Chapter X: Introduction (10)

My Lady Paget makes her fine preserved Pippins, thus: They are done best, when Pippins are in their prime for quickness, which is in November. Make your Pippin-water as strong as you can of the Apples, and that it may be the less boiled, and consequently the paler, put in at first the greatest quantity of pared and quartered Apples, the water will bear. To every Pint of Pippin-water add (when you put the Sugar to it) a quarter of a pint of fair spring-water, that will bear soap (of which sort only you must use) and use half a pound of Sugar, the purest double refined. If you will have much gelly, two Pippins finely pared and whole, will be enough; you may put in more, if you will have a greater proportion of substance to the gelly. Put at first but half the Sugar to the Liquor; for so it will be the paler. Boil the Apples by themselves in fair water, with a very little Sugar, to make them tender; then put them into the liquor, and the rest, the other half of the Sugar with them. Boil them with a quick fire, till they be enough, and the liquor do gelly, and that you see the Apples look very clear, and as though they were transparent. You must put the juyce of two Limons and half an Orange to this in the due time. Every Pippin should be lapped over in a broad-pill of Orange; which you must prepare thus. Pare your Orange broad and very thin, and all hanging together, rub it with Salt, prick it, and boil it in several waters, to take away the bitterness, and make it tender. Then preserve it by it self with sufficient quantity of Sugar. When it is throughly done, and very tender (which you must cast to do before hand, to be ready when the Apples are ready to be put up) take them out of their Syrup, and lap every Pippin in an Orange-peel, and put them into a pot or glass, and pour the liquor upon them: which will be gelly over and about the Apples, when all is cold. This proportion of liquor, Apples, and Orange-peels, will take up about three quarters of a pound of Sugar in all. If you would keep them any time, you must put in weight for weight of Sugar.

I conceive Apple-John's in stead of Pippins will do better, both for the gelly and Syrup; especially at the latter end of the year; and I like them thin sliced, rather than whole; and the Orange-peels scattered among them in little pieces or chipps.

SYRUP OF PIPPINS

Quarter and Core your Pippins; then stamp them in a Mortar, and strain out the Juyce. Let it settle, that the thick dregs may go to the bottom; then pour off the clear; and to have it more clear and pure, filter it through sucking Paper in a glass funnel. To one pound of this take one pound and an half of pure double refined Sugar, and boil it very gently (scarce simpringly, and but a very little while) till you have scummed away all the froth and foulness (which will be but little) and that it be of the consistence of Syrup. If you put two pound of Sugar to one pound of juyce, you must boil it more & stronglier. This will keep longer, but the colour is not so fine. It is of a deeper yellow. If you put but equal parts of juyce and Sugar, you must not boil it, but set it in a _Cucurbite in bulliente Balneo_, till all the scum be taken away, and the Sugar well dissolved. This will be very pale and pleasant, but will not keep long.

You may make your Syrup with a strong decoction of Apples in water (as when you make gelly of Pippins) when they are green; but when they are old and mellow, the substance of the Apple will dissolve into pap, by boiling in water.

Take three or four spoonfuls of this Syrup in a large draught of fountain water, or small posset-Ale, _pro ardore urinæ_ to cool and smoothen, two or three times a day.

GELLY OF PIPPINS OR JOHN-APPLES

Cut your Apples into quarters (either pared or unpared). Boil them in a sufficient quantity of water, till it be very strong of the Apples. Take the clear liquor, and put to it sufficient Sugar to make gelly, and the slices of Apple; so boil them all together, till the slices be enough, and the liquor gelly; or you may boil the slices, in Apple-liquor without Sugar, and make gelly of other liquor, and put the slices into it, when it is gelly, and they be sufficiently boiled. Either way, you must put at the last some juyce of Limon to it; and Amber and Musk if you will. You may do it with halves or quartered Apples, in deep glasses, with store of gelly about them. To have these clear, take the pieces out of the gelly they are boiled in, with a slice, so as you may have all the rags run from them, and then put neat clean pieces into clear gelly.

PRESERVED WARDENS

Pare and Core the Wardens, and put a little of the thin rind of a Limon into the hole that the Core leaveth. To every pound of Wardens, take half a pound of Sugar, and half a pint of water. Make a Syrup of your Sugar and Water; when it is well scummed, put it into a Pewter dish, and your Wardens into the Syrup, and cover it with another Pewter dish; and so let this boil very gently, or rather stew, keeping it very well covered, that the steam get out as little as may be. Continue this, till the Wardens are very tender, and very red, which may be in five, or six, or seven hours. Then boil them up to the height the Syrup ought to be to keep: which yet will not be well above three or four months. The whole secret of making them red, consisteth in doing them in Pewter, which spoileth other preserves, and in any other mettal these will not be red. If you will have any Amber in them, you may to ten or twelve pounds of Wardens, put in about twenty grains of Amber, and one, or at most, two grains of Musk, ground with a little Sugar, and so put in at the last. Though the Wardens be not covered over with the Syrup in the stewing by a good deal, yet the steam, that riseth and cannot get out, but circulateth, will serve both to stew them, and to make them red and tender.

