Miss Parloa's New Cook Book
by
Maria Parloa
Part 3 out of 9
in the basket and plunge for a moment into the boiling fat. Garnish
with this, or, pour a white or Bechamel sauce around the dish, and
garnish with fresh parsley. The quantity given will make six or seven
cutlets.
Canned Lobster.
Canned lobster can be used for cutlets, stews, curries and patties,
can be escaloped, or served on toast.
OTHER SHELL-FISH.
Stewed Terrapins.
Put them into boiling water, and boil rapidly for ten or fifteen
minutes, or until the nails will come out and the black skin rub off--
the time depending upon the size of the fish. After this, put into
fresh boiling water, and boil until the under shell cracks, which will
be about three-quarters of an hour. Remove the under shell, throw away
the sand and gall bags, take out intestines, and put the terrapins to
boil again in the same water for an hour. Pick liver and meat from
upper shell. Cut the intestines in small pieces, and add to this meat.
Pour over all a quantity of the liquor in which the intestines were
boiled sufficient to make very moist. Put away until the next day. For
each terrapin, if of good size, a gill of cream and of wine, half a
cupful of butter, yolks of two hard-boiled eggs, rubbed smooth, salt,
pepper and cayenne are needed. Pour over the terrapin, let it come to
a boil, and serve,--[Mrs. Furness, of Philadelphia.]
Soft-Shell Crabs.
Lift the shell at both sides and remove the spongy substance found on
the back. Then pull off the "apron," which will be found on the under
side, and to which is attached a substance like that removed from the
back. Now wipe the crabs, and dip them in beaten egg, and then in fine
bread or cracker crumbs. Fry in boiling fat from eight to ten minutes,
the time depending upon the size of the crabs. Serve with Tartare
sauce. Or, the egg and bread crumbs may be omitted. Season with salt
and cayenne, and fry as before,
When broiled, crabs are cleaned, and seasoned with salt and cayenne;
are then dropped into boiling water for one minute, taken up, and
broiled over a hot fire for eight minutes. They are served with
_maître d' hôtel_ butter or Tartare sauce.
MEATS.
BOILING.
All pieces, unless very salt, should be plunged into boiling water,
and boiled rapidly for fifteen minutes, to harden the albumen that is
on the outside, and thus keep in the juices. The kettle should then be
put back where it will just simmer, for meat that is boiled rapidly
becomes hard and stringy, while that which is kept just at the boiling
point (where the water hardly bubbles) will cut tender and juicy,
provided there is any juiciness in it at the beginning. White meats,
like mutton and poultry, are improved in appearance by having rice
boiled with them; or, a still better way is to thickly flour a piece
of coarse cotton cloth, pin the meat in it, and place in the boiling
water. Meat cooked in this way will be extremely juicy.
Leg of Mutton.
Cook, as directed, in boiling water to cover. A leg that weighs eight
or nine pounds will cook in one hour and a quarter if it is wanted
done rare. Allow five minutes for every additional pound. Save the
water for soups.
Lamb.
Cook the same as mutton. Serve with drawn butter.
Boiled Ham.
Wash the ham very clean, and put on with cold water to cover. Simmer
gently five hours, and set the kettle aside for one or two hours. When
nearly cold, take out the ham and draw off the skin. Cover with
cracker crumbs and about three table-spoonfuls of sugar. Place in the
oven, in a baking-pan, for thirty or forty minutes. Many people stick
cloves into the fat part of the ham, and use only a few crumbs. The
time given is for a ham weighing about twelve pounds; every pound over
that will require fifteen minutes more. The fish kettle comes next to
a regular ham kettle, and answers quite as well as both. If you have
neither kettle, and no pot large enough to hold all the meat, cut off
the knuckle, which will cook in about two hours. But this rather hurts
the flavor and appearance of the dish.
Salt Tongue.
Soak over night, and cook from five to six hours. Throw into cold
water and peel off the skin.
Fresh Tongue.
Put into boiling water to cover, with two table-spoonfuls of salt.
Cook from five to six hours. Skin the same as salt tongue.
Corned Beef.
Wash, and put into cold water, if very salt; but such a piece as one
finds in town and city shops, and which the butchers corn themselves,
put into boiling water. Cook very slowly for six hours. This time is
for a piece weighing eight or ten pounds. When it is to be served cold
let it stand for one or two hours in the water in which it was boiled.
If the beef is to be pressed, get either a piece of the brisket, flank
or rattle-ran. Take out the bones, place in a flat dish or platter,
put a tin sheet on top, and lay on it two or three bricks. If you have
a corned beef press, use that, of course.
ROASTING.
There are two modes of roasting: one is to use a tin Kitchen before an
open fire, and the other and more common way is to use a very hot
oven. The former gives the more delicious favor, but the second is not
by any means a poor way, if the meat is put on a rack, and basted
constantly when in the oven. A large piece is best for roasting, this
being especially true of beef. When meat is cooked in a tin kitchen it
requires more time, because the heat is not equally distributed, as it
is in the oven.
To prepare for roasting: Wipe the meat with a wet towel. Dredge on all
sides with salt, pepper and flour; and if the kitchen is used, dredge
the flour into that. Run the spit through the centre of the meat, and
place very near the fire at first, turning as it browns. When the
flour in the kitchen is browned, add a pint of hot water, and baste
frequently with it, dredging with salt and flour after each basting.
Roast a piece of beef weighing eight pounds fifty minutes, if to be
rare, but if to be medium, roast one hour and a quarter, and ten
minutes for each additional pound.
Roasting in the Oven.
Prepare the meat as before. Have a rack that will fit loosely into the
baking-pan. Cover the bottom of the pan rather lightly with flour, put
in rack, and then meat Place in a very hot oven for a few minutes, to
brown the flour in the pan, and then add hot water enough to cover the
bottom of the pan. Close the oven; and in about ten minutes, open, and
baste the meat with the gravy. Dredge with salt, pepper and flour. Do
this every fifteen minutes; and as soon as one side of the meat is
brown, turn, and brown the other. Make gravy as before. Allow a
quarter of an hour less in the oven than in the tin kitchen. The heat
for roasting must be very great at first, to harden the albumen, and
thus keep in the juices. After the meat is crusted over it is not
necessary to keep up so great a heat, but for rare meats the heat
must, of course, be greater than for those that are to be well done.
The kitchen can be drawn back a little distance from the fire and the
drafts closed. Putting salt on fresh meat draws out the juices, but by
using flour a paste is formed, which, keeps in all the juices and also
enriches and browns the piece. Never roast meat without having a rack
in the pan. If meat is put into the water in the pan it becomes soggy
and looses its flavor. A meat rack costs not more than thirty or forty
cents, and the improvement in the looks and flavor of a piece of meat
is enough to pay for it in one roasting. The time given for roasting a
piece of beef is for rib roasts and sirloin. The same weight in the
face or the back of the rump will require twenty minutes longer, as
the meat on these cuts is in a very compact form. If a saddle or loin
of mutton is to be roasted, cook the same time as beef if the weight
is the same; but if a leg is to be roasted, one hour and a quarter is
the time. Lamb should be cooked an hour and a half; veal, two hours
and three-quarters; pork, three hours and a quarter. Ten minutes
before dishing the dinner turn the gravy into a sauce-pan, skim off
all the fat, and set on the stove. Let it come to a boil; then stir in
one table-spoonful of flour, mixed with half a cupful of cold water.
Season with salt and pepper, and cook two minutes. Serve the meat on a
hot dish and the gravy in a hot tureen.
Boiled Rib Roast.
Either have the butcher remove the bones, or do it your-self by
slipping a sharp knife between the flesh and bones--a simple matter
with almost any kind of meat. Roll up the piece and tie with strong
twine. Treat the same as plain roast beef, giving the same time as if
it were a piece of rump (one hour and a half for eight pounds), as the
form it is now in does not readily admit the heat to all parts. This
piece of beef can be larded before roasting, or it can be larded and
braised. Serve with tomato or horse-radish sauce.
Roast Beef, with Yorkshire Pudding.
A rib or sirloin roast should be prepared as directed for roasting.
When within three-quarters of an hour of being done, have the pudding
made. Butter a pan like that in which the meat is being cooked, and
pour in the batter. Put the rack across the pan, not in it. Place the
meat on the rack, return to the oven, and cook forty-five minutes. If
you have only one pan, take up the meat, pour off the gravy and put in
the pudding. Cut in squares, and garnish the beef with these. Another
method is to have a pan that has squares stamped in it. This gives
even squares and crust on all the edges, which baking in the flat pan
does not. When the meat is roasted in the tin-kitchen, let the pudding
bake in the oven for half an hour, and then place it under the meat to
catch the drippings.
For the Yorkshire pudding, one pint of milk, two-thirds of a cupful of
flour, three eggs and one scant teaspoonful of salt will be needed.
Beat the eggs very light. Add salt and milk, and then pour about half
a cupful of the mixture upon the flour; and when perfectly smooth, add
the remainder. This makes a small pudding--about enough for six
persons. Serve it hot.
Fillet of Veal, Roasted.
About eight or ten pounds of the fillet, ham force-meat (see rule for
force-meat), half a cupful of butter, half a teaspoonful of pepper,
two table-spoonfuls of salt, two lemons, half a pound of salt pork.
Rub the salt and pepper into the veal; then fill the cavity, from
which the bone was taken, with the force-meat. Skewer and tie the
fillet into a round shape. Cut the pork in thin slices, and put half
of these on a tin sheet that will fit into the dripping pan; place
this in the pan, and the fillet on it. Cover the veal with the
remainder of the pork. Put hot water enough in the pan to just cover
the bottom, and place in the oven. Bake slowly for four hours, basting
frequently with the gravy in the pan, and with salt, pepper and flour.
As the water in the pan cooks away, it must be renewed, remembering to
have only enough to keep the meat and pan from burning. After it has
been cooking three hours, take the pork from the top of the fillet,
spread the top thickly with butter and dredge with flour. Repeat this
after thirty minutes, and then brown handsomely. Put the remainder of
the butter, which should be about three table-spoonfuls, in a sauce-
pan, and when hot, add two heaping table-spoonfuls of flour, and stir
until dark brown. Add to it half a pint of stock or water; stir a
minute, and set back where it will keep warm, but not cook. Now take
up the fillet, and skim all the fat off of the gravy; add water enough
to make half a pint of gravy, also the sauce just made. Let this boil
up, and add the juice of half a lemon, and more salt and pepper, if
needed. Strain, and pour around the fillet. Garnish the dish with
potato puffs and slices of lemon.
Roast Ham.
Prepare the ham as for boiling, and if it is of good size (say ten
pounds), boil three hours. Remove the skin, and put the ham in a
baking pan. Let it cook two hours in a moderate oven. Serve with
champagne sauce.
BROILING.
The fire for broiling must be clear, and for meats it must be hotter
and brighter than for fish. Coals from hard wood or charcoal are best,
but in all large towns and cities hard coal is nearly always used,
except in hotels and restaurants, where there is usually a special
place for broiling with charcoal. The double broiler is the very best
thing in the market for broiling meats and fish. When the meat is
placed in it, and the slide is slipped over the handles, all there is
to do is to hold the broiler over the fire, or, if you have an open
range, before the fire. A fork or knife need not go near the meat
until it is on the dish. A great amount of the juice is saved. With
the old-fashioned gridirons it is absolutely necessary to stick a fork
into the meat to turn it, and although there are little grooves for
the gravy to run into, what is saved in this way does not compare with
what is actually kept within the meat where the double broiler is
used. Professional cooks can turn a steak without running a fork into
the meat, but not one in a hundred common cooks can do it.
Mutton Chops.
