Chapter IX: Made Dishes (11)

The veal must be cut the same as for cutlets, in pieces about as big as a crown-piece; flour them well, and fry them of a light brown in fresh butter; lay them in a stew-pan; dredge them over with flour, and then put in as much boiling water as will well cover the veal; pour this in by degrees, shaking the stew-pan, and set it on the fire; when it comes to a boil, take off the scum, put in one onion, a blade of mace, and let it simmer very gently for three quarters of an hour; lay them on a dish, and pour the gravy through a sieve over them.

N.B. Lemon-juice and peel, wine, catchup, &c., are sometimes added; add curry powder, No. 455, and you have curry collops.

_Veal Olives._--(No. 518.)

Cut half a dozen slices off a fillet of veal, half an inch thick, and as long and square as you can; flat them with a chopper, and rub them over with an egg that has been beat on a plate; cut some fat bacon as thin as possible, the same size as the veal; lay it on the veal, and rub it with a little of the egg; make a little veal forcemeat, see receipt, No. 375, and spread it very thin over the bacon; roll up the olives tight, rub them with the egg, and then roll them in fine bread-crumbs; put them on a lark-spit, and roast them at a brisk fire: they will take three quarters of an hour.

Rump-steaks are sometimes dressed this way.

Mushroom sauce, brown (Nos. 305 or 306), or beef gravy (No. 329). Vide chapter on sauces, &c.

_Cold Calf's Head hashed._--(No. 519.)

See _Obs._ to boiled calf's head, No. 10.

_Calf's Head hashed, or Ragoût._--(No. 520.) See No. 247.

Wash a calf's head, which, to make this dish in the best style, should have the skin on, and boil it, see No. 10; boil one half all but enough, so that it may be soon quite done when put into the hash to warm, the other quite tender: from this half take out the bones: score it superficially; beat up an egg; put it over the head with a paste-brush, and strew over it a little grated bread and lemon-peel, and thyme and parsley, chopped very fine, or in powder, then bread-crumbs, and put it in the Dutch oven to brown.

Cut the other half-head into handsome slices, and put it into a stew-pan with a quart of gravy (No. 329), or turtle sauce (No. 343), with forcemeat balls (Nos. 376, 380), egg-balls, a wine-glass of white wine, and some catchup, &c.; put in the meat; let it warm together, and skim off the fat.

Peel the tongue, and send it up with the brains round it as a side dish, as directed in No. 10; or beat them up in a basin with a spoonful of flour, two eggs, some grated lemon-peel, thyme, parsley, and a few leaves of very finely-minced sage; rub them well together in a mortar, with pepper, salt, and a scrape of nutmeg; fry them (in little cakes) a very light brown; dish up the hash with the half-head you browned in the middle; and garnish with crisp, or curled rashers of bacon, fried bread sippets (Nos. 319, 526, and 527), and the brain cakes.

N.B. It is by far the best way to make a side dish of the tongue and brains, if you do send up a piece of bacon as a companion for it, or garnish the tongue and brains with the rashers of bacon and the forcemeat balls, both of which are much better kept dry than when immersed in the gravy of the ragoût.

_Obs._--In order to make what common cooks, who merely cook for the eye, call a fine, large, handsome dishful, they put in not only the eatable parts, but all the knots of gristle, and lumps of fat, offal, &c.; and when the grand gourmand fancies he is helped as plentifully as he could wish, he often finds one solitary morsel of meat among a large lot of lumps of gristle, fat, &c.

We have seen a very elegant dish of the scalp only, sent to table rolled up; it looks like a sucking pig.

_Veal Cutlets broiled plain, or full-dressed._--(No. 521.)

Divide the best end of a neck of veal into cutlets, one rib to each; broil them plain, or make some fine bread-crumbs; mince a little parsley, and a very little eschalot, as small as possible; put it into a clean stew-pan, with two ounces of butter, and fry it for a minute; then put on a plate the yelks of a couple of eggs; mix the herbs, &c. with it, and season it with pepper and salt: dip the cutlets into this mixture, and then into the bread; lay them on a gridiron over a clear slow fire, till they are nicely browned on both sides; they will take about an hour: send up with them a few slices of ham or bacon fried, or done in the Dutch oven. See Nos. 526 and 527, and half a pint of No. 343, or No. 356.

_Knuckle of Veal, to ragoût._--(No. 522.)

Cut a knuckle of veal into slices about half an inch thick; pepper, salt, and flour them; fry them a light brown; put the trimmings into a stew-pan, with the bone broke in several places; an onion sliced, a head of celery, a bunch of sweet herbs, and two blades of bruised mace: pour in warm water enough to cover them about an inch; cover the pot close, and let it stew very gently for a couple of hours; strain it, and then thicken it with flour and butter; put in a spoonful of catchup, a glass of wine, and juice of half a lemon; give it a boil up, and strain into a clean stew-pan; put in the meat, make it hot, and serve up.

_Obs._--If celery is not to be had, use a carrot instead or flavour it with celery-seed, or No. 409.

_Knuckle of Veal stewed with Rice._--(No. 523.)

As boiled knuckle of veal cold is not a very favourite relish with the generality, cut off some steaks from it, which you may dress as in the foregoing receipt, or No. 521, and leave the knuckle no larger than will be eaten the day it is dressed. Break the shank-bone, wash it clean, and put it in a large stew-pan with two quarts of water, an onion, two blades of mace, and a tea-spoonful of salt: set it on a quick fire; when it boils, take off all the scum.

