Put this _purée_ into a stewpan on the fire to boil.
When boiling, stir in a thickening of the flour.
Stir and cook well.
Then add the milk or cream, pepper, and salt, to taste.
Let the soup boil up, and it is ready.
Serve with fried _croutons_ of bread.
Tapioca Cream.
_Ingredients_--1½ pint of white stock.
1 oz. of crushed tapioca.
2 tablespoonfuls of cream.
The yolks of 2 eggs.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Put the stock into a stewpan on the fire to boil.
When boiling, sprinkle in the crushed tapioca.
Stir and cook well for about ten minutes.
Beat the yolks lightly with the cream, and strain them.
Let the stock cool a little, and then add two or three tablespoonfuls of
it gradually to the eggs and cream.
Pour the eggs and cream into the stock, and stir over the fire until the
eggs thicken like custard.
Care must be taken that the stock does not boil after the eggs are in
it, as that would curdle them.
Palestine Soup.
_Ingredients_--3 lb. of Jerusalem artichokes.
2 quarts of stock; or the liquor mutton or veal has been
boiled in.
1 onion.
1 turnip.
½ head of celery.
½ pint of cream, or good milk.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Peel and cut the artichokes and other vegetables into slices.
Boil them in the stock until tender.
Rub through a hair sieve.
Add the cream, and boil it in the soup.
Add pepper and salt; and serve with fried _croutons_ of bread.
Potato Purée.
_Ingredients_--1 lb. of potatoes.
1 onion.
1 stick of celery.
1½ pint of white stock.
½ pint of cream or milk.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Peel the potatoes, and cut them, as well as the onion and the
celery, into thin slices.
Put them in the stock, and simmer gently until tender.
Rub through a tammy-cloth or hair sieve.
Add the cream to the soup, and make it hot.
Serve with fried _croutons_ of bread.
Egyptian Purée or Lentil Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 pint of Egyptian lentils.
1 good-sized onion.
Carrot and turnip.
3 sticks of celery, or one dessertspoonful of celery seed
tied in a piece of muslin.
2 quarts of water, or liquor from a leg of mutton.
Pepper and salt.
_Method._--Wash the lentils thoroughly.
Then boil them in the water with the vegetables, cut in small pieces,
from two to three hours, stirring occasionally; when quite cooked, rub
through a wire sieve; season to taste.
Make the soup hot in a stewpan, stirring all the time.
Serve with fried _croutons_ of bread.
Note.--This soup is much improved if it is rubbed through a hair
sieve, after it has been through the wire sieve.
Pea Soup.
Make according to directions given in preceding recipe, substituting
split peas for lentils.
Calf-tail Soup.
_Ingredients_--4 calves' tails.
1 carrot.
1 turnip.
1 onion.
1 sprig of thyme, parsley, and marjoram.
A little celery.
1 small clove of garlic.
1 dozen peppercorns.
4 oz. flour.
2 quarts of stock.
Salt.
_Method._--Cut the tails into joints.
Put them into a stewpan, with the water; when it simmers put in the
vegetables, &c., and cook very gently for four hours.
Remove the pieces of tail, and let the stock get cold.
Then remove the fat, and thicken the stock with the flour.
Serve with the pieces of tail in it. A wineglass of sherry may be added
if liked.
Ox-tail Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 ox-tail.
3 quarts of stock.
1 carrot, 1 turnip, and 1 onion.
Half a head of celery.
1 slice of ham.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
2 bay leaves.
3 cloves.
Pepper and salt.
2 oz. of butter.
1 wineglass of sherry.
A few drops of lemon juice.
4 oz. of flour.
_Method._--Cut the ox-tail into joints.
Fry them in the butter, with the vegetables, cut in pieces.
Put the tail and vegetables into a large saucepan with the stock,
pepper, salt, and cloves.
Boil for very nearly four hours.
Then strain the stock.
Remove the pieces of tail, and put them on one side.
When the stock is quite cold, remove the fat perfectly and put the stock
in a stewpan on the fire to boil.
When it boils, stir in a thickening made of the flour.
Stir, and cook the flour well.
