sounds, especially to any one who has made glace nuts--a very general
accomplishment nowadays. Reduce some apple marmalade by leaving it for
an hour or two in a double boiler; the water boiling round it will
evaporate moisture without danger of burning. Stir occasionally, and
when the marmalade is so reduced that it will make a firm paste when
cold (try a little in a saucer on ice), color one half pink with
cochineal. Spread half an inch thick on plates slightly oiled; when
stiff and cold, cut out the marmalade into squares, ovals, diamonds,
leaves, etc., with tin cutters. Boil a pound of sugar with a gill of
water to the crack--that is, until a teaspoonful dropped in ice-water
will crack between the teeth. Oil a fork and a large dish, and use the
fork to drop the pieces of marmalade into the candy; lift them out
quickly, and lay them on the dish, which will be better if it is set on
ice. When they are cold, dish them in a pyramid, the pink to contrast
with the white effectively. Pour a little liqueur-flavored syrup round
the base of the fruit.
_Compote of Pears (white)._--Use any fine-flavored dessert pears. Cut
them in halves, core, pare, and trim neatly, and simmer them in syrup (a
pound of sugar and juice of half a lemon to a pint of water) till they
are tender, yet firm to the touch. Dish the pieces, keeping them close
to each other. Lay a thin sheet of apple jelly over them, and the syrup,
boiled down till rich and thick, round them.
_A Pink Compote_ is prepared in the same way, the only difference being
that a very few drops of cochineal are added to the syrup before the
pears go in. Decorate with angelica.
_Pears a la Princesse._ Select seven pears of the best quality, without
blemish, and of equal size; pare them with great care; stand them close
together in a saucepan, with weak acidulated syrup to cover them; simmer
slowly till quite tender, but yet firm to the touch; take them up,
leaving the syrup to boil down. When cold, cut the stalk end off each
pear about an inch deep, or so as to leave about an inch of surface, on
which place a ring of angelica (simply cut angelica crosswise and it
forms rings, being tubular); if the rings are flattened, lay them in
syrup; when softened bend them round and lay one on each pear; then, if
in season, dip a fine strawberry or stoned red cherry in the hot syrup
and lay it on the ring of angelica. Cut strips of angelica and run them
through the strawberry down to the pear, both to hold the decoration in
place and to represent the stalk; dish them standing; when dished up,
pour some syrup, boiled till thick and rich, over the seven pears. When
fresh fruit is not in season for decoration, use candied cherries.
_Variegated Compote of Pears._--This is a pretty dish. Prepare some
pears as in the last recipe, except that the tops are not to be cut off;
color half the number a pale pink by adding a few drops of cochineal to
the syrup in which they are simmered; dress them alternately, a pink
pear and a white one, in the compotier; pour over each the pink and
white syrup in which they were cooked, and pour syrup flavored with
vanilla round them.
_Compote of Oranges._--Divide six oranges in halves; first cut out the
centre string of pith, pick all pips out carefully, and with a very
sharp knife pare off the peel of the orange down to the naked
transparent pulp; in this way you get rid of the whole of the white
outside skin. Place the halves as you do them in a bowl; pour over them
some hot syrup boiled _a lisse_, flavored with orange peel, rubbed with
lump sugar, and previously dissolved in the syrup; a very little lemon
juice should be added if the oranges are very sweet. Let them steep a
few minutes; then remove them; then build the oranges into a pyramid on
the compotier, and the last thing before going to table pour the syrup,
well boiled and cold, over them.
_Chestnut Compote._--Take the largest French or Spanish chestnuts, make
slits in the peel, and boil till tender; take off the shell, and press
them flat without breaking; lay them in a saucepan; pour over them
thick syrup; put them in the oven, but do not let them boil; when they
look quite clear take them up, put them into the compotier, boil the
syrup to candy height, squeeze into the compotier the juice of an
orange, and pour the candy over the chestnuts.
_Chestnut Compote_ No. 2.--Prepare the nuts as in last recipe; put the
yolks of three eggs in a saucepan; stir gradually to them a pint of
cream; cook a quarter of a pound of sugar to the crack, with a few dried
orange flowers; the minute the candy begins to get yellowish pour it
into the cream, stirring constantly, and let it come to boiling-point;
then strain the cream over the chestnuts.
