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THE
WHITE HOUSE
COOK BOOK
COOKING, TOILET AND HOUSEHOLD RECIPES,
MENUS, DINNER-GIVING, TABLE ETIQUETTE,
CARE OF THE SICK, HEALTH SUGGESTIONS,
FACTS WORTH KNOWING, Etc., Etc.
THE WHOLE COMPRISING
A COMPREHENSIVE CYCLOPEDIA OF INFORMATION FOR THE HOME
BY
MRS. F.L. GILLETTE
AND
HUGO ZIEMANN, Steward of the White house
1887
TO THE WIVES OF OUR PRESIDENTS, THOSE NOBLE WOMEN WHO HAVE GRACED THE WHITE HOUSE, AND WHOSE NAMES AND MEMORIES ARE DEAR TO ALL AMERICANS, THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR.
PUBLISHERS' PREFACE
In presenting to the public the "WHITE HOUSE COOK BOOK," the publishers believe they can justly claim that it more fully represents the progress and present perfection of the culinary art than any previous work. In point of authorship, it stands preeminent. Hugo Ziemann was at one time caterer for that Prince Napoleon who was killed while fighting the Zulus in Africa. He was afterwards steward of the famous Hotel Splendide in Paris. Later he conducted the celebrated Brunswick Cafe in New York, and still later he gave to the Hotel Richelieu, in Chicago, a cuisine which won the applause of even the gourmets of foreign lands. It was here that he laid the famous "spread" to which the chiefs of the warring factions of the Republican Convention sat down in June, 1888, and from which they arose with asperities softened, differences harmonized and victory organized.
Mrs. F.L. Gillette is no less proficient and capable, having made a life-long and thorough study of cookery and housekeeping, especially as adapted to the practical wants of average American homes.
The book has been prepared with great care. Every recipe has been tried and tested, and can be relied upon as one of the best of its kind. It is comprehensive, filling completely, it is believed, the requirements of housekeepers of all classes. It embodies several original and commendable features, among which may be mentioned the menus for the holidays and for one week in each month in the year, thus covering all varieties of seasonable foods; the convenient classification and arrangement of topics; the simplified method of explanation in preparing an article, in the order of manipulation, thereby enabling the most inexperienced to clearly comprehend it.
The subject of carving has been given a prominent place, not only because of its special importance in a work of this kind, but particularly because it contains entirely new and original designs, and is so far a departure from the usual mode of treating the subject.
Interesting information is given concerning the White House; how its hospitality is conducted, the menus served on special occasions, views of the interior, portraits of all the ladies of the White House, etc.
Convenience has been studied in the make-up of the book. The type is large and plain; it is sewed by patent flexible process, so that when opened it will not close of itself, and it is bound in enameled cloth, adapted for use in the kitchen.
THE PUBLISHERS.
CONTENTS.
ARTICLES REQUIRED FOR THE KITCHEN 588 BISCUITS, ROLLS, MUFFINS, ETC. 249 BREAD 238 BUTTER AND CHEESE 219 CAKES 282 CANNED FRUITS 438 CARVING 7 CATSUPS 176 COFFEE, TEA AND BEVERAGES 448 COLORING FOR FRUIT, ETC. 444 CONFECTIONERY 446 CUSTARDS, CREAMS AND DESSERTS 344 DINNER GIVING 600 DUMPLINGS AND PUDDINGS 381 DYEING OR COLORING 591 EGGS AND OMELETS 225 FACTS WORTH KNOWING 566 FILLINGS FOR LAYER CAKES 287 FISH 49 FOR THE SICK 510 FRENCH WORDS IN COOKING 587 FROSTING OR ICING 284 HEALTH SUGGESTIONS 521 HOUSEKEEPERS' TIME-TABLE 542 ICE-CREAM AND ICES 376 MACARONI 216 MANAGEMENT OF STATE DINNER AT WHITE HOUSE 507 MEASURES AND WEIGHTS IN ORDINARY USE 603 MEATS 107 MENUS 478 MISCELLANEOUS 587 MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 543 MODES OF FRYING 48 MUTTON AND LAMB 136 PASTRY, PIES AND TARTS 320 PICKLES 179 PORK 144 POULTRY AND GAME 81 PRESERVES, JELLIES, ETC. 423 SALADS 168 SANDWICHES 236 SAUCES AND DRESSING 156 SAUCES FOR, PUDDING 417 SHELL FISH 67 SMALL POINTS ON TABLE ETIQUETTE 595 SOUPS 27 SOUPS WITHOUT MEATS 41 SPECIAL MENUS 503 TOAST 276 TOILET RECIPES AND ITEMS 577 VARIETIES OF SEASONABLE FOOD 473 VEGETABLES 191
WHITE HOUSE COOK BOOK.
CARVING.
Carving is one important acquisition in the routine of daily living, and all should try to attain a knowledge or ability to do it well, and withal gracefully.
When carving use a chair slightly higher than the ordinary size, as it gives a better purchase on the meat, and appears more graceful than when standing, as is often quite necessary when carving a turkey, or a very large joint. More depends on skill than strength. The platter should be placed opposite, and sufficiently near to give perfect command of the article to be carved, the knife of medium size, sharp with a keen edge. Commence by cutting the slices thin, laying them carefully to one side of the platter, then afterwards placing the desired amount on each guest's plate, to be served in turn by the servant.
In carving fish, care should be taken to help it in perfect flakes; for if these are broken the beauty of the fish is lost. The carver should acquaint himself with the choicest parts and morsels; and to give each guest an equal share of those tidbits should be his maxim. Steel knives and forks should on no account be used in helping fish, as these are liable to impart a very disagreeable flavor. A fish-trowel of silver or plated silver is the proper article to use.
Gravies should be sent to the table very hot, and in helping one to gravy or melted butter, place it on a vacant side of the plate, not pour it over their meat, fish or fowl, that they may use only as much as they like.
When serving fowls, or meats, accompanied with stuffing, the guests should be asked if they would have a portion, as it is not every one to whom the flavor of stuffing is agreeable; in filling their plates, avoid heaping one thing upon another, as it makes a bad appearance.
A word about the care of carving knives: a fine steel knife should not come in contact with intense heat, because it destroys its temper, and therefore impairs its cutting qualities. Table carving knives should not be used in the kitchen, either around the stove, or for cutting bread, meats, vegetables, etc.; a fine whetstone should be kept for sharpening, and the knife cleaned carefully to avoid dulling its edge, all of which is quite essential to successful carving.
* * * * *
BEEF.
HIND-QUARTER.
No. 1. Used for choice roasts, the porterhouse and sirloin steaks.
No. 2. Rump, used for steaks, stews and corned beef.
No. 3. Aitch-bone, used for boiling-pieces, stews and pot roasts.
No. 4. Buttock or round, used for steaks, pot roasts, beef a la mode; also a prime boiling-piece.
No. 5. Mouse-round, used for boiling and stewing.
No. 6. Shin or leg, used for soups, hashes, etc.
No. 7. Thick flank, cut with under fat, is a prime boiling-piece, good for stews and corned beef, pressed beef.
No. 8. Veiny piece, used for corned beef, dried beef.
No. 9. Thin flank, used for corned beef and boiling-pieces.
FORE-QUARTER.
No. 10. Five ribs called the fore-rib. This is considered the primest piece for roasting; also makes the finest steaks.
No. 11. Four ribs, called the middle ribs, used for roasting.
No. 12. Chuck ribs, used for second quality of roasts and steaks.
No. 13. Brisket, used for corned beef, stews, soups and spiced beef.
No. 14. Shoulder-piece, used for stews, soups, pot-roasts, mince-meat and hashes.
Nos. 15, 16. Neck, clod or sticking-piece used for stocks, gravies, soups, mince-pie meat, hashes, bologna sausages, etc.
No. 17. Shin or shank, used mostly for soups and stewing.
No. 18. Cheek.
The following is a classification of the qualities of meat, according to the several joints of beef, when cut up.
First Class.—Includes the sirloin with the kidney suet (1), the rump steak piece (2), the fore-rib (11).
Second Class.—The buttock or round (4), the thick flank (7), the middle ribs (11).
Third Class.—The aitch-bone (3), the mouse-round (5), the thin flank (8, 9), the chuck (12), the shoulder-piece (14), the brisket (13).
Fourth Class.—The clod, neck and sticking-piece (15, 16).
Fifth Class.—Shin or shank (17).
VEAL.
HIND-QUARTER.
No. 1. Loin, the choicest cuts used for roasts and chops.
No. 2. Fillet, used for roasts and cutlets.
No. 3. Loin, chump-end used for roasts and chops.
No. 4. The hind-knuckle or hock, used for stews, pot-pies, meat-pies.
FORE-QUARTER.
No. 5. Neck, best end used for roasts, stews and chops.
No. 6. Breast, best end used for roasting, stews and chops.
No. 7. Blade-bone, used for pot-roasts and baked dishes.
No. 8. Fore-knuckle, used for soups and stews.
No. 9. Breast, brisket-end used for baking, stews and pot-pies.
No. 10. Neck, scrag-end used for stews, broth, meat-pies, etc.
In cutting up veal, generally, the hind-quarter is divided into loin and leg, and the fore-quarter into breast, neck and shoulder.
