The Virginia Housewife by Mary Randolph
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Mary Randolph >> The Virginia Housewife
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* * * * *
ARTICHOKES.
Soak them in cold water, wash them well, then put them into plenty of
boiling water, with a handful of salt, and let them boil gently till
they are tender, which will take an hour and a half, or two hours: the
surest way to know when they are done enough, is to draw out a leaf;
trim them, and drain them on a sieve, and send up melted butter with
them, with some put into small cups, so that each guest may have one.
* * * * *
BROCOLI.
The kind which bears flowers around the joints of the stalks, must be
cut into convenient lengths for the dish; scrape the skin from the
stalk, and pick out any leaves or flowers that require to be removed;
tie it up in bunches, and boil it as asparagus; serve it up hot, with
melted butter poured over it. The brocoli that heads at the top like
cauliflowers, must be dressed in the same manner as the cauliflower.
* * * * *
PEAS.
To have them in perfection, they must be quite young, gathered early in
the morning, kept in a cool place, and not shelled until they are to be
dressed; put salt in the water, and when it boils, put in the peas; boil
them quick twenty or thirty minutes, according to their age; just before
they are taken up, add a little mint chopped very fine; drain all the
water from the peas, put in a bit of butter, and serve them up quite
hot.
* * * * *
PUREE OF TURNIPS.
Pare a dozen large turnips, slice them, and put them into a stew-pan,
with four ounces of butter and a little salt; set the pan over a
moderate fire, turn them often with a wooden spoon; when they look
white, add a ladle full of veal gravy, stew them till it becomes thick;
skim it, and pass it through a sieve; put the turnips in a dish, and
pour the gravy over them.
* * * * *
RAGOUT OF TURNIPS.
Peel as many small turnips as will fill a dish; put them into a stew pan
with some butter and a little sugar, set them over a hot stove, shake
them about, and turn them till they are a good brown; pour in half a
pint of rich high seasoned gravy; stew the turnips till tender, and
serve them with the gravy poured over them.
* * * * *
RAGOUT OF FRENCH BEANS, SNAPS, STRING BEANS.
Let them be young and fresh gathered, string them, and cut them in long
thin slices; throw them in boiling water for fifteen minutes; have ready
some well seasoned brown gravy, drain the water from the beans, put them
in the gravy, stew them a few minutes, and serve them garnished with
forcemeat balls; there must not be gravy enough to float the beans.
* * * * *
MAZAGAN BEANS.
This is the smallest and most delicate species of the Windsor bean.
Gather them in the morning, when they are full grown, but quite young,
and do not shell them till you are going to dress them. Put them into
boiling water, have a small bit of middling, (flitch,) of bacon, well
boiled--take the skin off, cover it with bread crumbs, and toast it; lay
this in the middle of the dish, drain all the water from the beans--put
a little butter with them, and pour them round the bacon. When the large
Windsor beans are used, it is best to put them into boiling water until
the skins will slip off, and then make them into a puree as directed for
turnips--they are very coarse when plainly dressed.
* * * * *
LIMA, OR SUGAR BEANS.
Like all other spring and summer vegetables, they must be young and
freshly gathered: boil them till tender, drain them, add a little
butter, and serve them up. These beans are easily preserved for winter
use, and will be nearly as good as fresh ones. Gather them on a dry day,
when full grown, but quite young: have a clean and dry keg, sprinkle
some salt in the bottom, put in a layer of pods, containing the beans,
then a little salt--do this till the keg is full; lay a board on with a
weight, to press them down; cover the keg very close, and keep it in a
dry, cool place--they should be put up as late in the season, as they
can be with convenience. When used, the pods must be washed, and laid in
fresh water all night; shell them next day, and keep them in water till
you are going to boil them; when tender, serve them up with melted
butter in a boat. French beans (snaps) may be preserved in the same
manner.
* * * * *
TURNIP ROOTED CABBAGE.
The cabbage growing at the top is not good; cut the root in slices an
inch thick, peel off the rind, and boil the slices in a large quantity
of water, till tender, serve it up hot, with melted butter poured over
it.
* * * * *
EGG PLANT.
The purple ones are best; get them young and fresh; pull out the stem,
and parboil them to take off the bitter taste; cut them in slices an
inch thick, but do not peel them; dip them in the yelk of an egg, and
cover them with grated bread, a little salt and pepper--when this has
dried, cover the other side the same way--fry them a nice brown. They
are very delicious, tasting much like soft crabs. The egg plant may be
dressed in another manner: scrape the rind and parboil them; cut a slit
from one end to the other, take out the seeds, fill the space with a
rich forcemeat, and stew them in well seasoned gravy, or bake them, and
serve up with gravy in the dish.