SWEET MEAT OF APPLES

My Lady Barclay makes her fine Apple-gelly with slices of John apples. Sometimes she mingles a few Pippins with the John's to make the Gelly. But she liketh best the John's single, and the colour is paler. You first fill the glass with slices round-wise cut, and then the Gelly is poured in to fill up the vacuities. The Gelly must be boiled to a good stiffness. Then when it is ready to take from the fire, you put in some juyce of Limon, and of Orange too, if you like it: but these must not boil; yet it must stand a while upon the fire stewing in good heat, to have the juyces Incorporate and Penetrate well. You must also put in some Ambergreece, which doth exceeding well in this sweet-meat.

A FLOMERY-CAUDLE

When Flomery is made and cold, you may make a pleasant and wholesome caudle of it, by taking some lumps and spoonfuls of it, and boil it with Ale and White wine, then sweeten it to your taste with Sugar. There will remain in the Caudle some lumps of the congealed flomery, which are not ungrateful.

PLEASANT CORDIAL TABLETS, WHICH ARE VERY COMFORTING, AND STRENGTHEN NATURE MUCH

Take four ounces of blanched Almonds; of Pine kernels, and of Pistachios, _ana_, four Ounces. Erin-go-roots, Candid-Limon peels, _ana_, three Ounces, Candid Orange peels two Ounces, Candid Citron-peels four Ounces, of powder of white Amber, as much as will lie upon a shilling; and as much of the powder of pearl, 20 grains of Ambergreece, three grains of Musk, a book of leaf gold, Cloves and Mace, of each as much as will lie upon a three pence; cut all these as small as possible you can. Then take a pound of Sugar, and half a pint of water, boil it to a candy-height, then put in the Ambergreece and Musk, with three or four spoonfulls of Orange flower water. Then put in all the other things and stir them well together, and cast them upon plates, and set them to dry: when both sides are dry, take Orange-flower-water and Sugar, and Ice them.

TO MAKE HARTS-HORN GELLY

Take four Ounces of Harts-horn rasped, boil it in four pound of water, till it will be a gelly, which you may try upon a plate (it will be so, in four or five or six hours gentle boiling) and then pass the clear liquor from the horn (which will be a good quart) then set it on the fire again with fine Sugar in it to your taste; when that is dissolved (or at the same time you put that in) put half a pound of white-wine or Sack into it, and a bag of Spice, containing a little Ginger, a stick of Cinnamon bruised, a Nutmeg quartered, two or three Cloves, and what other Spice you like, but Pepper. As soon as it beginneth to boil, put into it the whites of three or four Eggs beaten, and let it boil up gently, till the Eggs harden into a curd. Then open it with a spoon, and pour into it the juyce of three or four good Limons; then take it presently off the fire, letting it not boil more above a walm: Then run it through a Hippocras bag, putting spirit of Cinnamon, or of Ambergreece, or what you please to it.

For gelly of flesh you proceed in the same manner, with a brawny Capon or Cock, and a rouelle of Veal (first skinned, and soaked from the blood) in stead of Harts-horn: and when the broth will gelly, do as above, using a double or treble proportion of wine. Boil no Salt in it at first, for that will make the gelly black.

HARTS-HORN GELLY

Take a pound of Harts-horn, and boil it in five quarts of water, until it come to three pints, then strain it through a sieve or strainer, and so let it stand, until it be cold; and according to the strength you may take more or less of the following Ingredients. First, take your stock of gelly, & put it into a skillet or pipkin with a pound of fine loaf Sugar, and set it over a fire of Charcoal; and when it begins to boil, put in a pint or more of Rhenish-wine. Then take the whites of Eggs six or eight, beaten very well, with three or four spoonfuls of Rose-water, and put into the gelly. Then take two grains of Amber, and one grain of Musk, and put thereto, so let it boil a quarter of an hour, but not too violent; Then put in three or four spoonfuls of Cinnamon-water, with the juyce of seven or eight Limons; boil it one walm more, and run it very hot through your gelly-bag; this done, run it again as cool and softly as you can into your Glasses and Pots.

