Chapter VIII: Front Matter (8)

Mix with a quart of flour half a nutmeg grated, the yelks of four eggs beaten with four spoonfuls of rosewater, into a stiff paste, with cold water; then roll in a pound of butter, and make them into a cracknel shape; put them into a kettle of boiling water, and boil them till they swim, then take out, and put them into cold water; when hardened, lay them out to dry, and bake them on tin plates.

_Rice Cake._

Mix ten ounces of ground rice, three ounces of flour, eight ounces of pounded sugar; then sift by degrees into eight yelks and six whites of eggs, and the peel of a lemon shred so fine that it is quite mashed. Mix the whole well in a tin stewpan over a very slow fire with a whisk, then put it immediately into the oven in the same, and bake forty minutes.

_Another Rice Cake._

Beat twelve yelks and six whites of eggs with the peels of two lemons grated. Mix one pound of flour of rice, eight ounces of flour, and one pound of sugar pounded and sifted; then beat it well with the eggs by degrees, for an hour, with a wooden spoon. Butter a pan well; and put it in at the oven mouth.

A gentle oven will bake it in an hour and a half.

_Sponge Cake._

Weigh ten eggs, and their weight in very fine sugar, and that of six in flour; beat the yelks with the flour, and the whites alone to a very stiff froth; then by degrees mix the whites and the flour with the other ingredients, and beat them well half an hour. Bake in a quick oven an hour.

_Another, without Butter._

Dry one pound of flour, and one and a quarter of sugar; beat seven eggs, yelks and whites apart; grate a lemon, and with a spoonful of brandy, beat the whole together with your hand for an hour. Bake in a buttered pan, in a quick oven.

Sweetmeats may be added, if approved.

_Macaroons._

Blanch four ounces of almonds, and pound with four spoonfuls of orange flower water; whisk the white of four eggs to a froth, then mix it, and a pound of sugar, sifted, with the almonds to a paste; and laying a sheet of wafer paper on a tin, put it on in different little cakes the shape of macaroons.

_Wafers._

Dry the flour well which you intend to use, mix a little pounded sugar and finely pounded mace with it, then make it into a thick batter with cream; butter the wafer irons, let them be hot, put a teaspoonful of the batter into them, so bake them carefully, and roll them off the iron with a stick.

_Tunbridge Cakes._

Rub six ounces of butter quite fine into a pound of flour, then mix six ounces of sugar, beat and strain two eggs, and make with the above into a paste. Roll it very thin, and cut with the top of a glass; prick them with a fork, and cover with carraways, or wash with the white of an egg, and dust a little white sugar over.

_Gingerbread._

Mix with two pounds of flour half a pound of treacle, three quarters of an ounce of carraways, one ounce of ginger finely sifted, and ten ounces of butter.

Roll the paste into what form you please, and bake on tins.

If you like sweetmeats, add orange candied; it may be added in small bits.

_Another sort._

To three quarters of a pound of treacle beat one egg strained; mix four ounces of brown sugar, half an ounce of ginger sifted, of cloves, mace, allspice, and nutmeg, a quarter of an ounce, beaten as fine as possible; coriander and carraway seeds, each a quarter of an ounce; melt one pound of butter, and mix with the above; and add as much flour as will knead into a pretty stiff paste; then roll it out, and cut into cakes.

Bake on tin plates in a quick oven. A little time will bake them.

Of some, drops may be made.

_To make a good Gingerbread, without Butter._

Mix two pounds of treacle, of orange, lemon, citron, and candied ginger, each four ounces, all thinly sliced, one ounce of coriander seeds, one ounce of carraways, and one ounce of beaten ginger, in as much flour as will make a soft paste; lay it in cakes on tin plates, and bake it in a quick oven. Keep it dry in a covered earthen vessel, and it will be good for some months.

_Note._ If cake or biscuit be kept in paper or a drawer, the taste will be disagreeable. A pan and cover, or tureen, will preserve them long and moist. Or, if to be crisp, laying them before the fire will make them so.

_A good plain Bun, that may be eaten with or without toasting and
Butter._

Rub four ounces of butter into two pounds of flour, four ounces of sugar, a nutmeg, or not, as you like, a few Jamaica peppers, a dessert spoonful of carraways; put a spoonful or two of cream into a cup of yeast, and as much good milk as will make the above into a light paste. Set it to rise by a fire till the oven be ready. They will quickly bake on tins.

_Richer Buns._

Mix one pound and a half of dried flour, with half a pound of sugar; melt a pound and two ounces of butter in a little warm water; add six spoonfuls of rosewater, and knead the above into a light dough, with half a pint of yeast; then mix five ounces of carraway comfits in, and put some on them.

_Muffins._

Mix two pounds of flour with two eggs, two ounces of butter melted in a pint of milk, and four or five spoonfuls of yeast; beat it thoroughly, and set it to rise two or three hours. Bake on a hot hearth in flat cakes. When done on one side turn them.

_Note._ Muffins, rolls, or bread, if stale, may be made to taste new, by dipping in cold water, and toasting or heating in an oven, or Dutch oven, till the outside be crimp.

