_Seasonable_ from May to October.
_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.
_Note_.--Force-meat b.a.l.l.s can be added, and the soup may be flavoured with a little lemon-juice, or a gla.s.s of sherry or Madeira. The bones from the head may be stewed down again, with a few fresh vegetables, and it will make a very good common stock.
GIBLET SOUP.
168. INGREDIENTS.--3 sets of goose or duck giblets, 2 lbs. of shin of beef, a few bones, 1 ox-tail, 2 mutton-shanks, 2 large onions, 2 carrots, 1 large f.a.ggot of herbs, salt and pepper to taste, 1/4 pint of cream, 1 oz. of b.u.t.ter mixed with a dessert-spoonful of flour, 3 quarts of water.
_Mode_.--Scald the giblets, cut the gizzards in 8 pieces, and put them in a stewpan with the beef, bones, ox-tail, mutton-shanks, onions, herbs, pepper, and salt; add the 3 quarts of water, and simmer till the giblets are tender, taking care to skim well. When the giblets are done, take them out, put them in your tureen, strain the soup through a sieve, add the cream and b.u.t.ter, mixed with a dessert-spoonful of flour, boil it up a few minutes, and pour it over the giblets. It can be flavoured with port wine and a little mushroom ketchup, instead of cream. Add salt to taste.
_Time_.--3 hours. _Average cost_,9d. per quart.
_Seasonable_ all the year.
_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.
GRAVY SOUP.
169. INGREDIENTS.--6 lbs. of shin of beef, a knuckle of veal weighing 5 lbs., a few pieces or tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs, 2 slices of nicely-flavoured lean, ham; 1/4 lb. of b.u.t.ter, 2 onions, 2 carrots, 1 turnip, nearly a head of celery, 1 blade of mace, 6 cloves, a hunch of savoury herb with endive, seasoning of salt and pepper to taste, 3 lumps of sugar, 5 quarts of boiling soft water. It can be flavoured with ketchup, Leamington sauce (_see_ SAUCES), Harvey"s sauce, and a little soy.
_Mode_.--Slightly brown the meat and ham in the b.u.t.ter, but do not let them burn. When this is done, pour to it the water, and as the sc.u.m rises, take it off; when no more appears, add all the other ingredients, and let the soup simmer slowly by the fire for 6 hours without stirring it any more from the bottom; take it off, and let it settle; skim off all the fat you can, and pa.s.s it through a tammy. When perfectly cold, you can remove all the fat, and leave the sediment untouched, which serves very nicely for thick gravies, hashes, &c.
_Time_.--7 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. per quart.
_Seasonable_ all the year.
_Sufficient_ for 14 persons.
ENDIVE.--This plant belongs to the acetarious tribe of vegetables, and is supposed to have originally come from China and j.a.pan. It was known to the ancients; but was not introduced to England till about the middle of the 16th century. It is consumed in large quant.i.ties by the French, and in London,--in the neighbourhood of which it is grown in abundance;--it is greatly used as a winter salad, as well as in soups and stews.
HARE SOUP.
I.
170. INGREDIENTS.--A hare fresh-killed, 1 lb. of lean gravy-beef, a slice of ham, 1 carrot, 2 onions, a f.a.ggot of savoury herbs, 1/4 oz. of whole black pepper, a little browned flour, 1/4 pint of port wine, the crumb of two French rolls, salt and cayenne to taste, 3 quarts of water.
_Mode_.--Skin and paunch the hare, saving the liver and as much blood as possible. Cut it in pieces, and put it in a stewpan with all the ingredients, and simmer gently for 8 hours. This soup should be made the day before it is wanted. Strain through a sieve, put the best parts of the hare in the soup, and serve.
OR,
II.
Proceed as above; but, instead of putting the joints of the hare in the soup, pick the meat from the bones, pound it in a mortar, and add it, with the crumb of two French rolls, to the soup. Rub all through a sieve; heat slowly, but do not let it boil. Send it to table immediately.
_Time_.-8 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 9d. per quart.
_Seasonable_ from September to February.
_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.
[Ill.u.s.tration: HARE.]
THE COMMON HARE.--This little animal is found throughout Europe, and, indeed, in most of the northern parts of the world; and as it is dest.i.tute of natural weapons of defence, Providence has endowed it with an extraordinary amount of the pa.s.sion of fear.