Wash and pick a quarter of a pound of rice; put it into the stew-pan with the meat, and let it stew very gently for about two hours: put the meat, &c. in a deep dish, and the rice round it.

Send up bacon with it, parsnips, or greens, and finely minced parsley and butter, No. 261.

MR. GAY'S _Receipt to stew a Knuckle of Veal._--(No. 524.)

Take a knuckle of veal;
You may buy it or steal;
In a few pieces cut it,
In a stewing-pan put it;
Salt, pepper, and mace,
Must season this knuckle,
Then, what's joined to a place[323-*]
With other herbs muckle;
That which kill'd King Will,[324-*]
And what never stands still[324-+]
Some sprigs of that bed,[324-++]
Where children are bred.
Which much you will mend, if
Both spinach and endive,
And lettuce and beet,
With marigold meet.
Put no water at all,
For it maketh things small,
Which lest it should happen,
A close cover clap on;
Put this pot of Wood's metal[324-§]
In a boiling hot kettle;
And there let it be,
(Mark the doctrine I teach,)
About, let me see,
Thrice as long as you preach.[324-||]
So skimming the fat off,
Say grace with your hat off,
O! then with what rapture
Will it fill Dean and Chapter!

_Slices of Ham or Bacon._--(No. 526.)

Ham, or bacon, may be fried, or broiled on a gridiron over a clear fire, or toasted with a fork: take care to slice it of the same thickness in every part.

If you wish it curled, cut it in slices about two inches long (if longer, the outside will be done too much before the inside is done enough); roll it up, and put a little wooden skewer through it: put it in a cheese-toaster, or Dutch oven, for eight or ten minutes, turning it as it gets crisp.

This is considered the handsomest way of dressing bacon; but we like it best uncurled, because it is crisper, and more equally done.

_Obs._--Slices of ham or bacon should not be more than half a quarter of an inch thick, and will eat much more mellow if soaked in hot water for a quarter of an hour, and then dried in a cloth before they are broiled, &c.

_Relishing Rashers of Bacon._--(No. 527.)

If you have any cold bacon, you may make a very nice dish of it by cutting it into slices about a quarter of an inch thick; grate some crust of bread, as directed for ham (see No. 14), and powder them well with it on both sides; lay the rashers in a cheese-toaster, they will be browned on one side in about three minutes, turn them and do the other.

_Obs._--These are a delicious accompaniment to poached or fried Eggs: the bacon having been boiled[325-*] first, is tender and mellow. They are an excellent garnish round veal cutlets, or sweet-breads, or calf's-head hash, or green pease, or beans, &c.

_Hashed Venison._--(No. 528.)

If you have enough of its own gravy left, it is preferable to any to warm it up in: if not, take some of the mutton gravy (No. 347), or the bones and trimmings of the joint (after you have cut off all the handsome slices you can to make the hash); put these into some water, and stew them gently for an hour; then put some butter into a stew-pan; when melted, put to it as much flour as will dry up the butter, and stir it well together; add to it by degrees the gravy you have been making of the trimmings, and some red currant jelly; give it a boil up; skim it; strain it through a sieve, and it is ready to receive the venison: put it in, and let it just get warm: if you let it boil, it will make the meat hard.

_Hashed Hare._--(No. 529.)

Cut up the hare into pieces fit to help at table, and divide the joints of the legs and shoulders, and set them by ready.

Put the trimmings and gravy you have left, with half a pint of water (there should be a pint of liquor), and a table-spoonful of currant jelly, into a clean stew-pan, and let it boil gently for a quarter of an hour: then strain it through a sieve into a basin, and pour it back into the stew-pan; now flour the hare, put it into the gravy, and let it simmer very gently till the hare is warm (about twenty minutes); cut the stuffing into slices, and put it into the hash to get warm, about five minutes before you serve it; divide the head, and lay one half on each side the dish.

For hare soup, see No. 241, mock hare, No. 66.*

_Jugged Hare._--(No. 529*.)

Wash it very nicely; cut it up into pieces proper to help at table, and put them into a jugging-pot, or into a stone jar,[325-+] just sufficiently large to hold it well; put in some sweet herbs, a roll or two of rind of a lemon, or a Seville orange, and a fine large onion with five cloves stuck in it,--and if you wish to preserve the flavour of the hare, a quarter of a pint of water; if you are for a _ragoût_, a quarter of a pint of claret, or port wine, and the juice of a Seville orange, or lemon: tie the jar down closely with a bladder, so that no steam can escape; put a little hay in the bottom of the saucepan, in which place the jar, and pour in water till it reaches within four inches of the top of the jar; let the water boil for about three hours, according to the age and size of the hare (take care it is not over-done, which is the general fault in all made dishes, especially this), keeping it boiling all the time, and fill up the pot as it boils away. When quite tender, strain off the gravy clear from fat; thicken it with flour, and give it a boil up: lay the hare in a soup-dish, and pour the gravy to it.

_Obs._--You may make a pudding the same as for roast hare (see No. 397), and boil it in a cloth; and when you dish up your hare, cut it in slices, or make forcemeat balls of it, for garnish.