The Several Parts of a Moderately-sized, Well-fed Calf, about eight weeks old, are nearly of the following weights:—Loin and chump, 18 lbs.; fillet, 12-1/2 lbs.; hind-knuckle, 5-1/2 lbs.; shoulder, 11 lbs.; neck, 11 lbs.; breast, 9 lbs., and fore-knuckle, 5 lbs.; making a total of 144 lbs. weight.
MUTTON.
No. 1. Leg, used for roasts and for boiling.
No. 2. Shoulder, used for baked dishes and roasts.
No. 3. Loin, best end used for roasts, chops.
No. 4. Loin, chump-end used for roasts and chops.
No. 5. Rack, or rib chops, used for French chops, rib chops, either for frying or broiling; also used for choice stews.
No. 6. Breast, used for roast, baked dishes, stews, chops.
No. 7. Neck or scrag-end, used for cutlets, stews and meat-pies.
NOTE.—A saddle of muton or double loin is two loins cut off before the carcass is split open down the back. French chops are a small rib chop, the end of the bone trimmed off and the meat and fat cut away from the thin end, leaving the round piece of meat attached to the larger end, which leaves the small rib-bone bare. Very tender and sweet.
Mutton is prime when cut from a carcass which has been fed out of doors, and allowed to run upon the hillside; they are best when about three years old. The fat will then be abundant, white and hard, the flesh juicy and firm, and of a clear red color.
For mutton roasts, choose the shoulder, the saddle, or the loin or haunch. The leg should be boiled. Almost any part will do for broth.
Lamb born in the middle of the winter, reared under shelter, and fed in a great measure upon milk, then killed in the spring, is considered a great delicacy, though lamb is good at a year old. Like all young animals, lamb ought to be thoroughly cooked, or it is most unwholesome.
PORK.
No. 1. Leg, used for smoked hams, roasts and corned pork.
No. 2. Hind-loin, used for roasts, chops and baked dishes.
No. 3. Fore-loin or ribs, used for roasts, baked dishes or chops.
No. 4. Spare-rib, used for roasts, chops, stews.
No. 5. Shoulder, used for smoked shoulder, roasts and corned pork.
No. 6. Brisket and flank, used for pickling in salt and smoked bacon.
The cheek is used for pickling in salt, also the shank or shin. The feet are usually used for souse and jelly.
For family use the leg is the most economical, that is when fresh, and the loin the richest. The best pork is from carcasses weighing from fifty to about one hundred and twenty-five pounds. Pork is a white and close meat, and it is almost impossible to over-roast or cook it too much; when underdone it is exceedingly unwholesome.
VENISON.
No. 1. Shoulder, used for roasting; it may be boned and stuffed, then afterwards baked or roasted.
No. 2. Fore-loin, used for roasts and steaks.
No. 3. Haunch or loin, used for roasts, steaks, stews. The ribs cut close may be used for soups. Good for pickling and making into smoked venison.
No. 4. Breast, used for baking dishes, stewing.
No. 5. Scrag or neck, used for soups.
The choice of venison should be judged by the fat, which, when the venison is young, should be thick, clear and close, and the meat a very dark red. The flesh of a female deer about four years old, is the sweetest and best of venison.
Buck venison, which is in season from June to the end of September, is finer than doe venison, which is in season from October to December. Neither should be dressed at any other time of year, and no meat requires so much care as venison in killing, preserving and dressing.
SIRLOIN OF BEEF.
This choice roasting-piece should be cut with one good firm stroke from end to end of the joint, at the upper part, in thin, long, even slices in the direction of the line from 1 to 2, cutting across the grain, serving each guest with some of the fat with the lean; this may be done by cutting a small, thin slice from underneath the bone from 5 to 6, through the tenderloin.
Another way of carving this piece, and which will be of great assistance in doing it well, is to insert the knife just above the bone at the bottom, and run sharply along, dividing the meat from the bone at the bottom and end, thus leaving it perfectly flat; then carve in long, thin slices the usual way. When the bone has been removed and the sirloin rolled before it is cooked, it is laid upon the platter on one end, and an even, thin slice is carved across the grain of the upper surface.
Roast ribs should be carved in thin, even slices from the thick end towards the thin in the same manner as the sirloin; this can be more easily and cleanly done if the carving knife is first run along between the meat and the end and rib-bones, thus leaving it free from bone to be cut into slices.
Tongue.—To carve this it should be cut crosswise, the middle being the best; cut in very thin slices, thereby improving its delicacy, making it more tempting; as is the case of all well-carved meats. The root of the tongue is usually left on the platter.
BREAST OF VEAL.
This piece is quite similar to a fore-quarter of lamb after the shoulder has been taken off. A breast of veal consists of two parts, the rib-bones and the gristly brisket. These parts may be separated by sharply passing the carving knife in the direction of the line from 1 to 2; and when they are entirely divided, the rib-bones should be carved in the direction of the line from 5 to 6, and the brisket can be helped by cutting slices from 3 to 4.
The carver should ask the guests whether they have a preference for the brisket or ribs; and if there be a sweetbread served with the dish, as is frequently with this roast of veal, each person should receive a piece.
Though veal and lamb contain less nutrition than beef and mutton, in proportion to their weight, they are often preferred to these latter meats on account of their delicacy of texture and flavor. A whole breast of veal weighs from nine to twelve pounds.
A FILLET OF VEAL.
A fillet of veal is one of the prime roasts of veal; it is taken from the leg above the knuckle; a piece weighing from ten to twelve pounds is a good size and requires about four hours for roasting. Before roasting, it is dressed with a force meat or stuffing placed in the cavity from where the bone was taken out and the flap tightly secured together with skewers; many bind it together with tape.
To carve it, cut in even thin slices off from the whole of the upper part or top, in the same manner as from a rolled roast of beef, as in the direction of the figs. 1 and 2; this gives the person served some of the dressing with each slice of meat.
Veal is very unwholesome unless it is cooked thoroughly, and when roasted should be of a rich brown color. Bacon, fried pork, sausage-balls, with greens, are among the accompaniments of roasted veal, also a cut lemon.
NECK OF VEAL.
The best end of a neck of veal makes a very good roasting-piece; it, however, is composed of bone and ribs that make it quite difficult to carve, unless it is done properly. To attempt to carve each chop and serve it, you would not only place too large a piece upon the plate of the person you intend to serve, but you would waste much time, and should the vertebrae have not been removed by the butcher, you would be compelled to exercise such a degree of strength that would make one's appearance very ungraceful, and possibly, too, throwing gravy over your neighbor sitting next to you. The correct way to carve this roast is to cut diagonally from fig. 1 to 2, and help in slices of moderate thickness; then it may be cut from 3 to 4, in order to separate the small bones; divide and serve them, having first inquired if they are desired.
This joint is usually sent to the table accompanied by bacon, ham, tongue, or pickled pork, on a separate dish and with a cut lemon on a plate. There are also a number of sauces that are suitable with this roast.
LEG OF MUTTON.
The best mutton, and that from which most nourishment is obtained is that of sheep from three to six years old, and which have been fed on dry, sweet pastures; then mutton is in its prime, the flesh being firm, juicy, dark colored and full of the richest gravy. When mutton is two years old, the meat is flabby, pale and savorless.
In carving a roasted leg, the best slices are found by cutting quite down to the bone, in the direction from 1 to 2, and slices may be taken from either side.
Some very good cuts are taken from the broad end from 5 to 6, and the fat on this ridge is very much liked by many. The cramp-bone is a delicacy, and is obtained by cutting down to the bone at 4, and running the knife under it in a semicircular direction to 3. The nearer the knuckle the drier the meat, but the under side contains the most finely grained meat, from which slices may be cut lengthwise. When sent to the table a frill of paper around the knuckle will improve its appearance.
FORE-QUARTER OF LAMB.
The first cut to be made in carving a fore-quarter of lamb is to separate the shoulder from the breast and ribs; this is done by passing a sharp carving knife lightly around the dotted line as shown by the figs. 3, 4 and 5, so as to cut through the skin, and then, by raising with a little force the shoulder, into which the fork should be firmly fixed, it will easily separate with just a little more cutting with the knife; care should be taken not to cut away too much of the meat from the breast when dividing the shoulder from it, as that would mar its appearance. The shoulder may be placed upon a separate dish for convenience. The next process is to divide the ribs from the brisket by cutting through the meat in the line from 1 to 2; then the ribs may be carved in the direction of the line 6 to 7, and the brisket from 8 to 9. The carver should always ascertain whether the guest prefers ribs, brisket, or a piece of the shoulder.
HAM.
The carver in cutting a ham must be guided according as he desires to practice economy, or have at once fine slices out of the prime part. Under the first supposition, he will commence at the knuckle end, and cut off thin slices toward the thick and upper part of the ham.
To reach the choicer portion of the ham, the knife, which must be very sharp and thin, should be carried quite down to the bone through the thick fat in the direction of the line from 1 to 2. The slices should be even and thin, cutting both lean and fat together, always cutting down to the bone. Some cut a circular hole in the middle of a ham gradually enlarging it outwardly. Then again many carve a ham by first cutting from 1 to 2, then across the other way from 3 to 4. Remove the skin after the ham is cooked and send to the table with dots of dry pepper or dry mustard on the top, a tuft of fringed paper twisted about the knuckle, and plenty of fresh parsley around the dish. This will always insure an inviting appearance.
Roast Pig.—The modern way of serving a pig is not to send it to the table whole, but have it carved partially by the cook; first, by dividing the shoulder from the body; then the leg in the same manner; also separating the ribs into convenient portions. The head may be divided and placed on the same platter. To be served as hot as possible.