* * * * *
POTATO PUMPKIN.
Get one of a good colour, and seven or eight inches in diameter; cut a
piece off the top, take out all the seeds, wash and wipe the cavity,
pare the rind off, and fill the hollow with good forcemeat--put the top
on, and set it in a deep pan, to protect the sides; bake it in a
moderate oven, put it carefully in the dish without breaking, and it
will look like a handsome mould. Another way of cooking potato pumpkin
is to cut it in slices, pare off the rind, and make a puree as directed
for turnips.
* * * * *
SWEET POTATO.
Take those that are nearly of the same size, that they may be done
equally--wash them clean, but do not peel them--boil them till tender,
drain the water off, and put them on tin sheets in a stove for a few
minutes to dry.
* * * * *
SWEET POTATOS STEWED.
Wash and wipe them, and if they be large, cut them in two lengths; put
them at the bottom of a stew pan, lay over some slices of boiled ham;
and on that, one or two chickens cut up with pepper, salt, and a bundle
of herbs; pour in some water, and stew them till done, then take out the
herbs, serve the stew in a deep dish--thicken the gravy, and pour over
it.
* * * * *
SWEET POTATOS BROILED.
Cut them across without peeling, in slices half an inch thick, broil
them on a griddle, and serve them with butter in a boat.
* * * * *
SPINACH.
Great care must be used in washing and picking it clean; drain it, and
throw it into boiling water--a few minutes will boil it sufficiently:
press out all the water, put it in a stew pan with a piece of butter,
some pepper and salt--chop it continually with a spoon till it is quite
dry: serve it with poached eggs or without, as you please.
* * * * *
SORREL.
Is dressed as the spinach; and if they be mixed in equal proportions,
improve each other.
* * * * *
CABBAGE PUDDING.
Get a fine head of cabbage, not too large; pour boiling water on, and
cover it till you can turn the leaves back, which you must do carefully;
take some of those in the middle of the head off, chop them fine, and
mix them with rich forcemeat; put this in, and replace the leaves to
confine the stuffing--tie it in a cloth, and boil it--serve it up whole,
with a little melted butter in the dish.
* * * * *
SQUASH OR CIMLIN.
Gather young squashes, peel, and cut them in two; take out the seeds,
and boil them till tender; put them into a colander, drain off the
water, and rub them with a wooden spoon through the colander; then put
them into a stew pan, with a cup full of cream, a small piece of butter,
some pepper and salt--stew them, stirring frequently until dry. This is
the most delicate way of preparing squashes.
* * * * *
WINTER SQUASH.
The crooked neck of this squash is the best part. Cut it in slices an
inch thick, take off the rind, and boil them with salt in the water;
drain them well before they are dished, and pour melted butter
over--serve them up very hot.
The large part, containing the seeds, must be sliced and pared--cut it
in small pieces, and stew it till soft, with just water enough to cover
it; pass it through a sieve and stew it again, adding some butter,
pepper, and salt; it must be dry, but not burnt. It is excellent when
stewed with pork chops.
* * * * *
FIELD PEAS.
There are many varieties of these peas; the smaller kind are the most
delicate. Have them young and newly gathered, shell and boil them
tender; pour them in a colander to drain; put some lard in a frying pan;
when it boils, mash the peas, and fry them in a cake of a light brown;
put it in the dish with the crust uppermost--garnish with thin bits of
fried bacon. They are very nice when fried whole, so that each pea is
distinct from the other; but they must be boiled less, and fried with
great care. Plain boiling is a very common way of dressing them.
* * * * *
CABBAGE WITH ONIONS.
Boil them separately, and mix them in the proportions you like; add
butter, pepper, and salt, and either stew them, or fry them in a cake.
* * * * *
SALSIFY.
Scrape and wash the roots, put them into boiling water with salt; when
done, drain them, and place them in the dish without cutting them up.
They are a very excellent vegetable, but require nicety in cooking;
exposure to the air, either in scraping, or after boiling, will make
them black.
* * * * *
STEWED SALSIFY.