XXX.
MISCELLANEOUS SWEETS.--_Continued._
Strawberries, raspberries, currants, etc., need very little cooking, and
that little in high candy. If it is understood that strong syrup tends
to make fruit firm, and weak syrup to make it tender, it will be seen
why all soft fruit, in order to keep its shape, should be dropped into
candy boiled till brittle, and why apples and other hard fruits should
be first stewed in weak syrup until soft; yet there are degrees; for
instance, hard peaches require thin syrup, and very luscious ones must
be put into syrup that is very near candy. This is also the case with
pears. Be guided as to the strength of the syrup by the kind of fruit.
Avoid fruit that is very ripe, because the syrup from it will not jelly
readily.
_Compote of Strawberries._--Select a quart of fine large berries, rather
under than over ripe; boil three quarters of a pound of sugar to the
crack; drop the strawberries into the syrup after it is removed from the
fire; return them to the range; let them boil gently once; take out the
berries most carefully with the skimmer; lay them on the compotier; boil
the syrup fast, skimming it carefully then pour it over the fruit.
_Compote of Cherries_ is made in the same way, with the finest red
cherries, only they require to boil up several times. When clear, drain
them with the skimmer; lay them in the compote dishes; add a gill of red
currant juice to the syrup; boil it till it is a weak jelly; then throw
it over the cherries when nearly cold.
_Orange Baskets Filled with Fruits._--Select seven oranges, not too
large, but all the same size. With a very sharp knife pare the fruit as
thin as possible--so thin that it still remains yellow, and only the
shining outer surface is removed (in fact, it may be lightly grated
off, but that is more trouble), to render them transparent; cut two
quarters out of the upper part of the orange, so as to leave a narrow
band half an inch wide, which will form the handle; pass the knife
carefully round inside the band, so as to remove the strip of pulp. With
the bowl of a teaspoon detach the remaining pulp from the inside without
in any way damaging the shape of the basket. As you prepare them, drop
them in a saucepan of cold water, and then put them into boiling water,
and simmer three minutes gently. This is only to soften the peel and
enable you to stamp out the edges with a perforating cutter, if you have
one, which will give them an openwork effect; if not, just scallop them
with scissors, and snip out a sort of trellis-work to increase the
basket effect. Put them into a preserving-kettle with weak syrup _a
lisse_, boil them gently till they look clear, then put them aside in
the syrup till next day; boil the syrup twice alone at intervals of
several hours, and throw it over the baskets. These baskets may be kept
ready prepared for months by putting them in wide jars and covering them
with syrup. When required for use, they must be taken out, drained
thoroughly, and then filled with a variety of small fruits, such as
cherries, strawberries, currants, etc., which have been mixed with a
little apple or orange jelly. In winter, ambrosia--a mixture of cut-up
banana, grated cocoa-nut, orange quarters, etc.--may be served in them,
or a mixture of preserved fruits that are firm, such as Chinese oranges,
limes, ginger, etc. In all cases serve them on a compote dish, and throw
over them syrup flavored with maraschino.
_Lemon Baskets_ are prepared precisely as the orange baskets, but they
require longer boiling, and the syrup they are served with should be
flavored with citronelle or the rasped peel of green limes.
_Orange Baskets Glace._--These are not much more trouble than the
baskets simply preserved, but if successfully done they can be very
effectively filled with candies or ice-cream. Prepare the baskets as in
last recipe, drain them on a napkin, very carefully remove all moisture
from the inside, and set them over a register, or in an oven with the
door open, to dry. Boil two pounds of sugar with a pint of water and two
tablespoonfuls of vinegar till it begins to change color (this is some
little time after the brittle stage is reached, and is called caramel);
lightly oil the skimmer, and drop a basket in the candy; remove as
quickly as possible, but see that the whole is well coated, yet has as
little superfluous candy as possible, for which reason the baskets must
be warm when they are dipped, also the skimmer. You must not leave the
candy on the fire after it _begins_ to change color, but the work of
coating the baskets had better be done quite near the fire, with the pot
containing the candy on some part of it where it will be kept hot, but
not cook. They must be slipped on to an oiled dish, and, needless to
say, most carefully handled.