Sprinkle the chops with salt, pepper and flour. Put them in the double
broiler. Broil over or before the fire for eight minutes. Serve on a
_hot_ dish with butter, salt and pepper for tomato sauce. The
fire for chops should not be as hot as for steak. Chops can be
seasoned with salt and pepper, wrapped in buttered paper and broiled
ten minutes over a hot fire.
Beef Steak.
Have it cut thick. It will never be good, rich and juicy if only from
one-fourth to one-half an inch thick. It ought to be at least three-
quarters of an inch thick. Trim off any suet that may be left on it,
and dredge with salt, pepper and flour. Cook in the double broiler,
over or before clear coals, for ten minutes, if to be rare, twelve, if
to be rather well done. Turn the meat constantly. Serve on a hot dish
with butter and salt, or with mushroom sauce, _maitre d' Hôtel_
butter or tomato sauce. Do not stick a knife or fork into the meat to
try it. This is the way many people spoil it. Pounding is another bad
habit: much of the juice of the meat is lost. When, as it sometimes
happens, there is no convenience for broiling, heat the frying pan
very hot, then sprinkle with salt, and lay in the steak. Turn
frequently.
MISCELLANEOUS MODES.
Braised Beef.
Take six or eight pounds of the round or the face of the rump, and
lard with quarter of a pound of salt pork. Put six slices of pork in
the bottom of the braising pan, and as soon as it begins to fry, add
two onions, half a small carrot and half a small turnip, all cut fine.
Cook these until they begin to brown; then draw them to one side of
the pan and put in the beef, which has been well dredged with salt,
pepper and flour. Brown on all sides, and then add one quart of
boiling water and a bouquet of sweet herbs; cover, and cook
_slowly_ in the oven for four hours, basting every twenty
minutes. Take up, and finish the gravy as for braised tongue. Or, add
to the gravy half a can of tomatoes, and cook for ten minutes. Strain,
pour around the beef, and serve.
Fricandeau of Veal.
Have a piece of veal, weighing about eight pounds, cut from that part
of the leg called the cushion. Wet the vegetable masher, and beat the
veal smooth; then lard one side thickly. Put eight slices of pork in
the bottom of the braising-pan; place the veal on this, larded side
up. Add two small onions, half a small turnip, two slices of carrot,
one clove and a bouquet of sweet herbs--these to be at the sides of
the meat, not on top; and one quart of white stock or water. Dredge
with salt, pepper and flour. Cover, and place in a rather moderate
oven. Cook three hours, basting every fifteen minutes. If cooked
rapidly the meat will be dry and stringy, but if slowly, it will be
tender and juicy. When done, lift carefully from the pan. Melt four
table-spoonfuls of glaze, and spread on the meat with a brush. Place
in the open oven for five minutes. Add one cupful of hot water to the
contents of the braising-pan. Skim off all the fat, and then add one
heaping teaspoonful of corn-starch, which has been mixed with a little
cold water. Let it boil one minute; then strain, and return to the
fire. Add two table-spoonfuls of glaze, and when this is melted, pour
the sauce around the fricandeau, and serve. Potato balls, boiled for
twelve minutes in stock, and then slightly browned in the oven, make a
pretty garnish for this dish. It is also served on a bed of finely-
chopped spinach or mashed potatoes.
Leg of Lamb à la Française.
Put a leg of lamb, weighing about eight pounds, in as small a kettle
as will hold it. Put in a muslin bag one onion, one small white
turnip, a few green celery leaves, three sprigs each of sweet marjoram
and summer savory, four cloves and twelve allspice. Tie the bag and
place it in the kettle with the lamb; then pour on two quarts of
boiling water. Let this come to a boil, and then skim carefully. Now
add four heaping table-spoonfuls of flour, which has been mixed with
one cupful of cold water, two table-spoonfuls of salt and a speck of
cayenne. Cover tight, and set back where it will just simmer for four
hours. In the meantime make a pint and a half of veal or mutton force-
meat, which make into little balls and fry brown. Boil six eggs hard.
At the end of four hours take up the Iamb. Skim all the fat off of the
gravy and take out the bag of seasoning. Now put the kettle where the
contents will boil rapidly for ten minutes. Put three table-spoonfuls
of butter in the frying-pan, and when hot, stir in two of flour; cook
until a dark brown, but not burned, and stir into the gravy. Taste to
see if seasoned enough. Have the whites and yolks of the hard-boiled
eggs chopped separately. Pour the gravy over the lamb; then garnish
with the chopped eggs, making a hill of the whites, and capping it
with part of the yolks. Sprinkle the remainder of the yolks over the
lamb. Place the meat balls in groups around the dish. Garnish with
parsley, and serve.
Braised Breast of Lamb.
With a sharp knife, remove the bones from a breast of lamb; then
season it well with salt and pepper, and roll up and tie firmly with
twine. Put two table-spoonfuls of butter in the braising-pan, and when
melted, add one onion, one slice of carrot and one of turnip, all cut
fine. Stir for five minutes, and then put in the lamb, with a thick
dredging of flour. Cover, and set back, where it will not cook
rapidly, for half an hour; then add one quart of stock or boiling
water, and place in the oven, where it will cook _slowly_, for
one hour. Baste often. Take up the meat, skim all the fat off of the
gravy, and then put it where it will boil rapidly for five minutes.
Take the string from the meat. Strain the gravy, and pour over the
dish. Serve very hot. Or serve with tomato or Bechamel sauce. The
bones should be put in the pan with the meat, to improve the gravy.
Beef Stew.
Two pounds of beef (the round, flank, or any cheap part; if there is
bone in it, two and a half pounds will be required), one onion, two
slices of carrot, two of turnip, two potatoes, three table-spoonfuls
of flour, salt, pepper, and a generous quart of water. Cut all the fat
from the meat, and put it in a stew-pan; fry gently for ten or fifteen
minutes. In the meantime cut the meat in small pieces, and season well
with salt and pepper, and then sprinkle over it two table-spoonfuls of
flour. Cut the vegetables in very small pieces, and put in the pot
with the fat. Fry them five minutes, stirring well, to prevent
burning. Now put in the meat, and move it about in the pot until it
begins to brown; then add the quart of boiling water. Cover; let it
boil up once, skim, and set back, where it will just bubble, for two
and a half hours. Add the potatoes, cut in thin slices, and one table-
spoonful of flour, which mix smooth with half a cupful of cold water,
pouring about one-third of the water on the flour at first, and adding
the rest when perfectly smooth. Taste to see if the stew is seasoned
enough, and if it is not, add more salt and pepper. Let the stew come
to a boil again, and cook ten minutes; then add dumplings. Cover
tightly, and boil rapidly ten minutes longer.
Mutton, lamb or veal can be cooked in this manner. When veal is used,
fry out two slices of pork, as there will not be much fat on the meat.
Lamb and mutton must have some of the fat put aside, as there is so
much on these meats that they are otherwise very gross.
Irish Stew.
About two pounds of the neck of mutton, four onions, six large
potatoes, salt, pepper, three pints of water and two table-spoonfuls
of flour. Cut the mutton in handsome pieces. Put about half the fat in
the stew-pan, with the onions, and stir for eight or ten minutes over
a hot fire; then put in the meat, which sprinkle with the flour, salt
and pepper. Stir ten minutes, and add the water, boiling. Set for one
hour where it will simmer; then add the potatoes, peeled, and cut in
quarters. Simmer an hour longer, and serve. You can cook dumplings
with this dish, if you choose. They are a great addition to all kinds
of stews and ragouts.
Toad in the Hole.
This is an English dish, and a good one, despite the unpleasant name.
One pound of round steak, one pint of milk, one cupful of flour, one
egg, and salt and pepper. Cut the steak into dice. Beat the egg very
light; add milk to it, and then half a teaspoonful of salt. Pour upon
the flour, gradually, beating very light and smooth. Butter a two-
quart dish, and in it put the meat. Season well, and pour over it the
batter. Bake an hour in a moderate oven. Serve hot. This dish can be
made with mutton and lamb in place of steak.
Scotch Roll.
Remove the tough skin from about five pounds of the flank of beef. A
portion of the meat will be found thicker than the rest. With a sharp
knife, cut a thin layer from the thick part, and lay upon the thin.
Mix together three table-spoonfuls of salt, one of sugar, half a
teaspoonful of pepper, one-eighth of a teaspoonful of clove and one
teaspoonful of summer savory. Sprinkle this over the meat, and then
sprinkle with three table-spoonfuls of vinegar. Roll up, and tie with
twine. Put away in a cold place for twelve hours When it has stood
this time, place in a stew-pan, with boiling water to cover, and
simmer gently for three hours and a half. Mix four heaping table-
spoonfuls of flour with half a cupful of cold water, and stir into the
gravy. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer half an hour
longer. This dish is good hot or cold.
POULTRY AND GAME.
To Clean and Truss Poultry.
First singe, by holding the bird over a blazing paper. It is best to
do this over the open stove, when all the particles of burnt paper
will fall into the fire. Next open the vent and draw out the internal
organs, if this has not been done at the butcher's. Be careful not to
break the gall bladder. Wash quickly in one water. If there are large
black pin-feathers, take out what you can with the point of a knife,
(it is impossible to get out all). Cut the oil bag from the tail. Be
sure that you have taken out every part of the wind-pipe, the lights
and crop. Turn the skin back, and cut the neck quite short. Fill the
crop with dressing, and put some in the body also. With a short
skewer, fasten the legs together at the joint where the feet were cut
off. [Be careful, in cutting off the feet of game or poultry, to cut
in the joint. If you cut above, the ligaments that hold the flesh and
bones together will be severed, and in cooking, the meat will shrink,
leaving a bare, unsightly bone. Besides, you will have nothing to hold
the skewer, if the ligaments are cut off.] Run the skewer into the
bone of the tail, and tie firmly with a long piece of twine. Now take
a longer skewer, and run through the two wings, fastening them firmly
to the sides of the bird. With another short skewer, fasten the skin
of the neck on to the back-bone. Place the bird on its breast, and
draw the strings, with which the legs were tied, around the skewers in
the wings and neck; pass them across the back three times, and tie
very tightly. By following these directions, you will have the bird in
good shape, and all the strings on the back, so that you will avoid
breaking the handsome crust that always forms on properly basted and
roasted poultry. When cooked, first cut the strings, then draw out the
skewers. The fat that comes from the vent and the gizzard of chickens,
should be tried out immediately and put away for shortening and
frying. That of geese, turkeys and ducks is of too strong a flavor to
be nice in cookery.
To clean the giblets: Cut the gall-bag from the lobe of the liver,
cutting a little of the liver with it, so as not to cut into the bag.
Press the heart between the finger and thumb, to extract all the
blood. With a sharp knife, cut lightly around the gizzard, and draw
off the outer coat, leaving the lining coat whole. If you cannot do
that (and it does require practice), cut in two, and after removing
the filling, take out the lining. When the poultry is to be boiled,
and is stuffed, the vent must be sewed with mending cotton or soft
twine. Unless the bird is full of dressing, this will not be necessary
in roasting.
Fowl and Pork.
Clean and truss, pin in the floured cloth and put into water in which
one pound of rather lean pork has been boiling three hours. The time
of cooking depends upon the age of the fowl. If they are not more than
a year old an hour and a half will be enough, but if very old they may
need three hours. The quantity of pork given is for only a pair of
fowl, and more must be used if a large number of birds be cooked.
Serve with egg sauce. The liquor should be saved for soups.
Boiled Fowl with Macaroni.
