The Virginia Housewife Part 10

TO DRESS DUCKS WITH JUICE OF ORANGES.

The ducks being singed, picked, and drawn, mince the livers with a little sc.r.a.ped bacon, some b.u.t.ter, green onions, sweet herbs and parsley, seasoned with salt, pepper, and mushrooms; these being all minced together, put them into the bodies of the ducks, and roast them, covered with slices of bacon, and wrapped up in paper; then put a little gravy, the juice of an orange, a few shallots minced, into a stew pan, and shake in a little pepper; when the ducks are roasted, take off the bacon, dish them, and pour your sauce with the juice of oranges over them, and serve them up hot.

TO DRESS DUCKS WITH ONIONS.

Stuff the ducks as before, cut the roots off small onions, blanch them in scalding water, then pick and put them into a stew pan with a little gravy, set them over a gentle fire, and let them simmer; when they are done, thicken them with cream and flour, and when the ducks are roasted, dish them, pour the ragout of onions over, and serve them up hot.

TO ROAST A CALF'S HEAD.

Wash and pick the head very nicely; having taken out the brains and tongue, prepare a good quant.i.ty of forced meat, with veal and suet well seasoned; fill the hole of the head with this forced meat, skewer and tie it together upon the spit, and roast it for an hour and a half. Beat up the brains with a little sage and parsley shred fine, a little salt, and the yelks of two or three eggs; boil the tongue, peel, and cut it into large dice, fry that with the brains, also some of the forced meat made up into b.a.l.l.s, and slices of bacon. Let the sauce be strong gravy, with oysters, mushrooms, capers, and a little white wine thickened.

TO MAKE A DISH OF CURRY AFTER THE EAST INDIAN MANNER.

Cut two chickens as for frica.s.see, wash them clean, and put them in a stew pan with as much water as will cover them; sprinkle them with a large spoonful of salt, and let them boil till tender, covered close all the time, and skim them well; when boiled enough, take up the chickens, and put the liquor of them into a pan, then put half a pound of fresh b.u.t.ter in the pan, and brown it a little; put into it two cloves of garlic, and a large onion sliced, and let these all fry till brown, often shaking the pan; then put in the chickens, and sprinkle over them two or three spoonsful of curry powder; then cover the pan close, and let the chickens do till brown, often shaking the pan; then put in the liquor the chickens were boiled in, and let all stew till tender; if acid is agreeable squeeze the juice of a lemon or orange in it.

DISH OF RICE TO BE SERVED UP WITH THE CURRY, IN A DISH BY ITSELF.

Take half a pound of rice, wash it clean in salt and water--then put it into two quarts of boiling water, and boil it briskly twenty minutes; strain it through a colander and shake it into a dish, but do not touch it with your fingers nor with a spoon.

Beef, veal, mutton, rabbits, fish, &c. may be curried and sent to table with or without the dish of rice.

Curry powder is used as a fine flavoured seasoning for fish, fowls, steaks, chops, veal cutlets, hashes, minces, alamodes, turtle soup, and in all rich dishes, gravies, sauce, &c. &c.

OCHRA AND TOMATOS.

Take an equal quant.i.ty of each, let the ochra be young, slice it, and skin the tomatos; put them into a pan without water, add a lump of b.u.t.ter, an onion chopped fine, some pepper and salt, and stew them one hour.

GUMBO--A WEST INDIA DISH.

Gather young pods of ochra, wash them clean, and put them in a pan with a little water, salt and pepper, stew them till tender, and serve them with melted b.u.t.ter. They are very nutritious, and easy of digestion.

PEPPER POT.

Boil two or three pounds of tripe, cut it in pieces, and put it on the fire with a knuckle of veal, and a sufficient quant.i.ty of water; part of a pod of pepper, a little spice, sweet herbs according to your taste, salt, and some dumplins; stew it till tender, and thicken the gravy with b.u.t.ter and flour.

SPANISH METHOD OF DRESSING GIBLETS.

Take the entrails of fat full grown fowls, empty them of their contents--open them with a sharp knife, sc.r.a.pe off the inner coat; wash them clean, and put them on to boil with the liver, gizzard, and other giblets; add salt, pepper, and chopped onion--when quite tender, set them by to cool; put some nice dripping or b.u.t.ter in a pan, when it boils put the giblets, add salt, fry them a nice brown; when nearly done, break six eggs in a bowl, beat them a little, pour them over the giblets, stir them for a few minutes, and serve them up.

PASTE FOR MEAT DUMPLINS.

Chop half a pound of suet very fine--add one and a quarter pound of flour, and a little salt--mix it up with half a pint of milk, knead it till it looks light; take a bowl of proper size, rub the inside with b.u.t.ter, roll out the paste and lay it in; parboil beef steaks, mutton-chops, or any kind of meat you like; season it and lay it in the bowl--fill it with rich gravy, close the paste over the top--get a very thick cloth that will keep out the water; wet and flour it, place it over the top of the bowl--gather it at bottom and tie it very securely; the water must boil when you put it in--when done, dip the top in cold water for a moment, that the cloth may not stick to the paste; untie and take it off carefully--put a dish on the bowl and turn it over--if properly made, it will come out without breaking; have gravy in a boat to eat with it.

TO MAKE AN OLLO--A SPANISH DISH.

Take two pounds beef, one pound mutton, a chicken, or half a pullet, and a small piece of pork; put them into a pot with very little water, and set it on the fire at ten o'clock, to stew gently; you must sprinkle over it an onion chopped small, some pepper and salt, before you pour in the water; at half after twelve, put into the pot two or three apples or pears, peeled and cut in two, tomatos with the skin taken off, cimblins cut in pieces, a handful of mint chopped, lima beans, snaps, and any kind of vegetable you like; let them all stew together till three o'clock; some cellery tops cut small, and added at half after two, will improve it much.

ROPA VEIJA--SPANISH.

Peel the skin from ripe tomatos, put them in a pan with a spoonful of melted b.u.t.ter, some pepper and salt, shred cold meat or fowl; put it in, and fry it sufficiently.

CHICKEN PUDDING, A FAVOURITE VIRGINIA DISH.

Beat ten eggs very light, add to them a quart of rich milk, with a quarter of a pound of b.u.t.ter melted, and some pepper and salt; stir in as much flour as will make a thin good batter; take four young chickens, and after cleaning them nicely, cut off the legs, wings, &c. put them all in a sauce pan, with some salt and water, and a bundle of thyme and parsley, boil them till nearly done, then take the chicken from the water and put it in the batter pour it in a dish, and bake it; send nice white gravy in a boat.

TO MAKE POLENTA.

Put a large spoonful of b.u.t.ter in a quart of water, wet your corn meal with cold water in a bowl, add some salt, and make it quite smooth, then put it in the b.u.t.tered water when it is hot, let it boil, stirring it continually till done; as soon as you can handle it, make it into a ball, and let it stand till quite cold--then cut it in thin slices, lay them in the bottom of a deep dish so as to cover it, put on it slices of cheese, and on that a few bits of b.u.t.ter; then mush, cheese and b.u.t.ter, until the dish is full; put on the top thin slices of cheese and b.u.t.ter, put the dish in a quick oven; twenty or thirty minutes will bake it.

MACARONI.

Boil as much macaroni as will fill your dish, in milk and water, till quite tender; drain it on a sieve sprinkle a little salt over it, put a layer in your dish then cheese and b.u.t.ter as in the polenta, and bike it in the same manner.

MOCK MACARONI.

Break some crackers in small pieces, soak them in milk until they are soft; then use them as a subst.i.tute for macaroni.