A Plain Cookery Book for the Working Classes Part 5

No. 94. PLUM OR CURRANT DOUGH PUDDING.

Ingredients, two pounds of dough from the baker's, four ounces of plums or currants, a pinch of allspice, ditto of salt, a gill of milk. Mix all the above ingredients together in a pan; tie up the pudding in a well-greased pudding-cloth, and place it in a pot containing _boiling_ water, and allow it to continue boiling for two hours; at the end of this time the pudding will be done, and may be turned out on its dish.

No. 95. CHRISTMAS PLUM PUDDING.

Ingredients, two pounds of flour, twelve ounces of raisins, twelve ounces of currants, twelve ounces of peeled and chopped apples, one pound of chopped suet, twelve ounces of sugar, four eggs, one pint and a-half of milk or beer, one ounce of salt, half an ounce of ground allspice. Boil the pudding four hours. First, put the flour, suet, and all the fruit in a large pan; mix these well together, and having made a deep hole in the middle thereof with your fist, add the salt, sugar, and allspice, and half a pint of the milk, or beer, to dissolve them; next, add the four eggs, and the remaining pint of milk, or beer; mix all vigorously together with the hand, tie up the pudding in a well-greased and floured cloth, boil it for at least four hours, taking care that the water boils before the pudding is put into the pot to boil. When done, turn the pudding out on its dish, and, if you can afford it, pour over it the following sauce:--

No. 96. SWEET PUDDING SAUCE.

Ingredients, two ounces of common flour, ditto of b.u.t.ter, ditto of sugar, chopped lemon-peel, half a gill of any kind of spirits, and half a pint of water. First mix the flour, b.u.t.ter, and sugar in a small saucepan by kneading the ingredients well together with a wooden spoon, then add the water, spirits, and lemon-peel; stir the sauce on the fire till it comes to a boil, and then pour it all over the pudding.

No. 97. JAM PUDDING.

Ingredients, one pound of flour, six ounces of suet, half a pint of water, a pinch of salt, one pound of any kind of common jam, at 7_d._ Mix the flour, suet, water, and salt into a firm, compact kind of paste; roll this out with a rolling-pin, sprinkling some flour on the table to prevent the paste from sticking to either; fold up the paste, and roll it out again; repeat the rolling-out and folding three times; this operation will make the paste lighter. Next, roll out the paste one foot long by eighteen inches wide, spread the jam all over this, roll up the pudding in the form of a bolster, roll it up in a well-greased and floured cloth, tie it up tightly at both ends; put the pudding into a pot of _boiling_ water, and boil it for nearly two hours; when done, turn out carefully on to its dish, without breaking the crust.

No. 98. RHUBARB PIE.

A bundle of rhubarb, one pound of flour, six ounces of b.u.t.ter, or lard, or dripping, half a pint of water, a pinch of salt, ditto of baking-powder, eight ounces of moist sugar. First, cut up the rhubarb in pieces about an inch long, wash them in plenty of water, and drain them in a colander, or sieve. Next, place the flour in a pan, or on the table, make a hollow in the middle with your fist, place the salt and the baking-powder in it, pour in the water to dissolve them, then add the b.u.t.ter; mix all together by working the ingredients with the fingers of both hands, until the whole has become a firm, smooth, compact kind of paste. You now put the cleaned rhubarb into a pie-dish, with the sugar and a gill of water, roll out the paste to the exact size of the dish, and after wetting the edges of the dish all round, place the rolled-out paste upon it, and by pressing the thumb of the right hand all round the upper part of the edge, the paste will be effectually fastened on, so as to prevent the juice from running out at the sides; a small hole the size of a sixpence must be made at the top of the pie, for ventilation, or otherwise the pie would burst. Bake the pie for an hour and a quarter.

No. 99. FRUIT PIES IN GENERAL.

All kinds of fruit pies are made as shown in the foregoing Number.

No. 100. A CHEAP KIND OF MINCE-MEAT.

Ingredients, eight ounces of stoned raisins, eight ounces of washed and dried currants, one pound of tripe, one pound of apples, one pound of chopped suet, four ounces of shred candied peel, one pound of moist sugar, one ounce of allspice, the juice and the chopped rind of three lemons, half a gill of rum. First chop the raisins, currants, apples, and the tripe all together, or separately, until well mixed; then place these in a pan, add the remainder of the ingredients, mix them thoroughly until well incorporated with each other; put the mince-meat into a clean dry stone jar, tie some thick paper, or a piece of bladder over the top, and keep it in a cool place till wanted for use.