Half boil it, cut it up, and put it in a stew pan, with a very little
water, and a spoonful of butter; stew them dry, and serve them up. For
change, you may, after stewing, cut them in scollop shells with grated
bread, and bake them; or make them into cakes, and fry them. They are
delicious in whatever way they can be dressed.
* * * * *
STEWED MUSHROOMS.
Gather grown mushrooms, but such as are young enough to have red gills;
cut off that part of the stem which grew in the earth--wash them
carefully, and take the skin from the top; put them into a stew pan with
some salt, but no water--stew them till tender, and thicken them with a
spoonful of butter, mixed with one of brown flour; red wine may be
added, but the flavour of the mushroom is too delicious to require aid
from any thing.
* * * * *
BROILED MUSHROOMS.
Prepare them as above directed--broil them on a griddle, and when done,
sprinkle pepper and salt on the gills, and put a little butter on them.
* * * * *
TO BOIL RICE.
Put two cups full of rice in a bowl of water, rub it well with the hand,
and pour off the water; do this until the water ceases to be
discoloured; then put the rice into two and a half cups of cold water;
add a tea-spoonful of salt, cover the pot close, and set it on a brisk
fire; let it boil ten minutes, pour off the greater part of the water,
and remove the pot to a bed of coals, where it must remain a quarter of
an hour to soak and dry.
* * * * *
RICE JOURNEY, OR JOHNNY CAKE.
Boil a pint of rice quite soft, with a tea-spoonful of salt; mix with it
while hot a large spoonful of butter, and spread it on a dish to cool;
when perfectly cold, add a pint of rice flour and half a pint of
milk--beat them all together till well mingled. Take the middle part of
the head of a barrel, make it quite clean, wet it, and put on the
mixture about an inch thick, smooth with a spoon, and baste it with a
little milk; set the board aslant before clear coals; when sufficiently
baked, slip a thread under the cake and turn it: baste and bake that
side in a similar manner, split it, and butter while hot. Small homony
boiled and mixed with rice flour, is better than all rice; and if baked
very thin, and afterwards toasted and buttered, it is nearly as good as
cassada bread.
* * * * *
PUDDINGS, &c.
OBSERVATIONS ON PUDDINGS AND CAKES.
The salt should always be washed from butter, when it is to be used in
any thing that has sugar for an ingredient, and also from that which is
melted to grease any kind of mould for baking--otherwise, there will be
a disagreeable salt taste on the outer side of the article baked.
Raisins should be stoned and cut in two, and have some flour sifted over
them--stir them gently in the flour, and take them out free from lumps;
the small quantity that adheres to them, will prevent their sticking
together, or falling in a mass to the bottom. Eggs must be fresh, or
they will not heal well: it is better to separate the yelks from the
whites always, though it is a more troublesome process; but for some
things it is essential to do so: when they are to be mixed with milk,
let it cool after boiling, or the eggs will poach; and only set it on
the fire a few minutes, to take off the raw taste of the eggs, stirring
it all the time. Currants require washing in many waters to cleanse
them; they must be picked and well dried, or they will stick together.
Almonds should be put in hot water till the skins will slip off, which
is called blanching; they must always be pounded with rose or orange
flower water, to prevent their oiling. When cream is used, put it in
just before the mixture is ready; much beating will decompose it. Before
a pudding or cake is begun, every ingredient necessary for it must be
ready; when the process is retarded by neglecting to have them prepared,
the article is injured. The oven must be in a proper state, and the
paste in the dishes or moulds, ready for such things as require it.
Promptitude is necessary in all our actions, but never more so than when
engaged in making cakes and puddings. When only one or two eggs are to
be used, cooks generally think it needless to beat them--it is an error:
eggs injure every thing, unless they are made light before they are
used. Cloths for boiling puddings should be made of German sheeting; an
article less thick, will admit the water, and injure the pudding.
* * * * *
RICE MILK FOR A DESSERT.
Boil half a pint of rice in water till tender, pour off the water, and
add a pint of milk with two eggs beaten well, stirred into it; boil all
together two or three minutes; serve it up hot, and eat it with butter,
sugar, and nutmeg. It may be sweetened and cooled in moulds, turned out
in a deep dish, and surrounded with rich milk, with raspberry marmalade
stirred into it, and strained to keep back the seeds--or the milk may be
seasoned with wine and sugar.
* * * * *
TO MAKE PUFF PASTE.