_French Rolls._

Rub an ounce of butter into a pound of flour, mix one egg beaten, a little yeast that is not bitter, and as much milk as will make a dough of a middling stiffness. Beat it well, but do not knead; let it rise, and bake on tins.

_Brentford Rolls._

Mix with two pounds of flour a little salt, two ounces of sifted sugar, four ounces of butter, and two eggs beaten with two spoonfuls of yeast, and about a pint of milk. Knead the dough well, and set it to rise before the fire. Make twelve rolls, butter tin plates, and set them before the fire to rise till they become a proper size; then bake half an hour.

_Excellent Rolls._

Warm one ounce of butter in half a pint of milk, put to it a spoonful and half of yeast of small beer, and a little salt. Put two pounds of flour into a pan, and mix in the above. Let it rise an hour; knead it well; and make into seven rolls, and bake in a quick oven.

If made in cakes three inches thick, sliced and buttered, they resemble Sally Lumm’s as made at Bath.

The foregoing receipt, with the addition of a little saffron, boiled in half a teacupful of milk, makes remarkably good

_Saffron cakes, to eat hot with butter._

_Potatoe Butter._

Boil three pounds of potatoes, bruise and work them with two ounces of butter, and as much milk as will make them pass through a colander. Take half or three quarters of a pint of yeast, and half a pint of warm water, mix with the potatoes, then pour the whole upon five pounds of flour, and add some salt. Knead it well; if not of a proper consistence, put a little more milk and water warm. Let it stand before the fire an hour to rise. Work it well, and make into rolls. Bake about half an hour in an oven not quite so hot as for bread.

They eat well toasted and buttered.

_Yorkshire Cake._

Take two pounds of flour, and mix with it four ounces of butter melted in a pint of good milk, three spoonfuls of yeast, and two eggs; beat all well together, and let it rise; then knead it, and make into cakes; let them rise on tins before you bake, which do in a slow oven.

Another sort is made as above, leaving out the butter.

The first sort is shorter; the last lighter.

_French Bread._

With a quarter of a peck of fine flour mix the yelks of three and whites of two eggs, beaten and strained, a little salt, half a pint of good yeast that is not bitter, and as much milk, made a little warm, as will work into a thin light dough. Stir it about, but do not knead it. Have ready three quart wooden dishes, divide the dough among them, set to rise, then turn them out into the oven, which must be quick. Rasp when done.

_To make Yeast._

Thicken two quarts of water, with fine flour about three spoonfuls; boil half an hour, sweeten with near half a pound of brown sugar; when near cold, put into it four spoonfuls of fresh yeast in a jug, shake it well together, and let stand one day to ferment near the fire, without being covered. There will be a thin liquor on the top, which must be poured off, shake the remainder, and cork it up for use. Take always four spoonfuls of the old to ferment the next quantity, keeping it always in succession.

An half peck loaf will require about a gill.

_Another way._

Boil one pound of potatoes to a mash, when half cold add a cupful of yeast, and mix it well. It will be ready for use in two or three hours, and keeps well.

Use a double quantity of this to what you do of beer yeast.

To take off the bitter of yeast, put bran into a sieve, and pour it through.

_To preserve Yeast._

When you have plenty of yeast begin to save it in the following manner; whisk it until it becomes thin, then get a large wooden dish, wash it very nicely, and when quite dry, lay a layer of yeast over the inside with a soft brush; let it dry, then put another layer in the same manner, and so do until you have a sufficient quantity, observing that each coat dry thoroughly before another be added. It may be put on two or three inches thick, and will keep several months; when to be used cut a piece out; stir it in warm water.

If to be used for brewing, keep it by dipping large handfuls of birch tied together; and when dry, repeat the dipping once. You may thus do as many as you please; but take care that no dust comes to them, or the vessel in which it has been prepared as before. When the wort be set to work, throw into it one of these bunches, and it will do as well as with fresh yeast; but if mixed with a small quantity first, and then added to the whole, it will work sooner.

_To pot Cheese._

Cut and pound four ounces of Cheshire cheese, one ounce and a half of fine butter, a teaspoonful of white pounded sugar, a little bit of mace, and a glass of white wine. Press it down in a deep pot.

_To roast Cheese, to come up after dinner._

Grate three ounces of fat Cheshire cheese, mix it with the yelks of two eggs, four ounces of grated bread, and four ounces of butter, beat the whole well in a mortar, with a teaspoonful of mustard, and a little salt and pepper. Toast some bread, lay the paste as above thick upon it, put it into a Dutch oven, covered with a dish till hot through, remove the dish, and let the cheese brown a _little_. Serve as hot as possible.

_To poach Eggs._

Set a stewpan of water on the fire; when boiling, slip an egg, previously broken into a cup, into the water; when the white looks done enough, slide an egg slice under the egg, and lay it on toast and butter, or spinach. As soon as enough are done, serve hot.

* * * * *

The servants of each country are generally acquainted with the best mode of managing the butter and cheese of that country; but the following hints may not be unacceptable to give information to the Mistress.

DAIRY.

The greatest possible attention must be paid to cleanliness. All the utensils must be daily scalded and brushed, washed in plenty of cold water, dried with clean cloths, and turned up in the air.

The dairy should be kept perfectly clean and cool.