Break twelve sticks of macaroni in pieces about two inches long; throw
them into one quart of boiling water, add a table-spoonful of salt and
half a table-spoonful of pepper. Boil rapidly for twelve minutes; then
take up, and drain off all the water. Season with one table-spoonful
of butter and one teaspoonful of salt. After the fowl have been singed
and cleaned, stuff with the macaroni. Truss them, and then pin in a
floured cloth and plunge into enough boiling water to cover them. Boil
rapidly for fifteen minutes; then set back where they will just simmer
for from one and a half to two and a half hours. The time of cooking
depends upon the age of the birds. Serve with an egg or Bechamel
sauce. The quantity of macaroni given is for two fowl. Plain boiled
macaroni should be served with this dish.
Boiled Turkey with Celery.
Chop half a head of celery very fine. Mix with it one quart of bread
crumbs, two scant table-spoonfuls of salt, half a teaspoonful of
pepper, two heaping table-spoonfuls of butter and two eggs. Stuff the
turkey with this; sew up and truss. Wring a large square of white
cotton cloth out of cold water, and dredge it thickly with flour. Pin
the turkey in this, and plunge into boiling water. Let it boil rapidly
for fifteen minutes; then set back where it will simmer. Allow three
hours for a turkey weighing nine pounds, and twelve minutes for every
additional pound. Serve with celery sauce. The stuffing may be made
the same as above, only substitute oysters for celery, and serve with
oyster sauce.
Boiled Turkey.
Clean and truss the same as for roasting. Rub into it two spoonfuls of
salt, and put into boiling water to cover. Simmer gently three hours,
if it weighs nine or ten pounds, and is tender. If old and tough it
will take longer. Serve with oyster, celery or egg sauce. Pour some of
the sauce over the turkey, and serve the rest in a gravy boat.
Roast Turkey.
Proceed the same with a turkey as with a chicken, allowing one hour
and three-quarters for a turkey weighing eight pounds, and ten minutes
for every additional pound.
Roast Turkey with Chestnut Stuffing and Sauce.
Clean the turkey, and lard the breast. Throw fifty large chestnuts
into boiling water for a few minutes; then take them up, and rub off
the thin, dark skin. Cover them with boiling water, and simmer for one
hour; take them up, and mash fine. Chop one pound of veal and half a
pound of salt pork very fine. Add half of the chestnuts to this, and
add, also, half a teaspoonful of pepper, two table-spoonfuls of salt
and one cupful of stock or water. Stuff the turkey with this. Truss,
and roast as already directed. Serve with a chestnut sauce. The
remaining half of the chestnuts are for this sauce.
Boned Turkey.
Get a turkey that has not been frozen (freezing makes it tear easily).
See that every part is whole; one with a little break in the skin will
not do. Cut off the legs, in the joints, and the tips of the wings. Do
not draw the bird. Place it on its breast, and with a small, sharp
boning knife, cut in a straight line through to the bone, from the
neck down to that part of the bird where there is but little flesh,
where it is all skin and fat. Begin at the neck, and run the knife
between the flesh and the bones until you come to the wing. Then cut
the ligaments that hold the bones together and the tendons that hold
the flesh to the bones. With the thumb and fore-finger, _press_
the flesh from the smooth bone. When you come to the joint, carefully
separate the ligaments and remove the bone. Do not try to take the
bone from the next joint, as that is not in the way when carving, and
it gives a more natural shape to the bird. Now begin at the wish-bone,
and when that is free from the flesh, run the knife between the sides
and the flesh, always using the fingers to press the meat from the
smooth bones, as, for instance, the breast-bone and lower part of the
sides. Work around the legs the same as you did around the wings,
always using great care at the joints not to cut the skin. Drawing out
the leg bones turns that part of the bird inside out. Turn the bird
over, and proceed in the same manner with the other side. When all is
detached, carefully draw the skin from the breast-bone; then run the
knife between the fat and bone at the rump, leaving the small bone in
the extreme end, as it holds the skewers. Carefully remove the flesh
from the skeleton, and turn it right side out again. Rub into it two
table-spoonfuls of salt and a little pepper, and fill with dressing.
Sew up the back and neck and then the vent. Truss the same as if not
boned. Take a strong piece of cotton cloth and pin the bird firmly in
it, drawing very tight at the legs, as this is the broadest place, and
the shape will not be good unless this precaution be taken. Steam
three hours, and then place on a buttered tin sheet, which put in a
baking pan. Baste well with butter, pepper, salt and flour. Roast one
hour, basting every ten minutes, and twice with stock. When cold,
remove the skewers and strings, and garnish with aspic jelly, cooked
beets and parsley. To carve: First cut off the wings, then about two
thick slices from the neck, where it will be quite fat, and then cut
in thin slices. Serve jelly with each plate.
Filling for a turkey weighing eight pounds: The flesh of one chicken
weighing four pounds, one pound of clear veal, half a pound of clear
salt pork, one small capful of cracker crumbs, two eggs, one cupful of
broth, two and a half table-spoonfuls of salt, half a teaspoonful of
pepper, one teaspoonful of summer savory, one of sweet majoram, one of
thyme, half a spoonful of sage, and, if you like, one table-spoonful
of capers, one quart of oysters and two table-spoonfuls of onion
juice. Have the meat uncooked and free from any tough pieces. Chop
_very_ fine. Add seasoning, crackers, etc., mix thoroughly, and
use. If oysters are used, half a pound of the veal must be omitted.
Where one cannot eat veal, use chicken instead. Veal is recommended
for its cheapness. Why people choose boned turkey instead of a plain
roast turkey or chicken, is not plain, for the flavor is not so good;
but at the times and places where boned birds are used, it is a very
appropriate dish. That is, at suppers, lunches and parties, where the
guests are served standing, it is impracticable to provide anything
that cannot be broken with a fork or spoon; therefore, the advantage
of a boned turkey, chicken, or bird, is apparent. One turkey weighing
eight pounds before being boned, will serve thirty persons at a party,
if there are, also, say oysters, rolls, coffee, ices, cake and cream.
If the supper is very elaborate the turkey will answer for one of the
dishes for a hundred or more persons. If nothing more were gained in
the boning of a bird, the knowledge of the anatomy and the help this
will give in carving, pay to bone two or three chickens. It is
advisable to bone at least two fowls before trying a turkey, for if
you spoil them there is nothing lost, as they make a stew or soup.
Aspic jelly: One and a half pints of clear stock--beef if for amber
jelly, and chicken or veal if for white; half a box of gelatine, the
white of one egg, half a cupful of cold water, two cloves, one large
slice of onion, twelve pepper-corns, one stalk of celery, salt. Soak
gelatine two hours in the cold water. Then put on with other
ingredients, the white of the egg being beaten with one spoonful of
the cold stock. Let come to a boil, and set back where it will just
simmer for twenty minutes. Strain through a napkin, turn into a mould
or shallow dish, and put away to harden. The jelly can be made with
the bones of the turkey and chicken, by washing them, covering with
cold water and boiling down to about three pints; by then straining
and setting away to cool, and in the morning skimming off all the fat
and turning off the clear stock. The bones may, instead, be used for a
soup.
Roast Goose.
Stuff the goose with a potato dressing made in the following manner:
Six potatoes, boiled, pared and mashed fine and light; one table-
spoonful of salt, one teaspoonful of pepper, one spoonful of sage, two
table-spoonfuls of onion juice, two of butter. Truss, and dredge well
with salt, pepper and flour. Roast before the fire (if weighing eight
pounds) one hour and a half; in the oven, one hour and a quarter. Make
gravy the same as for turkey. No butter is required for goose, it is
so fat. Serve with apple sauce. Many people boil the goose half an
hour before roasting, to take away the strong flavor. Why not have
something else if you do not like the real flavor of the goose?
Roast Duck.
Ducks, to be good, must be cooked rare: for this reason it is best not
to stuff. If, however, you do stuff them, use the goose dressing, and
have it very hot. The better way is to cut an onion in two, and put
into the body of the bird; then truss, and dredge with salt, pepper
and flour, and roast, if before the fire, forty minutes, and if in the
oven, thirty minutes. The fire must be very hot if the duck be roasted
in the kitchen, and if in the oven, this must be a quick one. Serve
with currant jelly and a sauce made the same as for turkey.
Roast Chicken.
Clean the chicken, and stuff the breast and part of the body with
dressing made as follows: For a pair of chickens weighing between
seven and eight pounds, take one quart of stale bread (being sure not
to have any hard pieces), and break up in very fine crumbs. Add a
table-spoonful of salt, a scant teaspoonful of pepper, a teaspoonful
of chopped parsley, half a teaspoonful of powdered sage, one of summer
savory and a scant half cupful of butter. Mix well together. This
gives a rich dressing that will separate like rice when served. Now
truss the chickens, and dredge well with salt. Take soft butter in the
hand, and rub thickly over the chicken; then dredge rather thickly
with flour. Place on the side, on the meat rack, and put into a hot
oven for a few moments, that the flour in the bottom of the pan may
brown. When it is browned, put in water enough to cover the pan. Baste
every fifteen minutes with the gravy in the pan, and dredge with salt,
pepper and flour. When one side is browned, turn, and brown the other.
The last position in which the chicken should bake is on its back,
that the breast may be nicely frothed and browned. The last basting is
on the breast, and should be done with soft butter, and the breast
should be dredged with flour. Putting the butter on the chicken at
first, and then covering with flour, makes a paste, which keeps the
juices in the chicken, and also supplies a certain amount of rich
basting that is absorbed into the meat. It really does not take as
much butter to baste poultry or game in this manner as by the old
method of putting it on with a spoon after the bird began to cook. The
water in the pan must often be renewed; and always be careful not to
get in too much at a time. It will take an hour and a quarter to cook
a pair of chickens, each weighing between three and a half and four
pounds; anything larger, an hour and a half. A sure sign that they are
done is the readiness of joints to separate from the body. If the
chickens are roasted in the tin-kitchen, before the fire, it will take
a quarter of an hour longer than in the oven.
Gravy for chickens: Wash the hearts, livers, gizzards and necks and
put on to boil in three pints of water; boil down to one pint. Take
them all up. Put the liver on a plate, and mash fine with the back of
the spoon; return it to the water in which it was boiled. Mix two
table-spoonfuls of flour with half a cupful of cold water. Stir into
the gravy, season well with salt and pepper, and set back where it
will simmer, for twenty minutes. Take up the chickens, and take the
meat rack out of the pan. Then tip the pan to one side, to bring all
the gravy together. Skim off the fat. Place the pan on top of the
stove and turn into it one cupful of water. Let this boil up, in the
meantime scraping everything from the sides and bottom of the pan.
Turn this into the made gravy, and let it all boil together while you
are removing the skewers and strings from the chickens.
Chicken à la Matelote.
Cut up an uncooked chicken. Rub in butter and flour, and brown in an
oven. Fry in four table-spoonfuls of chicken fat or butter, for about
twenty minutes, a small carrot, onion and parsnip, all cut into dice.
When the chicken is browned, put it in a stew-pan with the cooked
vegetables and one quart of white stock. Then into the fat in which
the vegetables were fried, put two table-spoonfuls of flour, and cook
until brown. Stir this in with the chicken. Add the liver, mashed
fine, one table-spoonful of capers and salt and pepper to taste. Cook
very gently three-quarters of an hour; then add one-fourth of a pound
of mushrooms, cut in small pieces. Cook fifteen minutes longer. Serve
with a border of boiled macaroni, mashed potatoes or rice.
Chicken à la Reine.
Clean, stuff and truss a pair of chickens, as for roasting. Dredge
well with salt, pepper and flour. Cut a quarter of a pound of pork in
slices, and put part on the bottom of a deep stew-pan with two slices
of carrot and one large onion, cut fine. Stir over the fire until they
begin to color; then put in the chickens, and lay the remainder of the
pork over them. Place the stew-pan in a hot oven for twenty minutes;
then add white stock to half cover the chicken (about two quarts), and
a bouquet of sweet herbs. Dredge well with flour. Cover the pan and
return to the oven. Baste about every fifteen minutes, and after
cooking one hour, turn over the chickens. Cook, in all, two hours.