No. 101. MINCE-PIE PASTE.

Ingredients, one pound of flour, eight ounces of b.u.t.ter or lard, three gills of water, half an ounce of salt, a tea-spoonful of baking-powder.

Place the flour on the table, hollow out a hole or well in the centre with your fist, place the salt and baking-powder in this, add the water and the b.u.t.ter, work all together lightly with the fingers, without positively absorbing or entirely uniting the b.u.t.ter with the flour, but, on the contrary, keeping the b.u.t.ter in distinct pieces here and there; then roll up the paste in the form of a ball of dough, spread it out on the floured table, and, with a rolling-pin, roll it out to the extent of eighteen inches in length, by eight inches wide; then fold the paste in three equal folds, roll it out the reverse way, fold it up again as before, and after repeating the rolling out and folding up a third time, the paste will be ready for use.

No. 102. TO MAKE A MINCE-PIE.

Having prepared the paste according to the directions given in the foregoing Number, divide it in two equal parts, roll these out either round or square, place one of the flats on a tin baking-dish, wet all round the edge of the paste, spread some of the mince-meat about half an inch thick all over the paste to within an inch of its edge, then cover all in by laying the other flat of paste evenly upon the whole, press all round the edge of the pie with your thumb to secure the mince-meat from running out at the sides, score the pie neatly over the surface, in the form of reversed strokes, and bake it for an hour.

No. 103. JAM TART.

Prepare some paste, as in No. 101, and use this to make a jam tart, as directed for making a mince-pie, using any kind of common jam, instead of mince-meat, for the purpose.

No. 104. BAKED APPLE DUMPLINGS.

Ingredients, one pound of flour, four ounces of chopped suet, half a pint of water, a pinch of salt, eight or ten large apples peeled. With the above ingredients prepare some suet paste, as directed in No. 97; divide the paste into about eight equal parts, first make these into b.a.l.l.s with the hand, and then roll them out with a rolling-pin to the size of a large saucer, envelop an apple in each flat of paste, and, wetting the edges with water, gather them round in a purse-like form, and twist the ends tightly together to fasten them securely. The dumplings, thus formed, must be placed on the twisted end, at equal distances of three inches apart from each other, upon a tin baking-dish, and baked in the oven for about three-quarters of an hour.

No. 105. PANCAKES FOR SHROVE TUESDAY.

Ingredients, twelve ounces of flour, three eggs, one pint of milk, a tea-spoonful of salt, a little grated nutmeg, and chopped lemon-peel.

First, put the flour into a basin, hollow out the centre, add the salt, nutmeg, lemon-peel, and a drop of milk, to dissolve them; then break in the eggs, work all together, with a spoon, into a smooth soft paste, add the remainder of the milk, and work the whole vigorously until it forms a smooth liquid batter. Next, set a frying-pan on the fire, and, as soon as it gets hot, wipe it out clean with a cloth, then run about a tea-spoonful of lard all over the bottom of the hot frying-pan, pour in half a small tea-cupful of the batter, place the pan over the fire, and, in about a minute or so, the pancake will have become set sufficiently firm to enable you to turn it over in the frying-pan, in order that it may be baked on the other side also; the pancake done on both sides, turn it out on its dish, and sprinkle a little sugar over it: proceed to use up the remaining batter in the same manner.

No. 106. RAISINET--A PRESERVE FOR WINTER.

Ingredients, twelve pounds of fruit, consisting of peeled apples, pears, plums, and blackberries, in equal proportion; six pounds of raw sugar, at 4-1/2_d._ per pound; one quart of water. Bake three hours in a slack or slow oven. First, prepare the fruit, and put it in mixed layers of plums, pears, berries, apples, alternating each other, in stone jars.

Next, put the six pounds of sugar in a clean saucepan, with the quart of water, and stir it with a spoon on the fire till it comes to a gentle boil; remove the dirty sc.u.m from the surface of the sugar; and, after allowing it to boil for ten minutes, pour it in equal proportions into the jar or jars containing the fruits, and place them in a moderate heat to bake slowly for three hours at least. When boiling the sugar for this purpose, remember that it is most prudent to use a saucepan capable of containing double the quant.i.ty, as sugar is very liable to boil over and waste. When the fruit is nearly dissolved, the raisinet will be done; it must then be removed to a cool place until it has become thoroughly cold and partially set firm; the jars should then be tied down with thick paper, or bladder, and kept in the cellar for winter use, either for making puddings or tarts, or for spreading on bread for the children.

