cores. Put them into a saucepan, placing them close together, with the
stems uppermost. Pour over sufficient water, a cup of sugar, a few
whole cloves and some sticks of cinnamon, a tablespoonful of lemon
juice. Cover the stewpan closely, to stew gently till the fruit is
done, which will depend on the quality of the fruit. Then take out the
fruit carefully and arrange it on a dish for serving. Boil down the
syrup until quite thick; strain it and allow it to cool enough to set
it; then pour it over the fruit.
The juice could be colored by a few drops of liquid cochineal, or a
few slices of beets, while boiling. A teaspoonful of brandy adds much
to the flavor. Serve with cream or boiled custard.
BAKED QUINCES.
Take ripe quinces, pare and quarter them, cut out the seeds; then stew
them in clear water until a straw will pierce them; put into a baking
dish with half a cupful of loaf sugar to every eight quinces; pour
over them the liquor in which they were boiled, cover closely and bake
in the oven one hour; then take out the quinces and put them into a
covered dish; return the syrup to the saucepan and boil twenty
minutes; then pour over the quinces and set them away to cool.
GOOSEBERRY FOOL.
Stew a quart of ripe gooseberries in just enough water to cover them;
when soft, rub them through a colander to remove the skins and seeds;
while hot stir into them a tablespoonful of melted butter and a cupful
of sugar. Beat the yolks of three eggs and add that; whip all together
until light. Fill a large glass fruit dish and spread on the top the
beaten whites mixed with three tablespoonfuls of sugar. Apples or any
tart fruit is nice made in this manner.
MERINGUES OR KISSES.
A coffeecupful of fine white sugar, the whites of six eggs; whisk the
whites of the eggs to a stiff froth and with a wooden spoon stir in
_quickly_ the pounded sugar; and have some boards put in the oven
thick enough to prevent the bottom of the meringues from acquiring too
much color. Cut some strips of paper about two inches wide; place this
paper on the board and drop a tablespoonful at a time of the mixture
on the paper, taking care to let all the meringues be the same size.
In dropping it from the spoon, give the mixture the form of an egg and
keep the meringues about two inches apart from each other on the
paper. Strew over them some sifted sugar and bake in a moderate oven
for half an hour. As soon as they begin to color, remove them from the
oven; take each slip of paper by the two ends and turn it gently on
the table and with a small spoon take out the soft part of each
meringue. Spread some clean paper on the board, turn the meringues
upside down and put them into the oven to harden and brown on the
other side. When required for table, fill them with whipped cream,
flavored with liquor or vanilla and sweeten with pounded sugar. Join
two of the meringues together and pile them high in the dish. To vary
their appearance, finely chopped almonds or currants may be strewn
over them before the sugar is sprinkled over; and they may be
garnished with any bright-colored preserve. Great expedition is
necessary in making this sweet dish, as, if the meringues are not put
into the oven as soon as the sugar and eggs are mixed, the former
melts and the mixture would run on the paper instead of keeping its
egg-shape. The sweeter the meringues are made the crisper will they
be; but if there is not sufficient sugar mixed with them, they will
most likely be tough. They are sometimes colored with cochineal; and
if kept well-covered in a dry place, will remain good for a month or
six weeks.
JELLY KISSES.
Kisses, to be served for dessert at a large dinner, with other
suitable confectionery, may be varied in this way: Having made the
kisses, heap them in the shape of half an egg, placed upon stiff
letter paper lining the bottom of a thick baking pan; put them in a
moderate oven until the outside is a little hardened; then take one
off carefully, take out the soft inside with the handle of a spoon,
and put it back with the mixture, to make more; then lay the shell
down. Take another and prepare it likewise; fill the shells with
currant jelly or jam; join two together, cementing them with some of
the mixture; so continue until you have enough. Make kisses, cocoanut
drops, and such like, the day before they are wanted.
This recipe will make a fair-sized cake basket full. It adds much to
their beauty when served up to tint half of them pale pink, then unite
white and pink. Serve on a high glass dish.
COCOANUT MACAROONS.
Make a "kiss" mixture, add to it the white meat, grated, and finish as
directed for KISSES.
ALMOND MACAROONS.
Half a pound of sweet almonds, a coffeecupful of white sugar, the
whites of two eggs; blanch the almonds and pound them to a paste; add
to them the sugar and the beaten whites of eggs; work the whole
together with the back of a spoon, then roll the mixture in your hands
in balls about the size of a nutmeg, dust sugar over the top, lay them
on a sheet of paper at least an inch apart. Bake in a cool oven a
light brown.