Then add the sherry and lemon juice. Serve with the pieces of tail in
it.
Sheep's-head Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 sheep's head.
3 quarts of water.
1 large carrot.
1 large turnip.
1 large onion.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
1 head of celery.
4 oz. of flour.
1 teaspoonful of minced parsley.
2 tablespoonfuls of bread-crumbs.
1 egg.
Pepper and salt.
_Method._--Split open the head, and clean it thoroughly.
Remove the tongue and brains, and blanch the head by putting it into
cold water and bringing it to the boil.
Throw the water away, and rinse the head well.
Put it into a large saucepan with the three quarts of water and the
vegetables, cut in small pieces.
Boil gently for five hours.
Then strain into a basin, and rub the meat and vegetables through a wire
sieve.
When cold, remove the fat from the stock, and add the pulped vegetables
and meat.
Make the soup hot, and stir in a thickening made of the flour.
Boil the flour well, stirring all the time.
Serve the soup with forcemeat balls in it.
_To make the Forcemeat Balls._--Boil the tongue and brains separately.
Chop them up; mix them with the bread-crumbs, pepper, salt, and the
minced parsley, and bind with the egg.
Make into balls, and roll them in flour; place them on a greased
baking-sheet and bake until brown.
Put them in a soup-tureen, and pour the soup over them.
Tapioca Soup.
_Ingredients_--2 oz. of tapioca.
4 pints of second stock.
_Method._--Wash the tapioca well, and throw it into the stock when
boiling.
Simmer gently for half an hour, stirring occasionally.
Ox-cheek Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 ox-cheek.
Some cold water, allowing 1 pint to every pound of meat and
1 quart over.
2 carrots.
2 turnips.
2 onions.
Half a head of celery.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
2 bay leaves.
Pepper and salt.
Flour.
If possible, a ham-bone.
A few drops of lemon juice.
_Method._--Cut up the cheek, and put it with the bone and vegetables
into a stockpot to boil gently for five hours, skimming occasionally.
Then strain the stock into a clean pan and set it aside to get cold.
When cold, carefully remove all the fat.
Put the stock into a stewpan on the fire to boil.
When boiling, stir in a thickening made of the flour, mixed smoothly
with cold water. Use one ounce of flour to every pint of stock.
Stir and boil the flour in the stock for three minutes.
Add to it a squeeze of lemon juice, and serve the soup with neat pieces
of the cheek, about one inch in size, in it.
The remains of the cheek may be reboiled, with fresh vegetables, to make
a plain second stock.
Giblet Soup.
_Ingredients_--2 sets of goose or 4 sets of duck giblets.
¼ of a head of celery.
1 carrot.
1 turnip.
1 onion.
2 cloves.
1 blade of mace.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
2 quarts of second stock.
A few drops of lemon juice.
Pepper and salt.
_Method._--Clean the giblets thoroughly, and cut them in pieces.
Put them into a saucepan, with the vegetables sliced, and the stock, and
simmer gently for two hours.
Then take out the best pieces of giblet, trim them neatly, and set them
aside.
Simmer the soup for half an hour longer.
Then add to it a thickening of flour, using one ounce of flour to every
pint of stock.
Boil and cook the flour well, and add pepper and salt to taste.
Strain the soup into another saucepan.
Add to it the lemon juice, and, if liked, two glasses of Madeira wine;
also the pieces of giblet.
Make it quite hot, and it is then ready for serving.
Milk Soup.
_Ingredients_--4 potatoes.
2 onions.
2 oz. of butter or dripping.
3 tablespoonfuls of semolina.
1 pint of milk.
2 quarts of liquor from meat.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Slice the potatoes and onions; add them to the meat liquor,
with the butter and pepper and salt to taste, and boil gently for one
hour.
Then rub the soup through a wire sieve.
Put it into the saucepan again, and, when boiling, shake into it the
semolina and cook for fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally.
When the semolina is cooked the soup is ready.
If this soup is used for children, water may be substituted for the meat
liquor if the latter is not available.
Bonne Femme Soup.
_Ingredients_--2 lettuces.
2 leaves of sorrel.
4 sprigs of taragon.