Serve with Hollandaise sauce or with the sauce in which the chickens
were cooked, it being strained over them.
Chicken à la Tartare.
Singe the chicken, and split down the back. Wipe thoroughly with a
damp cloth. Dredge well with salt and pepper, cover thickly with
softened butter, and dredge thickly on both sides with fine, dry bread
crumbs. Place in a baking pan, the inside down, and cook in a very hot
oven thirty minutes, taking care not to bum. Serve with Tartare sauce.
Broiled Chicken.
Singe the chicken, and split down the back, if not already prepared;
and wipe with a damp cloth. Never wash it. Season well with salt and
pepper. Take some soft butter in the right hand and rub over the bird,
letting the greater part go on the breast and legs. Dredge with flour.
Put in the double broiler, and broil over a moderate fire, having the
breast turned to the heat at first. When the chicken is a nice brown,
which will be in about fifteen minutes, place in a pan and put into a
moderate oven for twelve minutes. Place on a hot dish, season, with
salt, pepper and butter, and serve immediately. This rule is for a
chicken weighing about two and a half pounds. The chicken is improved
by serving with _maître d' hôtel_ butter or Tartare sauce.
Chicken Stew with Dumplings.
One chicken or fowl, weighing about three pounds; one table-spoonful
of butter, three of flour, one large onion, three slices of carrot,
three of turnip, three pints of boiling water and salt and pepper. Cut
the chicken in slices suitable for serving. Wash, and put in a deep
stew-pan, add the water, and set on to boil. Put the carrot, turnip
and onion, cut fine, in a sauce-pan, with the butter, and cook slowly
half an hour, stirring often; then take up the vegetables in a
strainer, place the strainer in the stew-pan with the chicken, and dip
some of the water into it. Mash the vegetables with the back of a
spoon, and rub as much as possible through the strainer. Now skim two
spoonfuls of chicken fat from the water, and put in the pan in which
the vegetables were cooked. When boiling hot, add the three table-
spoonfuls of flour. Stir over the fire until a dark brown; then stir
it in with the chicken, and simmer until tender. Season well with
pepper and salt. The stew should only simmer all the while it is
cooking. It must not boil hard. About two hours will be needed to cook
a year old chicken. Twelve minutes before serving draw the stew-pan
forward, and boil up; then put in the dumplings, and cook _ten_
minutes. Take them up, and keep in the heater while you are dishing
the chicken into the centre of the platter. Afterwards, place the
dumplings around the edge. This is a very nice and economical dish, if
pains are taken in preparing. One stewed chicken will go farther than
two roasted.
Larded Grouse.
Clean and wash the grouse. Lard the breast and legs. Run a small
skewer into the legs and through the tail. Tie firmly with twine.
Dredge with salt, and rub the breast with soft butter; then dredge
thickly with flour. Put into a quick oven. If to be very rare, cook
twenty minutes; if wished better done, thirty minutes. The former
time, as a general thing, suits gentlemen better, but thirty minutes
is preferred by ladies. If the birds are cooked in a tin-kitchen, it
should be for thirty or thirty-five minutes. When done, place on a hot
dish, on which has been spread bread sauce. Sprinkle fried crumbs over
both grouse and sauce. Garnish with parsley. The grouse may, instead,
be served on a hot dish, with the parsley garnish, and the sauce and
crumbs served in separate dishes. The first method is the better,
however, as you get in the sauce all the gravy that comes from the
birds.
Larded Partridges.
Partridges are cooked and served the same as grouse.
Larded Quail.
The directions for cooking and serving are the same as those for
grouse, only that quails cook in fifteen minutes. All dry-meated birds
are cooked in this way. The question is sometimes asked, Should ducks
be larded? Larding is to give richness to a dry meat that does not
have fat enough of its own; therefore, meats like goose, duck and
mutton are _not_ improved by larding.
Broiled Quail.
Split the quail down the back. Wipe with a damp towel. Season with
salt and pepper, rub thickly with soft butter, and dredge with flour.
Broil ten minutes over clear coals. Serve on hot buttered toast,
garnishing with parsley.
Broiled Pigeons.
Prepare, cook and serve the same as quail They should be young for
broiling, squabs being the best.
Broiled Small Birds.
All small birds can be broiled according to the directions for quail,
remembering that for extremely small ones it takes a very bright fire.
As the birds should be only browned, the time required is very brief.
Small Birds, Roasted.
Clean, by washing quickly in one water after they have been drawn.
Season with salt and pepper. Cut slices of salt pork _very thin_,
and with small skewers, fasten a slice around each bird. Run a long
skewer through the necks of six or eight, and rest it on a shallow
baking-pan. When all the birds are arranged, put into a _hot_
oven for twelve minutes, or before a hot fire for a quarter of an
hour. Serve on toast.
Potted Pigeons.
Clean and wash one dozen pigeons. Stand them on their necks in a deep
earthen or porcelain pot, and turn on them a pint of vinegar. Cut
three large onions in twelve pieces, and place a piece on each pigeon.
Cover the pot, and let it stand all night In the morning take out the
pigeons, and throw away the onions and vinegar. Fry, in a deep stew-
pan, six slices of fat pork, and when browned, take them up, and in
the fat put six onions, sliced fine. On these put the pigeons, having
first trussed them, and dredge well with salt pepper and flour. Cover,
and cook slowly for forty-five minutes, stirring occasionally; then
add two quarts of boiling water, and simmer gently two hours. Mix four
heaping table-spoonfuls of flour with a cupful of cold water, and stir
in with the pigeons. Taste to see if there is enough seasoning, and if
there is not, add more. Cook half an hour longer. Serve with a garnish
of rice or riced potatoes. More or less onion can be used; and, if you
like it so, spice the gravy slightly.
Pigeons in Jelly.
Wash and truss one dozen pigeons. Put them in a kettle with four
pounds of the shank of veal, six cloves, twenty-five pepper-corns, an
onion that has been fried in one spoonful of butter, one stalk of
celery, a bouquet of sweet herbs and four and a half quarts of water.
Have the veal shank broken in small pieces. As soon as the contents of
the kettle come to a boil, skim carefully, and set for three hours
where they will just simmer. After they have been cooking one hour,
add two table-spoonfuls of salt. When the pigeons are done, take them
up, being careful not to break them, and remove the strings. Draw the
kettle forward, where it will boil rapidly, and keep there for forty
minutes; then strain the liquor through a napkin, and taste to see if
seasoned enough. The water should have boiled down to two and a half
quarts. Have two moulds that will each hold six pigeons. Put a thin
layer of the jelly in these, and set on ice to harden. When hard,
arrange the pigeons in them, and cover with the jelly, which must be
cold, but liquid. Place in the ice chest for six or, better still,
twelve hours. There should be only one layer of the pigeons in the
mould.
To serve: Dip the mould in a basin of warm water for one minute, and
turn on a cold dish. Garnish with pickled beets and parsley. A Tartare
sauce can be served with this dish.
If squabs are used, two hours will cook them. All small birds, as well
as partridge, grouse, etc., can be prepared in the same manner.
Remember that the birds must be cooked tender, and that the liquor
must be so reduced that it will become jellied.
Roast Rabbit.
First make a stuffing of a pound of veal and a quarter of a pound of
pork, simmered two hours in water to cover; four crackers, rolled
fine; a table-spoonful of salt, a scant teaspoonful of pepper, a
teaspoonful of summer savory, a large table-spoonful of butter and one
and a quarter cupfuls of the broth in which the veal and pork were
cooked. Chop the meat fine, add the other ingredients, and put on the
fire to heat. Cut off the rabbit's head, open the vent, and draw. Wash
clean, and season with salt and pepper. Stuff while the dressing is
hot, and sew up the opening. Put the rabbit on its knees, and skewer
in that position. Rub thickly with butter, dredge with flour, and put
in the baking pan, the bottom of which should be covered with hot
water. Bake half an hour in a quick oven, basting frequently. Serve
with a border of mashed potatoes, and pour the gravy over the rabbit.
Curry of Rabbit.
Cut the rabbit in small pieces. Wash, and cook the same as chicken
curry.
Saddle of Venison.
Carefully scrape off the hair, and wipe with a damp towel; Season well
with salt and pepper, and roll up and skewer together. Rub thickly
with soft butter and dredge thickly with flour. Roast for an hour
before a clear fire or in a _hot_ oven, basting frequently. When
half done, if you choose, baste with a few spoonfuls of claret. Or,
you can have one row of larding on each side of the back-bone. This
gives a particularly nice flavor.
To make the gravy: Pour off all the fat from the baking pan, and put
in the pan a cupful of boiling water. Stir from the sides and bottom,
and set back where it will keep hot. In a small frying-pan put one
table-spoonful of butter, a small slice of onion, six pepper-corns and
four whole cloves. Cook until the onion is browned, and then add a
generous teaspoonful of flour. Stir until this is browned; then,
gradually, add the gravy in the pan. Boil one minute. Strain, and add
half a teaspoonful of lemon juice and three table-spoonfuls of currant
jelly. Serve both venison and gravy very hot. The time given is for a
saddle weighing between ten and twelve pounds. All the dishes and
plates for serving must be hot. Venison is cooked in almost the same
manner as beef, always remembering that it must be served _rare_
and _hot_.
Roast Leg of Venison.
Draw the dry skin from the meat, and wipe with a damp towel. Make a
paste with one quart of flour and a generous pint of cold water. Cover
the venison with this, and place before a hot fire, if to be roasted
in the tin kitchen, or else in a very hot oven. As the paste browns,
baste it frequently with the gravy in the pan. When it has been
cooking one hour and a half, take off the paste, cover with butter,
and dredge thickly with flour. Cook one hour longer, basting
frequently with butter, salt and flour. Make the gravy the same as for
a saddle of venison, or serve with game sauce. The time given is for a
leg weighing about fifteen pounds.
ENTREES.
Fillet of Beef, Larded.
The true fillet is the tenderloin, although sometimes one will see a
rib roast, boned and rolled, called a fillet. A short fillet, weighing
from two and a half to three pounds (the average weight from a very
large rump), will suffice for ten persons at a dinner where this is
served as one course; and if a larger quantity is wanted a great
saving will still be made if two short fillets are used. They cost
about two dollars, while a large one, weighing the same amount, would
cost five dollars, Fillet of beef is one of the simplest, safest and
most satisfactory dishes that a lady can prepare for either her own
family or guests. After a single trial she will think no more of it
than of broiling a beef steak. First, remove from the fillet, with a
sharp knife, every shred of muscle, ligament and thin, tough skin. If
it is not then of a good round shape, skewer it into shape. Draw a
line through the centre, and lard with two rows of pork, having them
meet at this line. Dredge well with salt, pepper and flour, and put,
without water, in a very small pan. Place in a hot oven for thirty
minutes. Let it be in the lower part of the oven the first ten
minutes, then place on the upper grate. Serve with mushroom,
Hollandaise or tomato sauce, or with potato balls. If with sauce, this
should be poured around the fillet, the time given cooks a fillet of
any size, the shape being such that it will take half an hour for
either two or six pounds. Save the fat trimmed from the fillet for
frying, and the lean part for soup stock.
Fillet of Beef à la Hollandaise.
Trim and cut the short fillet into slices about half an inch thick.