A Spare Rib of Pork is carved by cutting slices from the fleshy part, after which the bones should be disjointed and separated.
A leg of pork may be carved in the same manner as a ham.
HAUNCH OF VENISON
A haunch of venison is the prime joint, and is carved very similar to almost any roasted or boiled leg; it should be first cut crosswise down to the bone following the line from 1 to 2; then turn the platter with the knuckle farthest from you, put in the point of the knife, and cut down as far as you can, in the directions shown by the dotted lines from 3 to 4; then there can be taken out as many slices as is required on the right and left of this. Slices of venison should be cut thin, and gravy given with them, but as there is a special sauce made with red wine and currant jelly to accompany this meat, do not serve gravy before asking the guest if he pleases to have any.
The fat of this meat is like mutton, apt to cool soon, and become hard and disagreeable to the palate; it should, therefore, be served always on warm plates, and the platter kept over a hot-water dish, or spirit lamp. Many cooks dish it up with a white paper frill pinned around the knuckle bone.
A haunch of mutton is carved the same as a haunch of venison.
TURKEY.
A turkey having been relieved from strings and skewers used in trussing should be placed on the table with the head or neck at the carver's right hand. An expert carver places the fork in the turkey, and does not remove it until the whole is divided. First insert the fork firmly in the lower part of the breast, just forward of fig. 2, then sever the legs and wings on both sides, if the whole is to be carved, cutting neatly through the joint next to the body, letting these parts lie on the platter. Next, cut downward from the breast from 2 to 3, as many even slices of the white meat as may be desired, placing the pieces neatly on one side of the platter. Now unjoint the legs and wings at the middle joint, which can be done very skillfully by a little practice. Make an opening into the cavity of the turkey for dipping out the inside dressing, by cutting a piece from the rear part 1, 1, called the apron. Consult the tastes of the guests as to which part is preferred; if no choice is expressed, serve a portion of both light and dark meat. One of the most delicate parts of the turkey are two little muscles, lying in small dish-like cavities on each side of the back, a little behind the leg attachments; the next most delicate meat fills the cavities in the neck bone, and next to this, that on the second joints. The lower part of the leg (or drumstick, as it is called) being hard, tough and stringy, is rarely ever helped to any one, but allowed to remain on the dish.
ROAST GOOSE.
To carve a goose, first begin by separating the leg from the body, by putting the fork into the small end of the limb, pressing it closely to the body, then passing the knife under at 2, and turning the leg back as you cut through the joint. To take off the wing, insert the fork in the small end of the pinion, and press it close to the body; put the knife in at fig. 1, and divide the joint. When the legs and wings are off, the breast may be carved in long, even slices, as represented in the lines from 1 to 2. The back and lower side bones, as well as the two lower side bones by the wing, may be cut off; but the best pieces of the goose are the breast and thighs, after being separated from the drumsticks. Serve a little of the dressing from the inside, by making a circular slice in the apron at fig. 3. A goose should never be over a year old; a tough goose is very difficult to carve, and certainly most difficult to eat.
FOWLS.
First insert the knife between the leg and the body, and cut to the bone; then turn the leg back with the fork, and if the fowl is tender the joint will give away easily. The wing is broken off the same way, only dividing the joint with the knife, in the direction from 1 to 2. The four quarters having been removed in this way, take off the merry-thought and the neck-bones; these last are to be removed by putting the knife in at figs. 3 and 4, pressing it hard, when they will break off from the part that sticks to the breast. To separate the breast from the body of the fowl, cut through the tender ribs close to the breast, quite down to the tail. Now turn the fowl over, back upwards; put the knife into the bone midway between the neck and the rump, and on raising the lower end it will separate readily. Turn now the rump from you, and take off very neatly the two side bones, and the fowl is carved. In separating the thigh from the drumstick, the knife must be inserted exactly at the joint, for if not accurately hit, some difficulty will be experienced to get them apart; this is easily acquired by practice. There is no difference in carving roast and boiled fowls if full grown; but in very young fowls the breast is usually served whole; the wings and breast are considered the best parts, but in young ones the legs are the most juicy. In the case of a capon or large fowl, slices may be cut off at the breast, the same as carving a pheasant.
ROAST DUCK.
A young duckling may be carved in the same manner as a fowl, the legs and wings being taken off first on either side. When the duck is full size, carve it like a goose; first cutting it in slices from the breast, beginning close to the wing and proceeding upward towards the breast bone, as is represented by the lines 1 to 2. An opening may be made by cutting out a circular slice, as shown by the dotted lines at number 3.
Some are fond of the feet, and when dressing the duck, these should be neatly skinned and never removed. Wild duck is highly esteemed by epicures; it is trussed like a tame duck, and carved in the same manner, the breast being the choicest part.
PARTRIDGES.
Partridges are generally cleaned and trussed the same way as a pheasant, but the custom of cooking them with the heads on is going into disuse somewhat. The usual way of carving them is similar to a pigeon, dividing it into two equal parts. Another method is to cut it into three pieces, by severing a wing and leg on either side from the body, by following the lines 1 to 2, thus making two servings of those parts, leaving the breast for a third plate. The third method is to thrust back the body from the legs, and cut through the middle of the breast, thus making four portions that may be served. Grouse and prairie-chicken are carved from the breast when they are large, and quartered or halved when of medium size.
PHEASANT.
Place your fork firmly in the centre of the breast of this large game bird and cut deep slices to the bone at figs. 1 and 2; then take off the leg in the line from 3 and 4, and the wing 3 and 5, severing both sides the same. In taking off the wings, be careful not to cut too near the neck; if you do you will hit upon the neck-bone, from which the wing must be separated. Pass the knife through the line 6, and under the merry-thought towards the neck, which will detach it. Cut the other parts as in a fowl. The breast, wings and merry-thought of a pheasant are the most highly prized, although the legs are considered very finely flavored. Pheasants are frequently roasted with the head left on; in that case, when dressing them, bring the head round under the wing, and fix it on the point of a skewer.
PIGEONS.
A very good way of carving these birds is to insert the knife at fig. 1, and cut both ways to 2 and 3, when each portion may be divided into two pieces, then served. Pigeons, if not too large, may be cut in halves, either across or down the middle, cutting them into two equal parts; if young and small they may be served entirely whole.
Tame pigeons should be cooked as soon as possible after they are killed, as they very quickly lose their flavor. Wild pigeons, on the contrary, should hang a day or two in a cool place before they are dressed. Oranges cut into halves are used as a garnish for dishes of small birds, such as pigeons, quail, woodcock, squabs, snipe, etc. These small birds are either served whole or split down the back, making two servings.
MACKEREL.
The mackerel is one of the most beautiful of fish, being known by its silvery whiteness. It sometimes attains to the length of twenty inches, but usually, when fully grown, is about fourteen or sixteen inches long, and about two pounds in weight. To carve a baked mackerel, first remove the head and tail by cutting downward at 1 and 2; then split them down the back, so as to serve each person a part of each side piece. The roe should be divided in small pieces and served with each piece of fish. Other whole fish may be carved in the same manner. The fish is laid upon a little sauce or folded napkin, on a hot dish, and garnished with parsley.
BOILED SALMON.
This fish is seldom sent to the table whole, being too large for any ordinary sized family; the middle cut is considered the choicest to boil. To carve it, first run the knife down and along the upper side of the fish from 1 to 2, then again on the lower side from 3 to 4. Serve the thick part, cutting it lengthwise in slices in the direction of the line from 1 to 2, and the thin part breadthwise, or in the direction from 5 to 6. A slice of the thick with one of the thin, where lies the fat, should be served to each guest. Care should be taken when carving not to break the flakes of the fish, as that impairs its appearance. The flesh of the salmon is rich and delicious in flavor. Salmon is in season from the first of February to the end of August.
SOUPS.
Consomme, or Stock, forms the basis of all meat soups, and also of all principal sauces. It is, therefore, essential to the success of these culinary operations to know the most complete and economical method of extracting from a certain quantity of meat the best possible stock or broth. Fresh, uncooked beef makes the best stock, with the addition of cracked bones, as the glutinous matter contained in them renders it important that they should be boiled with the meat, which adds to the strength and thickness of the soup. They are composed of an earthy substance—to which they owe their solidity—of gelatine, and a fatty fluid, something like marrow. Two ounces of them contain as much gelatine as one pound of meat; but, in them, this is so encased in the earthy substance, that boiling water can dissolve only the surface of the whole bones, but by breaking them they can be dissolved more. When there is an abundance of it, it causes the stock, when cold, to become a jelly. The flesh of old animals contains more flavor than the flesh of young ones. Brown meats contain more flavor than white.
Mutton is too strong in flavor for good stock, while veal, although quite glutinous, furnishes very little nutriment.
Some cooks use meat that has once been cooked; this renders little nourishment and destroys the flavor. It might answer for ready soup, but for stock to keep it is not as good, unless it should be roasted meats. Those contain higher fragrant properties; so by putting the remains of roast meats in the stock-pot you obtain a better flavor.
The shin bone is generally used, but the neck or "sticking-piece," as the butchers call it, contains more of the substance that you want to extract, makes a stronger and more nutritious soup, than any other part of the animal. Meats for soup should always be put on to cook in cold water, in a covered pot, and allowed to simmer slowly for several hours, in order that the essence of the meat may be drawn out thoroughly, and should be carefully skimmed to prevent it from becoming turbid, never allowed to boil fast at any time, and if more water is needed, use boiling water from the tea-kettle; cold or lukewarm water spoils the flavor. Never salt it before the meat is tender (as that hardens and toughens the meat), especially if the meat is to be eaten. Take off every particle of scum as it rises, and before the vegetables are put in.