For sauce, No. 346. _Or_,

A much easier and quicker, and more certain way of proceeding, is the following:

Prepare the hare the same as for jugging; put it into a stew-pan with a few sweet herbs, half a dozen cloves, the same of allspice and black pepper, two large onions, and a roll of lemon-peel: cover it with water; when it boils, skim it clean, and let it simmer gently till tender (about two hours); then take it up with a slice, and set it by the fire to keep hot while you thicken the gravy; take three ounces of butter, and some flour; rub together; put in the gravy; stir it well, and let it boil about ten minutes; strain it through a sieve over the hare, and it is ready.

_Dressed Ducks, or Geese hashed._--(No. 530.)

Cut an onion into small dice; put it into a stew-pan with a bit of butter; fry it, but do not let it get any colour; put as much boiling water into the stew-pan as will make sauce for the hash; thicken it with a little flour; cut up the duck, and put it into the sauce to warm; do not let it boil; season it with pepper and salt, and catchup.

N.B. The legs of geese, &c. broiled, and laid on a bed of apple sauce, are sent up for luncheon or supper. _Or_,

Divide the duck into joints; lay it by ready; put the trimmings and stuffing into a stew-pan, with a pint and a half of broth or water; let it boil half an hour, and then rub it through a sieve; put half an ounce of butter into a stew-pan; as it melts, mix a table-spoonful of flour with it; stir it over the fire a few minutes, then mix the gravy with it by degrees; as soon as it boils, take off the scum, and strain through a sieve into a stew-pan; put in the duck, and let it stew very gently for ten or fifteen minutes, if the duck is rather under-roasted: if there is any fat, skim it off: line the dish you serve it up in with sippets of bread either fried or toasted.

_Ragoûts of Poultry, Game, Pigeons, Rabbits, &c._--(No. 530*.)

Half roast it, then stew it whole, or divide it into joints and pieces proper to help at table, and put it into a stew-pan, with a pint and a half of broth, or as much water, with any trimmings or parings of meat you have, one large onion with cloves stuck in it, twelve berries of allspice, the same of black pepper, and a roll of lemon-peel; when it boils, skim it very clean; let it simmer very gently for about an hour and a quarter, if a duck or fowl--longer if a larger bird; then strain off the liquor, and leave the ducks by the fire to keep hot; skim the fat off; put into a clean stew-pan two ounces of butter; when it is hot stir in as much flour as will make it of a stiff paste; add the liquor by degrees; let it boil up; put in a glass of port wine, and a little lemon-juice, and simmer it ten minutes; put the ducks, &c. into the dish, and strain the sauce through a fine sieve over them.

Garnish with sippets of toasted, or fried bread, No. 319.

_Obs._--If the poultry is only half roasted, and stewed only till just nicely tender, this will be an acceptable _bonne bouche_ to those who are fond of made dishes. The flavour may be varied by adding catchup, curry powder, or any of the flavoured vinegars.

This is an easily prepared side dish, especially when you have a large dinner to dress; and coming to table ready carved saves a deal of time and trouble; it is therefore an excellent way of serving poultry, &c. for a large party. _Or_,

Roast or boil the poultry in the usual way; then cut it up, and pour over it a sufficient quantity of No. 305, or No. 329, or No. 364, or No. 2.

_Stewed Giblets._--(No. 531.)

Clean two sets of giblets (see receipt for giblet soup, No. 244); put them into a saucepan, just cover them with cold water, and set them on the fire; when they boil, take off the scum, and put in an onion, three cloves, or two blades of mace, a few berries of black pepper, the same of allspice, and half a tea-spoonful of salt; cover the stew-pan close, and let it simmer very gently till the giblets are quite tender: this will take from one hour and a half to two and a half, according to the age of the giblets; the pinions will be done first, and must then be taken out, and put in again to warm when the gizzards are done: watch them that they do not get too much done: take them out and thicken the sauce with flour and butter; let it boil half an hour, or till there is just enough to eat with the giblets, and then strain it through a tamis into a clean stew-pan; cut the giblets into mouthfuls; put them into the sauce with the juice of half a lemon, a table-spoonful of mushroom catchup; pour the whole into a soup-dish, with sippets of bread at the bottom.

_Obs._--Ox-tails prepared in the same way are excellent eating.

_Hashed Poultry, Game, or Rabbit._--(No. 533.)

Cut them into joints, put the trimmings into a stew-pan with a quart of the broth they were boiled in, and a large onion cut in four; let it boil half an hour; strain it through a sieve: then put two table-spoonfuls of flour in a basin, and mix it well by degrees with the hot broth; set it on the fire to boil up, then strain it through a fine sieve: wash out the stew-pan, lay the poultry in it, and pour the gravy on it (through a sieve); set it by the side of the fire to simmer very gently (it must not boil) for fifteen minutes; five minutes before you serve it up, cut the stuffing in slices, and put it in to warm, then take it out, and lay it round the edge of the dish, and put the poultry in the middle; carefully skim the fat off the gravy, then shake it round well in the stew-pan, and pour it to the hash.

N.B. You may garnish the dish with bread sippets lightly toasted.

_Pulled Turkey, Fowl, or Chicken._--(No. 534.)

Skin a cold chicken, fowl, or turkey; take off the fillets from the breasts, and put them into a stew-pan with the rest of the white meat and wings, side-bones, and merry-thought, with a pint of broth, a large blade of mace pounded, an eschalot minced fine, the juice of half a lemon, and a roll of the peel, some salt, and a few grains of Cayenne; thicken it with flour and butter, and let it simmer for two or three minutes, till the meat is warm. In the mean time score the legs and rump, powder them with pepper and salt, broil them nicely brown, and lay them on, or round your pulled chicken.

