Jelly Roll.
Make the sponge cake mixture as for lady-fingers, and bake in one shallow pan twenty minutes. While it is yet warm, cut off the edges, and spread the cake with any kind of jelly. Roll up, and pin a towel around it. Put in a cool place until serving time. Cut in slices with a sharp knife.
Molasses Pound Coke.
One quart of molasses, one pint of water, six and a half pints of flour, one ounce of soda, half an ounce of alum, one heaping cupful of butter, six eggs, one ounce of cinnamon, one pound of raisins. Boil the alum in part of the pint of water, and let it cool before mixing with the other ingredients. Instead of alum, one ounce of cream of tartar may be used.
Soft Gingerbread.
Six cupfuls of flour, three of molasses, one of cream, one of lard or butter, two eggs, one teaspoonful of saleratus, and two of ginger. This is excellent.
Hard Gingerbread.
One cupful of sugar, one of butter, one-third of a cupful of molasses, half a cupful of sour milk or cream, one teaspoonful of saleratus, one table-spoonful of ginger, flour enough to roll. Roll thin, cut in oblong pieces, and bake quickly. Care must be taken that too much flour is not mixed in with the dough. All kinds of cakes that are rolled should have no more flour than is absolutely necessary to work them.
Canada Gingerbread.
One cupful of butter, two of sugar, one of molasses, five of flour, three eggs, one nutmeg, one teaspoonful of ginger, one of soda, one tea-cupful of cream or rich milk, one table-spoonful of cinnamon, one pound of currants. Beat the butter to a cream. Add the sugar, molasses and spice; next the eggs, well beaten; then the milk, in which the soda has been dissolved, next the flour; and lastly the currants. This will make three sheets, or two very thick ones. Bake in a moderately-quick oven, if in three sheets, twenty five minutes; if in two sheets, ten minutes longer.
Fairy Gingerbread.
One cupful of butter, two of sugar, one of milk, four of flour, three-fourths of a teaspoonful of soda, one table-spoonful of ginger. Beat the butter to a cream. Add the sugar, gradually, and when very light, the ginger, the milk, in which the soda has been dissolved, and finally the flour. Turn baking pans upside down and wipe the bottoms very clean. Butter them, and spread the cake mixture very thin on them; Bake in a moderate oven until brown. While stillhot, cut into squares with a case-knife and slip from the pan. Keep in a tin box. This is delicious. With the quantities given a large dish of gingerbread can be made. It must be spread on the bottom of the pan as thin as a wafer and cut the moment it comes from the oven.
Shewsbury Cake.
Two cupfuls of butter, one pint of sugar, three pints of flour, four eggs, half a teaspoonful of mace. Roll thin, cut into small cakes, and bake in a quick oven. Not a particle more of flour than what is given above must be used. The cakes should be made in a rather cool room, and they cannot be made in very warm weather. They can be kept a long time, and are delicious.
Jumbles.
Three cupfuls of sugar, two of butter, five of flour, one egg, half a teaspoonful of soda, flavor to taste. Roll thin, sprinkle with sugar, cut in round cakes, and cut a small piece from the centre of each. Bake in a quick oven.
Seed Cakes.
Three-fourths of a pint of sugar, one cupful of butter, a quart and half a pint of flour, one teaspoonful of saleratus, two eggs, and seeds. Roll thin, cut in round cakes, and bake quickly.
Cookies.
One cupful of butter, two of sugar, five of flour, a teaspoonful of saleratus, dissolved in four of milk; one egg, flavor to taste. Roll and bake like seed cakes.
Hermits.
Two cupfuls of sugar, one of butter, one of raisins (stoned and chopped), three eggs, half a teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in three table-spoonfuls of milk; a nutmeg, one teaspoonful each of clove and cinnamon, and six cupfuls of flour. Roll about one-fourth of an inch thick, and cut with a round cake cutter. Bake in a rather quick oven. It will take about twelve minutes. [Mrs. L. C. A.]
Kneaded Plum Cake.
Two and a half cupfuls of sugar, half a cupful of butter, half a cupful of sour milk, two spoonfuls of cream, a teaspoonful of saleratus, half a spoonful of cinnamon and of nutmeg, a cupful of chopped raisins, and flour enough to knead (about six cupfuls). Roll an inch thick, and cut in oblong pieces. Bake on sheets in a quick oven.
Eclairs.
Put one cupful of boiling water and half a cupful of butter in a large sauce-pan, and when it boils up, turn in one pint of flour. Beat well with the vegetable masher. When perfectly smooth, and velvety to the touch, remove from the fire. Break five eggs into a bowl. When the paste is nearly cold, beat the eggs into it with the hand. Only a small part of the eggs should be added at a time. When the mixture is thoroughly beaten (it will take about twenty minutes), spread on buttered sheets in oblong pieces about four inches long and one and a half wide. These must be about two inches apart. Bake in a rather quick oven for about twenty-five minutes. As soon as they are done, ice with either chocolate or vanilla frosting. When the icing is cold, cut theéclairson one side and fill them.
Chocolate Éclairs.
Put one cupful and a half of milk in the double boiler. Beat together two-thirds of a cupful of sugar, one-fourth of a cupful of flour, two eggs, and one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt. Stir the mixture into the boiling milk. Cook fifteen minutes, stirring often. When cold, flavor with one teaspoonful of vanilla extract. Put two squares of scraped chocolate with five table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar and three of boiling water. Stir over the fire until smooth and glossy. Dip the tops of theéclairsin this as they come from the oven. When the chocolate icing is dry, cut open, and fill with the cream, which should be cold. If a chocolate flavor is liked with the cream, one table-spoonful of the dissolved chocolate may be added to it.
Vanilla Éclairs.
Make an icing with the whites of two eggs and a cupful and a half of powdered sugar. Flavor with one teaspoonful of vanilla extract. Frost theéclairs; and when dry, open, and fill with a cream, the same as chocolateéclairs. They may be filled with cream sweetened, flavored with vanilla and whipped to a stiff froth. Strawberry and raspberry preserves are sometimes used to filléclairs. They are then named after the fruit with which they are filled.
Frosting.
The white of one egg, one tea-cupful of powdered sugar, one table-spoonful of lemon juice. Put the white of the egg in a bowl and add the sugar by degrees, beating with a spoon. When all has been added, stir in the lemon juice. If the white of the egg is large it will require a very full cup of sugar, and if small, a rather scant cupful. The egg mustnotbe beaten until the sugar is added. This gives a smooth, tender frosting, which will cover one small sheet of cake. The same amount of material, prepared with the whites of the eggs unbeaten, will make one-third less frosting than it will if the eggs are beaten to a stiff froth before adding the sugar; but the icing will be enough smoother and softer to pay for the extra quantity. It may be flavored with half a teaspoonful of vanilla.
Chocolate Icing.
Two squares of Baker's chocolate, the whites of two eggs, two cupfuls of powdered sugar, four table-spoonfuls of boiling water. Beat one and two-thirds cupfuls of the sugar into the unbeaten whites of the eggs. Scrape the chocolate, and put it and the remaining third of a cupful of sugar and the water in a small frying-pan. Stir over a hot fire until smooth and glossy, and then stir into the beaten whites and sugar. With the quantity given two sheets of cake can be iced.
Chocolate Icing, No. 2.
Soak a teaspoonful of gelatine one or two hours in three table-spoonfuls of water. Pour on it one-fourth of a cupful of boiling water, and stir into it one and two-thirds cupfuls of powdered sugar. Prepare two squares of chocolate as for the first icing, and stir them into this mixture. Use immediately.