Allow a little less than a quart of water to a pound of meat and bone, and a teaspoonful of salt. When done, strain through a colander. If for clear soups, strain again through a hair sieve, or fold a clean towel in a colander set over an earthen bowl, or any dish large enough to hold the stock. As stated before, stock is not as good when made entirely from cooked meats, but in a family where it requires a large joint roasted every day, the bones, and bits and underdone pieces of beef, or the bony structure of turkey or chicken that has been left from carving, bones of roasted poultry, these all assist in imparting a rich dark color to soup, and would be sufficient, if stewed as above, to furnish a family, without buying fresh meat for the purpose; still, with the addition of a little fresh meat it would be more nutritious. In cold weather you can gather them up for several days and put them to cook in cold water, and when done, strain, and put aside until needed.
Soup will be as good the second day as the first if heated to the boiling point. It should never be left in the pot, but should be turned into a dish or shallow pan, and set aside to get cold. Never cover it up, as that will cause it to turn sour very quickly.
Before heating a second time, remove all the fat from the top. If this be melted in, the flavor of the soup will certainly be spoiled.
Thickened soups require nearly double the seasoning used for thin soups or broth.
Coloring is used in some brown soups, the chief of which is brown burnt sugar, which is known as caramel by French cooks.
Pounded spinach leaves give a fine green color to soup. Parsley, or the green leaves of celery put in soup, will serve instead of spinach.
Pound a large handful of spinach in a mortar, then tie it in a cloth, and wring out all the juice; put this in the soup you wish to color green five minutes before taking it up.
Mock turtle, and sometimes veal and lamb soups, should be this color.
Okras gives a green color to soup.
To color soup red, skin six red tomatoes, squeeze out the seeds, and put them into the soup with the other vegetables—or take the juice only, as directed for spinach.
For white soups, which are of veal, lamb or chicken, none but white vegetables are used; rice, pearl barley, vermicelli, or macaroni, for thickening.
Grated carrot gives a fine amber color to soup; it must be put in as soon as the soup is free from scum.
Hotel and private-house stock is quite different.
Hotels use meat in such large quantities that there is always more or less trimmings and bones of meat to add to fresh meats; that makes very strong stock, which they use in most all soups and gravies and other made dishes.
The meat from which soup has been made is good to serve cold thus: Take out all the bones, season with pepper and salt, and catsup, if liked, then chop it small, tie it in a cloth, and lay it between two plates, with a weight on the upper one; slice it thin for luncheon or supper; or make sandwiches of it; or make a hash for breakfast; or make it into balls, with the addition of a little wheat flour and an egg, and serve them fried in fat, or boil in the soup.
An agreeable flavor is sometimes imparted to soup by sticking some cloves into the meat used for making stock; a few slices of onions fried very brown in butter are nice; also flour browned by simply putting it into a saucepan over the fire and stirring it constantly until it is a dark brown.
Clear soups must be perfectly transparent, and thickened soups about the consistency of cream. When soups and gravies are kept from day to day in hot weather, they should be warmed up every day, and put into fresh-scalded pans or tureens, and placed in a cool cellar. In temperate weather, every other day may be sufficient.
HERBS AND VEGETABLES USED IN SOUPS.
Of vegetables the principal ones are carrots, tomatoes, asparagus, green peas, okra, macaroni, green corn, beans, rice, vermicelli, Scotch barley, pearl barley, wheat flour, mushroom, or mushroom catsup, parsnips, beetroot, turnips, leeks, garlic, shallots and onions; sliced onions fried with butter and flour until they are browned, then rubbed through a sieve, are excellent to heighten the color and flavor of brown sauces and soups. The herbs usually used in soups are parsley, common thyme, summer savory, knotted marjoram, and other seasonings, such as bay-leaves, tarragon, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, mace, black and white pepper, red pepper, lemon peel and juice, orange peel and juice. The latter imparts a finer flavor and the acid much milder. These materials, with wine, and the various catsups, combined in various proportions, are, with other ingredients, made into almost an endless variety of excellent soups and gravies. Soups that are intended for the principal part of a meal certainly ought not to be flavored like sauces, which are only intended to give relish to some particular dish.
STOCK.
Six pounds of shin of beef, or six pounds of knuckle of veal; any bones, trimmings of poultry, or fresh meat; one-quarter pound of lean bacon or ham, two ounces of butter, two large onions, each stuck with cloves; one turnip, three carrots, one head of celery, two ounces of salt, one-half teaspoonful of whole pepper, one large blade of mace, one bunch of savory herbs except sage, four quarts and one-half-pint of cold water.
Cut up the meat and bacon, or ham, into pieces of about three inches square; break the bones into small pieces, rub the butter on the bottom of the stewpan; put in one-half a pint of water, the broken bones, then meat and all other ingredients. Cover the stewpan, and place it on a sharp fire, occasionally stirring its contents. When the bottom of the pan becomes covered with a pale, jelly-like substance, add the four quarts of cold water, and simmer very gently for five or six hours. As we have said before, do not let it boil quickly. When nearly cooked, throw in a tablespoonful of salt to assist the scum to rise. Remove every particle of scum whilst it is doing, and strain it through a fine hair sieve; when cool remove all grease. This stock will keep for many days in cold weather.
Stock is the basis of many of the soups afterwards mentioned, and this will be found quite strong enough for ordinary purposes. Keep it in small jars, in a cool place. It makes a good gravy for hash meats; one tablespoonful of it is sufficient to impart a fine flavor to a dish of macaroni and various other dishes. Good soups of various kinds are made from it at short notice; slice off a portion of the jelly, add water, and whatever vegetables and thickening preferred. It is best to partly cook the vegetables before adding to the stock, as much boiling injures the flavoring of the soup. Season and boil a few moments and serve hot.
WHITE STOCK.
White stock is used in the preparation of white soups, and is made by boiling six pounds of a knuckle of veal, cut up in small pieces, poultry trimmings, and four slices of lean ham. Proceed according to directions given in STOCK, on opposite page.
TO CLARIFY STOCK.
Place the stock in a clean saucepan, set it over a brisk fire. When boiling, add the white of one egg to each quart of stock, proceeding as follows: beat the whites of the eggs up well in a little water; then add a little hot stock; beat to a froth and pour gradually into the pot; then beat the whole hard and long; allow it to boil up once, and immediately remove and strain through a thin flannel cloth.
BEEF SOUP.
Select a small shin of beef of moderate size, crack the bone in small pieces, wash and place it in a kettle to boil, with five or six quarts of cold water. Let it boil about two hours, or until it begins to get tender, then season it with a tablespoonful of salt, and a teaspoonful of pepper; boil it one hour longer, then add to it one carrot, two turnips, two tablespoonfuls of rice or pearl barley, one head of celery, and a teaspoonful of summer savory powdered fine; the vegetables to be minced up in small pieces like dice. After these ingredients have boiled a quarter of an hour, put in two potatoes cut up in small pieces, let it boil half an hour longer; take the meat from the soup, and if intended to be served with it, take out the bones and lay it closely and neatly on a dish, and garnish with sprigs of parsley.
Serve made mustard and catsup with it. It is very nice pressed and eaten cold with mustard and vinegar, or catsup. Four hours are required for making this soup. Should any remain over the first day, it may be heated, with the addition of a little boiling water, and served again. Some fancy a glass of brown sherry added just before being served. Serve very hot.
VEAL SOUP. (Excellent.)
Put a knuckle of veal into three quarts of cold water, with a small quantity of salt, and one small tablespoonful of uncooked rice. Boil slowly, hardly above simmering, four hours, when the liquor should be reduced to half the usual quantity; remove from the fire. Into the tureen put the yolk of one egg, and stir well into it a teacupful of cream, or, in hot weather, new milk; add a piece of butter the size of a hickory nut; on this strain the soup, boiling hot, stirring all the time. Just at the last, beat it well for a minute.
SCOTCH MUTTON BROTH.
Six pounds neck of mutton, three quarts water, five carrots, five turnips, two onions, four tablespoonfuls barley, a little salt. Soak mutton in water for an hour, cut off scrag, and put it in stewpan with three quarts of water. As soon as it boils, skim well, and then simmer for one and one-half hours. Cut best end of mutton into cutlets, dividing it with two bones in each; take off nearly all fat before you put it into broth; skim the moment the meat boils, and every ten minutes afterwards; add carrots, turnips and onions, all cut into two or three pieces, then put them into soup soon enough to be thoroughly done; stir in barley; add salt to taste; let all stew together for three and one-half hours; about one-half hour before sending it to table, put in little chopped parsley and serve.
Cut the meat off the scrag into small pieces, and send it to table in the tureen with the soup. The other half of the mutton should be served on a separate dish, with whole turnips boiled and laid round it. Many persons are fond of mutton that has been boiled in soup.
You may thicken the soup with rice or barley that has first been soaked in cold water, or with green peas, or with young corn, cut down from the cob, or with tomatoes, scalded, peeled and cut into pieces.
GAME SOUP.
Two grouse or partridges, or, if you have neither, use a pair of rabbits; half a pound of lean ham; two medium-sized onions; one pound of lean beef; fried bread; butter for frying; pepper, salt and two stalks of white celery cut into inch lengths; three quarts of water.