2 sprigs of chervil.
Half a cucumber.
2 pints of white stock.
The yolks of 3 eggs.
¼ of a pint of cream.
The crust of a French roll.
½ oz. of butter.
_Method._--Wash the lettuce, taragons, and chervil well, and shred them
finely.
Peel the cucumber, and shred it also finely.
Melt the butter, and gently _sauté_ the vegetables in it for five
minutes, taking care they do not discolour.
Boil the stock in another saucepan, and, when boiling, pour it on to the
vegetables.
Simmer gently until the vegetables are quite tender.
Beat the yolks of the eggs with the cream, and when the stock has cooled
a little strain them through a hair sieve into it.
Put the stewpan by the fire, and stir until the eggs thicken, taking
care that the stock does not boil, as that would curdle them.
Add pepper and salt to taste, and the soup is ready.
The crust of the French roll should be served in the soup; it should be
baked in the oven and then cut into fancy shapes.
Turnip Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 quart of stock, or the boilings from mutton.
2 lb. of turnips.
1 large onion.
½ pint of cream, or good milk.
2 large slices of bread.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Put the bread to soak in a little cold stock.
Pare the turnips and onions, and cut them in pieces.
Boil them gently in the stock, adding (when well soaked) the bread.
When the turnips are cooked, rub the soup through a wire sieve.
Put it again into the saucepan.
Add to it the cream or milk, pepper and salt to taste; and let it well
boil up.
Serve with fried or toasted _croutons_ of bread.
Rabbit Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 large rabbit.
2 quarts of water.
½ pint of milk or cream.
2 good-sized onions.
_Method._--Cut the rabbit into joints.
Put them in a stewpan with the onions sliced and the water.
Stew very gently for three hours.
Then strain the stock and remove the fat.
Put it into a clean stewpan and add a thickening of flour, taking one
ounce of flour to every pint of soup.
Stir and cook well.
Add the milk or cream and boil it in the soup.
Season with pepper and salt to taste, and serve with fried or toasted
bread.
It is an improvement to this soup to cook a ham-bone with the rabbit, or
a slice of lean pork.
Hare Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 hare.
1 lb. of gravy beef.
1 carrot, 1 turnip, and 1 onion.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
1 bay leaf.
1 dozen peppercorns.
1 blade of mace and 5 cloves.
2 or 3 oz. of butter or dripping.
7 pints of water.
_Method._--Cut the hare into joints, and the meat into pieces, and fry
them in a stewpan in the butter or dripping.
Afterwards fry the vegetables in the same fat.
Then pour in the water, add the mace and pepper-corns, and simmer gently
from four to five hours.
Strain the stock and let it get cold.
Remove the fat perfectly, and put it into a clean stewpan on the fire.
When it boils stir in a thickening of flour, using one ounce of flour to
every pint of soup.
Cook the flour well, and add a little colouring if necessary.
Season to taste, and, just before serving, pour in two glasses of port
wine.
Some forcemeat balls should be served in the soup.
Make them with veal forcemeat, mixed with the liver of the hare finely
chopped, and bake them in the oven.
Mulligatawny Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 rabbit or chicken.
2 quarts of second stock.
1 onion.
1 apple.
2 tablespoonfuls of curry powder.
½ pint of cream.
2 oz. of butter or dripping.
A few drops of lemon juice.
_Method._--Cut the rabbit, or chicken, into joints, and fry them in the
butter or dripping.
Remove them when nicely browned, and fry the apple and onion.
Then put the apple, onion, and meat into a stewpan, with the stock,
which should be mixed with the curry powder.
Simmer very gently for an hour and a half, until the meat is tender.
Then remove the meat from the stock, and cut it into neat pieces,
convenient for serving in the soup, removing all the bone.
Thicken the soup with flour, using about one ounce to every pint of
stock.
Boil the flour well in the stock, and then rub the soup through a wire
sieve.
Put it into a stewpan, add the cream, and let it boil in the soup.
Put in the pieces of meat; and, just before serving, add a squeeze of
lemon juice.
Serve nicely boiled rice with this soup (_see_ Rice for Curry).
Parsnip Soup.
