Part 54 (2/2)

Spartia.n.u.s, a Latin historian, tells us that, mixed with water, it was the drink of the soldiers, and that, thanks to this beverage, the veterans of the Roman army braved, by its use, the inclemency and variety of all the different seasons and climates of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is said, the Spanish peasantry, and other inhabitants of the southern parts of Europe, still follow this practice, and add to a gallon of water about a gill of wine vinegar, with a little salt; and that this drink, with a little bread, enables them, under the heat of their burning sun, to sustain the labours of the field.

INDIAN CHETNEY SAUCE.

452. INGREDIENTS.--8 oz. of sharp, sour apples, pared and cored; 8 oz.

of tomatoes, 8 oz. of salt, 8 oz. of brown, sugar, 8 oz. of stoned raisins, 4 oz. of cayenne, 4 oz. of powdered ginger, 2 oz. of garlic, 2 oz. of shalots, 3 quarts of vinegar, 1 quart of lemon-juice.

_Mode_.--Chop the apples in small square pieces, and add to them the other ingredients. Mix the whole well together, and put in a well-covered jar. Keep this in a warm place, and stir every day for a month, taking care to put on the lid after this operation; strain, but do not squeeze it dry; store it away in clean jars or bottles for use, and the liquor will serve as an excellent sauce for meat or fish.

_Seasonable_.--Make this sauce when tomatoes are in full season, that is, from the beginning of September to the end of October.

PICKLES.--The ancient Greeks and Romans held their pickles in high estimation. They consisted of flowers, herbs, roots, and vegetables, preserved in vinegar, and which were kept, for a long time, in cylindrical vases with wide mouths. Their cooks prepared pickles with the greatest care, and the various ingredients were macerated in oil, brine, and vinegar, with which they were often impregnated drop by drop. Meat, also, after having been cut into very small pieces, was treated in the same manner.

ITALIAN SAUCE (Brown).

453. INGREDIENTS.--A few chopped mushrooms and shalots, 1/2 pint of stock, No. 105, 1/2 gla.s.s of Madeira, the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 teaspoonful of pounded sugar, 1 teaspoonful of chopped parsley.

_Mode_.--Put the stock into a stewpan with the mushrooms, shalots, and Madeira, and stew gently for 1/4 hour, then add the remaining ingredients, and let them just boil. When the sauce is done enough, put it in another stewpan, and warm it in a _bain marie_. (_See_ No. 430.) The mushrooms should not be chopped long before they are wanted, as they will then become black.

_Time_.--1/4 hour. _Average cost_, for this quant.i.ty, 7d.

_Sufficient_ for a small dish.

ITALIAN SAUCE (White).

454. INGREDIENTS.--1/2 pint of white stock, No. 107; 2 tablespoonfuls of chopped mushrooms, 1 dessertspoonful of chopped shalots, 1 slice of ham, minced very fine; 1/4 pint of Bechamel, No. 367; salt to taste, a few drops of garlic vinegar, 1/2 teaspoonful of pounded sugar, a squeeze of lemon-juice.

_Mode_.--Put the shalots and mushrooms into a stewpan with the stock and ham, and simmer very gently for 1/2 hour, when add the Bechamel. Let it just boil up, and then strain it through a tammy; season with the above ingredients, and serve very hot. If this sauce should not have retained a nice white colour, a little cream may be added.

_Time_.--1/2 hour. _Average cost_, for this quant.i.ty, 10d.

_Sufficient_ for a moderate-sized dish.

_Note_.--To preserve the colour of the mushrooms after pickling, throw them into water to which a little lemon-juice has been added.

TO PICKLE LEMONS WITH THE PEEL ON.

455. INGREDIENTS.--6 lemons, 2 quarts of boiling water; to each quart of vinegar allow 1/2 oz. of cloves, 1/2 oz. of white pepper, 1 oz. of bruised ginger, 1/4 oz. of mace and chilies, 1 oz. of mustard-seed, 1/2 stick of sliced horseradish, a few cloves of garlic.

_Mode_.--Put the lemons into a brine that will bear an egg; let them remain in it 6 days, stirring them every day; have ready 2 quarts of boiling water, put in the lemons, and allow them to boil for 1/4 hour; take them out, and let them lie in a cloth until perfectly dry and cold.

Boil up sufficient vinegar to cover the lemons, with all the above ingredients, allowing the same proportion as stated to each quart of vinegar. Pack the lemons in a jar, pour over the vinegar, &c. boiling hot, and tie down with a bladder. They will be fit for use in about 12 months, or rather sooner.

_Seasonable_.--This should be made from November to April.

THE LEMON.--In the earlier ages of the world, the lemon does not appear to have been at all known, and the Romans only became acquainted with it at a very late period, and then only used it to keep moths from their garments. Its acidity would seem to have been unpleasant to them; and in Pliny's time, at the commencement of the Christian era, this fruit was hardly accepted, otherwise than as an excellent antidote against the effects of poison. Many anecdotes have been related concerning the anti-venomous properties of the lemon; Athenaeus, a Latin writer, telling us, that on one occasion, two men felt no effects from the bites of dangerous serpents, because they had previously eaten of this fruit.

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