formed in the usual manner, is to be stiffened, when perfectly dry, with
the following composition, worked upon the inner surface. One pound of
gum kino, eight ounces of gum elemi, three pounds of gum olibanum, three
pounds of gum copal, two pounds of gum juniper, one pound of gum
ladanum, one pound of gum mastic, ten pounds of shell lac, and eight
ounces of frankincense. These are pounded small and mixed together;
three gallons of alcohol are then placed in an earthen vessel to receive
the pounded gums, and the vessel is then to be frequently agitated. When
the gums are sufficiently dissolved by this process, a pint of liquid
ammonia is added to the mixture, with an ounce of oil of lavender, and a
pound of gum myrrh and gum opoponax, dissolved in three pints of spirit
of wine. The whole of the ingredients being perfectly incorporated and
free from lumps, constitute the patent water-proof mixture with which
the shell of the hat is stiffened. When the shell has been dyed, shaped,
and rendered perfectly dry, its inner surface and the under side of the
brim are varnished with this composition by means of a brush. The hat is
then placed in a warm drying-room until it becomes hard. This process is
repeated several times, taking care that the varnish does not penetrate
through the shell, so as to appear on the outside. To allow the
perspiration of the head to evaporate, small holes are to be pierced
through the crown of the hat from the inside outward; and the nap of
silk, beaver, or other fur, is to be laid on by the finisher in the
usual way. That on the under side of the brim, which has been prepared
as above, is to be attached with copal varnish.
VARNISH FOR PAINTINGS. Mix six ounces of pure mastic gum with the same
quantity of pounded glass, and introduce the compound into a bottle
containing a pint of oil of turpentine. Now add half an ounce of camphor
bruised in a mortar. When the mastic is dissolved, put in an ounce of
Venice turpentine, and agitate the whole till the turpentine is
perfectly dissolved. When the varnish is to be applied to oil paintings,
it must be gently poured from the glass sediment, or filtered through a
muslin.
VARNISH FOR PALING. A varnish for any kind of coarse wood work is made
of tar ground up with Spanish brown, to the consistence of common paint,
and then spread on the wood with a large brush as soon as made, to
prevent its growing too stiff and hard. The colour may be changed by
mixing a little white lead, whiting, or ivory black, with the Spanish
brown. For pales and weather boards this varnish is superior to paint,
and much cheaper than what is commonly used for that purpose. It is an
excellent preventive against wet and weather, and if laid on smooth wood
it will have a good gloss.
VARNISH FOR SILKS. To one quart of cold-drawn linseed oil, add half an
ounce of litharge. Boil them for half an hour, and then add half an
ounce of copal varnish. While the ingredients are heating in a copper
vessel, put in one ounce of rosin, and a few drops of neatsfoot oil,
stirring the whole together with a knife. When cool, it is ready for
use. This varnish will set, or keep its place on the silk in four hours,
the silk may then be turned and varnished on the other side.
VARNISH FOR STRAW HATS. For straw or chip hats, put half an ounce of
black sealing-wax powdered into two ounces of spirits of wine or
turpentine, and place it near the fire till the wax is dissolved. If the
hat has lost its colour or turned brown, it may first be brushed over
with writing ink, and well dried. The varnish is then to be laid on warm
with a soft brush, in the sun or before the fire, and it will give it a
new gloss which will resist the wet.
VARNISH FOR TINWARE. Put three ounces of seed-lac, two drams of dragon's
blood, and one ounce of turmeric powder, into a pint of well-rectified
spirits. Let the whole remain for fourteen days, but during that time,
agitate the bottle once a day at least. When properly combined, strain
the liquid through a piece of muslin. This varnish is called lacquer; it
is brushed over tinware to give it a resemblance to brass.
VARNISH FOR WOOD. The composition which is the best adapted to preserve
wood from the decay occasioned both by the wet and the dry rot, is as
follows. Melt twelve ounces of rosin in an iron kettle, and when melted,
add eight ounces of roll brimstone. When both are in a liquid state,
pour in three gallons of train oil. Heat the whole slowly, gradually
adding four ounces of bees' wax in small pieces, and keep the mixture
stirring. As soon as the solid ingredients are dissolved, add as much
Spanish brown, red or yellow ochre, ground fine with some of the oil, as
will give the whole a deep shade. Lay on this varnish as hot and thin as
possible; and some days after the first coat becomes dry, give a second.
This will preserve planks and other wood for ages.