_Ingredients_--2 quarts of stock.
2 lb. of parsnips.
If possible, ½ pint of cream.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Slice the parsnips and put them into boiling stock.
Simmer them for one hour, or more, until quite tender.
Then rub the soup through a wire sieve.
Add the cream to it, and pepper and salt to taste.
Put it into a clean stewpan.
Boil up once more and it is ready.
Serve with fried _croutons_ of bread.
Red Lentil Soup.
_Ingredients_--1 pint of Egyptian lentils.
1 large carrot.
3 onions.
2 lb. of parsnips.
1 sprig of parsley.
2 or 3 large crusts of bread.
2 quarts of water.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Wash the lentils well.
Boil with the vegetables, cut in slices, and the bread, for two hours or
more; stirring occasionally when the lentils are nearly cooked, as they
are apt to stick to the bottom of the saucepan and burn.
Rub the soup through a wire sieve, adding pepper and salt to taste.
Make it hot again, stirring all the time, and it is ready to serve.
Mock-Turtle Soup.
_Ingredients_--Half a calf's head.
3 oz. of butter.
1 shalot.
Half-a-dozen mushrooms.
1 carrot.
½ a head of celery.
1 leek.
1 onion.
1 small turnip.
1 sprig of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
1 bay leaf.
1 blade of mace.
5 cloves.
3 oz. of flour.
2 wineglasses of sherry.
1 dozen forcemeat balls.
4 quarts of water.
¼ lb. of ham.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Wash the calf's head thoroughly.
Cut all the flesh from the bones and tie it in a cloth.
Put it, with the bones and water, into a large saucepan and let it
simmer gently, stirring occasionally for three and a half hours.
Then take out the calf's head and strain the stock into a clean pan.
Let it get cold, and then carefully remove all the fat.
Then put the butter into a stewpan, and fry in it the ham and
vegetables, cut into slices, with the herbs, mace, cloves, &c.
When they are fried, put in the flour and fry till a light brown,
stirring it to keep it from burning.
Then pour in the stock and stir until it boils.
Add pepper and salt to taste; put it by the side of the fire to simmer
for half an hour.
Remove all scum, or fat, as it rises.
Then strain the stock into another stewpan.
Cut part of the calf's head into neat pieces and add it to the stock.
Pour in the sherry and lemon juice, and add the forcemeat balls.
Let the soup just come to the boil, and it is ready for serving. The
forcemeat balls should be made of veal stuffing, and should be either
fried or baked.
They should not be too large.
It is better to make this soup the day before it is wanted.
Pot-au-Feu.
_Ingredients_--4 lb. of sticking of beef, or 4 lb. of ox cheek without the
bone.
2 large carrots.
1 head of celery.
3 onions.
2 turnips.
3 sprigs of parsley, thyme, and marjoram.
3 cloves.
6 quarts of water.
2 oz. of crushed tapioca, or sago.
Pepper and salt to taste.
_Method._--Tie the meat firmly into shape with string.
Put it into a large saucepan with the water.
When it boils, add a teaspoonful of salt.
Simmer the meat gently for nearly two hours.
Clean the vegetables thoroughly, tying the celery, parsnips, and carrots
together.
Add them, with the exception of the cabbage, to the meat, and simmer
gently for two hours more.
Then add the cabbage, cleaned and trimmed; it should be cut in two, and
tied together with string.
Simmer until it is tender, adding pepper and salt to taste.
The meat is then served with the carrots, turnips, and parsnips, as a
garnish, and a little of the liquor poured round for gravy.
The cabbage is served in a vegetable dish.
To make the soup, put two quarts of the liquor into a saucepan. When it
boils sprinkle in the sago, or tapioca, and cook for fifteen minutes,
stirring occasionally.
Dr. Kitchener's Broth.
_Ingredients_--4 oz. of Scotch barley.
4 oz. of sliced onions.
2 oz. of dripping.
3 oz. bacon.
4 oz. oatmeal.
5 quarts of the liquor from meat.
_Method._--Wash the barley, and soak it in water for two hours.
Put the meat liquor on to boil.
When boiling, add the barley and the onions.