No. 107. CURRANT JAM.

Ingredients, twelve pounds of picked currants, either red, black, or white, or, if agreeable, mixed; eight pounds of raw sugar, three pints of water. If you could borrow what is called a preserving-pan from a neighbour, it would suit the purpose better than a pot; but, failing the preserving-pan, put the eight pounds of sugar in a four-gallon iron pot, with the three pints of water; stir these on the fire till the sugar boils; remove the sc.u.m from the surface, and, when it has boiled for about ten minutes, add the currants, and keep stirring the jam, while it boils for half an hour; and then, if it presents the appearance of being rather thick, and the currants partly dissolved, it will be ready to pour into stone jars, which, after being allowed to cool all night, are to be tied down with paper, and kept in a cold place for winter's use.

All kinds of seed fruit can be prepared in the same manner, as well as all kinds of plums.

No. 108. HOW TO PRESERVE RHUBARB.

Free the rhubarb from leaves, cut it up in inch lengths, wash and drain it in a sieve or colander. Next, put the rhubarb into a sufficiently large pot, or preserving-pan, with a little water--say a pint of water to ten pounds of rhubarb, and put this on the fire, with the lid on, to boil until dissolved to a pulp, stirring it occasionally; as soon as all the rhubarb is dissolved, add six pounds of moist sugar, and stir the whole continuously on the fire while boiling fast, until reduced to a rather stiff paste or marmalade--this will require about half an hour's boiling; the preserve or jam must then be immediately put into jars, or gallipots, and, when cold, is to be covered with stiff paper, and tied round with string. Keep the jam in a cold place, for use.

No. 109. HOW TO MAKE GOOSEBERRY JAM.

Pick ten pounds of ripe gooseberries, put them in a covered pot, with a pint of water, and set them on the fire to boil to a pulp, stirring them frequently, and, when they are thoroughly dissolved, add six pounds of sugar, and stir the whole continuously while boiling on the fire, until the jam is reduced to a rather stiff paste; it must then be poured into gallipots, and, when cold, is to be covered with paper, and tied round with string.

No. 110. BAKED PEARS.

Put the pears, standing up side by side in rows, with their stalks uppermost, in an earthenware baking dish; add a sprinkle of moist sugar, a few cloves, and a pint of cider or water, and bake them until they are done. The time for cooking them depends upon their size and kind.

No. 111. BAKED APPLES.

Put the apples on a baking-dish, with a sprinkle of sugar, and a drop of cider or water, and set them in the oven to bake. Baked apples or pears, with bread, form a cheap, wholesome, and proper kind of supper for children.

No. 112. TO MAKE ELDER WINE.

Ingredients, two gallons of elderberries, two quarts of damsons, eight pounds of raw sugar, at 4-1/2_d._ per pound, two gallons of water, two ounces of ginger, one ounce of cloves, and half a pint of fresh yeast.

To make this quant.i.ty of elder wine, you must have a copper, a tub, a large canvas or loose flannel bag, and a five-gallon barrel. First, crush the elderberries and damsons thoroughly in the pot or copper in which they are to be boiled; then add the water, and keep stirring all together as it boils, until the fruit is well dissolved; then use a wooden bowl or a basin to pour the whole into a loose flannel bag, steadily fixed across two stout sticks, resting safely on two chairs, or, if you have one, a large coa.r.s.e sieve instead. When all the liquor has pa.s.sed through into the tub, put the dregs back into the copper, to be boiled up with a couple of quarts of water, and then to be strained to the other liquor. The next part of the process is to put the whole of the elderberry juice back into the clean pot or copper, with the sugar, and the spice, well bruised with a hammer; stir all together, on the fire, and allow the wine to boil gently for half an hour, then pour it into the clean tub to cool; the half-pint of yeast must then be added, and thoroughly mixed by stirring. At the end of two days, skim off the yeast which, by that time, will have risen to the surface. The elder wine must now be put into the barrel, and kept in the cellar with the bung-hole left open for a fortnight; at the end of this time, a stiff brown paper should be pasted over the bung-hole, and after standing for a month or six weeks, the wine will be ready for use. To be obliged to buy all the ingredients for making elder wine, would render it a matter of great difficulty--perhaps, in some cases, an impossibility; but, remember, that when living in the country, where in some parts elderberries grow in the hedge-rows, you may have them for the trouble of gathering them, in which case the elder wine would be cheaper, and more easily within your means.