The Country Housewife and Lady's Director in the Management of a House Part 17

Take the Umbles of a Deer and boil them tenderly, and when they are cold, chop them as small as Meat for minc'd Pyes, and shred to them as much Beef-Suet, six large Apples, half a Pound of Sugar, a Pound of Currans, a little Salt, and as much Cloves, Nutmeg and Pepper powder'd as you see convenient; then mix them well together, and when they are put into the Paste, pour in half a Pint of Sack, the Juice of two Lemons and an Orange: and when this is done, close the Pye, and when it is baked, serve it hot to the Table.

To Stew Peaches. From the same.

Take Peaches when they are so ripe that they begin to smell; then pare them and slit them, and the Sorts I recommend will leave the Stones. Put these in a Silver Plate, or on such a one as will not communicate any ill taste to them, and pour over them a Syrup made of Pippins, Water and Sugar boil'd till it is a Jelly, and add a little White Wine; then stew them gently over a clear Fire till they are tender; and serve them with fine Sugar sifted upon them. In some Cafes they pour Cream upon them.

Red _Peach Tarts._ From the same.

Take your Peaches, as before directed, and order them as you did before in paring them and slitting them; then lay them into the Coffins, and when you have sifted on them some fine powder'd Loaf-Sugar, pour over them some Syrup of Raspberries or Mulberries, and bake them gently: they will be tender and very highly flavoured, if you put Raspberries to them, and finely colour'd; but to have them more of their own Taste, put Syrup of Mulberries to them, and they will be finely colour'd. The Coffins or Crust ought to be made of melting Paste, with fine Sugar in it.

_Bitters_ to be drank with Wine.

Take a Quart of clean Spirit, or good Brandy, and put into it an Ounce of Gentian Root sliced, one Ounce and a half of dry'd Orange-Peel, and one Drachm of _Virginia_ Snake-Root; add to this half a Drachm of Cochineel, and half a Drachm of Loaf-Sugar; which last will heighten the Bitter to admiration. A little of this Bitter in a Gla.s.s of White Wine creates an Appet.i.te.

To Stew _Wild-Ducks._ From _Amsterdam._

When your Ducks are ready prepar'd for the Fire, rub their Inside with Pepper, Salt, and a little powder of Cloves, a Shallot or two, with a lump of b.u.t.ter in the Belly of each of them; then lay them in an earthen glazed Pan, that will just hold them, and put three Quarters of a Pound of b.u.t.ter under and over your Ducks: then pour in a Pint of Vinegar, and as much Water with some Salt, Pepper, some Lemon-Peel, some Cloves whole, a bunch of sweet Herbs, and covering the Pan close, let them stew three or four Hours. Then pa.s.s the Liquor through a Sieve, and pour it over your Ducks; and serve them hot with garnish of Lemon sliced and Raspings of Bread sifted. This Method serves likewise for Easterlings, Widgeons, Teal and such like.

To Stew a salted Brisket of _Beef._ From Mr. _La Fontaine._

To a Pound of common Salt, put one Ounce of Salt-Petre, and rub your Beef well with it, and let it lie a Week; then lard the Skin of it with Bacon-Fat, and lay it in a Stew-pan that will shut close. Cut a Lemon in half with its Rind, and lay a-part on each side the Beef; then put in a bunch of sweet Herbs, some whole Cloves, half a Nutmeg sliced, some Pepper, an Onion, or three or four Shallots, half a Pound of b.u.t.ter, a Pint of Claret, and a Quart of Water; shut your Pan close, and let it stew gently five or six Hours till it is very tender.

Then having some boil'd Turnip cut in dice, flour them and fry them brown; then pour off the Liquor the Beef was stew'd in, and having pa.s.sed it through a Sieve, thicken it with burnt b.u.t.ter, and mix your fry'd Turnips with it, and pour all together over your Beef; garnish with Lemon sliced, and Raspings of Bread sifted, and serve it hot, it is an excellent Dish.

Neck of _Mutton_ ragou'd. From the same.

Take a Neck of Mutton clean from Bones, and strip it from the Skin; salt it a little, and let it lie till the next day. In the mean while, bake the Bones with a slice or two of fat Bacon, a f.a.ggot of sweet Herbs, some Spice, a little Salt and some Lemon-Peel, with half a Pint of Water, and half a Pint of Claret, to cover them; then lay your Mutton in a Pan, and when your baked Gravey is pa.s.sed through a Sieve, pour it into the Pan to the Mutton; but first lard the fat Part of the Mutton with Lemon-Peel, and the leaner Part with Fat of Bacon; then strew some grated Bread and Spice over the Mutton, which will not be cover'd with the baked Gravey; and when you have closed your Pan, stew it gently four Hours. Then lay it in the Dish, and when you have thickned the Sauce with burnt b.u.t.ter, put a Pint of Mushroom b.u.t.tons, either fresh and parboil'd, or pickled, into it, and toss them up till they are hot; then pour them all over your Meat, and serve it hot, garnish'd with Lemon sliced, red Beet-Roots pickled and sliced, Capers, and Horse-Radish sc.r.a.p'd.

