Part 5 (1/2)

155. =Baked Turnips.=--Pare six large yellow turnips, slice them, and boil them till tender in plenty of salted water; drain them, put them on a flat dish in layers, pour over them half a pint of _Bechamel_ sauce, dust them thickly with crumbs and grated Parmesan cheese; brown them in a quick oven, and serve hot.

156. =Glazed Onions.=--Pare three dozen b.u.t.ton onions, put them on a tin dish, pour over them a very little Spanish sauce or brown gravy, just enough to moisten them, season them with a teaspoonful of salt, and quarter of a saltspoonful of pepper; brown them in a quick oven, shaking them occasionally to color them equally; serve hot.

157. =Mushroom Pudding.=--Cleanse a quart of fresh mushrooms, cut them in small pieces, mix them with half a pound of minced ham or bacon, season them with a teaspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of pepper; spread them on a roly-poly crust made by mixing one pound of flour, half a pound of shortening, and a teaspoonful of salt, with about one pint of water: roll up the crust, tie it tightly in a floured cloth, and boil it about two hours in boiling stock, or salted water; serve hot with bread, or vegetables.

158. =Boiled Potatoes.=--Potatoes should be prepared for boiling by first carefully was.h.i.+ng them, removing the deep eyes or defective parts, and then paring off one ring all around the potato; place them in cold water with a little salt; when cooked, which will be in from twenty to thirty minutes, pour off all the water, cover them with a clean, coa.r.s.e towel, _leaving off the lid of the pot_, and set them on a hot brick on the back of the fire to steam. Potatoes treated in this way can be kept fresh, hot and mealy for hours. Medium-sized and smooth potatoes are the most economical to use, and the kind should be selected in reference to the season.

159. =Lyonnaise Potatoes.=--Chop two ounces of onion, and fry it pale yellow in two ounces of b.u.t.ter; meantime peel boiled potatoes, either hot or cold, cut them in slices, put them into the pan containing the onion and b.u.t.ter, season them with a teaspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of pepper, fry them pale brown, shaking the pan to prevent burning, and tossing it to brown them evenly; sprinkle with two tablespoonfuls of chopped parsley, and serve at once.

160. =Stuffed Potatoes.=--Wash twelve large potatoes with a brush; bake them _only until they begin to soften_; not more than half an hour; cut off one end, scoop out the inside with a teaspoon into a sauce-pan containing two ounces of b.u.t.ter, one saltspoonful of white pepper, one teaspoonful of salt, and two ounces of grated Parmesan cheese; stir all these ingredients over the fire until they are scalding hot; then fill the potato skins with the mixture, put on the ends, press the potatoes gently in shape, heat them in the oven, and serve them on a hot dish covered with a napkin, the potatoes being laid on the napkin. _Observe never to cover a baked potato unless you want it to be heavy and moist._

161. =Potato Snow.=--Peel a quart of white potatoes, and boil them as directed in receipt No. 158; drain them thoroughly, put them in a sieve over the dish in which they are to be served, and rub them through it with a potato masher, or a wooden spoon; do not stir them after they are put into the dish, and serve them hot.

162. =Bermuda or New Potatoes.=--Wash a quart of new potatoes thoroughly, put them into plenty of boiling water and salt, and boil them until tender enough to pierce easily with a fork; drain off the water, cover them with a towel, let them steam five minutes, and serve them in their jackets.

163. =Broiled Potatoes.=--Boil a quart of even sized potatoes until tender, but do not let them grow mealy; drain off the water, peel the potatoes, cut them in half inch slices, dip them in melted b.u.t.ter, and broil them over a moderate fire; serve hot, with a little b.u.t.ter melted.

164. =Saratoga Potatoes.=--Peel a quart of potatoes, cut them in very thin slices, and lay them in cold water and salt for an hour or more; then dry them on a towel, throw them into a deep kettle of smoking hot fat, and fry them light brown; take them out of the fat with a skimmer into a colander, scatter over them a teaspoonful of salt, shake them well about, and turn them on a platter to serve.

165. =Broiled Tomatoes.=--Wipe half a dozen large red tomatoes, cut them in half inch slices, dip them in melted b.u.t.ter, season them with salt and pepper, dip them in cracker crumbs, and broil them on an oiled gridiron over a moderate fire, being very careful not to break the slices in turning them. Serve them with chops for breakfast.