Joint your game neatly; cut the ham and onions into small pieces, fry all in butter to a light brown. Put into a soup-pot with the beef, cut into strips, add a little pepper. Pour on the water; heat slowly, and stew gently two hours. Take out the pieces of bird, and cover in a bowl; cook the soup an hour longer; strain; cool; drop in the celery and simmer ten minutes. Pour upon fried bread in the tureen.
Venison soup made the same, with the addition of a tablespoonful of brown flour wet into a paste with cold water, adding a tablespoonful of catsup, Worcestershire, or other pungent sauce, and a glass of Madeira or brown sherry.
CONSOMME SOUP.
Take good strong stock (see pages 27 and 30), remove all fat from the surface, and for each quart of the stock allow the white and shell of one egg and a tablespoonful of water, well whipped together. Pour this mixture into a saucepan containing the stock; place it over the fire and heat the contents gradually, stirring often to prevent the egg from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. Allow it to boil gently until the stock looks perfectly clear under the egg, which will rise and float upon the surface in the form of a thick white scum. Now remove it and pour it into a folded towel laid in a colander set over an earthen bowl, allowing it to run through without moving or squeezing it. Season with more salt if needed, and quickly serve very hot. This should be a clear amber color.
JULIENNE SOUP.
Cut carrots and turnips into quarter-inch pieces the shape of dice; also celery into thin slices. Cover them with boiling water; add a teaspoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful pepper, and cook until soft. In another saucepan have two quarts of boiling stock (see pages 27 and 30), to which add the cooked vegetables, the water and more seasoning if necessary. Serve hot.
In the spring and summer season use asparagus, peas and string beans—all cut into small uniform thickness.
CREAM OF SPINACH.
Pick, wash and boil enough spinach to measure a pint, when cooked, chopped and pounded into a soft paste. Put it into a stewpan with four ounces of fresh butter, a little grated nutmeg, a teaspoonful of salt. Cook and stir it about ten minutes. Add to this two quarts of strong stock (see pages 27 and 30); let boil up, then rub it through a strainer. Set it over the fire again, and, when on the point of boiling, mix with it a tablespoonful of butter, and a teaspoonful of granulated sugar.
CHICKEN CREAM SOUP.
An old chicken for soup is much the best. Cut it up into quarters, put it into a soup kettle with half a pound of corned ham, and an onion; add four quarts of cold water. Bring slowly to a gentle boil, and keep this up until the liquid has diminished one-third, and the meat drops from the bones; then add half a cup of rice. Season with salt, pepper and a bunch of chopped parsley.
Cook slowly until the rice is tender, then the meat should be taken out. Now stir in two cups of rich milk thickened with a little flour. The chicken could be fried in a spoonful of butter and a gravy made, reserving some of the white part of the meat, chopping it and adding it to the soup.
PLAIN ECONOMICAL SOUP.
Take a cold roast-beef bone, pieces of beefsteak, the rack of a cold turkey or chicken. Put them into a pot with three or four quarts of water, two carrots, three turnips, one onion, a few cloves, pepper and salt. Boil the whole gently four hours; then strain it through a colander, mashing the vegetables so that they will all pass through. Skim off the fat, and return the soup to the pot. Mix one tablespoonful of flour with two of water, stir it into the soup and boil the whole ten minutes. Serve this soup with sippits of toast.
Sippits are bits of dry toast cut into a triangular form.
A seasonable dish about the holidays.
OX-TAIL SOUP.
Two ox-tails, two slices of ham, one ounce of butter, two carrots, two turnips, three onions, one leek, one head of celery, one bunch of savory herbs, pepper, a tablespoonful of salt, two tablespoonfuls of catsup, one-half glass of port wine, three quarts of water.
Cut up the tails, separating them at the joints; wash them, and put them in a stewpan with the butter. Cut the vegetables in slices and add them with the herbs. Put in one-half pint of water, and stir it over a quick fire till the juices are drawn. Fill up the stewpan with water, and, when boiling, add the salt. Skim well, and simmer very gently for four hours, or until the tails are tender. Take them out, skim and strain the soup, thicken with flour, and flavor with the catsup and port wine. Put back the tails, simmer for five minutes and serve.
Another way to make an appetizing ox-tail soup. You should begin to make it the day before you wish to eat the soup. Take two tails, wash clean, and put in a kettle with nearly a gallon of cold water; add a small handful of salt; when the meat is well cooked, take out the bones. Let this stand in a cool room, covered, and next day, about an hour and a half before dinner, skim off the crust or cake of fat which has risen to the top. Add a little onion, carrot, or any vegetables you choose, chopping them fine first; summer savory may also be added.
CORN SOUP.
Cut the corn from the cob, and boil the cobs in water for at least an hour, then add the grains, and boil until they are thoroughly done; put one dozen ears of corn to a gallon of water, which will be reduced to three quarts by the time the soup is done; then pour on a pint of new milk, two well-beaten eggs, salt and pepper to your taste; continue the boiling a while longer, and stir in, to season and thicken it a little, a tablespoonful of good butter rubbed up with two tablespoonfuls of flour. Corn soup may also be made nicely with water in which a pair of grown fowls have been boiled or parboiled, instead of having plain water for the foundation.
SPLIT PEA SOUP. No. 1.
Wash well a pint of split peas and cover them well with cold water, adding a third of a teaspoonful of soda; let them remain in it over night to swell. In the morning put them in a kettle with a close fitting cover. Pour over them three quarts of cold water, adding half a pound of lean ham or bacon cut into slices or pieces; also a teaspoonful of salt and a little pepper, and some celery chopped fine. When the soup begins to boil, skim the froth from the surface. Cook slowly from three to four hours, stirring occasionally till the peas are all dissolved, adding a little more boiling water to keep up the quantity as it boils away. Strain through a colander, and leave out the meat. It should be quite quick. Serve with small squares of toasted bread, cut up and added. If not rich enough, add a small piece of butter.
CREAM OF ASPARAGUS.
For making two quarts of soup, use two bundles of fresh asparagus. Cut the tops from one of the bunches and cook them twenty minutes in salted water, enough to cover them. Cook the remainder of the asparagus about twenty minutes in a quart of stock or water. Cut an onion into thin slices and fry in three tablespoonfuls of butter ten minutes, being careful not to scorch it; then add the asparagus that has been boiled in the stock; cook this five minutes, stirring constantly; then add three tablespoonfuls of dissolved flour, cook five minutes longer. Turn this mixture into the boiling stock and boil twenty minutes. Rub through a sieve; add the milk and cream and the asparagus heads. If water is used in place of stock, use all cream.
GREEN PEA SOUP.
Wash a small quarter of lamb in cold water, and put it into a soup-pot with six quarts of cold water; add to it two tablespoonfuls of salt, and set it over a moderate fire—let it boil gently for two hours, then skim it clear; add a quart of shelled peas, and a teaspoonful of pepper; cover it, and let it boil for half an hour; then having scraped the skins from a quart of small young potatoes, add them to the soup; cover the pot and let it boil for half an hour longer; work quarter of a pound of butter and a dessertspoonful of flour together, and add them to the soup ten or twelve minutes before taking it off the fire.
Serve the meat on a dish with parsley sauce over it, and the soup in a tureen.
DRIED BEAN SOUP.
Put two quarts of dried white beans to soak the night before you make the soup, which should be put on as early in the day as possible.
Take two pounds of the lean of fresh beef—the coarse pieces will do. Cut them up and put them into your soup-pot with the bones belonging to them (which should be broken in pieces), and a pound of lean bacon, cut very small. If you have the remains of a piece of beef that has been roasted the day before, and so much underdone that the juices remain in it, you may put it into the pot and its bones along with it. Season the meat with pepper only, and pour on it six quarts of water. As soon as it boils, take off the scum, and put in the beans (having first drained them) and a head of celery cut small, or a tablespoonful of pounded celery seed. Boil it slowly till the meat is done to shreds, and the beans all dissolved. Then strain it through a colander into the tureen, and put into it small squares of toasted bread with the crust cut off.
TURTLE SOUP FROM BEANS.
Soak over night one quart of black beans; next day boil them in the proper quantity of water, say a gallon, then dip the beans out of the pot and strain them through a colander. Then return the flour of the beans, thus pressed, into the pot in which they were boiled. Tie up in a thin cloth some thyme, a teaspoonful of summer savory and parsley, and let it boil in the mixture. Add a tablespoonful of cold butter, salt and pepper. Have ready four hard-boiled yolks of eggs quartered, and a few force meat balls; add this to the soup with a sliced lemon, and half a glass of wine just before serving the soup.
This approaches so near in flavor to the real turtle soup that few are able to distinguish the difference.
PHILADELPHIA PEPPER POT.
Put two pounds of tripe and four calves' feet into the soup-pot and cover them with cold water; add a red pepper, and boil closely until the calves' feet are boiled very tender; take out the meat, skim the liquid, stir it, cut the tripe into small pieces, and put it back into the liquid; if there is not enough liquid, add boiling water; add half a teaspoonful of sweet marjoram, sweet basil, and thyme, two sliced onions, sliced potatoes, salt. When the vegetables have boiled until almost tender, add a piece of butter rolled in flour, drop in some egg balls, and boil fifteen minutes more. Take up and serve hot.
SQUIRREL SOUP.