VEAL. In purchasing this article, the following things should be
observed. The flesh of a bull calf is the firmest, but not so white. The
fillet of the cow calf is generally preferred for the udder. The
whitest meat is not the most juicy, having been made so by frequent
bleeding, and giving the calf some whiting to lick. Choose that meat
which has the kidney well covered with fat, thick and white. If the
bloody vein in the shoulder look blue, or of a bright red, it is newly
killed; but any other colour shows it stale. The other parts should be
dry and white: if clammy or spotted, the meat is stale and bad. The
kidney turns first in the loin, and the suet will not then be firm. This
should carefully be attended to, if the joint is to be kept a little
time. The first part that turns bad in a leg of veal, is where the udder
is skewered back: of course the skewer should be taken out, and both
that and the part under it wiped every day. It will then keep good three
or four days in hot weather. Take care also to cut out the pipe that
runs along the chine of a loin of veal, the same as in beef, to hinder
it from tainting. The skirt of the breast of veal is likewise to be
taken off, and the inside of the breast wiped and scraped, and sprinkled
with a little salt.
VEAL BLANQUETS. Cut thin slices off a fillet of veal roasted. Put some
butter into a stewpan, with an onion chopped small; fry them till they
begin to brown, then dust in some flour, and add some gravy, and a
faggot of sweet herbs, seasoned with pepper, salt, and mace; let this
simmer till you have the flavour of the herbs, then put in your veal;
beat up the yolks of two eggs in a little cream, and grated nutmeg, some
chopped parsley, and a little lemon peel shred fine. Keep it stirring
one way till it is smooth, and of a good thickness: squeeze in a little
juice of orange, and dish it up. Garnish with orange and barberries.
VEAL BROTH. To make a very nourishing veal broth, take off the knuckle
of a leg or shoulder of veal, with very little meat to it, and put it
into a stewpot, with three quarts of water. Add an old fowl, four
shank-bones of mutton extremely well soaked and bruised, three blades of
mace, ten peppercorns, an onion, and a large slice of bread. Cover it
close, boil it up once, and skim it carefully. Simmer it four hours as
slowly as possible, strain and take off the fat, and flavour it with a
little salt.--Another way. Take a scrag of veal, of about three pounds;
put it into a clean saucepan, with a tea-spoonful of salt; when it
boils, scum it clean; put in a spoonful of ground rice, some mace, a
faggot of herbs, and let it boil gently for near two hours, or till you
have about two quarts: send it to table with your veal in the middle,
toasted bread, and parsley and butter in a boat.
VEAL A LA CREME. Take the best end of a loin of veal, joint it, and cut
a little of the suet from the kidney. Make it lie flat, then cut a place
in the middle of the upper part about three inches deep and six inches
long, take the piece out and chop it, add a little beef suet or beef
marrow, parsley, thyme, green truffles, mushrooms, shalots, lemon peel
chopped fine, and season it with pepper, salt, and a little beaten
allspice. Put all together into a marble mortar, add the yolks of two
eggs, and a little French bread soaked in cream. Pound the ingredients
well, fill the cavity with the forcemeat, and cover it with a piece of
veal caul. Then tie it down close, cover the whole with a large piece of
caul, and roast it gently. When to be served up, take off the large
caul, let it colour a little, glaze it lightly, and put under it a white
sauce. A fillet of veal may be done in the same way, instead of using
plain stuffing for it.
VEAL CAKE. Boil six or eight eggs hard; cut the yolks in two, and lay
some of the pieces in the bottom of the pot. Shake in a little chopped
parsley, some slices of veal and ham, and then eggs again; shaking in
after each, some chopped parsley, with pepper and salt, till the pot is
full. Then put in water enough to cover it, and lay on it about an ounce
of butter: tie it over with a double paper, and bake it about an hour.
Then press it close together with a spoon, and let it stand till cold.
The cake may be put into a small mould, and then it will turn out
beautifully for a supper or side dish.
VEAL COLLOPS. Cut long thin collops, beat them well, and lay on them a
bit of thin bacon of the same size. Spread forcemeat over, seasoned
high, and also a little garlic and cayenne. Roll them up tight, about
the size of two fingers, but not more than two or three inches long.