In milking, if the cows be not left perfectly dry, the quantity will be decreased. The quantity depends on the goodness of different cows, on the pasture, and on the length of time from calving. A middling cow gives a pound of butter a day for five or six weeks, and sometimes longer. When the milk decreases, a change even to a worse pasture will effect an alteration; and where water is within reach of the animals, it is of great consequence to the milk.

The chief of the cows should come in the end of March, or the beginning of April, and one the end of September; then the family will be supplied with milk in the winter.

When a calf is to be reared, it should be taken from the cow in a week at furthest, or it will cause great trouble in rearing, because it will be difficult to make it take milk in a pan. The calf should be taken from the cow in the morning, and kept without food till next morning, when being hungry it will take it without much trouble. Skimmed milk made as warm as new, is to be given twice a day in such quantities as it shall require and if milk run short, a fine smooth gruel mixed with it will do very well. This is to be continued till the calf be taken out to grass, which at first will be only by day, then milk must be given when housed in the evening.

_To scald Cream._

In winter the milk stands twenty four hours before scalded; in the summer twelve. The milkpan is to be put on a hot hearth, if you have one, or if not, into a brass kettle of water, of a size to receive the pan. It must remain on the fire till quite hot, but on no account boil, or there will be a skin, instead of cream, upon the milk. You will know when done enough by the undulations on the surface, and looking quite thick. The time required to scald cream depends on the size of the pan and the heat of the fire; the slower the better. Remove the pan into the dairy when done, and skim it next day.

Of cream thus prepared, the butter is usually made in Devonshire, &c.

_Buttermilk._

If made of sweet cream, is a delicious and most wholesome food. Those who can relish sour buttermilk, find it still more light; and it is reckoned more beneficial in some cases.

_To cure Mawskins for Rennet._

Cut the calf’s stomach open, rub it well with salt, let it hang to drain two days, then salt it well, and let it lie in that pickle a month or more; then take it out, drain, and flour it, stretch it out with a stick, and let it hang up to dry.

A piece of this is to be soaked, and kept ready to turn the milk in cheesemaking time.

Some lands make cheese of a better quality than the butter produced on them is.

When the soil is poor, the cheese will want fat; to remedy which, after pressing the whey from the curd, crumble it quite small, and work into it a pound of fine fresh butter; then press, &c. as usual.

_Cream Cheese._

Put five quarts of strippings, that is, the last of the milk, into a pan, with two spoonfuls of rennet. When the curd is come, strike it down two or three times with the skimming dish just to break it. Let it stand two hours, then spread a cheesecloth on a sieve, put the curd on it, and let the whey drain; break the curd a little with your hand, and put it into a vat with a two pound weight upon it. Let it stand twelve hours, take it out, and bind a fillet round. Turn every day till dry, from one board to another; cover them with nettles, or clean dockleaves, and put between two pewter plates to ripen. If the weather be warm, it will be ready in three weeks.

_Another._

Have ready a kettle of boiling water, put five quarts of new milk into a pan, and _five pints_ of cold water, and _five_ of hot; when of a proper heat, put in as much rennet as will bring it in twenty minutes, likewise a bit of sugar. When come, strike the skimmer three or four times down, and leave it on the curd. In an hour or two lade it into the vat without touching it; put a two pound weight on it when the whey has run from it, and the vat is full.

_Another sort._

Put as much salt to three pints of raw cream as shall season it; stir it well, and pour it into a sieve in which you have folded a cheesecloth three or four times, and laid at the bottom. When it hardens, cover it with nettles on a pewter plate.

_Rush Cream Cheese._

To a quart of fresh cream, put a pint of new milk warm enough to make the cream a proper warmth, a bit of sugar and a little rennet.

Set near the fire till the curd comes, fill a vat made in the form of a brick, of wheat straw or rushes sewed together. Have ready a square of straw, or rushes sewed flat to rest the vat on, and another to cover it; the vat being open at top and bottom. Next day take it out, and change it as above to ripen. A half pound weight will be sufficient to put on it.

_Another way._

Take a pint of very thick sour cream from the top of the pan for gathering for butter, lay a napkin on two plates, and pour half into each, let them stand twelve hours, then put them on a fresh wet napkin in one plate, and cover with the same; this do every twelve hours until you find the cheese begins to look dry, then ripen it with nut leaves; it will be ready in ten days.

Fresh nettles, or two pewter plates, will ripen cream cheese very well.

_To brew very fine Welsh Ale._

Pour forty two gallons of water hot, but not quite boiling, on four bushels of malt, cover, and let it stand three hours. In the mean time infuse a pound and a half of hops in a little hot water, or two pounds if the ale is to be kept five or six months, and put water and hops into the tub, and run the wort upon them, and boil them together three hours. Strain off the hops, and keep for the small beer. Let the wort stand in a high tub till cool enough to receive the yeast, of which put two quarts of ale, or if you cannot get it, of small beer yeast. Mix it thoroughly and often. When the wort has done working, the second or third day, the yeast will sink rather than rise in the middle, remove it then, and turn the ale as it works out, pour a quart in at a time, and gently, to prevent the fermentation from continuing too long, which weakens the liquor. Put a bit of paper over the bunghole two or three days before stopping up.

