which shows they are fat. In other respects, choose them by the same
marks as other fowl. When stale, the feet are harsh and dry. They will
keep a long time. There are three sorts of these birds, the grey, the
green, and the bastard plover, or lapwing. Green plovers are roasted in
the same way as snipes and woodcocks, without drawing, and are served on
toast. The grey ones may be roasted, or stewed with gravy, herbs, and
spice.
PLOVERS' EGGS. Boil them ten minutes, and serve them either hot or cold
on a napkin. These make a nice and fashionable dish.
PLUM CAKE. This is such a favourite article in most families, and is
made in so many different ways, that it will be necessary to give a
variety of receipts, in order that a selection may be made agreeably to
the taste of the reader, or the quality of the article to be
preferred.--For a good common plum cake, mix five ounces of butter in
three pounds of fine dry flour, and five ounces of the best moist sugar.
Add six ounces of currants, washed and dried, and some pimento finely
powdered. Put three spoonfuls of yeast into a pint of new milk warmed,
and mix it with the above into a light dough.--A cake of a better sort.
Mix thoroughly a quarter of a peck of fine flour well dried, with a
pound of dry and sifted loaf sugar, three pounds of currants washed and
very dry, half a pound of raisins stoned and chopped, a quarter of an
ounce of mace and cloves, twenty peppercorns, a grated nutmeg, the peel
of a lemon cut as fine as possible, and half a pound of almonds blanched
and beaten with orange-flower water. Melt two pounds of butter in a pint
and a quarter of cream, but not too hot; add a pint of sweet wine, a
glass of brandy, the whites and yolks of twelve eggs beaten apart, and
half a pint of good yeast. Strain this liquid by degrees into the dry
ingredients, beating them together a full hour; then butter the hoop or
pan, and bake it. When the batter is put into the pan, throw in plenty
of citron, lemon, and orange candy. If the cake is to be iced, take half
a pound of double refined sugar sifted, and put a little with the white
of an egg; beat it well, and by degrees pour in the remainder. It must
be whisked nearly an hour, with the addition of a little orange-flower
water, but not too much. When the cake is done, pour the iceing over it,
and return it to the oven for fifteen minutes. But if the oven be quite
warm, keep it near the mouth, and the door open, lest the colour be
spoiled.--Another. Dried flour, currants washed and picked, four pounds;
sugar pounded and sifted, a pound and a half; six orange, lemon, and
citron peels, cut in slices. These are to be mixed together. Beat ten
eggs, yolks and whites separately. Melt a pound and a half of butter in
a pint of cream; when cold, put to it half a pint of yeast, near half a
pint of sweet wine, and the eggs. Then strain the liquid to the dry
ingredients, beat them well, and add of cloves, mace, cinnamon, and
nutmeg, half an ounce each. Butter the pan, and put it into a quick
oven. Three hours will bake it.--Another. Mix with a pound of well-dried
flour, a pound of loaf sugar, and the eighth of an ounce of mace, well
beaten. Beat up five eggs with half the whites, a gill of rose water,
and a quarter of a pint of yeast, and strain them. Melt half a pound of
butter in a quarter of a pint of cream, and when cool, mix all together.
Beat up the batter with a light hand, and set it to rise half an hour.
Before it is put into the oven, mix in a pound and a half of currants,
well washed and dried, and bake it an hour and a quarter.--For a rich
cake, take three pounds of well-dried flour, three pounds of fresh
butter, a pound and a half of fine sugar dried and sifted, five pounds
of currants carefully cleaned and dried, twenty-four eggs, three grated
nutmegs, a little pounded mace and cloves, half a pound of almonds, a
glass of sack, and a pound of citron or orange peel. Pound the almonds
in rose water, work up the butter to a thin cream, put in the sugar, and
work it well; then the yolks of the eggs, the spices, the almonds, and
orange peel. Beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, and put them into
the batter as it rises. Keep working it with the hand till the oven is
ready, and the scorching subsided; put it into a hoop, but not full, and
two hours will bake it. The almonds should be blanched in cold water.
This will make a large rich plum cake.--A small common cake may be made
of a pound of dough, a quarter of a pound of butter, two eggs, a quarter
of a pound of lump sugar, a quarter of a pound of currants, and a little
nutmeg.--Another. Take a pound and a half of fine white dough, roll into
it a pound of butter, as for pie crust, and set it by the fire. Beat up
the yolks of four eggs, with half a pound of fine powdered sugar; pour
it upon the mass, and work it well by the fire. Add half a pound of
currants, well picked and washed, and send it to the oven. Half the
quantity of sugar, eggs, and butter, will make a very pleasant
cake.--Another. A pound and a half of well-dried flour, a pound of
butter, a pound of sugar, and a pound of currants, picked and washed.