Stew'd _Beef_ in _Soup._ From the same.

Take four Pounds of Beef, indifferently lean, and cut it in eight or ten Pieces. Put these into a Pan that may be close cover'd, and then about three Quarts of Water, and a Pint of White Wine, some Pepper and Salt, some Powder of dry'd sweet Marjoram, a few Cloves powder'd, half a dozen small Turnips cut in Dice, a Carrot or two cut in the same manner, the white Part of a large Leek shred small, some Leaves of white Beet, two Heads of Sallery shred, and a Piece of Bread-Crust burnt; cover close, and stew this for six Hours, and serve it hot. You may garnish with Lemon sliced.

To dress the _Liver_ and _Crow_ of an _Hog._ From Mrs. _Johnson_ in _Devereux-Court._

However this Dish may seem dispiseable, yet if it is well dresed, few of the savoury Dishes exceed it. The Liver and Crow of an Hog, with the Sweet-Breads, should be used presently after the Hog is kill'd, and the Liver cut in Lumps, twice as big as a Walnut, and not in thin Pieces as most do; for then they will become hard in the Dressing. The Crow must likewise be cut in Slips about the breadth of two Fingers, and so must the Sweet-Breads; then parboil the Pieces of Liver, and make a thick Batter of Flour, Water and Eggs, mixing a little Salt with it, and prepare some red Sage shred very fine; some grated Bread, and some Pepper beaten: mix these together, and when you have some b.u.t.ter, or Lard, very hot in your Frying-Pan, dip the Crow and Sweet-Bread in the Batter, and immediately dip your Pieces in the Mixture of Bread, Sage, _&c._ and throw them into the Pan. When these are enough, lay them to drain before the Fire, and then dip the Bits of Liver into the Batter; and after that, into the crumb'd Bread, and give them a turn or two in the Pan, over a quick Fire: then drain them like the others, and serve them hot with b.u.t.ter and Mustard.

_Sea-Larks_ or _Oysters,_ roasted on Spits or Skewers. From the same.

Take large Oysters, and wash them from Dirt; then dip them in Batter made with Milk, Flour, Powder of Mace, some Eggs and a little Pepper; then dip them again in Crumbs of Bread grated, and some Mace powder'd, and put them on a fine Skewer, broad-side to broad-side, or upon Silver Lark Spits; and when they are at the Fire, flour them well, and baste them with b.u.t.ter till they are enough. Prepare for them, while they are Roasting, the following Sauce: Take Crumbs of Bread, a little Pepper and Salt, and a Blade or two of Mace with a little Nutmeg, and boil them in some of the Oyster-Liquor till the Bread is tender and like a Pulp, and tastes well of the Spice; then put in a Gla.s.s of White Wine, and mix it well, and serve it hot, in a Plate, with the roasted Oysters over the Sauce.

A Shoulder of _Mutton_ or _Lamb,_ roasted with a Farce of _Oysters._ From Mr. _Norman,_ late Cook in _Norfolk._

Take a Shoulder of Mutton or Lamb, of the smallest size, and slip up the Skin almost to the Leg-Joint; then cut the Flesh from the Bone, on the upper side, and mince it very small, take part of that, and as many Oysters parboil'd without their Fins, and chopt a little; then have some Mace powder'd, and a little Salt and Pepper, with some grated Lemon-Peel, and some grated Bread, with the Yolk of an Egg, or two; and make this into a Paste, and lay it into the Places where the Flesh was taken out; and you may add to this Paste a little Fat of Bacon cut small, or a little b.u.t.ter.

Then skewer the Skin on all sides, over the Farced Meat, and lard the Skin and the fleshy Parts below with Lemon-Peel, and some will lard in Lemon Thyme likewise. Then fix it on a Spit with Skewers, and roast it, well basted with b.u.t.ter and well floured. The Sauce for this should be stew'd Oysters, some Mace, stew'd Mushrooms, a little Gravey, and some White-Wine, with Crumbs of Bread; then serve it hot, garnish'd with sliced Lemon, and Red Beet-Root pickled and sliced.