TO MAKE HARTS-HORN GELLY

Take a pound of Harts-horn, and a prety big lean Chicken, and put it into a skillet with about nine quarts of water, and boil your stock prety stiff, so that you may cut it with a knife; you may try it in a spoon, as it is a boiling. Then drain your liquor clear away from the Harts-horn through a fine searse, and let it stand until the next morning; Then if there be any fat upon it, pare it away, and likewise the settlings at the bottom. Then put your Gelly into a good big skillet, and put to it a quart of the palest white-wine that you can procure, or a quart of Rhenish-wine, and one pound of double refined Sugar, and half an Ounce of Cinnamon broken into small pieces, with three or four flakes of Mace. Then set it upon the fire, and boil it a good pace. Then have the whites of sixteen Eggs beaten to a high froth; so put in the froth of your Eggs, and boil it five or six Walms; then put in the juyce of six Limons, and boil it a little while after, and then run it into a silver bason through your gelly-bag: and keep it warm by the fire, until it have run through the second time. You must observe to put but a very little into your bag at a time for the second running, that it may but little more then drop; and it will be so much the clearer: and you must not remove the whites of Eggs nor Spice out of the bag, all the while it is running. And if the weather be hot, you need not put in so much wine; for it will not then be so apt to gelly as in cold weather.

ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE HARTS-HORN-GELLY

Take a small Cock-chick, when it is scalded, slit it in two pieces, lay it to soak in warm water, until the blood be well out of it. Then take a calves foot half boiled, slit it in the middle and pick out the fat and black of it. Put these into a Gallon of fair-water; skim it very well; Then put into it one Ounce of Harts-horn, and one Ounce of Ivory. When it is half consumed, take some of it up in a spoon; and if it gelly, take it all up, and put it into a silver bason, or such a Pewter one as will endure Char-coal. Then beat four whites of Eggs, with three or four spoonfuls of Damask-Rose-water very well together. Then put these into the gelly, with a quarter of an Ounce of Cinnamon broken into very small pieces; one flake of Mace; three or four thin slices of Ginger; sweeten it with loaf Sugar to your liking; set it then over a chafing dish of coals; stir it well, and cover it close; blow under it, until there arise a scum or curd; let it boil a little, then put into it one top of Rose-mary, two or three of sweet Marjoram; wring into it the juyce of half a Limon; let not your curd fall again, for it will spoil the clearness of the gelly. If you will have it more Cordial, you may grind in a Sawcer, with a little hard Sugar, half a grain of Musk, a grain of Ambergreece. It must be boiled in an earthen pipkin, or a very sweet Iron-pot, after the Harts-horn and Ivory is in it. It must constantly boil, until it gellieth. If there arise any scum, it must be taken off.

MARMULATE OF PIPPINS

Take the quickest Pippins, when they are newly gathered, and are sharp; Pare and Core and cut them into half quarters. Put to them their weight of the finest Sugar in Powder, or broken into little pieces. Put upon these in your preserving pan, as much fountain water, as will even cover them. Boil them with a quick-fire, till by trying a little upon a Plate, you find it gellieth. When it is cold (which may be in less then half an hour) then take it from the fire, and put into it a little of the yellow rind of Limons rasped very small, and a little of the Yellow rinde of Oranges boiled tender (casting away the first waters to correct their bitterness) and cut into narrow slices (as in the gelly of Pippins) and some Ambergreece, with a fourth part of Musk, and break the Apples with the back of your preserving spoon, whiles it cooleth. If you like them sharper, you may put in a little juyce of Limon, a little before you take the pan from the fire. When it is cold, put it into pots. This will keep a year or two.

Try if the juyce of Apples (strained out of rasped Apples) in such sort, as you make Marmulate of Quinces, with the juyce of Quinces, would not be better, then fair-water, to boil your Apples and Sugar in.

GELLY OF QUINCES

My last Gelly of Quinces I made thus. The Quinces being very ripe, and having been long gathered, I took the flesh of twelve Quinces in quarters, and the juyce of fifteen or sixteen others, which made me two pounds of juyce; And I made a strong decoction of about twenty four others, adding to these twenty four (to make the decoction the stronger, and more slimy) the Cores and the Parings of the twelve in quarters; and I used the Cores sliced and Parings of all these. All this boiled about an hour and half in eight or ten pound of water; Then I strained and pressed out the decoction (which was a little viscous, as I desired) and had between 4 and five pound of strong decoction. To the decoction and Syrup, I put three pound of pure Sugar, which being dissolved and scummed, I put in the flesh, and in near an hour of temperate boiling (covered) and often turning the quarters, it was enough. When it was cold, it was store of firm clear red gelly, environing in great quantity the quarters, that were also very tender and well penetrated with the Sugar. I found by this making, that the juyce of Quinces is not so good to make gelly. It maketh it somewhat running like Syrup, and tasteth sweetish, mellowy, syrupy.

