The Book of Household Management Part 170

1390. INGREDIENTS.--Apple marmalade No. 1395, 6 or 7 good boiling apples, 1/2 pint of water, 6 oz. of sugar, 2 oz. of b.u.t.ter, a little apricot jam.

_Mode_.--Pare the apples, and take out the cores without dividing them; boil up the sugar and water for a few minutes; then lay in the apples, and simmer them very gently until tender, taking care not to let them break. Have ready sufficient marmalade made by recipe No. 1395, and flavoured with lemon, to cover the bottom of the dish; arrange the apples on this with a piece of b.u.t.ter placed in each, and in between them a few spoonfuls of apricot jam or marmalade; place the dish in the oven for 10 minutes, then sprinkle over the top sifted sugar; either brown it before the fire or with a salamander, and serve hot.

_Time_.--From 20 to 30 minutes to stew the apples very gently, 10 minutes in the oven.

_Average cost_, 1s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 1 entremets.

_Note_.--The syrup that the apples were boiled in should be saved for another occasion.

FLANC OF APPLES, or APPLES IN A RAISED CRUST.

_(Sweet Entremets.)_

1391. INGREDIENTS.--3/4 lb. of short crust No. 1211 or 1212, 9 moderate-sized apples, the rind and juice of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 lb. of white sugar, 3/4 pint of water, a few strips of candied citron.

_Mode_.--Make a short crust by either of the above recipes; roll it out to the thickness of 1/2 inch, and b.u.t.ter an oval mould; line it with the crust, and press it carefully all round the sides, to obtain the form of the mould, but be particular not to break the paste. Pinch the part that just rises above the mould with the paste-pincers, and fill the case with flour; bake it for about 3/4 hour; then take it out of the oven, remove the flour, put the case back in the oven for another 1/4 hour, and do not allow it to get scorched. It is now ready for the apples, which should be prepared in the following manner: peel, and take out the cores with a small knife, or a cutter for the purpose, without dividing the apples; put them into a small lined saucepan, just capable of holding them, with sugar, water, lemon juice and rind, in the above proportion. Let them simmer very gently until tender; then take out the apples, let them cool, arrange them in the flanc or case, and boil down the syrup until reduced to a thick jelly; pour it over the apples, and garnish them with a few slices of candied citron.

1392. A MORE SIMPLE FLANC may be made by rolling out the paste, cutting the bottom of a round or oval shape, and then a narrow strip for the sides: these should be stuck on with the white of an egg, to the bottom piece, and the flanc then filled with raw fruit, with sufficient sugar to sweeten it nicely. It will not require so long baking as in a mould; but the crust must be made everywhere of an equal thickness, and so perfectly joined, that the juice does not escape. This dish may also be served hot, and should be garnished in the same manner, or a little melted apricot jam may be poured over the apples, which very much improves their flavour.

_Time_.--Altogether, 1 hour to bake the flanc from 30 to 40 minutes to stew the apples very gently.

_Average cost_, 1s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 1 entremets or side-dish.

_Seasonable_ from July to March.

APPLE FRITTERS.

1393. INGREDIENTS.--For the batter, 1/2 lb. of flour, 1/2 oz. of b.u.t.ter, 1/2 saltspoonful of salt, 2 eggs, milk, apples, hot lard or clarified beef-dripping.

_Mode_.--Break the eggs; separate the whites from the yolks, and beat them separately. Put the flour into a basin, stir in the b.u.t.ter, which should be melted to a cream; add the salt, and moisten with sufficient warm milk to make it of a proper consistency, that is to say, a batter that will drop from the spoon. Stir this well, rub down any lumps that may be seen, and add the whites of the eggs, which have been previously well whisked; beat up the batter for a few minutes, and it is ready for use. Now peel and cut the apples into rather thick whole slices, without dividing them, and stamp out the middle of each slice, where the core is, with a cutter. Throw the slices into the batter; have ready a pan of boiling lard or clarified dripping; take out the pieces of apple one by one, put them into the hot lard, and fry a nice brown, turning them--when required. When done, lay them on a piece of blotting-paper before the fire, to absorb the greasy moisture; then dish on a white d'oyley, piled one above the other; strew over them some pounded sugar, and serve very hot. The flavour of the fritters would be very much improved by soaking the pieces of apple in a little wine, mixed with sugar and lemon-juice, for 3 or 4 hours before wanted for table; the batter, also, is better for being mixed some hours before the fritters are made.

_Time_.--About 10 minutes to fry them; 5 minutes to drain them.

_Average cost_, 9d.

_Sufficient_ for 4 or 5 persons.

_Seasonable_ from July to March.

ICED APPLES, or APPLE HEDGEHOG.

1394. INGREDIENTS.--About 3 dozen good boiling apples, 1/2 lb. of sugar, 1/2 pint of water, the rind of 1/2 lemon minced very fine, the whites of 2 eggs, 3 tablespoonfuls of pounded sugar, a few sweet almonds.