Caramel Frosting.
One cupful of brown sugar, one square of Baker's chocolate, scraped fine; one table-spoonful of water. Simmer gently twenty minutes, being careful not to let it burn. Spread on the cake while hot.
Golden Frosting.
Into the yolks of two eggs stir powdered sugar enough to thicken, and flavor strongly with lemon. This does not have so good a flavor as other kinds of frosting, but it makes a change.
Marking Cakes in Gold.
Bake round cakes for the children, and when the frosting on them is hard, dip a small brush into the yolk of an egg, and write a word or name upon the cake. It pleases the little ones very much.
PRESERVING.
In using self-sealing glass jars great care must be taken. If the work is properly done the fruit can be kept for years. Have a kettle of hot water on the stove beside the preserving kettle, and also a small dipper of hot water. Plunge a jar into the hot water, having the water strike both inside and outside the jar at the same time. If you set it down instead of plunging it, it will break. Put the cover in the dipper. When the jar is hot, lift it up and pour the water from it into the kettle. Stand the jar in the hot water and fill it with hot fruit from the preserving kettle. Fill to the brim with the hot syrup. Take the cover from the dipper of hot water and screw it on very tightly. In using the jars a second time have the right cover and band for each one. A. large-mouthed tunnel, such as grocers have, is almost indispensible in the work of preserving.
Jellies and jams should be put in tumblers or bowls. A paper should be cut to fit the top, and then wet in brandy, and another paper should be pasted over it Jelly tumblers with glass covers are more convenient than the old-fashioned ones, and where they are used the second paper cover is not necessary. It is better not to cover until some weeks after the jelly is made. White crushed sugar is much the nicest for preserving. If jelly does not seem hard, as it should be the day after it is made, it can be set in the sun for several hours, which will help it greatly.
Strawberries.
To each pound of berries allow half a pound of sugar. Put the berries in a kettle, and mash them a little, so that there will be juice enough to cook them without using water. Stir them to prevent scorching. Cook fifteen minutes; then add the sugar, and let them boil hard one minute. Put them in the jars as directed. More or less sugar may be used, as one prefers.
Raspberries.
To each pound of berries allow three-fourths of a pound of sugar, and cook the same as the strawberries.
Cherries.
Cherries may be preserved either with or without stones. Many think the stones give a richer flavor. To each pound of cherries allow one third of a pound of sugar. Put the sugar in the kettle with half a pint of water to three pounds of sugar. Stir it until it is dissolved. When boiling, add the cherries, and cook three minutes; then put in the jars.
Currants.
Currants should be prepared the same as raspberries.
Pineapple.
Pare the fruit, and be sure you take out all the eyes and discolored parts. Cut in slices, and cut the slices in small bits, taking out the core. Weigh the fruit, and put in a pan with half as many pounds of sugar as of fruit. Let it stand over night In the morning put it over the fire and let it boil rapidly for a minute only, as cooking long discolors it. Put it in the jars as directed.
Grated Pineapple.
Pare the fruit clean; then grate it on a coarse grater, rejecting the cores. Weigh it, and put to each pound of fruit a pound of sugar. Let it stand over night. In the morning boil for a minute, and it is done. Put it in jars as directed.
Blackberries.
Blackberries are prepared like strawberries. If they are quite ripe, not quite so much sugar is needed.
Whortleberries.
To each quart of berries allow one-third of a pound of sugar, and half a pint of water to three pounds of sugar. Put the water and sugar over the fire, and when boiling hot, add the berries. Cook three minutes. Put in the jars as directed.
Crab-Apples.
To each pound of fruit allow half a pound of sugar, and a pint of water to three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling hot, drop in the apples. They will cook very quickly. When done, fill a jar with the fruit, and fill it up with syrup.
Pears.
Pare the fruit and cut in halves. Throw into cold water, or they will be discolored. Use one pound of sugar for three of fruit, and one quart of water for three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling, take the pears from the water, and drop into the syrup. Cook until they can be pierced easily with a silver fork. Fill the jars with fruit, and fill up to the brim with syrup, using a small strainer in the tunnel, that the syrup may look clear. Bartlett pears are delicious, as are, also, Seckel; but many other varieties are good.
Peaches.
Have ready a kettle of boiling water. Fill a wire basket with peaches and plunge them into the boiling water. In two minutes take them out, and the skins will come off easily. Drop the fruit into cold water, to keep the color. For three pounds of fruit use one pound of sugar, and one pint of water for three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling hot, take the fruit from the water, and drop into it. Put but a few in at a time, as they cook very quickly. Take them from the syrup with a silver fork, fill the jar, and fill up with strained syrup. Peaches are much nicer preserved whole, as the stones give a rich flavor.
Brandied Peaches.
The Morris white peaches are the best. Take off the skins with boiling water. To each pound of fruit allow one pound of sugar, and half a pint of water to three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling hot, put in the peaches, and as fast as they cook, take them out carefully and spread on platters. When cool, put them in jars, and fill up these with syrup, using one-half syrup and one-half pale brandy. First-proof alcohol, diluted with an equal quantity of water, can be used, instead of brandy, but it is not, of course, so nice.
Plums.
The large white plums must be skinned by using boiling water, as for peaches, and then throwing them into cold water. For one pound of fruit allow half a pound of sugar, and half a pint of water for three pounds of sugar. Cook but few at a time, and take them out carefully. Fill up the jar with hot syrup.
Damsons.
Wash the fruit, and for one pound of it use half a pound of sugar, and half a pint of water for three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling hot, put in the fruit, and cook three minutes. Dip the plums and syrup together into the jars.
Quinces.
Pare and quarter the fruit, and take out all the cores and the hard place around them. Boil the fruit in clear water until tender; then spread it on towels to dry. For one pound of fruit allow half a pound of sugar, and one pint of water for three pounds of sugar. When the syrup is boiling hot, put in the fruit, and let it cook very slowly; or, set it back on the stove so that it hardly cooks at all, and keep it on for an hour or more, if you can without its cooking to pieces--as the longer it cooks, the brighter red color it will be. Put it in jars, and strain the syrup over it, as with other fruits.
Sour Oranges.
Grate off the rind, cut the orange into two parts, and remove the pulp. Weigh the peel, place it in a large stone pot, and cover with brine made of three gallons of water and a quart of salt. Let it stand twenty-four hours, and drain off the brine. Again cover the peel with brine made of the same quantity of water and half as much salt as was first used, and let it stand another day. Drain, cover with clear cold water, and let it stand a third day. Drain again, and put in a boiler and cover with fresh cold water. Let it come to a boil, and boil fifteen minutes; then take out and drain. Make a syrup of three quarts of sugar and one of water, for every six pounds of peel. When the syrup is clear, drop in the peel and boil until it is clear and tender--perhaps four hours of slow boiling. Great care must be taken that it is not scorched. It must be stirred every fifteen minutes. The sugar may be either white or brown. The orange used is not the common orange, but the wild, sour fruit, found in Florida. The pulp may be used for marmalade.
Grapes.
Squeeze the pulp of the grapes out of the skins. Cook fee pulp (a few minutes) until you can press it all through a sieve. Reject the seeds. Add a little water to the skins, and cook until they are quite tender. Then put the skins and pulp together. Measure; and to each pint add a pound of sugar, and boil fifteen minutes.
Apple Ginger.
