American Cookery Part 8

Thanksgiving Pudding

Beat the yolks of four eggs; add one pint of soft bread crumbs, one cup of sugar, the grated rind of a lemon, one teaspoonful of salt, and one cup of large table raisins from which the seeds have been removed; mix all together thoroughly, then add one quart of rich milk. Bake in a very moderate oven until firm in the center. When the pudding has cooled somewhat, beat the whites of four eggs dry; beat in half a cup of sugar and spread or pipe the meringue over the pudding; dredge with granulated sugar and let cook in a very moderate oven about fifteen minutes; the oven should be of such heat that the meringue does not color until the last few minutes of cooking.

Coffee Fruit Punch

Add one-half a cup of fine-ground coffee to one cup of cold water, bring very slowly to a boil, and let simmer for ten minutes. Strain, allow grounds to settle, decant, and add one cup of sugar. Mix one-half a cup of sifted strawberry preserve with the juice of two lemons, the juice of three oranges and the grated rind of one, and half a cup of pineapple juice. Let the whole stand together for half an hour; then strain, add the coffee, a quart or more of Vichy, or any preferred sparkling water, and serve in tall gla.s.ses filled one-third full with shaved ice; garnish each with a thin strip of candied angelica.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SWEET CIDER FRAPPe]

Sweet Cider Frappe

Make a syrup by boiling one cup of sugar and two cups of water fifteen minutes; add one quart of sweet cider and one-half a cup of lemon juice; when cool freeze--using equal parts of ice and salt. Serve with roast turkey or roast pork.

Fig-and-Cranberry Pie

Chop one-half a pound of figs and cook until tender in a pint of water.

Add a pint of cranberries, and cook until they pop. Mix one cup of sugar with four tablespoonfuls of flour and stir into the fig-and-cranberry mixture; let boil, remove from fire, and stir in two tablespoonfuls of b.u.t.ter and the juice of one-half a lemon. Put into a pastry sh.e.l.l, arrange strips of paste in a basket pattern over the top, and bake until these are browned.

Dry Deviled Parsnips

Wash and sc.r.a.pe--not pare--three large parsnips; cut in halves, lengthwise, and place, cut side uppermost, on the grate of a rather hot oven to bake for thirty to forty minutes, or until soft and lightly browned. Soften one-half a cup of b.u.t.ter, without melting it, and rub into it the following mixture: Two teaspoonfuls of salt, four tablespoonfuls of dry mustard, one-half a teaspoonful of cayenne, one teaspoonful of white pepper, and flour enough to stiffen the paste. When the parsnips are cooked make four slanting cuts in each of the halves, and fill each with as much of the paste as it will hold. Spread over the flat side with the remainder of the paste, arrange on the serving dish, sift fine b.u.t.tered crumbs over them, and place under the gas flame, or on the upper rack of an oven until crumbs are brown.

King's Pudding With Apple-Jelly Sauce

Soak, over-night, one-half a cup of well-washed rice, and cook in one pint of milk in double boiler until very tender. Mix this with three cups of apple sauce, well-sweetened and flavored with cinnamon. Add the beaten yolks of two eggs, one ounce, each, of candied citron and orange peel, very fine-chopped, and one-half a cup of raisins. Add, the last thing, the whites of the eggs, beaten to the stiffest possible froth.

Line a deep dish with a good, plain paste, pour in the pudding, bake until both paste and pudding top are brown, invert on serving dish and pour the sauce over it.

Apple-Jelly Sauce

Beat one-half a cup of apple jelly until it is like a smooth batter; gradually add two tablespoonfuls of melted b.u.t.ter, the juice of one lemon and one-half the grated rind, and a few gratings of nutmeg. Set into a saucepan of boiling water until ready to use, then beat well and pour over the pudding.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CRANBERRY TART]

Cranberry Tart

Spread a round of paste over an inverted pie plate, p.r.i.c.k the paste with a fork eight times. Bake to a delicate brown. Remove the paste from the plate, wash the plate and set the pastry inside. When cold fill with a cold, cooked cranberry filling and cover the filling with a top pastry crust, made by cutting paste to a paper pattern and baking in a pan.

Arrange tart just before serving.

Cooked Cranberry Filling

Mix together three level tablespoonfuls of cornstarch, three-fourths a teaspoonful of salt and one cup and one-half of sugar; pour on one cup and one-half of boiling water and stir until boiling, then add one-third a cup of mola.s.ses, two teaspoonfuls of b.u.t.ter and three cups of cranberries, chopped fine. Let simmer fifteen minutes.