Fasten each firmly with a small skewer, smear them over with egg, fry
them of a fine brown, and pour a rich brown gravy over.--To dress
collops quickly in another way, cut them as thin as paper, and in small
bits, with a very sharp knife. Throw the skin and any odd bits of veal
into a little water, with a dust of pepper and salt. Set them on the
fire while the collops are preparing and beating, and dip them into a
seasoning of herbs, bread, pepper, salt, and a scrape of nutmeg, having
first wetted them with egg. Then put a bit of butter into a fryingpan,
and give the collops a very quick fry; for as they are so thin, two
minutes will do them on both sides. Put them into a hot dish before the
fire, strain and thicken the gravy, give it a boil in the fryingpan, and
pour it over the collops. The addition of a little ketchup will be an
improvement.--Another way is to fry the collops in butter, seasoned only
with salt and pepper. Then simmer them in gravy, either white or brown,
with bits of bacon served with them. If white, add lemon peel and mace,
and a little cream.
VEAL CUTLETS. Cut the veal into thin slices, dip them in the yolks of
egg, strew them over with grated bread and nutmeg, sweet herbs and
parsley, and lemon peel minced fine, and fry them with butter. When the
meat is done, lay it on a dish before the fire. Put a little water into
the pan, stir it round and let it boil; add a little butter rolled in
flour, and a little lemon juice, and pour it over the cutlets. Or fry
them without the bread and herbs, boil a little flour and water in the
pan with a sprig of thyme, and pour it on the cutlets, but take out the
thyme before the dish is sent to table.
VEAL GRAVY. Make it as for cullis; but leave out the spices, herbs, and
flour. It should be drawn very slowly; and if for white dishes, the meat
should not be browned.
VEAL LARDED. Take off the under bone of a neck of veal, and leave only a
part of the long bones on. Trim it neatly, lard and roast it gently with
a veal caul over it. Ten minutes before it is done, take off the caul,
and let the veal be of a very light colour. When it is to be served up,
put under it some sorrel sauce, celery heads, or asparagus tops, or
serve it with mushroom sauce.
VEAL OLIVES. Cut some long thin collops, beat them, lay them on thin
slices of fat bacon, and over these a layer of forcemeat highly
seasoned, with some shred shalot and cayenne. Roll them tight, about the
size of two fingers, but not more than two or three inches long. Fasten
them round with a small skewer, rub egg over them, and fry them of a
light brown. Serve with brown gravy, in which boil some mushrooms
pickled or fresh, and garnish with fried balls.
VEAL OLIVE PIE. Having prepared the veal olives, lay them round and
round the dish, making them highest in the middle. Fill it nearly up
with water, and cover it with paste. When baked, mix some gravy, cream,
and flour, and pour it hot into the pie.
VEAL PATTIES. Mince some veal that is not quite done, with a little
parsley, lemon peel, a dust of salt and nutmeg. Add a spoonful of cream,
gravy sufficient to moisten the meat, and a little scraped ham. This
mixture is not to be warmed till the patties are baked.
VEAL PIE. Take some of the middle or scrag of a small neck, and season
it, adding or not a few slices of lean bacon or ham. If wanted of a high
relish, add mace, cayenne, and nutmeg, to the salt and pepper; also
forcemeat, and eggs. To these likewise may be added, truffles, morels,
mushrooms, sweetbreads cut into small bits, and cocks' combs blanched,
if approved. It will be very good without any of the latter additions,
but a rich gravy must be prepared, and poured in after baking.--To make
a rich veal pie, cut steaks from a neck or breast of veal, season them
with pepper, salt, nutmeg, and a very little clove in powder. Slice two
sweetbreads, and season them in the same manner. Lay a puff paste on the
ledge of the dish, put in the meat, yolks of hard eggs, the sweetbreads,
and some oysters, up to the top of the dish. Lay over the whole some
very thin slices of ham, and fill up the dish with water. Cover it with
a crust, and when taken out of the oven, pour in at the top, through a
funnel, a few spoonfuls of good veal gravy, and fill it up with cream;
but first boil and thicken it with a tea-spoonful of flour.
VEAL AND PARSLEY PIE. Cut some slices from a leg or neck of veal; if the
leg, from about the knuckle. Season them with salt, scald some pickled
parsley, and squeeze it dry. Cut the parsley a little, and lay it at the
bottom of the dish; then put in the meat, and so on, in layers. Fill up
the dish with new milk, but not so high as to touch the crust. When
baked, pour out a little of the milk, and put in half a pint of good
scalded cream. Chicken may be cut up, skinned, and dressed in the same
way.
