English Housewifery Part 17

Take a handful of sweet herbs, a few breadcrumbs, a little beef-suet shred fine, and two eggs, (leave out the whites) mix altogether with a little nutmeg, pepper and salt; stuff your kidney with one part of the stuffing, and fry the other part in little cakes; so serve it up.

298. _To stew_ CUc.u.mBERS.

Take middling cuc.u.mbers and cut them in slices, but not too thin, strow over them a little salt to bring out the water, put them into a stew-pan or sauce-pan, with a little gravy, some whole pepper, a lump of b.u.t.ter, and a spoonful or two of vinegar to your taste; let them boil all together; thicken them with flour, and serve them up with sippets.

299. _To make an_ OATMEAL PUDDING.

Take three or four large spoonfuls of oatmeal done through a hair-sieve, and a pint of milk, put it into a pan and let it boil a little whilst it be thick, add to it half a pound of b.u.t.ter, a spoonful of rose-water, a little lemon-peel shred, a little nutmeg, or beaten cinnamon, and a little salt; take six eggs, (leave out two of the whites) and put to them a quarter of a pound of sugar or better, beat them very well, so mix them all together; put it into your dish with a paste round your dish edge; have a little rose-water, b.u.t.ter and sugar for sauce.

300. _To make a_ CALF'S HEAD PIE _another Way_.

Half boil your calf's head, when it is cold cut it in slices, rather thicker than you would do for has.h.i.+ng, season it with a little mace, nutmeg, pepper and salt, lie part of your meat in the bottom of your pie, a layer of one and a layer of another; then put in half a pound of b.u.t.ter and a little gravy; when your pie comes from the oven, have ready the yolks of six or eight eggs boiled hard, and lie them round your pie; put in a little melted b.u.t.ter, and a spoonful or two of white wine, and give them a shake together before you lie in your eggs; your pie must be a standing pie baked upon a dish, with a puff-paste round the edge of the dish, but leave no paste in the bottom of your pie; when it is baked serve it up without a lid.

This is proper for either top or bottom dish.

301. _To make_ ELDER WINE.

Take twenty pounds of malaga raisins, pick and chop them, then put them into a tub with twenty quarts of water, let the water be boiled and stand till it be cold again before you put in your raisins, let them remain together ten days, stirring it twice a day, then strain the liquor very well from the raisins, through a canvas strainer or hair-sieve; add to it six quarts of elder juice, five pounds of loaf sugar, and a little juice of sloes to make it acid, just as you please; put it into a vessel, and let it stand in a pretty warm place three months, then bottle it; the vessel must not be stopp'd up till it has done working; if your raisins be very good you may leave out the sugar.

302. _To make_ GOOSEBERRY WINE _of ripe_ GOOSEBERRIES.

Pick, clean and beat your gooseberries in a marble mortar or wooden bowl, measure them in quarts up-heap'd, add two quarts of spring water, and let them stand all night or twelve hours, then rub or press out the husks very well, strain them through a wide strainer, and to every gallon put three pounds of sugar, and a jill of brandy, then put all into a sweet vessel, not very full, and keep it very close for four months, then decant it off till it comes clear, pour out the grounds, and wash the vessel clean with a little of the wine; add to every gallon a pound more sugar, let it stand a month in a vessel again, drop the grounds thro' a flannel bag, and put it to the other in the vessel; the tap hole must not be over near the bottom of the cask, for fear of letting out the grounds.

The same receipt will serve for curran wine the same way; let them be red currans.

303. _To make_ BALM WINE.

Take a peck of balm leaves, put them in a tub or large pot, heat four gallons of water scalding hot, ready to boil, then pour it upon the leaves, so let it stand all night, then strain them thro' a hair-sieve; put to every gallon of water two pounds of fine sugar, and stir it very well; take the whites of four or five eggs, beat them very well, put them into a pan, and whisk it very well before it be over hot, when the skim begins to rise take it off, and keep it skimming all the while it is boiling, let it boil three quarters of an hour, then put it into the tub, when it is cold put a little new yeast upon it, and beat it in every two hours, that it may head the better, so work it for two days, then put it into a sweet rundlet, bung it up close, and when it is fine bottle it.

304. _To make_ RAISIN WINE.

Take ten gallons of water, and fifty pounds of malaga raisins, pick out the large stalks and boil them in your water, when your water is boiled, put it into a tub; take the raisins and chop them very small, when your water is blood warm, put in your raisins, and rub them very well with your hand; when you put them into the water, let them work for ten days, stirring them twice a day, then strain out the raisins in a hair-sieve, and put them into a clean harden bag, and squeeze it in the press to take out the liquor, so put it into your barrel; don't let it be over full, bung it up close, and let it stand whilst it is fine; when you tap your wine you must not tap it too near the bottom, for fear of the grounds; when it is drawn off, take the grounds out of the barrel, and wash it out with a little of your wine, then put your wine into the barrel again, draw your grounds thro' a flannel bag, and put them into the barrel to the rest; add to it two pounds of loaf sugar, then bung it up, and let it stand a week or ten days; if it be very sweet to your taste, let it stand some time longer, and bottle it.

305. _To make_ BIRCH WINE.

Take your birch water and boil it, clear it with whites of eggs; to every gallon of water take two pounds and a half of fine sugar, boil it three quarters of an hour, and when it is almost cold, put in a little yeast, work it two or three days, then put it into the barrel, and to every five gallons put in a quart of brandy, and half a pound of ston'd raisins; before you put up your wine burn a brimstone match in the barrel.

306. _To make_ WHITE CURRAN WINE.