Beat up eight eggs, warm the butter, mix all together, and beat it up
for an hour.--For little plum cakes, intended to keep for some time, dry
a pound of fine flour, and mix it with six ounces of finely pounded
sugar. Beat six ounces of butter to a cream, and add to three eggs well
beaten, half a pound of currants nicely washed and dried, together with
the sugar and flour. Beat all for some time, then dredge some flour on
tin plates, and drop the batter on them the size of a walnut. If
properly mixed, it will be a stiff paste. Bake in a brisk oven. To make
a rich plum cake, take four pounds of flour well dried, mix with it a
pound and a half of fine sugar powdered, a grated nutmeg, and an ounce
of mace pounded fine. When they are well mixed, make a hole in the
middle, and pour in fifteen eggs, but seven whites, well beaten, with a
pint of good yeast, half a quarter of a pint of orange-flower water, and
the same quantity of sack, or any other rich sweet wine. Then melt two
pounds and a half of butter in a pint and a half of cream; and when it
is about the warmth of new milk, pour it into the middle of the batter.
Throw a little of the flour over the liquids, but do not mix the whole
together till it is ready to go into the oven. Let it stand before the
fire an hour to rise, laying a cloth over it; then have ready six pounds
of currants well washed, picked, and dried; a pound of citron and a
pound of orange peel sliced, with a pound of blanched almonds, half cut
in slices lengthways, and half finely pounded. Mix all well together,
butter the tin well, and bake it two hours and a half. This will make a
large cake.--Another, not quite so rich. Three pounds of flour well
dried, half a pound of sugar, and half an ounce of spice, nutmeg, mace,
and cinnamon, well pounded. Add ten eggs, but only half the whites,
beaten with a pint of good yeast. Melt a pound of butter in a pint of
cream, add it to the yeast, and let it stand an hour to rise before the
fire. Then add three pounds of currants well washed, picked and dried.
Butter the tin, and bake it an hour.--A common plum cake is made of
three pounds and a half of flour, half a pound of sugar, a grated
nutmeg, eight eggs, a glass of brandy, half a pint of yeast, a pound of
butter melted in a pint and half of milk, put lukewarm to the other
ingredients. Let it rise an hour before the fire, then mix it well
together, add two pounds of currants carefully cleaned, butter the tin,
and bake it.
PLUM JAM. Cut some ripe plums to pieces, put them into a preserving pan,
bruise them with a spoon, warm them over the fire till they are soft,
and press them through a cullender. Boil the jam an hour, stir it well,
add six ounces of fine powdered sugar to every pound of jam, and take it
off the fire to mix it. Then heat it ten minutes, put it into jars, and
sift some fine sugar over it.
PLUM PUDDING. Take six ounces of suet chopped fine, six ounces of malaga
raisins stoned, eight ounces of currants nicely washed and picked, three
ounces of bread crumbs, three ounces of flour, and three eggs. Add the
sixth part of a grated nutmeg, a small blade of mace, the same quantity
of cinnamon, pounded as fine as possible; half a tea-spoonful of salt,
nearly half a pint of milk, four ounces of sugar, an ounce of candied
lemon, and half an ounce of citron. Beat the eggs and spice well
together, mix the milk with them by degrees, and then the rest of the
ingredients. Dip a fine close linen cloth into boiling water, and put it
in a hair sieve, flour it a little, and tie the pudding up close. Put it
into a saucepan containing six quarts of boiling water; keep a kettle of
boiling water near it, to fill up the pot as it wastes, and keep it
boiling six hours. If the water ceases to boil, the pudding will become
heavy, and be spoiled. Plum puddings are best when mixed an hour or two
before they are boiled, as the various ingredients by that means
incorporate, and the whole becomes richer and fuller of flavour,
especially if the various ingredients be thoroughly well stirred
together. A table-spoonful of treacle will give the pudding a rich brown
colour.--Another. Beat up the yolks and whites of three eggs, strain
them through a sieve, gradually add to them a quarter of a pint of milk,
and stir it well together. Rub in a mortar two ounces of moist sugar,
with as much grated nutmeg as will lie on a six-pence, and stir these
into the eggs and milk. Then put in four ounces of flour, and beat it
into a smooth batter; by degrees stir into it seven ounces of suet,
minced as fine as possible, and three ounces of bread crumbs. Mix all
thoroughly together, at least half an hour before the pudding is put
into the pot. Put it into an earthenware pudding mould, well buttered,
tie a pudding cloth tight over it, put it into boiling water, and boil