Let it boil gently for an hour and a half.
Then put the dripping into another saucepan, and fry the bacon in it.
Then add, by degrees, the oatmeal; stir until it forms a paste.
Then pour in the broth.
Season with pepper and salt to taste, and set it by the side of the fire
to simmer for thirty minutes; the soup is then ready.
Crowdie.
_Ingredients_--1 gallon of liquor from meat.
¼ pint of oatmeal.
1 onion.
Pepper and salt.
_Method._--Put the liquor into a saucepan on the fire.
Mix the oatmeal to a paste with cold water.
Pour it into the liquor when boiling.
Stir until it thickens.
Add the onion, finely-chopped, and pepper and salt to taste.
Boil gently, stirring occasionally, for half an hour.
BREAD AND CAKES.
In making bread be careful that the yeast is good; otherwise the bread
may be heavy. The German and French yeast will do quite as well as the
brewers', and are generally more easily procured. The French yeast is
the closest and strongest, but, though less is required, bread made with
it will take longer to rise than that made with German. The yeast may be
tested by mixing it with a little sugar; if it is good, it has the power
of dissolving the sugar to a syrup. Everything made with yeast should be
allowed a proper time to rise. A quartern loaf will generally be ready
to make up in about two hours after the dough is set, but the time of
rising will vary according to circumstances--for example, in cold
weather it may not rise so quickly as in hot. For making bread, warm the
pan or tub the dough is to be mixed in, but do not make it hot. Take
care that the flour is dry, and free from lumps. The water used must be
warmed, but care must be taken that it is neither too hot nor too cold.
A certain amount of warmth is necessary for the growth of the yeast, but
too great heat kills it. The water, therefore, should be lukewarm. When
the dough is mixed, sprinkle the top with a little flour to prevent a
crust forming; the pan should then be covered with a cloth and placed on
a chair in a warm place, free from draught. It may be placed with
advantage before the oven or boiler, but should not be put directly in
front of a fire. When the dough is exposed to too great a heat it gets
moist and sticky, is very difficult to make up, and is heavy when baked.
When the dough has risen sufficiently, it should be well kneaded, and
then made up into loaves. These loaves are then set on floured tins to
rise in a warm place for about twenty minutes before they are baked. The
oven should be very hot for the first twenty minutes, and then very much
moderated: a sharp heat is necessary at first to throw up the bread; but
the rest of the time the heat applied should be moderate. The same heat
is required in baking cakes: a sharp heat at first, to throw them up,
and moderate afterwards, so that they may get cooked through without the
crust burning. The sugar in cakes causes them to burn very quickly. It
is, therefore, a wise precaution to line the tin, even for a plain cake,
with foolscap paper.
Currants used in cakes should be well washed and dried before they are
used, and any stones removed from them. Sultanas should be rubbed in
flour, and the stalks picked off. Raisins should be stoned, and cut in
two or three pieces.
To cream butter is to work it about in a basin with the hand, or wooden
spoon, until it is the consistency of cream.
The cake tins should be kept in a dry place, and before using should be
well greased, especially at the bottom.
A Quartern Loaf.
_Ingredients_--3½ lb. of flour.
1¾ pint of water.
½ oz. of salt.
1 oz. of German yeast.
_Method._--Put 3 lb. of flour into the pan.
Make the water lukewarm, and mix it with the yeast.
Make a hole in the middle of the flour, and mix in the water smoothly
and gradually.
Knead lightly for a minute or two.
Sprinkle with a little flour, and set to rise in a warm place for about
two hours.
Then knead well for about a quarter of an hour, working in the remainder
of the flour.
Make it into a loaf, and put it in or on a floured tin.
Set it to rise for about twenty minutes, and then bake.
The oven must be very hot for the first few minutes, and then the heat
must be _much_ lowered, that the bread may get well cooked through.
Vienna Bread.
_Ingredients_--2 lb. of Vienna flour.
2 oz. of butter.
1 oz. of German yeast.
1 pint of milk.
1 teaspoonful of salt.
_Method._--Rub the butter well into the flour, and add the salt.
Make the milk tepid, and mix smoothly with the German yeast.
