\ ' % i i ' 4 HW^5*^ -^J tjndJionnaiiu.- a /fell 4 . imeoh ihom&3lMurr& y A ex And Many Other Authorities ALBERT R. MANN LIBRARY Cornell University Gift of Thomas Bass .f^-- =■-- ~ - - From Home Bakings, by Edna Evans San Francisco, 1912. The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924087319780 — — ^^ =—^rr\ UBRARY III 19 7 VERSITY 111 87 3 i^^O §SH? =C0 metropolitan Coal Company... General Offices 30 Congress Street BOSTON sizes or COAL « « « Furnace .... Coal Egg .'.... Stove Nut " Pea " Lehigh Furnace Coal Lehigh Egg Coal Franklin Stove Coal Shamokin Stove Coal English and American Cannel Coal Hard and Soft Wood Prepared any Length for Kindling or Open Fires Blank Pages for Additional Recipes. Did it ever occur to You When considering the fuel question, that there is COAL and COAL ? Have you used that discrimination in buying that has brought the best results and smallest coal bills ? We buy directly from the producers, and in such large quantities that we are enabled to select those dealing only in first quality coal. With our perfect organization for handling our business, we can deliver all orders promptly. If you do not trade with us now, why not give us a trial ? Metropolitan Coal Co. GENERAL OFFICES \ 30 CONGRESS ST., BOSTON. See Inside Front Cover for Addresses of Wharves and Branch Offices. -BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES Price, Twenty-five Cents COLLEGE SONGS AND GLEES WITH WORDS AND MUSIC As sung at Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Princeton and other Leading Colleges. NOTHING makes a home more charm- ing than music ; nothing inspires men to greater achievements than music. It is indispensable to a successful life ; and is the greater creator of human happiness. The songs in vogue at America's greatest seats of learning are the songs that appeal to the good taste of the general public, and we intend distributing at a nominal cost the best collection of these merriment makers ever compiled, together with the COLLEGE CHEEJjS AND SUCH POPULAR SONGS AS Oh, That Will Be Joyful Rig-a-Rig Nellie Was A Lady Fair Harvard Mary Had A Little Lamb Bingo Good Night, Ladies Old Dog Tray Saw My Leg Off Three Little Darkies Upidee Jack and Jill, etc. Parties receiving a copy of the " New England Cook Book" (Published at One Dollar and a Half) through the courtesy of the Metropolitan Coal Company will be favored with one copy of " College Songs and Glees" at the special price of 10 cents. Address orders with stamps or coin to CHARLES E. BROWN, 47 WINTER ST., BOSTON, MASS. Trade Follows the Flag ? And the reason is not hard to find in our case. The people know that if they order their coal where they see this sign, it will be right. 6fiS^ GOAL Metropolitan Coal Co. General Offices, - 30 Congress Street, Boston Wharves and Branch Offices throughout the Metropolitan District. === LOOK FOR THE FLAG ! == THE NEW ENGLAND COOK BOOK THE LATEST AND THE BEST METHODS FOR ECONOMY AND LUXURY AT HOME CONTAINING NEARLY A THOUSAND OF THE BEST UP-TO-DATE RECEIPTS FOR EVERY CONCEIVABLE NEED IN KITCHEN AND OTHER DEPART- MENTS OF HOUSEKEEPING CHAS. E. BROWN PUBLISHING COMPANY PUBLISHERS 47 WINTER STREET, BOSTON Copyright, 1906, by THE CHAS. E. BROWN PUBLISHING CO. PUBLISHERS, BOSTON. NEW YORK. CHICAGO. Oh! better no doubt is a dinner of herbs, When season'd by love, which no rancor disturbs, And sweeten' d by all that is sweetest in life Than turbot, bisque, ortolans, eaten In strife! But if out of humor, and hungry, alone A man should sit down to dinner, eacn one Of the dishes of which the cook chooses to spoil "With a horrible mixture of garlic and oil, The chances are ten against one, I must own, He gets up as ill-tempered as when he sat down. Owen Meredith. Cleanliness in the Kitchen Is an important requisite if you wish to obtain the best results in cooking. Is it not just as impor- tant that your COAL should be clean ? Our coal is clean, and is housed by careful men, with as little annoy- ance to the customer as possible. In fact, it is what you want, when you want it, and as you want it. Metropolitan Coal Co. GENERAL OFFICES \ 30 CONGRESS ST., BOSTON. ■Vffliarves and Branch Offices throughout the Metropolitan District. See Insiifcront Cover for addresses. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page FOREWORD 29 CHAPTER 1. The Art of Cooking 33 2. Soups, Souf Stock, etc., 35 3. Fish, Oysters, etc., 47 4. Poultry and Game 61 5. Meats 71 i. Beef 71 ii. Veal 76 iii. Mutton and Lamb 82 iv. Pork 85 6. Vegetables 91 7. Salads and Sauces 103 8. Croquettes and Fritters, Ill 9. Eggs 117 10. Bread, Biscuit, Hot Cakes, etc. , 127 i. Bread, 127 ii. Toast 131 iii. Fancy Breads 132 iv. Rolls 134 v. Biscuit, Rusk, and Buns 136 vi. Muffins and Waffles 140 vii. Griddle Cakes, 142 viii. Yeast and Yeast Cakes, 145 11. Pastry and Puddings, 147 12. Creams, Jellies, and Light Desserts 167 13. Cakes and Cakb Baking 179 14. Fresh Fruits and Nuts, 2> 16. Jellies, Jams, and Preserves vi TABLE OF CONTENTS. Pate CHAPTER 16. Canned Fruit and Vegetables 219 17. Pickles and Catsup 223 18. Beverages 233 19. Candies, 241 20. Chafing Dish 247 21. Invalid Cookery, 251 22. Health 257 23. Marketing 261 i. Beef 261 ii. Veal, 263 iii. Mutton 264 iv. Lamb 206 v. Pork 266 vi. Venison 267 vii. Poultry 268 viii. Vegetables 268 24. Carving 271 25. Serving Meals 281 24. Index 289 THE NEW ENGLAND COOK BOOK Always has been Is now And always will be THE BEST HOUSEHOLD SOAP MADE FOR SALE EVERYWHERE BY First Class Grocers Send to us for a catalogue of USEFUL AND VERY DESIRABLE PREMIUMS The Geo.E. Marsh Co. Lynn, Mass. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Bread, Barley 133 " Boston Brown 130 " Biscuit, Cream 137 " Breakfast Rolls 134 " Brown 129 " Buckwheat Cakes 143 " Buns 139 " Buttered Toast 131 " Corn 130 " Corn Muffins 141 " Cream Biscuits 137 " Cream Toast 131 " Crumpets 142 " Dry Toast 131 " Egg Toast 131 " English Bolls 134 " Flannel Cakes 144 " Flannel Cakes No. 2 ...144 " Flavored Biscuits 138 " French Bolls 135 " French Toast 131 " Genera Bolls 138 " Graham Biscuits 138 " Graham Bread 130 " Graham Griddle Cakes .143 " Graham Muffins 141 " Hoe Cake 133 " Hominy Cakes 145 " Hominy Muffins 141 " Hot Cross Buns 139 " Indian Griddle Cakes ..145 " Johnny Cake 133 " Light Biscuit 137 Page. Bread, Maryland Biscuit ....138 Milk 128 Milk Toast 131 Muffins 140 Muffins No. 2 141 Parker House Bolls ...135 Patent Yeast 146 Plain Bolls 134 Pone 133 Pop Overs 140 Potato 128 Potato Biscuit 137 Pumpkin 133 Quick Waffles 142 Eaised Waffles 142 Bice 130 Rice Cakes 144 Rice Cake No. 2 144 Rice Muffins 141 Rice Waffles 142 Rye 129 Sally Lunn 132 Sally Lunn No. 2 132 Salt Rising 128 Scotch Short Cake 133 Short Biscuits 138 Slapjacks 145 Soda Biscuits 137 Soft Toast 254 Sour Milk Cakes 145 Sweet Busk 139 Tea Biscuit 137 Tea Busk . .< 138 An Essential to Good Cooking BECAUSE it corrects all unwholesome and un- sanitary conditions and maintains thorough KITCHEN CLEANLINESS The only Disinfectant and Deodorant Possessing Perfect Cleansing Properties Destroys all disease germs; purifies the air ; exterminates roaches, water-hugs, ants, and other vermin. Used and endorsed hy all who are strong advocates of hygienic conditions in the home. Sul- pho-Napthol meets the new needs of the people, oc- casioned hy an awakened interest in germ theory. Physicians recommend its general use. At all dealers', 10c, 25c, 50c, $1.00. Look for above Trade-mark on all packages. lO and 25c size mailed hy Sulpho-Napthol Co. 63 HAYMARKET SQUARE, BOSTON, MASS. So«I!S--;" 9» s ; Bruises. Burps "ores nTi»il vois, jjrruses, Burns water v-K „'. eas P,° cra,ul '° a quart of ho ■""M* Swater!" °°' tablea P 0o, " ul lo • fl nd nl^P^T^ 01 fl °ors ) woodwork, sinks koi.e, ' "'°V? cleansing about the w erythi"° l £ db e.» s e d in water to clean !»■«< L, J 5 " ,ch water is «"Pl°y=d. *>roesti« ^a^~P estr ?ys lice and Seas on • *«ts th.i I JJS? amd Poultry and all in- »M», SJck"' fetation, tfures mange, S at •»« ! slS, ".•'"""a.-etc. Makes the ?f komiof " c , ,Mn and healthy. Rids .'"obnji. CO(:k roaches, water and but ?!' p'SSS"! 8 "^"''"'- ^ Destroys \l""> aiSe"; S e b «etetia of all infec- '^'"y'nic^ aU odor » emanating •""»•« «usShV r ™ Me - Sffectual ana ?^«(fi«Sf , ? ai '° r se»eral direc- ^o*.? d >ok N »»-WlM„ oos . Non . cori:o5lve J,He Sulpho-Napthol Co b °sto.n;mass " U.S.A. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Bread, Unleavened 130 " Vienna 129 " Vienna Rolls 135 " Wheat 127 " Yeast Cakes 146 " Yorkshire Biscuits 138 Candy, Almond 243 " Butter Scotch 242 " Butter Taffy 244 " Candied Nuts & Fruits .243 " Chocolate Caramels 243 " Chocolate Caramels, 2 .243 " Chocolate Creams 244 " Cocoanut 242 " Cream 242 " Cream Chocolates 244 " Cream Dates 245 " Cream Walnuts 245 " Fig Paste 246 " Gum Drops 245 " Ice Cream Candy 242 " Jujube Paste 246 " Lemon Taffy 244 " Molasses 242 " Peanut 245 " Peppermint Drops 246 " Philadelphia Groundnut Cakes ..-. 245 Cake, Almond Sponge 187 " Angels' Food 196 " Apple 183 " Black 190 " Bread 181 " Chocolate 191 " Chocolate Kisses 197 " Chocolate Macaroons ...197 " Cider 185 " Cinnamon 183 •' Cinnamon Buns 181 " Citron 189 " Cocoanut 189 " Cocoanut 193 " Cocoanut Cookies 184 " Cocoanut Steeples 198 " Coffee 188 ' Cookies 182 " Cookies, Soft 183 '• Cork 186 Page. Cake, Cream r 193 " Cream Puffs 197 " Cream Sponge 187 " Crullers 184 " Cup 186 " Currant 189 " Currant Jumbles : 184 " Delicate 193 " Doughnuts 184 " Doughnuts, raised 184 " Eclaire a la Creme 199 " Farmer's Fruit 191 " Fig 188 " French Straws 184 " Fruit 190 " Gingerbread 181 " Gingersnaps 182 " Gold 186 " Gold 191 " Hickorynut 189 " Ice Cream 194 " Jelly 192 " Jelly Roll 192 " Jumbles 183 " Kisses 197 " Knickerbocker 182 " Lady Fingers 198 " Lady Fingers No. 2 ...198 " Lemon 183 " Lincoln 186 " Loaf Dutch 180 " Love Knots 185 " Macaroons 196 " Marble 194 " Melrose 191 " Meringues 198 " Moravian 186 " Neapolitan 195 " New Year's 189 " One, Two, Three Four.. 185 " Orange 194 " Peach 192 " Pinafore 186 " Pineapple 192 " Plum 190 " Poor Man's 186 " Pound 187 " Puff 185 " Scotch Wafers 182 " Seed 183 Modern Embroidery Linen and Lace Centerpiece No. B-149, 23 Inches. On Linen 35 cents. Lace Materials to Work, $1.25 Send 10 cents for illustrated and instructive Catalogue and Guide to Fancy Work. A beautiful display of Pillow Tops, Linen and Lace Centerpiece, Doilies, Collars, Handkerchiefs, Bound Goods, etc. All Embroidery Materials. WALTER P. WEBBER 73-75 Harwood Street :: :: Lynn, Mass. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Cake, Shrewsbury 182 " Silver 186 " Small Sugar 182 " Snow 188 " Soft Molasses 181 " Spice 188 " Spiee No. 2 188 " Sponge 187 " Tea 185 " Tumbler 185 " Union 194 " Walnut 183 " Walnut 189 " Washington 187 " Watermelon 195 " Wedding 190 " White Mountain 193 " White Pound 187 " Wine 188 Canned Asparagus 222 " Beans 222 " Corn 222 " Gooseberries 220 " Grapes 221 " Peaches 220 " Peaches No. 2 221 " Pears 221 " Pineapple 221 " Plums 221 " Strawberries 220 " Tomatoes 222 Chafing Dish, Cheese Frit- ters 247 " Chicken a la Reiue 247 " Creamed Oysters 248 " Lobster a la Newberg . .248 " Lobster a la Somerset. .249 " Lobster on Toast 249 " Lobster Stew 249 " Oyster a la Bechamel ..248 " Oysters a la Belevue . .248 " Oyster Relish 247 " Scalloped Halibut 249 " Shrimps & Peas 249 " Swiss Eggs 250 " Welsh Rarebit 250 '• Welsh Rarebit with Ale 250 Page. Creams. " Apple Jelly 173 " Apple Snow 175 " Bavarian 170 '•» Berry Sponge 176 " Biscuit Glace 178 " Blanc Mange 175 " Calf's Foot Jelly 172 " Charlotte Russe 177 " Charlotte Russe No. 2.. 177 " Chocolate Blanc Mange 176 " Chocolate Charlotte Russe 177 " Chocolate Ice Cream ...168 " Coffee Jelly 173 " Cornstarch Blanc Mange 176 " Cream, Turret 171 " Figs a la Genevieve 178 " Floating Island .-..175 " Frozen Fruits 169 " Italian 169 " Jelly Oranges 172 '" Lemon Ice Cream 167 " Lemon Jelly 174 " Lemon Water Ice 168 " Orange 170 ' ' Orange Dessert 174 " Orange Ice Cream 167 " Orange Jelly 174 " Orange Trifle 174 " Orange Water Ice 168 " Peach Ice Cream 168 ' ' Peach Meringue 176 " Pine- Apple Ice Cream .168 " Pink Cream 170 " Raspberry Ice Cream ..168 " Spanish Cream 169 " Strawberry Ice Cream.. 168 " Strawberry Sherbet ....170 " Syllabub 169 " Tapioca Blance Mange . .175 " Tapioca Cream 170 ." Turret Cream 171 " Tutti Frutti 168 " Vanilla Ice Cream 167 " Velvet Cream 171 " Wine Jelly 172 " Wine Jelly No. 2 172 " Whipped Cream 169 BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES GENERAL INDEX. Page. Croquettes, Chicken 112 " Hominy Ill " Lobster 113 " Oyster 112 " Oyster Plant 112 " Potato '. 112 " Rice Ill " Veal 112 Drinks, Appleade . ". 256 Apple Water 256 Arrow Root Broth 254 Barley Water 255 Blackberry Sirup ..256 Bread Panada 254 Cocoa, Breakfast 237 Cocoa, Luncheon 237 Cherry Brandy 239 Chicken Broth 252 Chocolate 236 Coffee 235 Currant Raspberry Shrub 238 Currant Wine 238 Egg Nog 237 Frothed Cafe au lait 236 Frothed Chocolate 236 Ginger Beer 239 Grape Punch 237 Imperial 240 Indian Meal Gruel 253 Lemonade 237 Lemonade, concentrated. 237 Lemonade, portable 237 Mead 240 Meringued Coffee 235 Milk Porridge 255 Milk Punch 238 Mutton Broth 252 Oatmeal Gruel 253 Quick Beer 240 Raspberry Brandy 239 Raspberry Vinegar 239 Raspberry Wine 239 Rice Milk 255 Roman Punch 238 Sago 253 Sherbet 239 Spruce Beer 240 Page. Drinks, Tea 234 " Tea a la Russe 235 " Tea a la Russe, Iced ..235 " Tea, Beef 251 " Tea, Beef, No. 2 252 " Tea, Flaxseed 256 " Tea, Iced ' 234 " Thickened Milk 255 la Mode 120 Baked 120 Baked, No. 2 121 Balls 125 Baskets 122 Boiled 118 Boiled, with Sauce ....119 Cheese Omelet 124 Cream — Invalid 253 Creamed for Luncheon . . 126 Curried 123 Deviled 125 Fish Omelet 124 Fricasseed 122 Gruel— Invalid 253 Meat Omelet 124 Omelet a la Mode 124 Omelet Souffle 126 Omelt with Oysters 124 Omelet with Oysters . . 124 Pickled 125 Plain Omelet 123 Poached 119 Poached a la Creme ...119 Poached with Ham Sauce 119 Raw— Invalid 253 Sandwiches 124 Scrambled 121 Scrambled in Tomatoes. 126 Scrambled with Ham . .121 Soft-Boiled 125 Soft-Boiled 252 Steamed 120 Sur le Plat 121 Sweet Omelet 125 Swiss, in Chafing Dish .250 Toast 122 Toasted Eggs 121 Whirled 120 BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES GENERAL INDEX. Page. Fish, Baked Cod 48 " Baked Halibut 48 " Baked Salmon, with Cream Sauce 49 " Baked Shad 47 " Boiled Halibut 48 " Boiled Lobster ...! 57 " Boiled Rockflsh 48 " Boiled Salmon 49 " Bread Stuffing for 60 " Bread Stuffing No. 2 ... 60 " Broiled Oysters ......... 54 " Broiled Salmon ...._,.. 49 " Broiled Shad 47 " Chowder 51 " Clam Chowder 59 " Clam Scallops 53 " Cleaning a Shad 60 " Cream Oysters 54 " Deviled Clams 59 " Deviled Lobster 57 " Fish Balls 52 " Fish in Season 60 " Fried Catfish 51 " Fried Cutlets 50 " Fried Eels 51 " Fried Oysters 54 " Fried Perch 50 " Fried Trout 50 " Halibut Cutlets 47 " Little Pigs in Blankets. 53 " Lobster a la Newberg in Chafing Dish 248 " Lobster a la Somerset in Chafing Dish 249 " Lobster Chowder 53 " Lobster on Toast in Chafing Dish 249 " Lobster Patties 58 " Lobster Salad. See Salads. " Lobster Sauce. See Sauces. " Lobster Stew in Chafing Dish 249 " Mock Terrapin 58 " New Engladn Chowder. 52 " Oyster a la Bechamel In Chafing Dish 248 " Oysters a la Belevue in Chafing Dish 248 Page. Fish, Oysters, Creamed In Chafing Dish 248 " Oyster Macaroni 56 " Oyster Omelette 55 " Oyster Patties 56 " Oyster Pie 56 " Oyster Relish in Chafing Dish 247 " Oyster Salad. See Salads. " Oyster Sauces. See Sauces. " Oyster Toast 54 " Pickled Salmon 50 " Roasted Oysters 54 " Salmon Steak 50 '■ Scalloped Crabs 59 " Scalloped Halibut in Chafing Dish 249 " Scalloped Oysters No. 1 55 " Scalloped Oysters No. 2 56 " Scallops 60 " Shrimp & Peas in Cha- fing Dish ....249 " Smoked Salmon, Boiled 49 " Soaked Salt Fish 60 " Soft Shell Crabs 59 " Spiced or Pickled Oys- ters 55 " Stewed Clams 59 " Stewed Lobster 57 " Stewed Trout 50 " Terrapins 58 " White 49 Fritters, Apple 114 " Bread .- 113 " Cheese, in Chafing Dish. 247 " Clam 115 " Corn 113 " Cream 115 " Currant 114 " French 115 " Fruit H4 " Hominy 114 • " Oyster 115 " Parsnip 114 " Plain U3 " Potato 113 " Rice Fritters 114 " Spanish Fritters 116 " Venetian 116 Blank Page for Additional Recipes. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Frosting, Cocoanut ...". 200 " Cooked 200 Fruits, Apples, Baked 204 " Apple Float 204 " Apples, Roast 256 " Apple Sauce 204 " Apples with Lemon ....204 " Apple, Transparent 204 " Bananas and Cream ...205 " Bananas, Fried 205 " Candied 205 " Crystallized 205 " Nutmegs, etc 203 " Nuts 206 " Oranges 203 " Orange & Cocoanut ....203 " Peaches, Fried 204 " Peaches, Frosted 203 " Peaches, Sliced 203 " Peaches, Stewed 203 " Pears, Baked 205 " Pineapples 203 " Quinces 205 " Rhubarb, Stewed 205 " Watermelon 202 Icings, Almond 200 " Banana 200 " Chocolate 199 " For Cake 199 " Lemon 199 " Orange 199 Invalid Diet— Appleade 256 " Apples, Roast 256 " Apple "Water 256 " Arrow Root Broth 254 " Arrow Root Jelly 253 " Barley Water 255 " Beef Tea 251 " Beef Tea No. 2 252 " Blackberry Sirup 256 " Bread Panada 254 " Chicken Broth 252 " Chicken Jelly 252 " Chicken Panada 254 " Cracked Panada 254 " Cracked Wheat 254 " Egg Cream 253 " Egg Gruel 253 Page. Invalid Diet— Egg, Raw 253 " Eggs, Soft-Boiled 252 " Flaxseed Tea 256 " Indian Meal Gruel 253 " Milk Porridge 255 " Milk, Thickened 255 " Mutton Broth 252 " Oatmeal Gruel 253 " Rice Milk 255 " Sago 253 " Soft Toast 254 " Wine Whey 256 Jelly, Apple 210 " Apple, No. 2 210 " Apple Butter 218 " Apple Marmalade 211 " Arrow Root Jelly 253 " Barberry 211 " Barberry Jam 213 " Blackberry Jam 213 " Black Currant 210 " Brandy Peaches 217 " Cherry Jam 213 " Chicken— Invalid 252 " Crabapple 210 " Currant 209 " Currant No. 2 209 " Currant without Cook- ing 209_ " Damson Jam 214 " Damson Preserves 216 " Grape 211 " Grapes In Brandy 217 " Grape Marmalade 212 " Green Gage Jam 214 " Green Gage Preserves .216 " Orange Marmalade 212 *' Peach Butter 218 " Peach Marmalade 212 " Pear and Quince Mar- malade 211 " Pineapple Marmalade .212 " Pineapple Preserve ....215 " Preserved Cherries 210 '* Preserved Citron 216 " Preserved Peaches 214 " Preserved Peaches, 2.. 214 " Preserved Pears 215 " Preserved Quinces ....215 " Preserved Strawberries. 216 BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES GENERAL INDEX. Page. Jelly, Quince 211 " Quince Marmalade 211 " Raspberry Jam '..213 " Kaspberry 211 " Spiced Peaches 217 " Strawberries In Wine ..217 " Strawberry Jam 213 " Watermjelon Rind Pre- serves 213 " White Currant 210 " White Currant Jam 213 " Wine Whey— Invalid . .256 Meats, Bacon, broiled or fried 89 " Baked Ham 88 " Baked Heart 74 " Baked Pork Tenderloins 87 " Baked Sausages 89 " Beef a la Mode 72 '• Beef Hash 73 " Beefsteak and Tomatoes 75 " Beefsteak Pudding 76 " Beefsteak with Onions . 75 " Beef Stew 74 " Boiled Corned Beef 74 " Boiled Fillet 77 " Boiled Ham 87 " Boiled Leg of Lamb 84 " Boiled Leg of Mutton . . 83 " Boiled Pork 90 " Boiled Tongue 74 " Breaded Lamb Chops . . 85 " Broiled Beefsteak 75 " Broiled Kidneys 81 " Broiled Lamb Chops ... 85 " Broiled Mutton Chops . . 83 " Broiled Salt Pork 89 " Broiled Sweetbreads ... 81 " Calf's Liver or Heart .. 80 " Calf's Tongue 81 " Curried Beef 73 " Cutlets, Broiled 80 " Cutlets in Crackers .... 79 " Deviled Beef 73 " Fried Sausage 89 " Glazed Ham 88 " Ham and Eggs 88 " Ham Of Tongue Toast . 88 " Irish Stew 84 " Lamb Steaks, Fried ... 85 " Lamb Stewed in Butter 84 P«g* Meats, Leg of Pork, Roastci «' " Minced Beef '3 " Minced Veal 8') " Mutton and Green Peas S3 " Mutton, Dressed like Venison 83 " Pork Cutlets «7 " Pot Roasted Fillet 77 " Pressed Veal so " Roast Beef 71 " Roast Beef with York- shire Pudding 71 " Roast Lamb 84 " Roast Mutton 82 " Roast Pig 86 " Roast Pork 86 " Roast Spare-rib 86 " Roast Veal 77 " Saddle of Lamb 84 " Sausage Meat 89 i " Savory Beef 73 " Scrappel 90 " Souse 90 " Spiced Beef 72 " Stewed Shin of Beef ... 74 " Stewed Sweetbreads ... 81 " Stuffed Beefsteak 75 " Veal Hash 78 " Veal Loaf 79 " Veal Pie 78 " Veal Pot Pie 78 " Veal Scallop 80 " Veal Stew 77 " Veal with Oysters 79 " Veal with Peas 79 " Veal with Rice 79 Pickles, Barberries 225 " Beets 227 " Bell Apples 228 " Carrots 225 " Chili Sauce 231 " Chow Chow 230 " Cucumber 224 " Cucumber, No. 2 224 " East India 229 " Flint 228 " French 229 " Garlic and Eschalots ...226 " Grape Catsup 231 Blank Page for Additional Recipes. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Pickles. " Green Tomato Catsup .230 " Mushrooms, Pickled ....227 " Muskmelon 225 " Nasturtiums 226 " Onions 226 " Onions No. 2 226 " Oyster Catsup 232 " Tears 225 " Peppers 228 " Pepper Hash 228 " Piccallily 229 " Red Cabbage 227 " Sweet 230 ■' Sweet Tomato 230 " Tomato Catsup 230 " Tomato Catsup No. 2 ..230 " Tomato Soy 231 " Walnut Catsup 231 " Walnut Catsup No. 2 ..232 " Walnuts 226 " Watermelon 226 Pie, Apple 149 " Apple, Dried 151 " Apple Meringue 149 " Cheese Cake 152 " Cherry 150 " Cocoanut 152 " Cream 152 " Crust for 148 " Crust Glaze 148 " Custard 152 " Gooseberry 150 " Lemon . .- 152 " Mince 152 *' Orange 151 " Orange 152 " Peach 149 " Peach Meringue 149 " Prune 151 " Pumpkin 150 " Raisin 151 " Rhubarb 150 " Squash 151 " Sweet Potato 150 " Tomato 1551 Poultry, etc. " Boiled Chicken, Stuff- ing 69 Page. Poultry, etc. " Chicken a la Relne in Chafing Dish 247 " Chicken, Broiled 62 " Chicken, Fricasseed ... 64 " Chicken, Fried 64 " Chicken, fried with rice 64 " Chicken, Jellied 60 " Chicken Panada 254 " Chicken Patties 63 " Chicken Pie 64 " Chicken Pot Pie 65 " Chicken, Pressed 65 " Chicken, Roast 62 " Chicken, Smothered 64 " Chicken Souffle 63 " Chicken, Stewed 62 " Duck, Canvas Back 66 " Duck, Roast 66 " Duckling Pot Riast 70 " Game or Poultry in Jelly 68 " Goose, Roast 66 " Gravy for Poultry 69 " Grouse, Fillet of 70 " Keeping Game 69 " Oyster Stuffing 69 " Partridge, Roast 67 " Pigeon, Potted 63 " Pigeon, Roast 66 " Plain Stuffing 69 " Potato Stuffing 69 " Potted Fowl Roast 70 " Quail on Toast 67 " Rabbit, Fried 67 " Rabbit, Roast 67 " Snipe, Roast 66 ," Turkey, Boiled 61 " Turkey, Boned , . . 62 " Turkey, Roast 61 " Venison, Broiled Steaks of 67 Puddings, Almond 160 ' ' Amsterdam 166 " Apple 159 " Apple Batter 154 " Apple Dumplings 165 " Arrow Root 157 " Baked Hasty 155 PARKER'S 2-30-2 COLD CREAM IS THE BEST. Recommended for all skin irritations from summer heat. Trial size, 10 cents. Sold by Dealers in Toilet Articles Everywhere. GENERAL INDEX. Page. Puddings, Baked Indian 161 " Baked Indian 161 " Batter 154 " Berry 164 " Bird's Nest 163 " Blackberry Mush 164 " Bread 159 " Brown Betty 162 " Cabinet 163 " Cherry 164 " Chocolate Custard 161 " Cocoanut 157 " Cocoanut No. 2 157 " Corn 155 " Cottage 158 " Cup Custard 160 " Delicious 163 " Delmonieo 160 " Dutch 161 " English Plum 162 " Farina 156 " Fruit 164 " Fruit Bread 159 " German Puffs 165 " Hasty 155 " Indian Puffs 165 " Jelly 162 " Lemon 158 " Lemon Dumplings 165 " Minute 155 " Oak Balls 165 " Orange 159 " Paradise 162 " Paste Shells 149 " Peach Dumplings 165 " Pineapple Tart 153 " Plain Tapioca 156 " Poor Man's Plum 162 " Puff Paste 148 " Rennet 158 " Rice 157 " Rice Custard 161 " Rice, No. 2 158 " Roley Poley 164 " Sago 157 " Snow 164 " Spice 162 " Strawberry Short Cake .153 " Strawberry Short Cake, No. 2 154 " Suet 154 Page. Puddings, Suet, No. 2 155 " Tapioca and Apple 156 " Tarts 153 " Tea Baskets 153 " Vermicelli 156 " White Puff 165 Salads, Cabbage 104 " Chicken 105 " Chicken, No. 2 105 " Cold Slaw 103 " Cold Slaw, No. 2 104 " Cold Slaw, Maryland ..104 ' ' Lettuce 104 " Potato 105 " Potato, No. 2 105 Sauces, Anchovy 109 " Asparagus 107 " Boiled Egg 110 " Brown Butter 110 " Butter 110 " Caper Sauce 108 " Celery 107 " Chili 107 " Cranberry 106 " Cranberry 108 " Cream 166 " Drawn Butter 110 " Fruit Syrup 106 " Green Tomato 107 " Hard 166 " Lemon 108 " Lemon, No. 2 108 " Lobster 106 " Lobster 109 " Mayonnaise 110 " Mayonnaise, No. 2 110 " Mint 107 " Molasses 106 " Mushroom 108 " Oyster 109 " Plain French Dressirg .109 " Strawberry 108 " Tomato, No. 2 107 " Vanilla 109 " Venison 109 " White 166 " Wine 166 " Yellow 166 BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES GENERAL INDEX. Page. Soups, Bean 39 " Beef 37 " Beef, No. 2 37 " Beef, with Okra 38 " Black Bean 39 " Browned Flour for 45 " Chicken 43 " Clam 44 " Clam Cakes 46 " Corn 40 " Corned Beef 38 " Dried Split Pea 40 " Drop Dumplings 45 " Green Pea 40 " Gumbo 41 " Home-made Noodles, Substitute for Vermi- celli 45 " Julienne 42 " Lobster 43 " Maccaroni or Vermicelli 42 " Marrow Dumplings for. 46 " Meat Balls for 45 " Mock Turtle 41 " Mock Turtle, No. 2 41 " Mutton Broth 38 " Onion 40 " Ox Tail 38 " Portable 44 " Potage a la Reine 46 " Southern Gumbo 42 " Tomato 39 " Tomato, No. 2 : 39 " Turkey 43 " Vegetable 38 " White 43 Vegetables, Baked Beans ... 96 " Baked Corn 95 " Baked Egg Plant 98 " Baked Macaroni 101 " Baked Sliced Tomatoes 94 " Boiled Artichokes 100 " Boiled Asparagus 96 " Boiled Beans 95 " Boiled Beets 96 " Boiled Cabbage 98 " Boiled Cauliflower 98 " Boiled Green Corn 95 " Boiled Green Peas 96 Page. Vegetables, Boiled Greens . . . 100 " Boiled Hominy 101 " Boiled Leeks 99 " Boiled Onions 99 " Boiled Parsnips 99 " Boiled Rice 101 " Boiled Spinach 100 " Boiled Squash 99 " Boiled Sweet Potatoes . 93 " Boiled Turnips 99 " Boiled White Potatoes . 92 " Broiled Mushrooms 100 " Broiled Tomatoes 94 " Cabbage a la Cauliflower 98 " Corn Fritters 95 (See Fritters). " Egg Plant 102 " Fried Egg Plant 98 " Fried Egg Plant, No. 2 . 98 " Fried Onions 99 " Fried Parsnips 99 " Fried Potatoes 93 " Fried Squash 99 " Fried Sweet Potatoes . . 93 " Fried Tomatoes 94 " Lima Beans 95 " Macaroni with tomatoes. 101 " Mashed Potatoes 92 " Mock Fried OysLcrs 102 " Potato Cakes 93 " Potato Hillocks 97 " Potato Pie 97 " Pototoes, Roasted with Meat 92 " Roasted Sweet Potatoes 93 " Roasted White Potatoes 92 " Saratoga Potatoes 93 " Sliced Cucumbers 102 " Stewed Celery 100 " Stewed Macaroni 101 " Stewed Mushrooms 100 " Stewed Potatoes 93 " Stewed Oyster Plant ...102 " Stewed Tomatoes 94 " String Beans 95 " Stuffed Onions 97 " Succotash 95 " Tomatoes a la Creme . . 95 " Tomatoes Baked Whole 94 " Water-Cresses 102 BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES FOREWORD. IN no department of industry has the last century brought greater changes than in the department of housekeeping. Then, the housekeeper was at the head of, and the principal worker in, a manufacturing plant in which was made nearly everything used by the family. The housewife made with her own hands the candles for lighting and the soap for cleaning. The flax was taken as it came from the field and the wool as it came from the sheep, and all the processes of spin- ning, weaving, knitting, bleaching, dyeing and making the cloth into clothes for all the members of the family, and the linen for the table or bed, were carried on by the women of the household. Then the housekeeper took the grain as it came from the field and the fruit as it came from the vine and tree, and attended to all the steps by which it was converted into food. To-day all this is changed. While food has still to undergo some measure of preparation within the house- hold, and while there are still a sufficiency of duties for the housekeeper, the work has been greatly simplified and made easier by the invention of many labor-saving devices, appliances and processes. In a civilized community the position of housekeeper will always be first in importance to the well-being of the family, and the duties of the housekeeper are com- ing more and more to be the spending of a definite amount of money for a great variety of ready-prepared 30 THE HOUSEWIFE'S I.IBRARY. articles, the most successful housekeeper being the one who can spend the money to the greatest advantage. Competition is daily becoming more strenuous and the claims of manufacturers and dealers more pictur- esque. The unscrupulous will adulterate their goods and sell an. inferior article for the sake of the. larger profit, and it is of the greatest importance to the house- keeper to know what are standard goods and where they can be obtained. The housekeeper who is led to spend money for inferior goods, or to deal with irre- sponsible concerns, lowers the standard of living of the whole family. For this reason the publishers of The New England Cook Book have introduced a department of " Sup- plies, Furnishings, etc.,' 7 which is a feature never before attempted. We have investigated the claims of manu- facturers of and dealers in goods that are used by the housewife or the members of the family, and, having satisfied ourselves as to the excellence of the goods offered and the reliability of the manufacturers and dealers, we have allowed them to state in their own way their claims for recognition. We can assure the readers of The New England Cook Book that the articles here described are of the highest quality as to material and manufacture, that the individuals and firms here represented are of unques- tioned reliability, and that the use of the goods here described, or the patronage of the houses referred to, will insure the certainty of getting the very best that the market affords. Missing Page Missing Page I.— THE ART OF COOKING. THERE is a science and there is an art of cooking. The science tells what should be done and why ; the art takes held and does the thing, without, in most cases, knowing any reason why certain methods produce certain results. The one is theoretical, the other practical ; the one deals with principles, the other with performances. The science of cookery proceeds on the basis that man needs certain elements of repair and growth for the various tissues of his body, that these elements exist in nature in various forms, and that the mission of the cook is so to prepare these suitable substances that man may receive them in their most enjoyable and assimilable forms, and thus have his waste repaired and his growth provided for. This basis is solid. On it the whole culinary system is founded But, from the merely utilitarian idea of repairing waste and supplying force, cookery rises to the supreme height ol exquisitely delighting the taste while doing its most impor- tant work of feeding the body. Indeed, the art of cooking well, and of serving well-cooked victuals well, is " a fine art " in the best sense of the term. There are artistes in this line. Meals may be served artistically. They may become a delight to the most refined natures and a real benefaction to both body and soul. The great aim of all cooking is to retain all the valuable elements of the food, and to put them into such forms as shall awake desire, stimulate digestion, and secure to the eater, in the readiest and most pleasing way, all the nutriment these viands afford. For instance, in cooking meats it is desirable to retain all the natural juices. To this end, when meat is to be boiled it should be plunged into hot water, which at once renders the outer part measurably impenetra- 34 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. ble, ana so confines the juices. On the other hand, if the juices are to be drawn out for the production of soup, it must be placed in cold water, and gradually warmed and slowly boiled, so as to allow the exudation of the juices. On the same principle, broiling and roasting, by quickly clos- ing the surface of the meat, retain the juices as well as the odors, and make the meat both juicy and savory. The re- tention of the fatty substances renders such preparations somewhat less digestible, however, than boiled food or lean meat. High art in cookety, as elsewhere, demands high rates of expenditure. Instructions on that grade alone would not meet the want of American homes. But high aims in this department are equally commendable with high aims else- where. So important a factor in domestic economy as cook- ing cannot be ignored and should not be treated lightly. Good food, well cooked and well served, goes far to make home happy and its inmates healthy. The chemical aspect of food and cooking may be left to the chemist and the physiologist. They will perfect the scientific aspects of the case. But the art of cooking, which teaches just how and when to do the right things, is for us to learn and to practice day by day. Such is the relation of stomach and brain on the one side, and of stomach and cook on the other side, that the cook becomes the sov- ereign, to whom many a brain mightier than his own bows in servile allegiance. What cookery was practiced in the garden of Eden his- tory does not tell. Vegetarians insist that permission to eat animal food was not given until after the flood (Genesis xi, 3, 4), when, by indulgence, man's appetites had become abnormal. If vegetable food only were used in Eden, and that mainly of the nature of fruits, but little cooking was needed, and the simplest forms would suffice amply. BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES GOOD COOKING Cannot be done without good fuel. Are you sure that you are using the coal' best adapted to your requirements for cooking and heating ? Our experts, with the knowledge gained by years of experience in filling just such wants as yours, are at your service. A postal card or telephone message will bring one. METROPOLITAN COAL CO. General Offices, - - 30 Congress Street, Boston See Inside Front Cover for Addresses of "Wharves and Branch Offices. r»y .9^ Blank Page for Additional Recipes. n.— SOUP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. GENERAL SUGGESTIONS ON SOUP STOCK AND SOUP MEAT, HOW TO PREPARE THEM, HOW TO ENRICH THEM, THICKENING SOUP, COLORING SOUP, FLAVORING SOUP, ETC. THIRTY-FIVE RECIPES FOR SOUPS AND INCIDENTAL PREPARATIONS. THE first and great essential to making good soup is stock, or good, fresh meat. To make stock, take the liquor left after boiling fresh meat, bones large or small, the large ones being cracked, that the marrow may be extracted, trimmings of meat, bones, and meat left over /rom a roast or broil, put any or all of these in a large pot or soup-kettle with water enough to cover them. Let them simmer slowly over a steady fire, keep the kettle covered, stir frequently, pour in now and then a cup of cold water, and skim off the scum. If it is fresh meat or bones, com- mence with cold water ; if cooked, with warm water. Bones are as useful as meat in making stock, as they furnish gela- tine. A quart of water is usually enough for a pound of meat. Six to eight hours will make stock fit for use. Let it stand over night, then skim off the fat, put the stock into an earthen jar, and it is ready for use. Fresh meat should be freed from all superfluous skin and fat, which make a soup greasy, rather than rich. . The glutinous substance contained in the bones renders it important that they should be boiled with the meat, as they add to the strength and thickness of the soup. The meat, however, should be cut off the bone and divided into small pieces. Place in cold water over a gentle fire and boil by the long and slow process, that the essence of the meat may 35 86 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. be drawn out thoroughly. When it comes to the boiling point, throw in a little salt to assist the scum to rise ; then skim carefully to prevent its becoming turbid. When no more scum accumulates, and the meat is softened so as to readily separate with the use of the fork, it should be strained, the vegetables put it, the seasoning done, and the necessary amount of hot water added if too much has boiled away. All soup meats are better boiled the day before using, so as to allow the grease to chill over night, when it can readily be removed before putting over the fire again. The following thickening is almost indispensable to all good soups : A tablespoonful or more of flour mixed to a smooth paste with a little water, and enriched with a tea- spoonful of butter, or good beef drippings well stirred in. If it be necessary to add water to a soup, always use boil- ing water, as cold water injures the flavor. If making a rich soup that requires catsup or wine, let either be added just before the soup is taken from the fire. Soup may be colored yellow by the use of grated car- rots ; 'red with the juice of tomatoes ; green with the juice of powdered spinach ; brown with carefully scorched flour, Jkept ready for use. Onions are thought by many to be a necessity in all soups— that their flavor must lurk some- where, either defined or undefined. Their flavor may be much improved if fried until nicely browned in hot butter before being added to the soup. Potatoes should never be boiled with soup, because they add nothing to its flavor and are themselves injured by the long cooking.. They should be boiled separately, and then added. A most desirable quality in soup is that no one flavor predominate over the others, but, that by a careful blending of the different ingredients it shall contain and harmonize all flavors. Soups and broths should always be strained. It. SOUP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. 37 makes them more relishable as well as inviting to the eye. A slight acid, like lemon or tomato, gives a peculiar relish to some soups, as do many of the palatable condi- ments prepared by such manufacturers as Skilton & Foote Co., D. & L. Slade Co., and several others, for this especial purpose. With such helps and a suffi- cient quantity of stock on hand, a choice, rich soup of any variety may be gotten up in thirty minutes. RECIPES. Beef Soup. — Boil a shin of beef, or a piece off the shoulder, slowly and thoroughly, the day before desiring to use it ; skim well the next day and thin the jelly, if necessary, with water ; add a little brandy, a grated carrot, two tablespoon- fuls of butter rubbed smooth in brown flour, a little vermi- celli, and spices to taste. Two or three eggs may be boiled hard, mashed smooth, and placed in the tureen before turning in the soup. « Beef Soup, No. 2. — Boil a shin of beef of moderate size, crack the bone, remove the tough outside skin, wash, and place in a kettle to boil with six or eight quarts of water. Let it boil about four hours, until it becomes perfectly tender, then take it out of the liquid. Add salt, one pint of tomatoes, two onions cut in small pieces, two turnips cut in quarters, one grated carrot, one large tablespoonful of sugar, a little sweet marjoram and thyme rubbed fine, one red pepper cut in very small pieces, also a celery top or a small quantity of bruised celery seed. This soup may be thick- ened according to taste either with vermicelli, macaroni, noodles, or drop dumplings. For an incidental side dish, take the soup meat that has been cut from the bones, chop fine while warm, season with salt and pepper, add one teacup of soup saved out before 38 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. putting in the vegetables. Pack in a dish, and slice down for tea or lunch when cold. Beef Soup with OkTa. — Cut a round steak in small pieces and fry in three tablespoonfuls of butter, together with one sliced onion, until very brown ; put into a soup kettle with four quarts of cold water, and boil slowly an hour ; add salt, pepper, and one pint of sliced okra, and simmer three and one-half hours longer. Strain before serving. Corned Beef Soup. — When the liquor in which corned beef and vegetables have been boiled is cold, remove all the grease that has risen and hardened on the top, and add tomatoes and tomato catsup and boil half an hour — thus making an excellent tomato soup ; or add to it rice, or sago, or pearl barley, or turn it into a vegetable soup by boiling in the liquor any vegetables that are fancied. Several varieties of soups may have this stock for a basis and be agreeable to the taste. Ox-tail Soup. — Chop the ox-tail into small pieces ; set on the fire with a tablespoonful of butter, and stir until brown, and then pour off the fat ; add broth to taste, and boil gently until the pieces of tail are well cooked. Season with pepper, salt, and three or four tomatoes ; boil fifteen minutes and then serve. This soup can be made with water, instead of the stock broth, in which case season with carrot, onion, turnip, and parsley. Mutton Broth. — After the steaks have been cut from the leg, the lower part is just adapted for a soup. The neck- piece is also very nice. Boil the meat very gently in cold water, adding a turnip, a carrot, and a spoonful of rice. All the fat should be removed. Toward the last, add a little minced parsley. Dumplings are an excellent addition. Vegetable Soup. — Take two pounds of shin of beef and two pounds of knuckle of veal ; remove all the fat and break SO UP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. 