Foods of England - Encyclopedia of Practical Cookery, 1891

Encyclopedia of Practical Cookery, 1891

A Foods of England online text. For more see Cookbooks

TITLE: The encyclopædia of practical cookery : a complete dictionary of all pertaining to the art of cookery and table service
AUTHOR: Theodore Francis Garrett
PUBLISHER: Upcott Gill, London
DATE: 1891
THIS VERSION: This transcript is based on the online version at archive.org, from The University of Leeds Library. This is an Optical Character Recognition scan, it has been partly edited, but still contains very significant errors.

This is Volume 1 only, other volumes are available at Archive.org

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THE

ENCYCLOPAEDIA

OF PRACTICAL

COOKERY

A Complete Dictiohary of all pertaining to the Art of Cookery and Table Service.

INCLUDING ORIGINAL MODERN RECEIPTS FOR ALL KINDS OF DISHES FOR GENERAL, OCCASIONAL. AND EXCEPTIONAL USE; THE MAKING OF EVERY DESCRIPTION OF TABLE CONFECTIONERY; THE HOME MANUFACTURE OF WINES, LIQUEURS, AND TABLE WATERS; THE LAYING, DECORATING, AND PREPARING OF BANQUETS, WEDDING BREAKFASTS, LUNCHEONS, TEAS, CELEBRATION AND BALL SUPPERS, PICNICS, GARDEN-PARTY REFRESHMENTS,

RACE AND BOATING BASKETS, &C.; THE CARE AND GOOD MANAGEMENT OF THE CELLAR, BUTLER’S PANTRY, LARDER, ICE ROOMS AND CHESTS, &C.;

ILLUSTRATED with COLOURED PLATES and ENGRAVINGS, by HAROLD FURNISS, GEORGE CRUIKSHANK, W. MUNN ANDREW, and others.

EDITED BY

THEODORE FRANCIS GARRETT,

Author of “ The Chefs Memoranda,” “ Plain and Artistic Cookery? “ Littlerknown Foods? “ Ice and Ice- Making? “ The Manufacture of British Wines, TFc.? “ Ball Suppers and their Service? “ Wine Adulteration? “ Savoury Suppers?

“ Muffins and Crumpets,” “ Sandwiches? “ American Drinks? “ Confectionery! “ Notes on Curries?

“ I.oving-Cups? “Antiquity of Cheese? “ Good Coffee? “ Lives of Famous Cooks? and numerous other Serial and Special Papers in Technical and Domestic Publications.

Assisted by WILLIAM A. RAWSON (Cook and Confectioner to Messrs. Ring and Brymer, Caterers for City of London and other Banquets; Sec. of the Original U.F. Society of Cooks and Confectioners);

And, in Special Departments, by the following and other distinguished CHEFS DE CUISINE

and CONFECTIONERS:

C. J. Corblet, Chef de Cuisine, Bute House, W.; Grand Diploma of Honour; tst Grand Prize, 1887; 1st Gold Medal of 1st Class, 1885.

J. Detraz, Chef de Cuisine, Hotel Metropole, London.

J. Fiorillo, Chef de Cuisine, late of Hotel Victoria, London; Grand Prix d’Honneur, Paris, 1889; 1st Prize, Gold Medal, 1885; Champion Silver Medal. 1885; 1st Prize, Gold Medal, 1888; 1st Prize, Gold Medal, 1889.

G. Heywood, Chef de Cuisine, and President of the Original U.F. Society of Cooks and Confectioners.

C. Norwak, Confectioner, Gold and Silver Medallist in Sugar-Flowers and Piping, London, 1889.

L. Lecomte, Chef de Cuisine to Lord Harewood, Silver Medal, Exposition Culinaire Internationale, London, 1885; Diploma of Honour, Grand Prize, and Gold Medal, Exposition Culinaire Internationale, London, 1887.

C. Reichert, Confectioner to Messrs. W. and G. Buszard.

A. Thoumire, Chef de Cuisine to Sir Julian Goldsmid; Silver Medal for Turtle Dinner of 13 Dishes, Universal Cookery and Food Exhibition, 1889; Bronze Medal for Menu Design, 1889; and Vermillion Medal, Exposition Culinaire, 1887.

T. Wallace, Chef de Cuisine, Great Eastern Hotel, London.

C. Willin, Chef de Cuisine, late of the Grand Hotel Bristol; 1st Prize in Open Turtle Competition.

LONDON: L. UPCOTT GILL.

Sole Agent: A. W. COWAN, 30 and 31, NEW BRIDGE STREET, LONDON, E.C.

LONDON

A.

BRADLEY, LONDON AND COUNTY PRINTING WORKS,

DRURY LANE, W.C.

UNIVERSITY

UNWARY

LEEDS

PREFACE.

OOKERY may now be considered one of the Fine Arts. Its

practice can be traced back to primitive man, who first impaled slices of flesh on sharpened sticks, and toasted them over the smouldering embers of a wood fire. Baking coarse-ground meal

cakes in holes dug in the ground, and heated by the ashes of a fire, may be regarded as the origin of the oven; but boiling, which was born of civilisation, followed later on. These crude processes were virtually the same as those practised in the present day — and as they were in the days of the luxurious

Romans, when Lucullus ordered pearls to be dissolved in soup, and a dish was

estimated by its cost rather than its culinary quality. Nightingales’ brains, and peacocks’ -tongues patty, “ o’erlayed with beaten gold,” were considered dishes fit to set before a king, even by such famous gourmets as Apicius, Epicurus, and others; but just as these culinary giants were in advance of the primeval toaster, so are our modern professional chefs de cuisine in advance of the Roman cooks.

Modern cookery ranks high amongst the Fine Arts, and its high priests and votaries have brought it into this elevated position by the investment of much artistic skill and scientific intelligence in its development. In France and some other Continental countries it is regarded as one of the greatest of arts, and cooks have been invested with the cordon rouge and cordon bleu — orders of a very high degree in the old French Courts; but it is to be feared that the honour has lost something of its original value and dignity by its frequent illegitimate application. The Grand Prix d’honneur de Paris is awarded to cooks of exceptional ability, and gold, silver, and bronze medals, and diplomas of special merit to those who excel; but in England we are apparently too indolent or indifferent to bestow special acknowledgment upon our native professional cooks, some of whom have proved themselves to be gifted with excellent talent. Indications of a new era are, however, not wanting, as shown in the establishment of Schools of Cookery, and the popularity of Cookery Exhibitions, which leads us to believe that the time is not far distant when good cookery at home will be regarded as the first of all

IV

PREFACE.

accomplishments. Cookery is a superior art, for it has the power to gratify three special senses at once — namely, sight, smell, and taste; and, in a minor degree, the sense of feeling, by comfort provided at the board. Add to these the gratification of the ear by music, or pleasing and congenial conversation, and the measure of man’s enjoyment should be full.

Cookery Books innumerable have been written or compiled by individuals professing some special qualification; but experience shows that the culinary art is made up of so many different branches that it would be impossible for any one cook, however expert, to be master of them all. With this view before us, we have invoked the aid of a staff of professional British and foreign cooks, confectioners, and others, and must record our great regret that we could not extend the number indefinitely amongst the numerous skilled culinary professors of our acquaintance, whose great charm is the readiness with which they impart, for the benefit of others, the knowledge which their lives have been spent in acquiring. In this case, at any rate, we trust it will be found that too many cooks have not spoiled the broth.

The arrangement we have adopted as most convenient is that of an alphabetical Encyclopaedia, the receipts being classified according to the chief material used, where such a distinction would be understood from the name; and although the highest branches of the art have been carefully treated and simplified, the bulk of the work is ruled by general domestic utility and economy. In this way we have been enabled to supply elementary instruction for the enlightenment of beginners, as well as a valuable book of ready reference for the use of the most experienced cooks and confectioners. May they, one and all, appreciate the labour we have undertaken. Remember the words of Desaugiers:

Un cuisinier, quand je dine,

Me semble un etre divin.

A cook, when I dine,

Seems to me a being divine.

THE

ENCYCLOPAEDIA

PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Abbreviations used: Eng., English; Fr., Fi-ench; Ger., German; Hind., Hindoostanee; Ital., Italian; Sp., Spanish.

Quantities and measurements are abbreviated in the usual manner: lb., pound; oz., ounce; gall., gallon; qt., quart; ft., foot; in., inch.

Note. — For further information upon any subject mentioned in the following articles, refer to that name

in its alphabetical order.

ABAT-FAIM. — Fr. for, literally, a “hunger-reducer,” such as a substantial joint of roast beef. Hence it comes to mean the piece de resistance — something to cut at and come again.

AB ATT AGE. — From abatter, to pull down. Applied to a pile of pieces, especially of game.

ABBOCATI. — Italian light wines, such as Muscatel, “Vino Santo, and Yernaccia. See Italian Wines.

ABDEIiAVI. — A sort of melon, or cucumber, which grows in Egypt and Arabia. Orientals eat the fruit both green and cooked, and look upon it as being very healthy. A refreshing and pleasing drink is made from the juice sweetened with sugar.

ABEIDERO.— A sort of peach, much used in Spanish confectionery.

ABERDEEN SANDWICHES— See Sandwiches.

ABERFRAU CAKES. — See Cakes.

ABERNETHY BISCUITS. — Very popular digestive biscuits, containing carraway seeds, and said to have been invented by the celebrated physician after whom they were named. See Biscuits.

ABLETTE. — Fr. for a bleak or sort of smelt, caught chiefly in the Seine. Answers to our whitebait.

ABRICOTE. — Fr. for a “ bon-bon” of crystallised apricots.

ABSINTHE (Fr. Absinthe; Ger. Wermuth – extract; Ital. Assenzio; Sp. Ajenjo). — This is the name given to a liqueur made from an infusion in strong alcohol of wormwood ( Absinthium Artemisia) and some other aromatic ingredients, but must not be confounded with Vermouth. It is manufactured largely in Neufchatel, Montpellier,

Absinthe — continued.

Lyons, and Pontarlier, each kind having its peculiar taste and odour; but since the demand for Absinthe has increased in this and other countries, inferior varieties have been prepared for the market, possessing qualities of a dangerously deleterious character, and adulterated with noxious compounds, such as indigo, sulphate of copper, and chloride of antimony, for colouring.

Genuine Absinthe has a greenish colour, is intensely bitter, and has a peculiarly penetrating odour. Age changes this green colour to greenish-yellow, and the liqueur is then much improved, becoming agreeable, odorous, and sweetish. It is considered good when it turns milky, or opalescent, on being diluted; but certain aromatic resins, such as benzoin, guaiacum, and others, are sometimes added to impure qualities of Absinthe, for the purpose of producing this “ milky ” result.

The wormwood plant grows wild in some parts of England, amongst rocks and rubbish, and is used in the brewing of purl; it is carefully cultivated in the Absinthemanufacturing districts of the Continent.

The various known brands of Absinthe are produced from the following formulae:

Lyons Absinthe ia made with large wormwood leaves, green anise, fennel, angelica seed, and alcohol, coloured with a mixture of small wormwood leaves, lemon balm, hyssop tops and flowers, and dried veronica.

Montpellier Absinthe resembles the Lyons, with these exceptions, that coriander seed is added, and the colouring is effected by hyssop herb and flowers, dried balm of Moldavia, and small wormwood leaves.

Neufchatel Absinthe. — About 41b. of the freshly-gathered leaves and tops of wormwood, together with loz. each of angelica and calamus roots, aniseed and marjoram leaves, macerated for ten days in 4galls. brandy, or spirit 12 under proof. Add lgall. of water, and distil 4galls. at a gentle heat.

B & C

2

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Absinthe — continued.

Dissolve in the distilled spirit 21b. of crushed white sugar,

and flavour with a few drops of oil of anise.

Fontarlier Absinthe. — The angelica seed is omitted; otherwise

the ingredients and proportions are similar to those of the Lyons.

ABTSSINIAN ALES.— These are brewed indiscriminately from either wheat, barley, or millet, and are generally called “ Tallah.” The grain is first dried, and then broken up in a mortar, or between stones, to divest it of some of the outer husk. After being passed through a grass sieve, the grain is put into a large earthenware saucer, about 2ft. in diameter and 6in. deep in the centre. In this the brewing takes place by the aid of heat, and the “ Ale ” is afterwards stored for fermentation in jars.

ACACIA. — The name of the gum extracted from the tree of the same name. Sometimes the gum is known as “ Gum Arabic.” See Gums.

ACAR1TJS. — See Mites (Cheese-mite, Meal-mite, Sugarmite, &c.;).

ACCOLADE. — Fr. for a “ brace,” as of pheasants, partridges, &c.; These are sometimes served two together, or en accolade.

ACCOMMODE(E). — Fr. for “arranged ” or “dressed,” as accommode au beurre, dressed with butter. Asparagus is said to be accommode en fagon de petit pois, or dressed after the fashion of green peas.

ACCOUNTS. — The economical householder is careful to obtain, so far as it lies in his power, a full return for his money. Whether he does so or not depends, in a great measure, upon the habits of those in charge of certain departments, but more especially the chief of the kitchen. A careful cook can more than double the value of services rendered, by practising economy and studying the interests of the master before those of the tradesman. That this is not always done, we have more than hearsay evidence to prove; although, perhaps, it is not so frequently due to dishonest collusion as to a culpably lax system, or entire lack, of keeping Kitchen Accounts.

In large hotels the chef is not responsible for the goods he receives: he merely signs his orders, which have to be again presented with the goods, and before the latter are sent to the kitchen, a superintendent appointed for the purpose carefully examines and weighs (or should do so) every article, to see that it corresponds in every particular with the order given. But a collusion between this superintendent and the tradesman might exist, and goods be forwarded up to the kitchen as correct weight which might be very much short. The cook is the loser, then, not only of material, but of reputation, for his kitchen profits must be less in proportion to the value of the dish that would have been prepared from the material of which he has been defrauded. These remarks apply with equal force to small kitchens as to large ones; and the suspicion naturally arises that a cook who is said to be “ careless ” in his or her Accounts is, in reality, in league with the tradesman to defraud the master. Sometimes the master or the mistress is to blame for any loss that may be sustained by dishonest dealing — servants insufficiently paid, long credit, and reckless ordering, might prevail — but where a rigid system of Kitchen Accounts and checking is instituted, and the servants are fairly treated, the most dishonest tradesman would fail in his attempts to cheat. Under such circumstances, the saving on the kitchen department will in some cases be found to more than repay the trouble of keeping Accounts.

As it would be impossible to organise a system of keeping Kitchen Accounts that would be found perfect enough to meet all purposes, something must be left to the cook and the master, each of whom will prove his ability to deal with the subject by formulating a system to meet his own requirements, based upon the few

Accounts — continued.

suggestions we are able to make for general guidance. We have to deal here with Accounts, and not with losses from indiscreet marketing or bad cooking: these matters have to be treated on their own merits.

Every cook should have an Order Book, with counterfoils, upon which an exact copy of the order issued should be taken. With each parcel of goods care should be taken to receive an Invoice, and no goods should be received without one. The Invoice should coincide with the counterfoils of the Order Book, and be marked with the weight or measure and price of each article. After the weights and measures have been corroborated by actual weighing and measuring, which is so often neglected, and the price is ascertained to be correct according to the markets, the next thing to do is to file the Invoice for future reference — or, where a kitchen clerk is kept, it may be entered up fully in an Invoice Book kept for the purpose. This is your check upon the tradesmen, whose petty defalcations are not in all cases a systematic fable. When once it is understood that goods are weighed and measured when received, the necessity for it will disappear; but the system should not be relaxed, for all that. Instead of an Order Form, books are sometimes used, in which the order is written and signed, and filled up with prices and quantities by the tradesman, and returned with the goods. This system saves much writing, but it is open to this objection: the book might be lost, and then the cook would have no existing check upon the account of the tradesman.

The cook should also keep a Journal or Diary — that is to say, a book in which can be scribbled down at the moment any circumstances worthy of note, especially such as cash paid out or received for kitchen purposes, orders received and executed, memoranda for a future day, and notes of new ideas. Besides this, there should be an Account or Gash Book in which tradesmen’s bills, wages, and cash transactions generally, are entered; a Petty Cash Book, in which small sums under a certain amount can be quickly entered without reference to the Account Book; and a slate hung up in a convenient spot.

Cooks in large kitchens have styles of bookkeeping convenient to themselves, as also have proprietors and managers of hotels; but the small householder is often the victim of the fraudulent tradesman because the cook is not expected to keep Accounts, and the mistress is too indolent or careless to do so. If the amount of money wasted yearly in this country through not keeping Kitchen Accounts could be calculated, it is certain that the total would be astonishing. See also Economy in the Kitchen and Marketing.

ACE PH ALE. — Fr. for fish such as oysters, mussels, cockles, scallops, limpets, periwinkles, &c.; signifying, literally, “without heads.”

ACETIC ACID. — This acid is the foundation of vinegars, but is not often used in its crude state, excepting to make artificial vinegars, which may be either white or brown, the latter being coloured with burnt sugar. Acetic Acid is very difficult to obtain in a state of purity — that is, free from metallic combination; hence it is not recommended for culinary purposes. See Yinegar.

ACHAR, Hind— A. salt or acid relish. The term is used by Anglo-Indians to signify pickles of any sort.

The composition of Achar is generally a combination of capsicums, onions, salt, and lemon- or lime-juice, or vinegar, in proportionate quantities to suit the taste, pounded, and mixed together. Salt-fish, mangoes, and other things, may be added at discretion. A pickle called Achar, or Archard, is made by macerating in vinegar the tender shoots of the bamboo, or the cabbage that grows in the crest of the palm-tree.

ACID DROPS.— See Sugar.

ACID PUDDING.— See Puddings.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

3

ACIDS. — There are several of these used in cookery and confectionery, such as Acetic Acid, Carbonic Acid, Hydrochloric Acid, Salicylic Acid, Sulphuric Acid, Tartaric Acid, &c.; Refer to those headings.

ACITRON. — Sp. for citron dried and made into sweetmeat; candied lemon-peel.

ACORN (literally, oak(ac)corn). — At an early period of barbaric existence this fruit of the oak was ground into meal to make a kind of cake, or bread. In modern times it is regarded as food lit only for hogs, and even that is disputed. It is stated that in Germany Acorns are sometimes chopped up and roasted to be used medicinally by invalids as coffee; by this process of roasting much of their intense astringency is destroyed.

ACQUACEDRATA . — Ital. for water sweetened with sugar and flavoured with lemon-peel — a sort of lemonade.

ADELAIDE PUDDING.— See Puddings.

ADELAIDE CAKES.— See Cakes.

ADELAIDE SANDWICHES.— See Sandwiches.

ADJOUE. — A paste made of dates, which the Arabs carry about with them to mix with water and make a refreshing drink.

ADMIRAL’S SAUCE.— See Sauces.

ADULTERATIONS. — It would be impossible to perfect a work of this kind without saying a few words upon this bane of commerce and health. The craze for cheap goods has fostered the evil; but the Acts of Parliament affecting it — which would be better if they were more rigidly enforced — make the penalties so heavy, that the risk of loss by exposure and fine would exceed the value of the gain. Unfortunately, the passing of an Act does not always ensure its activity; hence, in the case particularly of tinned and preserved foods, the Adulteration still carried on is prodigious. The great secret of its avoidance is to buy of the best makers only. Any purchaser can have food analysed by the public analyst on payment of a fee of 10s. 6d. The penalty for the first detected offence of adulteration is, should a conviction ensue, a fine not exceeding £50. The following are a few of the more common Adulterations: Allspice, with mustard-husks; Anchovies, with Armenian bole, Y enetian red, red ochre, &c.; Arrowroot, with cheaper starches — sago, tapioca, potato; Bread, with potatoes, alum, and inferior or diseased flour; Butter, with colouring matter, water, salt, lard, tallow, and other fats; Cayenne, with ground rice, vermilion, Venetian red, and turmeric; Cheese, with colouring matter; Chicory, with colouring matters, such as ferruginous earths, burnt sugar, and Venetian red, and different flours, such as wheat, rye, beans, and sometimes sawdust; Cloves, with clove-stalks; Cocoa and Chocolate, with arrowroot and other starchy matters; Coffee, with chicory and its adulterations (it is better to buy the roasted beans, and grind fresh for use); Confectionery, with dangerous colouring matters, especially in aromatic confectionery; Curry Powder, with red lead, ground rice, and salt; Custard and Egg Powders, with turmeric, chrome yellow, and indifferent flours; Flour, with many substances, such as other and inferior flours, rice, beans, Indian corn, potato, sulphate of lime, and alum; Gelatine, with salt and sugar; Ginger (ground), with turmeric and husks of mustard, flour, and sago; Honey, with flour and sugar; Isinglass, with inferior gelatine; Lard, with carbonate of soda, salt, potato, flour, lime; Lemon-juice (in bottles), with sugar and water, acidulated with sulphuric acid; Liquorice, with rice, chalk, gelatine, and cheap flours; Marmalade, with turnip pulp; Milk, with water (the old story of chalk is mythical, as it would be found at the bottom of the vessel after standing, and could not, therefore, be mistaken for cream); Mustard, with turmeric and wheat-flour; Oatmeal, with barley-flour, and rubble; Pepper, with linseed-meal, cheap flours, mustard-husks,

Adulterations — continued.

&c.; Pickles, with salts of copper; Porter and Stout, with sugar, treacle, liquorice, water, salt, and “ porter extract ” — a compound of iron, salt, liquorice, treacle, seeds of Paradise, and other abominations, sold to publicans in bladders, and added, by unscrupulous tradesmen, to wastebeer, to make porter; Rum, with water, cayenne, and burnt sugar; Sago, with potato-flour; Sauce, with treacle, salt, cochineal, Armenian bole, and other colouring matters; Sherry, with sulphate of potash, soda, brandy, burnt sugar, &c.; Soda ( Bicarbonate ), with carbonate and sulphate of soda; Spices, with colouring matters, flour and other substitutions; Sugar, with sand and flour; Tapioca, with inferior starch; Tea, with sand, iron, exhausted tea-leaves, foreign leaves, sloe-leaves, and, in green teas, black lead, Prussian blue, and China clay; Vinegar, with sulphuric acid, and metallic impurities, such as lead; Wines, with water, bitartrate of potash, jerupiga, and various substitutions. See Analysis.

AERATED BREAD. — Bread that has been raised by the injection of carbonic-acid gas in lieu of yeast or other leaven. See Bkead.

AERATED WATER ( Fr . Eau Gaseuse; Ger. Gashaltige Wasser).- — There are two sorts of popular beverages which come under this title; the one being from natural springs, or medicated, and the other, artificial and refreshing. Both kinds are impregnated with carbonic-acid gas under high pressure, and are bottled by machinery.

, Of the Natural springs, those best known are:

Apollinaris.— From the Apollinaris Brunnen Springs in the valley of the Ahr, Germany. It contains the carbonate, chloride, sulphate, and phosphate of soda, salts of potash, carbonates of magnesia and lime, oxides of iron and alumina, and silicic acid. This spring yields at the rate of 6000 quarts in an hour.

Carlsbad. — At Carlsbad, in Bohemia, there are several springs, of alkaline and saline composition, containing, in regular proportions, sulphates of potash and soda, chloride of soda, carbonates of soda, lime, and magnesia, strontia, alumina, and manganese, oxide of iron, phosphates of alumina and lime, fluoride of lime, and silica. It is strongly recommended in diabetes, gout, and biliary disorders. Should be taken warm.

Friedricbsball Bitter.— Obtained from Friedrichshall, near Coburg. Contains sulphates of soda, potash, magnesia, and lime, chlorides of sodium and magnesium, bromide of magnesia, carbonates of lime and magnesia, and the silicate of magnesia. Aperient and diuretic. A few drops of lemon-juice, or a glass of sherry, will take off some of the bitterness. This water keeps good for a length of time.

Pullna is a strong purgative, each pint holding in solution about 150 grains of sulphate of soda, 120 grains of sulphate of magnesia (Epsom salts), and other salts..

Rosbach. — In the Wetterau the springs giving this water are found. It is famous because it is so perfectly free from organic impurities. It contains chloride of sodium (common salt) and carbonates of lime and magnesia.

Seltzer. — An artificial water of this name is so cheaply supplied by Aerated Water makers that it is doubtful how much of the spring-water is imported here. More than a million bottles of the water are said to be exported annually from Seitz, or Selters, in Nassau, near Mayence. It contains bicarbonates of soda, lime, and magnesia, bromide of iron, chlorides of sodium, and potassium, sulphates and phosphates of sodium, silica, and alumina. Seltzer is very pleasant drinking with brandy or wine, being highly gaseous and digestive. For invalids it is specially recommended with milk.

Vicby. — This water can be obtained from several springs, the chief of which are the Grande-grille, Petits puits carre, Grand puits carre, Hopital, Acacias, Lucas, Celestin, Desdames, &c.; They are situated in the valley of the Allier, in France, and hold in solution carbonates of soda, lime, and magnesia, chloride of sodium, sulphate of soda, oxide of iron, and silica. Recommended in liver complaints and dyspepsia.

Wilbelm’s Quelle.— Kronthal, near Frankfort-on-the-Maine, is famous for this very ancient spring. The yield is bright and

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Scc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Aerated Water — continued.

sparkling’, with an agreeable saline flavour, and being bottled at high pressure, the water is very full of gas. It is recommended in cases of gout, rheumatism, and diseases of the bladder. The water contains the chlorides of sodium and potassium, sulphate of potassium, bromide, iodide, phosphate and carbonate of sodium, carbonates of lithium, barium, strontium, lime, magnesia, and iron, manganese, and silica.

There are also mineral springs at Aix-la-Chapelle, Baden-Baden, Cauteret, Ems, Fachingen, Homburg, Kissingen, Kreuznach, Marienbad, Seidlitz, Vais, and others of less importance. In England, we have mineral and hot springs at Bath, Brighton, Bristol, Buxton, Cheltenham, Clifton, Filey, Harrogate, Hastings, Leamington, Malvern, Parton and Woodhall, Scarborough, and Tunbridge Wells. In Scotland, the principal are Airthrey, Bridge of Allan, Moffatt, and Strathpeffer; all having special medicinal claims, but known better locally than as bottled beverages.

Artificial Aerated Waters may be divided into three classes: (1) the Simple Aerated Water, commonly known as Soda-water, though containing no soda; (2) Saline and Medicated Aerated Waters, or imitations of natural springs; and (3) Saccharinated Aerated Waters, or those containing fruit-syrups and flavourings.

Simple Aerated Water. — This consists of pure water highly impregnated with carbonic-acid gas, which has been also thoroughly purified, yielding a pleasant, freely sparkling, almost tasteless beverage. It is commonly known as “ Sodawater,” having, in its early days, been rendered saline by the addition of certain salts of soda. It was for many years a fashionable dinner beverage.

Saline and other Medicated Aerated Waters. — These require no further notice than to observe that they are chalybeate and saline, in imitation of various natural springs. For many years these and the genuine spring waters were sold under the Patent Medicines Act, and carried a stamp; but in the year 1833 this Act, so far as they were concerned, was abolished. Numberless attempts have been made to introduce non-alcoholic Aerated Beverages that should be worthy imitations of bottled beers, stouts, and sparkling wines; and prizes are given yearly by Mr. J. Gilbert Smith, proprietor of the Mineral Water Trade Review (the representative trade journal), at the London Brewers’ Exhibition, for the best and newest specimens of this or any other kind. It is only just to say that these praiseworthy efforts have done good service, and in the next class considerable success has been achieved.

Saccharinated Aerated Waters.— First amongst these ranks Lemonade, and next in importance is Ginger Ale, Orangeade and some others flavoured with vanilla and fruit-syrup bringing up the rear. The process of aerating is too intricate to be treated of in these pages, and the machinery required is too expensive

Fig. 1. Aerating Machine.

and troublesome for private use (see Fig. 1). The flavourings are given by syrups with essential oils. Thus, lemon syrup, composed of essence of lemon, citric acid, and syrup, gives Lemonade; orange syrup, Orangeade; and ginger syrup, often

Aerated W ater — continued.

with essence of capsicum added to give it warmth, Gingerade, or Ginger Ale, as it is more frequently styled.

It is not necessary to go further into the manufacture of these excellent beverages, for they are produced for us at a price that could not be rivalled by home preparation. They form, however, a very important factor in our table festivities, and in summer a goodly supply, iced, should be ready at hand at all times to refresh a visitor or guest. Soda, Potash, and Seltzer Waters, served with the spiritflasks or claret, and Lemonade with sherry or Marsala, always betoken the liberality of the host.

iESCULAF. — An artificial saline-aperient aerated medicinal mineral water, named after Aesculapius, the great father of healing.

AFRICAN BEER. — The brewing of strong drink from grain has assumed a considerable importance in various parts of Africa, especially in Cairo, Tunis, Constantine, Algiers, Oran, Phillippeville, and other large towns, and is likely to increase considerably, since Mussulman lovers of it have discovered that it is not specially proclaimed by the Khoran. The best African Beer is that brewed in Algiers, which is of a bright golden colour, and of pleasing flavour, though inclined to be over-sweet. That brewed in inferior breweries is of a dark colour, and none too pleasing in aroma or flavour, but seems to meet the requirements of the natives, in spite of its high cost — averaging about 5d. per half-pint glass. Experts believe that the prevalence of the sirocco in some way affects the quality of the African brewing; but the probabilities are that the fault lies with the workmen. See Beer.

AFRICAN BITTERS. — A firm of manufacturers in Phillippeville, Algeria, produce a large quantity of a tonic bitter under this name. It is said to be compounded principally of bitter orange-peel, quinine or cinchona bark, quassia, gentian, and calumba root, macerated in spirits of wine, diluted, and sweetened with sugar.

AGLIONO.— The name of a Piedmontese white wine. See Italian Wines.

AGNELIiOTTO(I). — Hal. for a kind of mincemeat. Patties made of chopped meat, wrapped in pastry, and boiled in a good broth. Urbain-Dubois, formerly chef to the late King William of Prussia, gives the following receipt for preparing this fanciful dish:

Agnellotti Turin. — Prepare a nouille-paste with lib. of flour, the yolk of one egg, a small piece of butter, and the water required to make a stiff paste. Trim a piece of cold braised beef, cut it up into small pieces, and chop it. Fry in a stewpan, with butter, 2 table-spoonfuls of chopped onions, without allowing them to take colour. Moisten with a few gravy-spoonfuls of broth, and reduce to a glaze. Then put the pan back, and add the chopped meat to the onions. Introduce into this a handful of grated Parmesan cheese; season with salt and pepper, and let the preparation cool. In the meantime, divide the nouillepaste into two parts, and roll them out very thin. Take up the preparation in the stewpan with a spoon, and set small balls of it at short distances from each other on the first flat of paste. Moisten the paste, cover the first flat with the second, and press it down with your thumb between each of the small balls. Cut these flats with a pastry roulette into squares, which should be lifted with a palette-knife, and laid jon a floured napkin spread over a baking-sheet. A few minutes before serving, plunge the Agnellotti into boiling salt water, boil for a few seconds, and then draw the pan to one side, and in five or six minutes you can drain them. Whilst they are draining, clarify about lOoz. or 12oz. of butter, and add thereto J pint of good brown gravy. At the first bubbling, remove to one side, and drop in the Agnellotti. Pour the whole into a flat dish, and sprinkle freely with grated Parmesan cheese.

AGNEW PUDDING. — See Puddings.

AGRO DOLCE SAUCE .—Ital., literally, for “ bittersweet sauce ”; a great favourite in Italy, and served with a multitude of roast and baked dishes. The re

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

5

Agro Dolce Sauce — continued. ceipt for its manufacture is given by Mr. J. Fiorillo as follows:

lib. of pignoli, or pine-cone kernels, from which a pungent bitter is obtained, 2oz. pistachio kernels, 3oz. of chocolate, 2oz. of sugar, j- pint of wine vinegar, l.joz. of candied orangeand lemon-peel combined, 2oz. of black currants, and ljoz. of red-currant jelly; these ingredients are stewed for half-an-hour in a rich, clear, brown sauce, preferably that made from the flesh which forms the dish. Wild boar, venison, hare, and other savoury meats, are greatly improved by the addition of this sauce.

AIGEN. — The Tartar tribes give this name to a sort of arrack, which they ferment from cows’-milk, as the Arabs prepare koumiss from the milk of mares. See Koumiss.

AIGRETTE.— This is a French term, much used in ornamental confectionery, and signifies, literally, “ a bunch or group,” such as of grass, palms, or flowers, or a plume of grapes.

AIGUILLETTES. — Fr. for, literally, “little needles.” By some cooks the term is applied to “ very thin strips ” into which fish or meat is cut; but others, and Soyer amongst them, adapt the term to indicate the mode of serving — that is, “ on small, silver skewers.”

Aiguillettes of Fish. — This dish is given us by Dubois, and the term is applied as to the strips of flesh. Cut a slice of any fish to little more than lin. thick, remove the skin, and divide the slice into two, having removed the bone. Cut the slices up into very thin strips (forming the Aiguillettes), salt them, dip them in oil, roll them in flour, and plunge them into hot fat to fry them. As soon as the flesh is firm, take them out with a skimmer, drain, season them with salt, and dish up with a little fried parsley.

Note that this process is merely one of frying strips of flesh, and may therefore be applied equally well to almost any kind of fish flesh which may be convenient. The hot fat must be hotter than boiling water ( see Frying), and a thick batter may be used instead of oil and flour. Anchovy sauce goes well with these fish Aiguillettes.

“For this kind of hors-d’oeuvres,” says Soyer, “it is necessary to have twelve small silver” or electroplated. — Ed. “ skewers, about 4in. long, and the thickness of a packing-needle, with a ring or fancy design on the

top (see Fig. 2); the persons eating what is served upon, them taking the head of the skewer with the thrnnb and fingers of the left hand, and picking it off with the fork ” ( see Attelettes).

Aiguillettes of Sweetbread. — Boil three throat sweetbreads in water for ten minutes. Pour off the water, and add one onion, one carrot, one turnip (all sliced), two bay leaves, and 1 pint of white stock or broth. Let all simmer for about twenty minutes or so — that is, until the sweetbreads are quite firm. Then take out the sweetbreads, and lay them on a clean cloth. Cut them into pieces about the size round of a shilling, with a long, round cutter, and season with pepper and salt. The next part of the process is to chop two shallots very fine, and fry them in a stewpan with loz. of butter until they are quite white. Then add 10 table-spoonfuls of white sauce and 8 table-spoonfuls of light stock. Let it reduce slowly until thickish, when the yolks of two eggs may be beaten in, and the juice of half a lemon. Do not let it boil after the yolks are added, but remove to one side of the stove. Dip the pieces of sweetbread into the sauce with a fork, and lay them on a dish until they are cold. Bun the skewers through the centres of the pieces — two on a skewer. Egg and bread

Aiguillettes — cont inued.

crumb them freely, and fry in hot lard. Serve very hot, on

a folded napkin or dish-paper.

A variety of dainty foods can be served on these Aiguillettes, which would be inexpensive: Oysters threaded, egged, and breaded, or buttered, and fried; mussels ditto; bits of lobster or any other fish; or cold meats, such as chicken and ham alternately, served with a slice of lemon to each: either would complete a very novel and tasty supper-dish, well worthy of any cook’s consideration.

AILLADE.— Fr. for a piece of bread that has been rubbed with garlic.

AIR.— It is a remarkable fact that cooks and others pay very little attention to the value of a continuous supply of fresh Air to the apartments in which they are destined to spend so much of their time. A notion seems to prevail that a draught, as they term it, passing through the chamber, is calculated to delay the cooking by cooling the stove; whereas, the free access of Air increases the combustion of the fuel, and in that way increases the heat far beyond what the stream of Air can carry off. Roasting meats should at all times be protected by a screen ( see Roasting). The kitchen of the Orleans Club, London, under the direction of Mons. L. Cunat, is divided into compartments by glass partitions descending from the ceiling to within about 6ft. or 7ft. of the floor. The heated Air rises into these compartments, and is carried off by ventilators opening at the top of each. The result is, that whilst the massive ovens, stoves, and roasting-fumace are in full work, the heat is scarcely perceptible a few yards away from them. Such a clever and strictly scientific arrangement adds to the comfort and health of those working therein. Air contains moisture, which the heat of the stove quickly dries up; this moisture is essential to the well-being of the lungs and Air-passages. Hence, inhaling heated or dried Air leads to numerous irritative or inflammatory affections of the respiratory organs, such as bronchitis, pneumonia, and asthma, to all of which cooks and kitchen hands are notoriously subject. A wise cook will take care that a steady current of Air is gently, but continuously moving through the kitchen, and that this Air comes direct from the outside, and is therefore pure and unvitiated in transit. After coming into contact with the heated stoves, it passes up the flue, or through ventilators in or close to the ceiling.

Fig. 3. Ventilated Safe (Keen’s Principle).

As a stream of Air passes along, it bears on its soft wings particles of dust, which are continually falling when the Air is still, but which are raised again like featherdown in a gust or rapid draught. These particles may be

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

6

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Air — continued.

seen dancing about in the rays of sunshine like so many microscopical flies. Their vagaries may be watched with interest, and then their everlasting tendency to fall will be observed. It is important to understand this, because recent investigations have shown that amongst these floating particles are to be found the chrysalised germs of putrefaction. If the Air remains still, these germs will naturally settle upon anything that is within their falling course, and will start into active life so soon as they happen to alight upon congenial soil. This will suggest that food concealed under a bell-shaped cover — such as a tumbler of milk under a basin — will be less subject to putrefaction than that which is exposed to the influence of these falling bodies; and a very ingenious series of culinary utensils have been invented by Mr. Keen, of St. Leonards-on-Sea, to meet this view, and provide ventilation at the same time, an illustration of one of which is given by Fig. 3.

Further special reference will be made to this subject in the article on Food-preserving.

AITCHBONE. — That part of an ox which is cut from between the rump and the buttock. It is called indiscriminately Edge-bone, H-bone, and Haunch-bone. See Beef.

AJADA. — A Spanish sauce made of bread steeped in water, garlic, and salt.

AJO BLANCO. — To Spain this soup belongs. In Andalusia it is regarded with exceeding favour. A jo

being the Spanish for garlic, and bianco, white. This means literally “ white garlic broth.”

Pound in a mortar a large-sized clove of garlic and six or seven blanched almonds or peeled haricot beans until they are reduced to a smooth paste. Add to this, stirring well, a tablespoonful of olive oil, drop by drop; then water by degrees, rubbing thoroughly so as to entirely incorporate the lot. Continue to add water until the mass is sufficiently wet to soak a thick slice of bread; then pour in a dessert-spoonful of vinegar, and add a little salt. Put in the bread broken into pieces half the size of an almond, and allow them to soak. Mix up again, and serve.

AJOLIO. — Sp. for a sauce made of oil and garlic. See Ayoli.

AKEE. — This tree ( Blighia sap id a) is a native of Guinea, and is found also in the West Indies, to which part it was carried by Captain Bligh. According to Rhind, it was introduced into England in 1793. The fruit

is oblong, ribbed, compressed in the middle, and dull orange in colour; it contains several large seeds, to the end of which is attached a rich, tasty, and slightly acid outer coat, which is the part eaten.

A LA. — Fr. for “after the style of,” as a la mode Russe, in the Russian style; the word mode being understood.

ALAJU. — A Spanish dessert dish; a compote or paste made of almonds and walnuts.

ALBANY CAKES. — See Cakes.

ALBATROSS (Fr, Albatros; Ger., Kriegsscliiffvogel). — This monstrous bird of the Australian seas is not unfamiliar to chefs of sea-going ships’ kitchens. The flesh is hard, but makes capital stock, and the fat is proclaimed excellent for frying.

ALBEMARLE PUDDING. — See Puddings. ALBERT CAKES. — See Cakes.

ALBERT PUDDING.— See Puddings.

ALBORONIA. — A Sp anish dish made with tomatoes, pumpkins, and pimento.

ALBUMEN (Fr. Albumine; Ger. Eiweiss, Eiweistoff; literally, the white of egg). — Flesh consists chiefly of cells containing Albumen, which constitutes the nutrient quality of the meat; so that it is important for cooks to

Albumen — continued.

understand something of the nature and properties of this substance. It must not be confounded with isinglass or gelatine, from which it is quite distinct, although similar in some of its qualities. Gelatine or isinglass contains but little nourishing value, whereas Albumen is the most nourishing substance known.

In its natural state Albumen is thickly fluid, as seen in the white of an uncooked egg; but when subjected to heat it turns hard and white. The same result happens with the albuminous juice of meat when exposed to the heat of the fire in cooking, and, in consequence, the flesh becomes firm and set; with this exception, the Albumen of meat being combined with red corpuscles, which turn brown on cooking, it assumes a whitey-brown appearance instead of a pure white, as in the case of the Albumen of egg. Milk consists of minute oil globules, surrounded by albuminous serum; hence boiling renders it less subject to the attacks of putrefactive germs, which are ever floating in the air (see Air). So also with cooked meat: it is harder, and therefore “keeps better” ( see Food-preserving).

Uncooked Albumen is soluble in cold or tepid water; plunged into boiling water, it sets at once, and is no longer soluble. Hence, meat put into cold water, and then heated up to boiling, loses much of its nourishing albumen in the water or broth ( see Boiling). For a similar reason, the cut surfaces of a piece of meat intended for roasting, over which the freed albumen has been flowing, can be furnished with a hard case, preventing further exudation, by exposing at first to the full force of a hot fire ( see Roasting).

Albumen exists largely in fish, as well as in flesh, and in vegetables, especially those which are termed “ succulent,” such as seakale and asparagus. In all cases the quantity of Albumen present in it determines the nourishing value of the food, and, whether animal or vegetable, is subject to the same changes in cooking.

The various and almost innumerable uses to which the Albumen of the egg may be applied in cooking and confectionery, will be found under other headings. It is preserved in several convenient forms, the most important being that of uncooked Albumen, freed from its watery constituent by drying.

Dried Albumen. — Let a thin layer of white of egg, or the serum of bullock’s blood, be exposed to the evaporating influence of dry air, until it concretes into a thin sheet, resembling horn or palecoloured glue. In this condition it will keep in the dry for years. The drying may be still further continued by the aid of a gentle heat, until the Albumen becomes sufficiently brittle to be powdered. To prepare either for use, it is only necessary to dissolve sufficient in cold water, whisk into a froth, and stir up in the fluid to be clarified.

ALCOHOL.— This word is derived from the Arabic — al, the; Kohol, spirit, — its discovery being attributed to the Arabians, who were great chemists at one time, and sufficiently wise also to prohibit its use amongst themselves by direction of the Koran. Amongst some other races of men, being under the influence of strong drink was looked upon as equivalent to being possessed of evil spirits —hence the name, Alcohol — “ the spirit ”; but others, especially the natives of Central Africa, regarded such an individual as temporarily raised to the dignity of a god — or “elevated,” as we say in our language — and to such a one they permitted extravagances of conduct that, under other circumstances, would have been deemed outrageous.

Alcohol is the product of fermenting sugar, and gives to wines, spirits, and beers, their intoxicating qualities. It is highly inflammable, and is used as “spirits of wine” for heating purposes; it also evapoi – ates freely, for which reason ( see Refrigerating) it is sometimes used for cooling. Dilute. Alcohol may be procured by distillation from all saccharine liquors, after fermentation: brandy, from wine; mm, from the refuse juice of the sugar-cane; whisky, from fermented malt; arrack, from fermented

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dc., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

7

Alcohol — continued.

rice, or from palm wine, &c.; “ Spirits of wine ” is diluted Alcohol (Alcohol is never found in an absolutely undiluted state), and may be either “rectified” or “proof.” Proof Spirit contains in 100 parts about 57 of Alcohol and 47 of water, the 4 per cent, over disappearing by the condensation that follows the admixture of spirit with water. Rectified Spirit is usually sold at from 54 to 64 over-proof, reckoning “ proof ” as 100; so that 100 pints of rectified spirit, at 64 over-proof, would contain as much Alcohol as 164 pints of proof spirit.

The terms “over-proof” (o.p.) and “under-proof” (u.p.) are thus shown to be calculated upon the consideration that proof spirit is, as nearly as possible, equal parts of pure (or absolute) Alcohol and water, and fixes the standard at 100. Gin is generally retailed at about 20 under proof, which indicates that 100 pints of gin at 20 u.p. would contain as much absolute alcohol as 80 pints of proof spirit. Brandy sold at 5 o.p. would show that 100 measures of that spirit would contain as much absolute Alcohol as 105 of proof spirit.

The following is a list of the average percentages of Alcohol found in some of the better-known spirits, wines, malt liquors, &c.;: the exact amount varies somewhat

according to age and conditions of manufacture, and the “reduction” the spirit may have suffered at the hands of the retailer. In some cases this is regulated by Act of Parliament.

Spirits.

In a Hundred Parts.

Scotch Whisky

about 5 4 1

Irish Whisky

„ 54

Rum

534

Brandy

„ 534

Gin

514

Wines.

Raisin

„ 25

Marsala

,. 25

Amontillado

„ 24

Port

„ 234

Madeira

„ 22

Currant

,. 204

Constantia, White

,i 194

Lachryma Christi …

„ m

Sherry

191

Malaga

19

Constantia, Red …

19

Lisbon

184

Bucellas

„ 184

Cape Muscat

„ 184

Rousillion …

„ 18

Grape

„ 18

Hermitage, White…

174

Malaga

174

Zante

„ 17

Malmsey

164

Claret

15

Burgundy …

„ 144

Sauterne

,. 144

Champagne, Still ..

„ m

Vin de Grave

„ 134

Tent

134

Champagne, Sparkling

12f

Frontignac …

„ 12f

Champagne, Red …

„ 124

Hermitage, Red …

„ 124

Hock

„ 12

Gooseberry…

m

Riidesheimer

„ 114

Orange

„ 1H

Tokay

03.

o 1,4

Elder

„ 91

Cider

9f

Hock

84

Rhenish

„ 84

Mead

„ 74

Perry

„ 74

Alcohol — continued.

Malt

Liquors.

In a hundred Parts.

Ale, Burton

about 8

Stout, Brown

„ 6f

Ale, Edinburgh

„ 64

,, Ordinary

54

Porter

44

Small Beer…

„ H

Sweet Liqueurs

from 20 to 35

For further information concerning the liquors mentioned in the above list, reference should be made to their special headings.

ALDERMAN’S PUDDING. — See Puddings.

ALE. — This old-fashioned English beverage is occasionally used in cookery (see Rarebits) as a vehicle for boiling some fish, such as eels, or for giving a body to thin soups and sauces. It has been also employed as a substitute for sherry or other wine in preparing jellies and other nourishing foods for invalids. See Beer.

Ale Flip. — An old and favourite drink for cold weather, prepared by heating good Ale, with sugar and spice to taste. For every quart beat up the yolks of two eggs, and the white of one — some put the two entire eggs in — and after mixing with a little cold Ale, stir in quickly, and froth up by dexterously pouring from one jug to another from a height.

Ale Posset. — A trusted remedy for colds. Boil lightly 4 pint of new milk, and stir in the beaten yolk of an egg and a piece of butter as large as a filbert; sweeten to sweetness with powdered sugar. Mix this with an equal quantity of warmed Ale, and boil until a scum rises, when it is ready. Pour over a welltoasted slice of bread from which the crusts have been removed, and serve steaming in a basin, with the toast.

Mulled Ale.— Ale is mulled by boiling with a small piece of butter, ginger, cloves, and sugar to taste. Eggs well beaten and whipped in may be added, and the whole served hot.

ALEATICO. — A light, sweet wine of Tuscany. See Italian Wines.

ALECOST. — See Costmary.

ALEXANDRA PUDDING.— See Puddings.

ALG1E. — A tribe of seaweeds, of which several edible varieties are known, all more or less wholesome and

Fig. 4. Two Varieties of Sea-Moss.

nutritious. Blyth, in his “ Dictionary of Hygiene,” declares them to contain a greater proportion of nourishment than

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, ifcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

8

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Algse — continued.

oatmeal or Indian corn. The following are the more familiar kinds:

Chondrus crispus, or Carrageen; better known as Irish Moss, Pearl-moss, or Sea-moss. See Pig. 4. See also Carrageen. Laminaria digitata, styled Sea-girdle in

Fig. 5. Sea-Girdle.

England, Tangle in Scotland, and Redware in the Orkneys. See Fig. 5. L. saccharina ( Alaria esculenta), or Bladderlock; called also by the Scotch, Henware or Honeyware. See Fig. 6. Porphyra laminata ( P . vulgaris ), called Laver in England, Stoke in Ireland, and Slouk in Scotland. See Fig. 7. Ulva latissima, or Green Laver. See Fig. 8.

From their nutritive qualities and plentiful distribution along our coasts, the foregoing Algas and others have been freely adopted by the poorer classes as a staple article of diet. In fashionable circles the Laver has been highly esteemed as “marine sauce.” It is gathered during the

Fig. 6. Bladderlock.

winter months, and is reckoned to be fit for food only in the cold season. Visitors to the seaside, especially invalids, should not fail to make the acquaintance of these Algee. They are easily prepared for eating, as follows:

Wash in cold water until all salt and sand are removed, and add a little bicarbonate of soda to the last water, in which you may

Algse — continued.

allow the weed to steep for some hours; this will remove some of the bitterness. Stew in rain water or milk until it becomes tender and mucilaginous, and serve either strained, like spinach, or in the broth. Pepper, vinegar or lemon-juice, salt or

Fig. 7. Laver. Fig. 8. Green Laver.

butter, may be addl at discretion, or according to taste. After Laver has been thoroughly boiled for some time it should assume a dark green colour, and then, when cold, can be stored away in earthenware jars for future use. It will keep good for two or three weeks.

ALGERIAN WINES.— A very large variety of Wines are produced from the sunny vineyards of Algeria, but they are considered inferior in quality to the sweet Wines of Spain and Portugal, which they otherwise closely resemble. They are not sufficiently known in this country. See Wines.

ALKALI. — An agent which neutralises acids. The chief Alkalies used in cookery or confectionery are Ammonia, Potash, and Soda. Refer to those headings.

ALKANET (Fr. Orcanet; Ger. Orkanet). — A plant of the Bugloss tribe ( Anchusa tinctoria). A beautiful crimson dye is obtained from the dried root, which is useful for colouring fats, oils, wax, spirits, essences, and other things in which it can be infused. Commercially, it is used for colouring cheese, and wine- merchants add it to inferior port to heighten the colour. Bottlers of port wine are apt to stain the new corks in a strong alcoholic infusion of Alkanet, to give them, when drawn, the character of old bottling. Alkanet is largely cultivated in Montpellier.

ALEEBNES.— A cordial prepared from Kermes (Arabian berries). See Cordials and Liqueurs.

Bruise lib. of mace, lib. of bay leaves, loz. of cloves, 2oz. of cinnamon, and 2oz. of nutmegs, and soak for some days in 3galls. of brandy. The whole should then be distilled to 2galls., with which 181b. of clarified syrup of kermes and 1 pint of orangeflower water, are to be eventually added. The distillation is important, but by straining and filtering the infusion as it is, a very good cordial is produced.

Imitation Alkermes. — Macerate for ten days 2 drachms each (bruised) of cinnamon and cloves, 4 drachms of nutmeg, in 4qts. of proof spirits; after straining and filtering this, dissolve 51b. of loaf sugar in 1 pint of rose-water, and add to the spirit, colouring a light red.

ALLIGATOR APPLE ( Anona palustris). — The tree bearing this fruit grows wild in the marshes of Jamaica. It is shiny and smooth in appearance, and pleasant to the taste, but highly narcotic.

ALLIGATOR PEAR ( Persea gratissima). — Another name for this is the Avocado. It is a native of the West Indies, about the size and shape of a large European pear, and is said to be the most delicious fruit in the world. It contains a kernel, inclosed in a soft rind, and

l’or details respecting Culinary Processes t Utensils, Sauces, Ac., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

9

Alligator Fear — continued. the yellow pulp, which is firm, has the delicate rich flavour of the peach, but is infinitely more grateful. “It is sometimes called vegetable marrow,” says a writer on these fruits, “ and is eaten with pepper and salt.” It appears

Fig. 9. Alligator Pear.

necessary, on account of the richness of its pulp, to take some spice or acid with it, and thus lime-juice is frequently added, well sweetened with sugar. There are three kinds, red, purple, and green, the last-named being considered the best of the three (see Fig. 9).

ALLSPICE.— Pimento, or Jamaica Pepper (Pimento, officinalis ), of the myrtle tribe, is the shrub from which this useful spice is obtained. The green berries are gathered from the plants along the “ Pimento walks,” and dried and powdered, the ripe berries being of too gelatinous a nature to admit of this process. Allspice, as we know it, is a powder yielding an aromatic odour of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmegs combined, from which it derives its name; but it is to be feared that the Allspice of commerce, or much of that sold under the name, is merely a mixture of those or inferior spices. The genuine powdered berry can readily be distinguished by spreading a portion out on a sheet of paper, and examining closely for grains of a distinct port-wine colour, with which it should be freely intermingled.

ALMA PUDDING. — See Puddings.

ALMACX’S CONFECTION.— There does not appear to be anything exceptional about this very nice sweetmeat, beyond the name, that should claim for it a special notice. It is very easily prepared.

Peel and core a dozen each of large cooking apples and pears, and cut two dozen large plums in halves, taking out the stones. Put them in alternate layers at the bottom of a deep jar or pan, place in the bain-marie or in a saucepan, with boiling water to cover the fruit, and stir constantly until done. Then turn the mixture into a preserving pan and add to it an equal weight of crushed loaf sugar. Set the pan on the fire and let it remain there for about forty-five minutes or so, by which time the contents should be quite thick. When it is so, pour out into a flat tin or basin, let it get cold, cut into slices, dust with caster sugar, and it is then ready to serve.

ALMONDS ( Fr . Amandes; Ger. Mandeln; Ital. Mandorle; Sp. Almendras). — The kernel of the Almond nut is

Almonds — continued.

largely used in cooking and confectionery for its delicate flavour. There are two kinds — Sweet and Bitter — so closely resembling each other in appearance as to be almost indistinguishable, excepting by the taste. The Sweet variety ( Amygdalus dulcis) are harmless, but the Bitter Almonds (A. amara) contain, or generate by fermentation, prussic acid, rendering them extremely dangerous to use without much discretion. A hundred grains of Bitter Almond pulp are said to contain two drops of the oil, and from fifteen to thirty drops of the oil are sufficient to cause death (see Flavourings). The skins of both kinds are very indigestible, and have been known, even when eaten in small quantities, to induce attacks of nettle-rash. For this reason Almonds should invariably be skinned, or “ blanched,” before using.

a b . c

Fig. 10. Almonds. a, Jordan; b, Valencia; c, Italian.

The best Almonds are the Jordan (see Fig. 10, a), imported chiefly from Malaga, and preferred for dessert. They are of two kinds: the one above lin. in length, flat, with a clean brown skin, sweet, mucilaginous, and rather tough; the other more plump, pointed at one end, brittle, but quite as sweet as the former. Valencia Almonds (see Fig. 10, b) are reckoned of the second quality: they are cheaper, and consequently are more used. They are under lin. long, round at one end and bluntly pointed at the other, flat, of a dingy-brown colour, and with a dusty skin. Barbary and Italian Almonds (see Fig. 10, c) are smaller, and less flattened. Spanish Almonds are of mediocre quality, and are usually imported in baskets. When fresh, either kind may be used; but cooks are strongly recommended not to buy kernels of any kind if they are dry, broken, worm-eaten, or smell in the least degree rancid.

To Blanch Almonds. — The Almonds should be thrown into a pan of boiling water, and allowed to remain over the fire until the skins will slip off readily when rubbed between the finger and thumb. It is well then to drain them off, and plunge them into cold water for a minute or two, when they may be drained again, and the skins rubbed off in a cloth. As they are blanched, throw them into cold water, with a little salt in it; leave them for a couple of hours, take them out, and then dry them. They are easily split with a knife, or may be cut lengthwise into long shreds, or crosswise into short ones, or may be chopped up, according to the purpose for which they are required.

To Colour Almonds. — Whether the Almonds are whole, shredded, or chopped, it is only necessary to rub them together with the colouring matter until all are saturated; they should then be dried in a screen.

To Found Almonds. — It is better after blanching to let the Almonds soak for an hour or so in cold water, which will prevent them in a measure from “ oiling.” A few drops of water, orange-flower water, or lemon-juice, should be added now and then, for the same purpose, as the pounding proceeds. When reduced to a softish pulp they are ready for use. Almond Albert Cakes. — Take lib. of ground Valencia Almonds, and put them into a large basin, with lib. of caster sugar, 1 teaspoonful of essence of lemon, and teaspoonful of mixed spice. Mix up in this, with a wooden spoon, the yolks of fifteen eggs; then stir in the whites of the eggs, whipped till quite stiff; and lastly, work in thoroughly Jib. of sifted pastry flour. Have ready a sufficient number of buttered fancy moulds, and bake until a light brown in a moderately quick oven.

Almond Bavaroise, or Bavarian Cream. — Put )oz. of gelatine into a basin with 1 teacupful of milk, and soak it for two hours.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

10

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Almonds — continued.

Put I 2 pints of cream into a basin, and whip well until there is only 5 pint left, the remainder being in a stiff froth. Put 1 pint of blanched Sweet Almonds into a mortar, pound them well, mix in the unwhipped cream, and add three eggs beaten up with 1 teacupful of sugar. Put the whole into a saucepan, and stir well over the fire until the preparation commences to thicken. Add the gelatine, remove the pan from the fire, pour the whole through a sieve into a basin, and add 5 teaspoonful of Essence of Almonds. Whisk well until the mixture thickens, then add the whipped cream, stir well, and pour the cream into moulds, packed in ice. When it is set and firm, turn it out on to a dish, and serve. Whipped cream should accompany it.

Almond Birds’-nest Biscuits. — Prepare some paste as for Almond Faggots, or as follows: Blanch and pound lib. of Sweet Almonds with lib. of caster sugar and a few drops of essence of lemon, and make into a paste with yolks of eggs. To form the nests, roll out the paste thickly, and divide equally into pieces to form round balls the size of a large walnut, which arrange on a greased baking-sheet. Make a depression in the centre of each ball with any convenient round-ended instrument of about .’in. diameter, forming with this the hollow of the nest; drop three or four white confits into it, to represent eggs (see Fig. 11), and bake in a moderate oven. When baked a light brown, and cold, pipe round the rim of the nest with sugar icing; then lift each nest between the fingers and thumb, and dip it lightly into some very finely shredded pistachio kernels, so that the icing may take up enough to give the rim of the nest a very pretty chevauxde-frise appearance. These nests may be used for garnishing, or other artistic decoration.

Almond Biscuits. — (1) Blanch and pound 2oz. each of Bitter and Sweet Almonds, adding a few drops of orange-flower water to prevent them from oiling. Beat up the yolks of two eggs, and mix in jib. of caster sugar; add the Almond pulp, and sufficient flour to form a stiff paste, and roll out to in. thick. Cut into shapes with a pastry-cutter or the rim of a wineglass, and bake on a greased baking-sheet until a light brown.

(2) Into lilb. of fine pastry flour rub lib. of fresh butter, and mix in lib. of caster sugar. Pound 2oz. of blanched Bitter Almonds to a pulp, and add to the mixture of flour, butter, and sugar, making the whole into a stiff paste with three wellbeaten eggs. Mix and knead thoroughly, adding a little milk, milk-and-water, or water, if required. Boll out thin, cut into shapes, dock (see Biscuits), and bake in a quick oven.

(3) Blanch and pound to a pulp jib. of Bitter Almonds, grate off the outer skin of two lemons, and beat six yolks and three whites of eggs together. Beat up 1 teaspoonful of caster sugar with the remaining three whites. Put a baking-sheet into the oven to heat; grease it very lightly, when quite hot, with a piece of rag dipped in butter; paint over the surface with a large paste-brush dipped in the whites of the eggs. Two or three coats of white will be required to make the “ wafer-paper,” as the white is called, sufficiently thick. Bub 3oz. of fresh butter into lib. of fine flour; mix in the Almond pulp, grated lemon-rind, and lib. of caster sugar, and form into a stiff paste with the beaten eggs. Boll out this paste to;lin. thick, and cut into rounds, laying each one separately and apart on the prepared baking-sheet. Put into a quick oven until they are baked a light brown; remove from the oven, and divide the white of eggs on the baking-sheet with the point of a sharp knife between the biscuits, and when cold take up each biscuit by itself, and trim the white round with a pair of scissors.

Almond Blancmanger. — Blanch fib. of Jordan Almonds and l,oz. of Bitter ones. Pound them in a mortar, and add lqt. of water. Strain through a tammy cloth into a basin. Put ilb. of sugar and If pints of water into a stewpan, and stir over the fire until the sugar is dissolved, when it is well to

Fig. 11. Almond Bird’s-nest Biscuit.

Almonds — continued.

strain through a silk sieve. When cool, this should be stirred into the Almond milk with 2oz. of gelatine dissolved in it, or vice versa, and the addition of a teaspoonful of orange-flower water is an improvement. Fill a mould with the mixture, and set in ice for at least two hours. It may be turned out then and served.

Almond Bread. — Blanch and pound 8oz. of Sweet and loz. of Bitter Almonds, put them in a basin, and mix with lib. 2oz. of sifted crushed loaf sugar. Bub the mixture through a sieve into another basin, and add the grated rind of a lemon, 2oz. of flour, and sufficient yolk of egg to make them all into a light soft paste or batter. Pour the mixture into wellbuttered shallow tins to about 2in. in depth, bake gently in a slack oven until done, and it is ready for use.

Almond Cakes.— Mix lb. of warmed butter with lb. of caster sugar until it presents a creamy appearance; then work in gradually five beaten eggs. Having done this thoroughly, mix in lightly 2oz. of ground Sweet Almonds, with a few ground Bitter ones amongst them, a wineglassful of brandy, and 6oz. of flour. Pour this cake about lin. deep into a baking-sheet, previously buttered, and put it into a quick oven to bake. When the cake is nearly done, spread the following mixture over it: £lb. of chopped Almonds, 2oz. of caster sugar, and half the white of an egg, which must be well whipped. Beturn to the oven, and finish baking to a nice light brown colour. When done, the cake should be turned out and allowed to get cold; when it can be cut up in strips, and these into diamond shapes

Fig. 12. Method of Cutting a Strip into Diamonds.

(see Fig. 12), and built up like a pyramid on a fancy dishpaper or napkin. Sometimes whipped cream is served on the centre of each diamond.

Almond Carrot and Turnip Biscuits. — These are very easily made, and most useful for ornamenting sweet entremets. They are shaped by hand out of the same paste as is used for the Almond Walnuts and Nests, the one resembling small spring carrots, and the other turnips, about the size of large radishes. Into the crests of each, where the leaves should be, place a piece of thin stick, with a length of string attached to it, by which the shapes are to be suspended and left for twenty-four hours to dry, and then put into a moderate oven to bake. Have ready a

Fig. 13. Almond Carrot and Turnip Biscuit.

breakfast-cupful of liquid sugar icing coloured red and another plain white. Hip the carrots in the red, and the turnips in the white, and hang them up again to dry. When the icing is

For details respecting Culinary Processes. Utensils, Sauces, c tee., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

11

Almonds — continued.

well set, take out the sticks, and put in their places strips of angelica (see Fig. 13), fixing these in by dipping the end first in the prepared icing, and pushing into the hole from which the piece of stick has been removed.

Almond. Cheese-cakes. — (1) Take 4oz. of Sweet Almonds and six Bitter Almonds, blanch, and pound them in a mortar, adding a few drops of water to prevent them from oiling. Put into a basin Jib. of sugar, a table-spoonful of cream, a small piece of butter the size of a walnut, warmed to melting, and the well-beaten whites of two eggs, and then stir in the pounded Almonds and 20 drops of essence of lemon. Mix all well together, and have ready some light paste, with which line some small tartlet- or patty-pans; fill up the pans with the mixture, and bake for twenty minutes in a moderate oven.

(2) Beat up together very light Jib. of powdered sugar and the whites of four eggs. Beat up Jib. of ground Almonds with the eggs and sugar. Add a little Oil of Almonds or rose-water, and bake in pastry.

(3) Soak Jib. of Almonds in cold water all night. Next morning, blanch them, lay them on a clean cloth to dry, and then beat them fine in a marble mortar with a little orange-flower or rose-water. Then beat and strain six yolks and two whites of eggs, add Jib. of white sugar, and a little powdered mace. Bub all well together in the mortar. Melt lOoz. of fresh butter, and add the grated peel of one lemon. Mix all the ingredient together and fill tartlet-pans, after lining with a puff paste.

(4) Take 6oz. of Sweet and Joz. of ground Bitter Almonds. Work Jib. of butter to a cream with a spoon, put in the Almonds, and add 6oz. of finely-powdered caster sugar, four eggs well whisked, 1 gill of cream, and a little grated lemon-peel. Then take some tartlet-pans, line them with puff paste, fill them with the mixture, put a little candied peel on the top of each, and bake for half-an-hour in a quick oven.

Almond Crackling’s. — Take 6oz. of blanched Almonds cut in short shreds, 4oz. of ground Almonds, lOoz. of sifted sugar, the whites of two eggs, and a few drops of essence of vanilla. Mix them together in a basin, and use a dessert-spoon to lay out pieces the size of a walnut upon a sheet of paper, spread on baking-plates. The cracklings should bo placed 1 Jin. apart, and he slightly spread out with the tip of the finger dipped in water. The circular form may be preserved, and Jin. is sufficient thickness. Bake the cracklings of a light brown colour in a moderately hot oven.

Almond Cream. — Alexis Soyer gives a receipt for this, which we have arranged to suit modern requirements. Blanch Jib. of Sweet Almonds, dry and pound them well. Put them into a stewpan with 6oz. of lump sugar and the yolks of four eggs, and mix well together with a fork. In another stewpan have 1 pint of milk in which you have put loz. of isinglass; boil slowly down to f pint, pass through a tammy, and pour over the preparation in the other stewpan. Stir over the fire until it all thickens, when it may be poured into the howl prepared for it. Let it remain until cold, stirring occasionally to keep it smooth, and shortly after add 2 wineglassfuls of noyeau, maraschino, or curagoa.

Almond Crisps or Pralines.— Blanch lib. of Sweet Almonds, and set them in a slow oven to dry. When sufficiently dry and crisp without being discoloured, they may be pounded in a mortar; lib. of icing-sugar is then to be mixed with them. Pass this through a wire sieve on to a marble slab, and then rub in Jib. of good butter, a little chopped thin rind of lemon or a few drops of the essence, and the yolks of three eggs well beaten, and make into a paste. Boll out this paste, and cut into equal-sized pieces; bake in a sharp oven, and dip in sugar boiled to the “crack” ( see Sugar-boiling). Set to harden.

Almond Croquettes.— (1) Take 8oz. of flour, 8oz. of Almonds, 8oz. of sugar, the zest of two oranges rasped by lumps of sugar, two whole eggs and one extra yolk. Scald the Almonds, and remove their skins, afterwards soaking for two hours in cold salt-and-water. Pound them thoroughly in the mortar, with a few drops of orange-flower water added to prevent oiling, until reduced to a pulp; then mix in the remainder of the ingredients by pounding all together. Take up the paste, knead it with a little flour upon the slab, roll it with a bit of flat board into the shape of a straight rolling-pin, lay this on

Almonds — continued.

a greased baking-sheet, egg it over, and bake in very moderate heat; when done, and while hot, cut it up in thin slices (see

Fig. 14. Cutting-up Almond Croquettes.

Fig. 14), and dry them on a baking-sheet in a very slow oven. After they are dried, moisten their edges with royal icing, dip them in finely-chopped pistachio kernels, and dry them a few minutes longer.

(2) Use the same ingredients as in the preceding; mix all together, leaving the Almonds whole; roll as before in the form of a rolling-pin, and when baked in very moderate heat, cut it up into slices while hot (for if allowed to cool it would be hard and difficult to cut); colour the edges with pink chopped Almonds, or pink-coloured sugar.

Almond Custard Fritters.— Beat up five eggs, mix in a stewpan with lib. of flour, and pour in by degrees lqt. of new milk, taking care to keep the mixture quite smooth. Stir this over a gentle stove for twenty minutes or so, until the custard is sufficiently thickened, when add a mixture of Jib. of sugar, loz. of blanched and well-pounded Bitter Almonds, six yolks of eggs, and a small pinch of salt. This will then form a thick custard, which may be spread on a slightly-buttered bakingsheet; and when cold it may be cut into pieces of about 2in. by ljin. These pieces are now to be dipped in egg and breadcrumbs, and fried in very hot fat until slightly coloured. Drain by skimmer, dust with caster sugar, and serve piled up on a folded napkin or dish-paper. These are not “ fritters ” in the general acceptation of the term, hence it is more convenient to insert them here than under that generic head.

Almond Faggots. — Blanch and pound to a pulp Jib. of Sweet Almonds, adding a teaspoonful of orange-flower water to pre

Fig. 15. Strip for Almond Faggot.

vent them from oiling. Mix up the Almond pulp, with Jib. of fine caster sugar, into a paste with the whites of two eggs

and 10 drops of essence of lemon, and work in as much fine pastry flour as may be required to make a stiff paste.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, fcc., referred to, see under their special heaas.

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Almonds — continued.

Roll this out very thin, and cut into bands about 2in. wide. Cut these bands slantingly crosswise into strips of about -jin. in width, split the ends of some of them (see Rig. 15), gather up five or six into a bundle, and fasten round the centre with another strip (see Fig. 16); twist the ends of the bands together lightly, lay each faggot upon paper, and bake in a moderate oven. Some pastrycooks believe that this sort of paste should be made up on one day, and kept in a cool place covered over with a cloth until the next day, before baking. The object of this delay is that the paste may dry before baking. They should be eaten quite freshly made, but cold.

Almond Flavouring. — See Essence of Bitter Almonds.

Almond Genoese Pastry. — Put 2oz. of butter into a basin, warm it, and beat in jib. of sifted crushed loaf sugar, and 2oz. of Almonds, blanched and pounded with a little orange-flower water; then add the whites of two eggs and the yolks of four, one at a time; and lastly, dredge in by degrees jib. of dried and sifted flour. Work the mixture well with a spoon until it is perfectly smooth, then add a little essence of vanilla to flavour. Put a border of rich puff paste round a dish, pour in the mixture, smooth it on the top, and bake in a moderate oven. Take it out when done, and spread a layer of apricot jam on the top of it. Put the whites of two eggs into a basin with a little each of lemon-juice and icing sugar, work well with a spoon, adding slowly more of the sugar, until the mixture is quite thick and of the consistence of butter. Put this icing over the jam, smoothing over the surface, and set it in the oven again for a few minutes, for the icing to set; take it out, let it get quite cold, cut it into slices, and it is ready for use.

Almond Hardbake. — This is made by dissolving, say, lib. of loaf sugar to a breakfast-cupful of water, and boiling to the “ crack ” (see Sugar-boiling). When the syrup has arrived at this degree (it can be tested by dropping a little on a cold marble slab or plate, when its brittle character will be your guide; or you may drop it into cold water for the same indication), add the juice of half a lemon and a full ounce of butter, and then pour it out on to a well-greased tin or slab. Have ready jib. of split Almonds, and set them in the syrup before it has time to cool, with their flat surfaces upwards.

Sometimes the Almonds are mixed in with the syrup, when they are left unskinned, and the whole is cast in a slab about ljin. deep, and before cold cut into strips about 1 jin. broad.

Almond Icing for Cakes. — Put 8oz. of blanched Sweet Almonds and loz. of Bitter ones into a mortar, pound them well, adding a little rose-water to prevent their oiling, add gradually 9oz. of finely crushed and sifted loaf sugar, and work the whole into a smooth paste; if it be too dry, add a little white of egg. The cake intended to be iced should be first spread over with this paste and then with the sugar-icing when it is set and dry. It can also be made from Bitter Almonds — which have been infused in spirit to obtain the extract of Alm onds — and no Sweet Almonds will then be required. See Icings.

Almond Jumbles. — Put lib . of butter in a basin, warm it, and beat it to a cream, adding gently an equal quantity of sifted crushed loaf sugar. Work in lib. of flour and jib. of Almonds, blanched and pounded or cut up into very small pieces, and the strained juice of a lemon. Knead the mixture well, turn it out on to a floured board, roll it out very thin, and cut it with a tin biscuit-cutter into rounds. Put these on a baking-dish, and bake in a sharp oven until they are done. Take them out, and when cold they are ready for use.

Almond Kosher Pudding.— Blanch and pound 4oz. of Sweet Almonds and three or four Bitter ones, adding a teaspoonful of water to prevent them oiling. Put them into a basin with jib. of sifted crushed loaf sugar, mixing in 2 tablespoonfuls of rose-water and the well-beaten yolks of four eggs and whites of three. Beat this mixture well for about ten minutes, then pour it into a buttered mould or basin, put it in a quick oven, and bake for half-an-hour. Turn it out on to a dish, pour round a little lemon-flavoured syrup coloured with cochineal, and serve.

Almond Meringues. — Put the whites of two eggs into a bowl, whisk them to a stiff froth, and add 4oz. of caster sugar; continue to whisk vigorously, and mix in 4oz. of Sweet Almonds, blanched and finely chopped. Drop the mix

Almonds — continued.

ture on to pieces of thin paper, and put them to dry in the drying closet or slow oven with the door open. Take them out, carefully remove the paper from them, either by damping it or easing the Meringues off with a knife, arrange them on a dish, and serve when quite cold and dry.

Almond Milk. — When Almonds, either Bitter or Sweet, are pounded together, and water added, the liquor resulting is of a milky appearance, and is commonly known to confectioners as “ Almond Milk.” Pound 4oz. of Almonds with 1 pint of water; strain this over jib. of caster sugar, boil up once, and put into bottles for future use. This preparation will keep good for a week.

Almond Oil. — An oil expressed from Sweet Almonds. Sometimes used by cooks and confectioners as a lubricant. This must not be confounded with the Essential Oil of Bitter Almonds.

Almond Paste. — Blanch jib. of Jordan Almonds the day before they are required for use, and allow them to remain in cold water. Soak 4oz. of very clean gum dragon in a jar with 1 gill of water, long enough to allow it to absorb all the water. Pound the Almonds to a pulp, adding a little lemon-juice so as to prevent them from “ oiling.” When they are like a smooth paste, rub them through a close hair sieve. Having done this, put the Almonds into a sugar -boiler with jib. of icing-sugar, and well stir the whole with a wooden spoon. This should be done briskly, so that the paste may not acquire colour. When it does not stick to the sides of the pan it may be taken off the fire. The gum must now be squeezed through strong cloth, and rubbed upon the slab and gradually worked into the paste along with another Jib. of sugar. This kind of paste is usually employed for making baskets, &c.;, which, when filled with strawberries and cream, or any other kind of fruit, make a pretty dish. See Marzipan.

Almond Paste Candied. — Blanch and pound jib. of Jordan Almonds in a mortar, moistening with a little white of egg to prevent oiling. To this add a table-spoonful of kirschenwasser or maraschino, jib. of caster sugar, and a little red colouring matter, such as extract of cochineal. Mix well together, and when cold divide into pieces of equal size, and shape with the fingers. Put these pieces on a sieve and dry in the hot- closet for at least four hours; then set them in a candy-tin. Pour over some syrup at 36deg. of strength ( see Sugar-boiling), and let it flow to about lin. above the pieces. Cover with a sheet of paper, and set to candy in a drying hot-closet. About this time a crust will have formed over the syrup, which must be broken, and the syrup drained off, when the pieces of paste will be found candied. Set them on a wire drainer, and dry in the hotcloset.

Almond Pudding’. — (1) Put 4oz. of butter into a basin, and warm it. Beat the yolks of six eggs and the whites of five in a basin, and add gradually jib. of sifted crushed loaf sugar, then the butter, then jib. of Sweet Almonds, blanched and pounded, and next jib. of sifted breadcrumbs. Turn the mixture into a well-buttered basin or mould, in layers alternately with apricot jam; tie the mould over with a wet cloth, and boil the pudding in a saucepan of water for an hour-anda-half. Turn it out on to a dish, pour sweet sauce round, and serve.

(2) Put four pounded crackers into a basin and mix them up with lib. of Almonds, blanched and pounded with a little rose-water. Then add six eggs, lib. of sugar, 1 pint of cream or milk, jib. of warm butter, and 4 tablespoonfuls of wine. Line a pie-dish with rich puff paste, put in the mixture, and bake in a moderate oven until done. Take it out, and serve.

(3) Put lqt. all but a teacupful of milk into a saucepan with 1 pint of blanched and pounded Almonds, put the saucepan on the fire, and as soon as the milk boils add 1 tablespoonful of rice-flour mixed smooth in 1 teacupful of cold milk. Boil for six minutes, turn it out into a basin, and let it cool. When it is lukewarm add 1 teacupful of sugar beaten until quite light with an equal quantity of warmed butter, and when the mixture is perfectly cold, add the wellbeaten yolks of six eggs, two dozen macaroons dried and rolled, and 1 pint of cream. Pour the mixture into a buttered baking-dish, bake it slowly for forty-five minutes, take it out and serve when cold.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

13

Almonds — continued.

Almond Puddings. — Put 1 breakfast-cupful of milk and 2oz. of butter into a saucepan, and when the liquor boils, pour it over 6oz. of breadcrumbs in a basin; then add a dozen blanched and pounded Jordan Almonds, two well-beaten eggs, and sufficient sugar to sweeten. Pour the mixture into buttered cups or small moulds, and bake them for half-an-hour in a quick oven. Turn them out when done, and serve at once.

Almonds and Raisins for Dessert.— The finest quality of Valencia Raisins, in good bunches, with a purple bloom on the fruit, should be procured for this purpose. Pile up the bunches on the dish in a pyramidal heap, upon a lace-pattern dessertpaper, and strew well-blanched Almonds over and between the bunches. See Raisins.

Almond and Raspberry Ice. — 1st Mixture: Blanch, peel, and pound jib. of Jordan Almonds and joz. of Bitter Almonds. Boil 3 pints of cream, or half milk and half cream, pour into a stewpan, and let it cool; then stir in jib. of finely-powdered or caster sugar, and when that is quite dissolved beat up and stir in sharply the yolks of twelve eggs; stir over the fire, without allowing to boil, until the mixture thickens; add quickly the pounded Almonds, and 1 table-spoonful of kirschenwasser; strain the whole through a tammy cloth into a basin. 2nd Mixture: Mix lqt. of raspberry-juice and lqt. of syrup at 18deg. by the saccharometer ( see Sybups), or take 2qts. of raspberry syrup made without vinegar, and strain through a sieve, if necessary. Freeze these two mixtures in separate pots ( see Ices), and serve in layers.

Almond and Rice Pudding. — Put 2 breakfast-cupfuls of milk and 3oz. of ground rice into a saucepan, and boil them. Pour the mixture into a basin, and when it is quite cold mix in 6oz. each of sugar and warmed butter, six yolks and nine whites of eggs, and five or six blanched and shred Sweet Almonds. Put the mixture into a buttered dish, and bake it until done. Turn it out on to a dish, cover it with pieces of Almonds stuck into it, and serve.

Almond Rock Biscuits. — As these keep well in a tin, and there is always a lively demand for them, it is just as well to make plenty at one baking. Blanch and mince coarsely 21b. of Sweet Almonds, and dry them slightly in a screen or very slow oven, or before a warm fire. Mix up the Almonds with the yolks of eight eggs and white of one, and two piled table-spoonfuls of caster sugar. Blend all together to form a paste, and then prepare a baking-sheet with egg wafer (see Almond Biscuits, No. 2), drop a dessert-spoonful of the paste at regular intervals upon it, and bake in a sharp oven. When done, dry them before the fire, or in a screen.

Almond-sandwich Biscuits with Raspberry Jam.—

Blanch and pound to a pulp lib. of Sweet Almonds, adding the white of one egg to prevent them from oiling. Then mix up the Almond pulp and lib. of caster sugar into a paste with the whites of one or two more eggs. Divide the mass into two equal parts, and into one part work 2 table-spoonfuls of flour to make it into a stiff paste. Roll this out thin, and trim off the edges of the sheet of pastry to make it square. Mask it over with raspberry jam, and cover with a rolled-out sheet of the second part of the Almond paste. Cut into squares or diamonds with a sharp knife, and lay each one carefully on a baking-sheet prepared with white of egg (see Almond Biscuits, No. 2). Put into a slow oven, and bake lightly.

To use up the trimmings of the cuttings, it will be well to chop them into dice, and pile them into little groups on a second baking-sheet prepared as above, and put a little sugaricing over them (white and pink if desired), a slip of citronpeel, and a dash here and there of jam. Bake in a slow oven as before, and trim the “ wafer ” with a pair of sharp scissors.

Almond Savarin Pudding. — Put loz. of yeast (German) into a basin, and let it dissolve in a little less than a breakfastcupful of warm milk; pass the liquor through a fine sieve into another basin, and add sufficient flour to make it into a stiff dough. A pound of flour will be required for the pudding, and the quantity that is not used with the milk must be put into a basin underneath the dough mixture, which has been

‘ rolled into a ball. Set the sponge or dough in a warm place, and when it is sufficiently risen, work in jib. of sifted crushed loaf sugar, jib. of slightly warmed butter, eight eggs, and a small quantity of salt. Cover the bottom of a well-buttered plain border mould with small pieces of Almonds, turning it

Almonds — continued.

over so that those pieces that do not adhere will fall out, and pour in the mixture, when it is quite smooth, to about three-fourths fill it. Put a cover over the mould, set it in a warm place, and when it has sufficiently risen, put it in a moderate oven and bake for an hour-and-a-half. Take it out, and before turning it out of the mould, make several incisions with a knife all over the bottom, and pour in a mixture of onethird weak syrup and two-thirds rum. When it has well soaked in, say to about lin. in depth, turn the pudding out on to a dish and serve, either hot or cold, as desired.

Almond Savoy Cake. — Blanch and pound in a mortar fib. of Sweet Almonds and jib. of Bitter, or purchase the Almonds ready ground; pass them through a sieve into a basin, add 21b. of caster sugar, and mix well together. Then add j pint of eggs, and well mix again; after that add 1 pint of the yolks of eggs very slowly, stirring until the mixture is quite light; mix in the well-whisked whites of twelve eggs; and lastly, lib. of finely-sifted flour, which sprinkle in a little at a time, working freely. Butter some savoy moulds, put in the mixture to about three-quarters fill them, and bake in a moderate oven. See Savoy Cakes.

Almond Soup.— (1) Blanch and pound 1 jib. of Sweet Almonds and a dozen Bitter ones, adding a little water to prevent them from oiling, and work them until they are quite smooth. Pour 3qts. of water into a saucepan, set it on the fire, and when the water boils, add joz. of coriander and the pulp of half a lemon, and let them infuse. Add a little at a time of this to the pounded Almonds, and rub them several times through a cloth or sieve, until the mixture has the appearance of milk; sweeten to taste, and sprinkle in a little salt. Set the pan in the bain-marie or in a larger saucepan of boiling water until wanted, and a few minutes before serving add thin slices or pieces of toast.

(2) Blanch and pound 8oz. of Sweet Almonds and five or six Bitter ones, using a little water to prevent them from oiling. Pour 3qts. of milk into a saucepan on the fire, boil it, and rub a part of it with the Almonds through a cloth or very fine sieve. Repeat this operation until the mixture has the appearance of milk, and in the other part of the milk infuse half a stick of vanilla, which must be removed before the two lots of milk are again mixed. Pour the milk containing the Almonds into a saucepan, sweeten to taste, and add a little salt; then pour in the vanilla-flavoured milk, set the saucepan in the bain-marie, and add loz. of butter. Turn the Soup into the tureen over pieces of toasted bread, and serve.

(3) Pour 3qts. of milk into a saucepan and let it boil. Put the yolks of eight eggs into a saucepan, and add two dozen Almond macaroons, half sweet and half bitter, crushed with a rolling-pin; then pour in 3 pints of the milk, which must be hot but not boiling, sweeten to taste, and add 1 tablespoonful of orange-flower water and a slight seasoning- of salt, stirring well, so that the whole of the ingredients shall be well mixed. Cut off some thin slices of bread from a household loaf, sprinkle them well with sugar, glaze them in the oven, and put them in the soup tureen; stir the plain milk with a wooden spoon, and pour it over. Put the saucepan containing the Almond-flavoured milk on to the fire to thicken, stirring well without boiling, add it to the tureen, and serve. Pralines may be used instead of macaroons if desired.