CHOCOLATE MACAROONS.
Put three ounces of plain chocolate in a pan and melt on a slow fire;
then work it to a thick paste with one pound of powdered sugar and the
whites of three eggs; roll the mixture down to the thickness of about
one-quarter of an inch; cut it in small, round pieces with a
paste-cutter, either plain or scalloped; butter a pan slightly, and
dust it with flour and sugar in equal quantities; place in it the
pieces of paste or mixture, and bake in a hot but not too quick oven.
LEMON JELLY. No. 1.
Wash and prepare four calf's feet, place them in four quarts of water,
and let them simmer gently five hours. At the expiration of this time
take them out and pour the liquid into a vessel to cool; there should
be nearly a quart. When cold, remove every particle of fat, replace
the jelly into the preserving-kettle, and add one pound of loaf sugar,
the rind and juice of two lemons; when the sugar has dissolved, beat
two eggs with their shells in one gill of water, which pour into the
kettle and boil five minutes, or until perfectly clear; then add one
gill of Madeira wine and strain through a flannel bag into any form
you like.
LEMON JELLY. No. 2.
To a package of gelatine add a pint of cold water, the juice of four
lemons and the rind of one; let it stand one hour, then add one pint
of boiling water, a pinch of cinnamon, three cups of sugar; let it all
come to a boil; strain through a napkin into molds, set away to get
cold. Nice poured over sliced bananas and oranges.
WINE JELLY.
One package of gelatine, one cupful of cold water soaked together two
hours; add to this three cupfuls of sugar, the juice of three lemons
and the grated rind of one. Now pour over this a quart of boiling
water and stir until dissolved, then add a pint of sherry wine. Strain
through a napkin, turn into molds dipped in cold water and place in
the ice box for several hours.
One good way to mold this jelly is to pour some of it into the mold,
harden it a little, put in a layer of strawberries or raspberries, or
any fresh fruit in season, pour in jelly to set them; after they have
set, another layer of jelly, then another of berries, and so fill each
mold, alternating with jelly and berries.
CIDER JELLY.
This can be made the same, by substituting clear, sweet cider in place
of the wine.
ORANGE JELLY.
Orange jelly is a great delicacy and not expensive. To make a large
dish, get six oranges, two lemons, a two-ounce package of gelatine.
Put the gelatine to soak in a pint of water, squeeze the orange juice
into a bowl, also the lemon juice, and grate one of the lemon skins in
with it. Put about two cupfuls of sugar with the gelatine, then stir
in the orange juice, and pour over all three pints of boiling water,
stirring constantly. When the gelatine is entirely dissolved, strain
through a napkin into molds or bowls wet with cold water, and set
aside to harden. In three or four hours it will be ready for use and
will last several days.
VARIEGATED JELLY.
After dividing a box of Cox's gelatine into halves, put each half into
a bowl with half a cupful of cold water. Put three-quarters of an
ounce or six sheets of pink gelatine into a third bowl containing
three-fourths of a cupful of cold water. Cover the bowls to keep out
the dust and set them away for two hours. At the end of that time, add
a pint of boiling water, a cupful of sugar, half a pint of wine, and
the juice of lemon to the pink gelatine, and, after stirring till the
gelatine is dissolved, strain the liquid through a napkin. Treat one
of the other portions of the gelatine in the same way. Beat together
the yolks of four eggs and half a cupful of sugar, and, after adding
this mixture to the third portion of gelatine, stir the new mixture
into a pint and a third of boiling milk, contained in a double boiler.
Stir on the fire for three minutes, then strain through a fine sieve,
and flavor with a teaspoonful of vanilla extract. Place in a deep pan
two molds, each holding about three pints, and surround them with ice
and water. Pour into these molds, in equal parts, the wine jelly
which was made with the clear gelatine, and set it away to harden.
When it has become set, pour in the pink gelatine, which should have
been set away in a place not cold enough to make it harden. After it
has been transferred and has become hard, pour into the molds the
mixture of eggs, sugar and gelatine, which should be in a liquid
state. Set the molds in an ice chest for three or four hours. At
serving time, dip them into tepid water to loosen the contents, and
gently turn the jelly out upon flat dishes.
The clear jelly may be made first and poured into molds, then the pink
jelly and finally the egg jelly.
STRAWBERRY JELLY.
Strawberries, pounded sugar; to every pint of juice allow half a
package of Cox's gelatine.