_Obs._--Three table-spoonfuls of good cream, or the yelks of as many eggs, will be a great improvement to it.

_To dress Dressed Turkey, Goose, Fowl, Duck, Pigeon, or Rabbit._--(No. 535.)

Cut them in quarters, beat up an egg or two (according to the quantity you dress) with a little grated nutmeg, and pepper and salt, some parsley minced fine, and a few crumbs of bread; mix these well together, and cover the fowl, &c. with this batter; broil them, or put them in a Dutch oven, or have ready some dripping hot in a pan, in which fry them a light brown colour; thicken a little gravy with some flour, put a large spoonful of catchup to it, lay the fry in a dish, and pour the sauce round it. You may garnish with slices of lemon and toasted bread. See No. 355.

_Devil._--(No. 538.)

The gizzard and rump, or legs, &c. of a dressed turkey, capon, or goose, or mutton or veal kidney, scored, peppered, salted, and broiled, sent up for a relish, being made very hot, has obtained the name of a "devil."

_Obs._--This is sometimes surrounded with No. 356, or a sauce of thick melted butter or gravy, flavoured with catchup (No. 439), essence of anchovy, or No. 434, eschalot wine (No. 402), curry stuff. (No. 455, &c.) See turtle sauce (No. 343), or grill sauce (No. 355), which, as the palates of the present day are adjusted, will perhaps please _grands gourmands_ as well as "_véritable sauce d'Enfer_."--Vide _School for the Officers of the Mouth_, p. 368, 18mo. London, 1682.

"Every man must have experienced, that when he has got deep into
his third bottle, his palate acquires a degree of torpidity, and
his stomach is seized with a certain craving, which seem to demand
a stimulant to the powers of both. The provocatives used on such
occasions, an ungrateful world has combined to term devils.

"The _diables au feu d'enfer_, or dry devils, are usually composed
of the broiled legs and gizzards of poultry, fish-bones, or
biscuits; and, if pungency alone can justify their appellation,
never was title better deserved, for they are usually prepared
without any other intention than to make them 'hot as their native
element,' and any one who can swallow them without tears in his
eyes, need be under no apprehension of the pains of futurity. It
is true, they answer the purpose of exciting thirst; but they
excoriate the palate, vitiate its nicer powers of discrimination,
and pall the relish for the high flavour of good wine: in short, no
man should venture upon them whose throat is not paved with mosaic,
unless they be seasoned by a cook who can poise the pepper-box with
as even a hand as a judge should the scales of justice.

"It would be an insult to the understanding of our readers, to
suppose them ignorant of the usual mode of treating common devils;
but we shall make no apology for giving the most minute
instructions for the preparation of a gentler stimulant, which,
besides, possesses this advantage--that it may be all done at the
table, either by yourself, or at least under your own immediate
inspection.

"Mix equal parts of fine salt, Cayenne pepper, and curry powder,
with double the quantity of powder of truffles: dissect, _secundum
artem_, a brace of woodcocks rather under-roasted, split the heads,
subdivide the wings, &c. &c. and powder the whole gently over with
the mixture; crush the trail and brains along with the yelk of a
hard-boiled egg, a small portion of pounded mace, the grated peel
of half a lemon, and half a spoonful of soy, until the ingredients
be brought to the consistence of a fine paste: then add a
table-spoonful of catchup, a full wine-glass of Madeira, and the
juice of two Seville oranges: throw this sauce, along with the
birds, into a silver stew-dish, to be heated with spirits of wine:
cover close up, light the lamp, and keep gently simmering, and
occasionally stirring, until the flesh has imbibed the greater part
of the liquid. When you have reason to suppose it is completely
saturated, pour in a small quantity of salad oil, stir all once
more well together, 'put out the light, and then!'--serve it round
instantly; for it is scarcely necessary to say, that a devil should
not only be hot in itself, but eaten hot.

"There is, however, one precaution to be used in eating it, to
which we most earnestly recommend the most particular attention;
and for want of which, more than one accident has occurred. It is
not, as some people might suppose, to avoid eating too much of it
(for that your neighbours will take good care to prevent); but it
is this: in order to pick the bones, you must necessarily take some
portion of it with your fingers; and, as they thereby become
impregnated with its flavour, if you afterward chance to let them
touch your tongue, you will infallibly lick them to the bone, if
you do not swallow them entire."--See page 124, &c. of the
entertaining "_Essays on Good Living_."

_Crusts of Bread for Cheese, &c._--(No. 538.)

It is not uncommon to see both in private families and at taverns a loaf entirely spoiled, by furious epicures paring off the crust to eat with cheese: to supply this, and to eat with soups, &c. pull lightly into small pieces the crumb of a new loaf; put them on a tin plate, or in a baking dish; set it in a tolerably brisk oven till they are crisp, and nicely browned, or do them in a Dutch oven.

_Toast and Cheese._--(No. 539.)

"Happy the man that has each fortune tried,
To whom she much has giv'n, and much denied;
With abstinence all delicates he sees,
And can regale himself on toast and cheese."

KING'S _Art of Cookery_.

Cut a slice of bread about half an inch thick; pare off the crust, and toast it very slightly on one side so as just to brown it, without making it hard or burning it.