_Mode_.--Peel and core a dozen of the apples without dividing them, and stew them very gently in a lined saucepan with 1/2 lb. of sugar and 1/2 pint of water, and when tender, lift them carefully on to a dish. Have ready the remainder of the apples pared, cored, and cut into thin slices; put them into the same syrup with the lemon-peel, and boil gently until they are reduced to a marmalade: they must be kept stirred, to prevent them from burning. Cover the bottom of a dish with some of the marmalade, and over that a layer of the stewed apples, in the insides of which, and between each, place some of the marmalade; then place another layer of apples, and fill up the cavities with marmalade as before, forming the whole into a raised oval shape. Whip the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, mix with them the pounded sugar, and cover the apples very smoothly all over with the icing; blanch and cut each almond into 4 or 5 strips; place these strips at equal distances over the icing sticking up; strew over a little rough pounded sugar, and place the dish in a very slow oven, to colour the almonds, and for the apples to get warm through. This entremets may also be served cold, and makes a pretty supper-dish.

_Time_.--From 20 to 30 minutes to stew the apples.

_Average cost_, 1s. 9d. to 2s.

_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons.

_Seasonable_ from July to March.

THICK APPLE JELLY OR MARMALADE, for Entremets or Dessert Dishes.

1395. INGREDIENTS.--Apples; to every lb. of pulp allow 3/4 lb. of sugar, 1/2 teaspoonful of minced lemon-peel.

[Ill.u.s.tration: APPLE JELLY STUCK WITH ALMONDS.]

_Mode_.--Peel, core, and boil the apples with only sufficient water to prevent them from burning; beat them to a pulp, and to every lb. of pulp allow the above proportion of sugar in lumps. Dip the lumps into water; put these into a saucepan, and boil till the syrup is thick and can be well skimmed; then add this syrup to the apple pulp, with the minced lemon-peel, and stir it over a quick fire for about 20 minutes, or until the apples cease to stick to the bottom of the pan. The jelly is then done, and may be poured into moulds which have been previously dipped in water, when it will turn out nicely for dessert or a side-dish; for the latter a little custard should be poured round, and it should be garnished with strips of citron or stuck with blanched almonds.

_Time_.--From 1/2 to 3/4 hour to reduce the apples to a pulp; 20 minutes to boil after the sugar is added.

_Sufficient._--1-1/2 lb. of apples sufficient for a small mould.

_Seasonable_ from July to March; but is best in September, October or November.

CLEAR APPLE JELLY.

1396. INGREDIENTS.--2 dozen apples, 1-1/2 pint of spring-water; to every pint of juice allow 1/2 lb. of loaf sugar, 1/2 oz. of isingla.s.s, the rind of 1/2 lemon.

_Mode_.--Pare, core, and cut the apples into quarters, and boil them, with the lemon-peel, until tender; then strain off the apples, and run the juice through a jelly-bag; put the strained juice, with the sugar and isingla.s.s, which has been previously boiled in 1/2 pint of water, into a lined saucepan or preserving-pan; boil all together for about 1/4 hour, and put the jelly into moulds. When this jelly is nice and clear, and turned out well, it makes a pretty addition to the supper-table, with a little custard or whipped cream round it: the addition of a little lemon-juice improves the flavour, but it is apt to render the jelly muddy and thick. If required to be kept any length of time, rather a larger proportion of sugar must be used.

_Time_.--From 1 to 1-1/2 hour to boil the apples; 1/4 hour the jelly.

_Average cost_, 1s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for a 1-1/2-pint mould.

_Seasonable_ from July to March.

A PRETTY DISH OF APPLES AND RICE.

1397. INGREDIENTS.--6 oz. of rice, 1 quart of milk, the rind of 1/2 lemon, sugar to taste, 1/2 saltspoonful of salt, 8 apples, 1/4 lb. of sugar, 1/4 pint of water, 1/2 pint of boiled custard No. 1423.

_Mode_.--Flavour the milk with lemon-rind, by boiling them together for a few minutes; then take out the peel, and put in the rice, with sufficient sugar to sweeten it nicely, and boil gently until the rice is quite soft; then let it cool. In the mean time pare, quarter, and core the apples, and boil them until tender in a syrup made with sugar and water in the above proportion; and, when soft, lift them out on a sieve to drain. Now put a middling-sized gallipot in the centre of a dish; lay the rice all round till the top of the gallipot is reached; smooth the rice with the back of a spoon, and stick the apples into it in rows, one row sloping to the right and the next to the left. Set it in the oven to colour the apples; then, when required for table, remove the gallipot, garnish the rice with preserved fruits, and pour in the middle sufficient custard, made by recipe No. 1423, to be level with the top of the rice, and serve hot.

_Time_.--From 20 to 30 minutes to stew the apples; 3/4 hour to simmer the rice; 1/4 hour to bake.