Four pounds each of apple and sugar. Make a syrup of the sugar, adding a pint of water. Chop the apple very fine--with one ounce of green ginger; or, if you cannot get the green ginger, use white ginger root Put in the syrup with the grated rind of four lemons, and boil slowly for two hours, or until it looks clear.
Raspberry or Strawberry Jam.
For each pound of fruit allow a pound of sugar. Mash the fruit in the kettle. Boil hard for fifteen minutes; then add the sugar, and boil five minutes.
Orange Marmalade.
Take equal weights of sour oranges and sugar. Grate the yellow rind from a fourth of the oranges. Cut all the fruit in halves at what might be called the "equator." Pick out the pulp, and free it of seeds. Drain off as much juice as you conveniently can, and put it on to boil with the sugar. Let it come to a boil. Skim, and simmer for about fifteen minutes; then put in the pulp and grated rind and boil fifteen minutes longer. Put away in jelly tumblers.
Quince Marmalade.
Cut up quinces--skins, cores and all, cover with water and boil until tender. Rub through a sieve, and to every pint of pulp add one pint of sugar. Boil two hours, stirring often. Peach, crab-apple and, in feet, all kinds of marmalade may be made in the same manner.
Currant Jelly.
Wash the currants clean. Put them in the preserving kettle and mash them, and boil twenty minutes or more, or until they are thoroughly cooked. Dip them, a quart or more at a time, into a strainer cloth, and squeeze out all the juice. Measure this, and for each pint allow one pound of sugar. Put the juice over the fire, and let it boil rapidly for five minutes; then add the sugar, and let it boil rapidly one minute longer. Take off of the fire, skim clear, and put in tumblers.
Barberry Jelly.
The barberries need not be stripped from the stems. Put the fruit in a kettle with water enough to come just to the top of the fruit, and boil until thoroughly cooked. Put in a strainer cloth and get out all the juice. To each pint of it allow one pound of sugar. Boil the juice hard for fifteen minutes. Add the sugar, and boil rapidly five or ten minutes, or until it is thick.
Grape Jelly.
Mash the grapes in a kettle, put them over the fire, and cook until thoroughly done. Drain through a sieve, but do not press through. To each pint of the juice allow one pound of sugar. Boil rapidly for five minutes. Add the sugar, and boil rapidly three minutes more.
Cider Apple Jelly.
Cut good, ripe apples in quarters, put them in a kettle, and cover them withsweetcider, just from the press. (It should, if possible, be used the day it is made--or, at any rate, before it has worked at all.) Boil until well done, and drain, through a sieve. Do not press it through. Measure the liquor, and to each pint add one pound of sugar. Boil from twenty minutes to half an hour.
Crab-Apple Jelly.
Wash the fruit clean, put in a kettle, cover with water, and boil until thoroughly cooked. Then pour it into a sieve, and let it drain. Do not press it through. For each pint of this liquor allow one pound of sugar. Boil from twenty minutes to half an hour.
Other Jellies.
Jellies can be made from quinces, peaches and Porter apples by following the directions for crab-apple jelly.
PICKLES AND KETCHUP.
Pickled Blueberries.
Nearly fill a jar with ripe berries, and fill up with good molasses. Cover, and set away. In a few weeks they will be ready to use.
Sweet Melons.
Use ripe citron melons. Pare them, cut them in slices and remove the seeds. To five pounds of melon allow two and one-half pounds of sugar and one quart of vinegar. The vinegar and sugar must be heated to the boiling point and poured over the fruit six times, or once on each of six successive days. In the last boiling of the syrup add half an ounce of stick cinnamon, half an ounce of white ginger root and a few cloves. When the syrup boils, put in the melon, and boil ten minutes; then put in jars. Skim the syrup clear and pour it over the melon.
Peaches, Pears and Sweet Apples.
For six pounds of fruit use three of sugar, about five dozen cloves and a pint of vinegar. Into each apple, pear or peach, stick two cloves. Have the syrup hot, and cook until tender.
Sweet Tomato Pickle.
One peck of green tomatoes and six large onions, sliced. Sprinkle with one cupful of salt, and let them stand over night. In the morning drain. Add to the tomatoes two quarts of water and one quart of vinegar. Boil fifteen minutes; then drain again, and throw this vinegar and water away. Add to the pickle two pounds of sugar, two quarts of vinegar, two table-spoonfuls of clove, two of allspice, two of ginger, two of mustard, two of cinnamon, and one teaspoonful of cayenne, and boil fifteen minutes.
Spiced Currants.
Make a syrup of three pounds of sugar, one pint of vinegar, two table-spoonfuls of cinnamon, two table-spoonfuls of clove, and half a teaspoonful of salt. Add six pounds of currants, and boil half an hour.
Spiced Plums.
Make a syrup, allowing one pound of sugar to one of plums, and to every three pounds of sugar, a scant pint of vinegar. Allow one ounce each of ground cinnamon, cloves, mace and allspice, to a peck of plums. Prick the plums. Add the spices to the syrup, and pour, boiling, over the plums. Let these stand three days; then skim them out, and boil down the syrup until it is quite thick, and pour hot over the plums in the jar in which they are to be kept. Cover closely.
Pickled Cucumbers.
Six hundred small cucumbers, two quarts of peppers, two quarts of small onions. Make enough brine to cover the pickles, allowing one pint of salt to four quarts of water, and pour it, boiling, over the pickles. Let them stand until the next morning; then pour off the brine, throw it away, make a new one, and scald again. The third morning scald this same brine and pour it over again. The fourth morning rinse the pickles well in cold water, and cover them with boiling vinegar. Add a little piece of alum and two table-spoonfuls each of whole cloves and allspice, tied in a bit of muslin, if you like the spice.
Pickled Cucumbers, No. 2.
Wash and wipe six hundred small cucumbers and two quarts of peppers. Put them in a tub with one and a half cupfuls of salt and a piece of alum as large as an egg. Heat to the boiling point three gallons of cider vinegar and three pints of water. Add a quarter of a pound each of whole cloves, whole allspice and stick cinnamon, and two ounces of white mustard seed, and pour over the pickles. Cover with cabbage leaves.
Stuffed Peppers.
Get large bell peppers. Cut around the stem, remove it, and take out all the seeds. For the stuffing use two quarts of chopped cabbage, a cupful of white mustard seed, three table-spoonfuls of celery seed, two table-spoonfuls of salt, half a cupful of grated horse-radish. Fill each pepper with part of this mixture, and into each one put a small onion and a little cucumber. Tie the stem on again, put the peppers in a jar, and cover with cold vinegar.
Mangoes.
Get small green musk-melons or cantelopes. Cut a small square from the side of each one, and, with a teaspoon, scrape out all the seeds. Make a brine of one pint of salt to a gallon of water. Cover the mangoes with it while it boils. Let them stand two days; then drain them, and stuff with the same mixture as is used for peppers. Pour boiling vinegar over them, using in it a bit of alum.
Chopped Pickle.
One peck of green tomatoes, two quarts of onions and two of peppers. Chop all fine, separately, and mix, adding three cupfuls of salt. Let them stand over night, and in the morning drain well. Add half a pound of mustard seed, two table-spoonfuls of ground allspice, two of ground cloves and one cupful of grated horse-radish. Pour over it three quarts of boiling vinegar.
Pickled Tomato.