Wash and quarter three or four good sized squirrels; put them on, with a small tablespoonful of salt, directly after breakfast, in a gallon of cold water. Cover the pot close, and set it on the back part of the stove to simmer gently, not boil. Add vegetables just the same as you do in case of other meat soups in the summer season, but especially good will you find corn, Irish potatoes, tomatoes and Lima beans. Strain the soup through a coarse colander when the meat has boiled to shreds, so as to get rid of the squirrels' troublesome little bones. Then return to the pot, and after boiling a while longer, thicken with a piece of butter rubbed in flour. Celery and parsley leaves chopped up are also considered an improvement by many. Toast two slices of bread, cut them into dice one-half inch square, fry them in butter, put them into the bottom of your tureen, and then pour the soup boiling hot upon them. Very good.
TOMATO SOUP. No. 1.
Place in a kettle four pounds of beef. Pour over it one gallon of cold water. Let the meat and water boil slowly for three hours, or until the liquid is reduced to about one-half. Remove the meat and put into the broth a quart of tomatoes, and one chopped onion; salt and pepper to taste. A teaspoonful of flour should be dissolved and stirred in, then allowed to boil half an hour longer. Strain and serve hot. Canned tomatoes in place of fresh ones may be used.
TOMATO SOUP. No. 2.
Place over the fire a quart of peeled tomatoes, stew them soft with a pinch of soda. Strain it so that no seeds remain, set it over the fire again, and add a quart of hot boiled milk; season with salt and pepper, a piece of butter the size of an egg, add three tablespoonfuls of rolled cracker, and serve hot. Canned tomatoes may be used in place of fresh ones.
TOMATO SOUP. No. 3.
Peel two quarts of tomatoes, boil them in a saucepan with an onion, and other soup vegetables; strain and add a level tablespoonful of flour dissolved in a third of a cup of melted butter; add pepper and salt. Serve very hot over little squares of bread fried brown and crisp in butter.
An excellent addition to a cold meat lunch.
MULLAGATAWNY SOUP. (As made in India.)
Cut four onions, one carrot, two turnips, and one head of celery into three quarts of liquor, in which one or two fowls have been boiled; keep it over a brisk fire till it boils, then place it on a corner of the fire, and let it simmer twenty minutes; add one tablespoonful of currie powder, and one tablespoonful of flour; mix the whole well together, and let it boil three minutes; pass it through a colander; serve with pieces of roast chicken in it; add boiled rice in a separate dish. It must be of good yellow color, and not too thick. If you find it too thick, add a little boiling water and a teaspoonful of sugar. Half veal and half chicken answers as well.
A dish of rice, to be served separately with this soup, must be thus prepared: put three pints of water in a saucepan and one tablespoonful of salt; let this boil. Wash well, in three waters, half a pound of rice; strain it, and put it into the boiling water in saucepan. After it has come to the boil—which it will do in about two minutes—let it boil twenty minutes; strain it through a colander, and pour over it two quarts of cold water. This will separate the grains of rice. Put it back in the saucepan, and place it near the fire until hot enough to send to the table. This is also the proper way to boil rice for curries. If these directions are strictly carried out every grain of the rice will separate, and be thoroughly cooked.
MOCK TURTLE SOUP, OF CALF'S HEAD.
Scald a well-cleansed calf's head, remove the brain, tie it up in a cloth, and boil an hour, or until the meat will easily slip from the bone; take out, save the broth; cut it in small square pieces, and throw them into cold water; when cool, put it in a stewpan, and cover with some of the broth; let it boil until quite tender, and set aside.
In another stewpan melt some butter, and in it put a quarter of a pound of lean ham, cut small, with fine herbs to taste; also parsley and one onion; add about a pint of the broth; let it simmer for two hours, and then dredge in a small quantity of flour; now add the remainder of the broth, and a quarter bottle of Madeira or sherry; let all stew quietly for ten minutes and rub it through a medium sieve; add the calf's head, season with a very little cayenne pepper, a little salt, the juice of one lemon, and, if desired, a quarter teaspoonful pounded mace and a dessert-spoon sugar.
Having previously prepared force meat balls, add them to the soup, and five minutes after serve hot.
GREEN TURTLE SOUP.
One turtle, two onions, a bunch of sweet herbs, juice of one lemon, five quarts of water, a glass of Madeira.
After removing the entrails, cut up the coarser parts of the turtle meat and bones. Add four quarts of water, and stew four hours with the herbs, onions, pepper and salt. Stew very slowly, do not let it cease boiling during this time. At the end of four hours strain the soup, and add the finer parts of the turtle and the green fat, which has been simmered one hour in two quarts of water. Thicken with brown flour; return to the soup-pot, and simmer gently for an hour longer. If there are eggs in the turtle, boil them in a separate vessel for four hours, and throw into the soup before taking up. If not, put in force meat balls; then the juice of the lemon, and the wine; beat up at once and pour out.
Some cooks add the finer meat before straining, boiling all together five hours; then strain, thicken and put in the green fat, cut into lumps an inch long. This makes a handsomer soup than if the meat is left in.
Green turtle can now be purchased preserved in air-tight cans.
Force Meat Balls for the Above.—Six tablespoonfuls of turtle meat chopped very fine. Rub to a paste, with the yolk of two hard-boiled eggs, a tablespoonful of butter, and, if convenient, a little oyster liquor. Season with cayenne, mace, half a teaspoonful of white sugar and a pinch of salt. Bind all with a well-beaten egg; shape into small balls; dip in egg, then powdered cracker; fry in butter, and drop into the soup when it is served.
MACARONI SOUP.
To a rich beef or other soup, in which there is no seasoning other than pepper or salt, take half a pound of small pipe macaroni, boil it in clear water until it is tender, then drain it and cut it in pieces of an inch length; boil it for fifteen minutes in the soup and serve.
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 flour (browned), and season with pepper, salt and a small piece of butter. This is a cheap but good soup, using the remains of cold turkey which might otherwise be thrown away.
GUMBO OR OKRA SOUP.
Fry out the fat of a slice of bacon or fat ham, drain it off, and in it fry the slices of a large onion brown; scald, peel and cut up two quarts fresh tomatoes, when in season (use canned tomatoes otherwise), and cut thin one quart okra; put them, together with a little chopped parsley, in a stew-kettle with about three quarts of hot broth of any kind; cook slowly for three hours, season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
In chicken broth the same quantity of okra pods, used for thickening instead of tomatoes, forms a chicken gumbo soup.
TAPIOCA CREAM SOUP.
One quart of white stock; one pint of cream or milk; one onion; two stalks celery; one-third of a cupful of tapioca; two cupfuls of cold water; one tablespoonful of butter; a small piece of mace; salt, pepper. Wash the tapioca and soak over night in cold water. Cook it and the stock together very gently for one hour. Cut the onion and celery into small pieces, and put on to cook for twenty minutes with the milk and mace. Strain on the tapioca and stock. Season with salt and pepper, add butter and serve.
SOUPS WITHOUT MEAT.
ONION SOUP.
One quart of milk, six large onions, yolks of four eggs, three tablespoonfuls of butter, a large one of flour, one cup full of cream, salt, pepper. Put the butter in a frying pan. Cut the onions into thin slices and drop in the butter. Stir until they begin to cook; then cover tight and set back where they will simmer, but not burn, for half an hour. Now put the milk on to boil, and then add the dry flour to the onions and stir constantly for three minutes over the fire; then turn the mixture into the milk and cook fifteen minutes. Rub the soup through a strainer, return to the fire, season with salt and pepper. Beat the yolks of the eggs well, add the cream to them and stir into the soup. Cook three minutes, stirring constantly. If you have no cream, use milk, in which case add a tablespoonful of butter at the same time. Pour over fried croutons in a soup tureen.
This is a refreshing dish when one is fatigued.
WINTER VEGETABLE SOUP.
Scrape and slice three turnips and three carrots and peel three onions, and fry all with a little butter until a light yellow; add a bunch of celery and three or four leeks cut in pieces; stir and fry all the ingredients for six minutes; when fried, add one clove of garlic, two stalks of parsley, two cloves, salt, pepper and a little grated nutmeg; cover with three quarts of water and simmer for three hours, taking off the scum carefully. Strain and use. Croutons, vermicelli, Italian pastes, or rice may be added.
VERMICELLI SOUP.
Swell quarter of a pound of vermicelli in a quart of warm water, then add it to a good beef, veal, lamb, or chicken soup or broth, with quarter of a pound of sweet butter; let the soup boil for fifteen minutes after it is added.
SWISS WHITE SOUP.
A sufficient quantity of broth for six people; boil it; beat up three eggs well, two spoonfuls of flour, one cup milk; pour these gradually through a sieve into the boiling soup; salt and pepper.
SPRING VEGETABLE SOUP.
Half pint green peas, two shredded lettuces, one onion, a small bunch of parsley, two ounces butter, the yolks of three eggs, one pint of water, one and a half quarts of soup stock. Put in a stewpan the lettuce, onion, parsley and butter, with one pint of water, and let them simmer till tender. Season with salt and pepper. When done, strain off the vegetables, and put two-thirds of the liquor with the stock. Beat up the yolks of the eggs with the other third, toss it over the fire, and at the moment of serving add this with the vegetables to the strained-off soup.
CELERY SOUP.