_Strong Beer, or Ale._

Twelve bushels of malt to the hogshead for beer, eight for ale; for either pour the whole quantity of water hot, but not boiling, on at once, and let it infuse three hours close covered; mash it in the first half hour, and let it stand the remainder of the time. Run it on the hops previously infused in water; for strong beer three quarters of a pound to a bushel, if for ale, half a pound. Boil them with the wort two hours from the time it begins to boil. Cool a pailful to add three quarts of yeast to, which will prepare it for putting to the rest when ready next day; but if possible, put together the same night. Turn as usual. Cover the bunghole with paper when the beer has done working; and when it is to be stopped have ready a pound and a half of hops, dried before the fire, put them into the bunghole, and fasten it up.

Let it stand twelve months in casks, and twelve in bottles before it be drank. It will keep, and be very fine, eight or ten years. It should be brewed the beginning of March.

Great care must be taken that bottles are perfectly prepared, and that the corks are of the best sort.

The ale will be ready in three or four months; and if the vent peg be never removed, it will have spirit and strength to the very last. Allow two gallons of water at first for waste.

After the beer or ale is run from the grains, pour a hogshead and a half for the twelve bushels, and a hogshead of water if eight were brewed; mash, and let stand, and then boil, &c. Use some of the hops for this table beer that were boiled for the strong beer.

_Excellent Table Beer._

On three bushels of malt pour of hot water the third of the quantity you are to use, which is to be thirty nine gallons. Cover it warm half an hour, then mash, and let it stand two hours and a half more, then set it to drain. When dry, add half the remaining water, mash, and let it stand half an hour, run that into another tub, and pour the rest of the water on the malt, stir it well, and cover it, letting it infuse a full hour. Run that off, and mix all together. A pound and a quarter of hops should be infused in water, as in the former receipt, and be put into the tub for the first running.

Boil the hops with the wort an hour from the time it first boils. Strain off, and cool. If the whole be not cool enough that day to add to the yeast, a pail or two of wort may be prepared, and a quart of yeast put to it over night. Before tunning, all the wort should be added together, and thoroughly mixed with the lade pail. When the wort ceases to work, put a bit of paper on the bunghole for three days, when it may be safely fastened close. In three or four weeks the beer will be fit for drinking.

_Note._ Servants should be directed to put a cork into every barrel as soon as the cock is taken out, the air causing casks to become musty.

_To refine Beer, Ale, Wine, or Cider._

Put two ounces of isinglass shavings to soak in a quart of the liquor that you want to clear, beat it with a whisk every day till dissolved. Draw off a third part of the cask, and mix the above with it; likewise a quarter of an ounce of pearlashes, one ounce of salt of tartar calcined, and one ounce of burnt alum powdered. Stir it well, then return the liquor into the cask, and stir it with a clean stick. Stop it up, and in a few days it will be fine.

_To make excellent Coffee._ See among sick Cookery.

_Orgeat._

Boil a quart of new milk with a stick of cinnamon, sweeten to your taste, and let grow cold; then pour it by degrees to three ounces of almonds, and twenty bitter, that have been blanched and beaten to a paste, with a little water to prevent oiling; boil all together, and stir till cold, then add half a glass of brandy.

_Another way._

Blanch and pound three quarters of a pound of almonds, and thirty bitter, with a spoonful of water. Stir in by degrees two pints of water, and three of milk, and strain the whole through a cloth. Dissolve half a pound of fine sugar in a pint of water, boil and skim it well; mix it with the other, as likewise two spoonfuls of orange flower water, and a teacupful of the best brandy.

_Lemonade. To be made a day before wanted._

Pare two dozen of tolerably sized lemons as thin as possible, put eighteen of the rinds into three quarts of hot, not boiling water, and cover it over for three or four hours. Rub some fine sugar on the lemons to attract the essence, and put it into a China bowl, into which squeeze the juice of the lemons: to it add one pound and a half of fine sugar, then put the water to the above, and three quarts of milk made boiling hot; mix, and pour through a jellybag till perfectly clear.

_Another way._

Pare a number of lemons according to the quantity you are likely to want; on the peels pour hot water, but more juice will be necessary than you need use the peels of. While infusing, boil sugar and water to a good syrup with the white of an egg whipt up. When it boils, pour a little cold water into it; set it on again, and when it boils up take the pan off, and set it to settle. If there is any skum, take it off, and pour it clear from the sediment to the water the peels were infused in, and the lemonjuice; stir and taste it, and add as much more water as shall be necessary to make a very rich lemonade. Wet a jellybag, and squeeze it dry, then strain the liquor, which is uncommonly fine.

_Raspberry vinegar._

Put a pound of fine fruit into a China bowl, and pour upon it a quart of the best white wine vinegar; next day strain the liquor on a pound of fresh raspberries; and the following day do the same, but do not squeeze the fruit, only drain the liquor as dry as you can from it. The last time pass it through a canvass previously wet with vinegar to prevent waste. Put it into a stonejar, with a pound of sugar to every pint of juice, broken into large lumps; stir it when melted, then put the jar into a saucepan of water, or on a hot hearth, let it simmer, and skim it. When cold, bottle it.