Sift a quart of flour, leave out a little for rolling the paste, make up
the remainder with cold water into a stiff paste, knead it well, and
roll it out several times; wash the salt from a pound of butter, divide
it into four parts, put one of them on the paste in little bits, fold it
up, and continue to roll it till the butter is well mixed; then put
another portion of butter, roll it in the same manner; do this till all
the butter is mingled with the paste; touch it very lightly with the
hands in making--bake it in a moderate oven, that will permit it to
rise, but will not make it brown. Good paste must look white, and as
light as a feather.
* * * * *
TO MAKE MINCEMEAT FOR PIES.
Boil either calves or hogs' feet till perfectly tender, rub them through
a colander; when cold, pass them through again, and it will come out
like pearl barley; take one quart of this, one of chopped apples, the
same of currants, washed and picked, raisins stoned and cut, of good
brown sugar, suet nicely chopped, and cider, with a pint of brandy; add
a tea-spoonful of pounded mace, one of cloves and of nutmegs; mix all
these together intimately. When the pies are to be made, take out as
much of this mixture as may be necessary; to each quart of it, add a
tea-spoonful of pounded black pepper, and one of salt; this greatly
improves the flavour, and can be better mixed with a small portion than
with the whole mass. Cover the moulds with paste, put in a sufficiency
of mince-meat, cover the top with citron sliced thin, and lay on it a
lid garnished around with paste cut in fanciful shapes. They may be
eaten either hot or cold, but are best when hot.
* * * * *
TO MAKE JELLY FROM FEET.
Boil four calfs' feet, that have been nicely cleaned, and the hoofs
taken off; when the feet are boiled to pieces, strain the liquor through
a colander, and when cold, take all the grease off, and put the jelly in
a skillet, leaving the dregs which will be at the bottom. There should
be from four feet, about two quarts of jelly: pour into it one quart of
white wine, the juice of six fresh lemons strained from the seeds, one
pound and a half of powdered loaf sugar, a little pounded cinnamon and
mace, and the rind thinly pared from two of the lemons; wash eight eggs
very clean, whip up the whites to a froth, crush the shells and put with
them, mix it with the jelly, set it on the fire, stir it occasionally
till the jelly is melted, but do not touch it afterwards. When it has
boiled till it looks quite clear on one side, and the dross accumulates
on the other, take off carefully the thickest part of the dross, and
pour the jelly in the bag; put back what runs through, until it becomes
quite transparent--then set a pitcher under the bag, and put a cover all
over to keep out the dust: the jelly looks much prettier when it is
broken to fill the glasses. The bag should be made of cotton or linen,
and be suspended in a frame made for the purpose. The feet of hogs make
the palest coloured jelly; those of sheep are a beautiful amber-colour,
when prepared.
* * * * *
A SWEETMEAT PUDDING.
Make a quart of flour into puff paste; when done, divide it into three
parts of unequal size; roll the largest out square and moderately thin,
spread over it a thin layer of marmalade, leaving a margin all round
about an inch broad; roll the next largest in the same manner, lay it
on, cover that with marmalade, leaving a margin; then roll the smallest,
and put it on the other two, spreading marmalade; fold it up, one fold
over the other, the width of your hand--press the ends together, tie it
in a cloth securely, and place it in a kettle of boiling water, where it
can lie at length without doubling; boil it quickly, and when done, pour
melted butter with sugar and wine in the dish.
* * * * *
TO MAKE AN ORANGE PUDDING.
Put two oranges and two lemons, into five quarts of water--boil them
till the rinds are quite tender; take them out, and when cold, slice
them thin, and pick out the seeds; put a pound of loaf sugar into a pint
of water--when it boils, slice into it twelve pippins pared and
cored--lay in the lemons and oranges, stew them tender, cover the dish
with puff paste, lay the fruit in carefully, in alternate layers--pour
on the syrup, put some slips of paste across, and bake it.
* * * * *
AN APPLE CUSTARD.
Pare and core twelve pippins, slice them tolerably thick, put a pound of
loaf sugar in a stew pan, with a pint of water and twelve cloves: boil
and skim it, then put in the apples, and stew them till clear, and but
little of the syrup remains--lay them in a deep dish, and take out the
cloves; when the apples are cold, pour in a quart of rich boiled
custard--set it in water, and make it boil till the custard is set--take
care the water does not get into it.
* * * * *
BOILED LOAF.
Pour a quart of boiling milk over four little rolls of bread--cover them
up, turning them occasionally till saturated with the milk; tie them
very tight in cloths, and boil them an hour; lay them in the dish, and
pour a little melted butter over them; for sauce, have butter in a boat,
seasoned with wine, sugar, and grated nutmeg.
