A Book of Fruits and Flowers Part 1

A Book of Fruits and Flowers.

by Anonymous.

Of Lemmons.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Lemmon.]

_A Lemmon Sallet._

Take Lemmons, rub them upon a Grate, to make their rinds smooth, cut them in halves, take out the meat of them, and boyle them in faire water a good while, changing the water once or twice in the boyling, to take away the bitternesse of them, when they are tender take them out and sc.r.a.pe away all the meat (if any be left) very cleane, then cut them as thin as you can (to make them hold) in a long string, or in reasonable short pieces, and lay them in your gla.s.se, and boyling some of the best _White_-wine vineger with shugar, to a reasonable thin Syrupe, powre it upon them into your gla.s.se, and keep them for your use.

_To Preserve Oranges or Lemmons_.

Take your _Oranges_ or _Lemmons_, lay them in water three dayes, and three nights, to take away their bitternesse, then boyle them in faire water till they be tender, make as much Syrupe for them as will make them swim about the pan, let them not boyle too long therein, for it will make the skins tough; then let them lie all night in the Syrupe, to make them take the Syrupe in the morning, boyle the Syrupe to his thicknesse, and put them in gally pots or gla.s.ses, to keep all the yeare, and this is the best way to Preserve _Orenges, Lemmons_, or _Citrons_.

_To make Past of Lemmons_.

Take halfe a dozen of thick-rined _Lemmons_, cut them through the middest, and boyle them tender in faire water, then stamp them in a Morter, strayne the juyce or pulp from them, and dry it, and put two pound of _Shugar_ to it, then make it into what fas.h.i.+on you will, on a sheet of white paper, dry it in an Oven, and turne it often for two dayes and two nights, for in that time it will be dry enough; box it thus up, and it will endure all the Yeare.

_Sweet Bagges to lay amongst Linnen_.

Take _Orris, Cypris, Calamus, Fusis_, all of them grosse beaten, and _Gallingall_ roots, of each a handfull, and as much of the small tops of _Lavender_, dryed, and put them into baggs to lay among your cloaths. You may put in a handfull or two of _Damask Rose_ leaves dryed, which will somewhat better the sent.

Medicines made of Lemmons.

_To take away the Spots, or red Pimpels of the face_.

Take halfe a pint of raine water, and halfe a pint of good _Verjuice_, seeth it till it be halfe consumed, then whilst it boils fill it up againe with juyce of _Lemmon_, and so let it seeth a pretty while; then take it from the fire, and when it is cold put to it the whites of four new laid Eggs, well beaten, and with this water annoynt the place often.

_A very good Medicine for the Stone_.

Make a Posset of a quart of _Rhenish_ wine, a pint of _Ale_ and a pint of _Milke_, then take away the curd, and put into the drink, two handfulls of Sorrell, one handfull of _Burnet_, and halfe a handfull of _Balm_, boyle them together a good while, but not too long, least the drink be too unpleasant, then take of the drink a quarter of a pint, or rather halfe a pint, at once, at morning, and to bed-ward, putting therein first two or three spoonfulls of juice of _Lemmons_, this is an excellent Medicine for the _Stone in the Kidneyes_, to dissolve and bring it away. It is very good in these Diseases of the _Stone_, to use _Burnet_ often in your drink at Meales, and often to steep it in over night, and in the morning put in three or foure spoonfulls of juice of _Lemmons_, and to drink thereof a good draught every morning a week together, about the full of the Moone, three dayes before, and three dayes after.

_To roste a Shoulder of Mutton with Lemmons_.

Take a Shoulder of _Mutton_ halfe rosted, cut off most of the meat thereof, in thin slices, into a faire dish with the gravy thereof, put thereto about the quant.i.ty of a pint of clarret wine, with a spoonfull or two at most of the best wine _Vineger_, season it with _Nutmeggs_, and a little _Ginger_, then pare off the rines of one or two good _Lemmons_, and slice them thin into the _Mutton_, when it is almost well stewed between two dishes, and so let them stew together two or three warmes, when they are enough, put them in a clean dish, and take the shoulder blade being well broyled on a grid-iron, and lay it upon your meat, garnis.h.i.+ng your dishes with some slices and rinds of the _Lemmons_, and so serve it.