Take the largest white currans you can get, strip and break them in your hand, whilst you break all the berries; to every quart of pulp take a quart of water, let the water be boiled and cold again, mix them well together, let them stand all night in your tub, then strain them thro' a hair-sieve, and to every gallon put two pounds and a half of six-penny sugar; when your sugar is dissolved, put it into your barrel, dissolve a little isingla.s.s, whisk it with whites of eggs, and put it in; to every four gallons put in a quart of mountain wine, so bung up your barrel; when it is fine draw it off, and take off the grounds, (but don't tap the barrel over low at the bottom) wash out the barrel with a little of your wine, and drop the grounds thro' a bag, then put it to the rest of your wine, and put it all into your barrel again, to every gallon add half a pound more sugar, and let it stand another week or two; if it be too sweet let it stand a little longer, then bottle it, and it will keep two or three years.

307. _To make_ ORANGE ALE.

Take forty seville oranges, pare and cut them in slices, the best coloured seville you can get, put them all with the juice and seeds into half a hogshead of ale; when it is tunned up and working, put in the oranges, and at the same time a pound and a half of raisins of the sun stoned; when it has done working close up the bung, and it will be ready to drink in a month.

308. _To make_ ORANGE BRANDY.

Take a quart of brandy, the peels of eight oranges thin pared, keep them in the brandy forty-eight hours in a close pitcher, then take three pints of water, put into it three quarters of a pound of loaf sugar, boil it till half be consumed, and let it stand till cold, then mix it with the brandy.

309. _To make_ ORANGE WINE.

Take six gallons of water and fifteen pounds of powder sugar, the whites of six eggs well beaten, boil them three quarters of an hour, and skim them while any skim will rise; when it is cold enough for working, put to it six ounces of the syrrup of citron or lemons, and six spoonfuls of yeast, beat the syrrup and yeast well together, and put in the peel and juice of fifty oranges, work it two days and a night, then tun it up into a barrel, so bottle it at three or four months old.

310. _To make_ COWSLIP WINE.

Take ten gallons of water, when it is almost at boiling, add to it twenty one pounds of fine powder sugar, let it boil half an hour, and skim it very clean; when it is boiled put it in a tub, let it stand till you think it cold to set on the yeast; take a poringer of new yeast off the fat, and put to it a few cowslips; when you put on the yeast, put in a few every time it is stirred, till all the cowslips be in, which must be six pecks, and let it work three or four days; add to it six lemons, cut off the peel, and the insides put into your barrel, then add to it a pint of brandy; when you think it has done working, close up your vessel, let it stand a month, and then bottle it; you may let your cowslips lie a week or ten days to dry before you make your wine, for it makes it much finer; you may put in a pint of white wine that is good, instead of the brandy.

311. _To make_ ORANGE WINE _another Way_.

Take six gallons of water, and fifteen pounds of sugar, put your sugar into the water on the fire, the whites of six eggs, well beaten, and whisk them into the water, when it is cold skim it very well whilst any skim rises, and let it boil for half an hour; take fifty oranges, pare them very thin, put them into your tub, pour the water boiling hot upon your oranges, and when it is bloodwarm put on the yeast, then put in your juice, let it work two days, and so tun it into your barrel; at six weeks or two months old bottle it; you may put to it in the barrel a quart of brandy.

312. _To make_ BIRCH WINE _another Way_.

To a gallon of birch water put two pounds of loaf or very fine lump sugar, when you put it into the pan whisk the whites of four eggs; (four whites will serve for four gallons) whisk them very well together before it be boiled, when it is cold put on a little yeast, let it work a night and a day in the tub, before you put it into your barrel put in a brimstone match burning; take two pounds of isingla.s.s cut in little bits, put to it a little of your wine, let it stand within the air of the fire all night; takes the whites of two eggs, beat it with your isingla.s.s, put them into your barrel and stir them about with a stick; this quant.i.ty will do for four gallons; to four gallons you must have two pounds of raisins shred, put them into your barrel, close it up, but not too close at the first, when it is fine, bottle it.

313. _To make_ APRIc.o.c.k WINE.

Take twelve pounds of apric.o.c.ks when full ripe, stone and pare them, put the paring into three gallons of water, with six pounds of powder sugar, boil them together half an hour, skim them well, and when it is blood-warm put it on the fruit; it must be well bruised, cover it close, and let it stand three days; skim it every day as the skim rises, and put it thro' a hair sieve, adding a pound of loaf sugar; when you put it into the vessel close it up, and when it is fine bottle it.

314. _To make_ ORANGE SHRUB.

Take seville oranges when they are full ripe, to three dozen of oranges put half a dozen of large lemons, pare them very thin, the thinner the better, squeeze the lemons and oranges together, strain the juice thro'

a hair sieve, to a quart of the juice put a pound and a quarter of loaf sugar; about three dozen of oranges (if they be good) will make a quart of juice, to every quart of juice, put a gallon of brandy, put it into a little barrel with an open bung with all the chippings of your oranges, and bung it up close; when it is fine bottle it.

This is a pleasant dram, and ready for punch all the year.

315. _To make_ STRONG MEAD.

Take twelve gallons of water, eight pounds of sugar, two quarts of honey, and a few cloves, when your pan boils take the whites of eight or ten eggs, beat them very well, put them into your water before it be hot, and whisk them very well together; do not let it boil but skim it as it rises till it has done rising, then put it into your tub; when it is about blood warm put to it three spoonfuls of new yeast; take eight or nine lemons, pare them and squeeze out the juice, put them both together into your tub, and let them work two or three days, then put it into your barrel, but it must not be too full; take two or three pennyworth of isingla.s.s, cut as small as you can, beat it in a mortar about a quarter of an hour, it will not make it small; but that it may dissolve sooner, draw out a little of the mead into a quart mug, and let it stand within the air of the fire all night; take the whites of three eggs, beat them very well, mix them with your isinglas, whisk them together, and put them into your barrel, bung it up, and when it is fine bottle it.