Other baskets are made with nougat, others with pastry, and the Swiss
make what they call _Vacherin_ with almond paste, and serve whipped
cream in them; but the idea may be extended and improved upon by serving
dried fruits or candies, or ice-cream in them, and they are a decided
improvement on the paper baskets so often used for the last purpose,
being eatable.
_Swiss Vacherin._--Take half a pound of almond paste, three quarters of
a pound of confectioners' sugar, and the white of one egg. Shave the
almond paste, stir the egg and sugar together, and flavor with a little
orange-flower water or wine; work all together with the hand into a
smooth, stiff paste that will roll out; if there is a disposition to
crack or crumble, use more white of egg and almond paste. Roll it just
as you would pie crust on the pastry board, using confectioners' sugar
in place of flour. Line small cups or tartlet moulds, or anything that
will make a good form for baskets, which have been very slightly oiled.
Put them aside to harden and dry. Chop a tablespoonful of blanched
pistachio-nuts till they are as fine as corn-meal, mix with an equal
quantity of granulated sugar. Trim the edges of the cups or baskets with
scissors, turn them out of the moulds, very carefully dip the edges in a
saucer containing white of egg beaten to liquid--the edges only need to
be just wet. Have the chopped pistachio-nuts and sugar also in a saucer,
dip the wet edge of the cup lightly into it, and shake gently. If
properly done, the cups will now have a pretty green border. When these
are filled with whipped cream, sweetened, flavored, and colored, they
are called _Swiss Vacherin_. Filled with plain whipped cream, and the
top covered with strawberries, they are called "Chantilly cups," but
they may be used in many decorative ways, to hold preserves or candied
fruits, etc., etc.
_Little China Dishes._--This quaint recipe is from the immortal Mrs.
Glasse, and on trial was found so unique and agreeable a variety to our
modern fancies that with some little changes to suit our present ideas I
give the last-century dainty. If you have any pretty-shaped little tin
dishes, without fluting, to mould and bake them in, they are very little
trouble to make. Take the yolks of two eggs, two small tablespoonfuls of
sherry, and one of rose-water, beat together only enough to mix, then
use as much fine flour as will make a firm paste that can be rolled out
exceedingly thin. Cover some nicely shaped little tins slightly
buttered, press to the form, be careful the paste fits without creases,
and bake in a cool oven. When the paste is crisp, with very little
change of color, they are done. Do not touch them till they are cold, as
they may be brittle. Stir the white of an egg with a tablespoonful of
rose-water and confectioners' sugar enough to make a smooth icing;
squeeze in the juice of half a lemon, and when the little dishes are
cold, ice the under side only just thick enough to mask the pastry; when
they are dry and hard, turn them over and ice the inside; do this with
great smoothness, to look as much like porcelain as possible. If you
choose, when the icing is quite hard, you can wet the edge of the dishes
with white of egg and dip them in chopped pistachio-nuts and sugar, like
the Chantilly baskets, or in nonpareils (the smallest size). They may be
used to serve anything sweet, from jelly to candies.
_Almond Trifles._--With the almond paste used for Chantilly cups many
trifles may be made with very little trouble; for instance, mix a
tablespoonful of flour with the paste; roll it out; cut into circles;
pinch up two sides; place a little handle over the centre, and in each
open end, which must be bent slightly upward, place a candied cherry.
Or cut a number of thin strips of paste, stick them together in the
middle with white of egg, pass a strip of almond paste round so that the
strips look like fagots of sticks, let them just color in the oven, sift
sugar over them, and put them away. The paste may be rolled as thick as
a pipe-stem and tied in knots, the surface just moistened, and sugar
sifted over them; these also must only just take color in the oven.
These are only suggestions for using up the trimmings from the cups.
XXXI.
