Good Things to Eat as Suggested by Rufus Part 4

-STEWED SAUSAGE WITH CABBAGE---Procure a medium sized white cabbage, remove all the green leaves, and cut it into quarters, removing the center stalks. Wash thoroughly in cold water, drain well and cut into small pieces. Put in boiling salted water for five minutes. Take out and put in cold water and cool moderately. Drain in a colander and put in a saucepan with one gill of fat from soup stock or one ounce of b.u.t.ter.

Season with a pinch of salt and one-half pinch of pepper, a medium sized onion and a carrot cut into small quarters. Put on the cover of the saucepan, set on a moderate fire and cook for half an hour. Take twelve sausages, p.r.i.c.k them with a fork, add them to the cabbage and allow all to cook together for twelve minutes. Dress the cabbage on a hot dish and arrange the sausages and carrot on top. Serve very hot.

-SUCKLING PIG---The pig should not be more than a month or six weeks old, and if possible should be dressed the day after it is killed.

First, scald it as follows: Soak the pig in cold water for fifteen minutes, then plunge it into boiling water. Hold it by the head and shake around until the hairs begin to loosen. Take out of the water and rub vigorously with a coa.r.s.e towel, until all hairs are removed. Cut the pig open, remove the entrails, wash thoroughly in cold water. Dry on a towel, cut the feet off at the first joint leaving enough skin to turn over and keep it wrapped in a wet cloth until ready for use.

SALADS

-ASPARAGUS SALAD---Cook the asparagus in salted water, drain and chill.

Serve with French dressing or sprinkle lightly with a little oil dressing; let stand a half hour and serve with mayonnaise or boiled dressing as any one of the three distinct kinds is appropriate with this salad.

-BEET SALAD---Bake the beets until tender, remove the skins and place them in the ice box to chill. Shred a white cabbage finely and sprinkle well with salt and use lettuce leaves to line the salad bowl. Slice the beets, place them on the lettuce, spread with a layer of cabbage, garnish with sliced beets cut in points and dress with mayonnaise or boiled dressing.

-BIRDS NEST SALAD---Have ready as many crisp leaves of lettuce as may be required to make a dainty little nest for each person. Curl them into shape and in each one place tiny speckled eggs made by rolling cream cheese into shape, then sprinkle with fine chopped parsley. Serve with French dressing hidden under the leaves of the nest.

-CABBAGE SALAD---Chop or shave fine, half a medium size head of cabbage that has been left in cold water until crisp, then drain. Season with salt and pepper, then pour over it a dressing made this way: Beat the yolks of two eggs, add two tablespoons of melted b.u.t.ter and beat again.

Add two tablespoons thick sour cream, two tablespoons sugar, a sprinkle of mustard and half cup of vinegar. Beat until thoroughly mixed, pour over the cabbage and toss lightly until uniformly seasoned.

-CAULIFLOWER MAYONNAISE---Take cold boiled cauliflower, break into branches, adding salt, pepper and vinegar to season. Heap on a platter, making the flowers come to a point at the top. Surround with a garnish of cooked and diced carrots, turnips, green peas. Pour mayonnaise over all, chill and serve. Another garnish for cauliflower is pickled beets.

-CELERY AND NUT SALAD---Cut enough celery fine to measure two cups, add one cup of finely shredded or shaved cabbage and one and one-half cups of walnut meats, broken in small pieces, but not chopped. Mix and moisten on a serving dish and garnish with celery tips.

-CREOLE SALAD---Half cup of olive oil, five tablespoons of vinegar, half teaspoon of powdered sugar, one teaspoon salt, two tablespoons chopped red pepper, three tablespoons chopped green peppers, half Bermuda onion, parsley and lettuce and serve.

-FISH SALAD---Remove skin and bones and flake cold cooked fish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and add a few drops of lemon juice. Arrange on a bed of shredded lettuce in the shape of a fish. Cover with mayonnaise or cream dressing and garnish with hard boiled eggs and parsley.