39 the bones and take out the marrow ; put into a pot with five pints of water ; add a teaspoonful of salt, and then cover and let it come to a boil quickly ; remove the scum that rises, and set where it will simmer for five'hours ; one hour before serving, add two young carrots, scraped and cut in slices, half a head of celery, and a small onion cut into squares ; in half an hour add one turnip sliced, and in fifteen minutes one cauliflower broken in small pieces. Bean Soup. — Soak one and a half pints of beans in cold water over night. In the morning drain off the water, wash the beans in fresh water, and put into soup-kettle with four quarts of good beef stock, from which all the fat has been removed. Set it where it will boil slowly but steadily for three hours at the least. Two hours before it is needed for use, slice in an onion and a carrot. Some think it im- proved by adding a little tomato. If the beans are not liked whole, strain through a colander and send to the table hot. Black Bean Soup. — Three pounds soup bone, one quart black beans, soaked over night and drained ; one onion, chopped fine ; juice of one lemon. Pepper, salt, and Durkee's Challenge Sauce to taste. Boil the soup bone, beans, and onions together six hours ; strain, and add seasoning. Slice lemon and put on top when served. Tomato Soup. — Take a knuckle of veal, a bony piece of beef, a neck of mutton, or almost any piece of meat you may happen to have ; set it over the fire in a small quantity of water, cover it closely, and boil very gently, to extract the juices of the meat. When nearly done, add a quantity Of peeled tomatoes, and stew till the tomatoes are done ; add salt and pepper to your taste. This is a very cheap, healthful, and easily made soup. Tomato Soup, No. 2. — Take one quart of tomatoes. When boiling, add one teaspoonful of soda, two pulverized soda 40 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. crackers, one pint of hot water, one pint of milk, salt, and pepper ; strain through a colander and serve hot. Green Pea Soup. — Boil the empty pods of a half-peck of green peas in one gallon of water one hour ; strain them out ; add four pounds of beef cut into small pieces, and boil slowly for an hour and a half longer. Half an hour before serving add the shelled peas, and twenty minutes later half a cup of rice flour, salt, pepper, and a little chopped parsley. After adding the rice flour stir frequently so as to pre- vent scorching. Dried Split Pea Soup. — One gallon of water, one quart of soaked split peas, half a pound of salt pork, one pound of beef. Put over the fire, seasoning with salt and pepper, celery salt, salpicant, curry powder, marjoram, or savory ; let it boil slowly for two hours, or until the quantity of liquor does not exceed two quarts'. Pour into a colander and press the peas through with- a spoon. Fry two or three slices of stale bread in butter till brown, scatter, them in the soup after it is placed in the tureen. Corn Soup. — Cut the corn from the cob, and to a pint of corn allow one quart of hot water ; boil an hour and press through a colander; put into a saucepan an ounce of but- ter and a tablespoonful of flour, being careful to stir well to prevent it being lumpy; then add the corn pulp, a little cayenne pepper, salt, a pint of boiling milk, and half a pint of cream. Onion Soup. — Slice ten medium-sized onions and fry brown in butter with a tablespoonful and a half of flour ; put into a saucepan, and stir in slowly four or five pints of milk and water (about one-third water) ; season to taste, and add a teacupful of grated potato ; set in a kettle of boiling water, and cook ten minutes ; add a cup of sweet cream and serve quickly. SOUP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. 41 Mock-turtle Soup. — Scald a calf's head and wash it clean ; boil it in a large pot of water for half an hour, cut all the skin off, and take the tongue out. Take the broth made of a knuckle of veal, put in the tongue and skin, with one onion, half-ounce of cloves, half-ounce of mace, half a nut- meg, all kinds of sweet herbs chopped fine, and three anchovies. Stew till tender ; then take out the meat, and cut it in pieces two inches square; cut the tongue, previously skinned, in slices ; strain the liquor through a sieve ; melt half a pound of butter in a stewpan ; put in it half a pound of flour and stir it till smooth — if at all lumpy, strain it ; add the liquor, stirring it all the time ; then put to the meat the juice of two lemons, or one bottle of Madeira wine, if pre- ferred ; season rather highly with pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper ; put in a few meat balls and eight eggs boiled hard. Stew gently one hour, and serve in a tureen ; if too thick, add more liquor before stewing the last time. Mock-turtle Soup. No. 2. — Take a calf's head and about two pounds of delicate fat pork. Put both into a soup- kettle, with two onions, sweet herbs, celery, pepper, and mace. Fill the kettle with water, and boil very gently till the meat is tender. Take out the head and the pork, return the bones of the head into the soup ; let it stew several hours longer ; and, when cold, take off the fat, strain the soup, and thicken; add the juice of a lemon and half a pint of white wine. Cut up the head and pork into pieces ; warm them up in the soup, adding some choice meat balls made from finely minced, savory meat. The pork will be found quite an addition to the soup and a substitute for the fat of the turtle. Gumbo Soup. — Cut up two chickens, two slices of ham, and two onions into dice ; flour them, and fry the whole to a light brown ; then fill the frying-pan with boiling water, stir 42 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. it a few minutes, and turn the whole into a saucepan con- taining three quarts of boiling water ; let it boil forty min- utes, removing the scum. In the meantime soak three pods of okra in cold water twenty minutes ; cut them into thin slices, and add to the other ingredients ; let it boil one hour and a half. Add a quart of canned tomatoes and a cupful of boiled rice half an hour before serving. Southern Gumbo Soup. — Cut up one chicken, and fry it to a light brown, also two slices of bacon ; pour on them three quarts of boiling water ; add one onion and some sweet herbs tied in a bag ; simmer them gently three hours and a half; strain off the liquor, take off the fat, and then put the ham and chicken (cut into small pieces) into the liquor; add half a teacup of sliced okra, also half a teacup of boiled rice. Boil all half an hour, and just before serving add a glass of wine and a dozen oysters with their juice. Julienne Soup. — Scrape two carrots and two turnips, and cut in pieces an inch long ; cut slices lengthwise about one- eighth of an inch thick; then cut again, so as to make square strips ; put them in a saucepan, with two ounces of butter, three tablespoonfuls of cabbage chopped fine, and half an onion chopped ; set on the fire and stir until half fried ; add broth as you wish to make thick or thin ; boil until done ; salt to taste ; skim off the fat, and serve ; it takes about two hours to prepare this soup properly. It can be served with rice or barley. Macaroni or Vermicelli Soup. — Two small carrots, four onions, two turnips, two cloves, one tablespoonful salt, pep- per to taste. Herbs — marjoram, parsley, and thyme. Put any cooked or uncooked meat and its bones in enough water to cover them; when they boil, skim them and add the vegetables. Simmer three or four hours, then strain through a colander and put back in the saucepan to reheat. SOUP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. 43 Boil one-half pound macaroni until quite tender, and place in the soup tureen, and pour the soup over it — the last thing. Vermicelli will need to be soaked a short time only — not to be boiled. White Soup. — Boil a knuckle of veal for three hours. Add a quarter of a pound of macaroni, and when done, a pint of cream. Season with lemon-peel and mace. Turkey Soup. — Take the turkey bones and boil three- quarters of an hour in water enough to cover them ; add a little summer savory and celery chopped fine. Just before serving, thicken with a little browned flour, and season with pepper, salt, and a small piece of butter. Chickeu Soup. — To the broth in which chickens have been boiled for salad, etc., add one onion and eight or ten tomatoes ; season with pepper and salt ; add Challenge Sauce or Salpicant, if desired ; boil thirty minutes ; add two well- beaten eggs just before sending to the table. Lobster Soup. — To boil a lobster, put it in a fish-kettle and cover it with cold water, cooking it on a quick fire. Remove the small bladder found near the head, and take out a small vein found immediately under the shell all along the back of the lobster, and use the rest. Two lobsters will make soup for six or eight persons, and salad also. All the under shell and small claws are pounded in a mortar to make the soup ; when pounded, put it into a pan and set it on the fire with broth or water. The meat is cut in small pieces, to be added afterward. The soup is left on the fire to boil gently for half an hour ; then put it in a sieve and press it with a masher to extract the juice. To make it thicker, a small piece of parsnip can be added and mashed with the rest into a pan, so that all the essence is extracted in that way from the lobsjter. When you have strained it put a little 44 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. butter with it and add as much broth as is required ; put some of the meat in the tureen and pour the soup over it. Clam Soup. — Wash the clams free from grit; boil them in a pint of water till they will come from the shells easily. Take a small quantity of the liquor, add some milk, thicken it with a little flour, and add the clams. Split crackers are very nice added. Portable Soup. — Boil a knuckle of veal, also the feet, a shin of beef, a cowheel or any other bones of meat which will produce a stiff jelly, in a large kettle, with as much water as will cover them. Let it stand a long time over the fire before it boils. Skim it most thoroughly, until the broth appears entirely clear. Then fill up the kettle with hot water, and boil it eight hours, or until it has evaporated so as to be somewhat thick. Run it through a hair sieve, set it in a cool place where it will harden very quickly. Skim off every particle of fat, and return it to a saucepan ; skim and stir continually, so that it may not scorch, and all the previous labor be lost, until it becomes a very thick syrup. As soon as it can be no longer done in this way, transfer it to a deep jar, and set into a kettle of water, hot, but not boiling, until it jellies very thick. This will keep good many months, if packed dry in tin canisters. This is the con- centrated essence of soup, and is a most convenient article of use, either at home in an emergency or in traveling, and especially at sea. To make a pint of soup, cut off a piece as large as a walnut, dissolve it in the boiling water, and it is ready for use. Fluid Beef. — Among the advanced preparations of the day meat extracts are taking a high place. One of the finest of these preparations is " Armour's Fluid Beef." It contains all the nutritive constituents of the beef, and is readily available for soups, sandwiches, beef tea, etc. For medi- cal uses, traveling, picnics, etc„ it is very convenient. To SOUP STOCK, SOUPS, ETC. 4S use for soups and beef tea, add a teaspoonful to a cup of boiling water and season to taste ; or as a sandwich paste, it may be used on toast, with or without butter. Put up in cans of various sizes, from two, ounces to one pound, which can be left open without injury to contents. RECIPES INCIDENTAL TO SOUPS. Meat Balls for Soup. — Take fresh cooked meat or fowl and chop fine ; season with pepper, salt, and herbs, and a little lemon ; mix together with an egg ; roll in bread-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. Browned Flour for Soups. — Dredge the bottom of a spider well with flour, and shake it over hot coals, letting it brown gradually, but not burn. Keep it in a dry place, in a tin canister, without wholly closing the lid. It is very con- venient to have it already prepared, although when used fresh it is much nicer. Home-made Noodles — a substitute for Vermicelli. — Wet with the yelks of four eggs as much fine, dry, sifted flour as will make them into a firm but very smooth paste. Roll it out as thin as possible, and cut it into bands of about an inch and a quarter in width. Dust them lightly with flour, and place four of them one upon the other. Cut them in the finest possible strips, separate them with the point of a knife, and spread them on the pie-board so that they may dry a little before they are used. Drop them gradually into the boiling soup, and in five minutes they will be done. Drop Dumplings. — Take prepared flour, add a little beef drippings or lard, well rubbed through, and moisten to a soft dough. With floured hands pinch off very small pieces and form into balls by rolling in the palm of the hand. In boil- ing dumplings of any kind, put them in the water one at a time. If they are put in together they will blend with each other. 46 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Clamcakes. — Fried bread crumbs for soups are pre- pared in this way : Cut slices of stale home-made bread half an inch thick, trim off all crust, and cut each slice into squares ; fry these in very hot fat ; drain them on a clean napkin, and add six or eight to each portion of soup. — Thomas J. Murrey. Marrow Dumplings for Soups. — Grate the crust of a breakfast roll, and break the remainder into crumbs ; soak these in cold milk ; drain, and add two ounces of flour; chop up half a pound of beef-marrow freed from skin and sinews ; beat up the yolks of five eggs ; mix all together thoroughly, if too moist add some of the grated crumbs ; salt and pepper to taste ; form into small round dumplings ; boil them in the soup for half an hour before serving. — Thomas J. Murrey. Potage a la Reine. — Remove the fat from one quart of the water in which a chicken has been boiled. Season highly with salt, pepper and celery-salt, and a little onion if desired, and put on to boil. Mash the yolks of three hard-boiled eggs fine, and mix them with half a cup of bread or cracker crumbs soaked until soft in a little milk. Chop the white meat of the chicken until fine like meal, and stir it into the egg and bread paste. Add one pint of hot cream slowly, and then rub all into the hot chicken liquor. Boil five minutes, add more salt if needed, and if too thick add more cream, or if not thick enough add more fine cracker-dust. It should be like a puree. — The Boston Cook Book: Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. Roberts Brothers, Publishers. (Queen Victoria's Favorite Soup k> <<£rf BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES III. — FISH, OYSTERS, Etc. HINTS CONCERNING FISH — HOW TO DRESS, HOW TO BOIL FISH, HOW TO BAKE FISH, HOW TO BROIL FISH, HOW TO FRY FISH, ETC. FIFTY-THREE RECIPES FOR COOKING FISH, OYSTERS, ETC.] AND FOR INCIDENTAL PREPARATIONS. RECIPES. Broiled Shad. — Scrape, split, wash, and dry the shad on a cloth; season with pepper and salt; grease the gridiron well ; as soon as it is hot lay the shad on to broil with the inside downward. One side being well browned, turn it. It should broil a quarter of an hour or more, according to thickness. Butter well and send to table hot. Baked Shad. — Many people are of the opinion that the very best method of cooking a shad is to bake it. Stuff it with bread-crumbs, salt, pepper, butter, and parsley, and mix this up with beaten yelk of egg ; fill the fish with it, and sew it up or fasten a string around it. Pour over it a little water and some butter, and bake as you would a fowl. A shad will require from an hour to an hour and a quarter to bake. Halibut Cutlets. — Cut your halibut steaks an inch thick, wipe them with a dry cloth, and season with salt and cay- enne pepper. Have ready a pan of yelk of eggs well beaten and a dish of grated bread-crumbs. Put some fresh 48 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. lard or beef drippings in a frying-pan and hold it over the fire till it boils. Dip your cutlets in the egg, and then in the bread-crumbs. Fry a light brown; serve up hot. Salmon or any large fish may be fried in the same manner. Baked Cod or Halibut. — Use a piece of fish from the middle of the back, weighing four, five, or six pounds. Lay the fish in very cold salt-and-water for two hours ; wipe dry ; make deep gashes in both sides at right angles with the back- bone, and rub into these, as well as coat it all over with, a force-meat made of the crumbs, pork, herbs, onion, and seasoning, made to adhere by raw egg. Lay in the baking- pan and pour over it the drawn butter (which should be quite thin), season with the anchovy sauce, lemon juice, pepper, and a pinch of parsley. Bake in a moderate oven nearly an hour — or even more if the piece be large — basting frequently lest it should brown too fast. Add a little butter-and-water when the sauce thickens too much. When the fish is done, remove to a hot dish, and strain the gravy over it. A few capers or chopped green pickles are a pleasant addition to the gravy. Boiled Halibut. — Take a small halibut, or what you require from a large fish. Put it into the fish-kettle, with the back of the fish undermost ; cover it with cold water, in which a handful of salt and a bit of saltpetre the size of a hazel-nut have been dissolved. When it begins to boil skim it care- fully, and then let it just simmer till it is done. Four pounds of fish will require half an hour nearly to boil it. Drain it, garnish with horse-radish or parsley. Egg sauce, or plain melted butter, are served with it. Boiled Rockfish. — After the fish has been nicely cleaned, put it into a pot with water enough to cover it, and throw in salt in the proportion of half a teaspoonful to a pound of fish. Boil it slowly until the meat is tender and easily sep- ffSff, OYSTERS, ETC. 49 arates from the bones. A large fish will require an hour to cook. When done, serve on a hot dish, and have a few hard-boiled eggs, cut in thin slices, laid around it and over it. Eat with egg-sauce. White Fish, — This fish may be broiled, fried, or baked. To bake it, prepare a stuffing of fine bread-crumbs, a little salt pork chopped very fine ; season with sage, parsley, pep- per, and salt. Fill the fish with the stuffing, sew it up, sprinkle the outside with salt, pepper, and flour, and bake. In frying white fish, pour off the fat as it accumulates, as it is apt to be too fat when served. Broiled Salmon. — The steaks from the centre of the fish are best. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, spread on a little butter, and broil over a clear but slow fire. Smoked Salmon, Broiled. — Take a half pound of smoked salmon and parboil it ten minutes ; lay in cold water for the same length of time ; wipe dry and broil over a clear fire. Add two tablespoonfuls of butter while hot ; season with cayenne and the juice of half a lemon; pile in a "log- cabin " square upon a hot plate, and serve with dry toast. Boiled Salmon. — A piece weighing six pounds should be rubbed with salt, tied carefully in a cloth, and boiled slowly for three-quarters of an hour. It should be eaten with egg or caper sauce. If any remain after dinner, it may be placed in a deep dish, a little salt sprinkled over, and a teacupful of boiling vinegar poured upon it. Cover it closely, and it will make a nice breakfast dish. Baked Salmon with Cream Sance. — Butter a sheet of fools- cap paper on both sides, and wrap the fish up in it, pinning the ends securely together. Lay in the baking-pan, and pour six or seven spoonfuls of butter-and-water over it. Turn another pan over all, and steam in a moderate oven 4 50 THE HOUSEWIFE 'S LIBRARY. from three-quarters of an nour to an hour, lifting the cover, from time to time, to baste and assure yourself that the paper is not burning. Meanwhile, have ready in a sauce- pan a cup of cream, in which you would do well to dis- solve a bit of soda a little larger than a pea. This is a wise precaution whenever cream is to be boiled. Heat this in a vessel placed within another of hot water ; thicken with a heaping teaspoonful of corn-starch ; add a tablespoonful of r utter, pepper and salt to taste, a liberal pinch of minced parsley, and when the fish is unwrapped and dished, pour half the dressing slowly over it, sending the rest to table in a boat. If you have no cream, use milk, and add a beaten egg to the thickening. Salmon Steaks or Cutlets Pried. — Cut slices from the middle of the fish one inch thick ; wipe dry, and salt slightly ; dip in egg, then in cracker crumbs ; fry very quickly in hot butter ; drain off every drop of grease, and serve upon a hot dish. Sprinkle green parsley in bunches over it. The French use the best salad-oil in this recipe instead of butter. Pickled Salmon. — Soak salt salmon twenty-four hours, changing the water frequently ; afterward pour boiling water around it, and let it stand fifteen minutes ; drain off and then pour on boiling vinegar with cloves and mace added. Pried Perch. — Scale and clean them perfectly ; dry them well, flour and fry them in boiling lard. Serve plenty of fried parsley round them. Pried Trout. — Wash, drain, and split ; roll in flour, season with salt ; have some thin slices of salt pork in a pan, and when very hot put in the fish and fry to a nice brown. Stewed Trout — Clean and wash the fish with care, and wipe it perfectly dry ; put into a stewpan two tablespoonfuls ot butter, dredge in as it melts a little flour, grate half a FISH, OYSTEKS, ETC. 51 nutmeg, a few blades of mace, a little cayenne, and a tea- spoonful of salt ; mix it all together ; then lay in the fish, let it brown slightly; pour over some veal gravy, a lemon thinly sliced ; stew very slowly for forty minutes ; take out the fish, and add two glasses of wine to the gravy. Lay the fish on a hot dish, and pour over it some of the gravy. Serve the rest in a sauce-tureen. Fried Catfish. — Catfish must be cooked quite fresh — if pos- sible, directly out of the water. The larger ones are gener- ally coarse and strong; the small-sized fish are the best. Wash and clean them, cut oft" their heads and tails, remove the upper part of the backbone near the shoulders, and score them along the back with deep gashes or incisions. Dredge them with flour, and fry them in plenty of lard, boiling fast when the catfish are put into the pan. Or you may fry them in the drippings or gravy saved from roast beef or veal. They are very nice dipped in a batter of beaten egg and grated bread-crumbs, or they may be done plain, though not in so nice a way, with Indian meal instead of bread-crumbs. Drain off the lard before you dish them. Touch each incision or cut very slightly with a little cay- enne before they go to table. Fried Eels. — After skinning, emptying, and washing them as clean as possible, cut them into short pieces, and dry them well with a soft cloth. Season them with fine salt and cayenne, flour them thickly, and fry them in boiling lard ; when nicely browned, drain and dry them, and send to the table with plain melted butter and a lemon, or with fish-sauce. Eels are sometimes dipped into batter and then fried, or into egg and dried bread-crumbs, and served with plenty of crisped parsley Fish Chowder. — Take a fresh haddock, of three or four pounds, clean it well, and cut in pieces of three inches 62 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. square. Place in the bottom of your dinner-pot five or six slices of salt pork, fry brown, then add three onions sliced thin, and fry those brown. Remove the kettle from the fire, and place on the onions and pork a layer of fish. Sprinkle over a little pepper and salt, then a layer of pared and sliced potatoes, a layer of fish and potatoes, till the fish is used up. Cover with water, and let it boil for half an hour. Pound six biscuits or crackers fine as meal, and pour into the pot ; and, lastly, add a pint of milk ; let it scald well, and serve. New England Chowder. — Take a good haddock, cod, or any other solid fish, cut it in pieces three inches square ; put a pound of fat, salt pork, cut into strips, into the pot ; set it on hot coals and fry out the grease ; take out the pork, but leave the grease in the bottom of the pot, and put in a layer of fish, over that a layer of sliced onions, over that a layer of fish, with slips of the fried pork, then another layer of onions and a few sliced raw potatoes, and so on alternately until your fish is all in ; mix some flour with as much water as will fill the pot ; season to suit your taste, and boil for half an hour ; have ready some pilot bread, soaked in water, and throw them into your chowder five minutes before tak- ing off; serve in a tureen. Pish-balls. — Two cupfuls cold boiled codfish, fresh or salted. Chop the fish when you have freed it of bones and skin ; work in one cupful of mashed potatoes, and moisten with a half cup of drawn butter with an egg beaten in. Sea- sen t© taste. Have them soft enough to mold, yet firm enaugh to keep in shape. Roll the balls in flour, and fry quiefely to a golden-brown in lard or clean dripping. Take from the fat so soon as they are done ; lay in a colander or sieve and shake gently, to free them from every drop of grease. Turn out for moment on white paper to absorb any lingering drops, and serve on a hot dish. FISH, OYSTERS, ETC. 53 Lobster Chowder. — Meat of one fine lobster, picked out from the shell and cut into bits, one quart of milk, six Boston crackers split and buttered, one even tea- spoonful of salt, one scant quarter-teaspoonful of cay- enne, two tablespoonfuls of butter rolled m one of pre- pared flour, a pinch of soda in the milk. Scald the milk, and stir in seasoning, butter, and flour, cook one minute, add the lobster, and simmer five minutes. Line a tureen with the toasted and buttered crackers, dipping each quickly in boiling water before putting it in place, and pour in the chowder. — Marion Harland. Clam Scallops. — Chop fifty clams fine, and drain off in a colander all the liquor that will come away. Mix this in a bowl with a cupful of crushed crackei , half a cupful of milk, two beaten eggs, a tablespoonful melted butter, half a teaspoonful of salt, a pinch of mace and the same of cayenne pepper. Beat into this the chopped clams and fill with the mixture, clam-shells, or the silver or stone-china shell-shaped dishes sold for this purpose. Bake to a light brown in a quick oven and serve in the shells. Serve with sliced lemon. — Marion Harland. Little Pigs in Blankets. — Season large oysters with salt and pepper. Cut bacon in very thin slices ; wrap an oyster in each slice, and fasten with a little wooden skewer. Heat a frying-pan and put in the "little pigs." Cook just long enough to crisp the bacon. Place on slices of toast that have been cut into small pieces and serve immediately. Do not remove the skewers. This is a nice relish for lunch or tea ; and, garnished with parsley, is a pretty one. The pan must be very hot before the ' ' pigs " are put in. Great care must be taken that they do not burn. — New Cook Book : Miss Maria Parloa. Estes & Lauriat, Publishers. 64 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Roasted Oysters. — Take oysters in the shell; wash the shells clean, and lay them on hot coals ; when they are done they will begin to open. Remove the upper shell, and serve the oysters in the lower shell, with a little melted butter poured over each, and season to taste. Oyster Toast. — Select fifteen plump oysters; mince them, and season with mixed pepper and a pinch of nutmeg ; beat the yelks of four eggs and mix them with half a pint of cream. Put the whole into a saucepan and set it over the fire to simmer till thick ; stir it well, and do not let it boil, lest it should curdle. Toast five pieces of bread, and butter them ; when your dish is near the boiling-point, remove it from the fire and pour it over the toast. Cream Oysters.— Fifty shell oysters, one quart sweet cream ; butter, pepper, and salt to suit taste. Put the cream and oysters in separate kettles to heat, the oysters in their own liquor, and let them come to a boil; when sufficiently cooked, skim ; then take them out of the liquid and put them into a dish to keep warm. Put the cream and liquid together. Season to taste, and thicken with powdered cracker. When sufficiently thick, stir in the oysters. Broiled Oysters. — Drain select oysters in a colander. Dip them one by one into melted butter, to prevent sticking to the gridiron, and place them on a wire gridiron. Broil over a clear fire. When nicely browned on both sides, season with salt, pepper, and plenty of butter, and lay them on hot buttered toast, moistened with a little hot water. Serve very hot. Oysters cooked in this way and served on broiled beefsteak are delicious. Pried Oysters. — Select the largest and finest fresh oysters, put them into a colander and pour over a little water to rinse them ; then place them on a dean towel and dry them. Have ready some grated bread-crumbs seasoned with FISH, OYSTERS, ETC. 55 pepper and salt, and plenty of yelk of egg beaten till very light ; and to each egg allow a large teaspoonful of rich cream or of the best fresh butter. Beat the egg and cream together. Dip each oyster first into the egg and cream, and then into the crumbs. Repeat this twice, until the oysters are well coated all over. Have ready boiling, in a frying-pan, an equal mixture of fresh butter and lard. It must very nearly fill the frying-pan, and be boiling fast when the oysters go in, otherwise they will be heavy and greasy. Fry them of a yellow brown on both sides, and serve hot. Oyster Salad, see Salads. Spiced or Pickled Oysters. — Put into a porcelain kettle one hundred and fifty large oysters with the liquor ; add salt, and simmer till the edges roll or curl ; skim them out ; add to the liquor one pint of white wine vinegar, one dozen blades mace, three dozen cloves, and three dozen pepper- corns ; let it come to a boil, and pour over the oysters. Serve with slices of lemon floating in saucer. Oyster Omelette. — Allow for every six large oysters or twelve small ones one egg ; remove the hard part and mince the rest very fine ; take the yelks of eight eggs and whites of four, beat till very light, then mix in the oysters ; season and beat up thoroughly ; put into a skillet a gill of butter, let it melt ; when the butter boils, skim it and turn in the ome- lette ; stir until it stiffens ; fry light brown ; when the under side is brown, turn on to a hot platter. To brown the upper side, hold a red-hot shovel over it. Scalloped Oysters, No. 1. — Open the shells, setting aside for use the deepest ones. Have ready some melted butter, not hot, seasoned with minced parsley and pepper. Roll each oyster in this, letting it drip as little as may be, and lay in the shells,which should be arranged in a baking-pan. Add 56 THE HO USE WIFE' S LIBRAR Y. to each a little lemon juice, sift bread-crumbs over it, and bake in a quick oven until done. Serve in the shells. Scalloped Oysters, No. 2. — Cover the bottom of a baking- dish (well buttered) with a layer of crumbs, and wet these with cream, put on spoonful by spoonful. Pepper and salt, and strew with minute bits of butter. Next, put in the oys- ters, with a little of their liquor. Pepper them, stick bits of butter in among them, and cover with dry crumbs until the oysters are entirely hidden. Add more pieces of butter, very small, and arrange thickly on top. Set in the oven, invert a plate over it to keep in the flavor, and bake until the juice bubbles up to the top. Remove the cover, and brown on the upper grating for two or three minutes. Serve in the bake-dish. Oyster Pie. — Line a dish with a puff paste or a rich bis- cuit paste, and dredge well with flour ; drain one quart of oysters ; season with pepper, salt, and butter, and pour into the dish ; add some of the liquor ; dredge with flour, and cover with a top crust, leaving a small opening in the centre. Bake in a quick oven. Oyster Patties. — Put one quart of oysters in a saucepan, with liquor enough to cover them, set it on the stove and let them come to a boil ; skim well, and stir in two table- spoonfuls of butter, a little pepper, and salt. Line some patty-pans with puff-paste, fill with oysters, cover with paste, and bake twenty minutes in a hot oven. The upper crust may be omitted, if desired. Oyster Macaroni — Boil macaroni in a cloth to keep it straight. Put a layer in a dish seasoned with pepper, salt, and butter, then a layer of oysters, until the dish is full. Mix some grated bread with a beaten egg, spread over the top, and bake. Qyster Sauce, see Sauces. FISff, OYSTERS, ETC. 57 Boiled Lobster. — If purchased alive, lobsters should be chosen by weight (the heaviest are the best) and their live- liness and briskness of motion. When freshly boiled they are stiff) and their tails turn strongly inward ; when the fish appear soft and watery, they are stale. The flesh of the male lobster is generally considered of the finest flavor for eating, but the hen lobster is preferred for sauce and soups, on account of the coral. To properly boil lobsters, throw them living into a kettle of fast-boiling salt and water, that life may be destroyed in an instant. Let them boil for about half an hour. When done, take them out of the kettle, wipe them clean, and rub the shell with a little salad-oil, which will give a clear red appearance. Crack the large claws without mashing them, and with a sharp knife split the body and tail from end to end. The head, which is never eaten, should also be sepa- rated from the body, but laid so near it that the division is almost imperceptible. Dress in any way preferred. Deviled Lobster. — Procure a live, heavy lobster ; put it in a pot of boiling water, with a handful of salt to it. When done and cold, take out all the meat carefully, putting the fat and coral on separate plates; cut the meat in small pieces, rub the coral to a paste ; stir the fat in it, with a little salt, cayenne, chopped parsley, essence of anchovies, and salad-oil, or melted butter and lemon juice ; cut the back of the lobster-shell in two, lengthwise ; wash clean ; stir the lobster and sauce well together; fill the shells; sprinkle bread-crumbs and a few bits of butter over the top ; set in the oven until the crumbs are brown. Stewed Lobster. — A middling-sized lobster is best; pick all the meat from the shells and mince it fine ; season with a little salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg ; add three o\ four spoonfuls of rich gravy and a small bit of butter. If you 58 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. have no gravy, use more butter and two spoonfuls of vinegar ; stew about twenty minutes. Lobster Salad, see Salads. Lobster Croquettes, see Croquettes. Lobster Sauce, see Sauces. Lobster Patties. — Proceed as in oyster patties, but use the meat of a cold boiled lobster. Terrapins. — Put the terrapins into a pot of boiling water, where they must remain until they are quite dead. You then divest them of their outer skin and toe-nails ; and, after washing them in warm water, boil them again until they become quite tender, adding a handful of salt to the water. Having satisfied yourself of their being perfectly tender, take off the shells and clean the terrapins very care- fully, removing the sandbag and gall without by any means breaking them. Then cut the meat into Small pieces and put into a saucepan, adding the juice which has been given out in cutting them up, but no water, and season with salt, cay- enne, and black pepper to your taste, adding a quarter of a pound of good butter for each terrapin and a handful of flour for thickening. After stirring a short time, add four or five tablespoonfuls of cream, and a half pint of good Maderia to every four terrapins, and serve hot in a deep dish. A very little mace may be added and a large table- spoonful of mustard ; just before serving, add the yelks of four hard-boiled eggs. During the stewing, particular attention must be paid to stirring the preparation frequently ; and terrapins cannot possibly be served too hot. Mock Terrapin. — Take half a calf's l'Ver, season and fry it brown ; chop it into dice, not too small ; flour it thickly, and add a teaspoonful of mixed mustard, a little cayenne pepper, two hard-boiled eggs chopped fine, a lump of but- FISIT, OYSTERS, ETC. 59 ter the size of an egg, and a teacupful of water. Let it boil a minute or two. Cold veal will do as well as liver. Scalloped Crabs. — Put the crabs into a kettle of boiling water, and throw in a handful of salt. Boil from twenty minutes to half an hour. Take them from the water when done and pick out all the meat ; be careful not to break the shell. To a pint of meat put a little salt and pepper ; taste, and if not enough add more, a little at a time, till suited. Grate in a very little nutmeg, and add one spoonful of cracker or bread crumbs, two eggs well beaten, and two tablespoonfuls of butter (even full) ; stir all well together ; wash the shells clean, and fill each shell full of the mixture; sprinkle crumbs over the top and moisten with butter, then bake until nicely browned on top. Soft-shell Crabs. — Season with pepper and salt; roll in flour, then in egg, then in bread-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. Serve hot with rich condiments. Stewed Clams. — Chop the clams and season with pepper and salt; put in a saucepan butter the size of an egg, and when melted add a teaspoonful of flour; add slowly the clam liquor and then the clams, and cook three minutes ; then add half a pint of cream, and serve. Deviled Clams. — Chop fifty clams very fine; take two tomatoes, one onion chopped equally fine, a little parsley, thyme, and sweet marjoram, a little salt, pepper, and bread- crumbs, adding the juice of the clams until the mixture is of the consistency of sausage ; put it in the shells with a lump of butter on each ; cover with bread-crumbs, and bake one-half hour. Clam Chowder. — Forty-five clams chopped, one quart of sliced potatoes, one-half pint sliced onions. Cut a few slices salt pork, fry to a crisp, chop fine. Put in kettle a little fat 60 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. from the pork, a layer of potatoes, clams, onions, a little pep- per and salt ; another layer of chopped pork, potatoes, etc., until all are in. Pour over all the juice of the clams. Cook three hours, being careful not to burn. Add a teacupful of milk just before serving. Scallops. — Wipe dry; dip separately into seasoned egg, then into cracker dust, and fry in hot lard. RECIPES INCIDENTAL TO FISH. Bread Stuffing for Fish. — Take about half a pound of stale bread and soak in water, and when soft press out the water; add a very little chopped suet, pepper, salt, a large table- spoonful of onion minced and fried, and, if preferred, a little minced parsley ; cook a trifle, and after removing from the fire add a beaten egg. Bread Stuffing, No. 2. — Bread-crumbs with a little chopped parsley and pork, salt, pepper, and butter. Fill up the fish, sew it closely, then bake. Cleaning a Shad. — Scale and scrape it carefully; split it down the back and remove the contents, reserving the roe or melt. Wash well and cook as desired. Soaking Salt Fish. — Very salt fish should be soaked several hours in three or four changes of warm water. Place the skin side up, so that salt crystals may fall away from the under or meat side. Wipe carefully and clean, then soak for an hour in very cold water. Fish in Season. — As a rule, fish are in best condition just before they spawn, and many are so while they are full of roe, as smelts, mackerel, and shad. As soon as spawning is over, they become unfit for food, some of them becoming positively unwholesome. In season, the flesh is firm and it boils white ; when it boils to a bluish hue, the fish are not in season, or are stale. £5 INSEPARABLE from the charm of the turkey is the dressing thereof. It is difficult, however, to make a perfect dressing. It is sometimes too tame, sometimes too strong, again it contains too much of one kind of herb, not enough of another. BELL'S SPICED SEASONING overcomes the difficulty. It gives the effect of a dozen different varieties. Made from pure sweet herbs and choice selected spices, it is pure, economi- cal, rich, yet delicate. It makes a perfect dressing every time, appetizing, delicious. For meats, game and fish; in croquettes, scalloped dishes and soups the housekeeper finds Bell's Seasoning invaluable. It saves time and bother. Get Bell's from your grocer. Be sure and get Bell's. There are always imitations of a good thing. Ask for our dainty booklet of receipts, every one tested. Sent by mail to any address. If your grocer cannot supply you, send 10 cents in stamps for a sample can containing enough to flavor the dressing for 100 lbs. of meat or poultry. Please mention where you saw this advertisement. TEe WILLIAM G. BELL COMPANY SOLE PROPRIETORS 50-54 Commercial St., Boston, Mass. IV.