it three hours. Half a pound of raisins cut in halves, and added to the
above, will make a most admirable plum pudding. This pudding may also be
baked, or put under roast meat, like a Yorkshire pudding. In the latter
case, half a pint more milk must be added, and the batter should be an
inch and a quarter in thickness. It will take full two hours, and
require careful watching; for if the top get burned, an unpleasant
flavour will pervade the whole pudding. Or butter some saucers, and fill
them with batter; in a dutch oven they will bake in about an
hour.--Another. To three quarters of a pound of flour, add the same
weight of stoned raisins, half a pound of suet or marrow, cut small, a
pint of milk, two eggs, three spoonfuls of moist sugar, and a little
salt. Boil the pudding five hours.--To make a small rich plum pudding,
take three quarters of a pound of suet finely shred, half a pound of
stoned raisins a little chopped, three spoonfuls of flour, three
spoonfuls of moist sugar, a little salt and nutmeg, three yolks of eggs,
and two whites. Boil the pudding four hours in a basin of tin mould,
well buttered. Serve it up with melted butter, white wine and sugar,
poured over it.--For a large rich pudding, take three pounds of suet
chopped small, a pound and a half of raisins stoned and chopped, a pound
and a half of currants, three pounds of flour, sixteen eggs, and a quart
of milk. Boil it in a cloth seven hours. If for baking, put in only a
pint of milk, with two additional eggs, and an hour and a half will bake
it.--A plum pudding without eggs may be made of three quarters of a
pound of flour, three quarters of a pound of suet chopped fine, three
quarters of a pound of stoned raisins, three quarters of a pound of
currants well washed and dried, a tea-spoonful of ground ginger, and
rather more of salt. Stir all well together, and add as little milk as
will just mix it up quite stiff. Boil the pudding four hours in a
buttered basin.--Another. The same proportions of flour and suet, and
half the quantity of fruit, with spice, lemon, a glass of white wine, an
egg and milk, will make an excellent pudding, but it must be well
boiled.
POACHED EGGS. Set a stewpan of water on the fire; when boiling, slip an
egg, previously broken into a cup, into the water. When the white looks
done enough, slide an egg-slice under the egg, and lay it on toast and
butter, or boiled spinach. As soon as done enough, serve them up hot. If
the eggs be not fresh laid, they will not poach well, nor without
breaking. Trim the ragged parts of the whites, and make them look round.
POISON. Whenever a quantity of arsenic has been swallowed, by design or
mistake, its effects may be counteracted by immediately drinking plenty
of milk. The patient should afterwards take a dram of the liver of
sulphur, in a pint of warm water, a little at a time as he can bear it;
or he may substitute some soap water, a quantity of common ink, or any
other acid, if other things cannot be readily procured.--To obviate the
ill effects of opium, taken either in a liquid or solid form, emetics
should be given as speedily as possible. These should consist of an
ounce each of oxymel squills and spearmint water, and half a scruple of
ipecacuanha, accompanied with frequent draughts of water gruel to assist
the operation.--Those poisons which may be called culinary, are
generally the most destructive, because the least suspected; no vessels
therefore made of copper or brass should be used in cooking. In cases
where the poison of virdigris has been recently swallowed, emetics
should first be given, and then the patient should drink abundance of
cold water.--If any one has eaten of the deadly nightshade, he should
take an emetic as soon as possible, and drink a pint of vinegar or lemon
juice in an equal quantity of water, a little at a time; and as sleep
would prove fatal, he should keep walking about to prevent it.--For the
bite of the mad dog, or other venomous animals, nothing is to be
depended on for a cure but immediately cutting out the bitten part with
a lancet, or burning it out with a red-hot iron.--To prevent the
baneful effects of burning charcoal, set an open vessel of boiling water
upon the pan containing the charcoal, and keep it boiling. The steam
arising from the water will counteract the effects of the charcoal.
Painters, glaziers, and other artificers, should be careful to avoid the
poisonous effects of lead, by washing their hands and face clean before
meals, and by never eating in the place where they work, nor suffering
any food or drink to remain exposed to the fumes or dust of the metal.
Every business of this sort should be performed as far as possible with
gloves on the hands, to prevent the metal from working into the pores of
the skin, which is highly injurious, and lead should never be touched
when it is hot.