(4) Put a fowl, 101b. of veal, and some bones from the veal, into a saucepan with 5qts. of water, and boil over a good fire until the liquor is reduced to 3qts., and forms jelly. Care must be taken at first to prevent the veal burning at the bottom of the pan. Add a thin slice of uncooked ham, a tablespoonful of chopped onion, half a blade of mace, half a nutmeg, six cloves, and a sprig of green thyme. Set the pan on the fire and boil until the various flavourings are thoroughly incorporated with the Soup; strain it into a jar or bowl, skim it well, and pour off the clear into another saucepan, and set it on the side of the fire to keep hot. Blanch lib. of Almonds, and pound 12oz. of them, cutting into shreds the remainder. Put the pounded Almonds into the Soup, add a little salt to taste, remove the saucepan from the fire, stir in the shred Almonds and 1 pint of boiling thick sweet cream, pour the Soup into the tureen, and serve at once. The cream must not be allowed to boil with the Soup, otherwise it would curdle,

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, tc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Almonds — continued.

and the Soup would be spoilt. A bowl of cold cream whipped to a froth, and a table-spoonful of it dropped into each soupplate when being served, is a great improvement.

Almond Sponge Biscuits.— Crack twelve eggs separately into a teacup, and having ascertained that each is good, as you break it, pour them all into a large kitchen basin, and beat up with a whisk until thoroughly mixed; then add by degrees lib. 2oz. of fine caster sugar, and beat in until the sugar is quite dissolved. Then add lib. 3oz. of fine pastry flour, and work into a light dough. Have ready sufficient sponge-cake or other convenient small moulds; warm them, and butter the inner surfaces neatly. Fill level to the rims with the dough, dust over the top with caster sugar, lay over them some chopped blanched Almonds, and bake in a moderate oven.

Almond Sponge Cake — Take lib. of ground Sweet Almonds, and mix with the whites of three eggs; add a teaspoonful of grated lemon-rind, lib. of caster sugar, and the yolks of fifteen eggs, well whisked. Then take the whites of twelve eggs, whip them to a froth, and stir them in. Next sift in slowly, beating all the time, jib. of dried flour; pour this into a tin, carefully buttered and dusted with caster sugar, until it is half full, put it into the oven, and hake for an hour. When done, turn it out and set it on a sieve to cool. See Sponge Cakes.

Almond Tablets. — Dissolve lib. of loaf-sugar in a saucepan with 2 breakfast-cupfuls of water, set the saucepan on the fire, and boil quickly until the sugar candies ( see Sugar-boiling). Add a small quantity of cream of tartar and 6oz. of Almonds, blanched, cut into shreds, and dried or toasted in the oven. Butter or oil a flat tin dish, pour in the mixture, and when it is cool, mark it in the shapes required with a blunt knife. When it is quite cold, turn it out and break it into tablets, which are then ready for use.

Almond Tartlets. – — Line a dozen tartlet-moulds with paste, cut the paste on the rims of the moulds, then mask the bottom with a thin layer of marmalade. Pound 6oz. of blanched Almonds, dried in the oven, mixing up by degrees the same amount of fine sugar, a little orange or lemon zest, and the yolks of six eggs. Bemove this from the mortar, put it into a kitchen basin, and work up with it eight whipped whites of eggs. Pill the tartlets, sprinkle them over with fine sugar, and bake in a slack oven for twenty-five to thirty minutes.

Almond Wafers. — Blanch and pound to a pulp in a mortar fib. of Sweet Almonds, and beat them up with two eggs; sift in gradually, whilst still beating, 1 teacupful of caster sugar and 1 table-spoonful of fine flour. Add 2 or 3 drops of essence of lemon. Butter lightly a warmed, clean baking-sheet, and spread the mixture with a spatula very thinly and evenly over it. Put into a quick oven, and bake a pale brown. Bemove to the table, cut the paste with a knife into oblongs, and roll each one lengthwise round a piece of round stick about jin. in diameter. Let them get cold and hard, and then remove the sticks. These wafers are very useful as a garnish for creams and other light, sweet entremets.

Almond Walnut Biscuits. — To make these, special moulds or stamps are required — one for the half-kernel, and the other for the half-shell (see Fig. 17).

(Note. — These moulds may be purchased of any culinaryutensil manufacturers.) Use the same paste as for Almond Birds’-nest Biscuits, roll it -in. thick, cut out the shapes with the moulds, place each on greased paper, and let stand for a day. Then bake the shells dark and the kernels much lighter, and join the two neatly together with icing, placing them afterwards in a very slow oven for a few minutes to set.

Amandines.— Put fib. of butter into a basin, warm it, and beat it to a cream with fib. of sifted crushed loaf sugar. Add gradually 3oz. of Bitter Almonds, blanched and pounded in a mortar with a little rose-water; next add sufficient flour to make a thick paste, and stir in lastly the whites of

Almonds — continued.

twelve eggs beaten to a stiff froth. Half-fill small buttered cups or tins with the mixture, and bake them in a quick oven for about half-an-hour. Turn them out, decorate some of them with chopped pistachio kernels, and some with cochineal, sugar, or sugar-icing, and they are ready for use.

Apple and Almond Pudding 1 . — See Apples.

Burnt Almond Charlotte B-usse. — Line a plain mould with finger biscuits as for other charlottes. Chop up finely fib. of best Almonds, and brown them by boiling in fib. of sugar; cool them on a baking-sheet, pound them thoroughly in a mortar, adding after, as you stir in a pan on the fire, lqt. of cold milk; press through a tammy cloth or stout napkin. Steep loz. of isinglass in 1 gill of tepid water. Put the Almond Cream into a stew-pan with eight beaten yolks of eggs, add fib. of finely-powdered sugar, and stir over the fire until it thickens; pour into a kitchen basin, and stir in the solution of isinglass, after straining it; pack the basin in broken ice, and stir the mixture slowly until it begins to freeze. As soon as it shows symptoms of congelation, pour it carefully into the biscuit-lined mould, and cover it with a thin sheet of tin, a baking-sheet, or a plate, with ice piled on it, and leave it thus for an hour or so longer, or till wanted; it may then be turned out on to a glass dish, and garnished with crystallised fruits.

Burnt Almonds and Orange Ice. — 1st Mixture: Chop 2oz. of blanched Almonds, and melt 2 table-spoonfuls of coarselypounded sugar in a sugar-boiler; add the chopped Almonds, and stir over the fire until they are red-brown, when they must be spread on a baking-sheet to hai-den. Boil If pints of rich cream. Put the beaten yolks of six eggs into a stewpan with fib. of pounded sugar, stir in the hot cream, and continue to stir over the fire or stove until the mixture thickens. Pound the Burnt Almonds as finely as possible in a mortar, and then add them to the cream, stirring briskly. 2nd Mixture: Take 1 pint of syrup at 18 deg. by the saccharometer, and rasp into it the thin rind (zest) of eight oranges. Squeeze the juice of sixteen oranges, and dilute with f pint of water; tinge with carmine, and dissolve in it 1 tablespoonful of citric acid. Strain this mixture through a pointed strainer. Whisk in thoroughly the white of one egg. Freeze the two ices separately in a freezer ( see Ices), and mould together in layers when serving. These cream ices are declared to be exquisitely delicious.

Cannelons of Almond Baste. — Make a good Almond Paste by pounding in a mortar fib. of Sweet Almonds, blanched and peeled, using a little white of egg to moisten them and prevent oiling when pounding. When thoroughly pounded, mix with them fib. of caster sugar and two eggs, one beaten in at a time. Make some good puff paste, and roll it out, about fin. in thickness. Divide the Almond Paste into equal-sized portions, 2in. long and lin. wide, cover over with paste and stick the edges well together by wetting, cut them apart, and fry them in hot fat. When they are done, drain them and sift a little caster sugar over the tops; then serve.

Essence of Bitter Almonds, or Almond Flavouring. —

This favourite flavouring is prepared by dissolving the oil of Bitter Almonds with a large proportion of spirits of wine. As these flavourings require great care in selecting and making up, they are generally bought in bottles, ready mixed for use, from druggists’ and other domestic stores. Almond Flavouring is stated to contain prussic acid, but it has been satisfactorily shown that the peculiar Almond flavour does not depend upon the presence of this poisonous acid, hence successful attempts have been made to supply the flavour deprived of the deleterious ingredient.

Forcemeat of Almonds. — Put 1 teacupful of cream into a basin, and beat it up with the yolks of three eggs and a little grated nutmeg to flavour it. Put 3oz. of blanched Sweet Almonds into a mortar, and pound them well, adding sufficient white of egg to moisten them. Put this into the cream mixture with 3oz. of butter, broken into small pieces, and 12oz. of finelysifted breadcrumbs. Put the whites of the three eggs into a basin, whisk them to a stiff froth, and stir them into the other mixture, when it will be ready for use.

Pithiviers Almond Cake. — Pithiviers is the name of a town in France celebrated for lark pies, Almond Cakes, honey, and

Fig. 17. Almond Walnut Biscuit.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

15

Almonds — continued.

a variety of other delightful things. The receipt generally favoured for this Almond Cake is that given by Urbain-Dubois, which is something as follows: Pound 4oz. of Sweet and Bitter Almonds in equal proportions, with the same quantity of sugar, and half a medium stick of vanilla. Bub into this 3oz. of butter, a little chopped orange-rind peeled very thin, and a little pinch of salt, and work up with the yolks of two eggs and one whole one. When sufficiently combined, pass through a medium sieve into a basin, and stir with a spoon for a few minutes. Take lib. of puff paste, roll out lightly to the thickness of fin., and cut out a round about 6in. in diameter. Boll out the remainder of the paste, and cut another round, the same size as the previous one. Put one of these flats on the baking-sheet, and spread the Almond preparation smoothly over it to within lin. of the circumference. Wet the uncovered edge with the paste-brush, and then lay the other round flat exactly over this. Press down gently so as to fix the two rounds, and cut out the edges ornamentally. Brush over the surface of the cake with white of egg, and mark the top with the point of a well

Fig. 18 . Pithiviers Almond Cake.

floured knife in any pattern fancied (see Fig. 18). Bake in a moderate oven for forty-five minutes, sprinkle over with caster sugar, and put it back into the oven again for five or ten minutes to glaze. Serve cold on a folded napkin.

Salted and “ Devilled ” Almonds. — Blanch and dry in a

cloth as many Jordan Almonds as may be required; put them into a frying-pan with a little butter, and fry them until they are of a delicate fawn colour. Then pour them into a colander, and sprinkle them over immediately with fine tablesalt, tossing them as they are sprinkled. Serve, hot or cold, in little trays with cheese.

To “devil” them, mix with the salt twice the quantity of cayenne pepper, and sprinkle as before.

Sugared Almonds. — These are usually manufactured wholesale by machinery, but can be made in small quantities, if desired, by those who have a sufficient knowledge of the practical details of sugar-boiling. The invention of a revolving apparatus has considerably simplified their manufacture for the trade.

Blanch, wash, wipe, and dry in the oven, lib. of Jordan Almonds. Have ready dissolved 6oz. of gum arabic, not too thin; you must also have at hand, clarified, 3ilb. of the finest loaf sugar syrup of 32deg. ( see Syrups). The syrup, quite hot but no I boiling, must be kept over a stove, at a low heat. Put a sixth part of the syrup into a sugar-boiler, with a sixth part of the dissolved gum, and boil this to the thread degree ( see Sugarboiling). Suspend a round-bottomed stewpan over a low gas-stove, put the Almonds in it, toss them until they arc hot, add 1 teaspoonful of gum, shake together until the gum is dried on the Almonds, then add another spoonful of gum, and shake or dredge in a little starch-powder, to give them another coating. Next use the beading-funnel, to give a coating with the boiled sugar and gum, and this done, the Almonds being detached and separated from each other, and perfectly dry, turn them out upon a cane sieve to riddle off any fragments of sugar. Starch and gum five times more, cleaning out the pan each time, and put the confits to dry, at a very slow heat, till next day. Now give the confits six more charges or coatings in the manner before described, and afterwards dry them in slow heat to whiten them. Colours must be added in a liquid or powdered state. When giving the last two charges, a few drops of any land of essence, such as vanilla, orange, lemon, roses, cinnamon, &c.;, may be

Almonds — con t inned.

added to flavour the syrup used for the preparation of

the confits.

See also Macaeoons, Marzipan, Royeau, Orgeat, and Ratafias.

AXiOJA. — A Spanish beverage made of honey, water, and spice.

ALOXE. — The name of a red Burgundy wine. See Wines.

ALUM (TV. Alun; Ger. Alaun; Ital. Alunna; Sp. Alumbre). — Alum is a white, transparent, mineral salt, having very astringent qualities. It is sometimes used by bread-makers and pastrycooks to whiten flour. It is generally regarded as an adulteration. Publicans employ it to quickly clear gin which has become turbid by the addition of water. It gives a creamy head to porter, and a smack of old age to other beers. To inferior port wine it is thought to add brilliancy of colour. When employed for these purposes, it is technically known in the trade as “Rocky,” or “Stuff.”

Alum is largely manufactured in this country, there being numerous Alum-works in different parts of England and Scotland; amongst these, the more important are those of Lord Glasgow, near Glasgow; Lord Dundas and Mulgrave, at Whitby; Mr. Spence, at Manchester, and Goole, in Yorkshire; and Mr. Pochin, also at Manchester. These two latter have distinct processes of their own, and are credited with the largest and best productions. There are also extensive Alum-works in the neighbourhood of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

In some parts of the world Alum is found in a natural state; but the Alum of commerce is almost invariably prepared from aluminous earths, known as Alum-ores, Alum-rock, Alum-stone, or Alunite. Rone but the very best Alum should be used for culinary purposes, as inferior kinds contain numerous impurities.

AMABELE. — A favourite food of the Kaffir, consisting of millet-seed crushed and toasted into the form of brown sawdust. It is served in a small pot, from which the guests take pinches at a time.

AMANDINES.— See Almonds.

• AMASI. — This is the name given by the natives of Central Africa to a drink made from sour milk, in which condition it is believed to be more wholesome, nutritious, and easy of digestion. It is prepared by adding to new milk a small quantity of milk previously allowed to sour. This, upon stirring, affects the whole in a very short space of time, after which it will be ready for drinking. The ingenuity of the distiller appears to have reached this almost unexplored country long before its customs were known to civilised men, for recent travellers affirm that a very harsh spirit is obtained from fermented Amasi, which is a choice beverage supplied at the expense of the chiefs during the wild orgies of sacrificial festivals.

AMAZON BITTERS. — See Bitters.

AMAZON TEA. — The leaves of this plant (Eupatorium Ayapana ) are much used in Brazil in combination with China Teas, and are considered to improve the bouquet and flavour.

AMBER PUDDING.— See Puddings.

AMBERGRIS. — A solid, opaque, ash-coloured, inflammable substance, variegated like marble, remarkably light, rugged on its surface, and, when heated, emitting a fragrant odour. It is a concretion, the supposed result of disease, produced in the intestines of the spermaceti whale, and is sometimes found floating on the ocean in regions frequented by whaleSj in immense masses. It is chiefly useful for toilet purposes, but enters occasionally into confectionery, and vintners dissolve it in wine to give bouquet, one grain being sufficient to perfume a whole hogshead.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces. lc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

AMBROSIA (Food for the Gods). — The nearest approach to Ambrosia is a combination of sweet oranges and pineapples, sliced very thin, layered alternately, sugared well with caster sugar, wetted with Madeira wine, and with a dusting of sugar over all. Ornamented with small shapes cut out of crystallised angelica, this makes a beautiful dish. Tinned pineapple answers well. The following is a splendid receipt: —

Skin sufficient oranges, and remove all pith and seeds; cut into thin slices, and place a layer of them on a glass dish; dust over well with caster sugar, and moisten with maraschino and brandy mixed in equal proportions. Spread ever this a layer of desiccated cocoanut, and then lay over that thin slices of pared fresh or tinned pineapple, dusting with sugar and moistening as before. Continue piling up these alternate layers, graduating into a conical shape, and sprinkling cocoanut after each layer of either fruit. Decorate with dried cherries and shapes cut out of candied angelica, and top up with whipped cream. Garnish the dish round with croutons of sweet jelly, and here and there a little chopped jelly, coloured if convenient.

AMBROSIA SYRUP. — A mixture of equal parts of vanilla and strawberry syrups.

AMERICAN BEER. — The brewing of Beer has rapidly increased of late years in the United States, the varieties most in demand being a sort of Lager and Golden Ale, introduced by enterprising Germans. Its percentage of alcohol is low, but as it is bright, sparkling, has a good head, and is retailed icy cold, it suits the dry climate of America. Other Ales on the British principle — bitter and strong — are brewed in the country, but are not so greatly in demand; and black or dark brown Beers, such as Porter and Stout, find little or no favour.

AMERICAN BISCUITS. — See Biscuits.

AMERICAN CHEESE. — See Cheese.

AMERICAN DISHES.— The culinary products of the United States differ very slightly from those of the “old country,” and that more in the materials than in the mode or style of preparing. Maize, or Indian corn, ripe (whole or ground) and in the green ear, occupies an important position amongst American cooks. Pumpkins Melons, Bananas, and Tams, are indigenous. Okra is a vegetable unknown to us, except by importation; it makes a delicious mucilaginous soup, commonly styled Okra Gumbo. Hickory Nuts are largely used in confectionery. Candies, Buckwheat Cakes, Chow-Chow, Pan-Dowdy, Pumpkin-pie, Popcorn, and Dougli-nuts, and more recently Chewing-gum, are held in high favour. Amongst birds are the Canvas-back Duck (a great delicacy). Mallard, Prairie Chicken, Reed-bird, and the indigenous Turkey; and of fish there are the Bass, Sheep’s-head, and Bluefish, besides the famous Clams of “Clam-chowder” celebrity, and Terrapins. These will be further described under their various names.

AMERICAN DRINKS. — It is not our purpose to detail the eccentric combinations which are so highly esteemed by thirsty American epicures, as hitherto efforts to make them popular in this country have failed. With the exception of Iced Soda Creams flavoured with fruit syrups, we shall do well to rest satisfied with our present productions. In some of the liquor-bars of the States are to be found praiseworthy efforts to combine nourishment with stimulants, such as Lactarts, Egg Phosphates, Acid Phosphates, Moxie’s Nerve Foods, hot Beef Tea, Chicken Tea, and other refreshing and invigorating fluids, for many of which we have our British counterparts. But where the American asserts his superiority is in the nomenclature of his drinks. Punch, in several forms, is familiar to us; but “ Spread Eagle ” Punch, “ Thirtysecond Regiment ” Punch, “ Light Guard ” Punch, “ Rocky Mountain” Punch, “Tip Top” Punch, “Bimbo” Punch,

American Drinks — continued.

“Duke of Norfolk” Punch, and “Uncle Toby” Punch, would be innovations. Amongst the “ Noggs ” America holds its own; but the “Julep” is said to be peculiarly an American beverage, and is more popular than any other. It was introduced into England by Captain Marryat, who wrote of it thus:

“I must descant a little upon the Mint Julep, as it is, with the thermometer at lOOdeg., one of the most delightful and insinuating potations that ever was invented, and may be drunk with equal satisfaction when the thermometer is as low as TOdeg. There are many varieties, such as those composed of claret, madeira, &c.; but the ingredients of the real Mint Julep are as follows. I learnt how to make them, and succeeded pretty well.

“ Put into a tumbler about a dozen sprigs of the tender shoots of mint (see Fig. 19), upon them put a table-spoonful

of pounded white sugar (caster sugar), and equal proportions of peach and common brandy, so as to fill it up one-third, or perhaps a little less. Then take rasped or pounded ice, and fill up the tumbler. Epicures rub the lips of the tumbler with a piece of fresh pineapple, and the tumbler itself is very often incrusted outside with stalactites of ice. As the ice melts, you drink. I once overheard two ladies talking in the next room to me, and one of them said: ‘Well, if I have a weakness for any one thing, it is for a Mint Julep ! ’ — a very amiable weakness, and proving her good sense and good taste. Mint Juleps are, in fact, like the American ladies, irresistible.”

The “ Smash ” is a Julep on a small plan. The “ Cobbler ” is claimed to be of American origin, but it is said to be a favourite now in all warn climates; perhaps, because it requires but little skill to manufacture. The “ Cocktail ” is par excellence American; so also is the “ Crusta,” which is said to be an improvement on the “Cocktail.” Jerry Thomas, the celebrated “bar-tender” of New York, gives the following receipt for a “ Crusta ”:

First mix a Brandy Cocktail thus: Three or four

dashes of gum syrup, three or four dashes of bitters,

1 wineglassful of brandy, one or two dashes of cura 9 oa, squeeze of lemon- juice, fill glass one-third full of ice, strain into a fancy wineglass, throw a piece of lemon-peel on top, and add more lemon-juice. Now take a fancy red wineglass, rub a sliced lemon around the rim of the same and dip it in pulverised sugar, so that the sugar will adhere

to the edge of the glass. Pare half a lemon the same as you would an apple (all in one piece), so that the paring will fit in the wineglass, and strain the Crusta (see Fig. 20) from the tumbler into it. Then smile.

Fig. 20. A Crusta.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under their special heads.

TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

17

American Drinks — continued.

“Mulls” and “ Sangai-ees,” “Toddies” and “Slings,” Flip,” “ Negus,” “Bishop,” and “Shrub,” are common, and may be classed as importations or “ settlers ”; but “Fixes” and “Sours” are indigenous. It is not until we get to the “ fancy ” drinks that the American’s inventive genius and “ tall talk ” distinguish themselves. When we are invited to partake of a “ Pousse 1’ Amour,” “ Sleeper,” “Balaklava Nectar,” “Crimean Cup,” “Tom and Jerry,” “ White Tiger’s Milk,” “ White Lion,” “ Locomotive,”

Fio. 21. Mixing American Drink, Blue Blazer.

“ Archill shop,” “ Cardinal,” “ Pope,” “ Knickerbocker,” “ Rumfustian,” “Bottled Velvet,” “Blue Blazer,” “Stone Juice,” “Gin Straight,” “Fixed Bayonets,” “Elephant’s Milk,” “ Widow’s Tears,” “ Corpse Reviver,” and many others equally suggestive, our ideas of moderation betray us. The art of mixing some of these depends upon the skill with which the mixer can empty one glass into another from a height (see Fig. 21).

AMERICAN MEAT, — The trade in Meat exported in refrigerating chambers from the United States has assumed great proportions, and the . produce gives general satisfaction to the cook, both in quality and price. It differs slightly from our fresh meats, but according to good authority the quality is not deteriorated by the freezing process to which it is subjected. The market price is considerably below that of our own. The question of imported preserved Meats is fully discussed under Australian Meat, to which any remarks made apply more emphatically, in consideration of the much longer time required in transit. See Food-preserving.

AMERICAN OVENS. — In small kitchens, or for the purpose of cooking diminutive dishes, such as bacon or a sheep’s heart, this utensil is very convenient, as it will accomplish before a very small fire what no other oven would do with a similar degree of heat. It is in many respects the counterpart of what is generally known as the Dutch oven, although it has some advantages

American Ovens — continued. of construction that the Dutch oven does not generally possess.

The American Oven is fitted with a shelf as well as an inclined floor, and concentrates the heat very fully

Fig. 22. American Oven.

without being set nearer than a foot to the fire; and it is not an absolute necessity that the fire should be glowing or free from flame. Made of tin or thin sheet iron, its cost is very small in comparison with its usefulness. Meat cooked in it requires care and attention, and frequent basting and turning.

AMERICAN WHITE-CAKE. — See Cakes.

AMERICAN WINES. — During the past few years America has produced a large quantity of Wines of variable quality; and it is confidently asserted and believed by Americans that the time is not far distant when America will assert her pre-eminence as a Wine-producing country, and that her vineyards will yield finer Wines, and in greater quantities, than France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and all other European coimtries combined. This may be but an idle boast, but it is certain that over 25,000,000 galls, are now produced annually, and that with a very small proportion of acreage under grape plantation. It is remarkable that, except in California, none of the European vines will succeed; hence, according to Professor Simmonds, the American vintners are “compelled to search in their forests, and develop in nurseries and vineyards, the varieties which are, in the future, to be their reliance for competing with foreign producers.” Wine made from the Catawba grape is amongst the best and most popular, and of this the native poet Longfellow sang: — The richest and best Is the Wine of the West,

That grows by the beautiful river,

Whose sweet perfume Fills all the room With a benison on the giver.

Very good, in its way,

Is the Verzenay,

Or the Sillery, soft and creamy;

But Catawba Wine Has a taste more divine —

More dulcet, delicious, and dreamy.

Whether American Wines are ever likely to supersede European in universal favour it is not possible to say: at present the country consumes nearly all it can produce, and the importation of foreign Wines has fallen in the last ten years from 7,000,000 galls, to less than half that quantity.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

D & E

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

AMES CAKE.— See Cakes.

AMHURST PUDDING.— See Puddings.

AMMONIA (Fr. Ammoniaque; Ger. Ammoniak). — A very volatile salt, prepared commercially from tlie ammoniacal liquor of the gasworks and the manufactories of ivory-black, animal charcoal, &c.;, in which it exists in a variety of chemical combinations. The Sesquicarbonate of Ammonia, commonly known as “Volatile Salt,” “ Voil,” or “ Saleratus,” is used in cooking to lighten pastry and cakes, or to stimulate meat teas and jellies for invalids. It requires much discrimination in its use, lest the “hartshorn” flavour predominate to the extent of being unpleasant. It should he purchased in solid lumps, and pounded well in a mortar fresh before using. Being exceedingly volatile, it is advisable to beep it in a closelystoppered, wide-mouthed bottle.

AMNASTICH.— This is a Jewish dish, and is, like most of the Hebrew culinary preparations, exceedingly pure and tasty.

Wash thoroughly lib. of rice by passing a stream of water through it in a colander, and stirring briskly until the water runs away quite clear. Put this into a lined stewpan, with lqt. of white stock, and bring slowly to the boil over a moderate fire. When the rice has begun to soften, add a large onion stuck with twelve cloves, and a bundle of selected sweet herbs. Into this mixture put a fine young chicken, stuffed with forcemeat, to simmer, and stew until thoroughly done. Then place the fowl on a dish, strain off the rice, picking out the herbs, onions, and any loose cloves. Beat up with the rice the yolks of four eggs, the juice of a lemon, and 1 table-spoonful of strong infusion of saffron (made by steeping teaspoonful of hay saffron in 1 wineglassful of boiling water, allowing it to stand until cold, and then straining off the clear liquor). This infusion must, of course, be prepared early enough to be ready when wanted. Garnish the fowl with the rice, and season according to taste. Serve hot.

AMONTILLADO. — A pale, dry Spanish wine of the sherry order, which does well for all culinary purposes in which that class of wine is used.

AMOURETTES (Fr. for, literally, “little loves”).— This term is applied to small garnishes made from the spinal marrow of beef, veal, or mutton. Amourettes are usually prepared thus:

Cut up the bones containing the marrow into lengths, take out the marrow from them, and remove any sinewy skin. Tie the marrow up loosely in a cloth, and let it soak for a few hours in salted water. Drain it, and place it in a stewpan, pouring sufficient tepid water over to cover it. Add salt, a small quantity of vinegar, a minced onion, and a sprig or two of parsley to taste. Let the water boil for two or three minutes, and then remove, alio whig the marrow to cool in the liquor. It is then ready to be used in any way required.

Timbale of Amourettes (Old Roman Style).- — Take 21b. of the spinal marrow of beef, and prepare as above. Cut the marrow into lengths of 2in. each, and lay them flat on the bottom of a stewpan; season them with pepper and salt, and moisten with a little good Spanish sauce. Cut up lib. of the lean of cooked ham into very small squares; take the same weight of cooked black truffles, cut up like the ham, and sprinkle over the marrow. Take 21b. cf veal or poultry forcemeat, and work up with a little of the Spanish sauce. Butter a dome-shaped mould, and arrange on the bottom and round the sides a few shapely truffles; then plaster with a spoon (over the truffles) the inside of the mould with a layer of the ready-made forcemeat, spreading it about in. thick. Three-quarters-of-an-hour before the timbale is wanted for serving, place the cold marrow-mixture in the hollow of the mould, leaving space to cover over the top with a lin. layer of the forcemeat. Smooth with a knife or spatula to the level of the rim of the mould, and cover with a round of buttered paper. Set the mould on a hollow support placed on the bottom of a stewpan, taking care that the sides of the stewpan are higher than the mould as it stands; pour boiling water into the stewpan up to half the height of the mould; put

Amourettes — continued.

it on the stove, and let the water boil. Then immediately cover over the stewpan, and regulate the heat so as to keep up constant simmering without boiling up. In about forty minutes the timbale will be ready to serve. Before turning out of the mould, put a folded cloth on the top, in order to sponge up any superfluous moisture, and then turn the timbale out boldly on to a dish. Surround it with a wre ath of

boiled mushroom-heads (see Fig. 23), selected as nearly the same size as possible, pour round the dish a little velouG sauce, and serve more in a sauce-boat with the Timbale, which should bo very hot.

AMPHITRYON. — Literally used to denote the host, or a hospitable person. Kettner tells us, in his “ Book of the Table,” that few names are more highly honoured than this; yet none is more ambiguous, nor more curiously linked with shame and ridicule. The true Amphitryon was thoroughly befooled and dishonoured. He was thus injured by the king of gods, who took his name and form, entered his house, and made love to his wife. When the two Amphitryons were brought face to face, and each claimed against the other to be the true one, the false Amphitryon, Jupiter, invited the assembled company to dine, whereupon his friend, Mercury, exclaimed that this settled the question and resolved all doubts; therefore Le veritable Amphitryon Est l’Amphitryon ou l’on dine.

The lines are those of Moliere, who converted the plot into an amusing comedy.

AMYDON. — A starchy material, used some centuries ago to thicken broths; it was made from fine wheat-flour steeped in water, strained, and left to stand and settle, then drained and dried in the sun. The term is now used to denote the starch-powder employed by Continental confectioners, as d’Amydon.

ANACREON. — A famous French cake, very popular in Paris, and christened after the celebrated Greek lyric, who was a lover of cake and wine. M. Corblet gives the receipt thus:

Take 11b. of sweet almonds; blanch, and shred small; then lib. of caster sugar, ten yolks of eggs, four whole eggs, and 1 wineglassful of kirschenwasser; mix all thoroughly together, to insure that the paste shall be light, and then work in 11b. of potato-flour, Jib. of warmed butter, lib. of cherries (chopped), and the whites of ten eggs beaten stiff. When the whole is thoroughly mixed, put it in a Breton mould, and bake in a moderate oven. Ice with kirsch icing.

ANALYSIS.— The meaning of this term is, literally, a resolution of anything into its constituent elements. . It is applied to a process by which the chemical composition of foods and other matter is decided. Analysis is of

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred, to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

19

Analysis — continued.

great importance where it is advisable to ascertain the purity of a food ( see Adulterations), or determine its chemical nutritive value. The examination may be of either a simple or a superficial character, when it is termed “ Proximate,” or it may extend to the elementary principles, when it is known as “ Ultimate.” When merely the number and nature or quality of the component parts are ascertained, the Analysis is “ Qualitative ”; but when their proportions or quantities also are determined, the Analysis is termed “ Quantitative.”

By the Analysis of food, science contributes a powerful aid to the cook, which is sometimes insufficiently appreciated, or even ignored; not because the careful cook is unmindful of the importance of dealing with pure and nutritive foods, hut because chemistry, although entering deeply into and governing every phase of the culinary art, extends so inimitably beyond it that the wise cook iscontented to perfect himself in the practical details, and leave the abstruse science to the chemist.

ANCHOVIES (Fr. Anchois; Ger. Anschove-sardellen; Ital. Acciughe; Sp. Anchovas). — These delicious little sea-fish are chiefly imported from the Mediterranean, the best kind being those which are sent from Gorgona. Anchovies are found along the shores of Great Britain, but are probably only met with in sprat shoals, hence we have no specific fisheries of them. They are caught at night-time by nets, being allured to the fishermen’s boats by fires hanging from the sterns.

To preserve them for exportation the heads, which are bitter, are cut off, and the bodies gutted. They are then thrown into brine, and packed in barrels holding from 51b. to 201b.; and from these bairels our merchants fill

Fig. 24. Anchovy.

bottles for the market. Dutch Anchovies may be known by having been cleaned of their scales; French Anchovies by their larger size; and both by the pale tint of their flesh. Anchovies may also be distinguished from sprats and sardines by their colour, although attempts are frequently made to impart the necessary reddish-brown hue by artificial means.

The following hints are worth notice: The colour of

the pickle of the best fish, after repose or being filtered, is of a clear pink, without red sediment; whereas that from inferior sorts is generally turbid and red only when stirred or agitated. A heavy red sediment is deposited, which the fishermen, of Provence especially, add to make up for deficiency of the natural colour of the fish. This red colouring may be either Armenian bole, Yenetian red, or ochre. Brine of bay-salt should alone be used, and changed two or three times before final packing.

The uses to which the savoury Anchovy may be applied in cooking are innumerable, every cook having special receipts of his or her own. It will be impossible here to give more than a few of the typical preparations; but from these it will be possible, with a little ingenuity, to produce many others.

To Serve Anchovies to Table. — They must be thoroughly

cleaned, honed, and trimmed. To open them easily, or “ fillet ” them, as it is called, they should be soaked in cold water for a couple of hours, taken out and dried in a cloth, and the backs divided by the points of the two thumbs, rather than with a knife, which should never touch them unless it be electro-plated or silver. Lay the halves or fillets neatly in a shallow dish, and garnish tastily with finely-chopped white of egg and parsley; pour salad oil over all.

Anchovies — continued.

Aigrettes of Anchovies.— Fillet about one dozen Anchovies, and after washing them, lay them in a marinade or pickle of oil and vinegar, with a sprinkle of cayenne pepper over them. After leaving them so for about two or three hours, take them out and let them drain. Make a light batter, and dip them in; drop them in very hot lard, and fry to a nice golden colour. Break off the rough parts, and ornament with chopped parsley and lobster coral that has been rubbed through a sieve. Build them up on a napkin, and serve very hot.

Anchovy Allumettes. — Take a bottle of Anchovies preserved in oil, dry them, cut them into long thin strips, roll each one up in paste, and plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling fat. Take them out when done, drain on a sieve placed in front of the fire, put in two-and-two across one another on a napkin spread over a dibs, and serve very hot, with a garnish of sprigs of fried parsley.

Anchovy Biscuits. — Take lb. of patten paste, and work well into it sufficient potted Anchovy to give it a good flavour. Boll the paste out to fin. in thickness, and then stamp it out with a fancy cutter, or cut into strips about 3in. long, and twist them round. Place them upon a sheet of white paper, laid on a baking-sheet, and bake until nicely done. Dish them upon a neatly-folded napkin, and serve hot or cold.

Anchovy Butter. — This is a very useful savoury to have in stock, and can be used to spread on slips of toast as a relish, or may be employed in making Anchovy Sauce for fish, or be served in pats garnished with parsley. Clean, bone, and beat in a mortar to a paste, one part of Anchovies to two parts of fresh butter; or take eight Anchovies to loz. of butter, and add 4oz. more butter. Pass through a sieve.

Some cooks add spices, and others finely-chopped parsley that has been scalded. Francatelli recommends the addition of cayenne pepper and grated nutmeg to taste; or it may be made by working 1 teaspoonful of Anchovy Essence into loz. of butter.

Anchovy Butter Sauce. — Beat up a piece of Anchovy Butter tho size of a small egg in 1 pint of good brown sauce, warm over a slow fire, and stir in the juice of half a lemon, or more, according to taste. This sauce goes well with baked fish.

Anchovy and Caper Sauce. — Put £ pint of melted butter into a saucepan, dredge in a little flour to thicken, add a little seasoning of pepper and salt, a small quantity of grated nutmeg, and pour in a little of the vinegar from capers; mix all well together, and then stir in a boned Anchovy and 1 table-spoonful of capers, both very finely chopped. Set the saucepan on the fire, boil the sauce for five minutes, and it is ready for use.

Anchovy Cream.— The following is one of Soyer’s favourite receipts: Make 1 pint of ordinary melted butter (butter sauce), and place it in a stewpan over a slow heat. When hot, add 3oz. of Anchovy Butter, stir till dissolved, and then stir in quickly 2 table-spoonfuls of whipped cream, but do not let it boil. A delicious sauce for fried fish: the cream enriches the melted butter supremely.

Anchovies with Eggs and Endive.— Carefully remove the shells from half-a-dozen hard-boiled eggs, and with the point of a sharp knife cut them round, so as to take off the halves of white without injuring them. Put the yolks into a basin with a little Anchovy Sauce, and mix them well; form them into their original shapes, and put them carefully inside the whites. Decorate a round dish or plate with leaves of endive, keeping the points of the leaves towards the rim of the plate, put the eggs on these, and servo. Great care must be taken, for if the white should crack or break, the effect will be spoilt.

Anchovy Cushions, or Canapes. — (1) Cut slices, jin. thick, off a stale tinned loaf, and trim off the crusts. Divide them into slips 2Jin. long and lin. wide, fry them in clarified butter till they are a nice golden brown, and when cold spread them with Anchovy Butter. Clean, bone, and trim, removing all the small bones, some Anchovy fillets as previously directed. Place four fillets lengthwise on each piece of toast, and lay chopped parsley along the middle

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dc ., referred to, see under their special heads.

D & E 2

20 THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Anchovies — continued.

groove, and chopped hard yolk of egg along the two outer or reverse this order. Arrange the charged toasts with regularity on a dish previously fitted with an ornamental dish-paper.

(2) Butter some square pieces of fried or toasted bread, and spread over them a little Anchovy paste. Chop up very fine a little mustard-and-cress or lettuce; boil hard two eggs, chop up the white, and rub the yolks through a very fine sieve; arrange these cress and eggs on the paste in circles, triangles, or any other design, put

– the croutons of bread on a napkin spread over a dish, and serve quite cold.

(3) Cut half-a-dozen little French rolls lengthwise into halves, and scoop out the crumb. Set the crust to dry before a fire. Chop up some hard-boiled eggs sufficient to fill the roll shells, and mix with this a little finely-chopped tarragon, chervil, and chives; mix into a paste in a basin with tarragon vinegar and salad oil, and season nicely with pepper and salt. Fill the crusts with this mixture, and lay thin slips or shreds of Anchovy fillets lattice-wise over them. This makes an elegant liors-d’ceuvre.

(4) Cut some rounds of bread about 4in. in diameter. In the meantime, have the required quantity of boned Anchovies, capers, hard-boiled yolks and whites of eggs, all very finely chopped. Put one of these ingredients in a small circle in the centre of the round of bread, then a little larger circle of another of them, and so on until there are the four circles. They should be varied as much as possible; or they may be put in quarters on the rounds, or in any other artistic design. Arrange them on a napkin on a dish, and serve.

Anchovy Essence. — Very useful to have in stock, and can be made after a variety of receipts. The following will be found vastly superior to the essence sold in many shops: Take

lb. of boned and cleaned Anchovies, beat them to a pulp in a mortar, and rub this through a hair sieve. Boil in £ pint of water for a quarter-of-an-hour the bones and trimmings of the Anchovies, and add to this liquor, when strained, loz. each of salt and flour, the flour to be first mixed with a little cold water. A saltspoonful of cayenne pepper may be added or not, according to taste. Having these materials ready, stir the fluid into the Anchovy pulp by degrees, being careful to mix all smooth, and then simmer the whole slowly for a few minutes; remove, and pour into a large jug. When cold, stir in briskly 1 teacupful of strong pickling vinegar. The essence is now ready for bottling -, and if required to keep, the corks must be tied over with bladder or sealing-waxed.

Note . — The addition of 1 teacupful of mushroom or walnut ketchup improves the quality, and the thin peel of a lemon boiled with the liquor is another optional flavouring. If a high colour is desired, cochineal or annatto may be used without harm.

Ancliovy Essence, for Chops, Steaks, &c.; — Fillet nine Anchovies, then bone and wash them, and pound in a mortar with

1 table-spoonful of capers and a chopped shallot. Put these into a stewpan, with a bay-leaf, a little thyme and parsley,

2 table- spoonfuls of mushroom ketchup, a little mace, and 1 pint of good chicken stock. Eeduce this to one-half, add a little lemon- juice, and rub through a close hair sieve. It will then be ready for use.

Ancliovy Fritters. — Cleanse, bone, and fillet two dozen good Anchovies, steep them in vinegar for an hour or two, and then dry them with a cloth. Take up the fillets, removing all small bones, and spread them on a plate. Anoint them with salad oil, and sprinkle over some finely-chopped parsley. Five minutes before they are required, roll up each fillet, tie it with thread, dip it in batter, and plunge them into a pan of fat so hot that water dropped upon it hisses, splutters, and flies off in steam. In a very short time the batter will be fried light brown, when the fritters must be removed with a skimmer. Place them on a strainer to dry, and then range them on a neatly-folded napkin or ornamental dish-paper, and garnish with fried parsley.

Anchovy Ketchup. — Put 8oz. of Anchovies and half-a-dozen small-sized onions into a saucepan with 2qts. of mild ale, and add two cloves, three blades of mace, two dozen peppercorns, a small quantity of whole ginger, and 1 tea For details respecting Culinary Processes. Utensils,

Anchovies — continued.

spoonful of crushed loaf sugar. Set the saucepan on the fire, and boil the liquor up quickly; then remove the pan to the side of the fire, and simmer gently for about fortyfive minutes. Pass the liquor through a very fine sieve into a basin, mix in 2 table-spoonfuls of mushroom ketchup, pour it into bottles when cold, cork them down securely, and the ketchup is ready for use.

Anchovies with Olives. — Thoroughly, wash and cut off the fillets of four Anchovies, and chop them up very fine with a very little parsley and onion; put the whole into a mortar and pound it well, adding a little cayenne foxseasoning. Cut nine large Spanish olives in halves, take out the stones, and fill them with the pounded Anchovy mixture. In the meantime, cut nine small rounds of bread about lin. in thickness and lin. in diameter, scrape out a little from the centre of each, put them into a frying-pan with butter, and fry to a nice light golden colour. Take them out, drain, arrange when cold on a napkin spread over a dish, put an olive in each, and serve with a little mayonnaise . sauce poured over and round the foot of the croutons of fried bread.

Ancliovy Omelet. — Cut a slice off a stale tinned loaf, not more than jin. thick, remove the crusts, and cut into pieces lin. square. Fry these lightly in oil or butter. Beat up a dozen eggs into an omelet, and season with pepper, salt, and 1 teaspoonful of finely-chopped parsley. Pour half of this into a small, flat, well-buttered stewpan, and cook one side only; then remove it, set the pieces of bread over it, and upon each piece of bread lay a in. length of a fillet of Anchovy. Make a second omelet, and lay on the top of all, the side of the omelet that was nearest the fire going uppermost. Set these in an oven between two plates for a few minutes, and serve with a little Spanish sauce.

Anchovy Paste.- — Prepared the same as Anchovy Butter, but with a much larger proportion of Anchovy.

Anchovy Powder. — This is rather a novelty for a breakfasttable, and, being somewhat troublesome of preparation, is likely to remain so. Pound Anchovy fillets to a paste, and rub this through a fine hair or silk sieve. What you cannot rub through the first time may be poixnded again and again until all passes, except bits of bone or other refuse. Make a dry dough of this Anchovy pulp by working in flour; roll this dough into very thin layers, cut into narrow ribbons, and dry by a gentle heat before a stove. When sufficiently dry it may be powdered in a mortar, passed through a coarser sieve, and bottled ready for use. Sprinkled on bread-and-butter, or hot buttered toast, it makes a capital relish.

Anchovy Kelish. — Put a little finely-shred beef-suet into a saucepan, boil it until it is all dissolved, and then strain it into a bowl of boiling water; when it is quite cold, remove the fat, scrape it clean and dry, and put it in paper until wanted for use. Put a dozen or so Anchovies into a basin of milk, and let them steep for two hours, when the bone can easily be removed; wipe them dry, bone and trim them, and pound them in a mortar with a little less than their bulk of the clarified suet. Spread this paste over thin pieces of toast or wafer biscuits, and serve. In this way it is more wholesome than the Anchovy Butter.

Anchovy Salad. — (1) Fillet some Anchovies, and shred them lengthwise. Arrange them tastefully upon a small plate, and garnish with groups of chopped hard eggs, chopped parsley, and onions, ornamented with whole capers. Pour salad oil, or oil and vinegar, over the whole, and serve.

This is a very favourite dish at the tables of some of the foreign aristocracy, but the following is more in accordance with British notions of a salad:

(2) Wash a good lettuce, and dry it thoroughly on a cloth. Split it lengthwise into quarters, and then cut crosswise into fine shreds — the finer the better. Slice very finely some small onions, and chop up a pinch of parsley. Mix thoroughly in a bowl. Then shred lengthwise a dozen fillets of Anchovies, sprinkle them over the salad, and pour over all oil and lemonjuice, beaten togethex -, ixx equal propox-tioxxs.

Anchovy Sandwiches. — Empty a bottle of Anchovies into a bowl of water, and wash them thoroughly, chaxxging the water frequently. Put them, when drained and boned, into a mortar with an equal quantity of butter, and pound them

Sauces, fee., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Anchovies — continued.

well to a very smooth paste. Spread this over thin slices of bread, put two of these together to form the sandwich, and serve.

Anchovy Sauce. — (1) Take three or four filleted Anchovies, and beat them in a mortar, with 3oz. of butter. Put this Anchovy Butter into a stewpan, with 1 wineglassful of water, 2 table-spoonfuls of vinegar, and 1 table-spoonful of flour (previously rubbed down smooth with the water). Stir over the fire until it thickens, and then rub it through a coarse hair sieve.

The following is more simple and suitable for boiled fish:

(2) Warm in a fry -pan 1 heaped table-spoonful of flour, with a piece of butter the size of a small egg; stir them together until a light brown. Stir in slowly 1 breakfast-cupful of the liquor tho fish for which this sauce is being prepared has been boiling in, and boil up; strain, and add 2 table-spoonfuls of Anchovy Essence, 1 table-spoonful of lemon-juice, and a pinch of cayenne.

(3) Make J pint or more of melted butter, and stir in a sufficiency of the Anchovy Essence according to taste. To use Anchovy Butter for this is sheer waste of labour in making the butter, as the essence answers admirably. Some add, and beat in well, the juice of half a lemon to J- pint of the sauce.

As it is advisable to please the eye as well as the palate, and the abovo mixtures would have rather a poor colour, it is a good plan, when possible, to add some raw lobster-spawn, rubbed through a sieve, which gives a natural and effective tint, and adds a tone not obtainable in any other way.

Anchovies in Surprise. — Take about a dozen very small dinner rolls, cut tho tops off, and take out all the crumb. Then mix tho following: 1 teaspoonful eacli of chopped

tarragon, chervil, and chives, 3 table-spoonfuls of salad oil, three hard-boiled eggs chopped very fine, a little cayenne pepper, and tho fillets of twelve Anchovies washed and cut in halves. Mix the whole well together, and fill the rolls with it. Replace the tops as neatly as possible, and serve upon a neatly-folded napkin.

Anchovy Stuffing. — Put two large finely-chopped onions into a frying-pan with a little oil or butter, and fry them to a light brown. Put them in a basin, and add 2 handfuls of breadcrumbs that have been dipped in water and squeezed quite dry; then add a small piece of the finely-chopped liver of the bird intended to be stuffed, the fillets of seven or eight salted Anchovies, a pinch of parsley, and a few chopped capers. Work these well together, sprinkle over a little pepper, and thicken tho mixture with the yolks of two or three eggs, when it is ready for use. The scoter, a waterfowl common in the south of France, is usually stuffed with this.

Anchovy Tart. — Pare and clean about two-and-a-half dozen salted Anchovies, pound them in a mortar, and rub them through a sieve into a basin. Add gradually 1 teacupful of olive oil, working it into a smooth but not too thin paste. Roll out jib. of puff paste into a round flat about lOin. in diameter, put it on a baking-sheet, trim it neatly round, and spread over the Anchovy Paste,- keeping it at a little distance from the edge. Roll out another equal quantity of the paste, having it a little larger round, trim it, and with a plain tin biscuit-cutter cut out a round about 3in. in diameter; then cut the flat like a scroll with eight equal pieces, take one at a time and arrange them on the flat with tho Anchovy puree, covering both it and tho paste, and placing tho scrolls slightly overlapping one another, leaving a hollow in the centre of the tart. Secure tho edge by pressing it, channel tho tart all round, brush it over with egg, and with the point of a sharp small knife decorate each scroll or piece of the paste. Put tho tart into a quick oven, and bake for thirty-five minutes. Take it out when done, put it carefully on a dish, and pour in a little olivo oil through the hole in the centre of the top.

Anchovy Tartines. — Unroll, dry, and cut into narrow strips a bottle of Anchovies preserved in oil. Cut some French rolls into round slices, butter them well, and arrange a few of the strips of Anchovy on them so as to form an open or trellis work. In the centre or opening put the yolk and white of egg and parsley or finely-chopped gherkins, varying

Anchovies — continued.

them so as not to let the colours contrast, put them on a dish with a napkin spread over it, and serve with cheese.

Anchovy Toast. — (1) Soyer had a famous method of serving this delicious breakfast relish, thus: Thoroughly cleanse and fillet a dozen Anchovies, and chop them small, or crush them out with a silver (or electro-plated) knife. Put this puree into a small stewpan with 6 table-spoonfuls of Provence (or salad) oil; warm slightly, and stand it by. Cut twelve slices of bread, nearly Jin. thick, and trim to an even oblong shape; toast them both sides on a gridiron, basting with a brush dipped in oil. Spread the Anchovy over them, and sprinkle over all a little chopped parsley. Push the gridiron, with the dressed slices on, into a sharp oven for a few minutes, and serve hot.

(2) Spread thin, hot toast with Anchovy Butter, and lay striplets of Anchovy fillets over them in lattice fashion.

There is an air of simplicity about this latter; but a very nice Anchovy Toast can be prepared more simply yet, by

(3) Spreading chopped Anchovy fillets, or Anchovy Essence, over hot buttered toast from which the crusts have been removed.

(4) Bruise up the fillets of six Anchovies with the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs, 2 table-spoonfuls of butter, and a dust of cayenne. Pass through a sieve. Cut some slices, about jin. thick, off a tinned loaf, and with a round cutter stamp out of tho slices sufficient pieces to make six croutons. Fry these in boiling fat, or toast light brown before a sharp fire; spread the centres with the paste, and trim round the edge, or sprinkle all over with the whites of the eggs chopped very fine.

Tried Ancliovies. — Put a dozen or so of Anchovies with their oil into a frying-pan, and fry them gently for a few minutes. Take them out, put them on thin slices of toast, arrange them on a dish, and serve with cheese.

Ol’lys of Anchovies. — Tho Anchovies which come from Nice should be used for this, as they are smaller and fatter than the others. Put a dozen or so into a basin of cold water, and steep them until they are easily opened. Take them out, drain, chop off their heads, scrape off the scales, and cut out the backbone. Trim them round to an even shape, put them in a basin of milk, and steep for an hour. Take them out again, drain, cover over with flour, plunge into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry until done. Take them out, drain them on paper, put in tho form of a pyramid on a napkin spread over a dish, garnish with sprigs of fried parsley, and servo with a sauceboatful of Poivrado sauce. Potted Ancliovy. — Pound sufficient well-cleansed Anchovy fillets, with allspice and cayenne pepper to taste. Put it into pots, and press down smooth with an ordinary palette-knife, leaving sufficient room for warm clarified butter to bo poured over to jin. in depth. Tho potted Anchovies sold in hermetically-sealed tins, or jars, should be purchased of tho best makers only, lest other fish and worse adulterations find a place within them.

Stuffed Anchovies. — Split open a dozen or so Anchovies wash them well in white rvine, and bone them. Mince a little cooked fish of any kind, put it into a basin with very fine breadcrumbs, and make into a paste by adding yolk of egg. Stuff the Anchovies with this mixture, dip into frying-batter, plunge into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry to a light colour. Take them out when done, drain, arrange on a dish, and serve with a garnish of fried parsley.

ANCHOVY FEAR ( Grias cauUflora). — This fruit is a great favourite in the West Indies, where it is indigenous. It is about the size and shape of a roundish egg, brownish, and having a kind of pulp over a single oval kernel. It very much resembles the mango in taste, and is, like that fruit, often converted into pickle before it is ripe.

ANDOUILLE(S). — Fr. for a kind of Sausage(s) made of chitterlings.

ANDOUILLETTE(S).— Fr. for “little sausage(s).” The name given to little rolls of minced veal with which hot pies and vol-au-vents are garnished.

ANGEL-FISH ( Squatina angelus). — This is known also as the Fiddle-fish, Monk-fish, Shark-ray, and wrongfully, in some parts of America, as the “ Porgey.” It

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Ac., referred to, see under their special heads.

22

TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Angel-Fish — continued.

is found occasionally along the British and French coasts, and the southern coast of the United States, and commonly in the West Indies. Its flesh is declared by some to be “ very savoury wherefore, as it is caught varying from 6ft. to 8ft. long, it should be a valuable article of food. Naturalists have described the Angel-fish (Fig. 25) as a cross between the shark and the skate, which would

suggest that the quality of the flesh also varies between that of the shark and that of the skate — and this would not recommend it to the epicure as likely to make a prime dish. There are, however, several varieties of it, some of which are found superior to others for culinary purposes; but these are so rarely met with that no special culinary treatment of them has as yet been described.

ANGELICA (Fr. Angelique; Ger. Angelika, Angelicawurzel, Angel- Kraut). — An aromatic herb ( Angelica Archangelica) which grows wild in this and other countries (rarely in this). It is cultivated on the Continent for the purpose (when candied) of flavouring and ornamenting confectionery, and for dessert. It may be seen in any large confectionery establishment, neatly tied into bundles with coloured ribbon. Angelica was at one time eaten like celery, raw and stewed. Herbalists have attached so many virtues to this herb, especially that of driving away pestilence, that the common name for it in rural districts is “ Holy Ghost.” Candies, compotes, jellies, &c.;, are made or flavoured with Angelica. Angelica may be preserved in syrup, candied, and used in a number of ways. The Americans put it into punch.

Angelica Confits. — Cut up some candied Angelica into little diamond shapes or tiny strips. Put these into a small, shallow preserving-pan, fitted with a long handle, strewing them thinly and evenly over the bottom of it; set it over a very slow heat, and let it warm thoroughly. Make a syrup with 21b. of sugar to 1 pint of water in which loz. of powdered gum arabic has been previously dissolved, and when the pan and Angelica are quite hot, but not burning, pour some of the syrup loosely over the Angelica and shake freely till it dries on. Six or eight coatings must be given in this way, shaking the pan continually during the whole time it remains over the fire, and bearing in mind that the confits must he turned out of the pan upon a baking-sheet to be dried after every charge of syrup, the pan being cleaned on each occasion. Finally, when sufficiently coated, dry upon a sieve at a little distance from the fire, or in a screen. If desired, the syrup may be flavoured, or coloured.

Angelica Punch. — Stone and chop Jib. of raisins; put them into a basin with the grated rind of half a lemon, the strained juice of a whole one, and 1 pint of boiling water; stir in ilb. of sugar till dissolved. Strain the liquor through a fine hair sieve, rubbing the raisin pulp through at the same time. Pour it into a freezer, add 1 pint of Angelica wine, and work it till frozen. When nearly frozen, add the whites of two eggs that have been whipped till thick with 2 tablespoonfuls of caster sugar. When quite frozen, the punch will have the appearance of cream; it is then ready for serving.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Angelica — continued.

Angelica Ratafia. — Macerate for ten days in a large stone jar 1 drachm of bruised Angelica seed (bruised in a stone mortar), Jib. of sliced fresh or dried Angelica stalk, loz. of bruised bitter almonds (blanched), and 6qts. of proof spirit, or brandy. When ready, filter off the liquor and stir into it lqt. of syrup (21b. to the pint). Let this stand for two or three weeks, then strain it through a sieve, and bottle for use.

Compote of Green Angelica. — Take sufficient preserved green Angelica, and arrange the sticks crosswise on a glass dish; pour over all some of its own syrup, slightly flavoured with orange. The stalks may be cut into rings.

Dried. Angelica. — Prepare the Angelica as for preserving, and then cut the stalks into short strips, lozenges, or large and small rings; give them two or three more boilings in the syrup (see Preserved Green Angelica); drain, give them a roll in finely-powdered sugar, dry thoroughly in a screen, and pack away in tins for future use.

Preserved Angelica with Jellies. — Select a few broad, hollow stalks or reeds of green preserved Angelica, cut them in slanting or transverse slices lin. wide, fill up the hollows with apple or currant jelly, or any other stiff preserve, dip them in caster sugar, and place them on a sieve in the screen to dry slowly for an hour. Serve in a glass dish, or use to garnish sweet entremets, such as jellies, creams, and blancmangers. Preserved Green Angelica. — Let the Angelica selected be as fresh, young, crisp, and tender as can be got. Cut the tubes or stalks into 6in. lengths, and wash them clean; boil them in water for ten minutes, and then, having drained them, boil in syrup for half-an-hour, and set aside to cool, leaving in the syrup. Preserve in jars or wide-mouthed bottles. Francatelli advises a very elaborate process: First scald the sticks in

boiling water for three or four minutes, and then “ refresh ” them in cold water; drain them upon a sieve, and then parboil them in water (without allowing it to come to the boil) for ten minutes; once again drain, and throw them into cold water; drain again, and put them with sufficient syrup at 22deg. (see Syrups) to make them swim in a copper preserving-pan. Set them on the fire till the syrup begins to simmer; then remove to a cool place, leaving them in the pan with the syrup, the surface being covered over with vine-leaves, and leave thus until the following day. The Angelica sticks are next to he drained on a sieve, the vine-leaves thrown away, pint of water added to the syrup, the pan scoured out, the syrup replaced in it, boiled up once and well skimmed, the Angelica to be added, and covered afresh with vine-leaves, and set aside till the next day This process must be repeated twice more — in all, four different charges to be given four days running; at the end of this time the Angelica will be perfectly green and tender.

ANGELS’ BREAD.— This is a very popular variety of Cocoanut Cake. See Cakes.

ANGELS’ CAKE. — This resembles in many respects the cake described as Angels’ Bread; but as it is known to confectioners under a specific name, it is considered advisable to distinguish one from the other. See Cakes.

ANGELS ON HORSEBACK (Fr. Anges au Cheval). — The origin of this unique term is of quite modern birth, it being originally applied, we believe, to oysters on steak. So many fanciful variations have ensued from the inventive genius of our cooks, who evidently have been taken with the name, that the term may now be considered to represent a class of dishes.

(1) Select a few dozen large oysters, open them, and remove their beards and the hard part; put them on a plate, and season with salt and pepper. Blanch a piece of bacon, and when cold cut it into thin strips, and then into squares, each about the diameter of an oyster. Take the oysters one by one, and pile them on little silver or electro-plated skewers ( see Aiguillettes), alternating each of the oysters with a square of bacon, until six of each are on a skewer. Sprinkle over these a little breadcrumb mixed with chopped parsley; or egg and breadcrumb in the usual way. Broil at a brisk fire for three minutes only, and dish, placing the skewers on little croutons fried in butter, and kept very hot.

(2) Beard two dozen oysters (large ones do for cooking), and set them on one side. Next cut some bread about lin.

Sauces, fce., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

23

Angels on Horseback — continued.

thick, toast it, and cut it into squares about l jin. each way. Spread upon these toasts some anchovy butter. Lay an oyster (or two, if they are small) upon the centre of each, and season with a dust of cayenne. Upon the oyster lay a piece of fat bacon, cut very thin and patted flat with a knife, so as to prevent it from curling when cooking; upon the bacon put a little chopped parsley, and a small squeeze of lemon-juice. Set these on a baking-sheet, and put them in the oven to bake. When hot, dish upon an ornamented dishpaper or neatly-folded napkin, and serve.

(3) Roll the oysters in the bacon, and secure by transfixing with a large needle. Otherwise treat the same as No. 2.

ANGOSTURA HITTERS. — Although the first manufacture of this now famous appetiser dates back to the early part of the present century, its introduction to this country is quite recent. The tonic was invented by one Dr. Liegert, of Angostura, for his own use; but his friends soon assisted him to make it famous. Angostura Bitters is aromatic, stomachic, and digestive, and probably contains a preparation of the Galipca cusp aria, or Angostura bark, as well as a proportion of chamomile flowers, cardamoms, cinnamon, and orange-peel. A few drops in a glass of dry sherry form a splendid tonic.

ANIMAIi WINES.— The value to delicate stomachs of soups, jellies, and other nourishing foods, combined with wine or some other stimulant, has long been recognised; but, according to a recent writer (Professor Simmonds on “Popular Beverages”), it is to the Chinese that we are indebted for the suggestion. He says: “ Among these beverages are Mutton Wine, Dog Wine, Deer and Deer- horn Wine, Snake Wine, and Tortoise Wine. To assure purchasers that the article is genuine, a strip of the skin of the animal is fastened to the top of the containing vessel. These animal substances are macerated in fermented or distilled liquors Another authority tells us that the flesh was first macerated, and then fermented; both may be right. — Ed., and by the Chinese nearly all portions of animals thus prepared are supposed to be efficacious in the treatment of disease” — Kidney Wine for kidney disease, Liver Wine for livers, Heart Wine for hearts, Brain Wine for brains, &c.; “ The

officinal Mutton Wine is, in fact, goat’s flesh,” he facetiously adds, “ these two animals (sheep and goat) being often confounded. It is a sweet and unctuous liquor, and believed to be a great restorer of the constitution. The alcoholic percentage is over 9. Sugar, raisins, almonds, litchi fruit, and skim-milk, enter into its composition.” See Koumiss.

ANIMELLES.— This is a dish very little known in England or France, but much esteemed in Italy, both in Naples and Rome. Animelles are only to be found in entire male sheep.

Pried Animelles. — Remove the skin that covers eight or ten Animelles, cut them lengthwise in quarters, put into a basin, dredge over with salt, and let them stand to macerate for ten minutes or so, by which time all the moisture will be extracted. Take up the pieces a few at a time, dredge over with flour, plunge into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry until they are done and hard inside. Take them out, drain, wipe gently with a cloth, sprinkle over with salt, arrange on a napkin folded on a dish, and serve with a garnish of fried parsley.

ANISE (Fr. Anis; Ger. Gemeiner Anis). — An aromatic herb of the Pimpinella tribe. The essential oil is used as a flavouring in confectionery The best only should be used, as common kinds are largely adulterated with the oil of Star Anise, which, although from quite another plant, possesses the aromatic qualities of the Anise, but in a much less delicate form.

ANISEED. — The seed of Anise from which Oil of Aniseed is made.

Aniseed Bread. — Stir -)-lb. of caster sugar with the yolks of ten eggs until frothy; add to this loz. of bruised Aniseed,

Aniseed — continued.

and work in lOoz. of best flour. Make into a dough, and form into rolls, setting them on paper and putting them into a hot oven to bake. This bread is said to be especially good for children.

Aniseed Cake. — Break five eggs in a basin, add lib. of sugar, beat well, then add gradually lib. of flour and 1 drachm of Essence of Aniseed; take small quantities up with a fork, and drop lightly on buttered baking-sheets, leaving a small space between each; set in a warm place to rise for twenty-five minutes, and bake in a moderate oven.

Aniseed Confits or Balls.— Put 21b. of Aniseed into a confitpan, and pour over a mixture of thin liquid gum, worked up with flour until it is of a consistence that does not stick to the hand. Set the confit-pan in action, heating it with a little steam, and add slowly to the Aniseed mixture some boiling thin syrup, flavoured with oil of Aniseed, keeping the mixture moving while adding it, and allowing it to coat well before more is put on. Continue to add the syrup until the confits are of the required size, letting the action of the pan complete the process. Take them out, and they are ready for use. Common sugar should be used for the syrup; and about six coatings of this will be sufficient to make Confits the size of peas.

Aniseed Cordial. — This may be manufactured from either the bruised seed or the essential oil. Take 2oz. of Aniseed, or 1 drachms of the oil, macerate or dissove it in lgall. of proof spirit, and dissolve in that about 41b. of crushed loaf sugar. Reduce the whole by adding an equal quantity of cold water. The cordial must not be of a lower alcoholic strength than 45 under proof, or it will be cloudy. A strong syrup of 21b. of loaf sugar to the pint, made by dissolving the sugar in the water at a heat a little below boiling-point, may be used instead.

Aniseed Lozenges. — Put 141b. of crushed loaf sugar on a marble slab, make a cavity in the centre, and pour in about Iqt. of strained gum mucilage, made in the proportion of 21b. weight of boiling water 1 to each pound of gum arabic, or tragacanth. Mix in goz. of oil of Aniseed and a little extract of liquorice to colour, and work the whole well into a stiff paste. Put a small quantity of this on to another slab, and roll it out to the required thickness, using the ball of the band to smooth the surface. Brush it over gently, and cut it into shapes with an oval tin cutter. Put the lozenges on boards or trays dusted over with starch powder, let them get cold, and they are ready for use.

Essence of Aniseed. — As a substitute for Aniseed when used as a flavouring, the essence is by some confectioners considered to be greatly superior. It is prepared by dissolving one part of the oil of Anise in four parts of rectified spirits of wine. Shake the bottle, and keep it well stoppered.

ANISETTE. — A French cordial made with Oil of Aniseed.

Anisette Jelly -with Pears. — Cut six rather largo pears into six pieces each, boil them in some syrup, and colour with a few drops of prepared cochineal. Whisk over the fire, till boiling, 2oz. of gelatine, the whites of three beaten eggs, fib. of lump sugar, the juice of one lemon, and 2 j pints of water. Take this mixture off, let it cool, and then add J pint of Anisette. Drain the pears, and fill a plain cylinder mould with pears and jelly alternately. Pack the mould in ice, and when the jelly is solid (about two hours) turn out and send to table.

ANKER.— This is the name given to a small cask or runlet, which was at one time much used in this country for wine, its measure being fixed at 8.1 galls. It is now in common use on the Continent, but varies in its capacity from 7-tgalls. to lOgalls.

ANNATTO (sometimes spelt Annatta, Aimotta, Anotto, Arnatto, or Arnotto; Fr. Rocou, Roucou, or Roucoue; Ger. Orleans).— A harmless colouring matter obtained from the outer pellicle of the seeds of Bixa Orellana (see Fig. 26), an evergreen tree, indigenous to Cayenne and other parts of tropical America, and now cultivated for exportation in the East and West Indies.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, etc., referred to, see under their special heads.

24

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Annatto — continued.

The best Annatto should be in the form of a paste, soft and smooth to the touch, and with a peculiar odour, but not putrid or disagreeable. The colour should be deep red, brighter in the middle than on the outside. Inferior or adulterated Annatto is sold in the form of a hard, brown cake, frequently with the manufacturer’s name stamped

Fig. 26. Flowering Branchlet of Annatto Plant.

thereon, and the mystic word “patent.” The texture of these specimens is generally hard and leathery, and the smell extremely disagreeable.

Annatto is very sparingly soluble in water, but freely so in spirits, ether, oils, or fats. Plain, it gives an orange colour; the addition of an alkali darkens it, strong acids turn it blue, and most acids will cause it to fall from the solution in a dark orange-red precipitate.

ANTELOPES.— The Antelopes constitute a very large and varied class of warm-climate animals. The flesh of some is considered very delicate, and of others quite uneatable. It is usually cooked in plain hunter’s style, but may be treated like venison.

ANTHRACITE. — A species of hard, dull-looking coal, which is beginning to find favour for kitchen purposes. It is difficult to kindle, and requires a strong draught to keep it burning; then it makes up for its deficiencies by showing neither flame nor smoke, and throwing out an intense heat. In the United States it is commonly employed in kitchen stoves, and will be used more in Great Britain when it is better known. Culm is an inferior kind of Anthracite, of no use for cooking.

ANTIPERMENTS. — Chemists have long striven to discover some agent which, when added to fruit-juices, jams, syrups, and other foods, will prevent fermentation setting up, as it frequently does, and spoiling the goods. Salicylic Acid, Sulphate of Lime, Marble Dust, Ground Oyster- shells, Chalk, Sulphate of Potash, new Black Mustard Seed ground, Cloves, Capsicum, &c.;, are claimed as Antiferments, but are scarcely eligible for mixing with foods. Some of them are used occasionally, however, but then they become forms of adulteration.

APES.— Some species of Ape are mentioned by hungered travellers as forming a palatable diet; but this would much depend upon the kind and quality of the animal, and the taste of the individual. No special style of cooking is prescribed.

APICIUS.— The name of a celebrated Roman gastronome, who lived in the time of Augustus and Tiberius Caesars. It is said that he spent an enormous fortune in inventing and producing new dishes. Several dishes and sauces are named after him by modern cooks, who regard him in the light of the father of the art.

APOSTELKUCHEN. — A German savoury cake eaten with cheese.

APPEARANCES. — Mr. C. J. Corblet expresses himself upon this subject as follows: “ There are two important principles to be constantly borne in mind in cookery: one is to please the palate, the other to please the eye. I have called them two principles, but in reality they are one, for the reason that the palate is pleased by means of the eye. There are some good old sayings pregnant with meaning, such as ‘ It makes one hungry to look at it,’ or ‘ It makes one’s mouth water.’ I believe that, in teaching young cooks, one cannot begin too soon to impress upon them the importance of appearances. For instance, in London, at times, in cheap eating-houses, will be seen a window with perhaps fifty or a hundred cold roast fowls all heaped up together, ‘ going cheap.’ Does it make your mouth water even if you are hungry p No. Suppose, however, we were to take one of these fowls, put it on a nice bright silver dish, and ornament it with some green double parsley and a few thin slices of cut lemon, and place the dish on a cloth as white as snow. What a difference ! Again, look at a sirloin of beef that has got cold in the dish in which it was originally served hot — the gravy has settled, and the whole joint is studded with wafers of fat; the edge of the dish, too, is greasy. Suppose some stupid servant were to bring up the joint just as it is. It is perfectly wholesome, but would it look tempting? On the other hand, look at a cold sirloin on the sideboard, in a large, clean dish, with plenty of curly, white horse-radish and parsley. There are, to my mind, few dishes more tempting. Tet, bear in mind, the difference between the two is simply that of Appearance. I have known cooks exclaim, ‘ Oh, never mind what it looks like, as long as it tastes all right.’ This is, however, a great mistake. Experienced cooks will put a few drops of vinegar into the water in which they poach eggs. Why? For the simple reason that the eggs will look whiter; the colouring matter mixed in with the eggs is more soluble in boiling water slightly acid than in ordinary water, and, consequently, poached eggs treated this way will come to table presenting that snowy appearance that renders them far more appetising — not that they taste better, but that the palate is affected through the eye.”

The principle of pleasing the palate through the eye can be extended indefinitely, and it is upon the acceptation of that fact that the instructions given in this Encyclopaedia are based. — Ed.

APPETITE.— All the cooking in the world would be useless except for an Appetite, which is, as we are told by a philosopher, “the best sauce.” Appetite, like hunger, should be ready at regular intervals, and whilst proclaiming the system’s need of supplies, should continue up to, and last no longer than, the amount required shall be swallowed. Disordered or irregular Appetite indicates some systemical derangement requiring medical treatment; and the famous maxim applies here that “ a stitch in time saves nine.” The ingenuity of man has created for us numerous Appetisers, which will be further mentioned under the heading Bittees; but it is not our province to recommend “Appetite forcers” when Nature leaves a ready means open to us of promoting a healthy desire for food by exercise in the open air, regular feeding hours and not too many of them, and total abstinence between meals, combined with discretion in eating and a wise choice of foods.

Some good suggestions on this and kindred subjects will be found under other headings; but as this is not a medical encyclopaedia, we must content ourselves with observing to those who purpose concocting and enjoying some of the good things provided for them in these pages, “May good digestion wait on Appetite, and health on both ! ”

APPLE JACK. — See Apple Brandy.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, etc., referred to, see under their special heads.

No. 2.

No. 5.

PAPER CASES, ORNAMENTS, ETC.,

For Entremets, Entrees, Ices, Jellies, and other Sweet or Savoury Dishes

(DRAWN FROM SAMPLES SUPPLIED BY MESSRS. HUNT, MANSELL, CATTY, AND CO.).

, P .hon for bSiOI. !

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

25

APP.LES (Fr. Pommes; Ger. Apfel or Aepfel; Ital. Mele). — The Apple has justly gained for itself the title of “ cook’s friend,” at any rate amongst fruits; for it is in season, so to speak, from one year’s end to the other, and the uses to which it is applied for the table are so numerous that it would be impossible to describe them all in one volume. Its sweet-acid flesh renders it particularly delicious in sweet foods, but when used as a sauce for meats its piquant flavour is, in the opinion of epicures, unequalled by that of any other fruit.

Apples may bo classed as (1) Dessert; (2) “ Kitchen,” or Cooking; (3) those suitable for both cooking and dessert; (4) the common Cider or Crab Apple, with which we have no present business. Dessert Apples take first place for quality, and are characterised by a firm, juicy pulp, piquant flavour, regular form, and handsome colour. The principal of these are to be found amongst the Pippins, Pearmains, Nonpareils, and Russets. “ Kitchen ” or Cooking Apples are characterised by their property of “ falling ” into a pulpy mass of equal consistency when subjected to heat, and in a degree by their large size and keeping qualities. Some Apples will “fall” in cooking when green, such as the Codlins; and others will only do so when ripe, as the Russets. Others, again, are equally good for dessert or cooking, and amongst these are some of the Pippins.

In Nicholson’s “ Illustrated Dictionary of Gardening ” we find the following enumeration of Apples. We have extracted from that work some remarks upon their appearance and quality, and the periods during which they are in season.

For Dessert. — Adams’ Pearmain, very handsome, juicy and sugary; December to March. Ashmead’s Kernel, or Cockle Pippin, very rich and sugary; November to January. Boston Russet (American), very sugary and rich; similar to Ribston Pippin; January to May. Calville Blanche, first class; October

Fig. 27. Dessert Apple, Calville Blanche.

to December; see Pig. 27. Claygate Pearmain, rich, aromatic, excellent, like Ribston Pippin; January to May. Coe’s Golden Drop, small, with a crisp and juicy flavour; November to January. Cornish Aromatic, rich, juicy, and aromatic; October to December. Cornish Gillyflower, very rich, quite aromatic; October to January. Court of Wick, very handsome, flavour like Golden Pippin; December to March. Cox’s Orange Pippin, rich aromatic flavour, very handsome, and one of the best grown; October to December. Devonshire Quarrenden, excellent quality and handsome; July to September. Duke of Devonshire, flavour crisp, juicy, rich and sugary; December to March. Golden Pippin, small, very excellent flavour; November to January. Golden Reinette, small, yellowish-red, streaked with red, flavour excellent, sweet, and rich; one of the best and most useful of Dessert Apples; October to December. Irish Peach (sometimes known as Early Crofton), yellowish-green, juicy, and excellent; July and August. Iveddlestone Pippin, small, yellow or golden, specked with russet, delicious, highly aromatic; December to March. Kerry Pippin, flesh firm, yellow and red, sugary and rich; September and October. King of the Pippins, yellow and red, juicy and rich; October to January. Lodgemore Nonpareil, rich, sugary, and aromatic; January to May. Mr. Gladstone, large and

“The Illustrated Dictionary of Gardening.” Edited by George Nicholson, A.L.S. 4 vols. London; L. Upcott Gill.

Apples — continued.

handsome, scarlet cheek, striped and shaded, quality excellent; July and August. Northern Spy, large, tender, and highly aromatic; December to May. Old Nonpareil, tender and juicy; November to January. Pitmaston Pineapple, small, flavour very rich; July to September. Red Astrachan, good size, bright, flavour delicate and rich; August and September. Red Ingestrie, bright red next the sun, and yellow ground, flesh pale yellow, flavour brisk and sparkling; August and September. Red Juneating (or Margaret), very good; July and August. Red Quarrenden, bright scarlet, crisp and sweet; August. Reinette du Canada, large, greenish-yellow and brown, juicy.

Fig. 28. Dessert Apple, Reinette du Canada.

brisk, and sub-acid; November to May; see Pig. 28. Reinette Grise, flesh yellowish- white, sugary, pleasant, and sub-acid;

Fig. 29. Dessert Apple, Reinette Grise.

November to April; see Fig. 29. Ribstone Pippin, greenishyellow and red, rich and aromatic; October to December. Sam Young (Irish), small, yellowish, with russet spots, delicious, tender, and juicy; October to December. Scarlet Crofton, yellow and red, crisp, juicy, and sweet; October to December. Scarlet Nonpareil, well coloured and large, crisp and juicy; January to March. Stamford Pippin, large, brisk flavour and agreeable aroma; November to January. Sturmer Pippin, brisk and rich; February to June. Syke House Russet, small and rich; January to May. Van Mons. Reinette, small, rich, aromatic flavour; November to January. White Juneating, small, good quality, but bad keeper; J uly and August. White Nonpareil, delicious; March to June.

For Cooking’. — Alexander, large, showy, and good; September to December. Alfriston, fine, large, white flesh; November to April. Bedfordshire Foundling, large, and very useful; February to May. Bess Pool, large and good; December to May. Betty Geeson, large; February to May. Blenheim Pippin, one of the best; November to February. Cellini, perfect; October to January. Cox’s Pomona, large; October. D. T. Fish, large, roundish, of a clear straw-colour, with small specks of russet, slightly flushed with crimson on the side where the sun strikes it, sub-acid; November to January. Duchess of Oldenburgh (Russian), large, red-striped; August to October. Dumelow’s Seedling (or Wellington, or Normanton Wonder), firm and large, and acid; November to March. French Crab, large, pale green, firm, acid, and the longest keeper. Gravenstein, large, handsome, sweet and crisp; November to January. Greenup’s Pippin, large, February to May. Jolly Beggar, large, pale yellow, tender and juicy; November to January. Keswick

For details respecting Culinarii Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under their special heads.

26

TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Apples— continued.

Codlin, large and early, and an excellent fruit; August to October. Lord Suffield, large, white, soft, and excellent for sauce or tarts; August and September. Manx’s Codlin, one of the finest and most useful; September and October. Mere de Menage, large and good; October to March. New (or Winter) Hawthornden, very large and excellent, one of the best for sauce and cooking; November to January. Nonsuch, large and juicy, unequalled for sauce and cooking; August to October. Norfolk Beefing, large and good-flavoured, an excellent keeper, most useful for baking whole and preserving; November to July. Norfolk Greening, rather acid, keeps till April and May. Small’s Admirable, large, crisp, sweet, and juicy; November to January. Tower of Glammis, yellow, large, square-shaped, crisp, and excellent; February to May. Waltham Abbey Seedling, large; November and December. Warner’s King, large, handsome, and good; November to March. Worcestershire Pearmain, large, conical, of a very brilliant colour, crisp and juicy; August to October. Yorkshire Greening, large, juicy, and tender; November to January.

For Dessert or Cooking’. — Brabant Bellefleur, large, round, pale yellow, red streaked, most useful for cooking; November to April. Court Pendu Plat, rich russet-brown, of first-rate

Fig. 30. Dessert or Cooking Apple, Court Pendu Plat.

quality; November to April; see Fig. 30. Early Harvest, juicy and pleasantly sharp; July to September. Lady Henniker, yellow, with crimson streaks near the sun, highly flavoured, and with a pleasant perfume; February to May. Winter Quoining (or Queening), very bright, almost red, flavour excellent; November to May. Wormsley Pippin, excellent quality, large, and pale green; September and October. There was at one time a very fine kind of cooking Apple sold in this country, called Costards, from which the term “costermonger,” or seller of Costards, is derived; they are not met with now, having been superseded by other varieties. Pippins have ever been favourites, especially for dessert, and Shakespeare makes Sir Hugh Evans say, in “ The Merry Wives of Windsor”;

“ I will make an end of my dinner;

There’s pippins and cheese to come.”

Cheese is sometimes eaten with Apple Pie in these days of gastronomic enlightenment.

The addition of Apples to some foods adds a wonderful zest to their appetising qualities. For instance, with pork and goose, Apple Sauce is an essential of the gourmet’s table; and in some parts of the country a farmer’s dinner would be incomplete without Apple Pie or Pudding. But there are many capital receipts in which Apples form the most prominent item, and a selection of these will be found in their place.

Cider is manufactured largely in Apple-growing comities, by grinding down the fruit to a pulp, and pressing and squeezing out the juice, which is then fermented by the addition of yeast. It is a brisk and pleasing acid drink, and although variable in alcoholic strength, is not usually found much more intoxicating than small beer.

The nutritive value of Apples is very small, probably less than that of rice; but their piquant acid flavour and ready adaptability to all sorts of culinary purposes render them of illimitable value to the cook. The best Apples for use are those which are freshly picked, but those imported from America and the colonies in tubs are generally good cookers and soimd. Dried Apples are

Apples — continued.

to be found in the market under the name of Norfolk “Beau-fines” (corrupted to “Biffins”) and Normandy – Pippins; they are dried whole under heavy weights: those supplied in chips and slices are dried by exposure to heat. In this state they can be kept in stock, and are very serviceable, seeing how readily they absorb moisture in place of that which has been driven out of them by evaporation. Tinned Apples are not so well flavoured as the dried kinds.

American Crab Apples are sometimes used by confectioners; they resemble red cherries in size and appearance, and make pretty decorations and good compotes. Apple and Almond Pudding 1 . —Peel and core a dozen or so of cooking Apples, put them into a saucepan with a little water, and cook them to a pulp. Put this at the bottom of a buttered basin or mould, and let it cool. Put 5oz. ol blanched almonds into a mortar with an equal weight of crushed loaf sugar, pound them well, and mix in the wellbeaten yolks of seven eggs, the strained juice and grated rind of a lemon, and 1 table-spoonful of flour to thicken it. When these are incorporated, add the whites of the seven eggs beaten to a stiff froth, turn the whole into the basin or mould over the Apples, put it into a moderate oven, and bake for about half-an-hour, when the pudding should be of a light brown. Take it out when done, turn it out on to a dish, and serve with sweet sauce.

Apples in Apricot Jam. — Pare and carefully core a couple of dozen small Reinette Apples, and cut them into slices about the thickness of a halfpenny-piece. Put a layer of apricot jam on a dish, cover over with a layer of Apples, and continue in this way to form a dome. Sprinkle it over freely with caster sugar, glaze it in the oven, and serve.

Apple and Apricot Meringue. — Pare and core a dozen or so Apples, cut them up into quarters, put them into a saucepan with 2oz. of sugar, and cook them until they are done and quite tender. Turn them out on to a sieve over a basin to strain off all the juice, then arrange them at the bottom of a dish, put a layer of apricot jam over them, spread over the whites of five eggs whipped to a snowy froth, dust this over with caster sugar, and put the dish in a moderate oven for a few minutes to dry the egg froth. Take it out before it colours, and serve.

Apple Bavaroise. — Peel and cut into quarters 41b. of sweet Apples, and put them into a preserving’-pan; add the juice of two lemons, 2 wineg’lassfuls of sherry, lb. of caster sugar, and loz. of isinglass dissolved in 1 gill of warm water and strained. Place the pan over a moderate fire, stirring the contents occasionally with a wooden spoon. Stew until the Apples are quite tender, and then rub the lot through a tammy sieve into a kitchen basin. Place this upon ice, and stir slowly until upon the point of setting, when 1 pint of whipped cream must be stirred in, and the whole poured into a mould. Turn out when sot, and serve. A wineglassful of maraschino or noyeau adds considerably to the richness of the flavour.

Apple and Blackberry Jam. — See Blackberries.

Apple Brandy. — A spirit made wholesale in the United States from Apples, and more familiarly known as Apple Jack. To 5 barrels of good rectified spirit add lgall. of syrup of gum arabic, lib. of oil of Apple, and Jib. of oil of pear. Let it remain for some time in the barrel, then stir well, and filter.

