This species is of a distinctly different character from the Agaracini or gilled mushrooms. The cap is more solid, being filled with a ma.s.s of vertical tubes or pores. Some Boleti are as large as six to eight inches in diameter, one of them making a meal for several people. Any of this cla.s.s which have any tinge of red on the under surface should be rejected.
Remove the skin and pores, and either saute the caps in b.u.t.ter, or dip them in fritter batter, or egg and crumb them, and fry in smoking-hot fat. They may also be stewed in a white sauce, but they are very juicy, and need but little extra liquor. These mushrooms must be carefully examined for insects, as they are quickly attacked.
=PUFF b.a.l.l.s=
All are edible when gathered at the white stage. Cut them in slices one half inch thick. Either saute them in b.u.t.ter, or dip them in beaten egg, and fry in hot fat or cook on a griddle. Season with pepper and salt.
=MORCh.e.l.lae ESCULENTae=
These mushrooms resemble none but those of the same genus, and all of them are edible. They are hollow, the exterior resembles a honey-comb, and they are found in open woods and at the base of trees on lawns.
Great use is made of all the Morels in the French kitchen, and they are much prized by epicures.
Morels are usually stuffed with chicken, veal, or other meat, chopped very fine and highly seasoned. The stem is opened to admit the forcemeat, then pressed together again. Lay them on slices of bread, and bake in a moderate oven for ten minutes, or until tender; baste them with b.u.t.ter while cooking, and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Wash the Morels well before stuffing them.
=HYDNUM CAPUT MEDUSae=
Cut the fungus into pieces, and simmer it in a little water; season with b.u.t.ter, salt, and pepper, and add a little cream. When cooked, pour the mixture over croutons, or saute the pieces in b.u.t.ter; add a little sherry just before removing from the fire, and serve on softened toast.
=CLAVARIA=
Separate the branches, and stew in white sauce; or saute them in b.u.t.ter, seasoning with lemon-juice, salt, and pepper.
=TO DRY MUSHROOMS=
Place them in a saucepan, and cook with gentle heat until the moisture they give is evaporated; then place them on a hot shelf until they are thoroughly dry. Pound them to powder in a mortar, and place the powder in well-closed preserve jars.
=SCALLOPED MUSHROOMS=
Make a roux of one tablespoonful each of b.u.t.ter and flour. Add two cupfuls of chicken broth or of white stock; add the chopped stalks of a pint of mushrooms; reduce the sauce one half; add a tablespoonful of chopped parsley, pepper, and salt. Turn this sauce into a shallow baking-dish. Press into it as many mushrooms as will fit into the dish, placing them close together, with the gills up. Put a piece of b.u.t.ter on each one; sprinkle the top with crumbs, and place in the oven for five to eight minutes. Serve in the same dish.
=MUSHROOMS a LA POULETTE=
Stew the mushrooms in a little water with a tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter; season with pepper and salt. When ready to serve, add a little milk or cream; remove from the fire, and stir in the beaten yolks of two eggs; replace on the fire for a minute to thicken the eggs, and serve at once.
CHAPTER XIII
ASPIC JELLY, FANCY MOLDING, SUPPORTS
[Sidenote: Uses.]
Aspic is very useful in the preparation of cold dishes, and much care should be given to having it perfectly clear and well flavored. The second one of the two receipts given below is so simple that the most inexperienced cook can easily make it. With aspic, cold meats and salads can be made into most attractive dishes; and it is well worth while to learn and ornamenting with it. (See opposite pages 326, 328.)
=ASPIC=
1 fowl.
1 shin of beef.
1 knuckle of veal.
4 cloves.
1 bay-leaf.
2 onions.
1 carrot.
1 stock of celery.
1 turnip.
1/2 package c.o.x"s gelatine.
1 cupful of sherry or Madeira.
Put the chicken, beef, and veal in a pot. Cover them well with cold water, and let simmer for five or six hours, with the pot covered closely. An hour before removing from the fire, add the carrot cut into dice, the cloves, and bay-leaf. Fry in b.u.t.ter the onions and celery (cut into pieces) to a dark brown, and add them to the stock at the same time. Remove from the fire, strain, and add one half package of gelatine (which has been soaked for an hour in one cupful of water) and one cupful of sherry or Madeira. Stir until the gelatine is dissolved. Set away until the next day. There should be two quarts of jelly. If it is not solid enough to stand, more gelatine may be added at the time of clearing. Boiling down jelly will not make it more firm.
=TO CLEAR ASPIC=
Remove all the grease from the top of the jelly, and wipe it off with a cloth wet in hot water, so every particle of grease will be removed.
Stir into the cold jelly the beaten whites and the sh.e.l.ls of three eggs (do not froth the egg). Put it on the fire, and continue to stir until it boils. Let it boil for five minutes; then strain it through a double cloth. If not perfectly clear, strain it a second time. Let the jelly drain through the cloth without pressure.
=QUICK ASPIC=
Put into a saucepan one and a half cupfuls of cold water, a tablespoonful each of chopped carrot and celery, a slice of onion, sprig of parsley, one bay-leaf, and three cloves; add also one teaspoonful of beef extract (obtained in jars) dissolved in one cupful of hot water.
Cover, and let simmer for half an hour; then add one half box of c.o.x"s gelatine, which has been soaked in one half cupful of cold water for one hour. Stir until the gelatine is dissolved. Season with salt and pepper.
A tablespoonful of sherry improves the flavor. If a deeper color is wanted add a few drops of kitchen bouquet or of caramel. Strain through a double cloth. If it is for molding it can be used at once, as there is no grease to be removed. If for garnishing, turn it into a shallow pan to set. It can be stamped or cut into fancy shapes more easily if cooled in layers of the right thickness. Gelatine added to a good, clear consomme will give the same results. Observe always the proportion of one box, or one and a half ounces, of gelatine to one and a quarter quarts (five cupfuls) of liquor. This simple method of making aspic is very quick, and is entirely satisfactory.
=CHICKEN ASPIC OR JELLY=
Boil a fowl as directed for chicken stock (page 100), or boil a chicken or knuckle of veal, as directed for white stock (page 99). Let the stock cool, take off the grease, then clarify the stock. If veal has been used, no gelatine will be needed. If chicken only has been used in making the stock, add to each quart of hot clarified stock three quarters of a box of c.o.x"s gelatine which has been soaked one hour in a half cupful of cold water. Stir until the gelatine is dissolved. This will make a very clear, light-colored jelly, good for molding, salads, chicken, etc.
=ASPIC CROuTONS=
When jelly is to be used for garnishing, pour it into a square shallow pan one and a half inches deep. When it has thoroughly set, turn it onto a slightly dampened napkin spread on a board in a cool place. Dip a knife into hot water. Wipe it dry, and cut the jelly in strips the same width as the thickness of the jelly, then cut it straight across, making squares, or diagonally across, making diamonds, or into triangles. These croutons will stand upright, and can be used for borders. If it is to be laid flat on the dish the strips need be cut only one quarter of an inch thick, and can be stamped with cutters into fancy shapes. Small molds may also be used for getting fancy forms of aspic. (See ill.u.s.tration facing page 328.)
[Ill.u.s.tration: ASPIC CUT INTO ORNAMENTAL SHAPES FOR GARNISHING COLD DISHES.]
=TO CHOP JELLY=