This is one of the most useful preparations that can be kept in a house, not only as affording the most refreshing beverage, but being of singular efficacy in complaints of the chest. A large spoonful or two in a tumbler of water.

N. B. Use no glazed or metal vessel for it.

_Note._ The fruit, with equal quantity of sugar, makes excellent raspberry cakes without boiling.

_Raspberry wine._

To every quart of well picked raspberries put a quart of water; bruise, and let them stand two days; strain off the liquor, and to every gallon put three pounds of lump sugar; when dissolved put the liquor in a barrel, and when fine, which will be in about two months, bottle it, and to each bottle put a spoonful of brandy, or a glass of wine.

_Raspberry, or Currant wine._

To every three pints of fruit, carefully cleared from mouldy or bad, put one quart of water; bruise the former. In twenty four hours strain the liquor, and put to every quart a pound of sugar, a good middling quality of Lisbon. If for white currants, use lump sugar. It is best to put the fruit, &c. in a large pan, and when in three or four days the skum rises, take that off before the liquor be put into the barrel.

Those who make from their own gardens may not have a sufficiency to fill the barrel at once. The wine will not be hurt if made in the pan, in the above proportions, and added as the fruit ripens, and can be gathered in dry weather. Keep an account of what is put in each time.

_Imperial._

Put two ounces of cream of tartar, and the juice and paring of two lemons into a stonejar; pour on them seven quarts of boiling water, stir and cover close. When cold, sweeten with loaf sugar, and straining it, bottle and cork it tight.

This is a very pleasant liquor, and very wholesome; but from the latter consideration was at one time drank in such quantities, as to become injurious. Add, in bottling, half a pint of rum to the whole quantity.

_Excellent Gingerwine._

Put into a very nice boiler ten gallons of water, twelve pounds and a half of lump sugar, with the whites of six or eight eggs well beaten and strained; mix all well while cold; when the liquor boils, skim it well; put in half a pound of common white ginger bruised, boil it twenty minutes. Have ready the very thin rinds of ten lemons, and pour the liquor on them; when _cool_, turn it with two spoonfuls of yeast; put a quart of the liquor to two ounces of isinglass shavings, while warm, _whisk_ it well three or four times, and pour all together into the barrel. Next day stop it up; in three weeks bottle, and in three months it will be a delicious and refreshing liquor; and though very cool, perfectly safe.

_Another for Gingerwine._

Boil nine quarts of water with six pounds of lump sugar, the rinds of two or three lemons very thinly pared, with two ounces of bruised white ginger half an hour; skim. Put three quarters of a pound of raisins into the cask; when the liquor is lukewarm, tun it with the juice of two lemons strained, and a spoonful and a half of yeast. Stir it daily, then put in half a pint of brandy, and half an ounce of isinglass shavings; stop it up, and bottle it six or seven weeks. Do not put the lemonpeel in the barrel.

_Alderwine._

To every quart of berries put two quarts of water, _boil_ half an hour, run the liquor, and break the fruit through a hair sieve; then to every quart of juice, put three quarters of a pound of Lisbon sugar, not the very coarsest, but coarse. Boil the whole a quarter of an hour with some Jamaica peppers, ginger, and a few cloves. Pour it into a tub, and when of a proper warmth into the barrel, with toast and yeast to work, which there is more difficulty to make it do than most other liquors. When it ceases to hiss, put a quart of brandy to eight gallons, and stop up. Bottle in the spring or at Christmas.

_White Alderwine; very much like Frontiniac._

Boil eighteen pounds of white powder sugar, with six gallons of water, and two whites of eggs well beaten; then skim it, and put in a quarter of a peck of alder flowers from the tree that bears _white_ berries; do not keep them on the fire. When near cold, stir it, and put in six spoonfuls of lemonjuice, four or five of yeast, and beat well into the liquor; stir it every day; put six pounds of the best raisins, stoned, into the cask, and tun the wine. Stop it close, and bottle in six months.

When well kept, this wine will pass for Frontiniac.

_Clary Wine._

Boil fifteen gallons of water, with forty five pounds of sugar, skim it, when cool put a little to a quarter of a pint of yeast, and so by degrees add a little more. In an hour pour the small quantity to the large, pour the liquor on clary flowers, picked in the dry; the quantity for the above is twelve quarts. Those who gather from their own garden may not have sufficient to put in at once, and may add as they can get them, keeping account of each quart. When it ceases to hiss, and the flowers are all in, stop it up for four months. Rack it off, empty the barrel of the dregs, and adding a gallon of the best brandy, stop it up, and let it stand six or eight weeks then bottle it.

_A rich and pleasant Wine._

Take new cyder from the press, mix it with as much honey as will support an egg, boil gently fifteen minutes, but not in an iron, brass, or copper pot. Skim it well; when cool, let it be tunned, but do not quite fill. In March following bottle it, and it will be fit to drink in six weeks; will be less sweet if kept longer in the cask. You will have a rich and strong wine, and it will keep well. This will serve for any culinary purposes which sack, or sweet wine, are directed for.

Duhamel says, honey is a fine ingredient to assist, and render palatable, new crabbed austere cider.

_Raisinwine, with Cider._

Put two hundred weight of Malaga raisins into a cask, and pour upon them a hogshead of good sound cider that is not rough. Stir it well two or three days; stop it, and let it stand six months; then rack into a cask that it will fill, and put in a gallon of the best brandy.