One peck of green tomatoes, a dozen onions, sliced thin; two cupfuls of salt, a small (quarter of a pound) box of mustard, one quarter of a pound of mustard seed, one ounce each of ground allspice, clove and pepper. Cut the tomatoes in thin slices, sprinkle with the salt, and let them stand two days; then drain them. Mix the spices. Put layers of tomato, onion and spice in the kettle, and cover with vinegar. Cook slowly until the tomato looks clear--about half an hour.
Pickled Cauliflowers.
Two cauliflowers, cut up; one pint of small onions, three medium-sized red peppers. Dissolve half a pint of salt in water enough to cover the vegetables, and let these stand over night. In the morning drain them. Heat two quarts of vinegar with four table-spoonfuls of mustard, until it boils. Add the vegetables, and boil for about fifteen minutes, or until a fork can be thrust through the cauliflower.
Tomato Ketchup.
Twelve ripe tomatoes, peeled; two large onions, four green peppers, chopped fine; two table-spoonfuls of salt, two of brown sugar, two of ginger, one of cinnamon, one of mustard, a nutmeg, grated; four cupfuls of vinegar. Boil all together till thoroughly cooked (about three hours), stirring frequently. Bottle while hot.
Tomato Ketchup, No, 2.
Skin the tomatoes, and cook them well. Press them through a sieve, and to each five pints add three pints of good cider vinegar. Boil slowly a long while (about two hours), until it begins to thicken; then add one table-spoonful of ground clove, one of allspice, one of cinnamon and one of pepper, and three grated nutmegs. Boil until very thick (between six and eight hours), and add two table-spoonfuls of fine salt. When thoroughly cold, bottle, cork and seal it.
Barberry Ketchup.
Three quarts of barberries, stewed and strained; four quarts of cranberries, one cupful of raisins, a large quince and four small onions, all stewed with a quart of water, and strained. Mix these ingredients with the barberries, and add half a cupful of vinegar, three-fourths of a cupful of salt, two cupfuls of sugar, one dessert-spoonful of ground dove and one of ground allspice, two table-spoonfuls of black pepper, two of celery seed, and one of ground mustard, one tea-spoonful of cayenne, one of cinnamon and one of ginger, and a nutmeg. Let the whole boil one minute. If too thick, add vinegar or water. With the quantities given, about three quarts of ketchup can be made.
POTTING.
For potting, one should have small stone or earthen jars, a little larger at the top than at the bottom, so that the meat may be taken out whole, and then cut in thin slices. All kinds of cooked meats and fish can be potted. The meat must, of course, be well cooked and tender, so that it can be readily pounded to a paste. Of the fish, salmon and halibut are the best for potting. When the potted meat or fish is to be served, scrape off all the butter, run a knife between the meat and the jar, and, when the meat is loosened, turn it out on a dish. Cut it in thin slices, and garnish with parsley; or, serve it whole, and slice it at the table. The butter that covered meats can be used for basting roasted meats, and that which covered fish can be used for basting baking fish.
Beef.
Three pounds of the upper part of the round of beef, half a cupful of butter, one table-spoonful of salt, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of pepper, a speck of cayenne, one-eighth of a teaspoonful of mace, the same quantity of clove, a bouquet of sweet herbs, three table-spoonfuls of water. Cut the meat in small pieces and put it in a jar with the water, herbs and seasoning. Mix one cupful of flour with water enough to make a stiff paste. Cover the mouth of the jar with paper, and spread over this the paste. Place the jar in a pan of hot water and put in a moderate oven for five hours. Take up and remove the cover and herbs. Pound the meat to a paste, add half of the butter to it, and when thoroughly mixed, pack solidly in small jars. Melt the remainder of the butter and pour it over the meat. Paste paper over the jars, put on the covers, and set away in a cool, dry place. Veal may be potted in the same manner, omitting the clove.
Chicken.
One quart of cold roasted chicken, one cupful of cold boiled ham, four table-spoonfuls of butter, a speck of cayenne, a slight grating of nutmeg, and two teaspoonfuls of salt. Free the chicken of skin and bones. Cut it and the ham in fine pieces. Chop, and pound to a paste. Add the butter and seasoning, and pack solidly in small stone pots. Cover these, and place them in a pan of hot water, which put in a moderate oven for one hour. When the meat is cold, cover with melted butter, and put away in a cool, dry place.
Tongue.
Pound cold boiled tongue to a paste, and season with salt, pepper and a speck of cayenne. To each pint of the paste add one table-spoonful of butter and one teaspoonful of mixed mustard. Pack closely in little stone jars. Place these in a moderate oven in a pan of hot water. Cook half an hour. When cool, cover the tongue with melted butter. Cover, and put away.
Ham.
Cut all the meat, fat and lean, from the remains of a boiled ham, being careful not to mix with it either the outside pieces or the gristle. Chop very fine, and pound to a paste with the vegetable masher. To each pint of the paste add one teaspoonful of mixed mustard and a speck of cayenne, and, if there was not much fat on the meat, one table-spoonful of butter, Pack this smoothly in small earthen jars. Paste paper over these, and put on the covers. Place the pots in a baking pan, which, when in the oven, should be filled with hot water. Bake slowly two hours. Cool with, the covers on. When cold, take off the covers and pour melted butter over the meat. Cover again, and set away in a cool place. The ham will keep for months. It is a nice relish for tea, and makes delicious sandwiches.
Marbled Veal.
Trim all the roots and tough parts from a boiled pickled tongue, which chop and pound to a paste. Have two quarts of cold roasted or boiled veal chopped and pounded to a paste. Mix two table-spoonfuls of butter and a speck of cayenne with the tongue, and with the veal mix four table-spoonfuls of butter, one of salt, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of pepper and a speck of mace. Butter a deep earthen dish. Put a layer of the veal in it and pack down solidly; then put spoonfuls of the tongue here and there on the veal, and fill in the spaces with veal. Continue this until all the meat has been used, and pack very solidly. Cover the dish, and place it in the oven in a pan of water. Cook one hour. When cold, pour melted butter over it. Cover, and set away.
Fish.
Take any kind of cooked fish and free it of skin and bones. To each quart of fish add one table-spoonful of essence of anchovy, three of butter, two teaspoonfuls of salt, a little white pepper and a speck of cayenne. Pound the fish to a paste before adding the butter and anchovy. When all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, pack the fish closely in little size jars. Place these in a pan of water and put in a moderate oven. Cook forty-five minutes. When cold, pour melted butter over the fish. Paste paper over the top, and set way.
Lobster.
Prepare and pot lobster the same as fish. If there is "coral" in the lobster, pound it with the meat.
Mackerel.
Nine pounds of small mackerel (about twenty-five in number), one ounce of whole cloves, one of pepper-corns, one of whole allspice, six teaspoonfuls of salt, three pints of vinegar. Wash the mackerel and pack them in small, deep earthen or stone pots. Three will be needed for the quantities given. Divide the spice into six parts. Put each portion in a small piece of muslin, and tie. Sprinkle two teaspoonfuls of salt on the fish in each pot, and put two of the little bags of spice in each pot. Cover the fish with the vinegar; and if there should not be enough, use more. Cover the pots with old plates, and place in a moderate oven. Bake the fish four hours. Cool, and put away in the pots in which they were baked. They will keep five or six months. Where oil is liked, half a cupful can be added to each pot with the vinegar. Any kind of small fish can be potted in this manner.
Smelts.
Six dozen smelts, one pint of olive oil, three pints of vinegar, or enough to cover the smelts; three table-spoonfuls of salt. Spice the same as potted mackerel, and prepare and cook the same as mackerel. More or less oil can be used. Smelts are almost as nice as sardines.
