treacle, pinch salt, 1 teaspoonful ginger, 1 teaspoonful baking
powder. Mix, cover with greased paper, and steam 3 hours, taking care
that it never stops cooking. The baking powder is home made. The
pudding should be like sponge cake.
_Trifle._--Place in a glass dish a layer of macaroons and ratafias,
moisten them with 1 glass sherry and ½ glass brandy; put a layer of
apricot jam or quince jelly over this. Make a plain custard, and
when cold pour it over the jam or jelly. Take 1½ pint rich cream, ¼
lb. sifted sugar, the juice of 1 lemon, the grated peel of ½ lemon,
2 tablespoonfuls noyeau, and 1 of white wine; whisk the whole well
together, and as the froth rises lay it on a sieve in a cool place.
Cover the custard with the whipped cream. Ornament with crystallized
fruit and strips of angelica.
_Tutti Fruiti._--Soak 4 penny sponge cakes in 1 wineglassful orange
or raisin wine, and put over them a layer of jam. Make a custard with
the yolks of 3 eggs, and pour over the whole. Make a stiff whip of
the whites, and arrange this over the custard. Scatter all over the
top two pennyworth of hundreds-and-thousands, and arrange some very
thin strips of candied peel in a pattern on the top of the whip, and
serve.
_Vanilla Cream._--Boil a stick of vanilla in 1½ pint milk, with
sugar to taste. Beat up the yolks of 8 eggs, pour the flavoured milk
on them, and keep on stirring in a bain-marie until the custard
thickens. Melt 9 sheets best French gelatine in a little milk, add
this to the custard. Whisk to a froth ½ pint cream, mix quickly with
the custard, put into a mould, place it in a cold place or on ice to
set, and at the time of serving dip the mould in hot water, and turn
out the cream.
_Vanilla Soufflé._--Put into a saucepan a piece of fresh butter the
size of a walnut, 1 large tablespoonful flour, a small pinch of salt,
and stir in gradually ½ pint milk; add powdered loaf sugar to taste,
and stir on the fire till the mixture thickens and boils. When nearly
cold work into it the yolks of 4 eggs, and as much vanilla essence
as will flavour it strongly, and then, quickly and thoroughly, the
whites of 6 eggs whisked to a stiff froth; pour the mixture into a
tin large enough to allow room for rising, strew a little finely
powdered sugar over it, and place the tin at once into a quick oven.
It will take 15-20 minutes to cook, and as soon as the soufflé has
well risen, and the top has taken a good colour, it is ready, and
must be served immediately in the tin, a little finely powdered sugar
being sprinkled on the top.
_Venus Pudding._--Take a quart mould, butter it well, and ornament
it with candied ginger; make a rich custard with the yolks of 12 and
the whites of 6 eggs, 1 pint cream, and loaf sugar to taste, then
dissolve 1 oz. isinglass in sufficient milk to fill up the mould;
when cold add a glass of rum or sherry; pour the mixture into the
mould, and place it on ice to set. Before adding the isinglass put
aside a little of the custard for sauce, add some ginger syrup to
this, and serve cold with the pudding.
_Victoria Pudding._--This requires care in its preparation, and
should be made the day before it is wanted. Make a custard with 4
eggs, 1 pint milk, and ¾ oz. isinglass, flavouring it with vanilla
and brandy. The vanilla should be cut into small pieces, tied up in
a muslin bag, and boiled in the milk; the brandy should be added
when cold; a very small quantity of the latter is sufficient. Let
the custard get quite cold, when it will become thick and lumpy. Dip
a jelly-mould into cold water, and with a spoon arrange the custard
in the design at the bottom of the mould, carefully filling all the
holes. Slice some penny sponge cakes in halves, dip them in sherry or
Marsala, and then place them in layers in the centre of the mould,
with preserves (either strawberry or raspberry) between each layer,
filling up in the meanwhile the space between the cake and the mould
with custard, so that when turned out the custard appears as a crust
around it. It should remain in the mould for at least 12 hours to
stiffen. Turn it out on a dish and garnish with strawberry jelly.
_Waffles._--1 qt. sour milk, 4 eggs, 3 oz. butter, ½ teaspoonful
salt, 2 teaspoonfuls soda, flour enough to make a thick batter. Bake
and serve hot.
_Wigs._--Take ¼ peck of fine flour, ½ lb. butter rubbed in fine, ½
lb. sugar, ½ nutmeg, ½ race of ginger, 3 eggs, beat well, and put to
½ pint yeast and 3 spoonfuls sack; make a hole in the flour, and pour
in, with as much milk just warm as will make it into a light paste.