If raisinwine be much used, it would answer well to keep a cask always for it, and bottle off one year’s wine just in time to make the next, which, allowing the six months of infusion, would make the wine to be eighteen months old. In cider countries this way is very economical; and even if not thought strong enough, the addition of another quarter of a hundred of raisins would be sufficient, and the wine would still be very cheap.

When the raisins are pressed through a horsehair bag, they will either produce a very good spirit by distillation, and must be sent to a chymist who will do it (but if for that purpose, they must be very little pressed); or they will make excellent vinegar, on which article see page 116.

The stalks should be picked off for the above, and may be thrown into any cask of vinegar that is making; being very acid.

_Raisinwine, without Cider._

On four hundred weight of Malagas pour one hogshead of spring water, stir well daily for fourteen days, then squeeze the raisins in a horsehair bag in a press, and tun the liquor; when it ceases to hiss, stop it close. In six months rack it off into another cask, or into a tub, and after clearing out the sediment, return it into the same, but do not wash it; add a gallon of the best brandy, stop it close, and in six months bottle it.

Take care of the pressed fruit, for the uses of which refer to the preceding receipt.

_Ratafia._

Blanch two ounces of peach and apricot kernels, bruise and put them into a bottle, and fill nearly up with brandy. Dissolve half a pound of white sugarcandy in a cup of cold water, and add to the brandy after it has stood a month on the kernels, and they are strained off; then filter through paper, and bottle for use.

_Raspberry brandy._

Pick fine dry fruit, put into a stonejar, and the jar into a kettle of water, or on a hot hearth, till the juice will run; strain, and to every pint add half a pound of sugar, give one boil, and skim it; when cold, put equal quantities of juice and brandy, shake well, and bottle. Some people prefer it stronger of the brandy.

_Verder, or Milkpunch._

Pare six oranges, and six lemons as thin as you can, grate them after with sugar to get the flavour. Steep the peels in a bottle of rum or brandy stopped close twenty four hours. Squeeze the fruit on a pound and a half of sugar, add to it four quarts of water, and one of new milk boiling hot; stir the rum into the above, and run it through a jellybag till perfectly clear. Bottle, and cork close immediately.

_Norfolkpunch._

Pare six lemons and three Seville oranges very thin, squeeze the juice into a large teapot, put to it two quarts of brandy, one of white wine, and one of milk, and one pound and a quarter of sugar. Let it be mixed, and then covered for twenty four hours, strain through a jellybag till clear; then bottle it.

_Orange, or Lemon syrup; a most useful thing to keep in the house, to
take with water, in colds or fevers._

Squeeze the juice of very good fruit, and boil when strained, a pint to a pound of sugar, over a very gentle fire; skim it well; when clear, pour it into a China bowl, and in twenty four hours bottle it for use.

_White Currant shrub._

Strip the fruit, and prepare in a jar as for jelly; strain the juice, of which put two quarts to one gallon of rum, and two pounds of lump sugar; strain through a jellybag.

* * * * *

The following pages will contain Cookery for the sick; it being of more consequence to support those whose bad appetites will not allow them to take the necessary nourishment, than to stimulate those that are in health.

It may not be unnecessary to advise that a choice be made of the things most likely to agree with the patient; _that_ a change be provided; _that_ some one at least be always ready; _that_ not too much of those be made at once, which are not likely to keep, as invalids require variety; and let them succeed each other in a different form and flavour.

_A great Restorative._

Bake two calf’s feet in three pints of water, and new milk, in a jar close covered, three hours and a half. When cold remove the fat.

Give a large teacupful the last and first thing. Whatever flavour is approved, give it by baking in it lemonpeel, cinnamon, or mace. Add sugar.

_Another._

Simmer six sheep’s trotters, two blades of mace, a little cinnamon, lemonpeel, a few hartshorn shavings, and a little isinglass, in two quarts of water to one; when cold take off the fat, and give near half a pint twice a day; warming with it a little new milk.

_Another._

Boil one ounce of isinglass shavings, forty Jamaica peppers, and a bit of brown crust of bread, in a quart of water to a pint, and strain it.

This makes a pleasant jelly to keep in the house; of which a large spoonful may be taken in wine and water, milk, tea, soup, or any way.

_Another most pleasant Draught._

Boil a quarter of an ounce of isinglass shavings with a pint of new milk to half, add a bit of sugar, and, for change, a bitter almond. Give this at night, not too warm.

Blamange, Dutch Flummery, and Jellies, as directed pages 164 and 165, or less rich according to judgment.

_A very nourishing Veal broth._

Put the knuckle of a leg or shoulder of veal, with very little meat to it, an old fowl, and four shankbones of mutton extremely well soaked and brushed, three blades of mace, ten peppercorns, an onion, and a large bit of bread, and three quarts of water, into a stewpot that covers close, and simmer in the slowest manner after it has boiled up, and been skimmed; or, bake it; strain and take off the fat. Salt as wanted.