MISCELLANEOUS SWEETS.--_Continued._
_Raspberry Charlotte Russe._--The simplest and quite the most effective
way of making charlottes of any kind is the following: Take a strip of
light cartridge or drawing paper from two to three inches wide, measure
it round a mould the size you wish the charlotte to be, and cut it an
inch larger; piece the two ends together, lapping an inch. Lay this
paper circle on an ornamental dish (the one you wish to use), split
lady-fingers, and stand them around it inside like a picket-fence, only
as close together as they will go, inserting a pin from the outside
through the paper and each cake as you do it. When you have lined the
paper completely you will have a close frame of lady-fingers held in
place by pins. Whip a pint of _perfectly sweet_ cream that is at least
twenty-four hours old and has been thoroughly chilled on ice. Sweeten
the cream with two tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar, and flavor it with
a tablespoonful of raspberry _juice_ (not syrup) mixed with a
tablespoonful of powdered sugar; sometimes the raspberry juice will
color the cream a beautiful faint pink, which cannot be improved upon,
but if it is not bright enough in tint stir in one or two drops of
cochineal. If the weather is warm stand the vessel containing the cream
in ice; then beat without stopping to skim the froth as it rises. In
about ten to fifteen minutes the cream ought to be perfectly solid if
all the conditions were observed, and the beating carried on in a cool,
airy room. If, however, the cream is not solid enough to keep shape, set
it on ice for an hour and beat again. Fill the centre of the frame of
lady-fingers, piling it high; decorate either with chopped
pistachio-nuts lightly sprinkled, or with rings of angelica. The
raspberry _juice_ used for flavoring is to be obtained at first-class
druggists', where the best quality of soda-water is sold. It is
unsweetened, and although I have kept it two or three months in cool
weather, it often will not keep many weeks; it is therefore better to
buy it by the gill or half-pint, if your druggist will sell it so, than
to buy a large bottle, although it is so useful for making raspberry
jelly, raspberry shrub, and many other things, that even a bottle is not
likely to be wasted. It must not be confused with raspberry _syrup_,
which is heavily sweetened, but not nearly so fragrant. Before serving
the charlotte remove the pins and take the paper off.
_Charlotte Russe with Gelatine._--Prepare a frame as in last recipe,
also beat a pint of cream sweetened and flavored with wine or to taste;
melt in a pint of milk half an ounce of gelatine. The French gelatine is
very pure, easy to melt, and no more expensive than any other good kind,
and for delicate uses preferable to them. Make the gelatine and milk
into a custard with two eggs, sweeten with two tablespoonfuls of sugar,
flavor to taste, and put to get cold, stirring it once in a while; when
it begins to thicken round the sides of the vessel beat with the
egg-beater till foamy. You have now a vessel of whipped custard and one
of whipped cream, both cold; now mix the cream into the custard, a
little at a time, giving the spoon a light upward movement; _do not stir
it_; that deadens the cream; your object is to keep it light; when all
is mixed, fill the frame of cake with the spongy mixture; decorate it
either with drops and pipings of the mixture applied to the smooth
surface, or with candied fruits cut into forms or various colored
jellies.
Of course a charlotte russe can be varied in many ways. It may be filled
with the custard made with chocolate, and so be brown charlotte, or the
filling may have apricot or currant jelly whipped into it with the
gelatine; this is an admirable change.
_Almond Turban._--Make half a pound of fine puff-paste, give it nine
turns, roll it the last time to the thickness of a dollar; have ready
half a pound of almonds, blanched and chopped; put them in a bowl with
half a pound of powdered sugar and the whites of two eggs, adding a very
little more if the icing is too stiff to spread; spread the almond icing
on the pastry as thick as a twenty-five-cent piece; with a sharp knife
cut the pastry into strips two and a half inches long and one in
breadth; bake these in a moderate oven a very pale brown; make a circle
on a dish of some _firm_ marmalade or jam; when the almond cakes are
cold, dress them in a crown on the jam, which serves to keep them in
place; fill the centre of the turban with vanilla ice-cream or simple
whipped cream.
_Fine Small Cakes for Dessert._--It may not be worth the while of a busy
housekeeper within reach of a first-class confectioner's to make these,
because, although when of fine quality they are always expensive, yet
they are also tedious to make. Many, however, live in country towns,
where there is no possibility of obtaining anything better than the
sandy products of the country bakery.
A few really fine cakes can be made at a time, and kept in an air-tight
box, with layers of paper between, for some time. In speaking, however,
of the tediousness I would not discourage the reader, for there are few
more tedious things in cooking than the rolling out, making, and baking
of thin cookies or ginger-snaps, and the result attained so inadequate.
