English Housewifery Part 15

262. _To make a_ LEMON POSSET.

Take a pint of good thick cream, grate into it the outermost skin of two lemons, and squeeze the juice into a jack of white wine, and sweeten it to your taste; take the whites of two eggs without the strains, beat them to a froth, so whisk them altogether in a stone bowl for half an hour, then put them into gla.s.ses for use.

263. _To make whipt_ SILLABUBS.

Take two porringers of cream and one of white wine, grate in the skin of a lemon, take the whites of three eggs, sweeten it to your taste, then whip it with a whisk, take off the froth as it rises, and put it into your sillabub-gla.s.ses or pots, whether you have, then they are fit for use.

264. _To make_ ALMOND b.u.t.tER.

Take a quart of cream, and half a pound of almonds, beat them with the cream, then strain it, and boil it with twelve yolks of eggs and two whites, till it curdle, hang it up in a cloth till morning and then sweeten it; you may rub it through a sieve with the back of a spoon, or strain it through a coa.r.s.e cloth.

265. _To make_ BLACK CAPS.

Take a dozen of middling pippens and cut them in two, take out the cores and black ends, lay them with the flat side downwards, set them in the oven, and when they are about half roasted take them out, wet them over with a little rose water, and grate over them loaf sugar, pretty thick, set them into the oven again, and let them stand till they are black; when you serve them up, put them either into cream or custard, with the black side upwards, and set them at an equal distance.

266. _To make_ SAUCE _for tame_ DUCKS.

Take the necks and gizzards of your ducks, a scrag of mutton if you have it, and make a little sweet gravy, put to it a few bread-crumbs, a small onion, and a little whole pepper, boil them for half a quarter of an hour, put to them a lump of b.u.t.ter, and if it is not thick enough a little flour, so salt it to your taste.

267. _To make_ SAUCE _for a_ GREEN-GOOSE.

Take a little good gravy, a little b.u.t.ter, and a few scalded gooseberries, mix all together, and put it on the disk with your goose.

268. _To make another_ SAUCE _for a_ GREEN-GOOSE.

Take the juice of sorrel, a little b.u.t.ter, and a few scalded gooseberries, mix them together, and sweeten it to your taste; you must not let it boil after you put in the sorrel, if you do it will take off the green.

You must put this sauce into a bason.

269. _To make_ ALMOND FLUMMERY.

Take a pint of stiff jelly made of calf's feet, put to it a jill or better of good cream, and four ounces of almonds, blanch and beat them fine with a little rose-water, then put them to your cream and jelly, let them boil together for half a quarter of an hour, and sweeten it to your taste; strain it through a fine cloth, and keep it stirring till it be quite cold, put it in cups and let it stand all night, loosen it in warm water and turn it out into your dish; so serve it up, and p.r.i.c.k it with blanch'd almonds.

270. _To make_ CALF'S FOOT FLUMMERY.

Take two calf's feet, when they are dress'd, put two quarts of water to them, boil them over a slow fire till half or better be consumed; when your stock is cold, if it be too stiff, you may put to it as much cream as jelly, boil them together with a blade or two of mace, sweeten it to your taste with loaf sugar, strain it through a fine cloth, stir it whilst it be cold, and turn it out, but first loosen it in warm water, and put it into your dish as you did the other flummery.

271. _To stew_ SPINAGE _with_ POACHED EGGS.

Take two or three handfuls of young spinage, pick it from the stalks, wash and drain it very clean, put it into a pan with a lump of b.u.t.ter, and a little salt, keep stirring it all the time whilst it be enough, then take it out and squeeze out the water, chop it and stir in a little more b.u.t.ter, lie it in your dish in quarters, and betwixt every quarter a poached egg, and lie one in the middle; fry some sippets of white bread and p.r.i.c.k them in your spinage, to serve them up.

This is proper for a side-dish either for noon or night.

272. _To make_ RATIFIE DROPS.

Take half a pound of the best jordan almonds, and four ounces of bitter almonds, blanch and set them before the fire to dry, beat them in a marble mortar with a little white of an egg, then put to the half a pound of powder sugar, and beat them altogether to a pretty stiff paste; you may beat your white of egg very well before you put it in, so take it out, roll it with your hand upon a board with a little sugar, then cut them in pieces, and lie them on sheets of tin or on paper, at an equal distance, that they don't touch one another, and set them in a slow oven to bake.

273. _To fry_ ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS.