— POULTRY AND GAME. GENERAL REMARKS ON POULTRY AND GAME — HOW TO SELECT, PREPARATION FOR BOILING, FOR ROASTING, ETC. THIRTY-ONE RECIPES FOR POULTRY AND GAME. RECIPES. Roast Turkey. — A young turkey, weighing not more than eight or nine pounds, is the best. Wash and clean thor- oughly, wiping dry, as moisture will spoil the stuffing. Take one small loaf of bread grated fine, rub into it a piece of butter the size of an egg, one small teaspoonful of pep- per and one of salt ; a sprinkling of sweet marjoram, sum- mer savory, or sage, if liked. Rub all together, and fill the turkey, sewing up so that the stuffing cannot cook out. Always put the giblets under the side of the fowl, so they will not dry up. Rub salt, pepper, and butter on the out- side; put into dripping-pan with one teacupful of water, basting often, turning the fowl till brown all over ; bake about two hours ; take out the giblets and chop fine. After taking out the turkey, put a large tablespoonful of flour into the pan and stir until brown. Put the giblets into a gravy- boat, and pour over them the gravy. Boiled Turkey. — Stuff the turkey as for roasting. A very nice dressing is made by chopping half a pint of oysters and mixing them with bread-crumbs, butter, pepper, salt, thyme, and wet with milk or water. Baste about the turkey a thin cloth, the inside of which has been dredged with flour, and put it to boil in cold water with a teaspoonful of salt 62 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. in ft. Let a large turkey simmer for three hours; skim while boiling. Serve with oyster sauce, made by adding to a cupful of the liquor in which the turkey was boiled the same quantity of milk and eight oysters chopped fine ; sea- son with minced parsley ; stir in a spoonful of rice or wheat flour wet with cold milk ; a tablespoonful of butter. Boil up once and pour into a tureen. Boned Turkey. — Boil a large turkey in as little water as possible until the meat falls from the bones ; remove all the bones and skin ; pick the meat into small pieces, and mix dark and light together ; season with pepper and salt ; put into a mold and pour over it the liquor, which must be kept warm, and press with a heavy weight. Roast Chicken. — Having selected your chickens in view of the foregoing hints, proceed, in the matters of cleansing, filling, and preparing for the oven, precisely as directed in the case of roast turkey. As the roasting goes on, baste and turn as may be needful to secure a rich brown all over the fowls. Prepare the gravy as in the former case. Stewed Chicken. — Clean and cut the chicken into joints ; put it in a saucepan with the giblets ; stew in just enough water to cover it until tender ; season with pepper, salt, and butter ; thicken with flour ; boil up once and serve with the gravy poured over it. Broiled Chicken. — Only young, tender chickens are nice broiled. After cleaning and washing them, split down the back, wipe dry, season with salt and pepper, and lay them inside down on a hot gridiron over a bed of bright coals. Broil until nicely browned and well cooked through, watch- ing and turning to prevent burning. If chickens are large, steaming them for one-half hour before placing on the grid- iron will better insure their being cooked through. POULTRY AND GAME. 63 Chicken Souffle. — Take the white meat of one chicken, remove all skin and sinews, chop very fine. Put the chopped meat in a skillet or stew-pan, add some white sauce, a little chopped parsley ; salt and pepper to taste ; stir it until it boils ; allow it to cool a little ; add yolks of three eggs beaten to a froth, and stir well. Turn into a baking-dish or mould which has been well buttered and the bottom covered with fine cracker crumbs. Bake in a very quick oven. Serve with white sauce. Chicken Patties. — Prepare crusts in the same way as for tarts. Boil the chicken until tender. Chop the meat, but not too fine. Make a gravy out of the water in which the chicken was boiled by adding a half-cupful of flour and two teaspoonfuls of butter to a quart of water. Season with pepper and salt to taste ; put the chopped chicken into the gravy, and boil for five min- utes, and fill the crusts with it. Don't have the filling too thin. Serve at once. Potted Pigeon. — Clean the birds and then stuff them with a dressing proportioned in following recipe. Sew them up and truss them ; boil them for half an hour with just water enough to cover them ; take them out and drain ; roll in flour and fry brown in pork fat ; make a gravy out of the liquid in which they were boiled, thick- ened with flour and seasoned to taste ; let the pigeons simmer in this gravy for two hours ; serve with the gravy. Poultry Dressing. — Toast eight slices of white bread; place in a deep dish, add butter the size of an egg, cover with hot water to melt butter and make bread of right consistency ; add one even teaspoonful of Bell's Spiced Seasoning and one even teaspoonful of salt; mix well and stir in one or two raw eggs. g4 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Fricasseed Chickens. — Cut them in pieces, and put in the stewpan with salt and pepper ; add a little water, and let them boil half an hour ; thon thicken the gravy with flour ; add butter and a little cream, if you have it. Catsup is an additional relish to the gravy. Smothered Chicken. — Dress your chickens ; wash and let them stand in water half an hour to make them white ; cut them open at the back; put into a baking-pan, sprinkle salt and pepper over them, putting a lump of butter here and there ; cover tightly with another pan the same size, and bake one hour ; baste often with butter. Pried Chicken. — Prepare the chicken as for stewing ; dry it, season with salt and pepper, dredge with flour, and fry brown in hot butter or lard ; take it out, drain, and serve with Challenge Sauce, or some other savory condiment, or pour into the gravy left in the frying-pan a cup of milk, thicken with flour, add a little butter, and season with Sal- picant; boil once and pour over the chicken, or serve sepa- rately. Chickens. Pried with Rice. — Take two or three chickens, cut them up, and half fry them ; then boil half a pint of rice in a quart of water, leaving the grains distinct, but not too dry ; stir one large tablespoonful of butter in the rice while hot ; let five eggs be well beaten into the rice, with a little salt, pepper, and nutmeg, if the last is liked ; put the chick- ens into a deep dish, and cover with the rice ; brown in an oven not too hot. Chicken Pie. — Line the sides of a deep pie-dish with a good puff paste. Have your chicken cooked, as for a fricassee, seasoned with salt and pepper and a little, chopped parsley. When they are nearly cooked, lay them in a pie- dish with half a pound of salt pork cut into small squares, and some of the paste also cut into half-inch pieces ; pour POULTRY AND CAME. 65 in a part of the chicken gravy, thicken with a little flour, and cover the dish with the paste cover. Cut a hole the size of a dollar in the cover, and cover it with a piece of dough. When baking, remove this piece occasionally and examine the interior. Brush egg over the top crust of the pie, and bake in a quick oven. Should the pie become dry pour in more of the gravy. Pigeon pie or any other bird pie may be made by the above recipe. Chicken Pot-pie. — Cut and joint a large chicken. Cover with water, arid let it boil gently until tender. Season with salt and pepper, and thicken the gravy with two tablespoon- fuls of flour mixed smooth in a piece of butter the size of an egg. Have ready nice, light bread dough ; cut with a biscuit-cutter about an inch thick ; drop this into the boiling gravy, having previously removed the chicken to a hot platter; cover, and let them boil from one-half to three- quarters of an hour. To ascertain whether they are done, stick them with a fork ; if it comes out clean, they are done. Lay them on the platter with the chicken, pour over the gravy, and serve. Pressed Chicken. — Boil three chickens until the meat comes off the bones ; then, removing all bones and skin, chop the meat, but do not chop very fine ; add a piece of butter as large as an egg ; salt and pepper to season well. Take about a pint of the broth in which the chickens were boiled, into which put one-half a box of Swampscott Sparkling Gelatine ; when the gelatine has dissolved, put back the chopped chicken and cook until the broth is evenly absorbed. Pour the whole into a mould or pan and press under a weight until cold. When ready, serve with sliced hard-boiled eggs and garnish with parsley, water-cress or sliced lemon. Veal may be treated in a similar manner. 66 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Jellied Chicken. — Cook a chicken in boiling water until tender, remove skin and bones, and season to taste, and place in mould. Place the bones back in the liquid and boil until there is about one quart of liquid left. Add one-quarter box Swampscott Sparkling Gelatine and the juice of one lemon ; salt and pepper to taste ; strain over the chicken and stand in cool place to harden. Roast Goose and Duck. — A goose should always be par- boiled, as it removes the rank taste and makes it more palatable. Clean, prepare, and roast the same as turkey, only adding to the force-meat a large onion chopped fine. Ducks dp not require parboiling (unless very old), otherwise . they are cooked the same as geese. Canvas-back Duck. — Having picked, singed, and drawn it well, wipe it carefully, so as to have it clean without wash- ing. Truss it, leaving the head on, to show its quality. Place it in a moderately hot oven for at least three-quarters of an hour ; serve it hot, in its own gravy, on a large chafing- dish. Currant jelly should be on the table. Roast Pigeons. — Clean, wash, and stuff the same as poultry ; lay them in rows in a dripping-pan with a little water. Unless they are very fat, baste with butter until they are half done, afterward with their own gravy. Roast Snipe. — Clean and truss, but do not stuff! Lay in rows in the dripping-pan, sprinkle with salt, and baste well with butter, then with butter and water. When they begin to brown, cut as many slices of bread as there are birds. Toast quickly, butter, and lay in the dripping-pan, a bird upon each. When the birds are done, serve upon the toast, with the gravy poured over it. The toast should lie under them while cooking at least five minutes, during which time the birds should be basted with melted butter seasoned with pepper. The largest snipe will not require above twenty POULTRY AND GAME. 67 minutes to roast. Or, dip an oyster in melted butter, then in bread-crumbs, seasoned with pepper and salt, and put in each bird before roasting. Small birds are especially de- licious cooked in this way. Roast Partridges, Pheasants, or Quails. — Pluck, singe, draw, and truss them ; season with salt and pepper; roast for about half an hour in a brisk oven, basting often with butter. When done, place on a dish together with bread-crumbs fried brown and arranged in small heaps. Gravy should be served separately in a tureen. Quail on Toast. — Clean, wash, slit down the back, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and lay them on a gridiron, the inside down. Broil slowly; when nicely browned, butter well. Serve with cream gravy on toast. Omitting the cream, gravy, and toast, you have the ordinary broiled quail. Pigeons, woodcock, and small birds may be broiled in the same manner, and are delicious and nourishing for invalids. Pried Rabbit. — After the rabbit has been thoroughly cleaned and washed, put it into boiling water and let it boil for about ten minutes ; drain, and when cold, cut it into joints ; dip into beaten egg, and then into fine bread-crumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper. When all are ready, fry them in butter over a moderate fire fifteen minutes ; thicken the gravy with an ounce of butter and a small teaspocnful of flour. Serve hot. Roast Rabbit. — Dress nicely and fill with a dressing made of bread-crumbs, a little onion, sage, pepper, and salt, and a small piece of butter ; tie a piece of salt pork over it ; put into a dripping-pan with a little water in a quick oven ; baste often ; serve with currant jelly. Broiled Steaks of Venison. — Heat the gridiron, grease it well, lay on the steaks ; broil quickly, without scorching, 68 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. turning them two or three times ; season with salt and pepper. Have butter melted in a well-heated platter, into which lay steaks, hot from the gridiron, turning them over several times in the butter, and serve hot with currant jelly on each steak. It is well to set the platter into another containing boiling water. Game or Poultry in Jelly. — Take a knuckle of veal weighing two pounds ; a slice of lean ham ; one shallot, minced ; a sprig of thyme and one of parsley ; six pepper-corns (white) and one teaspoonful of salt, with three pints of cold water. Boil all these together until the liquor is reduced to a pint ; strain without squeezing, and set to cool until next day. It should then be a firm jelly. Take off every particle of fat. Then take one package gelatine, soaked in one cupful cold water for three hours ; one tablespoonful of sugar ; two table- spoonfuls strained lemon juice, and two tablespoonfuls of currant jelly, dissolved in cold water, and strained through a muslin cloth. Pour a quart of boiling water over the gela- tine, stir for a moment, add the jellied " stock," and when this is dissolved, add sugar, lemon juice, and coloring. Stir until all are mixed and melted together, and strain without shaking or squeezing through a flannel bag until quite clear. Have ready several hard-boiled eggs, and the remains of roast game, roast or boiled poultry, cut in neat, thin slices, and salted slightly. Wet a mold with cold water, and when the jelly begins to harden, pour some in the bottom. Cut the whites of the eggs in pretty shapes — stars, flowers, rings, leaves — with a keen penknife, and arrange these on the lowest stratum of jelly, which should be thin, that the forms may be visible. Add more jelly, and on this lay slices of meat, close together. More jelly, and proceed in this order until the mold is full. Set in a cool place to harden, and then turn out upon a flat dish. A mold with smooth, upright sides, is best for this purpose. POULTRY AND GAME. Q& RECIPES INCIDENTAL TO POULTRY, GAME, ETC. Gravy for Poultry. — Boil the giblets very tender; chop fine ; then take the liquor in which they are boiled, thicken with flour ; season with salt, pepper, and a little butter ; add the giblets and dripping in which the turkey was roasted. Plain Stuffing. — Take stale bread, cut off all the crust, rub very fine, and pour over it as much melted butter as will make it crumble in your hands ; salt and pepper to taste. See also under " Roast Turkey." Potato Stuffing. — Take two-thirds bread and one-third boiled potatoes grated, butter size of an egg, pepper, salt, one egg ; mix thoroughly. Oyster Stuffing. — By substituting oysters for potatoes in the above, you have.oyster filling. See also under " Boiled Turkey." Stuffing for Boiled Chicken. — One cupful of bread-crumbs, one tablespoonful of butter, one egg, half a teaspoonful of salt, and one tablespoonful of sweet marjoram. Mix well ; stuff and sew in. Capons. — Young male fowls, prepared by early gelding, and "then nicely fattened, are the finest delicacies in the poultry line. They may be known by a small head, pale comb, which is short and withered, the neck feathers longer than usual, smooth legs, and soft, short spurs. They are cooked as ordinary chickens. Keeping Game. — Game is rendered more tender, and its flavor is improved by keeping. If wrapped in a cloth satu- rated with equal parts of pyroligneous acid and water, it will keep many days. If in danger of tainting, clean, rub well with salt, and plunge into boiling water, letting it run through them for five minutes ; then hang in a cold place. If tainted, put them in new milk over night. Always hanf them up by the neck. 70 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Duckling Pot Roast. — This is a very good way to cook this very acceptable bird. Put into a shallow crock a thin strip of bacon and a tablespoonful of mixed whole spice. Clean and truss two ducklings, put them in the crock, add hot water or soup-stock enough to come up half-way on the birds. Then add a sprig of celery and two of parsley ; place a narrow strip of bacon over each bird; cover close and set the crock in a moderate oven, where the birds will cook slowly two hours. Remove the ducklings, strain the sauce, and reduce it one-third by boiling ; add a gill of dark wine ; thicken with a dash of brown flour ; simmer fifteen minutes ; add a teaspoonful of lemon-juice and serve with the duck. A small quantity of the sauce may be boiled down until thick as cream. This is called glaze ; it is brushed over the bird before serving. — Thomas J. Murrey. Fillet of Grouse. — Remove the breast and separate into four or six pieces. Disjoint and cook the remainder in boiling salted water to cover, till tender ; then remove all the meat and chop it fine. Thicken the broth (which should be reduced to half a cup), season, and moisten the meat. Spread the minced meat on squares of toast ; put a layer of currant jelly on each. Rub the fillets with butter and broil them carefully ; season with salt, pepper and butter, and lay them on the jelly. — The Peerless Cook Book : Mrs. D. A. Lincoln, Roberts Brothers, Publishers. Potted Fowl Roast. — Put fowl in pot, half covering with boiling water, and boil until tender, letting the water boil away. Add salt and pepper and let fowl brown in the fat. Serve with a gravy. >> *P%J BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES V. — MEATS. I. — BEEF. HOW TO ROAST, BROIL, AND BOIL BEEF. NINETEEN RECIPES FOR COOKING BEEF. RECIPES. Roast Beef — The best roasting-pieces are the middle ribs and the sirloin. The ends of the ribs should be removed from the flank, and the latter folded under the beef and securely fastened with skewers. Rub a little salt into the fat part ; place the meat in the dripping-pan with a pint of stock or water ; baste freely, and dredge with flour half an hour before taking the joint from the oven. Should the oven be very hot, place a buttered paper over the meat to prevent it scorching while yet raw. When the paper is used it will need very little basting. Or, turn the rib side up toward the fire for the first twenty minutes. The time it will take in cooking depends upon the thickness of the joint and the length of time the animal has been killed. Skim the fat from the gravy and add a tablespoonful of prepared brown flour to the remainder. Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding. — Take a large rib roast ; rub salt and pepper over it, and dredge with flour. Place on a rack in a dripping-pan, with very little water, until it is heated thoroughly; baste frequently. When nicely browned on the upper side, turn and baste. About three-quarters of an hour before it is done, take out the meat, pour off most of the dripping, put the batter for the 72 THE HO USE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. pudding in the bottom of the pan, allowing the drippingu from the beef to drop into it. When the pudding is done, return the meat and finish roasting. Add some hot water t© the dripping and thicken with flour for the gravy. For the batter of this pudding, take half a cup of butter, three cups of flour, three eggs, one cup of milk, and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder. Beef a la Mode. — Take a round of fresh beef, extract the •bone, and take away the fat. For a round weighing ten pounds, make a seasoning or stuffing as follows : Half a pound of beef suet ; half a pound of grated bread-crumbs ; the crumbled yelks of three hard-boiled eggs; a little bundle of sweet marjoram, the leaves chopped; another of sweet basil ; four onions minced small; a large tablespoonful of mixed mace and nutmeg powdered. Season lightly with salt and cayenne. Stuff this mixture into the place from whence you took out the bone. Make a number of deep cuts about the meat, and stuff them also. Skewer the meat into a favorable shape, and secure its form by tying it round with tape. Put it -into a tin bakepan, and pour over it a pint of port wine. Put on the lid, and bake the beef slowly for five or six hours, or till it is thoroughly done. If the meat is to be eaten hot, skim all the fat from the gravy, into which, after it is taken off the fire, stir in the beaten yelks of two eggs. Minced oysters maybe substituted for onions. Spiced Beet — Boil a shin of beef weighing ten or twelve pounds, until the meat falls readily from the bones. Pick the meat to pieces, and mash the gristle very fine, rejecting' all parts that are too hard to mash. Set away the liquor in which the beef has boiled till it is cold ; then take off all the fat. Boil the liquor down to a pint and a half. Roll a dozen crackers very fine, and add them to the meat. Then return the meat to the liquor, and heat it all. Add salt and pepper to taste, half a teasooonful of cloves, half a teaspoon* MEATS. 73 ful of cinnamon, half a teaspoonful 01 parsley chopped fine, and a little powdered nutmeg. Let it boil up once, and put into a mold or deep dish, with a weight adjusted to press it down. When it is entirely cold, cut into thin slices. Savory Beef — Take a shin of beef from the hind-quarter, saw it into four pieces, put it into a pot, and boil it until the meat and gristle drop from the bones ; chop the meat very fine, put it in a dish, and season it with a little salt, pepper, clove, and sage, to your taste ; pour in the liquor in which the meat was boiled, and place it away to harden. Cut in slices and eat cold. Minced Beet — Cut cold roast beef into thin slices; put some of the gravy into a stewpan, a bit ■ of butter rolled in flour, pepper and salt, and boil it up Add a little catsup, and put in the minced slices, and heat them through, but do not let it boil. Put small slices of toast in the dish, and cover with the meat. Deviled Beef — Take slices of cold roast beef, lay them on hot coals, and broil ; season with pepper and salt, and serve while hot, with a small lump of butter on each piece. Curried Beef — Take about two ounces of butter and place them in a saucepan with two small onions cut up into slices, and let them fry till they are of a light brown ; then add a tablespoonful and a half of curry powder, and mix it up well. Now cut up the beef into pieces about an inch square ; pour in from a quarter to a third of a pint of milk, and let it simmer for thirty minutes ; then take it off and place it in a dish with a little lemon juice. While cooking stir constantly, to prevent burning. Send it to table with a wall of mashed potatoes or rice around it. Beef Hash. — Chop fine cold steak or roast beef, and cook in a little water ; add cream or milk, and thicken with flour ; season to taste, and pour over thin slices of toast. 74 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Beef Stew. — Cut cold beef into small pieces, and put into cold water ; add one tomato, a little onion, chopped fine ; pepper and salt, and cook slowly ; thicken with butter and flour, and pour over toast. Boiled Corned Beef. — Put four or five pounds of lean corned meat into a pot with plenty of water. The water should be hot. The same care should be taken in skimming as for fresh meat. Allow half an hour for every pound of meat after it has begun to boil. The excellence of corned beef depends very much upon its being boiled gently and long. If it is to be eaten cold, lay it, when boiled, into a coarse earthen dish or pan, and over it a clean board about the size of the meat ; upon this put a heavy weight. Salt meat is much improved by pressing. Stewed Shin of Beef. — Wash, and set it on to stew in suffi- cient cold water to keep it just covered until done. When it boils, take off the scum, and put an ounce and a quarter of salt to the gallon of water. It is usual to add a few cloves and some black pepper, slightly bruised and tied up loosely in a fold of muslin, two or more onions, a root of celery, a bunch of savory herbs, four or five carrots, and as many turnips, either whole or sliced ; if to be served with the meat, the last two will require a little more than the ordinary time of boiling, but otherwise they may be simmered with the meat from the beginning. Give the beef from four to five hours' gentle stewing, and serve it with part of its own liquor thickened and flavored, or quite plain. Boiled Tongue. — Soak the tongue over night, then boil four or five hours. Peel off the outer skin and return it to the water in which it was boiled to cool. This will render it juicy and tender. Baked Heart. — Wash carefully and stuff nicely ; roast or bake and serve with gravy, which should be thickened with MEATS. 75 some of the stuffing. It is very nice hashed, with a little port wine added. Broiled Beefeteak. — Have the choice steaks cut three- quarters of an inch thick ; grease the gridiron and have it well heated. Put the steak over a hot, clear fire. When the steak is colored, turn it over, which must be done without sticking a fork into it and thus letting out the juice. It should be quite rare or pink in the centre, but not raw. When cooked sufficiently, lay on a hot platter and season with pepper and salt ; spread over the top some small bits of butter, and serve immediately. Salt extracts the juices of meats in cooking. Steaks ought not to be salted until they have been broiled. Beefeteak with Onions: — Take a nice rumpsteak, and pound it with a rolling-pin until it is quite tender ; flour and season; put it into a frying-pan with hot lard and fry it. When well browned on both sides, take it up and dredge with flour. Have about two dozen onions ready boiled ; strain them in a colander and put them in a frying-pan, seasoning with pepper and salt ; dredge in a little flour, and add a smaii lump of butter ; place the pan over the fire and stir the onions frequently, to prevent tl~ Jr scorching. When they are soft and a little brown, return the steak to the pan, and heat all together. Place the steak on a large dish, pour the onions and gravy over it, and send to the table hot. Beefeteak and Tomatoes. — Stew a dozen good-sized tomatoes one hour, with salt and pepper. Then put in a pound of tender beefsteak, cut in small pieces, and boil fifteen min- utes longer. Lay buttered toast in a deep dish, pour on the steak and tomato, and you have a most relishing and healthful dish. Stuffed Beefsteak. — Take a rump steak about an inch thick. Make a stuffing of bread and herbs, and spread it over the steak. Roll it up, and with a needle and coarse thread sew 76 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. it together. Lay it in an iron pot on one or two wooden skewers, and put in water just sufficient to cover it. Let it stew slowly for two hours — longer if the beef is tough ; serve it in a dish with the gravy turned over it. To be carved crosswise, in slices, through beef and stuffing. BeeMeak Pudding. — Prepare a good suet crust, and line a cake tin with it; put in layers of steak, with onions, toma- toes and mushrooms chopped, a seasoning of pepper, salt, and cayenne, and half a teacupful of water before closing it. Bake from an hour and a half to two hours, and serve hot II.— VEAL. CHOOSING VEAL, FOR ROASTING, FOR STEWING; THE HEAD, FEET, KIDNEYS, SWEET-BREADS, ETC.; GENERAL USEFULNESS. TWENTY-ONE RECIPES FOR COOKING VEAL. VEAL should be fat, finely grained, white, firm, and not overgrown. When large, it is apt to be coarse and tough, and if too young, it lacks flavor and is less wholesome. it is more difficult to keep than any meat except pork, and should never be allowed to acquire the slightest taint before it is dressed. The fillet, the loin, the shoulder, and the best end of the neck, are the parts preferred for roasting ; the breast and knuckle are more usually stewed or boiled. The head and feet of the calf are valuable articles of food, both for the nutriment which the gelatinous parts of them afford, and for the greater variety of modes in which they may be dressed. The kidneys, with the rich fat that surrounds them, and the sweet-breads especially, are well-known delicacies; the liver and the heart also are very good eating ; and no meat s so generally useful for rich soups and gravies as veal. MEATS. 77 The best veal is from calves not less than four, or more than six weeks old. If younger it is not wholesome. If older its character begins to change materially from the calf's use of grasses and other food. RECIPES. Roast Veal — Take a loin or fillet of veal ; make a stuffing as for roast turkey ; fill the flat with the stuffing, and sew it firmly to the loin ; rub the veal with salt, pepper, and flour, and put it into a pan with a little water. While roasting, baste frequently, letting it cook until thoroughly done. Allow two hours for a roast weighing from six to eight pounds. When done, remove the threads before sending to the table ; thicken the gravy with a little flour. Veal should be rather overdone. Pot-roasted Fillet. — Remove the bone and fill the cavity with a force-meat made of bread-crumbs, a very little salt, pork chopped fine, sage, pepper, salt, and ground cloves. Lay in the pot a layer of slices of salt pork ; put in the fil let, fastened with skewers, cover with additional pork, pout over it a pint of good stock, cover down close, and let it cook slowly two or three hours ; then take off the cover and let it brown. Serve hot. Boiled Fillet — A small and delicately white fillet should be selected for this purpose. Bind it round with tape, after having washed it thoroughly ; cover it well with cold water, and bring it gently to a boil ; clear off carefully the scum as it rises, and be very cautious not to allow the water to become smoked. Let the meat be gently simmered for three hours and a half to four and a half, according to its weight. Send it to table with rich white sauce. Veal Stew. — Cut four or five pounds of veal into strips ; peel a dozen large potatoes, and cut them into slices ; place a layer of sliced salt pork with salt, pepper, sage, and onion 78 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. on the bottom of the pot, then a layer of potatoes, then a layer of the veal nicely seasoned. Use up the veal thus. Over the last layer of veal put a layer of the pork, and over the whole a layer of potatoes. Pour in water till it covers the whole ; cover the pot closely ; heat it rapidly for a few minutes, and then let it simmer two hours. Veal Hash. — Take a teacupful of boiling water in a sauce- pan, stir into it an even teaspoonful of flour wet in a table- spoonful of cold water, and let it boil five minutes ; add one-half teaspoonful of black pepper, as much salt, and two tablespoonfuls of butter, and let it keep hot, but not boil. Chop the veal fine and mix with half as much stale bread- crumbs. Put into a pan and pour the gravy over it, then let it simmer ten minutes. Serve this on buttered toast. Veal Pie. — Line a pudding-dish with good pie crust ; into this put a layer of veal cut into small slices from the neck, or other less valuable part ; make a second layer of hard- boiled eggs sliced thin ; butter and pepper this layer. Add a layer of sliced ham, or salt pork, squeezing a few drops of lemon juice on the ham. Add more veal, as before, with eggs, ham, etc., till the dish is nearly full. Pour over a cupful of stock and cover with a stout crust. Bake in a moderate oven for two hours. Veal Pot Pie. — Make a crust of a dozen mashed potatoes, two tablespoonfuls of butter, half a teacup of milk or cream, a little salt, and flour enough to stiffen it nicely. Fry half a dozen slices of salt pork, then cut up the veal and boil these together, in but little water, till the veal is almost done. Peel and slice a dozen potatoes quite thin, and roll the dough about half an inch thick and cut it into strips. Now build in your pot a layer of crust, meat, potatoes ; then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then another set of layers, and top off with crust. Pour on the liquor in which the meat was cooked, and let all simmer for half an hour, or until MEATS. 7 J the top crust is cooked. Brown the crust by holding over it a red-hot shovel. Veal Loaf — Take a piece of butter the size of an egg, three pounds of raw veal, one heaping teaspoonful of salt, one of pepper, and two raw eggs. Chop the veal fine and mix all together, and put in about two tablespoonfuls of water. Mold this into a loaf, then roll it in eight tablespoonfuls of rolled crackers, and pour over it three tablespoonfuls of melted butter ; place in a pan and bake two hours. To be sliced off when cold, and served at luncheon or tea. Veal with Oysters. — Cut the veal in small, thin slices, place it in layers in a jar with salt, pepper, and oysters. Pour in the liquor of the oysters, set the jar in a kettle of boiling water, and let it stew till the meat becomes very tender. Veal with Rice. — Pour over a small knuckle of veal rather more than sufficient water to cover it ; bring it slowly to a boil ; take off all the scum with great care ; throw in a tea- spoonful of salt, and when the joint has simmered for about half an hour, throw in from eight to twelve ounces of well- washed rice, and stew the veal gently for an hour and a halt longer, or until both the meat and rice are perfectly tender. A seasoning of cayenne and mace in fine powder, with more salt, should it be required, must be added twenty or thirty minutes before they are served. For a superior stew, good veal broth may be substituted for the water. Veal with Peas. — A quart or more of full-grown green peas, instead of rice, added to the veal, prepared as above, as soon as the scum has been cleared off, will make a most excellent stew. It should be well seasoned with white pepper, and the mace should be omitted. Cutlets ill Craoker. — Pound the cutlet and season, cut the edges into good shape ; take one egg, beat it a little, roll the cutlet in it, then cover thoroughly with rolled crackers. gO THE HO USE WIFE'S LIB R AR Y. Have a lump of butter and lard mixed hot in your skillet } put in the meat and cook slowly. When nicely browned stir in one spoonful of flour for the gravy ; add half a pint of sweet milk, and let it come to a boil. Salt and pepper. Cutlets, Broiled. — Trim evenly ; sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides ; dip in melted butter, and place upon the grid- iron over a clear fire; baste while broiling with melted butter, turn over three or four times ; serve with melted butter, or tomato sauce. Pressed Veal. — Put four pounds of veal in a pot ; cover with water ; stew slowly until the meat drops from the bone, then take out and chop fine ; let the liquor boil down until there is a cupful ; put in a small cupful of butter, a table- spoonful of pepper, a little allspice, and a beaten egg ; stir this through the meat ; slice a hard-boiled egg ; lay in a mold, and press in the meat ; when put upon the table gar- nish with celery tops or parsley. Minced Veal. — Heat a cupful of well-thickened gravy to a boil; add two tablespoonfuls of cream or rich milk, one tablespoonful of butter, pepper and salt, parsley to taste, a small onion, and three eggs well beaten; When these are stirred in, add the cold minced meat, salted and peppered. Let it heat thoroughly, but not boil. Veal Scallops. — Mince the meat very small, and set it over the fire ; season with grated nutmeg, pepper and salt, and a little cream. Then put it into scallop-shells, and cover with crumbs of bread, over which put bits of butter, and brown at a quick fire. Serve hot, with catsup or mushroom sauce. Calf's Liver or Heart. — Cut the liver in slices, plunge into boiling water for an instant, wipe dry, season with pepper and salt, dredge with flour, and fry brown in lard. Have it per- fectly done. Serve in gravy, made with either milk or water. Calf's heart dressed in this way is also very palatable. MEATS. 8] Broiled Sweet-breads.— Parboil and blanch the sweet« breads by putting them first into hot water and keeping it at a hard boil for five minutes, then plunging it into ice- cold water somewhat salted. Allow them to lie in this ten minutes, wipe them very dry, and with a sharp knife split in half, lengthwise. Broil over a clear, hot fire, turning when- ever they begin to drip. Have ready upon a deep plate melted butter, well salted and peppered, mixed with catsup or Challenge sauce. When the sweet-breads are done to a fine brown lay them in this preparation, turning them over several times ; cover and set them in a warm oven. Serve on fried bread or toast in a chafing-dish, a piece of sweet- bread on each. Pour on the hot butter and send to table. Stewed Sweet-breads. — Parboil, blanch, and cut into small pieces ; boil fifteen minutes in milk ; stir into this chopped parsley, a little butter, and cornstarch to thicken. Serve hot. Broiled Kidneys. — Skin the kidneys carefully, but do not slice or split them. Lay for ten minutes in warm (not hot) melted butter, rolling them over and over, that every part may be well basted. Broil on a gridiron over a clear fire, turn ing them every minute. Unless very large, they should be done in about twelve minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and lay on a hot dish, with butter upon each. Calf's Tongue. — Of all the tongue preparations, calf's tongue is regarded as best. To pickle them, use for each a quarter pound of salt, one ounce of saltpetre, and a quar. ter pound of sugar. Rub the tongues daily with this, allow- ing them to lie in pickle for two weeks, after which they will be ready for smoking or boiling. If used without smoking, they require no soaking, but should simmer sev eral hours till perfectly done, when the skin will peel oft readily. If soaking is needed, lay them first in cold water and then in tepid water for two hours each; then boil til* done. 82 THE HO USE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. III.— MUTTON AND LAMB. CHOOSING MUTTON AND LAMB, FOR ROASTING, FOR BOILING} CUTLETS, SUITABLE VEGETABLES, ETC. THIRTEEN RECIPES FOR MUTTON AND LAMB. THE best mutton is small-boned, plump, finely grained, and short legged ; the lean of a dark, rather than of a bright hue, and the fat white and clear ; when this is yellow, the meat is rank, and of bad quality. The leg and the loin are the desirable joints ; and the preference would probably be given to the latter, but for the superabundance of its fat, which renders it a somewhat wasteful part. The parts for roasting are the shoulder, saddle, or chine, the loin, and haunch. The leg is best boiled, unless the mutton is young and very tender. The neck is sometimes roasted, but it is more generally boiled ; the scrag, or that part of it which joins the head, is seldom used for any other purpose than making broth, and should be taken off before the joint is dressed. Cutlets from the thick end of the loin are commonly preferred, but they are frequently taken from the best end of the neck and from the middle of the leg. Lamb should be eaten very fresh. In the fore-quarter, the vein in the neck should be blue, otherwise it is stale. In the hind-quarter the fat of the kidney will have a slight odor if not quite fresh. Lamb soon loses its firmness if stale. New potatoes, asparagus, green peas, and spinach, are the vegetables to be eaten with roast lamb. RECIPES. Roast Mutton. — Wash the meat well, sprinkle with pepper and salt, dredge with flour, and put in the dripping-pan, with a little water in the bottom. Baste often with the drip- pings, skim the gravy well, and thicken with flour. MkAfk. $3 Soiled Leg of Mutton. — Cut off the shank-bone, trim the knuckle, and wash the mutton ; put it into a pot with salt, and cover with boiling water. Allow it to boil a few min- utes ; skim the surface clean, draw your pot to the side of the fire, and simmer until done. Time, from two to two hours and a half. Do not try the leg with a fork to determine whether it is done. You lose the juices of the meat by so doing. Serve with caper sauce, or drawn butter, well sea- soned. The liquor from this boiling may be converted into soup with the addition of a ham-bone and a few vegetables boiled together. Mutton Dressed like Venison. — Skin and bone a loin of mutton, and lay it into a stewpan with a pint of water, a large onion stuck with a dozen cloves, half a pint of port wine, and a spoonful of vinegar ; add, when it boils, a little thyme and parsley, and some pepper and salt ; let it stew three hours, and turn it often. Make some gravy of the bones, and add it at intervals to the mutton. Broiled Mutton Chops. — Trim off a portion of the fat, or the whole of it, unless it be liked ; heat the gridiron, rub it with a bit of the mutton suet, broil over a brisk fire, and turn often until they are done, which, for the generality of eaters, will be in about eight minutes, if the chops are not more than half an inch thick, which they should not be. Add salt and pepper with melted butter, and serve on a hot plate. Mutton and Green Peas. — Select a breast of mutton not too fat, cut it into small, square pieces, dredge it with flour, and fry to a fine brown in butter ; add pepper and salt, cover it with water, and set it over a slow fire to stew, until the meat is perfectly tender. Take out the meat, skim off all the fat from the gravy, and just before serving add a quart of young peas, previously boiled with the strained gravy, and let the whole boil gently until the peas are entirely done. 84 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Irish Stew. — Blanch three pounds of mutton chops by dip. ping them first in boiling water, for two or three minutes, and then into ice-cold water. Place them on the bottom of a clean stewpan, barely covering them with cold water. Bring them slowly to a boil ; add one teaspoonful of salt ; skim clean ; add a little parsley, mace, and a few pepper- corns. Simmer twenty minutes ; add a dozen small onions whole, and two tablespoonfuls of flour mixed well with cold water. Let it simmer for an hour ; add a dozen potatoes pared and cut to about the size of the onions. Boil till these are done ; then dish, placing the chops around the edge of the plate, and pouring the onions and potatoes into the centre. Strain the gravy, add three tablespoonfuls of chopped parsley, and pour over the stew. Boiled Leg of Lamb. — Choose a ewe leg, as there is more fat on it ; saw off the knuckle, trim off the flap, and the thick skin on the back of it ; soak in warm water for three hours, then boil gently (time according to size). Serve with oyster sauce. (See Sauces.) Roast Lamb. — Wash well, season with pepper ana salt, put in the dripping-pan with a little water. Baste often with the dripping ; skim the gravy well and thicken with flour. Lamb Stewed in Butter. — Select a nice loin, wash well, and wipe very dry ; skewer down the flap, and lay it in a close-shut- ting and thick stewpan, or saucepan, in which three ounces of good butter have been just dissolved, but not allowed to boil ; let it simmer slowly over a very gentle fire for two hours and a quarter, and turn it when it is rather more than half done. Lift it out, skim, and pour the gravy over it; send to table with brown gravy, mint sauce, and a salad. Saddle of Lamb. — This is a dainty joint for a small party. Sprinkle a little salt over it, and set.it in the dripping-pan, with a few small pieces of butter on the meat; baste it MEATS. 85 occasionally with tried-out lamb-fat; dredge a little flour over it a few minutes before taking from the oven. Ssrve with currant jelly and a few choice early vegetables. Mint- sauce may be served with the joint, but in a very mild form. (See Sauces.) Broiled Lamb Chops. — Trim off most of the fat ; broil over a brisk fire, turning frequently until the chops are nicely browned. Season with pepper and salt, and baste with hot butter. Serve on a buttered dish. Breaded Lamb Chops. — Grate plenty of stale bread, season with salt and pepper, have ready some well-beaten egg, have a spider with hot lard ready, take the chops one by one, dip into the egg, then into the bread-crumbs ; repeat it, as this will be found an improvement; then lay the chops sep- arately into the boiling lard, fry brown, and then turn. To be eaten with currant jelly. Lamb Steaks, Fried — Dip each steak into well-beaten egg, cover with bread-crumbs or corn-meal, and fry in butter or new lard. Mashed potatoes and boiled rice are a necessary accompaniment. The gravy may be thickened with flour and butter, adding a little lemon juice ; pour this hot upon the steaks, and place the rice in spoonfuls around the dish to garnish it. IV.