Apple Bread. — Put ljlb. of coarsely-broken lump sugar into a round-bottomed pan with 1£ pints of water, and boil to crack ( see Sugar-boiling). Have ready, peeled, cored, and sliced thin, about twenty-four good cooking Apples, and when the syrup is ready put these in, stirring continuously until the whole is a thick marmalade. Then take it off the fire, and pour into a well-buttered, round mould with a central hollow, and let it remain until cold. It must be well shaken — not pressed — down into the mould. When firm, turn upside down. Fill the central depression with whipped cream, and pour over the following: 2 table-spoonfuls of red-currant jelly melted over heat, with the addition of 2 wineglassfuls of rum. Other embellishments may suggest themselves to the artist.

Apple Butter. — In some parts of the world — notably America and Germany — special parties are gathered together to mako

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

27

Apples — continued.

Apple Butter. The first part of the business is to pare, quarter, and core as many cooking Apples as may bo deemed necessary. Whilst this is going on, let a quantity of new clear cider be boiled down to about half in a large pan or galvanised copper; put in the Apples to fill the boiler, and let the lot be continually stirred by relays of friends. By boiling some considerable time, the mass becomes as thick as hasty pudding. At this stage throw in a quantity of finely-powdered allspice, and after that is well stirred about, the Butter is ready for putting into pots for preservation, and will keep for years if well secured by covering. Eaten as a preserve.

Apple Cake. — (1) This is a very delicious dish when well made. Bub jib. of fresh butter into jib. of best flour mixed with jib. of caster sugar, the grated rind of one lemon, and make into a paste with water. Divide into halves, and roll out one half into a round about lOin. in diameter, and cover this flat, lin. from the edge, with slices of peeled cooking Apples; strew over a few well-washed currants, sugar to sweeten, and a little ground cinnamon. With the other half of the paste make a trellis-work and ornamental border, and wash over with an egg. Bake in a cake-hoop.

(2) The Germans make a very nice Apple Cake thus: Peel, core, and mince a few good cooking Apples, and put them into a stewpan with jib. of warm butter; when very hot, remove them, and allow them to cool. Put jib. of flour into a large basin, and mix to a thick cream with cold milk; beat in four or five whole eggs; whip well, and pass through a sieve, adding afterwards 3 piled table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar, a little orange flavouring, and j teaspoonful of salt. Mix this and the Apples together, pour into a well-buttered, large, flat baking-tin, and bake in a moderate oven for about forty minutes. When set and dry, sprinkle over powdered sugar to glaze it, and put it back into the oven till done. Bemove, cut into long squares, and serve on a folded napkin.

(3) Take sufficient dough or good tart paste, roll out to about jin., and lay on a greased, flat baking-sheet, turning up the edges a little. Peel, core and cut into eighths sufficient cooking Apples, and arrange these in rows like horses (a cheval) by pressing the thin edge slightly into the paste. Sprinkle over thickly with caster sugar, flavoured with finely-powdered cinnamon or orange flavouring, set in a quick oven, and bake until done; then remove, and cut into squares for the table; sprinkle over more sugar before serving. These are delicious eaten hot as a tea-cake, or with lemon sauce as a pudding, or cold. When baker’s dough is used, it will require thoroughly kneading, and setting to rise; butter and sugar must be worked in during the kneading. To lib. of dough about 4oz. of butter and 2 table-spoonfuls of sugar will bo sufficient for the paste.

(4) Pare and slice ljlb. of cooking Apples, and put them in a stewpan with 1 breakfast-cupful of raw sugar, 1 teacupful of water, and the rind and juice of one lemon. When the Apples have stewed till quite tender, rub all through a fine hair sieve; mix with them loz. of gelatine that has previously been dissolved in a little water. Take 1 teacupful of the above preparation, colour it with a few drops of cochineal, pour it into a well-oiled mould, and leave it till set; then pour in the rest. Great care must be taken that the cake is quite firm before it is turned out of the mould. When served, a custard or some whipped cream eaten with it is a great addition.

Apple Charlotte. — This is one of those dainty and tasty dishes which so well repay any amount of trouble taken in preparing them. Every cook has a special receipt, these differing more in the shapes and ornamentation than in the materials or mode of preparation. To begin with, take a large loaf of stale bread, and after removing all the crusts, with a very sharp knife cut up the crumb into slices about j in. thick, and these slices again into shapes, such as hearts, long triangles, thin squares, rounds, and slips, or fingers, as they are called; the shape to be cut out depending upon the style of ornamental arrangement desired. Cut out a round ljin. in diameter, and lay in the centre of the bottom of a round tin mould then shape out several hearts, large enough for the points to rest on the round disc, whilst their rounded ends touch the sides of the mould. Next cut some of the slices of bread into long rectangular strips, and set them round the side of the mould, standing upright, resting on the round ends of the hearts, and overlapping each other. Dip each piece of bread in warmed

Apples — continued.

butter before setting in the mould. Have ready some thick Apple Marmalade prepared thus: Peel and core about eighteen Apples, and cut them in slices. Put them into a stewpan with fib. caster sugar, the peel (cut thin) of half a lemon, and a bit of cinnamon, tied together. Moisten with rather less than j pint of water. Put these ingredients upon the stove to boil, and then let them simmer until the Apples fall. Bemove from the stove, take out the lemon-peel and cinnamon, and stir briskly with a wooden spoon until the marmalade is of a stiff consistency. Pour this into the bread-lined mould, and cover the top with a slice of bread dipped in the warmed butter, and cut to fit the mould. Put the charlotte into a brisk oven, and bake until the bread is a golden-brown. Turn out on to a dish and sprinkle caster sugar over it, and then glaze it with a very hot salamander, and pour apricot marmalade or apricot puree round the dish; or, instead of the glazed sugar, cover the charlotte over with apricot marmalade. The bread may be cut into any other fanciful shapes, such as may suggest themselves to the artistic cook.

Apple Chartreuse. — This dish owes its origin to the inventive genius of Ude, and has been somewhat simplified by Soyer. In any case it is a troublesome sweetmeat to prepare, but fully repays the artist for the pains taken. Cut off the tops and bottoms of twenty small Busset Apples, and then with a long, round vegetable-cutter (like a tube or cheese-taster) bore out as many pieces as you can of about lin. in length. The cutter should be not much thicker than a quill. Have ready in a stewpan on the fire a strong syrup made from jib. of sugar dissolved in j pint of water, with the juice of a lemon added. When the syrup is ready, throw in half the pieces of Apple, and stow them until tender, but not to break; take them out, and lay them out upon a hair sieve. Put the other half of the Apples into the syrup, and stew them until nearly done; then add a little essence of cochineal, and stew a minute or so longer. Take them out, and lay them on the sieve till cold. Oil lightly a plain round mould, cut some pieces of crystallised angelica, and form a star with them at the bottom of the mould, and a fancy border round the edge. Now take the white pieces of Apple, and stand them slantingly in a row all round the mould, one leaning upon the other. Above this place a row of the red pieces in the same manner, and so on alternately until the rows reach the top. Before you commence to dress the mould in this way, you should make a marmalade of about a dozen-and-a-half Apples diced — the fragments of the pierced slices may be added to the others, in which case less than eighteen will be required. Put them into a preserving-pan with jib. of sugar, the juice of a lemon, a small piece of butter, a little powdered cinnamon, and a small liqueur glass of rum; keep them over a sharp fire, stirring occasionally until they form a thick marmalade. Put them into a basin to cool. You can then fill up the Chartreuse, prepared as before described; and when ready to serve, turn out on a glass or silver dish. Garnish with little bits of red-currant jelly or preserved cherries, and pour a little white syrup, reserved from the first boiling of the Apples, over all.

Apple Cheese. — Pare and core a quantity of Apples, put some into a saucepan with sufficient cider to cover them, and boil until they are quite tender. The cider should be previously boiled and reduced one-third — that is, 3qts. boiled down to 2qts. Take out the Apples carefully, straining off all the liquor from them; then put in another lot of Apples to the cider, and continue in this way until the 2qts. are absorbed. Put the Apples into an earthenware vessel, and let them remain for ten or twelve hours; then put them into a preserving-pan and boil them until they are of the consistence of porridge and of a rich golden colour. “When done, turn it back into the earthenware jar until wanted for use.

Apple Cheesecakes. — Put a dozen large pared and cored Apples into a saucepan with a little water, and boil to a pulp. Beat with a spoon, and add the juice and grated rind of two lemons, the yolks of six eggs, sufficient sugar to taste, and lastly, jib. of butter warmed and beaten to a cream. Have ready some small patty- or tartlet-pans, lined with rich puff paste; put the mixture in them, and bake for from fifteen to twenty minutes. Turn them out on to a dish, and serve.

For details respectin’ Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, fcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Apples — continued.

Apple Cheese and Cream. — Put lib. of sugar in a saucepan with a little water and boil it, skimming frequently; add lib. of Apples, pared, cored, and cut up into quarters, and the juice and finely-chopped peel of a lemon. Boil this mixture over a clear fire until it is of the consistence of a thick jam. Pour it into a mould, and turn it out when set and firm. In the meantime, put a pint of cream or milk into a saucepan and stir in the well-beaten yolks of two eggs, the thin peel of a lemon, a stick of cinnamon, and a table-spoonful of orange-flower water. Set the pan on the fire, boil for a few minutes, stirring frequently, and then let it get quite cold. Turn the Apple Cheese out on to a dish, pour the cream round, and serve.

Apples a la Cherbourg.— Choose firm but good cooking Apples. Pare them, and cut them into bricks. Put lib. of sugar, the thickly-peeled rind of two lemons, and a little ginger, to every pound of Apples, and cover them closely for some hours. Then place them in a preserving-pan, being careful not to break the Apples, and put to them a breakfastcupful of cider; let them boil until the Apples look quite clear (for about twenty-five minutes). Bemove them one by one to a dish. When cold, place them in cross piles, and crown the whole with lemon-peel. Pour the syrup round, and eat them with Devonshire cream.

Apple (flavoured) Chocolate.— See Chocolate.

Apple Chutney. — Pare and core half-a-dozen Apples, and mince them very fine with half the quantity of onions and 6oz. of sultana rasins. Put the mince into a mortar, and add J table-spoonful each of salt, essence of anchovy, and Indian soy, 1 table-spoonful of olive oil, 2 table-spoonfuls of tomato sauce, 1 teaspoonful of ground ginger, and half the quantity of cayenne; pound the whole veiy fine, adding gradually a dessert-spoonful of vinegar. Put the Chutney into jars or bottles, cork them down securely, and keep them in a cool place until wanted.

Apple and Cornflour Pudding. — Pare, core, and cut into quarters sufficient sweet cooking Apples to fill a quart measure. Put Jgall. of milk into a double-boiler, and set it on the fire; when the milk boils, pour it gradually over a breakfast-cupful of cornflour, in a basin, and stir it until quite smooth. Beturn the mixture to the double-boiler and cook for half-an-hour longer, stirring it frequently. Add 1 breakfast-cupful of molasses, 3 table-spoonfuls of butter, 1 dessert- spoonful of salt, and the quart of Apples. Turn the mixture into a well-buttered dish, put it in a slack oven, and bake for three hours. Take it out, and serve.

Apple Cream. — Pare, core, and finely mince half-a-dozen good cooking Apples, put them into a stewpan, with a piece of butter the size of a small egg, 1 teacupful of powdered white sugar, 1 wineglassful of water, and a beaten egg. Add 10 drops of lemon or orange essence to flavour. Stir smartly over a quick fire for about ten minutes. This makes a nice relish for tea, or a good sauce for a batter pudding.

Apple Cream Cake. — Put loz. of butter into a basin, warm it, and rub it into 12oz. of flour. Put 1 breakfast-cupful of sour cream into a basin, and mix in 1 teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda dissolved in 1 teaspoonful of hot water, stirring well until there is a good froth. Should the cream be very sour and refuse to froth easily, add a little more soda, made in the same way as before, as the success of the cake depends entirely on the froth. Turn it into the basin containing the flour, and work the whole into a soft light paste. In the meantime have ready some cold stewed and well-sweetened Apples, grate a little lemon-peel over them, put them on a strainer, and let as much of the juice as possible drain from them. Put a thin layer of this light paste over a well-buttered plate or flat dish, spread the Apple stew over, leaving a margin round the edge, cover over with a layer about an inch thick, fastening the edges well together, put into a sharp oven, and bake until done. Take it out, and serve either hot or cold.

Apple Croquettes. — An Apple Marmalade is prepared as for Apple Bread, and fonned by the hands into the shape of pears. Have three well-whisked eggs in a basin; dip each croquette into this, and throw them afterwards into a dish of very fine breadcrumbs. Smooth them over with a knife, and dip a second time in the egg. Pry in a saute-pan of very best

Apples — continued.

lard until the bread colours a golden-brown. Bemove, place on a sieve to drain, and then pile pyramid fashion on a neatly-folded napkin, and dust freely with sifted sugar which has been flavoured with orange.

Apple and. Crumb Pudding. — Cover the bottom of a wellbuttered deep pie-dish with sifted breadcrumbs; over that put a layer of Apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin slices; then sprinkle these over with powdered cinnamon and sufficient sugar to sweeten; continue in this way until the dish is full. Put it in a slow oven, and bake for about half-an-hour. Turn it out on to a dish, pour round a little cream, and servo.

Apples with Currants. — Pare half-a-dozen or so large Beinette Apples, and cut out the cores with a tin cutter, taking out a little more of the Apples than for merely coring them. Put the required quantity of well-washed currants into a basin of warm water to soften, take them out, drain and wipe them dry, and stuff the Apples with them. Sprinkle over a little caster sugar, put them on a dish, place a small lump of butter on each one, pour a few table- spoonfuls of white wine into the dish, put them in a slow oven, and bake for about twenty-five minutes. Take out the dish when the Apples are well cooked, and serve.

Apple and Currant Soup. — Pare a dozen or so Apples, put them into a saucepan with a few slices of bread cut from a household loaf, and add a flavouring of lemon-peel. Pour over sufficient water to cover them, place the saucepan on the fire, and stew until the Apples are quite soft and pulpy. Strain the liquor into another saucepan, and add about Jib. of well-washed currants, 1 breakfast-cupful of milk, and a sufficient quantity of sugar to sweeten. A teaspoonful of aniseed may be added if desired, and two or three cloves stewed with the Apples are an improvement to the taste. Put the saucepan on the fire, boil a few minutes longer, pour the soup into a tureen, and serve very hot.

Apple Custard. — Take 1J pints of Apple Marmalade or Stewed Apples, and warm up with Jib. of finely -powdered sugar; let this stand in a basin until cold. Beat up half-a-dozen eggs very light, and then stir and beat them well into lqt. of new milk: a little cream enriches the custard. Mix this up with the Apples, pour into a deep dish, and bake for twenty minutes.

Apple Custard Pie. — Peel, core, and chop up sufficient Apples to make a pie, and stew them in not more water than just enough to keep them from burning. When done, mash well, and add to each quart of fruit the following: Pour eggs (well beaten), 1 pint of sweet milk, 4oz. of butter (melted), a grated nutmeg, 1 teaspoonful of lemon-juice, and Jib. of powdered sugar. When the Apples are cool, stir all up together, and bake in a rich pastry crust.

Apple Custard Pudding. — (1) Stew half-a-dozen good largo cooking Apples (pared, cored, and minced) in a little water; when done, rub through a coarse sieve, and sweeten. Make a good custard of 3 pints of milk, six eggs, and 4 table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar and lemon flavouring. Pour the Apples into a pudding-dish, and the custard mixture on top of the Apples, and put into a slow oven to bake until done — about half-an-hour.

(2) Sometimes a rich short-paste is used; a dish or mould is then lined with it. The paste should be put into the oven to set before adding the Apple and custard. Over the top of the custard apricot marmalade may be spread to give the whole an exceeding richness.

Apple Custard with. Vanilla. — This is a very exquisite but extravagant sweetmeat. Strongly flavour with vanilla Jib. of Apple Marmalade, and squeeze through a tammy cloth. Work up 3oz. of warmed butter with a spoon in a basin until creamed, gradually introducing into it the yolks of twelve eggs and the whito of one. When this is worked frothy, add 4 table-spoonfuls of finely-powdered loaf sugar, and the Apple Marmalade. Stir well, and throw in a couple of handfuls of ratafia biscuits. Pour the whole into a buttered mould, and let it poach for some time in the bain-marie. Turn out on to a warm dish, and mask with almond-cream, thickened with apricot marmalade.

Apple Dessert. — Pare, core, and mince 21b. of green Apples, and drop them into I pint of strong boiling syrup. Add the

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, kc:, referred to see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

29

Apples — continued.

juice of a large lemon and 1 teaspoonful of essence of lemon. Boil till it is all a mass, and then turn out into a wet mould to stand until cold. Serve with hoiled custard or flavoured cream.

Apple Devil.— Pare and core two or three dozen cooking Apples, cut them into rings or slices, and put at once into a saucepan with a little cold water, adding their equal weight in crushed loaf sugar, the strained juice and thin rind of a couple of lemons, 1 teaspoonful of cayenne, and 2oz. of ground ginger. Put the saucepan over a moderate fire, and boil until the Apples are done and quite clear. Put the Apples into jars, and they will keep good for years. When wanted for use, arrange them on a dish, heap over them white of egg beaten to a stiff froth, with a little crushed and sifted loaf sugar, and brown in the oven for a few minutes. Serve hot or cold, as desired.

Apple Drink. — Invalids are generally fond of this. Throw 2 table-spoonfuls of clean rice into 2qts. of boiling water, and add quickly half-a-dozen Apples, jieeled, cored, and sliced very thin. Boil for an hour, then pass the liquor through a colander, pressing the rice and Apples with a spoon, but not squeezing them through. When cold it may bo drunk with impunity in almost any stage of illness, and in some cases it may be iced. Some persons prefer it sweetened with powdered loaf sugar, but it does not then quench thirst so readily.

Apple Dumplings.- — These favourite British dainties are almost unknown, or unnoticed, by foreign cooks, and, according to history, created great astonishment in the mind of George III., who exclaimed when he saw them: “ Oh ! Goody, Goody, how did the apples get in f ” Prom this circumstance they are sometimes called “Apples en surprise.” They are either baked or boiled, the pastry in each case being made to suit the cooking.

Baked Dumplings are made with a good short or tart crust. First pare the Apples whole, and then cut out the core by means of a sharp, thin knife, or a corer. Fill up the cavity with sugar, butter, and a little cinnamon, or a clove. Cut some rounds of paste rather larger than the Apples, and cover the fruits, leaving no cracks. A better plan, perhaps, is to roll out the paste to the required thickness (jin.), and put an Apple under it, closing, and pinching’ off the pastry underneath. The dumplings should be baked in a pan; the juice is certain to ooze out of some of them, and should not be wasted, for by adding a little sugar, butter, and nutmeg, it forms a capital sauce to serve with or over the dumplings. Before the dumplings are quite done – — they take about an hour in a quick oven — the tops may be damped and a little sugar sprinkled over to give a glaze.

In America these dumplings are baked in a deep bakingdish nearly full of a rich sauce, made of 1 pint of water, Jib. of sugar, a piece of butter the size of a fowl’s egg, and 1 teaspoonful of powdered cinnamon. With this syrup the dumplings should be well covered, and a little poured over before serving.

Boiled Dumplings are best made with a good puff paste, and are universally made and served in America thus:

(1) Pare some large Apples, cut them into quarters, and take out the cores very neatly. Take a piece of crust and roll it large enough for an Apple. Boll the crust round each, and make them round like a ball. Have a pot of water boiling: take a clean cloth, dip it in the water, and shake flour over it. Tie each dumpling by itself, and plunge them into the water, which is still boiling. If your crust is light and good, and the Apples not too large, half-an-hour will be long enough to boil them; but if the Apples are large, they will require nearly an hour. Serve with fresh butter and sugar; or the butter and sugar may be melted together to make a sauce. A little essence of lemon or orange improves the flavour of the sauce.

In Scotland the paste is sometimes baker’s dough, and the dumplings are boiled in a fine net. They look very pretty when served.

(2) Another American Apple Dumpling is made thus: Take 3 pints of flour, 1J pints of milk, 1 large table-spoonful of butter, one egg, and as many Apples (chopped fine) as the batter will take. Work into a pudding, and divide into dumplings of the required size. Boil for two hours in a well-floured cloth. The water should be boiling when the dumplings

Apples — continued.

are dropped in, and should be kept boiling all the while until they are done, or else they will be heavy. These should be eaten with sugar, butter, and lemon.

Apple Flawn.— (1) This is made with short paste, prepared as follows: Mix well together fib. of butter to each pound of flour, the yolks of three eggs, 4 table-spoonfuls of finelypowdered sugar, a tiny pinch of salt, and a little water. After it has stood for a time in a cool place, covered with a cloth, it will be ready to use. Line a flawn-circle, cut the paste at the level of the top, mask the bottom of the flawn with a layer of orange marmalade, then fill the hollow with good Apple Marmalade, flavoured and well sweetened. Over this put a lattice of strips of paste, crossing one another from side to side (see Fig. 31); “solder” these to the edge of the paste by moistening the ends and pressing gently down, and cover the joins by a ring of paste, ornamented by nipping into points with a pair of well-floured scissors or a knife. Egg the surface of the paste, and push into a slack oven, baking for about thirty-five minutes. Before the flawn is quite done, take it from the oven and sprinkle freely with powdered sugar, returning it to complete, and glaze. Let it cool before removing the mould.

(2) A simpler method of making Apple Flawns is to cut up some Apples into quarters, peel, core, and mince them, put them into a basin, sprinkle some sugar over them, and let them macerate together for half-an-hour or so, tossing them occasionally. Place a flawn-circle on a baking-sheet, and line it with tartlet paste. Sprinkle over the Apples some powdered sugar, well flavoured with orange essence, and after the sugar throw over the lot 2 or 3 tablespoonfuls of well-cleansed currants. Spread this mixture in the flawn-case, and heap it up to a dome above the rim, or it will sink below in cooking. It is usual to cover the Apples with a flat of the same pastry, to prevent them from burning in baking. A moderate oven is sufficient, and forty minutes’ baking should be enough. When done, take the flawn out of the oven, and remove the upper paste; and when it is cooled down a little, mask the contents with good icing-sugar. Bernove the circle before serving.

Apple Float. — Bub lqt. of stewed Apples through a coarse sieve, or mash them thoroughly. Sweeten with G tablespoonfuls of sugar, and flavour with nutmeg; add this, a spoonful at a time, to the well-beaten whites of four eggs. Put 1 pint of cream, seasoned with sugar and nutmeg, at the bottom of your dish, and put the Apples on top. Put in the oven for twenty minutes, and serve either hot or cold.

Apple Fool. — Peel and core as many Apples as may be required, and add Jib. of sugar to every 2qts. of fruit. Stew in sufficient water to cover, and when quite tender pass through a coarse sieve. If not sweetened to taste, add more sugar, and lqt. of new milk warmed, 1 teacupful of cream, and a well-beaten egg. Let this milk and egg thicken in the stewpan, and when cold add the fruit and stir all together. This may be served cold or hot.

Apple Fritters. — (1) Peel and core the Apples, and cut in slices about -jin. thick. Dip in the batter, and fry for six minutes in boiling fat. Serve on a hot dish. The Apples may be sprinkled with sugar and a little nutmeg, and allowed to stand for an hour before being fried. In that case, sprinkle them with sugar when you serve them.

(2) Peel the Apples; slice them across into rounds, after removing the cores. Dip them in batter, and fry to a light brown and until tender. Pile them regularly in the dish, and dust with sugar before serving. Oil is the best to fry them in; but whatever fat is used, it is of no use attempting fritters unless you have plenty of it. Some steep the sliced Apples for a time in brandy or rum before dipping them into the batter, which is an excellent plan.

(3) Take lib. of flour, J pint of milk or water, Jib. of butter (melted), and mix well together; smooth this with a little table beer. Whisk the whites of three eggs stiff, and stir in gently. Have six Apples peeled, and the cores taken out; cut in slices Jin. thick, dip in the batter, and fry in hot lard for about six

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TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Apples — co ntinued.

minutes, the fat not too hot at first: they should be crisp and of a nice golden colour. Serve piled on a napkin, with caster sugar sifted over each.

A la Due d’Orleans. — Pare and core a dozen or so Apples, cut them in halves, put in a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and cook until quite tender. Take them out and drain on a strainer until quite cold. Eoll out some brioche paste, cut or divide it into as many rounds as there are Apples, put an Apple on each, fold the paste over, securely fastening the edges, and plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling lard. Take them out when done, drain on a cloth, put on a napkin on a dish, and serve.

Apple Ginger. — Take 41b. each of Apples and sugar. Make a syrup of the sugar, adding 1 pint of water. Chop the Apples very fine, with loz. of green ginger; or if you cannot get the green ginger, use the dried. Put this mince into the syrup with the grated rind of four lemons, and boil slowly for two hours — that is, until it looks clear.

Apple Hedgehog.— Put Jib. of sugar into a saucepan with a breakfast-cupful of water, and convert it into syrup; add a dozen-and-a-half of large Apples, pared and cored, set the pan on the side of the fire, and simmer gently until they are quite tender. Take them out, drain off all the syrup, fill the cavity of the core with strawberry or apricot jam, and arrange on a dish in the form of a hedgehog. Pare and core about 51b. of sweet cooking Apples, put them in a saucepan with a little water, and boil to a pulp; pour this over the Apples on the dish, covering them with it, and carefully filling up all the holes. Put 3oz. of sifted crushed loaf sugar into a bowl with the whites of three eggs, and whip them to a stiff froth; spread this over the Apples, dusting the whole over with caster sugar. Cut Jib . of blanched sweet almonds into tiny narrow strips, stick them over the hedgehog to represent the bristles, and set the dish in a slack oven for a few minutes to slightly colour the almonds and heat the Apples. Take it out, and serve.

Apple Ice. — Cut fifteen good cooking Apples into quarters, peel them, put them into a stewpan, with J pint of water, half a stick of vanilla, and 2 table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar. Boil this on a quick fire, keeping the stewpan covered; then pass it through a fine sieve. Dilute this puree with 2 wineglassfuls of syrup at 30deg. (see Syrups), and add the juices of three oranges and three lemons, with 10 drops of essence of lemon. Put into a freezer to solidify.

Apple Jam. — (1) Pare and core some good Apples, cut them into small pieces, and place them in a preserving-pan, with sufficient water to cover them. Boil them until they are reduced to a pulp, then pass through a hair sieve. To lib. of pulp add 12oz. of preserving- sugar, boil and skim till no more scum rises, then put into pots. When cold, cover with paper soaked in brandy and cut to fit the inside of the pots. Tie over with paper in the usual way.

(2) Pare and core the Apples, and cut them up small. Allow lib. of preserving-sugar to lib. of fruit. Put the fruit and a quarter of the sugar into a preserving-pan, adding sufficient water to cover the fruit. When boiling, add another quarter of the sugar; boil again, add more sugar, and when all is used let the jam boil till it hardens on the spoon. Cooking in only a little sugar at a time prevents the fruit from getting hard. A little mixed spice added is an improvement.

Apple Jelly. — (1) Pare and core some good Apples, and slice them into a preserving-pan, with enough water to cover them. Put the pan on the fire, and boil the Apples until they are reduced to a mash. Pour the mixture into a flannel bag, so that the liquid can drain off. For each pound of filtered Apple- juice take 12oz. of sugar, boil it, and remove any scum that may rise. When sufficiently boiled, the syrup should cling to the wooden spoon; or a little dropped on a cold plate sets soon. Put in pots and tie down as for jam.

(2) Take 61b. of sound Apples, peel, core, and slice them thin, and put them in a preserving-pan to boil, with 2qts. of water. When the Apples are reduced to a pulp, drain them on a hair sieve and press out the juice into a basin. Weigh the juice, and to every pound of it add lOoz. of loaf sugar. (The Apple which remains on the sieve may be used for marmalade.) Put the jelly and sugar into the pan again, set over the stove, and when all the sugar is melted, pass the jelly through a

Apples — continued.

tammy, and boil it up again, keeping it on the simmer, until it will set on a cold plate. Then put into jars to preserve.

Apple Johnny Cake. — This is an American cake held in great esteem. It is made with 1 pint of flour, mixed with 2 table-spoonfuls of sugar, J teaspoonful of salt, J teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, 1 teaspoonful of cream of tartar, and milk enough to make quite soft. Three Apples, pared, cored, and sliced up small, are worked in, and the mass is put into a shallow cake-pan, and baked for about half-an-hour. Powdered sugar, sifted over the top before removing from the oven, is a pleasing embellishment.

Apple Manger. — Stew 31b. of Pippins, or other good cooking Apples, with 1J pints of water and 31b. of sugar; just before they are done, add a few drops of lemon- juice. Mash well. If put in moulds or jam jars before cooling, it will keep, if necessary, for a long time. Turned out and sliced, it is delicious at tea. Quinces treated in this way are very nice, and may be mixed with Apples if desired.

Apple Marmalade. — A variety of receipts are given for making Apple Marmalade, used in preparing dishes of different kinds.

(1) Take a dozen good cooking Apples, and cut them into quarters. Core and peel them, and put them in a stewpan, with 2 table-spoonfuls of water and 6oz. of powdered sugar. Put them over a slow stove until they fall to a pulp; then reduce by simmering until the marmalade clings to the spoon. Cool, and dish up in a compote-dish, or put in jars to keep. If required for immediate use, sprinkle some caster sugar over the top, and glaze by passing a red-hot salamander over it to melt the sugar.

(2) Some confectioners stew the Apples with water, and then pass the pulp through a sieve, making a puree. This they pour into a stewpan, with two-thirds of its volume of fine sugar and a little lemon-peel cut thin, putting it back on the fire again to reduce it, stirring slowly with a spoon. When it will set jellylike on a cold plate, the lemon-peel should be removed, and the whole poured on to a glass dish for immediate use. Smooth the top with the blade of a knife, sprinkle some caster sugar over, and glaze it with the aid of an iron skewer made red-hot in the fire. With this skewer the surface can be ornamented by forming a little rosette. Surround the dish with soft biscuits, cut into triangular shape.

Apple Meringo or Meringue. — There are several methods of preparing this pretty dish, some of which are, to all appearance, exceedingly elaborate, but, like a Chinese puzzle, simple enough when understood.

(1) Core and pare seven large Apples, and bake on a shallow plate till soft, but not broken. Beat the yolks of three eggs with 3 table-spoonfuls of finely -powdered sugar, a little salt, and 1 pint of scalded milk. Pour this over the baked Apples, which may be piled in a pyramid. Bake these till the custard is firm, and then take it out of the oven and allow it to cool. Make a meringue of the whites of the three eggs by beating them till foamy, gradually adding 3 table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar and a little lemon flavouring, and beat till quite stiff. Place this over the Apples with a spoon, and then set in the oven to brown.

(2) Pare and core the Apples as in the former case, and fill the cavity with sugar and mixed spice, or with sugar, butter, and grated lemon-peel. Bake, and cover with meringue prepared as in No. 1. Make the yolks into a boiled custard for a sauce; or the dish may be served with cream. Brown the meringue by holding a hot stove-cover or salamander over it, and serve hot or cold.

(3) Stew the Apples until well done and smooth. Sweeten to taste, and add the rind of a grated lemon. Beat the whites of five eggs to a stiff froth; add to them 1 teacupful of powdered sugar, a little rose-water, the juice of a lemon, or any flavouring preferred. Put the fruit into a flat dish, and put the egg mixture on with a spoon. Set in the oven for a few minutes to brown. Add a little butter to the Apples while hot.

(4) Pare and cut up two Apples, put them into a saucepan, with a teaspoonful of butter and a table-spoonful of sugar, and let them boil to a marmalade, which spread on a small, flat dish. While this is cooling, beat the whites of three eggs to a firm froth with 4 table-spoonfuls of pounded sugar. When quite stiff, with two dessert-spoons shape this froth into egg-shaped lumps, which you must jdace side by side over

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Apples — continued.

the marmalade until you have covered it and completely hidden the Apples. Strew pounded sugar lightly over all, and put into a quick oven for a few minutes, till crisp and bright yellow. Serve instantly, as it is worthless cold. If you have a lemon at hand, it will improve the flavour of the Apples to put a little both of the rind and of the juice into the marmalade.

(5) Put a dozen large pared and cored Apples into a saucepan with sufficient sugar to sweeten, and cook them slowly for from four to five hours. Beat to a pulp, and put a layer of this at the bottom of a souffle dish; over that put a layer of stewed preserved Apple sours, covering over again with the remainder of the Apple pulp. Put the dish in a moderate oven, and hake for an hour. Take it out, cover the Apple over with sugar icing, return it to the oven to brown for a few minutes, and serve very hot.

(6) This is not an elaborate dish, as described by Jules Gouffe. Take eighteen Apples, cut them in quarters, peel them, take out the cores, and cut them iu slices iu. thick. Put into a saute-pan 6oz. of butter, the sliced Apples, and 4oz. of powdered sugar, and stir over a brisk fire for about fifteen minutes. Add 2 table-spoonfuls of apricot jam. Put the Apples on a round dish, raising them towards the centre. Whip the whites of three eggs, and when very firm mix gently with 4oz. of powdered sugar. Cover the Apples thickly with this mixture; sprinkle some sugar over, and put into a slow oven for ten minutes; when the top assumes a nice yellow colour, the dish may be served.

(7) Urbain-Dubois gives a very pretty arrangement for an Apple Meringue in his book of “Artistic Cookery.” It is almost too intricate for general use, and requires great care and neatness in building. He tells us to get eight or ten small Kennet Apples; peel, core, and boil them in a light syrup, or in water, keeping them very white. When soft, hut not falling, let them cool, and mask them with their own syrup reduced to a jelly. Into the hollow of each of the Apples put a few preserved cherries. Again, cut eight or ten Apples into quarters, peel them, remove the pips, blanch them slightly, and place them in a flat stewpan, with 2oz. of butter and a piece of vanilla. Sprinkle sugar over, let them cook, turning them, and being careful to keep the pieces whole. When cooked, moisten them with 4 table-spoonfuls of apricot marmalade, take them off the fire, and let them cool in the

stewpan. Three-quarters-of-an-hour before serving, lay a few pieces of toast at the bottom of a dish so as to form a circular platform, mask this with a layer of Apple Marmalade, and upon this arrange in a pyramid the cooked quarters. Then mask this pyramid with longish beads of meringue squeezed through a silk bag ( poche ). The decoration is in imitation of a pineapple Begin the beading by making small ones all round the top, enlarging as the circles get larger. Stick long shreds of blanched almonds into these beads. When this part of the performance is completed, sprinkle powdered sugar over all, and put the dish into a moderate oven till it takes a tinge of colour. When it is baked, stick slips of angelica, cut to imitate pineapple leaves, into the top, and surround the base of the pyramid with the Apples containing the cherries (see Fig. 32).

Apples — continued.

Apple Molasses. — This is very useful for dressing other dishes, because of its piquant flavour. It is made by boiling a large number of Apples in a boiler, with just enough water to steam them — say to about one-fourth of the depth of the boiler filled with fruit. When soft, turn them into a basket with a little clean straw at the bottom, place a board, such as a copper-lid, on them, and pile weights upon that. The juice may be caught in a tub or earthenware crock. Remove the juice to a large galvanised saucepan, and reduce by simmering to the consistency of treacle. This will keep well in tightly-covered jars or bottles.

Apple Open-Tart. — Put lqt. of Apples, pared, cored, and cut into slices, into a saucepan with 1 teacupful of moist sugar – pour over 1 gill of water, and add the grated peel of a lemon and half a nutmeg, also grated. Cook gently until the Apples are quite tender, then put the mixture into a basin and let it cool. Put it to about -Jin. in depth into a shallow pie-dish lined with rich puff paste. Have ready some more of the paste, rolled and cut into strips, brushed over with yolk of egg, mixed with a little milk and sugar. Arrange these strips over the top of the Apple mixture from side to side of the edge of the crust, trim the tart, and bake in a moderate oven until done, which is ascertained by the crust easily separating from the dish. Turn it out carefully on to a dish, and serve.

Apple Pancakes.— The same batter as that used for ordinary pancakes is used in this case; and it may be observed that it is always better to mix batter with yeast in it some three or four hours before it is required for cooking, in order to give it time to rise, and insure the pancakes being light. Break four eggs into a large bowl, and beat up well, adding 1 table-spoonful of yeast, 1 teaspoonful of salt, 1 wineglassful of brandy, and a little powdered cinnamon or grated nutmeg. In a smaller basin mix as much flour and milk as may bring the whole to the consistency of a batter, and when it is worked smooth, stir it into the large bowl with the other ingredients. Cover with a cloth, and set in a warm place to work. Prepare a few Apples by coring, peeling, and mincing small. With each quantity taken for a pancake — say 1 teacupful (according to the size of pan used) — stir in a piled teaspoonful of the minced Apple. If too much Apple is added, the pancakes are liable to break, unless made extra thick. These — indeed, all pancakes — should be sent to table “ hot and hot,” accompanied by pounded sugar and oranges or lemons, cut into halves, for squeezing over.

Apple Paste. — This preparation requires some knowledge of confectionery; but as that is now so easily obtained, no further difficulty will be found in manufacturing this elegant sweetmeat, for which we are indebted to the famous Wm. Gunter. Procure some good Apples, core and peel them, and boil in a little water in a covered pan until they are soft; when done, take them out, mash them, and pass through a sieve. Next weigh the mashed Apples, and put them into a pan. Take the same weight of sugar, clarify it, and when it has boiled to the feather (see Sugar-boiling), remove it from the fire, and stir in the mashed Apples. Set the mixture on a slow fire, stir well, and when it just simmers, or boils very gently, remove it, and pour it out thin on small plates, or into shallow moulds or rings of various shapes; the latter should be arranged on a clean tin, or the paste may be spx-ead on sheets of tin, placed level, with a thin knife. Dry them in a drying-stove or oven at a very low temperature until the paste is sufficiently hard to be manipulated. The strips may then be tied in knots, and crystallised if desired.

If it is desired to colour this paste for any purpose, the colour must be put into the pulp after the cooking is finished, and then the paste must be warmed up for one moment before taking off the fire, as colours do not stand when exposed for any length of time to boiling-heat.

Apple Pickle. — To make this, all that is necessary is to put the ingredients into an earthenware covered jar, and set in a hot oven until the Apples become clear. As it will keep in wide-mouthed stoppered bottles, we give the proportions for a considerable quantity; half, or a quarter, or less, may be made: 61b. of good cooking Apples (cored, pared, and minced), 41b. of powdered loaf sugar, lqt. of vinegar, 2 teaspoonfuls of mace, 2 table-spoonfuls of bruised cinnamon, two dozen cloves, 4 teaspoonfuls of allspice, 2 table-spoonfuls of bruised ginger, and

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2 table-spoonfuls of celery seed. It requires no straining, but should be rubbed through a coarse sieve. See Spiced Apples and Pickles.

Apple Pies. — If there is more than one way of killing a pig, most decidedly there is more than one way of making an Apple pie or pudding. Every country has its characteristic style, and so has every county in this country. This being the case, we have selected those which are simplest, and therefore the more likely to give satisfaction.

Small Pies. — (1) Either take a good puff paste, or rub ilb. of butter into lib. of fine flour until they are evenly mixed right through; then pour cold water in the middle, add a little salt, and stir up with two fingers, drawing in the flour gradually. Spread some of the flour on the table, and pat the paste into a smooth mass in it; roll out the paste once, fold it up like doubling up a napkin, and it is ready for use. Cover each patty-pan with a layer of paste rolled thin. Peel two good Apples, slice them off the cores into the pie, cover with another crust, cut off the edges by pressing with both hands against the patty-pan, turning it round at the same time. Bake in a slack oven until the Apples are done — from fifteen to thirty minutes. Some persons add grated nutmeg or cinnamon to the Apples, dredge a little flour over them, and add sugar before putting on the top crust. A little sugar dusted over the top after they are baked improves their appearance.

(2) Pare, core, and slice thin across the core-hole, making rings, some of the best cooking Apples procurable. Line some patty -pans as in No. 1, and fill with about two layers of slices. Sprinkle moist sugar and grated nutmeg over the Apples, and put in each a piece of butter the size of a walnut, and 1 tablespoonful of cold water. Bake without a top crust slowly and dry. The Apples soon become transparent, and half-candied.

Large Pies. — (1) Make a good puff paste, and lay some round the sides and bottom of a pie-dish, whilst the pared and cut Apples are stewing. Put in a thick layer of Apples, throw in half the sugar you destine for the pie, grate a little orange-peel on to it; squeeze out over them a little of the orange-juice, add a few cloves, and then put in the rest of the Apples and sugar. Boil the peelings and cores of the Apples with a blade of mace; strain, and boil this liquor with a little sugar till there is but very little left, then pouring it into the pie. Put on the upper crust, and bake. The quantity of sugar put on the Apples depends upon taste and the quality of the fruit.

(2) Put a good tart crust (see Pastes) over the bottom of a dish. Spread on this layers of sliced Apples, previously peeled and cored, and powdered sugar alternately until the dish is filled. Add a few cloves, and a few teaspoonfuls of rose-water if you have it handy. Put on the top crust after wetting the edges of the under-crust with a paste-brush, and press together. Ornament the edge with a fork, or other stamp; stick a knife in the centre to let out the steam, and bake in a moderate oven.

(3) Core, pare, and mince some good Apples, and then stew them till thoroughly done. Bub through a sieve or colander, and sweeten with powdered sugar. Whip 1 teacupful of cream and the whites of three eggs with 1 pint of Apple, and beat all together. Spread this upon crusts of puff paste on shallow tin patty-pans. Grate nutmeg over each, and bake. Pile them on a dish, and serve with good custard.

(4) Core, pare, and slice as many Apples as may be required. Make a little thick syrup of white sugar, into which throw a few cloves, allspice, or mace, and scald a few of the Apples at a time in this syrup, taking them out in a short time, and putting more in till all are partly cooked. Set them aside to cool, and put into deep patty-pans lined with tart-paste. Dredge with flour, put bits of butter over all, then dredge again, cover with paste, and bake. A wineglassful of wine or brandy added to the Apples will improve the pies exceedingly.

(5) Peel about two dozen good Apples, cut them into quarters, and remove the cores. Put them into a pie-dish, with a good handful of sugar, six or eight cloves, the zest of a lemon, and 1 gill of water. Line round the edge of the dish with tartpaste rolled rather thin, wet the edge with water, cover over the top with some more tart-paste, and trim round the edge, notching with the back of a knife. A very pretty further ornamentation can be made by putting on the top in some

Apples — continu ed.

order a number of paste leaves. These paste leaves are made by cutting a long strip of paste, say lin. wide, into diamonds, and marking these diamonds with the back of the knife. To lay the paste evenly over the top of the pie, first roll it round the rolling-pin, and then unroll it as you lay it over.

German Style. — Boil Apples (cored, pared, and cut into quarters) in as little water as possible, with a glass of red wine, some sugar, and lemon-peel. When cold, put them into a pie-dish that has been well smeared with butter. Stir 1 tablespoonful of warm butter into 1 gill of cream, and add nine eggs, lh. of flour, 1 pint of cream, and lib. of sugar. Take care to rub the flour in smoothly little by little. When this is all thoroughly mixed together, pour it over the Apples, and bake.

Apple Porcupine. — (1) This is an ornamental dish, and, although simple enough to prepare, always gives pleasure and satisfaction. Make a stiff Apple Marmalade with a dozen or so of Apples, and put into a compote-case, spreading a little boiled custard over the top. Make a stiff meringue as follows: Beat up the whites of two eggs until they are very stiff, and then add gently -£lb. of castor sugar. Spread this smoothly over the Apple. Shred lengthwise jib. of blanched Jordan almonds, and stick them all over the Porcupine in imitation of the quills of the animal. The head and feet may be shaped out of angelica. Put into an oven to bake a nice fawn-colour. To complete the figure, after removing from the oven, when cold make two dents where the eyes should be, and drop in a little jelly from the Apples, and in the centre of each drop of jelly stick a currant. The compotecase should not be more than 2in. high. To finish, draw red-currant jelly down the back between the rows of almonds.

(2) A variety of the preceding dish is made, so far as the body is concerned, of Apples baked in the following syrup: 1 breakfast-cupful each of powdered sugar and water, and a slip of stick cinnamon. Boil slowly for ten minutes, skimming well. Core and pare eight or ten good Apples, and cook in the syrup until nearly done. Drain, and set them in a quick oven for a few minutes. Boil the syrup to almost a jelly Arrange the Apples conveniently to form the body of the Porcupine, and fill up the interstices with quince jelly. Make a thick meringue, as above, and spread over, sticking long shreds of blanched almonds to resemble quills. Set in the oven to bake a fawn colour, and serve with boiled custard.

Apples a la Fortugaise (Portuguese style). — Take a dozen fine cooking Apples, and see that they are perfectly sound. Core and pare them, and then boil in a thin syrup until they are just done. Make a very white marmalade with other Apples, and put on a dish, levelling smooth with a knife. Having drained the Apples until no syrup remains upon them, set them round the dish at equal distances, and in such a manner that they may be more elevated towards the centre. In the cavity of each Apple place a preserved cherry. If you have any apricot marmalade (generally called apricot jam), you may use it freely to decorate this very nice entremet, or anything else that fancy or ingenuity may dictate.

Apple (flavoured) Posset.— See Possets.

Apples a la Princess of Wales. — Core and peel about eighteen good-sized Apples, and cut them into slices. Put these into a stewpan, with 1 pint of water, the rind of a lemon, six cloves, and 6oz. of caster sugar. Boil well, and when reduced a little add loz. of gelatine, and pass the lot through a tammy sieve. Divide this puree, and colour one-half with cochineal strong enough to make it a handsome red; then add to the other half a little cream, to make it whiter. Put these two upon some ice, or in a very cool place, to set; and when firm enough, stamp out pieces of the size of shillings, or a little larger, and arrange alternately round a plain charlotte mould with sufficient lemon-jelly to make them adhere to the sides. Dissolve what you have left of the two Apple purees, keeping them separate, and pour into the mould a layer of each until it is filled, taking the greatest care that one layer shall set before the other is laid on. When thoroughly set, turn out on to a dish with a fancy paper on it, by dipping the mould into hot water and then inverting it. Put upon the top a ball of whipped cream mixed with chopped pistachio nuts. As this dish requires some time to prepare, it should be got ready the day before it is wanted. Its solidity and firmness will depend upon the temperature

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Apples — continued.

to which it is exposed. It is rarely satisfactory unless kept in or on ice some time before it is required for use.

Apple Puddings. — (1) Peel, quarter, and remove the cores of eighteen Apples. Mix Jib. of finely-chopped suet, lib. of flour, and a pinch of salt, with water, into paste of a rather stiff consistency. Line a buttered pudding-basin with this (the pudding-basin should have a round rim). Put in the Apples, with six cloves, a little grated lemon-peel, a good handful of sugar, and about 1 gill of water. Moisten round the edge where the paste has been trimmed off the basin, and cover the top with a flat of paste, which must be soldered to that lining the basin. Tie a pudding-cloth over the basin, put the pudding into boiling water, and boil for two hours. Bemove the cloth, and run a small knife round the inside of basin, so as to loosen the pudding without cutting it. If the basin was fairly greased, the pudding should turn out easily. Lay the flat dish accurately upon it, upside down, and turn over quickly. If this is neatly effected, the pudding should remain unbroken.

(2) A very excellent Apple Pudding is given by Dubois, who advises that the cloth should be tied under the basin. The ingredients are arranged as follows: Prepare a mince of Apples, sweeten it, and thicken it with a little apricot marmalade. Butter a dome-mould or basin, and line it with very thin short paste; fill the hollow with the Apples, setting them in layers, and sprinkling over each layer a pinch of currants and one of chopped raisins or sultanas. Close up the pudding with a flat of paste, and solder round the edge of the mould. Butter Fig. 33. Apple Pudding Boiled in Mould. the centre of a napkin, and lay it over the mould, drawing tight and tying underneath. Plunge into boiling water, and boil for two hours on a slow fire, but keeping the saucepan covered, and not interrupting the boiling. Drain, remove the napkin, and turn the pudding out on a dish (see Pig. 33). Pour over the pudding, before serving, some apricot marmalade or syrup, mixed with a little kirschenwasser or maraschino.

French Mode. — Cut Apples, peeled and cored, into very thin slices; boil them for half-an-hour, adding a sufficient quantity of pounded lump sugar, well-washed currants, Malaga raisins, and white wine. When these are boiled together so that the Apples will mash into a marmalade, smear with butter the bottom of a circular dish which is rather deep and will stand the fire. Break up into crumbs a good quantity of sweet biscuits; strew a layer of these crumbs at the bottom of the dish, and over them put a layer of marmalade, then another layer of crumbs, and so on, continually diminishing the circumference, so that the pudding is conical in shape, almost terminating in a point. The top layer should be composed of biscuit. Beat up five whole eggs with 5 pint of milk and 1 liqueurglass of kirschenwasser; pour this over the pudding, and immediately set it on a stand in a moderate oven. Leave it there for half-an-hour, and serve very hot.

German Style (Potjdin Allemand, or Deutscher Pudding). — Mr. C. Beichert contributes the following receipt as a special favourite. The ingredients required are: fib. of butter, lib. of caster sugar, lflb. of white breadcrumbs wetted with a little milk, lb. of chopped cooking Apples, fib. sultana raisins, 6 oz. of mixed candied peel chopped small, ten yolks of eggs, and ten whites whipped to a stiff snow. Cream the butter by working with the sugar, mix in the yolks of the eggs, then the wetted breadcrumbs, the peel, sultanas, and lastly the whipped whites of the eggs, very lightly. Fill some wellgreased charlotte-moulds, and either steam or bake for an hour-and-a-half in the oven, the mould standing upright in a little water. Serve with a sauce made by diluting red-currant jelly with water.

Baked. — (1) Take twelve large Pippins, or other cooking Apples, pare and core them, and put them into a saucepan with four or five table- spoonfuls of water. Boil till quite soft and easy to mash, and then heat them up well. Stir in lib. of

Apples — continued.

powdered loaf sugar, the peel of three lemons, cut thin and beaten in a mortar (f teaspoonful of essence of lemon will do as well), and the well-beaten yolks of eight eggs, and mix all together. Bake in a slack oven, in a dish lined with puff paste, and with the edges ornamented. Sprinkle well with fine sugar before serving.

(2) Fill a 3qt. earthen dish with pared and quartered Apples. Sprinkle over these 1 breakfast-cupful of sugar, a grating of nutmeg, 1 table-spoonful of butter, and breakfast-cupful of water. Cover with a sheet of greased paper, and bake for half-an-hour. Boll a piece of short paste, and cut into a strip 2in. deep to reach round the pie-dish. Boll more paste to cover the dish. Take the pie-dish from the oven, slip the strip of paste between the Apples and the dish, and put on the top crust, after moistening that part of the rim upon which it will rest. Beturn to the oven, and bake for another hour. Dust with caster sugar, and serve with sugar and cream.

(3) Boil and strain twelve Apples as for sauce. Stir in ilb. each of butter and sugar. When cold, add four wellbeaten eggs. Pour into a baking-dish, thickly strewn with crumbs of bread, and strew crumbs on the top. When done, grate white sugar freely over it before serving.

(4) Ingredients: Three eggs, 1 breakfast-cupful of sugar, 1 breakfast-cupful of butter (melted), 1 breakfast-cupful of now milk, 1 J breakfast-cupfuls of minced Apples, 1 teaspoonful of essence of lemon. Mix well together, and bake in a small dish lined with puff paste.

Dutch Style. — To 1 pint of flour add 1 teaspoonful of cream of tartar, £ teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, and g teaspoonful of salt, and rub through a sieve. Beat an egg and stir into j breakfast-cupful of new milk. Bub 2 tablespoonfuls of butter (salt butter will do, in which case less salt is used) into the flour. Mix the paste thoroughly with the milk and egg, and roll to in. deep on a well-buttered baking-sheet. Pare and core the Apples, cut them into eighths, and press these close together in rows into the dough. Sprinkle well with caster sugar, bake in a quick oven for about twenty-five minutes, or until the paste is done, and cut into squares before serving. This is to be eaten with orange-flavoured custard, cream, or a sweet sauce.

Apple Pudding – with. Rice. — (1) Well wash a breakfastcupful of rice and soak it for two hours in cold water. Peel, core, and quarter two dozen Apples. Wet a pudding-cloth, and spread it in a colander; cover with two-thirds of the rice; lay in the Apples, packing as closely as possible; sprinkle the remainder of the rice over them, tie up the pudding-cloth as tightly as possible, and plunge into boiling water. Boil for an hour, and servo with a sweet sauce.

(2) A variety of the above can be made which is superior in many respects. The rice is to be parboiled first until it no longer crackles between the teeth. Drain it, and put it into a stewpan, adding a piece of butter as large as a fowl’s egg, grated orange- or lemon-peel, or both; sprinkle pounded white sugar over, and let it cool. Moisten a napkin in cold water, wring it out, butter its centre, spread it over a basin, and then place the rice in layers on the napkin, alternately with quartered Apples, which have been peeled and cored, and slightly fried in butter with a little sugar. Let the last layer, as well as the first, be rice. Tie the pudding up tightly after pressing the mass together, plungo into boiling water, and let it boil continuously for an hour-and-a-half. Drain, unwrap, turn out on to a dish, and mask with Apple Marmalade flavoured with orange.

Apple Puffs. — (1) These little pieces of Apple pastry are very simple and tasty. One pound of second or “ patten ” paste — that is, the trimmings off puff paste — will make several. Boll it out to iin. in thickness, and cut into round flats about 4in. in diameter. Peel, core, and coarsely mince some score or so of good Apples, and put them into a saute -pan, with a large piece of butter, a piece or two of cinnamon, and 2 breakfastcupfuls of raw sugar. Let them toss quickly, so that the Apples may be cooked without breaking; remove, and pick out the cinnamon. When cool, the flats should have a small quantity spread half-way over each without going quito to the edge ( see Fig. 34, a). Wet this free edge with the paste-brush, and fold over so as to quite cover the Apples. Press the edges together neatly, and flatten so as to give the shape

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Apples — continued.

shown in Fig. 34, b. Channel along the top ornamentally with the point of a small knife. Egg over slightly, and bake on a greased baking-sheet in a slack oven; but before they are

Fig. 34. Ornamental Apple Puff.

quite done withdraw them, and sprinkle them over with fine sugar for a glaze, and then let them finish baking. A most effective supper or lunch dish.

(2) Boll out some puff paste to a thin sheet, and cut into 3 Jin. squares. Put some Apple Jam or sugary marmalade in the centre, and fold over to make a three-cornered puff. Pinch the edges together as ornamentally as you please. Brush over the tops, after placing on the greased baking sheet, with egg and water, and sprinkle granulated sugar over them. This will glaze them. Bake in a moderately slack oven.

Some cooks use finely-minced Apples, with clove, cinnamon, or lemon flavouring.

Apple and Quince Tart. — Pare and core eight or ten good cooking Apples, cut in slices, and arrange at the bottom of a pie-dish. Cut a quince into slices, put it in a saucepan with a little water, and add 3oz. of sugar and loz. of butter. Set the saucepan on the fire and stew the quince until it is quite tender; then put it on top of the Apples in the pie-dish, add sufficient sugar to sweeten the whole, and grate over the rind of a lemon. Put a thin strip of rich puff paste round the edge of the dish, damp it, and cover the tart over with a flat of the paste, securing it all round at the edge. Decorate the cover with leaves, &c.;, in paste, brush the whole over with egg, put it into a moderate oven, and bake for from forty-five minutes to an hour, according to the size of the tart and the heat of the oven. Take it out when done, and serve.

Apple Roly-poly. — Pare and core a few Apples, cut them into rings or slices, and put on a flat round of suet crust rolled out very thin; sprinkle over sufficient moist sugar to sweeten, and flavour with ground cinnamon or finely-grated rind of lemon. Boll the crust over, fasten the edge and ends by damping and squeezing with the finger and thumb, tie it up in a well-floured cloth, put into a saucepan of boiling water, and boil for an hour-and-a-half. Then turn it out on to a dish, sprinkle over a little caster sugar, and serve.

Apple Sandwich. — Mix breakfast-cupful of sugar and salt-spoonful of cinnamon, or the grated rind of half a lemon. Melt 2 breakfast-cupful of butter, and stir it into 1 pint of soft breadcrumbs. Pare, core, and slice Apples to fill 3 pints. Butter a pie-dish, put in a thick layer of crumbs, then sliced Apples, and sprinkle with the prepared sugar. Bepeat this order of layers until the materials are all used up, finishing off with a thick layer of crumbs at the top. A squeeze of lemon-juice over the Apples adds to the flavour. Bake in a slow oven.

Apple Sauce. — (1) A few good “ falling ” Apples should be pared and sliced into a saucepan. Pour in sufficient water to just cover the Apples, and stew with a lid on until quite done — about half-an-hour. Whilst they are stewing, throw in a bit of butter, and mash all up with a silver fork or spoon. Do not add any sugar.

(2) Other cooks add a little sugar (to tart Apples), a squeeze of lemon-juice, and a little grated nutmeg.

(3) Ude advises cooks to stew the Apples with a little brown sugar. Beat up with a wooden spoon, add a little butter, and serve for goose and roast pork.

(4) Delamere recommends boiling the Apples in cider, flavouring with cloves and mace, and mashing up with a little fine sugar.

Apples — continued.

Apple Shape. — Pare and core 21b. or more of firm, green Apples, plunge them into a basin of cold water for a few minutes to preserve their colour, take them out, drain, and put into a copper saucepan, with only just sufficient water to prevent them burning or sticking to the saucepan. Boil until they are quite . tender, then pass them through a fine sieve back into the saucepan, and add 12oz. of crushed loaf sugar to every pound of fruit. Place the pan back on to

the fire, and boil quickly, stirring frequently until quite

done. Then turn it into a mould, and when perfectly cold and firm turn on to a dish, and serve.

Apple Shortcake.— Put 6oz. of butter or lard into a basin, warm it, and rub it into 9oz. of dried and sifted flour,

adding 1 teacupful of iced water to make it into a paste.

Put this on to a floured board, roll it, and fold six times; then roll it out thin, and cover over two jelly cake-tins with it. Trim round the edges, and bake in a moderate oven until done. Turn out of the tins, spread a thick layer of Apple Cream on one, cover it over with the other, mask it with crushed loaf sugar, wet it with water, and put the shortcake into the oven or hot closet to dry. Take it out, and serve.

Apple Snow. — Stew or steam a dozen large tart Apples, cored and quartered; drain, and rub through a hair sieve. Beat up the whites of a dozen eggs until stiff; add lib. of powdered white sugar, and beat again; add the Apple, and beat all together until like snow. Pile lightly on a glass dish, and garnish with coloured jellies or holly leaves. This eats nice with well-flavoured custard or sweetened cream.

Apple Snow with Sponge Cakes —Take four or five stale sponge cakes, cut them up into slices, arrange these on a dish, damp them with maraschino or light wine, and pour over them i pint of rich custard or whipped cream. Next take twelve good-sized Apples, bake until they open and are quite soft, remove the cores and rind, and weigh the remainder. About fifteen minutes before this is wanted, take lb. of it, and beat it up with the juice of a lemon, adding sufficient caster sugar to sweeten; add the whites of two eggs, well whisked, and continue whisking the mixture until it has the appearance of white snow. Heap this on the custard, and garnish with dried cherries and diamonds of angelica. A wonderfully pretty and tasty dish for a ball buffet.

Apple Snowballs. — Boil a sufficient quantity of rice until tender. Soak some small pudding-cloths — say about 1ft. square — in hot water, wring, and lay them over small bowls or large cups. Spread the rice with a spoon about -jin. thick over the cloth, and set an Apple in each. (These Apples should be cored, pared, and the core-hole stuffed with flavoured and well-sweetened rice.) Tie up tightly in the cloths, and put in hot water to boil for half-an-hour. Serve with butter and

Fig. 35. Apple Snowballs, or Apples in Rice.

sugar, sweet sauce, or some kind of marmalade. See Fig. 35. Apricots are very nice in these instead of Apples.

Apple Soup. — This is a favourite dish amongst the Germans. Pare, core, and coarsely mince some good cooking Apples; boil them to a mash in sufficient water to cover them, with grated breadcrumbs of an equal amount to the Apples, lemon-peel and lemon-juice, and cinnamon, cardamoms, or other aromatic spice to taste. When cooked to a pulp, rub the whole through a sieve; add white wine, warm up in a stewpan, and sweeten. Serve hot with sippets of toasted bread.

Apple Souffle. — (1) The word Souffle has come, by erratic use, to be applied to a great number of light dishes which have very little resemblance to, and no possible culinary connection with, each other. That which we are now describing consists of a raised border of dry stewed Apples, with the

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces t &c–; referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

35

Apples — continued.

hollow centre filled in with boiled custard, and whipped white of egg and sugar piled on top. It need not be baked, but the top may be browned by holding a red-hot shovel over it, or by placing it on the shelf in the oven. Serve cold.

(2) Stir with 1 pint of hot stewed Apple 1 table-spoonful of butter, f teacupful of sugar, a little grated nutmeg, and the well-beaten yolks of three eggs. When this is cold, beat the whites of six eggs to a stiff froth, and stir into the Apple. Butter a 3-pint dish, turn the souffle into it, and bake thirty minutes in a moderate oven. Serve immediately, hot, with any kind of sweet or wine sauce.

(3) Take lglb. of slightly-sweetened Apple Marmalade, well reduced and perfumed, flavoured with a few drops of essence of lemon; let it boil steadily, stirring continuously; then take it off the fire, and beat with it seven or eight whites of eggs, whipped very firm. Pour this preparation into a soufflepan, smooth its surface with the blade of a knife, giving it a dome or inverted-cone shape, set in a slack oven, and bake for twenty minutes. Candied angelica, cut in diamonds or other shapes, and half-candied cherries, may be set upon the souffle to ornament its sloping sides.

Apple Souffle in Paste. — Cover the outside of a wellbuttered pie-dish with some rich puff paste, put it in the oven, and bake it lightly; take it out, and carefully remove the dish, so that the paste will form a shell. Pare, core, and stew to a pulp a dozen large Apples, put them in the shell of paste, and add the thin rind of half a lemon (cooked quite soft and tender) and 3oz. of crushed and pounded loaf sugar; then heap over all the whites of four eggs whipped to a stiff froth, and dust it over with caster sugar. Put the souffle in the oven, and bake until it is of a light golden colour. Take it out, and serve on a napkin folded on a dish, with another one put round the base of the souffle to keep it in position.

Apple Sugar. — This, made on the principle of Barley Sugar, is generally much liked as a sweetmeat. Boil lib. of fine loaf sugar in 8oz. of water and 8oz. of expressed Apple-juice. Add 1 teaspoonful of acetic acid, and boil to the crack ( see Sugar-boiling). Then add the juice of a lemon and a few drops of essence of lemon, and give the sugar another boil. Cool the bottom of the pan by plunging a little way into cold water, and when the heat of the sugar is subsiding pour the sugar on to a marble slab very slightly smeared with oil of almonds. As the sugar spreads, lift it up all round in a heap with a knife, and as soon as it has cooled a little, cut off slips as wide as your finger; roll these into round sticks, twist them so as to resemble cords, and lay them on an oiled baking-sheet to set. These sticks want keeping in closely-stoppered bottles or jars.

Apple Syrup. — Cut off the peel from 101b. or 201b. of Apples, put them into a mortar with a little crushed loaf sugar, and pound well. Put this into a very fine sieve, and squeeze out all the juice, to every pint of which take 3 teacupfuls of water and 31b. of sugar. Put the sugar and water into a saucepan and boil them; then add the juice, remove the pan at once from the fire, stir well, skim off all the scum, pass it through a fine sieve into a basin or jar, and it is ready for use.

Apple and Tapioca Pudding. — Pare and core half-a-dozen large, sweet, cooking Apples, and stuff them with a mixture of sugar and powdered cinnamon. Arrange them in a piedish, put a small lump of butter on each, sprinkle round them a breakfast-cupful of tapioca sweetened with sugar and well flavoured with lemon-rind finely grated, pour in sufficient water to fill the dish, place it in a slow oven, and bake until both the Apples and tapioca are thoroughly cooked. Take the dish out of the oven, and serve.

Apple Tapioca — Soak some tapioca — f breakfast-cupful in lqt. of cold water — for a few hours, or pour lqt. of boiling water over it. Boil this in a convenient utensil until the tapioca is transparent. Stir often, and add f teaspoonful of salt. Core and pare seven or eight large Apples, and either quarter them or leave them whole. If quartered, they must be stirred into the tapioca, with 1 breakfast-cupful of powdered white sugar and 1 teaspoonful of essence of lemon, and the mass turned out into a buttered dish, and baked for half-an-hour. If whole, the core-holes should be filled with sugar and lemon-juice.

Apples — continued.

Pour the tapioca over them, and bake till the Apples are very soft. Serve either hot or cold, with sugar and cream.

A delicious variation may be made by using equal parts of Apples and canned or fresh quinces.

Apple Tart. — (1) An Apple Pie may be converted into a tart by cutting out the top crust (being careful not to break the border), and filling up the centre to the rim of the dish with strongly-flavoured boiled custard, smoothed over. With some fancy tin cutters stamp out the pastry top which you have taken off, and put the pieces in some design upon the custard. Then pipe round the edges of the pieces of paste with pipingsugar in paper cones, and fill in the centres with Apple and Red-currant Jelly. This dish is a really pretty and uncommon one.

(2) Take fib. of puff paste, and roll out to about fin. in thickness. Provide yourself with an open-tart mould, butter it well, and lay it upon a buttered baking-sheet. Lay the paste over, press it into the shape, and trim off to the level of the rim of the mould. Fill in with minced Apples flavoured with lemon or cinnamon. Or the Apples may be prepared in this way: Put into a saute-pan 6oz. of butter, eighteen peeled, cored, and sliced Apples, and 4oz. of powdered sugar, and stir over a brisk fire for about a quarter-of-anhour. Bake the tart with the Apples in for half-an-hour, and when cold spread over the face of the Apples 2 or 3 tablespoonfuls of apricot jam or Apple Jelly.

Flemish Style. — Peel, core, and mince 21b. or 31b. of good cooking Apples, put them into a flat stewpan with butter, and toss them over a brisk fire. Add a little sugar, and heat them gently until sufficiently done without breaking. Put them into a flat dish, and smooth them into a dome, covering after with rich almond cream or meringue. Decorate with coloured jellies, angelica, crystallised fruit, or whatever may be according to taste or at hand. Sprinkle over some fine sugar, and put into a moderate oven for twenty minutes or so to finish.

German Style. — (1) Prepare what is called a half-brioche paste of lib. of flour, foz. of German yeast previously made into a sponge, 4oz. of butter, 2oz. of sugar, four eggs well beaten, and the grated peel of one lemon. Let the paste be stiff, then roll it out into a round flat, and make an inchhigh border of puff paste. Fill up with Apples, previously pared, cored, quartered, and each quarter cut into three pieces. Put brown sugar over the top, and a few well-washed currants. Bake over a round, flat baking-tin, and when done dredge over with caster sugar.

(2) Work 6oz. of fresh butter into fib. of fine flour mixed with loz. of sugar, and make this into a stiff shortpaste with water. Roll out into a round about lOin. to 12in. diameter, and make a border lin. wide of puff paste. Prick the short-paste all about with the point of a knife to prevent its blistering, and bake crisp. Peel and core about eight large cooking Apples, and cut each into twelve wedgeshaped pieces. Make a syrup by boiling lib. of sugar in 1 pint of water, and whilst still hot put the Apples in to blanch, with six cloves. Do not boil them, but allow them to remain until soft without falling. Spread some Apple or apricot marmalade over the short-crust, and arrange the Apple slices closely in the form of a star. Strew over a few well-washed currants which have previously been boiled up, dredge sugar all over, and serve.

Westphalian Style. — Peel and mince about fifteen good Apples, and fry them quickly with butter, but so as to get them soft without breaking. Thicken the Apples with 4 tablespoonfuls of apricot marmalade, put them into a flat dish, and smooth nicely. Work up fib. of butter with a spoon until creamy; then add to this, one by one, the yolks of four or five eggs, and fib. of grated breadcrumb, or fine biscuitpowder passed through a sieve. Next add, and stir in thoroughly, 6oz. of powdered white sugar flavoured with vanilla. With this cream mask over the Apples smoothly with a knife, sift over a little sugar, and put the dish into a moderate oven for twenty-five minutes.

Apple Tart and Custard. — Put a border of rich puff paste round a pie-dish, and put in 21b. of Apples, pared, cored, and cut into thin slices; sprinkle over 4oz. of sugar, and grate over the rind of half a lemon. Mix 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice in a little water, pour it over the Apples and

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Apples — continued.

cover the whole over with a crust of the paste. Put the tart into the oven, bake it for about three-quarters-of-anhour, then take it out, and with a sharp knife cut away all the inside of the crust, leaving merely the edge or border. Pour over the Apples a pint of boiled custard, grate over a little nutmeg, let the tart get quite cold, and serve.

Apple Tartlets. — These require little moulds, which may be either the ordinary patty-pans, mince-pie tins, or tartletpans. The tartlet-pans are better than any, being deeper and more ornamental.

(1) The pans are first buttered, and then lined with good

tart-paste and trimmed off round the edges. The centre is then filled with stiff Apple Marmalade (or jam, as it is called by some). This may be made in several ways, as already described, or as an ordinary marmalade; but Soyer recommends the following for tartlets: “Take ten good

cooking Apples, cut each one in halves, peel them neatly, and take out the cores. Put the juice of a lemon into your sugar-pan, into which throw the halves as you peel them. When they are all done, add £lb. of lump sugar, and a little thin lemon-peel cut into strips; stew them gently until tender, and leave them to get cold in their syrup. Put half an Apple into each tartlet, and fill up with the syrup, to which yon have added a little apricot marmalade; turn out, and serve.”

(2) Tbellised.— Tartlets are sometimes ornamented with what is called “ stringing ” paste — that is, a piece of paste, say as large as an Apple, worked up on the pastry-board, with a little water, until it becomes so stringy that you can pull it out thin enough to overlay the tartlets like a lattice (see Fig. 36), or in other pretty design. Solder the strips to the edge of the rim, pinch off, and snip round to form a wreath. Egg the surface of the paste, and bake in a slack oven.

Three minutes before the tartlets are cooked, take them out of the oven, sprinkle sugar over them, and put back to glaze.

(3) Another good preparation of Apples for tartlets is given by Dubois. Cut up some Apples in quarters, and mince them transversely, so that the slices be not too broad. Put them into a kitchen basin, sprinkle over lemon-flavoured sugar, and a handful of currants. Let them macerate for an hour; then fill up the moulds with tartlet-paste, and pile the Apples in them. Cover the Apples with a round of the same paste, solder it to the edges of the mould, and bake in a slack oven for forty minutes. Sprinkle with sugar before serving.

(4) This tartlet is quite a novelty amongst cooks. Make a good, flaky short-paste with 6oz. of butter or lard, 9oz. of finely-sifted flour, and £ breakfast-cupful of iced water. When rolled out sufficiently, cover patty-pans with the paste, trim, and bake separately. When cooked a light brown, mask the paste with Apple Marmalade, and fill up high with Apple Snow.

Apple Tartlets with Cream. — Line the moulds with paste, as above, and fill with good stiff Apple Marmalade. Bake in a slack oven. When cool, spread apricot marmalade over the Apple, and over this lay whipped vanilla-flavoured cream. Smooth the cream over into a dome, and decorate round with crystallised cherries cut into halves, angelica, or other ornamentation.

Apple Timbale. — This is a dish requiring much care and practical experience to make successfully.

(1) Soyer tells us to line a plain round mould, previously buttered, with fine paste, but the paste is not to be thicker in any part than a shilling. Then the interior of the paste is to be lined with rice, previously boiled, and eight Apples, previously quartered and cooked with flavourings and syrup. Cover another sheet of paste over, and put in a hot oven until the paste is quite done. When three-parts cold, turn out upon your dish and mask over with apricot marmalade, decorating it with dried cherries and blanched pistachios. This may be served hot, but it is much better cold.

(2) We have a very much more surprising dish, called by Dubois “ Timbale of Milan,” which appears to be more difficult to make than it is. Pare, core, and quarter a dozen good

Apples — continued.

Apples, and put them into a stewpan, with half a stick of vanilla, a table-spoonful of butter, and 2 handfuls of sugar. Toss them over a brisk fire until they are tender without breaking. Then mix in 1 teacupful of sultana raisins and 1 dessert-spoonful of chopped citron-peel, and let stand till cool. Next take some short-paste — made with 12oz. of flour, 8oz. of butter, 4oz. of sugar, the yolks of two eggs, a little salt, and a little water. After standing a bit, this paste must be divided into a few pieces, which, after being rolled,

must be cut into strips about £in. wide, or less. Have ready a buttered, dome-shaped mould, and into this lay the strips t of paste round and round, commencing at the bottom, and working in a spiral, taking care that each fresh ring shall sit fast on its predecessor. The ends of the strips must also be well soldered together by wetting with water. Having filled the mould, dip a paste-brush in warm butter, and thoroughly moisten the inside of the coil with it. Then fill in with Apples, and cover with a paste flat. Bake for about fifty minutes, and turn it out on to a dish, masking afterwards with apricot marmalade (see Fig. 37). Trim round with small preserved Apples, greengages, apricots, or any other ornamental fruit. Half an Apple or apricot, topped with crystallised cherries, surmounting the Timbale, gives a very pretty effect.

Apple Toddy. — An American colonel supplies the following: lgall. of Apple brandy or whisky, Ingalls, of hot water (well sweetened), a dozen large Apples (well roasted), two grated nutmegs, 1 gill of allspice, 1 gill of cloves, and a large pinch of mace. Season with £ pint of good rum. Let it stand for three or four days before using.

Apple Trifle. — Peel and core a dozen or so of Apples, cut them up, put into a saucepan with a little water, to prevent them burning or sticking to the pan, and add the grated rind of a lemon and sufficient sugar to sweeten. Stew them gently until quite tender, then remove the pan from the fire. Beat to a pulp and put it at the bottom of a trifle-dish. Put the yolks of two eggs into a basin, and beat them well with 1 teacupful of cream and 3 teacupfuls of milk, sweetened to taste; put the basin in a saucepan of boiling water, and stir well until the mixture is quite thick. Lot it get cold, pour it over the Apple pulp in the trifledish, put a heap of whipped cream over it, and serve.

Apple Turnovers. — Another name for these would be “puffs”; but as there is some difference in the arrangement of the pastry, both styles are given, although under different names. Peel about a dozen Apples, cut them into quarters, and remove the cores. Put them into a stewpan, with a little butter, £lb. of powdered sugar, a little lemon-zest, and 1 gill of water. Put this upon the stove, and shake it well until about half done. Next, roll out some tart paste, and cut it round about the size of a large plate (the edge should be a little the thickest). Put the Apples in the centre, with some apricot jam over them. Boll out another piece of paste like the first, and cover over the other, having first wetted the edges. With the fingers twist the edges together, or notch them with the back of a knife. Put the turnover into an oven on a bright, greased baking- sheet, and when rather more than half done take it out and wash it over with whipped white of egg, using a

Fig. 36. Apple Taetlet, Trellised.

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Apples — continued.

brush for that purpose. Shake some rough sugar over the top, and return to the oven to bake a nice brown colour. These turnovers may be served hot or cold.

Apple Water. — This delicate drink is very grateful to invalids, especially after it has been standing for a time in ice.

(1) Slice two large Apples, put them into a jug, and pour a pint of boiling water over them. Lot them stand for an hour. Sweeten very lightly.

(2) Apple Water is also sometimes made by boiling lib. of sliced Apples for an hour in 2 pints of water, with 1 tablespoonful of powdered loaf sugar (or none at all if preferred), and straining through a tammy.

Apple Water Ice. — Peel and core the required number of Apples, cut them in quarters, and put them into a saucepan. Set the pan over a clear fire, and cook them until they are tender. Pass them through a very fine sieve over a basin, rubbing as much through as possible, and mix them up with a sufficient quantity of water, highly flavoured with lemon. Pack the basin in ice, and when the mixture is frozen, it is ready for use.

Apple Wine.— Pare and core sufficient Apples to make lib. when cut up into quarters. Put them into a basin, mix in half the quantity of sugar, and pour over 2qts. of boiling water. Let them remain in this until the liquor is quite cold, then strain off the liquor into another basin, and beat the Apples to a pulp. Pour the liquor in again, let it stand for an hour or so longer, strain it again, and it is ready for use.

Baked Apples. — (1) Core and peel some good cooking Apples, and set them almost touching in a shallow bakingdish. Mix in proportion 1 teaspoonful of grated lemon-rind to 6 teaspoonfuls of sugar, and fill with it the cavities from which the cores have been taken; pour in sufficient water to cover the bottom of the dish, and bake in a very quick oven till soft, basting frequently with the syrup formed with the water and sugar.

(2) Some cook’s advise that the Apples should not be peeled, but sliced off at the top and bottom, and cored. Fill the core-holes with sugar, and put a piece of butter and nutmeg on the top of the sugar. Add water as above, bake, and baste frequently. The syrup should be served with the Apples.

To prevent the Apples from blackening or blistering before they are done through, a sheet of greased paper should be laid over them.

Baked Apples with Butter. — Pare a few good Apples — say eight or ten — and remove the cores with a long cutter. Spread a thin layer of butter on a baking-dish, and set the Apples thereon, with a pinch of powdered cinnamon sprinkled over them. Fill the core-holes with pounded sugar, and baste over with about a table-spoonful of butter melted for the purpose. Put in the oven until done, and serve hot.

Baked Apples, Glazed. — We are indebted to Urbain-Dubois for this pretty but simple dish. Choose some small Apples of an equal size; hollow them in the centre by removing the cores, peel them, and let them boil in acidulated (with lemonjuice or citric acid), slightly-sweetened water. Care should

Fig. 38. Baked Apples, Glazed, and Ornamented with Cherries, Icing, and Angelica.

be taken that the water only just simmers, so that the Apples may not break. Keep them covered. Drain them when ready, and place in a kitchen basin; pour over a little syrup, and let them cool. Well coat them with apricot marmalade, and decorate them round the top with angelica

Apples — continued.

rounds. Fill the hollows with preserved cherries, or with fruit jelly, and dish in a group, decorated with angelica slips cut like leaves, as shown in Fig. 38. The angelica rounds may bo cut with a tube.

Baked Apple Roll. — Roll out thinly a good tart-paste, spread over it thin slices of pared and cored Apples, sprinkle well with sugar, and roll up. Seal the ends, and lay in a baking-pan, with a little water, sugar, and butter round the roll. Grate a nutmeg over all, and put into the oven until cooked. Any other fruit does as well.

Bavaroise of Apples a la St. Albans. — Core a dozen large, sweet, cooking Apples, cut them up into slices of equal thickness, and with a tin biscuit-cutter cut them into rounds of equal size. Put them into a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and stew gently, without allowing to boil or to cook too much. Take them out, drain, colour one half with cochineal, and let them all get quite cold. Wash the bottom and sides of a charlotte mould with a little warmed Apple Jelly, pack the mould in ice, put the rounds of Apples in chains or circles round it, commencing from the bottom and finishing at the top, and let them set; then fill in the spaces between the pieces of Apple with more of the jelly. Put a smaller mould in the large one, and fill the cavity between them with more of the warmed jelly, being careful not to disturb the Apple. Let it set, and then remove the inner mould. Pare and core half-a-dozen Apples, cut them up in pieces, put into a saucepan with sufficient water to moisten them, and add the zest of half a lemon, two cloves, and a small quantity of apricot jam or marmalade. Put the saucepan on the fire, and boil until the mixture is quite thick; then add oz. of soaked gelatine, and stir well until it is dissolved. Rub this through a fine sieve into a basin, stir in a teacupful of cream, and pour it into the centre of the mould. Then cut when set, and serve.

Buttered Apples. — Pare and core a dozen or so large Apples and put them into a deep pie-dish, filling the centres of them where the core was cut out with a mixture of sugar and butter. Put a few lumps of butter in the dish, place this in a saucepan, cover it over, and set it in a cool oven. Baste frequently with the butter, and cook until the Apples are done, but in their original shape, and not burst or broken. Take them out when done, put them on a dish, and serve.

Compote of Apples. — (1) Peel about eighteen Apples, and with a tin cutter stamp out the cores; boil them in a light syrup, with the rind of a lemon (pared very thin) and six cloves; when done, remove the peel and cloves, and allow the Apples to get cold. Line a compote-case with tart-paste, put a sheet of paper in next the paste, and fill the centre with flour; set in the oven to bake. When done, and cold, remove the flour and paper, put in the centre some boiled rice, and pile the Apples round it in the shape of a pyramid; mask them over with diluted apricot jam, and ornament the compote with preserved cherries and angelica cut into the shape of leaves; also a few shredded almonds. Care should be taken that the case suits the shape of the dish it is to be served upon. Remove the case, and ornament the pastry with icing.

(2) Make a syrup with 1 breakfast-cupful of sugar, 1 breakfast-cupful of water, and a square inch of stick cinnamon; boil slowly for ten minutes, skimming well. Core and peel eight or ten tart Apples, stew them nearly to falling in the syrup; take out and drain, and again cook them a few minutes in the oven. Boil the syrup till almost like a jelly. Arrange the Apples on a dish for serving, fill the core-cavities with jelly or marmalade, and pour the syrup over them. Put whipped cream round the base, and garnish the cream with coloured jellies.

(3) Take some ripe Apples, and pare, core, and weigh them, to each pound allowing lib. of fine loaf sugar and two lemons; parboil the Apples, and set them aside to cool. Peel off very nicely (with a penknife) the yellow rind of one lemon, taking care not to break it, and then with scissors trim the edges to an even width all along; put the lemonrind to boil by itself until it becomes tender, and set it to cool. Allow i pint of water to each pound of sugar; when the sugar is melted, set it on the fire in a preserving-pan, put in the Apples, and boil till they are clear and tender all through, but do not allow them to break. Skim the

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Apples — continued.

syrup carefully after you have taken out the Apples, add the lemon-juice, put in the lemon-peel, and boil till quite transparent. Arrange the Apples on a dish, and pour the syrup over and around them.

(4) A very pretty compote was prepared by Francatelli thus: Cut the Apples in halves, scoop out the cores neatly, either trim or peel them in straight bands of equal breadths, and as each is turned out of hand, drop it into some acidulated water; simmer in 28deg. syrup ( see Syrups) until the Apples are partially done through, and allow them to steep in their syrup in a basin until they are cold and ready to be dished up. Drain them well on a napkin, and place in the dish. Decorate the compote with angelica, the red peel of apples, and different sorts of preserves, all previously cut in thin sheets or slices, and stamped out with tin cutters in ornamental shapes to form tasteful designs upon each piece of Apple, representing wreaths, stars, &c.; Cover the whole with a thin sheet of Apple Jelly.

Crisped Apples. — Pare and core some medium-sized cooking Apples, put them into a bowl with sufficient syrup, well flavoured with lemon, to cover them, and let them remain for several hours. Take them out, roll well in flour, plunge into a fryingpan of boiling lard, and fry until done and of a good colour. Take them out, drain, put on a dish, pour sweet sauce over or round them, and serve.

Dried American Crab-Apples. — Cut the stalks to about an inch in length of the required quantity of American Crab-Apples, prick them, and put them into a preserving-pan with sufficient syrup of 22 deg. ( see Syrups) to cover them, and simmer gently on the side of the fire for ten minutes. Remove the pan from the fire, cover the Apples over with leaves, and let them remain in the syrup for a day. Drain off the syrup, return it without the Apples to the preserving-pan or sugarboiler, boil up, skim well, and pour over the Apples. Repeat this operation twice more. Take out the Apples, drain them on a sieve, and dry thoroughly in the hot closet. Add the juice of a lemon to a sufficient quantity of syrup at 35 deg., working it against the side of the boiler until it becomes of a dull appearance; plunge in the Apples, toss them up in it, take them out carefully, put them in a strainer in the hot closet, and let them dry for about an hour. Pack them in layers in boxes, with paper between them, and they are ready for use.