The Decoction of the flesh is only good for Syrup. I conceive, it would be a grateful sweetmeat to mingle a good quantity of good gelly with the Marmulate, when it is ready to put into pots. To that end they must both be making at the same time: or if one be a little sooner done then the other, they may be kept a while warm (fit to mingle) without prejudice. Though the Gelly be cold and settled, it will melt again with the warmth of the Marmulate, and so mingle with it, and make a Marmulate, that will appear very gellyish; or peradventure it may be well to fill up a pot or glass with gelly, when it is first half filled with Marmulate a little cooled.

PRESERVED QUINCE WITH GELLY

When I made Quinces with Gelly, I used the first time these proportions; of the decoction of Quinces three pound; of Sugar one pound three quarters; Flesh of Quince two pound and an half; The second time these, of decoction two pound and an half, Sugar two pound and a quarter, Of flesh two pound three quarters. I made the decoction by boyling gently each time a dozen or fourteen Quinces in a Pottle of water, an hour and a half, or two hours, so that the decoction was very strong of the Quinces. I boiled the parings (which for that end were pared very thick, after the Quinces were well wiped) with all the substance of the Quince in thick slices, and part of the Core (excepting all the Kernels) and then let it run through a loose Napkin, pressing gently with two plates, that all the decoction might come out; but be clear without any flesh or mash. The first making I intended should be red; and therefore both the decoction, and the whole were boiled covered, and it proved a fine clear red. This boiled above an hour, when all was in. The other boiled not above half an hour, always uncovered (as also in making his decoction) and the Gelly was of a fine pale yellow. I first did put the Sugar upon the fire with the decoction, and as soon as it was dissolved, I put in the flesh in quarters and halves; and turned the pieces often in the pan; else the bottom of such as lay long unturned, would be of a deeper colour then the upper part. The flesh was very tender and good. I put some of the pieces into Jar-glasses (carefully, not to break them,) and then poured gelly upon them. Then more pieces, then more gelly, &c. all having stood a while to cool a little.

TO MAKE FINE WHITE GELLY OF QUINCES

Take Quinces newly from the tree, fair and sound, wipe them clean, and boil them whole in a large quantity of water, the more the better, and with a quick fire, till the Quinces crack and are soft, which will be in a good half hour, or an hour. Then take out the Quinces, and press out their juyce, with your hands hard, or gently in a press through a strainer, that only the clear liquor or juyce run out, but none of the pap, or solid and fleshy substance of the Quince. (The water, they were boiled in, you may throw away.) This liquor will be slimy and mucilaginous, which proceedeth much from the seeds that remaining within the Quinces, do contribute to making this Liquor. Take three pound of it, and one pound of fine Sugar, and boil them up to a gelly, with a moderate fire, so that they boil every where, but not violently. They may require near an hours boiling to come to a gelly. The tryal of that is, to take a tin or silver plate, and wet it with fair-water, and drop a little of the boiling juyce upon the wet plate; if it stick to the plate, it is not enough; but if it fall off (when you slope the Plate) without sticking at all to it, then is it enough: and then you put it into flat shallow Tin forms, first wetted with cold water, and let it stand in them four or five hours in a cold place, till it be quite cold. Then reverse the plates, that it may shale and fall out, and so put the parcels up in boxes.

Note, you take fountain water, and put the Quinces into it, both of them being cold. Then set your Kettle to boil with a very quick-fire, that giveth a clear smart flame to the bottom of the Kettle, which must be uncovered all the while, that the gelly may prove the whiter; And so likewise it must be whiles the juyce or expression is boiling with the Sugar, which must be the finest, that it may not need clarifying with an Egg; but that little scum that riseth at the sides at the beginning of moderate boiling must be scummed away. You let your juyce or expression settle a while, that if any of the thick substance be come out with it, it may settle to the bottom; for you are to use for this only the clear juyce: which to have it the clearer, you may let it run through a large, thin, open, strainer, without pressing it. When you boil the whole Quinces, you take them out, to strain them as soon as their skins crack, and that they are quite soft; which will not happen to them all at the same time, but according to their bigness and ripeness. Therefore first take out and press those, that are ready first: and the rest still as they grow to a fit state to press. You shall have more juyce by pressing the Quinces in a torcular, but it will be clearer, doing it with your hands; both ways, you lap them in a strainer.

WHITE MARMULATE, THE QUEENS WAY

Take a pound and an half of flesh of Quinces sliced, one pound of Sugar, and one pound of Liquor (which is a decoction made very strong of Quinces boiled in fair water). Boil these with a pretty quick fire, till they be enough, and that you find it gellieth. Then proceed as in my way.