Make a well in the middle of the flour, and stir in the milk smoothly.
Knead very lightly for a minute, and then put the dough to rise in a
warm place for two hours.
When it has well risen, make it into rolls or fancy twists.
Set them to rise on floured tins for about ten minutes.
Then bake in a quick oven from ten to twenty minutes, according to their
size.
When nearly cooked, brush them with a little milk or white of egg to
glaze them.
Unfermented Bread.
_Ingredients_--1 lb. of flour.
2 heaped teaspoonfuls of baking powder.
Enough water to mix a dough.
_Method._--Put the flour in a pan.
Add the baking powder and mix up with the water.
Make it into small loaves quickly, and bake in a quick oven for about
half an hour.
Milk Rolls.
_Ingredients_--1 lb. of flour.
2 oz. of butter.
2 heaped teaspoonfuls of baking powder.
Enough milk to mix to a dough.
_Method._--Rub the butter into the flour lightly.
Add the baking powder, and mix with the milk.
Make into small rolls as quickly as possible, and bake for a few minutes
in a quick oven.
Brush over with a little milk to glaze them.
Pound Cake.
_Ingredients_--10 oz. of flour.
8 oz. of butter.
8 oz. of castor sugar.
2 oz. of candied peel.
¼ lb. of sultanas.
4 large eggs.
Grated rind of a lemon.
_Method._--Rub the flour and sugar through a sieve.
Beat the butter to a cream in a basin.
Mix in a little flour and sugar.
Then a well-beaten egg.
Next more flour, sugar, and another egg.
Continue mixing in the same way until the flour, sugar, and eggs are all
well blended together.
Add the other ingredients, and put into a well-greased cake-tin lined
with buttered paper.
Bake for about two hours.
Queen Cakes.
_Ingredients_--6 oz. of flour.
4 oz. of butter.
4 oz. of sugar.
4 eggs.
A few currants.
Grated rind of a lemon.
_Method._--Cream the butter.
Mix in the flour, sugar, and eggs, according to directions given in
preceding recipe.
Add the lemon rind, and partly fill small well-greased Queen-cake tins
with the mixture.
Sprinkle a few currants on the top of each.
Bake in a moderately quick oven for about a quarter of an hour.
Rock Cakes.
_Ingredients_--1 lb. of flour.
6 oz. of butter.
6 oz. of castor sugar.
½ lb. of currants.
2 oz. of candied peel.
1 teaspoonful of baking powder.
2 eggs.
Grated rind of a lemon.
_Method._--Rub the butter into the flour.
Add the sugar, currants, and other ingredients.
Mix very stiffly with the eggs, well beaten.
Put in rough heaps on a well-greased baking-sheet.
Bake in a quick oven for a quarter of an hour.
Plain Rock Cakes.
_Ingredients_--1 lb. of flour.
¼ lb. of moist sugar.
¼ lb. of currants.
¼ lb. of butter, lard, or dripping.
1 egg.
A little milk.
_Method._--Rub the butter or dripping into the flour.
Add the other dry ingredients.
Mix stiffly with the egg, well beaten, and a little milk.
Put in little rough heaps on a well-greased baking-tin.
Bake in a quick oven for about a quarter of an hour.
Plain Seed Cake.
_Ingredients_--10 oz. of flour.
3 oz. of butter or clarified dripping.
1 teaspoonful of caraway seeds.
3 oz. of castor sugar.
2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder.
1 egg.
¾ gill of milk.
½ saltspoonful of salt.
_Method._--Rub the fat well into the flour.
Add all the other dry ingredients.
Mix with the egg and milk, well beaten.
Bake in a well-greased cake-tin for about an hour.
Sultana Cake.
_Ingredients_--10 oz. of flour.
¼ lb. butter.
¼ lb. of castor sugar.
¼ lb. of sultana raisins.
1 oz. of candied peel.
2 eggs.
1 teaspoonful of baking powder.
½ gill of milk.
Grated rind of a lemon.
_Method._--Rub the butter well into the flour.
Add all the other dry ingredients.
Mix with the milk and yolks of the eggs, well beaten together.