— PORK. PORK REQUIRES CAREFUL CHOOSING; NEEDS THOROUGH COOH« ING. NINETEEN RECIPES FOR COOKING PORK. PORK, more than any other meat, requires to be chosen with the greatest care. The pig, from its gluttonous habits, is particularly liable to disease, and if killed and eaten when in an unhealthy condition, those who par- take of it will probably pay dearly for their indulgence. Dairy-fed pork is the best. 86 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. If this meat be not thoroughly well-done, it is disgusting to the sight and poisonous to the stomach. " In the gravy of pork, if there is the least tint of redness," says an emi- nent medical authority, " it is enough to appall the sharpest appetite. Other meats under-done may be unpleasant, but pork is absolutely uneatable." RECIPES. Roast Pig. — A fat pig about three weeks old is best for a roast. Wash it thoroughly inside and out ; chop the liver fine with bread-crumbs, onions, parsley, pepper, salt, and potatoes boiled and mashed ; make it into a paste with but- ter and egg. Put this stuffing into the pig and sew it up ; put in a baking-pan with a little water and roast over a bright fire, basting well with butter; rub frequently also with a piece of lard tied in a clean rag. When thoroughly done, lay the pig, back up, in a dish, and put a red apple or pickled-mango in its mouth. Make a dressing with some of the stuffing, with a glass of wine and some of the drip- ping. Serve with the roast pig, and also in a gravy-boat. Roast Pork. — Choose for roasting, the loin, the leg, the saddle, the fillet, the shoulder, or the spare-rib. The loin of young pork is roasted with the skin on, and this should be scored in regular strips of about a quarter inch wide before the joints are laid to the fire. The skin of the leg also should be cut through in the same manner. This will prevent blistering, and render it more easy to carve. In beginning the roasting the meat should be placed at some distance from the fire, in order that it may be heated through before the skin hardens. The basting should be constant. The cooking must be thorough and the meat well-browned before removed from the fire. Roast Spare-rib. — Spare-rib should be well rubbed with salt and pepper before it is roasted. If large and thick, it MEATS. 87 will require two or three hours to roast ; a very thin piece may be roasted in an hour. Lay the thick end to the fire. When you put it down to roast, dust on some flour, and baste with a little butter. The shoulder, loin, and chine are roasted in the same manner. Leg of Pork Roasted. — Parboil a leg of pork, take off the skin, and then roast ; baste with butter, and make a savoiy powder of finely minced or dried or powdered sage, ground black pepper, salt, and some bread-crumbs rubbed together through a colander ; add to this a little very finely minced onion ; sprinkle the meat with this when it is almost done ; put a half pint of gravy into the dish. Baked Pork Tenderloins. — Split the tenderloin lengthwise nearly through ; stuff with a filling of bread-crumbs, pep^ per, salt, and sweet marjoram. Tie a string around it, to keep the filling in, and bake in a hot oven'for half an hour, basting well as the cooking proceeds. Pork Cutlets. — Cut them about half an inch thick from a delicate loin of pork, trim into neat form, and take off part of the fat, or the whole of it when it is not liked ; dredge a little pepper or cayenne upon them, and broil (or fry) over a clear and moderate fire from fifteen to eighteen minutes, sprinkle a little fine salt upon them just before they are dished. They may be dipped into egg and then into bread- crumbs mixed with minced sage, then finished in the usual way. When fried, flour them well, and season with salt and pepper. Serve with gravy made in the pan. Boiled Ham. — The soaking which must be given to a ham before it is boiled depends both on the manner in which it has been cured and on its age. If highly salted, hard, and old, a day and night, or even longer, may be requisite to open the pores sufficiently and to extract a portion of the salt. The water must be several times changed during the steeping, After the ham has been scraped or brushed as 88 THE HO USE WIFES L1BRAR Y. clean as possible, pare away lightly any part which may be blackened or rusty. Lay it into a suitable kettle and cover it plentifully with cold water ; bring it very slowly to boil, and clear off the scum, which will be thrown up in great abundance So soon as the water has been cleared from this, draw the pot to the edge of the stove, that the ham may be simmered slowly but steadily, until it is tender. On no account allow it to boil fast. When it can be probed very easily with a sharp skewer, lift it out, strip off the skin, and return the ham to the water to cool. Ham. — A ham of sixteen pounds must be boiled three hours, then skin and rub in half a pound of brown sugar, cover with bread-crumbs, and bake well for two hours. Glazed Ham. — Take a cold-boiled ham from which the skin has been removed, and brush it well all over with beaten egg. To a cup of powdered cracker allow enough rich milk or cream to make into a thick paste, salt it, and work in a teaspoonful of melted butter. Spread this evenly, a quarter of an inch thick, over the ham, and set to brown in a moderate oven. Ham and Eggs. — Cut the ham in very thin slices, and fry long enough to cook the fat, but not long enough to crisp the lean. A very little boiling water may be put into the frying-pan to secure the ham moist and tender. Remove the ham when it is done, break eggs gently into the pan, without breaking the yelks, and fry till done, about three minutes. The eggs will not require to be turned. Cut off the uneaven edges, place the eggs around the ham, and pour in the gravy. Ham or Tongue Toast. — Toast a thick slice of bread ana butter it on both sides. Take a small quantity of remains «tf ham or tongue, grate it, and put it in a stewpan with two MEATS. 89 hard-boiled eggs chopped fine, and mixed with a little but- ter, salt, and cayenne ; heat it quite hot, then spread thickly upon the buttered toast. Serve while hot. Broiled Salt Pork. — Cut the pork in thin slices. Put a lit- tle water in the pan, and when it has boiled three minutes pour it off; dredge the pork with flour and brown it. Bacon Broiled or Fried. — Cut evenly into thin slices, or rash- ers ; pare from them all rind and rust ; curl them round ; fasten them with small, slight skewers, then gently fry, broil, or toast them ; draw out the skewers before they are sent to table. A few minutes will dress them either way. They may be cooked without being curled. The slow cooking is necessary that the meat may be well done without being dried or hardened. Fried Sausage. — Sausages should be used while quite fresh. Melt a piece of butter or dripping in a clean frying-pan ; when just melted, put in the sausages, shake the pan for a minute, and keep turning them ; do not break or prick them ; fry them over a very slow fire till they are nicely browned ; when done, lay them on a hair-sieve before the fire to drain the fat from them. The secret of cooking sau- sages well is to let them heat very gradually. If so done the skins will not burst if they are fresh. The common practice of pricking them lets the gravy out, which is un- desirable. Baked Sausages. — The most wholesome way to cook sau- sages is to bake them. Place them in a baking-pan in a single layer, and bake in a moderate oven ; turn them over when half done, that they may be equally browned. Serve with pieces of toast between them, having cut the toast about the same size as the sausage, and moistened it with a little of the sausage fat. Sausage Meat. — Many prefer to use sausage meat in bulk. §0 HIE tiOUSkWTFE'S LlBkAkV. Small portions of the meat should be packed lightly to- gether and fried slowly until nicely browned. When done, drain through a hair-sieve. Do not pack hard. It will make the sausages tough. Sorappel. — Boil a hog's head one day, and let it stand five or six hours, or all night. Slip out the bones and chop fine ; then return the meat to the liquor ; skim when cold ; warm and season freely with pepper, salt, sage, and sweet herbs. Add two cupfuls of buckwheat-meal and one cup- ful of corn-meal. Put into molds, and when cold cut into slices and fry for breakfast. Boiled Pork. — The shoulder or leg are regarded as the most economical pieces for boiling. They should be well salted first, by about ten days' pickling. Boil precisely as ham is boiled, but not for so long a time, about three hours sufficing to thoroughly cook an ordinary sized leg of pork. After it has come to the boiling point, let the process pro- ceed slowly as possible. Peel off the skin when done and spot the surface with dashes of red and black pepper, or with allspice, or garnish with parsley. Souse. — Pigs' feet and ears may be soused by cleaning thoroughly, soaking in salt and water several days, and then boiling till the bones can be picked out with ease and the skin peeled off! Cover the meat and gelatinous substance with boiling vinegar, highly spiced with peppercorns and mace. This may be eaten cold or the meat may be fried after dipping in egg and cracker. Pig's head may be prepared the same way, the meat being chopped fine and mixed with pounded crackers. Mix with herbs, spices, salt, and pepper to taste, and a small quantity of vinegar. Press into a mold, or a jar, and cut in slices. To be eaten cold. J?'*** BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES VI.— VEGETABLES. VEGETABLES SHOULD BE FRESH — HOW TO WASH AND PRESERVE- HOW TO COOK. WELL, AND IMPORTANCE OF SO DOING — SUITABLE POTS FOR COOKING VEGETABLES — VEGETABLES SUITABLE TO CERTAIN MEATS. SIXTY RECIPES FOR COOKING VEGETABLES. ALL vegetables should be used when fresh as possible. Wash them thoroughly, and allow them to lie in cold water until ready to be used. Great care must be taken to remove gravel and insects from heads of lettuce, cabbage, and cauliflower. To do this, lay them for half an hour or more in a pan of strong brine, placing the stalk ends uppermost. This will destroy the small snails and other insects which cluster in the leaves, and they will fall out and sink to the bottom. Strong-flavored vegetables, like turnips, cabbage, and greens, require to be put into a large quantity of water. More delicate vegetables, such as peas, asparagus, etc, require less water. As a rule, in boiling vegetables, let the water boil before putting them in, and let it continue to boil until they are done. Nothing is more indigestible than vegetables not thoroughly cooked. Just when they are done must be ascertained to a certainty in each particulat case, without depending upon any general directions. Never let boiled vegetables stand in the water after com. ing off the fire ; put them instantly into a colander over a pot of boiling water, and let them remain there, if you have to keep them back from the table. An iron pot will spoil the color of the finest greefis ; they should be boiled by themselves in a tin, brass, or topper vessel. 91 92 THE HO USE WIFE'S LIB HAS Y. Potatoes are good with all meats. Carrots, parsnips, tur- nips, greens, and cabbage belong with boiled meats ; beets, peas, and beans are appropriate to either boiled or roast. RECIPES. Boiled White Potatoes. — Peel off a strip about a quarter of an inch wide, lengthwise, around each potato. Put them on in cold water, with a teaspoonful of salt in it. Let them boil fifteen minutes, then pour off half the water and replace it with cold water. When the edge of the peel begins to curl up they are done. Remove them from the pot, cover the bottom of a baking-tin with them, place them in the oven, with a towel over them, for fifteen minutes, leaving the oven door open. Then serve with or without the skins. The use of cold water in boiling potatoes, as in this recipe, is exceptional. Hot water is generally used, but for this purpose cold seems preferable. Roasted White Potatoes. — Select the largest and finest potatoes for roasting. Wash them thoroughly and put in the oven with their skins on. Roast about one hour, turn- ing them occasionally with a fork. When done, send them to the table hot, and in their skins. Potatoes Roasted with Meats. — To roast potatoes with beef, poultry, and other meats, peel the potatoes, lay them in a pan, and cook them in the gravy. It is quite proper to roast both white and sweet of potatoes in the same pan. Mashed Potatoes. — Steam or boil pared potatoes until soft, in salted water ; pour off the water and let them drain per- fectly dry ; sprinkle with salt and mash ; have ready hot milk or cream, in which has been melted a piece of butter ; pour this on the potatoes, and stir until white and very light. A solid, heavy masher is not desirable. An open wire tool is much better. VEGETABLES. 93 Stewed Potatoes. — Take sound raw potatoes, and divide each into four parts, or more, if they be very large. Put them into the stewpan ; add salt, pepper, and a piece of fresh butter; pour in milk, with a little cream, just to keep the potatoes from burning. Cover the saucepan, and allow the potatoes to stew until thoroughly soft and tender. Pried Potatoes. — Boil some good and large potatoes until nearly done; set them aside a few minutes; when suffi- ciently cool, slice or chop them ; sprinkle them with pepper and salt, and fry in butter or fresh lard until they are of a light brown color. Serve hot. Saratoga Potatoes. — Peel and slice the potatoes on a slaw- cutter, into cold water ; wash them thoroughly, and drain ; spread between the folds of a clean cloth, rub and pat until dry. Fry a few at a time in boiling lard ;_ salt as you take them out. Saratoga potatoes are very nice when eaten cold. They can be prepared three or four hours before needed, and if kept in a warm place they will be crisp and nice. They may be used for garnishing game and steaks. Potato Cakes. — Mash thoroughly a lot of potatoes just boiled ; add a little salt, butter and cream ; fry brown on both sides, after making into little cakes. Boiled Sweet Potatoes. — Take large, fine potatoes, wash clean ; boil with the skins on in plenty of water, but without salt. They will take at least one hour. Drain off the water, and set them for a few minutes in a tin pan before the fire, or in the oven, that they may be well dried. Peel them be- fore sending to the table. Roasted Sweet Potatoes. — Sweet potatoes are roasted in the same manner as white, but they require a little longer time. Pried Sweet Potatoes. — Choose large potatoes, half boil them, and then, having taken off the skins, cut the potatoes W slices and fry in butter, or in nice drippings. 94 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Stewed Tomatoes. — Pour boiling water on the tomatoes to be used, and then peel and slice them. Stew them gently, without adding any water, fifteen minutes ; then add some pulverized cracker or bread crumbs, sufficient to thicken it a little, and salt and pepper to your taste. Stew fifteen min- utes longer, and add a large piece of butter. The thickening suggested is not essential. Many prefer the pure tomatoes. Try both ways and adopt the more pleasing. Broiled Tomatoes. — Cut large tomatoes in two, from side to side, not from top to bottom ; place them on a gridiron, the cut surface down ; when well seared, turn them and put on butter, salt, and pepper ; then cook with the skin side down until done. Pried Tomatoes. — Cut the tomatoes in slices without skin- ning ; pepper and salt them well ; then sprinkle a little flour over them and fry in butter until browned. Put them on a hot platter ; then pour milk or cream into the butter and juice, and when this is boiling hot, pour it over the tomatoes. Tomatoes Baked Whole. — Select a number of sound, ripe tomatoes. Cut a round hole in the stem side of each, and stuff it with bread-crumbs, nicely peppered and salted ; cover the bottom of the pan with the tomatoes, the opened side upward ; put in a very little water, dredge with flour, and bake till brown. Serve hot. Baked Sliced Tomatoes. — Skin the tomatoes, slice in small pieces ; spread a thick layer in the bottom of a pudding dish ; cover with a thin layer of bread-crumbs, and sprinkle salt, pepper, and a few small pieces of butter over them ; add another layer of tomatoes, then of crumbs, etc., until the dish is filled ; sprinkle over the top a layer of fine rolled crackers ; bake one hour. Canned tomatoes, put up whole, may be used nicely this way, VEGETABLES. 95 Tomatoes a la Creme. — Pare and slice ripe tomatoes ; one pound of fresh ones or a quart can ; stew until perfectly smooth, season with salt and pepper, and add a piece of but- ter the size of an egg. Just before taking from the fire, stir in one cup of cream, with a tablespoonful of flour stirred smooth in a part of it ; do not let it boil after the flour is put in. Have ready in a dish some pieces of toast ; pour the tomatoes over this and serve. Boiled Green Corn. — Take off the outside leaves and the silk, letting the innermost leaves remain on until after the corn is boiled, which renders the corn much sweeter. Boil for half an hour in plenty of water, drain, and after fully re- moving the leaves, serve. Baked Corn. — Grate one dozen ears of sweet corn, one cup of milk, a small piece of butter ; salt to taste, and bake in a pudding dish for one hour. Corn Fritters, see Fritters. Lima Beans. — Shell, wash, and put into boiling water; when boiled tender, drain and season them. Dress with cream, or with a large lump of butter, and let the whole simmer for a few moments before serving. Succotash. — Take ten ears of green corn and one pint of Lima beans ; cut the corn from the cob, and stew gently with the beans until tender. Use as little water as possible. Season with butter, salt, and pepper — milk, if you choose. If a few of the cobs are stewed in the succotash, it will improve the flavor, as there is great sweetness in the cob. String Beans. — Remove the strings of the beans with a knife, and cut off both ends. Cut each bean into three pieces, boil tender, add butter when they are done, pepper and salt, and serve hot. Boiled Beans. — Dried beans must soak over night in soft water ; put them in a strong bag, leaving room for them to 96 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. swell ; let them boil in a plenty of water until done ; hang up the bag that all the water may drain off; then season with butter, pepper, and salt to the taste. Baked Beans. — Put the beans to soak early in the evening, in a dish that will allow plenty of water to be used. Change the water at bed-time. Next morning early, parboil two hours ; pour off nearly all the water ; take raw pork, scored on top ; put the beans in a deep dish, a stoneware jar is very nice, the pork in the middle, sinking it so as to have it just level with the surface. Add half a teaspoonful of soda, two tablespoonfuls of molasses, and bake at least six hours. As the beans bake dry, add more water, a little at a time, until the last hour, when it is not necessary to moisten them. Boiled Green Peas. — The peas should be young and freshly shelled ; wash and drain them carefully ; put them into fast- boiling, salted water ; when quite tender drain, and add pep- per, butter, and a little milk. Serve hot. Boiled Asparagus. — Scrape the stems of the asparagus lightly, but make them very clean, throwing them into cold water as you proceed. When all are scraped, tie them in bunches of equal size ; cut the hard ends evenly, that all may be of the same length, and put into boiling water. Prepare several slices of delicately browned toast half an inch thick. When the stalks are tender, lift them out and season with pepper and salt. Dip the toast quickly into the liquor in which the asparagus was boiled, and dish the veg- etable upon it, the points, or the butts, meeting in the cen- tre of the dish. Pour rich melted butter over it, and send to the table hot. Boiled Beets. — Wash, but do not cut them, as cutting de- stroys the sweetness ; let them boil from two to three hours, or until they are perfectly tender ; then take them up, peel and slice them, and pour vinegar, or melted butter, ovet them, as may be preferred. VEGETABLES. d? Potato Hillocks. — Whip boiled potatoes light with a little butter and milk, and season with salt and pepper. Beat in a raw egg, to bind the mixture ; shape into small conical heaps, set in a greased pan in the oven, and as they brown, glare with butter. The oven must be very- hot. • Slip a cake-turner under each hillock and transfer to a hot platter. — Marion Harland. Potato Pie. — Pare and cut four good-sized potatoes into dice, cover them with boiling water, boil ten min- utes, drain. Add to them one tablespoonful chopped parsley, one of chopped ham and one of chopped onion. Season with salt and pepper and turn into a baking dish. Add one teaspoonful of baking powder and a half of salt to one pint of flour, mix and add sufficient milk to make a soft dough. Roll out and cover the top of the baking dish, just as you would an ordinary pie. Brush with milk and bake in a quick oven twenty minutes. Serve hot with cream sauce. — Mrs. S. T. Rorer. Stuffed Onions. — Select large onions, the Spanish va- riety preferred, and cook them in a steamer until tender, but not broken. Let them cool, then cut off a slice from the top and scoop out the inside, leaving not more than two or three layers. Chop the part removed, and chop with it some sweet green pepper (one teaspoon for each onion). Into the onion cups put several boiled chestnuts (shelled), and fill the spaces with the chopped mixture. Add a teaspoon of butter and a little salt, and stand the onions in a pan of water. Bake until very soft, and when nearly done cover the top with buttered cracker crumbs and return to the oven until the crumbs are crisp. When the crumbs are crisp, have ready a tomato sauce and pour it over them on the serving dish. — Mrs. Lincoln. 98 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Pried Egg-plant — Pare and cut in slices quarter of an incl* thick ; sprinkle with salt ; cover and let stand for an hour. Pour off the juice or water which exudes; wipe each slice diy ; dip first in beaten egg, then in rolled cracker or bread crumbs. Season with pepper and salt, and fry brown in but- ter. Serve very hot. Fried Egg-plant No. 2. — Put into water and boil until soft, then cut in two and scoop out all the inside ; season ; take a tablespoonful of the remaining pulp at a time, dip in egg and bread-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. Serve hot. Baked Egg-plant. — Boil them till somewhat tender, in order to remove the bitter flavor. Then slit each one down the side, and take out the seeds. Have ready a stuffing made of grated cracker, butter, minced herbs, salt, pepper, nut- meg, and beaten yelk of eggs. Fill with this the cavity left by the seeds, and bake the plants in a hot oven. Serve with well-seasoned gravy poured around them in the dish. Boiled Cabbage. — Strip off the loose or withered leaves, and wash well ; then split in two, or if the head be veiy large, into four pieces, and put into boiling water with some salt ; let it boil slowly, skimming carefully and frequently. When done, strain, through a colander. Serve in a vegetable-dish and lay inside, among the leaves, some bits of butter ; sea- son with" pepper, and serve while hot. Boiled Cauliflower.— Trim off all the outside leaves; wrap in a cloth and put into boiling water well salted ; boil until tender, and then serve with drawn butter. Cabbage a la Cauliflower. — Cut the cabbage fine, as for slaw ; put it into a stewpan, cover with water, and keep closely covered ; when tender, drain off the water ; put in a small piece of butter, with a little salt, one-half a cupful of cream, or one cupful of milk. Leave on the stove a few minutes before serving. VEGETABLES. 99 Boiled Turnips. — Pare and cut into pieces ; put them into boiling water well salted, and boil until tender ; drain thor- oughly and then mash and add a piece of butter, pepper, and salt to taste. Stir until they are thoroughly mixed, and serve hot. Boiled Onions. — Skin them carefully and put them to boil ; when they have boiled a few minutes, pour off the water, add clean cold water, and then set them to boil again, Pour this away also, and add more cold water, when they may boil till done. This change of waters will make them white and clear, and very mild in flavor. After they are done, pour off all the water, and dress with a little cream, salt, and pepper to taste. Pried Onions. — Peel and slice fresh, solid onions very evenly, then fry them in a pan of hot butter till slightly browned. Boiled Leeks. — Trim off the coarser leaves of young leeks, cut them into equal lengths, tie them in small bunches, and boil in plenty of water, previously salted. Serve on toast, and send melted butter to the table with them. Boiled Squash. — Remove the seeds ; boil till very tender ; then press out all the water through a colander, and mash, with butter, pepper, and salt. Pried Squash. — Pare the squash, cut in slices, dip in egg seasoned with pepper and salt, then into cracker dust, and fry to a nice brown. Boiled Parsnips. — Scrape thoroughly, then wash and boil in a little water well salted. When done, dress with butter and a little pepper, or drawn butter, if desired. Fried Parsnips. — Having boiled your parsnips, split open the largest ones, season with pepper and salt, dredge a littla flour over them, and fry to a light brown, 7 100 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Boiled Spinach. — Boil the spinach in plenty of water, drain, and press the moisture from it ; chop it small, put it into a clean saucepan, with a slice of fresh butter, and stir the whole until well mixed and very hot. Smooth it in a dish, and send it quickly to table. Boiled Greens. — Turnip-tops, mustard-tops, cabbage-leaves, beet-tops, cowslips, dandelions, and various similar articles are much relished in the spring, boiled in salt and water or with salt pork. When done sufficiently they will sink to the bottom. Stewed Celery. — Clean the heads thoroughly ; take off the coarse, green, outer leaves ; cut the stalks into small pieces, and stew in a little broth ; when tender, add some rich cream, a little flour, and butter enough to thicken the cream. Season with pepper, salt, and a little nutmeg, if that is agreeable. Boiled Artichokes. — Soak the artichokes and wash them in several waters ; cut the stalks even ; trim away the lower leaves, and the ends of the other leaves; boil in salted water with the tops downward, and let them remain until the leaves can be easily drawn out. Before serving, remove the surrounding leaves, and send the remainder to the table with melted butter. Broiled Mushrooms. — In order to test mushrooms, sprinkle salt on the gills ; if they turn yellow, they are poisonous ; if they turn black, they are good. When satisfied at this point, pare, and cut off the stems, dip them in melted butter, season with salt and pepper, broil them on both sides over a clear fire, and serve on toast. Stewed Mushrooms. — Being sure you have the genuine mushrooms, put them in a small saucepan, season with pepper and salt, add a spoonful of butter and a spoonful or two of gravy from roast meat, or, if this be not at hand, the VEGETABLES. 101 same quantity of good, rich cream ; shake them about over the fire, and when they boil they are done. Boiled Rice. — Wash a cupful of rice in two or three waters ; let it lie for a few minutes in the last water, then put it into three quarts of fast-boiling water, with a little salt ; let it boil twenty minutes, then turn into a colander, drain, and serve, using such sauce or dressing as may be desired. Boiled Hominy. — Soak one cupful of fine hominy over night in three cupfuls of water, and salt to taste ; in the morning turn it into a quart pail ; then put the pail into a kettle of boiling water, cover tightly, and steam one hour ; add one teacupful of sweet milk, and boil fifteen minutes additional, then serve hot. Stewed Macaroni — Break the macaroni into small pieces, wash it, and put into salted hot water ; cook about twenty minutes; drain, and put in a vegetable dish a layer of macaroni, sprinkle with grated cheese, bits of butter, pepper and salt ; proceed in this manner until the dish is full, but omit the cheese at the last. Set the dish in the oven for a few minutes, and let it get thoroughly hot. Baked Macaroni — For baked macaroni, proceed as in stewed, but, when prepared fully as above, pour a few spoonfuls of milk over the top, and bake half an hour. Macaroni with Tomatoes. — Have water boiling in a large saucepan; throw into it macaroni, broken, bJt not too short; let it cook twenty to thirty minutes, pour over it some cold water, and strain it quite dry ; cut an onion into small dice, throw it into cold water and squeeze it dry in a cloth ; put some olive oil, butter, or clarified fat into a saucepan ; the oil, of course, is best. Throw into it the onion, and let it nook, shaking occasionally, until the onion is almost melted »way. Have some cooked tomatoes ready to add to this 102 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. sauce. If it is too thick, add some cold water by teaspoon- fuls at a time. Let all simmer for ten minutes longer. Sprinkle some grated cheese over your macaroni, which must be piping hot, in a dish. Pour the sauce over this and serve. A quarter of a pound of macaroni makes a large dish, and takes about a third of a can to half a can of tomatoes. Sliced Cucumbers. — Peel and slice the cucumbers as thin as possible ; lay the slices in salted water for an hour ; then pour off the water; cover them with vinegar, half a tea- spoonful of pepper, and salt as may be necessary. Stewed Oyster-plant. — Cut off the tops of a bunch of salsify, or oyster-plant, close to the root ; scrape and wash well, and slice lengthwise or round ; stew until tender in salted water ; drain and put in a stewpan, cover with milk ; to one pint of salsify add a tablespoonful of butter rolled in flour ; season with salt and pepper ; let it stew a few min- utes and add a little vinegar, if liked. Mock Pried Oysters. — Scrape one bunch of salsify, and boil until tender ; mash through a colander, add one beaten egg, a small piece of butter, salt and pepper to taste; drop by the spoonful into hot lard and fry brown. Egg-Plant. — Cut the plant into slices one-third of an inch thick, without removing the skin. Sprinkle salt over each slice, pile them, and cover with a weight to press out the juice. Drain, and dip each slice first in fine crumbs, then in beaten egg, and again in crumbs, and saute them in hot fat. — The Peerless Cook Book : Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. Roberts Brothers, Publishers. Water-Cresses. — Wash well, pick off decayed leaves, and leave in ice-water until you are ready to eat them. They should then be shaken free of wet and piled light- ly in a glass dish. Eat with salt. — Marion Harland. Blank Page for Additional Recipes. Blank Page for Additional Recipes. FREE DELIVERY OF REASONABLE AMOUNTS Telephone and Mail Orders Given Prompt Attention THE GOURMET (The Judge of Good Living) Our new Price List, which may be had FREE for the asking, will give you some idea of the Wonderful Variety and Fine Quality of the goods we carry, and also please you at the revelation "in the economy of trading with us." If — ' ' it is good to eat or drink " — we have it WARREN F. WITHERELL CO. Hfmpnrtera a»o (grows 91 CAUSEWAY STREET, Opposite North Union Station BOSTON VII.— SALADS AND SAUCES. SALADS DEFINED — HOW DRESSED, COMBINED, AND SERVED. SAUCES DEFINED — 'I HEIR USES AND COMPOSITION. HOW TO PREPARE INGREDIENTS FOR SALADS, WHAT VEGETABLES TO EMPLOY, FRESHNESS, EXCELLENCE, ETC. THIRTY-SIX RECIPES FOR SALADS AND SAU.CES. UNDER the head of salads all preparations of uncooked herbs or vegetables is placed. They are usually dressed with salt, vinegar, oil, and spices. Sometimes they are combinad with meat or shell fish, as chicken, veal, lobster, etc. They are used chiefly as relishes with other food. Sauces are generally used to impart a relish to articles of food. Sometimes vegetables are employed as the basis of sauces, but they are compounded chiefly of savory con- diments, that they may add zest to eating. Meat or fish used in salads should not be minced, but rather picked apart, or cut in pieces of moderate size. Cab- bage, celery, asparagus, cauliflower, water-cress, and all kinds of lettuce are the vegetables best adapted for use in salads. They must be used when quite fresh and crisp, and all the ingredients used in their dressing must be of the best quality and flavor. All condiments are in some sense sauces, but the term is usually confined to those which are the result of compound- ing a variety of articles. RECIPES. Coldslaw. — With a sharp knife, or, better, with a knife made for the purpose, cut up into fine shavings a firm head of cabbage; sprinkle with as much salt and pepper as you 104 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. deem necessary; beat up the yelk of one egg, add a lump of butter the size of a walnut, a gill of cream, the same quantity of vinegar, a tablcspoonful of sugar, an even tea- spoonful of mustard, and a pinch of bruised celery seed. Heat these condiments together, without boiling, and pour over the sliced cabbage ; then toss it with a fork until thor- oughly mixed. Allow time for it to cool before serving. Coldslaw, No. 2.— Take equal parts of chopped cabbage and the green stalks of celery. Season with salt, pepper, and vinegar. Maryland Coldslaw. — Halve the cabbage and lay it in cold water for one hour ; shave down the head into small slips with a sharp knife. Put in a saucepan a cup of vinegar, and let it boil ; then add a cup of cream, with the yelks of two eggs, well beaten ; let it boil up, and pour over the cabbage. As soon as the cabbage is cut it should be sprinkled with a little salt and pepper. Cabbage Salad. — Take one head of fine, white cabbage, minced fine ; three hard-boiled eggs ; two tablespoonfuls of salad oil ; two teaspoonfuls white sugar ; one teaspoonful salt ; one teaspoonful pepper; one teaspoonful made mustard; one teacupful vinegar. Mix and pour upon the chopped cabbage. Lettuce Salad.— Take a good-sized head of lettuce and pull the leaves apart. Wash them a moment, then shake oft" the water and dry the leaves. Examine them carefully, wipe off all grit, and reject those that are bruised. Take the yelks of two hard-boiled eggs ; add one-half teaspoonful of mixed mustard, and mix to a paste with a silver fork ; then add slowly, mixing carefully, about one-half a cup of vinegar, one teaspoonful of sugar, and salt to taste ; cut the lettuce small as may be desired with a sharp knife, and pour the dressing over it ; garnish w>h hard-boiled eggs. SALADS AND SAUCES. JOfl Potato Salad. — Steam and slice the potatoes ; add a very little raw onion chopped very fine, and a little parsley, and pour over the whole a nice salad dressing. Serve either warm or cold, as may be preferred. Potato Salad, No. 2. — Cut up three quarts of boiled potatoes. while hot, into neat pieces ; add a tablespoonful of chopped parsley, a tablespoonful of chopped onion, a teaspoonful of pepper, and one of salt ; also add a cupful of oil, and mix ; then add a cupful of warm stock, a wineglassful of vinegar (from the mixed-pickle bottle) ; mix the ingredients together carefully, and do not break the potatoes any more than is absolutely unavoidable. Set the whole in the ice-box and serve cold. The onion and parsley may be omitted, and boiled root celery added, or a little stalk celery chopped fine. Chicken Salad. — Boil a small chicken until very tender. When entirely cold, remove the skin and fat, cut the meat into small bits, then cut the white part of the stalks of celery into pieces of similar size, until you have twice as much celery as meat. Mix the chicken and celery together; pour on Slade's Salad Cream, and stir all thoroughly. Cold veal used in place of chicken will also make a very excel- lent salad. Chicken Salad, No. 2. — Take three chickens, boil until very tender ; when cold, chop them, but not too fine ; add twice the quantity of celery cut fine, and three hard-boiled eggs sliced. Make a dressing with two cups of vinegar, half a cup of butter (or two tablespoonfuls of oil), two eggs beaten, with a large tablespoonful of mustard, saltspoonful of salt, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, tablespoonful of pepper, or a little cayenne pepper ; put the vinegar into a tin pan and set in a kettle of boiling water ; beat the other ingre- dients together thoroughly and stir slowly into the vinegar until it thickens. Cool it and pour over the salad just be- fore serving. 106 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Molasses Sauce. — One cupful of molasses, half a cup- ful of water, one tablespoonful of butter, a little cinna- mon or nutmeg (about half a teaspoonful) , one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, three tablespoonfuls of vinegar. Boil all together for twenty minutes. Juice of lemon can be used instead of vinegar. — New Cook Book: Miss Maria Parloa. Estes & Lauriat, Publishers. Fruit-Syrup Sauce. — One cup fruit-syrup, one-half cup sugar, one teaspoonful corn-starch, one teaspoonful butter. Use the syrup from apricots, peaches, cherries, quinces, or any fruit you prefer. The amount of sugar will depend upon the acidity of the fruit. Mix the corn- starch with the sugar, add the syrup, and boil five min- utes. Add butter last. — The Peerless Cook Book: Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. Roberts Brothers, Publishers. Lobster Sauce. — One small lobster, four tablespoonfuls of butter, two of flour, one-fifth of a teaspoonful of cayenne, two tablespoonfuls of lemon-juice, one pint of boiling water. Cut the meat into dice. Pound the " coral " with one tablespoonful of the butter. Rub the flour and the remainder of the butter to a smooth paste. Add the water, pounded "coral" and butter, and the seasoning. Simmer five minutes and then strain on the lobster. Boil up once and serve. — New Cook Book : Miss Maria Parloa. Estes & Lauriat, Publishers. Cranberry Sauce. — Put three pints of washed cranberries in a - granite stewpan. On top of them put three cups of granulated sugar and three gills of water. After they begin to boil, cook them ten minutes, closely covered, and do not stir them. Remove the scum. They will jelly when cool, and the skins will be soft and tender. — The Boston Cook Book: Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. Roberts Brothers, Publishers. SALADS AND SAUCES. 107 Tomato Sauce, — Halve the tomatoes and squeeze out the seeds and watery pulp. Stew the solid portions gently with a little gravy or strong broth until they are entirely softened. Strain through a hair sieve and reheat with additional gravy, a little cayenne pepper and salt. Serve hot. Green Tomato Sauce. — Cut up two gallons of green toma- toes ; take three gills of black mustard seed, three table- spoonfuls of dry mustard, two and a half of black pepper, one and a half of allspice, four of salt, two of celery seed, one quart each of chopped onions and sugar, and two and a half quarts of good vinegar, a little red pepper to taste. Beat the spices and boil all together until well done. Chili Sauce. — Take ten pounds of ripe tomatoes, peeled and sliced; two pounds of peeled onions chopped fine; seven ounces of green peppers finely chopped, without the seeds ; six ounces of brown sugar ; four ounces salt ; a pint and a half of vinegar. Boil all together in a porcelain-lined kettle for several hours, until thick as desired ; put up in tight cans or jars, and use with soups and gravies. Celery Sauce. — Pick and wash two heads of celery ; cut them into pieces one inch long, and stew them in a pint of water, with one teaspoonful of salt, until the celery is tender. Rub a large spoonful of butter and a spoonful of flour well together ; stir this into a pint of cream ; put in the celery, and let it boil up once. Serve hot with boiled poultry. Mint Sauce. — Wash the sprigs of mint, let them dry on a towel, strip off the leaves, and chop them very fine ; put in a sauce-boat with a cupful of vinegar and four lumps of sugar; let it stand an hour, and before serving stir all together. Mint sauce, if bottled, will keep a long time, - and be just as good, if not better, than when freshly made. Asparagus Sauce. — Take a, dozen heads of asparagus ; two teacupfuls drawn butter; two eggs; the juice of half a 108 THE HOUSEWIFE S LIBRARY. lemon ; salt and white pepper. Boil the tender heads in a very little salt water. Drain and chop them. Have ready a pint of drawn butter, with two raw eggs beaten into it ; add the asparagus, and season, squeezing in the lemon juice last. The butter must be hot, but do not cook after putting in the asparagus heads. This is a delightful sauce for boiled fowls, stewed fillet of veal, or boiled mutton. Mushroom Sauce. — Pick, rub, and wash a pint of young mushrooms, and sprinkle with salt to take off the skin. Put them ii.to a saucepan with a little salt, a blade of mace, a little nutmeg, a pint of cream, and a piece of butter rolled in flour ; boil them up and stir till done. Caper Sauce. — Make a drawn butter sauce, and add two or three tablespoonfuls of French capers ; remove from the fire and add a little lemon juice. Cranberry Sauce. — Cover a quart of cranberries with water and let it simmer gently till thoroughly cooked. Strain the skins out through a colander, and add to the juice two cup- fuls of sugar ; let it simmer again for fifteen minutes, and pour into a mold previously wet in cold water. Strawberry Sauce. — Rub half a cupful of butter and one cupful of sugar to a cream ; add the beaten white of an egg and one cupful of strawberries thoroughly mashed. Lemon Sauce. — One-half a cupful of butter, one cupful of sugar, yelks of two eggs, one teaspoonful of corn-starch. Beat the eggs and sugar until light ; add the grated rind and juice of one lemon. Stir the whole into three gills of boiling water until it thickens sufficiently for the table. Lemon Sauce, No. 2. — One large tablespoonful of butter, one small tablespoonful of flour, one cupful of sugar, grated rind and juice of one lemon. SALADS AND SAUCES. 