_A clear Broth that will keep long._

Put the mouse round of beef, a knucklebone of veal, and a few shanks of mutton into a deep pan, and cover close with a dish or coarse crust; bake till the beef is done enough for eating, with only as much water as will cover. When cold, cover it close in a cool place. When to be used, give what flavour may be approved.

_Dr. Ratcluff’s restorative Porkjelly._

Take a leg of well fed pork, just as cut up, beat it, and break the bone. Set it over a gentle fire, with three gallons of water, and simmer to one. Let half an ounce of mace, and the same of nutmegs, stew in it. Strain through a line sieve. When cold, take off the fat. Give a chocolate cup the first and last thing, and at noon, putting salt to taste.

_Beef tea._

Cut a pound of fleshy beef in thin slices, simmer with a quart of water twenty minutes, after it has once boiled, and been skimmed. Season, if approved; but it has generally only salt.

_Broth of Beef, Mutton, and Veal._

Put two pounds of lean beef, two pounds of scrag of mutton, sweet herbs, and ten peppercorns, into a nice tin saucepan, with five quarts of water; simmer to three quarts; and clear from the fat when cold.

_Note._ That soup and broth made of different meats are more supporting, as well as better flavoured.

TWO WAYS OF PREPARING A CHICKEN.

_Chicken panada._

Boil it till about three parts ready in a quart of water, take off the skin, cut the white meat off when cold, and put into a marble mortar; pound it to a paste with a little of the water it was boiled in, season with a little salt, a grate of nutmeg, and the least bit of lemonpeel. Boil gently for a few minutes to the consistency you like; it should be such as you can drink, though tolerably thick.

This conveys great nourishment in small compass.

_Chicken broth._

Put the body and legs of the fowl that the panada was made of, taking off the skin and rump, into the water it was boiled in, with one blade of mace, one slice of onion, and ten white peppercorns. Simmer till the broth be of a pleasant flavour. If not water enough, add a little. Beat a quarter of an ounce of sweet almonds, with a teaspoonful of water, fine, boil it in the broth, strain, and when cold, remove the fat.

_Shank jelly._

Soak twelve shanks of mutton four hours, then brush and scour them very clean. Lay them in a saucepan with three blades of mace, an onion, twenty Jamaica, and thirty or forty black peppers, a bunch of sweet herbs, and a crust of bread made very brown by toasting. Pour three quarts of water to them, and set them on a hot hearth close covered; let them simmer as gently as possible for five hours, then strain it off, and put it in a cold place.

This may have the addition of a pound of beef, if approved, for flavour.

_Eel broth._

Clean half a pound of small eels, and set them on with three pints of water, some parsley, one slice of onion, a few peppercorns; let them simmer till the eels are broken, and the broth good. Add salt.

The above should make three half pints of broth.

_Tench broth._

Make as above. They are both very nutritious, and light of digestion.

_A quick made Broth._

Take a bone or two of a neck or loin of mutton, take off the fat and skin, set it on the fire in a small tin saucepan that has a cover, with three quarters of a pint of water, the meat being first beaten, and cut in thin bits; put a bit of thyme and parsley, and, if approved, a slice of onion. Let it boil very quick, skim it nicely; take off the cover, if likely to be too weak; else cover it. Half an hour is sufficient for the whole process.

_Calf’s feet Broth._

Boil two feet in three quarts of water to half; strain and set it by. When to be used, take off the fat, put a large teacupful of the jelly into a saucepan, with half a glass of sweet wine, a little sugar and nutmeg, and heat it up till it be ready to boil, then take a little of it, and beat by degrees to the yelk of an egg, and adding a bit of butter, the size of a nutmeg, stir it altogether, but do not let it boil. Grate a bit of fresh lemonpeel into it.

_Another._

Boil two calf’s feet, two ounces of veal, and two of beef, the bottom of a penny loaf, two or three blades of mace, half a nutmeg sliced, and a little salt, in three quarts of water, to three pints; strain, and take off the fat.

_Panada; made in five minutes._

Set a little water on the fire with a glass of white wine, some sugar, and a scrape of nutmeg and lemonpeel; meanwhile grate some crumbs of bread. The moment the mixture boils up, keeping it still on the fire, put the crumbs in, and let it boil as fast as it can. When of a proper thickness just to drink, take it off.

_Another._

As above, but instead of a glass of wine, put in a spoonful, a teaspoonful of rum, and a bit of butter; sugar as above.

This is a most pleasant mess.

_Another._

Put to the water a bit of lemonpeel, mix the crumbs in, and when nearly boiled enough, put some lemon or orange syrup.

Observe to boil all the ingredients; for if any be added after, the panada will break, and not jelly.

_Barleywater._

Boil an ounce of pearlbarley a few minutes to cleanse, then put on it a quart of water, simmer an hour; when half done, put into it a bit of fresh lemonpeel, and one bit of sugar. If likely to be too thick, you may put another quarter of a pint of water.

_Common Barleywater._

Wash a handful of common barley, then simmer it gently in three pints of water with a bit of lemonpeel.

This is less apt to nauseate than pearlbarley; but the former is a very pleasant drink.

_A very agreeable Drink._

Into a tumbler of fresh cold water pour a table spoonful of capillaire; and the same of good vinegar.