Dried Apples. — Put the Apples into boiling water until soft, then remove, peel carefully, and place them on a strainer, under which is a dish to catch the juice. Place the peeled fruits in an oven, about hot enough to bake bread, and let them remain there for twenty-four hours. When taken out and cooled, the Apples may be pressed flat by a board with weights upon it. When set, dip them in their own juice, and pack away in boxes or jars.

Florentine Mode of Preparing Apples. — Peel seven or eight of the best cooking Apples procurable, remove the cores, and hollow out the inside with a column-tube. Boil them in e light acidulated syrup: 1 teaspoonful of lemon-juice to 5 pint of syrup is sufficient. Keep them a little firm and whole. Drain them, and fill the cavities with boiled sweetened rice, and mask the aperture with apricot marmalade. Spread on a dish a layer of chestnut puree, which is made by baking for a few minutes two or three dozen chestnuts, and after skinning and cleaning them, boiling them in water until they mash easily with cream, flavouring with vanilla, sweetening with sugar, and stiffening with eggs. Place the Apples on this layer, glaze them by means of a paste-brush with apricot marmalade, and put into a hot oven for a few minutes. When thoroughly heated through, sprinkle freely with chopped pistachios, and serve.

Fried Apples. — There is scarcely a restaurant in New York where this dish cannot be obtained, especially as a complement to salt pork; it has an excellent repute for its tasty qualities, and is described thus: It consists essentially of

slices of unpeeled Apple, fried in bacon or pork fat. A competent authority (Whitehead) advises that only “five or six slices should be fried at a time, flat in a large frying-pan, with no more pork fat (or butter) than just enough to cover the bottom. When the slices are brown on one side, turn over with a knife.” When they are thrown into a dripping-pan and cooked in the oven, whether they are a success or not

Apples — continued.

very inuch depends upon careful draining. Sometimes it is as well to dip the slices in flour before frying; and if soaked for a time in rum or cognac, the result is very gratifying.

Glazed Apple Marmalade. — Pare and core eight or nine large Apples, put them in a saucepan with a little water, and cook to a pulp. Rub this through a fine sieve, put it back into the saucepan, and add two-thirds of its bulk in crushed loaf sugar, and a little lemon-zest tied up in a muslin bag. Put the saucepan back on the fire, and stir constantly until the moisture is greatly reduced. Take out the zest, and turn the Apple pulp out on to a dish, smooth its surface with a knife, sprinkle it over freely with caster sugar, and glaze it with a red-hot skewer or small iron bar, making a pattern like a small rosette. Cut a few finger biscuits in triangular-shaped pieces, put them round the rosette on top of the Apple, and serve.

Minced Apples. — Pare and core five or six good Apples, and cut them up into pieces about the size of small nuts. Place these in a stewpan with 6oz. of sugar, and the thin peel of half a lemon. Pour on water to three-quarters of their height, and to this add the juice of two or three lemons. Cover the stewpan and set it on the fire. Let it boil up once or twice, and then remove. When the syrup is cold, remove the lemon-peel, and pour out on to a deep dish; sprinkle over this some wellcleansed currants.

Minced Apples -with. Crodtons. — Mince seven or eight Apples, and put them into a flat stewpan with some butter, 5oz. of powdered sugar, a little orange or lemon flavouring, and vanilla. Toss the Apples over a quick fire till their moisture is reduced, and they are set, but not done too much so as to fall. Cut some slices of bread, and shape them into triangles; cut five or six of them into strips, and one quite round. Put these into a flat stewpan with some butter, and colour a golden-brown. Drain them, and sprinkle over with powdered sugar. Place the Apple Mince on the centre of a dish, smooth over to a handsome dome, and surround with the

Fig. 39. Minced Apples with Croutons of Fried Bread.

crusts, as shown in Fig. 39. On the centre form a rosette with the round and slips. The crusts may be ornamented with coloured jams or marmalades to form an exceedingly pretty dish.

Miroton of Apples. — To the incomparable Soyer we owe so many of our best dishes that no apology is needed for reproducing this. Procure a dozen Russet Apples, which cut into slices in. in thickness; peel and take out the cores with a round cutter. Next put 2oz. of butter into a saute-pan, spread it over the bottom of the pan, and lay in the Apples, with lb. of powdered sugar and the juice of two lemons. Stew gently over a moderate fire. They are done when they yield readily to pressure. Dress them rather high in a crown shape upon the dish. Melt 3 table-spoonfuls of red-currant jelly in a small pan, mix with it a wineglassful of Madeira wine, and pour over the Apples. This is a beautiful dish for many purposes, and is very easy of preparation.

Orange and Apple Tart. — See Oranges.

Preservation of Apples. — Let the Apples remain upon the trees until frost sets in, when they should be carefully picked by hand, put into close casks, and kept as dry and cool as possible. If suffered to lie on the floor for weeks, they will wither and lose their flavour, without acquiring any additional durability. Bought Apples should be carefully examined one by one to see that they are not bruised or rotten, and then be packed away in tubs or boxes of well-dried sand. The sand must be thoroughly dry, or it will be worse than useless to put Apples in it to keep. Lay the Apples singly, and

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Apples — continued.

not touching, upon a layer of sand, coyer oyer level with more sand, and repeat these layers until the receptacle is full. “ The singular advantages,” says an authority, “of this mode of treatment are these: Firstly, the sand keeps the Apples from the air, to do which is essential to their preservation; secondly, the sand checks the evaporation of the Apples, thus preserving them in their full flavour. At the same time, any moisture yielded by the Apples (and some there will be) is absorbed by the sand, so that the Apples are kept dry, and all mustiness is prevented.” It is a good plan to cover the casks or boxes with a nailed-down lid.

Preserved Apples. — Core, pare, and slice some Pippins, and put to each pound of the Apples lb. of preserving sugar, and to every 81b. thus sweetened lqt. of water, a few cloves, and the thin rind and juice of a lemon. Stew this till the Apples go clear, and put into wide-mouthed bottles or jars for use in winter. Eaten with cream, it is very good.

Preserved Pippins. — Boil the rind of an orange till tender, then lay it in cold water for three days. Select two dozen nice Golden Pippins, peel six of them, boil to a strong jelly, and strain it several times through a jelly-bag till quite clear. Put 31b. of loaf sugar in a preserving-pan, pour in 1J pints of water, and boil it. Peel and core the remaining Pippins, and put them in with the syrup when boiling; add the orange-rind cut in long, thin strips, boil fast till the sugar is thick and will almost candy; then put in the Pippin Jelly and boil it fast till the jelly is clear and squeeze in the juice of a lemon. Move the pan off the fire, and leave the contents till cool. Put the Pippins, syrup, and orange-peel into glass jars, and tie them down.

Spiced Apples. — This is a variety of what has previously been described as Apple Pickle. Boil together 81b. of pared and cored Apples, 41b. of loaf sugar, lqt. of vinegar, loz. of stick cinnamon, and Joz. of cloves. When the Apples are tender, but not broken, take them out and put them (whole) into earthenware jars. Reduce the syrup to three-quarters by boiling, and pour it over the Apples in the jars. Tie down with bladder for keeping. Two or three Spiced Apples served on a glass dish are a nice addition to the dinner-table.

Stewed Apples. — It is usual to make a mash of Apples when stewing them; but this destroys the great beauty they display when boiled nearly transparent, and yet served whole. They are, in this latter state, capable of unlimited manipulation in the way of ornamentation. Some care is necessary in the selection of Apples for stewing to avoid those which “ fall ” easily. The cores must be removed before peeling, and the Apples then put into sufficient water and sugar to cover them. A little spinach-green is recommended to give them a nice colour. When the Apples are transparent but not yet broken, they may be lifted out carefully with a strainer and placed on a glass dish. The centres may be filled with red jelly, and the tops masked with apricot or orange marmalade. The sweet water they were boiled in should be reduced by simmering until it is quite syrupy; it may then be coloured with a little cochineal, flavoured with lemon, and poured round in the dish.

Stewed Apples and Rice. — Pare and core a dozen or so large Russet Apples, put them in a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and simmer gently on the side of the fire until they are done and quite tender. Clean and blanch lib. of rice, put it into a saucepan with a little milk, sugar, and salt to taste, set the saucepan on the fire, and as the milk is absorbed pour in a little more; continue in this way until the rice is quite cooked and firm, and all the milk absorbed. Turn it out on to a dish, put the Apples on it, fill up the spaces between them with some of the rice, and place it in the oven for a few minutes to acquire a light golden colour. Take it out, and serve.

Stewed Dried Apples. — Put the required quantity of dried Apples into a bowl of cold water, and let them steep for several hours. Take them out, put into a saucepan with sufficient water to cover them, add a little lemon-juice, cover over the pan, set it on the fire, and stew until nearly all the water is dried up or evaporated. Turn the Apples out, and they are ready, and can be used for tarts, pies, &c.;

Suedoise of Apples. — Make a marmalade of Apples as stiff as possible. Then take small pieces of Apples cut into “ corks ”

Apples — continued.

by a vegetable tube-cutter, stain them of different colours by steeping in a little syrup coloured with carmine, saffron, &c.;, and just boil up once. Let the Apples cool in the coloured syrups, so that the colour may spread equally over them. To dish these, first spread some Apple Marmalade over the middle of the dish, and then arrange the coloured corks upright symmetrically, viz., white, red, yellow, and so on. Make the second layer of corks smaller, and the third still smaller. The top may be decorated with crystallised cherries, greengages, angelica, &c.; Cover the Suedoise over with firm Apple Jelly, and put it into an ice-chamber to cool. This dish is capable of any amount of extension and variation, both as to arrangement of colours, ornamentation, and flavourings.

Soyer says of this dish: “ These very grotesque entremets were never favourites of mine; any kind of ornament, such as cascades, ruins, arches, &c.;, may be made from them, and ornamented with various fruits; but they look very heavy, and from the Apples being so much boiled and reduced, become very unpalatable, they being nothing more than Apples boiled in syrup to a very firm marmalade.” Soyer’s opinion on this subject is worthy of all respect.

Sugar-Iced Apples. — Pare and core a dozen fine, firm Apples, leaving them whole. Put them into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and stew until the Apples can be pierced with a straw. Remove them from the water, and set in a dish to cool. Fill the centres with currant or some other jelly, and ice over each with lemon-flavoured sugar-icing. These are excellent with rich cream or custard.

Surprise Apples.— Pare and core eight or ten Apples (Reinette Apples for preference), and put them on an equal number of round flats of puff or short paste. Brush them over with butter, sprinkle them with caster sugar, and fill the cavities where the cores were cut out — some with pear preserve or marmalade, and others with plum, apricot, or any other kind of jam or preserve. Damp the edges of the paste and fold it over the Apples, securely fastening it at the top. Put them on a well-buttered baking-sheet at a little distance from one another, and bake them in a moderate oven until quite done. A few minutes before serving, dust them over with caster sugar, glaze in the oven, put on a dish, and serve. The edges of the crust should be soldered together by means of a narrow strip of the paste, as in this way it gives a neater appearance. Vol-au-Vent of Apples. — Take sixteen good cooking Apples, cut them into quarters, peel and core them, put them in a stewpan with the rind of a lemon pared very thin and six cloves, nearly cover them with water, and add 1 teaspoonful of coarsely-powdered sugar. Stew until the Apples are done through, strain them, and pick out a few of the best-looking quarters and put aside. Boil down the remainder in the stewpan to a rather stiff consistency, having previously stirred in 2 table-spoonfuls of apricot jam. Next roll out a piece of best puff paste about lin. thick, and with a bold, ornamental cutter stamp out a piece about Tin. or 8in. long and 3in. or 4in. wide, and with a smaller cutter, the same shape as the larger, stamp the top about half-way through. Put on a greased baking-sheet and bake in a moderately-heated oven. When this paste is nicely done, let it get cold. Then remove the paste at the top where the inner stamp has been, so as to leave a case, into which the selected quarters are to be put, with some of the stew, well reduced by simmering. With a little ingenuity the quarters may be piled up very neatly, and the top flattened, or slightly hollowed, and then, just before sending to table, some good whipped cream may be put on the top, with some chopped pistachio kernels sprinkled over it. Serve on a fancy dish-paper or nicely-folded napkin. Note. — A great number of receipts for preparing Apples crowd before us; but the selection made lias been governed by variety, leaving something, if further should be required, to the ingenuity of the cook.

APRICOTS ( Fr . Abricots; Ger. Aprikosen; Hal. Albicocche; Sp. Albaricoques). — In old English works we find this word written Apricock or Abricock, which, according to the name in some of the Continental languages, appears to be nearer the correct way of spelling than our more modern word. The fruit is said to have been introduced into this country from France in the

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Apricots — continued.

reign of Henry VIII. It is supposed by some to be a native of America, but by others of Africa. In China Apricots are very plentiful, and are employed in many ways by the people of that country. The flesh of the fruit of the wild tree is of little value, but it contains a very large kernel, from which an oil is extracted. The fruit of the cultivated tree is preserved wet by the Chinese in all the flavour of its kind; they make lozenges of the clarified juice, which afford a very agreeable beverage when dis

Fig. 40. Moorpark Apricot.

solved in water. There are not many varieties of Apricots, and the difference in flavour is not readily distinguishable, although perhaps the Moorpark is the best (see Fig. 40).

The coarser, and consequently cheaper, sorts of Apricots do quite as well as any other for cooking purposes; and the green fruit picked from the trees during the process called “ thinning ” can be used for tarts in the same manner as green gooseberries. Tinned and dried Apricots are much used also, and very effectively sometimes, in combination with other fruits, such as rhubarb, apples, and plums. Apples in Apricot Jam . — See Apples.

Apple and Apricot Meringue . — See Apples.

Apricot d’Artois. — Boll out some patten paste rather thinly, about the size of the baking-sheet you are going to use. Lay the paste over this by winding upon the rolling-pin, ari spread some Apricot Jam all over it. Eoll out another piece the same size, and lay over the other by winding round the rolling-pin as before explained. With the back of a knife mark out pieces about 2in. by lin., or in diamonds same size, running the knife from top to bottom and crossways. Set in a moderate oven to bake. When done, let it cool, and when quite cold, cut it up through the marks, or stamp it out with a fancy-shaped cutter. Pipe each D’Artois with sugar round the edge and across the top, so as to leave spaces on each, which are to be filled in with apple and red-currant jelly. These form a very pretty dish when laid upon an ornamental dish-paper or neatly -folded napkin. The piping is very simple, and can easily be performed by anyone after reading the instructions given under that head.

Apricot Biscuits. — (1) Put the yolks of fourteen eggs into a basin, and beat in lib. of sifted, crushed loaf sugar and a small pinch of salt; add a little orange, lemon, or any other flavouring, and work well for about twenty minutes, when the mixture should have the consistence and appearance of cream. Put the whites of the fourteen eggs into a bowl, taking care that not a drop of the yolks is with them, whip into a stiff froth, and stir lightly into the yolks, adding gradually 4Joz. each of flour and potato or Indian corn-flour. Put this batter into a biscuit-forcer, and lay it

Apricots — continued.

out upon well buttered and floured baking-sheets in the shape of halves of Apricots, sprinkle them over with caster sugar, put them into a moderate oven, and bake to a light golden colour. Take them out, connect two of the halves together with a little Apricot Jam, cover them over with jam, and glaze with transparent Apricot Icing. Put them as soon as done upon a wire tray or sieve over a baking-sheet, dry in the hot closet, take them out, and they are ready for use. If preferred, royal icing, slightly coloured with orange sugar or gamboge, may be substituted for the transparent Apricot Icing.

(2) Spread over some square, flat, thinnish pieces of sponge cake some Apricot Jam. Boil 21b. of sugar to a blow ( see Sugar-boiling), add half a wineglassful of noyeau, boil again for half-a-minute, and then remove the boiler from the fire. Now work the syrup by rubbing with a spoon or spatula on the side of the boiler until the sugar granulates; .then dip Apricot Biscuits into this with a fork, and lay them on a sieve to set.

Apricot Bombe with Maraschino. — This is given by Jules Gouffe, and deserves attention on that account. Make lqt. of Apricot Puree, and mix it with lqt. of syrup at 30deg.; strain this through a silk sieve into a basin. Put the yolks of fourteen eggs into a stewpan, with £ pint of syrup at 32deg., £ pint of cream, and 3 tablespoonfuls of maraschino; stir over the fire until the egg begins to thicken. Strain the cream through a silk sieve into a basin, and whip it until it becomes of the consistency of biscuit paste. Set two freezing-pots and a bombo-mould in some pounded ice and bay-salt. Put the Apricot Syrup into one freezing-pot, freeze, and work it with the spatula. Put the cream into the other pot, and work it with the spatula, adding £ pint of whipped cream. Line the mould with a coating of Apricot Ice lin. thick; fill the centre with maraschino ice, close the mould, and embed it in the ice for two hours. Turn the bombe out on a sheet of paper, cut it into slices fin. thick, cut each slice across, and dish the pieces on a napkin.

Apricot Bonnes Boucli.es. — Prepare a biscuit batter as for Apricot Biscuits, put it into a biscuit-forcer, and squeeze out in rounds about ljin. in diameter, letting them fall upon a sheet of stiff paper spread over a baking-sheet. Sprinkle them over with a little caster sugar, and put in a moderate oven to bake a light golden colour. Take them out, trim, remove the paper by inverting and damping it, and put on a wire sieve. Take them up as required, place half an Apricot on each, allowing time for any moisture from the halves of Apricots to be absorbed by the sugar, then glaze with noyeau-flavoured icing, put in the hot closet or screen, and let them remain for a few minutes so that they may dry. Take them out, and they are ready for use. They are frequently required for ornamenting cakes, &c.;

Apricot Brandy. — (1) Put two dozen Apricots into a saucepan with a syrup made of Jib. of sugar and a little water. Boil them up in this, then take them out, put into jars, and when cold fill them up with brandy. Cover them over securely, and let them remain for several days, when they are ready for use. They may be carefully and thinly peeled after putting them into the syrup, but this way is not generally adopted.

(2) Cut into halves three or four dozen Apricots, put them into a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and let them simmer gently on the side of the fire for five minutes. Let them remain in this for a day, then take them out and put into wide-mouthed bottles or jars. Put the saucepan with the syrup back on to the fire, and boil it down to the feather degree ( see Sugar-boiling); then add an equal quantity of pale brandy to it, lot it get quite cold, pour it into the bottles or jars, cork them down, tie them over with bladder to exclude the air, and put them in a cool cellar until wanted for use.

Apricot Cakes. — Eoll out a piece of puff paste — trimmings, or “ patten ” paste, as they are called, will do nicely Spread this over a baking-sheet, by first winding it on the rollingpin, and then unwinding. Spread some Apricot Marmalade with a spatula equally all over the paste. Next cut some more rolled paste into long, narrow strips, and roll it like a cord. Arrange these strips over the marmalade, and finish off the ends, soldering on to the edge of the pasto flat, by

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under their special heads.

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Apricots — continued.

moistening with water. Lay icing-sugar along the bars in an ornamental manner, and then bake in a moderately hot oven. When done, cut into oblong pieces 2in. by 3in., and pile one upon the other on a dish with a cut paper spread on it.

Ude recommends that this dish should be decorated with almonds cut into different shapes and coloured.

Apricot Charlotte Russe.— Line a plain round mould with finger-biscuits, and pack it in ice. Eub 1 pint of Apricot Marmalade through a sieve, put it into a basin, and stir in loz. of gelatine, dissolved in 1 gill of water, and strained. Put the basin on the ice, and work the mixture with a spoon until it begins to freeze; then add lqt. of well-whipped cream, mix, and fill the mould with it. Cover the mould with a bakingsheet, with ice on the top; let it remain in this way for an hour; then turn the charlotte out of the mould on to a suitable dish, and serve.

Apricot Chartreuse. — Put 6oz. of sugar into a saucepan with a tin of preserved Apricots, and add a wineglassful of white wine and a breakfast-cupful of water. Sot the pan on the fire, boil the liquor up once, pour the whole on to a sieve over a basin, cut the Apricots in halves, remove the stones, take out the kernels, and carefully skin the Apricots. Pour 1 pint of the syrup into a saucepan, add fifteen sheets of French gelatine, previously soaked in water, and set the pan on the fire; boil the liquor, then add the whites and broken shells of three eggs, and strain the whole through a jelly-hag into a basin. Pour a little warmed sweet jelly on the bottom of a mould packed in ice, put a layer of the halves of Apricots, with a few of the kernels blanched and cut in halves also, and let the jelly set; then cover them with more jelly, and let that set also. Put a smaller mould, about ljin. less in diameter than the other, into the larger one, taking care to have it exactly in the centre, and fill the cavity between them with more of the jelly; when it is nearly set, add the remainder of the Apricots and kernels, so as to have them well distributed round the side. Pour a little warm water ints the smaller mould, to remove it, when the jelly is quite firm; fill the space with Apricot Syrup mixed with well-whipped cream and a little dissolved gelatine, cover over the mould, pack ice on the top, and let it remain until the whole is set. Turn it out on to a dish when ready, and serve.

Apricot Clieese. — (1) Take any form of Apricot, parboil, and reduce to a pulp by beating in a mortar or with a fork. Pass through a sieve, rejecting the skin; add lb. of powdered sugar to every pound of strained fruit, or puree, as it is called, and the kernels of half the stones, nicely blanched. Boil until it has thickened, and then pour into buttered moulds. Set in a very slow oven or drying-closet, and when quite firm, turn out and serve with whipped cream.

(2) Take, according to their size, eight or twelve ripe Apricots; peel and stone them, and pound to a pulp in a mortar, with a little caster sugar. When well pounded, rub them through a sieve with a wooden spoon. Mix a little softened isinglass with this puree. Well beat 1 pint of thick cream, and mix it with the Apricots. Taste whether the cream is sweetened enough. Continue to whip it over ice till you perceive that the isinglass is well melted and blended with the mixture, then put the cheese into a mould, and surround well with ice pounded with salt. If the stirring is neglected when over the ice, the Apricot will fall to the bottom of the mould, so that when the ice-cream is turned upside down into the dish, it will appear of two colours, and the yellow part will be tough. A pot of Apricot Marmalade or tinned Apricots may be used instead by rubbing into a puree through a hair sieve. Proceed as before, and then take 1 pint of thick cream, or more, according to the size of the mould, whip it well, mix it gently over ice with the fruit, and when they are well mixed put them into the mould, and pack in ice.

Apricots a la Colbert. — Put a little rice into a saucepan with milk, and boil it. Cut a dozen or so Apricots in halves, form a little of the rice into the same shape, and fasten both together so as to have a shape like an Apricot, only half Apricot and half rice. Dip them into egg, roll in breadcrumbs, plunge into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry them. Take them out, drain, roll in sugar, put on a dish, and serve with a little sweet sauce made with Apricot

Apricots — continued.

Syrup. The rice should be boiled and prepared as for rice croquettes.

Apricots a la Cond£. — Divide and remove the kernels from a dozen ripe Apricots, and stew them in a light syrup until done, with the rind of one lemon pared very thin. Next prepare a border of rice suitable to the dish you are going to use; fill in the centre with the Apricot, and just before serving pour some whipped cream over the top, and sprinkle with pistachio nuts chopped very fine.

Apricot Cream. — (1) Divide and remove the kernels from twelve ripe Apricots, and put them into a stewpan with gib. of caster sugar and a little water; stew them gently until soft, and then add ioz. of gelatine. Eub the Apricots through a tammy sieve, and mix with them 1 pint of whipped cream, adding more sugar if required, as some Apricots are not so sweet as others, and pour the mass into a fancy mould; or use for any purpose required. If a mould is used, the top should be ornamented with a little crystallised fruit or coloured jelly. When ready to be served, dip the mould into warm water to loosen the cream, but do not let the water overflow the top. Turn out on a glass dish, and serve.

(2) Take some ripe Apricots, split them, and remove the stones; put them in a preserving pan with lb. of sugar and 1 gill of water, stir them over the fire until the Apricots are quite soft, then rub through a hair sieve into a pan. Mix with the puree 1 pint of whipped cream and loz. of dissolved isinglass, pour the cream into a fancy mould, and put it upon the ice or in a cool place to set. When set and ready for use, dip the mould into clean warm water, to loosen the cream, so that the water does not cover it, and turn out in the usual way. This sort of cream may be prepared with plums instead of Apricots.

Apricot Flawn. — (1) Butter a flawn-circle, which place on a baking-sheet. Line it with puff paste (trimmings will do), and trim off level to the rim. Mask the bottom with a thin layer of powdered sugar, and upon this sugar arrange halves of peeled or tinned Apricots in sufficient quantity to fill the flawn. Ornament the rim of the paste with a strip that has been stamped. Sprinkle over with sugar, and bake in a slack oven for thirty-five minutes.

(2) Line a well-buttered flawn-mould with about 12oz. of short-crust paste, fill it up with flour, and bake for about fifteen minutes. Take it out, remQve all the flour, and return it to the oven for five minutes longer, to dry, and colour slightly. Put lOoz. of crushed loaf sugar into a saucepan with the thin rind of a lemon, pour in 3 teacupfuls of water, and boil the whole to a thin syrup. Cut a dozen Apricots in halves, take out the stones, put them into the syrup, and cook gently until they are quite tender. Turn the shell of paste carefully out of the mould, put the Apricots in, as well as the syrup, and serve.

Apricot Fritters. — (1) Make lib. of brioche paste, using only jib. of butter, and set it for three hours to rise; then lay the paste on the slab, fold it over, and roll out thick; fold over again, and put it in a basin on ice or other very cool place. When it is quite firm, roll it out to gin. thickness, and stamp out rounds with a cutter 2in. in diameter; moisten the top of the edge of the rounds with a little brush dipped in water, and put g teaspoonful of Apricot Jam in the centre of each; cover this with a second round of paste, and press the two together, taking care to make the edges stick fast. Prick with a skewer-point round the top about gin. from the edge, and fry the fritters in warm fat; drain, and sprinkle some fine sugar over them. Pile them on a napkin on a dish, and serve ornamented with sugar piping. Halves of crystallised cherries and angelica cut in shapes may be substituted for the sugar dust, if an elaborate dish is desired.

(2) Cut some ripe Apricots into halves, remove the stones, and cut each half into two or three pieces; peel them, and range them in a kitchen basin. Sprinkle over a handful of sugar, and moisten with a little cognac. After soaking halfan-hour, drain them, dip them into thin, sweet batter, and plunge them into hot frying fat. Cook them a few at a time, drain them, and serve hot, with fine sugar dusted over them.

Apricot Ice. — Stew for a few minutes lib. of chopped-up Apricots and the peeled kernels of half of them in 1 pint of water with gib. of sugar. Eub the fruit, with the back of a

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PBACTICAL COOKERY.

Apricots — continued.

spoon, through a strainer into the freezer, and mix in the syrup. Freeze, and when it is nearly set, whip the whites of two eggs to a firm froth; mix them in, and turn the freezer rapidly a short time longer. Cut up two or three very ripe Apricots, and stir them into the ice just before serving. Tinned Apricots can be used if fresh ones are not available; and if preserved in syrup, that will serve for mixing with them; or the liquor can be made into syrup by boiling with a proper proportion of sugar.

Apricot Ice Cream. — Put 8oz. of Apricot Jam into a basin or bowl, and mix in the strained juice of a lemon, half-adozen bitter almonds blanched and pounded, a liqueur-glassful of noyeau, and 2 breakfast- cupfuls of cream. Work these well with a pestle or rolling-pin, rub the mixture through a fine sieve into the freezer, and when nearly set, put it into a mould packed in ice. Turn it out on to a dish when firm, and serve.

Apricot Jam. — (1) Split, peel thin, and slice up as many Apricots as desired; break the stones, extract the kernels, scald them to remove the skins, and then add them to the fruit. Boil an equal weight of sugar in a pan, with pint of water to the pound, to the pearl degree ( see Sugar-boiling), and throw in the fruit. Stir the whole as it boils for about twenty minutes, removing the scum as it rises. When the marmalade hangs in drops from the edge of the spoon it is sufficiently done. Pour into pots, and when cold, cover and tie down in the usual way. Some confectioners do not peel the Apricots; but the peels need not be wasted, as they make a nice little dish of preserve for family use.

(2) Take some ripe Apricots, and place them in boiling water. After they have been in a short time, take them out, cut out the stones, and press the fruit through a hair sieve by working it through with a spoon-bowl. Make a syrup of lib. of preserving-sugar to lib. of the pulp, and whilst boiling throw in the pulp by degrees. Stir well as it boils, and then after a time the mixture will be found to adhere to the spoon like a jelly. Remove from the fire, and add the kernels of the Apricots, previously blanched and dried on a cloth. Store in jars in the usual way.

(3) Cut 81b. of good Apricots in slices, and put them into a basin, with 51b. of pounded sugar and lqt. of water. Stir with a wooden spoon till the sugar is melted, and put the whole into the preserving-pan to boil for ten minutes, whilst continuously stirring, and skimming off the scum as it rises. To judge if the jam is done, take the skimmer out and cool what is on it, and this should feel greasy under the finger. Another mode of ascertaining when the jam is done is to pour a little into a cold plate: if it shows an inclination to set without running, it is made, and must be removed at once, as to leave it longer causes a waste of material. Pour the jam into pots, and cover as usual.

Apricot Jelly. — Cut eighteen ripe, fleshy Apricots into slices and remove the stones. Put them into a basin, with the juice of three lemons. Have ready boiling pints of clarified syrup, pour it over the Apricots, cover the basin with a cloth, and let the contents cool. Then add to the syrup when half-cold lfoz. of isinglass, mix well in, and strain through a jelly-bag into a mould. The remainder of the Apricots make a very good, but inferior-looking, marmalade, or compote, for nursery use.

Apricot Marmalade. — Select some Apricots quite ripe, stone, and pass them through a sieve; weigh 31b. of the Apricot puree, put it into a preserving-pan, and mix with it 21b. of crushed sugar. Set the pan over a fire or stove, and let the marmalade reduce slowly until it coats over the spoon, and falls in large drops from it. Add some of the kernels of the Apricots, blanched in hot water and dried, and pour it into jars, as for jams. Apricot Marmalade and Apricot Jam are virtually one and the same thing.

Apricots with Noyeau Jelly.— Beat the whites of three eggs and put them in a stewpan, with 2oz. of gelatine, fib. of loaf sugar, the juice of one lemon, and lqt. of water. Whisk it over the fire till it boils. Boil some Apricots, cut in halves, in syrup; drain them, and crack the stones; blanch and peel the kernels, divide them in halves, and strew them in a plain cylinder mould with a little dissolved gelatine. Fill the mould alternately with layers of jelly and Apricots, cover it with a

Apricots — continued.

baking-sheet, imbed it in ice, with ice on the top, and let it freeze for two hours. When ready to serve, wipe the mould and turn the jelly out.

Apricot Omelet. — Put the yolks of six eggs and the whites of four into a basin, sprinkle over them a small quantity of salt, and beat them well. Pour this into an omelet-pan with a little melted butter in it, and as soon as it is set turn it carefully out. Spread over as much Apricot Jam or Marmalade as required, fold the omelet up, put it on a dish, sprinkle over caster sugar, glaze it in the oven or with a salamander, and servo hot. •

Apricot Open Tart. — Proceed, as for Apple Pie No. 2, to trim an open-tart mould, spread sugar over the paste, and fill up the centre with halves of Apricots instead of apples. Sprinkle sugar freely over the fruit, and bake for half-an-hour or so, until done.

Apricot “ Pain,” or Bread (as described by a celebrated Parisian confectioner). — Dissolve loz. of best isinglass in % pint of lukewarm water, and stir this into an equal quantity of Apricot Marmalade. Add to this the juice of an orange and 1 teaspoonful of orange flavouring, pass through a sieve, and stir upon ice until partly set. Fix a dome-shaped mould in broken ice, and put some of the Apricot mixture into it. When that is set, let down on to it, exactly in the centre, another mould of the same shape but much smaller, and let this inside mould be filled with pounded ice and salt. Pour the Apricot mixture all round this mould until it fills the space between the moulds up to the top. Let all set. Then remove the ice from the inner mould, and pour in a little water, so that by the difference of temperature it may loosen itself. Have ready some syrup flavoured with vanilla, and mix with it a little dissolved isinglass. Stir on ice until this mixture begins to thicken, and then introduce into it i pint of whipped cream, and some strawberries preserved whole. Pour it into the hollow left by the removal of the inner mould; let it set, and as soon as it is quite firm, turn it out on to a dish.

Apricot Paste. — Make a very firm Apricot Jam, pour it upon a clean baking-sheet, and put it in a very slow oven to dry. When set, stamp out or cut into any shapes, such as rings, rounds, ovals, leaves, lozenges, &c.;, and place on trays to be dried in the screen. Cover with paper to keep off the dust. A very low oven will do where a drying-screen is not available. The shapes when quite dry may be dusted with fine sugar, and packed in tin boxes for use when required.

Apricot Pastille Drops. — Put jib. of coarsely-sifted, crushed loaf sugar into a small, spouted, and round-bottomed sugarboiler, and place it on a sheet of wrought iron prepared for this purpose, having a hole about 6in. in diameter cut in the centre, so as to reduce the heat, and only allow the bottom part of the sugar-boiler to be exposed to the fire. Stir well for two minutes with a wooden spoon until the sugar begins to dissolve at the bottom, and then with a piece of bent wire cut off lumps as big as peas as the mixture runs out of the spout, letting them fall gently in close rows upon sheets of stiff paper. Let them remain until they are quite firm and set. Turn the paper over, damp it, and the pastilles will fall from it on to a dry sieve. Roll them in this gently over a slow fire to dry them, put them into jars or bottles, well stoppered to exclude the air, place them in a dry, cool place, and let them remain until wanted.

Apricot Pie. — (1) English Fashion . — Take an ordinary pie-dish, and make sufficient tart paste, according to the sized tart you propose making. Lay closely pressed round the border of the dish (previously wetted) a band of paste, 3in. wide and £in. thick. Within the dish arrange a sufficient quantity of halves of Apricots to fill it — unripe fruit will do for these pies — 1 teacupful of sugar, and 2oz. or 3oz. of butter. Roll out some more paste to make a crust, and having wetted the band with a paste-brush, cover with the sheet of paste prepared for the purpose. Press the edges down, trim off with an upright knife, and notch round with the back of the knife, or ornament in any other way. Brush over the top of the pie with white of egg, and strew finely-broken sugar over. Bake for a hour-and-a-quarter, and serve hot. If to be served cold, the butter is better omitted.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

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Apricots — continued.

(2) Dubois puts a little water at the bottom of the dish, instead of butter, as in No. 1. The paste he also makes with yolks of eggs and sugar.

Apricot and Pistachio Ice. — Blanch, peel, and pound jib. of pistachio kernels. Boil 1 j pints of milk. Put the yolks of six eggs in a stewpan, with jib. of pounded sugar and the boiled milk. Stir over the fire till the eggs begin to thicken. Let this cool, then add the pounded pistachios and a little green spinach-colouring, and strain the whole through a tammy cloth into a basin. Make 1 pint of Apricot purde (by stewing the fruit until soft and then rubbing it through a sieve), mix with 1 pint of syrup, and strain through a sieve. Freeze the two mixtures separately, and serve them moulded together.

Apricot Pudding. — (1) Take two dozen Apricots, divide them, and remove the stones. Put the halves into a stewpan upon the stove, with 6oz. of caster sugar. Pour over them j pint of water, well shake them, and when about half cooked through pour them into a pudding-basin, which has been previously buttered and lined with a good suet paste. Cover the top with the same sort of paste, tie over with a pudding-cloth, plunge into boiling water, and boil for two hours. Remove from the saucepan, untie the cloth, turn out upon a dish, and serve. By running the edge of a small knife round the edge of the basin between it and the pudding, the latter turns out more readily.

(2) Careme advises the addition of a few of the blanched kernels of the stones; but as the tinned Apricots (which have no kernels) are more likely to be used, the addition of j teaspoonful of almond flavouring will answer the purpose instead.

Apricot Ratafia. — Cut two dozen Apricots into pieces. Take the kernels out of their shells, blanch them, and crush in a mortar. Put all together into a jar, with jib. of fine sugar, eight cloves, a little cinnamon, and lqt. of brandy. Cover up the jar quite closely, and allow the contents to macerate for three weeks, when they may be passed through a tammy filter and bo bottled for use. Peach brandy is made in a similar manner.

Apricots with. Rice. — Cut eighteen or twenty Apricots in halves, put them without their stones into a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and simmer them gently until quite tender. In the meantime, prepare a croustade of rice the size of the dish about to be used, and about 2in. in height. Put a breakfast- cupful of rice into a saucepan with 1 quart of milk, add a stick of vanilla for flavouring, and sufficient sugar to sweeten; set the pan on the side of the fire, and simmer gently for about an hour. Turn the rice into the croustade placed on the dish, forming it into the shape of a dome, put the halves of Apricots round it in circles, reduce the syrup quickly, pour it over, and serve at once.

Apricot Sauce. — Cut a dozen or so Apricots in halves, remove and break the stones, blanch and pound the kernels, and put them with the fruit in a saucepan, with a little water, to prevent them burning. Pour over 1 wineglassful of madeira when the fruit is stewed quite soft, add sufficient sugar to sweeten, and a thickening of flour or arrowroot mixed smooth with water. Pass the sauce through a fine sieve into a sauceboat, and it is ready for use. Apricot Jam and sherry may be substituted for the fresh Apricots and madeira if desired.

Apricot Snowballs. — Divide a little more than a breakfastcupful of boiled rice into six equal parts, and spread each part over a small, wet pudding-cloth placed over a half-pint basin to about a third of an inch in thickness. Cut half-adozen Apricots only sufficient to extract the stones, fill the cavities with a little of the cooked rice, place them in the centre of the rice, and draw the cloths gently round until the Apricots are covered with the rice; then tie them round securely and tightly, put them in a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water, and steam for ten minutes. Take them out, carefully remove the cloths, put them on a dish, pour over a little sweet sauce made from Apricot Syrup, and Berve.

Apricot Souffle. — (1) Take one dozen Apricots, divide them, and remove the stones; cook them in a light syrup — lib. of sugar to 1 pint of water — and put them upon a sieve to drain. Make the following custard: jib. of flour, the same amount of butter, the yolks of eight eggs, and jib. of caster

Apricots — continued.

sugar. Flavour with vanilla and 1 gill of the Apricot Syrup. Stir the whole upon the fire until it boils, then remove it. Cut the Apricots up into small squares, add them and the whites of twelve eggs, whisked up very firm, also about jib. of Almonds, having previously blanched them; mix the whole together carefully. Butter a souffle-tin, put some buttered paper round it, and tie with a string. Put the mixture in the oven, and bake for about one hour and a-quarter. When

it has been in the oven one hour, dust it over with caster

sugar, and return it to finish baking. When quite done,

remove the paper, and put the souffle into a souffle-dish.

It should be served immediately it is taken from the oven.

(2) Bub through a sieve sufficient halves of tinned Apricots to make 3 gills. Put this puree into a basin, with double its volume of powdered sugar — a part of which may be flavoured with orange. Set the basin on ice, work the preparation with a spoon till thickened; then add the white of an egg, not whipped, and continue working the mixture briskly. As soon as the white of one egg is well worked in, add another, and continue to add the whites of eggs up to ten. To insure this souffle turning out light, it must be worked for three-quarters-of-an-hour at least. Pour into a souffle-pan, and bake in a moderately hot oven for about twenty minutes.

Apricot Tartlets. — The first step is to decide how many you mean to make, and then if this receipt is carefully carried out, a very beautiful dish will result. Prepare the Apricots by boiling 4oz. of sugar with 1 pint of the juice in which they are preserved in the tins, and if you have not sufficient of this to make 1 pint, you must add water to make up the quantity. Partly cook twelve halves of Apricots in this syrup, and when sufficiently boiled, take them up on a fork, and lay them on a plate. Put another twelve halves in, parboil, and remove as before. Separate the skins from the Apricots, and strain the syrup they were cooked in through a tammy; then boil down to half. Take sufficient good puff paste, and roll it out very thin; fold it double, and cut through twenty-four very narrow strips. Unfold the paste after cutting off the strips, and cut twenty-four sheets to line the tartlet-moulds. Boll the strips cut off between the fingers and the dresser, and then form a sort of cord by twisting two together. Moisten the edges of the tartlet, so that the strips may be soldered on like a ring or framework. Into each mould cast a good pinch of sugar, and upon that lay half an Apricot, kernel-side down. Bake on a baking-sheet in a quick oven, and when the paste at the bottom of the pans looks done, and of a fine yellow colour, take them out of the oven, and pour over each 1 table-spoonful of the syrup. Set half a blanched kernel (if you have any) on each half of the fruit.

Apricot Tartlets -with Cream.— A dozen, or any other number, of tartlet-pans are to be lined with sweetened short-paste, and sufficient custard placed in to fill them. Bake these in a slack oven for about twenty-five minutes, and when they have half cooled, mask over the custard with Apricot Marmalade. In each of these tartlets place half an Apricot, peeled, and very slightly cooked in a weak syrup, made by adding sugar to the juice from the tin, and boiling together for a little time. Push back into a slack oven for a short time, and then take them out, and carefully remove the moulds before serving.

An ornamentation of halves of crystallised cherries (Fig. 41), dots of meringue, or icing, is an addition, the meringue requiring to be set by placing in the oven for a few minutes.

Apricot Toast. — Cut a dozen or so Apricots in halves to extract the stones, put them into a saucepan with sufficient syrup to cover them, pour in a wineglassful of wine, set the saucepan on the side of the fire, and simmer gently for a few minutes. Cut two dozen thin rounds of bread a little larger than the Apricots, put them into a frying-pan with a little butter, and fry to a light golden colour. Take them out, drain, put on a dish, place a half of Apricot on each, with the hollow side uppermost, put half a blanched kernel in each, pour over a little of the syrup, and serve with whipped cream poured round.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Apricots — continued.

Apricot Water Ice. — Take about eighteen ripe Apricots, and slice them without peeling. Boil them soft in J pint of water and 1 pint of syrup. Add three drops of strong hitter-almond flavouring, mix up well, and put into the freezer.

Bavaroise of Apricots. — A dozen ripe Apricots, out in halves and stewed, or two dozen tinned halves will do. Put these into a preserving-pan, with -.’.111. of sugar, the juice of two lemons, and loz. of isinglass which has been previously dissolved in a little water. Stew them until they are sufficiently tender to he mashed, when they must be rubbed through a sieve into a hasin. Stir upon ice until just about to set, when 1 pint of whipped cream must be stirred in smartly, and the whole turned into a mould. Set this in ice, and when quite firm, turn out on to a glass dish.

Bottled Apricots. — For this, Apricots that have fallen before they are quite ripe are generally used, as they are not fit for tarts or anything else. Put them in wide-mouthed bottles, fill up with some syrup at 22deg. ( see Syeups), cork and tie down tightly, put them in a saucepan with water up to their necks, and boil slowly for twenty minutes. Let them cool, and they are ready for use.

Bottled Halves of Apricots. — Select very ripe fruit, cut them in halves, and remove the stones; scald the halves in a little hot water, remove their skins, and then plunge them into cold water to soak. Put them in wide-mouthed bottles with their kernels (blanched and dried), packing them in tightly, and fill up the bottles with syrup at 26deg. ( see Sugae-boiling). Cork up the bottles, tie them down; put them in a saucepan of water, and boil gently on the side of the fire for ten minutes. Take the bottles out, let them cool, and the Apricots are ready for use.

Broiled Apricots. — Cut a dozen or so Apricots in halves, take out the stones, and sprinkle the former over with finely-sifted, crushed loaf sugar; put them on a gridiron over a clear fire, or hot embers, and broil them. Put a few stoned Apricots into a mortar with an equal quantity of raspberries and sufficient sugar to sweeten, and pound them well together. Put this fruit-pulp into a saucepan, and boil it until done. Place the broiled halves of Apricots on a glass dish, and serve very hot, with the fruit-pulp poured over.

Compote of Apricots. — (1) Split the fruit in halves, peel them thinly and smoothly, let them simmer for a few minutes in thin syrup (made by boiling lib. of sugar in 1 pint of water), add the blanched kernels, dish them up piled in a pyramidal form, and pour the syrup over the top.

(2) Remove the stones from one dozen ripe Apricots, and stew them in a light syrup with a little lemon-peel pared very thin; and when done, allow them to get cold. Next prepare a compote-case — that is, a case lined with patten or second paste -about ljin. high. Previous to putting this paste in the oven, line it with a piece of paper, and fill the centre with flour, so as to keep the paste a good shape. When dene and cold, remove the flour and paper, and fill in with the Apricots. Cover over the top with some whipped cream, smooth it nicely with a knife, and ornament it with angelica and cherries, or pistachio nuts if preferred.

Croutons with Apricots.— Slice up some good bread or dinnerrolls, about Jin. thick. From these slices stamp or cut out

Fig. 42. Croutons with Apricots.

rounds, according to the number required, and fry them a nice golden colour in clarified butter. Drain them, sprinkle over with icing-sugar, and give them a little more colour by

Apricots — continued.

putting in the oven upon a flat haking-sheet. When this is done, lay upon each crouton half an Apricot, hollow side down (see Fig. 42). But before this the Apricots, whether fresh or tinned, must be in halves, without stones, and partly cooked in a light syrup. Arrange the croutons on the dish upon which they are to be served, and then pour over and round a rich custard sauce made with the syrup. Serve very hot.

Dried Apricots. — This is a very useful mode of preserving Apricots, and they make an exceedingly tasty side-dish. Prepare the fruit by halving and peeling, then set them in a stewpan or preserving-pan, with a thin syrup. Boil up, remove, and drain — three times. At the last charge of syrup, place them separately on the drainer at a distance from each other, resting upon a baking-sheet, and put in the screen or hot-closet to dry. A very slow oven will dry them, especially if it is heated by regulatable gas-burners. Boil 21b. of sugar to the pearl degree (see Sugae-boiling); add the juice of 1 lemon, and with the bowl of a spoon or a spatula work the sugar at the side of the pan until it becomes dulled or whitish; then throw in the dried halves of Apricots, shake all round gently together, and use a silver fork to lift out the pieces, placing them, with the round side uppermost, upon the drainer as before, and set them in the screen again for about an hour to dry the sugar on them. When finished, put them away in boxes, with a sheet of clean paper between the layers of dried fruit.

Effervescing 1 Apricot Drink.— Filter until clear 1 pint of the expressed juice of Apricots. The juice may be obtained by pounding the fruit in a mortar and squeezing in a tammy cloth until no more can be extracted. Make this clear juice into a syrup by heating with Jib. of sugar, and add loz. of tartaric acid. When required for use, put 20 grains of pure carbonate of soda into f tumblerful of ice-cold water, and add 2 tablespoonfuls of the syrup, stirring quickly.

Frozen Apricots. — Tinned Apricots do well for this. Take one tin of fruit, lib. of sugar, lqt. of water, and 1 pint of whipped cream — measured after whipping. Cut the Apricots into small pieces, add the sugar and water, and set to freeze. When nearly frozen, add the cream. A very tasty dish, which may also be served without the cream.

Breen Apricot Compote. — Select the best of the green Apricots thinned from the trees, and blanch thorn in boiling water. When thoroughly scalded, remove them from the fire, and cover over with a towel. By so doing, they become green again. Drop them into cold water, and then drain in a hair sieve. Boil some preserving-sugar in a stewpan, put your fruit into it, and give them a boil (there should be enough syrup to completely cover the Apricots). Put the pan on one side, and let the fruit soak in the warm syrup for three or four hours. When you are ready to use them, drain off the syrup, and boil it to the thread degree ( see Sugae-boiling). Put the fruit in a glass dish, and cover it with the syrup when cold. This compote should be used within twenty-four hours of boiling, or if required to bo kept longer, it must be fresh boiled every second day.

Imitation Apricots. — Put the required quantity of sugar into a sugar-boiler and boil it to the ball degree (see Sugaeboiling); then add a few drops of acetic acid, and with a tablespoon (a silver one should be used) rub it well against the sides of the boiler, taking it up in large quantities, until the whole has a white appearance. Have ready some moulds made in halves, joined together with a hinge, in imitation of Apricots, pour the sugar in, and let it remain until it is set and quite firm in the centre. Turn out on to a board, and proceed to colour them as follows: Grind a little gamboge with water on a plate and rub in a little carmine; coat the Apricots with this, putting it on in three different thin shades, allowing one to dry before another is put on. To imitate the small reddy-brown spots, dip a stiffhaired brush into carmine slightly coloured with brown, and dot them over with it. Let them get perfectly dry, then give a thin coating of dissolved gum, dredge over a little very fine starch-powder in imitation of the bloom, and they are ready for use.

Nougats of Apricots. — (1) Lay Jib. of puff paste, rolled very thin, over a baking-sheet. Spread Apricot Marmalade about Jin. thick over the paste. Then have ready jib. of minced Jordan almonds, which put into a basin with lb. of powdered

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

45

Apricots — continued.

sugar, and mix with the whites of four eggs. Spread this mixture all over the marmalade, and bake in a hot oven to a nice golden-brown. When cold it maybe cut up, like Apricot Cakes, piled up, and served on a napkin or ornamental dishpaper.

(2) Boll out some patten or puff paste very thin, lay it upon a baking-sheet by winding round the rolling-pin, lifting, and then unwinding, and spread over it some very good Apricot Jam. Roll out another piece of paste about the same size, and lay on top in the same manner. Then mix in a basin some chopped, blanched almonds with an equal amount of sugar, which should be sifted through a coarse sieve with the almonds, to ensure their both being in pieces of about the same size. Add the whipped white of an egg, mix well together, and spread over the top crust. Put this into a moderate oven to bake until done, and then allow it to stand until it is cold. Cut out into diamonds or oblongs, or stamp out with a fancy cutter. Serve on a dish-paper or neatly-folded napkin.

Preserved Apricots. — Several methods of preparing this delicious fruit for keeping are described by various confectioners, all being more or less troublesome and expensive. Packing in strong, hot syrup, or drying by heat, are the methods usually recommended; but since the introduction to our markets of Apricots in tins, there is no longer any necessity for the cook to waste time or trouble over preserving them, seeing that those sold as “ tinned Apricots ” are far less expensive at all times, and always ready to hand. Suedoise of Apricots. — Put a little warmed Apricot Jelly at the bottom of a mould packed in ice, and let it set. In the meantime cut a dozen Apricots in halves and remove the stones, put them into a preserving-pan with sufficient syrup to cover them, and boil until quite tender. Take them out, let them get cold, and cut each half up into three strips; arrange these in the mould, commencing at the bottom, and continue all round the sides, dipping them in more of the warmed jelly to make them adhere to the sides. When they have set, pour in a little more jelly to cover the pieces at the bottom, place a small mould inside the large one, leaving about -jin. space all round, and fill the space up with more jelly, pouring it in carefully so as not to disturb the pieces of Apricot. When all is set and firm, pour a little warm water into the small mould to remove it. Cut three Apricots in halves, remove and break the stones, blanch the kernels, and put them with the Apricots into a saucepan with sufficient water to moisten them, and cook until they are soft. Add Joz. of dissolved gelatine, rub the whole through a fine sieve, and pour in 1 teacupful of cream; sweeten to taste. Pour this into the centre of the mould, and let it set. Turn it out on to a dish, and serve. Vol-au-Vents of Apricots. — Prepare a few vol-au-vents with some puff paste, and bake them in a quick oven for ten minutes or so. Take them out, sprinkle a little sugar in the inside, and melt it by holding a red-hot shovel or salamander over it. Pill them up with Apricot Jam or stewed Apricots, pile some whipped cream on the top, and serve.

APRICOT WINS. — California is famous for its prolific growth of Apricots, which is so greatly in excess of ordinary requirements that many tons of them are annually converted into Wine, producing a rich-flavoured, clear, sparkling liquor. In less-favoured countries the yield of Apricots is not sufficiently large to warrant their use for this purpose.

AQUA VITAS (literally, “water of life”). — An old name for Irish Whiskey.

ARABIC. — See Gums.

ARMADILLO. — The “little animals in armour” called Armadilloes are esteemed “ fine eating ” by the natives of South and Central America, but owing to the rank and strong flavour of the flesh, it is not much fancied by Europeans. Stewed or as toasted steaks would appear to be the favourite processes of cooking.

ARMAGNAC. — An inferior quality of Brandy, known as Bas-Armagnac and Haut-Armagnac.

ARNATTO. — See Annatto.

AROMATIC SEASONING. — See Bouquets Garnis, Herbs, and Spices.

ARRACACHA ( Arrncacha esculenta ). — A farinaceous root, about the size of a cow’s horn, which grows abundantly on the plains of Columbia, Jamaica, and other tropical regions. Arracacha roots have been grown in England; but although it is reputed that a few which were planted near Plymouth tln’ived exceedingly, they do not appear to have made much progress in the ranks of our farinaceous vegetables. The root is cultivated in South America, and when boiled, baked, or roasted like potatoes, is declared to be exceedingly palatable, having a flavour something between a parsnip and a sweet chestnut.

ARRACK. — The natives of India and Ceylon distil a rough spirit, called Arrack, from the juice of the date, cocoa-nut, and other palms, rice, molasses, and probably from many other things also. It is not much used by Europeans, though some Anglo-Indian cooks make use of it occasionally for sauces, preserves, and punch. It is nearly colourless, but when kept a long time, gains a slight yellow tinge. The three best known varieties derive their names from Batavia, Madras, and China.

The alcoholic strength of Arrack is uncertain, differing greatly not only in various kinds, but in successive productions from the same still.

ARROPIA. — A Spanish cake made of flour, honey, and spice.

ARROWROOT. — The delicate flavour of this starchy food renders it exceedingly grateful to invalids, and to those who have delicate stomachs. As a nutriment it ranks very low, but this is compensated for in a measure by its combination with eggs, milk, or cream, and its ready digestibility. Arrowroot is prepared from the root, or tuber, of the Maranta, a plant which grows in the West Indies and India to the height of some 2ft. or 3ft., and bears pretty spikes of small, white flowers

Fig. 43. Tuber, Flowers, and Leaves of Arrowroot-plant.

(see Fig. 43). It was called Arrowroot because it was at one time confounded with the root of another plant, with which the Indians used to poison their arrows.

The process of manufacture is described thus: When

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Arrowroot — continued.

the roots (see Fig. 43) are a year old, they are dug up and carefully washed in clean water, and their paperlike scales and discoloured and defective parts are removed by hand. They are then again washed and drained, and next subjected to the action of a wheel rasp, grated, or beaten into a pulp in a large wooden mortar. This pulp is then thrown into a quantity of clean rain-water, and after being thoroughly stirred up, the milky fluid is passed through a hair sieve, or a coarse cloth, which arrests’ the fibrous matter of the root; the starch is then allowed, by standing, to settle to the bottom, and the water is drained off. After the further washing of the pasty deposit, and draining some two or three times, it is spread out on clean white cloths, and allowed to dry in the sun. In this state it is ready to be packed for market, and will keep for any length of time if moisture is kept from it.

There are several kinds of so-called Arrowroot in the market, notably Brazilian Arrowroot, which is Cassava Starch or Tapioca Meal; East Indian Arrowroot, or Curcuma Starch; English Arrowroot, Potato Starch;

Portland Arrowroot, from the tubers of the Wake-Robin Arum maculatum), a plant which grows wild in many parts of this country; Tahiti An-owroot, which is Tacca Starch, or Otaheite Salep. The best are known as “Bermuda,” “St. Yincent,” and “St. Kitts” or “West Indian” Arrowroots; all these are good alike, the preference, if any, being in favour of the former two. Arrowroot is imported in tins, barrels, and boxes, and should be a light, dull, dead white, tasteless, inodorous powder, or in small, pulverulent masses; it should feel firm to the fingers, and crackle when pressed or rubbed. Under a pocket lens the starch granules appear as shown in Fig. 44.

In cookery, Arrowroot is used for making cakes, biscuits, and puddings, and for thickening soups and other fluid foods; but in order to render it nourishing, eggs, milk, and butter must be added, either one or all, in due proportion. It requires no boiling, unless for invalids, when it is better cooked for a few minutes after mixing.

Arrowroot Biscuits. — (1) Whisk up five eggs into Jib. of caster sugar, then add 3oz. of pastry flour and the same amount of Bermuda Arrowroot; let both be sifted and stirred in lightly. When the paste is ready and very smoothly mixed, put small quantities into small, round tins, and dust over with sugar. Bake in a moderately quick oven.

(2) Small. — Kub 8oz. of butter into 5 Jib. of flour, then add 6oz. of sugar and fioz. of fine Arrowroot. Make a bay in the flour, and into this pour throe eggs beaten up in 1 pint of water. Mix into a stiff dough, break, and then set to prove, covered over in a cool place. Make lib. of dough into sixteen biscuits,

Arrowroot — continued.

roll each one of them separately into a round cake, 3in. in diameter, dock with an arrowroot-docker, and bake in a hot oven.

Arrowroot Blanc-mang-. — (1) For lqt. of milk it will be

sufficient to mix 3oz. of best Arrowroot with a small quantity of the milk, taking care to make it quite smooth. Boil the rest of the milk with half-a-dozen laurel leaves in it, or half a stick of vanilla (20 drops of the essence may be used instead). Watch carefully, and just as the milk rises, take it off the fire and pour it on to the Arrowroot, stirring thoroughly. This may then be sweetened to taste, and set upon the fire for ten minutes, stirring all the time. Pour it into a mould, cool, and turn out. It will not keep very long. If the blancmanger cracks, it is either under-boiled, or the Arrowroot is of an inferior quality. Lemon-peel boiled in the milk is sometimes preferred to laurel or vanilla as a flavouring.

(2) A little isinglass dissolved in the milk will make the blanc-mang stand firmer.

(3) Take 1 teacupful of Arrowroot, put it into a large bowl, and dissolve it in a little cold water. When it is melted, pour off the water, and let the Arrowroot remain at the bottom. Boil this water in J pint of unskimmed milk, made very sweet with white sugar; add a grated nutmeg, and eight or nine blades of mace, mixed with the juice and grated peel of a lemon. When it has boiled long enough to be highly flavoured, strain it into 1J pints of very rich milk or cream, and add fib. of sugar. Boil the whole for ten minutes, then strain it, boiling hot, over the Arrowroot. Stir well and frequently till cold, then put it into moulds, and let it set.

(4) Boil lqt. of milk with loz. of sweet almonds and fifteen or sixteen bitter almonds, blanched aud pounded, or with noyeau. Moisten 2 teacupfuls of Arrowroot with a little cold milk, and pour on it the boiling milk, stirring all the time. Then put it in the saucepan, and boil a minute or two longer, still stirring. Pour into a mould to set.

Arrowroot Cake. — Almost any mode of preparing this deliciously-flavoured starch is welcome, especially amongst invalids of delicate stomach. The following receipt is given by a ladycook of considerable experience, and will be found very good: Beat lib. of butter to a cream. In a separate basin beat 8 eggs until they are light and very frothy, when add, gradually, lib. of finely-powdered sugar and the grated peel of a lemon. Beat this together, add lib. of the very best Arrowroot, little by little, and continue to beat for at least an hour. Pour into a well-buttered mould, and bake in a moderate oven until done, which can be determined by sticking a knitting-needle into the centre: if it is not done, the needle will come out not quite clear of the dough. Slices of candied peel laid on the top, and a dust of sugar ten minutes before removing from the oven, add to the beauty of the cake.

Arrowroot Cream. — Boil 1 pint of milk, or half milk and half cream, with a bay or laurel leaf or two and the thin rind of a lemon, and sweeten. Stir up 1 table-spoonful of Arrowroot with 2 table-spoonfuls of cold water. When the milk is boiling, remove the leaves and peel, and pour rapidly on to the moistened Arrowroot; stir thoroughly, and continue to do so now and again until it is cold. Serve in a glass dish with tarts or stewed fruit.

Arrowroot Custard. — Beat up an egg with a little sweetened milk; stir this on to 1 teaspoonful of Arrowroot, and add sufficient hot milk for the mixture to fill a small buttered cup. Stand this in a stewpan with so little water that it cannot boil over the sides of the cup, and steam for about twenty minutes. When done, turn out. Serve hot or cold, and with stewed fruit or jam if desired.

These custards can be flavoured with essence of vanilla or lemon.

Arrowroot Drink. — Mix up 2 teaspoonfuls of Arrowroot with 3 table-spoonfuls of water. Add to this when smooth J pint of boiling water, stirring quickly; then add slowly J pint of cold water, or enough to make the mixture of the consistency of cream. Stir till quite smooth, and then add by degrees 2 wineglassfuls of sherry, or 1 wineglassful of brandy, and sufficient sugar to barely sweeten. When cold, or iced, this is delicious.

Arrowroot Drink, with. Black-currant Preserve. — Boil

up in a stewpan 2 table-spoonfuls of good black-currant pre

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Arrowroot — continued.

serve in lqt. of hot or cold water; cover it over, and let it stew by the side of the stove for another half-hour. Strain, and then set the liquor on the stove again. Whilst this is getting hot, mix 1 teaspoonful of Arrowroot in cold water, and when the liquor boils, pour it upon the Arrowroot, stirring quickly. Let it get cold, strain it again, and serve. Children take this readily.

Arrowroot Drops. — Into a buttered or well-oiled saucepan pour 1 teacupful of Arrowroot, which has been crushed in a mortar, or under a rolling-pin. Add 2oz. of butter, 1 tablespoonful of pounded sugar, 1 teaspoonful of grated lemon-rind, a well-beaten egg, and warm them all up together, beating thoroughly to make the mixture light and thick. Then drop pieces about as large as a walnut, or smaller if preferred, at regular intervals on to a buttered, bright baking-sheet, and put into a quick oven for about a quarter-of-an-hour. When done, the drops can be lifted off with a knife.

The addition of a small chip of candied citron- or orange-peel, or a slip of angelica, pressed on to each drop before baking, is by some considered an improvement.

Arrowroot Food.— (1) Break an egg, separate the yolk from the white, and whip each to a stiff froth. Add 1 tablespoonful of Arrowroot and a little water to the yolk, and rub till smooth and free from lumps. Pour slowly into J pint of boiling water, stirring all the time, and let it simmer till jellylike. Sweeten to taste, and add 1 table-spoonful of French brandy. Stir in the frothed white, and serve hot in winter. In summer, set first on ice, then stir in the beaten white. Milk may be used instead of water.

(2) Mix 1 table-spoonful of Arrowroot with enough cold water to make a paste, free from lumps. Pour this slowly into £ pint of boiling milk, and let it simmer until it becomes thick and jelly-like. Sweeten to taste, and add a little nutmeg or cinnamon.

Arrowroot Fritters. — Dissolve 1 piled-up table-spoonful of caster sugar in 1 pint of new milk, and boil in a saucepan, with three or four laurel- or bay-leaves. Whilst this is heating’, moisten Jib. of Arrowroot with a little cold water, and make quite smooth; stir this into the milk as soon as it boils. Beat up the yolks of four eggs, stir in briskly, and make smooth also. Then pour this into a well-buttered baking-tin, and bake it in a quick oven. When it is well done and cold, stamp it out in rounds, dip the rounds in egg and breadcrumb, and fry for five minutes in hot lard. Drain and pile up on a dishpaper, and serve with raspberry jam.

Arrowroot Jelly. — This is considered a very fine food for invalids with weak bowels. Mix thoroughly loz. of Arrowroot (the best only must be used for jellies and blancmangers) with a little cold water, and when smooth stir in £ pint of boiling water. Beef tea, strong chicken or veal stock, or milk, may be used instead of the water. Add a wineglassful of port or madeira, and flavour with nutmeg, or vanilla if milk or water only is used.

Arrowroot Pudding’. — (1) Mix loz. of Arrowroot smooth with a little cold water in a basin. Boil 1 pint of milk with a little lemon-peel and sugar, and pour on quickly, stirring well. Beat up the yolks of two eggs and stir in, afterwards adding the whites beaten to a froth. Stir lightly, pour into a baking-dish, and bake for ten or fifteen minutes. Serve at once whilst hot, as it is liable to turn watery when cold.

(2) Boil lqt. of milk and make it into a thick batter with Arrowroot. Add the yojks of six eggs, Jib. of sugar, Jib. of butter, half a nutmeg, and a little grated lemon-peel. Line a pie-dish with thin pastry, and pour in the Arrowroot mixture to fill the dish. Bake it nicely. When done, stick slips of citron all over the top, and pour over it the whites of six eggs, beaten stiff, sweetened with 3 or 4 table-spoonfuls of sugar, and flavoured to taste.

(3) Mix thoroughly 1 piled table-spoonful of Arrowroot with 3 pint of milk, put in a strip of thinly-cut lemon-rind, and boil slowly, stirring well. Add the yolks of four eggs, 1 wineglassful of sherry or madeira, and 1 teacupful of orange-flower water. Beat up the whites of four eggs, and stir in lightly, sweetening to taste. Butter a mould, arrange dried cherries in it, and pour in the mixture. Set in a stewpan of water, and steam for half-an-hour with some fire on the lid of the stewpan, which makes the pudding light. Serve with a sweet wine sauce.

Arrowroot — continued.

(4) Rub 1 teapcupful of Arrowroot smooth with J pint of cold milk. Boil lqt. of milk in a saucepan, with cinnamon and lemon- or orange-peel, sweetening with 2oz. of sugar. Pound twelve bitter almonds, and mix them with the Arrowroot and cold milk; strain through a hair sieve, and add the boiling milk, stirring well. When the mixture begins to thicken, add 1 teaspoonful of fresh butter, and when it is thoroughly done, pour into a mould. Put in a cold place to set.

Arrowroot Sauce. — For this, 2 dessert-spoonfuls of Arrowroot, mixed smooth with J pint of milk or white wine, and sufficient sugar to sweeten, are required. Add a little grated orange- or lemon-peel. Stir this over a slow fire, and when thick remove to ope side. Ten minutes afterwards remove the peel, and add a few table-spoonfuls of rum, or of maraschino or any other liqueur. Pour over light puddings.

Arrowroot Shape. — Mix 2oz. of Arrowroot in J pint of cold water, and let it settle; pour off the water, and flavour the Arrowroot with 1 table-spoonful of orange-flower water. Boil lqt. of milk with 2 table-spoonfuls of sugar and a little cinnamon, and strain through a tammy cloth on to the Arrowroot, stirring all the time. Simmer a short time, still stirring, and put it into a well-buttered mould. Put it in a cold place to set. Turn it out on the following day, and serve with a custard made with 1 pint of milk and the yolks of four eggs, and flavoured with essence of vanilla or orangeflower water.

Arrowroot Souffle. — Moisten 4 or 5 table-spoonfuls of Arrowroot with J pint of cold milk, and pass through a sieve into a stewpan, adding a grain of salt, 4oz. of sugar, 20 drops of essence of lemon or vanilla, and a piece of butter the size of a walnut. Stir over the fire until the mixture is in a smooth batter. Boil quickly for a few minutes; pour into another stewpan, and beat in the yolks of five or six eggs. When cool, mix in the whipped whites of four eggs, and 2 or 3 tablespoonfuls of whipped cream. Pour this into a buttered souffledish, put into a slack oven, and bake for twenty-five minutes. Sprinkle with caster sugar, and serve. Apricot marmalade is an excellent garnish for this.

Arrowroot Soup. — Any soup or broth, particularly white soups, may be thickened with Arrowroot. Put a small quantity in a basin, add some of the broth drop by drop, working with the back of a spoon till the mixture is of the consistency of thick mustard. Stir into the soup, and boil up.

ART.— Ger. for “ after the fashion of,” as Pariser art — Parisian style. The term is frequently used in Continental

cookery.

ARTICHOKES (Fr. Artichauts; Ger. Artischoken). — There are two kinds of vegetables known by this name — the Green. or Globe Artichoke ( Gynara Scolymus), the flower of which resembles that of a thistle, and provides the edible part; and the Jerusalem Artichoke, which is a species of sunflower, with edible, tuberous roots (Helianthus tuberosus ). The latter is the most common in this country, and grows very profusely in any soil or situation.

The name “ Jerusalem ” is probably a corruption of the word Girasole, which is the Italian name for the sunflower. “Artichoke ” is most likely of Arabic origin, the name for the plant in that language being Alkharciof, which is pronounced very hard and abruptly. Some authorities believe that it is derived from the Greek word artitykos, meaning “ suitable for seasoning.”

The Globe Artichoke (see Fig. 45) is mentioned as a favourite dish in the reign of Henry VIII., when it is said to have been first transplanted from France into

Fig. 45. Green or Globe Artichoke.

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Artichokes — con t inued.

British gardens. In the privy-purse expenses of this king are several entries about Artichokes. Thus:

“ Paied to a servant of Maister Tresorer in reward for bringing Archecokks to tho King’s Grace to Yorke place, iiij 3 iiijd.”

There are three kinds of Glohe Artichoke commonly cultivated; hut the variety with the green (not purplish) head is generally reckoned the best, and it is the largest. Before cooking they should be very carefully washed in several waters, and plunged into hot water with salt and soda. They require from twenty to twenty-five minutes’ fast boiling, and are served upon a vegetable- dish on a napkin or strainer. In France, where Globe Artichokes are very plentiful, they are eaten raw as a salad or relish. Dr. Delamere describes the proceeding thus:

Tho eater makes upon Ms plate a mixture of pepper, oil, vinegar, and salt, commonly called a poivrade. He then takes the Artichoke in his left hand, holding it by the top or the tips of the leaves, and with the knife in his right hand he cuts successively from the bottom very thin slices, to each of which is attached a leaf; then holding the leaf between his finger and thumb, he dips the sliced bottom into the poivrade, and duly masticates it as he would uncooked celery, radishes, and the like, and it is not a bit more wholesome or digestible.

The Flower, Glohe, or “Burr” Artichoke, as it is sometimes called, is largely cultivated on the Continent, and is such a favourite food that the bottoms are sold ready

Fig. 46. Methods of Preparing Globe Artichokes.

boiled in some of the appropriate shops in Paris, simply covered by a cloth to keep them hot. In some parts of the Continent, these vegetables are so prolific as to be thrown away in large quantities; hut in Great Britain they are rarely cultivated, forming an expensive vegetable luxury of not sufficient delicacy to become popular at the price charged for them in our markets.

To prepare the Globe Artichokes (Fig. 46, a) for cooking, it is necessary to trim off the stalks, and cut through the tops of the leaves ( b, c). For plain serving, it is usual only to trim the bottoms and cut off the leaf-tips in this way; but the fibrous core, called the “choke,” may be removed by quartering (d, e), for which purpose the leaves must be cut off lower down than they would be for cooking whole (c). Dubois advises, when these quarters are thoroughly cleaned, that they should he rubbed with a lemon, and then half-boiled in acidulated, salted water. After draining, they are to be ranged in a flat stewpan, side by side, with a hit of butter popped in between them here and there. Add a little seasoning, and boil over a slow fire. Served with brown or white sauce, finished with chopped parsley and the juice of a lemon, it would be difficidt to find a nicer dish.

The Continental cook avails himself of the cup-like shape to which the Artichoke bottoms may be trimmed (g) to use it as an elegant and appropriate receptacle

Artichokes — continued.

for little, highly-seasoned dainties, such as minces of game, and its shield-like appearance () renders it exceedingly available for a garnish. It is not surprising then that amongst artistic cooks the Glohe Artichoke holds an important position.

A few modes of cooking and serving these flowers are here described.

Artichokes a la Barigoule. — (1) Cut off about fin. from the tops of four Artichokes, trim off a few of the leaves from the bottom and burn them. Wash them thoroughly, put into a saucepan with a good supply of slightly-salted water, and boil until quite tender. Take them out, drain, scoop out the fibrous insides, and squeeze perfectly dry. Put the tops of the leaves into a frying-pan with about 6 table-spoonfuls of oil, and fry them. Put ( lb . of grated bacon into a saucepan with ioz. each of flour and butter, add 1 gill of prepared fine herbs, and pour over 1 teacupful of broth; put the saucepan on the fire, and stir well for about five minutes. Place a quarter of this mixture into each Artichoke (previously seasoned with salt and pepper internally), cover the top or opening made to scoop out the inside with a thin slice of bacon about 2in. square, bind them round with string to keep them in position, put into a saute-pan with a breakfast- cupful of broth, set the pan in the oven, and bake for twenty minutes. Arrange the cooked leaves on a dish, remove the string and bacon from the Artichokes, place them on the leaves, and serve.

(2) Prepare, blanch, and parboil six Artichokes as above. Trim them, scoop out the insides or choke, and fill them up with a mixture of sifted breadcrumbs, savoury meat, parsley, truffles, mushrooms, and shallots, all chopped very fine and seasoned with salt and pepper. Arrange them close together at the bottom of a saucepan, on top of a little each of ham, bacon, carrots in slices, and sweet herbs, and pour over 1 wineglassful of Chablis or any other white wine. Cover over the saucepan, set it on the fire, and cook the Artichokes until quite tender. Take them out when done, arrange on a dish, strain the liquor into another saucepan, thicken it with a little baked flour, strain it again, pour it round the Artichokes, and serve.

Artichokes Boiled Plain. — (1) Cut off the tips of the leaves (Pig. 4G, c) and round off the bottoms, removing the stalk and trimming the under-leaves away. Soak in saltand-water, washing well. Throw them into boiling saltand-water, and let them boil fast until quite tender. The leaves come away readily when they are done. Boiling in a large quantity of water is advisable, as it helps to rid them of a certain bitterness to which they are liable, especially in the autumn. It is advisable when the Artichokes are cooked to drain upon a cloth, and then remove with a spoon the soft or fibrous substance found in the inside, and which is fancifully styled the “ choke.” Throw them once again into the boiling water, to heat up; take them out again, drain,

Fig. 47. Dish of Globe Artichokes Plain Boiled.

and serve in a vegetable-dish with a strainer (see Pig. 47) or upon a neatly -folded napkin. Serve with melted butter, or butter which has been oiled.

(2) Cold they are eaten with pepper, oil, and vinegar.

(3) Cut the Artichokes into four pieces, and remove the core. Plunge into boiling water in which 1 teaspoonful of salt

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

The Crucifixion.

WILLIAM ON HIS HUNTING-GROUND AT RODEN RECEIVES INTELLIGENCE FROM TOSTIG OF HAROLD’S CORONATION.

FREEHAND SUGAR PIPING, BY C. NORWAK.

Awarded Gold Medal at Unix’. Coolc. Ex., 1S89.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

49

Artichokes — continued.

and a piece of baking-soda the size of a bean have been dissolved. Boil for about half-an-hour, or until the soft end of the leaf is tender. Serve with butter.

Artichoke Bottoms for Canapes.— Cook some Artichokes, spread over the bottoms some Anchovy Butter, and decorate them with pickled cucumbers, capers or gherkins, anchovies, and the whites and yolks of hard-boiled eggs. Pour over them a salad dressing, and garnish with water-cresses.

Artichoke Bottoms with French Beans. — This is essentially a Continental dish, and one that is deservedly a favourite. Unfortunately, the Globe Artichokes are too rare in this country to admit of such extravagance, but it may be known that these bottoms, in a state of preservation in tins, are easily obtainable from warehouses or shops supplying special French comestibles. The Artichoke Bottoms (see Fig. 46, ) are to be first partially boiled; then arrange them one by one in a flat stewpan, and moisten with sufficient white broth very fat, the juice of two or three lemons, and a little white wine to cover them over. Lay a buttered paper over them, and finish the cooking gently. Take 1 pint of French beans, and mince or leave whole. Put them in boiling water, with plenty of salt, and boil over a hot fire until done. Drain in the usual way, and after dropping into a stewpan a good jib. of butter, season a little as required, and toss them well over the fire until the butter is all melted; then add the juice of a couple of large lemons.

Pile up in a pyramid on a dish (see Fig. 48), and arrange the Artichoke Bottoms round them like shields, slightly overlapping. The Artichoke Bottoms should be selected as nearly one size as possible. This dish is to be had for the asking in almost any Continental dining-room.

Artichoke Bottoms for Garnish.— Cut off all the top leaves and trim the under ones of the required number of Artichokes, put them into a saucepan of slightly-salted water, and boil until the skin can easily be removed. Take them out, skin, trim, and turn them, put them into a saucepan with a composition of flour, water, salt, lemon, and butter, and cook until quite tender. Remove the pan from the fire, let them get quite cold in the mixture, and take them out when wanted.

Artichoke Cream. — Put half-a-dozen Artichokes into a saucepan of slightly-salted water, and parboil them; take them out, trim off the leaves, squeeze out the edible part of them into a sieve, scoop out the chokes, and rub them through with the pulp from the leaves into a basin. Mix up this puree with a little well-whipped cream, put the whole into a mould, set it in a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water, and steam for about twenty minutes, or until the puiAo mixture is done. Turn it out of the mould on to a dish, pour round a little cream sauce, and serve. A small quantity of onions, boiled and rubbed through a sieve, may be added to the Artichoke pulp if desired.

Artichokes and Eggs. -Prepare and boil half-a-dozen Artichoke bottoms, arrange them on small pieces of toast or fried bread cut into rounds a little bigger than the Artichoke bottoms, and on top of each put half a hot hard-boiled egg, with the point upwards. Pour over melted butter or gravy, and serve very hot.

Artichokes — continued.

Artichokes Cooked in Italian Style. — (1) Take a dozen Artichokes, or as many as may be required, and trim them, cutting them into quarters (see Fig. 46, d, e ), and removing the fibrous centre. Throw them into boiling water for ten minutes, with a pinch of salt. Having done so, remove and drain them; now arrange them in a saute-pan, having first spread 6oz. of butter over the bottom of it. Sprinkle a little caster sugar over them, and season with pepper and salt. Add 1 wineglassful of white wine and 1 gill of chicken stock, and let these simmer for three-quarters-of-an-hour. Dish them up in the shape of a dome. Put into the saut5pan pint of Spanish sauce, stir over the fire for five minutes, strain, and pour over the Artichokes before serving.

(2) Parboil some Artichoke bottoms as previously described. Chop a few onions very small, brown them in butter, mix them, without mashing them, with equal quantities of grated breadcrumbs and grated cheese. Fill the Artichoke bottoms with this mixture, piling it up, set in the oven to brown, and serve hot, with a squeeze of lemon over them. This makes a wonderfully tasty dish.

Artichoke Omelet.— Select half-a-dozen or so fresh, tender Artichokes, free of all fibre, cut off all the green leaves, and cut the others to half their height; chop the Artichokes in halves, and cut them again into long thin slices. Put these into a frying-pan with a little butter, sprinkle them over with salt and pepper, and fry until done, turning them frequently, so as to cook them on both sides and thoroughly. Take them out and put them on a sieve to drain. Put ten eggs into a basin with a slight seasoning of salt and pepper, beat them well for a minute or so, add the prepared Artichokes and a small quantity of finely-chopped parsley, pour the omelet into an omelet-pan with a little butter, and when it thickens, roll it. Take it out when done, put it on a dish, and serve.

Artichoke Soup. — Mince some cooked Artichoke bottoms, fry them with a little butter, season them well, thicken with a few table-spoonfuls of bechamel sauce and a little glaze, and pass them through a fine sieve or tammy. Dilute this puree with 3qts. of stock; pass it through a tammy into a stewpan; boil up, and then remove at once to the side of the stove, and let it remain there for a quarter-of-an-hour; skim off the fat, and thicken the soup with the yolks of four eggs; then pour it into the tureen, and serve.

Artichokes Stewed in Gravy. — Trim off the leaves and remove the chokes or cores from the required number of Artichokes, plunge them into a bowl of lukewarm water, and let them soak for several hours, changing the water frequently. Take them out, drain, put into a saucepan with a little gravy flavoured with mushroom or other ketchup, and add a little lemon-juice, and a small quantity of butter kneaded with flour, to thicken. Put the saucepan on the fire (not too fierce a one), and boil for about twenty-five minutes, when the Artichokes should be done. Take them out, arrange on a dish, strain the liquor over, and serve.

Artichoke and Tomato Salad. — Prepare a mixture of chervil, tarragon, salt, pepper, vinegar, and oil; dip some cooked Artichoke bottoms and slices of tomatoes into this, arrange them alternately in a salad-bowl, pour over salad dressing, and serve.

Bonnes Bouches of Artichokes. — Take about one dozen Artichokes, cut off the tips, and trim them well; throw them into hot lard for a few minutes; take them out, and drain them on a cloth, so as to absorb all the lard. Having done this, remove the fibrous substance from the centre, and fill up with a mixture made as follows: Chop up very fine six or eight button mushrooms, some sprigs of parsley, four shallots, and lb. of ham; put these into a stewpan, with a little pepper and salt, also a little chopped thyme, and stir over the fire for five minutes; then add the yolks of four eggs and 1 wineglassful of white wine. Having filled the centre with this mixture, cover over each Artichoke with a thin slice of fat bacon, tie them up with string, and put them in a large stewpan with some of the fat bacon at the bottom; moisten with 1 tumblerful of wine and about the same quantity of chicken stock. Put on a tight-fitting cover, and bring to a boil; then place in an oven to simmer for about an hour. When done, remove carefully, drain, and put them upon the dish. Put into the centre of each 1 tea H & I

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Artichokes — continued.

spoonful of white wine, having first removed the string and bacon. Italian sauce should be served in a boat.

Fried Artichoke Bottoms. — Take a sufficient quantity of the preserved or fresh bottoms, partly boil them, and then, after draining, dip them in batter, or first flour them, then dip in egg-yolk and breadcrumb them. Fry in a pan of boiling fat or oil. Sprinkle each lightly with a little fine salt, and then pile up on a napkin or dish-paper.

Preserved Artichokes. — (1) Plunge some Artichokes into a saucepan of boiling water on the fire, and let them remain until the leaves will easily fall out. Take them out, drain, remove the leaves, and scoop out the chokes. Trim them, put on to a strainer to dry, and then into the hot closet to get firm. When wanted for use, they must bo warmed up in gravy.

(2) Trim the required number of Artichokes in the same way as for cooking them. Put them into a saucepan and boil quickly for a few minutes, take them out, scoop out the choke, and put them on a strainer to drain. Put them into jars or bottles, pour over sufficient strong salt pickle to cover them, and let remain for a few days. Then pour off the pickle, boil and strain it, pour it over the Artichokes again, and in a couple or three days pour in oil or warmed butter, to about 2in. in height. Cover the jars over, first with paper, then with parchment, and let them remain about three months. Pour off the pickle again, and repeat the operation with fresh pickle and oil or warmed butter. They are then ready for use. Artichoke bottoms can be preserved in the same way, after being parboiled, but without cooking them too soft; the choke scooped out; and well rubbed with lemon.

Puree of Artichokes. — Prepare and cook some Artichoke bottoms as for garnish, and when they are quite soft, take them out, drain, and cut up. Put them into a saucepan with an equal bulk of bechamel sauce, glaze them and reduce the liquor, rub the whole through a fine sieve into a basin, mix in a little hot cream and butter, and serve. Stuffed Artichoke Bottoms. — Prepare, cut in quarters, and cook some Artichokes as for Artichokes in the Italian style, and fill the centre of each quarter with a little chicken forcemeat, mixed with d’uxelles sauce. Put them into a saute-pan with a little butter, and place in the oven to poach the forcemeat. Take them out, arrange on a dish, and serve with a little half-glaze poured over them.

There are various other methods of dressing and cooking these delicate vegetables; but hitherto they have not made sufficient progress in popular favour in this country to demand further attention.

Fig. 49. Jerusalem Artichokes.

Jerusalem Artichokes (see Fig. 49) are very troublesome to prepare for cooking, on account of the awkward bulbous excrescences that crop out of the tubers in all directions; but as these may be removed by a clean sweep of the knife, giving each large tuber the shape of a pear, or by the exercise of a little patience if economy is to be observed, there is no other reason why these tasty vegetables should be so constantly disregarded by culinary artists. Soyer writes very highly of them, and in one of his numerous works observes: “The Jerusalem Artichoke is one of the best and most useful vegetables ever introduced to table, and anything but appreciated as it deserves

Artichokes — continued.

to be. To prove to you that I am a great admirer of it, you will find it very often mentioned in my receipts. In using them for the second course, I choose about twelve of the same size, peel them, and shape them like pears, but flat at the bottom, wash them well, boil gently in 3 pints of water, loz. of salt, loz. of butter, and a few sliced onions. When tender, I make a border of mashed potatoes on a dish, fix them on it point upwards, sauce them over with either cream sauce, white sauce, melted butter, or maitre – d’hotel butter, and place a fine Brussels sprout between them, which contrast is exceedingly inviting, simple, and pretty.”

