WATERMELON PICKLE.
Ten pounds of watermelon rind boiled in pure water until tender; drain the water off, and make a syrup of two pounds of white sugar, one quart of vinegar, half an ounce of cloves, one ounce of cinnamon. The syrup to be poured over the rind boiling hot three days in succession.
SWEET PICKLE FOR FRUIT.
Most of the recipes for making a sweet pickle for fruit, such as cling-stone peaches, damsons, plums, cherries, apricots, etc., are so similar, that we give that which is most successfully used.
To every quart of fruit, allow a cup of white sugar and a large pint of good cider vinegar, adding half an ounce of _stick_ cinnamon, one tablespoonful of _whole_ cloves, the same of whole allspice. Let it come to a boil, and pour it hot over the fruit; repeat this two or three days in succession; then seal hot in gla.s.s jars if you wish to keep it for a long time.
The _fruit_, not the liquor, is to be eaten, and used the same as any pickle. Some confound this with "Spiced Fruit," which is not treated the same, one being a pickle, the other a spiced preserve boiled down thick.
Damsons and plums should be p.r.i.c.ked with a needle, and peaches washed with a weak lye, and then rubbed with a coa.r.s.e cloth to remove the fur.
PEAR PICKLE.
Select small, sound ones, remove the blossom end, stick them with a fork, allow to each quart of pears one pint of cider vinegar and one cup of sugar, put in a teaspoonful allspice, cinnamon and cloves to boil with the vinegar; then add the pears and boil, and seal in jars.
SPICED CURRANTS.
Seven pounds of fruit, four pounds of sugar, one pint of good cider vinegar, one tablespoonful of ground cinnamon, one teaspoonful of cloves. Put into a kettle and boil until the fruit is soft; then skim out the fruit, putting it on dishes until the syrup is boiled down thick. Turn the fruit back into the syrup again, so as to heat it all through; then seal it hot in gla.s.s jars, and set it in a cool, dark place.
Any tart fruit may be put up in this way, and is considered a very good embellishment for cold meats.
SPICED PLUMS.
Seven pounds of plums, one pint of _cider_ vinegar, four pounds of sugar, two tablespoonfuls of broken cinnamon bark, half as much of whole cloves and the same of broken nutmeg; place these in a muslin bag and simmer them in a little vinegar and water for half an hour; then add it all to the vinegar and sugar, and bring to a boil; add the plums and boil carefully until they are cooked tender. Before cooking the plums they should be pierced with a darning needle several times; this will prevent the skins bursting while cooking.
SPICED GRAPES.
Take the pulp from the grapes, preserving the skins. Boil the pulp and rub through a colander to get out the seeds; then add the skins to the strained pulp and boil with the sugar, vinegar and spices. To every seven pounds of grapes use four and one-half pounds of sugar, one pint of good vinegar. Spice quite highly with ground cloves and allspice, with a little cinnamon.
PICKLED CHERRIES.
Select sound, large cherries, as large as you can get them; to every quart of cherries allow a large cupful of vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, a dozen whole cloves, and half a dozen blades of mace; put the vinegar and sugar on to heat with the spices; boil five minutes, turn out into a covered stoneware vessel; cover and let it get perfectly cold; pack the cherries into jars, and pour the vinegar over them when cold; cork tightly and set away; they are fit for use almost immediately.
VEGETABLES.
Vegetables of all kinds should be thoroughly picked over, throwing out all decayed or unripe parts, then well washed in several waters. Most vegetables, when peeled, are better when laid in cold water a short time before cooking. When partly cooked a little salt should be thrown into the water in which they are boiled, and they should cook steadily after they are put on, not allowed to stop boiling or simmering until they are thoroughly done. Every sort of culinary vegetable is much better when freshly gathered and cooked as soon as possible, and, when done, thoroughly drained, and served immediately while hot.
Onions, cabbage, carrots and turnips should be cooked in a great deal of water, boiled only long enough to sufficiently cook them, and immediately drained. Longer boiling makes them insipid in taste, and with _too little_ water they turn a dark color.
Potatoes rank first in importance in the vegetable line, and consequently should be properly served. It requires some little intelligence to cook even so simple and common a dish as boiled potatoes. In the first place, all defective or green ones should be cast out; a bad one will flavor a whole dish. If they are not uniform in size, they should be made so by cutting after they are peeled. The best part of a potato, or the most nutritious, is next to the skin, therefore they should be pared very thinly, if at all; then, if old, the cores should be cut out, thrown into _cold_ water salted a little, and boiled until soft enough for a fork to pierce through easily; drain immediately, and replace the kettle on the fire with the cover partly removed, until they are completely dried. New potatoes should be put into boiling water, and when partly done salted a little. They should be prepared just in time for cooking by sc.r.a.ping off the thin outside skin. They require about twenty minutes to boil.
