Put the gelatine into the cold water and soak one hour. Put the boiling water, the sugar, and the sc.r.a.pings of the peel on the fire, and still till the sugar dissolves. Take it off the fire and stir in the gelatine, and mix till this is dissolved; when it is partly cool, turn in the lemon juice and strain through a flannel bag dipped in water and wrung dry. Put in a pretty mould.
Orange Jelly
Make this exactly as you did the lemon jelly, only instead of taking the juice of three lemons, take the juice of two oranges and one lemon, and sc.r.a.pe the orange peel instead of the lemon peel.
Whipped cream is nicer with either of these jellies.
Prune Jelly
Wash well a cup of prunes, and cover them with cold water and soak overnight. In the morning put them on the fire in the same water, and simmer till so tender that the stones will slip out. Cut each prune in two and sprinkle with sugar as you lay them in the mould; pour over them lemon jelly made by the recipe above, and put on ice.
Turn out on a pretty dish, and put whipped cream around.
Sometimes Margaret colored lemon jelly with red raspberry juice, and piled sugared raspberries around the mould. Lemon jelly is one of the best things to put things with; peaches may be used instead of prunes, in that rule, or strawberries, with plenty of sugar, or bits of pineapple.
Fruit Jelly
Make a plain lemon jelly, as before. Cut up very thin two oranges, one banana, six figs, and a handful of white grapes, which you have seeded, and sweeten them. Put in a mould and pour in the jelly; as it begins to grow firm you can gently lift the fruit from the bottom once or twice.
You can also fill the mould quite full of fruit, and make only half the jelly and pour over. Whipped cream is nice to eat with this.
Coffee Jelly
1/2 box of gelatine.
1/2 cup of cold water.
1 pint strong hot coffee.
3/4 cup sugar.
1/2 pint boiling water.
Put the gelatine in the cold water and soak two minutes, and pour over it the coffee, boiling hot. When it is dissolved, put in the sugar and boiling water and strain; put in little individual moulds, and turn out with whipped cream under each one. Or, set in a large mould, and have whipped cream around it.
Snow Pudding
1/2 box of gelatine.
1 pint of cold water.
3 eggs.
Juice of three lemons.
1/2 cup of powdered sugar.
Pour the water over the gelatine and let it stand ten minutes; then put the bowl over the fire and stir till it is dissolved, and take it off at once. As soon as it seems nearly cold, beat to a froth with the egg-beater. Beat the whites of the eggs stiffly, and add to the gelatine, with the lemon juice and sugar, and mix well.
Put in a mould and set on ice. Make a soft custard by the rule, and pour around the pudding when you serve it.
Velvet Cream
1/4 box of gelatine.
1 pint milk.
2 eggs.
3 tablespoonfuls of sugar.
Small teaspoonful of vanilla.
Put the gelatine in the milk and soak fifteen minutes; put on the stove and heat till it steams, but do not let it boil; stir carefully often, as there is danger of its burning. Beat the yolks of the eggs with the sugar, and put these in the custard, and cook till it all thickens and is smooth, but do not boil it. Strain, cool, and add the vanilla, and last fold in the beaten whites of the eggs, and put in a mould on the ice.
Preserved peaches laid around this are very nice, or rich pineapple, or apricot jam; or a ring of whipped cream, with bits of red jelly, make a pretty border.
Easy Charlotte Russe
1/4 box gelatine.
1/2 pint of milk.
1 pint thick cream.
1/2 cup powdered sugar.
1 small teaspoonful vanilla.
Put the gelatine in the milk and stand on the stove till the gelatine is dissolved, stirring often. Then take it off, and beat with the egg-beater till cold. Beat the cream with the egg-beater till perfectly stiff, put in the sugar and vanilla, and mix with the milk, and set on ice in a mould. When you wish to use it, turn out and put lady-fingers split in halves all around it.
PUDDING SAUCES
Orange Sauce
3 egg-whites.
1/2 cup powdered sugar.
Juice of 2 oranges.
Grated rind.
Beat the egg-whites very stiff, add the sugar, then the grated orange-peel, then the juice; beat up lightly and serve at once.
Delicious Maple Sauce
2 egg-yolks.
1/4 cup maple syrup.
1/2 cup whipped cream.
Beat the yolks very light, putting in a pinch of salt; put in the syrup and cook till the spoon coats over when you dip it in; then cool and beat in the whipped cream, and serve very cold.
Hard Sauce
Beat together a half-cup of powdered sugar and a half-cup of b.u.t.ter with a fork till both are light and creamy. Flavor with a teaspoonful of vanilla and put on the ice to harden.