_Rout Biscuits._--Boil a pound of sugar in half a pint of milk; grate
into it the rind of a lemon when cold; rub half a pound of butter into a
pound and a half of flour and a pound of almond paste grated fine; put
as much carbonate of soda as would lie on a silver dime into the milk,
and mix with the flour and almond paste; beat two eggs, and make the
whole into a firm, smooth paste; print this paste with very small
butter moulds if you have them, making little cakes just like the tiny
pats of butter one gets at city restaurants. Bake on a well-buttered pan
in a quick oven a very pale yellow.
_Macaroons._--These must be exempted from the charge of being tedious,
they are so easily and quickly made. One pound of almond paste grated,
one pound and a half of sugar, and the whites of seven eggs. Some
confectioners use a teaspoonful of flour, with the idea that the
macaroons are not so apt to fall. I recommend a trial of both methods;
they will both be good. Stir the sugar and the beaten white of eggs
together just enough to mix, then by degrees add the grated paste,
mashing with the back of a fork till it forms a perfectly smooth paste.
Oil several sheets of paper cut to the size of your baking-pans.
Dripping-pans may be used if you have no regular baking-sheets. Lay a
sheet of paper at the bottom of the pan. Put half a teaspoonful of the
macaroon paste on a scrap of buttered paper in the oven. If it spreads
too much it requires a very little more sugar; if it does not spread at
all, or so little as to leave the surface rough, it is too stiff, and
requires perhaps _half_ the white of an egg, or the finger dipped in
water and laid on each macaroon after they are on the paper is often
sufficient--a little practice is all that is necessary. Lay the paste in
half-teaspoonfuls on the oiled or greased paper. If the trial one
indicated that they were slightly too stiff, lay a wet finger on each,
sift powdered sugar over, and then put a pinch of chopped and blanched
almonds in the centre with just enough pressure to keep them in place.
As the macaroon spreads in the oven the almonds scatter themselves.
Macaroons should be baked _about_ twenty minutes in a moderate oven.
They must be taken out while they are a very pale brown, but they must
also be quite "set," or they will fall. If the oven is too quick they
will brown too soon; in that case leave the oven door open, taking care
that no cold draught can blow on the macaroons. You can tell if they
have browned too quickly by the cracks in them being still white and
sticky. When done both the cracks and surface should be the same pale
color. The macaroons must be left five minutes in the pan after leaving
the oven without being touched. At the end of that time they may be
gently taken off the pans _on the papers_, from which they must not be
detached until they are quite cold. Should they stick to the paper,
moisten the back of it.
_Fine Ginger Dessert Cakes._--Rub half a pound of fresh butter into
three quarters of a pound of flour; beat three eggs with three quarters
of a pound of powdered sugar and half a glass of rosewater, the grated
peel of a lemon, and a teaspoonful of the best powdered ginger--use the
ginger carefully, trying a level spoonful first. Then mix all into a
paste. If the flavor of ginger is not strong enough, add more; they
should taste well of it, without being hot in the mouth. Roll the paste
a quarter of an inch thick, and cut into small oval or round cakes, sift
powdered sugar over them, and bake rather slowly a very pale brown.
XXXII.
FINE CAKES AND SAUCES.
_Madeleines._--Four ounces of butter, four ounces of the best flour,
three ounces of sugar, a teaspoonful of orange-flower water, the yolks
of four eggs, and rind of a lemon. Beat butter, sugar, and yolks of eggs
together, then add the other ingredients; grate in the rind of half a
lemon, and add the well-beaten whites of eggs last of all. Fill little
moulds that have been buttered with washed butter, cover the tops with
split almonds and sifted sugar; bake from thirty to forty minutes in a
moderate oven. These cakes are sometimes served hot with apricot sauce.
_Chestnut Croquettes._--Boil fifty sound chestnuts; take them out of the
shells; reject all imperfect ones; keep the large pieces aside; pound
the crumbs and most broken pieces with an ounce of butter till very
smooth; then mix in a _small_ cup of cream two ounces of butter and one
ounce of powdered sugar; put the whole into a double boiler, and stir in
the beaten yolks of six eggs. Let the mixture set. When cool, make it
into balls; in the centre of each ball put a piece of the chestnut you
have laid aside, dip the balls in fine cracker meal and eggs, and fry a
very pale yellow. Serve with sifted sugar.
Very pretty cakes, very easily made, which come under the French term
_petits fours_, may be given here.