BREAKFAST AND TEA.
Meat Hash.
Chop rather fine any kind of cold meat; corned beef is, however, the best. To each pint add one pint and a half of cold boiled potatoes, chopped fine; one table-spoonful of butter and one cupful of stock; or, if no stock is on hand, two-thirds of a cupful of hot water. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Put the mixture in a frying-pan, and stir over the fire for about eight minutes, being careful not to burn. Spread smoothly. Cover the pan and set back where the hash will brown slowly. It will take about half an hour. When done, fold it like an omelet and turn on to a hot dish. Garnish with points of toast and parsley. Serve hot. If there are no cold potatoes, the same quantity of hot mashed potatoes may be used.
Vegetable Hash.
Chop, not very fine, the vegetables left from a boiled dinner, and season them with salt and pepper. To each quart of the chopped vegetables add half a cupful of stock and one table-spoonful of butter. Heat slowly in the frying-pan. Turn into a hot dish when done, and serve immediately. If vinegar is liked, two or more table-spoonfuls of it can be stirred into the hash while it is heating.
Breaded Sausages.
Wipe the sausages dry. Dip them in beaten egg and bread crumbs. Put them in the frying-basket and plunge into boiling fat. Cook ten minutes. Serve with a garnish of toasted bread and parsley.
Meat Fritters.
Cut any kind of cold meat into dice. Season well with salt and pepper. Make a fritter batter. Take up some of it in a large spoon, put a small spoonful of the meat in the centre, cover with batter, and slide gently into boiling fat. Cook about one minute. Drain on brown paper, and serve on a hot dish.
Lyonnaise Tripe.
About one pound of cooked tripe, cut in small pieces; two table-spoonfuls of butter, one of chopped onion, one of vinegar, salt, pepper. Put the onion and butter in a frying-pan, and when the onion turns yellow, put in the tripe. Cook five minutes. Season with the salt, pepper and vinegar. Serve on slices of toast.
Meat and Potato Sandwiches.
Any kind of cold meat, cut in slices and seasoned with salt and pepper; four large potatoes, two eggs, salt, pepper, one-forth of a cupful of boiling milk, one table-spoonful of butter. Have the meat cut in thin slices and seasoned with salt and pepper. Pare, boil and mash the potatoes. Add the milk, butter, salt, pepper and one well-beaten egg. Cover the slices of meat on both sides with this preparation, and dip in well-beaten egg. Put in the frying-basket and fry till a light brown. Serve on a hot dish.
Minced Veal and Eggs.
One quart of cold veal, chopped rather coarse; one teaspoonful of lemon juice, one cupful of stock or water, two table-spoonfuls of butter, one teaspoonful of flour, salt, pepper. Melt the butter in a frying-pan. Add the flour to it. Stir until smooth, and add the stock and seasoning. When it boils up, add the chopped veal. Heat thoroughly, and dish on slices of toast. Put a dropped egg in the centre of each slice, and serve very hot.
Mutton, Réchauffé.
Cut cold roasted or boiled mutton in slices about half an inch thick, and cover both sides with sauce made in this way: Put two table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when melted, add one of flour. Stir until smooth. Add, gradually, one cupful of stock, and two table-spoonfuls of glaze. Boil for one minute, and stir in the yolks of two eggs. Season with salt, pepper and one table-spoonful of lemon juice, and remove from the fire at once. Season the mutton with salt and pepper, and as soon as the sauce begins to cool, dip both sides of the slices in it, and roll them in fine bread crumbs. Beat one whole egg and the two whites together. Dip the sauced mutton in this and again in the crumbs. Fry in boiling fat for two minutes. Drain on brown paper, and serve with either tomato, Tartare or Hollandaise sauce. Any kind of cold meat can be served in this manner.
Chicken In Jelly.
A little cold chicken (about one pint), one cupful of water or stock, one-fifth of a box of gelatine, half a teaspoonful of curry powder, salt, pepper. Cut the meat from the bones of a chicken left from dinner. Put the bones on with water to cover, and boil down to one cupful Put the gelatine to soak in one-fourth of a cupful of cold water. When the stock is reduced as much as is necessary, strain and season. Add the curry and chicken. Season, and simmer ten minutes; then add the gelatine, and stir on the table until it is dissolved. Turn all into a mould, and set away to harden. This makes a nice relish for tea or lunch. If you have mushrooms, omit the curry, and cut four of them into dice. Stir into the mixture while cooking. This dish can be varied by using the whites of hard-boiled eggs, or bits of boiled ham. To serve: Dip the mould in warm water, and turn out on the dish. Garnish with parsley.
Chicken Cutlets.
Season pieces of cold chicken or turkey with salt and pepper. Dip in melted butter; let this cool on the meat, and dip in beaten egg and in fine bread crumbs. Fry in butter till a delicate brown. Serve on slices of hot toast, with either a white or curry sauce poured around. Pieces of cold veal make a nice dish, if prepared in this manner.
Broiled Liver.
Cut in slices and dip in melted butter, and lightly in flour. Broil over a bright fire eight or ten minutes.
Liver, Fried in Crumbs.
Season slices with salt and pepper. Dip in beaten egg and very fine cracker crumbs. Fry six minutes in boiling lard.
Liver and Bacon.
Cut in slices, season with salt and pepper, and cut again into small squares. Place on a skewer pieces of liver and bacon, alternating. Fry five minutes in boiling fat. Slip off of the skewer on to toasted bread, and serve immediately.
Liver, Sauté.
Cut the liver inthinslices. Season with salt and pepper. Heat together in a small frying-pan two table-spoonfuls of butter and a large one of flour. Lay in the liver, and brown it on both sides. Add a teaspoonful of chopped parsley, two table-spoonfuls of water and one of wine. Taste to see if salt enough. Boil up once, and serve.
Liver, Sauté, with Piquant Sauce.
Cut the liver in slices about one-third of an inch thick, and if beef liver, let it stand in warm water ten minutes (calves' livers will not need this). Drain dry, and put in the frying-pan with enough beef or pork drippings to prevent its sticking, and cook very slowly for eight minutes, turning constantly. Take up on a hot dish and pour a piquant sauce over it. Serve immediately.
Curry of Liver.
Cut the liver in small, thin pieces, and for every pound have four table-spoonfuls of butter, two slices of onion, two table-spoonfuls of flour, a speck of cayenne, salt, pepper, one teaspoonful of curry powder. Let the butter get hot; then cook the liver in it slowly for four minutes. Add the flour and other ingredients. Cook two minutes, and add, slowly, one cupful of stock. Let this boil up. Dish, and serve.
Chicken Livers, Sauté.
Wash and wipe six livers. Put two table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when hot, add a large slice of onion, which cook slowly ten minutes, and then take out. Dredge the livers with salt, pepper and flour, and fry for ten minutes in the butter; add one teaspoonful of flour, and cook a minute longer. Pour in half a cupful of stock, one tea-spoonful of lemon juice, one of vinegar and one-fourth of a spoonful of sugar, and boil up once. Serve with a garnish of toasted bread.
Chicken Livers and Bacon.
Cut the livers in pieces the size of a half dollar, and have thin slices of bacon of the same size. Nearly fill a small wire skewer with these, alternating. Place in the frying basket and plunge into boiling fat for about one minute. Serve on the skewers, or on toast, with thin slices of lemon for a garnish. Or, the skewers can be rested on the sides of a narrow baking pan and placed in a hot oven for five minutes. Serve as before. The livers of all other kinds of poultry can be cooked the same as chicken.