-JELLIED CUc.u.mBER---Pare and slice cuc.u.mbers and cook in water to cover until tender. Drain, season with salt, a few grains of cayenne, and to one cup of the cooked cuc.u.mber add a level teaspoon of gelatin dissolved in a spoonful of cold water. Stir the soaked gelatin in while the cuc.u.mber is hot. Set into a cold place to chill and become firm. If a large mold is used break up roughly into pieces, if small molds are taken then unmold onto lettuce leaves and serve with mayonnaise.

-NUT AND CELERY SALAD---Cover one cup of walnut meats and two slices of onion with boiling water, to which is added a teaspoon of salt. Cook half an hour, drain, turn into ice cold water for ten minutes, then rub off the brown skin. Add the nuts broken in small pieces to two cups of celery cut in small pieces crosswise. Use only the white inner stalks, serve with a cream dressing.

-SALAD---Two cups of apples cut into small pieces, one cup celery cut into small pieces, one cup English walnuts. Serve on a lettuce leaf with mayonnaise dressing, made without mustard, and thinned with cream.

Garnish dish that dressing is made in with a little garlic.

-SPANISH TOMATOES---Choose ten or a dozen large tomatoes, cut a slice from the stem end of each and scoop out the inside. Put the pulp into a basin with two ounces of melted b.u.t.ter, two tablespoonfuls of lemon juice, half a pound of chestnuts, boiled and grated, and seasoning of salt and white pepper to taste. Fill the tomatoes with this, which should be about the consistency of thick cream, spread with a thick mayonnaise, garnish with chopped parsley and serve on lettuce leaves.

-TOMATO BASKETS---Tomato baskets are charming accessories for holding vegetable salad, chicken, shrimps, cold beans, asparagus tips, shredded celery, cuc.u.mbers cut in cubes and minced peppers. Choose firm, smooth tomatoes, not too large and as nearly one size as possible. Dip for half a minute in boiling water, skin and set in ice box to chill. Cut out pulp and seeds, dress the cavity with salt, pepper, oil and vinegar, then fill with the salad, seasoned with French dressing or mayonnaise.

Handles of watercress may be attached to these baskets. Set on lettuce or cress, as desired.

-TRIANON SALAD---Cut one grape fruit and two oranges in sections and free from seeds and membrane. Skin and seed one cup white grapes and cut one-third cup pecan nut meats in small pieces. Mix ingredients, arrange on a bed of romaine and pour over the following dressing: Mix four tablespoons olive oil, one tablespoon grape juice, one tablespoon grape vinegar, one-fourth teaspoon paprika, one-eighth teaspoon pepper and one tablespoon finely chopped Roquefort cheese. This dressing should stand in the ice-box four or five hours to become seasoned.

-CREAM DRESSING---Mix one-half level tablespoon each of salt and mustard, three-quarters level tablespoon of sugar, one egg slightly beaten, two and one-half tablespoons of melted b.u.t.ter, three-quarters cup of cream, and heat in a double boiler. When hot add very slowly one-quarter cup of hot vinegar, stirring all the time. When thickened strain and cool.

-FRENCH DRESSING---For party of six five tablespoons of oil and three of vinegar, juice of half lemon, two drops tabasco, tablespoon of salt, slice of onion, and boil for three minutes and ready for service. Strain and bottle and put in ice box, shake before using each time.

-SALAD DRESSING---When making salad for a large family take quart bottle with a rather wide mouth, put in one-half cup of vinegar, one and one-half cups of olive oil, two level teaspoons of salt and one-half level teaspoon of pepper; cork the bottle tightly and shake vigorously until an emulsion is made. The proportion of vinegar may be larger if not very strong and more salt and pepper used if liked. Use from the bottle and shake well each time any is used.

Instructions for Preparing Poultry Before Dressing.

To serve poultry tender and delicate; it should be kept some hours after being killed before boiling or roasting. Poultry intended for dinner should be killed the evening before. When poultry has ceased to bleed, before picking put it into cold water, in a vessel large enough to completely cover it. Then take out and soak in boiling water for a few minutes. Pick it, being careful to take out all the small feathers. When cleaning the inside of poultry or game be sure not to break the gall bladder, for it will give a bitter taste to the meat. Be equally careful not to tear the intestines near the gizzard, as it will make the inside dirty and spoil the whole bird.