POIVRADE SAUCE. Pick the skins of twelve shalots, chop them small, mix
with them a table-spoonful of veal gravy, a gill and a half of vinegar,
half an anchovy pressed through a fine sieve, and a little salt and
cayenne. If it is to be eaten with hot game, serve it up boiling: if
with cold, the sauce is to be cold likewise.--Another way. Put a piece
of butter the size of half an egg into a saucepan, with two or three
sliced onions, some of the red outward part, of carrots, and of the part
answering to it of parsnip, a clove of garlic, two shalots, two cloves,
a bay leaf, with basil and thyme. Shake the whole over the fire till it
begins to colour, then add a good pinch of flour, a glass of red wine, a
glass of water, and a spoonful of vinegar. Boil it half an hour, take
off the fat, pass the sauce through a tammis, add some salt and pepper,
and use it with any thing that requires a relishing sauce.
POLISHED STOVES. Steel or polished stoves may be well cleaned in a few
minutes, by using a piece of fine-corned emery stone, and afterwards
polishing with flour of emery or rottenstone. If stoves or fire irons
have acquired any rust, pound some glass to fine powder; and having
nailed some strong woollen cloth upon a board, lay upon it a thick coat
of gum water, and sift the powdered glass upon it, and let it dry. This
may be repeated as often as is necessary to form a sharp surface, and
with this the rust may easily be rubbed off; but care must be taken to
have the glass finely powdered, and the gum well dried, or the polish on
the irons will be injured. Fire arms, or similar articles, may be kept
clean for several months, if rubbed with a mixture consisting of one
ounce of camphor dissolved in two pounds of hog's lard, boiled and
skimmed, and coloured with a little black lead. The mixture should be
left on twenty four hours to dry, and then rubbed off with a linen
cloth.
POMADE DIVINE. Clear a pound and a half of beef marrow from the strings
and bone, put it into an earthen pan of fresh water from the spring, and
change the water night and morning for ten days. Then steep it in rose
water twenty four hours, and drain it in a cloth till quite dry. Take an
ounce of each of the following articles, namely, storax, gum benjamin,
odoriferous cypress powder, or of florence; half an ounce of cinnamon,
two drams of cloves, and two drams of nutmeg, all finely powdered. Mix
them with the marrow above prepared, and put all the ingredients into a
pewter pot that holds three quarts. Make a paste of flour and the white
of an egg, and lay it upon a piece of rag. Over that must be another
piece of linen, to cover the top of the pot very close, that none of the
steam may evaporate. Set the pot into a large copper pot of water,
observing to keep it steady, that it may not reach to the covering of
the pot that holds the marrow. As the water shrinks add more, boiling
hot, for it must boil incessantly for four hours. Strain the ointment
through a linen cloth into small pots, and cover them when cold. Do not
touch it with any thing but silver, and it will keep many years. A fine
pomatum may also be made by putting half a pound of fresh marrow
prepared as above, and two ounces of fresh hog's lard, on the
ingredients; and then observing the same process as above.
POMATUM. To make soft pomatum, beat half a pound of unsalted fresh lard
in common water, then soak and beat in two different rose-waters. Drain
it, and beat it, with two spoonfuls of brandy. Let it drain from this,
then add some essence of lemon, and keep it in small pots. Or soak half
a pound of clear beef marrow, and a pound of unsalted fresh lard, in
water two of three days, changing and beating it every day. Put it into
a sieve; and when dry, into a jar, and the jar, into a saucepan of
water. When melted, pour it into a bason, and beat it with two spoonfuls
of brandy. Drain off the brandy, and add essence of lemon, bergamot, or
any other scent that is preferred.--For hard pomatum, prepare as before
equal quantities of beef marrow and mutton suet, using the brandy to
preserve it, and adding the scent. Then pour it into moulds, or phials,
of the size intended for the rolls. When cold break the bottles, clear
away the glass carefully, and put paper round the balls.
PONDS. Stagnant or running water is often infected with weeds, which
become troublesome and injurious to the occupier, but which might easily
be prevented by suffering geese, or particularly swans, to feed upon the
surface. These water fowls, by nibbling the young shoots as fast as they
arise, will prevent their growth and appearance on the surface of the
water, and all the expense which might otherwise be incurred in clearing
them away.
POOR MAN'S SAUCE. Pick a handful of parsley leaves from the stalks,
mince them very fine, and strew over a little salt. Shred fine half a
dozen young green onions, add these to the parsley, and put them into a
sauce boat, with three table-spoonfuls of oil, and five of vinegar. Add
some ground black pepper and salt, stir them together, and it is ready.
Pickled French beans or gherkins cut fine, may be added, or a little
grated horseradish. This sauce is much esteemed in France, where people
of taste, weary of rich dishes, occasionally order the fare of the
peasant.