Season these well with salt, and then lay in a pan with six table-
spoonfuls of butter, just warm enough to be oily. Squeeze the juice of
a quarter of a lemon over them. Let them stand one hour; then dip
lightly in flour, place in the double broiler, and cook for six
minutes over a very bright fire. Have a mound of mashed potatoes in
the centre of a hot dish, and rest the slices against this. Pour a
Hollandaise sauce around. Garnish with parsley.
Fillet of Beef à l'Allemand.
Trim the fillet and skewer it into a good shape. Season well with
pepper and salt. Have one egg and half a teaspoonful of sugar well
beaten together; roll the fillet in this and then in bread crumbs.
Bake in the oven for thirty minutes. Serve with Allemand sauce poured
around it.
Fillet of Beef in Jelly.
Trim a short fillet, and cut a deep incision in the side, being
careful not to go through to the other side or the ends. Fill this
with one cupful of veal, prepared as for quenelles, and the whites of
three hard-boiled eggs, cut into rings. Sew up the openings, and bind
the fillet into good shape with broad bands of cotton cloth. Put in a
deep stew-pan two slices of ham and two of pork, and place the fillet
on them; then put in two calf's feet, two stalks of celery and two
quarts of clear stock. Simmer gently two hours and a half. Take up the
fillet, and set away to cool. Strain the stock, and set away to
harden. When hard, scrape of every particle of fat, and put on the
fire in a clean sauce-pan, with half a slice of onion and the whites
of two eggs, beaten with four table-spoonfuls of cold water. When this
boils, season well with salt, and set back where it will just simmer
for half an hour; then strain through a napkin. Pour a little of the
jelly into a two-quart charlotte russe mould (half an inch deep), and
set on the ice to harden. As soon as it is hard, decorate with the egg
rings. Add about three spoonfuls of the liquid jelly, to set the eggs.
When hard, add enough jelly to cover the eggs, and when this is also
hard, trim the ends of the fillet, and draw out the thread. Place in
the centre of the mould, and cover with the remainder of the jelly. If
the fillet floats, place a slight weight on it. Set in the ice chest
to harden. When ready to serve, place the mould in a pan of warm water
for half a minute, and then turn out the fillet gently upon a dish.
Garnish with a circle of egg rings, each of which has a stoned olive
in the centre. Put here and there a sprig of parsley.
Alamode Beef.
Six pounds of the upper part, or of the vein, of the round of beef,
half a pound of fat salt pork, three table-spoonfuls of butter, two
onions, half a carrot, half a turnip, two table-spoonfuls of vinegar,
one of lemon juice, one heaping table-spoonful of salt, half a
teaspoonful of pepper, two cloves, six allspice, a small piece of
stick cinnamon, a bouquet of sweet herbs, two scant quarts of boiling
water and four table-spoonfuls of flour. Cut the pork in thick strips--
as long as the meat is thick, and, with a large larding needle (which
comes for this purpose), draw these through the meat. If you do not
have the large needle, make the holes with the boning knife or the
carving steel, and press the pork through with the fingers. Put the
butter in a six-quart stew-pan, and when it melts, add the vegetables,
cut fine. Let them cook five minutes, stirring all the while. Put in
the meat, which has been well dredged with the flour; brown on one
aide, and then turn, and brown the other. Add one quart of the water;
stir well, and then add the other, with the spice, herbs, vinegar,
salt and pepper. Cover tightly, and _simmer gently_ four hours.
Add the lemon juice. Taste the gravy, and, if necessary, add more salt
and pepper. Let it cook twenty minutes longer. Take up the meat, and
draw the stew-pan forward, where it will boil rapidly, for ten or
fifteen minutes, having first skimmed off all the fat. Strain the
gravy on the beef, and serve. This dish may be garnished with, potato
balls or button onions.
Macaronied Beef.
Six pounds of beef from the upper part of the round or the vein, a
quarter of a pound of macaroni (twelve sticks), half a cupful of
butter, four large onions, one quart of peeled and sliced tomatoes, or
a quart can of the vegetable; two heaping table-spoonfuls of flour,
salt, pepper and two cloves. Make holes in the beef with the large
larding needle or the steel, and press the macaroni into them. Season
with salt and pepper. Put the butter and the onions, which have been
peeled and cut fine, in a six-quart stew-pan, and stir over the fire
until a golden brown; then put in the meat, first drawing the onions
aside. Dredge with the flour, and spread the top of the meat with the
fried onions. Put in the spice and one quart of boiling water. Cover
tightly, and simmer _slowly_ for three hours; then add the
tomato, and cook one hour longer. Take up the meat, and strain the
gravy over it. Serve hot. The tomato may be omitted if one pint more
of water and an extra table-spoonful of flour are used instead. Always
serve macaroni with this dish.
Cannelon of Beef.
One thin slice of the upper part of the round of beef. Cut off all the
fat, and so trim as to give the piece a regular shape. Put the
trimmings in the chopping tray, with a quarter of a pound of boiled
salt pork and one pound of lean cooked ham. Chop very fine; then add a
speck of cayenne, one teaspoonful of mixed mustard, one of onion
juice, one table-spoonful of lemon juice and three eggs. Season the
beef with salt and pepper. Spread the mixture over it, and roll up.
Tie with twine, being careful not to draw too tightly. Have six slices
of fat pork fried in the braising pan. Cut two onions, two slices of
carrot, and two of turnip into this, and stir for two minutes over the
fire. Roll the cannelon in a plate of flour, and put it in the
braising pan with the pork and vegetables. Brown slightly on all
sides; then add one quart of boiling water, and place in the oven.
Cook three hours, basting every fifteen minutes. When it has been
cooking two hours, add half a cupful of canned tomatoes or two fresh
ones. Taste to see if the gravy is seasoned enough; if it is not, add
seasoning. The constant dredging with flour will thicken the gravy
sufficiently. Slide the cake turner under the beef, and lift carefully
on to a hot dish. Cut the string in three or four places with a
_sharp_ knife, and gently draw it away from the meat. Skim off
all the fat. Strain the gravy through a fine sieve on to the meat.
Garnish with a border of toast or riced potatoes. Cut in thin slices
with a sharp knife.
Cannelon of Beef, No. 2.
Two pounds of the round of beef, the rind of half a lemon, three
sprigs of parsley, one teaspoonful of salt, barely one-fourth of a
teaspoonful of pepper, a quarter of a nutmeg, two table-spoonfuls of
melted butter, one raw egg and half a teaspoonful of onion juice. Chop
meat, parsley and lemon rind very fine. Add other ingredients, and mix
thoroughly. Shape, into a roll, about three inches in diameter and six
in length. Roll in buttered paper, and bake thirty minutes, basting
with butter and water. When cooked, place on a hot dish, gently unroll
from the paper, and serve with Flemish sauce poured over it. You may
serve tomato or mushroom sauce if you prefer either.
Beef Roulette.
Have two pounds of the upper part of the round, cut very thin. Mix
together one cupful of finely-chopped ham, two eggs, one teaspoonful
of mixed mustard, a speck of cayenne and three table-spoonfuls of
stock or water. Spread upon the beef, which roll up firmly and tie
with soft twine, being careful not to draw too tightly, for that would
cut the meat as soon as it began to cook. Cover the roll with flour,
and fry brown in four table-spoonfuls of ham or pork fat. Put it in as
small a sauce-pan as will hold it. Into the fat remaining in the pan
put two finely-chopped onions, and cook until a pale yellow; then add
two table-spoonfuls of flour, and stir three minutes longer. Pour upon
this one pint and a half of boiling water. Boil up once, and pour over
the roulette; then add two cloves, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of
pepper and one heaping teaspoonful of salt. Cover the sauce-pan, and
set where it will simmer slowly for three hours. After the first hour
and a half, turn the roulette over. Serve hot; with the gravy strained
over it. It is also nice to serve cold for lunch or supper. Ham force-
meat balls and parsley make a pretty garnish.
Beef Olives.
One and a half pounds of beef, cut very thin. Trim off the edges and
fat; then cut in strips three inches wide and four long; season well
with salt and pepper. Chop fine the trimmings and the fat Add three
table-spoonfuls of powdered cracker, one teaspoonful of sage and
savory, mixed, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of pepper and two
teaspoonfuls of salt. Mix very thoroughly and spread on the strips of
beef. Roll them up, and tie with twine. When all are done, roll in
flour. Fry brown a quarter of a pound of pork. Take it out of the pan,
and put the olives in. Fry brown, and put in a small sauce-pan that
can be tightly covered. In the fat remaining in the pan put one table-
spoonful of flour, and stir until perfectly smooth and brown; then
pour in, gradually, nearly a pint and a half of boiling water. Stir
for two or three minutes, season to taste with salt and pepper, and
pour over the olives. Cover the sauce-pan, and let simmer two hours.
Take up at the end of this time and cut the strings with a sharp
knife. Place the olives in a row on a dish, and pour the gravy over
them.
Veal Olives.
These are made in the same manner, except that a dressing, like
chicken dressing, is made for them. For one and a half pounds of veal
take three crackers, half a table-spoonful of butter, half a
teaspoonful of savory, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of sage, a
teaspoonful of salt, a very little pepper and an eighth of a cupful of
water. Spread the strips with this, and proceed as for beef olives.
Fricandelles of Veal.
Two pounds of clear veal, half a cupful of finely-chopped cooked ham,
one cupful of milk, one cupful of bread crumbs, the juice of half a
lemon, one table-spoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful of pepper, one
cupful of butter, a pint and a half of stock, three table-spoonfuls of
flour. Chop the veal fine. Cook the bread crumbs and milk until a
smooth paste, being careful not to burn. Add to the chopped veal and
ham, and when well mixed, add the seasoning and four tablespoonfuls of
the butter. Mix thoroughly, and form into balls about the size of an
egg. Have the yolks of three eggs well beaten, and use to cover the
balls. Fry these, till a light brown, in the remainder of the butter,
being _very_ careful not to burn. Stir the three table-spoonfuls
of flour into the butter that remains after the balls are fried. Stir
until dark brown, and then gradually stir the stock into it. Boil for
two minutes. Taste to see if seasoned enough; then add the balls, and
cook _very slowly_ for one hour. Serve with a garnish of toast
and lemon.
Fricandelles can be made with chicken, mutton, lamb and beef, the only
change in the above directions being to omit the ham.
Braised Tongue.
Wash a fresh beef tongue, and, with a trussing needle, run a strong
twine through the roots and end of it, drawing tightly enough to have
the end meet the roots; then tie firmly. Cover with boiling water, and
boil gently for two hours; then take up and drain. Put six table-
spoonfuls of butter in the braising pan, and when hot, put in half a
small carrot, half a small turnip and two onions, all cut fine. Cook
five minutes, stirring all the time, and then draw to one side. Roll
the tongue in flour, and put in the pan. As soon as browned on one
side, turn, and brown the other. Add one quart of the water in which
it was boiled, a bouquet of sweet herbs, one clove, a small piece of
cinnamon and salt and pepper. Cover, and cook two hours in a slow
oven, basting often with the gravy in the pan, and salt, pepper and
flour. When it has been cooking an hour and a half, add the juice of
half a lemon to the gravy. When done, take up. Melt two table-
spoonfuls of glaze, and pour over the tongue. Place in the heater
until the gravy is made. Mix one table-spoonful of corn-starch with a
little cold water, and stir into the boiling gravy, of which there
should be one pint. Boil one minute; then strain, and pour around the
tongue. Garnish with parsley, and serve.
Fillets of Tongue.