MY LADY OF BATH'S WAY

Take six pounds of flesh of Quince, and two pound of Sugar moistened well with juyce of Quinces. Boil these together in a fit kettle; first gently, till the Liquor be sweated out from the quince, and have dissolved all the Sugar; Then very quick and fast, proceeding as in my way, (bruising the Quinces with a spoon, &c.) till it be enough. This will be very fine and quick in taste; but will not keep well beyond Easter. In this course you may make Marmulate without any juyce or water (by the meer sweeting of the flesh) if you be careful, proceeding slowly till juyce enough be sweated out, least else it burn to; and then quick, that the flesh may be boiled enough, before the Moisture be evaporated away.

PASTE OF QUINCES

Take a quart of the juyce of Quince, and when it is on the fire, put into it, pared, quartered and Cored as much Quince, as the juyce will cover; when it is boiled tender, pass the Liquor through a sieve & put the pulp into a stone Mortar, and beat it very fine with a Woodden Pestel; then weigh it, and to every pound of pulp, take a quarter of a pound of loaf Sugar, and boil it up to a candy-height in some of the juyce, which you passed through the sieve; then put therein your pulp, stirring it well together, till it hath had one boil and no more; Then drop it on glasses, or spread it on plates, and set it to dry.

Into the juyce that remains, you may put more flesh of Quinces, and boil it tender, doing all as at the first. Then adding it (beaten to pulp in a Mortar) unto the former pulp; repeating this, till you have taken up all your juyce. Then put your proportion of Sugar to the whole quantity of pulp, and so make it up into paste, and dry it, and sometimes before a gentle fire, sometimes in a very moderate stove.

PASTE OF QUINCES WITH VERY LITTLE SUGAR

To one pound of flesh or solid substance of Quinces (when they are pared, cored, and quartered,) take but a quarter of double refined Sugar. Do thus, scald your flesh of Quinces in a little of the juyce of other Quinces, that they may become tender, as if they were coddled.

Then beat them in a mortar to a subtle uniform smooth pulp (which you may pass through a searce.) In the mean time let your Sugar be dissolved, and boiling upon the fire. When it is of a candy-height, put the pulp of Quince to it, and let it remain a little while upon the fire, till it boil up one little puff or bubbling, and that it is uniformly mixed with the Sugar; you must stir it well all the while. Then take it off, and drop it into little Cakes, or put it thin into shallow glasses which you may afterwards cut into slices. Dry the cakes and slices gently and by degrees in a stove, turning them often. These will keep all the year, and are very quick of taste.

ANOTHER PASTE OF QUINCES

Put the Quinces whole into scalding water, and let them boil there, till they be tender. Then take them out and peel them, and scrape off the pulp, which pass through a strainer; and when it is cold enough to every pound put three quarters of a pound of double refined Sugar in subtile powder; work them well together into an uniform paste; then make little cakes of it, and dry them in a stove. If you would have the Cakes red, put a little (very little; the colour will tell you, when it is enough) of juyce of barberies to the paste or pulp. You have the juyce of Barberries thus: Put them ripe into a pot over the fire, till you see the juyce sweat out. Then strain them, and take the clear juyce. If you would have the paste tarter, you may put a little juyce of Limons to it.

A pleasant Gelly in the beginning of the winter is made, of Pearmains, Pippins and juyce of Quinces. Also a Marmulate made of those Apples, and juyce of Quinces, is very good.

A SMOOTHENING QUIDDANY OR GELLY OF THE CORES OF QUINCES

Take only the Cores, and slice them thin, with the seeds in them. If you have a pound of them, you may put a pottle of water to them. Boil them, till they be all Mash, and that the water hath drawn the Mucilage out of them, and that the decoction will be a gelly, when it is cold. Then let it run through a widestrainer or fitcolender (that the gross part may remain behind, but all the slyminess go through), and to every pint of Liquor take about half a pound of double refined Sugar, and boil it up to a gelly. If you put in a little juyce of Quince, when you boil it up, it will be the quicker.

You may also take a pound of the flesh of Quinces (when you have not cores enow, to make as much as you desire) and one ounce of seeds of other Quinces, and boil them each a part, till the one be a strong decoction; the other a substantial Mucilage. Then strain each from their course _fæces:_ and mingle the decoctions, and put Sugar to them, and boil them up to a Gelly.

Or with the flesh and some juyce of Quinces, make Marmulate in the Ordinary way; which whiles it is boiling, put to it the Mucilage of the seeds to Incorporate it with the Marmulate. You may take to this a less proportion of Sugar than to my Marmulate.