Pumpkin Fanchonettes

Mix together one cup and a half of dry, sifted pumpkin, half a cup of sugar, two eggs, two tablespoonfuls of mola.s.ses, one tablespoonful of ginger, two tablespoonfuls of melted b.u.t.ter, one teaspoonful of cinnamon, one-fourth a teaspoonful of salt, and one cup of rich milk.

Pour into small tins lined with pastry, and bake about twenty-five minutes. Serve cold; just before serving decorate with whipped cream.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PUMPKIN FANCHONETTES]

Pilgrim Cookies

Let soak overnight one cup of seedless raisins, then drain and dry on a cloth. Cream one-third a cup of b.u.t.ter; beat in one cup of brown sugar, one tablespoonful of milk, and two eggs, beaten light. Add the raisins, and one cup of flour, sifted with one-half a teaspoonful, each, of nutmeg and cinnamon and two teaspoonfuls and one-half of baking powder.

When thoroughly mixed, add one-half a cup of graham flour, unsifted, and one-half a cup of bran, unsifted.

[Ill.u.s.tration: PILGRIM COOKIES]

Pyramid Birthday Cake

Bake any good layer cake or other simple cake mixture in one or two thin sheets, in a large pan. When done cut into as many graduated circles as the child is years old. Ice each circle, top and sides, with any good cake icing, either white or tinted, and lay one above the other with layers of jelly or preserves between slices. Around each layer arrange a decoration of fresh or candied fruits of bright colors, glaceed nuts, candied rose petals or violets, bits of angelica, or any other effective decoration. Let the cake stand on a handsomely decorated dish, and small flags be inserted in the topmost layer.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FRUIT AND MELONS]

Stirred Brown Bread

Measure three cups of graham flour into a large mixing-bowl; add one cup of bran, and sift on to these one cup and one-half of white flour, to which one and one-fourth a teaspoonful of salt has been added. Stir together until mixed. Dissolve one teaspoonful of baking soda in a tablespoonful of hot water, and add to two cups of b.u.t.termilk. Melt two tablespoonfuls of b.u.t.ter and one of any preferred subst.i.tute, mix with one-half a cup of mola.s.ses, stir into the b.u.t.termilk, and add all to the dry ingredients, stirring vigorously. Lastly, add one-half a compressed yeast cake to the batter, and stir again until the yeast is thoroughly incorporated with the batter, which should be very stiff. Place in a greased bread pan, cover, set in a warm place until batter has risen to top of pan or doubled in bulk. Bake one hour in an oven with gradually increasing heat. This bread keeps fresh for a long time, and is particularly good sliced thin for sandwiches.

Swedish Pancakes With Aigre-Doux Sauce

Beat, until light, the yolks of six eggs; add one-half a teaspoonful of salt, one teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in one tablespoonful of vinegar, then two cups of sifted flour, alternately, with the beaten whites of the eggs, and if necessary add enough milk to make a thin batter. Pour a small ladleful at a time on the griddle; spread each cake, when cooked, with raspberry jam, roll up like a jelly roll, pile on a hot platter, dust over with powdered sugar, and serve with each one a spoonful of Aigre-Doux Sauce.

Aigre-Doux Sauce

Add to two cups of sour cream the juice and fine-grated rind of one large lemon. Stir in enough sugar just to develop a sweet taste, one-half a cup or more, and beat hard and long with a Dover beater until the sauce is quite light.

Sauteed Cuc.u.mbers and Tomatoes

Pare four large cuc.u.mbers and cut in quarter-inch slices; season by sprinkling with salt and pepper, then dip in beaten egg, and afterwards in fine, sifted crumbs. Proceed in the same manner with two firm tomatoes, removing the skin by dipping first into boiling water, then into cold, and rubbing the skin off. The tomatoes should be cut in half-inch slices. Heat a large spider until very hot; add two or more tablespoonfuls of dripping or other fat, and saute in this, first the cuc.u.mbers, then the tomatoes, turning the slices when browned on one side, and cooking until crisped. Serve in a hot vegetable dish.

Skirt Steak, with Raisin Sauce

Make a rich stuffing by chopping together three-fourths a pound of veal, one-half a pound of ham, and an ounce of beef suet or other fat.