Cut a slice of cheese (good fat mellow Cheshire cheese, or double Gloster, is better than poor, thin, single Gloster) a quarter of an inch thick, not so big as the bread by half an inch on each side: pare off the rind, cut out all the specks and rotten parts,[331-*] and lay it on the toasted bread in a cheese-toaster; carefully watch it that it does not burn, and stir it with a spoon to prevent a pellicle forming on the surface. Have ready good mustard, pepper and salt.

If you observe the directions here given, the cheese will eat mellow, and will be uniformly done, and the bread crisp and soft, and will well deserve its ancient appellation of a "rare bit."

_Obs._--One would think nothing could be easier than to prepare a Welsh rabbit; yet, not only in private families, but at taverns, it is very seldom sent to table in perfection. We have attempted to account for this in the last paragraph of _Obs._ to No. 493.

_Toasted Cheese_, No. 2.--(No. 540.)

We have nothing to add to the directions given for toasting the cheese in the last receipt, except that in sending it up, it will save much time in portioning it out at table, if you have half a dozen small silver or tin pans to fit into the cheese-toaster, and do the cheese in these: each person may then be helped to a separate pan, and it will keep the cheese much hotter than the usual way of eating it on a cold plate.

MEM. Send up with it as many cobblers[331-+] as you have pans of cheese.

_Obs._--Ceremony seldom triumphs more completely over comfort than in the serving out of this dish; which, to be presented to the palate in perfection, it is imperatively indispensable that it be introduced to the mouth as soon as it appears on the table.

_Buttered Toast and Cheese._--(No. 541.)

Prepare a round of toast; butter it; grate over it good Cheshire cheese about half the thickness of the toast, and give it a brown.

_Pounded Cheese._--(No. 542.)

Cut a pound of good mellow Chedder, Cheshire, or North Wiltshire cheese into thin bits; add to it two, and if the cheese is dry, three ounces of fresh butter; pound, and rub them well together in a mortar till it is quite smooth.

_Obs._--When cheese is dry, and for those whose digestion is feeble, this is the best way of eating it; and spread on bread, it makes an excellent luncheon or supper.

N.B. The _piquance_ of this is sometimes increased by pounding with it curry powder (No. 455), ground spice, black pepper, cayenne, and a little made mustard; and some moisten it with a glass of sherry. If pressed down hard in a jar, and covered with clarified butter, it will keep for several days in cool weather.

_Macaroni._--(No. 543.) _See Macaroni Pudding for the Boiling of it._

The usual mode of dressing it in this country is by adding a white sauce, and parmesan or Cheshire cheese, and burning it; but this makes a dish which is proverbially unwholesome: its bad qualities arise from the oiled and burnt cheese, and the half-dressed flour and butter put into the white sauce.

Macaroni plain boiled, and some rich stock or portable soup added to it quite hot, will be found a delicious dish and very wholesome. Or, boil macaroni as directed in the receipt for the pudding, and serve it quite hot in a deep tureen, and let each guest add grated parmesan and cold butter, or oiled butter served hot, and it is excellent; this is the most common Italian mode of dressing it. Macaroni with cream, sugar, and cinnamon, or a little varicelli added to the cream, makes a very nice sweet dish.

_English way of dressing Macaroni._

Put a quarter of a pound of riband macaroni into a stew-pan, with a pint of boiling milk, or broth, or water; let it boil gently till it is tender, this will take about a quarter of an hour; then put in an ounce of grated cheese, and a tea-spoonful of salt; mix it well together, and put it on a dish, and stew over it two ounces of grated Parmesan or Cheshire cheese, and give it a light brown in a Dutch oven. Or put all the cheese into the macaroni, and put bread-crumbs over the top.

Macaroni is very good put into a thick sauce with some shreds of dressed ham, or in a curry sauce. Riband macaroni is best for these dishes, and should not be done so much.

_Macaroni Pudding._

One of the most excellent preparations of macaroni is the Timbale de Macaroni. Simmer half a pound of macaroni in plenty of water, and a table-spoonful of salt, till it is tender; but take care not to have it too soft; though tender, it should be firm, and the form entirely preserved, and no part beginning to melt (this caution will serve for the preparation of all macaroni). Strain the water from it; beat up five yelks and the white of two eggs; take half a pint of the best cream, and the breast of a fowl, and some thin slices of ham. Mince the breast of the fowl with the ham; add them with from two to three table-spoonfuls of finely-grated parmesan cheese, and season with pepper and salt. Mix all these with the macaroni, and put into a pudding-mould well buttered, and then let it steam in a stew-pan of boiling water for about an hour, and serve quite hot, with rich gravy (as in Omelette). See No. 543*.

_Obs._--This, we have been informed, is considered by a grand gourmand as the most important recipe which was added to the collection of his cook during a gastronomic tour through Europe; it is not an uncommon mode of preparing macaroni on the continent.

_Omelettes and various ways of dressing Eggs._--(No. 543*.)

There is no dish which in this country may be considered as coming under the denomination of a made dish of the second order, which is so generally eaten, if good, as an omelette; and no one is so often badly dressed: it is a very faithful assistant in the construction of a dinner.

When you are taken by surprise, and wish to make an appearance beyond what is provided for the every-day dinner, a little portable soup melted down, and some zest (No. 255), and a few vegetables, will make a good broth; a pot of the stewed veal of Morrison's, warmed up; an omelette; and some apple or lemon fritters, can all be got ready at ten minutes' notice, and with the original foundation of a leg of mutton, or a piece of beef, will make up a very good dinner when company unexpectedly arrives, in the country.