MARMULATE OF CHERRIES

Take four pound of the best Kentish Cherries, before they be stoned, to one pound of pure loaf Sugar, which beat into small Powder: stone the Cherries, and put them into your preserving pan over a gentle fire, that they may not boil, but resolve much into Liquor. Take away with the spoon much of the thin Liquor, (for else the Marmulate will be Glewy) leaving the Cherries moist enough, but not swimming in clear Liquor. Then put to them half your Sugar, and boil it up quick, and scum away the froth that riseth. When that is well Incorporated and clear, strew in a little more of the Sugar; and continue doing so by little and little, till you have put in all your Sugar; which course will make the colour the finer. When they are boiled enough, take them off, and bruise them with the back of a spoon; and when they are cold, put them up in pots.

You may do the same with Morello Cherries; which will have a quicker-tast, and have a fine, pure, shining, dark colour.

Both sorts will keep well all the year.

MARMULATE OF CHERRIES WITH JUYCE OF RASPES AND CURRANTS

Mingle juyce of Raspes and red Currants with the stoned Cherries, and boil this mixture into Marmulate, with a quarter, or at most, a third part of Sugar. The juyces must be so much as to make Gelly of them to mingle handsomely with the Cherries, to appear among and between them.

Madam Plancy (who maketh this sweet-meat for the Queen) useth this proportion. Take three pounds of Cherries stoned; half a pound of clear juyce of raspes, and one pound of the juyce of red currants, and one pound of fine Sugar. Put them all together into the preserving pan; boil them with a quick fire, especially at the first, skimming them all the while, as any scum riseth. When you find them of a fit consistence, with a fine clear gelly, mingled with the Cherries, take the preserving pan from the fire, and braise the Cherries with the back of your preserving spoon; and when they are of a fit temper of coolness, pot them up.

Peradventure, to keep all the year, there may be requisite a little more Sugar.

TO MAKE AN EXCELLENT SYRUP OF APPLES

Slice a dozen or twenty Pippins into thin slices, and lay them in a deep dish, _stratum super stratum,_ with pure double refined Sugar in powder. Put two or three spoonfuls of water to them, and cover them close with another dish, luting their joyning that nothing may expire. Then set them into an oven. And when you take out the dish, you will have an excellent Syrup, and the remaining substance of the Apples will be insipid.

You may proceed with Damsens, or other plumms, in the same manner, and you will have excellent stewed Damsens, (as fair as preserved ones) swimming in a very fine Syrup.

SWEET-MEATS OF MY LADY WINDEBANKS

She maketh the past of Apricocks (which is both very beautiful and clear, and tasteth most quick of the fruit) thus, Take six pound of pared and sliced Apricocks, put them into a high pot, which stop close, and set it in a kettle of boiling water, till you perceive the flesh is all become an uniform pulp; then put it out into your preserving pan or possenet, and boil it gently till it be grown thick, stirring it carefully all the while. Then put two pound of pure Sugar to it, and mingle it well, and let it boil gently, till you see the matter come to such a thickness and solidity, that it will not stick to a plate. Then make it up into what form you will. The like you may do with Raspes or Currants.

It is a pleasant and beautiful sweet meat to do thus: Boil Raspes in such a pot, till they be all come to such a Liquor; Then let the clear run through a strainer; to a pound, or English wine pint whereof, put a pound of red Currants (first stoned and the black ends cut off) and a pound of Sugar. Boil these, till the Liquor be gellied. Then put it in Glasses. It will look like Rubies in clear Gelly. You may do the like with Cherries, either stoned, and the stalks cut off, or three or four capped upon one stalk, and the stone left in the first, and boiled in Liquor of Raspes.

She makes her curious red Marmulate thus: Take six pounds of Quince-flesh; six pounds of pure Sugar; and eight pints of juyce; boil this up with quick fire, till you have scummed it, then pull away all the Coals, and let it but simper, for four or five hours, remaining covered, renewing from time to time so little fire, as to cause it so to continue simpring. But as soon as it is scummed, put into it a handful of Quince kernels, two races of Ginger sliced, and fourteen or fifteen Cloves whole; all these put into a Tyffany-bag tyed fast; when you finde that the colour is almost to your minde, make a quick fire, and boil it up a pace, then throw away your bag of kernels, Ginger and Cloves, and pot up your Marmulate, when it is cool enough.

She makes her red Gelly of Quince thus: Put the Quinces pared and sliced into a pot, as above; and to every pound of this flesh put about half a demistier of fair water, and put this into a kettle of boiling water, till you perceive all the juyce is boiled out of the Quince. Then strain it out, and boil this Liquor (which will not yet be clear) till you perceive it gellieth upon a plate. Then to every pint of Liquor put a pound of Sugar, and boil it up to a gelly, skimming it well, as the scum riseth, and you will have a pure gelly.