Let it stand before the fire, to rise, ½ hour; then make it into 1½
doz. wigs, brush them over with egg, and put into the oven. Bake ½
hour in a quick oven.
_Wine Jelly._--2 oz. gelatine, ¾ lb. loaf sugar, 3 lemons, ½ pint
sherry, 1 wineglassful brandy, whites of 4 eggs, 1½ pint water. Put
the water, gelatine, sugar, and the rinds of the lemons, peeled very
thinly, into a pan. Stir till the gelatine and sugar have dissolved,
and boil; then add the strained lemon juice, wine, and the whites of
eggs, whipped with a little cold water. Bring slowly to the boil, and
throw in a little cold water 3 times to check the boiling and throw
off the scum. Allow to simmer ¼ hour, then strain through a cloth or
jelly bag (which has been rinsed out in hot water) 2 or 3 times until
clear, then add brandy. When the jelly is beginning to set, pour into
a wet mould.
_Wine Roll._--Soak a penny roll in raisin wine till it has
quite absorbed all the liquid. Sprinkle it thickly with
“hundreds-and-thousands,” and pour round it a rich custard. Jam may
be previously spread over the roll (before soaking) if liked.
_Winter Cream._-½ oz. gelatine, 1 pint new milk, 1 pint cream, 2
yolks eggs, ½ pot apricots, ½ pot strawberry jam (pound pots),
juice of 1 lemon, a few drops of ratafia essence, a few drops of
cochineal. Soak the gelatine in a little of the milk; when it has
absorbed the milk, put it into a clean copper stewpan with the rest
of the milk and the cream; set on the fire, keeping it stirred with a
wooden spoon; when it is nearly boiling stir into it the well-beaten
yolks of 2 eggs, but be sure it does not boil, or the cream will be
curdled. Now take from the fire and pour into a large basin; mix with
it thoroughly the jam, which has been rubbed through a hair sieve,
adding the ratafia and the lemon juice, also a little cochineal to
give it a brighter colour. When the cream begins to set, whisk it a
few minutes, and put into a mould, and set away in a cool place. In a
few hours it will be ready to serve. (E. A. Robbins.)
_Yorkshire Pudding._--5 tablespoonfuls flour, pinch of salt, 1 pint
new milk, 2 eggs. Put flour and salt into a bowl, add slowly the milk
to make a smooth batter, then add the eggs, previously well beaten.
Fat should be put into the tin and allowed to come to boil, the
batter is then to be poured in and baked 20 minutes in a hot oven.
Can be finished under the joint if desired.
=Confectionery.=--The following recipes comprise the few kinds which
are adopted for home manufacture.
_Almond Hardbake._--Mix 1½ lb. moist sugar with ¾ pint water, put
the mixture into an earthenware pipkin, and let it boil until it is
brittle. Blanch 2½ oz. sweet almonds, split them in halves lengthwise
through the broadest part of the almond, and add them and 3 oz.
butter to the boiled sugar; let it continue to boil until it hardens.
Try by letting a little bit of the hardbake fall into cold water; if
it hardens immediately, it is done. Oil a flat dish, and pour the
hardbake on it to set.
_Barley Sugar._--Dissolve and boil 1½ lb. loaf sugar in ½ pint water
and the white of ½ egg; when it is at candy height, add a teaspoonful
of strained lemon juice, and boil it quickly till it recovers its
former state; pour it over a marble slab, and when it becomes stiff
cut it in strips and twist it.
_Chestnuts, Candied._--Remove the outer skin from some large
chestnuts, rejecting any one of them which is not perfectly sound;
throw them into a tinned pan full of boiling water, and let them
boil just long enough to allow of the second skin being removed.
Having done this, put them into another similar pan full of boiling
water, and as soon as they are done (they should be tender, but
rather underdone) drain the water from them, and put them into
a basin full of lukewarm water, with the juice of 1 or 2 lemons
squeezed in it. When the water is perfectly cold take out the
chestnuts very carefully, and dry them; put them into a basin, and
cover them with clarified sugar boiling hot, prepared as follows:
Take 6 lb. pounded sugar and put it into a sugar boiler--an untinned
copper vessel--with 1 qt. water. Beat up the whites of 3 eggs with 1
pint water, and add this to the rest. Set the pan on the fire, and
keep stirring the sugar; when it rises add a little cold water, and
repeat this every time the sugar rises until 1 pint water has been so
expended, and by that time the sugar will no longer rise, and a dark
scum will have gathered on the top. Remove the scum carefully, and
strain the syrup through a wetted napkin. Put the syrup back into the
boiler--having previously scoured it quite clean--and boil until on
taking some between thumb and finger and drawing them apart the sugar
will form a thread. The next day put the chestnuts with the syrup
into the sugar boiler, and let them boil for 5 minutes, then put them
by in the syrup to remain another day. The third day strain off the
syrup, boil it till on being raised on the skimmer, and blown through
it will form into bubbles; pour this over the chestnuts. On the
following day prepare some syrup as above, and boil it till a small
modicum dropped into cold water will harden, and can be made into a
ball; drain the chestnuts from the former syrup, dip them carefully
one by one in the fresh syrup, and put them on a wire sieve in a warm
place to dry. When dry they are ready.