VEAL PORCUPINE. Bone a fine large breast of veal, and rub it over with
the yolks of two eggs. Spread it out, and lay on it a few slices of
bacon, cut as thin as possible. Add a handful of parsley shred fine, the
yolks of five eggs, boiled hard and chopped, and a little lemon peel
finely shred. Steep the crumb of a penny loaf in cream, and add to it,
seasoning the whole together with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Roll the
veal close, and skewer it up. Cut some fat bacon, the lean of boiled
ham, and pickled cucumbers, about two inches long. Place these in rows
upon the veal, first the ham, then the bacon, and last the cucumbers,
till the whole is larded. Put the meat into a deep earthen pan with a
pint of water, cover it close, and set it in a slow oven for two hours.
Skim off the fat afterwards, and strain the gravy through a sieve into a
stewpan. Add a glass of white wine, a little lemon pickle and caper
liquor, and a spoonful of mushroom ketchup, and thicken the gravy with a
bit of butter rolled in flour. Lay the porcupine on a dish, and pour the
sauce over it. Have ready prepared a thin forcemeat, made of the crumb
of a penny loaf, half a pound of beef suet shred fine, the yolks of four
eggs, and a few oysters chopped. Mix these together, season the
forcemeat with cayenne, salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and spread it on the
veal caul. Having rolled the whole up tight, like collared eel, bind it
in a cloth, and boil it an hour. When done enough, cut it into four
slices, laying one at each end, and the others on the sides of the dish.
Have the sweetbreads ready prepared, cut in slices and fried, and lay
them round the dish, with a few mushrooms pickled. This is allowed to
make a fine bottom dish, when game is not to be had.
VEAL ROLLS. Cut thin slices of either fresh or cold veal, spread on them
a fine seasoning of a very few crumbs, a little chopped bacon or scraped
ham, and a little suet, parsley, and shalot. Or instead of the parsley
and shalot, some fresh mushrooms stewed and minced. Then add pepper and
salt, and a small piece of pounded mace. This stuffing may either fill
up the roll like a sausage, or be rolled with the meat. In either case
tie it up very tight, and stew very slowly in good gravy, and a glass of
sherry. Skim it very carefully, and serve it up quite tender.--Another
way. Take slices of veal, enough to make a side dish; lay them on your
dresser, and lay forcemeat upon each slice; roll them up, and tie them
round with coarse thread. Rub them over with the yolk of an egg, spit
them on a bird spit, and roast them of a fine brown. For sauce, have
good gravy, with morels, truffles, and mushrooms, tossed up to a proper
thickness. Lay your rolls in your dish, and pour your sauce over.
Garnish with lemon.
VEAL SAUSAGES. Chop equal quantities of lean veal and fat bacon, a
handful of sage, a little salt and pepper, and a few anchovies. Beat all
in a mortar; and when used, roll and fry it. Serve it with fried
sippets, or on stewed vegetables, or on white collops.
VEAL SCALLOPS. Mince some cold veal very small, and set it over the fire
with a scrape of nutmeg, a little pepper and salt, and a little cream.
Heat it for a few minutes, then put it into the scallop shells, and fill
them with crumbs of bread. Lay on some pieces of butter, and brown the
scallops before the fire. Either veal or chicken looks and eats well,
prepared in this way, and lightly covered with crumbs of fried bread; or
these may be laid on in little heaps.
VEAL-SUET PUDDING. Cut the crumb of a threepenny loaf into slices, boil
and sweeten two quarts of new milk, and pour over it. When soaked, pour
out a little of the milk; mix it with six eggs well beaten, and half a
nutmeg. Lay the slices of bread into a dish, with layers of currants and
veal suet shred, a pound of each. Butter the dish well, and bake it; or
if preferred, boil the pudding in a bason.
VEAL SWEETBREAD. Parboil a fine fresh sweetbread for five minutes, and
throw it into a basin of water. When the sweetbread is cold, dry it
thoroughly in a cloth, and roast it plain. Or beat up the yolk of an
egg, and prepare some fine bread crumbs. Run a lark spit or a skewer
through it, and tie it on the ordinary spit. Egg it over with a paste
brush, powder it well with bread crumbs, and roast it. Serve it up with
fried bread crumbs round it, and melted butter, with a little mushroom
ketchup and lemon juice. Or serve the sweetbread on toasted bread,
garnished with egg sauce or gravy. Instead of spitting the sweetbread,
it may be done in a Dutch oven, or fried.