POULTRY AND POULTRY DRESSINGS

-BOHEMIAN CHICKEN---Select a young and tender chicken and prepare as for frying or broiling. Place in a frying pan a pat of b.u.t.ter and place on the fire. Beat to a smooth, thin batter two eggs, three spoonfuls of milk and a little flour, season, dip each piece of the chicken in this batter and fry a rich brown in the heated b.u.t.ter.

-CHICKEN A LA TARTARE---Have a chicken dressed and split down the back; it should not weigh over two and a half pounds. Put one quarter cup of b.u.t.ter in a frying pan with a teaspoon of finely minced parsley, half a teaspoon of salt and a little pepper. Brown each half of the chicken in the b.u.t.ter and on both sides. Take up the chicken, brush the inside over with an egg beaten with one tablespoon of cold water, lay in a dripping pan and dust over the egg half a cup of fine bread crumbs mixed with the same amount of minced cooked ham. Set in a hot oven and finish cooking.

Serve on a hot dish with sauce tartare. The chicken will cook best if laid in a wire broiler resting on the dripping pan.

-CHICKEN BROILED IN PAPER---Split a chicken and let it soak for two hours in oil mixed with parsley, sliced onion, cloves, salt and pepper.

Put each half in papers, enclosing all the seasoning and broil over a very slow fire. When done take off the paper, bacon, etc., and serve with sauce a la ravigotte.

-CHICKEN CROQUETTES---Stir a pint of fine chopped chicken into a cup and a quarter of sauce made of one-third cup of flour, three tablespoons of b.u.t.ter, a cup of chicken stock and one-fourth cup of cream, season with a few drops of onion juice, a teaspoon of lemon, one teaspoonful celery salt and pepper. When thoroughly chilled form into cylindrical shapes, roll in egg and bread crumbs and fry in deep fat. Serve surrounded with peas and figures stamped upon cooked slices of carrot. Season with salt, paprika and b.u.t.ter.

-CHICKEN CROQUETTES---Take two chickens weighing about two pounds each, put them into a saucepan with water to cover, add two onions and carrots, a small bunch of parsley and thyme, a few cloves and half a grated nutmeg, and boil until birds are tender; then remove the skin, gristle and sinews and chop the meat as fine as possible. Put into a saucepan one pound of b.u.t.ter and two tablespoonfuls of flour, stir over the fire for a few minutes and add half a pint of the liquor the chickens were cooked in and one pint of rich cream, and boil for eight or ten minutes, stirring continually. Remove the pan from the fire, season with salt, pepper, grated nutmeg and a little powdered sweet marjoram, add the chopped meat and stir well. Then stir in rapidly the yolks of four eggs, place the saucepan on the fire for a minute, stirring well, turn the ma.s.s onto a dish, spread it out and let it get cold. Cover the hands with flour and form the preparation into shapes, dip them into egg beaten with cream, then in sifted breadcrumbs and let them stand for half an hour or so to dry; then fry them a delicate color after plunging into boiling lard. Take them out, drain, place on a napkin on a dish and serve. The remainder of the chicken stock may be used for making consomme or soup.

-CHICKEN CROQUETTES WITH FISH FLAVOR---The foundation of all croquettes is a thick white sauce which stiffens when cold, so that mixed with minced fish, chicken or other compounds it can be easily handled and shaped into pears, cylinders, ovals, etc. When cooked the croquettes should be soft and creamy inside. This sauce is made as follows:--

Scald in a double boiler one pint rich milk or cream. Melt in a granite saucepan two even tablespoons b.u.t.ter, then add two heaping tablespoonfuls cornstarch or flour, and one tablespoon of flavor.

When blended add one-third of the hot cream and keep stirring as it cooks and thickens. When perfectly smooth put in all the cream. The sauce should be very thick. Add the seasoning, a half teaspoonful of salt, a half teaspoonful celery salt, white peppers or paprika to taste, then the meat.