The nutritive value of Jerusalem Arti chokes is small, not much greater than that of turnips, although they contain a large proportion of sugar; not being of a starchy nature, they do not swell, become floury, and burst in cooking, as do potatoes; nor are they subject to injury from frost, for which reason they are easily kept during a hard winter. As fast as the Artichokes are peeled they should be thrown into a basin of cold water, to prevent them from soiling or turning black by exposure to the air — a peculiarity that is analogous to the cut surfaces of apples turning brown.

Baked Jerusalem Artichokes. — Peel and trim a dozen or so Jerusalem Artichokes, and put them in a baking-dish with 2oz. of butter, melted and seasoned with salt and pepper. Put the dish in the oven, baste them frequently, and bake for halfan-hour, by which time they should be done and of a rich brown. Take out the dish, and serve.

Jerusalem Artichoke Chips. — Peel the required number of Jerusalem Artichokes, cut them up into thin strips, put into a frying-pan with a little butter, and fry to a light golden colour. Take them out, put on a plate or piece of paper, dry in front of the fire, place on a napkin on a dish, and serve. Jerusalem Artichokes au Gratin. — Peel some Jerusalem Artichokes, put them into a saucepan with sufficient milk and water, in equal proportions, to cover them, and boil until quite tender. Take them out, rub through a fine sieve into a basin, and mix with a small quantity of cream. Put this into a shallow dish, grate over a little Parmesan cheese, brown the surface with a salamander or before the fire, and serve.

Jerusalem Artichokes Cooked in Italian Style. — This very dainty dish is highly recommended for a small dinnerparty. Prepare 31b. of Jerusalem Artichokes in the usual manner, keeping them white, and shaping smoothly. Spread 2oz. or 3oz. of salt butter in a stewpan, and arrange the Artichokes evenly upon it; sprinkle over pepper, salt, nutmeg, and 2 large table-spoonfuls of lemon-juice. Pour over 1 large breakfastcupful of good broth, and simmer with the lid on for half-an-hour. When they have assumed a good yellow colour, and are soft enough to yield to the pressure of the spoon, they are ready to serve. Pour over each one a little of the sauce in which they have been cooking.

Jerusalem Artichoke and Onion Salad. — Cut into slices a few cold cooked onions and Jerusalem Artichokes, arrange alternately on a dish, and pour over a little salad-dressing. Put round a garnish of pickled cauliflower, beetroot, and cold boiled carrots cut into forms to represent olives, and serve.

Jerusalem Artichoke Sauce. — Pare a dozen large Jerusalem Artichokes, wash them well, and put in a saucepan with lqt. of water, 1 table-spoonful of salt, and loz. of butter. Put the saucepan on the fire, and as the liquor commences to boil, add a piece of ham weighing about loz., an onion cut in slices, 2oz. more of butter, a seasoning of bay-leaf, a stick of celery, and a small quantity of mace, and pour in 2 breakfast-cupfuls of milk. Boil again until it is of the consistence of melted butter, strain it into another saucepan, heat it up, pour into a sauceboat or tureen, and serve. The sauce will require about one hour’s boiling in all.

Jerusalem Artichoke Soup. — (1) Put four slices of lean ham into a saucepan, and add one turnip, one onion, half a head of celery, all finely chopped, and 3oz. of butter. Set the saucepan on the fire, and boil quickly for a little longer than a quarter-of-an-hour, stirring constantly until the saucepan is slightly glazed with the mixture. Pour 2 breakfast

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

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Artichokes — continued.

cupfuls of water over fourteen or fifteen Jerusalem Artichokes, pared and cut up small, and cook until they are quite tender. Then add a slight thickening of flour mixed smooth in a little water, pour in $ gall, of good stock, salted to taste, and set the liquor to boil, stirring frequently. As soon as it boils, turn the contents of the saucepan out on to a fine sieve placed over another saucepan; rub through as much as possible, remove all the scum, place the saucepan on the fire, and boil for a few minutes; add 2 table-spoonfuls of cream, pour the soup at once into a soup-tureen over pieces of toast, and serve. From the commencement to the finish the soup will require to boil for at least an hour-and-a-half. A breakfast-cupful of milk added after the soup has been strained is an improvement.

(2) Pare, wash, and cut into slices four large potatoes. Put them into a saucepan with a dozen Jerusalem Artichokes, also pared and washed, and a couple of onions cut up small. Pour over gall. of mutton-broth, place the saucepan on the fire, and boil until all the vegetables are tender, which will take about an hour. Pour the whole into a fine sieve placed over a saucepan, and rub it through, adding salt and pepper to taste. Put the saucepan on the fire, boil up once more, remove the pan from the fire, pour in 1 teacupful each of milk and cream, or 2 teacupfuls of cream, and stir well. Pour the soup into a tureen over pieces of toast, or bread fried in butter, and serve.

(3) Cut into small pieces 61b. of peeled Jerusalem Artichokes, a small head of celery, one medium-sized onion, and three turnips. Put them into a saucepan, and cover with white veal stock. Put the saucepan on the fire, and boil slowly for about an hour, or until all the vegetables are soft; then pass them with the liquor through a fine sieve into another saucepan, pour in a little milk if the soup be too thick, and boil up once more. Eemove the pan from the fire, pour in 1 breakfast-cupful of cream, add sufficient sugar, cayenne, salt, and pepper to season, and stir well. Pour the whole into the tureen, and serve very hot.

Boiled Jerusalem Artichokes. — Have a lined saucepan of boiling salt-and-water ready to hand, and plunge the Artichokes into it as soon as they are ready; boil from twenty to twentyfive minutes, drain, and serve them on a napkin or a vegetabledish with a strainer. White sauce or melted butter should be sent to table with them. Great care is required in boiling these Artichokes: watch them carefully, and remove them as soon as they are soft, as by continuing the boiling after that they soon become hard again.

Boiled Jerusalem Artichokes with White Sauce. — Peel a dozen or so Jerusalem Artichokes, wash them thoroughly, dry, and cut up into pear shapes, chopping off a small piece from the bottom or thick end. Plunge them into a saucepan of salted water, and boil for from twenty to twenty-five minutes, or until quite tender. Arrange them on a dish, standing them on end, pour over a good supply of hot white or bechamel sauce, place a few cooked brussels sprouts in the cavities and round them, and serve.

Tried Jerusalem Artichokes. — (1) Slice the Artichokes, or cut them round; put them into boiling salt-and-water, and let them boil until nearly done; then let them drain, and get cool. Place them in a stewpan, with butter, and let them fry over a slow fire. Season, dish up, and mask with a little white or brown sauce.

(2) The Artichokes may be dipped in batter, or egg and breadcrumbs, and fried a light brown in a pan containing plenty of fat. Drain, and serve with brown sauce. Cold Artichokes may be sliced and served in a similar manner.

Mashed Jerusalem Artichokes. — When the Artichokes are boiled (in salt-and-water) quite soft — not longer, for reasons previously explained — take them out and mash them like turnips, adding butter or cream, pepper, and salt. This mashing is not so easy to perform as with turnips, hence it is advisable to rub through a coarse sieve, or to use a vegetable-masher, and warm up again in the stewpan before serving. Mashed Artichokes are very nice with boiled leg of mutton.

Scalloped Jerusalem Artichokes.— Pare and parboil half-adozen or so of Jerusalem Artichokes, and cut them up into the size and shape of oysters. Put them into scallop-shells, well buttered and sprinkled over with breadcrumbs seasoned

Artichokes — continued.

with salt and pepper, sprinkle the pieces of Artichoke over with more salt and pepper and a little pounded anchovy, then with more breadcrumbs, and a small lump of butter on each. Place them in the oven to brown, or brown them with a salamander, and serve.

ARTIFICIAL MILKS.— Imitations of cow’s, ass’s, and goat’s milks are sometimes found exceedingly useful when the real articles cannot be obtained or kept sweet and fresh. Receipts by which to prepare them will be found under their various headings.

ASH CAKE.— See Cakes.

ASHBERRIES.— These are gathered from the common Mountain Ash ( Pyrus Aueuparia), upon which, in autumn, they hang in brilliant scarlet clusters. They should be gathered before the frosts set in, for they easily spoil in cold weather.

Asliberry Jelly. — Put lqt. of Asliberries into a preserving-pan, with lqt. of water. Let the water simmer until it is coloured and tastes bitter; then strain off the liquor, and throw the berries away, cleaning the pan afterwards. Strain the liquor, and return it to the pan; put in with it 21b. of preserving-sugar and boil slowly over a hot stove for an hour, or a trifle less. Add -£oz. of isinglass, which will readily dissolve in the warm liquor; strain off again into jars, and when cold, cover in the usual way. This jelly is said to be very nice with roast venison, but is not often made. ASPARAGUS (Fr. Asperges; Ger. Spargeln; Ital. Asparago; Sp. Espavragos). — In the markets of Great Britain this select vegetable is generally sold under the name of “ Sparrow-grass a term that has no meaning, being merely a very simple and old-fashioned corruption of the correct appellation. The plant is one of the lily tribe, and, although cultivated in gardens for table use, is not unfrequently met with growing wild along the sea-sliore. It has a very ancient reputation, and is mentioned in several Greek and Roman books. Cato (b.c. 200) and Columella (a.d. 20-40), two Latin authors, speak very highly of it, and Pliny (a.d. 50) describes a sort that grew near Ravenna, yielding edible shoots so large that three of them would weigh a pound.

The Asparagus of commerce, as sold in bundles in our markets, is the young shoot of the plant cut for use, when only a few inches above the ground, by means of a knife specially constructed for the purpose. The head of this young shoot only is edible; but, if the shoot were left to develop instead of being gathered in, it would rapidly assume the proportions of a tall, feathery plant. Rliind describes the progress of the Asparagus -plant thus: “ The shoot grows only from the extremity, and works or vegetates from the centre, and not from the surface as in trees; thus it pushes up through the soil in one mass. The branches, which lie so thick together, safe and well protected xmder their scaly leaves, soon begin to be developed, and are drawn out until the whole plant, with its numerous thread-like leaves, assumes very much the character of a larch-tree, having its miniature parts more light and elegant, and the colour of a more lively green. The flowers, which wave in graceful panicles, are of a yellow hue, and exhale a fragrant smell. They are followed by round berries of a bright orange-red.”

There are two varieties of Asparagus sold in our markets, the one Red and the other Green. The first is a larger kind, growing fuller and closer, which, though handsomer in appearance, is not considered of so good a flavour as the Green. Nicholson, in the “ Dictionary of Gardening,” pronounces Conover’s Colossal and Giant sorts to be those held in the greatest esteem; but, according to some practical cooks, there is little to choose between sorts so long as the shoots are young, large, clean-looking, freshgathered, and tender.

The nutritive value of Asparagus as a food is not very great; but, like many other vegetables in frequent use, it is chiefly admired for its flavour. Its culinary preparations are for the same reason extremely limited, lest the delicate

II & 12

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TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Asparagus — continued.

flavour should he interfered with by injudicious combinations or adjuncts. Asparagus is seasonable in spring, about May or June. See that the heads are full, green or purple, and heavy. Before cooking, it is necessary to pick off the loose leaves, and scrape the stalks clean; then cut off the white ends to make them all of a length or nearly so, unless some other form of dressing is particularly described.

Since the introduction into this country of foods preserved in hermetically-sealed tins, foreign Asparagus has found its way into our markets, and offers many advantages over our own “ fresh cut.” It comes to us already partially cooked by the process of preservation it has undergone, and requires, therefore, only to be warmed up in the tins in which it is packed to be ready for immediate use. In or out of season it is available at all times for all the purposes to which Asparagus is adapted, and claims superiority of flavour over that cooked in the ordinary way, for this reason: when closely packed in the tins, only a very small proportion of water can come into contact with the Asparagus, and this is sealed up with the sticks, forming a sort of juice in which it is afterwards warmed up. Boiled in the ordinary way, Asparagus loses much of its flavour and aroma to the water in which it is boiled, which is invariably thrown away. The juice in the tin, however, forms an excellent basis for a sauce.

Asparagus with Cream. — Cut into small pieces a bunch of Asparagus, put them into a saucepan of boiling water, and blanch them for three minutes. Take them out, drain, put into another saucepan with a very little water, some butter, sugar, and one onion. Set the saucepan on the side of the fire, and simmer gently for half-an-hour. Take out the onion, add a thickening of yolk of egg or cream, stir well, turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve.

Asparagus in a Crust. — Make a strong paste with flour and the yolfcs of eight eggs, and form it into a sheet 19in. long by liin. wide. Boll out a flat, which cut to a round of 6 jin. in diameter; moisten the edg’e, fasten the band round to form a crust, pinch it into a firm position, and decorate (see Fig. 50).

Egg over, and bake in a slow oven until of a handsome brown. Have ready some fine Asparagus heads, which have been boiled quickly in a preserving-pan (this will preserve the colour), and when they are nearly done, cool them by draining off the water in which they have been boiled and pouring on cold. Bemove from the pan, and lay upon a napkin to dry; pat them gently with another, and when ready, cut seven of the largest to 9in. long, and stand these in the centre of the crust; around these group sixteen or twenty other heads, 7in. long; and around these again two other circles, one of 6in. long and the other of 5in. long. When thus arranged, set in the oven to warm, if desired hot; or serve the dish cold, with oil poured over, or a good mayonnaise sauce.

Asparagus and Eggs, — Put 2 table-spoonfuls each of gravy and cream (or milk) into a saucepan with 2oz. of butter and a

Asparagus — continued.

slight seasoning of salt and pepper. Place the saucepan on the fire, and as soon as the butter is melted, add six eggs, and cook gently until they begin to set. In the meantime, cut a couple of dozen heads or sticks of Asparagus into small pieces, using the green part only; parboil them in salted water, drain them, throw them into the egg mixture, and stir gently over the fire for thirty or forty seconds. Turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve with a garnish of fried bread or toast.

Asparagus in French. Soils. — Carefully cut off a small piece from one end of each of three French rolls, and scrape out all the crumb with the handle of a spoon. Put the tops and shells of crust into a frying-pan with a little butter and fry them, or place them before the fire to get crisp. Pour 1 breakfastcupful of cream into a saucepan, add the yolks of five eggs, beat these together for a few minutes, and season with a little salt and grated nutmeg. Set the saucepan on the fire, and when the mixture commences to thicken, put in about seventy green parts of Asparagus, cut up into small pieces. Fill the rolls with this mixture, replace the lids or pieces of the tops that were cut off, and with a sharp-pointed stick or skewer make sufficient holes at one end of each of them to insert about ten more of the green parts of the Asparagus. Arrange them in a napkin on a dish, and serve. The pieces of Asparagus projecting from the rolls will give them the appearance of growing out of them.

Asparagus Ice. — Take lib. of green Asparagus points, and cut them up in pieces jin. long. Boil them in salt-and-water in a stewpan, keeping them firm; take them out, drain them, pound them in a mortar, and pass them through a sieve. Dilute this puree with lqt. of strong, cold syrup flavoured with vanilla, and add j pint of cream; pass it all through a tammy, and then set it in the freezer. Add a little spinach-green to the syrup to give a high green colour.

Francatelli goes so far as to freeze a similar mixture in moulds made to represent heads of Asparagus: the tips only are then coloured with a brush after freezing.

Asparagus Omelet. — Sprue Asparagus is used for this. Scrape them slightly, cut the tips off the heads, break the stems at the part ceasing to be tender, cut them transversely into pieces jin. long to fill a pint measure. Put them into a frying-pan, with 1 table-spoonful of butter. Season them with salt and pepper, and toss over a sharp fire till they are done rather soft. Be careful not to blacken or dry them by over-cooking; drain them on a sieve. Break ten eggs into a basin, season with salt, pepper, and 1 table-spoonful of chopped parsley; beat the eggs up together with the parsley. Have some butter warmed in an omelet-pan, into which pour the eggs after stirring in the Asparagus. Stir the omelet slowly as it thickens, toss it gently on the fire, and when done, fold it over, and put it on a dish to serve.

Asparagus Peas. — The long, thin Asparagus, called “ sprue,” is used for this purpose, although contrary to the advice of many gardeners, who declare that this is an unwise consumption of the young plant, to the prevention of its increasing in size as a shoot for the next season. Others are of opinion that the root is strengthened by the removal of these young heads. The “ peas ” are greatly in request by some cooks when the real thing is not in season.

(1) Procure a bunch of small green Asparagus, or sprue, break off the tops into pieces the size of large peas, and boil them in plenty of water with a full quantity of salt — 2pz. to lgall. When boiled quite tender, strain them off, having taken care that they shall not be too much done, or gone “ mashy,” in which case they would be watery. Soyer then proceeded as follows: He drained them upon a sieve, and put them into a stewpan with 8 table-spoonfuls of white sauce to lqt. of “ peas,” a little pepper, salt, and grated nutmeg, together with 1 teaspoonful of powdered sugar; placed the stewpan upon the fire, moved them gently round and round with a spoon, added four pats of butter, each about the size of a large walnut, and when the butter was melted, stirred in the yolk of one egg beaten up with £ gill of cream. When this was all nicely amalgamated and thickened, he poured it upon a dish, and dressed with crohtons of fried bread.

(2) When the “ peas ” are boiled, toss them, with butter, in a sautd-pan, and use for a garnish.

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(3) Ude recommends that after being partly boiled in salt water, the “ peas ” shall be dried upon a soft towel. Then put them into a stewpan with a small piece of butter, a bunch of parsley and green onions, and toss in the stewpan over the fire for ten minutes. Add a little flour and a small lump of sugar, and moisten with boiling water. They must boil over a large fire. When well reduced, take out the parsley and green onions, and thicken with the yolks of two eggs beaten up with a little cream, and a pinch of salt. “ Remember, ” he says, “ that in this entremet sugar must predominate, and that there is to be no sauce.”

Asparagus Points may be dressed in something of the same style as the foregoing receipt of Ude’s for Asparagus Peas. Boil them till done, put them into cold water for two or three minutes to harden a little, and then drain them upon a sieve. Put them into a stewpan, with a little green onion and parsley tied together, 2oz. of fresh butter, 1 table-spoonful of caster sugar, a little grated nutmeg and salt. Set the pan upon the stove to simmer very gently for five or six minutes. Remove the onion and parsley, and mix in a pat of fresh butter and a liaison of the yolks of four eggs mixed with igill of cream. Stir very gently so as to set the liaison, and pile upon a dish in a dome.

Asparagus Points with Cream. — Cut off the points or heads of a bundle of Asparagus, wash and drain them, put into a saucepan with a little warmed butter. Set the saucepan on the fire, stir in a little bechamel sauce, and let them remain until done. Take them out, put on a dish, pour over the sauce, and serve.

Asparagus a la Pompadour. — Untie a bundle of Asparagus, put it into a saucepan of boiling salted water, and boil it until done. Take the sticks out, cut them into lengths of about 2in., put in a cloth near the fire, and let them dry. Prepare a little sauce with vinegar, butter, yolk of egg, salt and pepper. Put the pieces of Asparagus on a dish, pour the sauce over, and serve.

Asparagus Pudding. — Put 1 table-spoonful of finely-minced lean ham into a basin, and mix it up with four well-beaten eggs, ljoz of warmed butter, lj- table-spoonfuls of flour, and salt and pepper to taste. When these are thoroughly incorporated, add 1 breakfast-cupful of the green part of Asparagus cut up into pieces about the size of a pea, and stir them well in, and then add sufficient milk to give the mixture the appearance and consistence of butter. Butter a mould, taking one that is just large enough to hold all the ingredients, put in the mixture, cover it over with a floured cloth, tie securely, plunge it into a saucepan of boiling water, and boil for a couple of hours. Turn it out on to a dish when done, pour round melted butter, and serve. Sweet sauce may be substituted for the melted butter if desired.

Asparagus Salad. — (1) It is not necessary to boil Asparagus especially for this, as any that has been left over cold will do up well in this way, and produce a very tasty dish with cold meat or cheese. Wash off any melted butter which may remain on with hot salt water, and cool. Cut off the tender points, arrange them on a glass dish, and pour over a cream saladdressing.

(2) German Style. — Take sufficient cold boiled Asparagus points, and put them into a basin with one-third of their quantity of crayfish-tails. Season with salt and pepper. Pass through a sieve the yolks of six hard-boiled eggs, and beat up with a little oil, vinegar, and salt to the consistency of thick cream. Pour this over the Asparagus and crayfishtails, and dish in a salad-bowl.

Crayfish are not sufficiently common to be used generally in this way; but almost any cold shell-fish will do.

Asparagus and Salmon Salad. — Put two bunches of Asparagus into a saucepan with lqt. of cold water and 1 table-spoonful of salt, and boil them for twenty minutes. Take tnem out, cut off the heads or points, and put them (the points’) on a sieve to drain. Put lqt. of cooked salmon into a basin, and mix in 3 table-spoonfuls of oil, 2 of strained lemon-juice, and 1 of vinegar; sprinkle over 1 teaspoonful of salt, and a third of that quantity of pepper. Put the basin into the ice-box or chest, and let it remain for two hours. Turn it out on to the centre of the dish, put round

Asparagus — continued.

the Asparagus points when cold, pour 1 breakfast-cupful of mayonnaise salad-dressing over the salmon, and serve with a garnish of slices of lemon cut into triangles, put round the dish.

Asparagus Sauce (Hot). — Season about J teacupful of boiling water with nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Put the yolks of two eggs in the water; whisk it by the side of the fire, but do not let it boil. Add gradually lb. of butter, broken into small pieces, and continue whisking till it presents the appearance of smooth cream. Squeeze in a small quantity of lemonjuice, and serve the sauce in a sauce-boat. This sauce is very good when served on cold slaw.

Asparagus Soup. — When the season is nearly over, and the Asparagus is hard and coarse, it may be used to make a very delicious soup.

About a hundred heads should be picked, scraped, and thoroughly washed, and the tops broken off as far down the stalks as possible. Cook in boiling salted water for about twenty minutes. Put the stalks into lqt. of good veal stock, and boil for twenty minutes. Cut an onion into thin slices, and fry in 3 table-spoonfuls of butter for ten minutes, being careful not to let it burn, and then add part of the Asparagus tops. Cook for a few minutes, stirring gently. Add a sprinkle or two of flour, and continue cooking for a few minutes longer. Remove the stalks from the stock, pour in the contents of the frying-pan, and boil all together for twenty minutes. Rub through a sieve. Have ready boiling 1 pint of milk and 1 pint of cream, and add to the stock. Season well with salt and pepper, and then serve. A very delicious soup.

Asparagus in Spanish Style. — Boil several heads of Asparagus in salted water, and remove them from the fire when done. Pour a part of their cooking stock into a smaller pan, add a few table-spoonfuls of vinegar to it, and when it boils, poach a dozen large eggs in it. Drain off the eggs, trim them, and having piled the Asparagus on a napkin folded to occupy just the room required in the centre of the dish, lay the poached eggs round, and serve with oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper mixed. This sauce is termed “ vinaigrette ”; it may be mixed before sending to table, and then it is best served in a sauceboat.

Asparagus with Young Carrots. — Partly boil three or four dozen small, young carrots of about equal size; drain them, and put them into a stewpan with butter, to fry over a moderate fire. Season, and when done thicken with a little Wloute sauce. Two minutes after, add the same amount of small Asparagus, cut into lengths of lin. each, previously also parboiled in salted water, and well drained. Let these cook thoroughly. Season, and put little bits of butter about amongst them, so soon as they are on the dish ready to be served.

Boiled Asparagus. — (1) Procure the supply as freshly-cut as possible, scrape and clean as explained before, wash thoroughly, and tie with string in bundles of five or six shoots each. The bundles may be much larger, but they should not contain more than twenty-five at the most, or the centre sticks of the bundle will not cook so readily as those outside. Take care

Fig. 51. Boiled Asparagus on Toast.

to adjust the points so that when you cut off the bottoms of the stalks all will be of one length. Put the bundles into boiling salt-and-water, and let them boil fast, without the lid, until tender; this will take from twenty minutes to halfan-hour. Have ready some slices of toast, without crust.

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Asparagus — continued.

and lay them for sippets at the bottom of the vegetable-dish, Take out the bundles of Asparagus from the boiling water, using great care to prevent the heads from falling off. Lay the bundles on the toast, and untie them upon it, allowing the Asparagus to fall so that all shall be in one direction on the toast, and the sippet be saturated with the water of the Asparagus. Melted butter with the juice of a lemon in every pint, may be poured over, or served separate in a butter-boat. Oiled butter is sometimes served with Asparagus, especially in Paris and other continental cities.

(2) After boiling as above for thirty minutes, take out of the pot, drain, and cut that which is tender into pieces about lin. in length; put these into a flat saucepan, with just enough milk or cream to cover them. Warm up to boiling, and just before serving add 1 tablespoonful of butter, in which 1 teaspoonful of flour has been previously thoroughly rubbed. Season with salt and pepper.

Carrots and Asparagus . — See Carrots.

Cauliflower and Asparagus Salad . — See Cauliflowers.

Preserved Asparagus. — Scrape the required quantity of sticks of Asparagus, clean them, wash thoroughly, drain, tie up into bundles, and cut the ends so as to have them all of one length. Fill a saucepan about three-parts full, add a little pepper, salt, and vinegar, and a few cloves. Set the pan on the fire, and as soon as the liquor boils, plunge in the bundles of Asparagus and let them blanch. Take them out, drain, put into jars, pour in sufficient strong salt-and- water pickle to cover them, and let them remain in this for a few days. Pour off the pickle, boil and skim it, pour it back again into the jars, let it remain for two or three days, and then pour in oil or hot butter to the depth of about 2in. Cover the jars over with paper first, then with parchment or bladder, and let them remain for about three months in a cool place. Repeat the operation with fresh pickle and oil or butter, cover over the jars again, and the Asparagus is then ready for use. They will remain good for a long time in this pickle.

Puree of Asparagus. — Take the tender parts of a large bundle of Asparagus, wash well, heat in boiling water with salt to make them green. When beginning to get tender, drain and put in cold water. When they are cold, drain on a clean towel, and when dry put into a stewpan previously prepared with a small piece of fresh butter, some sprigs of green parsley, and a few green onions; fry them as quickly as possible, to preserve the green colour. Add a lump of sugar, a little salt, sprinkle with 1 table-spoonful of fine flour, and moisten with a good broth. Cool quickly, and rub through a tammy sieve, adding a little spinach-green to colour.

A plain puree may be used for soups.

Sprue and Eggs.— For this dish take the long, thin, overgrown Asparagus, that is useless for serving in any other way; cut the sticks into lin. lengths, and boil them till tender. Separate the yolks and whites of three eggs or more, according to the quantity of Asparagus, and beat them well; then mix them together with a little butter and cream. Thoroughly drain the Asparagus, then pour the above mixture into the saucepan with it, and toss over the fire till quite hot. Turn the Asparagus into a hot deep dish, garnish with croutons of fried bread, and serve.

Stewed Asparagus Points. — Put a little fat bacon or lard into a saucepan over the fire, and when it is melted add a little each of grated nutmeg, salt, pepper, and finely-chopped chervil and parsley. Add the required number of Asparagus heads, moisten with a little stock, and when the heads are cooked, mix in a little beef gravy. Turn the whole on to a dish, and serve.

To Warm and Serve Tinned Asparagus.— Open the tin, and stand it over a stove in a shallow stewpan with sufficient water to simmer without boiling over the edges of the tin; or the tin may be set in a slow oven for a short time. Remove the heads from the tin one by one, lifting them by the white end, and taking great care not to break off the points. Lay them neatly upon toast previously soaked with part of the liquor from the tin. Put the remainder of the liquor or juice in a little saucepan, add a piece of butter the size of a walnut, a squeeze of lemon-juice, salt to taste, and stir up with sufficient flour to make a thin “ melted-butter ” sauce, which pour over, and serve.

ASPERULE ODORANTE ( Asperula odorata ). — This plant is variously named, hut is generally known as Woodruff, Wald-meister, and Muguet des Bois. The inhabitants of North Germany value it highly for the fragrant taste imparted by its leaves to a drink which they partake of with much gusto about the time its leaves are fully formed. This being in May, the drink is named accordingly; but it is very little known in this country.

Mai-trank is made thus: (1) lib. of pounded white sugar is put into a large bowl, and moistened with a few table-spoonfuls of cold water to dissolve it. To this is added 1 bottle of white Moselle wine, and a pinch of well-washed Asperule leaves, which are permitted to infuse in the liquor for the space of twenty-five minutes. Then the liquid is passed through a strainer into a punch-bowl, and set on ice to cool.

(2) Put a dozen black-currant leaves into a glass bowl or mug, add a little woodruff and lemon-juice, and sugar to taste. Pour in 1 pint of moselle or hock, stir well for thirty minutes or so, and it is ready for use. The commonest wine that can be obtained is the best for this, and if any other wines, such as Sauterne, Yin de Grave, &c.;, are used, they must be diluted with water. This is a very good beverage, and can only be made when the shoots of the woodruff are fresh and tender; that is, from the middle of April to the middle of June.

The Asperule odorante is used in France for scenting clothes and wardrobes, and is considered to be a sime preventive against the attacks of moths.

ASPIC.— This is the name of a clear savoury .jelly made from meat, which has lately come into very general use in preparing ornamental entrees, decorating hams, pies, and many other tasty dishes. The origin of the name is not distinctly understood, although “ Aspic ” is universally adopted by all Continental countries. Some assert that it owes its title to a small serpent of the Asp species that waits for its prey in a bed of transparent jelly with which it has enshrined itself. “ Cold as an Aspic,” is a common French saying; but it is just possible that the term “ cold ” refers to the jelly rather than to the snake. Other authorities express it as their opinion that Aspic refers to lavender; but that derivation appears to be somewhat exaggerated and far-fetched.

As there are so many uses to which Aspic is applied, it is not surprising to find that there are several ways of producing it; but whatever their number may be, they all take their foundation from one source, and that is savoury meat. In preparing “ Aspics,” the art is displayed in the arrangement of fish, flesh, fowl, or game, with truffles, cockscombs, sliced pickles, and the like, and the subsequent inclosing the same in a body of moulded jelly. The jelly may be variously coloured and cut up, or separately moulded, or may undergo a variety of artistic metamorphoses; but in all cases its technical constitution is the same, with this exception — that French cooks generally add tarragon vinegar to them Aspic.

Aspic Jelly.— (1) Put two scalded and well-cleaned calf’s feet, chopped up, 41b. of lean veal, 31b. of lean ham, two large onions sliced, three sliced carrots, and lgall. of water into a pot; boil steadily for eight or ten hours — that is to say, until the stock is reduced to about one-half. Strain this into a large stewpan, and stir in the well-beaten whites of four eggs, a large bunch of savoury herbs, three blades of mace (bruised), 1 teaspoonful of white peppercorns, and as much salt as would be necessary to season the stock. Keep it stirred over a stove until nearly boiling; let it simmer for twenty or thirty minutes, and then strain through a stout jelly-bag or clean kitchen cloth, stretched by its corners to the four legs of an inverted chair. If not quite clear and bright, strain again and again until it is. In this state it is ready for use; and if allowed to cool and solidify, it can be re-melted at any time by warming it in a pan.

(2) Pack into a stewpan two calf’s feet, chopped into small pieces, a few slices or bits of ham, from which all fat has been removed, the chopped-up carcase of a fowl (as old

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Aspic — continued.

as you please), two onions and two carrots cut into slices, a head of celery, one shallot, and a sprig or two of parsley, sweet herbs, spices, pepper, and salt to taste. Fill up with lgall. of ordinary clear stock, and set the whole to simmer gently for three or four hours. Strain off the liquor into a crock, and when cold carefully remove all the fat, should there be any; then put the jelly which has resulted into a saucepan, and add to it what colouring you require — say a little burnt sugar, to make it a golden-brown. Boasting the chicken before boiling will give a nice colour. Put the saucepan on the fire, and when the jelly is melted, whisk into it the whites of two eggs and 1 wineglassful of tarragon vinegar. When this has reached the boiling-point, strain it through a jelly-bag or kitchen cloth, as described in No. 1. Warm up and strain again if the first product is not quite bright and clear.

(3) Put 1 pint of good brown stock, which must be quite free from fat, into a clean saucepan, with 1 pint of water, loz. of gelatine, the rind and juice of a lemon, a bouquet garni (which consists of a sprig of thyme and marjoram, two bay-leaves, and a little parsley, tied together in a bunch), a small carrot and an onion (sliced), one blade of mace, six cloves, teaspoonful of salt, 1 teaspoonful of peppercorns, and 1 dessert-spoonful of tarragon vinegar, and, lastly, stir in the whites and shells of two eggs. Well whisk all this over the fire until it boils; let it simmer for fifteen minutes with the lid on at the side of the fire, and then strain twice through a napkin or jelly-bag into a crock, and it is ready for use.

Veal, ham, and chicken hones, with calf’s feet, if in sufficient quantity, will make a good Aspic. Dissolved gelatine can be added instead of the calf’s feet, if they are not at hand, to give it consistency when cold, hut care must he taken not to add the gelatine too liberally, or the Aspic will be hard — about 2oz. of the French gelatine to lqt. will be sufficient. Herbs and spices are sometimes added in great variety, but it is a question worth considering how far they injure or destroy each other’s flavour. White wines and lemon- juice are also frequently added when economy is no object.

The whites of eggs, and sometimes them shells, when used as clarifiers, must be stirred into the stock when it is quite hot and liquid. By allowing it to stand a few minutes the egg quickly settles, carrying other floating matters to the bottom with it. Before straining it is advisable to pour the clear liquor off the sediment, and warm again to a thin fluid. The more thoroughly the Aspic is strained and clarified, the brighter it will be. A clouded Aspic is considered indicative of inexperience or neglect.

With this information, the next step is to use some ingenuity with whatever may be to hand to produce an Aspic which shall be gratifying not only to the taste, but also to the sight and smell, of those before whom it is placed. Aspics are vei’y pretty dishes when well prepared, but their success depends very greatly upon the translucency of the jelly. From the following receipts it will be simple enough to concoct others of much more elaborate detail, and something, it must not be forgotten, will be due to the shape of the mould. To set an Aspic in the mould, ice is almost an essential.

Aspic Jelly Sauce for Salad. — Put about 1 teacupful of Aspic Jelly in a saucepan and melt it; leave it till cooled, but not firm, then mix with it 1 teacupful of salad oil and 1 table-spoonful of tarragon vinegar; season the mixture with salt and pepper. Stand the bowl in ice-water, and whisk the sauce until it thickens and whitens; then squeeze in a small quantity of lemon-juice. The sauce should be kept on ice up to the time of serving.

Aspic Lie or Sauce. — Put a little each of tarragon, chervil, and burnet, into a saucepan, pour over a little vinegar, and set the saucepan over a slow fire, to let the herbs infuse, for half-anhour. Pour in about three times the quantity of vinegar in Spanish sauce, boil for ten minutes or a quarter-of-an-hour, and add salt and pepper to taste. Pour the whole into a jelly

Aspic — continued.

bag, hung over a basin, and when it has all run through, it is ready for use.

Aspic of Lobster . — See Lobsters.

Aspic in Norman Style. — As seen in Fig. 52, the whole secret of this dish consists in cutting out with a cutter rounds of different savoury meats, such as sweetbread, liver, kidney, tongue, ham, veal, pork, slices of sausages, alternating the layers of these with sliced truffles or sliced button mushrooms, and filling up the mould with jelly, as before. The arrangement is very simple, and all that is required is to season the meats with salt and pepper as they are laid in. The centro of the mould should be hollowed, which may be easily done by

Fig. 52. Aspic, Norman Style.

putting a narrower mould inside. But the cylindrical moulds are so inexpensive that nothing would be gained by using two moulds when one will do. The centre may be filled with a good finely-cut salad of vegetables in season, thickened with mayonnaise sauce; and round the top a ring of sliced mushrooms should be laid. There is not so much difficulty in preparing this dish as might appear to some: the

difficulty is to provide a sufficient variety of tasty meats to make it savoury.

Aspic of Oysters . — See Oysters.

Border of Aspic Jelly. — A very pretty border can be made with Aspic and vegetables cut into slices and shapes. Pour into a suitable border mould (see Fig. 53), set in ice, sufficient clear Aspic to cover the bottom of the mould about m- thick; take care to keep the mould quite even. Have ready some

Fig. 53. Aspic Border Moulds.

slices of cooked carrots and beetroot, and cut them with vegetable cutters to any fancy shapes, such as crescents, stars, diamonds, triangles, or squares; also some slices of hardboiled eggs. When the jelly is set, lay these upon it in order,

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Aspic — continued.

and tastefully. Then fill up the mould with more jelly until quite full. Leave in the ice-packing until quite firm, and then turn out carefully on to a dish, and fill the centre with chipped salad.

Crayfish in Aspic.— See Crayfish.

Crofttons of Aspic for Ornamentation. — With appropriate moulds, it is astonishing what can be done with Aspic Jelly in the way of ornamenting cold dishes, especially when used in a variety of colours. Attelettes (silver skewers with ornamental heads) are frequently decorated with a string of fancy meats or vegetables embedded in Aspic shapes. It is more frequently used either in mass, as described in the preceding recipes, or as croutons, of which Fig. 54 gives a good idea.

These croutons may be of almost any shape, a well-made Aspic being easily cut and manipulated; or little moulds may be used, into which the hot jelly is poured.

As a specimen of decorating a cold joint with Aspic Croutons, the accompanying engraving (Fig. 55) of cold ribs of beef thus ornamented, as illustrated by Gouffe, is a noteworthy example. After trimming the joint, which lies upon its side, and dressing the bone with a paper frill, a star is formed upon the broad part by the careful placing of croutons (see Fig. 54), and the centre is then filled in with finely-chopped Aspic. The tail part can

be similarly decorated, and the joint surrounded on the dish by croutons and Aspic chopped as before. The effect is very pretty, and by the addition of slices of beetroot, stamped into patterns by a vegetable-cutter, and set about symmetrically amongst the jelly, together with sprays of well-washed, curly parsley, the picturesqueness of the design is greatly enhanced. A multitude of dishes, in the preparation and decoration of which Aspic Jelly plays an important part, will be found described in the course of this work.

ASS. — Although it has been stated that the flesh of the Donkey is quite as palatable as that of the horse, it is doubtful whether either will ever occupy any

Ass — continued.

position amongst our natural foods. The Wild Ass of Persia is, however, considered by the Persians to form a very delectable dish, and the animals are hunted for culinary purposes only. No particular mode of cooking is prescribed, but from the reports received from travellers in Persia, the flesh would appear to admit of varied treatment.

ASSES’ MILK. — The milk of the maternal donkey is recommended by some physicians as being superior to cows’ milk for the use of invalids. That it is richer in some respects there can he no reason to doubt, but the difficulty of obtaining it, and the excessive price charged for it where it is available, carry it beyond the reach of the moderate investor. The following receipts are endorsed by the medical faculty as being worthy imitations:

(1) Put 2 teaspoonfuls of prepared pearl barley into a basin, and add 2 table-spoonfuls of water, working it well until it is perfectly smooth, and then mix in 2 breakfastcupfuls of boiling water. Set the saucepan on the fire, add a piece of sugar-candy to sweeten, and simmer gently for five minutes. Pass the liquor through a fine sieve into a basin, and add 2 breakfast- cupfuls of new cows’ milk and two well-beaten eggs. Let it get cool, and it is ready for use.

(2) Put Joz. each of candied eringo-root and prepared pearl barley into a saucepan over the fire, pour in 1 pint of water, and boil until it is reduced to 1 breakfast-cupful. Add 1 breakfast-cupful of cows’ milk, a small quantity of sugar, and loz. of gelatine dissolved in cold water. Pour the whole into a basin, and when cold it is ready for use.

(3) To make 1 tumblerful of artificial milk, beat up the yolks of four fresh eggs, and add by degrees £ teacupful of orange-flower water. When these are well mixed, add 1 dessert-spoonful of caster sugar, and when that is thoroughly dissolved, pour in sufficient hot water to fill a tumbler, stirring briskly or beating with a fork. This is best prepared fresh as required, and the greatest care must be taken to have the eggs perfectly sweet and pleasant, for the least taint once will sicken an invalid of this useful preparation.

(4) Put 2oz. of pearl barley into a saucepan with lqt. of water, and boil it gently for a few minutes; then strain off all the water and pour in another quart. Add oz. of hartshorn shavings, and double the quantity of candied eringo-root. Set the pan on the fire, and boil slowly until the liquor is reduced to half its original quantity. Pass it through a cloth or fine sieve into a basin, and it is ready for use. It should be mixed with an equal quantity of cows’ milk before using.

Two noted chemists (Ckevallier and Baudrimont) give the comparative nutritive values of asses’ and cows’ milk, thus:

Water. Casein. Butter. Sugar.

Asses’ milk … 907 … 1’7 … 1’55 … 5’8

Cows’ milk … 86’5 … 36 … 405 … 55

by which it will be seen that cows’ milk contains much more casein (cheese) and butter, a trifle less sugar, and considerably less water than asses’ milk — rather a strong indication in favour of the cows’ milk for quality.

ASSAFCETIDA.— This is a gum-resin exuded from the excised roots of Ferula ( Nartliex ) Asafcetida and some other plants of the same genus. It is brought into England in small, agglutinated, hard, but brittle masses or grains of different colours, whitish, reddish, or violet. It emits an extremely foetid odour, and has a pungent, aromatic, bitter taste, somewhat resembling that of garlic. In India it is used by the natives as a seasoning for their food, and is styled by them the “Food of Gods.” In Persia the leaves of the plant are eaten as salad; and the root, after being roasted, is considered a delicacy. In more civilised cookery it is sometimes used in place of garlic, and we are told by Dr. Pereira that he has been assured “ by an experienced gastronome that the finest relish which a beefsteak can possess may be communicated by

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, 1 be., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

57

Assafcetida— cont inued. slightly rubbing the gridiron on which the steak is to he cooked with Assafoetida.” As a substitute for garlic it may he used, but only when garlic, with which it has hut slight affinity, cannot he procured.

ASSAM. — This is the name of an Indian district bordering on China. It has become famous lately for a tea, grown amongst its swamps, which possesses a strong, musky flavour and deep colour. It is much liked by those whose predilections are in favour of strong-tasting, cheap teas.

ASSIETTES MONTEES. — Fr. for “raised dishes.”

ASTI.— The name of an Italian sparkling white wine, named after the district in which it is produced.

ASUREE. — To Marie Kibrigli Pasha we are indebted for this receipt and others of Turkish dishes.

Take 21b. of wheat, unground, and wash it; throw it into a large saucepan of cold water, and boil for an hour; then dry it near the stove on a cloth. When it is quite dry beat it in a mortar, to get off the husks; then put the wheat into a strong muslin bag, and tie it up; put it into a saucepan of cold water, and let it boil all day until the liquor becomes of the consistency of jelly. Then take out the bag, squeeze it until all the liquor is out, and throw the dregs away. Put lib. of sifted, crushed loaf sugar in the liquor, and boil it again; if not sweet enough, add more sugar. Put a handful of Sultana raisins into a basin, with a few blanched almonds, cut small; mix the jelly with these, and put it into glass dishes. It will keep many days, and is not only strengthening, but a very nice dish.

ATHERINE (Atlie rina presbyter). — The name by which this little fish (Pig. 56) is generally known is the

Fig. 56. Atherine.

Silverside or Sand-smelt, being often passed off in the market for the real smelt. It is related to the family of the mullets, and may he recognised by the absence of the cucumber smell peculiar to the smelt, and by the handsome bright stripe running the whole length of its side. It is declared by epicures to be a delicious fish, little, if anything, inferior to the smelt, and much more wholesome. It is dressed in the same way. tSee Smelts.

ATHOLE BROSE.— See Brose.

ATHOLE CAKES.— See Cakes

ATTELETTES. — These are small skewers, generally silver or thickly electro-plated, with ornamental heads. The name is sometimes spelled “Attelets,” or “Hatelets.” Soyer gives a few specimens of them (see Fig. 57), which are very ornamental; but more modern manufacturers than those of his time have produced a great variety, some of which are remarkable for the beauty and appropriateness of their designs. In length and size the Attelettes in general use differ considerably, according to the purpose for which they are intended; those of a smaller and simpler character being used for entrees and the larger for removes.

The larger ornamental skewer is frequently used for transfixing and holding in position small pieces upon larger, such as small birds upon a capon or turkey; or for decorating joints with shapes of aspic jelly, or meats with cocks’ combs, mushrooms, truffles, crayfish, and

Attelettes — con tinu ed.

other titbits. Indeed, the utility of the Attelette to the artistic cook is in proportion to its almost universal adaptability. Dubois, who spells the word “Hatelet,” gives in his high-class book of artistic cookery an extraordinarily handsome collection of garnished and transparent Attelettes for ornamenting hot and cold dishes, and he prefaces his description with the following sensible remarks: “ If Hatelets are applied with discernment, they always serve as a relief, and add splendour to the dishes intended for entertainments, such as great dinners or ball suppers. Hatelets as such are applicable to all dishes served, provided the form and nature of the latter agree with the ornaments; but intelligent cooks are careful not to lavish them without reason. A lady of rank displays her rich jewels only on festival days, and then only when dressed in

garments corresponding with their splendour; Hatelets, being the diamonds of cookery, ought to be shown only on solemn occasions, and applied to pieces worthy of such an honour: to be too prodigal with them is to diminish their value and their charm.”

Attelettes are easily put together, but, even though very artistic in construction, are not always seen to the best advantage, this being generally due to indiscretion in their application. Por instance, one would not wish to ornament a salmon with cocks’ combs, or fix a string of crayfish or prawns on a capon, or truffles and mushrooms on sweetmeats; such combinations would be incompatible. Neither shoidcl Attelettes be placed where they would be even partially concealed from view. They should not only be appropriate to the viand, but mounted as conspicuously as possible.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces t £c., referred to see under their special heads.

58

TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Attelettes — continued.

Our Plate represents a particularly artistic variety of Attelettes in all the splendour of their natural colourings; they present examples of combination which ingenious cooks will have no difficulty in imitating, or varying according to taste and convenience. They are arranged to suit either hot or cold dishes, savoury or sweet; and great care should he taken to insure their adding to the appetising qualities of the dish they are used to ornament, and every bit of them, except the skewer, should be edible, although rarely eaten at table.

When Attelettes are used for cold dishes, especially such as spiced or pressed meats, galantines, and aspics, it is usual to string small ornamental cuttings of vegetables, &c.;, and cover them with a column of jelly. This is effected by means of moulds specially constructed for the purpose (Fig. 58), and the mode of operation is as follows: Thread the ornaments carefully upon the skewer to a convenient distance from the top, and then plunge

Fig. 58. Attelette Moulds.

the skewer-shaft through the hole in the bottom of the mould. Tie round the skewer, below the’mould, a piece of tape or string, so as to support the mould in its appointed place, and then closely bung up the bottom aperture with stiff flour-and-water paste, so that the liquid jelly to be used cannot leak through. The ornaments on the Attelettes should be of such dimensions that they will pass readily into the mould without touching the sides. Next, pass the skewer shafts through holes in a convenient frame, so that they can be packed round with pounded ice, and kept perfectly upright.

To fill the moulds, use very bright, clear jelly, quite liquid, and as cool as it is possible to have it; and when this has set firm, remove the string and paste from beneath the mould, dip the mould quickly into warm water, and out again. When the pin is removed the mould will come away, leaving the jelly shape perfect. These Attelettes must be kept in a cold place, as warmth would make the jelly run.

Attelettes — continued.

For hot dishes, a great variety of Attelettes may be formed, all the ingredients being cooked as for eating, but they need not be hot themselves. A thin coating of meat glaze brushed over them makes them very bright, and adds very considerably to their ornamental appearance. Sweet jelly may be used, with crystallised fruits, and fruit pastes cut into shapes. Sugar glazing brushed over such ornaments as fresh fruits will give them extra brilliancy. The mode of preparing the different articles used will be found described under their own headings.

Description of Plate.

The preparation of decorative Attelettes opens up a large field for the display of artistic taste and culinary skill. The ornamental design crowning the Attelette may not be at all times subject to the cook’s selection, nor the materials at his disposal just such as ho would desire for any particular purpose; but as very pretty arrangements can be made out of such simple articles as carrots, turnips, mushrooms, and coloured glaze, which are to be found amongst the usual kitchen stock, even though cocks’ combs, truffles, prawns, and crayfish are unattainable, a really ingenious cook will never be at a loss for an Attelette. The combinations depicted on the coloured plate are examples of what can be done in this way, and therefore form a series of suggestions for the exercise of the cook’s skill.

No. 1. A combination of truffles, button mushrooms, and crayfish.

No. 2. Truffles, cocks’ combs, and button mushrooms. The cock ornamenting the crown of the Attelette makes this a good addition to capons, poultry, and other birds. May be either hot or cold.

No. 3. Truffles, prawns, or mushrooms.

No. 4. This is compounded of green peas, carrot rings, barberries, and mushrooms with aspic jelly. The crown of the Attelette forms a particularly suitable ornament for a hunting luncheon.

No. 5. Crystallised fruits, preserved violets, and cherries, with sweet jelly.

No. C. This gives an excellent opportunity for displaying the skilful use of a small knife. The combination is small carrots and turnips cut out of large ones, parsley, truffles, and mushrooms.

No. 7. Rings of carrot with peas in between, crayfish and truffles, and set in aspic jelly.

No. 8. Rings of green peas, barberries in the centre, truffles on slices of carrot in savoury jelly.

Note. — The mode of preparing each of the different ingredients used for Attelettes, will be found described under their particular headings.

ATTEREAU(X) —The meaning of this term is somewhat obscure. It was formerly spelt “Hatereau,” taking its origin fx-om hate, haste; but here a strange confusion seems to have taken place amongst French etymologists, for the word “haste” they conceived to be derived from the Latin word hasta, a spear or javelin. Hence the meaning of Attereaux may apply to those dishes which can be prepared “in haste,” or to the practice of spearing the dainty scraps on small skewers. Hatelet (see Attelettes) may have some such confused origin; but Time, the great reducer, and his confrere Custom have brought these terms into general use spelt as we have them here.

Many tasty little dishes are to be found amongst the Attereaux receipts of experienced cooks, and from amongst several we have selected the subjoined, in the hope that this style of quickly-prepared supper titbits may soon come into fashion again. Soyer used them and styled them Aiguillettes — “ little needles ” — evidently referring to the spear, or skewer, and not to “haste.” In any case, the confounding of “spear,” or “javelin,” with “ haste ” is suggestive.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, fee., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

59

Attereau(x) — continued.

To Louis Eustaclie Ude we are indebted for the following: —

Attereaux of Goose’s Tat Liver. — See Goose’s Fat Liver. Attereaux of Ox-palates.— See Ox-palates.

Attereaux of Rabbits in the Italian Style. — See Babbits. Attereaux of Sweetbreads.— See Sweetbreads.

AU RAIN-MARIE. — Fr. for the act of keeping sauces and other things warm in a hot-water bath. See Bain-marie.

AU BLEU. — Fr. for “plain-boiled.”

AU FOUR. — Fr. for “ in the oven.”

AU GRAS. — Fr. for any dish that is prepared with meat stock.

AU GRATIN. — Fr. for any dish prepared with breadcrumbs.

AU JUS. — Fr. for “with gravy”; and hence, “in its own gravy.”

AUM, or OHM.— A wine-cask holding 30galls., and much used in Germany for exporting wines.

AU MAIGRE. — Fr. term for soups and other dishes prepared without meat.

Australian Meat — continued.

Water.

Per Cent.

Australian Mutton No. 1

99 99 99

„ „ 9, 3

Home-grown Mutton

59-2G

6148

6157

52-59

This shows a very large percentage of water in the pound of Australian meat, which, as all know, is not nourishing, and therefore present at the expense of the good qualities of the meat.

Fat.

Per Cent.

Australian Mutton No. 1

1962

„ „,, 2

14-62

„ „,9 3

15-79

Home-grown Mutton

28-88

Extractive

Matters.

Alcoholic

Water

Total

Extract.

Extract.

Per Cent.

Australian Mutton No. 1

2-47 …

4-47

.. 6-94

2

2-87 …

4-05

.. 692

99 99 99 3 …

3T2 …

3-82

.. 6-91

Home-grown Mutton

2-28 …

1-85

.. 4-13

The nourishing qualities of the extractive matter vary according to composition.

Albumen and Fibrine.

AU NATUREL.-. for “plain.”

AURELIAN CAKES.— See Cakes.

AURORA SAUCE ( Sauce d la Aurore ). — This Sauce is so called from the Aurora-like colour that is introduced into it. For the receipt for its manufacture, see Sauces.

AUSTRALIAN BEER. — Considerable improvement has in late years been made in the brewing of Beer in our Australasian Colonies. That made in Tasmania is reckoned to be the best produced, and in nowise inferior to our best English brews; this being, in a great measure, due to the superiority of Tasmanian hops.

Australian Mutton No. 1

„ „ 99 2

„ „ „ 3

Per Cent. 14-60 16-92 16-39

Home-grown Mutton … … … 14″40

(of which by far the larger proportion is albumen).

Of this the albumen is the nourishing quality, but in the case of cooked (such as tinned) Meats it is not possible to separate them, hence they are stated under one analysis.

The toughness and hardness of Meat depend upon the proportion and strength of its fibrine, hence its nutritive qualities are less in proportion.

The mineral matters are not of so much importance; they are as follow:

AUSTRALIAN MEAT— There are two methods of preserving meat, grown and killed in Australia, for use in this country, the first and most important being that of conveying by ship the whole carcases of sheep, lambs, pigs, calves, and halves of beef, hung in freezing-chambers; and the other is that of putting up cooked meats in hermetically-sealed tins. The efficacy of this or that mode of preserving is not of so much importance to the cook as is the condition of the flesh when it reaches the market and is offered for sale. Some chemists have written boldly declaring that Australian frozen meat is not only quite as good as, but greatly superior to, anything to be met with as native to this country; but the declamations of such individuals are of little value, seeing that in almost every instance where such a wholesale statement has been made, the chemist making it has been, in a sense, an interested party. Independent chemists assure us that the frozen flesh of the imported animal is greatly inferior to the fresh meat of our market, and would scarcely be recognised as even a second-class quality, as regards either its nutritive value or its flavour; and, moreover, what is of much greater consequence, that the difference in cost is no real saving after all. This inferiority of Australian meat is not necessarily due to the influence of freezing, — indeed, the probability is that little or no change takes place during the time that King Frost reigns supreme —but the quality of the meat at the time of killing is inferior.

Mr. Ogilvie, in the Chemical News, in 1874, pointed out the comparative nutritive values of Australian and home mutton, and his figures are too important to be ignored. In the first place, he gives the results of his analyses of three kinds of Australian meat, and compares them with an average of the home produce.

Mineral Matters.

Soluble Insoluble Total Per Cent. Pel- Cent. Per Cent. Australian Mutton No. 1 … 0’654 … 0’444 … 1-098

„ „ „ 2 … 1-019 … 0-543 .. 1-562

„ „ „ 3 … 0-705 … 0 160 … 0-865

Home-grown mutton … 0’303 … 0’150 … 0 – 453

(much less than in the imported article).

From these tables it may be readily conceived that if correct — and they have not been disputed — the Meat imported from Australia is not so nutritious as that of home production; it lacks fat and albumen, and contains too much water and mineral and extractive matters in its composition. These remarks apply equally to Meats imported under similar conditions from America.

With regard to the various preparations of Meat imported in tins, Blyth observes: “ There are two serious objections to this Meat — the one that it is invariably overcooked, from the desire to insure the complete exclusion of atmospheric air; and the second, that the tins often crack from the constant pressure of the atmosphere, there being a vacuum within them.” This “cracking” of the tins has been overcome by the introduction of a nondecomposing gas, such as carbonic acid or nitrogen. Nevertheless, in spite of all that can be urged in their favour, Australian Meats, in whatever fashion imported, are shown to be inferior to home-grown produce, and therefore only serviceable to those families to whom price is of more importance than quality. See American Meat. To Cook Frozen Meat. — The first thing to do with Frozen Meat, before attempting to cook it, is to “ unfreeze ” it, or thaw the flesh gradually; for it may be taken for granted that during the voyage the whole substance of the animal has been frozen, and this can only be thawed by degrees. The

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under their svecial heads.

60

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Australian Meat — continued.

appearance of the outside is no criterion of the condition of the inside, and unless the joint be thawed quite through, it will remain uncooked in the middle.

In effecting this “unfreezing” of the joint right to the bone, a little care is advisable. If a bottle of water be carried from an ice-chamber into a warm or muggy atmosphere, it will condense the vapour contained in the atmosphere on its outside. The Frozen Meat does precisely the same thing, hence the outside fibres are apt to turn pale and soppy. The plan which salesmen of Frozen Meat have found most effective is that of thawing by gradation. The Meat is first taken to a dry chamber at about 40deg. Fahr., then to another at, say, 55deg., and then to one at about 70deg., or the same temperature as the outside air. By this plan, after carefully wiping the Meat and dusting here and there with flour, it can be exposed in a shop or a cook’s larder, looking as dry and fresh as home-killed Meat of the same quality.

In some other respects the joints of Frozen Meat differ very widely from those of freshly-killed Meat; they yield their nourishing juices somewhat too readily. This peculiarity can be scientifically accounted for, and, happily, prevented. Spon states that if you were about to cook a joint of Australian Meat, the first thing to do would be to pitch from loz. to 2oz. of fat off it into the fire, and hold the lean part in the blaze till the surface is seared and sealed by the action of the fire upon the albuminous juice — an operation that may be equally well effected by placing the part to be seared on a gridiron over a bright, smokeless fire. If it be required to roast a leg, the thick end, where the cut lean is apparent, should be served in the same way. If the leg is to be boiled, the water should be made to boil rapidly, and the leg rested against the side of the saucepan or boiler, so that the thick end at the bottom is covered only by about lin. of water. Let it remain thus on the fire for about ten minutes, and then fill up the boiler with more hot water, lay the leg in its proper position, and simmer till done. If you put the whole leg into the water at once, the water will cease to boil, and the cut end of the mutton will yield its juices freely; which may be all very well where broth is desired, but for a boiled joint should not be allowed. Covering the joint, or the end of it, with a stiff paste made of flour and water answers the same purpose as scalding. If a neck of Australian Mutton is to be boiled, the lean end should be hung in the water when it is boiling rapidly, and the whole joint put into the water gradually, keeping the water on the boil.

Australian Tinned Meats vary very slightly, if at all, from American, Brazilian, and other similar imports.

AUSTRALIAN WINES.— The manufacture of Wine is rapidly gaining ground in the southern colonies of Australia, namely, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. The Wines so far produced arc of different qualities, many being exceedingly good, luscious, and fruity, and the poorest being good enough for most cooking purposes. The Red Wines are strongly recommended as possessing a remarkable burgundy flavour, quite equal to the fuller wines of the South of Prance. The White Wines, resembling sauteme or muscatel, are excellent for sauces. Until quite recently the practice of fortifying Australian Wines with alcohol to the extent of 35 per cent, prevailed, to the great injury of their British sale; but our Colonial brethren have possibly learned by this time that their chances of supplying the Old Country with Wine, or any other produce, depends more upon the quality of their goods than the price. Indeed, the heavy charges for freightage from Australia to England go far to level their cost with Continental Wines, being moi-e than three times that charged for bringing Wines from Prance.

The plains of Adelaide provide Wines similar to those of the South of Spain, whereas the hilly districts are adapted to the growth of clarets and the higher class of Wines, each being christened according to the fancy of the cultivator. Tintara is best known to fame, owing, in a great measure, to the popularity of the vineyard proprietor, Dr. Kelly, who, it is said, has done much to encourage the growth of grapes in Australia. The range of varieties and qualities is very great — from light sherry to heavy port.

AUSTRIAN WINES. — Some excellent Wines are produced in Austrian vineyards; the principal districts where grapes are grown being Dalmatia, Lower Austria, the Northern Tyrol, Styria, and Istria. The character of the Austrian Red Wines is lighter and cruder than those of France; while the White Wines, in respect to quality, are inferior to those of the Rhine, but possess a larger proportion of alcohol than those of either the Rhine or the Moselle.

Among the finest and most celebrated Austrian Wines are the Sparkling and Still Voslauer; while of the Hungarian, the Tokay, Red Carlowitz, and Paluggy are best known. It is almost superfluous to add that for culinary uses suitable Austrian Wines can hardly be surpassed. See Wines.

AVA-PARA.— The name given to a wine manufactured by the Tahiti Islanders from the Pandanus odoratissimus, and called Pandanus Wine.

AVI. — Fr. for the burnt part of a loaf: Un pain qui a regu I’avi — a loaf that has been burnt. Sometimes spelt Havi.

AVOCADO PEAR. — See Alligator Pear.

AY OIi I (compoimded of aye and oli, garlic and oil; probably derived from the Spanish ajo, garlic, pronounced ayo). — This is the name given to the “ Butter of Garlic,” which is much used for culinary purposes in Provence and the South of Prance, and wherever garlic is held in esteem. It is especially coveted as a sauce for codfish, whether served cold or hot.

Ayoli is made by pounding a few cloves of garlic in a

mortar, gradually adding olive-oil until the whole is reduced

to the consistency of paste. See Garlic.

AZIA. — A French preparation of pickled cucumbers.

AZUCARILLO.— A Spanish sweetmeat consisting of flom-, sugar, and rose-water.

BABA. — This is the name given to certain sweet leavened cakes having something of the characteristic of brioches. They are said to have been made famous by King Stanislaus of Poland (“ un Prince fort gourmand,” as Careme describes him), who was so very fond of them that he caused them to be made for him during a state visit paid by him to France in the early part of the seventeenth century. Since that time

Fig. 59. Baba Moulds.

(Designs by Adams and Son.)

they have risen to high esteem throughout the Continent, and attained great favour amongst cooks and confectioners.

The modes of preparing Baba cake (or pudding, as it is sometimes called) differ in a few particulars — so also do the modes of serving; but the great secret seems to be to soak the cake in some sweet sauce strongly flavoured with fruit; or in rum-pnnch, and pour a sweet sauce over. The centre cavity also is usually filled to heaping with chopped preserved fruits. Some excellent receipts for its manufacture will be found hereunder.

For details respectinj Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, $cc., referred to, see under their special heads,

TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

61

Baba — continued.

Baba Cake. — (1) Sift 41b. of dried flour on to a marble or slate slab, put one quarter of it into a basin, and pour in the centre loz. of German yeast dissolved in 1 teacupful of warm water. Mix well, using the fingers onty, adding a little more water if required to make a stiff paste. Roll into the shape of a ball, put this in the basin again, score it across the top in the form of a cross, set the basin in a warm place, and let the dough rise for about ten minutes, or until it is quite light. Make a cavity in the centre of the 31b. of flour, add 21b. of butter, slightly warmed, oz. of salt, £ teacupful of water, and fifteen eggs. Work the eggs and butter well together, then mix the whole into a paste, keeping it rather soft. In about five minutes, add six more eggs, singly, and work lightly with the hand for ten minutes, sprinkling 1 teaspoonful of powdered saffron over the dough, and mixing it in. Put 4oz. of Smyrna and 8oz. of Malaga raisins, 4oz. of cleaned currants, and a small quantity each of mixed candied peels, cut into thin slices, into a basin, pour over 1 breakfast- cupful of Madeira wine, and 3 wineglassfuls of brandy or rum, whichever is preferred, and let the ingredients soak for a few minutes. Mix them all in with the paste, using the hand lightly, and let the preparation stand for a few minutes. Put a strip of paper about 3in. above the rim of a well-buttered mould, put in the mixture lightly to about three-quarters the height of the mould, set it in a warm place, and when the paste has risen to the top of the mould, put it in a slack oven on a trivet or stand, and bake until done, which will take about three hours. Turn it out carefully on to a sieve, and serve either hot or cold. Great care must he taken not to have the paste too thin

Fig. 60. Baba Cake.

or the fruit will fall to the bottom of the cake, and the effect will be lost. As the fruit in some cakes has a tendency to stick to the mould when cooked, the latter may be masked with a coating of the plain paste before putting the cake mixture in.

(2) Take lib. of flour, sift it, and mix into a fourth of it oz. of German yeast, having first mixed it in a little warm water, adding 1 pinch of salt. Put this in a pan in a warm place, so as to let it ferment into a sponge. Spread out the remainder of the flour, and work in lOoz. of butter and 2oz. of sugar, mixing together with seven eggs, and working it well with the hands for five minutes. When this is done, mix the two together if the sponge has sufficiently risen. A mould must now be buttered and lined with a thin coating of the paste. Mix with the remainder of the paste 3oz. of muscatel raisins, 2oz. of washed and dried currants, loz. of chopped-up candied peel, 1 wineglassful of brandy and the same quantity of rum, and fill in the centre. The Baba should then be set to rise gradually in a place where the temperature is moderate. As soon as it has risen sufficiently, place it in an oven upon a thick baking-sheet, with a roll of paper round the mould to prevent the Baba from receiving too much heat at first, and it should not acquire too much colour. About three-quarters-of-an-hour will suffice to bake it.

(3) Have ready fib. of the best flour, 1 drachm of compressed yeast, and f gill of warm water; put 3oz. of the flour into a vessel, make a hollow in the centre, and in it

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Baba — co ntinued.

lay the yeast and water; with the hands mix the yeast gently with the water for three minutes, then mix all together for three minutes more. Cover the vessel with a towol, and leave it in the warmest place in the kitchen (not on the stove), and after thirty minutes it will rise to twice the original size. Lay the remainder of the flour on the table, make a hollow in the centre, putting in it loz. of powdered sugar and four raw eggs; mix the sugar and eggs with the hands; then add 1 gill of cream and gill of good Madeira wine; season with 1 drachm of very fine salt, and mix all with the flour for five minutes. Make a hollow in the centre again, and into this put 5oz. of good, fresh, softened butter; mix well again for two minutes. If the prepared yeast-dough be now raised to its proper height, mix the two pastes together for at least five minutes, return it to the vessel, and put it in the same warm place, covering as before. When rested one hour, have ready 2oz. of cleaned sultana raisins, 2oz. of cleaned and stoned valencias, and loz. of finely-chopped citron-peel. Grease with cold butter the inside of a cylindrical copper or tin mould large enough to hold 3 pints. If the mixed paste be now raised to twice the original size, mix in the raisins, currants, and citron-peel, stirring thoroughly for about five minutes; put it in the mould, and lay it in a warm place (not on the stove) for another twenty minutes; then place it in a moderate oven for one hour. When a good golden colour, remove, and let it cool slightly; place a round dish over the mould, turn it upside down, lift off the mould, and glaze the cake with a thin syrup. Decorate the top and dish with candied fruits, and send to the table.

(4) Dissolve oz. of yeast in 1 breakfast-cupful of milk, and add sufficient flour to make a sponge. Set it to rise. Beat ilb. each of butter and sugar to a cream, add ioz. of blanched and chopped bitter almonds, £lb. each of raisins and sultanas, the grated rind of two lemons, 1 pinch of salt, 1 saltspoonful of powdered mace, and the yolks of ten eggs. Now add another breakfast-cupful of milk, the remainder of the flour, and the sponge when raised, working the whole well until perfectly smooth, and adding lastly the whites of ten eggs beaten to a snow. Turn the mixture into a buttered Baba cake’ mould, and bake. Turn it out when done, soak it in punch, ice it with chocolate or other icing, fill the cavity with preserved and dried fruits of all kinds, cut up into small pieces, and serve.

Baba au Madere. — Prepare a Baba cake as described in No. 3, but do not glaze it. Slit the cake into halves, and remove the top piece. Pour 1 pint of cold water in a very clean pan, add Jib. of sugar and half a medium-sized lemon, place it on the stove, and boil well for three minutes; then remove, and at once add 1 gill of good sherry wine and l gill of cura 5 oa. Lay the top part of the cake in a round, flat-bottomed vessel. To avoid breaking it, a wire basket is recommended, with which it can be lowered carefully into the pan. Pour gradually over it the prepared sauce; let it rest for two minutes, then replace it carefully on top of the other half of the cake. Arrange it nicely on a dessert serving dish, garnish tastefully with candied cherries, and decorate the border with thin slices of candied pine-apple.

Baba with Vanilla Cream Sauce. — Prepare a Baba cake. When removed from the mould, and laid on a dish, cut it into six equal parts. Take 6oz. of apricot marmalade, and proceed as follows: take one piece of cake in the left hand, and, with a knife in the right, cover both sides, where cut, with the marmalade. When finished, arrange the six pieces together on the dish, and give them the same form as before. To be eaten with vanilla cream sauce.

Hot BclbcL Cake. — Put lib. 3oz. of flour on a baking-sheet in the oven, dry it, and pass through a fine sieve into a basin. Put a quarter of this into another basin, and mix it up with ioz. of yeast and 1 wineglassful of lukewarm milk; when well mixed, put the basin in a warm place for this to rise. Form a hollow in the centre of the rest of the flour, and mix in 2 table-spoonfuls each of cream and sifted, crushed loaf sugar, four eggs, 6oz. of warmed butter, and a small pinch of salt. Work well with the hand until thoroughly mixed and quite smooth, then add singly four more eggs, working one well in before another is added. Add 4oz. more butter, pulled into small pieces, and work this in for about

Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Baba — continued.

five minutes; mix in the dough, work for five or six minutes longer, sprinkle in about 1 teacupful each of Smyrna raisins and well-washed and dried currants, and a little less than 1 teacupful of finely-chopped mixed candied peel. Take up the preparation with the hand, in small quantities, drop it into a well-buttered cylindrical-shaped mould, filling it to about three-quarters full, put it in a warm place to rise (or the heat of the kitchen will perhaps be sufficient), and when it has risen to the rim of the mould put it into a slack oven and bake it until done. Turn out very carefully on to a dish, smear over with chocolate or apricot sauce or orange cream, and serve. The proportion of ingredients used in the above should be sufficient to make two cakes.

GoufK serves Baba cake with the following sauce: Put lb. pot of apricot jam in a stewpan, with £ pint of syrup and 1 gill of rum. Boil, and strain through a hair sieve. Serve in a tureen, or poured over and round the cake.

Mr. C. Norwak gives us the following receipt for making sauce for Baba cake, as made by him in Krakau, Poland: Take 1 pint of good wine, and mix with it the strained juice of a large lemon, and a small piece of cinnamon just to give a flavour; work this up with 4oz. of caster sugar, the yolks of four eggs thoroughly beaten up over the fire, and when ready, pour over the hot Baba.

BABEURRE.-ft. for “butter-milk.”

BABKA — This is the name of a Polish cake made with eggs, milk, sugar, cream-cheese, and chopped almonds. It stands very high and narrow, and is said to be called “ Babka ” on account of its resemblance to an old woman with her head depressed. More than a hundred varieties of it are known in Poland, made with fruit, vegetables, fish, and other things.

BACALAO. — The Spanish mode of dressing salt codfish with oil and garlic, as follows:

(1) Clean a cod-fish, put it in a bowl of slightly salted water, and soak it for a day; take the fish out, cut it up in pieces or slices, lay a few of them at the bottom of an earthenware dish to cover it, then put over this a layer of garlic, parsley, and grated bread, continuing in this way until the dish is full. Pour over a mixture of oil and garlic well seasoned with salt and pepper, cover over the dish, and boil until nearly all the liquor has evaporated or is absorbed and the ingredients are nearly dry. When done, take it out, and serve.

(2) Clean and cut in slices a cod-fish; boil the pieces in a saucepan of water, and when done, take them out and drain them. Put the pieces into a bowl with sufficient honey to nearly cover them, and when they are well soaked, take them out, dust them over with flour, plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry them. Take the pieces out, drain them, and serve on a napkin spread over a dish. Or instead of being soaked in the honey, the pieces may be dipped in egg beaten with a little salt, well floured, fried in boiling fat, and dusted over with caster sugar.

(3) Cut some onions and tomatoes in rather thick slices, put a few of these at the bottom of an earthenware dish, and add a little garlic and ground cinnamon. Cover this over with slices of cod-fish, and continue in this way until the dish is full or all the cod-fish used up. Pour over a mixture of oil, whole and ground pepper, and cloves, filling up all the crevices, and boil over a clear fire until the liquor from the tomatoes and onions, together with the oil, is nearly absorbed. When done, take out the dish, and serve.

(4) Lay onions, cut in thick circles, at the bottom of a pipkin, with tomatoes, a grain of garlic, and cinnamon; on this place a layer of cod-fish sliced, and so on in alternate layers. Pour in plenty of oil, cloves, pepper (whole and ground), and then set on the fire to boil, without adding any stock, till the juice of the tomatoes and onions is nearly absorbed.

Bacalao A la Biscayexme. — After soaking and cutting in bits, put the fish on to boil; meanwhile toast a few tomatoes before the fire, skin them, and well mash them with a wooden spoon; chop up plenty of onions very small, put them to boil in oil, and just before they turn colour add the tomatoes. Now place the cod in a pipkin, throw in

Bacalao — continued.

the onions and tomatoes, with the oil in which they were cooked, and set on a slow fire to simmer gently till quite done.

Bacalao with Garlic Sauce. — Prepare this by boiling the fish first, then adding a sauce at the time of serving, made by frying garlic in oil, and adding peppers, green and red, with vinegar in equal quantity with the oil.

Bacalao a la Vizcaino. — Clean a cod-fish, cut it up in

pieces or slices, soak these for a day or so in slightly salted water, and boil them until done. Have ready a few tomatoes, toasted before the fire and skinned, and mash them to a pulp. Cut up a good lot of onions into very small pieces, put these into a saucepan with sufficient oil to cover them, and boil them. When they begin to change colour, add the tomato pulp, and cook until all are done. Arrange the slices of cod at the bottom of an earthenware dish, pour over the oil mixture, and place the dish on the side of the fire; simmer gently until the whole is done, and serve hot.

BACKINGS.— These are a very delicious kind of pancakes or fritters, highly esteemed in some parts of the United States as a breakfast delicacy.

Beat 1 breakfast-cupful of buckwheat meal in a basin with sufficient warm milk to make it soft and smooth. Into this stir £ teacupful of fresh yeast, or loz. of American cake yeast dissolved in 1 wineglassful of lukewarm water. Set this to rise until a good sponge has formed, and then dilute the whole till it forms a liquid batter. Just before being wanted for serving, have ready a frying-pan with plenty of hot fat in it, pour in f teacupful at a time, cook both sides as for pancakes, and serve in the same manner. A better name for these, perhaps, would be “ Buckwheat Pancakes.”

BACON ( Fr. Bacon; Ger. Speck; Ital. Lardo; Sp. Tocino). — The term “ Bacon ” is derived from the German bachen, the plural of bache — a wild sow — which it is more than probable formed, when dried, a very important item in the dietary of the rural German inhabiting the vast forests of the country where the wild pig or boar abounded. Bacon is defined as “ the flesh of swine, salted and dried, and subsequently smoked or not,” and the name, so far as we know it, is restricted to the sides and belly so prepared. Other parts of the pig are cured in a similar manner, hut these have distinctive names, such as “ hams ” and “ Bath chaps,” and will be treated under those heads. In some of the northern countries of Europe and America the term “ Bacon ” is more generally used and applied to other kinds of dried and smoked flesh, especially that of the bear, which is said to be of a very superior flavour; but with that we have nothing to do here, our remarks being confined to the belly and side of the domestic pig — “ salted and dried, and subsequently smoked or not.”

From the foregoing introductory notes it is plain that there are two kinds of Bacon to be met with in this country, namely, that which has been salted and dried only, and that which has been salted, dried, and subsequently smoked. We take the description of Bacon cured by the simplest process first.

Bacon, Salted and Dried (or “ Green,” as it is called). — After the slain pig has been cleaned and deprived of its head, it is slit carefully down the back (as shown in Fig. 61) by means of a butcher’s chopper, or in a largo pig the chine (a) is cut out for roasting or boiling. The hams (c) and hands (d) are removed, or the shoulder in small pork may be left. The hair on the skin is then singed off over a fire, or by means of kindled straw laid over it. Scalding with water is not advisable, as the dampness produced interferes with the process of salting. A large wooden trough or tray is provided, having a gutter round its edges to drain off the brine; the flitches, as they are called, are then sprinkled over with salt, and left for twenty-four hours on the trough, or on sloping boards, so that the flesh may drain. When the time prescribed for draining has elapsed, each flitch should be taken separately and wiped perfectly dry, and the drainings from them thrown away. Both sides of the flitches are then

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred, to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

63

Bacon — continued.

to be well rubbed with common salt, but the fleshy side will require considerably more rubbing than the skin.

Some curers use after the first salting a mixture of salts in these proportions: 31b. or 41b. of common salt, £lb. of saltpetre, and lib. of coarse sugar or treacle, and this “ pickle ” gives to the Bacon a flavour that is much admired by good judges. It is usual to dry the salt in an old fryingpan over the fire before using. When the process of rubbing is completed, the flitches have to be placed in the picklingtrough upon each other, skin side downwards, and the next day it is as well to rub salt into them again. They should be left in the trough for a month or six weeks, according to the size of the flitches and the state of the weather (cold weather requiring longer time). Repeat the rubbing process four or five times at intervals of about a week.

Fig. 61. Pig Marked Out for Cutting-up for Bacon.

The next step is to dry them by hanging them up high over a kitchen fireplace, or in some other equally warm and draughty place. When they are hard and firm, they may be removed to racks or hooks prepared for their reception near the kitchen ceiling. In old farm-houses the kitchen chimney is well adapted to the curing of Bacon, and the constantly open door permits a draught through, which removes any superfluous heat that might rise to the ceiling or rafters and injure the Bacon by turning it “ rusty.” Exposure to the sun will also turn Bacon rusty, and must therefore be carefully avoided.

Some slight variations of the foregoing process are practised in different parts of the country, but they are not sufficiently important to require special description. See Curing, Pickle, &c.;

Bacon, Salted, Dried, and Smoked.— For this the salting and drying process is precisely the same as that just described, the only difference being in the next step, which is smoking. In London it is unusual to meet with any Bacon but that which has been smoked, but in some of our large midland cities and towns “ green ” Bacon finds the readier sale. The smoke is generally that of burning wood or straw (in America hickory chips and corn-cobs are used). Woods containing resins, such as pine, are not advisable, as they would give an unpleasant flavour to the Bacon. The plan usually adopted is to dry the flitches slowly over the smoke made by burning sawdust of oak or beech. The fire may be kept up night and day by smothering with dry sawdust. In some parts of the country drying and smoking are practised as a regular trade, and sums are charged for smoking Bacon varying from 4d. to 6d. for a ham, and lOd. or Is. for flitches; and this convenience is widely appreciated in rural districts. The flitches should be hung up high until quite dry, but not so hard that the rind begins to peel off. Sometimes the rubbing over of the flitch with bran is advocated; but it cannot judiciously be recommended, for it encourages flies to settle upon the Bacon, and lay their eggs there, which produce maggots. This may be prevented to some extent by wrapping in paper or suspending in calico bags.

To Choose Bacon. — The best Bacon is that which has a thin rind, agreeable odour, firm, consistent fat, with a slight tint of red about it; the lean should be red and bright, tender, and fast on the bone. Do not buy Bacon with yellow fat, for that means that it is “ rusty.”

To test the quality of Bacon, a knife or skewer should be thrust into the meat close to or along a bone, and if it smells sweet when withdrawn, and the flesh is moderately firm, it is sure to be fresh and good.

Bacon — continued.

As to the choice of the different parts of Bacon, much is due to the purpose for which the Bacon may be required, and something to fancy. The streaky covering of the rib bones is generally preferred for ordinary use, or as breakfast rashers, and commands the highest price, although in all other animals this part is the least esteemed, and consequently the cheapest.

Fig. 62. a, b, and c, constitute the Entire Side; A and B, or B and C, are a Three-quarter Side; A, Fore-end, weighing about 181b.; B, Middle, 351b.; c, Gammon with Corner, 141b.

Fig. 63. D, e, f, Middle, cut through into three pieces, each weighing about 121b.

p o n M

Fig. 64. G, Fore Hock, weighing about 101b.; H, Thick Streaky, or Middle Cut, 81b.; J, Thin Streaky, 61b.; K, Flank, 3J,lb.; L, Gammon, 101b.; M, Corner of Gammon, 41b.; N, Long Loin, 81b.; o. Back and Ribs, 81b.; P, Collar, 71b.

X W V U T S

FIG. 65. Q, Top of Thick Streaky, weighing about 31b.; r, Prime Thick Streaky, or Middle Cut, 6ilb.; S, Leanest part of Loin, 21b.; T, Loin, 61b.; u, Back Ribs, prime cut, 61b.; v, Thick Back, 21b.; w, Prime part of Collar, 51b.; x, End of Collar, 21b.

PLANS OF A FLITCH OF BACON OF 64lb.

For lean Bacon, the back or gammon would be selected; and for cheapness, the fore hock, or fore end, would serve best, especially for boiling for family use. Part of the thick flank also doe3 very well for boiling. The above diagrams (Figs. 62 to 65) explain the parts into which a flitch is generally sub-divided.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Bacon — continued.

The foregoing list of parts is quite sufficient guide for use in ordering Bacon of the merchant; and as good Bacon is not always to be purchased near home, the above plan should be found very useful in obtaining supplies from a distance.

There are so many uses to which Bacon is applied by cooks, that it will be repeatedly mentioned throughout the receipts contained in these pages — in many cases as an incidental savoury; but there are a few conditions in which it forms the basis of a dish, and these are described in their place.

To Prepare Bacon for Breakfast. — Procure fine, fresh Bacon, and with a keen knife cut the under-bones off; pare both edges neatly, also the end (the opposite side to the string which hangs it up). With the help of the same sharp knife, cut the necessary number of slices desired for immediate use, and no more. Thin slices are always preferable, so that the Bacon, whether broiled or fried, will be crisp and tasty. When cutting off the slices, be careful to avoid detaching them from the skin; also cut them crosswise, but never lengthwise. Arrange the slices on the broiler, and broil over a moderate fire for two minutes on each side; dress the slices on a hot dish, and serve immediately. Four minutes will suffice for frying. See that the Bacon is kept hanging by the string in a dry, cool place, but do not put it on ice. Bacon and Eggs. — (1) To prepare these nicely, the rashers of Bacon, cut thin — slices of the back are best — must be trimmed of all bone, rind, and smoked part, and put into a hot enamelled frying-pan, or one that is bright and scrupulously clean. The Bacon is then to be cooked nicely brown without burning, and care taken that the fat especially shall not “catch.” When the Bacon is laid on a dish and popped into the oven, the shells of the eggs must be carefully broken so as not to break the yolks, and put into a cup — a shallow saucer is perhaps better, as being less likely to burst the yolk by the fall from the shell into the deep cup. Each egg should be broken and kept separately; first, because a bad

one would spoil the others (shop eggs, when really fresh, are quite good enough for this mode of cooking them); and secondly, because a fair share of white will then be apportioned to each yolk. As each egg is added to those in the frying-pan, the white about it should be allowed to set before adding another. Baste them with the hot fat, trim, and put one on each piece of Bacon. Sometimes mashed potatoes are served round the dish.

(2) Break several eggs, one at a time, and put them in a dish, close up in front of a fierce fire. Toast over these slices of streaky Bacon, allowing all the drippings to fall upon the eggs. By the time sufficient Bacon is cooked, the eggs should be done. Lay the Bacon about the eggs, and serve together.

Bacon-fat is declared by all cooks to be the best medium for frying such tasty foods as onions for curry, also for frying liver, and veal cutlets. Slices of bread fried in Bacon-fat make an excellent breakfast dish. The crusts should be trimmed off, and the bread fried a light brown, peppered, and served quite hot, garnished with parsley.

Bacon-fat Salad Dressing. — Take 2 table-spoonfuls of Baconor pork-fat, 1 table-spoonful of flour, 2 table-spoonfuls of lemonjuice, k teaspoonful of salt, 1 teaspoonful of sugar, 1 teaspoonful of mustard, two eggs, J breakfast-cupful of water, and i breakfast-cupful of vinegar. Have the fat hot. Add the flour, and stir until smooth, but not brown. Add the water, and boil up once. Place the saucepan in a bain-marie, or in another saucepan partly filled with boiling water.

