporating with the lye. Soft soap is made in the
same manner, only omitting the salt. It may also be made by putting the lye
and grease together in exact proportions, and placing it under the
influence of a hot sun for eight or ten days, stirring it well four or five
times a day.

TO MAKE STARCH.

Wash a peck of good wheat, and pick it very clean; put it in a tub, and
cover it with water; it must be kept in the sun, and the water changed
every day, or it will smell very offensively. When the wheat becomes quite
soft, it must be well rubbed in the hands, and the husks thrown into
another tub; let this white substance settle, then pour off the water, put
on fresh, stir it up well, and let it subside; do this every day till the
water comes off clear–then pour it off; collect the starch in a bag, tie
it up tight, and set it in the sun a few days; then open it, and dry the
starch on dishes.

TO DRY HERBS.

Gather them on a dry day, just before they begin to blossom; brush off
the dust, cut them in small branches, and dry them quickly in a moderate
oven; pick off the leaves when dry, pound and sift them–bottle them
immediately, and cork them closely. They must be kept in a dry place.

TO CLEAN SILVER UTENSILS.

Dissolve two tea-spoonsful of alum in a quart of moderately strong
lye–stir in a gill of soft soap, and skim off the dross. Wash the silver
clean in hot water, let it remain covered with this mixture for ten or
fifteen minutes, turning it over frequently; then wash it in hot soap suds,
and rub it well with a dry cloth.

TO MAKE BLACKING.

A quarter of a pound of ivory black, two ounces of sugar candy, a
quarter of an ounce of gum tragacanth; pound them all very fine, boil a
bottle of porter, and stir the ingredients in while boiling hot.

TO CLEAN KNIVES AND FORKS.

Wash them in warm water, and wipe them till quite dry; then touch them
lightly over, without smearing the handles, with rotten stone made wet; let
it dry on them, and then rub with a clean cloth until they are bright. With
this mode of cleaning, one set of knives and forks will serve a family
twenty years; they will require the frequent use of a steel to keep them
with a keen edge–but must never be put into very hot water, lest the
handles be injured.

THE END.

Footnotes:

1. Shote being a Provincial term, and
not a legitimate English Word, Mrs. R. has taken the liberty of spelling it
in a way that conveys the sound of the pronunciation more clearly than
shoat, the usual manner of spelling it.

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