109 Vanilla Sauce. — Put half a pint of milk in a small sauce- pan over the fire; when scalding hot add the yelks of three eggs, and stir until it is as thick as boiled custard ; remove the saucepan from the fire, and when cool add a tablespoonful of extract of vanilla and the beaten whites of two eggs. Venison Sauce. — Mix two teaspoonfuls of currant jelly, one stick of cinnamon, one blade of mace, grated white bread, ten tablespoonfuls of water ; let the whole stew till thoroughly cooked, when done serve with venison steak. Anchovy Sauce. — Stir two or three teaspoonfuls of pre- pared essence or paste of anchovy, into a pint of melted butter ; let the sauce boil a few minutes, and flavor with lemon juice. Lobster Sauce. — Break the shell of the lobster into small pieces. Pour over these one pint of water or veal-stock and a pinch of salt ; simmer gently until the liquid is re- duced one-half. Mix two ounces of butter with an ounce of flour, strain the liquid upon it and stir all, over the fire, until the mixture thickens, but do not let it boil. Add two tablespoonfuls of lobster meat chopped fine, the juice of half a lemon, and serve. Oyster Sauce. — Strain fifty oysters ; put the juice into a saucepan ; add one pint of new milk ; let it simmer, and then skim off whatever froth may rise. Rub a large spoon- ful of flour and two of butter together ; stir this into the liquor ; add a little salt and pepper. Let this simmer five minutes, but do not add the oysters till just as they are to be sent to the table, as oysters much cooked are hard. For turkeys, etc., this is a splendid dressing. Plain French Dressing. — A plain French dressing is made simply of salt, pepper, oil, and vinegar. Three tablespoon- fuls of oil to one of vinegar, saltspoon heaping full of salt, an even saltspoonful of pepper mixed with a little cayenne. 1 1 THE HO USE WIFE 1 S L IBRAR Y. Mayonnaise Sance. — Work the yelks of two raw eggs to a smooth paste, and add two saltspoonfuls of salt, half a salt- spoonful of cayenne, a saltspoonful of dry mustard, and a teaspoonful of oil; mix these thoroughly and add the strained juice of half a lemon. Take what remains of half a pint of olive oil and add it gradually, a teaspoonful at a time, and every fifth teaspoonful add a few drops of lemon juice until you have used two lemons and the half- pint of oil. Mayonnaise Sauce, No. 2. — Rub the yelks of three hard ■ boiled eggs with the yelk of one raw egg to a smooth paste -, add a heaping teaspoonful of salt, two saltspoonfuls of white pepper, and two saltspoonfuls of made mustard; mix thoroughly and work a gill of oil gradually into the mixture, alternated with a teaspoonful of vinegar, until you have used three tablespoonfuls of vinegar. Should the sauce appear too thick, add a wineglassful of cream. Butter Sauce. — Mix well together two tablespoonfuls of butter, some chopped parsley, juice of half a lemon, salt, and pepper. For broiled meat or fish. Brown Butter Sauce. — Put butter into a frying-pan and let it stand on the fire until very brown ; then add a little pars- ley and fry a moment longer. Drawn Butter Sauce. — Take one-quarter pound of butter j rub with it two teaspoonfuls of flour. When well mixed, put into a saucepan with one-half pint of water ; cover it, and set the saucepan into a larger one full of boiling water. Shake it constantly till completely melted and beginning to boil ; season with salt and pepper. Boiled Egg Sauce. — Add to half a pint of drawn butter sauce two or three hard-boiled eggs, chopped. R1TTERJ *9">> BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES VIII.— CROQUETTES AND FRITTERS. CROQUETTES DEFINED J FRITTERS DEFINED J USES OF BOTH. TWENTY-FOUR RECIPES FOR CROQUETTES AND FRITTERS. THE term croquette (pronounced cro-ket) is from a French verb, meaning " to crunch." It designates all that class of preparations made of minced meat, or other in- gredients, highly seasoned and fried in bread-crumbs. Fritters, like croquettes, are fried, but they are made of batter containing other ingredients, as taste may dictate. Both these preparations are used as accessories of the din- ner or tea table rather than as principal dishes. RECIPES. Rice Croquettes. — Put a quarter of a pound of rice into a pint of milk. Let it simmer gently until the rice is tender and the milk absorbed. It must then be boiled until thick and dry, or it will be difficult to mold. Add three table- spoonfuls of sugar, one of butter, one egg, and flavor to taste with vanilla or cinnamon ; beat thoroughly for a few minutes, and when cold form into balls or cones, dip these into beaten egg, roll lightly in bread-crumbs, and fry in hot butter. Hominy Croquettes. — To a cupful of cold boiled hominy (small grained) add a tablespoonful of melted butter and stir hard; moisten by degrees with a cupful of milk, beating to a soft, light paste. Put in a teaspoonful of white sugar and a well-beaten egg. Roll into oval balls with floured hands, dip in beaten egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. Ill 112 THE HOUSEWIFE S~LIBRARY. Potato Croquettes. — Season cold mashed potatoes with pep- per, salt, and nutmeg. Beat to a cream, with a tablespoon- ful of melted butter to every cupful of potato. Add two or three beaten eggs and some minced parsley. Roll into small balls; dip in beaten egg, then in bread-crumbs and fry in hot lard. Oyster-Plant Croquettes. — Wash, scrape, and boil the oyster- plant till tender ; rub it through a colander, and mix with the pulp a little butter, cream, salt, cayenne, and lemon juice ; mix the ingredients thoroughly together to a smooth paste, and set the dish in the ice-box to get cold ; then shape it into small cones, dip them in beaten egg, roll in crumbs, and fry crisp and brown. Chicken Croquettes. — Add to the quantity of minced chicken; about one-quarter the quantity of bread-crumbs, also one egg well beaten to each cupful of meat ; pepper, salt, and chopped parsley to taste, add the yelks of two hard-boiled eggs rubbed smooth. Add gravy or drawn butter to moisten it, make into cones or balls, roll in cracker-dust or flour, and fry in hot lard. Veal Croquettes. — Make these the same as chicken cro- quettes, by substituling for the chicken cold minced veal and ham in equal parts. The salt may be omitted, as the ham usually supplies it sufficiently. Turkey, duck, or the remains of any cold game or meat may be used in the same way with very satisfactory results. Oyster Croquettes. — Take the hard ends of the oysters, leav- ing the other end for a soup or stew ; scald them, then chop fine, and add an equal weight of potatoes rubbed through a colander ; to one pound of this combination add two ounces of butter, one teaspoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful of pep- per, half a teaspoonful of mace, and one-half gill of cream, make in small rolls, dip them in egg and grated bread, fry in deep, hot lard. CROQUETTES AND FRITTERS. H3 Lobster Croquettes.— Chop the lobster very fine ; mix with pepper, salt, bread-crumbs, and a little parsley; moisten with cream and a small piece of butter ; shape with your hands ; dip in egg, roll in bread-crumbs, fry in hot lard. Plain Fritters. — Take one pint of flour, four eggs, one pint of boiling water, and one teaspoonful of salt. Stir the flour into the boiling water gradually, and let it boil three minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the fire and stir in the yelks of the eggs, afterward the whites, they hav- ing been well beaten. Drop this batter by large spoon- fuls into boiling lard and fry to a light brown. Serve hot, powdered with white sugar. Bread Fritters. — Grate stale bread until you have a pint of crumbs ; pour a pint of boiling rnilk upon these, a table- spoonful of butter having been dissolved in it, and let the whole stand for an hour. Then beat up the mixture and flavor with nutmeg. Stir in gradually a quarter pound of white sugar, two tablespoonfuls of brandy, six well-beaten eggs, and currants enough to flavor the whole. The cur- rants should be washed, dried, and floured. Drop by large spoonfuls into boiling lard and fry to a light brown. Serve with wine and powdered sugar. Potato Fritters. — Break open four nicely baked potatoes ; scoop out the insides with a spoon, and mix with them a wineglassful of cream, a tablespoonful of brandy, two table- spoonfuls of powdered sugar, the juice of one lemon, half a teaspoonful of vanilla extract, and well-beaten yelks of four and the whites of three eggs ; beat the batter until it is quite smooth ; drop large tablespoonfuls of the mixture into boil- ing fat and fry to a light brown ; dust them with powdered sugar and send to table hot. Corn Fritters. — Scrape twelve ears of corn, mix with two 8 1 14 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRAR Y. eggs, one and one-half cups of milk, salt and pepper to taste, and flour enough to hold all together. Fry in hot fat. Hominy Fritters. — Two teacupfuls of cold boiled hominy ; stir in one teacupful of sweet milk and a little salt, four table- spoonfuls of sifted flour, and one egg ; beat the white sepa- rately and add last ; drop the batter by spoonfuls in hot lard and fry to a nice brown. Eic8 Fritters. — Boil a quarter of a pound of rice in milk till it is tender, then mix it with a pint of milk, two eggs, one cup of sugar, a little salt and cinnamon, and as much flour as will make a thick batter. Fry them in thin cakes and serve with butter and white powdered sugar. Parsnip Fritters. — Boil four good-sized parsnips in salted water until tender ; drain them, beat them to a pulp, and squeeze the water from -them as much as possible ; bind them together with a beaten egg and a little flour. Shape into cakes and fry in hot lard. Fruit Fritters. — The following recipe will serve for many kinds of fruit or vegetable fritters : Make a batter of ten ounces of flour, half a pint of milk, and two ounces of but- ter ; sweeten and flavor to taste ; stir in the whites of two eggs well beaten; dip the fruit in the batter and fry. Small fruit and vegetables should be mixed with the batter. Apple Fritters. — Take one egg, two tablespoonfuls of flour, a little sifted sugar and ginger, with milk enough to make a smooth batter ; cut a good sized apple into slices and put them into the batter. Put them into a frying-pan, with the batter which is taken up in the spoon. When fried, drain them on a sieve and sift on powdered sugar. Currant Fritters. — Take twocupfuls dry, fine bread-crumbs, two tablespoonfuls prepared flour, two cups of milk, one- half pound currants, washed and well dried; five eggs CROQUETTES AND FRITTERS. H5 whipped very light and the yelks strained, one-half cup pow- dered sugar, one tablespoonful butter, one-half teaspoonful mixed cinnamon arid nutmeg. Boil the milk and pour over the bread. Mix and put in the butter. Let it get cold. Beat in, next, the yelks and sugar, the seasoning, flour, and stiff whites, finally the currants dredged white with flour. The batter should be thick. Drop great spoonfuls into the hot lard and fry. Drain them and send hot to table. Eat with a mixture of wine and powdered sugar. Oyster Fritters. — Take one and one-half pints of sweet milk, one and one-fourth pounds of flour, four egg (the yelks having been beaten very thick) ; add milk and flour ; stir the whole well together, then beat the whites to a stiff froth and stir them gradually into the batter ; take a spoonful of the mixture, drop an oyster into it, and fry in hot lard ; let them be a light brown on both sides. Clam Fritters. — Take a dozen chopped clams, one pint of milk, three eggs. Add liquor from the clams, with salt and pepper, and flour enough to produce thin batter. Fry in hot lard. Cream Fritters. — Take one cup of cream, the whites of five eggs, two full cups prepared flour, one saltspoonful of nut- meg, a pinch of salt. Stir the whites into the cream in turn with the flour, put in nutmeg and salt, beat all hard for two minutes. The batter should be rather thick. Fry in plenty of sweet lard, a spoonful of batter for each fritter. Drain and serve upon a hot, clean napkin. Eat with jelly sauce. Do not cut them open, but break or pull them apart. French Fritters. — Take two cupfuls of flour, two teaspoon fuls of baking powder, two eggs, milk enough for stiff batter, and a little salt. Drop into boiling lard and fry light brown. Serve with cream and sugar or sauce. 116 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Spanish Fritters. — Cut stale bread into small, round slices about an inch thick ; soak them in milk, and then dip them into well-beaten egg which has been sweetened to taste. Sprinkle thickly with cinnamon and fry in hot lard. Venetian Fritters. — Take three ounces of whole rice, wash and drain into a pint of cold milk. Let it come slowly to a boil, stirring often, and let it simmer till quite thick and dry. Add two ounces of powdered sugar, one of fresh butter, a pinch of salt, the grated rind of half a lemon. Let the whole cool in the saucepan, and while still a little warm mix in three ounces of currants, four ounces of chopped apples, a teaspoonful of flour, and three well-beaten eggs. Drop the batter in small lumps into boiling fat, allowing them to fry till the under side is quite firm and brown ; then turn and brown the other side. When done, drain through a hair sieve, and powder with white sugar when about tc serve. BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES IX.— EGGS. NUTRITIOUS VALUE OF EGGS — TEST OF FRESHNESS — PACKING EGGS — PRESERVING EGGS. THIRTY-THREE WAYS OF COOKING EGGS. HIGH chemical authorities agree that there is more nutri- ment in an egg than in any substance of equal bulk found in nature or produced by art. They are much used for food the world over, and few articles are capable of more varied employment. The freshness of an egg may be determined in various ways. In a fresh egg, the butt end, if touched on the tongue, is sensibly warmer than the point end. If held to- ward the light and looked through (" candled "), a fresh egg will show a clear white and a well-rounded yelk. A stale egg will appear muddled. Probably the surest test is to put the eggs into a pan of cold water. Fresh eggs sink quickly ; bad eggs float ; suspicious ones act suspiciously, neither sinking nor floating very decidedly. Of all articles of food, doubtful eggs are most certainly to be condemned. On the packing of eggs, the following conclusions may be regarded as established among egg-dealers : By cold storage, temperature forty to forty-two degrees Fahrenheit, kept uniform, with eggs packed properly or in cases, they will keep in good condition from six to nine months ; but they must be used soon after being taken out of the cold storage, as they soon spoil. Eggs become musty from being packed in bad material. They will become musty in cases, as a change of temperature causes the eggs to sweat and the wrapping-paper to become moist and taint the eggs. 117 118 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Well-dried oats, a year old, makes the best packing. Eggs become " mixed " by jarring in shipping. Fresh eggs mix worse than those kept in cold storage. Eggs which have been held in cold storage in the West should be shipped in refrigerator cars in summer. Eggs will keep thirty days longer if stood on the little end than in any other position. They must be kept at an even temperature and in a pure atmosphere. Eggs laid on the side attach to the shell and are badly injured. To prevent imposition as to the freshness of the eggs, the egg gatherers should " candle " them when they get them from the farmers. Eggs keep better in the dark than in the light. Methods of preservation for domestic purposes are, to pack them in bran or salt, the small end down ; to grease them with linseed oil, or dip them in a light varnish. For extra long keeping, slack one pound of lime in a gallon of water ; when this is entirely cold, place it in a jar and fill with fresh eggs. Do not agitate the contents when eggs are removed from the jar. Eggs kept so will continue good for a year. The French method of preserving eggs is to dissolve beeswax and olive oil and anoint the eggs all over. If left undisturbed in a cool place, they will remain good for two years. RECIPES. Boiled Eggs. — Put into a saucepan of boiling water with a tablespoon, being careful not to break or crack them. Boil steadily three minutes, if you want them soft ; ten, if hard. Another way is to put them on in cold water, and let it come to a boil. The inside, white and yelk, will be then of the consistency of custard. Still another way is to put them in water, heated to the boiling point, and let them stand from five to seven minutes without boiling. If desired for salad, boil them ten minutes; EGGS. 119 then throw them in cold water ; roll them gently on a table or board, and the shell can be easily removed. Wire egg racks, to set in boiling hot water with the eggs held in place, are exceedingly convenient. Boiled Eggs, with Sauce. — Boil hard, remove the shell, set in a hot dish, and serve with seasoning and sauce to taste. Poached Eggs.— Have the water well salted, but do not let it boil hard. Break the eggs separately into a saucer, and slip them singly into the water ; when nicely done, remove with a skimmer, trim neatly, and lay each egg upon a small thin square of buttered toast, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Some persons prefer them poached rather than fried with ham ; in which case substitute the ham for toast. Poached Eggs with Ham Sauce. — Mince fine two or three slices of boiled ham, a small onion, a little parsley, pepper, and salt ; stew together for a quarter of an hour ; put the poached eggs in a dish, squeeze over them the juice of a lemon, and pour on the sauce hot but not boiling. Poached Eggs a la Creme. — Nearly fill a clean frying-pan with water boiling hot ; strain a tablespoonful of vinegar through double muslin, and add to the water with a little salt. Slip your eggs from the saucer upon the top of the water (first taking the pan from the fire). Boil three min- utes and a half; drain, and lay on buttered toast in a hot dish. Turn the water from the pan and pour in half a cup- ful of cream or milk. If you use the latter, thicken with a very little corn-starch. Let it heat to a boil, stirring to pre- vent burning, and add a great spoonful of butter, some pep- per, and salt. Boil up once and pour over the eggs. Or better still, heat the milk in a separate saucepan, that the eggs may not have to stand. A little broth improves the sauce. 120 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Steamed Eggs. — Butter a tin plate and break in your eggs ; set in a steamer ; place over a kettle of boiling water, and steam until the whites are cooked; they are more orna. mental when broken into patty tins, as they keep their form better ; the whites of the eggs, when cooked in this manner, are tender and light, and not tough and leathery, as if cooked by any other process. Eggs in .this style can be eaten by invalids, and are very much richer than by any other method. Whirled Eggs. — Put a quart of water, slightly salted, into a saucepan over the fire, and keep it at a fast boil. Stir with wooden spoon or ladle in one direction until it whirls rapidly. Break six eggs, one at a time, into a cup and drop each carefully into the centre, or vortex, of the boiling water. If kept at a rapid motion, the egg will become a soft, round ball. Take it out carefully with a perforated spoon, and put it on a slice of buttered toast laid upon a hot dish. Put a bit of butter on the top. Set the dish in the oven to keep warm, and proceed in the same way with another egg, hav- ing but one in the saucepan at a time. When all are done, dust lightly with salt and pepper and send up hot. Eggs a la Mode. — Remove the skin from a dozen tomatoes, medium size, cut them up in a saucepan, add a little butter, pepper, and salt ; when sufficiently boiled, beat up five or six eggs, and just before you serve, turn them into a sauce- pan with the tomato, and stir one way for two minutes, allow- ing them time to be well done. Baked Eggs. — Mix finely chopped ham and bread-crumbs in about equal proportions, season with salt and pepper, and moisten with milk and a little melted butter ; half fill your small patty pans with the mixture, break an egg over the top of each, sprinkle with fine bread-crumbs, and bake; serve hot. £GGS. 12 ] Baked Eggs, No. 2. — Butter a clean, smooth saucepan, break as many eggs as will be needed into a saucer, one by one, and if found good, slip each into the saucepan. No broken yelk must be allowed, nor must they crowd so as to risk breaking the yelk after put in. Put a small piece of butter on each, and sprinkle with pepper and salt. Set into a well- heated oven, and bake till the whites are set. If the oven is rightly heated, it will take but a few minutes, and the cooking will be far more delicate than fried eggs. Eggs sur le Plat. — Melt butter on a stone-china or tin plate. Break the eggs carefully into this ; dust lightly with pepper and salt, and put on top of the stove until the whites are well set. Serve in the dish in which they are baked. Scrambled Eggs. — Put into a frying-pan enough butter to grease it well ; slip in the eggs carefully without breaking the yelks ; add butter, and season to taste ; when the whites begin to set, stir the eggs from the bottom of the pan, and continue stirring until the cooking is completed. The appearance at the end should be marbled, rather than mixed. Scrambled Eggs with Ham. — Put into a pan, butter, a little pepper and salt, and a little milk ; when hot, drop in the eggs, and with a knife cut the eggs and scrape them from the bottom as the whites begin to set ; add some cold ham chopped fine, and when done, serve in a hot dish. Toasted Eggs. — Cover the bottom of an earthenware or stone-china dish with rounds of delicately toasted bread, or with rounds of stale bread dipped in beaten egg and fried ' quickly to a golden-brown in butter or nice dripping. Break an egg carefully upon each, and set the dish imme- diately in front of a glowing fire. Toast over this as many slices of fat salt pork or ham as there are eggs in the dish, holding the meat so that it will fry veiy quickly and all the dripping fall upon the eggs. When these are well set, they a*e done. Turn the dish several times while toasting the 122 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. meat, that the eggs may be equally cooked. Do not send the pork to table, but pepper the eggs lightly and remove with the toast to the dish in which they go to the table. Egg Toast. — Beat four eggs, yelks and whites, together thoroughly ; put two tablespoonfuls of butter into a sauce- pan and melt slowly ; then pour in the eggs and heat, with- out boiling, over a slow fire, stirring constantly ; add a litde salt, and when hot spread on slices of nicely browned toast and serve at once. Egg Baskets. — Boil quite hard as many eggs as will be needed. Put into cold water till cold, then cut neatly into halves with a thin, sharp knife ; remove the yelk and rub to a paste with some melted butter, adding pepper and salt. Cover up this paste and set aside till the filling is ready. Take cold roast duck, chicken, or turkey, which may be on hand, chop fine and pound smooth, and while pounding mix in the paste prepared from the yelks. As you pound, moisten with melted butter and some gravy which may have been left over from the fowls ; set this paste when done over hot water till well heated. Cut off a small slice from the end of the empty halves of the whites, so they will stand firm, then fill them with this paste ; place them close to- gether on a flat, round dish, and pour over the rest of the gravy, if any remains, or make a little fresh. A few spoon- fuls of cream or rich milk improves this dressing. Fricasseed Eggs. — Boil six eggs hard ; when cold, slice with a sharp knife. Have ready some slices of stale bread, fried to a nice brown in butter or drippings. Put a cupful of good broth in drawn butter over the fire, season it with pepper, salt, and a trace of onion ; let it come to a boil. Dip the slices of egg first into raw egg, then into cracker dust or bread-crumbs, and lay them gently into the gravy upon the side of the range. Do not let it actually boil, lest the eggs should break, but let them lie thus in the gravy at EGGS. 123 least five minutes. Place the fried bread upon a platter, lay the sliced eggs evenly upon this, pour the gravy over all, and serve hot. Curried Eggs. — Boil six or eight fresh eggs quite hard, and put them aside until they are cold. Mix well together from two to three ounces of good butter, and from three to four dessertspoonfuls of currie-powder ; shake them in a stewpan, or thick saucepan, over a clear but moderate fire for some minutes, then throw in a couple of mild onions finely minced, and fry gently until they are soft ; pour in by degrees from half to three-quarters of a pint of broth or gravy, and stew slowly until they are reduced to pulp ; mix smoothly a small cup of thick cream with two teaspoonfuls of wheaten or rice flour ; stir them to the currie, and simmer the whole until the raw taste of the thickening is gone. Cut the eggs into half-inch slices, heat them through in the sauce without boiling them, and send to the table as hot as possible. Plain Omelet. — Beat thoroughly yelks of five eggs, and a dessertspoonful of flour, rubbed smooth in two-thirds of a cupful of milk. Salt and pepper to taste, and add a piece of butter the size of a hickory-nut. Beat the whites to a stiff froth, pour the mixture into the whites, and without stirring pour into a hot, buttered omelet pan. Cook on top of the range for five minutes ; then set pan and all into the oven to brown the top nicely. Baked Omelet. — Beat the yelks of six eggs, and add the whites of three eggs beaten very light ; salt and pepper to taste, and a tablespoonful of flour mixed in a cup of milk. Pour into a well-buttered pan and put into a hot oven ; when thick, pour over it the whites of three eggs beaten light ; then brown nicely, without allowing the top to be- come crusted. Serve immediately. 124 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Omelet a la Mode. — Beat the yelks and whites of six eggS separately until light, then beat together and add one table- spoonful of cream. Have in the omelet pan a piece of butter ; when the butter is boiling hot, pour in the omelet and shake until it begins to stiffen, and then let it brown, and season to taste. Fold double and serve hot. If a larger omelet is desired, a tablespoonful of milk to each egg may be added, and one teaspoonful of corn-starch or flour to the whole. Cheese Omelet. — Butter the sides of a deep dish and cover with thin slices of rich cheese ; lay over the cheese thin slices of well-buttered bread, first covering the cheese with a little red pepper and mustard ; then another layer of cheese ; beat the yelk of an egg in a cup of cream or milk, and pour over the dish, and put at once into the oven ; bake till nicely browned. Serve hot, or it will be tough and hard, but when properly cooked it will be tender and savory. Meat or Pish Omelet. — Make the same as plain omelet. When it is done, scatter thickly over the surface cold, boiled ham, tongue, poultry, fish, or lobster, chopped fine, and season nicely to taste ; slip the broad knife under one side of the omelet and double, inclosing the meat. Then upset the frying-pan upon a hot dish, so transferring the omelet with- out breaking. Or the minced meat may be stirred in after the ingredients are put together, and before cooking. Be careful not to scorch the egg. Omelet with Oysters. — Allow one egg for each person, and beat yelks and whites separately, very light ; season to taste, and just before cooking add the oysters, which have been previously scalded in their own liquor. Egg Sandwiches. — Hard boil some fresh eggs, and, when cold, cut them into moderately thin slices, and lay them be- tween slices of bread and butter cut thin, and season well EGGS. 125 with celery salt. For picnic parties or for traveling, these sandwiches are very nice. Deviled Eggs. — Boil the eggs hard, remove the shell, and cut in two as preferred. Remove the yelks, and add to them salt, cayenne pepper, melted butter, and mixed mustard to taste ; then stuff the cavities of the hard whites, and put the halves together again. Serve garnished with parsley. For picnics, etc., each egg can be wrapped in tissue paper to preserve its form. Pickled Eggs. — Boil the eggs until very hard ; when cold, shell them, and cut them in halves lengthways. Lay them carefully in large-mouthed jars, and pour over them scalding vinegar, well seasoned with whole pepper, allspice, a few pieces of ginger, and a few cloves of garlic. When cold, tie up closely, and let them stand a month. They are then fit. for use. With cold meat, they are a most delicious and delicate pickle. Egg Balls. — Rub the yelks of hard-boiled eggs with the raw yelk of an egg, well beaten, and season to taste. Roll this paste into balls the size of marbles, adding flour if neces- sary to thicken, and boil two minutes. A valuable embel- lishment and enrichment of soups. Soft-boiled Eggs. — Put the eggs in a warm saucepan and cover with boiling water. Let them stand where they will keep hot, but not boil, for ten minutes. This method will cook both whites and yolks. — New Cook Book: Miss Maria Parloa. Esles & Lauriat, Publishers. Sweet Omelet. — Beat four eggs without separating ; add a piece of butter the size of a walnut and four table- spoonfuls of warm water. Put another piece of butter in a frying-pan. When melted and hot turn in the egg and shake until set, then lift carefully the side, drain the liquid portion underneath, shake again until the 126 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. omelet is cooked. Fill the centre with jam and fold over one side and then the other. Turn it into another heated pan ; turn on to a heated dish and serve. Creamed Eggs for Luncheon. — One-half dozen hard- boiled eggs cut in halves. Make a white sauce as fol- lows : Two teaspoonfuls butter, two level tablespoonfuls flour; melt butter and stir in flour; then add slowly one-half pint milk, seasoning with salt and pepper and a little celery. Pour over eggs and serve in a dish gar- nished with parsley. Eggs Scrambled in Tomatoes. — Fry one small slice of onion in three tablespoonfuls butter until crisp, then re- move onion ; add to the butter one large cup tomato, one teaspoonful sugar, one teaspoonful Worcestershire sauce. Season with salt and pepper and cook five min- utes. Add four eggs beaten and cook the same as scrambled eggs. Serve with entire wheat or brown bread toast. Omelet Souffle. — Separate six eggs, beat the whites to a very stiff froth ; beat and add the yolks of three, three tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar, the grated rind of half a lemon, a tablespoonful of lemon juice. Mix quickly and turn into a baking dish or form on a platter. Dust thickly with powdered sugar and bake in a quick oven about five minutes. BAKING POWDER THAT IS GUARANTEED ABSOLUTELY PURE IS THE PLUME a LIGHT AS A FEATHER" [TRADE MARK] YOUR GROCER SELLS IT OTHERWISE ADDRESS Plume Baking Powder Co., MALDEN, MASS. OCCIDENT FLOUR. How t»o get your money back Occident Flour is the best flour made. There is no doubt about that. We know it is best because we make it from North Dakota wheat that is proven by analysis to contain the largest amount of gluten and phosphates, those basic elements that assure strength, purity and color. Our mills, our millers, and our machinery are the best that money can buy. And being located in the heart of the famous hard wheat belt, we can secure the very cream of the wheat, before it is shipped to the large cities and mixed with cheaper wheat from other parts of the country. Because of the extra high-grade wheat used — and because a larger propor- tion of the lower-grade flour is taken out. of it. in it»s manufacture — Occi- dent. Flour costs a little bit more than other standard brands of flour. About 50 cents a barrel more. Remember — No matter what price you pay for flour, bread is the cheapest food product going on to your table. Therefore — Occident Flour is the cheapest flour you can buy because extra quality means extra consumption of bread and smaller consumption of more expen- sive foods. How t»o get your money back — When you buy flour, always buy Occident Flour. The grocer from whom you buy it is authorized to refund your money if the flour is not found exactly as represented — t»he best. Flour on earth. If you are unable to get Occident Flour from your dealer, send us his name. Russell-Miller Milling Co. of North Dakota GENERAL OFFICE NEW ENGLAND OFFICE MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, BOSTON, MASS. MILLS AT JAMESTOWN, VALLEY CITY, GRAND FORKS, N. D. NOTICE For perfect results from Occident Flour, use full measure of good yeast but less flour than usual, making the dough just as soft as can be handled. THIS IS IMPORTANT BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES X.— BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. AN immense department is opened up by the title of this chapter ; and it is a department of immense im- portance. Bread is confessedly the " staff of life," and, therefore, it should be good. And whatever takes the place of bread, be it biscuits, hot cakes, muffins, or what not, should also be good, or nothing is gained by the exchange. Many a housekeeper can make excellent pies, cakes, etc., but when bread is needed, she flies to the bakery, confessing her total inability to prepare this indispensable commodity. But even bread may become distasteful as a steady diet. To vary it with the long line of splendid substitutes which are possible, and which are discussed in this chapter, is a most desirable ability. This department, therefore, is worthy of every housewife's devout study. I.— BREAD. ESSENTIALS TO MAKING GOOD BREAD ; HOW TO KNOW GOOD FLOUR J YEAST j RAISING BREAD ; BAKING BREAD. TWELVE RECIPES FOR BREAD. THREE things are essential to the making of good bread, namely, good flour, good yeast, and, judicious baking. A fourth might be added, experience, without which none of the domestic arts can be successfully carried on. RECIPES. Wheat Bread. — Put seven pounds of flour into a breadpan ; hollow out the centre, and add a quart of lukewarm water, a teaspoonful of salt, and a wineglassful of yeast. Have 128 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. ready more warm water, and add gradually as much as will make a smooth, soft dough. Knead it well, dust a little flour over it, cover it with a cloth, and set it in a warm place four hours ; then knead it again for fifteen minutes and let it rise again. Divide it into loaves, and prick them with a fork, and bake in a quick oven from forty minutes to an hour. Potato Bread. — Three and one-half quarts of sifted flour, three boiled potatoes, one quart warm water, one teacupful of yeast, one even tablespoonful salt. Mix at night ; put the flour in a large bowl ; hollow a place in the centre for the mashed potatoes, water, and salt. Stir in flour enough to make a smooth batter ; add yeast ; stir in the rest of the flour. Put the dough on the floured board ; knead fifteen minutes, using barely enough flour to prevent sticking. Flour the bowl, lay the dough in it, cover and leave it to rise. In the morning, divide in four parts ; mold into loaves; when light, prick, and bake in a moderate oven. Salt Rising Bread. — Pour a pint of hot water in a two-quart pail or pitcher on one-half tablespoonful of salt ; when it has cooled a little, add one and one-third pints of flour ; mix well, and leave the pitcher in a kettle of water, as warm as that used for mixing. Keep it at the same temperature until the batter is nearly twice its original bulk, which will be in from five to eight hours. It may be stirred once or twice during the rising. Add to this a sponge made of one quart of hot water, two and one-half quarts of flour — adding as much more as may be necessary to make a soft dough ; mix well, and leave in a warm place to rise. When light, mold into loaves, keeping them as soft as possible ; lay in buttered tins. When light again, prick and bake. Milk Bread. — Let two quarts of milk come to a boil ; stand it aside to cool, and when it becomes tepid, add flour to it gradually until it makes a batter just soft enough to beat up BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. J29 with a spoon. To this add one cake of compressed yeast thoroughly dissolved in lukewarm water. The batter should . then be well beaten. Cover with a towel and set in a warm place to rise. When light, add two tablespoonfuls of salt, one of lard, one of light brown sugar, and flour enough to make a soft dough. Knead steadily for about half an hour. This quantity should make four or five medium-sized loaves. Put them in greased pans and let them rise again. When light, prick with a fork and bake in a quick oven. Vienna Bread. — The Vienna bread that became so famous on the Centennial Exhibition grounds in 1 876 was made on the following recipe : Sift in a tin pan four pounds of flour ; bank up against the sides ; pour in one quart of milk and water, and mix into it enough flour to form a thin batter, and then quickly and lightly add one pint of milk, in which is dissolved one ounce of salt and one and three-quarter ounces of yeast ; leave the remainder of the flour against the sides of the pan; cover the pan with a cloth, and set in a place free from draught for three quarters of an hour ; then mix in the rest of the flour until the dough will leave the bottom and sides of the pan, and let it stand two and a half hours ; finally, divide the mass into one-pound pieces, to be cut in turn into twelve parts each ; this gives square pieces about three and a half inches thick, each corner of which is taken up and folded over to the centre, and then the cases are turned over on a dough-board to rise for half an hour, when they are put in a hot oven that will bake them in ten minutes. Rye Bread. — Scald two handfuls of corn-meal with a quart of boiling water, and add a quart of milk and a tablespoonful of salt. When cool, add a teacupful of yeast, and enough rye flour to make it as stiff as wheat-bread dough. After it has risen put it in pans and bake an hour and a half. Brown Bread. — Take one cup of bread-crumbs, one pint of 130 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. sweet milk, one cup of molasses, butter the size of an egg, one teaspoonful of soda, corn-meal enough to make a stiff batter, with salt to taste. Turn the whole into a buttered basin and steam for two hours ; then bake in a quick oven half an hour. Boston Brown Bread. — Take three and three-fourth cupfuls of Indian corn-meal, two and one-half cupfuls rye-meal, two- thirds cupful molasses, one quart milk, either sweet or sour; two even teaspoonfuls soda, dissolved in the milk ; steam in a tin pudding boiler five hours ; take off the cover and set in the oven to brown. Corn Bread. — Two heaping cupfuls Indian meal, one cup- ful wheat flour, two heaping teaspoonfuls Plume Baking Powder; mix well together while dry; one teaspoonful salt, two tablespoonfuls white sugar, two eggs, one tablespoonful lard, two and a half cupfuls cold milk ; beat the eggs, melt the lard, and dissolve the salt and sugar in the milk before add- ing them to the flour ; bake in buttered pans in a quick oven. Graham Bread.-^Three quarts of Graham flour ; one quart of warm water; one gill of yeast; one gill of sirup; one tablespoonful of salt; one even teaspoonful of soda. Mix thoroughly and put in well-buttered pans to rise. Bake about an hour and a half. This same mixture may be thinned and baked in gem pans for Graham gems. Bice Bread. — After a pint of rice has been boiled soft, mix > it with two quarts of rice flour or wheat flour. When cold, add half a teaspoonful of yeast, a teaspoonful of salt, and enough milk to make a soft dough. When it has risen, bake in small buttered pans. Unleavened Bread. — Mix wheat flour into a stiff dough with warm water or milk ; add a little lard, or suet, and bake in thin cakes. Bake as soon as mixed, and eat hot BREAD, BISCUIT, JfOT CAKES, ETC. 131 II.