Bacon — continued.

Have the eggs and seasoning beaten together. Add the vinegar to the boiling mixture, and stir in the beaten egg. Cook four minutes, stirring briskly all the time. Cool, and use. If put into bottles and corked tightly, this will keep in a cool place, and forms a very pleasant addition to a salad.

Bacon with Macaroni. — Put 2oz. of broken macaroni into a saucepan with 2 breakfast-cupfuls of well-seasoned stock, and simmer gently on the side of the fire until it is quite tender, which will take about an hour; but it should be frequently tried, to prevent its being overdone or pulpy. Add 2oz. of streaky Bacon, boiled and cut up into small squares, and a small piece of butter. Toss the pan over the fire for a few minutes, season with salt and pepper, turn the preparation out on to a dish, and serve very hot.

Bacon Omelet. — Put Jib. of finely-minced lean Bacon into a frying-pan with a little butter or lard, and fry it until done. Have ready a sufficient number of eggs, well beaten with salt and pepper, and stir them into the Bacon. When the omelet is cooked, take it out carefully, put it on a dish, and serve with piquant sauce, either in a sauceboat or poured round it.

Bacon Salad. — Cut about Jib. of slices of fat Bacon into small squares, put them into a frying-pan, and fry them till lightly browned. Bemove the pan from the fire, and mix in with the Bacon one-third vinegar to two-thirds Baconoil. Prepare a salad by chopping up whatever greenmeats happen to be obtainable, season it, and pour the Bacon sauce over it; if the pieces of Bacon are not wanted, strain the sauce through a strainer. Beaten eggs may be mixed with the Bacon-fat if according to taste: they should be stirred into it over the fire till the dressing is thick, then let the mixture cool before pouring it over the salad.

Bacon and Spinach. — Line a pudding-basin with thin slices of raw Bacon, trimmed so as to be all of one size, and let them be arranged symmetrically. Take some boiled spinach, ready chopped for table, and seasoned with butter, salt, and pepper; also some boiled carrots, turnips, and small onions cut into Jin. squares. Whip up the yolk of an egg with pepper and salt, and mix the carrots and turnips up with the egg and seasoning. Now arrange the squares of vegetables alternately and thickly amongst the slices of Bacon, and fill up the centre of the dish with spinach. When the basin is full, cover over with more slices of Bacon, and put into a saucepan partially filled with boiling water, not deep enough to boil over, and steam for an hour. Turn out into a flat dish, and serve with a rich brown gravy.

Boiled Bacon. — (1) Before putting the piece of Bacon selected into the pot, it is advisable to soak it for some hours. This will remove superfluous salt, and enable the meat to soften and swell. Cut off any part that looks rusty, and scrape the flesh side quite clean. Put the piece into cold water, lot it come very slowly to the boiling-point, and then simmer gently until done. The time required may be calculated as twenty-five minutes for each pound, and twenty-five minutes over. When done, let it get cold in the liquor in which it has boiled, placing a folded cloth under the lid to keep in the steam. Peel off the skin (which may go into the stockpot, if you have one), and sprinkle the fat side freely with grated crust or browned breadcrumbs, which may be made by baking scraps of bread in the oven until brown, and then crushing them with a rolling-pin. Boiled Bacon can, when cold, be glazed by brushing it over with a solution of loz. of gelatine in 1 gill of warm water. Sometimes well-boiled ribbon vermicelli, after being thoroughly boiled, is cut into ornamental shapes and laid on the Bacon before glazing.

(2) Should the required piece of Bacon be very salt, it should first be soaked in cold water for several hours. Bemove any rusty or discoloured uneatable pieces, scrape the underneath parts, put it into a saucepan of water over a slow fire, and let it gradually come to the boiling-point. Bemove the saucepan to the side of the fire, and simmer slowly until the Bacon is quite tender. The time allowed for boiling Bacon is about twenty-five minutes for each pound, and if a big piece, about twenty minutes longer. When the Bacon is done, take it out, skin it, and sprinkle the fat over witli bread-raspings.

(3) Wash and scrape about 31b. of Bacon cut from the back or ribs, plunge it into a saucepan of water, and boil it

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

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65

Bacon — continued.

gently until quite clone, which will take about an hour-anda-half. Then remove the pan from the fire, place a cloth under the lid to keep in the steam, and let it remain until the Bacon and liquor are quite cool. Take the Bacon out, drain and skin it, and grate bread over it; or when it is quite cold it may be glazed with ijoz. of gelatine, dissolved in I teacupful of boiling water, with a little caramel colouring added. The piece of Bacon may be decorated with designs in vermicelli, which is prepared for the purpose by plunging it into boiling water and boiling for two or three minutes, and then taking it up with a fork or skewer and dropping it on to the glaze before it is set.

Boiled Bacon and Cabbage. — (1) This dish is not always prepared with cabbage; sometimes French beans are selected, or Bacon and broad beans are the choice. In either case the process differs only in the vegetable. Cut a good cabbage into quarters, and remove some of the thick part of the stem — as much as you can without disturbing the leaves. Soak it in a pan of cold water until wanted — some add salt to the water, but this does not appear to have any value. Put the cabbage into a large saucepan containing boiling water, with 1 teaspoonful of salt and 1 pinch of bicarbonate of soda, and cook for half-an-hour. Take lib. of the back of Bacon, clean off the smoky parts, put into cold water, and boil for half-an-hour by itself. Then drain both the cabbage and the Bacon, and put them together in one pot, covering them with boiling water which has not been used before, and let them cook slowly for another half-hour. Remove the cabbage as whole as the spoon will allow you, drain thoroughly through a colander, and after slicing the Bacon, serve it on the cabbage in a dish with a drainer.

(2) Take a piece of the back or middle of Bacon, and clean and trim it. Cut, quarter, and wash clean a good head of cabbage, and press the water out as well as you can. Boil the cabbage and Bacon, with half a pod of red pepper, together for one or two hours, according to the thickness of the meat; and having skinned the Bacon, serve it on the top of the cabbage, in slices, or surrounded by the cabbage; or the cabbage may he in a vegetable dish by itself.

Broiled Bacon. — Slices of streaky Bacon, nicely trimmed, may be broiled in a double gridiron over or in front of a clear fire. Turn frequently until done. Or the slices, cut all of a size, may he rolled up and impaled on skewers, when they may either be broiled, or baked in an oven; remove from the skewer before serving.

A very useful contrivance for cooking Bacon before the fire is a Bacontoaster. The rashers can be turned as often as desired by lifting the liook-bar by the handle provided for the purpose (see Fig. 67).

Broiled Liver and Bacon. — Broiling the Bacon for this dish is considered wasteful, hence it is usual in small kitchens to fry the liver and Bacon together. In this way the beauty of the dish is spoiled. The neatest plan is to fry the welltrimmed thin slices of Bacon, and having washed and sliced the liver not too thick, say -jin., dried it thoroughly in a cloth, floured it, and then dipped it in the Bacon-fat in the fryingpan, to broil that over or before a clear fire, peppering and salting whilst it is cooking. When done, lay each slice on a dish, with a piece of Bacon on each piece of liver.

Egg-and-Bacon Pie . — See Eggs.

Fowl-and-Bacon Sausages. See Fowls.

Fried Bacon. — Select a piece of streaky or back, and trim the piece to be cooked of rind, bone, and smoky parts before slicing. Many try to cut rashers by slicing through the rind, wherein they make a great mistake; for in the first place, it requires an exceedingly sharp knife to cut through the tough skin at all, and when it does cut it through, the chances are that the knife works unevenly and cuts the rashers irregularly. By laying the Bacon rind-side down, slices may be cut towards the skin, and trimmed off after, which will leave the rind uncut, and therefore serviceable for other culinary purposes. Cook in a frying-pan till the fat is transparent and the lean lightly browned on both sides, and crisp.

Bacon — continued.

Drain on paper, and serve. Rashers of Bacon may also be broiled when they are much milder in flavour; but when fried it is advisable that the frying-pan should contain some other fat than that of the Bacon, or tho rashers will be fried too fast and burned up. Some cooks dip tho slices in egg and breadcrumb, with chopped parsley and pepper, and fry in hot lard. Thin rashers, too, may be rolled up and tied, hut when cooked the string must be removed before serving.

Fried Eggs with Bacon. — See Eggs.

Steamed Bacon. — Wash and scrape the piece of Bacon required to be cooked, put it into a steamer over a saucepan of boiling water on the fire, and steam it until it is quite tender. Take it out, and it is ready for use. By cooking in this way, the quantity does not waste as in boiling, nor does the quality deteriorate.

BADEN-BADEN PUDDING-.— See Puddings.

BADET. — A fermented liquor made in Java from rice. It is a favourite drink amongst tlie natives, and no J avanese banquet or festival would be considered complete without it. By the addition of various spices and fruit juices to this Badet, some very delicious beverages are concocted.

BAEL. — This fruit, sometimes known as Bengal Quince, is imported from the East Indies; it grows upon a tree of the orange tribe (JEgle Marmelos), and is usually gathered when but half ripe, then dried, and

Fig. 68. Bael Fruit.

used as a medicine. When ripe and freshly gathered, the fruit is very fragrant, and pleasantly refreshing to the taste. In our Indian possessions the European residents hold it in high esteem as a preserve.

The dried fruit as received in this country is usually cut into slices, having on the outer side a smooth, greyish shell, and internally a hard orange or red pulp. It has no distinct smell, but tastes slightly acid and gummy. In its fresh state the fruit is mostly globular (see Fig. 68), and measures, on an average, from 2in. to 4in. in diameter; it, however, varies very much both in shape and size, some being flattened at each end like an orange, whilst others are oval, and others again partake of the shape of a pear. They have a smooth, hard shell, the interior being apportioned into ten to fifteen uneven cells, something of the character of an orange, each cell containing several woolly seeds. Between the cells the fruit is filled with a mucilaginous, juicy pulp, which has an agreeable aromatic flavour. The pulp, when mixed with water, and sweetened, forms a palatable cooling drink. The fruit is rarely eaten fresh.

Bael Jam. — Cut up the required quantity of half-ripe Bael fruit, and remove the stones and gum round about them; rub the fruit with a little water through a sieve into a preserving-pan, add sufficient sugar to sweeten well, and simmer gently for about half-an-hour, by which time the jam should be thick. Let it get cold, turn it into bottles or jars, cork or cover them over, and let them stand in a cool place until wanted.

K & L

Fig. 67. Bacontoaster.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

66

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Bael — continued.

Bael Preserve. -For this, fruit which is rather less than half ripe should be used. Cut as many as required into slices about jin. in thickness, and carefully remove all the seeds and the gum surrounding them. Throw them as cut into cold water, let them steep for a few minutes, take them out, put them into a saucepan with strong syrup, and simmer over a slow fire for thirty minutes or so, by which time the preserve should be a rich light brown. Let it get cold, bottle it, taking care to have the fruit well covered with the syrup, cork down the bottles, and keep them in a cool place until wanted.

Bael Sherbet (Indian). — Scoop out the whole contents of a ripe sweet Bael, add a little water to make it into a paste, sweeten to taste, pour in more water until it is as thick as honey, and strain it to remove the seeds and fibres. It is then ready for drinking. This is considered a delicious drink, and possesses the peculiarity, that if drank about as fluid as stout, it is a mild aperient; but if taken as thick as pea-soup, it has an astringent effect.

Candied Bael.— Cut up some Bael fruit into quarters or slices, remove the seeds and gum, and steep the fruit in cold

water. After a few hours, take them out, drain them, put

them into a preserving-pan, with sufficient syrup to cover, and simmer gently for half-an-hour, by which time the fruit should be tender. Turn it out on to oiled paper, lay

it on trays, set the trays in the sun for a few hours, and

the Candying will be complete. It may be stored away in boxes. The oiled paper is used to prevent the candy from sticking to the trays.

BAGRATION SOUP.— -See Soups.

BAIN-MARIE. — In kitchens where a demand might he made at any time upon sauces, gravies, stews, and such-like culinary preparations, the Bain-marie, or hotwater bath, is of the first importance; because by the principle of its construction it allows the most delicate fluids to be kept at a temperature equal to boiling water, without themselves boiling or being exposed to the uncertain heat of a hot-plate or stove. In small kitchens one pot stood in another, or in a flat tin containing water, answers for all purposes; but where several such pots are, or may be, required, the Bain-marie becomes an essential.

The origin of the term is doubtful, some Continental etymologists asserting that it obtained its wonderful name from the prophetess Marie, to whom the credit of its invention is attributed; but others, of a more practical turn of mind, are of opinion that it is styled Bainmarie, from bain, a bath, and marie — a corruption of mer — the sea, from the ocean-like appearance of the broad expanse of water the pan presents when the pots are removed. Amongst illiterate cooks it is occasionally styled the Banburee, but this is an evident corruption.

In large hotels and club kitchens the Bain-marie plays an important part, and its pans are kept perpetually supplied with stock sauces, which it is usual to label as shown in the illustration (Fig. 69).

Mr. Wilson, of the Wilson Engineering Company, has provided a very clever little Bain-marie pot, which

Bain-marie — continued.

can be made to fit into an ordinary kitchen boiler when the lid of the boiler is removed (see Fig. 70). The steam is quite as effectual as the hot water, so that the quantity of water in the boiler is not material to the utility of the pot.

Ude proclaims the value of the Bain-marie thus:

“ You put all your stewpans into the water, and f; keep that water always 1 i very hot, but it must not 11 m boil. The effect of this is

to keep every dish warm p IG 70. Wilson’s Bain-marie Pot without altering either the to Fit in a Kitchen Boiler. quantity or quality. When

I had the honour of serving a nobleman in this country, who kept a very extensive hunting establishment, and the hour of dinner was consequently uncertain, I was in the habit of using the Bain-marie as a certain means of preserving the flavour of all my dishes. If you keep your sauce, or broth, or soup, by the fire-side, the soup reduces and becomes too strong, and the sauce thickens as well as reduces.” All this, and the possibility of burning, is avoided by using the Bain-marie.

BAKEHOUSE.— If it were in the power of every baker to organise his own Bakehouse, the probabilities are that he would aim at constructing something very different from those generally met with. There is no reason why they should not be amply ventilated; but this the builder seems to carefully avoid, probably under the grievous misapprehension that heat is required outside as well as inside the oven. Sky-lights, or high windows that open widely, are essential to the well-being of those working in Bakehouses, allowing the superabundant heat from the oven and the steam from the bread to escape. Many important improvements have been made in modern bakeries, especially in the matter of Ovens, which are described under that head.

BAKESTONE CAKES.— -See Cakes.

BAKEWELL PUDDING.— This is named after the town of Bakewell, near Cliatsworth, in Derbyshire, where it is naturally and deservedly a great favourite. The term “ Bakewell ” does not, therefore, apply to the mode of cooking. The secret of its concoction is sufficiently simple to render it worthy of universal note.

(1) Line a pie-dish with a light paste, and spread over it

a thick layer of preserved fruit of any kind — plums, apples, pears, gooseberries, strawberries, cherries, apricots, or peaches, &c.; — and over this sprinkle some thin slips of candied orangeor citron-peel. Make a rich custard of six yolks and three whites of eggs, worked up with 5oz. of warmed, clarified butter, 6oz. of caster sugar, and 1 wineglassful of lemonbrandy, and flavour with 30 drops of essence of lemon. Pour the custard over and among the preserved fruit, and bake in a moderate oven for three-quarters-of-an-hour or until done. .

(2) Put 8oz. of butter into a basin, warm it, and add the beaten yolks of eight eggs and the whites of two. When the mixture is nearly cold, add 8oz. of sugar and a little essence of almonds for flavouring. Have ready a dish lined with puff paste, mask it at the bottom with a layer of jam or preserve, pour the mixture over to about lin. in thickness, put the dish in the oven, and bake for an hour, when if will be ready to be served.

(3) Grate jib. of finger biscuits into a basin, and mix them up with 6oz. of sifted crushed loaf sugar and 1 teacupful of cream. Put a thin layer of this mixture at the bottom of a buttered, plain mould, then a layer of peeled and cored pears; over this sprinkle a layer of breadcrumbs, and again over this put a few preserved or dried cherries, intermixed with small pieces of blanched almonds. Well beat a couple of eggs, pour them over, and continue in this way twice more, making three distinct layers, finishing with egg, cherries, and almonds.

Fur details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

67

Bakewell Pudding — continued.

Two dozen sweet almonds, 2oz. of dried cherries, and 41b. of pears, will be sufficient. Place the pudding in a quick oven, aud bake for twenty minutes; then take it out, and serve. A little sugar and salt beaten with the eggs is an improvement.

(4) Put 4oz. of finely-crushed loaf sugar into a basin, and mix in the grated peel and juice of two lemons, and the well-beaten yolks of eight eggs and whites of two. When these are all well mixed, pour in 3oz. of melted butter. Have ready a dish lined with puff paste and masked with strawberry, raspberry, or any other preserve to about 4in. in thickness, pour in the pudding mixture, set the dish in a sharp oven, and bake until done. Take it out, and serve. Bakewell Pudding with Almonds. — Put 3oz. each of breadcrumbs, sugar, blanched and finely-shred almonds, and warmed butter into a basin, and mix with them a little nutmeg, the juice and grated rind of half a lemon, and lastly, add the well-beaten yolks of three eggs. Line a pie-dish with puff paste, spread a layer of raspberry or strawberry jam about Jin. thick on the bottom, pour the mixture in, put the dish in a moderate oven, and bake for twenty minutes, when the pudding should be quite done and ready to bo served.

BAKING. — The literal meaning of this term, we are informed, is drying or hardening by heat, such as the surface of the earth by the action of the sun; but in cooking parlance it is generally accepted that the process of Baking is, broadly speaking, “cooking in an oven.” The Germans use the term baclcen — to bake; but it is peculiar that neither the French, Spanish, nor Italians have any verb which expresses the operation in a word; thus the French for “to bake” is cuire au four; Italian, cuocere al forno; Spanish, cocer en homo; all literally signifying “ to cook in an oven.” This being the accepted meaning of the term, a few words on the general management of an oven will not be out of place, leaving the description of the various styles of construction to special headings, under which the most recent information obtainable will be found. See Ovens and Stoves.

Fig. 71. Improved Baking-dish, with Grid, Double Jacket, and Basting Well.

(Wilson Engineering Company.)

It is of the highest importance that the oven shall be scrupulously clean before anything is put into it to bake; this precaution being essential to the preservation of pure flavoiu’s, but one unhappily too frequently neglected.

Large ovens are best for baking bread and joints, because the temperature is more even, and can be better regulated. In a small oven the variation of heat is generally very great, for the mere opening of the door to examine the food may cool the interior. In all cases care should be taken not to slam the door when closing it, as ‘by doing so you are apt to drive out the hot air by the gust created.

An oven that is intended for baking meat should have a ventilator, which ought to be left open, because certain empyreumatic gases and odours escape from the meat as.it is cooking, which by being re-absorbed render the joint unpalatable and tough; and again, without such means of exit, meat will bake sodden by the action of its own vapour.

Some ovens are fitted with thermometers set in the

Baking — continued.

door, with the bulb inside, but registering outside. Upon the index is marked the various degrees required for cooking various foods; but, although very highly spoken of by experienced cooks, thermometers are not calculated to find much favour in private houses. First, because they are very easily broken, and secondly, because they are not understood by “ plain cooks,” as they are called, who prefer to trust to their “feel” of the handle, or some other “rule of thumb,” rather than to the scientific indications of a thermometer. It is not unusual

Fig. 72. Baking-sheet.

for cooks to test the heat of an oven by placing a piece of white wrapping-paper on the baking-sheet. If it ignites soon after the door is closed, the oven is too hot for any kind of cookery; if it merely scorches, it is at what has been styled “ dark-brown-paper heat,” and will suit for bread. “Liglit-brown-paper heat” is a few degrees lower, and answers for meat pies. “ Dark-yellowpaper heat” is necessary for cakes and pastry; and “ light yellow ” proclaims a very slow oven. Sprinkling flour on the baking-sheet is another good test; the flour giving the same indications as the paper. In either case the heat must be judged by the colour given to the paper, or hour, within a very short time — say two or three minutes — of closing the oven door upon it.

Before starting upon an important Bake, it is well to see that the hues are thoroughly cleaned and free from soot and ashes; unless they are so, you cannot expect to have the oven hot. For anything that rises, such as pastry and bread, the oven should be hot at first, and cooled afterwards, if the heat continues so great as to threaten burning. When first heated, the air in the body of the pastry expands and lifts the crust up in hakes with it. If the heat of the oven is not great enough to set the pastry as it rises, the air will escape, and the paste settle down again, eventually being heavy, or “sad,” as it is sometimes called. Some cakes burn quickly, especially those with much sugar in them, such as sponge-cake; for these the oven should be cooler, and a piece of buttered paper be laid over the cake as a further precaution against scorching the top.

Baking meat is said to be a more economical style of cooking than roasting, because less evaporation takes place. But the notion impresses itself upon one that the advantage is in the saving of trouble in watching and basting — although baking-meats require basting occasionally. Get your oven hot whilst you are preparing the dish, for most dishes bake better when fresh prepared; and remember that the top shelf is always the hottest.

Every cook has his particular fancy in shape, size, and fashion of what are called baking-dishes, and it may be taken for granted that each style has its merits. The baking-dish, of which an illustration is given (Fig. 71), is fitted with a double jacket, stand, and well for basting-gravy. The advantages of this will be readily understood after reading this article. The object of the double jacket is that, although the hotter air surrounds the tin, the heat is not conducted by a continuity of metal from the fire direct to the fat, or dripping, which would then probably be burned, and give a disagreeable taste to the meat.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

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TEE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Baking — continued.

A useful article is a flat sheet of tin or thin iron, turned up a little at the edges, and made to slide in and out of the oven; upon this hatches of small cakes, &c.;, can he conveniently arranged (Fig. 72). Utensils of this kind are sometimes quite flat, round, or square, and are known as baking-sheets or plates. Others are constructed of coarse wire gauze, to allow the hot air equal access to both top and bottom of the biscuits or cakes.

BAKING-POWDERS.— These are for the most part mixtures of tartaric acid, carbonate of soda, and some form of farinaceous matter, such as ground rice, or potato-starch. They are mixed dry with the flour, and when wetted effervesce like Seidlitz powders, the carbonic-acid gas generated giving the required lightness to the dough or paste. A Mr. M’Dougall has recently advocated the use of phosphoric acid in place of the tartaric acid, the salt formed with the soda being a more natui-al constituent of food, and upon this supposition he has pi’oduced for us what is styled “phosphatic yeast,” which is simply a form of this substitution.

Analysts complain loudly of the impurities and adulterations found in some Baking-Powders, due in a great measure to the use of impure chemicals. Dr. Hassall states that he has found a large proportion of arsenic in some specimens that have been submitted to him for analysis, due to the use of common washing soda instead of the bicarbonate. The temptation to adulteration must be very great, especially in the very cheap forms of the powder, and it is therefore better to prepare Baking-Powder at home, unless one of the known good makes is obtainable, especially as the process is simple. Amongst the reliable makes may be safely included Borwick’s, Freeman’s, Teatman’s, and Goodall’s. Here are two or three excellent receipts:

(1) Take Jib. of powdered tartaric acid, fib. of bicarbonate of soda, and fib. of ground rice, or British arrowroot; dry them separately, and then mix them by rubbing through a sieve. This should be packed away in perfectly dry bottles without delay.

(2) Take fib- of powdered tartaric acid, (lb. of powdered alum, fib. of bicarbonate of soda, and lib. of ground rice; dry separately, and mix by rubbing through a sieve, and then add 3oz. of sesquicarbonate of ammonia, freshly and finely powdered.

(3) The following, which is known as “ Green’s receipt,” is for wholesale purposes: Tartaric acid, 351b.; bicarbonate of soda, 561b.; potato-flour, lcwt. Mix, and rub through a sieve.

By the addition of a little turmeric, say J dr. to each pound, the above Baking-Powders may be converted into eggpowder.

Should there be any difficulty in the way of either preparing Baking-Powder for private use, or purchasing it in packets, bicarbonate of soda and sour milk answer every purpose for making cakes — a little soda in excess being of no particular importance. One teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda should be sufficient to neutralise i pint of thoroughly soured milk, and carbonic-acid gas will be given off as soon as they are blended either in the cake or separate. The method usually adopted by confectioners is to mix the bicarbonate of soda with the flour, and wet the cake down with the sour milk.

BAKLAVA. — A sort of pastry-cake made in Turkey.

BALLACHONY. — This Indian preparation is in great favour amongst the European residents of India as an appetiser.

(1) Shell and clean eight or nine dozen boiled prawns, and pound them with a pestle and mortar, using a little vinegar to keep the mortar moistened. Put the mass into a basin, and mix in loz. of green ginger, half the quantity of chillies, and the rind of four lemons, all pounded separately; when they are incorporated, add 2oz. of salt and the strained juice of two lemons. In the meantime, cut four small onions into rings, put them into a frying-pan with 2oz. or 3oz. of butter, and

Ballachony — continued.

fry them until they are quite soft, taking care not to burn them. Add the mixture, cook until it is quite dry, and then take it out. As soon as it is quite cold, put it into jars or pots, cover it over with orange -leaves, tie the jars over with bladder, and keep them in a cool place until wanted. The Ballachony will keep in this way for years.

(2) For this either cooked or uncooked fish may be used, but if the latter, the onions must be half cooked before being added. Bemove the skin and bones from 21b. of any uncooked fish, mince it very fine, and add five or six large onions, also finely chopped, 2 table-spoonfuls of curry powder, and 1 teaspoonful of cayenne. When these are well mixed, add about 5 teacupful of tamarind-juice, the juice of two lemons, and 8oz. of butter. Put the preparation into a frying-pan over a slow fire, and stir well until it is cooked, adding a small quantity more of butter if required. Add a little salt if necessary, turn the whole out on to a dish, put it into jars or pots when cold, cover and tie them over, and the Ballachony is ready for use.

BALLOON OR PRUSSIAN CAKES. — See

Cakes.

BALLOON PUDDING.— Bee Puddings.

BALL-SUPPERS AND REFRESHMENTS.—

By these the host gives the key-note to the entire entertainment; for however exquisitely the room may be decorated, however sweet the music and highly polished the floor, and however charming and fascinating the company may prove, all is lost and absorbed in the discontentment born of a badly-served or ill-provided supper. The very act of dancing being one of over-heating and exertion, causes an exhaustion of the animal tissue and fluids, which must be reinstated to insure the comfort of the individual. For this reason it is advisable to show much discretion in the selection of refreshments, care being taken to avoid all those which might increase exhaustion by causing irritation — such as poultry, game, or fish with bones — or which by their nature provoke rather than relieve hunger and thirst, except perhaps in the case of those whose palates require something of an exciting character to gratify them. Another incidental to be borne in mind is that the measure of man’s or woman’s power of abstinence and appetite varies in each individual, as well as the meed of physical power which enables them to dance for a certain time without food or drink. Some are undoubtedly more capable of this abstention than others.

These and other such considerations have taught the careful hostess to provide a continual supply of refreshments throughout the evening, so that the thirsty can drink, and the hungry eat, just when it suits them to do so; but in the majority of cases these desires, however keen they may be, can only be gratified at the suppertable, and then the gentlemen are expected, in the ordinary course, to give their attention to the ladies, with the result that in the end they come off very badly themselves. It would appear that society is at last awaking to a knowledge of this state of affairs, and begins to admit that “ sit-down ” suppers, as they are styled, are a mistake, and that the true ball-supper should unhesitatingly commence with the dance, and last the dancing through.

Supposing that a buffet supper is decided upon, it will be obvious that any interval in the dance-programme would be inconvenient, and lead to a raid upon the buffet at one given time; so that it is better to state plainly bn the programme cards that refreshments are available during the whole evening; and if displayed in another room, which is almost imperative, the direction of the room should be specified.

How to the buffet. What do we find P A very simply constructed bar, behind which two or three of the female servants dispense the good things that are laid out before them. In the space facing the buffet, and beyond into the conservatory, hall, or other convenient space, there

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec ., referred to, sec under their special heads.

TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

GO

Ball-Suppers and Refreshments— continued. should be set numerous little marble-topped tables, or tables covered by snowy cloths, surmounted by little cruets, flowers in vases, knives, forks, spoons, glasses, and serviettes. Or, if the space will not admit of these cosy tables, then a few chairs should be set before the buffet for ladies, and the gentlemen will wait upon them and take care of themselves at the same time. In such case, instead of the single serviettes, it would be advisable to hang a row of clean damask cloths along the front of the buffet for gentlemen to wipe their fingers and moustaches upon. Finger-bowls here and there containing scented water would be an advantage.

What have we on the buffet? Little fairy lamps supporting tiny bouquets of flowers, and menu cards amongst tall ferns, grasses, and vases of fine flowers— a dozen or more of these cards, according to the company.

“ And what will you take? ” That depends, of course, upon what there may happen to be, as shown by the card.

Let it be observed here that a buffet presents a finer effect if decorated with tall flowers, and especially grasses; but should the supper be spread upon a table, then the only tall pieces must be of fruits or confectionery, or the guests will be hidden from each other across the table. But in the case of the buffet, as the maid-servants and the wall only, and perhaps a few piles of empty

lates, glasses, and other paraphernalia, are visible

ehind, it will be in perfect taste to lay it with a sort of background of noble epergnes, ferns, and foliage plants, provided always that they do not interfere with the serving from behind.

In lieu of menu cards, a far better plan is to have each dish of savouries plainly labelled — this does not so much matter for sweets, and is not at all necessary for fruits or biscuits, but applies especially to sandwiches and aspics. Wines, spirits, and liqueurs, and other beverages, should certainly be plainly marked, and this may prevent disappointment and enable the guest with a choice to get the drink he or she really wishes.

Of what shall the viands consist? Handsomely-piled dishes of fruit, such as grapes, with scissors to cut them; pine and melon, cut in slices and served with sugar; oranges, quartered and sugared; and any other juicy fruit, such as apples and pears, that may be in season. Nuts are of course inadmissible. Candied fruits are favourites with ladies, and make pretty little dishes with vanilla chocolates, as a set-off to the olives provided for the gentlemen. Gravy soups, always hot, served in small cups, with sippets, a variety of tasty sandwiches, small patties, rissoles, quenelles, boudins, boned poultry stuffed with savoury minces, salmis, ham and tongue, and cold ribs or round of beef, are available. Oysters, scalloped or plain, served on shell, mayonnaises, macedoines, aspics, galantines, and raised pies. Salads of different kinds, including lobster, celery, cheese straws, cheese souffles, macaroni cheese, and fried mushrooms on toast.

In the way of sweets, there are cakes and biscuits in almost any variety. J ellies, creams, ices, served on plates, and ice-puddings, compotes, blancmanges, custards, trifles, vol-au-vents, timbales, minces, meringues, flawns, tartlets, baba-cake, brioches, charlottes, and many other light dishes that are described in these pages. The prevailing idea should be to provide foods which can be eaten without difficulty, either with fork or spoon, or in rare cases with both, or even with a knife; but no bones of any kind should be served to a guest. No savouries of strong-smelling character, such as those prepared with onions or garlic, should be admitted, nor strongly-scented fish; even preparations of cheese might well be discarded. Luscious sweetmeats are not advisable; but a choice should be made of those which give a sweet acid flavour, and may therefore be regarded as refreshing. Lemon ices are preferable to strawberry creams, and so is lemonade to ginger beer. Cooling and thirst-assuaging ices and iced beverages should abound, and these are to be found

Ball-Suppers and Refreshments — continued. in syphons of effervescing waters, clarets, vins rouges et blancs, and light sparkling wines which have been standing in ice, such as champagne, hock, and moselle, and claret, cider, and other cups. With such a selection as the foregoing, surely no hostess need be at a loss to provide a supper. Please observe, however, that indigestible food, such as salmon, cucumber, radishes, and that style of food, should find no place at a ball. We give a Coloured Plate of a nicely-arranged Ball-Supper Buffet.

If a “ sit-down ” supper is decided upon, little or no further remarks are necessary excepting as to decorations, the guests usually taking care of themselves. The servants in attendance should see that as soon as a dish is getting low, it is replaced by a full one. The butler should take similar care of the decanters and claret-jugs. Claret-cup and cider-cup should be at everyone’s call, and be kept covered by a cloth, lest the dust floating in the room should settle upon its surface in the bowl. A plentiful supply of clean plates, glasses, knives, forks, and spoons should be always at hand; and if all the servants do their duty as well as a host and hostess can wish, such a Ball Buffet as we have described should assuredly prove a success.

Towards the small hours, tea, coffee, and chocolate with cream should be handed round, accompanied by large plates of rolled bread-and-butter, fingers of cakes, and biscuits. A flask of cognac should accompany the coffee.

One word more. As the host and hostess will probably have sufficient upon their hands in making themselves agreeable to their guests, and the guests agreeable to one another, it is advisable, if not imperative, that they should appoint some enthusiastic dancer, gifted also with discretion, to act as master of the ceremonies. But with his duties we have nothing to do, beyond mentioning that it is usual to provide him with a tambourine or gong, by which he can announce the next dance to the company, leaving the host and hostess to look after the more material comforts of the guests.

BALLOTTINES.— The name given to dishes prepared by mincing game, poultry, or other flesh with forcemeat, ham, and seasoning, and stuffing small birds, such as quails and larks, with the meat thus prepared. These are generally arranged, when highly ornamented, upon socles of fat or rice; being frequently garnished with aspic jelly in colours and a variety of designs. The illustration (Fig. 73) is that of a Ballottine made from a galantine of poultry cooked in the skin of a turkey’s leg. The forcemeat is prepared with meat of turkey and bacon in equal parts, mixed afterwards with a salpicon of fat, liver, and raw truffles. These galantines are sewn up so as to give them the shape of small hams.

When cold, they are masked with a white chandfroid sauce; then on the pointed end with a brown sauce, to imitate the skin of a ham. They are afterwards ornamented, slightly covered over with aspic jelly, decorated with paper frills, and dished up on an elaborate stand made of stearine, fat, or rice. See Fowls, Lamb, Larks, Partridges, Pigeons, Quails, Turkeys, &c.;

BALLS.— A variety of sweet and savoury preparations are made up in this convenient form, and are described under their various names, such as Oakes, Codfish, Eggs, Forcemeat, &c.;

BALMORAL CAKES. — See Cakes.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, fcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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3ALORINE. — This peculiar dish might not perhaps suit the taste of Southern Europeans, but it is nevertheless held in great esteem in Russia, whence it owes its origin. It is prepared as follows:

Russian Balorine. — Cut lib. or so of cold roast or boiled fresh beef into very small pieces, and mix in some finelychopped spring onions, five or six slices of boiled beetroot, and 1 teaspoonful of caraway seeds. Have ready a border of pieces of sorrel or spinach, put the mixture in the centre, pour over 1 wineglassful of whisky, sprinkle over or mix in one or two chopped hard-boiled eggs, and serve.

BALTIMORE BUTTER PIE.— Jessup Whitehead, a famous American cook, states that at the Kissimmeequick Hotel — a noted resort on the Kissimmee River — they have a custom of keeping custard pie as a standing dish. But as supplies are sometimes delayed in delivery, and eggs are occasionally at a discount, the following receipt is nsed for making it without eggs, and it is then called Baltimore Butter Pie:

Boil lqt. of milk with Coz. of fresh butter and 1 tablespoonful of caster sugar; then mix together the balance of 12oz. of sugar and 4oz. of dried flour, and stir them into the boiling milk, beating rapidly with an egg-whisk, and let it continue heating until thick. Line two deep custard pieplates with crust rolled very thin, and pour all the mixture into them. No flavouring besides the butter is required. Bake in a slack oven until the filling begins to rise in the middle, hut be careful not to bake too long, or the contents will flow over and spoil the appearance of the pie. Cream used instead of the milk, or equal parts of each, makes a very rich pie.

BAMBOO. — Of late years Bamboo canes have found their way freely into our markets, and a ready adaptation has been made of them to a variety of articles, such as small tables, chairs, supports for baskets, flower-pots, and other ornamental ware. But as an edible ingredient of culinary preparations, the British cook might be loth to accept them. Nevertheless, in many parts of India they form very favourite dishes, the yoimg shoots being exceedingly tender, crisp, and succulent, and often compared to asparagus.

Bamboo Pickle.— Gather the young shoots when they are first v’sible above the ground, cut them into pieces about lin. in length, put them in a deep dish, sprinkle plenty of salt over them, and let them remain thus for two days. At the end of that time, put the Bamboo shoots in a jar with a root of green ginger that has been cut into slices, a few peppercorns, and a clove of garlic. Pill the jar up with vinegar, and set it in the sun, or in a warm temperature, for seven or eight days. At the end of that time the pickle will bo ready for use. Should it be required hot, one or two green chillies should be put in.

Bamboo Salad. — Procure the tender shoots of the Bamboo, and blanch them in boiling water; drain them, put them in a salad-bowl, pour a plain dressing over, and serve. This dish is a favourite with tourists in Florida, and the mode of preparation is extremely simple.

BANANAS (Musa sapientum ).- — Whether it is that these deteriorate by the journey to England, or that they are gathered before they are mature, or whatever the reason may be, it is certain that Bananas as supplied to us here are a very inferior class of fruit, and of little or no use for dessert, cooking, or any other purpose. In some parts of the world where it llourishes, and that is wherever the mean temperature of the year exceeds 75deg. Fahrenheit, it is an important item of food, although it is admittedly deficient in nutritive qualities. The sugar it contains appears to constitute its chief claim to be regarded as a nutrient.

The ripe fruit of the Banana is preserved, like the fig, by drying in the sun. It is then stated to be very agreeable eating, and meal can be made from it by cutting it in slices, drying in the sun, and pounding it. There has been some talk of introducing the tree into this

Bananas— continued.

country, and cultivating it as a British fruit, for its admirers say that in flavour it “ surpasses the finest pear.” But no real efforts seem at present to have been made to render the idea popular. By the natives it is eaten raw, roasted, or boiled, and is made into fritters, preserves, and marmalades, the meal into bread, and wine brewed from its juice.

Baked Bananas. — Remove the skin or peel from a dozen or so Bananas, and cut them lengthwise in halves. Arrange these at the bottom of a baking-dish, putting them close together, sprinkle them over with caster sugar, put a few small lumps of butter on the top, grate a little nutmeg over the whole, and bake in a moderate oven for about twenty minutes. By this time the Bananas should be well glazed, and if there is not sufficient of their own syrup to baste them with, add a little to the dish a few minutes before taking it out of the oven. Bananas cooked in this way should be eaten with cake and milk.

Banana Cream Ice. — (1) Pour 1 pint of water into a saucepan on the fire, add 3 teacupfuls of sugar, and boil this for about twenty minutes; then add the pulp of six Bananas — or one or two more if a very strong flavour is desired — and add also the well-beaten yolks of three eggs. Stir well for six minutes, then remove the pan from the fire, put it into a bowl of cold water, and beat well for ten minutes. When the mixture is cold, pass it through a tammy sieve, add lqt. of cream, turn the whole into the freezer, and let it remain until frozen. It is then ready for use.

(2) Peel three large ripe Bananas, rub them through a fine sieve into a basin, mix them into lqt. of boiling sweet cream, and boil for five or six minutes. Lot the mixture cool, turn it into the freezer, and when sufficiently frozen it is ready for use.

(3) Put in a vessel Jib. of powdered sugar with the yolks of six eggs, and mix well with the spatula for ten minutes; add 1 pint of boiling milk, stir for two minutes longer, and pour the whole into a copper basin. Place the mixture on a hot stove and heat it thoroughly, stirring continually, but not letting it boil; remove, lay it on the table, mix in immediately 1 pint of sweet cream, and leave it to cool for half-an-hour. Have ready four peeled ripe Bananas, wipe them, cut them into halves, and remove the stones. Mash the Bananas into the cream, mixing thoroughly for three minutes; strain through a fine sieve into a freezer, pressing the Bananas through with a wooden spoon. Put on the lid, and set the mixture in an ice-tub, filling the freezer all round with broken ice mixed slightly with rock-salt; then turn the handle on the cover as briskly as possible for three minutes. Lift up the lid, and with a wooden spoon detach the cream from all round the freezer, and from the bottom as well; re-cover it, and turn the handle sharply for three minutes more; uncover, and detach the cream the same as before, being careful that no ice or salt drops in. Put the lid on, and repeat the same

Fur details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, J -c., referred to, see under their special heads.

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Bananas — continued.

three times more. The cream should by this time bo quite firm. Spread a folded napkin over a cold dish, dress the cream over, and send to the table.

Banana Cream Pie. — Put ljoz. of butter into a basin, warm it, and mix in 2 table-spoonfuls of crushed loaf sugar, the yolks of two eggs, 1 teacupful each of milk and sherry or angelica, and a littlo more than 1 breakfast-cupful of Bananas mashed to a pulp. Pour the mixture into a deep dish, stir in the well-whipped whites of the two eggs, put the dish in a moderate oven, and bake until done, taking care, by covering it over with paper, not to let it bake too quickly. Take it out, and serve.

Banana Fritters. — (1) Peel a dozen or so Bananas, cut them in halves if large, put into a basin, and soak in a mixture of rum and sugar. Take the Bananas out, dip them into thin batter, plunge into a frying-pan of boiling lard, and fry to a light brown. When done, take them out, drain, drop them in caster sugar, and serve on a dish; or they may be served with sweet sauce, or with syrup poured over them.

(2) Peel a dozen Bananas, cut them in halves, not lengthwise, put these into a basin, and steep in syrup for an hour or two. Take the Bananas out, drain them, roll them well in flour, coating them thickly with it, plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling lard, and fry to a light brown. Take them out when done, put on a dish, pour over more syrup, and serve. They may also be baked until they are crisp and well browned, but should be kept basted with syrup while baking. Banana Pie. — Line a pie-dish with rich puff paste, having it thinner in the centre of the dish than it is at the outside. This can bo easily done by folding over the paste and rolling it. Remove the peel from four or five mellow Bananas, cut them up lengthwise in slices, put these in the dish, cover them with crushed loaf sugar, put a few small lumps of butter on the top, and pour over 4 or 5 table-spoonfuls of wine. Bake in a moderate oven for twenty minutes; take out the pie when done, and serve.

Banana Syrup. — Dissolve 2 drachms of the essential oil of Banana in G pints of simple syrup, and stir in 1 drachm of powdered tartaric acid.

Compote of Bananas. — Peel a dozen or so Bananas, cut them in halves, put them into a saucepan with sufficient sweet sauce to cover them, and parboil. Put a thick layer of wellsweetened boiled rice on a dish, lay the Bananas on it, pour the sauce over, and serve.

BANBURY CAKES.— The town of Banbury, in Oxfordshire, has for generations past been famous for the manufacture of these delicacies, and cheese, as well as for its famous cross, to visit which we were in our

Fig. 75. Banbury Cakes.

childhood so often invited by our nurses to “ ride a cockhorse,” and behold the musically-disposed young lady “ sit on a white horse.” Whether the fame of the cakes preceded the rhyme, or the rhyme called attention to the cakes, we are unable to state; or, indeed, whether there is any connection whatever between the two excepting that of localisation; but this we can confidently state, that the inventor of the Banbury Cake deserved, if he did not realise, a fortune — he has been much flattered by a multitude of imitators. Whether the cake was first made in Banbury, or merely fantastically named after that town, is another moot point; certain it is, how

Banbury Cakes — continued. ever, that local confectioners have taken full advantage of the circumstance, and, as with the Richmond “ maids of honour,” there are more makers of them there now than the originator.

(1) Put lib. of butter on to a board well sprinkled with flour, and roll it out in sheets. Put the remainder of the flour (using ljlb. in all) into a basin, add a little yeast, pour over 1 breakfast-cupful of water, and make the whole into a stiff paste. Boll this out, place tho sheets of butter on it, double up, and roll out, repeating the operation five times in all. Cut up into squares of about ljin. in diameter, and cover each square over with 1 teaspoonful of a mixture made of finely-chopped candied peel, well-washed and dried currants, moist sugar, and brandy. Bring the corners of the paste together in the centre, over the mixture, giving the cakes an oval appearance; turn them over on to a bakingsheet, having the joins underneath, dust with caster sugar, and let them remain for a little time; then put them into a moderate oven, and bake very gently for about half-an-hour. Take them out when done, and they are ready for use. A rich mincemeat for the cakes may be made with 2oz. of bcof-suet, 12oz. of currants, 4oz. of candied orange- or lemon-peel (or half of each), 3oz. of ratafias, and a little seasoning of grated nutmeg, chopped up fine together.

(2) Put lib. of butter into a basin, warm it, and mix in fib. of flour, lib. of moist sugar, 21b. of well-washed and dried currants, fib. each of candied orange- and lemon-peel, and Joz. each of powdered cinnamon and allspice. When thoroughly mixed, jiut small quantities of it upon little rounds of puff paste, close the paste over the top, flatten them, dust over with caster sugar, arrange on a baking-sheet, giving them a littlo distance between one another, and bake in a moderate oven until done. Then take them out, and serve either hot or cold.

(3) Take 31b. of fine sifted flour, and work into it fib. of fresh butter. Moisten the flour with about 1 pint of water in which a little German yeast has previously been stirred up, and make into a smooth paste. Boll out on a large sheet, and lay on the remainder of butter (21b. in all); fold over, and roll out again: do this three times, and then cut into square pieces about as large as a duck’s egg. Have ready a mincemeat of currants, candied peel choiped fine, and moist sugar, moistened with a little brandy. Boll out the pieces of paste square, and put 2 teaspoonfuls of this mixture on each piece; bring the two corners together in the middle, close them up into an oval shape, and turn tho cake upside down, so that the closing may be downwards. Sift finelypowdered loaf sugar over the tops, put them on a cold wellbuttered tin, let them stand awhile in the cold to prove (as bakers call it), and bake in a moderate oven.

(4) Take 21b. of currants, foz. each of ground allspice and powdered cinnamon, 4oz. each of candied orange- and lemonpeel, 8oz. of fresh butter, lib. of moist sugar, and 12oz. of flour, and mix the whole well together. Boll out a piece of rich puff paste, and cut into oval shapes. Put a small quantity of the mince into each, double them up in the shape of an oval puff, passing the closing under, and flatten down with the floured hand or rolling-pin. Sift powdered sugar over the tops, and set on buttered baking-sheets to cook.

(5) Take lib. of fresh butter, warm it, and beat to a cream. Into this stir lib. of candied lemon- and orange-peel minced very finely, 21b. of well-washed and dried grocers’ currants, loz. of powdered cinnamon, 4oz. of powdered allspice. Mix them all together thoroughly, and put into a covered jar for future use. The paste should be a tolerably rich puff rolled out thin, and cut into rounds, squares, or ovals. Put a layer of the mince on each flat, and fold over, passing tho closing (wet the edges for this) under, flatten with the hand, and shape. Lay these on buttered baking-sheets, and bake. Before putting them into the oven, brush the tops over with the whites of eggs beaten into a froth with icing sugar. They will take about fifteen minutes to bake.

Banbury Mincemeat. — Wash and dry well fib. of currants, and mix them with 2oz. of beef-suet chopped as fine as possible, a little nutmeg, Jib. of candied orange-peel shred very fine, 3oz. of ratafias crushed up, and a slip of lemonpeel. Mix all well together, and when required for use it should be spread over paste, and baked.

For details respecting Culimry Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jec., referred to, see under their special heads

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BANDES. — The term used in French cookery for strips of paste used for various purposes, such as those forming the lattice-work over a tart. Bande dn tour is the long piece of paste used to surround other pieces and keep them together; bandes des cervelas — strings of sausages.

BANNOCKS. — Custom has led us to regard these cakes as of Scotch origin, whereas history tells us that in the days of King Alfred Bannocks were indigenous to all parts of England, Scotland, and Wales. The story of the burning of the cakes and the Battle of Bannockburn renders the name sufficiently familiar to us; but the Bannocks of to-day are more refined in their constitution than those which were formerly prepared from ground oats, dried peas, or barley-meal. Although any other meal may be used, corn-flour gives the most satisfactory results.

(1) Put 1 breakfast-cupful of corn-meal (corn-flour) into a basin, and mis in 1 teaspoonful each of salt and sugar, and 2 breakfast-cupfuls of boiling milk. Let the preparation cool, add two well-beaten eggs, turn the whole into a shallow earthenware dish, put it into a very hot oven, and bake. Take it out when done, and serve. These cakes may be cooked upon a griddle.

(2) Put lqt. of corn-meal into a basin, pour over a sufficient quantity of boiling milk or water to scald it, and let it cool. Add 2 table-spoonfuls of yeast,

1 teaspoonful of salt, 1 egg, and lqt. of flour; mix well, set the mixture in a warm place to rise, and work in i teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda. Divide the mixture into the required number of pieces, plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling lard, and fry. When done, take them out, drain, put on a dish, and serve.

BANQUETS Fr. Banquettes; Gtr. Banketten;

Ital. Banchetti; Sp . Banquetes). — The same term runs throughout all European languages, and has evidently originated from the Latin word bancus — a bench. Such an origin is quite natural, seeing that to ancient Rome we owe all that we know of luxurious feasting. It was the habit of these conquerors of the world, upon the smallest occasion, to indulge in Banquets, served with sumptuous extravagance, but, according to Careme, who made a special study of their dishes, not of the same culinary refinement as practised in more modern times. Lavish expenditure and voluptuous ease appear to have merited higher consideration than artistic combination of fine flavours. A piece of goat’s flesh broiled on a stick, and served with peacocks’ brains or a patty of nightingales’ tongues, would meet with greater approval, on account of its outrageous cost, than a delicately-seasoned ragout made from the remnants of a previous feast. But if the Romans failed, as they certainly did, in their epicurean proclivities, they set us an example of banqueting ease that has never been equalled in modern times. Picture to yourself a Roman Banquet, with the guests, male and female, lolling at length upon softly-pillowed couches, clad in loose drapery, with arms and chests exposed at will to the cooling air, which, laden with sweet odours, is wafted now and again over their brows, heated with sweet wines. Picture to yourself the tables covered with cloth of golden tissue, or richly embroidered silks, and spread with vessels of solid gold, piled with the rich fruits of the sunny south. Picture to yourself the silent ebony slaves as they glided noiselessly from guest to guest, replenishing from huge golden vases the golden goblets held out carelessly at arm’s length. Hark to the rude boasting and loud laughter of some riotous guest as the wine drowns his sense of decorum, and his noisy shouts are heard above the strains of dreamy distant music that fill the air. Hear the rippling laughter of privileged dames as they pass the joke that should scarcely have found place in such full fair lips, and

Banquets — continued.

mark the freedom of their flowing drapery, which makes no effort to conceal their abundant charms. Mark all this — listen — and picture to yourself the noisy brawlers returning from such a feast as this with tempers turned and swords hanging ready at their sides: picture all this, and then — take a peep at a modern banquet, where the gentlemen guests are clad in tight-fitting costumes of sombre black, stiff collar, and light waistcoats, and ladies with low-necked dresses, and figures trussed up with stiff, tight stays, sit uncomfortably upright before a table that is laid out with consummate taste and design, but having the appearance of so much careful arrangement that the guests fear to destroy the picture for the indulgence of the palate. Mark the order and regularity with which each viand is served, and each wine supplied — sherry with fish, and port with the fruit; and at the time when the relaxation of the body should come, and the mind be given free play, and the tongue free vent of speech, there cometh instead the solemn announcement from the master of the toasts that the time for toasting has arrived, which means listening with enforced courtesy to the indistinct utterances of some prosy

speakers, upon topics which are quite distinct from festivity, and jumping ever and again to their feet to do honour to the toast. The intervals between the speeches are devoted to hearing songs and music, which demand your entire attention, and arrest all attempts at conversation. Where is the luxury of freedom gone? where are the rollicking Romans and their soft couches P and where are the jovial jests and laughter? Ah, where! Modern banqueters may have much to be thankful for in the improvement and superiority of their dishes, thanks to such cooks as we have around us; but if the dishes of the Romans were not refined, nor their manners either, their fruits and wines were sweet and delicious, and their notions of luxury supreme.

The term Banquet is now generally applied to a feast held for the purpose of solemnising some great occasion — such as the election of Lord Mayor — Masonic and other annual festivals, or perhaps the foundation of a charity. Whatever the occasion may be, the mode of preparation and procedure are precisely the same. The decoration of the banqueting hall is in some way indicative of the occasion, and in those establishments where Banquets are plentiful, the same decorations serve time after time—

Fig. 76. Bad Arrangement of Tables.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dee., referred to, see under their special heads.

ATELETTES.

‘ Crayfish, ornamentally cut, Mushrooms, and Truffles, -z. Button Mushrooms, Cockscdmbs, ami Truffles.— j. Mushroom, Prawns, and Truffles. — 4, Star of Aspic felly with centre of Barberries, surroundedby rings of Carrot, with Green Peas in the rings; Green Peas and ornamented Mushrooms. — 5. Sweet jelly shape studded with half cherries; rounds of A ngelica, Strawberries, and other crystallized fruits. — 5 . Ornamented Mushrooms, Truffles, Green Peas, Parsley and Carrots, and Parsnips cut in miniature . — 7. Aspic Jelly shape, ornamental centre of Green Peas and Carrots, Truffles and Crayfish.— 8. Aspic Jelly shape, centred with Barberries and rings of Green Peas, Truffles, and rounds of Carrots.

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Banquets — continued.

the same banners, the same epergnes, the same vases of flowers, the same towering ferns and raised pieces, the same fruit dishes, and often the same fruit— the funeral baked meats serving for the wedding-breakfast — no variety, no change. With but trifling alterations, the same list of dishes might be served from one month’s end to the other if Banquets had to be provided each day, which system may be considered one of profit to the caterer, and saving of labour, but contributing little or nothing to the genuine art of cookery. Indeed, there are many points in the present mode of serving Banquets which are radically wrong. They have sprung from habit or custom, and maintained their uncanny existence in spite of the acknowledged fact that they are inconvenient and unnecessary, because no host has yet had the audacity to drive them from his board. It is the fashion — it must therefore be slavishly followed; it is the custom — let it abide. But one of the prime objects of this Encyclopaedia is to introduce and advocate culinary reforms; and so, in giving our notions of what a Banquet should be, and how it should be served, we rely upon our own views, without regard to the established errors of others.

The hall should certainly be decorated with quiet designs, and the walls duly draped with trophies; but as the details must depend entirely upon circumstances, it will be sufficient here to say that there should be nothing about these wall decorations so striking as to attract the eye from the table. Nor should the walls or ceilings be dazzlingly bright, or beautiful, for in that case the table may pale in comparison. Let them be rich if you will, but sombre.

The tables should not be more than 4ft. wide, so as to permit conversation between opposite guests; indeed, the tables are better if only 3ft. or 3ft. 6in. in width, for they take up so much less room and allow more for guests, besides requiring infinitely less materials to make a display. The position of the tables has always been a sorry feature of a Banquet, however well-conducted in other respects, and leads occasionally to much irritation between guests and waiters. For instance, a favourite plan is to place two, three, or more long tables parallel in the length of the room, and a head or top table at right angles to these, close upon them, or touching (Fig. 76). In this way those unfortunate guests who happen to be placed in the cuts de sac so formed, will probably fare badly — first because the waiters have some difficulty in reaching them; and when they do get up so far, the dishes they bring with them that ought to be hot, are cold.

One reason for this close-up arrangement is possibly that it prevents guests from seating themselves at the lower side of the top table, and thus the chairman preserves a full view of his guests; but this can be secured quite as well by a little good management and the provision of plenty of room; for it is a good axiom rather to lay too many covers than not enough, but rather be one or two short than have rows of empty chairs. The top or cross table should just be sufficiently far away from the ends of the long tables to allow waiters to pass freely to and fro. On special occasions, when distinguished visitors are present, the top table should be raised upon a dais or platform not more than 6in. from the floor. A cross table should be also laid at the bottom end of the long tables at a similar distance from the lower ends of the long tables, and a special chair placed for the vicechairman, who should also have a clear view of the guests, and face the chairman.

Under this collective heading it will not be possible to give more than a few general ideas of how a Banquet should be conducted, special feasts being treated under their respective headings, such as Ball-suppers,

Banquets — continued.

Dinnebs, Luncheons, Picnics, Wedding-breakfasts, &c.;

It is not to be supposed that a hall can be altered to suit present requirements if these were overlooked at the first building; but as in these days of rebuilding and altering, the opportunity might occur at one time or another of building a banqueting-room on a strictly modern plan, the following suggestions may be found useful, especially for large hotels, now that the fashion is so rapidly growing of private persons entertaining guests upon special occasions at an hotel rather than have the fuss and worry at home.

The chamber should be oblong, not square, and lighted from the roof, either by electricity or gas. The oldfashioned candelabra were very well before other illuminants were known, and are no doubt ornamental; but the glare from the light is too near the line of sight, and therefore dazzling and uncomfortable to the guests.

Fig. 77 shows a typical plan of a banqueting-room with a convenient arrangement of the tables. A is the “ chair ”; b the “ vice-chair ”; and c c crescent-shaped tables, backs to screens, built in stages, to hold glasses,

Fig. 77. Plan of Banqueting-Room and Tables Conveniently Arranged.

knives and forks, plates, decanters, cruets, and other ware — it should have no square corners, or a clumsy waiter in his hurry may run against it, to his own injury and that of the goods placed upon it. A long buffet arrangement may be used instead, but usually occupies too much room, e is the grand entrance for guests; f, private entrance for the chairman and special guests, who will have previously congregated in an ante-room; G G are lavatories; and d the kitchen entrance, which should be quite clear from the guests, and where all used plates, knives, forks, and other goods should be carried out, and the carvers’ dishes (on wheels) loaded.

Let each man have his work to do, and see that he does it. This applies to cooks, carvers, and waiters. At the entrance E should be hung in a conspicuous place on the back of the screen, plans of the room, with every cover numbered or indited with the name of the guest. This will save a great deal of confusion, and enable all to be seated at the sound of a gong, when the chairman and special guests will enter at f, Grace be speedily said, and the service of the soups commenced. Smoking

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, kc., referred to, see under their special heads .

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Banquets — continued.

lounges at either of h h h would he pleasant for those who cared to indulge in a quiet cigar.

Table Decorations and Table Service will he treated under these heads.

When Music is provided, let it be placed in a gallery or loft if possible. If a platform or stage has been built, it should be behind the “chair,” and let this sort of entertainment be of the very softest character. Singing, either plaintive or comic, is not suited to a Banquet, neither is a brass nor military band. There should be no sound sufficiently marked or noisy to interrupt conversation. A Banquet should not be mistaken for or confounded with a concert, and the caterer should understand that amongst that large congregation of guests it is quite possible some conversationalists may be found. The speech infliction is quite bad enough, but an essential of the gathering. The old formalities of “The Queen”; “The Army, Navy, and Yolunteers”; “The House of Lords”; “The Commons”; and others, could be amassed in one, to be drunk in silence thus: “ England, her Queen and Constitution ” — the band (chiefly strings and flutes) should here be heard in a soft, dreamy sound playing “ God save the Queen ! ” and gliding almost imperceptibly into “ Rule Britannia ! ” instead of bursting out with drums and trumpets, giving a decided headache to many, and promoting indigestion. After this may commence the business of the Banquet, and an address from the Chairman, followed by the Yice and others who are called upon to speak. In this way more business may be got through in a short time, and more time given to enjoy the Banquet, for which in most cases a high price of admission has been paid.

BAR. — This fish is frequently mistaken for the haddock, to which it bears some slight resemblance, but differs materially in the quality of its flesh. Continental cooks consider it to be superior for culinary purposes to salmon, but it is so very scarce that many cooks are unaware of its existence. This may be due in a measure to the fact that, although actually a sea-fish, it frequents the mouths of rivers, and may therefore be considered out of the way of the deep-sea fisherman. It is described as a well-shaped fish, weighing frequently as much as 151b. Its body is round, and the flesh is white and firm, with a very fine flavour, and therefore much esteemed by epicures. A silver stripe runs down each side of the back, and in some few respects it also resembles the perch.

Fig. 73. Bar, Trimmed for Cooking.

Bar Boiled in Court-bouillon. — Scrape off the scales of a Bar, cut the fins short with scissors, and chop the end off the tail with a knife (Fig. 78); open the belly and clean it inwardly, stuff with bread- stuffing, sew up the cut, put the fish on a drainer, tying it over three or four times with string to keep it in its place, put it into the fish-kettle, and pour over sufficient court-bouillon to cover it. Set the kettle on the fire and boil, then remove it to the side, and simmer gently for about forty-five minutes. When done, take out, drain, place on a napkin over a drainer on a dish, garnish with potatoes or sprigs of parsley, and serve with anchovy sauce.

BAR. — An intoxicating drink made by the Indian tribes of the Western Ghats.

BARAQUILLE. — This is the name for a very savoury French pasty filled with minced partridge, chicken, veal, sweetbread, truffles, mushrooms, and other good things, seasoned according to taste. It is not

Baraquille — continued.

much known in this country excepting as a foreign introduction.

BARBADOS CRBAM. — See Cordials and Liqueurs.

BARBARIE, A LA. — This term is used by Ude for a mode of dressing meat, game, or poultry, and is probably intended to denote something like cruelty in the preparation of the flesh. The principal feature appears to be studding deeply with truffles cut like nails. See Fowls, Partridges, Yeal, &c.;

BARBE BE CAPUCINE.— French name for a kind of blanched chicory, endive, or succory, very much used in Continental salads. The method of blanching usually adopted is to place the roots of the wild chicory in a dark chamber, and cut off the leaves and shoots as they grow long enough for use; but some persons like

Fig. 79. Barge de Capucine.

to plant the roots in a closed tub, with several holes in it, through which the leaves shoot, and give to the tub a barbed appearance. Receipts for salad made from endive will be found under that head; but, supposing the Barbe de Capucine to have some special quality, the following receipt is also appended:

Take two bunches of clear, white, fresh Barbe de Capucine; clean and wipe them carefully and thoroughly, but do not wash the salad, as this destroys its taste, and renders it too soft for use; cut it into three shreds, and place it in a saladbowl. Mix well in a basin 2 table-spoonfuls of vinegar, J pinch of salt, and J pinch of pepper; pour this over the salad, then add 1 table-spoonful of oil, mix well, and serve immediately.

BARBECUE.— This word signifies to dress and roast an animal whole. Pope writes;

Oldfield, with more than happy throat evoked,

Cries, “ Send me, gods, a whole hog barbecued.”

The term is derived from the French barbe it queue — beard to tail; but more modern usage has adopted it for other meanings in some way emanating from the original. Thus in America a kind of open-air festival, where animals are roasted whole, is styled a Barbecue.

BARBEL ( Barbus vulgaris) (Fr. Harbeau; Ger. Barbe). — This fish is of the carp and goldfish tribe, but differs from them in this, that the upper jaw extends considerably in advance of the lower, and has attached to it four soft barbules — two near the point, and one at each angle of the leathery snout (see Fig. 80). They frequent several European rivers, and afford good sport to the angler, often reaching 2ft. or oft. long, and weighing sometimes as much as 161b. or 181b. The Barbel of the Nile sometimes weighs as much as 701b. It has a long shape, and is in section nearly circular; the general colour of the head and upper part of the body

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Barbel — continued.

is greenish-brown, becoming yellowish-green on the sides, the belly white, the fins are red, and the tail is of a deep purple colour.

As a food, the Barbel is not considered a delicacy, although it is said that the flesh is much improved by keeping in water for a few days before cooking. At

Fig. 80. Barrel.

any time the flesh is coarse and woolly, and the roe is found to be violently cathartic. There are, however, a few receipts given for its preparation which may be appreciated by the hardy; but, as a rule, high-class cooks omit this fish from their list of good things.

Baked Barbel. — Put into a fish-kettle enough water, with a little vinegar, to cover the fish; add some fennel, and a good quantity of salt. When the water boils, put in the fish, thoroughly scraped, washed, and cleaned, and boil slowly. When done, drain for one hour, remove the fish from the

kettle, put it into a pie-dish with plenty of butter and

minced parsley, and bake in an oven for one hour. Serve very hot.

Baked Barbel served with. Parmesan Cheese. — Bcmove the skin and bones, if any, from pieces of cooked Barbel, break them up small, and warm in a saucepan with a little thick bechamel sauce. Turn the mixture out on to a tin or dish, smooth over the surface, sprinkle it over first with breadcrumbs and then with grated Parmesan cheese, put it in the oven to brown, or brown it with a salamander, and

serve. This is a vei-y good way of using up any pieces of

the fish left over from dinner.

Baked Barbel in Spanish Style. — Mr. C. Willin strongly recommends the following receipt: Clean the fish by taking out the inside gills and scaling; dust the inside with salt and cayenne mixed, laying the salt and pepper deeply along the backbone, add the juice of a lemon, and lay the fish on its back while preparing the following stuffing: Take a few champignons, a small piece of lean ham, a piece of garlic about the size of a coriander-seed, a good bunch of parsley, and chop all very fine. Place sufficient butter and flour in a stewpan to form a roux, with just a little cayenne, nutmeg, and salt, and mix with enough boiling milk to form a stiff paste that will not adhere to either spoon or sides of the pan; then add tho abovo chopped mixture of ham, parsley, &c.; stir well over a dull fire for five minutes, add the yolks of two eggs, and stuff tho inside of the fish, having previously rinsed out the pepper and salt with a little white wine vinegar. Tho above stuffing must be made in quantity according to tho sizo of the fish being prepared. Envelope tho fish in a well-buttered paper, taking care to turn in the edge of the paper so as to make it as air-tight as possible, and bake in a medium heat till quite done. Serve with tho following sauce: Chop an onion very fine and saute in butter till a light brown colour; add a finelyshredded red capsicum or chilli pepper, a little salt, a small clove of chopped garlic, a small quantity of sugar, and 1 tin of American cooked tomatoes; boil till reduced onefourth, keeping it constantly stirred to prevent burning. Pour a little around the fish on going to table, and also serve some in a sauceboat. A few browned breadcrumbs shaken over tho fish improves the appearance.

Barbel Boiled in Court-bouillon. — Clean and wash a good-sized Barbel, not scaling it, put it into a shallow dish,

75

Barbel— continued.

pour over boiling vinegar, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and let it soak for an hour or so. In the meantime, pour a little wine into a saucepan, and add a seasoning of onions, lemon-peel, sweet herbs, laurel leaves, cloves, salt, and pepper. Set it to boil, and put in the fish. Boil the fish in this until it is quito tender, then take it out, scale it, drain off all the liquor, put it on a napkin spread over a dish, and serve with a good sharp or other sauce. A little watercress should bo served as a garnish.

Broiled Barbel. — Scale, wash, and remove the gills, by making as small a hole as possible, so as not to interfere with the appearance of the fish; slit it up through tho belly, score it six or eight times, according to tho size of tho fish, across the back, and having spread it open on skewers broil it over a clear fire, turning frequently, and basting with butter, plenty of salt, and a little powdered thyme rubbed up with the salt.

Broiled Barbel a, la Maitre d’Hotel. — Take two Barbel weighing as nearly lib. each as possible, if you can get them. Scrape off the scales, remove the gills and fins, and make them as clean as possible. Score them across tho back and down both sides as shown in Fig. 81. Put them on a largo

Fig. 81. Scored Barrel.

dish to steep for an hour, with 1 tcacupful of oil poured over, after sprinkling freely with salt and pepper. Broil them for a few minutes over a clear fire, and turn, until done, and serve on a hot dish with maitre-d’hotcl butter.

Matelote of Barbel and Eel. — This mode of preparing Barbel is about the best that has been noticod. Take an eel weighing about 1 j 1 b ., skin and clean it, and steep it in boiling water for two or three minutes, and then you can rub off with a cloth the second skin of tho eel, which is exceedingly indigestible. Steep the eel until it does come off. Trim off tho fins, and chop into lengths of about 2in. Scrape, and clean a Barbel of about 1 jib., or thereabouts (selecting the two fish of about equal weights), and cut it into pieces about 2in. wide. Put into a large stewpan 2oz. of butter and twenty small round onions, nicely peeled and scalded. Fry tho onions in the butter until they are coloured, and then dredge in 2 table-spoonfuls of flour. Stir for ten minutes, and add lqt. of red wine, ‘2 pinches of salt, 2 small pinches of pepper, 1 double bunch of herbs, and a whole clove of garlic. Simmer for ten minutes, keeping the stewpan closely covered. Put in tho pieces of eel, and boil gently for a quarter-of-an-hour; then add tho pieces of Barbel and gill of brandy, and simmer for ten minutes more. Season to taste, remove the herbs and garlic, put tho fish on a dish, and pour over the onions and sauce.

Boasted Barbel. — Scrape off the scales, wash, and remove the gills, by making as small a hole as possible, so as not to interfere with the appearance of the fish; stuff tbo interior with sweet herbs — such as rosemary, thyme, marjoram, parsley, and winter savory, chopped vei’y fine. Boast beforo a quick fire, basting frequently with vinegar and butter, and plenty of salt.

Stewed Barbel. — Scale and clean a Barbel, wash it well, put it into a saucepan with sufficient red wine to moisten it, and add a seasoning of salt, black pepper, two cloves, a small bunch of sweet herbs, and a good lump of butter. Put the saucepan on the fire, and boil until the fish is clone. Take it out, put it on a dish, and pour over tho liquor, thickened with butter and flour and strained, and servo very hot.

BARBERA.-Tlie name of a famous class of Italian

wines, made in the Piedmont district.

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BARBERRIES ( Fr . Epine-vinette, Yinettier; Ger. Berberitzer). — The fruit of the Berberis vulgaris (Fig. 82) is not so highly prized by cooks and others as it deserves to be, either for making jellies, preserves, cooling drinks, or sweetmeats. The plant from which the fruit is gathered is a very ornamental shrub, and when covered, either with flowers in spring, or fruit in autumn, is very pleasing

to the eye. The leaves are of a yellowish or bluish green, and the red berries are gratefully acid to the taste; the odour of the flowers may be grateful at a distance, but close to they are strongly offensive. In olden times this plant grew profusely in the hedgerows of England, but has suffered banishment, if not extirpation, from a strange belief that its presence is injurious to the growth of corn crops. The roots boiled in an alkali yield a very good yellow dye.

Barberry Cream. — To those who admire sharp sweet flavours, this should be a welcome dish. It is made by stirring into 1 pint of cream, Jib. of Barberry Jelly and Joz. of isinglass in an enamelled pan over a low fire. When the isinglass and jelly are dissolved, remove them from the fire, and add a little cochineal to colour. Sweeten with caster sugar to taste, whisk to a fine froth, and pour into a suitable mould, and pack in ice to set. For a light supper dish, this cream is supreme.

Barberry Drops. — (1) Squeeze out as much juice as possible from 6oz. of Barberries, and mix it up with ljlb. of sugar. The sugar for drops should be crushed, then passed through a coarse sieve and afterwards through a very fine sieve, and the small lumps that remain in the fine sieve should only be used, as the fine or powder sugar is apt to spoil the appearance of the drops by making them heavy and compact. Put the juice and sugar mixture into a sugar-boiler with a spout or lip to it, and if it is too thick, add a little water. Stir well with a spatula over a stove until the sugar begins to make a slight noise, but without letting it boil, keeping the boiler on the side of the fire until the paste is done, which is ascertained by dropping a little on a slab, and seeing if it retains its round form and does not spread. If it is too thin, add a little more sugar. Let the drops fall from the spout on to a copper plate, or thick piece of cartridge-paper, cutting them off the spout with a bent piece of wire. Let them remain for one-and-a-half or two hours; take them off the plate with a knife, or by damping the back of the paper;

Barberries — continued.

put them in boxes with paper between the layers, and they are ready for use.

(2) Press out the juice of Jib. of Barberries through a sieve by means of a wooden spoon, and mix with it ljlb. of pounded sugar. Should the juice not moisten the sugar sufficiently, add a little clear water. Make no more paste than you are prepared to use at the time, as the second time it is heated it becomes greasy and difficult to drop. Boil to crack ( see Sugar-boiling), and drop upon a buttered baking-sheet. When cold, these drops may be raised from the sheet by a flat knife. They make a very nice sweetmeat for children.

Barberry Jam. — (1) Put 41b. of picked ripe Barberries into a preserving-pan with a little water and cook them slightly; add 3jlb. of sugar, and mash them well together until the sugar is dissolved. Put the pan on the fire, and boil quickly for from eighteen to twenty-five minutes, skimming frequently. When the jam is done and drops like a thick jelly from the spoon, pour it into jars, cover and tie down, and put away in a cool place until wanted.

(2) Put equal weights of well-washed ripe Barberries and coarsely -broken preserving-sugar into a preserving-pan, with sufficient water to cover the Barberries before the sugar is added. Boil together slowly, and skim as required. When the jam sets by dropping a little on a cold plate, remove the pan from the stove, stir well for a few minutes longer, then put into jars, and tie down in the usual way. See Jams.

Barberry Jelly. — (1) Put Gib. of ripe Barberries into a preserving-pan with i pint of water, stir over a stove until it begins to simmer, and then pass through a hair sieve, or the juice may be pressed out by means of a fruit-press. Leave this juice in a basin, and make a strong syrup at ball degree (see Sugar-boiling); add the fruit or juice, and continue to simmer for a little longer, stirring gently now and then. Remove with a skimmer any scum that rises, and in about twenty minutes the jelly will hang in broad triangular drops from the skimmer held sidewise, then (and not till then) the jelly is done, and ready to be put into pots as soon as it begins to cool.

(2) Gunter advises that the syrup should be made first, the fruit added in the preserving-pan, and the whole boiled to the pearl ( see Sugar-boiling), when the contents of tbe pan should be passed through a sieve, and the fruit pressed through as much as possible with a wooden spoon or spatula. In all other respects proceed as in No. 1.

(3) Dubois’ system differs from either of the foregoing in that he uses gelatine to make the jelly, which simplifies the process and insures success, which is not so easily attained without by other than experienced confectioners. Take 3 handfuls of the berries, which have been picked free from stalks, throw these into J pint of boiling thin syrup in a pan, remove the pan from the stove, and leave its contents to infuse for half-an-hour or so. Then stir in loz. of fine gelatine, set on the stove again, and let it come to the boil, stirring slowly all the time. Directly it bubbles freely, regulate the heat so that it will simmer for an hour, and then strain through a fine sieve. To make this jolly very bright and clear, pass it again and again through a jelly-bag. When it begins to cool down, but before setting firm, stir in sharply a small bottle of champagne, and fill champagne glasses with the jelly, and pack in ice, taking care to keep the glasses perfectly upright. These jellies are very nice for ball-suppers, or buffets.

Barberry Jelly with. Apples. — (1) Some cooks, and Jules Gouffe amongst them, will not use Barberries alone to make a jelly, but mix them with some other fruit, such as apples, gooseberries, or apricots. The addition of apples is certainly justifiable, and gives a body to the jelly; but apricots lose flavour by the mixture, and gooseberries have not a sufficiently distinctive character in their flavour to make any marked difference one way or the other. A very pretty compound dish of Barberry Jelly and Apples can be made in this way: Peel, cut into eight so-called quarters, five or six large cooking apples (Blenheim Orange or Calville apples for choice), and boil them soft without falling, in their syrup, made up of lqt. of water and 31b. of preserving-sugar; remove with a skimmer, and set aside on a sieve to drain. Boil up again the syrup from which the apples have been

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

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Barberries — continued.

removed, and then throw in Jib. of picked Barberries, remove from the fire or stove, cover, and leave for two or three hours to infuse. Then strain and squeeze the Barberries from the syrup through a white napkin. Dissolve 2oz. of fine gelatine in J pint of warm water, add the juice of one lemon, and mix with the syrup. Add also a few drops of infusion of cochineal to make a nice colour. Pack a plain cylinder mould in broken ice, and pour in a little of the jelly to the depth of Jin. When that is set, arrange on it a layer of the pieces of apple in any methodical design — on their backs as crescents, with one end pointing to the centre, does very well. Pour on sufficient jelly to just cover them, let that set, and arrange another layer of apple and again cover with jelly, and so on until the mould is full, taking care to finish with jelly. Put a small baking-sheet with ice on it over the mould, and let the jelly stand for at least two hours, then turn out on a suitable dish, and serve. Note that when filling the mould, the jelly must not be stiff, nor must it be warm; but just in that agreeable intermediary condition which a little experience in jelly-making will teach you how to obtain and preserve.

(2) Put into lqt. of boiling syrup Jib. of picked Barberries, and turn all into a basin. Put a cloth over the top, and let the contents stand for two hours. Dissolve 2oz. of gelatine in the whites of three eggs, the juice of 1 lemon, and 1J pints of water. Strain the Barberries through a fine hair sieve, and mix the syrup with the gelatine, colouring with a few drops of cochineal if required. Cut five cooking apples into about forty pieces, boil them in syrup, and drain them. Pour a little of the jelly into a plain cylinder mould, and when it has set put a layer of apple over it, then some more jelly, and so on until the mould is nearly full, letting each layer of jelly set before adding the fruit, and finishing with a layer of jelly on the top. Embed the mould in ice, cover with a baking-sheet, put ice on the top of that, and let the jelly freeze for two hours. Turn it out of the mould when ready to serve.

Barberry Ketchup. — (1) Have 3qts. of Barberries stewed and strained; 4qts. of cranberries, 1 breakfast-cupful of stoned raisins, a large quince, and four small onions, all stewed with lqt. of water, and strained. Mix these ingredients with the Barberries, and add J pint of vinegar, £ breakfast-cupful of salt, Jib. of sugar, 1 dessert-spoonful each of ground cloves and ground allspice, 2 table-spoonfuls each of black pepper and ground celery-seed, 1 table-spoonful of ground mustard, 1 teaspoonful each of cayenne, cinnamon, and ginger, and a grated nutmeg. Let the whole boil up for a minute. If too thick, add vinegar or water till it is of a useful consistency. With the quantities given, about 3qts. of ketchup can be made. Bottle for future use.

(2) Put 1 breakfast-cupful of stoned raisins, four small onions, one large quince, and lgall. of cranberries into a saucepan with lqt. of water, and boil them until all are done. Strain off all the water, put the whole into a bowl, and mix in 3qts. of Barberries, also stewed and strained, 1 teacupful of vinegar, 1J teacupfuls of salt, 1 dessert- spoonful each of ground cloves and allspice, 2 breakfast-cupfuls of sugar, 1 table-spoonful of ground mustard, 2 table-spoonfuls each of black pepper and celery-seed, a grated nutmeg, and 1 teaspoonful each of cayenne and ground cinnamon and ginger. Boil for a minute, and if the ketchup is too thick, add a little water or more vinegar. These quantities will be sufficient to make about 3qts. of ketchup, which should be kej)t in bottles in a cool place.

This ketchup is of American origin, but requires only to be known in this country to be a prime favourite. With chops, steaks, and some fish, it is superior to almost all other sauces.

Barberry Marmalade. — Boil 21b. of ripe Barberries in 1 pint of water until they are soft; pour the liquor through a coarse sieve, and return to the preserving-pan, adding sufficient extra water to make lqt. In this water boil 41b. of preserving-sugar to make a strong syrup, and then put in the fruit and boil up again very gently for a quarter-ofan-hour or so, or until you are satisfied that the marmalade will set. Some confectioners would stir in thoroughly loz. of gelatine with the fruit. Put into jars, and tie down in the usual way.

Barberries — continued.

Barberry Syrup. — This syrup is valuable for so many purposes where the flavour and colour of Barberries are desired, that it may be prepared in as large quantities as you may please or estimate to meet your probable requirements. Select and pick over the fruit, and then mash it in a sieve, squeezing and pressing out all the juice you possibly can. A fruit-press will save a lot of trouble, and produce much more juice from the same quantity of berries. Pass the juice once or twice through a tammy or flannel bag, or until it is quite bright. Make a syrup by boiling to the crack (see Stjgar-boiling) lib. of sugar to every pint of water, and adding to this quantity J pint of juice. Stir well over the stove, and let it boil, removing scum as it rises. When it has boiled for a quarter-of-an-hour, strain through a flannel jelly-bag, and put into wide-mouthed bottles for future use.

Barberry Tart. — Butter a deep dish, line it with any crust preferred, and bake in a quick oven. Pick the stalks off the fruit, put it into a saucepan with half its weight of sugar, or rather more if not quite ripe, pour in a very small quantity of water, and cook them over a slow fire. When cooked, turn the fruit into the crust, and serve.

Barberry Water Ice. — Put into a small sugar-boiler 21b. of well-washed ripe Barberries, with 1 teacupful of water, and boil until quite soft, then pass through a sieve by rubbing ‘ with the back of a wooden spoon. Into 1 pint of thick syrup stir 20 drops of essence of vanilla, 1 teaspoonful of infusion of cochineal, and the Barberry purde. Stand this in a freezer whilst you beat up the white of 1 egg – with a dessert- spoonful of caster sugar to make a meringue; work this into the syrup, and put into the freezer again to finish.

Bottled Barberries. — (1) The fruit should be quite ripe. Pick the berries off the stalks, put into bottles, shake them down close, and fill up with a thin syrup. Stand in boiling water up to the shoulder for fifteen minutes; cork and tie down.

In Bunches. — (2) Wash the bunches by dipping them several times in tepid water in which a good lump of alum has been dissolved. Drain them, and afterwards lay the bunches carefully in close layers in the bottles prepared for them; fill up with syrup, and stand in boiling water for twenty minutes. Keep the water boiling, cork, and tie down.

Compote of Barberries. — Pick off from the bunches all the bright red berries, wash them thoroughly by sousing several times in water, and drain them. Let them simmer gently for a quarter-of-an-hour in a good syrup, and when done pile them on a glass compote-dish, or compotier, and pour the syrup over them.

Pickled Barberries. — Bemove the leaves and stalks from the required quantity of Barberries. Put them into bottles or jars, pour over sufficient well-salted water to cover them, and tie down with bladder. As soon as the scum rises, strain off the salted water, and add fresh; cover over the bottles or jars again, and put them in a cool place until wanted. Vinegar is not used for this pickle, on account of the intense acidity of the juice of the fruit.

Preserved Barberries.— (I) There are several modes of preserving this fruit. Put them into a jar in layers with a good sprinkling of salt between each layer, and tie paper over the top.

(2) Take bunches of Barberries, and tie several together. Make a syrup, consisting of lib. of sugar boiled with £ pint of water, and clarify it with white of egg. When strained quite clear through a tammy, throw in the bunches, and boil quickly until the fruit looks slightly transparent. Pack them in jars, pour the syrup over, and when cold tie down with bladder.

(3) Pick the fruit off the stalks on to a clean hair sieve, and rub the pulp through with a wooden spoon into a clean white pan. Add 4oz. of pounded sugar to each pound of pulp. Mix thoroughly, and fill the bottles. Cork, and stand in a pan of boiling water for ten minutes, and tie down whilst hot.

Preserved Barberry Pulp. — Pick 41b. of Barberries, put them in a fine sieve, and rub through into a basin. Add ljlb. of crushed loaf sugar; mix well together, put into bottles, cork, and tie down; place in a saucepan of water, and boil for eight minutes. Let this cool, then take out, and put. in a cold, dry place until wanted.

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BARCELONNETTES.— A sort of French iced cakes, surmounted with confits, and so called after Barcelona, where a similar confection is in great vogue.

BARDING. — This term is frequently confounded with larding, but differs from it materially in one or two particulars. The word “ bard ” signifies a breastplate, or piece of armour; hence it was at one time usual to speak of barding as “ enarming.” A thin sheet of bacon-fat is sliced off and then trimmed square to fit, and tied over

Fig. 83. Barded Bird.

the breast of the bird with two or three pieces of thread (Fig. 83). The distinction between Barding and larding will be best understood by referring to Larding.

BARFOED PUDDING.— See Puddings.

BARIGOULE, A LA. – — The French name for a style of dressing artichokes, in which olive oil takes a prominent part. Barigoule is also the French botanical name for a sort of edible mushroom.

BARLEY (FY Orge; Ger. Gerste, from which we get “Grist”).- — This well-known grain is the produce of several species of the hordeum, and is chiefly of value in its natural state for “malting.” It forms, when ground to meal and relieved of husk, a good wholesome bread, but less nutritious than that made from wheat. Barley-meal or flour are also more perishable than wheatflour, and soon acquire a hot, nauseous taste, which is not destroyed or removed by cooking. “ Barley,” we are told, “was extensively cultivated by the Romans and many other nations of antiquity, as well as by the ancient inhabitants of Gaul; and the Greeks are said to have trained their athletes upon it.”