Chicken Livers in Papillotes.
Wash the livers and drop them into boiling water for one minute. Take them up; and when drained, split them. For eight livers put two table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when hot, add one table-spoonful of flour. Stir until smooth; then gradually add half a cupful of cold water. Stir into this two spoonfuls of glaze, if you have it. Season with pepper and salt, and stir into the sauce half a cupful of finely-chopped ham. Spread this mixture on the livers, place them inpapillotesthe same as cutlets, lay them in a pan, and put in a slow oven for fifteen minutes. Have little squares of toast or of fried brown bread. Heap these in the centre of a hot dish, and arrange the livers around them. Serve very hot.
Stewed Kidneys.
Cut the kidneys in thin round slices. Cover them with cold water and let them stand half an hour; then wash them clean, and put them in a stew-pan with one quart of water or stock, a clove, two table-spoonfuls of onion juice, and salt and pepper. Simmer two hours. Put one table-spoonful of butter in the frying-pan, and when hot, add one of flour. Stir until it is brown and smooth, and add to the kidneys. Put a small bouquet of sweet herbs in the stew-pan, and simmer half an hour longer. Taste to see if seasoned enough; if not, add more salt and pepper, and, if you like, one table-spoonful of lemon juice. Take out the bouquet, and serve. This dish can be prepared any time in the day, as it is quite as good warmed over as when first prepared.
Kidneys, Sauté.
Skin, wash and wipe the kidneys, cut in thin, round slices, and season with salt and pepper. Put one table-spoonful of butter and half a table-spoonful of flour in the frying-pan, and when hot, put in the kidneys. Stir two minutes, then add half a cupful of stock or water. When the dish boils up, add half a table-spoonful of lemon juice. Serve with a garnish of points of toast.
Broiled Kidneys.
Skin, wash, wipe and split sheep's or lambs' kidneys. Run a small skewer through each, to keep it open. Season with salt and pepper, dip in melted butter and in flour, place in the double broiler and cook six minutes over a bright fire. Serve on a hot dish.
Kidneys à la Maître d'Hôtel.
Split and cut in two, lengthwise, lambs' or sheep's kidneys. Wash and wipe them. Season with salt and pepper, and dip in melted butter and fine bread crumbs. Run a small skewer through each, to keep it open. Put them in the double broiler and cook about six minutes over a bright fire. Serve on a hot dish withmaître d'hôtelbutter.
Ham and Eggs on Toast.
Chop fine the trimmings from cold boiled or roasted ham. Toast and butter slices of stale bread. Spread the ham on these, and place in the oven for about three minutes. Beat six eggs with half a cupful of milk, a little pepper and one teaspoonful of salt. Put this mixture in a sauce-pan with two table-spoonfuls of butter, and stir over the fire until it begins to thicken. Take off, and beat for a moment; then spread on the ham and toast. Serve immediately.
Ham Croquettes.
One cupful of finely-chopped cooked ham, one of bread crumbs, two of hot mashed potatoes, one large table-spoonful of butter, three eggs, a speck of cayenne. Beat the ham, cayenne, butter, and two of the eggs into the potato. Let the mixture cool slightly, and shape it like croquettes. Roll in the bread crumbs, dip in beaten egg and again in crumbs, put in the frying-basket and plunge into boiling fat. Cook two minutes. Drain, and serve.
Canapees.
After cutting the crust from a loaf of stale bread, cut the loaf in very thin slices, and toast to a delicate brown. Butter lightly, and spread with any kind of potted meat or fish. Put two slices together, and, with a sharp knife, cut them in long strips. Arrange these tastefully on a dish and serve at tea or evening parties. Sardines may be pounded to a paste and mixed with the yolks of hard-boiled eggs, also pounded to a paste, and used instead of potted meats. In this case, the slices of bread may be fried in salad oil.
Welsh Rare-Bit.
Half a pound of cheese, two eggs, a speck of cayenne, a table-spoonful of butter, one teaspoonful of mustard, half a teaspoonful of salt, half a cupful of cream. Break the cheese in small pieces and put it and the other ingredients in a bright sauce-pan, which put over boiling water. Stir until the cheese melts; then spread the mixture on slices of crisp toast. Serve immediately. A cupful of ale or beer can be used instead of the cream.
Welsh, Rare-Bit, No. 2.
Grate one pint of cheese. Sprinkle on it half a teaspoonful of mustard, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt and a speck of cayenne. Heap this on slices of buttered toast. Put in the hot oven for a few moments, and when the cheese begins to melt, serve at once.
Corn Pie.
Four ears of cold boiled corn, two eggs, one table-spoonful of butter, one of flour, half a cupful of milk, half a teaspoonful of salt, a little pepper. Cut the corn from the cobs. Mix the milk, gradually, with the flour. Beat the yolks and whites of the eggs separately, and add them and the other ingredients to the flour and milk. The butter should be melted. Bake twenty minutes in two squash pie plates. This is a dish for breakfast.
Hominy.
Wash a cupful of hominy in two waters; then stir it into one quart of boiling water, with a teaspoonful of salt, and boil from thirty to sixty minutes. The latter time is the better. Be careful that the hominy does not burn. It can be used more than oatmeal, as it is good with any kind of meat. It is appropriate for any meal, and is nice eaten warm or cold with milk.
Oatmeal.
Oatmeal, Indian meal and hominy an require two things for perfection--plenty of water when put on to boil, and a long time for boiling. Have about two quarts of boiling water in a large stew-pan, and into it stir a cupful of oatmeal, which has been wet with cold water. Boil one hour, stirring often, and then add half a spoonful of salt, and boil an hour longer. If it should get too stiff, add more boiling water; or, if too thin, boil a little longer. You cannot boil too much. The only trouble in cooking oatmeal is that it takes a long time, but surely this should not stand in the way when it is so much better for having the extra time. If there is not an abundance of water at first the oatmeal will not be very good, no matter how much maybe added during the cooking. Cracked wheat is cooked in the same way.
Strawberry Short-Cake.
One pint of flour, measured before sifting; one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, two table-spoonfuls of sugar, four of butter, one tea-cupful of milk. Mix the other dry ingredients with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Rub the butter into the mixture, and add the milk. Butter two tin squash-pie plates. Spread the mixture in them, and bake in a quick oven from eighteen to twenty minutes. Mash one quart of strawberries with three-fourths of a cupful of sugar. When the cakes are taken from the oven, split and butter them, and put half of the strawberries and sugar in each cake. Serve immediately.
Sweet Strawberry Short-Cake.
Three eggs, one cupful of sugar, two of flour, one table-spoonful of butter, one scant teaspoonful of cream of tartar, a small half teaspoonful of soda. Beat the butter and sugar together. Add the eggs, well beaten. Mix the soda and cream of tartar with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Stir into the beaten egg and sugar. Bake in deep tin plates. Four can be filled with the quantities given. Have three pints of strawberries mixed with a cupful of sugar. Spread a layer of strawberries on one of the cakes, lay a second cake over this, and cover with berries. Or, a mèringue, made with the white of an egg and a table-spoonful of powdered sugar, may be spread over the top layer of strawberries,
MUFFINS AND CAKES.
English Muffins.