_To Boyle A Capon with Oranges and Lemmons_.

Take _Orenges_ and _Lemmons_ peeled, and cut them the long way, and if you can keep your cloves whole, and put them into your best Broth of _Mutton_ or _Capon_, with _Prunes_ or _Currants_ three or four dayes, and when they have been well sodden, cut whole _Pepper_, great _Mase_, a great peice of _Suggar_, some _Rose_-water, and either _White_ wine, or _Clarret_ wine, and let all these seeth together a while, and serve it upon Sopps with your _Capon_.

_A Lemmond Sallet_.

Cut out slices of the peele of the Lemmons, long wayes, a quarter of an inch one piece from another, and then slice the _Lemmons_ very thin, and lay them in a dish crosse, and the peeles about the _Lemmons_, and sc.r.a.pe a good deal of _Suggar_ upon them, and so serve them.

_Of Quinces_.

_The best way to Preserve Quinces._

First pare and coare the _Quinces_, and boyle them in faire water till they be very tender, not covering them, then taking them out of the water, take to every pound of them, two pound of _Sugar_, and half a pint of water, boyle it to a Syrupe, sc.u.mming it well, then put in some of the Jelly that is washed from the _Quince_ kernels, and after that, making it boyle a little, put in your _Quinces_, boyle them very fast, keeping the holes upward as neer as you can, for fear of breaking, and when they are so tender that you may thrust a rush through them, take them off, and put them up in your gla.s.ses, having first saved some Syrupe till it be cold to fill up your gla.s.ses.

_A speciall Remembrance in doing them_.

When you Preserve _Quinces_, or make _Marmalade_, take the Kernels out of the raw _Quinces_, and wash off the Jelly that groweth about them, in faire water, then straine the water and Jelly from the kernels, through some fine Cobweb laune, and put the same into the _Marmalade_, or preserved _Quinces_, when they are well sc.u.m'd, but put not so much into your _Quinces_, as into the _Marmalade_, for it will Jelly the Syrupe too much; put six or seven spoonfulls of Syrupe into the Jelly. Before you put it into the _Marmalade_, you must boyle your _Quinces_ more for _Marmalade_, then to preserve your _Quinces_, and least of them when you make your clear Cakes.

When you would preserve your _Quinces_ white, you must not cover them in the boyling, and you must put halfe as much _Sugar_ more for the white, as for the other. When you would have them red, you must cover them in the boyling.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Quince]

_To Pickle Quinces._

Boyle your _Quinces_ that you intend to keep, whole and unpared, in faire water, till they be soft, but not too violently for feare you break them, when they are soft take them out, and boyle some _Quinces_ pared, quarter'd, and coar'd, and the parings of the _Quinces_ with them in the same liquor, to make it strong, and when they have boyled a good time, enough to make the liquor of sufficient strength, take out the quartered _Quinces_ and parings, and put the liquor into a pot big enough to receive all the _Quinces_, both whole and quartered, and put them into it, when the liquor is thorow cold, and so keep them for your use close covered.

_To make Quince Cakes_.

Prepare your _Quinces_, and take the just weight of them in _Sugar_, beaten finely, and searcing halfe of it, then of the rest make a Syrupe, using the ordinary proportion of a pint of water to a pound of _Sugar_, let your _Quinces_ be well beaten, and when the Syrupe is cand height, put in your _Quince_, and boyle it to a past, keeping it with continuall stirring, then work it up with the beaten _Sugar_ which you reserved, and these Cakes will tast well of the _Quinces_.

_To make Printed Quidony of Quinces_.

Take two pound of _Quinces_, paired, coared, and cut in small pieces, and put them into a faire posnet, with a quart of faire water, and when they are boyled tender, put into them one pound of _Sugar_ clarified, with halfe a pint of faire water, let them boyle till all the fruit fall to the bottom of the posnet, then let the liquid substance run through a faire linnen cloath into a clean bason, then put it into a posnet, and let it boyle till it come to a jelly, then Print it in your Moulds, and turne it into your boxes. You shall know when it is ready to Print, by rouling it on the back of a Spoone.