There is not sufficient demand upon the supply of Barley-meal to render its adulteration of much commercial value to the adulterator. The best test for its

genuineness is the microscope (see Fig. 84), when any impurities, such as dust, grit, or insects, are readily detected.

Pearl Barley (Ft. Orge perle; Ger. Perlengraupen). — This is plain Barley deprived of its husks. The mode of operation is by steaming spring Barley to soften the skin, drying it, and then grinding it in a mill with the mill-stones set so far apart that the grain is deprived of its husk, all but that which remains in the furrow, rounded and polished.

Barley — continued.

Scotch Barley differs from the Pearl by not being rounded so completely.

Scotch Pearl Barley and French Pearl Barley

are very much the same, but are smaller, being prepared from the winter grain.

Baked Barley Pudding. — Put 4 “breakfast-cupfuls of boiled Barley into a basin with toacupful of black molasses, 3oz. of finely-shred beef-suet, two eggs, 1 teaspoonful of ground cinnamon, and 1 breakfast-cupful of milk or water. Mix them thoroughly, put the preparation into a buttered pie-dish, place it in a moderate oven, and bake for an hour. Take it out when done, and serve. If desired, 1 breakfast-cupful of stoned raisins may be sprinkled on the top, but must not bo stirred in, or they will sink to the bottom.

Barley Beverage.— Put 1 teaspoonful of ground Barley into a basin, and make it into a smooth paste by adding about 1 table-spoonful of cold water. Put it in a saucepan, pour over gradually lqt. of boiling water, and boil for ten minutes, stirring frequently; let it get cold, strain off the liquor, pour it into a basin or bowl, add the juice and rind of half a lemon, and sufficient sugar, honey, or capillaire to sweeten; let the mixture stand for an hour or so, strain it, and it is ready for use.

Barley Broth. — Put a trimmed sheep’s head, or 21b. of fleshy shin of beef, in ) gallon of water, add 1 teacupful of well-washed and strained Pearl Barley, two sliced onions, a few sprigs of parsley, half-a-dozen peeled and sliced old potatoes, and a little thyme; season with pepper and salt, and simmer for three or four hours. This broth should be frequently stirred to prevent the meat and vegetables settling at the bottom and burning. Solve very hot.

Barley Cream. — (1) Take lib. of chicken flesh, veal, beef, or other full-flavoured lean meat, and mince, or pass through a mincing machine if possible. Put this in lqt. of cold water, and add 1 piled table-spoonful of Pearl Barley and 1 teaspoonful of salt. Simmer slowly for two or three hours. When required, pound the meat and Barley in a mortar, and rub through a sieve with the gravy; add more salt to taste, and when cool stir in J pint of cream. Bice is sometimes used instead of the Barley. Serve in a breakfast-cup, lukewarm. Care should be taken that the meat is quite freed from fat and skin.

(2) Put lib. of Pearl Barley into a stewpan with 2qts. of water, a little salt, and butter the size of a fowl’s egg; cover the stewpan, bring the liquid to the boil, and remove it back to simmer, stirring the Barley from time to time. An hour or so after, drain off the water and work the Barley briskly with a wooden spoon to smash it; moisten by degrees with 3qts. of white broth. Let this boil for an hour at the side of the fire, and then pass the whole through a sieve, and afterwards, if required to be very fine, through a tammycloth. This “ cream ” must now be put into a stewpan and boiled up. Add to it 1 table-spoonful of caster sugar and ilb. of chopped-up large macaroni, previously boiled in water to make it full and soft. Break six eggs, put the yolks into a basin, and beat them up with 2 piled table-spoonfuls of grated Parmesan; add 1 pinch of powdered nutmeg, dilute with l pint of raw cream, and with this mixture thicken the cream over the fire without letting it do more than simmer.

(3) Put a piece of butter the size of a duck’s egg into a stewpan, melt it, and mix in 6 piled table-spoonfuls of Pearl Barley; let it stew for two or three minutes, then moisten it with 2 breakfast-cupfuls of boiling water, and add 1 pinch of salt. When this begins to boil, cover the stewpan, and remove it to the side of the fire to simmer. Boil the Barley in this way for two hours, adding a little rich clear broth from time to time. When the Barley is quite soft and done, take it off the fire, and smash it with a spoon in the same stewpan. Pass the whole through a sieve, lighten with more broth if required, and again strain it. Let it boil once more, stirring it, and then immediately it bubbles remove it to the side of the fire to simmer as before. In half-an-hour’s time skim the fat off the soup, thicken it with the well-beaten yolks of five eggs, and flavour with a little nutmeg and 1 teaspoonful of caster sugar.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die:, referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

79

Barley — continued.

Pour the soup through a colander into the tureen. Serve vvitli dice of bread sautes in butter.

(4) Moisten pint of well-washed Barley with lqt. of broth, adding- a bouquet of herbs and a whole onion; boil in the saucepan on the stove for three-quarters-of-an-hour, and season with £ table-spoonful of salt and 1 teaspoonful of pepper. Strain through a coarse colander, and remove the bouquet; thicken with 1 breakfast-cupful of cream and the yolks of two raw eggs, and servo with sippets of bread fried in butter.

Barley Cream Soup. — Well wash 1 teacupful of Barley, put it into a saucepan with an onion, a small piece of stick cinnamon, half a blade of mace, and 3 pints of chicken broth. When this boils, move the saucepan to the side of the fire and let the contents simmer slowly for five hours. Pass the above mixture through a fine hair sieve, return it to the saucepan, mix with it 2 table-spoonfuls of butter and J pint of boiling milk; or cream may be used instead of milk, and in that case the butter must be omitted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Beat the yolks of four eggs in 1 teacupful of milk; mix this in the soup, and stir it by the side of the fire for a few minutes, but do not let it boil after the eggs are added, or they will curdle. Turn the soup into a tureen, and serve it with a plate of sippets of toast or croutons of fried bread.

Barley Brittens. — (1) Boil 1 pint of Barley, drain it, put it into a basin, season with salt and pepper, add two eggs, 4oz. of fine flour, and £ pint of cold milk. Stir the mixture well with a wooden spoon, without beating it, for about five minutes, by which time it will be sufficiently thick and firm. Well buttter a frying-pan, and with a ladle that holds about 1 teacupful put the preparation into the pan, taking care not to let the fritters touch one another. Let them fry to a golden colour on each side, which will take about four minutes, take them out with a skimmer, place thorn on a dish over a folded napkin, and serve.

(2) Mix a small piece of butter and a little salt with lb. of Barley-meal, stir in sufficient boiling water to form a stiff paste, knead it well on a floured board, roll it out, cut it into round cakes with a cutter, cook them on a griddle until done on both sides, and serve either hot or cold.

Barley Gruel. — This, when well mado, is an important and valuable item in the dietary of an invalid. There are several formulae given for making it, from which the best have been selected.

(1) Wash 2 or 3 table-spoonfuls of Pearl Barley in cold water, and then boil it for a few minutes in 1 pint of other water. Pour this water away after the boiling, and put a fresh quart of boiling water to the Barley; let this simmer for three hours, then strain, and add any flavouring that may be desired. Lemon-peel cut very thin and infused for an hour in enough cold water to cover it, gives a fine result. Stir this infusion into the Barley Gruel. A few drops of essence of lemon, almond, or vanilla will answer the same purpose. Equal quantities of milk and Barley Gruel make a very nourishing drink for invalids. This is sometimes described as Barley Water.

(2) Wash and soak in cold water loz. of Pearl or “pot” Barley, strain off this washing, and put the Barley into a stewpan over a slow fire, with 1 pint of beef-tea or strong broth to moisten it, and let it simmer for two hours or more. Then strain, salt to taste, and serve hot. It should be quite thick.

(3) A very simple receipt is to boil 1 breakfast-cupful of Pearl Barley in 1 pint of water for a few minutes, and then strain this off. Then add 2qts. of boiling water, and simmer until reduced one-half. Strain, add sugar, essence of lemon, or wine to taste, and warm up before serving. This must not be given hot to invalids.

(4) Scald in hot water 2oz. of Pearl Barley, and then strain it through a sieve. Put the scalded Barley into a pan with lqt. of boiling water, and set over tho fire to simmer. Boil and skim till thick and clear, then pour in 1 pint of red wine, 1 table-spoonful of well-washed grocers’ currants, and powdered sugar to taste. Serve in a tureen with lemon to squeeze into it, and a few small dry biscuits, or sippets of toast.

Barley — continued.

Barley-meal Scones. — These very delicious tea-cakes may be prepared as follows: — Take as much good fresh Barleymeal as you require, season with a little salt, and mix with hot milk until it forms a stiff paste. Boll this out into thick round cakes, and quarter witli a knife into scones. Bake in a quick oven, or on a greased griddle over a bright fire. The addition of 1 teaspoonful of bakingpowder to each cake makes them very light. Butter, and serve hot.

Barley Milk. — Wash 2 table-spoonfuls of Pearl Barley in several waters, and then put it into a large jar, and stand in a stewpan of water. Stir in 1 pint of milk and i teaspoonful of salt, and boil the water until the milk is reduced to onehalf of its original volume. Strain off tho milk, and sweeten or flavour to suit the taste of the patient. Tho Barley itself is nice served on a plate with a wineglassful of sherry poured over, and a sprinkling of castor sugar.

Barley Negus (American).— Boil 1 table-spoonful of wellwashed Pearl Barley in 1 pint of water, and add i- pint of sherry or marsala, 1 table-spoonful of lemon-juice, and a little grated nutmeg. Sweeten with powdered sugar to taste.

Barley Puree. — Put the required quantity of Barley into a saucepan, with sufficient chicken broth to cover it, and boil for an hour. Bub the Barley through a fine sieve into a basin, moisten with stock, sprinklo over salt and pepper to taste, warm the puree up, put it on a dish, and serve with pieces of toast or fried bread for garnish.

Barley Soup. — (1) When there is choico of meat, this soup should be made with mutton, or a piece of cold mutton may he cut up and put into it, and 2 or 3 pints of good stock added instead of the fresh meat. Wash 1 teacupful of Pearl Barley in two or three waters, straining each time, and boil it in plenty of fresh water for about two hours; then strain away tho liquor from it, rinse once more in cold water, and tho Barley is then ready when required to put in the soup. Cut two slices of turnip and half as much carrot and onion into small dice, all of a size, and boil them in the soup or stock until tender — that would be about three-quarters-of-an-hour. Cut up in small squares about as much meat — all lean — as there was of turnips, and add to the soup; follow that with tho cooked Barley and chopped parsley, seasoning slightly. This is a very cheap soup, and is greatly recommended for its nourishing qualities.

(2) Boil in a good broth 1 breakfast-cupful of Pearl Barley, stirring tho broth that the Barley may not settle at the bottom; add 2 table-spoonfuls of flour mixed thin and smooth with a little cold broth, and place the soup over a slow fire, that it may simmer slowly without stopping for five hours; then take off the scum that has formed on the top, and add 1 dessert-spoonful of caster sugar. When serving, put a ladleful of the soup into a puree of the pounded flesh of two fowls, nicely seasoned, and add immediately 2 or 3 more table-spoonfuls of Barley, stirring it into the puree; pour this into tho tureen with the remaining Barley, mixing them perfectly. This is an extravagant dish, but exceedingly nutritious and delightful.

(3) A very fine rich soup, in tho compounding of which Pearl Barley takes a prominent part, can be prepared according to the following receipt, which is of Continental origin: Cut up into small, thin pieces two carrots, two turnips, two onions, two leeks, and one small head of celery, and toss them for half-an-hour in a saute-pan with plenty of butter. Add two heads of lettuce finely shredded, a sprig or two each of parsley, chervil, and niai’joram, putting these into 2qts. of hot water with teaspoonful of pepper, 1 teaspoonful of salt, a few cloves, and 1 teaspoonful of sugar. Let this simmer for two hours, then strain the soup through a fine strainer. Boil 1 pint of washed Pearl Barley in lqt. of this stock till tho Barley is soft enough to be reduced to a pulp; then rub it through a hair sieve, and add as much more of the liquor as will bo required to make the soup as thick as good cream. Put it on tho fire, and when it boils take it off, and stir into it the yolk of one egg beaten up with 1 gill of cream. Add 1 dessertspoonful of butter, pour the soup into the tureen, and serve with small dice of bread fried in butter.

tor details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, Jec., referred to. see under their special heads.

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Barley — continued.

(4) Take lib. of neck of mutton, remove all fat and bones, cut tbe meat up small, and add to it 1 table-spoonful of well-washed Barley and 1 pint of cold water. Boil up slowly, and simmer for two hours. Then remove the bones, boil them separately in about J pint of cold water for halfan-hour, and then strain the liquor into the soup. Season with salt, skim off what fat there may be, and serve with dry biscuits.

(5) Put into a large saucepan 2qts. of good broth free from fat. Add to it Jib. of well-washed Pearl Barley, which has been previously boiled in water for half-an-hour; also put in at the same time 2 breakfast-cupfuls of young vegetables, such as carrots, celery roots, and turnips cut into small dice. Boil up, and simmer for an-hour-and-ahalf. When the vegetables are done, pour the soup into the tureen, in which a few table-spoonfuls of cooked green-peas, asparagus heads, or cauliflower sprays have been previously placed. Further season with a little chopped chervil, and serve.

(6) The variety of Pearl-Barley soups appears to be almost interminable, owing in a large measure to the great adaptability of this grain to soups and broths. The following is a French receipt, and greatly esteemed at high-tea tables: Melt 6oz. of butter in a stewpan, and fry in it for a few minutes Jib. of well- washed Pearl Barley; add 2qts. or 3qts. of thin broth, stir the soup until boiling, season with salt, and simmer gently for about two hours; then introduce into it 7 or 8 table-spoonfuls of celery cut into small slices; halfan-hour after thicken the soup with the yolks of four eggs, beaten up with J tumblerful of cream. Place again upon the stove, and whilst simmering stir in 4oz. of butter, a little at a time. Pour it into the soup-tureen, and serve quite hot.

Barley Stew. — (1) Cut into pieces Jib. of cold roasted or broiled meat, and put it into a saucepan with J teacupful of well-washed Barley and two finely-chopped onions. Sprinkle over 1 table-spoonful of flour, 1 dessert-spoonful of salt, and a small quantity of pepper; pour in lqt. of flour, and simmer gently on the side of the fire for about two hours. Add four potatoes, peeled, washed, and cut in slices, simmer for an hour longer, and then sprinkle in a little more salt and pepper if required. Turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve.

(2) Take about Jib. of cold roasted or broiled lean of meat, two medium-sized onions, four potatoes, J breakfastcupful of Barley, 1 table-spoonful of flour, and lqt. of water. Cut the meat into dice, wash the Barley, and cut the onions very fine. Put all in a stewpan, dredge with the flour, adding J table-spoonful of salt and J teaspoonful of pepper, add the water, and simmer for two hours. Pare and slice the potatoes, add them to the stew, and simmer one hour longer. More salt and pepper may be added if required. Serve very hot.

Barley Water. — (1) The following receipt is especially recommended for its simplicity: Put 1 teacupful of washed Pearl Barley in lqt. of very pure, cold, soft water, and place on the fire. When it boils up, skim carefully, and let it continue boiling for at least half-an-hour; then strain off the water from the Barley, and let it cool. Some sweeten Barley Water, and flavour it with the juice of lemon; but it is better for invalids to take it without these additions. Note that the same Barley may be boiled two or three times over.

(2) If a sweet Barley Water is desired, as it may be sometimes for taking after or disguising medicine, such as cod-liver oil, take 1 table-spoonful of Pearl Barley, and wash it well in cold water; then pour off the water, and put the Barley, 1 table-spoonful of sugar, and half a lemon (sliced) into boiling water. Let it stand covered and where it will keep hot without boiling, for three hours; then strain it, and let it get cold for use. Currant jelly or orange-juice may be used instead of the lemon.

Barley Water for Coughs. — Add to lqt. of Barley Water (No. 1) Joz. of sliced and well-bruised stick-liquorice, 2oz. of chopped dried figs, 2oz. of stoned and chopped raisins, and 1 pint of water. Let this boil up, then simmer until the liquid is reduced to about 2 pints, and then strain for use. For children with whooping-cough this drink is

Barley — continued.

invaluable, but must be given with discretion, a sip or so at a time.

BARLBY SUGAR. — The reason that Barley Sugar is so named is because it was originally made with a decoction of Barley. To make this favourite sweetmeat some knowledge of sugar-boiling is necessary; so that it will be well before commencing, to make acquaintance with the details given under that heading. There are several methods advocated by different confectioners, each having one for himself, but the following receipts will be found sufficient for all practical purposes. Any flavouring, such as vanilla, ginger, &c.;, may be added.

(1) Put 21b. of crushed loaf sugar in a pan with 1 pint of water, and place it on the fire to boil; when it is at the feather degree see Sugar-boiling), add a little cream of tartar, and continue boiling to the crack degree; when this degree is attained shake in a few drops of essence of lemon, and colour with a few drops of infusion of sandelkolz mixed with 2 drops of acetic acid; pour the syrup on to a marble slab or large flat dish (previously oiled), cut it into strips, and when nearly cold take the strips in your fingers and twist them. When quite cold put them into bottles, and keep dry and cool.

(2) Dissolve and boil 31b. of crushed loaf sugar in 1 pint of pure water, and in this stir briskly the white of an egg. Strain the syrup, and boil to candy height ( see Sugarboiling); add 1 teaspoonful of citric acid or white vinegar, and then boil again quickly for a minute or two, so as to regain the candy height. Stir in essence of lemon to flavour. Then pour the syrup over an oiled marble slab, and when it sets stiff and can be handled, cut it into strips, and twist it like a screw or rope.

(3) White Barley Sugar is made the same as above, only without colouring. When poured out on the marble slab, throw the sides of it which cool first over against the middle, so that it cools all alike, and then when possible to handle, it is to be pulled over a hook on the wall and drawn over and over by doubling until the body of it becomes quite white. Dip your hands now and then in fine starch-powder to protect them from the heat of the sugar. After this drawing is completed, pull the mass out, and twist it; let it cool on the slab, cut it into lengths, and put into bottles to keep.

(4) When Barley Sugar is required for decorative purposes it is not an unusual thing with high-class confectioners to increase tho “ golden ” effect by mixing in, after the sugar is boiled, a few sheets of thin leaf gold, such as are used for gilding. Pour the syrup into a small oiled pan, and just before it becomes set it may be shaped with the back part of a knife or other tool. Mark it out over the surface, and when the sugar is quite stiff and brittle the shapes may be easily snapped apart.

When an orange flavour is desired, it is better to rub off the rind on to lumps of sugar and add these to the boil. The juice if added is liable to burn, or discolour the Barley Sugar, and render it bitter. A little caramel can be used for colouring at discretion.

Australian Barley Sugar. — Put lib. of crushed loaf sugar into a sugar-boiler, and add 1 breakfast-cupful of water. Set the sugar-boiler on the fire, and boil to the crack degree; then add 1 teacupful of filtered orange-juice, 1 liqueur-glassful of kirschenwasser, and 1 teaspoonful of acetic acid, also a few sheets of thin gold leaf, the same sort as is used for gilding. Have ready a well-oiled deep saute-pan, pour in the mixture, and before it sets mark it in the shape of diamonds. When the Barley Sugar is quite set and firm break it up where it was marked, and it is ready for use.

Barley-sugar Cream. — The famous Louis Eustache Ude has left us a receipt for this, which has been modified hereunder to suit modern times: Melt about loz. of sugar with a table-spoonful of water in a small sugar-boiler. Let it reduce till it is brown, but bo careful to keep stirring to prevent the sugar burning and getting bitter to tho taste. When it is quite brown, dilute it with 1 table-spoonful of sweetened water. Take lqt. of cream that has been gently warmed, pour the caramel into it, and add sufficient sugar to make it sweet and palatable. If you wish to have the cream iced,

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, die., referred to, see under tlieir special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

81

Barley Sugar — continued.

mix in the yolks of eight eggs, and when the eggs are well mixed, put the stewpan containing the mixture over the fire to thicken. When it begins to thicken, stir it well, and throw in Joz. of isinglass previously dissolved in a wineglassful of warm water, then pour the preparation into a mould, and when cool, ice it. You must let it cool first, or it will melt the ice, and the mould will be liable to tilt over, and the cream fall out. When you do not intend to put isinglass into the cream, you must add the yolks of twelve eggs instead of eight. Butter a mould, pour the cream into it, and set in a pan of boiling water with fire on the lid, to prevent the condensed steam falling in.

Barley-sugar Drops. — Put the required quantity of sugar into a sugar-boiler with a little water, and boil; add a squeeze or so of lemon-juice after boiling to the caramel degree (see Sugar-boiling). Have ready some icing-sugar, spread it out on a table, make some small holes in it, and let it dry. Add a few drops of essence of lemon to the boiled sugar, pour it into these holes, and let it cool. Take out the drops when quite cold, put them in boxes, and keep in a dry place until wanted, or the mass when cooled on a slab may be cut up into strips, and then into squares with a pair of scissors, and the corners shaped in by the fingers.

Vanilla-flavoured Barley Sugar. — Put lib. of broken loaf sugar into a sugar-boiler, with 1 breakfast-cupful of water and 1 tea-spoonful of acetic acid. Put the boiler on the fire, and boil to the crack degree ( see Sugar-boiling), and stir in a few drops of vanilla extract to flavour. Cool the bottom of the boiler by dipping it into cold water, and when the sugar has cooled a little, turn it out on to a marble slab which has been slightly rubbed over with oil of almonds. As the sugar spreads, turn it back again with the spatula until it is cool; then cut it into strips about Jin. in diameter, roll and twist into shape like a corkscrew, put them on a slightly-oiled baking-sheet, and let them remain until they are quite stiff and cold. Put the sticks into bottles or jars, cork or stopper them down, and keep them in a dry place until wanted.

BARLEY WINE.— The early name for English beer, and now employed by a large firm of brewers to denote a high-class liquor brewed from malt, possibly without hops.

BARM. — See Yeast.

BAROLO.— The name of a fine Piedmontese wine. See Italian Wines.

BARON OP BEEP. — The name given to two sirloins joined together at the backbone, corresponding in some respects to a saddle of mutton. This may be considered a title of greater honour than “Sir ’’-loin, it being due to its greater size that this cut of beef is entitled to the higher honour.

BARQUETTE . — Fr. for a piece of pastry formed into the shape of a ship.

BARREL. — This may be considered the standard of beer-measure from which other beer-vessels take their capacity as multiples or dividends. Thus, taking the Barrel of 36galls. as 1, a hogshead is It, a puncheon 2, a butt 3, and a tun 6. In the descending scale, a kilderkin is i, and a firkin These exact capacities are not, however, strictly adhered to throughout the. British Isles and they differ greatly in most parts of Europe, especially when employed for holding wines and spirits.

BARS AC. — A kind of sauterne manufactured in the locality of Bordeaux. See Wines.

BARSZCZ. — Tli is is the name given to a soup much appreciated in Poland. The principal featm’e of its manufacture is the introduction of the red juice of the beetroot. Some cooks term it indifferently Barsch,

bor details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Barszcz — continued.

Borsch, &c.; But the name given is that by which it is generally known in the country from which it takes its origin.

(1) Cut off 41b. of the rump of beef, and put it into a stockpot with lgall. of sour beetroot-juice, made as follows: Scrape three or four beetroots clean, put them in an earthenware basin, moisten with a little warm water with a little vinegar in it, and add 11b. of breadcrumbs and 1 breakfast-cupful of milk. Put the basin in a warm place with a cover over it; let it stand for a day, and strain the juice through a sieve. Put the pot with the beef on the fire, add a little salt, boil up, skim well, and place it on the side of the fire. Singe and blanch a salted pig’s ear, put it in the pot, add two leeks, place the pot on the fire again, and cook until the meat is done. Shred a little beetroot, celery, one leek, and a few mushrooms; put them in a frying-pan with a little butter, and fry them for a few minutes. Pour in 2qts. or 3qts. of the prepared broth well strained, boil it up, and add four or five smoked sausages. Let this boil for twenty minutes, add a few table-spoonfuls of raw beetroot-juice that has been well strained and is of a deep red colour, then the pig’s ear cut in small pieces, and a little of the beef, also cut up rather small. Take out the sausages, cut them up in slices, put them into a tureen, pour in the soup, add a little finely minced parsley, and garnish with croutons of fried bread hollowed out in the centre and filled with beef-marrow.

(2) Select a piece of very fat brisket of beef, about 31b., and put it into a saucepan with sufficient hot water to cover it; put in with it also about lib. of fat smoked bacon. Stew gently until nearly done. Chop up finely some slices of raw beetroot, three large onions, four leeks, a quarter of a large white cabbage-head, and a stick of celery, and fry all these in butter, adding a small quantity of salt and pepper. Pour over the vegetables 2qts. of the broth in which the meat was boiled, and let it boil up. Cut up the beef and bacon in small squares, and stir in. Then add 1 teacupful of beetroot-juice, acidified by adding 2 teaspoonfuls of vinegar, 1 breakfast-cupful of sour cream, and 21b. or 31b. of rasped raw beetroot, and a large pinch of finely-chopped fennel. Servo in a tureen.

(3) The following receipt is that which is more frequently

adopted: Select 31b. of fat beef, and having previously scalded it, and washed it thoroughly, cut it up in small pieces, and put it into a saucepan with sufficient thin stock to cover it. Add some finely-chopped vegetables, two or

three onions, two or three leeks, and a cabbage cut in quarters and halved again. Boil steadily until the cabbage is quito done, and then pour in 1 teacupful of acidulated beetroot-juice. Sometimes the Russians add rye-beer (kwass), or vinegar and salt. This has now to be boiled thoroughly until all the vegetables and meat are quite done. Then add about lib. of boiled ham cut in small squares; boil up again, and skim off the fat. Take out the cabbage, and put it into another saucepan with about lib. of sliced cooked beetroot, and more juice of a raw beetroot, pepper, salt, and sufficient stock to cover it. Boil up again, and then add altogether, and servo with chopped fennel. A few bay-leaves boiled in tho stock with the meat improve the flavour greatly.

BARTAVELLES.— The French name for their redlegged partridges. As these are almost unknown in this country, it will only be necessary to observe that they are subject to the same culinary processes as an ordinary partridge.

BASIL, SWEET ( Ocimum Basilicum) (Fr. Basilic; Ital. Bassilico). — A very favourite herb, used largely on the Continent for seasoning meats, and chiefly in this country as one of the flavourings of turtle. The leaves when pinched emit a very pungent odour, not unlike that of cloves, and are sometimes added to French salad. The plant is a native of the East Indies, and very scarce in this country, for which reason it is generally used dried.

i Basil Vinegar. — Put some freshly – gathered Basil -leaves into a wide-mouthed bottle, cover them with warm vinegar,

M & N

Sauces, &c.;, referred to, sec under their special heads.

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TEE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Basil, Sweet— continued.

and let them steep for ten days. If too strong, pour some of the vinegar off into other bottles, and add more fresh hot vinegar to the herbs; cork the bottle, seal it down, and keep

Fig. 85. Sweet Basil.

it in a cool store cupboard; at the end of two weeks it will be ready for use. Basil vinegar is often used in salads where a very high seasoning is desirable.

BASIN (Fr. Bassin; Ger. Becken, from which we get “ beaker ”; Ital. Bacino). — It would he almost impossible to describe the varieties of basins used in the kitchen. They are manufactured of all sorts and sizes,

for all sorts of purposes, and of different materials — china, earthenware, tin, iron, and more recently of a material called “ steel-pulp,” resembling papier-mache, but much harder, very light, and indestructible.

BASKETS (Fr. Corbeilles). — The multitude of designs and styles in which these vessels for carrying fruits and other dessert are made, is almost incalculable. They are manufactured of glass, china, gold, and silver, and sometimes of two or three of these combined. Some confectioners make them for themselves of almond-paste, sugar, the rinds of oranges, and a variety of less harmless materials; but their efforts rarely attain to the dignity of art, and it is the opinion of many of our best cooks that they would do better to leave such fragile imitations alone.

Francatelli excelled in making Baskets of sugar, and filling them with nougats and imitation fruits; but with the exception of Ude (in a small way), the principle does not seem to have met with much favour where it might have been most expected.

The custom of setting in the centre of the dinner-table a handsome candelabra, or stand of flowers, can be better replaced by a stand or basket of fruit in tiers. A Basket of fruit (see Fig. 87), rich, abundant, and varied in its selection, relieved by vine or other leaves, gives to a dinner-table arranged a la Russe, an aristocracy

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Baskets — continued.

of decoration which depends for its measure upon the elegance of the Basket and the beauty of the fruit. Dubois advises that when arranging a Basket of fruit for a dinner-table, only “the freshest, the rarest, and the most beautiful kinds should be selected,” but many of our commonest fruits, such as blackberries, barberries, and others equally simple, can be made to add elegance to a Basket if arranged by a master-hand. The sort and colour of fruits to be chosen must, of course, depend on the season; but they should he of as great a variety, and as diversified in tint, as possible. In short, “ such a Corbeille of fruit represents a portable garden in miniature, whereon the eye and the palate may be equally gratified.” When the available fruit is large, such as pears, apples, or pine-apples; they ought to be removed from the Basket to be cut up, and then should be handed round on plates; or pine-apples may be arranged ready peeled and sliced, and large pears quartered without being peeled. Several of these Baskets, of different styles, sizes, and patterns, may be arranged on one table.

Sometimes it is advisable to arrange a Basket of one kind of fruit only, such as of grapes, apples, peaches, &c.;,

Fig. 87. Basket of Fruit.

and then vine and other ornamental leaves may he made to set it off. Grapes are especially useful to the tabledecorator, for they can be made to hang from handles and artificial arches, and nuts of all kinds can, by a little ingenuity, be arranged with dried brown and bronzed leaves to form an elegant dish for table ornamentation. A clever artist has a wealth of decorative material in Baskets of fruit or flowers.

Modem ingenuity has enabled enterprising caterers to contrive vehicles capable of conveying food, and the necessary utensils for serving it, in such a compact form, that whilst no space is lost, every detail is provided for. Railway Baskets are now supplied upon many lines, which contain all that the heart can desire, without any further trouble to the traveller than a message to the station where he proposes to refresh. Other Baskets, such as for Picnics or Races, are fully described under those heads.

BASMUTTEE.— A very fine kind of Indian Rice.

BASS.— There are many species of this fish, all of which belong to the perch tribe, and are considered great culinary delicacies. In France there is one sort known as the “Sea-Wolf” (Loup de mer), which is especially

t ces. dec., referred to, see under their special heads .

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

83

Bass — continued.

deserving of a cook’s notice. It is more correctly known as the European. Sea-Bass ( Labrax lupus) (Fig. 88). The Striped Bass of America ( L . lineatus) is the famous Rock-fish; the White Bass or Lake Perch (L. albidus) (Fig. 89), the Ruddy Bass of the coast

Fig. 88. Sea-Bass, or Sea-Wolf.

(L. rufus), the White Perch (L. pallidus), the Canadian Black Bass ( Grystes nigricans) (Fig. 90), the Little Black Bass ( L . nigricans), the Spotted Bass of the St. Lawrence River ( Grystes notatus), the Stone Bass (Fig. 91), and several others, are pronounced by epicures to be more exquisite than salmon. They are all sold under the general name of Bass.

The Bass is essentially a sea-fish, hut is sometimes taken in rivers as well as along the coast. It has been caught weighing as much as 101b. or 151b., but commonly ranges from Mb. to 61b. or 71b. It makes a very handsome dish, the body being well shaped, round, and fleshy, and it is in season nearly all the year round, but at its best in March, April, and May.

Striped Bass, or Rock-Fish. — This fish is found in the American waters, and ranges from Mb. to 801b. or 1001b. in weight. The smaller sized are cooked as for Sea-Bass, and are better eating than the larger, which must be cut up in slices before they can be cooked.

The mode generally advocated for cooking Bass is to boil it in a good fish stock, or it may be boiled plain in salted water, or baked, or braised in wine. If boiled, oyster sauce should be served with it; if braised, a good veloute, reduced with the stock in which the fish has been boiled; if baked or broiled, a good maitre-d’hotel sauce is the best. Garnished with parsley and crayfish, it presents a handsome dish.

Baked Bass. — (1) Wash, scale, and clean a Bass, and leave the head intact if it is to be sent to the table whole. Mako a stuffing of 2 breakfast-cupfuls of breadcrumbs, 1 toacupful of butter, the rind of a quarter of a lemon minced fine, and two or three sprigs each of parsley, green thyme, and marjoram. Season this mixture with pepper and salt. Beat up two eggs, 1 table-spoonful of water, and mix the stuffing with it. Fill in the fish, and sew np when stuffed. Score both sides with a sharp knife by cutting down to the bone, and put a thin slice of salt pork into each incision. Bake in a pan, and baste with stock and seasoning. Thirty or forty minutes will cook the fish, according to size. Put a little tomato pure or tomato sauce into the pan with the

Bass — continued.

gravy after removing the fish, and lot this boil up; then skim and strain, to serve in a tureen with the fish. The greatest care must be taken not to break the fish in transferring it from the pan to the dish. An ornamental dishpaper should lie under the fish, and sprays of parsley, with prawns or crayfish prettily arranged, will complete the dressing. A glass of white wine added to each £ pint of sauce is considered an improvement.

(2) Lay a well-cleaned Bass, weighing about 31b., on a buttered baking-dish; season with £ pinch of salt and £ pirch of pepper, and moisten with £ wineglassful of white wine, and 3 table-spoonfuls of mushroom liquor. Cover with a heavy piece of buttered paper, and cook in a moderate oven for fifteen minutes; then lay the fish on a dish. Pour the liquor into a saucepan, with £ pint of good German sauce, thicken with 1 table-spoonful of butter, toss the pan until well dissolved, pour it over the Bass, and serve with six croutons of fried bread cut in any desired shape.

Baked Bass d la Bordelaise.— Cut a deep incision down the back of a 31b. Sea-Bass; put it in a baking-dish with £ wineglassful of red wine, £ pinch of salt, and £ pinch of pepper. Sprinkle over a finely-chopped shallot, cover with

buttered paper, and cook in a moderate oven for fifteen minutes; then lay the Bass on a dish. Put the liquor in a saucepan with 1 gill of Spanish sauce, four finely- shredded mushrooms, a thin slice of finely-chopped garlic, and cook for five minutes longer. Pour it over the fish, garnish with six cooked crayfish or shrimps, and serve very hot.

Bass d la Chambord. — Lift the middle skin from the back of a 31b. Bass, leaving the head and tail covered; lard the fish with a very small larding-needle, and lay it on a buttered, deep haking-pan, adding to it £ wineglassful of white wine, ha, If a carrot, half an onion, both sliced, and a bouquet garni. Season with 1 pinch of salt and £ pinch of popper. Cover with a buttered paper, and cook in the oven for thirty minutes, being very careful to baste it frequently; then take out the fish, and lay it on a dish. Strain the gravy into a saucepan, with £ pint of Chambord garnishing, moistened with £ pint of Spanish sauce, and reduce for

five minutes. Decorate the dish with clusters of the garnishing, three decorated fish quenelles, and three small, cooked crayfish, and serve with the sauce poured over.

Bass Dressed en Casserole. — Scale and clean a Bass, wash it well, and drain it. In the meantime prepare a stuffing of butter well rolled in flour, finely-chopped sweet herbs,

M & N 2

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, d’c., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Bass — continued.

and highly seasoned with grated nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Stuff the fish with this mixture, sew or tie it up, put it into a saucepan with only sufficient water or weak stock to prevent it burning or sticking to the pan, place the pan on the fire, and cook until it is done, allowing about six minutes to the pound. Take it out, put it on a dish, squeeze a little lemon-juice over it, and serve.

Boiled Bass. — Scale and clean a Basa, wash it well, drain it, put it into a saucepan of warm salted water, and set the saucepan on the fire. As soon as the water boils, remove the pan to the side of the fire, and let it simmer gently for twenty minutes, by which time the fish should be quite done. Let it remain in the liquor until wanted; then take it out, drain it, put it on a napkin spread over a dish, garnish with boiled potatoes and sprigs of parsley, and serve.

Broiled Bass. — (1) Clean a Bass, split it lengthwise in halves, and cut each half again into two or three pieces; sprinkle these over with flour, put em on a gridiron over a clear but slow fire, and broil them very gently, brushing them over continually with butter to prevent them burning. When done, and of a light brown colour, put the pieces of fish on a napkin spread over a dish, and serve. Small Bass may be broiled whole with their heads on.

(2) Another way is to wrap the fish or pieces in buttered or oiled paper, partly broil them, and complete the cooking in the oven.

Fried Bass with Bacon. — Wash, scale, and carefully clean the fish, cut off the fins with a chop of the knife, and if small cook them as they are; if large, split them lengthwise, cut them across into four pieces, and season them well with pepper and salt. Boll them in flour, and let them lie in it until you are ready to cook them, then drop them into a pan of very hot lard, and let them fry until nicely browned. The time will depend upon the size of the pieces. Fry in a separate pan four slices of streaky bacon, one for each piece of fish, and lay a slice of the bacon on each piece of fish. Garnish with parsley, and serve with mashed potatoes.

Fried Black Bass. — Scale and clean the required number of Black Bass, if possible selecting fish weighing about lib. each. Boll them well in flour, put them into a frying-pan with hot fat to about half their height, and fry them until done, taking care that a black burnt part does not appear where the thick part of the fish touches the pan. When done, put them on a dish, garnish with potatoes, slices of lemon, and sprigs of fried or plain parsley, and serve.

Stewed Stuffed Bass with Mushroom Sauce. — Scale and clean a Bass, wash it well, stuff it with highly-seasoned veal-stuffing, sew it up, put it into a saucepan with loz. of butter, pour over 1 teacupful of water or weak stock, and cook gently over the fire until it is done, being careful not to burn it, and turning it as often as required. When done, put it on a dish, and serve witli mushroom sauce, either in a sauceboat or poured round.

BASTING.— It is usual when roasting joints, poultry, and other meat, to haste freely during the process, especially towards the end of the cooking, by pouring the melted fat or gravy over at intervals. The object is to keep the surface moist, which prevents scorching, and diminishes the evaporation of the juices

Fig. 92. Basting Ladle.

of the meat. For the last ten minutes or so before dishing up, it is advisable to leave the joint unbasted; but poultry and game, when basted with butter, can be continued up to the last moment, Fat joints require less basting than lean ones. A basting ladle is shown at Fig. 92. See Baking, Braising, and Roasting.

BATCH.— This is the technical term applied by bakers to the number of loaves of bread which are put in the oven at one time, and as a distinction between them and what is called pan-bread, or bread baked in tins. Thus, one of our authorities writes, “ An oven which is either too hot or too cold will spoil what would otherwise be a good Batch of bread. Pan-bread, or bread baked in tins, needs a greater heat than Batch-bread, as pan-bread dough is of a lighter nature than Batch-bread dough, and consequently requires more heat to keep it up.” See Bread.

BATH BUNS. — It would be difficult to trace back to their origin the famous history of these popular buns. In some way or another they owe their existence to the town of Bath, and date back to the time when this oncecelebrated watering-place held highest rank under the

Fig. 93. Bath Buns.

favour and continual presence of royalty. Here were congregated the beaux and belles of court and fashionable life, who not only dipped their sweet lips in the waters of the pump-room, but partook of an occasional bun. But to whom the credit is due of the invention of Bath Buns it is impossible to say, there being, as there mostly are in such cases, more than one claimant to the honour. Anyhow, there are but few examples of fancy pastry which have maintained unflagging for so many years the reputation they have gained at the bands of fashion.

(1) Take 5oz. of sugar, 5oz. of butter, lloz. of flour, two eggs, lj gills of milk, 1 loz. of carbonate of soda, 1 pinch of nutmeg, and some chopped candied citron-peel. Warm 5oz. of butter, and pour it into a basin, and work it up with a spoon till it creams; then stir into it two eggs one by one, lfoz. of carbonate of soda, 5oz. of sugar, lib. of flour, 1 igills of milk by degrees, and 1 pinch of powdered nutmeg, working the preparation with the spoon. The paste must be of just sufficient stiffness to maintain itself without spreading when raised up. Take it up with a table-spoon in equal pieces of the size of a nut; range these pieces at a little distance from one another on a baking-sheet, and place on each of them a little slice of candied citron, two or three caraway comfits, and a sprinkle of fine sugar. Bake the buns in a slack oven.

(2) Put in a bowl lib. of fine flour, 1 teaspoonful of yeast, and lb. of caster sugar. Dissolve lb. of butter in 1 teacupful of cream; beat up three eggs, and add. Knead all well together, then let it rise. When light, roll out and shape the buns, place them on a baking-sheet, and bake in a hot oven.

(3) Prepare lib. of brioche paste as follows: lib. of flour, lOoz. of butter, Joz. of German yeast, 1 teaspoonful each of salt and sugar, and about seven eggs. Put one-fourth of the flour on the slab, spread it out so as to form a well in the centre, put in the yeast, and dissolve it with a little tepid water. When this is effected, add enough water to mix the whole into a rather soft paste. Knead this into the form of a round ball, put it into a stewpan capable of holding three times the quantity, score it all round with a knife, put the lid on, and set it to rise in a rather warm place. In the winter

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, A c., referred to, see under their special heads.

ERRATUM.

Page 84, Bath Buns (No. 1), 2nd line, for loz. of carbonate of soda read 1J drachms.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

85

Bath. Buns — continued.

it may be put in tbe screen before tbe fire, but in hot weather the fermentation will proceed more satisfactorily if it is placed on the kitchen table, or in some such place of moderate warmth. This part of the operation is termed “ setting the sponge.” Next, put the remainder of the flour on the slab, and spread it out to form a hollow in the centre; then put in the salt and the sugar, pour in a little water to dissolve them, add the butter, break in six eggs, and work the whole well together with the hands until it is well mixed; then rubbing the paste with both fists held flat on the slab, move them to and fro, so as to reduce any remaining lumps to smoothness. By the time that the paste is mixed, the sponge will probably have risen sufficiently. To be perfect it must have been increased three times its original size. Spread it out on the paste ready to receive it. It should present the appearance of what is called a honeycomb sponge, full of holes, from which circumstance it takes its name. Both the above should then be immediately, gently but thoroughly, mixed. A napkin must be spread in a wooden bowl, or basin, some flour shaken all over the bottom and sides, and the paste lifted into it. Sprinkle some flour over the paste, and after throwing the corners of the napkin over all, set the bowl containing the paste in a cool place in the larder or cellar, free from any current of air, till the next morning. Take up lib. of this paste, add thereto 1 gill of cream, 1 small glass of orange-flower water, 4oz. of cut candied peel, and 2oz. of cherry-kernel comfits. Mix all together, divide the whole into twelve equal parts, knead them into round balls, and press them down slightly upon buttered baking-sheets. Egg them over, sprinkle nibs of loaf sugar upon them, and bake them in a moderate heat till brown.

(4) Take lib. of fine flour, the grated peel of two lemons, Jib. of butter melted and stirred into 1 teacupful of cream, 1 teaspoonful of yeast, and three eggs. Mix thoroughly, and add £lb. of powdered loaf sugar. Mix this well again, and let it stand to rise, and then pinch off pieces sufficiently large to fill a table-spoon. Shape these on a buttered bakingsheet, and put into a hot oven to cook. This quantity should make about three dozen buns.

(5) Eor about a dozen buns take lib. of flour, 8oz. of butter, 8oz. of sugar, four eggs, a little warm milk, loz. of yeast, some citron-peel cut small, and half a grated nutmeg. Bub the butter in with the flour, make a bay, and break the eggs into it; add the yeast, with sufficient milk to make the whole into a dough of moderate consistence, and put in a warm place to rise. When it has risen enough, mix in the peel, a little essence of lemon, and the sugar, which should be in small pieces about the size of peas. Divide into pieces for buns, prove (that is, leave to rise in a warm place), and bake in gentle heat. They may be washed with egg and dusted with sugar before proving.

(6) Take 41b. of flour, 11b. of butter, 6oz. of sugar, 4oz. of yeast, four eggs, and sufficient milk to make all into a dough, adding essence of lemon. Warm the milk, add the sugar and yeast, with sufficient flour to make a ferment. When ready, add butter, eggs, and remainder of flour, with currants or peel to taste. Weigh or divide into 3oz. each, mould them round, egg over the top, and roll in caster sugar. Slightly prove, and bake in a moderate oven.

(7) The following receipt is that generally preferred by the famous William Gunter: Bub £lb. of butter into lib. of flour, and add five beaten eggs and 1 teacupful of yeast. Having well mixed the whole of these ingredients in a large pan, put it in a warm place to prove, and when sufficiently risen add lb. of finely-powdered sugar and loz. of powdered caraway-seeds well mixed in. Boll out, and shape into little cakes, and bake on buttered tins in a hot oven. Sift a little powdered loaf sugar on top, and stick on a few caraway comfits before putting the tins in the oven.

BATH CAKES. — See Cakes.

BATH CHAPS. — This somewhat fanciful title appears to have no definite meaning so far as the name of the city is concerned. It is only natural to associate it in some way or other with the fashionable wateringplace; but there are no authentic records that we know of to connect smoked chaps with Bath. They form,

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Bath Chaps — continued.

however, a very delicious breakfast-dish when boiled or baked, and are prepared as follows:

Select cheeks from pigs not weighing more than 8 score. To each stone of chaps mix lib. each of coarse sugar and bayor rock-salt, and loz. each of pepper and saltpetre. Bub well daily for a week; turn in the pickle for another fortnight; wipe dry. Coat with coarse oatmeal warmed in an oven, and hang up to dry for a week, and then put in a smoke-house for a month. See Cueing.

Bath Chaps are best cooked by boiling, after soaking in water for a few hours. They do not require more than an hour or three-quarters of sharp cooking, according to size, and should then be allowed to cool a bit in the liquor, after which skin and sprinkle with raspings of crust, or crushed baked breadcrumbs.

BATH OLIVER BISCUITS. — See Biscuits.

BATH PIPE. — Tbis sweetmeat is a great favourite in all families as a sedative in cases of irritable cough. It is easily made, and the following is an excellent receipt for it:

Put 3oz. of gum dragon into a basin of water; allow it to soak for a day, and then rub it through a sieve. Put lqt. of this gum mucilage into a basin with joz. of oil of aniseed and 21b. of extract of liquorice made into a solution, and work in sufficient finely-crushed and sifted loaf sugar to form a very stiff paste. Pull off a small piece, roll it out with the hands until it is of the required thickness, then roll it out again with a board, pressing it very slightly and evenly, so as to have the pipe of an equal thickness all over, and with a smooth surface. Arrange these pipes on a sieve, put them in the hot closet to dry, take them out when done, and they are ready for use.

BATH POLONIES. — See Polonies.

BATH PUDDING— See Puddings.

A

BATONS.— This is the name given by French confectioners to what would be termed generally in this country “sugar sticks.” There are several receipts given for them.

Milanese Batons. – — Put £lb. of flour on a marble slab, make a hole in the centre, and mix in 5oz. of loaf sugar crushed and sifted, 1 table-spoonful of vanilla sugar, two eggs, and a small quantity of salt. Work well until the mixture is quite elastic, then divide it into twenty-four parts of equal size. Put these on a floured board, and roll them out into thin sticks. As soon as this is done, put them on a baking-sheet, pressing down the ends to keep the sticks straight while baking. Place in a moderate oven, and bake for about eight minutes. Take them out when done, and put in tins for future use.

BATON DE JACOB. — A little French cake of an oblong shape, made of a spongy character, in two halves, hollowed, into which flavoured cream is put before fastening the two halves together. The tops are often covered with chocolate icing, or other kinds of different flavour and colours.

BATTEBi. — A mixture of flour, water, milk, and eggs is so called from the amount of “ battering,” or beating, required to mix it. French cooks have no definite name for this mixture, although it is frequently used by them in preparing English and some foreign dishes.

Batter holds a very important position in British cookery, as is testified by the variety of receipts given hereunder; and in some parts of England, especially in Yorkshire, it is so highly esteemed that scarcely a dinner is provided at which it does not appear in some form or other. For frying purposes, Batter is sometimes better than, or preferred to, the old-fashioned egg-andbreadcrumb dressing — due in a measure, perhaps, to the simplicity of its application; but, excepting in rare cases, the egg-and-breadcrumb results are considered by good cooks to be more satisfactory and refined. As a paste I for puddings, it is capable of a great variety of adaptations,

Sauces, kc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENG YGL0PTED1A OF PRAGTTGAL COOKERY.

Batter — continued.

and enters in modified forms into the composition of several famous dislies, such as Muffins and Crumpets, Pancakes, Pikelets, Toad-in-the-Hole, Yorkshire Pudding, and others, to which headings special reference may be made.

Batter can he used in preparing many dishes in which Cold meats are warmed up again, or rechauffes, as they are styled. A nice mince of any meat, bound together with egg, rolled in slices of cooked bacon, then dipped in Batter, and fried in hot fat, makes a toothsome cromesky. Fish fillets served in the same way and fried are nice, and so are fillets of cold rabbit or chicken.

The following receipts, gathered from several sources, are practical and good:

Baked Batter Pudding. — Take two eggs, 2 table-spoonfuls of flour, 1 table-spoonful of butter, and 1 breakfast-cupful of milk. Put the butter in a basin, beat to a cream before the fire, beat in the eggs, add a little white sugar and a few drops of essence of lemon. Put in the flour and milk, and beat all together. Pour the mixture into a buttered shallow dish, or saucer, and bake in a sharp oven for twenty minutes or so. If cooked in saucers, they should be doubled over when turned out, and sugar placed between and over them.

Baked or Boiled Batter Pudding. — A good authority tells us that the great secret of making a light Batter Pudding is that the flour should be mixed thoroughly with water before adding the milk. The yolks and whites of the eggs also should be beaten separately.

Take Mb. of fine flour, and work it smooth, pouring in 1 gill of cold water; add by degrees 1 pint of milk, 1 pinch of salt, and the yolks of two eggs. Have a sufficiently large basin, oil it well with butter, and when ready to receive the pudding, beat up the whites of the eggs to a froth, and stir them into the Batter. Pour into the basin, cover with a cloth tied tight, and boil for an-liour-and-aquarter. If preferred, this pudding can be baked, and then

1 teaspoonful of baking-powder stirred in quickly just before baking will make it nice and light. Or put loz. of butter, lard, or clarified beef-suet into a tart-dish or bakingtin, and let it get very hot; then put in the Batter, and bake sharply for forty minutes or so.

Baked Batter Pudding with Pruit. — One pint of milk,

2 piled breakfast-cupfuls of flour, four eggs, 1 table-spoonful of butter, 1 teaspoonful of salt, 1 pint of fruit, pared and quartered (apples, apricots, or peaches are best). Beat the eggs well with a spoon, and add the milk to them. Add this mixture by degrees to the flour, and beat to a light smooth Batter. Sprinkle in the fruit, and pour into a greased baking-dish. Bake for half-an-hour, and serve very hot with a good wine or sweet sauce.

Baked Batter Pudding with. Marmalade. — Make a Batter of two eggs, 1 pint of milk, 6 table-spoonfuls of flour, and 1 pinch of salt. Line a pie-dish with orange marmalade or other preserve, pour the Batter into the dish, bake about forty minutes in a quick oven, turn out, and serve. Minced apples, flavoured with essence of lemon, mixed in the Batter make a very good dish.

Batter for Basting. — Put 2 table-spoonfuls of flour into a basin, and mix in two whole eggs and one yolk, 2 dessertspoonfuls of salad-oil, and a small quantity of salt. Stir in sufficient milk to make a thin paste, and it is ready for use. Hare when about half roasted should be basted with this, and is a great improvement; but the paste must be kept quite thin, or the effect will be lost.

Batter Bread. — (1) An American food held in great esteem. Break two eggs into a bowl, and beat to a stiff froth. Pour in 1 teacupful of buttermilk, 1 teacupful of water, 1 teacupful of corn-meal, the same quantity of fine flour, teaspoonful of salt, 1 heaped teaspoonful of butter melted before the fire, and beat all well together. Have eight or ten muffin-moulds already heated on a baking-sheet. Grease them well with a piece of rag or paper dipped in lard, fill each one nearly full with the Batter, first sifting and stirring into it teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda. Set in a hot oven, and bake until they assume a light brown

Batter — continued.

colour. New milk may be used instead of buttermilk-andwater, and then add another egg, but omit the bicarbonate of soda.

(2) Take 4 teacupfuls of corn-flour, 2 teacupfuls of sweet milk, four eggs, 2 table-spoonfuls of flour, 1 table-spoonful of lard, 1 teaspoonful of salt, teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, and proceed as in No. 1.

(3) Take 1 teacupful of corn-flour or flour, 1 teacupful of sweet milk, 1 teacupful of butter-milk, two eggs, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 table-spoonful of flour, £ teaspoonful of salt, and the same quantity of bicarbonate of soda. Bake in moulds, as in No. 1, or cups.

Batter Cakes. — (1) Beat two eggs well into 1 teacupful of milk, and add it gradually to 1 pint of flour, with which 1 teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda has been mixed, also salt to taste. When they are ready to be baked, take 1 teaspoonful of tartaric acid, and having dissolved it in 1 tablespoonful of water, woi’k in quickly and thoroughly; then lay the cakes on a greased baking-sheet, and put into a quick oven until brown.

(2) Mix 1 pint of cream, 1 pint of sour milk or butter-milk, four eggs, 1 tcaspoonful of salt, sufficient bicarbonate of soda to neutralise the acidity of the milk, and 3 pints of sifted flour, or enough to make a stiff Batter. Stir these well together, and bake in a deep dish. If for griddle cakes, the Batter may be made a little thinner, by not adding so much flour. To bo served with butter and sugar, and eaten hot for tea or breakfast.

Batter Cakes with Bread. — Take 4 pressed teacupfuls of fine breadcrumbs, 1 teacupful of flour, 2 teacupfuls of buttermilk, one egg, a little salt, and 1 tcaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda. Let the breadcrumbs be very small. Pour the buttermilk over them, and let it remain sufficiently long to soften, then mix in the flour, egg, and soda, and proceed as for Batter Cakes with Bice. If butter-milk cannot be obtained, use water, with 1 teaspoonful of baking-powder.

Batter Cakes with Klice. — Take 1 teacupful of thoroughlywashed and cleansed large rice, and boil in 1 pint of water, in a saucepan with the lid close on. Cold boiled rice will do quite as well. Warm £ pint of milk, and mash the rice up with it, using a little of the milk at a time, and work with a spoon until quite smooth. Add 4 table-spoonfuls of flour, 1 teaspoonful of baking-powder, and a large pinch of salt, working in with two well-beaten eggs and 2 table-spoonfuls of golden syrup. Leave covered with a cloth in a warm place for a short time, and then cut off and shape pieces the size of a small fist into flat, round cakes, and bake on a griddle. These make nice teacakes, cut open, and buttered hot.

Batter Cakes with Yeast and without Eggs. — (1) Take 1 breakfast- cupful of flour, ) pint of water or milk, breakfastcupful of yeast, 2 table-spoonfuls each of melted lard and golden syrup, and a little salt, mixing all well together. Set this Batter in a warm place in the morning, having kept it in the cool all night, and let it rise ready to cook for breakfast. Beat well with the rolling-pin, and make into cakes for baking.

(2) Put 3 breakfast-cupfuls of flour into a bowl; pour in 2 breakfast-cupfuls of lukewarm water and 1 teacupful of yeast; mix well, and set it to rise in a warm place. Add 1 tablespoonful each of melted lard and syrup, and 1 teaspoonful of salt. Beat well with a spoon, divide the Batter into cakes, bake them in a moderate oven, and serve.

Batter-cream Soup. — Put 4 or 5 table-spoonfuls of flour into a saucepan, and pour in sufficient water to make a very thick Batter. Add four or five eggs, beat them well in, pour over the required quantity of well-strained and highly-seasoned boiling broth, stir well over the fire for a few minutes, pour the whole into a tureen, and serve very hot.

Batter Flannel Cakes. — Put 4 breakfast-cupfuls of flour into a basin, and mix in 1 teacupful of yeast and 4 breakfast-cupfuls of warm water. Let this remain in a warm place for eight or ten hours; then add 1 table-spoonful of syrup, ljoz- of melted lard, two eggs, and 1 pinch of salt. Boll this paste out on a floured board, after it has risen again, cut it into shapes, put these in a moderate oven, and bake until done. Take them out, and serve.

Batter for Fritters. — Make a smooth Batter by mixing Mb. of flour with 1 breakfast-cupful of water, and beating in,

For details respecting Culinary Processes. Utensils, Sauces, Jcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

87

Batter — continu ed.

adding gradually, 2oz. of hot butter. When these are incorporated, beat in lightly the -whites of two eggs, whipped to a froth, and the Batter is ready for use.

Batter for Frying. — (1) Stir with a fork 1 pint of water, or milk, gradually into a well, formed in 1 breakfast-cupful of flour, allowing the water to take up the flour by degrees, and keeping fluid all the time by adding more liquid as fast as the stirring thickens. Add 1 table -spoonful of olive oil, 1 teaspoonful of salt, and wineglassful of brandy, beating together thoroughly until quite smooth. When about to use for frying, beat an egg to a froth, and mix with the above. Dip the things to be fried into the Batter so that their surfaces are equally and thoroughly covered with it; and to insure this, dry first by dabbing with a cloth.

(2) Provence. — Mix in a basin lib. of flour, the yolks of two eggs, 4 table-spoonfuls of fine oil, and sufficient cold water to form the flour into a thin paste, working it with a wooden spoon until quite smooth, and add 1 pinch of salt and the well-whipped whites of two eggs. It is essential that the fat for frying should be quite hot for this Batter; for should it not be sufficiently so, the paste will soften, and the dish look poor, instead of crisp and firm.

(3) Dutch. — This is prepared precisely the same as No. 2, except that 1 pint of good strong beer is used for moistening instead of water.

Por frying sweet things, such as apple fritters, substitute 1 table spoonful of sugar for the salt; or use the following:

Batter for Frying 1 Sweet Things. — Take breakfast- cupful of milk, one egg, 2 table-spoonfuls of warmed broth, 1 tablespoonful of golden syrup, 1 breakfast-cupful of flour, and teaspoonful of baking-powder. Mix the baking-powder and flour together, and put them with the other ingredients into a pan, the flour last. Add 1 pinch of salt, and work well with a spoon until the Batter is quite smooth. It should be thin enough to coat whatever is dipped in it, clinging in lumps like paste.

Batter for Frying Vegetables.— Mix the required quantity of flour with water to the consistency of cream, then add a small quantity of salt, 1 table-spoonful of olive oil, and H table-spoonfuls of brandy. Beat thoroughly, and a few minutes before using it add the white of an egg beaten to a froth.

Batter Pudding (Small).— Put the yolks of eight and the whites of five eggs into a basin, and beat them up well with lb- of moist sugar. Beat 4oz. of butter that has been melted, in pint of cream and 4oz. of flour. Butter some breakfast-cups, sprinkle a few well-washed currants at the bottom of them, pour the Batter in, and bake for twenty minutes. These are sometimes called “blackcaps.”

Batter Bolls. — Beat the whites of six eggs to a froth, mix with them the yolks, well beaten, and 2 table-spoonfuls of flour previously mixed with 1 pints of milk, and make with this a Batter. Put a piece of butter in an omelet-pan, and when it is hot, turn in the Batter, and fry both sides. Mask it with jam, roll it, dust caster sugar over, and serve hot.

Boiled Batter Pudding. — Stir fast-cupful of flour with £ teaspoonful of salt; beat up two eggs, and mix with 1 pint of new milk; make a well in the flour in a large basin, and add the egg and milk gradually, stirring briskly until there are no lumps. Let the Batter stand a short time to set. Butter a pudding-basin, and pour the Batter into it; tie this over tightly and securely with a floured cloth, and put it into a saucepan of boiling water to boil. Move the saucepan backwards and forwards sharply every now and then after the pudding is first put in — this will prevent the flour settling at the bottom rather more than one hour, tl

up in a basin 1 piled break

Fig. 94. Boiled Batter Pudding (Mode of Tying Cloth over Mould).

of the basin. Let it boil for en turn it out, and serve very i

Batter — continued.

hot, with either wine or sweet sauce; or mask it with orange, apple and quince, or apricot marmalade.

Clabber Batter Cakes.— Sift the required quantity of flour into a basin, and pour in sufficient clabber, or milk curdled by souring, to make it of the proper consistence. Mix in a small quantity each of bicarbonate of soda and salt, form the Batter into cakes, cook them on the griddle over the fire, and they are ready for use.

Gratinated Batter. — Pour lqt. of warm milk into a basin, mix in 5oz. of flour, strain through a fine sieve into a saucepan, and stir over a good fire until it thickens; as soon as it commences to boil, remove it to the side, and mix in 2 table-spoonfuls of sugar, a little yeast, and a small pinch of salt. Let the Batter cook in this way for a quarter-of-anhour, by which time it should be quite thick and consistent. Turn about a fourth of this Batter into another saucepan, and thicken it quickly on the fire; when quite thick, take off the pan, work in the yolks of three or four eggs, and let this cool. Boil or simmer the remainder of the Batter for about forty-five minutes, adding from time to time a little warm milk to lighten it, as it must be quite light and free from grains. Well butter a baking-sheet, pour over a thin layer of the egg Batter, brown and dry it in a slack oven; take it out, cut it up into pieces, and remove them from the sheet by pushing a knife-blade under them. Pour the other mixture into a deep dish, cover with the pieces, and serve. Schwarn Batter. — Mix a little sugar, salt, and grated lemonpeel with Jib. of flour, adding the beaten yolks of four eggs and sufficient milk or cream to make it the consistency of thick Batter. Whisk the whites of the four eggs to a stiff froth, then stir them into the Batter. Put 2 table-spoonfuls of butter into a saucepan, and when melted pour in the Batter, put the lid on, and leave till the Batter is lightly browned at the bottom; then break it up with a fork, and leave it till set and browned again. Turn the Batter out, tear it lightly into small pieces, put it into a hot dish, pour some stewed fruit over it, and serve at once.

BATVINA, or BATUINIA.— This is the name of a Russian soup which has the unusual characteristic of being served cold. Although the mode of spelling varies somewhat according to different authorities, it is probable that the two ways given are pronounced in Russia very much the same. Dubois gives for its preparation a receipt somewhat as follows:

Blanch separately 4 handfuls of well-washed spinach and 2 handfuls of sorrel. Boil and drain them, and then press them through a sieve to make a puttie. Mix them together in a large kitchen basin, and moisten with lqt. of kislichi, a kind of sourish beer, made in Russia, in some respects resembling cider, and foaming like champagne. To this mixture add £ teaspoonful of moist sugar, and when that is stirred in, pour the whole into a silver stewpan, and keep the contents simmering by the side of the fire for a time, and then set it on the ice. Pick out five or six dozen crayfish tails, cut into thin slices a piece of braised sturgeon, and another of cold boiled salmon. Lay these on a dish. Pare two or three salted gherkins, and cut them into small squares. Garnish round the dish with little piles of these, and a tuft of scraped horseradish at each side or end. Put a few pieces of ice in the soup, and serve with the fish and garnish.

BAVARIAN’ BBBR. — According to some authorities, there is more beer consumed in Bavaria in proportion to the population than in any other country in the world. The average beer brewed is not of a very high alcoholic character, and is said to obtain some of its characteristic flavour from the pitch used to line the casks. Beer brewed from wheat — white beer — is monopolised by the Duke of Bavaria, who has established a Royal white-beer brewery.

BAVARIAN CREAMS. — A great variety of these are to be found under the name of Bavakoises, to which reference must be made for receipts for their preparation.

BAVARIAN SAUCE. — See Sauces.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, doc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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TITE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

BAVAROISES. — This name was first applied to drinks that were composed of tea, coffee, or chocolate, to which capillaire syrup was added instead of sugar. During a visit of certain Bavarian princes to Paris at the beginning of the last century, they frequently took tea at the Cafe Procope. This tea was served to them at them request in crystal vessels, and instead of sugar they sweetened it with capillaire syrup, from which circumstance these drinks have obtained the name “ Bavaroises.” Modern cooks have extended its application, however, to other comestibles prepared with milk, sugar, and the yolks of eggs, and flavoured with fruits, preserves, syrups, and other things, and iced. Gouffe and Dubois were both famous for these handsome dishes, and they have deservedly become general favourites amongst our principal cooks. A very usual name for them is Bavarian Creams, under which heading some of our culinary authors include dishes that do not in any way partake of the distinguishing characteristics of the Bavaroises. As in their preparation considerable skill and culinary tact is required, they are worthy of the highest efforts of our best confectioners; and it will be seen at once that in the matter of mounting, ornamenting, and garnishing, there is no limit to the display of artistic ability that may be exercised in this alone, without taking into consideration the opportunity they offer for exhibiting taste in manipulating flavours. They are mostly prepared according to the following mode, admitting of considerable variation, especially with regard to the shape of the mould.

Fruit Bavaroise with Cream. — Set a plain charlottemould on ice, and decorate it inside with any small fruit that is in season, dipping this into liquid jelly to make it adhere to the mould. Pour over the fruit a little more of the jelly so as to cover it, but taking care not to disturb it or prevent it showing when turned out. When the jelly is set, insert in the mould a smaller one, about ljin. less in diameter. Fill the cavity between the two moulds with more of the jelly and fruit, and when these have set and are quite firm, carefully remove the inner mould by pouring warm water into it. Fill the centre of the larger mould with strawberry or any kind of cream, and let it remain until it is set. Turn the Bavaroise out of the mould on to a dish, loosening it by damping the mould with a hot cloth or dipping it into warm water. Decorate the edge at the top of the Bavaroise with diamond-shaped pieces of angelica about lin. in length, and in the centre of these pile a little well-whipped cream, sprinkled over with finely-shred pistachiokernels, colour a little more of the cream with a few drops of cochineal, take it up in small quantities with a tea or dessert-spoon, garnish the dish with it, and serve. See Almond, Apple, Apricot, Chocolate, Cocoa, Coepee, Lemon, Maraschino, Orange, Peach, Pine-apple, Pistachio, Punch, Strawberry, &c.;

BAVETTE D’ALOYAU. — French for that part of beef which lies between the sirloin and the flank.

BAVEUX(SE). — The French term for slimy — commonly used to signify a partially-cooked omelette, as

omelette baveuse.

BAY-LEAVES. — These are used by cooks for flavouring; but a prejudice has existed against them for no genuine reason, but probably because the aromatic flavour and odour to some extent resemble bitter almonds. The Bay-tree is a shrub of the Laurel tribe, Laurus nobilis (Fig. 95), and grows freely in this country. The classical epicures of ancient Rome used the leaves to form their crowns of victory and triumph, as well as for culinary purposes; but the Greeks, more chaste in their ideas and less epicurean, consecrated its use to priests as well as heroes, and used it in their sacrifices. They may be gathered in the summer, tied in bunches, and hung up in paper bags to dry; but they give better results if used freshly gathered.

Bay-Leaves — continued.

Bay-leaf Flavouring 1 . — This is made by macerating for ten days Bay-leaves in rectified spirit, sufficient to cover them

Fig. 95 . Leaves, Flower, and Fruit of the Bay-tree.

when tightly packed in a bottle. The clear fluid will he

very resinous, but will give a very fine flavouring.

BAYONNAISE. — See Mayonnaise, for which this word is sometimes erroneously used.

BEACHE-DE-MER. — Sometimes this is written (erroneously) Beche-de-mer. It is a gelatinous mass found on the sand-banks and near the islands of the Chinese Archipelago, and Pacific Ocean, and commonly known as “ sea-pudding.” Along the shores of New Holland it is exceedingly abundant. The Chinese regard it as a great delicacy, and worthy to be set before a king. They cook it in various ways, and frequently add it to soups; but with that eccentric people as an exception, the seapudding is not much eaten.

Soup made from the Beache-de-mer is the turtle soup of China and Fiji, where it is regarded as a royal dish. The mode of cooking is as follows: It is soaked in cold water for an hour, scraped and cleaned, then boiled for eight hours, with some salt. After this it is again soaked for two hours in cold water. It is then boiled again for lialf-an-hour, and meat stock and seasoning added before it is ready for serving.

The Holothuria, or sea-slug, is another variety of the Beache-de-mer, and some thirty or forty kinds are enumerated by those who trade in them — black, white, red, yellow, and other colours — and when parboiled, dried, and smoked, it is a very hard, rigid, untempting-looking, brownish-black substance, which has to be softened by cooking.

BEAU’S. — Of those cultivated in this country for food there are two distinct kinds: the Broad or Windsor ( Faba vulgaris), and the Kidney Bean ( Pliaseolus vulgaris). The Broad Bean has many varieties, all having more or less similar characteristics — whereas the Kidney Bean is of two partly- distinct sorts — the Dwarf and the Runner. For culinary considerations it will be convenient to treat of them as three distinct vegetables, and then we must include the dried Beans of the Kidney species, known as “ Haricots,” the Lima or Butter Bean, and the Brazilian Black Bean, all being eaten as food in the countries where they grow.

Black Beans. — The kind of Beans known under this title are grown chiefly in Central America, and are much esteemed by both Brazilians and Mexicans, who call them Frijoles, and adapt them to various culinary processes, for which other Beans might be used.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, kc., referred to, see under their special heads

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Beans — continued.

Black-Bean Soup. — The night before the soup is made, soak 1 pint of Black Beans in 3qts. of water. On the following morning, drain the water off the Beans and put them into a saucepan with 3qts. of fresh water. When boiling, move the saucepan to the side of the fire and let them simmer for six hours, when the water should be reduced to lqt. Put in with the Beans a bunch of sweet herbs, one large onion, a slice each of carrot and turnip, and a stalk of celery, all of which have been finely chopped and fried in butter. Add a small quantity of whole allspice, cloves, mace, and cinnamon, and pour in lqt. of stock. Put 1 table-spoonful of butter and 1 table-spoonful of flour in a frying-pan, and stir over the fire till brown; then stir it into the soup, and keep it simmering for one hour. Put some slices of lemon in a soup-tureen, pour in the soup, straining it through a fine hair sieve, and serve it with a dish of egg balls.

Boiled Black Beans. — Put 1 pint of these Beans into a basin of water, and soak for about three hours. Then put them into a saucepan of water, and boil for three hours. Take them out, drain them, put them into another saucepan with a few small pieces of bacon, a little each of chutney, mushroom ketchup, anchovy paste, and gravy, and cook well for about balf-an-bour. Turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve with a garnish of boiled rice. In Brazil these Beans are cooked with various sorts of meat.

Broad Beans (Fr. Feves; Gcr. Bolmen; Ital. Gavas; Sp. Habas). — These are grown in almost every kitchen garden or patch, and have a world-wide reputation. They were known as a food to the early Egyptians and Greeks, and were possibly introduced into Britain

by the Romans. They are cultivated in China and Japan, and most parts of Africa, and some of the better kinds are believed to have been transported by the Moors into Spain, and by the Portuguese into their own country. In Barbary these Beans ripen about February, and continue in bearing throughout the whole of the spring. When stewed with oil and flavoured with garlic, they form a food that is highly esteemed by all classes of the natives.

In this country Broad or Windsor Beans are eaten in their fresh state, for when dried they are fit only for feeding horses and fattening pigs for bacon. The flour of Beans is largely used by dishonest millers to adulterate wheat-flour. It was found by Sir Humphrey Davy to contain 570 parts of nourishing matter out of every 1000: this is not so high as wheat, but it contains as a set-off a, much higher percentage of salts, such as potash and lime. The flesh-forming agent of Beans is legumin, or vegetable casein, and this is found in combination with sulphur and phosphorus. Blyth states that “both men and animals can be nourished on Beans alone for some time. Added to rice they form the staple food of large populations.”

In cooking Broad Beans it is as well to remember, as a general precaution, that they should be boiled slowly and for a long time. Old Beans, no matter how long boiled, will not soften; in fact, on prolonged boiling they become harder. As a food, they are digestible in proportion to whether they are young or old: in the latter case, a large proportion passes through the system almost unaltered. As, in any case, they are liable to produce flatulency, it is better always to eat them

For details respecting Culinary

Beans — continued.

with spices and some fatty matter, such as bacon or butter.

•

Boiled Broad Beans. — (1) When young the Beans may simply he boiled in salted water, and served up with parsley and butter. When old, the external skin may be taken off after they have been boiled, and the green part well mashed over a gentle fire, adding butter and a little flour, chopped parsley, pepper, and salt. Parmesan or other cheese, grated over and heated by the salamander, adds materially to the flavour. Some pieces of boiled bacon, cut into shapes, may be set about instead of the cheese.

(2) Shell very young and newly-gathered Beans as nearly as possible of one size. Boil them in plenty of fast-boiling salted water, with a sprig or two of savoury herbs. When boiled soft, drain them, and serve with the following sauce, either in a sauceboat, or poured over them: Mix 2oz. of butter in a saucepan with 1 table-spoonful of flour; add 1 tumblerful of boiling water, pepper and salt to taste, and a handful of finely-chopped parsley. Stir continually whilst cooking, and when the sauce boils it is ready to be served with the Beans.

(3) Boil the Beans in salted water. When nearly done, drain, and stew them in a little sauce, with a bunch of parsley and green onions, a little savoury, chopped very fine, and a small lump of sugar. When they are sufficiently cooked, throw them into a thickening made of the yolks of two eggs beaten up lightly with a little cream. Serve them with a savoury sauce. When the Beans are large, you must skin off the white coats and boil the green bodies in salted water. Cook them as for No. 4, not longer, and serve same way.

(4) (After Soyer).— Take 2qts. of Beans directly they are shelled, and boil them nearly ten minutes in salted water. When done, drain them upon a sieve, and put them into a stewpan. Pour J pint of maitre-d’hotel sauce over them, and add a little chopped tarragon and powdered sugar. Warm up, and serve.

Boiled. Broad Beaus and Bacon. — (1) Put a piece of streaky bacon into a saucepan with sufficient water to cover it, and boil for half-an-hour; then add the required quantity of Beans, and continue to boil until they are done. Take them out, drain them, and serve very hot, either with the bacon or without, as desired.

(2) Take a piece of streaky bacon, or back, and boil it for a couple of hours. When ready to send up, take off the rind, and braise the bacon over the top with a red-hot shovel or salamander. Powder the bacon over with raspings of bread, give it a pleasing shape, and lay it over the Beans, that have been boiled in salted water only, without any sauce. Send up separately in a boat some chopped parsley in melted butter. Beans, when young, are likewise an excellent garnish to a ham; servo them plain round it, and cook them as directed above.

Broad Beans and Cream. — Boil full-grown shelled Broad Beans in salted water, with sprigs of summer savoury. When very nearly or quite done, drain them, peel off their skins (which French cooks call their robes), and put them into a stewpan with a lump of butter the size of a fowl’s egg, a dust of flour, the same of sugar, and a little parsley and summer savoury, chopped very fine. Give them a few minutes’ tossing in this, then add 1 breakfast-cupful of cream. When all is well-heated, take up the Beans, pile them on a hot dish, thicken the cream with yolk of egg, pour it over them, and serve hot.

French or Kidney Beans (Fr. Haricots verts; Ger. Grime Bolmen; Ital. Flaginoli; Sp. Habichuelas, Judias,

Fig. 97. Dwarf or French Bean.

Alubias verdes). — Whether as dwarfs (Fig. 97) or Scarletrunners (Fig. 98), this vegetable has been a favourite of kings for centuries past. The first idea of cultivating the Scarlet-runner was for ladies’ bouquets, on account of the

Processes, Utensils, Sauces, &c.;, referred to, see under their special heads.

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THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

Beaus —continued.

exquisite colour of tlie flower, and it is stated that for more than a hundred years it maintained its ornamental reputation, the pod being unknown as a food until a gardener of Chelsea, named Miller, discovered late in the eighteenth century that it was good to eat. With the exception of the superior quality of the pods of the dwarf Kidney Beans, there is little to choose between the two kinds for flavour.

Fig. 98. Scarlet-runner Bean.

The varieties of each kind cultivated by market and private gardeners are more numerous than useful so far as the quality of the vegetable is concerned; it is only necessary in purchasing to see that they are young, crisp, and juicy. They become limp and had to cook very soon after gathering. The term kidney is applied to this vegetable on account of the shape of the Bean.

Always select those with smooth skins, and which will break across easily and clean without hanging by a shred. Wash them, cut off both ends, and pull away the strings at the edges, then cut them slantingly across (Fig. 100) — not in long shreds, or they will lose all their flavour in the cooking.

Boiled French Beans. — (1) Take 2qts. of fresh tender Beans, break off the tops and bottoms carefully, string’ both sides, and pare both edges neatly; wash them well in cold water, and drain. Place them in boiling salted water, and cook for twenty-five minutes. Drain again, and return them to cold water, letting them get thoroughly cool. Lift them out, and dry. They are now ready to use when required for salads or any other purpose.

(2) String 2qts. of Beans; if too large cut them lengthwise in halves, and cook them in water with salt and butter; drain, and place them in a saucepan with loz. of butter; add 1 teaspoonful of parsley and the same of chopped chives. Cook for five minutes longer, and when done, thicken the gravy with breakfast-cupful of cream, the yolks of two eggs, and the juice of a lemon. Mix well together for two minutes, and serve.

French Beans for Garnishing 1 . — Select a few large, young, and fresh French Beans, cut them across to form diamondshapes (see Fig. 99), and boil them in salted water. When

Fig 99. How to Cut French Beans into Diamonds for Garnishing.

done, drain them on a sieve, and put them into a saute-pan with some butter for a few minutes. They are then ready for use.

French Beans Plain-boiled.— (1) Cut the Beans into thin shreds, removing the ends. They should bo quite young, and fresh gathered. Throw them into boiling water with a piece of common soda the size of a small nut, and boil from ten to twenty minutes, according to the age of the Beans. They should be piled on a strainer, and served without sauce. They may also be boiled whole, when the flavour is decidedly better, none of the juice being lost by bleeding from the cut surfaces.

Beans — continued.

(2) The nice flavour of this vegetable depends on its freshness and the mode of cooking. It is better not to cut them, but simply to take off the tops and tails, pull away the thin stringy strip at each side of the Bean, and then wash them, but do not leave them in the water. Throw them into a saucepan of boiling water, salted with 1 tablespoonful of salt to each igall. of water, and boil quickly with the lid off until they are quite tender. Drain in a colander or sieve until all the water has run from them, then pile on a vegetable dish, and put several pieces of fresh butter over and about them.

(3) Pick the Beans carefully over, wash, and throw them into fast-boiling salted water, and boil in an uncovered stewpan until tender. Drain, and put them again into a stewpan with a large piece of butter and a squeeze of lemon-juice added. Toss about over the fire for a few minutes, and then serve.

(4) Cut enough young Beans into long shreds (see Fig. 100) to fill a large dish. Have a stewpan with lgall. of water, into which you have put £lb. of salt. When boiling, put in the Beans, which must boil very fast until tender.

When done, strain, put a layer of them upon the dish, with bits of butter all over them, and sprinkle with pepper and salt; then put on more Beans, and proceed as before, till you have formed a pyramid of them; then serve very hot.

(5) Pick and wash lib. of French Beans, and put them into a gallon stewpan, with 3qts. of boiling water and 1 pinch of salt; boil till tender. Gouffe gives the following receipt for a sauce to serve them in: Put in a 2qt. stewpan loz. of butter and loz. of flour; stir over the fire for three minutes, and add 3 gills of water and 1 pinch of salt; boil for ten minutes; thicken with two yolks of eggs and oz. of butter. Drain the Beans, put them in the sauce, with J table-spoonful of chopped parsley, mix, and serve. These Beans will retain their colour if boiled on a sharp fire, with plenty of water, in an uncovered stewpan, and a small quantity of salt only in the water.

(G) Boil in plenty of salted water over a sharp fire, that they may retain their green colour. Cut some onions into slices, and fry them a fine brown colour; take 2 tablespoonfuls of Spanish sauce, and work into it 1 dessertspoonful of fresh butter warmed. After draining the onions and Beans, pour them into the sauce, keep stirring, season them well with salt and a little pepper, and serve up hot all together.

French Beans a l’Angdaise. — Blanch and cook the Beans as for Boiled French Beans, keep them warm and of a light green colour, place them on a hot dish, pour over them 1 gill of melted butter, sprinkle a little chopped parsley on top, and serve very hot.

French Beans a la Bretonne. — Cut a medium-sized onion into dice-shaped pieces, and place these in a saucepan with ljoz. of butter; let it get a golden colour on the stove for five minutes, and add 1 table-spoonful of flour. Stir well, and moisten it with 1 pint of white broth. Stir well again, until it comes to a boil, and season with pinch each of salt and pepper; add the cooked Beans, with a clove of crushed garlic, to the sauce, cook for ten minutes, place on a hot dish, sprinkle 1 teaspoonful of chopped parsley over it, and serve.

French Beans with Cream. — (1) Prepare 3 breakfastcupfuls or so of French Beans, put them into a saucepan of slightly-salted water, and boil until tender. In the meantime put the yolks of three eggs into a basin, and beat them up with 2 table-spoonfuls of cream; add 2oz. of warm butter, beat well, pour the mixture into a saucepan on the fire, and when it is very hot mix in 1 or 2 table-spoonfuls . of vinegar, together with the Beans; after they have been

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred, to, see under their special heads.

TIIE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.

91

Beans — continued.

drained, remove the pan to the side of the fire, and steam them gently for six or seven minutes, stirring constantly. When done, turn the preparation out on to a dish, and serve at once.

(2) Put 2qt.s. of blanched Beans into a saucepan with loz. of butter, and cook on the stove for five minutes, tossing them well. Season with i pinch of salt, the same of pepper, and add bunch of chives, and two sprigs of parsley tied together. Pour in ij breakfast-cupful of cream or milk, diluted with the yolks of two eggs. Heat well, without boiling, for five minutes. Then serve as a hors d’oeuvre or entremet. Sugar may be added with advantage, if desired.

French Beans with Garlic.— Boil the Beans in slightlysalted water until they are tender. Take two small pieces of garlic which have been crushed on the dresser with a wooden spoon, and mix them with a little fresh butter. Drain quite dry, and then stir in lightly the garlic with £lb. of butter, and keep stirring the Beans till the whole is well combined. Mix some fine herbs, such as parsley and shallots, chopped fine, or green onions, with the above, and pour over them a little olive oil. Continue the stirring, and then the oil will form a paste. Season it well, and add the juice of a lemon. Servo up hot and quickly, that the oil may not drop through.

French Beans with Gravy.— Put 1 pint or so of cold, cooked French Beans into a saucepan with a little chopped parsley and onions, fried in butter, season to taste with salt and pepper, and toss them over the fire for about ten minutes. Now pour in sufficient stock and gravy from roasted meat to moisten, cook gently for fifteen minutes, skim out the Beans and put them on a dish. Add the yolks of two or three eggs to the gravy to thicken it, pour it over the Beans, and serve very hot.

French Beans with Parsley and Butter. — Put about 2oz. of butter into a saucepan, sprinkle in a few chopped, green parsley leaves, and about lqt. of French Beans, stir well until the butter is melted, the Beans are coated with it, and the parsley is equally spread over them. Cover over the pan, cook gently on the side of the fire for fifteen or twenty minutes, and serve.

French Beans a la Ponlette. — (1) Prepare and boil the Beans as before, and when done drain them quite dry, put them into a stewpan with £ pint of bechamel sauce, 6 table-spoonfuls of stock, pepper, salt, 1 teaspoonful of caster sugar, a bunch of small green onions, and parsley, and stew gently for ten minutes; take out the bunch, add 1 tcaspoonful of chopped parsley, and finish with a liaison of two yolks of eggs mixed with 1 gill of cream; stir this in quickly, and when it begins to thicken, it is ready to serve.