Celery soup may be made with white stock. Cut down the white of half a dozen heads of celery into little pieces and boil it in four pints of white stock, with a quarter of a pound of lean ham and two ounces of butter. Simmer gently for a full hour, then strain through a sieve, return the liquor to the pan, and stir in a few spoonfuls of cream with great care. Serve with toasted bread, and if liked, thicken with a little flour. Season to taste.
IRISH POTATO SOUP.
Peel and boil eight medium-sized potatoes with a large onion sliced, some herbs, salt and pepper; press all through a colander; then thin it with rich milk and add a lump of butter, more seasoning, if necessary; let it heat well and serve hot.
PEA SOUP.
Put a quart of dried peas into five quarts of water; boil for four hours; then add three or four large onions, two heads of celery, a carrot, two turnips, all cut up rather fine. Season with pepper and salt. Boil two hours longer, and if the soup becomes too thick add more water. Strain through a colander and stir in a tablespoonful of cold butter. Serve hot, with small pieces of toasted bread placed in the bottom of the tureen.
NOODLES FOR SOUP.
Beat up one egg light, add a pinch of salt, and flour enough to make a very stiff dough; roll out very thin, like thin pie crust, dredge with flour to keep from sticking. Let it remain on the bread board to dry for an hour or more; then roll it up into a tight scroll, like a sheet of music. Begin at the end and slice it into slips as thin as straws. After all are cut, mix them lightly together, and to prevent them sticking, keep them floured a little until you are ready to drop them into your soup which should be done shortly before dinner, for if boiled too long they will go to pieces.
FORCE MEAT BALLS FOR SOUP.
One cupful of cooked veal or fowl meat, minced; mix with this a handful of fine bread crumbs, the yolks of four hard-boiled eggs rubbed smooth together with a tablespoon of milk; season with pepper and salt; add a half teaspoon of flour, and bind all together with two beaten eggs; the hands to be well floured, and the mixture to be made into little balls the size of a nutmeg; drop into the soup about twenty minutes before serving.
EGG BALLS FOR SOUP.
Take the yolks of six hard-boiled eggs and half a tablespoonful of wheat flour, rub them smooth with the yolks of two raw eggs and a teaspoonful of salt; mix all well together; make it in balls, and drop them into the boiling soup a few minutes before taking it up.
Used in green turtle soup.
EGG DUMPLINGS FOR SOUP.
To half a pint of milk put two well-beaten eggs, and as much wheat flour as will make a smooth, rather thick batter free from lumps; drop this batter, a tablespoonful at a time, into boiling soup.
Another Mode.—One cupful of sour cream and one cupful of sour milk, three eggs, well beaten, whites and yolks separately; one teaspoonful of salt, one level teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in a spoonful of water, and enough flour added to make a very stiff batter. To be dropped by spoonfuls into the broth and boiled twenty minutes, or until no raw dough shows on the outside.
SUET DUMPLINGS FOR SOUP.
Three cups of sifted flour in which three teaspoonfuls of baking powder have been sifted; one cup of finely chopped suet, well rubbed into the flour, with a teaspoonful of salt. Wet all with sweet milk to make a dough as stiff as biscuit. Make into small balls as large as peaches, well floured. Drop into the soup three-quarters of an hour before being served. This requires steady boiling, being closely covered, and the cover not to be removed until taken up to serve. A very good form of pot-pie.
SOYER'S RECIPE FOR FORCE MEATS.
Take 1-1/2 lbs. of lean veal from the fillet, and cut it in long thin slices; scrape with a knife till nothing but the fibre remains; put it in a mortar, pound it ten minutes or until in a puree; pass it through a wire sieve (use the remainder in stock), then take 1 lb. of good fresh beef suet, which skin, shred and chop very fine; put it in a mortar and pound it, then add 6 oz. of panada (that is, bread soaked in milk, and boiled till nearly dry) with the suet; pound them well together, and add the veal, season with 1 teaspoonful of salt, 1/4 teaspoonful of pepper, 1/2 that of nutmeg; work all well together; then add four eggs by degrees, continually pounding the contents of the mortar. When well mixed, take a small piece in a spoon, and poach it in some boiling water, and if it is delicate, firm, and of a good flavor, it is ready for use.
CROUTONS FOR SOUP.
In a frying pan have the depth of an inch of boiling fat; also have prepared slices of stale bread cut up into little half-inch squares; drop into the frying pan enough of these bits of bread to cover the surface of the fat. When browned, remove with a skimmer and drain; add to the hot soup and serve.
Some prefer them prepared in this manner:
Take very thin slices of bread, butter them well; cut them up into little squares three-fourths of an inch thick, place them in a baking pan, buttered side up, and brown in a quick oven.
FISH STOCK.
Place a saucepan over the fire with a good-sized piece of sweet butter and a sliced onion; put into that some sliced tomatoes, then add as many different kinds of fish as you can get—oysters, clams, smelts, pawns, crabs, shrimps and all kinds of pan-fish; cook all together until the onions are well browned; then add a bunch of sweet herbs, salt and pepper, and sufficient water to make the required amount of stock. After this has cooked for half an hour pound it with a wooden pestle, then strain and cook again until it jellies.
FISH SOUP.
Select a large, fine fish, clean it thoroughly, put it over the fire with a sufficient quantity of water, allowing for each pound of fish one quart of water; add an onion cut fine and a bunch of sweet herbs. When the fish is cooked, and is quite tasteless, strain all through a colander, return to the fire, add some butter, salt and pepper to taste. A small tablespoonful of Worcestershire sauce may be added if liked. Serve with small squares of fried bread and thin slices of lemon.
LOBSTER SOUP, OR BISQUE.
Have ready a good broth made of three pounds of veal boiled slowly in as much water as will cover it, till the meat is reduced to shreds. It must then be well strained.
Having boiled one fine middle-sized lobster, extract all the meat from the body and claws. Bruise part of the coral in a mortar, and also an equal quantity of the meat. Mix them well together. Add mace, cayenne, salt and pepper, and make them up into force meat balls, binding the mixture with the yolk of an egg slightly beaten.
Take three quarts of the veal broth and put it into the meat of the lobster cut into mouthfuls. Boil it together about twenty minutes. Then thicken it with the remaining coral (which you must first rub through a sieve), and add the force meat balls and a little butter rolled in flour. Simmer it gently for ten minutes, but do not let it come to a boil, as that will injure the color. Serve with small dice of bread fried brown in butter.
OYSTER SOUP, No. 1.
Two quarts of oysters, one quart of milk, two tablespoonfuls of butter, one teacupful of hot water; pepper, salt.
Strain all the liquor from the oysters; add the water, and heat. When near the boil, add the seasoning, then the oysters. Cook about five minutes from the time they begin to simmer, until they "ruffle." Stir in the butter, cook one minute, and pour into the tureen. Stir in the boiling milk and send to table. Some prefer all water in place of milk.
OYSTER SOUP. No. 2.
Scald one gallon of oysters in their own liquor. Add one quart of rich milk to the liquor, and when it comes to a boil, skim out the oysters and set aside. Add the yolks of four eggs, two good tablespoonfuls of butter, and one of flour, all mixed well together, but in this order—first, the milk, then, after beating the eggs, add a little of the hot liquor to them gradually, and stir them rapidly into the soup. Lastly, add the butter and whatever seasoning you fancy besides plain pepper and salt, which must both be put in to taste with caution.
Celery salt most persons like extremely; others would prefer a little marjoram or thyme; others again mace and a bit of onion. Use your own discretion in this regard.
CLAM SOUP. (French Style.)
Mince two dozen hard shell clams very fine. Fry half a minced onion in an ounce of butter; add to it a pint of hot water, a pinch of mace, four cloves, one allspice and six whole pepper corns. Boil fifteen minutes and strain into a saucepan; add the chopped clams and a pint of clam-juice or hot water; simmer slowly two hours; strain and rub the pulp through a sieve into the liquid. Return it to the saucepan and keep it lukewarm. Boil three half-pints of milk in a saucepan (previously wet with cold water, which prevents burning) and whisk it into the soup. Dissolve a teaspoonful of flour in cold milk, add it to the soup, taste for seasoning; heat it gently to near the boiling point; pour into a tureen previously heated with hot water, and serve with or without pieces of fried bread—called croutons in kitchen French.
CLAM SOUP.
Twenty-five clams chopped fine. Put over the fire the liquor that was drained from them, and a cup of water; add the chopped clams and boil half an hour; then season to taste with pepper and salt and a piece of butter as large as an egg; boil up again and add one quart of milk boiling hot, stir in a tablespoon of flour made to a cream with a little cold milk, or two crackers rolled fine. Some like a little mace and lemon juice in the seasoning.
MODES OF FRYING
The usual custom among professional cooks is to entirely immerse the article to be cooked in boiling fat, but from inconvenience most households use the half-frying method of frying in a small amount of fat in a frying pan. For the first method a shallow iron frying kettle, large at the top and small at the bottom, is best to use. The fat should half fill the kettle, or an amount sufficient to float whatever is to be fried; the heat of the fat should get to such a degree that, when a piece of bread or a teaspoonful of the batter is dropped in it, it will become brown almost instantly, but should not be so hot as to burn the fat. Some cooks say that the fat should be smoking, but my experience is, that is a mistake, as that soon ruins the fat. As soon as it begins to smoke it should be removed a little to one side, and still be kept at the boiling point. If fritters, crullers, croquettes, etc., are dropped into fat that is too hot, it crusts over the outside before the inside has fully risen, making a heavy, hard article, and also ruining the fat, giving it a burnt flavor.