TO BOIL NEW POTATOES.
Do not have the potatoes dug long before they are dressed, as they are never good when they have been out of the ground for some time. Well wash them, rub off the skins with a coa.r.s.e cloth, and put them in _boiling_ water salted. Let them boil until tender; try them with a fork, and when done pour the water away from them; let them stand by the side of the fire with the lid of the saucepan partly removed, and when the potatoes are thoroughly dry, put them in a hot vegetable dish, with a piece of b.u.t.ter the size of a walnut; pile the potatoes over this and serve. If the potatoes are too old to have the skins rubbed off; boil them in their jackets; drain, peel and serve them as above, with a piece of b.u.t.ter placed in the midst of them. They require twenty to thirty minutes to cook. Serve them hot and plain, or with melted b.u.t.ter over them.
MASHED POTATOES.
Take the quant.i.ty needed, pare off the skins and lay them in cold water half an hour; then put them into a saucepan with a little salt; cover with water and boil them until done. Drain off the water and mash them fine with a potato masher. Have ready a piece of b.u.t.ter the size of an egg, melted in half a cup of boiling hot milk and a good pinch of salt; mix it well with the mashed potatoes until they are a smooth paste, taking care that they are not too wet. Put them into a vegetable dish, heaping them up and smooth over the top, put a small piece of b.u.t.ter on the top in the centre, and have dots of pepper here and there on the surface as large as a half dime.
Some prefer using a heavy fork or wire beater, instead of a potato masher, beating the potatoes quite light and heaping them up in the dish without smoothing over the top.
BROWNED POTATOES.
Mash them the same as the above, put them into a dish that they are to be served in, smooth over the top and brush over with the yolk of an egg, or spread on a bountiful supply of b.u.t.ter and dust well with flour. Set in the oven to brown; it will brown in fifteen minutes with a quick fire.
MASHED POTATOES. (Warmed Over.)
To two cupfuls of cold mashed potatoes add a half cupful of milk, a pinch of salt, a tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter, two tablespoonfuls of flour and two eggs beaten to a froth. Mix the whole until thoroughly light; then put into a pudding or vegetable dish, spread a little b.u.t.ter over the top and bake a golden brown. The quality depends upon very thoroughly beating the eggs before adding them, so that the potato will remain light and porous after baking, similar to sponge cake.
POTATO PUFFS.
Prepare the potatoes as directed for mashed potato. While _hot_, shape in b.a.l.l.s about the size of an egg. Have a tin sheet well b.u.t.tered, and place the b.a.l.l.s on it. As soon as all are done, brush over with beaten egg. Brown in the oven. When done, slip a knife under them and slide them upon a hot platter. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.
POTATOES a LA CReME.
Heat a cupful of milk; stir in a heaping tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter cut up in as much flour. Stir until smooth and thick; pepper and salt, and add two cupfuls of cold boiled potatoes, sliced, and a little very finely chopped parsley. Shake over the fire until the potatoes are hot all through, and pour into a deep dish.
NEW POTATOES AND CREAM.
Wash and rub new potatoes with a coa.r.s.e cloth or scrubbing-brush; drop into boiling water and boil briskly until done, and no more; press a potato against the side of the kettle with a fork; if done, it will yield to a gentle pressure; in a saucepan have ready some b.u.t.ter and cream, hot, but not boiling, a little green parsley, pepper and salt; drain the potatoes, add the mixture, put over hot water for a minute or two, and serve.
SARATOGA CHIPS.
Peel good-sized potatoes, and slice them as evenly as possible. Drop them into ice-water; have a kettle of very hot lard, as for cakes; put a few at a time into a towel and shake, to dry the moisture out of them, and then drop them into the boiling lard. Stir them occasionally, and when of a light brown take them out with a skimmer, and they will be crisp and not greasy. Sprinkle salt over them while hot.
FRIED RAW POTATOES.
Peel half a dozen medium-sized potatoes very evenly, cut them in slices as thin as an egg-sh.e.l.l, and be sure to cut them from the _breadth_, not the length, of the potato. Put a tablespoonful each of b.u.t.ter and sweet lard into the frying pan, and as soon as it boils add the sliced potatoes, sprinkling over them salt and pepper to season them. Cover them with a tight-fitting lid, and let the steam partly cook them; then remove it, and let them fry a bright gold color, shaking and turning them carefully, so as to brown equally. Serve very hot.