Part 200 (2/2)

The b.u.t.ter may be then dished, and garnished with a wreath of parsley, if for a cheese course; if for breakfast, put it into an ornamental b.u.t.ter-dish, with a little water at the bottom, should the weather be very warm.

CURLED b.u.t.tER.

1635. Tie a strong cloth by two of the corners to an iron hook in the wall; make a knot with the other two ends, so that a stick might pa.s.s through. Put the b.u.t.ter into the cloth; twist it tightly over a dish, into which the b.u.t.ter will fall through the knot, so forming small and pretty little strings. The b.u.t.ter may then be garnished with parsley, if to serve with a cheese course; or it may be sent to table plain for breakfast, in an ornamental dish. Squirted b.u.t.ter for garnis.h.i.+ng hams, salads, eggs, &c., is made by forming a piece of stiff paper in the shape of a cornet, and squeezing the b.u.t.ter in fine strings from the hole at the bottom. Scooped b.u.t.ter is made by dipping a teaspoon or scooper in warm water, and then scooping the b.u.t.ter quickly and thin. In warm weather, it would not be necessary to heat the spoon.

b.u.t.tER may be kept fresh for ten or twelve days by a very simple process. Knead it well in cold water till the b.u.t.termilk is extracted; then put it in a glazed jar, which invert in another, putting into the latter a sufficient quant.i.ty of water to exclude the air. Renew the water every day.

FAIRY b.u.t.tER.

1636. INGREDIENTS.--The yolks of 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1 tablespoonful of orange-flower water, 2 tablespoonfuls of pounded sugar, 1/4 lb. of good fresh b.u.t.ter.

_Mode_.--Beat the yolks of the eggs smoothly in a mortar, with the orange-flower water and the sugar, until the whole is reduced to a fine paste; add the b.u.t.ter, and force all through an old but clean cloth by wringing the cloth and squeezing the b.u.t.ter very hard. The b.u.t.ter will then drop on the plate in large and small pieces, according to the holes in the cloth. Plain b.u.t.ter may be done in the same manner, and is very quickly prepared, besides having a very good effect.

b.u.t.tER.--White-coloured b.u.t.ter is said not to be so good as the yellow; but the yellow colour is often artificially produced, by the introduction of colouring matter into the churn.

ANCHOVY b.u.t.tER.

1637. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of b.u.t.ter allow 6 anchovies, 1 small bunch of parsley.

_Mode_.--Wash, bone, and pound the anchovies well in a mortar; scald the parsley, chop it, and rub through a sieve; then pound all the ingredients together, mix well, and make the b.u.t.ter into pats immediately. This makes a pretty dish, if fancifully moulded, for breakfast or supper, and should be garnished with parsley.

_Average cost_, 1s. 8d.

_Sufficient_ to make 2 dishes, with 4 pats each.

_Seasonable_ at any time.

CHEESE.

1638. In families where much cheese is consumed, and it is bought in large quant.i.ties, a piece from the whole cheese should be cut, the larger quant.i.ty spread with a thickly-b.u.t.tered sheet of white paper, and the outside occasionally wiped. To keep cheeses moist that are in daily use, when they come from table a damp cloth should be wrapped round them, and the cheese put into a pan with a cover to it, in a cool but not very dry place. To ripen cheeses, and bring them forward, put them into a damp cellar; and, to check too large a production of mites, spirits may be poured into the parts affected. Pieces of cheese which are too near the rind, or too dry to put on table, may be made into Welsh rare-bits, or grated down and mixed with macaroni. Cheeses may be preserved in a perfect state for years, by covering them with parchment made pliable by soaking in water, or by rubbing them over with a coating of melted fat. The cheeses selected should be free from cracks or bruises of any kind.

CHEESE.--It is well known that some persons like cheese in a state of decay, and even ”alive.” There is no accounting for tastes, and it maybe hard to show why mould, which is vegetation, should not be eaten as well as salad, or maggots as well as eels. But, generally speaking, decomposing bodies are not wholesome eating, and the line must be drawn somewhere.

STILTON CHEESE.

[Ill.u.s.tration: STILTON CHEESE.]

1639. Stilton cheese, or British Parmesan, as it is sometimes called, is generally preferred to all other cheeses by those whose authority few will dispute. Those made in May or June are usually served at Christmas; or, to be in prime order, should be kept from 10 to 12 months, or even longer. An artificial ripeness in Stilton cheese is sometimes produced by inserting a small piece of decayed Ches.h.i.+re into an aperture at the top. From 3 weeks to a month is sufficient time to ripen the cheese. An additional flavour may also be obtained by scooping out a piece from the top, and pouring therein port, sherry, Madeira, or old ale, and letting the cheese absorb these for 2 or 3 weeks. But that cheese is the finest which is ripened without any artificial aid, is the opinion of those who are judges in these matters. In serving a Stilton cheese, the top of it should be cut off to form a lid, and a napkin or piece of white paper, with a frill at the top, pinned round. When the cheese goes from table, the lid should be replaced.

MODE OF SERVING CHEESE.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CHEESE-GLa.s.s.]

1640. The usual mode of serving cheese at good tables is to cut a small quant.i.ty of it into neat square pieces, and to put them into a gla.s.s cheese-dish, this dish being handed round. Should the cheese crumble much, of course this method is rather wasteful, and it may then be put on the table in the piece, and the host may cut from it. When served thus, the cheese must always be carefully sc.r.a.ped, and laid on a white d'oyley or napkin, neatly folded. Cream cheese is often served in a cheese course, and, sometimes, grated Parmesan: the latter should he put into a covered gla.s.s dish. Rusks, cheese-biscuits, pats or slices of b.u.t.ter, and salad, cuc.u.mber, or water-cresses, should always form part of a cheese course.

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