_Chocolate Creams._--(_a_) Mix 2 oz. Bermuda arrowroot smoothly with
1½ gill cold water; add 12 oz. pulverised sugar, and boil rapidly
8-10 minutes, stirring continually. Remove it from the fire, and stir
till a little cool; flavour with vanilla or rose; continue stirring
till it creams, then roll into little balls. Melt some chocolate over
steam (add no water), and when the cream balls are cold roll them in
it one by one, and lay on a buttered slab to cool. The creams may be
varied by dividing the cream into 3 parts, adding grated coconut to
one, chopped almonds to another, and pistachios to the third.
(_b_) Grate 8 oz. vanilla chocolate; put into a stewpan, with 8
oz. sugar, 8 yolks of eggs, 1 pint cream. Stir the whole over the
fire until the preparation begins to thicken, allowing the yolks to
sufficiently set without curdling; strain the cream through a clean
napkin, placed over a fine hair sieve, then pass it again through a
tammy cloth with pressure into a basin, then clarify 1 oz. best cut
isinglass, or gelatine; mix the whole well together, and pour it into
a mould embedded in rough ice.
(_c_) Put 1 lb. loaf sugar in a stewpan; pour upon it as much milk or
thin cream as the sugar will absorb. Dissolve it over the fire, and
boil slowly until it will candy when dropped into cold water. Neither
stir it, nor allow it to stick to the pan; take it off and stir it
until you can cream it with a spoon. Add a tablespoonful of extract
of vanilla, and beat it till cool enough to handle. Then fashion it
into balls the size of a filbert; lay these aside on buttered paper.
Put ½ lb. unsweetened pure chocolate in a tin plate over a kettle
of boiling water, and when it is dissolved dip the bonbons into it
and lay them out on buttered paper to cool. If the sugar grains like
sand instead of creaming, it has been boiled too long, and it will be
necessary to begin anew with other sugar.
_Coconut Candy._--Place in an earthen pipkin 1 lb. best loaf sugar
cut as for table, with a breakfastcupful of cold spring water. Let
it remain until the sugar is dissolved, and then set it on a clear
fire to boil for about 5 minutes, or rather more. As the scum rises
carefully skim it away until the sugar looks quite white and thick,
and then stir into it ¼ lb. grated coconut, taking care that it is
a nice fresh one. Again set it on the fire, and with a wooden spoon
stir it continuously until it rises quite up in the pipkin, then
at once spread it out on well-dried sheets of writing-paper, which
should be warmed before the fire before putting the coconut upon
them; the paste should be rather more than ½ in. thick. Let it
remain in this way until nearly but not quite cold, when the paper
must be removed, and it can then be cut up into small squares. Let it
get thoroughly dry before storing it in tin boxes for use. It is an
improvement to give it a slightly pink colour by adding a few drops
of cochineal to the sugar just before putting in the coconut. Some
people grate this, and spread it out to dry for a day or two before
it is used for candy.
_Marzipan._--(_a_) ½ lb. almonds, ¾ lb. sugar, the white of an egg,
and the juice of half a lemon. The whole to be well pounded together
till it acquires the consistency of a soft dough.
(_b_) Blanch, and then pound very fine 1 lb. sweet and a few bitter
almonds, adding a few spoonfuls of rosewater; put the almond paste
in a stewpan with 1 lb. powdered sugar, and stir over the fire till
a smooth paste is obtained, which will not stick to the finger when
touched. Turn it out on to a pasteboard well strewn with powdered
sugar; roll out the paste, divide it into cakes of any shape you
like, and put them on sheets of paper on the baking sheet well
sprinkled with sugar; bake in a slow oven until of a pale yellow
colour.