GELLY OF RED CURRANTS

Take them clean picked, and fresh gathered in the morning, in a bason, set them over the fire, that their juyce may sweat out, pressing them all the while with the back of your preserving spoon, to squeese out of them all that is good. When you see all is out, strain the Liquor from them, and let it stand to settle four or five hours, that the gross matter may sink to the bottom. Then take the pure clear, (the thick settling will serve to add in making of Marmulate of Cherries, or the like) and to every pint or pound of it, put three quarters of a pound of the purest refined Sugar, and boil them up with a quick fire, till they come to a gelly height (which will be done immediately in less then a quarter of an hour) which you may try with a drop upon a plate. Then take it off, and when it is cold enough, put it into Glasses. You must be careful to skim it well in due time, and with thin brown Paper to take off the froth, if you will be so curious.

GELLY OF CURRANTS, WITH THE FRUIT WHOLE IN IT

Take four pound of good Sugar, clarifie it with whites of Eggs, then boil it up to a candid height (that is, till throwing it, it goeth into flakes): Then put into it five pound (or at discretion) of pure juyce of red Currants first boiled to clarifie it by skimming it. Boil them together a little while, till it be well scummed, and enough to become gelly. Then put a good handful or two of the berries of Currants whole, and cleansed from the stalks and black ends, and boil them a little till they be enough.

You need not to boil the juyce, before you put it to the Sugar, and consequently do not scum it before the Sugar and it boil together: but then scum it perfectly: and take care before, that the juyce be very clear and well strained.

MARMULATE OF RED CURRANTS

Take some juyce of red Currants, and put into it a convenient proportion of some entire Currants cleansed from the stalks and buttons at the other end. Let these boil a little together. Have also ready some fine Sugar boiled to a candy height. Put of this to the Currants at discretion, and boil them together, till they be enough: and bruise them with the back of your spoon, that they may be in the consistence of Marmulate (like that of Cherries) which put in pots, when it is cool enough. You do not stone the whole Currants put into the juyce, unless you please.

SUCKET OF MALLOW STALKS

To candy or preserve the tender stalks of Mallows, do thus; Take them in the spring, when they are very young and tender; and peel off the strings that are round about the outside, as you do French-beans, and boil them, till they are very tender. In the mean time prepare a high Syrup of pure Sugar, and put the boiled stalkes into it, whiles it is boiling hot, but taken from the fire. Let them lie soaking there till the next morning. Then take out the stalks, and heat the Syrup again, scalding hot, and return the stalks into it, letting them lie there till next morning; (Note, that the stalks must never boil in the Syrup,) Repeat this six, or eight, or nine times, that is to say, till they are sufficiently Imbibed with the Syrup. When they are at this pass, you may either keep them as a wet sucket in Syrup, or dry them in a stove upon Papers, turning them continually, in such sort as dried sweet-meats are to be made. I like them best dry, but soft and moist within _(Medullosi)_ like Candied Eryngos. In Italy they eat much of them, for sharpness and heat of Urine, and in Gonorrhoea's to take away pain in Urining.

A Sucket is made in like manner of the Carneous substance of stalks of Lettice. It is the knob, out of which the Lettice groweth, which being pared, and all the tough rind being taken off, is very tender and so it is a pretty way downwards the root. This also is very cooling and smoothing.

In Italy these tender stalks of Mallows are called _Mazzocchi_, and they eat them (boiled tender) in Sallets, either hot or cold, with Vinegar and Oyl, or Butter and Vinegar, or juyce of Oranges.

CONSERVE OF RED ROSES

Doctor Glisson makes his conserve of red Roses thus: Boil gently a pound of red Rose leaves (well picked, and the Nails cut off) in about a pint and a half (or a little more, as by discretion you shall judge fit, after having done it once; The Doctors Apothecary takes two pints) of Spring water; till the water have drawn out all the Tincture of the Roses into it self, and that the leaves be very tender, and look pale like Linnen; which may be in a good half hour, or an hour, keeping the pot covered whiles it boileth. Then pour the tincted Liquor from the pale Leaves (strain it out, pressing it gently, so that you may have Liquor enough to dissolve your Sugar) and set it upon the fire by it self to boil, putting into it a pound of pure double refined Sugar in small Powder; which as soon as it is dissolved, put in a second pound; then a third, lastly a fourth, so that you have four pound of Sugar to every pound of Rose-leaves. (The Apothecary useth to put all the four pounds into the Liquor altogether at once,) Boil these four pounds of Sugar with the tincted Liquor, till it be a high Syrup, very near a candy height, (as high as it can be, not to flake or candy) Then put the pale Rose-leaves, into this high Syrup, as it yet standeth upon the fire, or immediately upon the taking it off the fire. But presently take it from the fire, and stir them exceeding well together, to mix them uniformly; then let them stand till they be cold; then pot them up. If you put up your Conserve into pots, whiles it is yet throughly warm, and leave them uncovered some days, putting them in the hot Sun or stove, there will grow a fine candy upon the top, which will preserve the conserve without paper upon it, from moulding, till you break the candied crust, to take out some of the conserve.

