Vaughan's Vegetable Cook Book Part 5

CREAM CHICORY.

Clean well and boil several heads of chicory, drain and cool; squeeze out the water from the chicory and mince it; melt some b.u.t.ter in a saucepan and cook until the moisture has evaporated; sprinkle with flour and add hot milk; boil up stirring all the time; season, and cook on back of the stove fifteen minutes; serve with croutons or bits of toast.

FRENCH RECIPE.

CHICORY SALAD.

Wash and shake well; select the white leaves and cut in one or two inch lengths. In the salad bowl mix the oil, salt and vinegar then add the chicory and mix vigorously with a wooden fork and spoon; add the vinegar sparingly--1-1/2 tablespoons of vinegar to 6 of oil. A crust of bread rubbed with garlic is usually added, but the bowl itself may be slightly rubbed with a cut clove.

FRENCH RECIPE.

CITRON PRESERVES.

Select sound fruit, pare and divide them into quarters, and cut each quarter into small pieces, take the seeds out carefully; the slices may be left plain or may be cut in fancy shapes, notching the edges nicely, weigh the citron, and to every pound of fruit allow a pound of sugar.

Boil in water with a small piece of alum until clear and tender; then rinse in cold water. Boil the weighed sugar in water and skim until the syrup is clear. Add the fruit, a little ginger root or a few slices of lemon, boil five minutes and fill hot jars. Seal tightly.

CITRON PUDDING.

Cream together half a cup of b.u.t.ter and one cup of sugar; add the well beaten yolks of five eggs, the juice and grated peel of one lemon, and whip until very light, then add the whites beaten to a froth alternately with two full cups of flour, through which must be sifted two even teaspoonfuls of baking powder. b.u.t.ter a mold lavishly, line it with strips of preserved citron, using a quarter of a pound for a pudding of this size, put in the batter, cover and set in a pan with boiling water in a good oven. Keep the pan nearly full of boiling water and bake steadily one and one half hours. Dip the mold in cold water, turn out upon a hot dish, and eat at once with any kind of sweet pudding sauce.

The mold must not be filled more than two thirds full, in order to give the pudding a chance to swell.

SWEET PICKLED CITRON.

One pound of sugar and one quart of vinegar (if too strong dilute with water) to every two pounds of citron. Boil the vinegar, sugar and spices together and skim well. Then add the citron and cook until about half done. Use spices to suit taste.

CORN CHOWDER.

Chop fine one-quarter pound of salt pork, put in a kettle, and when well tried out add two white onions sliced thin. Brown lightly, then add one pint of raw diced potatoes, one can of corn, chopped fine, and sufficient boiling water to cover. When the potatoes are tender stir in two tablespoonfuls of flour, blended with one of b.u.t.ter, one teaspoonful of salt and saltspoonful of white pepper and one quart of boiling milk.

Simmer five minutes longer, add one cupful of hard crackers, broken into bits, and serve.

MISS BEDFORD.

CHICKEN WITH CORN OYSTERS.

Clean and joint a chicken, one weighing about three pounds, as for frica.s.see. Wipe each piece with a damp cloth, dip in slightly beaten egg; then roll in seasoned fine bread crumbs. Arrange in a deep dish, and bake in a very hot oven for forty-five minutes, basting every ten minutes with melted b.u.t.ter. While the chicken is baking chop one cup full of cold boiled corn fine, add to it one beaten egg, one-quarter of a teaspoonful of salt, a dash of pepper, one tablespoonful of milk, two tablespoonfuls of flour and one-quarter of a teaspoonful of baking powder. Heat one tablespoonful of drippings in a pan, drop the batter in in spoonfuls, and brown quickly on both sides. Prepare a sauce with one tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter, blended with one of flour and one cupful of chicken stock (made from the neck and wing tips), one-half of a cupful of cream, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, a saltspoon of salt, one-quarter as much pepper and the yolks of two eggs. Do not add the eggs and cream until just before it is taken from the fire. Arrange on a warm, deep platter. Garnish with the corn oysters and sprigs of parsley.

Serve the sauce in a boat.

CHICAGO RECORD.

CREAM OF CORN.

Use one can of corn for one quart of soup. Crush it thoroughly with pestle or potato-masher to free the pulp from the tough outside coating; rub through a fine colander, then through a sieve. Add one teacupful of cream to the strained pulp and enough milk to make a quart altogether.

Put in a dash of cayenne pepper, a piece of b.u.t.ter the size of a filbert, and salt to taste--it requires a surprising amount of salt to bring out the flavor. Use a double boiler as it burns easily. Serve very hot stirring well before taking up.

MRS. THOMPSON.

GREEN CORN FRITTERS.

Cut the corn from three good sized ears and chop it slightly. Add one well beaten egg, one-half cup of milk, one tablespoonful of sugar, one-half teaspoonful of salt, one-quarter teaspoonful of pepper, and flour enough to make a thin batter. Put one teaspoonful of baking powder in the flour, fry to a golden brown in boiling fat.

CORN OMELET.

Take cold boiled corn and after cutting the grains through the middle, sc.r.a.pe it from the cob. Make a plain omelet, and have the corn with very little milk heating in a saucepan, seasoning to taste. When the omelet is ready to turn, put the corn by spoonfuls over half the top, and fold the omelet over. Serve at once.

GREEN CORN PUDDING.

Take one dozen ears of tender corn; grate them; then add one quart of sweet milk thickened with three tablespoonfuls of flour made free from lumps, a full tablespoonful of b.u.t.ter, four eggs, and pepper and salt to taste. b.u.t.ter an earthen baking dish and pour into it this mixture.

Bake one and one-half hours. This is to be served as a vegetable, though with the addition of sugar and a rich sauce it can be used as a dessert.

CORN SOUP.

Take three ears of corn, remove the corn from the cob and boil the cobs in three pints of soup stock or water very slowly one half hour. Remove the cobs, put in the corn and boil twenty minutes, then rub the corn through a sieve and add salt and pepper to taste. Boil up again and stir into the soup a tablespoonful of flour and b.u.t.ter mixed. When it thickens add one cupful of boiling milk. Let this new mixture come to a boil, add one well beaten egg and serve.

CORN VINEGAR.

Add to one gallon of rain water one pint of brown sugar or mola.s.ses and one pint of corn off the cob. Put into a jar, cover with a cloth, set in the sun, and in three weeks you will have good vinegar. Most people prefer it to cider vinegar.

CORN SALAD.

Corn salad makes a most refres.h.i.+ng salad in winter and spring as a subst.i.tute for lettuce. Serve with French dressing. It is also used as greens and is cooked like spinach.

CRESS.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Water cress has a pleasant and highly pungent flavor that makes it valuable as a salad or garniture. Tear water cress apart with the fingers and put them loosely in a bowl to clean; use cold water; break off the roots, do not use a knife; dress with salt, vinegar, and a little powdered sugar. Some send them to the table without any dressing and eat them with a little salt.

CUc.u.mBER AND CRESS SALAD.

Pare two cuc.u.mbers and cut them into quarters, lengthwise, then into half-inch pieces. Pick over, wash and drain a pint of fresh cress, and dry in a cloth. Add the cuc.u.mbers; mix and turn into the salad-bowl and pour over a French dressing, made by mixing together four tablespoonfuls of olive oil, one-quarter of a teaspoonful of salt, and the same of white pepper, then dropping in, while stirring quickly, one tablespoonful of tarragon or plain vinegar, or lemon juice.

CHICAGO RECORD.