Cut cold boiled tongue in pieces about four inches long, two wide and
half an inch thick. Dip in melted butter and in flour. For eight
fillets put two table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when
hot, put in the tongue. Brown on both sides, being careful not to
burn. Take up, and put one more spoonful of butter in the pan, and
then one heaping teaspoonful of flour. Stir until dark brown; then add
one cupful of stock, half a teaspoonful of parsley and one table-
spoonful of lemon juice, or one tea-spoonful of vinegar. Let this boil
up once, and then pour it around the tongue, which has been dished on
thin strips of toast. Garnish with parsley, and serve. For a change, a
table-spoonful of chopped pickles, or of capers, can be stirred into
the sauce the last moment.
Escaloped Tongue.
Chop some cold tongue--not too fine, and have for each pint one table-
spoonful of onion juice, one teaspoonful of chopped parsley, one
heaping teaspoonful of salt, one teaspoonful of capers, one cupful of
bread crumbs, half a cupful of stock and three table-spoonfuls of
butter. Butter the escalop dish, and cover the bottom with bread
crumbs. Put in the tongue, which has been mixed with the parsley,
salt, pepper and capers, and add the stock, in which has been mixed
the onion juice. Put part of the butter on the dish with the remainder
of the bread crumbs, and then bits of butter here and there. Bake
twenty minutes, and serve hot.
Tongue in Jelly.
Boil and skin either a fresh or salt tongue. When cold, trim off the
roots. Have one and a fourth quarts of aspic jelly in the liquid
state. Cover the bottom of a two-quart mould about an inch deep with
it, and let it harden. With a fancy vegetable cutter, cut out leaves
from cooked beets, and garnish the bottom of the mould with them.
Gently pour in three table-spoonfuls of jelly, to set the vegetables.
When this is hard, add jelly enough to cover the vegetables, and let
the whole get very hard. Then put in the tongue, and about half a
cupful of jelly, which should be allowed to harden, and so keep the
meat in place when the remainder is added. Pour in the remainder of
the jelly and set away to harden. To serve: Dip the mould for a few
moments in a pan of warm water, and then gently turn on to a dish.
Garnish with pickles and parsley. Pickled beet is especially nice.
Lambs' Tongues in Jelly.
Lambs' tongues are prepared the same as beef tongues. Three of four
moulds, each holding a little less than a pint, will make enough for a
small company, one tongue being put in each mould. The tongues can all
be put on the same dish, or on two, if the table is long.
Lambs' Tongues, Stewed.
Six tongues, three heaping table-spoonfuls of butter, one large onion,
two slices of carrot, three slices of white turnip, three table-
spoonfuls of flour, one of salt, a little pepper, one quart of stock
or water and a bouquet of sweet herbs. Boil the tongues one hour and a
half in clear water; then take up, cover with cold water, and draw off
the skins. Put the butter, onion, turnip and carrot in the stew-pan,
and cook slowly for fifteen minutes; then add the flour, and cook
until brown, stirring all the while. Stir the stock into this, and
when it boils up, add the tongue, salt, pepper and herbs. Simmer
gently for two hours. Cut the carrots, turnips and potatoes into
cubes. Boil the potatoes in salted water ten minutes, and the carrots
and turnips one hour. Place the tongues in the centre of a hot dish.
Arrange the vegetables around them, strain the gravy, and pour over
all. Garnish with parsley, and serve.
Stewed Ox Tails.
Two ox tails, three table-spoonfuls of butter, two of flour, one large
onion, half a small carrot, three slices of turnip, two stalks of
celery, two cloves, a pint and a half of stock or water, salt and
pepper to taste. Divide the tails in pieces about four inches long.
Cut the vegetables in small pieces. Let the butter get hot in the
stew-pan; then add the vegetables, and when they begin to brown, add
the flour. Stir for two minutes. Put in the tails, and add the
seasoning and stock. Simmer gently three hours. Serve on a hot dish
with gravy strained over them.
Ox Tails à la Tartare.
Three ox tails, two eggs, one cupful of bread crumbs, salt, pepper,
one quart of stock, a bouquet of sweet herbs. Cut the tails in four-
inch pieces, and put them on to boil with the stock and sweet herbs.
Let them simmer two hours. Take up, drain and cool. When cold, dip
them in the beaten eggs and in bread crumbs. Fry in boiling fat till a
golden brown. Have Tartare sauce spread on the centre of a cold dish,
and arrange the ox tails on this. Garnish with parsley, and serve.
Haricot of Ox Tails.
Three ox tails, two carrots, two onions, two small white turnips,
three potatoes, three table-spoonfuls of butter, two of flour, three
pints of water and salt and pepper to taste. Cut the tails in pieces
about four inches long. Cut the onions very fine, and the carrots,
turnips and potatoes into large cubes. Put the butter, meat and onion
in the stew-pan and fry, stirring all the time, until the onions are a
golden brown; then add the flour, and stir two minutes longer. Add the
water, and when it comes to a boil, skim carefully. Set back where it
will simmer. When it has been cooking one hour, add the carrots and
turnips. Cook another hour, and then add the salt, pepper and
potatoes. Simmer twenty minutes longer. Heap the vegetables in the
centre of a hot dish, and arrange the tails around them. Pour the
gravy over all, and serve.
Ragout of Mutton.
Three pounds of any of the cheap parts of mutton, six table-spoonfuls
of butter, three of flour, twelve button onions, or one of the common
size; one large white turnip, cut into little cubes; salt, pepper, one
quart of water and a bouquet of sweet herbs. Cut the meat in small
pieces. Put three table-spoonfuls each of butter and flour in the
stew-pan, and when hot and smooth, add the meat. Stir until a rich
brown, and then add water, and set where it will simmer. Put three
table-spoonfuls of butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, put in the
turnips and onions with a teaspoonful of flour. Stir all the time
until a golden brown; then drain, and put with the meat. Simmer for an
hour and a half. Garnish with rice, toasted bread, plain boiled
macaroni or mashed potatoes. Small cubes of potato can be added half
an hour before dishing. Serve very hot.
Ragout of Veal.
Prepare the same as mutton, using one table-spoonful more of butter,
and cooking an hour longer.
Chicken Pie.
One fowl weighing between four and five pounds, half the rule for
chopped paste (see chopped paste), three pints of water, one-fourth of
a teaspoonful of pepper, one table-spoonful of salt (these last two
quantities may be increased if you like), three table-spoonfuls of
flour, three of butter, two eggs, one table-spoonful of onion juice
and a bouquet of sweet herbs. Clean the fowl, and cut in pieces as for
serving. Put it in a stew-pan with the hot water, salt, pepper and
herbs. When it comes to a boil, skim, and set back where it will
simmer one hour and a half. Take up the chicken, and place in a deep
earthen pie dish. Draw the stew-pan forward where it will boil rapidly
for fifteen minutes. Skim off the fat and take out the bouquet. Put
the butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, add the flour. Stir until
smooth, but not brown, and stir in the water in which the chicken was
boiled. Cook ten minutes. Beat the eggs with one spoonful of cold
water, and gradually add the gravy to them. Turn this into the pie
dish. Lift the chicken with a spoon, that the gravy may fall to the
bottom. Set away to cool. When cold, roll out a covering of paste a
little larger than the top of the dish and about one-fourth of an inch
thick. Cover the pie with this, having the edges turned into the dish.
Roll the remainder of the paste the same as before, and with a
thimble, or something as small, cut out little pieces all over the
cover. Put this perforated paste over the first cover, turning out the
edges and rolling slightly. Bake one hour in a moderate oven.
Pasties of Game and Poultry.
Make three pints of force-meat. (See force-meat for game.) Cut all the
solid meat from four grouse. Lard each piece with very fine strips of
pork. Put half a cupful of butter and a finely-cut onion in a frying-
pan. Stir until the onion is yellow; then put in the grouse, and cook
slowly, with the cover on, for forty minutes. Stir occasionally. Take
up the grouse, and put three table-spoonfuls of flour with the butter
remaining in the pan. Stir until brown; add one quart of stock, two
table-spoonfuls of glaze, a bouquet of sweet herbs, and four cloves.
Simmer twenty minutes, and strain. Butter a four-quart earthen dish,
and cover the bottom and sides with the force-meat. Put in a layer of
the grouse, and moisten well with the gravy, which must be highly
seasoned with salt and pepper; then put in the yolks of six hard-
boiled eggs, and the whites, cut into rings. Moisten with gravy, and
add another layer of grouse, and of eggs and gravy. Twelve eggs should
be used. Make a paste as for chicken pie. Cover with this, and bake
one hour and a half. Serve either hot or cold.
Any kind of meat pasties can be made in the same manner. With a veal
pastie put in a few slices of cooked ham.
Cold Game Pie.
Make three pints of force-meat. (See force-meat for game.) Cut all the
meat from two partridges or grouse, and put the bones on to boil with
three quarts of water and three pounds of a shank of veal. Fry four
large slices of fat salt pork, and as soon as brown, take up, and into
the fat put one onion, cut in slices. When this begins to turn yellow,
take up, and put the meat of the birds in the pan. Dredge well with
salt, pepper and flour, and stir constantly for four minutes; then
take up, and put away to cool. Make a crust as directed for raised
pies. Butter the French pie mould very thoroughly, and line with
paste. Spread upon the paste--both upon the sides and bottom of the
mould--a thin layer of fat salt pork, then a layer of force-meat, one
of grouse, again one of force-meat, and so on until the pie is filled.
Leave a space of about half an inch at the edge of the mould, and heap
the filling in the centre. Moisten with half a cupful of well-seasoned
stock. Roll the remainder of the paste into the shape of the top of
the mould. Wet the paste at the edge of the mould with beaten egg;
then put on the top, and press the top and side parts together. Cut a
small piece of paste from the centre of the top crust, add a little
more paste to it, and roll a little larger than the opening, which it
is to cover. Cut the edges with the jagging iron, and, with the other
end of the iron, stamp leaves or flowers. Place on the top of the pie.
Bake in a slow oven three hours and a half. While the pie is baking
the sauce can be prepared. When the bones and veal have been cooking
two hours, add two cloves, a bouquet of sweet herbs and the fried
onions. Cook one hour longer; then salt and pepper well, and strain.
The water should be reduced in boiling to one quart. When the pie is
baked, take the centre piece from the cover, and slightly press the
tunnel into the opening. Pour slowly one pint of the hot gravy through
this. Put back the cover, and set away to cool. The remainder of the
gravy must be turned into a flat dish and put in a cold place to
harden. When the pie is served, place the mould in the oven, or
steamer, for about five minutes; then draw out the wires and open it.
Slip the pie on to a cold dish, and garnish with the jellied gravy and
parsley. This is nice for suppers or lunches. All kinds of game and
meat can be prepared in the same manner.
Pâté de Foies Gras.
Make a paste with one quart of flour, as for raised pies, and put away
in a cool place. Put four fat goose livers in a pint of sweet milk for
two or three hours, to whiten them. Chop _very fine_ two pounds
of fresh pork, cut from the loin (it must not be too fat), and one
pound of clear veal. Put one and a half cupfuls of milk on to boil
with a blade of mace, an onion, two cloves, a small piece of nutmeg
and a bouquet of sweet herbs. Cook all these for ten minutes; then
strain the milk upon four table-spoonfuls of butter and two of flour,
which have been well mixed. Add to this the chopped pork and veal and
one of the livers, chopped fine; stir over the fire for ten minutes,
being careful not to brown. Season well with pepper and salt, add four
well-beaten eggs, and stir half a minute longer; then put away to
cool. Cut half a pound of salt pork in slices as thin as shavings.