* * * * *
TRANSPARENT PUDDING.
Beat eight eggs very light, add half a pound of pounded sugar, the same
of fresh butter melted, and half a nutmeg grated; sit it on a stove, and
keep stirring till it is as thick as buttered eggs--put a puff paste in
a shallow dish, pour in the ingredients, and bake it half an hour in a
moderate oven; sift sugar over it, and serve it up hot.
* * * * *
FLUMMERY.
One measure of jelly, one of cream, and half a one of wine; boil it
fifteen minutes over a slow fire, stirring all the time; sweeten it, and
add a spoonful of orange flower or rose water; cool it in a mould, turn
it in a dish, and pour around it cream, seasoned in any way you like.
* * * * *
BURNT CUSTARD.
Boil a quart of milk--and when cold, mix with it the yelks of eight
eggs; stir them together over the fire a few minutes; sweeten it to your
taste, put some slices of savoy cake in the bottom of a deep dish, and
pour on the custard; whip the whites of the eggs to a strong froth, lay
it lightly on the top, sift some sugar over it, and hold a salamander
over it until it is a light brown; garnish the top with raspberry
marmalade, or any kind of preserved fruit.
* * * * *
AN ENGLISH PLUM PUDDING.
Beat eight eggs very light, add to them a pound of flour sifted, and a
pound of powdered sugar; when it looks quite light, put in a pound of
suet finely shred, a pint of milk, a nutmeg grated, and a gill of
brandy; mix with it a pound of currants, washed, picked, and dried, and
a pound of raisins stoned and floured--tie it in a thick cloth, and boil
it steadily eight hours.
* * * * *
MARROW PUDDING.
Grate a large loaf of bread, and pour on the crumbs a pint of rich milk
boiling hot; when cold, add four eggs, a pound of beef marrow sliced
thin, a gill of brandy, with sugar and nutmeg to your taste--mix all
well together, and either bake or boil it; when done, stick slices of
citron over the top.
* * * * *
SIPPET PUDDING.
Cut a loaf of bread as thin as possible, put a layer of it in the bottom
of a deep dish, strew on some slices of marrow or butter, with a handful
of currants or stoned raisins; do this till the dish is full; let the
currants or raisins be at the top; beat four eggs, mix with them a quart
of milk that has been boiled a little and become cold, a quarter of a
pound of sugar, and a grated nutmeg--pour it in, and bake it in a
moderate oven--eat it with wine sauce.
* * * * *
SWEET POTATO PUDDING.
Boil one pound of sweet potatos very tender, rub them while hot through
a colander; add six eggs well beaten, three quarters of a pound of
powdered sugar, three quarters of butter, and some grated nutmeg and
lemon peel, with a glass of brandy; put a paste in the dish, and when
the pudding is done, sprinkle the top with sugar, and cover it with bits
of citron. Irish potato pudding is made in the same manner, but is not
so good.
* * * * *
AN ARROW ROOT PUDDING.
Boil a quart of milk, and make it into a thick batter, with arrow root;
add six eggs, half a pound of butter, the same of pounded sugar, half a
nutmeg, and a little grated lemon peel; put a paste in the dish, and
bake it nicely; when done, sift sugar over it, and stick slips of citron
all over the top.
* * * * *
SAGO PUDDING.
Wash half a pound of sago in several waters; put it on to boil in a
quart of milk, with a stick of cinnamon; stir it very frequently, for it
is apt to burn: when it becomes quite thick, take out the cinnamon, stir
it in half a pound of butter, and an equal quantity of sugar, with a
gill of wine; when cold, add six eggs and four ounces of currants that
have been plumped in hot water--bake it in a paste.
* * * * *
PUFF PUDDING.
Beat six eggs, add six spoonsful of milk, and six of flour, butter some
cups, pour in the batter, and bake them quickly; turn them out, and eat
them with butter, sugar and nutmeg.
* * * * *
RICE PUDDING.
Boil half a pound of rice in milk, until it is quite tender; beat it
well with a wooden spoon to mash the grains; add three quarters of a
pound of sugar, and the same of melted butter; half a nutmeg, six eggs,
a gill of wine, and some grated lemon peel; put a paste in the dish, and
bake it. For change, it may be boiled, and eaten with butter, sugar, and
wine.
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