The great merit of an omelette is, that it should not be greasy, burnt, nor too much done: if too much of the white of the eggs is left in, no art can prevent its being hard, if it is done: to dress the omelette, the fire should not be too hot, as it is an object to have the whole substance heated, without much browning the outside.

One of the great errors in cooking an omelette is, that it is too thin; consequently, instead of feeling full and moist in the mouth, the substance presented is little better than a piece of fried leather: to get the omelette thick is one of the great objects. With respect to the flavours to be introduced, these are infinite; that which is most common, however, is the best, viz. finely chopped parsley, and chives or onions, or eschalots: however, one made of a mixture of tarragon, chervil, and parsley, is a very delicate variety, omitting or adding the onion or chives. Of the meat flavours, the veal kidney is the most delicate, and is the most admired by our neighbours the French: this should be cut in dice, and should be dressed (boiled) before it is added; in the same manner, ham and anchovies, shred small, or tongue, will make a very delicately flavoured dish.

The objection to an omelette is, that it is too rich, which makes it advisable to eat but a small quantity. An addition of some finely mashed potatoes, about two table-spoonfuls, to an omelette of six eggs, will much lighten it.

Omelettes are often served with rich gravy; but, as a general principle, no substance which has been fried should be served in gravy, but accompanied by it, or what ought to eat dry and crisp, becomes soddened and flat.

In the compounding the gravy, great care should be taken that the flavour does not overcome that of the omelette, a thing too little attended to: a fine gravy, with a flavouring of sweet herbs and onions, we think the best; some add a few drops of tarragon vinegar; but this is to be done only with great care: gravies to Omelettes are in general thickened: this should never be done with flour; potato starch, or arrow root, is the best.

Omelettes should be fried in a small frying-pan made for that purpose, with a small quantity of butter. The omelette's great merit is to be thick, so as not to taste of the outside; therefore use only half the number of whites that you do yelks of eggs: every care must be taken in frying, even at the risk of not having it quite set in the middle: an omelette, which has so much vogue abroad, is here, in general, a thin doubled-up piece of leather, and harder than soft leather sometimes. The fact is, that as much care must be bestowed on the frying, as should be taken in poaching an egg. A salamander is necessary to those who will have the top brown; but the kitchen shovel may be substituted for it.

The following receipt is the basis of all omelettes, of which you may make an endless variety, by taking, instead of the parsley and eschalot, a portion of sweet herbs, or any of the articles enumerated in the table of materials used for making forcemeats, see No. 373; or any of the forcemeats between Nos. 373 and 386.

Omelettes are called by the name of what is added to flavour them: a ham or tongue omelette; an anchovy, or veal kidney omelette, &c.: these are prepared exactly in the same way as in the first receipt, leaving out the parsley and eschalot, and mincing the ham or kidney very fine, &c., and adding that in the place of them, and then pour over them all sorts of thickened gravies, sauces, &c.

_Receipt for the common Omelette._

Five or six eggs will make a good-sized omelette; break them into a basin, and beat them well with a fork; and add a salt-spoonful of salt; have ready chopped two drachms of onion, or three drachms of parsley, a good clove of eschalot minced very fine; beat it well up with the eggs; then take four ounces of fresh butter, and break half of it into little bits, and put it into the omelette, and the other half into a very clean frying-pan; when it is melted, pour in the omelette, and stir it with a spoon till it begins to set, then turn it up all round the edges, and when it is of a nice brown it is done: the safest way to take it out is to put a plate on the omelette, and turn the pan upside-down: serve it on a hot dish; it should never be done till just wanted. If maigre, grated cheese, shrimps, or oysters. If oysters, boil them four minutes, and take away the beard and gristly part; they may either be put in whole, or cut in bits. _Or_,

Take eggs ready boiled hard, and either fry them whole, or cut them in half; when they are boiled (they will take five minutes), let them lie in cold water till you want to use them; then roll them lightly with your hand on a table, and they will peel without breaking; put them on a cloth to dry, and dredge them lightly with flour; beat two eggs in a basin, dip the eggs in, one at a time, and then roll them in fine bread-crumbs, or in duck (No. 378) or veal stuffing (No. 374); set them away ready for frying; fry them in hot oil or clarified butter, serve them up with mushroom sauce, or any other thickened sauce you please; crisp parsley is a pretty garnish. _Or_,

Do not boil the eggs till wanted; boil them ten minutes, peel them as above, cut them in half, put them on a dish, and have ready a sauce made of two ounces of butter and flour well rubbed together on a plate, and put it in a stew-pan with three quarters of a pint of good milk; set it on the fire, and stir it till it boils; if it is not quite smooth, strain it through a sieve, chop some parsley and a clove of eschalot as fine as possible, and put in your sauce: season it with salt to your taste: a little mace and lemon-peel boiled with the sauce, will improve it: if you like it still richer, you may add a little cream, or the yelks of two eggs, beat up with two table-spoonfuls of milk, and stir it in the last thing: do not let it boil after; place the half eggs on a dish with the yelks upward, and pour the sauce over them.