As if to awaken the vigilance of this pa.s.sion, too, He has furnished it with long and tubular ears, in order that it may catch the remotest sounds; and with full, prominent eyes, which enable it to see, at one and the same time, both before and behind it. The hare feeds in the evenings, and sleeps, in its form, during the day; and, as it generally lies on the ground, its feet, both below and above, are protected with a thick covering of hair. Its flesh, though esteemed by the Romans, was forbidden by the Druids and by the earlier Britons. It is now, though very dark and dry, and devoid of fat, much esteemed by Europeans, on account of the peculiarity of its flavour. In purchasing this animal, it ought to be remembered that both hares and rabbits, when old, have their claws rugged and blunt, their haunches thick, and their ears dry and tough. The ears of a young hare easily tear, and it has a narrow cleft in the lip; whilst its claws are both smooth and sharp.
HESSIAN SOUP.
171. INGREDIENTS.--Half an ox"s head, 1 pint of split peas, 3 carrots, 6 turnips, 6 potatoes, 6 onions, 1 head of celery, 1 bunch of savoury herbs, pepper and salt to taste, 2 blades of mace, a little allspice, 4 cloves, the crumb of a French roll, 6 quarts of water.
_Mode_.--Clean the head, rub it with salt and water, and soak it for 5 hours in warm water. Simmer it in the water till tender, put it into a pan and let it cool; skim off all the fat; take out the head, and add the vegetables cut up small, and the peas which have been previously soaked; simmer them without the meat, till they are done enough to pulp through a sieve. Add the seasoning, with pieces of the meat cut up; give one boil, and serve.
_Time_.--4 hours. _Average cost_, 6d. per quart.
_Seasonable_ in winter.
_Sufficient_ for 16 persons.
_Note_.--An excellent hash or _ragot_ can be made by cutting up the nicest parts of the head, thickening and seasoning more highly a little of the soup, and adding a gla.s.s of port wine and 2 tablespoonfuls of ketchup.
MOCK TURTLE.
I.
172. INGREDIENTS.--1/2 a calf"s head, 1/4 lb. of b.u.t.ter, 1/4 lb. of lean ham, 2 tablespoonfuls of minced parsley, a little minced lemon thyme, sweet marjoram, basil, 2 onions, a few chopped mushrooms (when obtainable), 2 shallots, 2 tablespoonfuls of flour, 1/4 bottle of Madeira or sherry, force-meat b.a.l.l.s, cayenne, salt and mace to taste, the juice of 1 lemon and 1 Seville orange, 1 dessert-spoonful of pounded sugar, 3 quarts of best stock, No. 104.
_Mode_.--Scald the head with the skin on, remove the brain, tie the head up in a cloth, and let it boil for 1 hour. Then take the meat from the bones, cut it into small square pieces, and throw them into cold water.
Now take the meat, put it into a stewpan, and cover with stock; let it boil gently for an hour, or rather more, if not quite tender, and set it on one side. Melt the b.u.t.ter in another stewpan, and add the ham, cut small, with the herbs, parsley, onions, shallots, mushrooms, and nearly a pint of stock; let these simmer slowly for 2 hours, and then dredge in as much flour as will dry up the b.u.t.ter. Fill up with the remainder of the stock, add the wine, let it stew gently for 10 minutes, rub it through a tammy, and put it to the calf"s head; season with cayenne, and, if required, a little salt; add the juice of the orange and lemon; and when liked, 1/4 teaspoonful of pounded mace, and the sugar. Put in the force-meat b.a.l.l.s, simmer 5 minutes, and serve very hot.
_Time_.--4-1/2 hours. _Average cost_, 3s. 6d. per quart, or 2s. 6d.
without wine or force-meat b.a.l.l.s.
_Seasonable_ in winter.
_Sufficient_ for 10 persons.
_Note_.--The bones of the head should be well stewed in the liquor it was first boiled in, and will make good white stock, flavoured with vegetables, etc.
II.
(_More Economical_.)
173. INGREDIENTS.--A knuckle of veal weighing 5 or 6 lbs., 2 cow-heels, 2 large onions stuck with cloves, 1 bunch of sweet herbs, 3 blades of mace, salt to taste, 12 peppercorns, 1 gla.s.s of sherry, 24 force-meat b.a.l.l.s, a little lemon-juice, 4 quarts of water.