One quart of flour, one teaspoonful of salt, one-third of a cake of compressed yeast, or one-third of a cupful of liquid yeast; one cupful and a half of water. Have the water blood warm. Dissolve the yeast in one-third of a cupful of cold water. Add it and the salt to the warm water, and gradually stir into the flour. Beat the dough thoroughly; cover, and let it rise in a warm place until it is spongy (about five hours). Sprinkle the bread board with flour. Shape the dough into balls about twice the size of an egg, and drop them on the floured board. When all the dough has been shaped, roll the balls into cakes about one-third of an inch thick. Lay these on a warm griddle, which has been lightly greased, and put the griddle on the back of the stove, where there is not much heat. When the cakes have risen a little, draw the griddle forward and cook them slowly, turning often, to keep the flat shape. It will take about twenty minutes for them to rise on the griddle, and fifteen to cook. Tear them apart, butter them, and serve.
Muffins, No. 1.
One quart of flour, two cupfuls of milk, half a cupful of sugar, two eggs, two teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, one of soda, half a teaspoonful of salt, butter the size of an egg. Mix the other dry ingredients with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Melt the butter with four table-spoonfuls of boiling water. Beat the eggs light, and add the milk. Stir into the flour, and add the butter. Beat thoroughly. Bake in buttered muffin pans from twenty-five to thirty minutes, in a quick oven.
Muffins, No. 2.
One cupful of milk, one of flour, one teaspoonful of sugar, a scant half teaspoonful of salt, two eggs. Beat the eggs light, and add the milk, salt and sugar. Pour gradually on the flour. Beat till light and smooth. Pour into buttered muffin pans and bake in ahotoven for twenty minutes.
Raised Muffins.
One pint of warm milk, half a cake of compressed yeast, or half a cupful of liquid yeast; one quart of flour, one table-spoonful of butter. Beat two eggs well, and add them and the salt, butter and yeast to the milk. Stir gradually into the flour. Beat until the batter is light and smooth. Let it rise four hours in a warm place. Fill buttered muffin pans two-thirds to the top with the batter, and let them stand until the batter has risen to the brim. Bake half an hour.
Graham Muffins.
Into a bowl put one and a half pints of Graham, half a cupful of sugar, and a teaspoonful of salt. Into a sieve put half a pint of flour, a teaspoonful of saleratus and two of cream of tartar. Mix thoroughly with the flour, and sift on to the material in the bowl. Mix all thoroughly while dry, and add two well-beaten eggs and a pint of milk. Fill muffin cups about two-thirds to the top, and bake in a quick oven.
Raised Graham Muffins.
These are made the same as Graham bread. Fill tin muffin pans two-thirds to the brim and let the mixture rise to the top. This will take an hour. Bake in a rather quick oven for twenty minutes.
Corn Muffins.
One pint of flour, one of Indian meal, one-third of a cupful of sugar, one teaspoonful of soda, two of cream of tartar, two eggs, a pint of milk, one table-spoonful of melted butter. Mix the dry ingredients together, and sift them. Beat the eggs light, add the milk to them, and stir into the dry ingredients. Bake twenty minutes in buttered muffin pans. Two dozen muffins can be made with the quantities given.
Fried Indian Muffins.
One pint of Indian meal, one pint ofboilingwater, two eggs, one teaspoonful of salt, one table-spoonful of sugar, one heaping table-spoonful of flour. Pour the boiling water gradually on the meal, salt and sugar. Beat thoroughly, and set away in a cool place. In the morning add the eggs, well beaten, and the flour. Dip a table-spoon in cold milk, fill it with batter, and drop this into boiling fat Cook ten minutes.
Corn Cake.
One quart of milk, one pint of Indian meal, two eggs, one teaspoonful of salt, butter the size of an English walnut. Let the milk come to a boil, and gradually pour it on the meal Add the butter and salt, and beat well, and set away in a cool place. Do this at night. In the morning beat thoroughly. Beat the eggs well, and add them. Pour the mixture into buttered deep earthen plates. Bake from twenty to thirty minutes. Success depends upon a good, beating of the cake in the morning.
Corn Cake, No. 2.
Two tea-cupfuls of corn meal, one of flour, three of sour milk, two eggs, one table-spoonful of sugar, or of molasses, if you prefer; one teaspoonful of soda, one of salt. Mix together the sugar, salt, meal and flour. Beat the eggs light. Dissolve the soda in two table-spoonfuls of boiling water, and pour into the sour milk. Stir well, and add to the other mixed ingredients. Add the eggs, and mix thoroughly. Pour into buttered tins to the depth of about an inch and a half. Bake twenty-five minutes in a quick oven.
Raised Corn Cake.
One pint of Indian meal, one pint and a half of boiling milk or water, one table-spoonful of sugar, two of butter, an egg, one teaspoonful of salt, one-fourth of a cake of compressed yeast or one-fourth of a cupful of liquid yeast. Pour the boiling milk, gradually, on the meal; then add the salt, sugar and butter, and beat well. Set away to cool. When blood warm, add the compressed yeast, dissolved in two table-spoonfuls of cold water, or the liquid yeast, and the egg, well beaten. Let the batter rise five hours. Turn into buttered pans to the depth of about two niches. Let it stand in a warm place for half an hour, and then bake it from thirty-five to forty-five minutes.
Thin Corn Cake.
One cupful of Indian meal, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, butter the size of an egg, one cupful and a half of boiling water, one teaspoonful of sugar. Pour the boiling water on the meal, sugar and salt. Beat thoroughly. Add the butter, and, when well mixed, spreadverythin on buttered tin sheets. Bake slowly for about twenty minutes.
Rye Muffins.
One pint of rye meal, not flour; one pint of wheat flour, one pint of milk, half a cupful of sugar, one teaspoonful of salt, one of soda, two of cream of tartar and two eggs. Put the meal in a mixing bowl. Put the flour and other ingredients in a sieve, and mix thoroughly, and sift. Beat the eggs light. Add the milk to them and pour on the dry ingredients. Beat well. Butter the muffin tins and bake twenty minutes is a quick oven. The quantities given will make twenty-four muffins. To make a less quantity, divide the dry mixture after it is prepared (it can be used whenever it may be wanted if it is kept dry); then halve the other ingredients.
Fried Rye Muffin.
One cupful and a half of rye meal, one cupful and a half of flour, one cupful of milk, two eggs, one teaspoonful of soda, two of cream of tartar, two generous table-spoonfuls of sugar, half a teaspoonful of salt. Put the meal in a large bowl. Put the flour, cream of tartar, soda, sugar and salt in the sieve, and rub through on to the meal. Beat the eggs well, add the milk to them, and stir into the dry ingredients. Fry the same as Indian muffins.
Rice Muffins.
One pint of milk, one quart of flour, one pint of boiled rice, three eggs, two table-spoonfuls of sugar, one teaspoonful of salt, one of soda, two of cream of tartar. Mix the sugar, salt, soda and cream of tartar with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Beat the eggs and add to the milk. Stir gradually into the flour. When a smooth, light paste, add the rice. Beat thoroughly. Bake thirty-five minutes in buttered pans. Three dozen muffins can be made from the quantities given.
Raised Rice Muffins.
One pint of warm milk, two cupfuls of warm boiled rice, one quart of bread flour, one teaspoonful of salt, two table-spoonfuls of butter, one-third of a cake of compressed yeast. Mix the butter, rice and milk together. Pour the mixture on the flour, and beat till a light batter is formed. Mix the yeast with four table-spoonfuls of cold water, and add it and the salt to the batter, which let rise over night in a cool place. In the morning fill buttered muffin pans two-thirds to the top, and set them in a warm place till the batter has so risen as to fill the tins. Bake thirty-five minutes. One-third of a cupful of liquid yeast may be substituted for the compressed yeast.