Pick the strawberries, put them into a pan, squeeze them well with a
wooden spoon, add sufficient pounded sugar to sweeten them nicely, and
let them remain for one hour that the juice may be extracted; then add
half a pint of water to every pint of juice. Strain the strawberry
juice and water through a napkin; measure it and to every pint allow
half a package of Cox's gelatine dissolved in a teacupful of water.
Mix this with the juice, put the jelly into a mold and set the mold on
ice. A little lemon juice added to the strawberry juice improves the
flavor of the jelly, if the fruit is very ripe; but it must be well
strained before it is put with the other ingredients, or it will make
the jelly muddy. Delicious and beautiful.
RECIPE FOR CHEESE CUSTARD.
For three persons, two ounces of grated parmesan cheese; the whites of
three eggs beaten to a stiff froth, a little pepper, salt and cayenne,
a little milk or cream to mix; bake for a quarter of an hour.
ICE CREAM AND ICES
ICE-CREAM.
One pint of milk, the yolks of two eggs, six ounces of sugar and one
tablespoonful of cornstarch. Scald but do not boil. Then put the
whites of the two eggs into a pint of cream; whip it. Mix the milk and
cream, flavor and freeze. One teaspoonful of vanilla or lemon is
generally sufficient.
The quantity, of course, can be increased to any amount desired, so
long as the relative proportions of the different ingredients are
observed.
PURE ICE-CREAM.
Genuine ice-cream is made of the pure sweet cream in this proportion:
Two quarts of cream, one pound of sugar; beat up, flavor and freeze.
For family use, select one of the new patent freezers, as being more
rapid and less laborious for small quantities than the old style
turned entirely by hand. All conditions being perfect, those with
crank and revolving dashers effect freezing in eight to fifteen
minutes.
FRUIT ICE-CREAM.
_Ingredients._--To every pint of fruit juice allow one pint of cream;
sugar to taste.
Let the fruit be well ripened; pick it off the stalks and put it into
a large earthen pan. Stir it about with a wooden spoon, breaking it
until it is well mashed; then, with the back of the spoon, rub it
through a hair-sieve. Sweeten it nicely with pounded sugar; whip the
cream for a few minutes, add it to the fruit, and whisk the whole
again for another five minutes. Put the mixture into the freezer and
freeze. Raspberry, strawberry, currant, and all fruit ice-creams are
made in the same manner. A little powdered sugar sprinkled over the
fruit before it is mashed assists to extract the juice. In winter,
when fresh fruit is not obtainable, a little jam may be substituted
for it; it should be melted and worked through a sieve before being
added to the whipped cream; and if the color should not be good, a
little prepared cochineal may be put in to improve its appearance. In
making berry flavoring for ice-cream, the milk should never be heated;
the juice of the berries added to _cold_ cream, or fresh rich milk,
mixed with _cold_ cream, the juice put in just before freezing, or
when partly frozen.
CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM. No. 1. (Very fine.)
Add four ounces of grated chocolate to a cupful of sweet milk, then
mix it thoroughly to a quart of thick sweet cream; no flavoring is
required but vanilla. Sweeten with a cupful of sugar; beat again and
freeze.
CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM. No. 2.
Beat two eggs very light and cream them with two cupfuls of sugar.
Scald a pint of milk and turn on by degrees, mixing well with the
sugar and eggs. Stir in this half a cupful of grated chocolate; return
to the fire and heat until it thickens, stirring briskly; take off and
set aside to cool. When thoroughly cold, freeze.
COCOANUT ICE-CREAM.
One quart of cream, one pint of milk, three eggs, one cupful and a
half of sugar and one of prepared cocoanut, the rind and juice of a
lemon. Beat together the eggs and grated lemon rind and put with the
milk in the double boiler. Stir until the mixture begins to thicken.
Add the cocoanut and put away to cool. When cool add the sugar, lemon
juice and cream. Freeze.
CUSTARD ICE-CREAM.
Sweeten one quart of cream or rich milk with half a pound of sugar and
flavor to taste; put it over the fire in a farina-kettle; as soon as
it begins to boil, stir into it a tablespoonful of cornstarch or rice
flour which has been previously mixed smooth with a little milk; after
it has boiled a few minutes, take it off the fire and stir in very
gradually six eggs which have been beaten until thick; when quite
cold, freeze it as ice-cream.
STRAWBERRY ICE-CREAM.
Mix a cupful of sugar with a quart of ripe strawberries, let them
stand half a day, then mash and strain them through a coarse towel,
then add to the juice a full cupful of sugar and when dissolved, beat
in a quart of fresh thick cream. Raspberries, pineapple and other
fruits made the same.