_Popcorn Candy._--Put into an iron kettle 1 tablespoonful butter,
3 tablespoonfuls water, and 1 cup white sugar; boil until ready to
candy, then throw in 3 qt. nicely popped corn; stir vigorously until
the sugar is evenly distributed over the corn; take the kettle from
the fire, and stir until it cools a little, and in this way you may
have each kernel separate and all coated with the sugar. Of course,
it must have your undivided attention from the first to prevent
scorching. Almonds, walnuts, or, in fact, any nuts are delicious
prepared in this way.
_Toffee._--(_a_) Take 1 breakfastcupful rich cream (if slightly sour
it would be just as good, or better), 1 breakfastcupful pounded white
sugar, pour the above into a very clean copper saucepan, and boil
slowly over a clear but not too hot fire. The mixture will first
become quite liquid, and will afterwards gradually thicken; when
almost done pour in 1 dessertspoonful essence of vanilla and 1 of
whisky. When the mixture becomes very frothy, and leaves the sides
of the pan clean, pour it out as quickly as possible on to a flat
buttered dish. It should set at once, cut it into squares; before
it is cold it should be quite smooth, and of a creamy white; it
should be “short,” without being at all crisp or crumbly. The only
difficulty is to know the exact moment to take it off the fire. This
can only be learned by practice.
(_b_) Put 3 oz. butter into a brass preserving pan, and, as soon as
it is melted, add 1 lb. brown sugar. Keep these stirred gently over a
moderate fire for 15 minutes, or until a little of it, dropped into
cold water, breaks clean between the teeth without sticking to them.
When it is boiled to this point it must be poured out immediately, or
it will burn. The grated rind of a lemon, or a small teaspoonful of
powdered ginger added when half done, very much improves the taste.
(_c_) 1 lb. treacle or golden syrup, 1 lb. moist whity-brown or
Demerara (this is best) sugar, ½ lb. fresh butter. Mix the treacle
and sugar well together in a large china-lined saucepan, and add the
butter broken into small pieces. Place the saucepan on a clear fire,
and stir slowly until all be incorporated. After this stop stirring,
or the toffee will “sugar”; boil about ½ hour, and be careful not to
let it burn. The juice of ½ lemon added is a great improvement. Have
a buttered tin ready to pour the toffee on, and when nearly done put
a little into cold water to taste if it be done enough.
(_d_) Put ¼ lb. butter into a saucepan over a clear fire, and when
it is melted add to it 1 lb. brown sugar; boil for 15 minutes.
Have ready some almonds (1½ oz.) blanched and halved, and a little
very finely grated lemon peel. Add these to the mixture, boil and
stir until when dropped into cold water it hardens directly; then
immediately pour it on to well-buttered dishes or on to marble slabs.
The almonds may be added after the toffee is put on to the dishes.
Also, ½ lb. treacle and ½ lb. sugar may be substituted for the 1
lb. sugar. When nearly cold, it should be marked with the back of a
knife.
_Rahat Lukum._--Make a syrup with 3 lb. best sugar and 3 pints water;
clear it with the whites of 3 eggs and the juice of a lemon. Dissolve
6 oz. purest wheat starch in ¾ pint cold water, strain it, and add it
to the clear syrup when it is boiling; reduce the whole by boiling
to ⅔. It should be very thick and stringy. Flavour the paste with
attar of roses or any sweet essence. Have ready a large dish well
covered with almond oil; empty the paste on the dish when it is cool,
spread it about 1 in. thick, then have ready another dish covered
with finely-powdered sugar, and when the paste is quite cold turn
it over very carefully upon the sugared dish. Absorb the oil with
silver paper or blotting paper; cut the paste into pieces 2-3 in.
square; powder them with sugar, and keep them very dry. A finer rahat
is made with rose or cherry syrup, with blanched almonds stirred in
before the paste thickens. This recipe was obtained at Athens from
a Sciote lady. The ladies of Scios are considered the most skilful
confectioners in the Levant.
=Ices.=--The following general remarks on ices are condensed from a
series of papers on the subject by Mary Hooper, in the _Queen_.
Freezing-powders.--Ice, in combination with salt, is the best
material for making ices; but when travelling, or in remote
districts where ice is difficult to procure, freezing powders are
of the greatest service, and those of the best makers are perfectly
satisfactory in their action. Indeed, there is no doubt freezing
powders would be more largely used than they are at present, were
it not that they are more expensive than ice. For cooling water and
other liquids, and for refrigerating food in the sick chamber, where
it is sometimes impossible either to keep or manage ice for this
purpose, freezing powders are invaluable. They are useful also when
a very rapid and strong freezing mixture is required, being used
instead of salt with the ice. It is desirable in choosing a freezing
machine to ascertain if it is as well adapted for the use of powders
as of ice, as some of them lined with metal would be corroded by the
action of the former.