N.B. Any cold fish cut in pieces may be warmed in the above sauce for a sent dinner. _Or_,

Slice very thin two onions weighing about two ounces each; put them into a stew-pan with three ounces of butter; keep them covered till they are just done; stir them every now and then, and when they are of a nice brown, stir in as much flour as will make them of a stiff paste; then by degrees add as much water or milk as will make it the thickness of good cream; season it with, pepper and salt to your taste; have ready boiled hard four or five eggs--you may either shred them, or cut them in halves or quarters; then put them in the sauce: when they are hot they are ready: garnish them with sippets of bread.

Or, have ready a plain omelette, cut into bits, and put them into the sauce.

Or, cut off a little bit of one end of the eggs, so that they may stand up; and take out the yelks whole of some of them, and cut the whites in half, or in quarters.

_Obs._--This is called in the Parisian kitchen, "eggs à la trip, with a roux."

_Marrow-Bones._--(No. 544.)

Saw the bones even, so that they will stand steady; put a piece of paste into the ends: set them upright in a saucepan, and boil till they are done enough: a beef marrow-bone will require from an hour and a half to two hours; serve fresh-toasted bread with them.

_Eggs fried with Bacon._--(No. 545.)

Lay some slices of fine streaked bacon (not more than a quarter of an inch thick) in a clean dish, and toast them before the fire in a cheese-toaster, turning them when the upper side is browned; first ask those who are to eat the bacon, if they wish it much or little done, _i. e._ curled and crisped, see No. 526, or mellow and soft (No. 527): if the latter, parboil it first.

Well-cleansed (see No. 83) dripping, or lard, or fresh butter, are the best fats for frying eggs.

Be sure the frying-pan is quite clean; when the fat is hot, break two or three eggs into it; do not turn them, but, while they are frying, keep pouring some of the fat over them with a spoon; when the yelk just begins to look white, which it will in about a couple of minutes, they are done enough; the white must not lose its transparency, but the yelk be seen blushing through it: if they are done nicely, they will look as white and delicate as if they had been poached; take them up with a tin slice, drain the fat from them, trim them neatly, and send them up with the bacon round them.

_Ragoût of Eggs and Bacon._--(No. 545*.)

Boil half a dozen eggs for ten minutes; throw them into cold water; peel them and cut them into halves; pound the yelks in a marble mortar, with about an equal quantity of the white meat of dressed fowl, or veal, a little chopped parsley, an anchovy, an eschalot, a quarter of an ounce of butter, a table-spoonful of mushroom catchup, a little Cayenne, some bread-crumbs, and a very little beaten mace, or allspice; incorporate them well together, and fill the halves of the whites with this mixture; do them over with the yelk of an egg, and brown them in a Dutch oven, and serve them on relishing rashers of bacon or ham, see No. 527.

For sauce, melted butter, flavoured to the fancy of the eaters, with mushroom catchup, anchovy, curry-powder (No. 455), or zest (No. 255).

_To poach Eggs._--(No. 546.)

The cook who wishes to display her skill in poaching, must endeavour to procure eggs that have been laid a couple of days--those that are quite new-laid are so milky that, take all the care you can, your cooking of them will seldom procure you the praise of being a prime poacher; you must have fresh eggs, or it is equally impossible.

The beauty of a poached egg is for the yelk to be seen blushing through the white, which should only be just sufficiently hardened, to form a transparent veil for the egg.

Have some boiling water[337-*] in a tea-kettle; pass as much of it through a clean cloth as will half fill a stew-pan; break the egg into a cup, and when the water boils, remove the stew-pan from the stove, and gently slip the egg into it; it must stand till the white is set; then put it over a very moderate fire, and as soon as the water boils, the egg is ready; take it up with a slice, and neatly round off the ragged edges of the white; send them up on bread toasted on one side only,[338-*] with or without butter; or without a toast, garnished with streaked bacon (Nos. 526 or 527), nicely fried, or as done in No. 545, or slices of broiled beef or mutton (No. 487), anchovies (Nos. 434 and 435), pork sausages (No. 87), or spinage (No. 122).

_Obs._--The bread should be a little larger than the egg, and about a quarter of an inch thick; only just give it a yellow colour: if you toast it brown, it will get a bitter flavour; or moisten it by pouring a little hot water upon it: some sprinkle it with a few drops of vinegar, or of essence of anchovy (No. 433).

_To boil Eggs to eat in the Shell, or for Salads._--(No. 547.)

The fresher laid the better: put them into boiling water; if you like the white just set,[338-+] about two minutes boiling is enough; a new-laid egg will take a little more; if you wish the yelk to be set, it will take three, and to boil it hard for a salad, ten minutes. See No. 372.

_Obs._--A new-laid egg will require boiling longer than a stale one, by half a minute.

Tin machines for boiling eggs on the breakfast table are sold by the ironmongers, which perform the process very regularly: in four minutes the white is just set.

N.B. "Eggs may be preserved for twelve months, in a sweet and palatable state for eating in the shell, or using for salads, by boiling them for one minute; and when wanted for use let them be boiled in the usual manner: the white may be a little tougher than a new-laid egg, but the yelk will show no difference."--See HUNTER'S _Culina_, page 257.

_Eggs poached with Sauce of minced Ham._--(No. 548.)

Poach the eggs as before directed, and take two or three slices of boiled ham; mince it fine with a gherkin, a morsel of onion, a little parsley, and pepper and salt; stew all together a quarter of an hour; serve up your sauce about half boiling; put the eggs in a dish, squeeze over the juice of half a Seville orange, or lemon, and pour the sauce over them.