(2) Prepare the required quantity of young French Beans by stringing them or removing the fibres; wash them thoroughly, put them into a saucepan of boiling water, and boil them. When done, strain off the water, add a little warm butter, well seasoned with chopped parsley and chives, toss the pan over the fire for a few minutes, mix in a little flour and salt, pour in a sufficient quantity of stock to moisten, reduce quickly, and add the yolks of eggs to thicken. When done, remove the saucepan from the fire, squeeze in a, little lemonjuice, turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve.

French-Bean Salad. — (1) Blanch some French Beans, cut up into diamond-shaped pieces, let them cool, and drain thoroughly; mix them up with salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, and a little ravigote sauce, turn the salad into a croustade made of paste, and serve cold.

(2) Take lqt. of cooked French Beans; place them in a

salad-bowl, seasoning with 1 pinch of salt, £ pinch of pepper, and sprinkle over 1 pinch of chopped parsley; add 3 tablespoonfuls of vinegar, and 2 table-spoonfuls of oil, and mix all well together with a wooden spoon before serving.

French Beans with Salted Herrings. — This is a much esteemed German dish, and is very easily prepared. Slice lengthwise a few handfuls of tender French Beans, put them into a saucepan and moisten to half their height with white broth. Bring the liquor to the boil, remove the pan to a moderate fire, and finish cooking the Beans. When they are done and the liquor is well reduced, season with salt,

Beans — continued.

pepper, and pounded dry or chopped fresh savoury, add a thickening of butter, turn the whole out on a dish, and keep hot. Well wash two or three salted herrings, cut off their heads, skin them and cut them up into slices, slightly slanting. Spread a dish over with vino-leaves, arrange the herrings in their original forms on top, and serve at the same time as the Beans.

French. Beans Sautes in Butter. — Take £qt. of fine French Beans, parboil them in boiling and slightly-salted water for one-and-a-half minutes, drain them on a colander, and place them immediately in a saucepan on a hot stove with loz. of butter; season with 1 teaspoonful of salt, and shuffle lightly with a wooden spoon while cooking for three minutes. When ready add teaspoonful of finely-chopped parsley; place them on a hot dish, and serve.

Mixed Beans Fanaclies. — Place pint of cooked blanched French Beans and the same quantity of Scarlet-runners or Lima Beans in a saute-pan with ljoz. of butter, season with pinch each of salt and pepper, toss them well while cooking for five minutes, place them on a hot dish, sprinkle over a pinch of chopped parsley, and serve.

Pickled French Beans.— (1) For this, the Beans should bo gathered before they are stringy, and the stalk-end should not be cut off. Put the required quantity into a basin of brine — which must bo very strong — and let them remain until they turn yellow. Take out and drain them, put them into a jar, pour over boiling water, cover over to prevent the steam escaping, and let them remain for a day. Drain off the water and repeat the process for four days, by which time the Beans will turn green again. Turn them, without the water, into a jar, add a little bruised ginger and a few peppercorns, pour over hot vinegar to cover them, and in a day or two they will be ready for use.

(2) Put the French Beans into a bowl together with ‘sufficient brine to cover them, and let them remain for a day; boil up the brine and pour it over them, continuing this for ten days, and then leave them for two or three weeks before boiling again. Put them into fresh water to soak out the salt, changing it frequently until they are sufficiently fresh; then put them into an iron vessel, with sufficient vinegar to cover them, and keep them on the side of the fire until the liquor is nearly boiling. Take them out, put them into another vessel, cover with more cold vinegar, and add a seasoning of mustard-seed, olive oil, green pepper pods, horseradish, allspice, ginger, mace, and cloves, mixing in lib. of moist sugar to each gallon of vinegar. In a few days the Beans will be fit for use.

Flageolets. — This is a term used for French Beans in their second stage — that is, before the shells are too old to be eaten, and the Beans inside are green and like peas. They can be cooked in the same way as green peas; but if they are in cans or preserved, they must be well washed and dried on a cloth before being used.

Haricot Beans (Fr. Haricots blancs; Ger. Weisse Bohnen). — These are simply the dried seeds of the Kidney Bean, of which the white variety, whether large (runner) or small (dwarf) are usually selected for cooking. The reason of this selection is chiefly for the sake of appearance, there being little or no difference in the nutritive and culinary qualities of red or white. Before purchasing these Beans, it is advisable to snap one through, when the kernel being exposed will enable you to judge by its colour and general quality whether they are this year’s Beans or last. New Beans only are fit for cooking or eating — those of another year, whilst probably answering the purpose of seed, are so hardened by keeping that they are not only difficult to soften, but indigestible when served. The meal resembles that of the dried Broad Bean in some particulars, but differs in that it is much more delicately flavoured. Baked Haricot Beans.— Wash lqt. of Beaus, put them into a basin with sufficient cold water to cover them, and let them soak for ten or twelve hours. Strain off the water, put the Beans in a saucepan, cover them with boiling water, put 21b. of corned beef or pork into the saucepan with them, and boil until the Beans begin to split open. It will take from halfan-hour to an hour, according to the age of the Beans. Take

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Beans — continued.

out the meat, turn the Beans into a sieve, and pour over several quarts of cold water. Put half of them into a deep earthenware pot, called a Bean-pot, place the meat on them, scoring the rind of pork if it is used, and cover over with the remainder of the Beans. Add 1 teaspoonful of mustard and 1 table-spoonful of molasses mixed in a little water, and pour over sufficient boiling water to cover the Beans. Put the pot into a moderate oven, and bake slowly for ten hours, adding a little water occasionally as required. When done, turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve.

Boiled Haricot Beans. — (1) Soak the Beans required in cold water all night; then put them in cold water with salt enough to cover them, and let them simmer until they are tender, which may be some two hours or more. Strain off the water, and leave them to steam until wanted. Serve hot with parsley and butter. The water in which the Beans were boiled makes good soup. Or they may be put into a large earthenware jar and seasoned with pepper and salt, with sufficient water added to cover them. A few slices of fat bacon on the Beans is very much liked by some. Bake three hours in a fairly hot oven.

(2) Boil as above (No. 1) till quite tender, then drain, and put them at once into a stewpan, with some fresh butter, chopped parsley, salt, pepper, and a little lemon-juice; toss them well, and serve very hot.

Boiled Haricot Beans with Capsicum Butter. — Put the

required quantity of Beans into a saucepan of water over the fire, and boil them. When they are done, take them out, drain, and put them into another saucepan with some capsicum butter, and toss them over the fire for a few minutes. When done, put them on a dish, and serve.

Fricassee of White Haricot Beans. — Blanch and skin lqt. of freshly-gathered White Kidney Beans, put them into a saucepan with 1 breakfast-cupful of water or veal broth, and add a small bunch of sweet herbs, a little each of mace, grated nutmeg, salt, and pepper, and 1 wineglassful of white wine. Cover over the saucepan, and cook gently for fifteen minutes; then remove the bunch of sweet herbs, and add a small lump of butter kneaded with flour, tossing it about in the pan until it is dissolved and the liquor thick. Put the yolks of two eggs in a basin, pour in 1 breakfast-cupful of cream, and beat well together; add them to the saucepan, and shake it in one direction until the liquor is quite thick and smooth. Remove the pan from the fire, add the juice of half a lemon, turn the fricassee on to a hot dish, and serve. If dried Beans are used, they must be soaked in salted water for ten or twelve hours, and then boiled until they are tender, when the skins will easily come off.

Fried Haricot Beans. – — Cold Beans are nice warmed up in the following manner: Put 1 breakfast- cupful of dripping into a stewpan, and let it heat to a froth; then put in some of the Beans, with a very little chopped sage, and toss them about with a wooden spoon till they are a pale gold colour. Remove them from the fat, and put to warm whilst more are cooking; let them all drain for a minute or two, adding pepper and salt to taste, and serve hot.

Haricot Beans and Boiled Pork. — Take a suitable piece of salt pork, score the skin, and boil for half-an-hour. To each pound of meat take lqt. of Beans that have been soaked over night in soft water. Put them on

to boil in cold water, and when they are soft drain off the water thoroughly, and having set the pork in a deep dish on a layer of the Beans, cover it nearly over with the remainder, adding 1 breakfast-cupful of warm water. Bake a nice brown. A dessert-spoonful of moist sugar mixed with the Beans before placing them in the dish, is considered by many to be a genuine improvement.

Haricot Beaus a la Maxtre d’Hotel. — For this dish it is best to have the Beans fresh shelled, of which about lqt. will be sufficient for a dish. Boil 3qts. of water, with 3 pinches of salt, in a gallon stewpan; when boiling, throw in the Beans, and simmer gently for two or three hours, or until they are done — which can be ascertained by pressing one between the fingers, when it should crush easily. Drain them, and put them back into the emptied stewpan. Mix ioz. of flour with loz. of butter to a smooth paste, divide it in small pieces, and add these to the Beans, with 1 salt

Beans — continued.

spoonful of salt, 1 pinch of pepper, 1 table-spoonful of chopped parsley, and .j teacupful of the liquor in which the Beans have been boiled. Toss the Beans till the stock thickens, and then serve hot.

Haricot Beans and Marrow. — Put the required quantity of -Haricot Beans into a saucepan of salted water over the fire, and boil them. Take them out, drain, put them into a saucepan with some beef-marrow, warm all together, sprinkle over a little salt and pepper, and add a little lemon-juice. Turn the mixture out on to a dish, and serve.

Haricot-Bean Omelet. — Wash and prepare 1 pint of Haricot Beans by steeping them in slightly-salted water for six or eight hours. Put them into a saucepan of water and boil them until perfectly soft; take them out, mash them up with 1 breakfast-cupful of milk, and rub the whole through a fine sieve into a basin. Mix in 4 table-spoonfuls of finelysifted breadcrumbs, the yolks and whites of eight eggs beaten separately, 2 table-spoonfuls of dissolved butter, loz. of minced parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Turn the omelet, when well mixed, into a buttered pan, and bake in a moderately hot oven for from three-quarters-of-an-hour to an hour. Serve on a hot dish, with sharp brown sauce in a sauceboat.

Haricot Beans Panaches a la Maitre d’Hotel. — Put £ pint each of Haricot and French Beans into separate saucepans of water, and boil them until they are tender. Put 2oz. of butter into a frying-pan, melt it, drain the Beans, and put them in; toss the pan until they are well mixed and quite hot, then turn them out on to a dish, and serve with fried bread for garnish.

Haricot-Bean Porridge. — Put 1 pint of dry white Beans into a basin of water, and soak them for ten or twelve hours. Drain off the water, put them into a saucepan with sufficient water to cover them, add a small quantity of bicarbonate of soda, and boil until they are soft. Put 51b. of corned beef — not too salt — or 41b. of beef and lib. of salted pork, into a saucepan of water, and simmer gently on the side of the fire for five or six hours, or until the meat is quite done and tender. Take out the meat, cut it up in pieces about 2in. square, removing all the bone, skin, and gristle; skim the liquor, put the meat and drained Beans into it, set the saucepan back on the side of the fire, and simmer for three or four hours longer, by which time nearly all the Beans should have broken. Put 4 table-spoonfuls of corn-flour into a basin, make it into a smooth paste with water, stir it into the saucepan with the Beans, sprinkle over salt and pepper to taste, and simmer for half-an-hour longer, by which time the liquor should be quite thick, and the meat will easily fall apart. Add 1 pint of hulled corn, turn the whole out on to a dish, and serve with slices of brown bread.

Haricot-Beau Puree for Soup. — Put 1 breakfast-cupful of dried Beans into a saucepan of water with a small lump of bicarbonate of soda, and boil them until they are perfectly soft. Rub them through a fine sieve into a saucepan, pour in gradually 4 gall, of good stock, and stir well. Add 1 tablespoonful of finely-chopped onion, and simmer gently on the side of the fire for from fifteen to twenty minutes. Add a little seasoning of well-minced red pepper and salt, and 1 teaspoonful of made mustard mixed in with 1 table-spoonful of thickening; sprinkle over a little chopped parsley when the soup is in the tureen, and serve with crusts of bread or toast.

Haricot-Bean Soup. — (1) Put 3qts. of soup stock into a saucepan with 1 breakfast-cupful or more of vegetables, such as onions, carrots, and turnips, cut up very small, having the onion in excess; add also 3 breakfast- cupfuls of cooked Haricot Beans, and boil for half-an-hour. Add 1 table-spoonful of flour, wet with water, sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste, and a little chopped parsley. Turn the soup into a tureen, and serve.

(2) Put 2 breakfast- cupfuls of Haricot Beans into a bowl of cold water and let them soak for ton or twelve hours. Put them into a saucepan with three times the quantity of water, and add a sprig or two of parsley, a little whole pepper, salt to taste, a bay -leaf, an onion stuck with three cloves, and a head of celery. Boil slowly until the Beans are done, strain off the liquor, and rub the remainder through a fine sieve

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Beans — continued.

into another saucepan. Stir well over the fire, add 1 oz. or 2oz. of butter, and, if required, a little of the Bean liquor, and serve.

(3) Put 1 teaeupful of white Haricot Beans into a basin, pour over sufficient boiling water to cover them, and let them remain for five or six minutes; take off their skins, and plunge the Beans into cold water. The skins, being very indigestible, should always be removed before cooking. Pour lqt. of water over the Beans in a saucepan, add two onions and 2oz. of fat bacon or pickled pork, and boil for about three hours, by which time they should be perfectly tender. A little more boiling water should be added now and then, otherwise the Beans are liable to stick to the pan. Take out the bacon or pork, mince it as fine as possible, rub the remainder through a sieve into a saucepan, put in the mince, add more broth or water, according to the thickness of the soup required, boil well again, turn the soup into a tureen, and serve very hot. Should the skins not be taken off the Beans, they will require longer to cook.

Potted Haricot Beans. — Take 1 pint or so of cold boiled Haricots — boiled in plain salted water. Pound them in a mortar, and add 3oz. or 4oz. of grated Cheshire cheese (or any other well-flavoured cheese), 2 table- spoonfuls of breadcrumbs, 2oz. of butter, some salt, cayenne, and nutmeg to taste. Mix thoroughly, fill into small jars, pour warm butter over, and use as potted meat. This makes a nice savoury for luncheon, but must be highly seasoned, or it will be somewhat insipid.

Preserved Haricot Beans. — For this the skins must be removed either by steeping the Beans in soft water for ten or twelve hours, or by pouring over them boiling water, letting it get cold, pouring it away, and adding more boiling water, by which time the skins can easily bo removed. Put the Beans into a saucepan with sufficient soft water to cover them, and boil until they are done, adding more boiling water as the other evaporates or is absorbed, and having only sufficient to moisten the Beans when done. Put them away in jars, and use as required.

Puree of Haricot Beans. — New White Beans freshly- gathered and shelled are the best for a pur£e. Put them into boiling water if fresh, and into cold water if dried, with a little butter, which will make the skins mellow. When they are thoroughly cooked, throw in 1 table-spoonful of salt. Fry a sliced onion in a little butter, and when the slices are of a nice brown colour dredge them with about table-spoonful of flour; moisten with veal or other stock, and season with a little salt and pepper. When the flour is done, mix it all well with the Beans; let them boil fifteen minutes longer, squeeze them well, and then rub them through a sieve. Let the puree be rather liquid, as it is likely to thicken on the fire. A short time before it is served, mix a little butter with the puree. This makes a nice additional vegetable for roast pork and other meats. A squeeze of lemon-juice over them is an addition.

Puree of Haricot Beans fl, la Soubise. — After soaking 1 pint of White Haricot Beans for four hours, cook them in a saucepan with loz. of butter and two sliced onions, and moisten with 3 pints of white broth, seasoning with % tablespoonful of salt and 1 teaspoonful of pepper. Boil for forty-five minutes; then rub through a fine sieve, and serve with a thickening made of the yolks of two eggs and i breakfastcupful of cream. Add twelve forcemeat quenelles to the soup, and serve.

Puree of Red Haricot Beans.— Put 1 pint of Red Beans into a saucepan of salted water, add one onion, one carrot, and a bunch of sweet herbs; put the saucepan on the fire, and boil until they are quite tender. When done, pour off the water, and rub the remainder through a fine sieve into another saucepan; add a little butter or gravy, and stew for a few minutes. Turn the puree on to a dish, garnish with pieces of toast or fried bread, and serve.

Red Haricot Beans a la Bourguignonne.— (1) Put some Red Haricot Beans into a saucepan with sufficient stock to cover them, and add a large lump of butter, one onion stuck with cloves, and a bunch of sweet herbs. Boil until the Beans are thoroughly done; then remove the herbs and onion, add salt and pepper to taste, and a small quantity of red wine; make the whole quite hot, turn it out on to a dish, and serve.

Beans — continued.

(2) Take lqt. of Red Beans, piok out any stones; wash them thoroughly, lay them in plenty of cold water, and lot them soak for six hours. Drain, and put them in a saucepan, covering with fresh water, adding loz. of butter, a bouquet garni, and a medium-sized onion, with two cloves stuck in it. Boil for twenty minutes, stirring in 1 wineglassful of red wine; season with 1 pinch of salt and £ pinch of pepper, and let this cook for forty-five minutes longer. Remove, take out the onion and bouquet, place the Beans in a hot deep dish. Decorate with six small glazed onions round the dish, and serve.

Red Haricot Bean Puree Soup.- — Place in a saucepan 1 pint of Red Beans previously soaked for four hours in cold water. Moisten with lqt. of white broth. Cook till soft, rub them through a sieve, and add 2oz. of blanched salt pork, one onion, one carrot, a bouquet garni, and 1 teaspoonful of pepper. Cook thoroughly for one hour; then strain, add i wineglassful of claret, and serve with 2 table-spoonfuls of small croutons of fried bread.

Red Haricot Beans with Wine.— Put 1 pint of Red Haricot Beans into a saucepan with a piece of smoked blanched bacon and boil them. In the meantime, blanch two dozen small onions, fry them in butter, add a little broth, and reduce to a glaze. Drain the Beans, put them into a saucepan with 1 pint of white wine, reduce to about one-third, simmer gently for about fifteen minutes, and add a thickening of well-kneaded butter. Turn the Beans on to a dish, garnish them with the bacon cut into slices and the glazed onions, and serve.

Salad of Boiled Haricot Beans.— Lot the Beans be cold, put them in a salad-bowl, and season with oil, vinegar, pepper, and salt, and 1 table-spoonful of chervil and tarragon, chopped fine.

Stewed Haricot Beans. — Take lqt. of Haricot Beans, and boil them till tender. Next take lb. of streaky bacon, remove tho rind, and cut the bacon into pieces lin. long and in. thick; scald these for five minutes in boiling water, drain, and put into a 2qt. stewpan; stir over tho fire till of a light brown colour, then add ioz. of flour, and stir for throe minutes more; next add a tumblerful of French r’ed wine, 2 teacupfuls of water, and 1 saltspoonful of popper, and simmer for twenty-five minutes. Drain tho Beans, put them into the stewpan with tho bacon, and add loz. of butter. Toss over the fire till tho butter is melted, and serve very hot.

Stewed Red Haricot Beans. — Remove tho rind of ilb. of streaky bacon, cut it up into pieces lin. long and Jin. thick, and put them into boiling water to blanch. Take them out in fivo minutes time, drain, put them into a large saucepan over the fire, and cook until they are of a light brown colour. Then add ioz. of flour, stir for two or three minutes longer, and add 3 teacupfuls of red wine, 2 teacupfuls of water, and a littlo pepper. Simmer gently on tho side of tho fire for twenty-five minutes, then add lqt. of boiled Red Haricot Beans and loz. of butter, and toss the pan for a few minutes to melt tho butter. Turn the whole out on to a hot dish, and serve.

White Haricot Beans and Cream. — Put two or three boiled and mashed onions into a saucepan with 1 gill of cream, and add ljoz. of butter, a little grated nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Now add about lqt. of cooked Haricot Beans, and stir gently over the lire until they are hot but without boiling; they aro then ready for use.

White Haricot Beans in Gravy. — Put a littlo butter and flour into a saucepan to prepare a roux, put in a few chopped onions to brown them, and add a little gravy and stock and a seasoning of salt and pepper. Have ready some boiled Haricot Beans, toss them in tho roux for about ten minutes, add 1 table-spoonful or so more of the gravy, and pour the whole over the meat with which they are to be served.

White Haricot Bean Puree.— Soak 1 pint of White Beans in water for a few hours, and boil them in lqt. of broth

until they are soft. Rub the Beans and broth through a

sieve, and add to the puree 2oz. of butter and a bouquet garni. Season with f table-spoonful of salt and 1 teaspoonful of

pepper. Cook well for half-an-hour, then strain the soup,

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Bear’s Paws — continued.

Beans — continued.

and stir in 1 teacupful of good cream. Serve with sippets of toast. It is advisable not to let the soup boil again after adding the cream, and to remove the herbs before straining.

Lima or Butter Beans. — Jerrold informs us in “ Our Kitchen Garden,” that “ The Butter Bean, Mount d’Or, or Golden Butter Bean, and Haricot d’Algiers, or Wax Runner, have not received the attention they deserve.” They gi – ow to the height of 6ft., are prolific bearers, and the pods having no tough inside skins, the Beans are cooked entire, forming a delicious dish when boiled and eaten with fresh butter, salt, and pepper. Lima Beans are greatly appreciated in the United States.

Boiled Dried Lima or Butter Beans.— (1) Soak 1 breakfastcupful of dried Lima Beans in water for two or three hours; then drain, and boil them in salted water for one hour. When cooked, drain ofE the water, put some pieces of butter in, then turn them all on to a dish, and serve.

(2) Put the Beans to soak overnight. Next morning soak again in fresh water till two hours before they are wanted for dinner. Boil steadily in a covered saucepan nntil tender. Drain, and stir up with them 1 table-spoonful of fresh butter and a little salt.

Boiled Lima Beans.— (1) Shell, and throw into cold water lqt. of Beans, and leave them ready for use. An hour before dinner put them into boiling water, add some salt, and boil them; when tender, drain off the water, and add 1 table-spoonful of fresh butter. These Beans want thoroughly cooking.

(2) Boil thoroughly as above (No. 1), and when tender, drain, and stew them a little time with butter, pepper, salt, and 1 gill of cream.

(3) Put the required quantity of Butter Beans into a saucepan of water, with a small piece of bacon and a little salt, and boil them until they are quite soft. Take them out, drain, and put them on a dish, sprinkle them well over with pepper, pour over a little melted butter, and serve. If desired, after the Beans have been boiled they may be fried or baked.

Cream of Lima Beans. — Put 2oz. of butter in a saucepan with pint of mirepoix, 1 table-spoonful of flour’, and 1 pint of boiled Lima Beans, seasoning with £ table-spoonful of salt. Moisten with 3 pints of white broth, and cook for thirty minutes. Then strain through a sieve, and serve with 1 teacupful of cream and a handful of croutons souffles.

Lima Beans Sautes. — Take lqt. of freshly-shelled Lima Beans, or 3qts. of unshelled, and parboil them in salted water for about twenty minutes; then take them from the fire, drain, and cool in fresh water. Drain again, and place them in a saute-pan with l£oz. of butter, seasoning with pinch each of salt and pepper, and -1, pinch of nutmeg. Cook for five minutes, tossing well; then moisten with 2 table-spoonfuls of cream, adding 1 pinch of chopped parsley. Mix well together, and serve.

BEAR. — Tlie flesh of this animal, if young and well kept (almost to spoiling), is very good eating: it has the taste of sweet pork, but is very dark-coloured, and, like pork, difficult to cook thoroughly. The meat of the Black Bear is considered to he the best, and a steak or roasted ham served with red or black-currant jelly, or cranberry sauce, is not by any means to be despised; indeed, such luxuries are high-priced — more on account probably of their scarcity than their quality. The flank and breast make good soup, stews, or ragouts.

BEAR’S PAWS. — This exceptionally Russian dish has no place in English cookery; nevertheless, the manner of preparing it may be of some interest.

Wash the bear’s paws, wipe, salt, and put them into a kitchen basin; cover them with cooked marinade, and let them macerate for two or three days. Spread a stewpan with trimmings of bacon and ham, and sliced vegetables; place the paws thereon, moisten with the marinade and a good broth, cover them with thin layers of bacon, and boil them for seven or eight hours on a slow fire, adding more broth

as the stock reduces. The paws being tender, leave them in their stock until nearly cold; then drain, wipe, and divide each of them into four pieces lengthwise; sprinkle over cayenne . pepper, roll them in melted lard and breadcrumbs, and broil them for half-an-hour over a very slow fire; then dish up. Pour on th9 dish some piquante sauce, and stir in 2 table-spoonfuls of red-currant jelly. The mode of dishing would depend upon a variety of circumstances.

BPARNAIS(E). — This term is used in French cookery to signify common quality, and is applied chiefly to meat of stringy, lean character, such as might be expected from animals bred in mountainous districts, such as Beam, a province in the South-west of France. See Sauces.

BfATXLI.ES. — Fr. for delicate luxuries, such as sweetbreads, cocks’ combs, Strasburg fat livers, and viands of that description. “ Une assiette de Beatilles” means a plate of dainty, choice food.

BEAUFORT PUNCH.— See Punch.

BEAUFORT PUDDING. — See Puddings. BEAULIEU CAKES— See Cakes.

BEAULIEU PUDDING.— See Puddings.

BEAUVILLIERS CAKE. — This is named after a celebrated French cook, who kept a famous restaurant in Paris, near the Palais Royal. He was also the author of “L’Art de Cuisinier” (1814), a work of considerable merit in those days. See Oakes.

BECCAPICO.— See Fig -PECKER.

BfCHAMEL.— A white sauce made of veloute (see Sauces) and milk reduced by boiling. It is named after Louis de Bechamel, or Bechameil, Marquis of Nointel, to whom its invention is attributed. Grinod, the French author, states that the Marquis of Bechamel was maitre d’hotel to Louis XIY., and was immortalised by inventing this sauce. Anyhow, it is a great favourite in all kitchens nowadays, and some receipts for its preparation will be found under Sauces. Bechamel graisse is another sauce of the same kind, but rather more elaborate in its preparation, being made of dice of bacon, veal-fat, several vegetables, and broth, the whole being highly seasoned with spices and aromatics.

BEDAGOSA. — A fictitious coffee, prepared from cassia-seeds, and frequently used on the Continent for adulterating.

BEEP (Fr. Bceuf; Ger., Rindfleisch; Ital. Manzo, Carne di Bue; Sp. Yaca la Carne de la Yaca, 6 del Buey). — The English race are famous for their Beef, and owe much of their courage and prowess, it is said, to its consumption as food. “The glorious roast Beef of Old England” has for hundreds of generations past maintained its prime position amongst meats, and the noble sirloin continues uninterruptedly to occupy the principal position on a British table. Other countries have emulated this taste, and served up dishes of Beef prepared in several ways; but foreign Beef has not yet attained to the perfection of that grown in this country, so that failure in cooking may be, in some degree, attributed to inferiority of quality; but so long as the “ rage for I’agouts ” and other “ kickshaws ” continues to influence foreign tables, observes a British gourmet, the probability of our Continental neighbours improving their physical powers by such noble joints as our ox supplies, need cause us no anxiety whatever. What is John Bull without Beef? A culinary writer from France, of some considerable eminence (Delamere), tells us that formerly to eat first-rate Beef, you had to go to London, where it used to be far better than in its native place in the immediate neighbourhood of the pastures where it was bred and fattened. Now, people complain

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Beef — continued.

that London Beef is no longer so good as it was, but that Beef everywhere is pretty much alike. “ The reason of this is,” he further tells us, “that Beef is a meat which is improved by travelling while alive. Like EastIndia madeira, it is the better for the journey — only, in the case of the bullock, it must he performed on foot. A moderate degree of fatigue, not amounting to exhaustion, causes the fat to incorporate more intimately with the lean, and the muscle itself to become more tender. Such meat acquired a softer, marrow-like consistency, and was doubtless more digestible than the robust, hardfibred flesh which reaches town by rail without the slightest physical exertion. It is one little item in the irresistible course of events, to which we must all of us submit. The cook must make up as well as she can for the ameliorating effects which pedestrian travel once produced in oxen.” “Beef renders good service by its mere appendages,” continues this amusing author; and he is correct, for the tail comes in for a great many dainty dishes, such as soup, stew, or ragout; the roll of the loin, or fillet, sliced artistically thin, laid a few minutes on the gridiron, and served on a hot dish with no other seasoning than a bit of fresh butter rolled in finely-chopped parsley, constitutes the wonder which the Continental epicurean lights of other days called (after its English confrere) “ a Beef’s Teak,” stating that it formed the principal dish at the average British dinner, and that it was worth braving the voyage across the Channel to taste. It is to be feared that some considerable disappointment would await the intrepid traveller should he venture to hope to find a fillet-steak in a British eating-house. Ho; this part of the ox is generally reserved for a more dignified fate, and figures as a prime cut in a sirloin or baron of Beef.

Of the various parts of Beef, their qualities, and different modes of cooking, ample information will be found in the directions and receipts hereto appended, but for special parts, such as Cow-Heels, Maebow, OxCheeks, Ox-Heads, Ox-Heaets, Ox-Kidneys, OxLivee, Ox-Tails, Ox-Tongues, Teipe, &c.;, special reference must be made to those headings.

The first consideration is to buy good Beef, and to do that you must know how to choose it, and recognise one part and one quality from another. For convenience’ sake, we divide the carcases into either Ox-Beef or CowBeef, and then English Beef and Scotch Beef, both of which may be prime, middling, or inferior; and although it may require some practical experience to distinguish one from the other, an attentive cook, by the aid of the following instructions and an intelligent use of the eyes, will soon be competent to pick out the best, which is always the cheapest in the end.

Ox-Beep Prime ). — The flesh of this should be bright cai’mine-red, marbled with yellow fat, and a thick outside layer of fat under a fine skin. The lean should be firm and elastic on pressure, standing out boldly and round from the bones. The suet, again, should be dry, and crumble easily. All this indicates a young, healthy, wellfed animal.

Cow-Beef. — Some buyers are not able to judge between inferior Ox-Beef and superior Cow-Beef, nor is the difference so very striking. The grain is closer, and the fat is white instead of yellow, and the flesh not quite so brilliant a red.

Infeeiok Beef. — Unfortunately, there is a great deal of this sort of meat sold for the use of the poor, or even to the ignorant rich. Hot only is it inferior in appearance, having a hard skin, with the fat, darkcoloured flesh sometimes quite a red-brown, with homy, ‘ligamentous texture prevailing throughout; but its nutritive qualities are exceedingly low, and it shrinks badly in cooking.

Scotch Beef, for reasons of superior feeding and breeding, is regarded by butchers and cooks alike as the

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils,

Beef— continued.

primest of the prime. It is generally small in size, and of exquisite colour, the yellow fat being most attractively blended with the fibres of the lean. Bear the foregoing indications in mind, and you will very likely buy good meat almost instinctively. As for the joints, in the shambles, the ox i3 divided somewhat differently to what

it is when the dead sides are cut up into joints, to which we shall refer directly. In this case (Fig. 101) we have — 1, head and cheek; 2, sticking-piece, or locality of throatcutting; 3, chuck-ribs; 4, middle-ribs; 5, fore-ribs; 6, sirloin; 7, rump; 8, clod; 9, leg of mutton piece; 10, brisket; 11, thin flank; 12, veiny parts; 13, aitchbone; 14, buttock; 15, mouse buttock; 16, thick flank; 17, leg.

To cut up a side of Beef into joints, the following plan (Fig. 102) is usually adopted; but as a customer may want half, or only a small portion of any joint, the butcher then creates a cutting-up theory of his own, diverging at times from any recognised plan: 1, sirloin; 2, rump; 3, aitchbone; 4, buttock (silverside); 5, mouse buttock, or mouse round; 6, hock; 7, thick flank; 8, thin flank; 9, fore-rib; 10, middle-rib; 11, chuck-rib; 12, leg of mutton piece; 13, brisket, or breast; 14, neck, clod, and sticking-piece; 15, shin.

Fig. 102 . Side of Beef Divided into Joints.

Of all these, the sirloin (1) is decidedly the prime joint, though by many it is considered to be wasteful. A baron of Beef is two of these sirloins in one, answering to a saddle of mutton. The under-cut, or fillet, is much prized, but the foreign cook regards it as of most value for special dishes. The rump (3d is famous for its British steaks, which the butcher slices off a good leg with a flash of the knife that proclaims great pride, dexterity, and neatness. The aitchbone (3) and buttoclc parts (4 and 5) are better suited for boiling or stewing, but are occasionally roasted. The latter (5) is better known when salted as silverside. The thicle flanlc (7) roasts well, and is an inexpensive, economical joint having no bone; the thin flanlc (8) makes good

Sauces, hc., referred, to, see under their special heads.

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puddings and pies, and stews nicely. The fore-ribs (9) are by many preferred to the sirloin. They are certainly more economical, but have no “under-cut.” The middle-ribs (10) are not so good as the fore-ribs, and the chuckribs (11) are still more inferior. The worst cut of the chuck-ribs may be recognised by a piece of yellow gristle running round it, between the muscles, about an inch from the outside. The leg of mutton piece (12) yields Beef-steaks. It has no bone, and, although not highpriced, the meat is generally tender and juicy, and not at all fat. The brisket (13), or breast, is mostly used for pickling; the neck, clod, and sticking-piece (14) being only fit for soups, stews, and puddings. The shin (15) is also good for soups, stock, and Beef-tea. To know more than this it will be necessary to study the animal from an anatomical point of view, which would be a decidedly unnecessary move in advance of the ordinary butcher; but, for the cook’s assistance, an extensive variety of drawings, illustrating the different cuts of Beef, are distributed through the text of this article. For special information as to the plan of carving any particular joint, see Carving.

Beep-steaks. — This term is evidently of early origin, dating back into the Anglo-Saxon period, when the half-civilized native broiled his slice of “ quivering flesh ” on a stick or stake over the embers of a wood fire. Although modern usage has established a different method of spelling this word according to whether it applies to the flesh or to the wood, there is no doubt that both are virtually identical. The old Norse for “a cook” is steikari; therefore it is more than probable, as Wedgwood states in his “ Dictionary of English Etymology,” that “as roast seems originally to signify the rod or what the meat was stuck on by way of a ‘ spit,’ so it is probable that steak is a modification of stick, or stake; ” and the German for Rump-steak is Rump f stuck. The Frenchman knows Beef-steak as Beef-teck, or tele, just as our roast Beef is converted by them into Rosbif; the German, as Rindfleischschnitte; the Spaniard as Lonja de Came de Vaca; and the Italian as Braciuda di Manzo — not an approach upon the simplicity of “steak.” From this we understand that the word “ steak ” does not apply to any particular cut of the Beef, but is applied generally to a slice of Beef prepared for broiling. This may be, therefore, either a fillet-steak or a loin-steak; a rump-steak or a steak from any other part of the body, taking its distinguishing name from the part whence it is cut.

There are certain features about a steak that are specially worthy of the cook’s notice. They are usually cut for broiling, and should therefore be from the tenderest part of a good animal. First in order is the “Porterhouse” steak, cut from the best part of the loin near the rump; then comes the fillet-steak, or “tenderloin,” which is cut from the underpart of the sirloin. These latter are round in form, and exceedingly juicy and tender. Steaks from the upper-cut of the loin are not so often met with, because in cutting them the joint must suffer in appearance. The rump of Beef is usually devoted to the cutting of steaks; but the largest are those cut from the round, which are not always the most delicate or toothsome, because that part is permeated by a network of fibre, making it tough to masticate. But, no matter where the steak is cut from, the success of its serving depends almost exclusively upon the skill and care of the cook.

In the first place, the meat should be hung for a week or more after killing, if in the winter; but if in the summer-time, it must be beaten with a steak-tenderer, or a hammer fitted with sharp teeth. Some cooks score the meat on each side across and across with a sharp knife; but that is not so satisfactory in its results as beating. The steak should be cut from fin. to lin. in thickness, unless cut thinner or thicker for some especial

Beef — continued.

purpose. Broiled steak or fried steak must be cooked quickly over a brisk fire; to stew steak requires more time, to ensure its being tender.

Broiled steak does not require any sauce in its serving beyond a slight sprinkle of chopped parsley, a bit of butter in the dish, and perhaps a dessert-spoonful of mushroom ketchup; or some say the rubbing over once of the hot plate with the cut surface of a garlic clove or onion. Fried steak is improved by being served with mushroom, oyster, or tomato sauce, heightened by 1 teaspoonful of essence of anchovy and a shred or two of horseradish. Various receipts for cooking steaks will be found in their alphabetical order.

Beef, we are informed, is the least wasteful of all meats to cook; but it is not so much on this account as for its exquisite flavour, that British cooks, and foreign chefs practising in this country, where they can get prime Beef, have devoted so much time and intelligence to its culinary treatment. The receipts following give an exhaustive variety of the modes of cooking Beef as employed by all nations and all classes. They are inserted alphabetically, without regard to their comparative merits.

Beef-tea. — The term “tea,” as applied to this “infusion of Beef,” is exceedingly inappropriate, no tea whatever entering into its composition; the beverage we style “ tea ” being but an infusion of the leaves of that plant, and as much entitled to be called tea-beef as this has to be called Beef- tea. Nevertheless, custom lias confirmed the adoption of the term, and grudgingly permitted its extension to some other meats, such as veal or chicken.

Beef-tea is unquestionably one of the gems of the sick-room, although the proportion of nourishment contained in it cannot be compared to solid Beef; yet its pleasant meat flavour, its freedom from fat, its liquid state requiring no exertion in mastication and but very little in swallowing, have gained for it a high position amongst invalid foods, which it appears likely to maintain in spite of the acknowledged fact that from being a fluid it passes through the stomach before it is sufficiently digested, and frequently causes flatulence and intestinal irritation and uneasiness. On this account it should be taken in small quantities with a spoon, and not drunk like tea from a cup. It should also be served with a thin slice of toast cut into lin. squares, each square being quite separated in cutting from its fellows, and the plate containing them quite free from crumbs. Lightlyboiled rice is sometimes preferred. The toast or rice, when soaked and swallowed, excite the stomach to detain the Beef-tea with the solids until it is digested, and provide a very important addition to the nourishing value of the food. A blade or so of mace added to the Beef -tea whilst infusing, is believed to avert flatulency; but some invalids object to the taste of spice, in which case it is better left out. The same remark applies to peppercorns and salt. Physicians occasionally prescribe the addition of port wine, beer, or brandy, in which case the stimulant should be added just before serving. Milk or cream in small quantities is often added to increase the nutritive value of the Beef-tea. A good nurse will see that the Beef-tea when served to the patient is quite warm but not too hot to drink right off, for to have to wait until it is cool is very irksome to an invalid.

A la mode Beef. — The precise moaning of this term is not so clearly defined as it might he, there being nothing sufficiently characteristic in the receipts given by different cooks to give any one of them an indisputable claim to originality. It is more than probable that the term A la mode, or “fashionable,” as applied to Beef, was first used in this country by an enterprising foreigner, who thus announced to the public that Beef at his establishment was prepared “a la mode Frangaise. ” A la mode dining-rooms — or “alamode,” as it is commonly written now — were at one time very popular, but have fallen out of fashion in

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, fcc., referred to, see under their special heads.

BRIDE CAKES.

From Designs by C. Noewak.

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these times, owing probably to the establishment of other foreign refreshment-houses of all descriptions; and something perhaps is due to the quality of the “h la mode Beef” sold at those eating-houses which elected to cozen the title. They provided a cheap dish of warmed-up salt Beef, covered with a thick brown gravy of so poor a character as not to merit the dignified name of “sauce.”

A la mode Beef, we are told, should be highly flavoured. A clove of garlic is therefore sometimes added, although it is not essential.

The following receipts are by different cooks of great repute, and will therefore be found vastly superior to the “ a la mode Beef ” of many of the shops:

(1) Take 41b. to 61b. of the under-part of a round of Beef. Wipe, and trim off the edges, put it in a deep earthen dish, and pour over it spiced vinegar. This is made by boiling for five minutes 1 breakfast-cupful of vinegar with one onion chopped fine, 3 teaspoonfuls of salt, and teaspoonful each of mustard, pepper, cloves, and allspice. Let the meat stand in this for several hours, turning it often. Then dress it with ten or twelve strips of salt pork, cut -Jin. square and as long as the meat is thick, inserting these strips with a large larding-needle, or by boring a hole in the meat with a carving-steel; or large incisions may be made, and stuffed with breadcrumbs highly seasoned with salt, pepper, onions, thyme, marjoram, &c.;, moistened with hot water, 1 tablespoonful of butter, and one well-beaten egg. Tie the Beef into a good shape with a narrow strip of cotton cloth, in such a way as to keep in the stuffing, and dredge with flour. Cut up fine two onions, half a carrot, and half a turnip, fry them in fat or dripping until brown, and put them in the stewpan. Then brown the meat all over in the same fat, and put it on a trivet in the pan. Half cover with boiling water, and add 1 teaspoonful of mixed herbs, tied in a small muslin bag. Cover closely, and simmer for four hours, or

Fig. 103. Beef-fork.

until tender. Take it up carefully with a Beef-fork (Fig. 103), remove the strings, and put the Beef on a large dish. Skim off the fat from the gravy, add more seasoning, and thicken with flour previously wetted and worked smooth in a little cold water; boil up for eight or ten minutes, and strain it over the meat. Garnish with potato balls and small onions.

(2) For 101b. of Beef, take four onions chopped up, 1 tablespoonful of allspice, 1 teaspoonful of mace, with red pepper and salt to taste. Macerate these in 1 pint of strong vinegar. Rub the Beef twice daily in this mixture, for three or four days; then cook in a covered pan in the oven with all these ingredients in the pan. The mouse-piece (Fig. 102, 5) is generally the part used for this purpose.

Fig. 104. Round of Beef.

(3) Take the bone from a round of fresh Beef (Fig. 104), and beat the meat all over slightly to make it tender. Grate a loaf of bread into fine crumbs, and mix with equal quantities of thyme and parsley dried and rubbed fine, 1 onion chopped small, the marrow from the bone, Jib. of minced

Beef — continued.

suet, with pepper and salt, cloves and nutmeg, to taste. Mix these with three eggs well beaten, and fill the place from whence the bone was removed. What is left may be rubbed all over the round. Tie up with tape to keep in shape. Cover a pan with slices of bacon, put the Beef upon them, and lay pieces of butter to the extent of Jib. over the meat. Pour in the pan round the meat 1 pint of water, cover closely, and stew gently for six hours. When done quite tender, take out the Beef, skim the fat from the gravy, strain this into a saucepan, set it on the stove, and stir into it 1 teacupful of port wine. Let it come to a boil, and send to the table in a sauce-tureen. Garnish the dish with vegetables and whites of eggs boiled hard and chopped fine.

Fig. 105 Rump of Beef.

(4) Take a round or a rump of Beef (Fig. 105), and remove the bone, gristle, and all the tough pieces about the edges. Fill the cavities from which the bone is taken with suet and fat salt pork. Press this so as to make it perfectly round, and tie up in a strong piece of cloth to hold it firmly in shape. The cloth must be the same width as the joint is thick, so as to leave the top and bottom open. With a larding-needle fill this thickly with strips of fat pork, running through from top to bottom, and about lin. apart each way; set this in a baking-pan, and pour over 1 teacupful of boiling water mixed with 1 teacupful of boiling vinegar; and add 1 full table-spoonful of moist sugar and a bunch of sweet herbs. Sprinkle over the Beef liberally with salt and black pepper; chop up a small onion very fine, and lay over the top of it; and simmer in an oven for two or three hours, basting frequently, and keeping an inverted tin plate over the Beef, except when basting. If the gravy stews down low, add stock or broth of any kind. Turn the meat over, and let the top be at the bottom. When it is done and tender, take out the meat, and put it on a hot dish. Skim the fat from the gravy, and pour over 2 table-spoonfuls of celery vinegar, 2 table-spoonfuls of pepper, 2 table-spoonfuls of wet mustard, and 1 table-spoonful of red-currant jelly. Put the meat back, and simmer in the oven for two hours longer, frequently basting, that it may be soft and seasoned through and through. Take the Beef from the pan, and remove the cloth; place on a large flat dish, pour over the gravy, and over this again 1 teacupful of good mushroom ketchup. Sift finelypowdered baked breadcrumbs over the top, and garnish with grated or scraped horseradish and parsley.

(5) Take any fleshy piece of Beef (say 51b. or 61b. weight), and remove the bone; lard it all over with unsmoked fat bacon, and dust it well with finely-minced parsley and chives, salt, ground pepper, and mixed spices. Take a saucepan, into which put 1 teacupful of white wine (good cider will do well as a substitute), Jib. of bacon cut into small dice, six shallots minced fine, two dozen small onions whole, two carrots sliced, 1 teaspoonful of peppercorns, and a little salt. Lay the Beef upon these ingredients, cover the stewpan close, and put it over a slow fire. Make it simmer gently for five or six hours, and then serve, with all its accompaniments and seasonings poured over.

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, tc., referred to, see under their special heads.

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(6) Take 41b. of thick flank of Beef (Fig. 102, 7) and lOoz. of fat bacon (cut off the rind, and put it aside to scald). Cut the bacon into strips in. thick, and sprinkle them with pepper. Lard the Beef in the grain of the meat with these strips, and tie it into a good shape with string. Put it into a stewpan with 1 pint of French white wine, 1 gill of brandy, pints of broth, 1 pint of water, two calf’s feet which have been blanched and boned; also the blanched rind of bacon. Put on the fire, add loz. of salt, then boil, and skim. Now add three whole carrots (about lib.), one onion minced, 2 small pinches of pepper, three cloves, and one faggot of sweet herbs. Put to simmer, in a closed stewpan, for four-hours-and-a-half, on the stove corner. Try the Beef, and when done, take it out, together with the calf’s feet and carrots. Keep hot till serving. Strain the gravy through a gravy-strainer, take off all the fat, and reduce it one-fourth. IJntie the Beef, put it on a dish, and garnish it round with the calf’s feet, each cut into eight pieces, with the carrots cut to the shape of corks with a vegetablecutter, and ten glazed onions. Pour the gravy over all, and should there be too much, reserve it for the next day. Taste for seasoning.

(7) Cut fib. of salt fat pork into thick strips, and with a larding-needle draw them through a piece of Beef about 61b. in weight, cutting off the upper part of the round. Trim off the ends of the pork if they are showing. Put 3 table-spoonfuls of butter into a 6qt. stewpan, place it on the fire, and when it is melted add two onions, half a carrot, and the same quantity of a turnip, all chopped fine; stir them well, and let them stew for five minutes. Sift some flour over the meat, and put that in, and when it is brown on one side, turn it over and brown the other; add lqt. of water, stir well, and then another quart of water, a small piece of cinnamon, a bunch of sweet herbs, two cloves, six allspice, 1 table-spoonful of salt, and 1 teaspoonful of pepper. Cover over the pan, remove it to the side of the fire, and let it simmer for four hours. Add 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice and a little more salt and pepper if necessary. Let it simmer for another twenty minutes; then take out the meat, skim off the fat, and put the pan on the fire, where it can boil quickly for from ten to fifteen minutes. Put the meat on a dish, strain the gravy through a sieve over it, and serve with a garnish of potato balls or small button mushrooms.

(8) Cut a piece of fat pork into narrow strips, and rub them well in a mixture of chopped onion, fine herbs, salt, pepper, and spices; with these lard a tenderloin of Beef weighing 61b. or 71b. Put a slice or two of pork at the bottom of a saucepan, place the Beef on top, set it over a quick fire, and let it brown all over; half-cover it with consomme, add 1 wineglassful of brandy, cover over the pan, and boil for a few minutes. When the meat is nearly cooked, add two carrots and two turnips cut into pieces, and one small whole onion, and cook until the meat is done. Take it out and put it on a dish, strain the gravy, skim off all the fat, pour it over the Beef, and serve very hot. About four hours in all will be required for cooking.

(9) Marseilles Style. — This receipt is given by Dubois, but it is rather more elaborate than useful: Cut from a loin of Beef a piece weighing from 41b. to 61b.; divide it into square pieces of 5oz. or 6oz. each, which interlard with fillets of raw bacon and ham; season with a little salt and pepper, and anoint with a little oil. Chop up lib. of bacon, put it into an earthen stock-pot with lard, melt it on a moderate fire, add to it the squares of meat, and fry them gently for ten or twelve minutes; then moisten with bottle of red wine, which let boil on a brisk fire until reduced, giving the pot a jerk from time to time, thus keeping the pieces of meat from adhering to the bottom. The wine being reduced, draw the earthen stock-pot on to some hot ashes, and surround it with them to half its height. Put into it a piece of dry orange-peel, a few whole cloves of garlic, a bunch of parsley tied up with two bay-leaves, and lastly, a pig’s foot, boned, singed, and blanched; or if this be not handy, 1 handful of blanched rinds of pork. Then cover the earthen stock-pot, first with a round piece of paper, and then with a soup-plate half-filled with water. Let the Beef boil for eight hours, being careful to keep the ashes round the pot, adding occasionally a few live embers, in order to have

Beef — continued.

them always hot, so that the stock may boil without interruption, but very gently. Turn the meat twice. When done, it should be highly flavoured, juicy, and succulent. Place the meat in a deep dish, and surround it with squares of tripe, boiled separately. Skim the fat off the stock, remove all solid ingredients, pour it over the Beef, and serve.

A la mode Beef Soup. — Put 51b. of Beef with the bones into a saucepan with 5galls. of water, and boil gently over a slow fire for about six hours. Take out the meat and bones, add twelve cloves and a bay-leaf, and continue to boil until the liquor is reduced to 3galls., which will take from three to four hours. Strain it into another saucepan, skim off all the fat, add an onion, turnip, and carrot, all finely chopped, as well as the Beef minced very fine, and boil for half-an-hour longer. Sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste, turn the whole out into a soup-tureen, and serve very hot.

Baked Brisket of Beef. — Take all the bones out of 81b. of brisket of Beef (Fig. 102, 13), and make holes in it about lin. apart with the end of a steel. Fill the first with bacon-fat, the second with parsley, the third with oysters, and so on until all are filled; also add to the above, pepper, nutmeg, and cloves. When completely stuffed, lay it in a pan, dredge it with flour, pour on it pint of water and the same of broth, and bake it three hours; then skim off the fat, put the meat into a dish, strain the gravy over, and garnish with any sort of pickles. Any piece of fresh meat may be dressed in this way, or baked before the fire in a Dutch oven with onions, the meat being frequently brushed over with oil.

Baked Fillet of Beef with Truffles. — Trim a good fillet of Beef (Fig. 106), stud its surface with truffles by making holes

Fig. 106. Beef-steak Fillet, Studded with Truffles, Prepared for Baking.

and sticking pieces of truffle in the holes, cover it with strips of bacon, and set it on a narrow baking-sheet with upturned rim, the bottom of which is masked with trimmings of bacon and vegetables, as well as sweet herbs; moisten it with 1 wineglassful of wine, then bake in a slack oven for nearly an hour, basting it repeatedly. Take the fillet out of the oven, drain it well, dish it, and surround it with a garnish composed of larded sweetbreads, marrow, and farced onions. These garnishes should be dished round the fillet in groups. Mask the fillet with brown sauce finished with 1 pinch of cayenne pepper; mask the marrow with a little white sauce; glaze the sweetbreads and onions, and serve with rich brown sauce.

Baked Larded Fillet of Beef.— Trim off the tough skin and uneatable parts from a short fillet of Beef (Fig. 134) weighing about 31b., dust it well with salt and pepper, flour it well, fasten it into shape with skewers, and lard it in two rows with strips of fat pork. Put it into a baking-pan, without any liquor, and bake for thirty minutes or so. It should bo first placed in the coolest part of the oven for ten minutes, and then in the hottest for the remainder of the time. When done, put it on a dish, pour round Hollandaiso or tomato sauce, or mushroom ketchup, and serve. A true fillet of Beef is the tenderloin; but a rib, boned and rolled, is also called a fillet.

Baked Larded Fillet of Beef, with Chateaubriand Sauce.

— Take a Beef-fillet, kept hung to tenderness, and trim and lard it (Fig. 107). Cover the bottom of a ruasting-pan, or a bakingtin, with chopped Beef-fat and some minced vegetables, and set the fillet upon them. Season with salt, moisten with

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1 gill of broth, cover the meat with buttered, paper, and bake in a slack oven for three-quarters-of-an-hour, or for one hour at the most, according to its size. Baste it frequently with its own fat; and when done to satisfaction, drain it, place it on a dish, and pour over it some Chateaubriand sauce. Serve the vegetables separately.

Baked Red Round of Beef. — Bub a round of Beef (Big. 102, 5) with a pickle composed of salt, saltpetre, and a small quantity each of pepper and allspice; put it into an earthenware bowl, and let it remain in this pickle for a fortnight or so, rubbing and turning it over every now and then. Take it out, rub it over well and vigorously with slices of onion, put it into a baking-pan with Beef-suet or dripping put over it, pour over 2 or 3 wineglassfuls of Madeira wine with a little ground mace in it, put the pan into a moderate oven, and bake until it is quite done, the time required depending on the size of the piece of Beef and the temperature of the oven. Take it out when done, put it on a dish, pour the gravy over, and serve.

Baked Ribs of Beef.— Break or saw off the ends of the bones of the required quantity of ribs of Beef (Big. 102, 10), take out the chine-bone, put the meat into a baking-pan, sprinkle it over with salt, put small lumps of butter all over it, dust it over with flour, and bake in a moderate oven until done; the time allowed being fifteen minutes to each pound. When done, put it on a dish, garnish with horseradish, and serve very hot.

Beef Bouilli. — Put a brisket or round of Beef, or any part of either of them, into a saucepan, together with any small pieces or trimmings of Beef, veal, lamb, or fowl giblets; sprinkle over salt and pepper to taste, pour over sufficient water to cover them, and boil until nearly done. Then add one onion and two carrots cut in slices, a hunch of parsley, 1 teacupful each of browned flour and butter to thicken, cover over the saucepan, and cook for about twenty minutes longer. When the meat is done, take it out, and put it on a dish. Strain the liquor, add 1 wineglassful of mushroom ketchup or white wine to it, pour it over the meat, and serve. The time allowed for cooking is fifteen minutes to each pound of meat, giving an extra twenty minutes at the finish to cook the vegetables. The chine-bone, if cooked with the meat, will greatly improve the gravy.

Beef Brasciolettes. — Short Beef-steak (Big. 108), freed from fat, is best for these. Bemove all skin and gristle, and, having minced it very finely, pound it in a mortar to a stiff paste with a little flour. Grate some breadcrumb, and season it with pepper, salt, spices, and chopped ‘parsley. Cut some lean bacon into thin strips, spread out the meat-paste to the thickness of iin., and cut it into squares of from 2in. to 4Jin. Put a slip of bacon on each, with a small piece of butter on it, and four or five pine-cone kernels (pignoli). Strew over a little of the prepared breadcrumb, and roll the bacon and kernels up on the table in the meat-paste; then roll these brasciolettes between the palms of the hands with plenty of breadcrumbs. When they are all ready and nicely shaped, lay them close on the bottom of a well-buttered baking-dish, strew more breadcrumbs over them, and put hero and there a little bit of butter. Bake in a quick oven, and in about fifteen minutes they will be done. Serve with tomato sauce.

Beef Broth, with Vermicelli— Divide lib. of lean Beef into small square pieces, chop it, and put it in a stewpan, with an egg broken and poured over it; skim the fat off

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Beef — continued.

2qts. of cold bouillon, and pour over it; add a piece of leek, a piece of celery, and a little minced carrot; stir occasionally, and when it bubbles move it to one side, and simmer gently fifteen or twenty minutes. Drain it through a wet cloth (see Broths) with a good-sized bowl underneath, skim off all the fat, and let it boil five minutes, adding from 3oz. to 5oz. of blanched vermicelli. Serve in a tureen with toast.

Beef Cakes. — Chop fine about lib. of under-done Beef, and mix it up with about 6oz. of boiled and mashed potatoes; sprinkle over salt and pepper to taste, and add a few sprigs of finely-chopped parsley; bind the mixture with yolk of egg. Blour the hands, and form the mince into cakes about iin. thick and 3in. in diameter. Sprinkle these well with flour, put them into a frying-pan with hot lard or dripping, and fry to a brown. Take them out when done, drain, put them on a napkin on a dish, garnish with fried sprigs of parsley, and serve.

Beef and Celery Bouillon — Mince 31b. of lean Beef and three large heads of celery together with the roots, put them into a saucepan with 3qts. of cold water, set the pan on the side of the fire, and heat gradually. Boil for an hour, adding salt and pepper to taste, and pour the liquor through a cloth into another saucepan. Skim off every particle of fat, beat in the whites of four eggs, boil up once more, strain the liquor two or three times through a cloth, brown it with 1 table -spoonful of burnt sugar, and let it get cold. Mix in the whites of two more eggs, and the bouillon is ready for use. A third of a tumblerful of the preparation, filled up with boiling water poured from a height, so as to mix well, makes a good drink.

Beef Collops. — (1) Take llb. of lean Beef and chop it fine, mixing with it 1 table-spoonful of fresh lard and 1 tablespoonful of butter, with enough water to cook it. Put into a stewpan, and when the Beef is done thicken the gravy with a little roux, and season with 1 table-spoonful of vinegar and pepper.

(2) Mince lib. of fresh Beef (inferior parts will do) very fine, and put it into a stewpan with 2oz. of butter, a little flour, pepper, and salt. Put it over a slow fire, stirring and beating it so that it does not go into lumps, and let it cook for half-an-hour. Serve with fried bread, toast, or mashed potatoes.

(3) Mince 21b. of lean Beef very finely, and put it into a saucepan with a bit of butter large enough to prevent the meat sticking to the pan. When hot, add 1 teaspoonful of flour and 1 teacupful of stock or water, stirring continuously to prevent them becoming lumpy. Allow twenty minutes to cook. Onions minced, or a little hot pickle, may be added.

Beef Collops with. Piquante Sauce. — These collops are generally made to warm up cold roasted fillet. Mince very fine, and warm up in sufficient sauce piquante to cover the mince, without boiling. Should ‘cold roasted meat be allowed to boil, it will harden, and lose its flavour.

Beef Croquettes. — (1) The following cold Beef croquettes are described by J. Gouffe: Chop ljlb. of cold Beef very

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fine; make 1 pint of poulette sauce in a 2qt. stewpan, reduce it to £ pint, and thicken with the yolks of three eggs; put the chopped Beef in the sauce, add 1 table-spoonful of chopped parsley, 1 pinch of salt, and 2 small pinches of pepper; mix well together with a wooden spoon, and spread out on the dish to the thickness of ljin. Let it get firm and cold, then divide into sixteen equal parts. Strew a board with breadcrumbs about Jin. in thickness, put the sixteen parts of mince thereon, leaving a space of 2in. between each, cover them with a similar thickness of breadcrumbs, and roll each part into the shape of a cork, making them as near the same size as possible. Beat the three whites of the eggs for one minute, so as to mix but not froth them; add 1 small pinch of pepper, 2 pinches of salt, 1 table-spoonful of oil, and 1 table-spoonful of water. Dip the croquettes in this mixture, roll them in the breadcrumbs, and set them on a plate. Twenty minutes before serving, have some hot fat; arrange the croquettes in the fryingbasket, and put them into the fat to fry; when they are nearly fried, move them gently with a slice to insure their colouring evenly. When they are of a light brown colour and crisp, they are done. Sprinkle them with salt, dish up, garnish with parsley, and serve.

(2) Put llb. of minced, cooked, and well-seasoned Beef into a saucepan with an onion finely chopped and fried in butter, pour over 1 breakfast- cupful of weak broth or water, and stir in 1 teaspoonful of gravy -browning and a small quantity of flour. Put the saucepan on the fire, boil for a few minutes, stir in quickly the well-beaten yolks of two eggs, turn the whole out on to a dish, and let it get cold.

Fig. 109. Beef Croquettes.

Form it into balls, cover these with breadcrumbs, dip them in yolk of egg beaten with a little salt, and breadcrumb them again, giving them a smooth appearance. Plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and lightly colour them; take them out, drain, arrange them in a heap on a napkin spread over a dish (Fig. 109), put sprigs of fried parsley round, and serve. This is a good dish for an entree.

Beef a la Cuiller (a Cuiller is a large ladle). — To make this dish you require a small cold roasted or braised rump of Beef. Scoop this out above with a sharp knife, forming a sort of cup or cavity. Set it on a gratin-dish, trim away the fat and ragged portions of the meat, and cut these into thinlysliced strips. Slice about twenty button mushrooms, put them into a shallow stewpan with butter, fry them over a brisk fire, and moisten with a little stock to which has been added a few table-spoonfuls of madeira and 2 table-spoonfuls of bottled tomato sauce. Boil this ragofit for a few minutes, and then add to it the slices of Beef. Warm these over a slow fire, and when hot pour them into the cavity made in the piece of Beef. Mask the top with a layer of sliced mushrooms, and sprinkle over the whole a few breadcrumbs, basting it with warm butter. Pour over the bottom of the dish a part of the gravy of the braised slices of meat, into which a glass of white wine has been stirred, and put the meat on it into a slow oven to warm up, basting from time to time with the gravy. When ready, serve it up on the same dish, with the remainder of the stock in a sauceboat.

Beef — continued.

Beef Cutlets. — Trim off all the skin and fat of some slices of Beef, and shape like cutlets, using the cutlet-bat to flatten them; then sprinkle salt and pepper over them. Put a small piece of butter in a saute-pan, and when it is melted, fry the cutlets on both sides till they are done. Sprinkle a little chopped parsley over the cutlets, dish them, and pour over them a thick brown gravy.

Beef it la Daube. — (1) Lard well a round of Beef (Fig. 102, 5), and put it in a stewpan; cut it in slices nearly to the bone, and have a few slices of bacon placed around and over it, with carrots and onions; season with pepper, salt, and thyme. Cover the whole with water, and let it stew very slowly from four to six hours; then take out the round, and let it cool. To make the jelly, take all the meat from the stewpan, strain the broth through a sieve, skim the fat from the top very carefully, put it on the fire with a few grains of pepper, and let it simmer slowly. Beat the whites of four eggs in a cup of water, and stir them in, and let all remain on the fire simmering for fifteen or twenty minutes. Strain the jelly, and when cool garnish the meat with it. This dish should be prepared the day before it is wanted.

(2) Take a Beef shin (Fig. 102, 15), and chop in several places to break the bone. Cook it till it falls to pieces in just enough water to prevent burning. Then, after taking out the bones, mix with 1 heaped teaspoonful of flour rubbed into 1 teaspoonful of butter, and season with a taste of red and black pepper, salt, and bruised celery-seed. Stew it long enough to cook the flour. Pour into a deep dish, cover with a plate, and put weights on it to press it. This is a very nice dish.

Beef Doopiaja. — Cut twelve onions into slices, brown them in a frying-pan with 3oz. of fat, take them out when done, and chop them up. Add to the fat 1 teaspoonful each of ground chillies and turmeric, 4 teaspoonfuls of ground onions, i teaspoonful of ground ginger, and i teaspoonful of ground garlic, cooking them until brown. Add 21b. of Beef cut up into small pieces, sprinkle over 1£ teaspoonfuls of salt, pour in 1 breakfast-cupful of water, and simmer gently for an hour or so, until the meat is perfectly tender, and the liquor is considerably reduced in quantity. Turn the curried meat out on to a dish, chop up the onions and sprinkle them over, and serve at once.

Beef £, la Franqaise. — Put two cow-heels and 4galls. of water into a stock-pot, set it on the fire at eight o’clock in the morning, and leave to boil slowly until the meat has dropped off the bones; then add half of a large onion, two large red pepper pods, and one sprig of parsley, all chopped fine. Remove the bones. Put into another pot 2galls. of water, in which place 101b. of nice pieces of Beef cut up small, half an onion, one red pepper, parsley (all chopped fine), and salt. When the meat has boiled to pieces, mix all together, and boil it for half-an-hour longer. Serve either hot, or cold as a jelly.

Beef Cooked in German Style. — Boil in a stock-pot a small rump of Beef (Fig. 102, 2) from which the bone has been removed. When about three-parts done, drain, and trim it square; then place it in a stewpan in which thin bacon and sliced vegetables have been laid; moisten to half its height with broth, gravy, and white wine. Let the stock boil, and remove the pan back to the side of the stove fire to simmer, putting hot embers on the lid. Let the meat finish cooking in this way. It should be glazed nicely. When ready to serve, remove and drain the piece of Beef, trim it, and set on a dish. Put Brussels sprouts on one side and glazed chestnuts on the other. Pour over the meat some of the stock in which it has been cooked, strained and freed of fat, having first added another glass of white wine. Serve up separately a dish of mashed potatoes and a sauce-tureen with veloute sauce in which 1 table-spoonful of essence of anchovies has been dissolved.

Beef Gobbets or Mouthfuls. — Cut intcfclices about lib. of Beef, taken from any part but the leg, Amt it into a saucepan with sufficient water or weak stck to cover it, and cook for about one hour. Add a very small quantity of mace, a few whole peppers, and two or three cloves, all tied up in a bag; add also half a head of celery cut up small, two carrots and turnips in slices, a sprig of parsley, a bunch of sweet herbs, salt to taste, loz. of rice, and a large crust

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of bread. Cover over the pan, and cook until the whole is done; then remove the bag of spices, bread-crust, and the bunch of herbs. Toast a French roll, and cut it into quarters; put these on a dish, put the meat in the centre, pour the gravy over, and serve as hot as possible.

Beef Grenadines. — Cut up 21b. of the under-cut of the rump (Fig. 110) into cutlets about £in. thick, lard them with thin strips of bacon, and put them in a stewpan with a small piece of butter, lightly sprinkling the upper side with pepper and salt. Let them cook very slowly for fifteen minutes, without approaching the frying point, then turn them on the other side, and again lightly pepper and salt the upper. Allow them to cook for another fifteen minutes. Have

Fig. 110. Back of Rump op Beef.

reay 4 pint of good brown gravy, thickened with 1 tablespoonful of flour to the half-pint. Coat the grenadines with this, place them on the dish in which they are to be served, and pour the gravy over them. This dish may be made to look very pretty by a little garnish of sprigs of cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, or any vegetable in season. After these are boiled and drained from the water, toss in a saut-pan with a little butter.

Beef Hams. — (1) Divide the bam into three parts, and rub on pint of molasses; let it remain in this molasses a day and two nights, turning it over occasionally during the time. Rub on then 1 handful of kitchen salt, and put it back in the vessel with the molasses; turn it over morning and night for ten days. Hang it up to dry for one week, then smoke a little ( see Cueing). It is an excellent plan, after the Beef is sufficiently smoked, to put each piece in a bag, to protect it from insects, and then it may be kept hanging till wanted for use.

(2) Take a leg of Beef weighing about 141b. or 161b., trim it, and shape it like a ham; put it into a deep bowl or pan, rub it well over with a pickle made with lib. each of salt and moist sugar, foz. of coarsely-ground black pepper, loz. each of bay-salt and saltpetre, 3oz. of molasses, and sufficient beer to moisten them. Baste the ham twice a day at regular intervals for a month, turning it daily; then take it out, drain it thoroughly, roll it well in bran, and smoke it ( see Cueing). Put it into a canvas bag, wash it over with lime, hang it in a dry, cool place, and let it remain until wanted.

Beef Jelly. — Prepare an extract of Beef in the same way as if for Beef-tea, without adding water, and with only a very little (if any) salt. Put 5OZ. of gelatine into a saucepan with 1 table-spoonful of cold water, and soak it; let it remain until sufficiently swollen, then put it on the fire, and boil it until dissolved. Take 1 teacupful of the -Beef extract when nearly cold, add the gelatine, stir well, let it set, and use as required.

Beef Jelly Broth with Vermicelli. — Trim the skin, &c.;, off lib. of lean Beef, and cut the Beef into small pieces; put them in a saucepan with a beaten egg and 2qts. of cold broth that has been skimmed and strained. Put in the broth a minedd carrot, a stick of celery, and a piece of leek. When boiling, move the saucepan to the side of the fire, stir the contents occasionally, and let them simmer for thirty minutes. Strain the broth through a wet jelly-bag, pour it into a saucepan, and skim off all the fat. Boil the broth up, mix in 5oz. of blanched vermicelli, and let the whole boil gently for five minutes. Pour the soup into a soup-tureen, and serve.

Beef — continued.

Beef a la Neapolitaine. — A piece of fresh silverside about 61b. or 81b. is best for this dish. Make two or three holes in it with a carving-steel or any other convenient borer, and insert in each a strip of fat bacon rolled in powdered sweet herbs and pepper. Tie up the meat with white tape, to keep it a good shape. Next mince a piece of fat bacon with a meat chopper, adding to it a clove of garlic, an onion, some parsley, thyme, and marjoram. When these are finely minced and well incorporated, put the mixture into a saucepan with the meat, and stew. Turn the meat frequently till it is browned on all sides; then moisten with plenty of tomato sauce, diluted with a little stock, and add salt to taste. Let the meat stew slowly till done. Remove the string, and serve with macaroni round the dish, dressed as follows: First boil it in milk or water, and then, when quite soft, mix with it some of the sauce of the meat, strained and freed from fat. To this add plenty of grated Parmesan cheese. The macaroni should be mixed in a warmed tureen, not over the fire.

Beef Olives. — (1) Take lib. of fillet, rump, or tender Beefsteak, and cut it into slices £in. thick, and 3in. by 4in. in diameter, or thereabouts, taking care to have all the same size. Flatten them with the side of a meat-chopper or cutlet-bat wet. Prepare a stuffing with the Beef trimmings chopped up, loz. of suet, a small scrap of bacon or ham, 1 teaspoonful of mixed powdered sweet herbs, a lemon-rind grated, salt, pepper, 2oz. of fine breadcrumbs, and an egg. Work this into a mass, and make into shapes like wine-corks, around each of which a piece of meat must be rolled and tied firm. Put these into 1 pint of boiling stock or brown sauce, and stew very gently for an hour. When serving they should be piled methodically on a flat dish, garnished with little piles of mashed potatoes, alternated with spinach, and the sauce in which they were cooked may be poured round the dish; or the following: Melt 1 table-spoonful of butter in a little saucepan, and work in smoothly 1 table-spoonful of flour, 4 pint of the stock in which the olives were cooked, and 1 table-spoonful of mushroom ketchup or tomato sauce; then boil up. Mashed potatoes may be heaped in the centre of the dish, and the olives ranged round. Pour on the sauce, and fill the centre up with spinach.

(2) Chop fine two slices of lean ham or bacon, put them into a mortar with 1 teacupful of breadcrumbs, half that quantity of shred beef-suet, and a few sweet herbs, and pound them well together. Have ready some slices of cooked cold Beef, in. thick and 4in. square, mix in the yolk of an egg to the pounded forcemeat, spread it over the slices of meat, roll them up, and fasten them in shape with string or skewers. Now brush them over with yolk of egg beaten with a little salt, cover with breadcrumbs, put them to brown in a Dutch oven or an ordinary one, then put them into a saucepan with rich gravy to moisten, and cook until they are quite tender. Put them carefully on a dish, pour the gravy over, garnish with pieces of toast or fried bread, and serve.

(3) Cut 141b. of lean Beef, rump-steak for preference, into slices Jin. in thickness and about 6in. in length, and brush them well over with beaten yolk of egg. Put 1 teacupful of breadcrumbs into a basin, and mix them up with 2oz. of beef-suet or marrow and a sprig of parsley, both finely chopped, a small quantity of powdered mace, the grated rind of half a lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Divide this mixture, and spread it over the slices of meat; roll these round, fastening them with small skewers, put them in a Dutch oven in front of a clear fire, and brown them. Put them into a saucepan with 2 breakfast-cupfuls of rich brown gravy, and add 1 table-spoonful each of browning and ketchup, and 1 teaspoonful of lemon pickle; thicken with a lump of butter rolled in flour, and stew them until done. Turn the whole out on to a dish, remove the skewers, and serve with forcemeat balls for garnish.

Beef Cooked in Parisian Style.— Take a rump of Beef (Fig. 102, 2) weighing 51b. or 61b., bone, and lard, following the grain of the meat, with strips of bacon and raw ham, previously seasoned. Place it in a kitchen basin, season, pour over 4- bottle of white wine, and let it macerate for five or six hours; after which, drain, roll, and tie it up

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into shape. Spread thin layers of bacon in a large stewpan, and set the meat upon them; add two blanched calf’s feet, freed of the bones by boiling; baste the meat with its marinade, and pour in broth to the height of the meat -; cover it with layers of bacon, add a hunch of aromatics and a clove of garlic, and put on the stove to boil, removing back to simmer. Put live embers on the lid, and occasionally turn

Fig. 111. Rump op Reef in Parisian Stile.

the meat. When this is three-parts done, pass all the stock through a sieve, put it again into the stewpan, adding two carrots, two turnips, and six small onions, sliced and slightly blanched; continue to boil gently, and when ready to serve, drain the meat, dish it up, take off the strings, and surround it with vegetables (Pig. 111). Skim the fat off the cooking stock (which then should be half glaze), pass it through a sieve, and pour it over the Beef.

Beef Patties. — Boll out thin about Jib. of puff paste, cut it into shapes the same as for puffs, and fill each one with a little mince made of partly-cooked Beef, highly seasoned with salt, pepper, and a small quantity of finely-chopped shallot or onion. Fold the paste over, fastening the edges, plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry them for about ten minutes or to a good brown colour. Take them out when done, drain off all the fat, put them in a heap on a napkin placed on a dish, and serve with a garnish of fried sprigs of parsley.

Beef Pilau. — For this dish take 21b. of Beef and cut it up into slices. Put 1 breakfast-cupful of rice into a saucepan, cover it with gravy well seasoned with onions, ginger, salt, and spices, and boil until the rice is quite soft. Put the Beef into a saucepan with sufficient boiling water to cover it, and boil until done. Place the piece of meat in the centre of a dish, pour over the rice, and serve with fried onions and bacon, and hard-boiled eggs cut into slices for garnish. Cold cooked meat is frequently used, and the slices may be first browned in a frying-pan.

Beef Pie. — Fill a pie-dish with bits of Beef cut into small pieces and rolled in flour. Season with pepper and salt. Pour over the meat 1 teacupful of water, cover with a suet- or good pie-crust, and bake in a quick oven, top shelf at first, and afterwards, when the crust is hard, on the lower one. Turn frequently to prevent burning. Hard eggs, slices of potato, macaroni, kidney, tomatoes, or mushrooms, may be mixed with the meat if fancied.

Beef Pie made with Stewed Shin. — Take about 31b. of the thick fleshy part of a shin of Beef (Fig. 102, 15), and stew it slowly for about three hours with six onions, a large turnip, and sliced carrot, in lqt. of water. Add 1 eggcupful of salt and 1 teaspoonful of black pepper. See that the meat cooks quite tender without being ragged. When done, remove it, and cut into thin slices, across the grain; mince it, put it in a basin, and mix up well with the vegetables (mashed) cooked with it. Beduce the gravy by boiling slowly in an open stewpan to about J pint, and pour this over the meat and vegetables. Some minced uncooked ox-kidney and finelychopped mushrooms add to the quality. Make a good suet paste, roll it out, then put a layer round the edge, and cover the pie, finishing in the usual style.

Beef Pot-au-feu. — For this receipt, which may be regarded as one of the best, any cut of Beef will do — about Gib. with Jib. or so of bone. Tie up the meat with string, and put it

Beef — continued.

with the bone into a very large saucepan; fill up with sufficient water to come over the meat and bones above an inch, and then set on the fire to boil. As the scum rises, take it off with a skimmer. Do not allow the water to quite boil. Begulate this by adding at convenient intervals a small quantity of cold water to the extent of 1 pint in all: this will check the bubbling, and help the scum to rise. When the scum is all removed, put in about 1 table-spoonful each of salt, whole pepper, and allspice, one onion stuck with twelve cloves, one onion toasted almost black before the fire, one leek, three carrots of average size cut in lengths, two turnips of average size each cut in four, and a bunch of herbs, such as two bay -leaves, two or three sprigs each of thyme and marjoram, a clove of garlic, and a small handful of parsley, all tied together into a bundle. The vegetables should not be put in all at once, but gradually, so as not to check the gentle simmering of the pot-au-feu, which it is most essential to keep up uninterruptedly. Skim once more, and leave in a convenient place on the stove to simmer for at least four hours. According to the season, celery, tomatoes, parsnips, and chervil may be added. Before serving this delicious broth, strain it, and skim off all the fat, which can be best effected when cold. Add 1 teaspoonful of sugar, and more salt to taste; make it very hot, and pour it into the soup-tureen over small slices of toasted bread without crusts. Add the vegetables or not, as desired, according to taste.

Beef Pot-Pie. — Cut into pieces of uniform size 21b. of coarse fat Beef, selecting such parts as are not suitable for steaks; put them into a saucepan with cold water, and stew them for about two hours with the lid on the pan; add a slice of fat pork or bacon, one onion, salt and pepper to taste, and a thickening of flour-and-water; turn the whole into a dish lined with biscuit dough, such as would be used for dumplings, cover over with more of it, and hake in a quick oven until done. Turn out carefully on to a dish, and serve.

Beef Cooked in Prussian Style. — A piece of the fillet-steak is best for this, but any other tender part of Beef without bone will do. Take about 61b., and lard it with bacon and raw ham; salt it, and put into a kitchen basin. Pack round the meat parsley and celery-roots, a carrot, and an onion sliced; also a little thyme, basil if available, bay-leaves, cloves, and peppercorns; cover with table ale or German Weissbier (white beer), and leave to soak until wanted, turning the meat frequently. Keep in a cool place. Into a stewpan put some trimmings of bacon and the vegetables out of the above marinade; set the meat thereon, pour the marinade over, and add more beer to cover the lot; add also a few rinds or strips of pork. Set this on the stove to boil, and skim it carefully. As soon as this begins to bubble, lay a thickly -buttered paper over the meat, replace the lid on the stewpan, and put it into a very slow oven to simmer. In three hours’ time turn the meat, and continue cooking it for three hours more; it should then bo done. Bemove the Beef, and set it on a dish. Strain the stock in which it was boiled through a sieve, skim the fat off carefully, and pour it over the Beef; then cover the stewpan, and keep the meat hot, having first emptied the stock into a second stewpan. Let this boil, and thicken it with 5 or G table-spoonfuls of gingerbread soaked in water and pounded smooth. As soon as the sauce boils, place it on the side to settle, add to it the grating of an orange-peel, the pulp and juice of a lemon without peel or pips, and a bunch of parsley, thyme, and bay-leaf. Twenty minutes after, skim off the fat again, and strain into another stewpan; then mix in 2 table-spoonfuls of red-currant jelly, and after boiling it for a few minutes, take it off the fire. Place the Beef on a large dish, and pour the sauce over. Garnish the dish with a few thin slices of lemon, and send up separately a small side dish of cucumbers which have been peeled, sliced, and salted.

Beef Pudding 1 . — Grease a basin, and lino it with suet paste Jin. thick: 1 Jib. of flour will make sufficient paste to line a quart basin. Trim the paste off the edge. Cut the Beef (any part will do, if not too fat) into about pieces lin. by ljin. square, roll them in flour, and season with pepper and salt. Fill the basin with the meat, and pouiin a very little water. A few oysters or chopped mushrooms will greatly improve the flavour. Boll out the

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trimmings of the paste, wet the edge round the basin, and cover the top; dip a cloth in boiling water, and tie it over the pudding; put into boiling water, and boil for fully three hours. Let it cool a minute or so before turning out of the basin, or it will be liable to burst. Garnish the dish round with potato croquettes (Pig. 112).

Fig. 112. Beep Pudding with Potato Croquettes

Beef Puree Soup. — Take a piece of cold Beef, about 21b., and remove all the fat, skin, or gristle; mince, and then pound the meat in a large mortar with a piece of butter. Season well, and add to it three or four yolks of eggs; rub this all through a wire sieve. Chop an onion small, and fry it with butter, without allowing it to take colour; sprinkle 1 table-spoonful of flour over this, and fry for a few seconds longer; then dilute it with 2qts. of broth; stir the liquid till it boils, and then immediately move it to one side, to clarify, and skim it of all fat. Twenty minutes or so after this, strain the soup through a sieve into another stewpan, and thicken it with the meat puree. Warm up without boiling, and pop in at the finish 1 pinch of chopped parsley or fennel.

Beef Raised-Pie. — Chop fine 4oz. of Beef-suet, put it into a saucepan with an equal quantity of butter, pour in 2 breakfast-cupfuls of water, and boil. Put 21b. of flour into a basin, make a hole in the centre, pour in the liquor from the saucepan through a sieve, and mix well with a spoon until the paste is quite cool. When it is smooth, turn it out on to a floured board, roll it out to about .jin. in thickness, and line a buttered raised-pie mould with it, pressing it firmjy against tho sides. Cut 21b. of lean Beef (Beefsteak is best) into small pieces or collops, dust them well with flour, sprinkle them over with finely-chopped parsley, salt, and pepper, put a layer of them at tho bottom of a mould, then a layer of thin slices of potatoes, and continue in this way until the mould is full. Put a flat of the paste over the mould, raising it in tho centre, make a hole in the middle, decorate with leaves of paste, putting one over to conceal the hole, brush the top over with egg, put it into a moderate oven, and bake for about three-hours-and-aquarter. Take it out when done, pour in a little rich gravy through the hole in the top, turn it out of the mould, and serve at once.

Beef Rissoles. — Mince a few slices of lean cold roasted Beef, sprinkle over salt and pepper to taste, season with finelychopped sweet herbs and lemon-peel, and mix in about half the weight of the Beef in breadcrumbs. Make tho mixture into a thick paste with yolk of egg, shape it into balls, dip them into beaten egg and breadcrumbs, plunge them into a frying-pan of boiling fat, and fry them for six or seven minutes. Take them out when brown, drain off tho fat, heap them on a dish, and serve with hot rich brown gravy poured round them; or they may be put on a napkin on a dish, and served plain.

Beef Rissolettes. — Mince 21b. of fresh Beef very fine, removing all skin and gristle; mix with the minced Beef about a fourth of its weight in breadcrumbs, add an onion boiled

Beef — continued.

tender, a few drops of essence of anchovy, pepper and salt and sufficient egg to make it all into a stiff paste. Boll into egg-shaped balls, dip each in egg, roll in breadcrumbs, and fry very gently. One egg, if well beaten, will

suffice to mix tho rissolettes, and egg the outside of a dozen. Make a little gravy by boiling the trimmings of the meat in the water the onion was boiled in, and when the rissolettes are done, pour the fat from the frying-pan, let the gravy boil up in it, and thicken it with a small quantity of flour worked smooth in a little water. Stir in the juice of half a lemon, season with pepper and salt, place the rissolettes neatly round a heap of mashed potatoes (Big. 113) on the dish, and pour the gravy round, but not over them.

Beef Rolls or Paupiettes. — (1) These can be made from almost any scraps of cold Beef, whether boiled, roasted, stewed, or braised, so long as the piece will cut into neat thin slices. Prepare a forcemeat of chopped parsley, fat bacon, sweet herbs, and a grating of lemon-peel; season with salt and peppier, and spread a small portion on each slice of meat; then roll up, tie round with thread in two places (Big. 114), dip into a thin batter, and throw into

boiling fat. When nicely hot, remove, and serve with brown sauce.

(2) Take some thin slices of cold Beef, and cut them into pieces 2Jin. by 4in. Chop up the trimmings and fat, and to every slice of meat allow 1 table-spoonful of it. Season with salt, pepper, and herbs, and add about a quarter as much bread- or cracker-crumbs as there is meat. Put this mixture on tho slices of meat, spreading it nearly to the edge; roll them up, and tie them with string; sprinkle over a little flour, salt, and pepper, put them into a frying-pan with a little dripping or salt-pork fat, and fry them brown. When they are done, pour the fat into a stewpan, add 2 table-spoonfuls of flour, and put it on the fire to brown, and then add 1 pint of hot water; add a little more salt and pepper, pour it over the rolls of meat, previously put into a saucepan, and let them simmer on tho side of the fire until quite done and tender. Take them out, cut off the string, and put them on a dish. Add a littlo seasoning to the gravy, and pour it over.

Beef Roulette. — Cut off a large thin slice from a round of Beef, or any tough part, beat it with a rolling-pin to break the fibre, and trim it into a rectangular shape. Dust

For details respecting Culinary Processes, Utensils, Sauces, dec., referred to, see under their special heads.

104

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL COOKERY.