Keeping and Choosing Ice.--It is often necessary--in cases of
sickness, for instance, in the houses of the poor--to keep a small
quantity of ice without a refrigerator. This is best done by wrapping
the ice first in paper--newspaper answers as well as any other--and
then covering it up in woollen or other cloths; place the ice thus
wrapped as much as possible out of draughts. Each time the ice is
opened, dry paper should be supplied; the sheets will last for
some time, and can be dried as often as desired. There is a great
difference in the quality of ice. Rough English ice, from being
frozen at a low temperature, is brittle, and melts rapidly; and that
taken from ponds is utterly unfit for drinking purposes, for there is
abundant proof that the poisonous properties of such water, and the
living organisms it contains, are not destroyed by its having been
frozen. Much of the foreign ice sold in this country as Wenham Lake,
is uncleanly, and a necessary rule to observe in the choice of ice
for the table is that it is perfectly clear and crystal-like, and
of a smooth and shining surface. In all cases, after being broken
up, ice should be rinsed before being sent to the table. A proper
awl for breaking ice into small pieces costs but a few pence, and
should always be kept at hand; otherwise, to their great injury,
forks and knives, with a hammer, and other unsuitable implements, are
substituted. When not in use, the point of the awl should be stuck
into a cork, both to prevent its being broken or causing injury to
inadvertent people.
Freezing-machines.--The only way to avoid failure in the domestic
manufacture of ices is to have one of the small patented machines,
which, besides being certain in action, require but 3-4 lb. ice to
freeze as many quarts of ices.
The principle which guides all freezing operations is--first, to have
the vessel which contains the material to be frozen embedded in the
freezing mixture, ice and salt, and then so rapidly and skilfully
to rotate it that ice soon begins to be made at the sides. This is
then scraped to the middle, and the whole thoroughly mixed, so as
to ensure an equal freezing throughout the mass. This process is
continued until a satisfactory result is obtained, when the ices will
be left in the freezing mixture to harden and ripen. The cost of
the necessary apparatus--namely, a pail, which should have a hole,
stopped with a cork, near the bottom, in order that water may be
drawn off as the ice melts, a pewter freezing pot, and spatula--for
freezing in the primitive manner, will be at least equal to that of
a patent machine for making ices. There are a large number of these
competing for public favour, each one possessing some special feature
of merit. In the choice of such a machine it should be ascertained
that it is simple in action, not liable to get out of order, of good
seasoned wood and the best workmanship, and that ices are made in
it rapidly, and with but a small quantity of freezing material. The
tendency in most perpendicular machines is to freeze too hard at the
bottom and too lightly at the top. This defect is remedied by the
Patent Horizontal Revolving Freezer (Kent, 199 High Holborn), and
the arrangement by which the ices are turned from the sides of the
freezing pot to the middle is perfectly satisfactory. In one of these
small freezers so small a quantity as 1 pint to 3 qt. can be frozen
with 3 lb. ice in as many minutes. The tubs being closed at the end,
and perfectly air-tight, prevents the waste of ice by the action
of the atmosphere, and thus secures a uniformity and intensity of
cold within the freezer, tending to produce very perfect, light, and
smooth ices.
For whatever method ice is required for freezing, it is necessary
both that it should be broken small, that is in pieces about the size
of small walnuts, and be thoroughly mixed with the salt. The easiest
way of breaking ice is to put it in a sack and crush it with a wooden
mallet. This done, well rolled salt of strong good quality should be
mixed with the ice, in the proportion of 1 lb. salt to 2-3 lb. ice.
It is safe to say that nearly all the failures in making ices result
from the neglect of these simple directions.
The expense of a thermometer for taking the temperature of ices, and
a saccharometer for ascertaining the correct amount of sweetness
in ices, is but small, and they are real helps to inexperienced
confectioners. For instance, if there is any doubt about the ices
being sufficiently frozen, if the thermometer registers less than
22°F. you will be sure that the ices will not melt too rapidly on
being served. Even in the hottest weather, a well-made ice will not
dissolve as soon as taken from the freezer.
As it is only for a short period in the year that the favourite
fruits for flavouring ices can be had fresh, it is necessary to
make of them syrups or preserves. To make strawberry and the like
preserves without sugar is somewhat difficult in domestic practice,
though, if the niceties of the process are observed, failure ought
not to follow.