— TOAST. WHAT TOAST IS GOOD FOR. SIX METHODS OF PREPARING TOAST. AS a palatable method of disposing of stale bread, as well as to furnish a variety of agreeable dishes, toast is an important factor in the culinary economy of the home. As a dish for invalids it is indispensible. RECIPES. Dry Toast is produced by browning stale baker's bread over glowing coals. A toasting fork, or rack, of which there are various patterns, is a great convenience. Do not burn the toast, nor allow it to be so browned as to harden it. It should be eaten hot, as it becomes tough when allowed to cool. Buttered Toast. — For buttered toast, the slices should be thicker than for dry toast. Butter the slices as toasted, and keep warm until served. Excessive buttering should be avoided. Egg Toast. — On slices of buttered toast lay poached eggs. Serve with Worcestershire sauce for breakfast. French Toast. — Beat three eggs light, add one cupful of milk, with pepper and salt to taste. Dip into this slices of bread, then fry them in hot butter to a delicate brown. Milk Toast. — Toast the bread an even, delicate brown, and pile into a hot dish. Boil milk with a little salt, a teaspoon- ful of flour, and one of butter, rubbed together; pour it over the toast and serve hot. Cream Toast. — Take slices of baker's bread from which the crust has been pared and toast it to a golden brown. Have on the range a shallow bowl or pudding-dish, more than half full of boiling water, in which a tablespoonful of butter has been melted. As each slice is toasted, dip in this 132 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. for a second, sprinkle lightly with salt, and lay ih the deep heated dish in which it is to be served. Have ready, by the time all the bread is toasted, a quart of milk scalding hot, but not boiling. Thicken this with two tablespoonfuls of corn-starch or best flour ; let it simmer until cooked ; put in two tablespoonfuls of butter, and when this is melted, the beaten whites of three eggs. Boil up once, and pour over the toast, lifting the lower slices one by one, that the creamy mixture may run in between them. Cover closely, and sefcin the oven two or three minutes before serving. III.— FANCY BREADS. FANCY BREADS AND PLAIN CAKES \ THEIR GENERAL USEFULNESS. EIGHT RECIPES FOR FANCY BREADS. SOME special preparations come naturally between bread and cake. For convenient classification, they are grouped here under the title of Fancy Breads, though they might as well be classed as Plain Cakes. They serve a good purpose for variety, for luncheon, etc. See plainer forms of cakes. RECIPES. Sally Lunn. — One quart of flour, a piece of butter the size of an egg, three tablespoonfuls of sugar, two eggs, two tea- cupfuls of milk, two teaspoonfuls of cream tartar, one of soda, and a little salt. Scatter the cream of tartar, the sugar, and the salt into the flour ; add the eggs, the butter (melted), and one cup of milk ; dissolve the soda in the remaining cup, and stir all together steadily a few moments. Bake in two round pans. Sally Ltuiil No. 2. — Rub into a quart of flour two teaspoon- fuls of baking-powder ; beat together nearly half a cup of BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 133 butter and two tablespoonfuls of sugar ; put into the flour and mix with a pint of milk ; then add two eggs, beaten light. Mix and bake as above. Johnny Cake. — One quart of buttermilk or sour milk, one quart Indian meal, one quart of flour, one cup of molasses, a teaspoonful of soda, two scant teaspoonfuls if the milk is sour, a teaspoonful of salt. Bake in shallow pans in a quick oven. Hoe Cake. — Scald one quart of Indian-meal in enough water to make a thick batter ; add a teaspoonful of salt, one of molasses, and two of butter. Bake on a board before a hot fire or in a pan. Scotch, Shorttake. — Two pounds of fine flour, one pound of fresh, sweet butter, half a pound of finest sifted sugar; throughly knead together without water; roll out to half an inch in thickness, and place it on paper in a shallow pan ; bake very slowly until of proper crispness. The cake, to be good, must be very brittle. Pumpkin Bread. — Stew and strain a sufficient quantity of pumpkin ; add enough Indian-meal to stiffen it, with yeast and a little salt; when sufficiently raised, bake as in ordi- nary bread. Pone. — This is a dish prepared by the Indians, called also paune. Take two cupfuls of corn-meal, two of wheat flour, one of sugar, and half a cup of melted butter. Add one egg, one teaspoonful of salt, one of soda, and two of cream of tartar. Mix with enough milk to make a moderately stiff batter, and bake in a hot oven. Barley Bread. — In Scotland, Norway, and other climates where wheat is not grown, barley bread is used extensively. It is both wholesome and palatable. Mix the barley meal with warm water and a little salt, but no yeast. Mix to a stiff dough, roll into flat cakes, and bake before the fire or in an oven. Eat hot, with butter. 134 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. IV.— ROLLS. A FAVORITE BREAKFAST DISH. SEVEN VARIETIES OF ROLLS. A FAVORITE departure from the ordinary forms of bread is furnished in rolls. They are exceedingly pop- ular for breakfast, served warm. There are sufficient variations in rolls to make them suitable for use day after day, if this be desired. RECIPES. Plain Rolls. — Boil six potatoes in two quarts of water, and when done pour and press the whole through the colander ; when cool, but not cold, add flour to make a thick batter ; add half a cup of yeast, or one-half cake of compressed yeast, and set to rise ; when light, add half a cup of lard and but- ter mixed, a tablespoonful of sugar, teaspoonful of salt, and flour to make a soft dough ; knead well and set again to rise ; when light, knead down again ; repeat three or four times ; an hour before they are to be used cut in small pieces, roll out, spread with melted butter, and fold over, laying them in a pan so that they will not touch each other ; set them in a warm place, and when light bake quickly. Or, make into an oblong roll without spreading and rolling, and just before putting them into the oven, gash deeply across the top with a sharp knife. English Rolls. — Two pounds of flour, two ounces of butter, three tablespoonful s of yeast, one pint of warm milk ; mix well together, and set in a warm place to rise ; knead, and make into rolls ; let them rise again and bake twenty min- utes. Breakfast Rolls. — One quart of sifted flour, three teaspoon- fuls baking-powder, half toaspoonful salt; mix well together dry, then add three and half gills of cold milk, or enough to make it the consistency of batter, and drop with a spoon BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 135 into gem baking-pans, which should have been previously heated very hot and buttered. French Rolls. — One pint of milk, scalded ; put into it while hot half a cupful of sugar, and one tablespoonful of butter ; when the milk is cool, add a little salt and half a cupful of yeast, or one cake of compressed yeast ; stir in flour enough to make a stiff sponge, and when light mix as for bread. Let it rise until light, punch it down with the hand, and let it rise again, and repeat this process two or three times ; then turn the dough on to the molding board, and pound with rolling-pin until thin enough to cut. Cut out with a tumbler, brush the surface of each one with melted butter, and fold over. Let the rolls rise on the tins ; bake, and while warm brush over the surface with melted butter to make the crust tender. Vienna Rolls. — One quart sifted flour, two heaping tea- spoonfuls Plume Baking Powder; mix well while dry ; then add a tablespoonful of butter or* lard, made a little soft by warming and stirring, and about three-fourths of a pint, or enough cold, sweet milk for a dough of usual stiffness, with about half a teaspoonful of salt dissolved in it. Mix into a dough easily to be handled without sticking ; turn on the board and roll out to the thickness of half an inch, cut it out with a large cake-cutter, spread very lightly with butter, fold one-half over the other, and lay them in a greased pan without touching. Wash them over with a little milk, and bake in a hot oven. Parker House Rolls. — One teacupful of yeast, or one cake of compressed yeast, a little salt, one tablespoonful sugar, piece of lard size of an egg, one pint milk, flour sufficient to mix. Put the milk on the stove to scald with the lard in it. Prepare the flour with salt, sugar, and yeast. Then add the milk, not too hot. Knead thoroughly, and when mixed set to rise ; when light, knead again slightly. Then roll out 1 36 THE HO USE WIFE S LIB HAS Y. and cut with large biscuit-cutter. Spread a little butter on each roll and lap together. Let them rise again very light, and bake in a quick oven. Geneva Rolls. — Into two pounds of flour break three ounces of butter, add a little salt, and make into a sponge with yeast, previously mixed with milk and water. Allow the batter to rise ; then mix in two eggs, made lukewarm by the adding of hot milk, and work the sponge to a light dough. Let it stand for three-quarters of an hour longer ; mold into small rolls ; place them in buttered pans. When light, brush them with beaten yelks of eggs, and bake for twenty minutes or half an hour. Serve hot. V.— BISCUIT, RUSK, AND BUNS, v SPECIAL CARE REQUISITE IN" THIS DEPARTMENT \ ATTENTION TO INGREDIENTS, OVEN, ETC. J HOW TO BAKE THEM; BAKING-POW- DER BISCUITS, SODA BISCUITS, ETC. \ CARE OF PANS. FIFTEEN RECIPES FOR BISCUITS, BUNS, ETC. GREAT care is requisite in making biscuits that quantities be accurately observed and that the ingredients used are of proper quality. Flour should be a few months old. New flour will not make good biscuits. It should always be sifted. The oven, too, needs careful attention. On its condition the success of biscuit baking will depend. Rolls and bis- cuit should bake quickly. To make them a nice color, rub them over with warm water just before putting them into the oven ; to glaze them, brush lightly with milk and sugar Baking-powder biscuit and soda biscuit should be made as rapidly as possible, laid into hot pans, and put in a quick oven. Gem pans should always be heated and well greased. BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 237 RECIPES. Potato Biscuit. — Pare ten potatoes, boil them thoroughly, and mash fine ; add two cups of lukewarm milk, two table- spoonfuls of white sugar, half a cup of yeast, and flour enough to make a thin batter. Mix well and allow it to rise. Then add four tablespoonfuls of melted butter, a little salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Let this rise again ; roll into a sheet about an inch thick, and cut into cakes. Set to rise again, and bake in a quick oven. Light Biscuit. — When kneading bread, set aside a small loaf for biscuits. Into this, work a heaping tablespoonful of lard and butter mixed and a teaspoonful of sugar. The more it is worked the whiter it will be. As it rises, mold it down twice before making into biscuit. Roll out and cut with a biscuit-cutter. The dough should be quite soft. Soda Biscuits. — One quart of flour, a tablespoonful of but- ter and two of lard, a teaspoonful of salt, and one teaspoon even full of cream of tartar, one teaspoonful of soda ; sift the cream tartar with the flour dry ; rub the butter and lard very thoroughly through it ; dissolve the soda in a pint of milk and mix all together. Roll out, adding as little flour as possible; cut with a biscuit-cutter, and bake twenty minutes in a quick oven. Tea Biscuit. — Take one quart sifted flour, one tablespoon- ful shortening, half teaspoonful salt, and two teaspoonfuls Plume baking-powder ; mix well together dry, then add sufficient cold milk or water to form a very soft dough ; bake immediately in a quick oven. Cream Biscuits. — Dissolve one teaspoonful of soda in a quart of sour cream, add to it flour sufficient to make a soft dough and a little salt ; or use sour milk, and rub a table- spoonful of butter into the flour. 138 THE, HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRAR Y. Graham Biscuits. — Take one quart of water or milk, butter the size of an egg, three tablespoonfuls sugar, two of baker's yeast, and a pinch of salt ; take enough white flour to use up the water, making it the consistency of batter cakes ; add the rest of the ingredients and as much Graham flour as can be stirred in with a spoon ; set it away till morning-, in the morning grease the pan, flour your hands.; take a lump of dough the size of a large egg, roll it lightly be- tween the palms, and let the biscuits rise twenty minutes, then bake in a tolerably hot oven. Maryland Biscuits. — Take three pints of sifted flour, one tablespoonful of good lard, one pint of cold water, salt to the taste; make into a stiff dough; work it till it cracks or blisters, then break, but do not cut it, into suitable portions, and make into biscuits ; stick the top of each with a fork and bake. Yorkshire Biscuits. — Make a batter with flour sufficient and one quart of boiling hot milk. When the batter has cooled to lukewarmness, add a teacupful of yeast and a half tea- spoonful of salt. Set to rise again and let it become very light ; then stir in a half teaspoonful of soda, two eggs, and a tablespoonful of melted butter. Add flour enough to make the dough into small, round cakes ; let them rise fifteen minutes, and bake in a slow oven. Short Biscuits. — Mix one quart of flour with a quarter pound of butter melted in boiling water. Add enough cold milk to make a stiff dough. Work into small biscuits and bake in a quick oven. Flavored Biscuits. — Biscuit dough made as for Light Bis- cuit may be flavored with any essence, or with lemon or orange peel, as desired. Tea Rusk. — Three cups of flour, one cup of milk, three- BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 139 fourths of a cup of sugar, two heaping tablespoonfuls of butter, melted ; two eggs, three teaspoonfuls baking-powder. Let them rise, and bake in a moderate oven. Glaze while hot with white of egg, in which has been stirred, not beaten, a little powdered sugar, or sift the powdered sugar in while the egg is still moist on the top. Rusks should never be eaten hot. Sweet Rusk. — One pint of warm milk — new is best — one- half cup of butter, one cup of sugar, two eggs, one tea- spoonful of salt, two tablespoonfuls of yeast ; make a sponge with the milk, yeast, and enough flour to make a thin bat- ter, and let it rise over night. In the morning add the sugar, butter, eggs, and salt, well beaten up together, with enough flour to make a soft dough ; let it rise again ; then work out into round balls, and set to rise a third time. Bake in a moderate oven. Buns. — One cupful of warm water, one cupful of sweet milk, yeast and sugar, with flour enough to make a stiff batter ; let this rise over night ; in the morning add a cupful of sugar, a cupful of raisins or currants, mold well ; let it rise till light, then make into buns ; rise again till very light, and bake. Use any spice desired. Hot Cross Buns. — Three cupfuls sweet milk ; one cupful of yeast ; flour to make thick batter. Set this as a sponge over night. In the morning add one cupful of sugar ; one-half cupful butter, melted ; half a nutmeg ; one saltspoonful salt, and flour enough to roll out like biscuit. Knead well, and set to rise five hours. Roll half an inch thick, cut into round cakes, and lay in rows in a buttered baking-pan. When they have stood half an hour, make a cross upon each with a knife, and put instantly into the oven. Bake to a light brown, and brush over with a feather or soft bit of rag, dipped in the white of an egg beaten up stiff with white sugar. 140 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Pop Overs. — Mix four cupfuls of flour, four cupfuls of milk, four eggs, and a little salt. This quantity will make about twenty puffs in gem-pans, which must be baked quick and done to a nice brown. VI.— MUFFINS AND WAFFLES. HOW MUFFINS AND WAFFLES DIFFER \ THEIR RELATION TO OTHER KINDRED PREPARATIONS ; MUFFIN-RINGS AND WAFFLE-IRONS ; WHEN TO USE MUFFINS AND WAFFLES J HOW TO SERVE THEM. ELEVEN RECIPES FOR MUFFINS AND WAFFLES. MUFFINS are baked in rings on a griddle, or in gem- pans, over a quick fire. Waffles are baked in waffle- irons, which inclose the batter and imprint both sides of the cake as it rises in the process of baking. Both muf- fins and waffles form a medium between bread and biscuits on the one side and griddle-cakes on the other. Muffin- rings were formerly about four inches in diameter, but now, with better taste, they are used much smaller. The approved waffle-irons of to-day are circular, baking four waffles at once, and suspended on a pivot that permits them to be turned with a touch of the fork. Both muffins and waffles are suitable for tea, and with stewed chicken and such deli- cacies they are really delicious. They should always be served hot and with the best of butter. Waffles and catfish are a famous dish at some eating-houses. RECIPES. MufflllS. — Two eggs lightly beaten, one quart of flour, one teaspoonful of salt, three teaspoonfuls of Plume baking- powder, one tablespoonful of melted butter, one pint of milk, and two teaspoonfuls of vanilla extract, if liked. Beat up quickly to the consistency of a cake batter; bake in buttered gem-pans in a hot oven. BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. \\\ Muffins, No. 2. — One cup of home-made yeast or half of a compressed yeast cake, one pint of sweet milk, two eggs, two tablespoonfuls of melted butter, two tablespoonfuls of sugar. Beat the butter, sugar, and eggs well together ; then stir in the milk, slightly warmed, and thicken with flour to the consistency of griddle-cakes. When light, bake in muffin- rings or on a griddle. If wanted for tea, the batter should be mixed immediately after breakfast. Muffins should never be cut with a knife, but be pulled open with the fingers. Rice Muffins. — Take one quart of sour milk, three well- beaten eggs, a little salt, a teaspoonful of soda, and enough of rice flour to thicken to a stiff batter. Bake in rings. Hominy Muffins. — Substitute hominy, well cooked and mashed, for the rice, and proceed as above. Bread Muffins. — Cut the crust off four thick slices of bread ; put them in a pan and pour on them just enough boiling water to soak them thoroughly. Let them stand an hour, covered ; then drain off the water and stir the "bread to a smooth paste. Stir in two tablespoonfuls of flour, a half pint of milk, and three well-beaten eggs. Bake to a delicate brown in well-buttered muffin-rings. Graham Muffins. — One quart of Graham flour, two tea- spoonfuls of baking-powder, a piece of butter the size of a walnut, one egg, one tablespoonful of sugar, one-half tea- spoonful of salt, milk enough to make a batter as thick as for griddle-cakes. Bake in gem-pans or muffin-rings in a hot oven. Corn Muffins. — Mix two cupfuls of corn-meal, two cupfuls of flour, one cupful of sugar, half a cupful of melted butter, two eggs, and one teaspoonful of salt. Dissolve one tea- spoonful of soda and two of cream tartar in a little milk, and beat it through. Add milk enough to make a moderately stiff batter, and bake in rings or gem-pans. 142 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Crumpets. — Three cupfuls of warm milk, half a cupful of yeast, two tablespoonfuls of melted butter, one saltspoonful each of salt and soda dissolved in hot water, flour enough to make a good batter. Set these ingredients — leaving out the butter and soda — as a sponge. When very light, beat in the melted butter, with a very little flour ; stir in the soda hard, fill patty-pans or muffin-rings with the mixture, and let them stand fifteen minutes before baking. Raised Waffles. — One quart of warm milk, one tablespoon- ful of butter, three eggs, one gill of yeast, one tablespoon- ful of salt, and flour to make a stiff batter. Set to rise, and bake in waffle-irons, which must be well heated before used. Quick Waffles. — One quart flour, two teaspoonfuls Plume Baking Powder,one teaspoonful salt ; mix dry ; then stir in one tablespoonful melted butter, two well-beaten eggs, and enough cold, sweet milk for a batter thin enough to pour ; bake at once in waffle-irons- Bice Waffles. — Mix a teacupful and a half of boiling rice with a pint of milk, rubbing it smooth over the fire. Take from the fire and add a pint of cold milk and a teaspoonful of salt. Stir in four well-beaten eggs with enough flour to make a thin batter, and bake as above. Waffles should always be served hot. Powdered sugar with a flavor of powdered cinnamon makes a pleasing dressing for them. VII.— GRIDDLE-CAKES. WHAT GRIDDLE-CAKES ARE J HINTS ABOUT GRIDDLES J HOW TO COOK GRIDDLE-CAKES ; HOW TO SERVE THEM ; WHEN TO SERVE THEM; WITH WHAT TO SERVE THEM. TEN RECIPES FOR GRIDDLE-CAKES. CAKES made of a batter so thin that it flows easily upon a griddle, and that can, therefore, be quickly baked and be served hot, are griddle-cakes, and great favorites they are. BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 143 All new griddles are hard to manage, but as the only way to get old ones is to make them out of new ones, we are shut up to the necessity of using the new, though they do not work so well. Opinions divide between iron griddles and those of soapstone. The latter require no greasing. Hence trouble is saved, and the smoke of the fat used in the constant greasing of a hot iron griddle is entirely avoided. But still, many housekeepers prefer the old style. A hot griddle is essential to good griddle-cakes. But it must not be hot enough to burn before it bakes. A cold griddle will make cakes tough, unpalatable, and decidedly unwholesome. Hot cakes may well be served with powdered sugar, Golden Tree Brand Maple Syrup or any molasses in the market. Cold days are the gala days for hot cakes. Time immemorial, buckwheat cakes and sausage have gone to the table side by side. There is delightful harmony in this union ; but to serve hot cakes and fish together would introduce discord into the best regulated family. There is an eminent fitness between hot cakes and certain other dishes, and it must never be disregarded. RECIPES. Buckwheat Cakes. — One quart of buckwheat-meal, one pint of wheat-flour or Indian-meal, half a teacupful of yeast, .salt to taste ; mix the flour, buckwheat, and salt with as much water moderately warm as will make it into a thin batter ; beat it well, then add the yeast ; when well mixed, set it in a warm place to rise ; as soon as it is very light, grease the griddle and bake the cakes to a delicate brown. Butter them with' good butter and serve hot. Graham Griddle-cakes. — Scald a cupful of Indian-meal in a pint of boiling water, and strain it over night. Thin it with a quart of milk, and make into a sponge with a cupful of 144 THE HOUSE WIFE'S LIBRAS Y. Graham flour, a large tablespoonful of molasses, and half a cupful of yeast In the morning, add salt to taste, a cupful of white flour, half a teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in hot water, and a tablespoonful of butter or lard. Stir in enough water to make batter of the right consistency, and bake on a hot griddle. Flannel Cakes. — Three eggs, one quart of sweet milk, about one quart of flour, a small teaspoonful of salt, two table- spoonfuls of prepared baking-powder ; beat the yelks, and half of the milk, salt, and flour together ; then the remainder of the milk ; and last, the whites of the eggs well beaten. Bake in small cakes on a hot griddle. Flannel Cakes, No. 2. — One quart of milk, three eggs, one cupful of yeast, one dessertspoonful of salt, flour enough for a thinnish batter, and a teaspoonful of butter ; set to rise ; bake like buckwheat cakes. Cakes half Indian and half wheat are very nice, and good cakes may be made even without the eggs. Eice Cakes. — Soak a cupful of rice five or six hours in enough warm water to cover it. Then boil slowly till soft. While still warm, but not hot, stir in a tablespoonful of but- ter, a tablespoonful of sugar, a teaspoonful of salt, and a quart of milk. When cold, add three eggs, beaten very light. Sift a half teaspoonful of cream of tartar into a quarter cupful of rice flour, and add them to the batter, first beating into it a quarter teaspoonful of soda dissolved in hot water. Rice Cakes, No. 2. — Boil a cupful of rice until quite soft, setting it aside until cool. Beat three eggs very light, and put them into the rice, with a pint of flour, into which you have sifted three teaspoonfuls of prepared baking-powder. Add a teaspoonful of butter and one of salt, making it into a batter with a quart of milk. Bake on a griddle. BREAD, BISCUIT, HOT CAKES, ETC. 145 Hominy Cakes. — Mix with cold boiled hominy an equal quantity of white flour until perfectly smooth ; add a tea- spoonful of salt and thin off with buttermilk, in part of which a teaspoonful of soda has been dissolved ; when of the proper consistency for griddle cakes, add a dessertspoon- ful of melted butter, and bake as usual. Sour Milk Cakes. — One pint sour milk, one teaspoonful of. soda, a little salt, two eggs, and flour to make a thin batter ; bake on a hot griddle. Indian Griddle Cakes. — One large cupful Indian-meal, four tablespoonfuls of wheat flour, two tablespoonfuls of Plume baking-powder, one teaspoonful salt, mix together dry, then add sufficient cold water for a batter ; bake at once on a hot griddle. Slapjacks. — One pint of milk, three eggs, one teaspoonful of soda, and one of salt, flour enough to make a thin bat- ter. Butter your griddle, and fry them the size of a tea- plate ; when one is done, turn it on the dish, sprinkle with a little white sugar, and continue in this way till they are all fried. Always fry them with butter. A little nutmeg may be grated with the sugar on each cake. VIII.— YEAST AND YEAST CAKES. NATURE OF YEAST J ACTION OF YEAST IN DOUGH ; CAUSES OF LIGHT BREAD AND HEAVY BREAD J CARE OF YEAST. TWO RECIPES FOR YEAST AND YEAST CAKES. IN this chapter, yeast has been so often referred to that its special consideration seems important just here. An- alytically considered, it consists of an innumerable quantity of infinitesimal fungi, called the yeast-plant. The remarkable characteristic of these minute^ plants is, that under fayoring conditions they multiply to an incredible 10 146 THE HOUSE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. extent in a very short time. Thus the production of yeast, in proper mixtures, is an easy matter. When yeast is placed in dough, it immediately produces fermentation, in the process of which gases are generated, which permeate the dough, filling it with gas-vessels and so producing the spongy appearance so familiar in raised bread. If this process goes too far, it sours the dough and unfits it for food. If arrested by placing the dough in a hot oven, the gases will be driven off by the heat, and the thin dough walls will be set and baked. If the oven be slow, the gases will be driven off, the dough walls will col- lapse, and heavy bread will be the result. The proper use of yeast is most important, therefore. It must be watched as carefully as any other tender plant. Excessive heat or cold, or rough mechanical usage will quickly destroy it. RECIPES. Patent Yeast. — Boil two ounces of hops in four quarts of water for a half hour. Strain and cool till lukewarm, then add a handful of salt, a half pound of sugar, and a pound of flour, all mixed well and beaten up together. After it has stood forty-eight hours, add three pounds of potatoes, boiled and well-mashed. Let it stand twenty-four hours, stirring it often ; then strain and bottle. It is ready for, im- mediate use, or will keep several months. Keep in a cool place. Yeast Cakes. — Thicken good yeast with Indian-meal till it becomes a stiff batter. A little lye will make it adhere bet- ter. Make into cakes an inch thick and two by three inches in area. Dry them in the air, but not in the sun. Keep them in a bag in a cool, dry place. One of these cakes is enough for four quarts of flour. To use them, soak in milk or water several hours and use as other yeast. BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES Fifty Years of Quality HARTSHORN'S HONEST FLAVORING EXTRACTS Have been prepared with Absolute Purity for half a century When you buy a bottle of HARTSHORN'S VANILLA, LEMON, ORANGE, ALMOND, or any of HARTSHORN'S EXTRACTS, you have the satisfaction of knowing that you are getting strictly PURE GOODS of unequaled strength and flavor. Always Call for Hartshorn's PREPARED BY E. HARTSHORN & SONS BOSTON After you have tried the recipes, in this book, for Plum Pudding, try a package of THREE MINUTE PLUM PUDDING and see what the manufacturers have done for you, in saving of time and trouble, with equally as good results. Prepared, in dry form, ipady for cooking. A 1 cent package will serve six to eight persons. For sale by leading grocers. THE- Three Minute Food Co., Mfs. Medford, Mass. i XL— PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. CAKE IN INGREDIENTS AND MANIPULATION ESSENTIAL J KEEP IIT- GREDIENTS COOL ; MIX QUICKLY ; HOW TO SHORTEN ; HOW ao ROLL; THE FILLING; THE BAKING. EIGHTY-SEVEN RECIPES FOR PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. THAT pastry may be wholesome and appetizing, great care in the selection of ingredients and in their ma- nipulation is absolutely essential. One fact must always be borne in mind — that inferior ingredients cannot be made into superior compounds — though the finest ingre- dients may be ruined by careless or unskillful handling. Some suggestions of general application are therefore de- sirable. Be careful to have all the materials cool, and the butter and lard hard ; use cold water (ice-water if convenient) ; use a cool knife, and work on a marble slab if it can be had. Put the ingredients together quickly, handling as little as possible ; slow mixing and much contact with the hands or fingers make tough crust. Always use well-sifted flour. Except in puff-paste, lard and butter in about equal pro- portions make the best crust ; if made of butter alone, it is almost sure to be tough. That of lard alone, though ten- der, is usually white, and insipid. Beef drippings, or the drippings of fresh pork, make a very light and palatable crust, lighter and more tender indeed than that made with butter alone, much better tasted than that made with lard alone, and quite equal to that made with butter and lard combined. Never use mutton drippings in crust Use very little salt and very little water; pour the latter in gradually, only a few drops at a time, unless you want tough crust 148 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Use plenty of flour on your paste-board, to keep the paste from sticking. Work the crust of one pie at a time, and always roll from you — one way only. The filling for thepie should be perfectly cool when put in, or it will make the bottom crust heavy. In making juicy pies, cut a slit in the top to let the steam escape, else the pie will be puffed unduly. The oven should be hot, but not sufficiently so to scorch or to set the paste before it has had time to rise ; if too slack, the paste will not rise at all, but will be white and clammy. The best paste has a tinge of yellow. If per- mitted to scorch or brown, even the best paste becomes rancid. RECIPES. Pie Crust. — Take one-half cupful of lard, one-half cupful of butter, one quart of sifted flour, one cupful of cold water and a little salt. Rub the butter and lard slightly into the flour ; wet it with the water, mixing it as little as possible. This quantity will make two large or three small pies. Pie Crust Glaze. — To prevent juice from soaking the under crust, beat up the white of an egg, and before filling the pie, brush over the crust with the beaten egg. Brush over the top crust also, to give it a beautiful yellow brown. Puff Paste. — Take one pound of sifted flour, on which sprinkle a very little sugar ; take the yelks of one or two eggs, and beat into them a little ice-water, and pour gently into the centre of the flour, and work into a firm paste, adding water as is necessary; divide three-quarters of a pound or a pound of firm, solid butter, as you prefer, into three parts ; roll out the paste, and spread one part of the butter on half of the paste ; fold the other half over, and roll out again, repeating the process until the butter is all rolled in ; then set the paste on the ice for fifteen or twenty PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. 149 minutes, after which roll out again three times, each time rolling it the opposite direction ; then put on the ice again until cold, when it is ready for use. Such paste will keep several days in a refrigerator, but should not be allowed to freeze. Paste Shells. — Take sufficient rich puff-paste prepared as in the preceding recipe, roll /ery thin, cut to shape, and bake in a brisk oven in tin pans. Baked carefully, before fill- ing with fru»t, the paste rises better. When cool, the shells may be filled with stewed fruit, jelly, preserves, rich cream whipped to a stiff froth, raspberries, strawberries, or sliced peaches. These are delicious light desserts. Raspberries, strawberries, or sliced peaches, smothered with whipped cream on these shells, are really exquisite. Apple Pie. — Line a pie plate with paste, and fill it heaping full with tart apples, sliced very thin. Sweeten and spice to taste, mixing well into the apples. Put in plenty of butter, and moisten well with cream. Bake until the apples are thoroughly done. Use no upper crust. Apple Meringue Pie. — Stew and sweeten ripe, juicy apples. Mash smooth, and season with nutmeg. Fill the crust, and bake until just done. Spread over the apple a thick me- ringue, made by whipping to a stiff froth the whites of three eggs ior each pie, sweetening with a tablespoonful of pow- dered sugar for each egg. Flavor this with vanilla ; beat until it will stand alone, and cover the pie three-quarters of an inch thick. Set back in the oven until the meringue is well set. Eat cold. Peach Meringue Pie. — Proceed as above in all respects, simply substituting peaches for apples. Whipped cream will make a delightful substitute for the whipped egg in either of these meringue pies. Peach Pie. — Bake rich shells about two-thirds done; if your peaches are fully ripe, cut them into halves or quarters- 150 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. put in the shell, sweeten and flavor to taste, cover or not as you choose, and finish baking in a quick oven; if the peaches are ripe, but not soft, it will improve the flavor to sugar them down some hours before you wish to use them ; if not ripe, they should be steWed. Gooseberry Pie. — Stew the gooseberries with plenty of white sugar, and use plain pufl^paste for crust. Cherry Pie. — Having removed the stones, put in sugar as may be needed, and stew the cherries slowly till they are quite done, if you use shells, or till nearly done if you use paste. A few of the pits added in stewing increase the richness of the flavor ; but they should not go into the pies. If baked slowly the cherries need not be stewed at all. Rhubarb Pie. — Remove the skin from the stalks ; cut them in small pieces ; pour boiling water "over and let stand for ten minutes ; drain thoroughly ; then fill the pie-dish evenly full ; put in plenty of sugar, a little butter, and dredge a trifle of flour evenly over the top ; cover with a thin crust, and bake the same as apple pie. Equal quantities of apple and rhubarb used in the same manner make a very good pie. Pumpkin Pie. — Stew the pumpkin until thoroughly done, and pass it through a colander. To one quart of stewed pumpkin, add three eggs, and one pint of milk. Sweeten, and spice with ground ginger and cinnamon to taste. Add butter, rose water, and a little brandy. The quantity of milk used will vary as the pumpkin may be moist or dry. Sweet Potato Pie. — 'Scrape clean two good-sized sweet pota- toes; boil; when tender, rub through the colander; beat the yelks of three eggs light ; stir with a pint of sweet milk into the potato ; add a small teacupful of sugar, a pinch of salt; flavor with a little fresh lemon, or lemon extract; bake to a nice brown ; when done, make a meringue top with the whites of eggs and powdered sugar; brown this a moment in the oven. PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. 151 Dried-Apple Pie. — To a pint of stewed dried-apples, passed through a colander, add a pint of sweet milk, three eggs, and three large tablespoonfuls of sugar, beaten well together as for custard. Spice with a tea- spoonful of cinnamon and half a teaspoonful of ground cloves. Bake with upper and under crusts. This quantity will make two pies. Prune Pie. — Stew the prunes until soft, then cool and remove the stones. Fill your dish with them, sweeten, and spice with a little cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Bake with upper and under crust. Squash Pie. — One cup of stewed squash, one-half cup of sugar, two eggs, and milk enough to fill a pie-plate. First line pie-plate with crust, then beat eggs and sugar together, adding squash and milk. Season with cin- namon, nutmeg and allspice, to suit the taste. Bake till well done. Tbmato Pie. — Take ripe tomatoes, wash, peel, and cut in thin slices ; fill a pie-plate, lined with good paste, with them ; sprinkle well with sugar, and sift a little cinnamon and grated nutmeg over them ; add two tea- spoonfuls of vinegar and one of lemon-essence ; cover with crust and bake. Raisin Pie. — Take juice and yellow rind of one lemon ; one cup of raisins, one cup of water, one cup of rolled crackers, one cup of sugar. Stone the raisins and boil in water to soften them. Bake with upper and under crusts. Orange Pie. — One orange grated, five crackers rolled fine, a pint of sweet milk, two eggs well beaten, sugar to sweeten. Bake as a custard. 152 THE HO USE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. Custard Pie. — Take one quart of milk, five eggs, four table- spoonfuls of sugar, a small piece of butter. Sift over the top Durkee's mixed spice. Lemon Pie. — Let two cupfuls of water come to a boil ; put in two tablespoonfuls of corn-starch dissolved. When it has boiled enough, take it from the stove, add the juice and rind of two lemons, two cupfuls of sugar, a piece of butter . the size of a walnut, and the yelks of two eggs. Beat the whites of these eggs with pulverized sugar, and put on the top of the pies when done. Put into the oven to brown. Orange Pie. — Beat the yelks of three eggs until light, and add to them the juice and grated rind of one orange, three- quarters of a cupful of sugar, and a tablespoonful of corn- starch mixed in half a cupful of water. Bake without upper crust, using the whites of the eggs for meringue. Cream Pie. — One pint of milk, scalded ; two tablespoonfuls of corn-starch, three tablespoonfuls of sugar, yelks of two eggs. Wet the starch with a little cold milk ; beat the eggs and sugar until light, and stir the whole into the scalding milk. Flavor with lemon or vanilla, and set aside to cool. Line a plate with pie-crust and bake ; fill it with the cream, and cover with frosting made of the whites of the eggs, beaten dry, with two tablespoonfuls of sugar. Bake to a delicate brown. Cocoanut Pie. — One quart of milk, half a pound of grated cocoanut, three eggs, six tablespoonfuls of sugar, butter the size of an egg. Bake in open shells. Cheese-cake Pie. — This may be made from the above recipe, substituting cottage-cheese for the cocoanut. Sprinkle the top with Slade's Spices. Mince Pie. — Seven pounds beef, three and a half pounds beef suet, five pounds of raisins, two pounds of currants, one-half peck apples, four pounds sugar, three-quarters PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. 1 53 of a pound of citron, one-quarter of a pound of preserved lemon, two large oranges, four nutmegs, half an o-ince of cinnamon, half an ounce of cloves, and three pints of brandy. This quantity of mince-meat will make from twenty to twenty-five pies. When making the pies, moisten the meat with sweet cider. Tarts. — Use the best of puff-paste; roll it out a little thicker than pie-crust, and cut with a large biscuit-cutter twice as many as you intend to have of tarts. Then cut out of half of these a small round in the centre, which will leave a circular rim of crust ; lift this up carefully, and lay it on the other pieces. Bake in pans, so providing both the bottom and the top crusts. Fill with any kind of preserves, jam, or jelly. Pineapple Tart — Take a fine, large, ripe pineapple; re- move the leaves and quarter it without paring, grate it down till you come to the rind ; strew plenty of powdered sugar over the grated fruit ; cover it, and let it rest for an hour; then put it into a porcelain kettle, and steam in its own sirup till perfectly soft ; have ready some empty shells of stiff- paste, or bake in patty-pans. When they are cool, fill them full with the grated pineapple; add more sugar, and lay round the rim a border of puff-paste. Tea Baskets. — Make a short, sweetened pie-crust ; roll thin, and partly bake in sheets ; before it is quite done take from the oven, cut in squares of four inches or so, take up two diagonal corners and pinch together, which makes them basket-shaped ; now fill with whipped cream, or white of egg, or both, well sweetened and flavored, and return to the oven for a few minutes. Strawberry Shortcake. — Make a good biscuit crust, and roll out about one-quarter of an inch thick, and cut into two r-akes the same size and shape ; spread one over lightly with melted butter, and lay the other over it, and bake in a. 154 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. hot oven. When done, they will fall apart. Butter them well as usual. Mix the berries with plenty of sugar, and set in a warm place until needed. Spread the berries and cakes in alternate layers, berries on the top, and over all spread whipped cream or charlotte russe. The juice that has run from the fruit can be sent to the table in a ttteen and served with the cake as it is cut. Strawberry Shortcake, No. 2. — Take one quart of flour and sift into it two teaspoonfuls of sea-foam, a little salt, quarter of a pound of butter rubbed in, with milk enough to moisten properly. Handle as little as possible, divide into two parts, roll each flat, and place in two jelly pans. Bake quickly, then split apart the top and bottom of each crust ; spread on plenty of butter, have the strawberries washed and drained in a sieve, crush them slightly, and sweeten well. Spread plenty of berries over each layer of the crust, and have some of the crushed and sweetened berries in a deep dish. When the cake is cut and served, cover each piece with the crushed berries, using this as sauce. Batter Pudding. — Beat the yelks and whites of four eggs separately, and mix them with six or eight ounces of flour and a saltspoonful of salt. Make the batter of the proper consistency by adding a little more than a pint of milk ; mix carefully; butter a baking-tin, pour the mixture into it, and bake three-quarters of an hour. Serve with vanilla sauce. Apple Batter Pudding. — Core and peel eight apples, put in a dish, fill the places from which the cores have been taken with brown sugar, cover and bake. Beat the yelks of four eggs light, add two teacupfuls of flour, three teaspoonfuls of Plume Baking Powder sifted with it, one pint of milk, and teaspoonful of salt, then the whites well beaten ; pour over the apples and bake. Use sauce with it. Suet Pudding. — Take a pint of milk, two eggs well beaten, half a pound of finely chopped suet, and a teaspoonful of PASTRY AND PUDDINGS. 