_Lemon water; a delightful drink._

Put two slices of lemon thinly pared into a teapot, and a little bit of the peel, and a bit of sugar, or a large spoonful of capillaire; pour in a pint of boiling water, and stop close.

_Apple water._

Cut two large apples in slices, and pour a quart of boiling water on them; or on roasted apples.

Tamarinds, currants fresh or in jelly, or scalded currants, or cranberries, make excellent drinks; with a little sugar or not, as may be agreeable.

_Raspberry Vinegarwater. See page 240._

This is one of the most delightful drinks that can be made.

_Toast and Water._

Toast slowly a thin piece of bread till extremely brown and hard, but not the least black, then plunge it into a jug of cold water, and cover it over an hour before used.

_Orangeade, or Lemonade._

Squeeze the juice; pour boiling water on a little of the peel, and cover close. Boil water and sugar to a thin syrup, and skim it. When all are cold, mix the juice, the infusion, and the syrup, with as much more water as will make a rich sherbet; strain through a jellybag. Or, squeeze the juice, and strain it, and add water and capillaire.

_Orgeat._

Beat two ounces of almonds with a teaspoonful of orange flower water, and a bitter almond or two; then pour a quart of milk and water to the paste. Sweeten with sugar, or capillaire.

Another orgeat for company, page 239.

_Milkporridge._

Make a fine gruel of half grits, long boiled; strain off; either add cold milk, or warm with milk as may be approved. Serve with toast.

_French Milkporridge._

Stir some oatmeal and water together, let it stand to be clear, and pour off the latter: pour fresh upon it, stir it well, let it stand till next day; strain through a fine sieve, and boil the water, adding milk while doing. The proportion of water must be small.

This is much ordered, with toast, for the breakfast of weak persons abroad.

_Caudle._

Make a fine smooth gruel of half grits; strain it when boiled well, stir it at times till cold. When to be used, add sugar, wine, and lemonpeel, with nutmeg. Some like a spoonful of brandy besides the wine.

_Another Caudle._

Boil up half a pint of fine gruel, with a bit of butter the size of a large nutmeg, a large spoonful of brandy, the same of white wine, one of capillaire, a bit of lemonpeel and nutmeg.

_Rice Caudle._

When the water boils, pour it into some grated rice mixed with a little cold water; when of a proper consistence add sugar, lemonpeel and cinnamon, and a glass of brandy to a quart. Boil all smooth.

_Cold Caudle._

Boil a quart of spring water; when cold, add the yelk of an egg, the juice of a small lemon, six spoonfuls of sweet wine, sugar to your taste; and syrup of lemons one ounce.

_A refreshing drink in a Fever._

Put a little tea sage, two sprigs of balm, and a _little_ woodsorrel into a stone jug, having first washed and dried them; peel thin a small lemon, and clear from the white; slice it, and put a bit of the peel in, then pour in three points of boiling water, sweeten, and cover it close.

_Another Drink._

Wash extremely well an ounce of pearlbarley; shift it twice, then put to it three pints of water, an ounce of sweet almonds beaten fine, and a bit of lemonpeel. Boil till you have a smooth liquor, then put in a little syrup of lemons and capillaire.

_Another Drink._

Boil three pints of water with an ounce and a half of tamarinds, three ounces of currants, and two ounces of stoned raisins, till near a third be consumed. Strain it.

_A most pleasant Drink._

Put a teacupful of cranberries into a cup of water, and mash them. In the mean time boil two quarters and a pint of water with one large spoonful of oatmeal, and a very large bit of lemonpeel: then add the cranberries, and as much fine Lisbon sugar as shall leave a smart flavour of the fruit; and a quarter of a pint of sherry or less, as may be proper; boil all for half an hour, and strain off.

_Whey._

That of cheese is a very wholesome drink, especially when the cows are in fresh herbage.

_White Wine whey._

Put half a pint of new milk on the fire; the moment it boils up, pour in as much sound raisin wine as will completely turn it, and it looks clear; let it boil up, then set the saucepan aside till the curd subsides, and do not stir it. Pour the whey off, and add to it half a pint of boiling water, and a bit of white sugar. Thus you will have a whey perfectly cleared of milky particles, and as weak as you choose to make it.

_Vinegar and Lemon wheys._

Pour into boiling milk as above, and when clear, dilute with boiling water, and put a bit or two of sugar.

_Eggwine._

Beat an egg, mix with it a spoonful of cold water; set on the fire a glass of white wine, half a glass of water and sugar, and nutmeg. When it boils, pour a little of it to the egg by degrees, till the whole be in, stirring it well; then return the whole into the saucepan, put it on a gentle fire, stir it one way for not more than a minute; for if it boil, or the egg be stale, it will curdle. Serve with toast.

Eggwine may be made as above, without warming the egg, and it is then lighter on the stomach, though not so pleasant to the taste.

An egg broken into a cup of tea, or beaten and mixed with a bason of milk, makes a breakfast more supporting than tea.

An egg divided, and the yelk and white beaten separately, then mixed with a glass of wine, will afford two very wholesome draughts, and prove lighter than when taken together.

Eggs very little boiled or poached, taken in small quantity, convey much nourishment.

_The following is a particularly soft and fine draught, to be taken
the first and last thing, by those who are weak, and have a cough._