Many French cooks prefer beef fat or suet to lard for frying purposes, considering it more wholesome and digestible, does not impart as much flavor, or adhere or soak into the article cooked as pork fat.
In families of any size, where there is much cooking required, there are enough drippings and fat remnants from roasts of beef, skimmings from the soup kettle, with the addition of occasionally a pound of suet from the market, to amply supply the need. All such remnants and skimmings should be clarified about twice a week, by boiling them all together in water. When the fat is all melted, it should be strained with the water and set aside to cool. After the fat on the top has hardened, lift the cake from the water on which it lies, scrape off all the dark particles from the bottom, then melt over again the fat; while hot strain into a small clean stone jar or bright tin pail, and then it is ready for use. Always after frying anything, the fat should stand until it settles and has cooled somewhat; then turn off carefully so as to leave it clear from the sediment that settles at the bottom.
Refined cotton-seed oil is now being adopted by most professional cooks in hotels, restaurants and many private households for culinary purposes, and will doubtless in future supersede animal fats, especially for frying, it being quite as delicate a medium as frying with olive oil. It is now sold by leading grocers, put up in packages of two and four quarts.
The second mode of frying, using a frying pan with a small quantity of fat or grease, to be done properly, should, in the first place, have the frying pan hot over the fire, and the fat in it actually boiling before the article to be cooked is placed in it, the intense heat quickly searing up the pores of the article and forming a brown crust on the lower side, then turning over and browning the other the same way.
Still, there is another mode of frying; the process is somewhat similar to broiling, the hot frying pan or spider replacing the hot fire. To do this correctly, a thick bottomed frying pan should be used. Place it over the fire, and when it is so hot that it will siss, oil over the bottom of the pan with a piece of suet, that is if the meat is all lean; if not, it is not necessary to grease the bottom of the pan. Lay in the meat quite flat, and brown it quickly, first on one side, then on the other; when sufficiently cooked, dish on a hot platter and season the same as broiled meats.
FISH.
In selecting fish, choose those only in which the eye is full and prominent, the flesh thick and firm, the scales bright and fins stiff. They should be thoroughly cleaned before cooking.
The usual modes of cooking fish are boiled, baked, broiled, fried and occasionally stewed. Steaming fish is much superior to boiling, but the ordinary conveniences in private houses do not admit of the possibility of enjoying this delicate way of cooking it. Large fish are generally boiled, medium-sized ones baked or boiled, the smaller kinds fried or broiled. Very large fish, such as cod, halibut, etc., are cut in steaks or slices for frying or broiling. The heads of some fish, as the cod, halibut, etc., are considered tidbits by many. Small fish, or pan-fish, as they are usually called, are served without the heads, with the exception of brook-trout and smelts; these are usually cooked whole, with the heads on. Bake fish slowly, basting often with butter and water. Salmon is considered the most nutritious of all fish. When boiling fish, by adding a little vinegar and salt to the water, it seasons and prevents the nutriment from being drawn out; the vinegar acting on the water hardens the water.
Fill the fish with a nicely prepared stuffing of rolled cracker or stale bread crumbs, seasoned with butter, pepper, salt, sage and any other aromatic herbs fancied; sew up; wrap in a well-floured cloth, tied closely with twine, and boil or steam. The garnishes for boiled fish are: for turbot, fried smelts; for other boiled fish, parsley, sliced beets, lemon or sliced boiled egg. Do not use the knives, spoons, etc., that are used in cooking fish, for other food, as they will be apt to impart a fishy flavor.
Fish to be boiled should be put into cold water and set on the fire to cook very gently, or the outside will break before the inner part is done. Unless the fish are small, they should never be put into warm water; nor should water, either hot or cold, be poured on to the fish, as it is liable to break the skin; if it should be necessary to add a little water while the fish is cooking, it ought to be poured in gently at the side of the vessel.
Fish to be broiled should lie, after they are dressed, for two or three hours, with their inside well sprinkled with salt and pepper.
Salt fish should be soaked in water before boiling, according to the time it has been in salt. When it is hard and dry, it will require thirty-six hours soaking before it is dressed, and the water must be changed three or four times. When fish is not very salt, twenty-four hours, or even one night, will suffice.
When frying fish the fire must be hot enough to bring the fat to such a degree of heat as to sear the surface and make it impervious to the fat, and at the same time seal up the rich juices. As soon as the fish is browned by this sudden application of heat, the pan may be moved to a cooler place on the stove, that the process may be finished more slowly.
Fat in which fish has been fried is just as good to use again for the same purpose, but it should be kept by itself and not put to any other use.
TO FRY FISH.
Most of the smaller fish (generally termed pan-fish) are usually fried. Clean well, cut off the head, and, if quite large, cut out the backbone, and slice the body crosswise into five or six pieces; season with salt and pepper. Dip in Indian meal or wheat flour, or in beaten egg, and roll in bread or fine cracker crumbs—trout and perch should not be dipped in meal; put into a thick bottomed iron frying pan, the flesh side down, with hot lard or drippings; fry slowly, turning when lightly browned. The following method may be deemed preferable: Dredge the pieces with flour; brush them over with beaten egg; roll in bread crumbs, and fry in hot lard or drippings sufficient to cover, the same as frying crullers. If the fat is very hot, the fish will fry without absorbing it, and it will be palatably cooked. When browned on one side, turn it over in the fat and brown the other, draining when done. This is a particularly good way to fry slices of large fish. Serve with tomato sauce; garnish with slices of lemon.
PAN-FISH.
Place them in a thick bottomed frying pan with heads all one way. Fill the spaces with smaller fish. When they are fried quite brown and ready to turn, put a dinner plate over them, drain off the fat; then invert the pan, and they will be left unbroken on the plate. Put the lard back into the pan, and when hot slip back the fish. When the other side is brown, drain, turn on a plate as before, and slip them on a warm platter, to be sent to the table. Leaving the heads on and the fish a crispy-brown, in perfect shape, improves the appearance if not the flavor. Garnish with slices of lemon.
Hotel Lafayette, Philadelphia.
BAKED PICKEREL.
Carefully clean and wipe the fish, and lay in a dripping pan with enough hot water to prevent scorching. A perforated sheet of tin, fitting loosely, or several muffin rings may be used to keep it off the bottom. Lay it in a circle on its belly, head and tail touching, and tied, or as directed in note on fish; bake slowly, basting often with butter and water. When done, have ready a cup of sweet cream or rich milk to which a few spoons of hot water has been added; stir in two large spoons of melted butter and a little chopped parsley; heat all by setting the cup in boiling water; add the gravy from the dripping-pan, and let it boil up once; place the fish in a hot dish and pour over it the sauce. Or an egg sauce may be made with drawn butter; stir in the yolk of an egg quickly, and then a teaspoon of chopped parsley. It can be stuffed or not, just as you please.
BOILED SALMON.
The middle slice of salmon is the best. Sew up neatly in a mosquito-net bag, and boil a quarter of an hour to the pound in hot salted water. When done, unwrap with care, and lay upon a hot dish, taking care not to break it. Have ready a large cupful of drawn butter, very rich, in which has been stirred a tablespoonful of minced parsley and the juice of a lemon. Pour half upon the salmon and serve the rest in a boat. Garnish with parsley and sliced eggs.
BROILED SALMON.
Cut slices from an inch to an inch and an half thick, dry them in a cloth, season with salt and pepper, dredge them in sifted flour, and broil on a gridiron rubbed with suet.
Another Mode.—Cut the slices one inch thick, and season them with pepper and salt; butter a sheet of white paper, lay each slice on a separate piece, envelop them in it with their ends twisted; broil gently over a clear fire, and serve with anchovy or caper sauce. When higher seasoning is required, add a few chopped herbs and a little spice.
FRESH SALMON FRIED.
Cut the slices three-quarters of an inch thick, dredge them with flour, or dip them in egg and crumbs; fry a light brown. This mode answers for all fish cut into steaks. Season well with salt and pepper.
SALMON AND CAPER SAUCE.
Two slices of salmon, one-quarter pound butter, one-half teaspoonful of chopped parsley, one shallot; salt and pepper to taste.
Lay the salmon in a baking dish, place pieces of butter over it, and add the other ingredients, rubbing a little of the seasoning into the fish; place it in the oven and baste it frequently; when done, take it out and drain for a minute or two; lay it in a dish, pour caper sauce over it and serve. Salmon dressed in this way, with tomato sauce, is very delicious.
BROILED SALT SALMON OR OTHER SALT FISH.
Soak salmon in tepid or cold water twenty-four hours, changing water several times, or let stand under faucet of running water. If in a hurry, or desiring a very salt relish, it may do to soak a short time, having water warm, and changing, parboiling slightly. At the hour wanted, broil sharply. Season to suit taste, covering with butter. This recipe will answer for all kinds of salt fish.
PICKLED SALMON.
Take a fine, fresh salmon, and, having cleaned it, cut it into large pieces, and boil it in salted water as if for eating. Then drain it, wrap it in a dry cloth, and set it in a cold place till next day. Then make the pickle, which must be in proportion to the quantity of fish. To one quart of the water in which the salmon was boiled, allow two quarts of the best vinegar, one ounce of whole black pepper, one nutmeg grated and a dozen blades of mace. Boil all these together in a kettle closely covered to prevent the flavor from evaporating. When the vinegar thus prepared is quite cold, pour it over the salmon, and put on the top a tablespoonful of sweet oil, which will make it keep the longer. |
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