FRUIT CREAM.
Make a rich, boiled custard; flavor with wine and vanilla; pour it
into a freezer. When half frozen, add pounded almonds, chopped citron
and brandy, peaches or chopped raisins. Have the freezer half full of
custard and fill up with the fruit. Mix well and freeze again. Almost
any kind of fruits that are preferred may be substituted for the
above.
TUTTI FRUTTI ICE-CREAM.
Take two quarts of the richest cream and add to it one pound of
pulverized sugar and four whole eggs; mix well together; place on the
fire, stirring constantly, and just bring to boiling point; now remove
immediately and continue to stir until nearly cold; flavor with a
tablespoonful of extract of vanilla; place in freezer and, when half
frozen, mix thoroughly into it one pound of preserved fruits, in equal
parts of peaches, apricots, gages, cherries, pineapples, etc.; all of
these fruits are to be cut up into small pieces and mixed well with
frozen cream. If you desire to _mold_ this ice sprinkle it with a
little carmine, dissolved in a teaspoonful of water, with two drops of
spirits of ammonia; mix in this color, so that it will be streaky or
in veins like marble.
ICE-CREAM WITHOUT A FREEZER.
Beat the yolks of eight eggs very light, and add thereto four cupfuls
of sugar, and stir well. Add to this, little by little, one quart of
rich milk that has been heated almost to boiling, beating all the
while; then put in the whites of eight eggs beaten to a stiff froth.
Then boil the mixture in a pail set inside another containing hot
water. Boil about fifteen minutes or until it is as thick as a boiled
custard, stirring steadily meanwhile. Pour into a bowl to cool. When
quite cold, beat into it three pints of rich sweet cream and five
teaspoonfuls of vanilla, or such other flavoring as you prefer. Put it
into a pail having a close-fitting cover and pack in pounded ice and
salt,--_rock salt_, not the common kind,--about three-fourths ice and
one-forth salt. When packed, before putting the ice on top of the
cover, beat the custard as you would batter, for five minutes steady;
then put on the cover and put the ice and salt over it, and cover the
whole with a thick mat, blanket or carpet and let it stand for an
hour. Then carefully uncover and scrape from the bottom and sides of
the pail the thick coating of frozen custard, making every particle
clear, and beat again very hard, until the custard is a smooth,
half-congealed paste. Do this thoroughly. Put on the cover, ice, salt
and blanket, and leave it for five or six hours, replenishing the ice
and salt if necessary.
_Common Sense in the Household._
FROZEN PEACHES.
One can or twelve large peaches, two coffeecupfuls of sugar, one pint
of water and the whites of three eggs beaten to a stiff froth; break
the peaches rather fine and stir all the ingredients together; freeze
the whole into form.
Frozen fruit of any kind can be made the same way; the fruit should be
mashed to a smooth pulp, but not thinned too much. In freezing, care
should be taken to prevent its getting lumpy.
FROZEN FRUITS.
The above recipe, increasing the quantity of peaches, raspberries or
whatever fruit you may use, and adding a small amount of rich cream,
make fine frozen fruits. In freezing, you must be especially careful
to prevent its getting lumpy.
LEMON ICE.
The juice of six lemons and the grated rind of three, a large sweet
orange, juice and rind; squeeze out all the juice and steep it in the
rind of orange and lemons a couple of hours; then squeeze and strain
through a towel, add a pint of water and two cupfuls of sugar. Stir
until dissolved, turn into a freezer, then proceed as for ice-cream,
letting it stand longer, two or three hours.
When fruit jellies are used, gently heat the water sufficiently to
melt them; then cool and freeze. Other flavors may be made in this
manner, varying the flavoring to taste.
PINEAPPLE SHERBET.
Grate two pineapples and mix with two quarts of water and a pint of
sugar; add the juice of two lemons and the beaten whites of four eggs.
Place in a freezer and freeze.
RASPBERRY SHERBET.
Two quarts of raspberries, one cupful of sugar, one pint and a half of
water, the juice of a large lemon, one tablespoonful of gelatine. Mash
the berries and sugar together and let them stand two hours. Soak the
gelatine in cold water to cover. Add one pint of the water to the
berries and strain. Dissolve the gelatine in half a pint of boiling
water, add this to the strained mixture and freeze.
ORANGE-WATER ICE.