The colour both of the Rose-leaves and the Syrup about them, will be exceeding beautiful and red, and the taste excellent; and the whole very tender and smoothing, and easie to digest in the stomack without clogging it, as doth the ordinary rough conserve made of raw Roses beaten with Sugar, which is very rough in the throat. The worst of it is, that if you put not a Paper to lie always close upon the top of the conserve, it will be apt to grow mouldy there on the top; especially _aprés que le pot est entamé_.

The Conserve of Roses, besides being good for Colds and Coughs, and for the Lunges, is exceeding good for sharpness and heat of Urine, and soreness of the bladder, eaten much by it self, or drunk with Milk, or distilled water of Mallows, and Plantaine, or of Milk.

ANOTHER CONSERVE OF ROSES

Doctor Bacon related to me, that Mr. Minito the Roman Apothecary, made him some conserve of Roses, in this manner. He took twelve pounds (of sixteen Ounces to the pound) of the best lump or Kitchin Sugar, and clarified it very well with whites of Eggs, using Spring-water in doing this. He made his reckoning, that his twelve pound of Sugar, came to be but nine pound, when all the scum was taken away, and the Sugar perfectly clarified. Boil it then to a Syrup, and when it is about half boiled, go roundly about your Rose-leaves. They must be picked and the white nails cut off before-hand; but begin not to beat them before your Syrup is half boiled. Then put thirty Ounces (which is two pound and an half of Roses to every pound of such Sugar) of your Red-Roses into the Mortar, and beat them well, squeesing into them, as you beat them, some of the subtilest and best part (which comes out first) of about two Limons, which brings out their colour finely. You must have finished beating your Roses, by then the Sugar is come by boiling to a high Syrup (for if you should let them lie still in the Air, but a little while, they would grow black, and of ill colour) then with your ladle put the Roses to the Sugar, and stir them very well in it, to Incorporate all well and uniformly together. So let them boil on gently (for all this while you take not your preserving pan from the fire, and a thick scum of the Roses will rise, which you scum off from time to time continually as it comes up, and reserve this in a pot by it self, for it will be good hard Sugar of Roses, and may be about an eight or ninth part of the whole. After it is clear from scum, and hath boiled near a quarter of an hour with the Roses in it, and that you see by a drop upon a plate, that it is of a due consistence; take your pan from the fire, and stir all very well together, and put it into pots, which leave uncovered during ten or twelve days, setting them in the hot strong Sun all the day long during that time, to give the Roses a fine hard crust or candy at the top; but under it, in the substance of the matter, it will be like a fine clear Syrupy gelly. If the Sun favour you not, then you may use a stove. After twelve days, tie covers of Paper, upon the pots.

Doctor Bacon useth to make a pleasant Julep of this Conserve of Roses, by putting a good spoonful of it into a large drinking glass or cup; upon which squeese the juyce of a Limon, and clip in unto it a little of the yellow rinde of the Limon; work these well together with the back of a spoon, putting water to it by little and little, till you have filled up the glass with Spring-water: so drink it. He sometimes passeth it through an Hypocras bag, and then it is a beautiful and pleasant Liquor.

_FINIS_

THE TABLE[2]

A

Scotch Ale from my Lady Holmbey 98

To make Ale drink quick 100

A very pleasant drink of Apples 100

Ale with Honey 104

Small Ale for the stone 105

Apple drink with Sugar, Honey, &c. 106

Master Webbs Ale and Bragot 107

To stew Apples 201

Apples in Gelly 234

Sweet-meat of Apples 238

To make an excellent syrup of Apples 253

B

Stewed Broth 125

Portugal Broth, as it was made for the Queen 127

Nourishing Broth 133

Broth and Potage 141

Broth for sick and convalescent Persons 143

A savoury and nourishing boiled Capon 133

To stew Beef 150

To stew a Rump of Beef 163, 196, 197

To rost Wilde Boar 168

About making of Brawn 205

To bake Beef 208

To boil Beef or Venison 209

Ordering Bacon for Gambons, and to keep 212

To make Bisket 219