Stew'd Veal, with white Sauce; from the same.

Take some Lean of a Leg of Veal, and cut it in thick Slices, then stew them in Water and a little Salt, with some Mace, and a little Nutmeg, and a Bunch of sweet Herbs. When they are almost stew'd enough with the Gravey in them, put to the Liquor they were stew'd in, a Gla.s.s or two of White Wine, and a little Lemon Juice, or Orange Juice, with a little Mushroom Gravey, or Liquor of stew'd Mushrooms. When this is done, have some Mushroom b.u.t.tons, that have been stew'd white in their own Liquor, and Spice, with a Bay-Leaf; then strain the Liquor, and put some in the Sauce: and when it is hot, put some thick Cream to it, with the Mushrooms; and then serve it hot with a Garnish of sliced Lemon.

Hard _Pease-Soup._ From the same.

There are many ways of making Pease-Soup. In great Families it is sometimes made of Beef, but a Leg of Pork is much preferable; and in smaller Families the Bones of Pork, as they are called. And the s.h.i.+n and Hock of a Leg of Pork, after they have made Sausages, may be had at the Sausage-Houses: these boil'd for a long time, will afford a strong Jelly Broth, but they are hard to be met with. However, when they are to be had, you have the Directions for a Broth. Then pa.s.s the Broth, hot, through a Sieve, and put into it half a Pint of slit Pease to a Quart of Liquor; or a Quart of whole Pease to three Quarts of Liquor. The Difference between one and the other, is, the slit Pease will open in the Liquor, when we boil it, and the other ought to be broken through a Cullender, when they are boil'd: but the slit Pease are the best; and when you put them into the Liquor to boil, add to every Quart of Liquor as much Sallery as you think proper, cut small; some powder of dry'd Mint, some powder of dry'd sweet Marjoram, some Pepper, and some Salt, to your mind, and let these boil till the Sallery is tender.

This is to be done, if we boil a Leg of Pork, after the Pork is out of the Pot; but if we make the Soup from the Bones, boil these Ingredients afterwards in the Liquor. When you serve it, put a _French_ Role in the middle of the Dish, and garnish the Border of the Dish with rasp'd Bread sifted. Some put in All-spice powder'd, which is very agreeable: and one might add the Leaves of white Beets, And in serving, put in toasted Bread, cut in Dice; but the last is out of fas.h.i.+on.

To make green _Pease-_Pottage, with _Milk._ From the same.

Take a Quart of green Pease sh.e.l.l'd, and boil three Quarts or two Quarts of Milk, as you please to have them thick with Pease; and add some Pepper largely beaten, a little Salt, some dry'd Mint, and sweet Marjoram in powder, and a little whole Spice beaten. Boil these together till the Cream rises, and then stir it, and serve it hot. _N.B._ The Pease should be boil'd first, if there is any opportunity; and for that Reason, if when we have a Dish of Pease, we leave any, they may be put into the Milk, and boil'd the Morning following; and indeed it is the best to have the Pease boil'd first.

To make an artificial _Crab_ or _Lobster._ From Mr. _F._ of _Buckingham._

I Suppose you have by you the large Sh.e.l.ls of Sea-Crabs clean'd; then take part of a Calf's Liver, boil it and mince it very small, and a little Anchovy Liquor, and but very little, to give it the Fish-taste. Mix it well with a little Lemon Juice, some Pepper, and some Salt, with a little Oil, if you like it, and fill the Sh.e.l.ls with it; and then the outside Parts of the Liver, being a little hard, will feel to the Mouth like the Claws of the Crab broken and pick'd, and the inner Parts will be soft and tender, like the Body of a Crab. One may serve this cold, and it will deceive a good Judge, if you do not put too much of the Anchovy Liquor into it. It is very good cold; but if you would have it hot, take the following Receipt.

To make artificial hot b.u.t.ter'd _Sea-Crabs._

Have the great Sh.e.l.ls of Crabs clean, and prepare some Liver, as before; or it you cannot get Calf's Liver, get a Lamb's Liver, or a young Sheep's Liver will do tolerably well. Boil these, and shred them as directed before, and put a little Anchovy Liquor to them; then add a little White Wine, some Pepper and Salt at pleasure, and some other Spice at discretion, with b.u.t.ter necessary to make it mellow, over a gentle Fire, or a little Sallet Oil, if you like Oil. Then add a little Lemon Juice in the Sh.e.l.ls, stirring the Mixture together. Then serve them up hot with Lemon sliced.

To make artificial _Crabs._ From M. _De la Port_ of _Lyons_ in _France._