155 salt. Add flour gradually till you have a pretty thick batter; boil two hours, and eat with molasses. Suet Pudding, No. 2. — One cupful of suet or butter, one cup- ful of molasses, one bowlful of raisins and currants, one egg, one cupful of sweet milk, one teaspoonful of saleratus dis- solved in milk ; one-fourth teaspoonful of cloves, and one- half of nutmeg. Mix stiff with flour and steam three hours. A fine sauce for this pudding may be made thus : One cup- ful of butter and two cupfuls of sugar, beat into a cream ; add three eggs beaten very light ; stir in two tablespoonfuls of boiling water. Flavor with wine, brandy, or vanilla. Hasty Pudding.— Wet a heaping cupful of Indian-meal and a half cupful of flour with a pint of milk ; stir it into a quart of boiling water. Boil hard for half an hour, stirring from the bottom almost constantly. Put in a teaspoonful of salt and a tablespoonful of butter, and simmer ten minutes longer. Turn into a deep, uncovered dish, and eat with sugar and cream, or sugar and butter with nutmeg. Baked Hasty Pudding. — Take from a pint of new milk suffi- cient to mix into a thin batter two ounces of flour, put the remainder, with a small pinch of salt, into a clean saucepan, and when it boils quickly, stir the flour briskly to it ; keep it stirred over a gentle fire for ten minutes, pour it out, and when it has become a little cool, mix with it two ounces of fresh butter, three of powdered sugar, the grated rind of a small lemon, four large or five small eggs, and half a glass of brandy or as much orange-flower water. Bake the pud- ding half an hour in a gentle oven. Minute Pudding. — Take six eggs, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, one cupful of flour, a lump of butter large as an egg, and half a nutmeg; you may add, if desired, a half pound of raisins ; mix well and bake quick. (torn Pudding.— Twelve ears of sweet corn grated to one 156 TSS HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. quart of sweet milk ; add a quarter of a pound of good but- ter, quarter of a pound of sugar, and four eggs ; bake from three to four hours. Farina Pudding. — Boil one quart of milk, stir in slowly three tablespoonfuls of farina, let it boil a few minutes ; beat two eggs and four tablespoonfuls of sugar with one pint of milk, and mix thoroughly with the farina; when it has cooled so as to be little more than lukewarm, put in pans, and bake in a moderate oven. Serve with cream sauce. Plain Tapioca Pudding. — A cup not quite full of tapioca to a quart of milk ; let it stand on the side of the range till it swells ; add while hot a tablespoonful of butter and a cupful of white sugar, and let it cool ; then add five eggs (three will do quite well), well beaten, and flavor to your taste. To be baked from three-quarters of an hour to an hour. It is very nice when dressed with wine sauce, but may be eaten with plainer dressing. Tapioca and Apple Pudding. — One coffeecupful Slade's Quick Tapioca, one dozen good-flavored, tart apples, pared and cored, one quart water, a little salt. Cover tapioca with the water and set it in a tolerably warm place to soak five or six hours, stirring occasionally. Lay the apples in a deep dish, put a little sugar and spice in the centre, pour over the tapioca, and bake one hour. Peaches may be substituted for apples, which will make a delightful dish. Serve with hard sauce. Vermicelli Pudding. — Into pint and a half of boiling milk drop four ounces fresh vermicelli, and keep it simmering and stirred gently ten minutes, when it will have become very thick ; then mix with it three and one-half ounces sugar, two ounces butter, and a little salt. When the whole is well blended, pour it out, beat for a few minutes to cool it, then add by degrees four well-beaten eggs and the pastry and puddings. 157 grated rind of a lemon ; pour a litde clarified butter over the top ; bake it from one-half to three-fourths of an hour. Sago Pudding. — Two large spoonfuls of sago boiled in one quart of water, the peel of one lemon, a little nutmeg ; when cold add four eggs and a little salt. Bake about one hour and a half. Serve with sugar and cream. Arrow-root Pudding.— Boil one quart of milk, and stir into it four heaping tablespoonfuls of arrow-root dissolved in a little milk, mixed with four well-beaten eggs and two table- spoonfuls of white sugar. Boil three minutes. Eat with cream and sugar. This pudding iR 40 YEARS Our New England Tomato Relish Is neither a ketchup nor a Chili sauce, but.has a spicy flavor of its own that is extremely palatable and a very welcome departure from the monotony : of other toihato products. ,lne jiigsare- particularly attractive, and are both useful and ornamental when emptied. Fancy Pint Jugs, 25 Cents SALADS of all' kinds are healthful, cheap and easy to make — all but the Dressing. -YfjU can make a nice dressing; but it's lots of bdthe'r and rather expensive, is n't it ? ;■ -' You can save bother, time and expense by buying Bunker Hill Mayonnaise Which is surpassingly smooth, delicate and deli- cious, and is the only unboiled, straight egg and oil, home-made style of dressing in the, market. Try it and you '11 find perfection. There is no other as good. Pints, 45 Cents; Half Pints, 25 Cents OFFICE 322 Board of Trade Building BOSTON, MASS. XVII.— PICKLES AND CATSUPS. PICKLES MORE POPULAR THAN WHOLESOME ; GREENING PICKLES J WHAT KETTLES AND JARS SHOULD NOT BE USED IN PICKLING J CHOOSING THE FRUIT, SPICES, ETC. ; HOW TO KEEP PICKLES ; CATSUPS, HOW MADE, ETC. THIRTY-THREE RECIPES FOR PICKLES AND CATSUPS. PICKLES are very popular as a relish, but it must be confessed that they are not the most wholesome diet. This is due chiefly to the fact that they are made of hard, crude, and often of unripe fruit. Then, too, the ex- cess of acid and the high seasoning disagree with many constitutions. It is deemed important that pickles for the market be well greened. To accomplish this end, copperas and other chemicals are employed or copper kettles are used. All this is poisonous, and should be shunned. No metal ket- tles or spoons should be tolerated in pickling. Glazed jars are not desirable either, as salt and vinegar decompose the glazing and set free the lead which it contains. An ordinary stone jar is the vessel to use, or a porcelain-lined kettle. Be careful to select perfectly sound fruit or vegetables for pickling, and use none but the very best cider vinegar. Good white wine vinegar does well for some sorts of pickles, but be ever watchful against chemical preparations called vinegar, that destroy instead of preserving the articles put away in them. In the selection of spices there is so much diversity of taste that no general directions will be of prac- tical value. But get the purest articles you can find. Pickles must be kept from the air. It is a good plan to 224 THE HOUSE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. put them up in large jars, and for use to empty the large, jar at once into smaller ones, using these one at a time. Keep them wholly covered with the vinegar. Water will soon cause the jar of pickles to spoil. The same hints given above apply to the making of cat- sup, which is really but a pickle cooked to a more advanced point. It needs to be tightly corked and sealed, that it may keep well. RECIPES. Cucumber Pickles. — Make a weak brine, hot or cold ; if hot, let the cucumbers stand in it twenty-four hours ; if cold, forty-eight hours ; rinse and dry the cucumbers with a cloth, take vinegar enough to cover them, allow one ounce of alum to every gallon of vinegar, put it in a brass kettle (or porcelain-lined, if the greening is not desired) with the cucumbers, and heat slowly, turning the cucumbers from the bottom frequently ; as soon as they are heated through, skim them out into a crock, let the vinegar boil up, turn it over the pickles, and let them stand at least twenty-four houis; drain off the vinegar. Take fresh vinegar, and to every gallon allow two tablespoofuls of white mustard-seed, one of cloves, one of celery-seed, one of stick cinnamon, one large, green pepper, a very little horse-radish, and, if you like, one-half pint of sugar. Divide the spices equally into several small bags of coarse muslin, scald with the vine- gar, and pour over the pickles. If you like your pickles hard, let the vinegar cool before pouring over them. Cucumber Pickles, No. 2. — To a gallon of water add a quart of salt, put in the cucumbers, and let them stand over night. In the morning, wash them out of the brine, and put them carefully into a stone jar. Boil a gallon of vinegar, put in, while cold, quarter of a pound of cloves, and a tablespoon- ful of alum ; when it boils hard, skim it well and turn over the cucumbers. In a week they will be fit for use. 15 PICKLES AND CATSUPS. 225 Pickled Carrot. — Boil carrots until tender, cut into fancy shapes, and put them into strong vinegar. Spice or flavor to suit taste. This is a pretty garnish and an excellent pickle. Pickled Barberries. — Soak nice large bunches of bar- berries in salt and water for a few hours. Remove from the water and pour scalding vinegar over them. Spice the vinegar if you prefer. These are ornamental for salad-garnishing. They may be kept in the brine and freshened when used. — The Peerless Cook Book : Mrs. D.A.Lincoln. Redding & Co., Publishers. Pickled Pears. — Take half a peck of pears halved and cored, lay the pieces together, and pack them all closely together in a preserving-kettle. Add two ounces of cin- namon-bark and half an ounce of cloves, two pounds of sugar, and one pint of vinegar ; cover them up and set on a slow fire to boil. Boil down until thoroughly cooked. Put in a stone jar and cover with white paper wet with brandy. Pickled Muskmelon. — Take a ripe melon (cantaloupe), peel, and cut in blocks. Then take two tablespoonfuls of pulverized alum dissolved in hot water, pour over and add cold water until they are covered. (Press them down with a plate.) Let them stand over night, then drain off, and rinse well with cold water. Take a quart of vinegar and two pounds of sugar, boil and turn over. Do this for nine mornings, adding the vinegar and sugar if necessary. The ninth morning tie up in a thin muslin bag an ounce of cloves and two ounces of cinnamon- bark, boil in vinegar, then add your melon and boil for a short time. In putting the pickle away in a jar, place the muslin bag containing the spices among them on the top. 226 THE HO USE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y. Pickled Onions. — Select small white onions, put them over the fire in cold water with a handful of salt. When the water becomes scalding hot, take them out and peel off the skins, lay them in a cloth to dry ; then put them in a jar. Boil half an ounce of allspice artd half an ounce of cloves in a quart of vinegar. Take out the sp'ce and pour the vinegar over the onions while it is hot. Tie up the jar when )he vinegar is cold, and keep it in a dry place. Pickled Onions, No. 2. — Take small, white onions and peel them ; lay them in salt water for two days ; change the water once; then drain and put them in bottles. Take vinegar enough to cover them, spice with whole mixed spices, scald it, and pour over the onions. Pickled Garlic and Eschalots. — Garlic and eschalots may h« pickled in the same way as onions. Pickled Nasturtiums. — Nasturtiums should be gathered quite young, and a portion of the buds, when very small, should be mixed with them. Prepare a pickle by dissolv- ing an ounce and a half of salt in a quart of pale vinegar, and throw in the berries as they become fit, from day to day. They are used instead of capers for sauce, and by some persons are preferred to them. When purchased for pickling, put them at once into a jar and cover them well with the vinegar. Pickled Watermelon.-— Take the outer part of the rind of the melon, pare and cut in small pieces. To one quart of vinegar add two pounds of sugar, one ounce of cassia buds, m this boil the rind until clear and tender. Pickled Walnuts. — Walnuts for this pickle must be gathered while a pin can pierce them easily. When once the shell can be felt, they have ceased to be in a proper state for it. Make sufficient brine to cover them well, with six ounces of salt to the gallon of water ; take off the scum, which will PICKLES AND CATSUPS. 227 rise to the surface as the salt dissolves, throw in the walnuts, and stir them night and morning ; change the brine every three days, and if they are wanted for immediate eating, leave them in it for twelve days; otherwise, drain them from it in nine, spread them on dishes, and let them remain exposed to the air until they become black ; this will be in twelve hours, or less. Make a pickle for them with some- thing more than half a gallon of vinegar to the hundred, a teaspoonful of salt, two ounces of black pepper, three of bruised ginger, a drachm of mace, and from a quarter to half an ounce of cloves (of which some may be stuck into three or four small onions), and four ounces of mustard- seed. Boil the whole of these together for about five min- utes ; have the walnuts ready in a stone jar, or jars, and pour the vinegar on them as soon as it is taken from the fire. Whfin the pickle is quite cold, cover the jar securely and store it in a dry place. Keep the walnuts always well covered with vinegar, and boil that which is added to them. Pickled Red Cabbage. — Slice the red cabbage into a colan- der, and sprinkle each layer with salt ; let it drain two days, then put it into a jar and pour boiling vinegar enough to cover, and put in a few slices of red beet-root. Use the purple red cabbage. Cauliflower cut in bunches, and thrown in after being salted, will take on the color of a beautiful red. Pickled Mushrooms. — Rub the mushroom heads with flan- nel and salt, throw them in a stewpan with a little salt over them ; sprinkle with pepper and a small quantity of mace ; as the liquor comes out, shake them well, and keep them over a gentle fire until all the liquor is dried into them again ; then put as much vinegar into the pan as will cover them ; give it a scald, and pour the whole into bottles. Pickled Beets.— Wash the beet perfectly, not cutting any of the fibrous roots, lest the juice escape ; put in sufficient 228 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. water to boil it, and when the skin will come off easily it is sufficiently cooked, and may be taken out and laid upon a cloth to cool. Having rubbed off the peel, cut the beet into thick slices, pour over it cold vinegar prepared as fol- lows : Boil a quart of vinegar with an ounce of whole black pepper and an equal weight of dry ginger, and let it stand until quite cold. Keep closely corked. Pickled Peppers. — Do not pick them till just as they begin to turn red ; then soak them for ten or twelve days in strong salt and water ; take them from the brine and soak them in clear water for a day. Wipe them dry, and put them away in cold vinegar ; or if you wish them milder, remove the seeds and scald the vinegar, but do not boil. Pickled Bell Peppers. — Cut a slit in the side of each pepper and take out all the seeds. Let them soak in brine (strong enough to float an egg) two days. Then, washing them in cold water, put them into a stonejar. Pour over them vine- gar boiled with cinnamon, mace, and nutmeg. Whenever they are wanted to be served, stuff each one with a boiled tongue cut into dice and mixed with a mayonnaise dressing. Or little mangoes may be made, stuffing each one with pickled nasturtiums, grapes, minced onions, red cabbage, or cucumbers, seasoned with mustard-seed, root ginger, and mace. Pepper-hash. — Take four dozen peppers, two very large cabbages, one ounce of light mustard-seed. Chop the peppers fine, cut the cabbage on a cabbage-knife, mix to- gether, salt well, and let it stand over night, putting the dish or tub so the juice will run down ; pour off in the morning. Add one ounce of cloves, one ounce of allspice ; mix all through, and put the vinegar on cold. Flint Pickles. — Make a brine of a gallon of water and a cupful of salt. This must be poured boiling hot on the cu- cumbers six days in succession. Rinse them in cold water; PICKLES AND CATSUPS. 229 put them in a kettle with a teaspoonful of allspice and a tea- spoonful of cloves, a handful of cinnamon sticks, a little sliced horse-radish, and cider vinegar to cover them. Let them come to a boil, then take out and put in jars. East India Pickle. — One hundred cucumbers (large and small), one peck of green tomatoes, one-half peck of onions, four cauliflowers, four red peppers (without the seeds), four heads of celery, one pint of bottled horse-radish. Slice all, and stand in salt twenty-four hours, then drain ; pour on weak vinegar ; stand on stove until it comes to a boil ; then drain again. Take one ounce of ground cinnamon, one ounce of ground tumeric, one-half pound of mustard, one- quarter pound of brown sugar,- wet these with cold vinegar; add to this sufficient vinegar to moisten all the pickles. Cook all together ten minutes. Seal in bottles while hot French Pickle. — Take one peck of green tomatoes, sliced ; six large onions. Throw on them a teacupful of salt over night. Drain thoroughly, then boil in two quarts of water and one quart of vinegar fifteen or twenty minutes ; drain in colan- der ; then take four quarts of vinegar, two pounds of brown sugar, one-half pound of white mustard-seed, two table- spoonfuls of cloves, two tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, two tablespoonfuls of ginger, two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard, one teaspoonful of cayenne pepper; put all to- gether and cook fifteen minutes. PiccaUily. — One peck of green tomatoes sliced, one-hall peck of onions sliced, one cauliflower, one peck of small cu- cumbers. Leave in salt and water twenty-four hours ; then put in a kettle with a handful of scraped horse-radish, one ounce of tumeric, one ounce of whole cloves, one-quarter pound of whole pepper, one ounce of cassia buds or cinna- mon, one pound of white mustard-seed, one pound of Eng- lish mustard. Put in kettle in layers, and cover with cold vinegar. Boil fifteen minutes, constantly stirring. 230 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Chow-chow. — One quart of large cucumbers, one quart of small ones ; two quarts of onions, four heads of cauliflower, six green peppers, one quart of green tomatoes, one gallon of vinegar, one pound of mustard,, two cupfuls of sugar, two cupfuls of flour, one ounce of tumeric. Put all in salt and water one night ; cook all the vegetables in brine until tender except the large cucumbers. Pour vinegar and spices over all. Sweet Pickles. — Such fruit as peaches, plums, cherries, grapes, etc., are very palatable when sweet pickled. The process is the same as for other light pickles, except that the vinegar is sweetened to taste. Sweet Tomato Pickles. — Eight pounds of peeled tomatoes, four of powdered sugar. Of cinnamon, cloves, and albpice, each one ounce. Boil one hour, and add a quart of boiling vinegar. Tomato Catsup. — Take one bushel of tomatoes ; boil soft, and pass through a sieve. Add half a gallon of cider vinegar, one pint of salt, two ounces of cloves, a quarter pound of allspice, a half ounce of cayenne pepper. Boil until reduced to half the quantity. When cool, bottle and cork tightly. Tomato Catsup, No. 2. — Take one peck of ripe tomatoes, cut up, boil tender, and strain through a wire sieve ; add one large tablespoonful of ground cloves, one large tablespoon- ful of allspice, one large tablespoonful of cinnamon, one tea- spoonful of cayenne pepper, one-quarter pound of salt, one- quarter pound of mustard, one pint of vinegar. Boil gently three hours. Bottle and seal while warm. Green Tomato Catsup. — One peck of green tomatoes, one dozen large onions, one-half pint of salt ; slice the tomatoes and onions. To a layer of these add a layer of salt ; let =>tand twenty-four hours, then drain. Add one-quarter pouud PICKLES AND CATSUPS. 231 of mustard-seed, three dessertspoonfuls of sweet oil, one ounce of allspice, one ounce of cloves, one ounce of ground mustard, one ounce of ground ginger, two tablespoonfuls of black pepper, two teaspoonfuls of celery-seed, one-quarter pound of brown sugar. Put all into a preserving-pan, cover with vinegar, and boil two hours. Chili Sauce. — Thirty tomatoes, three large onions, three peppers, one tablespoonful each of allspice, cloves, and cin- namon, two nutmegs,, two tablespoonfuls of salt, one quart of vinegar, one cupful of sugar. Chop the onions and pep- pers very fine. Cook the tomatoes somewhat first. Mix thoroughly. Tomato Soy. — One-half bushel of green tomatoes, three onions, three green peppers, one-quarter pound of mustard- seed, three cupfuls of suga>-, three cabbages. Chop the tomatoes and onions together fine; add" to one gallon of the tomatoes one cupful of salt ; let stand twenty-four hours, drain, and add the peppers (chopped fine), mustard- seed, sugar, and other spices to taste. Moisten all with vinegar and cook until tender. Before bottling, add the cabbages (chopped), and one cupful of chopped horse-radish. Grape Catsup. — Take five pints of grapes; simmer until soft, then put through a colander ; add to them two pints of brown sugar, one pint of vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of all- spice, two tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, two tablespoonfuls of cloves, one and one-half teaspoonfuls of mace, one teaspoon- ful of salt, one and one-half teaspoonfuls of red pepper. Boil till thick ; then bottle and seal tightly. Walnut Catsup. — The vinegar in which walnuts have been pickled, when they have remained in it a year, will generally answer all the purposes for which this catsup is required, particularly if it be drained from them and boiled for a few minutes, with a little additional spice and a few eschalots-, but where the vinegar is objected to, it may be made by 232 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. boiling either the expressed juice of young walnuts for an hour, with six ounces of fine anchovies, four ounces of eschalots, half an ounce of black pepper, a quarter ounce of cloves, and a drachm of mace to every quart. Walnut Catsup, No. 2. — Pound in a mortar a hundred young walnuts, strewing among them as they are done half a pound of salt ; then pour to them a quart of strong vinegar and let them stand until they have become quite black, keeping them stirred three or four times a day ; next add a quart of strong, old beer, and boil the whole together for ten minutes ; strain it, and let it remain until the next day ; then pour it off clear from the sediment, add to it one large head of garlic bruised, half an ounce of nutmegs bruised, the same quantity of cloves and black pepper, and two drachms of mace ; boil these together for half an hour, and the follow- ing day bottle and cork the catsup well. A bottle of port wine may be added before bottling, if de- sired, and a large bunch of sweet herbs. Oyster Catsup. — Take fine, large fresh oysters, opened care- fully, and wash them in their own liquor. To take any par- ticle of shell that may remain, strain the liquor after. Pound the oysters in a mortar, add the liquor, and to every pint put a pint of sherry ; boil it up and skim ; then add two anchovies, pounded, an ounce of common salt, two drachms of pounded mace, and one of cayenne. Let it boil up, then skim, and rub it through a sieve. Botde when cold and seal it. What remains in the sieve will do for oyster sauce. Blank Page for Additional Recipes. USE BENSDORP'S SS t y c a h l COCOA For Drinking and Cooking QUALITY, FLAVOR AND STRENGTH UNSURPASSED Cocoa is much more Convenient! for Cooking t>han Chocolate S. L. BARTLETT, Importer BOSTON, MASS. COFFEE. The Only Coffee on Earth THAT IS ALWAYS THE SAME AND ALWAYS RIGHT. SPURR'S Revere »$£* Coffee Java TRADE-MARKS REDEEMABLE FOR LIFE OF DELIVERED lit PIKK PAPER BAGS I ..wT^^"'' S PAUL R^ERE BEARING ^fc- ' , - * B.^BBh s voIs - and THIS TRADE-MARK the PAUL REVERE PANEL. Best Coffee in the world. There are no words of praise in the language too strong to apply to REVERE coffee. The Standard for the World. You use coffee — try a pound of REVERE (costing no more than any so-called high grade coffee) and enjoy a new experience by learning what delights there are in coffee that is coffee. REVERE coffee is sold in nearly every town and village in the United States and if you don't know of whom to obtain it write Howard W. Spurr Coffee Co., Boston, Mass., and they will inform you and refund your postage. Send to Howard W. Spurr Coffee Co., Boston, Mass., for a sample order and they will send you an order on the retail dealer in your town for a sample And refund your postage. XVIII. — BEVERAGES. USE GOOD MATERIALS; TEA ITS VALUE AS A BEVERAGE; COFFEE HOW TO GET IT PURE ; HOW TO RETAIN ITS FLAVOR; THE COFFEE-POT; CHOCOLATE AND ITS PREPARA- TION ; OTHER BEVERAGES. WHAT is worth doing at all in culinary lines is worth doing well, and beverages, being in the line of luxuries, should be good, if not posi- tively luxuriant. Employ good materials, and do not stint them in quantity, if you want good results. Tea is the leaf of the tea-tree cured in various ways, and the difference between good tea and poor tea is due mainly to methods of picking and curing the leaf. The housekeeper has no means of knowing the qual- ity of the tea she buys until it is ready for drinking, and the dealer has usually no means of knowing the manner in which the tea he sells is picked and cured. Of the hundred million pounds of tea sent to this country each year, fully three-quarters is of low grade. It is probable that it requires twenty times as many days' labor to produce a given quantity of choice tea as it does to produce the same amount of the lower grades. In order to be sure of securing choice tea, the house- keeper should buy for her supplies goods sold by deal- ers who are in a position to know all about the tea sold, from the time it is picked. The old-established Oriental Tea Company still dis- tributes, in the writer's opinion, the most satisfactory brands, notwithstanding the extensive advertising in- iulged in by some of the newer tea-houses. 234 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. The nutritive value of tea is not appreciable, but as an excitant of respiratory action and promoter of digestion it is very valuable. Tea should be kept closely covered in air-tight canisters, in order that the flavor may be retained. Coffee will grow in any climate where the temperature does not fall below fifty-five degrees. The best brands are obtained, however, when regard is had for climate and soil ; when skill is used in gathering and curing ; and when the preparation for and roasting of the coffee has been under the direction of trained and experienced experts. But a few years ago the securing of good cof- fee was a matter of chance. To-day there are several good brands on the market; but the writer has found Spurr's Revere Coffee to be by far the most satisfactory. Coffee should be kept in tight canisters or boxes. The coffee-pot must be scalded clean and occasionally with soda, so that the inside may be absolutely pure. Chocolate should never be made except it is intended to be used immediately. By allowing it to become cold or by boiling it again, the flavor is injured, the oily par- ticles of the cocoa are separated and rise to the surface also, and they will never blend pleasantly again. RECIPES. Tea. — Tea is best made in an earthenware tea-pot, and should never be made in a vessel made of tin. Use boiling water, but do not boil the tea. Allow one tea- spoonful for each person. Use the Oriental Tea Com- pany's teas — Garden Formosa, first picking, uncolored Japan tea, or for afternoon teas use Scented Orange Pekoe and Garden Flowery Pekoe. Teed Tea. — Iced tea should be made several hours before it is needed and set on ice. When ready to use it, sweet- en and drink without milk or cream. Use cracked ice BEVERAGES. 235 to put into the glass. The tea must be extra strong, and do not stint the ice. Tea a la Rnsse. — Slice fresh, juicy lemons ; pare care- fully, lay a piece in the bottom of each cup ; sprinkle with white sugar and pour tea, very hot and strong, over them. Iced Tea a la Russe. — To each goblet of cold tea (with- out cream) add the juice of half a lemon. Fill up with pounded ice and sweeten well. A glass of champagne added to this makes what is called Russian punch. Coffee. — To make choicest coffee, take Spurr's Revere Coffee ground to about the fineness of granulated sugar, and use one ounce or one tablespoonful to a pint of water. Mix one egg with the ground coffee and put into the cof- fee pot. Pour the water, which should be boiling hot, on it ; allow it to boil for one minute. Then pour in a very little cold water which will settle the grounds and clarify the liquid. Serve at once if you would have it at its best. The above applies when using an ordinary coffee pot. When using a percolating coffee pot, like the Gem coffee pot, the coffee should be ground very fine, the boiling hot water should be poured over it, and then poured from the spout into a hot pitcher, or other vessel, to be again poured over the coffee. This should be repeated two or three times in order to get the full strength of the coffee. Stronger or weaker coffee can be prepared by using more or less water but the proportions given here will prove most satisfactory. Whatever process you use always thoroughly cleanse the coffee pot after each service. Meringued Coffee. — For six cupf uls of coffee take about one cupful of sweet cream, whipped light, with a little sugar. Put into each cup the desired amount of sugar and about a tablespoonful of boiling milk. Pour the 236 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. coffee over these, and lay upon the surface of the hot liquid a large spoonful of the frothed cream. Give a gentle stir to each cup before sending it from the tray. Frothed Cafe au Lait. — Pour into the table urn one quart of strong, clear coffee, strained through muslin, and one quart boiling milk, alternating them and stirring gently. Cover and wrap a thick cloth about the urn for five min- utes before it goes to table. Have ready in a cream- pitcher the whites of three eggs, beaten stiff, and one tablespoonful of powdered sugar, whipped with them. Put large spoonful of this froth upon each cupful of cof- fee as you pour it out, heaping it slightly in the centre. Chocolate. — Scrape fine one square of a cake of Bens= dorp's Chocolate ; add equal weight of sugar ; put these into a pint of boiling milk and water, each one-half, and stir well for two or three minutes until the sugar and chocolate are well dissolved. This preparation may be improved by adding a well-beaten egg or two and stirring briskly through the mixture with an egg-beater. A tea- spoonful of Metcalf 's Water White Vanilla extract, added just before sending to table, is a valuable addition. Frothed Chocolate. — One cupful boiling water; three pints fresh milk ; three tablespoonfuls Bensdorp's Choco- late, grated ; five eggs, whites only, beaten light, and two tablespoonfuls powdered sugar for froth. Sweeten chocolate to taste ; heat milk to scalding ; wet up choco- late with boiling water, and when milk is hot, stir this into it ; simmer gently ten minutes, stirring frequently ; boil up briskly once ; take from fire ; sweeten to taste, taking care not to make it too sweet; and stir in whites of two eggs, whipped stiff, without sugar; pour into the chocolate-pot or pitcher, which should be well heated. Have ready in a cream-pitcher the remaining whites, BEVERAGES. 237 whipped up with the powdered sugar ; cover the surface of each cup with the sweetened meringue before dis- tributing to the guests. Breakfast Cocoa. — Into a breakfast cup put one-half a teaspoonful of Bensdorp's Royal Dutch Cocoa, add a table- spoonful of boiling water, and mix thoroughly. Then add equal parts of boiling water and boiled milk, and sugar to the taste. Boiling two or three minutes will im- prove it. Luncheon Cocoa. — Put one-half teaspoonful Bensdorp's Royal Dutch Cocoa into a cup, and a teaspoonful of sugar. Mix both well, pour one-half cup of boiling water, while stirring it add one-half cup of hot milk, and the Cocoa is ready. The Cocoa is much improved by boiling one minute. — Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. Grape Punch. — Take one pint of grape juice and the juice of six lemons, one pound of granulated sugar and two quarts of water. Mix and serve from a punch bowl. An orange or pineapple may be sliced in if desired. Lemonade. — Squeeze the juice of lemons, and add sugar and ice-water to taste. Concentrated Lemonade. — Make a rich sirup of two and a half pounds of sugar and one pint of cold water and boil gradually. Pour it hot on one and a half ounces of citric acid. Bottle tight while hot. One tablespoonful will make a tumblerful of lemonade. Portable Lemonade. — Mix a quarter pound of white sugar with the grated rind of a large, juicy lemon. Pour upon this the strained juice of the lemon and pack in a jar. One tablespoonful will suffice for a glass of water. Egg Nog. — To the yelks of six eggs, add six tablespoon- fuls of powdered sugar, one quart of new milk, a half pint 238 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. of French brandy, and one pint of Madeira wine. Beat the whites up separately, and stir them through the mixture just before pouring into glasses for use. Roman Punch. — Beat stiff the whites of three eggs.'with a half pound of powdered sugar. Add three teacupfuls of strong, sweet lemonade, one wineglassful each of rum and champagne, and the juice of two oranges. Ice abundantly, or freeze. Milk Punch. — Boil one quart of milk, warm from the cow. Beat up the yelks of four eggs and four tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar together; add two glasses of the best sheny wine ; pour into a pitcher, and mix with it the boil- ing milk, stirring all the time. Pour from one vessel to another six times ; add cinnamon and nutmeg to taste, and serve as soon as it can be swallowed without scalding the throat. Currant and Raspberry Shrub. — Pound four quarts of ripe currants and three quarts of red raspberries in a stone jar or wide-mouthed crock with a wooden beetle. Squeeze out every drop of the juice; put this into a porcelain, enamel, or very jlean bell-metal kettle, and boil hard ten minutes. Put in four pounds of loaf sugar at the end of the ten min- utes", and boil up once to throw the scum to the top ; skim and let it get perfectly cold ; then skim off all remaining impurities; add one quart of the best brandy and shake hard for five minutes. Bottle, seal the corks, and lay the bottles on their sides in dry sawdust. Currant Wine. — One quart of currant juice, three pounds of brown sugar, and one gallon of water; dissolve the sugar in the water, then add the juice ; when it ferments, add a little fresh water eacli day till it is done fermenting, which will be in from a month and a half to two months ; turn it off, scald the keg, put it in again, and cork tightly. BEVERAGES. 239 Raspberry Wine. — Bruise the raspberries with the back of a spoon ; strain them through a flannel bag ; add one pound of loaf sugar to one quart of juice; stir well and cover closely, letting it stand for three days, stirring well each day. Pour off the clear juice and add one quart of juice to two quarts of sherry wine ; bottle it and use in two weeks. Raspberry Brandy. — Using brandy instead of wine, as above, will produce a very valuable medicinal drink, Rasp- berry Brandy. Raspberry Vinegar. — Take three pints of red berries ; pour over them one pint of cider vinegar and let stand twenty- four hours. Strain, and to one pint of juice add one pound of sugar ; boil one-half hour, and when cold, bottle for use. Cherry Brandy. — Use either morello cherries or small black cherries ; pick them from the stalks ; fill the bottles nearly up to the necks, then fill up with brandy (some use whisky, gin, or spirit distilled from the lees of wine). In three weeks or a month strain off the spirit ; to each quart add one pound of loaf sugar clarified, and flavor with tincture of cinnamon or cloves. Sherbet. — In a quart of water boil six or eight sticks of rhubarb ten minutes ; strain the boiling liquor on the . thin shaved rind of a lemon. Two ounces of clarified sugar, with a wineglassful of brandy, stir to the above, and let it stand five or six hours before using. Ginger Beer. — Two ounces of ginger to a pint of molasses ; add a gallon of warm water ; stir it well, and add half a pint of lively yeast. If you wish it sweeter or hotter, add gin- ger or molasses before putting in the yeast, to suit your taste. 240 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Spruce Beer. — To three gallons of boiling water, add two pounds of molasses and two ounces of essence of spruce. Let the mixture cool, and when lukewarm, add a scant gill of yeast and set aside to ferment. While the fermentation goes on, skim frequently. When it becomes inactive, put in stone bottles and tie the corks down. White sugar may be used instead of molasses, and will give a better color. Quick Beer. — To fourteen quarts of water add one quart of molasses, one quart of hop yeast, and four tablespoonfuls of ginger. Mix well ; strain through a fine sieve ; bottle im- mediately. Ready for use in twenty-four hours. Imperial — Mix in a jug one-half ounce of cream tartar and one quart of boiling water ; flavor with lemon peel or essence of lemon, and sweeten to taste. This is a refreshing and pleasantly stimulating summer drink. Mead. — Mix six gallons of water with six quarts of strained honey ; add the yellow rind of two large lemons, pared thin, and the whites of three eggs beaten to a stiff froth. Mix well and boil - three-quarters of an hour, skim- ming thoroughly. Pour into a tub, add three tablespoonfuls of good yeast, and leave it ferment. When it is well worked, pour into a barrel with some lemon peel, and let it stand six months. Then bottle and tie down the corks. It is ready for immediate use, or will keep for months in a cool place. BLANK PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL RECIPES Blank Page for Additional Recipes. Of a-ll Fine (^onfection^ are noted for their Superior Qd BOSTON DENTALDEPOT. PURVEYORS TO DENTISTS nIOO BOYLSTON ST. BOSTON MASS., CARE tf the TEETH C,The care of the teeth is one of the main essentials to correct living, and healthy teeth mean a healthy body. CThe care of the teeth is probably the most neglected duty a person owes to himself, and it is estimated that about two-thirds of our population do neglect to perform this very important duty CTo give to the public a tooth powder that will preserve and beautify the teeth has been a great study with those that have put upon the market the various commodities known as Tooth Powders, Washes and Pastes. CGeer's Phenol Dentifrice or Carbonized Tooth Powder has been known to the public for thirty -five years, and has become a house- hold favorite. Clt has been endorsed by the dental profession as the most perfect Tooth Powder on the market. C,By its use all germs are killed, decay is retarded, the gums hardened, the breath sweetened and the teeth beautified and preserved. CGeer's Phenol Dentifrice keeps the crowns and bridge-work polish- ed and bright because it is not a saponaceous powder, and the Phenol which it contains counteracts the acids of the stomach. FOR SALE BY ALL DRUGGISTS IN THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA Blank Page for Additional Recipes. XXIII.— MARKETING. OPPORTUNITIES vary so in different localities, that general rules about marketing are hard to frame. In rural places the butcher drives to the door, and the customer must be content with what is found in the wagon. To know the parts of the animals sold in the markets, and to understand their relative value and most economical uses, is the first requisite in successful marketing. Cutting of animals varies somewhat among butchers of different places, but the chart given below will fairly set forth the usual methods of cutting, and the ordinary designations oi the several portions. CHART ILLUSTRATING THE CUTTING OF BEEF. In explanation of the illustration of the cutting of bed the following notes will suffice : No. I. — The choice cut of the beef, the Sirloin, containing the kidneys and the tenderloin. These are the finest pieces of roasting and steak meat. No. 2. — The Standing Rib piece, also a choice roastingpor- fcion. which includes about eleven of the ribs. 262 THE HOUSEWIFE S LIBRARY. No. 3. — The Chuck Rids, also used for roasting, but of a less desirable quality and usually sold at a lower price. No. 4. — The neck, with considerable bone, used generally for stewing and for pot roast. No. 5. — The Cheek, or jowl, a fleshy part, used for stew- ing or for boiling. No. 6.