Add a tablespoonful of gelatine to one gill of water; let it stand
twenty minutes and add half a pint of boiling water; stir until
dissolved and add four ounces of powdered sugar, the strained juice of
six oranges and cold water enough to make a full quart in all. Stir
until the sugar is dissolved; pour into the freezing can and freeze.
(See LEMON ICE.)
ALMOND ICE.
Two pints of milk, eight ounces of cream, two ounces of orange-flower
water, eight ounces of sweet almonds, four ounces of bitter almonds;
pound all in a marble mortar, pouring in from time to time a few drops
of water; when thoroughly pounded add the orange-flower water and half
of the milk; pass this, tightly squeezed, through a cloth; boil the
rest of the milk with the cream and keep stirring it with a wooden
spoon; as soon as it is thick enough, pour in the almond milk; give it
one boiling, take it off and let it cool in a bowl or pitcher before
pouring it into the mold for freezing.
CURRANT ICE.
A refreshing ice is made of currants or raspberries, or equal portions
of each. Squeeze enough fruit in a jelly-bag to make a pint of juice;
add a pint each of the water and sugar; pour the whole, boiling hot,
onto whites of three eggs, beaten to a stiff froth, and whip the
mixture thoroughly. When cool, freeze in the usual manner. Part red
raspberry juice is a much finer flavor.
Any juicy fruit may be prepared in this manner.
DUMPLINGS AND PUDDINGS
It depends as much upon the judgment of the cook as on the materials
used to make a good pudding. Everything should be the best in the way
of materials, and a proper attention to the rules, with some practice,
will ensure success.
Puddings are either boiled, baked or steamed; if boiled, the materials
should be well worked together, put into a thick cloth bag, previously
dipped in hot water, wringing it slightly and dredging the inside
_thickly_ with flour; tie it firmly, allowing room for it to swell;
drop it into a kettle of _boiling_ water, with a small plate or saucer
in the bottom to keep it from sticking to the kettle. It should not
cease boiling one moment from the time it is put in until taken out,
and the pot must be tightly covered, and the cover not removed except
when necessary to add water from the _boiling_ tea-kettle when the
water is getting low. When done, dip immediately in cold water and
turn out. This should be done just before placing on the table.
Or butter a tin pudding-mold or an earthen bowl; close it tight so
that water cannot penetrate; drop it into boiling water and boil
steadily the required time. If a bowl is used it should be well
buttered and not quite filled with the pudding, allowing room for it
to swell; then a cloth wet in hot water, slightly wringing it, then
floured on the inner side, and tied over the bowl, meeting under the
bottom.
To steam a pudding, put it into a tin pan or earthen dish; tie a cloth
over the top, first dredging it in flour, and set it in a steamer.
Cover the steamer closely; allow a little longer time than you do for
boiling.
Molds or basins for baking, steaming or boiling should be well
buttered before the mixture is put into them. Allow a little longer
time for steaming than for boiling.
Dumplings boiled the same way, put into little separate cloths.
Batter puddings should be smoothly mixed and free from lumps. To
ensure this, first mix the flour with a very small portion of milk,
the yolks of the eggs and the sugar thoroughly beaten together, and
added to this; then add the remainder of the milk by degrees, then the
seasoning, then the beaten whites of eggs last. Much success in making
this kind of pudding depends upon a strict observance of this rule;
for, although the materials may be good, if the eggs are put into the
milk before they are mixed with the flour, there will be a custard at
the top and a soft dough at the bottom of your dish.
All sweet puddings require a _little_ salt to prevent insipidity and
to draw out the flavor of the several ingredients, but a grain too
much will spoil any pudding.
In puddings where wine, brandy, cider, lemon juice or any acid is
used, it should be stirred in last and gradually, or it is apt to
curdle the milk or eggs.
In making _custard puddings_ (puddings made with eggs and milk), the
yolks of the eggs and sugar should be thoroughly beaten together
before any of the milk or seasoning is added, and the beaten whites of
eggs last.
In making puddings of bread, rice, sago, tapioca, etc., the eggs
should be beaten very light, and mixed with a portion of the milk,
before adding them to the other ingredients. If the eggs are mixed
with the milk, without having been thus beaten, the milk will be
absorbed by the bread, rice, sago, tapioca, etc., without rendering
them light.
The freshness of all pudding ingredients is of much importance, as one
bad article will taint the whole mixture.
When the _freshness_ of eggs is _doubtful_, break each one separately
in a cup before mixing them all together. Should there be a bad one
amongst them, it can be thrown away; whereas, if mixed with the good
ones, the entire quantity would be spoiled. The yolks and whites
beaten separately make the articles they are put into much lighter.