Hominy Muffins.
A pint of milk, a quart of Haxall flour, one teaspoonful of salt, two table-spoonfuls of butter, one-third of a cake of compressed yeast, or one-third of a cupful of liquid yeast; half a cupful of hominy, measured before cooking. Wash the hominy, and add a pint of boiling water. Boil one hour, stirring often. Then add the milk, salt, yeast and butter. Pour this, gradually, on the flour, beating well. Let it rise over night In the morning put in buttered muffin pans and let rise from half to three-quarters of an hour. Bake thirty-five minutes. The muffins may be put to rise in the morning for tea.
Gems.
One pint of flour, one of milk, an egg, half a teaspoonful of salt. Beat the egg until light, add the milk and salt to it, and beat, gradually, into the flour. Bake twenty minutes in hot gem pans. A dozen cakes can be made with the quantities given.
Hominy Drop-Cakes.
One pint of fresh boiled hominy (or, cold hominy may be used; if the latter, break into grains, as lightly as possible, with a fork, and heat in a farina kettle without adding water), one table-spoonful of water, two eggs--whites and yolks beaten separately. Stir the yolks into the hominy first, then the whites, and a teaspoonful of salt, if the hominy has not been salted in cooking; or, if it has, use half a teaspoonful. Drop, in table-spoonfuls, on well-buttered tin sheets, and bake to a good brown in a quick oven.
Squash Biscuit.
One cupful and a half of sifted squash, half a cupful of sugar, half a cake of compressed yeast, or half a cupful of liquid yeast; one cupful of milk, half a teaspoonful of salt, four table-spoonfuls of butter, five cupfuls of flour. Dissolve the yeast in a scant half cupful of cold water. Mix it and the milk, butter, sugar, salt and squash together, and stir into the flour. Knead well, and let it rise over night In the morning shape into biscuit. Let these rise an hour and a half, and bake them half an hour.
Sally Lunn.
One quart of flour, one generous pint of milk, two table-spoonfuls of sugar, two eggs, three table-spoonfuls of butter, one teaspoonful of salt, half a cake of compressed yeast. Have the milk blood warm, and add the butter, melted; the eggs, well beaten; and the yeast, dissolved in three table-spoonfuls of cold water. Pour, gradually, on the flour, and beat into a smooth batter; then add the salt and sugar. Butter baking pans, and pour in the batter to the depth of about two inches. Let it rise two hours in a warm place. Bake half an hour.
Snow Pancakes.
Half a pint of milk, an egg, an apple, pared, quartered, and chopped very fine; a cupful and a half of flour, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, a bowl of snow. Beat the egg light, and add the milk to it. Pour gradually on the flour, and beat until smooth and light Add the apple and salt, and at the last moment the snow. Drop by spoonfuls into boiling fat, and cook until a rich brown.
Waffles.
One pint of sifted flour, milk enough to make a thin batter (about two-thirds of a pint), two eggs, beaten very light; a table-spoonful of melted butter, and a little salt. Gradually mix the milk with the flour until there is a smooth paste; then add the salt and butter, and lastly the eggs. Have waffle irons about as hot as a griddle for cakes, and butter them well, or grease with pork as you would a griddle. Pour in enough of the batter to cover an iron, and put the other side gently down upon it. Keep over the fire about half a minute; then turn over, and let the other side remain to the fire the same time. Remove, and place the waffles where they will keep warm until enough are cooked to serve.
Many people butter the waffles as they place them on the dish, and others add sugar. This is very well if known to be to the taste of the family, but it is always safe to let each suit himself at the table.
Waffles, No. 2.
One pint of milk, two eggs, two table-spoonfuls of butter, one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, one scant pint and a half of flour. Mix the other dry ingredients with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Beat the eggs very light. Add the milk and the butter, which should be melted with two table-spoonfuls of boiling water. Stir into the flour.
Raised Waffles.
One pint of milk, one pint and a half of flour, an egg, a teaspoonful of salt, one-fourth of a yeast cake, or one-fourth of a cupful of liquid yeast. Dissolve the yeast in two table-spoonfuls of cold water. Have the milk blood warm, and add to it the yeast, salt and the egg, well beaten. Stir gradually into the flour. Cover, and let it rise four hours. Cook as usual.
Indian Waffles.
Half a cupful of Indian meal, two cupfuls of boiling milk, two eggs, one generous cupful of flour, one table-spoonful of butter, half a teaspoonful of baking powder, half a teaspoonful of salt. Pour the boiling milk on the meal and butter. Beat well, and set away to cool. Mix the other dry ingredients with, the flour, and sift. Beat the eggs, and add them and the flour to the cold mixture.
Rice Waffles.
Stir two cupfuls of boiled rice into the mixture for waffles, No. 2. Hominy waffles can be made in the same way.
Flannel Cakes.
One cupful of Indian meal, two of flour, three of boiling milk, one-fourth of a yeast cake, or one-fourth of a cupful of liquid yeast; one teaspoonful of salt, one table-spoonful of sugar, two of butter. Have the milk boiling, and pour it on the meal and butter. When cool, add the flour, salt, sugar and the yeast, which has been dissolved in four table-spoonfuls of cold water. Let the mixture rise over night. Fry like griddle-cakes.
Graham Griddle-Cakes.
Two cupfuls of Graham, one of flour, two and a half of milk, one table-spoonful of sugar, one teaspoonful of salt, one of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, two eggs. Let half the milk come to a boil. Pour it on the Graham, and stir until perfectly smooth; then add the cold milk, and set away to cool. Mix the other dry ingredients with the flour, and rub through a sieve. Add with the eggs, well beaten, to the Graham and milk. Rye griddle-cakes are made the same way.
Squash Griddle-Cakes.
One pint of flour, nearly a pint of milk, two eggs, one tea-spoonful of cream of tartar, half as much soda, four table-spoonfuls of sugar, one teaspoonful of salt, two cupfuls of sifted squash. Mix the flour with the other dry ingredients, and rub through a sieve. Beat the eggs well, add them and the milk to the squash, and pour on the flour. Beat till smooth and light. This gives a thin batter. If the cakes are liked thick a little more flour may be used. Fry as usual.Indian Griddle-Oakes.
One cupful of Indian meal, one of flour, three of boiling milk, two eggs, one teaspoonful of salt, one of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, two table-spoonfuls of sugar. Have the milk boiling, and, gradually, pour it on the meal. Put the other dry ingredients with the flour, and rub through a sieve. When the scalded meal is cool, add to it the flour and the eggs, well beaten.
Hominy Griddle-Cakes.
To a pint of warm boiled hominy add a pint of milk or water and a pint of flour. Beat two or three eggs and stir into the batter with a little salt Fry as any other griddle-cakes. They are delicious.
EGGS.
Omelets.
There is no better form in which to serve eggs than as an omelet, but so few people make a good omelet that that is one of the last things the inexperienced housekeeper or cook will attempt. Yet the making is a simple operation, the cause of failure usually being that the pan for cooking is not hot enough, and too much egg is put in at one time. When there is too much egg in the pan, one part will be cooked hard before the other is heated through. A pan measuring eight inches in diameter will cook an omelet made with four eggs; if more eggs are used, a larger pan is necessary.