_Fried Eggs and minced Ham or Bacon._--(No. 549.)

Choose some very fine bacon streaked with a good deal of lean; cut this into very thin slices, and afterward into small square pieces; throw them into a stew-pan, and set it over a gentle fire, that they may lose some of their fat. When as much as will freely come is thus melted from them, lay them on a warm dish. Put into a stew-pan a ladle-full of melted bacon or lard; set it on a stove; put in about a dozen of the small pieces of bacon, then stoop the stew-pan and break in an egg. Manage this carefully, and the egg will presently be done: it will be very round, and the little dice of bacon will stick to it all over, so that it will make a very pretty appearance. Take care the yelks do not harden; when the egg is thus done, lay it carefully in a warm dish, and do the others.

*.* They reckon 685 ways of dressing eggs in the French kitchen: we hope our half dozen receipts give sufficient variety for the English kitchen.

_Tea._[339-*]--(No. 550.)

"The Jesuit that came from China, A.D. 1664, told Mr. Waller, that to a drachm of tea they put a pint of water, and frequently take the yelks of two new-laid eggs, and beat them up with as much fine sugar as is sufficient for the tea, and stir all well together. He also informed him, that we let the hot water remain too long soaking upon the tea, which makes it extract into itself the earthy parts of the herb; the water must remain upon it no longer than while you can say the '_Miserere_' psalm very leisurely; you have then only the spiritual part of the tea, the proportion of which to the water must be about a drachm to a pint."--Sir KENELM DIGBY'S _Cookery_, London, 1669, page 176.

_Obs._--The addition of an egg makes the "_Chinese Soup_," a more nutritious and substantial meal for a traveller.

_Coffee._[340-*]

Coffee, as used on the Continent, serves the double purpose of an agreeable tonic, and an exhilarating beverage, without the unpleasant effects of wine.

Coffee, as drunk in England, debilitates the stomach, and produces a slight nausea. In France and in Italy it is made strong from the best coffee, and is poured out hot and transparent.

In England it is usually made from bad coffee, served out tepid and muddy, and drowned in a deluge of water, and sometimes deserves the title given it in "the Petition against Coffee," 4to. 1674, page 4, "a base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking puddle water."

To make Coffee fit for use, you must employ the German filter,--pay at least 4_s._ the pound for it,--and take at least an ounce for two breakfast-cups.

No coffee will bear drinking with what is called milk in London.

London people should either take their coffee pure, or put a couple of tea-spoonfuls of cream to each cup.

N.B. The above is a contribution from an intelligent traveller, who has passed some years on the Continent.

_Suet Pudding, Wiggy's way._--(No. 551.)

Suet, a quarter of a pound; flour, three table-spoonfuls; eggs, two; and a little grated ginger; milk, half a pint. Mince the suet as fine as possible, roll it with the rolling-pin so as to mix it well with the flour; beat up the eggs, mix them with the milk, and then mix all together; wet your cloth well in boiling water, flour it, tie it loose, put it into boiling water, and boil it an hour and a quarter.

Mrs. Glasse has it, "when you have made your water boil, then put your pudding into your pot."

_Yorkshire Pudding under roast Meat, the Gipsies' way._--(No. 552.)

This pudding is an especially excellent accompaniment to a sir-loin of beef,--loin of veal,--or any fat and juicy joint.

Six table-spoonfuls of flour, three eggs, a tea-spoonful of salt, and a pint of milk, so as to make a middling stiff batter, a little stiffer than you would for pancakes; beat it up well, and take care it is not lumpy; put a dish under the meat, and let the drippings drop into it till it is quite hot and well greased; then pour in the batter;--when the upper surface is brown and set, turn it, that both sides may be brown alike: if you wish it to cut firm, and the pudding an inch thick, it will take two hours at a good fire.

N.B. The true Yorkshire pudding is about half an inch thick when done; but it is the fashion in London to make them full twice that thickness.

_Plum Pudding._--(No. 553.)

Suet, chopped fine, six ounces; Malaga raisins, stoned, six ounces; currants, nicely washed and picked, eight ounces; bread-crumbs, three ounces; flour, three ounces; eggs, three; sixth of a nutmeg; small blade of mace; same quantity of cinnamon, pounded as fine as possible; half a tea-spoonful of salt; half a pint of milk, or rather less; sugar, four ounces: to which may be added, candied lemon, one ounce; citron, half an ounce. Beat the eggs and spice well together; mix the milk with them by degrees, then the rest of the ingredients; dip a fine close linen cloth into boiling water, and put it in a hair-sieve; flour it a little, and tie it up close; put it into a saucepan containing six quarts of boiling water: keep a kettle of boiling water along side of it, and fill up your pot as it wastes; be sure to keep it boiling six hours at least.

_My Pudding._--(No. 554.)

Beat up the yelks and whites of three eggs; strain them through a sieve (to keep out the treddles), and gradually add to them about a quarter of a pint of milk,--stir these well together; rub together in a mortar two ounces of moist sugar, and as much grated nutmeg as will lie on a sixpence,--stir these into the eggs and milk; then put in four ounces of flour, and beat it into a smooth batter; by degrees stir into it seven ounces of suet (minced as fine as possible), and three ounces of bread-crumbs; mix all thoroughly together at least half an hour before you put the pudding into the pot; put it into an earthenware pudding-mould that you have well buttered; tie a pudding-cloth over it very tight; put it into boiling water, and boil it three hours.