PORK. This is a strong fat meat, and unless very nicely fed, it is fit
only for hard working people. Young pigs, like lamb and veal, are fat
and luscious, but afford very little nutriment. Pork fed by butchers, or
at distilleries, is very inferior, and scarcely wholesome; it is fat and
spongy, and utterly unfit for curing. Dairy fed pork is the best. To
judge of pork, pinch the lean; and if young and good, it will easily
part. If the rind is tough, thick, and cannot easily be impressed with
the finger, it is old. A thin rind denotes a good quality in general.
When fresh, the meat will be smooth and cool: if clammy, it is tainted.
What is called in some places measly pork, is very unwholesome; and may
be known by the fat being full of kernels, which in good pork is never
the case. Bacon hogs and porkers are differently cut up. Hogs are kept
to a larger size; the chine or backbone is cut down on each side, the
whole length, and is a prime part either boiled or roasted. The sides of
the hog are made into bacon, and the inside is cut out with very little
meat to the bone. On each side there is a large sparerib, which is
usually divided into two, a sweet bone and a blade bone. The bacon is
the whole outside, and contains a fore leg and a ham; the last of these
is the hind leg, but if left with the bacon it is called a gammon.
Hog's lard is the inner fat of the bacon hog, melted down. Pickled pork
is made of the flesh of the hog, but more frequently of smaller and
younger meat. Porkers are not so large as hogs, and are generally
divided into four quarters. The fore quarter has the spring or fore leg,
the fore loin or neck, the sparerib, and the griskin. The hind quarter
has the leg and the loin. Pig's feet and ears make various good dishes,
and should be cut off before the legs and cheeks are cured. The bacon
hog is sometimes scalded, to take off the hair, and sometimes singed.
The porker is always scalded.
PORK CHOPS. Cut the chops nearly half an inch thick, trim them neatly,
and beat them flat. Put a piece of butter into the fryingpan; as soon as
it is hot, put in the chops, turn them often, and they will be nicely
browned in fifteen minutes. Take one upon a plate and try it; if done,
season it with a little finely minced onion, powdered sage, pepper and
salt. Or prepare some sweet herbs, sage and onion chopped fine, and put
them into a stewpan with a bit of butter. Give them one fry, beat two
eggs on a plate with a little salt, and the minced herbs, and mix it all
well together. Dip the chops in one at a time, then cover them with
bread crumbs, and fry them in hot lard or drippings, till they are of a
light brown. Veal, lamb, or mutton chops, are very good dressed in the
same manner.
PORK GRISKIN. As this joint is usually very hard, the best way is to
cover it with cold water, and let it boil up. Then take it out, rub it
over with butter, and set it before the fire in a Dutch oven; a few
minutes will do it.
PORK JELLY. Take a leg of well-fed pork, just as cut up, beat it, and
break the bone. Set it over a gentle fire, with three gallons of water,
and simmer it down to one. Stew with it half an ounce of mace, and half
an ounce of nutmegs, and strain it through a fine sieve. When cold, take
off the fat, and flavour it with salt. This jelly is reckoned a fine
restorative in consumptive cases, and nervous debility, a
chocolate-cupful to be taken three times a day.
PORK AS LAMB. To dress pork like lamb, kill a young pig four or five
months old, cut up the fore-quarter for roasting as you do lamb, and
truss the shank close. The other parts will make delicate pickled pork,
steaks, or pies.
PORK PIES. Raise some boiled crust into a round or oval form, and have
ready the trimming and small bits of pork when a hog is killed. If these
be not sufficient, take the meat of a sweet bone. Beat it well with a
rolling-pin, season with pepper and salt, and keep the fat and lean
separate. Put it in layers, quite up to the top; lay on the lid, cut the
edge smooth round, and pinch it together. As the meat is very solid, it
must be baked in a slow soaking oven. The pork may be put into a common
dish, with a very plain crust, and be quite as good. Observe to put no
bone or water into pork pie: the outside pieces will be hard, unless
they are cut small, and pressed close. Pork pies in a raised crust, are
intended to be eaten cold.
PORK SAUCE. Take two ounces of the leaves of green sage, an ounce of
lemon peel thinly pared, an ounce of minced shalot, an ounce of salt,
half a dram of cayenne, and half a dram of citric acid. Steep them for a
fortnight in a pint of claret, shake it often, and let it stand a day to
settle. Decant the clear liquor, and cork it up close. When wanted, mix
a table-spoonful in a quarter of a pint of gravy, or melted butter. This
will give a fine relish to roast pork, or roast goose.