166. =Stuffed Tomatoes.=--Cut off the tops from eight or ten large smooth round tomatoes; scoop out the inside, and put it into a sauce-pan with quarter of a pound of sc.r.a.ps of ham, bacon or tongue minced fine, a saltspoonful of salt, two ounces of b.u.t.ter, half an ounce of chopped parsley, and four ounces of grated cheese and bread crumbs mixed; stir these ingredients over the fire until they are scalding hot, fill the tomato skins with this forcemeat, fit them neatly together, dust them with sifted bread crumbs, put over each a very little sweet oil to prevent burning, brown them in a quick oven, and serve them on a hot dish with their own gravy turned over them.

167. =Saratoga Onions.=--Slice half a dozen delicately flavored onions in small strips; drop them into plenty of smoking hot fat, fry them pale brown, and drain them for a moment in a colander. Serve hot for breakfast or lunch.

168. =Fried Beans.=--Fry two ounces of chopped onions in one ounce of b.u.t.ter until golden brown; put into them about a quart of cold boiled white beans, season them with a teaspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of pepper, moisten them with half a pint of any brown gravy, and serve them hot.

169. =Ham and Beans.=--Put into a sauce-pan two ounces of b.u.t.ter, half a saltspoonful each of salt and pepper, one quart of cold beans, and quarter of a pound of ham chopped fine; moisten these ingredients with a little gravy of any kind, heat them thoroughly, and serve at once.

170. =Kolcannon.=--Mince an ounce of onion, fry it pale yellow in one ounce of b.u.t.ter, add to it equal parts of cold boiled potatoes and cabbage, season with a teaspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of pepper, and fry for fifteen minutes; serve hot for breakfast or lunch.

171. =Carrot Stew.=--Clean, boil, and quarter three large carrots; cut the pieces in two; simmer them gently in milk enough to cover them, season with a teaspoonful of salt, and a saltspoonful of pepper; when they are quite tender take them off the fire long enough to stir in the raw yolk of an egg, return them to the fire two minutes to cook the egg, and serve them hot at once.

172. =Baked Mushrooms.=--Clean a quart of medium sized mushrooms, trim off the roots, dip them first in some _maitre d'hotel_ b.u.t.ter made of equal parts of chopped parsley, lemon juice, and sweet b.u.t.ter, then roll them in cracker or bread crumbs, lay them on a dish, and just brown them in a quick oven.

173. =Stuffed Lettuce.=--Choose four round firm heads of lettuce, first bring them to a boil in hot water and salt, drain them carefully, cut out the stalk end, fill the inside of the head with minced veal or chicken highly seasoned, lay them on a baking pan, put a tablespoonful of some brown gravy over each, and then bake in a moderate oven about fifteen minutes.

174. =Stewed Parsnips.=--Wash eight parsnips, carefully cut each in four pieces, boil them in plenty of water, until tender, from twenty minutes to an hour, according to the season; then drain off the water, make a layer of quarter of a pound of salt pork on the bottom of the pot, put the parsnips in again, and fry them until brown; serve the pork with them on a platter.

CHAPTER X.

CHEAP DISHES WITHOUT MEAT.

”Bread is the staff of life;” in all ages and countries farinaceous foods have formed the bulk of man's sustenance; under this general term we include macaroni, which contains more gluten than bread and consequently is more nouris.h.i.+ng, the different wheat flours, oat and barley meal, pearl barley, peas, beans, and lentils; the latter are the nearest article to meat in point of nourishment, containing heat-food in quant.i.ty nearly equal to wheat, and twice as much flesh food. Lentils have been used for food in older countries from time immemorial, and it is quite time that we should become acquainted with their merits; a lentil soup is given in the second chapter, and in this we append some excellent directions for cooking this invaluable food. One quart of lentils when cooked will make four pounds of hearty food. There are two varieties in market; the small flat brown seed, called lentils _a la reine_; and a larger kind, about the size of peas, and of a greenish color; both sorts are equally well flavored and nutritious. There is no reason why, with judicious seasoning, the ”dinner of herbs” should lack the gustatory enjoyment which is popularly supposed to belong to the repast furnished by the ”stalled ox;” especially if we are economical enough to save towards making it any pot-liquor, or cold meat gravy or drippings, which are left from a feast-day.

175. =Potato Soup.=--Slice six onions, fry them brown with two ounces of drippings, then add two ounces of flour and brown it; add four quarts of boiling water, and stir till the soup boils; season with a level tablespoonful of salt, half a saltspoonful of pepper; add one quart of potatoes peeled and cut fine, and boil all until they are tender; then stir in four ounces of oatmeal mixed smooth with a pint of cold water, and boil fifteen minutes; this soup should be stirred often enough to prevent burning; when it is nearly done mix together off the fire one ounce each of b.u.t.ter and flour, and stir them into the soup; when it boils up pa.s.s through a sieve with a wooden spoon, and serve hot with plenty of bread.