Butter a French pie mould, holding about three quarts. Form three-
fourths of the paste into a ball. Sprinkle the board with flour, and
roll the paste out until about one-fourth of an inch thick. Take it up
by the four corners and place it in the mould. Be very careful not to
break it. With the hand, press the paste on the sides and bottom. The
crust must come to the top of the mould. Put a layer of the pork
shavings on the sides and bottom, then a thick layer of the force-
meat. Split the livers, and put half of them in; over them sprinkle
one table-spoonful of onion juice, salt, pepper, and, if you like, a
table-spoonful of capers. Another layer of force-meat, again the liver
and seasoning, and then the force-meat. On this last layer put salt
pork shavings. Into the remaining paste roll three table-spoonfuls of
washed butter, and roll the paste, as nearly as possible, into the
shape of the top of the pie mould. Cut a small piece from the centre.
The filling of the pie should have been heaped a little toward the
centre, leaving a space of about one inch and a half at the edges.
Brush with beaten egg the paste that is in this space. Put on the top
crust, and, with the fore-finger and thumb, press the two crusts
together. Roll the piece of paste cut from the centre of the cover a
little larger, and cover the opening with it. From some puff-paste
trimmings, cut out leaves, and decorate the cover with them. Place in
a moderate oven, and bake slowly two hours. Have a pint and a half of
hot veal stock (which will become jellied when cold) well seasoned
with pepper, salt, whole spice and onion. When the _pâté_ is
taken from the oven, take off the small piece that was put on the
centre of the cover. Insert a tunnel in the opening and pour the hot
stock through it. Replace the cover, and set away to cool. When the
_pâté_ is to be served, place it in the oven for about five
minutes, that it may slip from the mould easily. Draw out the wires
which fasten the sides of the mould, and slide the _pâté_ upon
the platter. Garnish the dish with parsley and small strips of
cucumber pickles.
Truffles and mushrooms can be cut up and put in the _pâté_ in
layers, the same as the liver and at the same time. The Strasburg fat
livers (_foies gras_) come in little stone pots, and cost from a
dollar to two dollars per pot.
Chartreuse of Chicken.
Make the force-meat as for _quenelles_ of chicken. Simmer two
large chickens in white stock for half an hour. Take up, and let cool.
Have a pickled tongue boiled tender. Cut thin slices from the breast
of the chickens, and cut these in squares. Cut the tongue in slices,
and these in turn in squares the same size as the chicken. Butter a
four-quart mould, and arrange the chicken and tongue handsomely on the
bottom and sides, being careful to have the pieces fit closely
together. Have note paper cut to fit the bottom and sides. Butter it
well, and cover about an inch deep with the force-meat. Take up the
bottom piece by the four corners and fit it into the mould, the meat
side down. Pour a little hot water into any kind of a flat-bottomed
tin basin, and put this in the mould and move it over the papers, to
melt the butter; then lift out the paper. Place the papers on the side
in the same way as on the bottom and melt the butter by rolling a
bottle of hot water over them. Remove these papers, and set the mould
in a cold place until the filling is ready. Cut from the tenderest
part of the chicken enough meat to make two quarts. Cut four large, or
six small, mushrooms and four truffles in strips. Put half a cupful of
butter, half a large onion, four cloves, a blade of mace, a slice of
carrot, one of turnip and a stalk of celery in a sauce-pan, and cook
five minutes, stirring all the while; then add five table-spoonfuls of
flour. Stir until it begins to brown, when add one quart of the stock
in which the chickens were cooked, a bouquet of sweet herbs, and salt
and pepper. Simmer twenty minutes; strain, and add to the chicken.
Return to the fire, and simmer twenty minutes longer, and set away to
cool. When cold, put a layer of the chicken in the mould, and a light
layer of the truffles and mushrooms. Continue this until the form is
nearly full, and then cover with the remainder of the force-meat.
Spread buttered paper upon it, and put in a cool place until cooking
time, when steam two hours. Turn carefully upon the dish. Brush over
with three table-spoonfuls of melted glaze. Pour one pint of supreme
sauce around it, and serve.
The force-meat must be spread evenly on the paper and smoothed with a
knife that has been dipped in hot water. All kinds of meat
_chartreuses_ can be made in this manner.
Chartreuse of Vegetables and Game.
Six large carrots, six white turnips, two large heads of cabbage, two
onions, two quarts of stock, three grouse, one pint of brown sauce,
four table-spoonfuls of glaze, two cloves, a bouquet of sweet herbs,
one pound of mixed salt pork and one cupful of butter. Scrape and wash
the carrots, and peel and wash the turnips. Boil for twenty minutes in
salted water. Pour off the water, and add three pints of stock and a
teaspoonful of sugar. Simmer gently one hour. Take up, drain, and set
away to cool. Cut the cabbage in four parts. Wash, and boil twenty
minutes in salted water. Drain in the colander, and return to the fire
with a pint of stock, the cloves, herbs and onions, tied in a piece of
muslin; a quarter of a cupful of butter and the pork and grouse. Cover
the sauce-pan, and place where the contents will just simmer for two
hours and a half. When cooked, put the grouse and pork on a dish to
cool. Turn the cabbage into the colander, first taking out the spice
and onion. Press all the juice from the cabbage and chop very fine.
Season with salt and pepper, and put away to cool. Butter a plain
mould holding about four quarts. Butter note paper, cut to fit the
sides and bottom, and line the mould with it. Cut the cold turnips and
carrots in thick slices, and then in pieces all the same size and
shape, but of any design you wish. Line the sides and bottom of the
mould with these, being particular to have the pieces come together.
Have the yellow and white arranged in either squares or rows. With the
chopped cabbage put half a pint of the brown sauce and two spoonfuls
of the glaze. Stir over the fire for six minutes. Spread a thick layer
of this on the vegetables, being careful not to displace them. Cut
each grouse into six pieces. Season with salt and pepper, and pack
closely in the mould. Moisten with the remaining half pint of brown
sauce. Cover with the remainder of the cabbage. Two hours before
serving time, place in a steamer and cook. While the _chartreuse_
is steaming, make the sauce. Put two table-spoonfuls of butter in a
stew-pan, and when hot, add two table-spoonfuls of flour. Stir until a
dark brown; then add the stock in which the cabbage was cooked and
enough of that in which the turnips and carrots were cooked to make a
quart. Stir until it boils; add two spoonfuls of glaze, and set back
where it will just simmer for one hour. Skim off the fat, and strain.
When the _chartreuse_ is done, take up and turn gently upon the
dish. Lift the mould _very_ carefully. Take off the paper. Pour
two table-spoonfuls of the sauce on the _chartreuse_ and the
remainder around it. The vegetable _chartreuse_ can be made with
any kind of game or meat.
Chartreuse of Chicken and Macaroni.
One large fowl, about four and a half or five pounds, boiled tender;
half a box of gelatine, one cupful of broth in which the chicken was
boiled, one cupful of cream, salt, pepper, fourteen ounces of
macaroni. Just cover the fowl with boiling water, and simmer until
very tender, the time depending upon the age, but being from one to
two hours if the bird is not more than a year old. Take off all the
skin and fat, and cut the meat in thin, delicate pieces. Soak the
gelatine two hours in half a cupful of cold water, and dissolve it in
the cupful of boiling broth; add to the cream, and season highly. Have
the chicken well seasoned, also. Put the macaroni in a large flat pan
with boiling water to cover, and boil rapidly for three minutes. Drain
off the water, and place the macaroni on a board, having about twelve
pieces in a bunch. Cut in pieces about three-fourths of an inch long.
Butter a two-quart mould (an oval charlotte russe mould is the best)
very thickly, and stick the macaroni closely over the bottom and
sides. When done, put the chicken in lightly and evenly, and add the
sauce very gradually. Steam one hour. Serve either cold or hot. Great
care must be taken in dishing. Place the platter over the mould and
turn platter and mould simultaneously. Let the dish rest a minute, and
then gently remove the mould. Serve immediately. A long time is needed
to line the mould with the macaroni, but this is such a handsome,
savory dish as to pay to have it occasionally. If you prefer, you can
use all broth, and omit the cream.
Galatine of Turkey.
Bone the turkey, and push the wings and legs inside of the body. Make
three pints of ham force-meat. Cut a cold boiled tongue in thin
slices. Season the turkey with salt and pepper, and spread on a board,
inside up. Spread a layer of the force-meat on this, and then a layer
of tongue. Continue this until all the tongue and force-meat are used.
Roll the bird into a round form, and sew up with mending cotton. Wrap
tightly in a strong piece of cotton cloth, which must be either pinned
or sewed to keep it in position. Put in a porcelain kettle the bones
of the turkey, two calf's feet, four pounds of the knuckle of veal, an
onion, two slices of turnip, two of carrot, twenty pepper-corns, four
cloves, two stalks of celery, one table-spoonful of salt and three
quarts of water. When this comes to a boil, skim, and put the turkey
in. Set back where it will just simmer for three hours. Take up and
remove the wrapping, put on a clean piece of cloth that has been wet
in cold water, and place in a dish. Put three bricks in a flat baking
pan, and place on top of the bird. Set away in a cool place over
night. In the morning take off the weights and cloth. Place on a dish,
the smooth side up. Melt four table-spoonfuls of glaze, and brush the
turkey with it. Garnish with the jelly, and serve. Or, the galatine
can be cut in slices and arranged on a number of dishes, if for a
large party. In that case, place a little jelly in the centre of each
slice, and garnish the border of the dish with jelly and parsley. The
time and materials given are for a turkey weighing about nine pounds.
Any kind of fowl or bird can be prepared in the same manner.
To make the jelly: Draw forward the kettle in which the turkey was
cooked, and boil the contents rapidly for one hour. Strain, and put
away to harden. In the morning scrape off all the fat and sediment.
Put the jelly in a clean sauce-pan with the whites and shells of two
eggs that have been beaten with four table-spoonfuls of cold water.
Let this come to a boil, and set back where it will just simmer for
twenty minutes. Strain through a napkin, and set away to harden.
Galatine of Veal.
Bone a breast of veal. Season well with salt and pepper. Treat the
same as turkey, using, however, two pounds of boiled ham instead of
the tongue. Cook four hours.
Chicken in Jelly.
For each pound of chicken, a pint of water. Clean the chicken, and put
to boil. When it comes to a boil, skim carefully; and simmer gently
until the meat is very tender--about an hour and a half. Take out the
chicken, skin, and take all the flesh from the bones. Put the bones
again in the liquor, and boil until the water is reduced one half.
Strain, and set away to cool. Next morning skim off all the fat. Turn
the jelly into a clean sauce-pan, carefully removing all the sediment;
and to each quart of jelly add one-fourth of a package of gelatine
(which has been soaked an hour in half a cupful of cold water), an
onion, a stalk of celery, twelve pepper-corns, a small piece of mace,
four cloves, the white and shell of one egg and salt and pepper to
taste. Let it boil up; then set back where it will simmer twenty
minutes. Strain the jelly through a napkin. In a three-pint mould put
a layer of jelly about three-fourths of an inch deep. Set in ice water
to harden. Have the chicken cut in long, thin strips, and well
seasoned with salt and pepper; and when the jelly in the mould is
hard, lay in the chicken, lightly, and cover with the liquid jelly,
which should be cool, but not hard. Put away to harden. When ready to
serve, dip the mould in warm water and then turn into the centre of a
flat dish. Garnish with parsley, and, if you choose, with Tartare or
mayonnaise sauce.
Chicken Chaud Froid.
Skin two chickens, and cut in small pieces as for serving. Wash, and
put them in a stew-pan with enough white stock to cover, and one large
onion, a clove, half a blade of mace, a bouquet of sweet herbs and
half a table-spoonful of salt. Let this come to a boil; then skim
carefully, and set back where it will simmer for one hour. Take up the
chicken, and set the stew-pan where the stock will boil rapidly. Put
three table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when it melts,
stir in two table-spoonfuls of flour, and cook until smooth, but not
brown. Stir this into the stock, of which there must be not more than
a pint; add four table-spoonfuls of glaze, and boil up once. Taste to
see if seasoned enough; if it is not, add more salt and pepper. Now
add half a cupful of cream, and let boil up once more. Have the
chicken in a deep dish. Pour this sauce on it, and set away to cool At
serving time, have large slices of cold boiled sweet potatoes, fried
in butter till a golden brown, handsomely arranged on a warm dish. On
them place the chicken, which must be very cold. On each piece of the
meat put a small teaspoonful of Tartare sauce. Heap the potatoes
around the edge of the dish, garnish with parsley, and serve.
