The best calves' feet for jelly are those that have had the hair
removed by scalding, but are not skinned; the skin containing a
great deal of glutinous matter. In Philadelphia, unskinned calves'
feet are generally to be met with in the lower or Jersey market.
Boil a set of feet in four quarts of cold water; (if the feet have
been skinned allow but three quarts;) they should boil slowly till
the liquid is reduced to two quarts or one half the original
quantity, and the meat has dropped in rags from the bone. Then
strain the liquid; measure and set it away in a large earthen pan
to get cold; and let it rest till next morning. Then, if you do
not find it a firm cake of jelly, boil it over again with an ounce
of isinglass, and again set it away till cold and congealed.
Remove the sediment from the bottom of the cake of jelly, and
carefully scrape off all the fat. The smallest bit of fat will
eventually render it dull and cloudy. Press some clean blotting
paper all over it to absorb what little grease may yet remain.
Then cut the cake of jelly into pieces, and put it into a
porcelain kettle to melt over the fire. To each quart allow a
pound of broken up loaf-sugar, a pint of Madeira wine, and a large
glass of brandy; three large sticks of the best Ceylon cinnamon
broken up, (if common cinnamon, use four sticks,) the grated peel
and juice of four large lemons; and lastly, the whites of four
eggs strained, but not beaten. In breaking the eggs, take care to
separate them so nicely that none of the yellow gets into the
white; as the smallest portion of yolk of egg will prevent the
jelly from being perfectly clear. Mix all the ingredients well
together, and put them to the jelly in the kettle. Set it on the
fire, and boil it hard for twenty minutes, but do not stir it.
Then throw in a tea-cup of cold water, and boil it five minutes
longer; then take the kettle off the fire, and set it aside,
keeping it closely covered for half an hour; this will improve its
clearness. Take a large white flannel jelly-bag; suspend it by the
strings to a wooden frame made for such purposes, or to the legs
of a table. Pour in the mixture boiling hot, and when it is all
in, close up the mouth of the bag that none of the flavour may
evaporate. Hang it over a deep white dish or bowl, and let it drip
slowly; but on no account squeeze the bag, as that will certainly
make the jelly dull and cloudy. If it is not clear the first time,
empty the bag, wash it, put in the jelly that has dripped into the
dish, and pass it through again. Repeat this till it is clear. You
may put it into moulds to congeal, setting them in a cold place.
When it is quite firm, wrap a cloth that has been dipped in hot
water, round the moulds to make the jelly turn out easily. But it
will look much better, and the taste will be more lively, if you
break it up after it has congealed, and put it into a glass bowl,
or heap it in jelly glasses Unless it is broken, its sparkling
clearness shows to little advantage.
After the clear jelly has done dripping, you may return the
ingredients to the kettle, and warm them over again for about five
minutes. Then put them into the bag (which you may now squeeze
hard) till all the liquid is pressed out of it into a second dish
or bowl. This last jelly cannot, of course, be clear, but it will
taste very well, and may be eaten in the family.
A pound of the best raisins picked and washed, and boiled with the
other ingredients, is thought by many persons greatly to improve
the richness and flavour or calves' feet jelly. They must be put
in whole, and can be afterwards used for a pudding.
Similar jelly may be made of pigs' or sheep's feet; but it is not
so nice and delicate as that of calves.
By boiling two sets, or eight calves' feet in five quarts of
Water, you may be sure of having the jelly very firm. In damp
weather it is sometimes very difficult to get it to congeal if you
use but one set of feet; there is the same risk if the weather is
hot. In winter it maybe made several days before it is to be
eaten. In summer it will keep in ice for two days; perhaps longer.