— The Rump, sometimes cut differently from the manner shown in the diagram, which is the usual cutting at the East, for domestic purposes. This part has very little bone and is generally used for choice steaks, and the par tion next the tail, left from the steak cutting, is a choice piece for corning. No. 7. — The Pin-bone, a choice piece for roasting, being very tender. No. 8. — The Round, which furnishes common steaks, and is the choice cut for dried beef or for corning. No. 9. — The Leg, the choice soup piece. No. 10. — The Shin, also used for soup. No. 1 1. — The Thin flank, used for boiling and for corning. No. 12. — The Brisket, used for corning. No. 13. — The Plate, used for family boiling and for corning. No. 14. — The Plate (thick end), extending under the shoulder, used for corning and family boiling. No. 15. — The Breast, or butt end of the brisket, also called the " sticking piece." Used for corning and souj>' meat. If the cutting vary materially from this plan, it is still true that the essential parts of the animal continue to exist and are for sale under some name and in some shape. A polite inquiry of any reputable butcher will secure the desired information as to any part. By this means a person may secure intelligent skill in purchasing beef. Some spe- cial points concerning beef need a moment's attention. The Tongue is used fresh, salted, or smoked. It is a very MARKETING. 263 desirableand delicate portion, suitable for table use at almost any time. The Tail, which affords some meat and much gelatinous substance, is prized for soups, ox-tail soup espe- cially being founded upon it. The Heart and Liver are used for food — the former being stuffed and roasted, the latter being fried, usually with onions. The Tripe, which is the lining of the large, or receiving stomach of the beef, is used for souse, for pepper-pot, etc. It is a cheap article. The Kidneys of beef are sold separate from the sirloin, from which they are cut. They are used for stewing, etc. Suet, used for pie-crust, plum-puddings, mince-meat, etc, is the solid, clear fat, which incloses the kidney. When pure it is a very desirable article. The Feet are used for jellies, though not so delicate as the calf's foot. The Head is refuse. The Marrow-bones are those of the shin, leg, and round. Any of the round, hollow bones contain marrow. The other remains of beef are refuse, except as available for manufacturing purposes. VEAL. Veal is a favorite meat. Consult the points concerning it made upon page 76. Veal is cut as shown below. No. 1. — Loin, the best end. It is the favorite roasting piece, and furnishes the choice chops. It com- mands the best price. No. 2. — Fillet, or cutlet piece. This too is a choice part, being excel- lent for steaks and for roasting and filling. It is also verv fine for a cold * * cut. No. 3. — The Leg, call- ed knuckle also, used chiefly for stewing and for soup. No. 4. — The Rack, used for chops, and for roasting ; less 20 CHART ILLUSTRATING THE CUTTING OF VEAL. 264 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. desirable and lower priced than the loin, having more bone. No. 5.— The Neck, used for stewing, pies, etc. The best end is quite desirable, that nearer the head being of less value. No. 6. — Head. The brains and tongue are prized by many, the former for frying as a delicacy, the latter for boiling. The head, as a whole, is used in mock turtle and some other fency soups. No. 7. — The Shoulder, used for roasting, for which it answers a good purpose. It is valuable for a stew also. No. 8. — The Breast. This is the second choice piece for stuffing and roasting. It is too valuable for pies, stews, etc No. 9. — The Shin. This usually goes with the shoulder, with which it is often roasted. If used separately, it answers Surly well for stewing. The Sweetbread, a very delicate portion, belongs with the oreast. It is often sold separately, however. The Kidneys are sold with the loin, in the fat of which they are imbedded. The Heart and Liver are great delicacies for frying, or the heart for stuffing and roasting. The Feet are the basis of genuine calves-foot jelly, and are much prized for this pur- pose. The Entrails, cut open and well cleaned, are made into souse by some persons. MUTTON. Next to beef, the most profitable and healthful meat is mutton. In all markets this meat is cut substantially in the game manner as shown in the following chart. The names and ordinary uses of the parts are as follows : No. I. — The Loin, best end. This is the choice piece for filling and roasting and for prime chops. Of course, it com- mands the best price. No. 2. — The Leg. This joint is nearly always used for roasting and chops, sometimes also for boiling. It has but little bone, as compared with the other parts of the animal. MARKETING. 265 and is, therefore, an economical piece to select, though the price per pound be greater than that of any other cut. It is common to find a good leg weighing from seven to twelve pounds. No. 3. — The Loin, second choice. This furnishes " French CHART ILLUSTRATING THE CUTTING OF MUTTON. chops," a favorite dish in eating-houses, and is specially good for a roast. No. 4. — The Loin, rump end. Good for roasting and boiling. It contains considerable bone. No. 5. — The Shoulder, used for boiling and for filling and roasting. It is less in price and nearly as good as the leg, but it has more bone. No. 6. — The Breast, used for stews and for meat pies. A pavory, juicy part. No. 7. — The Flank. A continuation of the breast, but somewhat thinner. This with the breast makes a cheap roast, which may be split and filled. No. 8. — The Rack. The best end of the rack is used for second-rate chops. The neck end of the rack is good for stewing only. No. 9. — The Neck. This, with the neck end of the rack, is for stewing only. 266 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. No. 10. — The Head. The tongue only is used, the re mainder being refuse. It is customary to split mutton down the back, and then to split each half into parts called hind and fore quarters. The saddle is the middle portion before this quartering is done. Part of it goes with each quarter. The hind quarter of mutton, consisting of the leg and the loin, is the choice quarter. It makes a very superior large roast, while either of its parts, the leg or the loin, suf- fices nicely for a small company. A hind quarter from an animal in good condition will weigh from twenty to thirty pounds. The Kidneys are used as in beef, so also the heart and liver. The other parts are refuse. LAMB. Lamb is cut as mutton, but it is usually dressed with more care, so as to present a more attractive appearance. Lamb proper is in market in the spring only. As the sea-> son advances older lamb is in market, but what is called "lamb" in the winter months is usually poor mutton dressed lamb style. The butcher indulges in a quiet smile when his customer, in the winter season, asks for and pays for " lamb." Of course, the superiority and rarity of lamb demand for it the best prices. Indeed, "fancy prices " reign in lamb. For tests, see p. 82. PORK. Fresh pork and salt pork are much used. General facts on pork are given on page 85. The usual method of cutting for domestic use is shown in the accompanying cut. For packing a somewhat different method is pursued. No. 1. — The Ham, the most valuable part of the hog. CHART ILLUSTRATING THE CUTTING OF PORK. MARKETING. 267 When nicely cured it is a very great delicacy. It is a great article of commerce also. No. 2. — Sirloin, furnishing chops and the finest roast- ing pieces. No. 3. — Rack, used for second-rate chops and roasts, the meat being as sweet, but the bone being greater than in the sirloin. No. 4. — Neck, used for inferior roasting, and for bailing when fresh, and also for corning. No. 5. — The Shoulder. A fair roasting piece, but chieflj used, like the ham, for pickling and curing, though it is greatly inferior to ham in juiciness and flavor. Either fresh or corned it is a fine boiling piece. No. 6. — The Jowl. Useful for smoking. Sometimes cured with the tongues remaining in them. No. 7. — The Head. Used for puddings and head cheese. No. 8. — The Belly or Flitch. A good boiling piece either fresh, salted, or smoked. No. 9. — Feet. These are much used for souse and for pickling. They contain so much gelatinous matter that they are exceedingly desirable. The Ears also are used for souse and head cheese. The Liver, Heart, and Kidneys are used for liver pudding. The Entrails, nicely cleaned, are used for sausage skins. The Fat about the kidneys furnishes leaf lard. The other fat fur- nishes common lard. The other parts are refuse. VENISON. If the marketer desires venison, it is well to remember that buck venison is best from August 1st to November 1st, and that doe venison is best from the latter date to January 1st, after which no deer should be killed. It is quite com- mon, however, to *reeze deer meat, and to keep it for months in that state. This adds to the cost, but it also improve* the fibre of the meat. Venison is cut into parts respectively designated haunch 268 THE HOUSE WIFE'S LIBRAR Y saddle, leg, loin, fore-quarter, and steaks. The latter should not be cut until ready for use. Venison should be fat. It cannot be too fat. Its flavor is better after hanging a few days, but it should not become rank. To test this, pierce it with a skewer and notice the odor. Shun tough venison. For roasting, choose the haunch, the saddle, the neck, or the shoulder. Cut steaks from the leg. Stew the shoulder, or any part which is too thin for satisfactory roasting. POULTRY. Tests of poultry are given on page 61. But the expe- dients resorted to in order to mislead purchasers are so numerous that even experts are not wholly safe. Techni- cally, the term chickens belongs to fowls under a year old, but actually, the entire tribe is included in the name. Capons are young roosters, gelded and carefully fed so as to secure the utmost delicacy of flesh. Pullets are young hens. Turkeys reach their maturity in eight or nine months, and hence young, but well-grown turkeys, are in market about the fall and winter holidays. Young hen turkeys are regarded as best, being fatter and more juicy ; but the male turkeys will be larger for the same age. The legs of young turkeys are black ; of old ones reddish and rough. Young cocks have small spurs; old ones large spurs and very rough legs. Fat turkeys, with broad, full breasts, are pre- ferable. Soft, pliable feet indicate fresh-killed birds. Wild turkeys are deemed to be finer in flavor than tame ones. They are in season in November, December, and January. They are usually sold with their feathers on. Small birds have their well-defined seasons, as have other kinds of game, but they admit little choice except as fresh. VEGETABLES. Every good marketer will supply his table with a variety of vegetables all the year round. There is hardly a vege- table that cannot be had in our markets at any season, either fresh or canned. Railroads and steamers connect the MARKETING. 269 different climates so closely that one hardly knows whether he is eating fruits and vegetables in or out of their natural season. But it takes a long purse to buy fresh vegetables at the North while the ground is yet frozen. Still, there are so many vegetables that keep through cold weather that if we did not have new ones from the South, there would be, nevertheless, a variety from which to choose. Late in the spring, when the old vegetables begin to shrink and grow rank, we greatly appreciate what comes from the South s If one has a good, dry cellar, it is wise to procure in the fall vegetables enough for all winter. But if the cellar is warm, vegetables will sprout and decay before half the cold months have passed. Those best adapted for winter keep- ing are onions, squashes, turnips, beets, carrots, parsnips, cabbages, and potatoes. Squashes and onions should be kept in a very dry room. The others will keep readily in a cool, dry cellar, or bedded in sand beneath the reach of frost. If vegetables be bought as needed, care must be used to get them in good condition. In season, they should never appear wilted, but should be fresh and crisp. At no time should they be used if suffering from decay. The utmost prudence is needed at this point. A very little waste will more than counterbalance all you save by purchasing large quantities, and by storing for the winter. The luxuries of the world are spread at the feet of the customer in our markets ; still, extravagant expenditure is by no means necessary. Many delicacies are within the reach of all. Those who content themselves with sending to the markets, miss many golden opportunities. Those who go, see for themselves, and embrace many a favoring chance. Personal observation ripens into experience also, and the experienced purchasers command the situation. These remarks apply with equal force to purchasing of the grocer, the baker, the milkman, and all, in short, who fupply us with the necessaries of life. There are reliable 270 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. dealers and those of doubtful integrity; but in every case the hope of the household is in its provider. Cultivate power in this line. It is best to deal steadily with persons whom you have tried and found reliable. Do not relinquish your indepen- dence, so as to suggest to them the idea that they may im- pose on you. Be ready to go elsewhere, if the old service falls off; but usually those who are regular dealers at a place get the best attention, and errors or failures can be rectified with ease. In all marketing and dealing with storekeepers keep your temper. To lose one's temper and scold or threaten, is un- dignified and worse than useless. State your .grievances calmly and plainly. If they are redressed, all right ; if not redressed, you can quietly go elsewhere and bestow your patronage. A little suspension of trade with a dealer often works wonders. He does not want to lose customers ; but such is the waywardness of human nature, that all of us need reminders to keep us fully up to duty. Let the dealer have these when he needs them, but never at the expense of your own self-possession and courteous dignity. XXIV.— CARVING. THE ART OF CARVING ; REQUISITES ; CARVING TURKEY, CHICKEN, DUCKS, GEESE, SMALL BIRDS, BEEF, MUTTON, LAMB, VENISON, HAM, PIG, RABBIT, STEAKS, FISH, TONGUE, AND CALF's-HEAD. EVERY person who travels or visits much sees number- less illustrations of the varied capacities of carvers. Hotel and restaurant life does not make much display- in this line, as the carving is done out of sight. And yet even here the marvelous thinness of the slice, which is so immense in its area, demonstrates that somebody is on hand who is expert in this line. In private houses the meat and the poultry are sometimes carved before they come to the table. By whom done, or with what accompaniments of per- spiration and emphatic words, the guests know not. But meat served thus is chilled and juiceless, and generally dam- aged. It is worthy of better treatment. Many amusing and not a few irritating examples of clumsy carving occur under everybody's eyes. Meat is con- demned as tough, knives as dull, dishes as too small, there is too much gravy, skewers are not drawn, and a thousand other reasons are blurted out by the clumsy carver, as he outwardly sweats and inwardly swears at his task. He slops gravy on to the cloth ; he drops part of the meat from the dish ; he cuts himself by an unfortunate slip of the knife ; and sometimes, like a distinguished wit of whom the story tells, he lands a fowl in the lap of a lady beside him, though probably, unlike that wit, he will not have the grace to say, " I will thank you, madam, to return that chicken." Every housekeeper should learn to carve. Carving should be done at the table by the gentleman of the house, or, in his 272 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. absence, by the lady, unless some other of the family be an expert carver. Unless a guest is known to be an expert, or unless he volunteers for the duty, he should not be expected to carve. ■ He may be a clumsy hand, and the courtesy of hospitality should protect him from exposure at this point The carver at a private table should retain his seat while carving and serving. To facilitate this, his chair should be high, so that he can reach readily to his work. The dish should be large enough to prevent soiling the cloth, except by some unusual accident. The centre of a carving-dish for roast meats should be raised nearly as high as the surround- ing edge, so that a horizontal movement of the knife in slicing may be made without interference from the edges. No man can slice meat neatly if the meat is in the bottom of a deep dish, into which he must scoop with his knife as best he may. Elevate the meat, but have a surrounding depression between the centre and the edge, where the rich juices of the meat may accumulate, and where they may be served readily. Not all knives are suitable for 'carving, nor is any one knife just the thing for all work in this line. For slicing, a long,' thin, broad blade is essential. With a fine roast, elevated on the dish, and with a good, sharp slicing knife in hand, a tool-headed man can hardly help doing neat and rapid work. But such a knife is not the one for poultry or rib carving. For these uses a shorter blade, which is both narrower and stiffer, must be employed. All knives for carving must be sharp. There should be a good steel at hand to touch up the edge — nothing more, for a dull knife should be ground, or whet up on an oil-stone. Any large fork, with a guard to prevent accidents, will do. A rest for the knife and fork when not in use is desirable. The carver's requisites, there- fore, are as follows : A high chair, suitable serving plates, two sharp knives, a good fork, and a knife and fork rest With these he is ready for work. Without them he is at serious disadvantage. CARVING. 273 Carving a Turkey. — Nothing delights an expert carver more than the opportunity to cut up a fine roast turkey. Such a man is in doubt whether the eating of the meat even is the greater luxury. Whether the head of the bird shall lie to the carver'^ right or left is an open question. Better to the right, as more work is required on the head end, and in this position the knife-hand works less over the hand which holds the fork. The fork should be inserted astride of the breast-bone, just back of its most promi- nent point. It should be sunk deep enough to pene- trate the encasing bone be- low the white meat. This secures full command of the bird. If the company be TU R KEy properly trussed for small and the bird fairly roasting. large, better do all the cutting from one side, reserving the otner in as perfect a form as possible. Remove all the limbs first unless half the bird is to be reserved. The neat cut is to remove each drum-stick, or lower leg, by a single stroke of the knife, which must ex- actly hit the joint. To remove the thigh, or upper leg joint, make a V-shaped cut, wide enough at the point whence the drum-stick has been cut to include all the meat, but converging at the joint, which can always be distinctly seen near the back. Two strokes of the knife do this work, each of them cutting down to the carcase. A slight outward pressure of the knife-blade, applied between the carcase and the upper point of the thigh joint, will cause it to drop off neatly on the plate. Outside the lines of these cuts, flakes of dark meat will remain adhering to the carcase, which should now be cut off. They help to meet demands for daA'k meat. 274 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. In carving the wings, the neat stroke removes the lower part, which contains the two bones, by cutting at the inner part of the joint, and so turning the blade of the knife as to throw that part off in the direction opposite to its natural movement. The first joint of each wing then follows, the cut being deep enough to fully reach the ball and socket joint. A slight motion of the pinion toward the head of the bird will suffice usually to detach this part. If it does not, the point of the knife may be thrust into the socket of the joint to sever the cartilage. This will free it. When this dismembering is accomplished, proceed to slice the breast meat in thin, broad slices. Clean off all the white meat, unless part only is needed. Placing your knife close to the front of the breast-bone, and cutting toward the neck, you will dislodge the V-shaped bone, corresponding to the " merrythought " or " pull-bone " of chickens. To dislodge the collar-bones is to many a hard task. But cut the cartilages which bind them to the frame of the bird. These cartilages are in the cavity between the neck and the breast-bone. Through, this cavity, thrust your knife out- wardly under one of these bones ; make a fulcrum of the front part of breast-bone, and a lever of the knife, its edge resting on the fulcrum. You can then easily pry up the troublesome bone and turn it off to the side. This move- ment takes the bone at the best mechanical advantage. It must come, and come at once, if this movement be made. Now attend to the other end of the bird. Shave off all superfluous meat from the carcase. Turn the carcase on its side, the back toward you. Insert your knife beside the oil- bag and thrust it forward parallel to the spine. It will cut its way very easily. A slight outward movement of the knife will then throw off these side bones, which are choice pieces, yielding the juiciest of the dark meat. The ribs may now be cut through with ease from front to rear, about midway from breast to back. The breast-bone is incapable CARVING. 275 of further division, but the back easily divides into six parts. Turn it back up and hold with the fork ; separate the oil- bag, about an inch of the spine with it ; lift the projecting spine with the knife back and it will break readily, carrying one rib with it. Cut off from each side of the remaining spine the rib parts adherent to it; then divide the remaining spine just back of the neck. An entire drum-stick, or second joint, need not be served to any one person, but had better be divided among several. A fair-sized turkey divided on the above method will furnish a good * supply for twenty people. fowl. It will be asked, however, how can one become r< *' *' '! n<: P* easy break- so expert in hitting these joints? Frequently age. a,c, e . the carver tries, and tries again, but tries in vain, j^ es o ' f *' £ to strike the right place for his knife. There is rationofside- one way only to succeed in this art. The anatomy tX^b pot-' of the turkey or chicken, or any other animal, must a ° n - be carefully studied. Do it in this way. Whenever a tur- key is brought into your house and is made ready for the roasting, place it on its back, as it will lie on the plate when it comes to the table. Carefully manipulate it, and note exactly where every joint lies. Imagine yourself about to carve it. Where would you put the knife to throw off that drum-stick ? How would you cut to throw off the thigh bone. Read the preceding directions ; apply them in fancy to the bird as you see and handle it ; then carry it all out at the table when the bird is cooked. No surgeon could do his work except he had thus prac- ticed on actual subjects in dissection. He must know by actual trial just what to do and how to do it. So must the carver know. Chickens, ducks, geese, small birds, meat, roasting pigs, every article, in short, which he expects to carve must be understood beforehand; then success will be his. 276 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Carving Roast Chicken. — The same course precisely as has been prescribed for carving turkey must be followed with chickens. The only difference is in the formation of the " pull-bone " or " merrythought," but this makes no difference whatever in the cutting of the bird. CHICKEN PROPER. LY TRUSSED I OK ROASTING. [Feet may be removed at option.] GOOSE PROPERLY TRUSSED FOR ROASTING. Carving Roast Ducks and Geese. — These are more -difficult than turkey or chick- ens, for the reason that they are constitu- tionally more sinewy in the joints and they have far less flesh proportionately. They are barrel-shaped, with thin layers of meat instead of the fine masses of flesh found on the turkey or on fine chickens. The leg joints lie farther to the rear, and higher on the side than in land fowls. They are not so easily reached, therefore Their anatomy must be studied, however. It is the only way to obtain com- mand of the carcase. In carving, dismember the bird as in other cases. Then cut the meat in long, narrow strips, along the sides and breast of the bird, and use these as the choice cuts. The legs and wings may be given out if desired or if the supply be short. Duck \s but a side dish, however ; it is supposed to be served with BREAST OF DUCK PROPER LY TRUSSED. [The lines show the direction of cutting the breast meat.] BACK OF DUCK PROPE RLi TRUSSED. [Feet twisted to lie on the back.] CARVING. 277 other dishes, and so to be served lightly. Goose is some- times the main piece, but not often so at elaborate feasts. Carving Broiled Chickens. — Chickens for broiling are pre- sumably young and tender. If not, thorough steaming before they are broiled will do something for them. They are trussed in such shape usually that joints are not easily struck. But study the bird when trussed. See where joints do lie and cut them. If the birds are really young and ten- der, however, they may be halved or quartered, cutting through the bones directly and so serving them. Carving Smaller Birds. — Smaller birds which need carving, may simply be split longitudinally, just beside the breast-bone and the spine. Their bones can be cut easily. This will apply to pigeon, partridge, prairie hen, pheasant, smaller bird properl-v r =. ' x- tr TRUSSED FOR ROASTING. etc. Carving Roast Bee£ — Pieces of roast beef vary so that no one rule covers all. A safe general direction, however, is to study carefully just what is in the piece before it is cooked. Know your meat before you attempt to carve it. Another general rule, applicable to all meats indeed, is to cut across the grain in all cases. Meat cut with the grain is stringy and fibrous. If cut across the grain, all the longi- tudinal flakes of flesh and the minute sinews are cut so short that any toughness existing in them is wholly con- cealed. The first slice, by this process, will always be a brown, outside cut. Slices should always be thin v but not so as to seem ragged. In carving ribs of beef the knife may be thrust along close to the ribs, so as to separate the meat from them. The cuts then made across the grain will separate the slices with ease and neatness. Never cut beef across the bone. It is the easiest way, but also the poorest 278 THE HOUSEWIFE S LIBRARY. Carving Rcasts of Mutton. — A leg of mutton is carved as a ham, by cutting down to the bone, from the outer edge, making the cuts converge on the bone, so freeing each slice as it is cut. A shoulder of mutton should be carved as the leg. In each case,, when the choice cuts are exhausted, clip off the remaining meat as best you can, always across the grain. Saddle of mutton is carved in several ways: 1st, in longi- ■ tudinal slices along the backbone ; 2d, by transverse slices, each taking in a rib, which makes thick and clumsy por- tions ; 3d, by oblique slices, not taking in the bones, but forming a slight angle with them. The latter method is deemed preferable by most carvers. In all roasts which include the ribs the backbone should be well and cleanly cut through by the butcher, between every pair of ribs. Otherwise no satisfactory carving can be done. Carving Roasts of Lamb. — The cut shows a fore-quarter of lamb with its outer side uppermost. This joint is first to be cut so as to divide the shoulder from the rest ol the quarter, which is called the target. For this pur- pose, put the fork firmly into the shoulder joint, and then cut underneath the blade-bone, beginning at a, FORE-QUARTER OF LAMB. and coht i nue cutting all around in the direction of the circular line, and pretty close to the under part of the blade-bone. Some cut the shoulder large, while others take off no more meat with it than is barely necessary to remove the blade-bone. It is most con- venient to place the shoulder on a separate dish. This is carved in the same way as the shoulder of mutton. When the shoulder is removed, a lemon may be squeezed over rhat part of the remainder of the joint where the knife hai CAR VING. 279 passed ; this gives a flavor to the meat which is generally approved. Then proceed to cut completely through from b to c, following the line across the bones as cracked by the butcher, and this will divide the ribs (d) from the brisket {/). Tastes vary in giving preference to the, ribs or the brisket. Other parts of lamb are carved as mutton. The fat is very delicate and should be served to all the guests. Carving Roasts of Venison. — These resemble roasts of mutton so closely that no different directions for their carv- ing need be given. Carving Ham. — Boiled or baked ham may be served either side up. The inner edge of the ham, which lay adjacent to the body, is rather more tender than the edge, which lay toward the tail. Slices should be cut directly from the edge to the bone, cutting out the middle portions first. Let the cuts converge upon the bone every time, so that each slice is set free at once. When the choice cuts are gone, trim up the remaining parts neatly as possible, and always across the grain. The knuckle end of a ham furnishes the leaner and drier cuts. Some prefer carving hams with a more slanting cut, rather than a direct, right-angled cut upon the bone, beginning at the thick end, and so continuing through^ out. This mode is, however, apt to be very wasteful, unless the carver be careful to take away both fat and lean in due proportion. Carving Roast Pig. — The cut below represents a pig roasted whole and served in the most approved style. Many, how- ever, separate the head before serving, and garnish the body with the ears, jaw, etc. The head may be severed by a neat cut around the neck, and a little sideward motion, but this is not necessary, as the cheek or jaw can be removed 21 WHOLE ROAST PIG. 280 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. without removing the head. The shoulder should then be taken off from the body, by passing the knife under it in a circular direction, and the leg separated as shown in the line d, e,f. The ribs may then be divided into two or more parts, helping at the same time an ear or jaw with it, with some of the sauce also. Pieces may be cut from the legs and shoulders. Some consider the neck end the finest part, while others give the ribs the preference. Carving Roast Rabbit. — Begin by cutting longitudinally jrom head to tail near to the backbone, then make a corres- ponding cut on the other side of the backbone, leaving the back and the head in one distinct piece. Cut off the legs at the hip-joint, and take off the wing, or fore leg, nearly as you would the wing of a bird, carrying the knife round in a circular line. The ribs are of little importance, as they are bare of meat. Divide the back into three or four equal por- tions. The head is then to be cut off, and the lower jaw divided from RABBIT, OR HARE, PROPERLY TRUSSED the Upper By Splitting FOR ROASTING. „, rr "L «• j the upper part of the head in the middle, you have the brains, which are prized by epicures. The comparative goodness of different parts of a rabbit will depend much on the age, and also upon the cooking. The back and the legs are always the best parts. XXV SERVING MEALS. methods of serving meals; russian, english, french, and american styles; tables, table-cloths, napkins, and decorations j finger-bowls ; due ceremony ; what to avoid; garnishes; royal displays. METHODS of serving meals differ widely. The items of conveniences and pecuniary ability always become important elements in the case. Taste, too, enters largely into it. Square end tables are now the proper style. They should be sufficiently roomy to wholly avoid crowding. A spot- lessly white table-cloth should be spread, with padding under it to deaden sound and make a softer appearance. The cloth should not be very stiffly starched, but it should be nicely polished and beautifully glossy. It should hang two feet from the top edge, the corners gathered up, if needs be, to prevent their drooping on the floor. Napkins should be large and heavy. Such texture does not need much starch. The glass and silverware should be perfect in brightness. It may be of inexpensive kind, but it must be scrupulously clean. Colored table-cloths of ornamental patterns are allowable for luncheon or tea. They are not in place where hot meats are served. Nor are colored napkins. Too often these deep tinted articles are used "to save washing," which means " to conceal dirt." Not unfrequently covers and nap- kins of this kind are kept in use when their rank odor cries out for the wash-tub, even though their soiled appearance does not. The doily, or DOiley, as some will have it from the proper name of its first reputed maker, is a small, colored napkin used with fruits and wines. Stains will not show so readily upon these, but they must always be scrupulously fresh and clean. To conceal filth under rich coloring is sacrilege of the worst sort, but to bring it to the table, and ask guests to wipe their lips with it, is a crime. 232 . THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. A great variety of ornaments and adornments are admis- sible on a table, but nothing is so pure and so appropriate as a handsome display of ferns or flowers. The flowers should not be just such as ladies wear so profusely and so beautifully in their belts and on their dresses. Larger blooms are preferable for the table, especially those of the pure white and fine texture belonging to the lily family. It is quite the proper and beautiful thing to place a neat bouquet beside each plate, in tasteful bouquet-holders. For gentlemen the little bunching suitable for the button-hole is desirable. For ladies the belt bouquet will meet the case. The floral centre-piece may be composed of small bouquets, which at the end of the meal may be distributed. Fruit pieces and handsome confectionery pieces may be disposed to advantage in ornamenting the table. Tasty folding of spotless napkins is so important a decoration that the subject will be treated fully farther on. These may be perched in polished goblets, while bouquets, or small rolls of bread nestle amid their snowy folds. Little arts like these embellish a table, and delight the guests. But these embellishments must not be overdone. What will be correct for a large table will be too much for a small one, and what will be just right for a small table will look thin and meagre on a large one. Study the proprieties of every occasion. What suits once does not suit forever. Embellishments may be liberally bestowed upon the din- ing-room itself. In addition to its permanent decorations, flowers are always admissible. At the great ball on March 20th, 1883, at the Vanderbilt Mansion in New York, the decorations of the supper-room were absolutely regal. The walls were completely hidden with palms and ferns, from which a countless number of orchids were suspended. Two large fountains were introduced into the far corners of the room. The doors of the main entrance to the supper-room were in an ooen position and were completely covered with SEJ? VING MEALS. 283 roses and lilies of the valley. In the centre of the room a large palm towered almost to the ceiling, and about it from the dome was suspended an immense Bougen Villa vine, the tendrils of which drooped in bunches from the branches of the palm. Throughout the room there were many stands and vases filled with flowers, the entire effect more resembling fairyland than an earthly home. Few can rival such a display, of course, but all enjoy at least a pen-peep upon such princely splendor. No ornament should be so large as to obscure to any great extent a view of the entire table, or to conceal any of its guests. As many knives, forks, and spoons as will be needed for the various courses may be placed at each plate, though, to avoid the display of so much cutlery, a better style is to supply these accessories as needed. Goblets and wine-glasses, if the latter be used, should be on the table at the start. Large spoons, with salt and pepper casters, should be on the table also. The dessert-plates, finger^ bowls, etc., should stand ready on the sideboard, awaiting the time when they shall be needed. The hot closet should be well stocked with dishes needing to be used warm. Finger-bowls should be half filled with water. In Paris they are served with warm water scented with peppermint. A slice of lemon in cold water answers the purpose entirely, as it removes any grease from fingers or lips. A geranium leaf may flo^t in the water. Its fragrance on the fingers, if it be pressed, will be agreeable. It is customary to place a fruit napkin, or doily, on the dish on which the finger-bowl rests, to avoid the rattle of the bowl, and to protect the dish from injury if it be highly ornamented. Little openworked mats will, however, answer better. Do not summon your company to dinner by a bell. Country hot§ls ai^cl cheap boarding-houses may do that, but not a refined home, espe- cially when guests are present. Soup is dished by the lady of the house at a home dinner. 284 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY. Meat is cut and dished by the gentleman of the house Vegetables, bread, butter, water, etc., are served by the waiter, dessert by the hostess, except in the case of melons, requiring to be cut at the table, which is the work of the host. Home meals should all be sufficiently ceremonious to dispense with haste and confusion. On the other hand, they should not run into stiffness and frigidity. Bright, cheery, pleasant chat should enliven every meal. If the leading dish be nothing but hash, let it be served in good style and amid a profusion of genial, social sunshine. What to Avoid. 1st. — Never use table-linen which is open to the suspicion of being soiled. The napkin-ring business is of question- able propriety. Why not, as at hotels, furnish a clean nap- kin to each person at every meal ? 2d. — Crockery with an abundance of nicks and splints and cracks is not unsightly merely, but, where the glazing is broken, the porous material absorbs grease and dish water, making these spots dense with unsavory and unwholesome matter. 3d. — Partly emptied dishes become unsightly, and some- times positively repulsive. They look like refuse and scraps. At the great State dinners at the Tuileries, no guest saw a partly emptied dish. A full, beautifully garnished dish was presented for his approval, upon expressing which, his per- sonal plate was taken to a side table and supplied from another serving dish. 4th. — An overloaded table or plate satiates appetite rather than stimulates it. A gracious expectancy of what is to come is a great help at the table. 5th. — A stinted supply is very discouraging. To the ap- prehension of a lack of food, the moral sense of mortification ts added in this case. SERVING MEALS. 285 6th. — Beware of ill-assorted dinners or tea-parties. An occasion intended to be a pleasure is often a pest for lack of care in this regard. This caution applies to the selection of guests, and more strongly to the disposition of guests at the table. Secure fitness both in the viands presented and in the parties present. 7th. — Do not inaugurate new features at a dinner party, unless you are sure you have the mastery of them, and that, when done in a masterly way they will certainly prove agreeable. 8th. — Beware of the delusion that hospitality is expressed by the weight of its beef and mutton, and the multitude and rarity of its viands. 9th. — Have no meddlesome, noisy, or slovenly service. Waiters should be attired neatly, and should wear light shoes or slippers. They should take no part in the social proceedings, not so much, indeed, as to smile at the best things. On formal occasions the man-servant should wear a dress-coat, white vest, and white necktie. The maid» servant should be attired in a neat, inconspicuous dress, with spotless white apron. 10th. — Both haste and slowness should be shunned. At the finished French dinners, the courses will not average *nore than five minutes each. French waiters are marvel- ously expert, however, in removing and replacing dishes. Garnishes. Much of the attractiveness of a table depends on the garnishes, which are added to certain dishes to embellish or beautify them. A few hints on this subject will be of value. Parsley is the almost universal garnish to all kinds of cold meat, poultry, fish, butter, cheese, etc. Horse-radish is the garnish for roast beef, and for fish in general ; for the latter, slices of lemon are sometimes laid alternately with heaps of horse-radish. 286 THE HOUSEWIFE'S LIBRARY, Slices of lemon for boiled fowl, turkey, and fish, and fof roast veal and calf's head. Carrot in slices for boiled beef, hot or cold. They may be cut into ornamental forms if desired. Barberries, fresh or preserved, for game. Fried smelts for turbot. Red beet-root sliced for cold meat, boiled beef, and salt fish. Fried sausages or force-meat balls for roast turkey, capon, or fowl. Fennel for mackerel and salmon, whether fresh or pickled. Lobster coral and parsley for boiled fish. Currant jelly for game, also for custard or bread-pud- ding. Seville oranges in slices for wild ducks, widgeons, teal, and such game. Mint, either with or without parsley, for roast lamb, whether hot or cold. Pickled gerkins, capers, or onions, for some boiled meats, stews, etc. A red pepper, or small red apple, for the mouth of a roast Pig- Spots of red and black pepper alternated on the fat side of a boiled ham, which side should lie uppermost on the serving dish. Sliced eggs, showing the white and yellow parts, for chicken salad. 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