To Remove a Fillet from a Fowl or Bird.
Draw the skin off of the breast, and then run a sharp knife between
the flesh and the ribs and breast-bone. You will in this way separate
the two fillets from the body of the bird. The legs and wings of the
largest birds and fowl can be boned, and stuffed with force-meat, and
then prepared the same as, and served with, the fillet. The body of
the bird can be used for soups. Fillets from all kinds of birds can be
prepared the same as those from chickens.
Chicken Fillets, Larded and Breaded.
Lard the fillets, having four fine strips of pork for each one, and
season with salt and pepper. Dip in beaten egg and in fine bread
crumbs. Fry ten minutes in boiling fat. Serve on a hot dish with a
spoonful of Tartare sauce on each.
Chicken Fillets, Braised.
Lard the fillets as for breading. For each one lay a slice of fat pork
in the bottom of the braising pan, and on this a very small piece of
onion. Dredge the fillets well with salt, pepper and flour, and place
them on the pork and onion. Cover the pan, and set on the stove. Cook
slowly half an hour; then add one pint of light stock or water and the
bones of one of the chickens. Cover the pan, and place in a moderate
oven for one hour, basting frequently with the gravy. If the gravy
should cook away, add a little more stock or water, (there should be
nearly a pint of it at the end of the hour). Take up the fillets, and
drain; then cover them with soft butter, and dredge lightly with
flour. Broil till a light brown. Serve on a hot dish with the sauce
poured around. Or, they can be dressed on a mound of mashed potato,
with a garnish of any green vegetable at the base, the sauce to be
poured around it.
To make the sauce: Skim all the fat from the gravy in which the
fillets were cooked. Cook one table-spoonful of butter and one heaping
teaspoonful of flour together until a light brown; then add the gravy,
and boil up once. Taste to see if seasoned enough, and strain.
Chicken Fillets, Sauté.
Flatten the fillets by pounding them lightly with the vegetable
masher. Season with pepper and salt, and dredge well with flour. Put
in the frying-pan one table-spoonful of butter for each fillet, and
when hot, put the fillets in, and cook rather slowly twenty minutes.
Brown on both sides. Take up, and keep hot while making the sauce. If
there are six fillets, add two table-spoonfuls of butter to that
remaining in the frying-pan, and when melted, stir in one table-
spoonful of flour. Stir until it begins to brown slightly; then slowly
add one and a half cupfuls of cold milk, stirring all the while. Let
this boil one minute. Season with salt, pepper and, if you like, a
little mustard. Fill the centre of a hot dish with green peas or
mashed potatoes, against which rest the fillets; and pour the sauce
around. Serve very hot.
Chicken Curry.
One chicken, weighing three pounds; three-fourths of a cupful of
butter, two large onions, one heaping table-spoonful of curry powder,
three tomatoes, or one cupful of the canned article, enough cayenne to
cover a silver three-cent piece, salt, one cupful of milk. Put the
butter and the onions, cut fine, on to cook. Stir all the while until
brown; then put in the chicken, which has been cut in small pieces,
the curry, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover tightly, and
let simmer one hour, stirring occasionally; then add the milk. Boil up
once, and serve with boiled rice. This makes a very rich and hot
curry, but for the real lover of the dish, none too much so.
Veal Curry.
Two pounds of veal, treated in the same manner, but cooked two hours.
Mutton and lamb can be used in a like way.
Chicken Quenelles.
One large chicken or tender fowl, weighing about three pounds; six
table-spoonfuls of butter, one table-spoonful of chopped salt pork,
three eggs, one teaspoonful of onion juice, one of lemon juice, half a
cupful of white stock or cream, one cupful of stale bread, one of new
milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Skin the chicken, take all the
flesh from the bones, and chop and pound _very_ fine. Mix the
pork with it, and rub through a flour sieve. Cook the bread and milk
together for ten minutes, stirring often, to get smooth. Add this to
the chicken, and then add the seasoning, stock or cream, yolks of
eggs, one by one, and lastly the whites, which have been beaten to a
stiff froth.
Cover the sides and bottom of a frying-pan with soft butter. Take two
table-spoons and a bowl of boiling water. Dip one spoon in the water,
and then fill it with force-meat, heaping it; then dip the other spoon
in the hot water, and turn the contents of the first into it. This
gives the _quenelle_ the proper shape; and it should at once be
slipped into the frying-pan. Continue the operation until all the meat
is shaped. Cover the quenelles with white stock, boiling, and slightly
salted, and cook gently twenty minutes. Take them up, and drain for a
minute; then arrange on a border of mashed potatoes or fried bread.
Pour a spoonful of either Bechamel, mushroom or olive sauce on each,
and the remainder in the centre of the dish. Serve hot.
Chicken Quenelles, Stuffed.
Prepare the force-meat as for _quenelles_. Soak four table-
spoonfuls of gelatine for one hour in cold water to cover. Put two
table-spoonfuls of butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, add one
table-spoonful of flour. Stir until smooth, but not brown; then
gradually stir in one pint of cream. Add one table-spoonful of lemon
juice, a speck of mace and plenty of salt and pepper. Cook for two
minutes. Stir in the soaked gelatine, and remove from the fire. Into
this sauce stir one pint and a half of cold chicken, cut _very_
fine. Set away to cool. Butter eighteen small egg cups, and cover the
sides and bottoms with a thick layer of the force-meat. Fill the
centre with the prepared force-meat, which should be quite firm. Cover
with chicken. Place the cups in a steamer and cover them with sheets
of thick paper. Put on the cover of the steamer, and place upon a
kettle of boiling water for half an hour. Do not let the water boil
too rapidly. Take up, and put away to cool. When cold, dip the
_quenelles_ twice in beaten egg and in bread crumbs. Fry in
boiling fat for three minutes. Serve hot with a garnish of stoned
olives.
Chicken Quenelles, Breaded.
Prepare the _quenelles_ as before, and when they have been
boiled, drain, and let them grow cold. Dip in beaten egg and roll in
bread crumbs; place in the frying basket and plunge into boiling fat.
Cook three minutes. Serve with fried parsley or any kind of brown
sauce.
Veal Quenelles.
One pound of clear veal, one cupful of white sauce, six table-
spoonfuls of butter, one cupful of bread crumbs, one of milk, four
eggs, salt, pepper, a slight grating of nutmeg and the juice of half a
lemon. Make and use the same as chicken _quenelles_.
Chicken Pilau.
Cut a chicken into pieces the size you wish to serve at the table.
Wash clean, and put in a stew-pan with about one-eighth of a pound of
salt pork, which has been cut in small pieces. Cover with cold water,
and boil gently until the chicken begins to grow tender, which will be
in about an hour, unless the chicken is old. Season rather highly with
salt and pepper, add three tea-cupfuls of rice, which has been picked
and washed, and let boil thirty or forty minutes longer. There should
be a good quart of liquor in the stew-pan when the rice is added. Care
must be taken that it does not burn. Instead of chicken any kind of
meat may be used.
Chicken Soufflé.
One pint of cooked chicken, finely chopped; one pint of cream sauce,
four eggs, one teaspoonful of chopped parsley, one teaspoonful of
onion juice, salt, pepper. Stir the chicken and seasoning into the
boiling sauce. Cook two minutes. Add the yolks of the eggs, well
beaten, and set away to cool. When cold, add the whites, beaten to a
stiff froth. Turn into a buttered dish, and bake half an hour. Serve
with mushroom or cream sauce. This dish must be served the moment it
is baked. Any kind of delicate meat can be used, the _soufflé_
taking the name of the meat of which it is made.
Fried Chicken.
Cut the chicken into six or eight pieces. Season well with salt and
pepper. Dip in beaten egg and then in fine bread crumbs in which there
is one teaspoonful of chopped parsley for every cupful of crumbs. Dip
again in the egg and crumbs. Fry ten minutes in boiling fat. Cover the
centre of a cold dish with Tartare sauce. Arrange the chicken on this,
and garnish with a border of pickled beets. Or, it can be served with
cream sauce.
Blanquette of Chicken.
One quart of cooked chicken, cut in delicate pieces; one large cupful
of white stock, three table-spoonfuls of butter, a heaping table-
spoonful of flour, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, one cupful of cream
or milk, the yolks of four eggs, salt, pepper: Put the butter in the
sauce-pan, and when hot, add the flour. Stir until smooth, but not
brown. Add the stock, and cook two minutes; then add the seasoning and
cream. As soon as this boils up, add the chicken. Cook ten minutes.
Beat the yolks of the eggs with four table-spoonfuls of milk. Stir
into the blanquette. Cook about half a minute longer. This can be
served in a rice or potato border, in a _crôustade_, on a hot
dish, or with a garnish of toasted or fried bread.
Blanquette of Veal and Ham.
Half a pint of boiled ham, one pint and a half of cooked veal, one
pint of cream sauce, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, the yolks of two
uncooked eggs, salt, pepper, two hard-boiled eggs. Have the veal and
ham cut in delicate pieces, which add with the seasoning to the sauce.
When it boils up, add the yolks, which have been beaten with four
table-spoonfuls of milled Cook half a minute longer. Garnish with the
hard-boiled eggs.
Salmis of Game,
Take the remains of a game dinner, say two or three grouse. Cut all
the meat from the bones, in as handsome pieces as possible, and set
aside. Break up the bones, and put on to boil with three pints of
water and two cloves. Boil down to a pint and a half. Put three table-
spoonfuls of butter and two onions, cut in slices, on to fry. Stir all
the time until the onions begin to brown; then add two spoonfuls of
flour, and stir until a rich dark brown. Strain the broth on this.
Stir a minute, and add one teaspoonful of lemon juice and salt and
pepper to taste; if you like, one table-spoonful of Leicestershire
sauce, also. Add the cold game, and simmer fifteen minutes. Serve on
slices of fried bread. Garnish with fried bread and parsley.
This dish can be varied by using different kinds of seasoning, and by
serving sometimes with rice, and sometimes with mashed potatoes, for a
border. Half a dozen mushrooms is a great addition to the dish, if
added about five minutes before serving. A table-spoonful of curry
powder, mixed with a little cold water, and stirred in with the other
seasoning, will give a delicious curry of game. When curry is used,
the rice border is the best of those mentioned above.
Game Cutlets à la Royale.
One quart of the tender parts of cold game, cut into dice; one
generous pint of rich stock, one-third of a box of gelatine, one quart
of any kind of force-meat, four cloves, one table-spoonful of onion
juice, two of butter, one of flour, three eggs, one pint of bread or
cracker crumbs, salt, pepper. Soak the gelatine for one hour in half a
cupful of cold water. Put the butter in a frying-pan, and when hot,
add the flour. Stir until smooth and brown, and add the stock and
seasoning. Simmer ten minutes; strain upon the game, and simmer
fifteen minutes longer. Beat an egg and add to the gelatine. Stir this
into the game and sauce and take from the fire instantly. Place the
stew-pan in a basin of cold water, and stir until it begins to cool;
then turn the mixture into a shallow baking pan, having it about an
inch thick. Set on the ice to harden. When hard, cut into cutlet-
shaped pieces with a knife that has been dipped in hot water. When all
the mixture is cut, put the pan in another of warm water for half a
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