Take artichoke bottoms when they are at the full growth, and boil them as you would do for eating, pull off the leaves, and take out the choke, cut off the stalks as close as you can from the bottom; take two or three eggs, beat them very well, so dip your artichokes in them, and strow over them a little pepper and salt; fry them in b.u.t.ter, some whole and some in halves; serve them up with a little b.u.t.ter in a china cup, set it in the middle of your dish, lie your artichokes round, and serve them up.

They are proper for a side dish either noon or night.

274. _To frica.s.sy_ ARTICHOKES.

Take artichokes, and order them the same way as you did for frying, have ready in a stew-pan a few morels and truffles, stewed in brown gravy, so put in your artichokes, and give them a shake altogether in your stew-pan, and serve them up hot, with sippets round them.

275. _To dry_ ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS.

Take the largest artichokes you can get, when they are at their full growth, boil them as you would do for eating, pull off the leaves and take out the choke; cut off the stalk as close as you can, lie them on a tin dripping-pan, or an earthen dish, set them in a slow oven, for if your oven be too hot it will brown them; you may dry them before the fire if you have conveniency; when they are dry put them in paper bags, and keep them for use.

276. _To stew_ APPLES.

Take a pound of double refin'd sugar, with a pint of water, boil and skim it, and put into it a pound of the largest and clearest pippens, pared and cut in halves; if little, let them be whole; core them and boil them with a continual froth, till they be as tender and clear as you would have them, put in the juice of two lemons, but first take out the apples, a little peel cut like threads, boil down your syrrup as thick as you would have it, then pour it over your apples; when you dish them, stick them with long bits of candid orange, and some with almonds cut in long bits, to serve them up.

You must stew them the day before you use them.

277. _To stew_ APPLES _another Way_.

Take kentish pippens or john apples, pare and slice them into fair water, set them on a clear fire, and when they are boiled to mash, let the liquor run through a hair-sieve; boil as many apples thus as will make the quant.i.ty of liquor you would have; to a pint of this liquor you must have a pound of double refin'd loaf sugar in great lumps, wet the lumps of sugar with the pippen liquor, and set it over a gentle fire, let it boil, and skim it well: whilst you are making the jelly, you must have your whole pippens boiling at the same time; (they must be the fairest and best pippens you can get) scope out the cores, and pare them neatly, put them into fair water as you do them; you must likewise make a syrrup ready to put them into, the quant.i.ty as you think will boil them in a clear; make the syrrup with double refin'd sugar and water. Tie up your whole pippens in a piece of fine cloth or muslin severally, when your sugar and water boils put them in, let them boil very fast, so fast that the syrrup always boils over them; sometimes take them off, and then set them on again, let them boil till they be clear and tender; then take off the muslin they were tied up in, and put them into gla.s.ses that will hold but one in a gla.s.s; then see if your jelly of apple-johns be boiled to jelly enough, if it be, squeeze in the juice of two lemons, and let it have a boil; then strain it through a jelly bag into the gla.s.ses your pippens were in; you must be sure that your pippens be well drained from the syrrup they were boiled in; before you put them into the gla.s.ses, you may, if you please, boil little pieces of lemon-peel in water till they be tender, and then boil them in the syrrup your pippens were boiled in; then take them out and lay them upon the pippens before the jelly is put in, and when they are cold paper them up.

278. _To make_ PLUMB GRUEL.

Take half a pound of pearl barley, set it on to cree; put to it three quarts of water; when it has boiled a while, shift it into another fresh water, and put to it three or four blades of mace, a little lemon-peel cut in long pieces, so let it boil whilst the barley be very soft; if it be too thick you may add a little more water; take half a pound of currans, wash them well and plump them, and put to them your barley, half a pound of raisins and stone them; let them boil in the gruel whilst they are plump, when they are enough put to them a little white wine, a little juice of lemon, grate in half a nutmeg, and sweeten it to your taste, so serve them up.

279. _To make_ RICE GRUEL.

Boil half a pound of rice in two quarts of soft water, as soft as you would have it for rice milk, with some slices of lemon-peel, and a stick of cinnamon; add to it a little white wine and juice of lemon to your taste, put in a little candid orange sliced thin, and sweeten it with fine powder sugar; don't let it boil after you put in your wine and lemon, put it in a china dish, with five or six slices of lemon, so serve it up.

280. _To make_ SCOTCH CUSTARD, _to eat hot for Supper_.