The Whitehouse Cookbook (1887) Part 66

One-quarter cake of Baker's chocolate, grated; one pint of boiling water, six eggs, one quart of milk, one-half cupful of white sugar, two teaspoonfuls of vanilla. Dissolve the chocolate in a very little milk, stir into the boiling water and boil three minutes. When nearly cold beat up with this the yolks of all the eggs and the whites of three. Stir this mixture into the milk, season and pour into sh.e.l.ls of good paste. When the custard is "set"--but not more than half done--spread over it the whites whipped to a froth, with two tablespoonfuls of sugar. You may bake these custards without paste, in a pudding dish or cups set in boiling water.

CHOCOLATE PIE. No. 2.

Put some grated chocolate into a basin and place on the back of the stove and let it melt (do not add any water to it); beat one egg and some sugar in it; when melted, spread this on the top of a custard pie. Lovers of chocolate will like this.

LEMON PIE. No. 1. (Superior.)

Take a deep dish, grate into it the outside of the rind of two lemons; add to that a cup and a half of white sugar, two heaping tablespoonfuls of unsifted flour, or one of cornstarch; stir it well together, then add the yolks of three well-beaten eggs, beat this thoroughly, then add the juice of the lemons, two cups of water and a piece of b.u.t.ter the size of a walnut. Set this on the fire in another dish containing boiling water and cook it until it thickens, and will dip up on the spoon like cold honey. Remove from the fire, and when cooled, pour it into a deep pie-tin, lined with pastry; bake, and when done, have ready the whites, beaten stiff, with three small tablespoonfuls of sugar. Spread this over the top and return to the oven, to set and brown slightly. This makes a deep, large sized pie, and very superior.

_Ebbitt House, Was.h.i.+ngton._

LEMON PIE. No. 2.

One coffee cupful of sugar, three eggs, one cupful of water, one tablespoonful of melted b.u.t.ter, one heaping tablespoonful of flour, the juice and a little of the rind of one lemon. Reserve the whites of the eggs, and after the pie is baked, spread them over the top beaten lightly-with a spoonful of sugar, and return to the oven until it is a light brown.

This may be cooked before it is put into the crust or not, but it is rather better to cook it first in a double boiler or dish. It makes a medium-sized pie. Bake from thirty-five to forty minutes.

LEMON PIE. No. 3.

Moisten a heaping tablespoonful of cornstarch with a little cold water, then add a cupful of boiling water; stir over the fire till it boils and cook the cornstarch, say two or three minutes; add teaspoonful of b.u.t.ter and a cupful of sugar; take off the fire and, when slightly cooled, add an egg well beaten and the juice and grated rind of a fresh lemon. Bake with a crust. This makes one small pie.

LEMON PIE. No. 4.

Two large, fresh lemons, grate off the rind, if not bitter reserve it for the filling of the pie, pare off every bit of the white skin of the lemon (as it toughens while cooking); then cut the lemon into very thin slices with a sharp knife and take out the seeds; two cupfuls of sugar, three tablespoonfuls of water and two of sifted flour. Put into the pie a layer of lemon, then one of sugar, then one of the grated rind and, lastly, of flour, and so on till the ingredients are used; sprinkle the water over all, and cover with upper crust. Be sure to have the under crust lap over the upper, and pinch it well, as the syrup will cook all out if care is not taken when finis.h.i.+ng the edge of crust. This quant.i.ty makes one medium-sized pie.

ORANGE PIE.

Grate the rind of one and use the juice of two large oranges. Stir together a large cupful of sugar and a heaping tablespoonful of flour; add to this the well-beaten yolks of three eggs, two tablespoonfuls of melted b.u.t.ter. Reserve the whites for frosting. Turn this into a pie-pan lined with pie paste and bake in a quick oven. When done so as to resemble a finely baked custard, spread on the top of it the beaten whites, which must be sweetened with two tablespoonfuls of sugar; spread evenly and return to the oven and brown slightly.

The addition of the juice of half a lemon improves it, if convenient to have it.

BAKERS' CUSTARD PIE.

Beat up the yolks of three eggs to a cream. Stir thoroughly a tablespoonful of sifted flour into three tablespoonfuls of sugar; this separates the particles of flour so that there will be no lumps; then add it to the beaten yolks, put in a pinch of salt, a teaspoonful of vanilla and a little grated nutmeg; next the well-beaten whites of the eggs; and, lastly, a pint of scalded milk (not boiled) which has been cooled; mix this in by degrees and turn all into a deep pie-pan lined with puff paste, and bake from twenty-five to thirty minutes.

I received this recipe from a celebrated cook in one of our best New York bakeries. I inquired of him "why it was that their custard pies had that look of solidity and smoothness that our home-made pies have not." He replied, "The secret is the addition of this _bit of flour_--not that it thickens the custard any to speak of, but prevents the custard from breaking or wheying and gives that smooth appearance when cut."

CREAM PIE.

Pour a pint of cream upon one and a half cupfuls of sugar; let it stand until the whites of three eggs have been beaten to a stiff froth; add this to the cream and beat up thoroughly; grate a little nutmeg over the mixture and bake without an upper crust. If a tablespoonful of sifted flour is added to it, as the above Custard Pie recipe, it would improve it.

WHIPPED CREAM PIE.

Line a pie plate with a rich crust and bake quickly in a hot oven.

When done, spread with a thin layer of jelly or jam, then whip one cupful of thick sweet cream until it is as light as possible; sweeten with powdered sugar and flavor with vanilla; spread over the jelly or jam; set the cream where it will get very cold before whipping.

CUSTARD PIE.

Beat together until very light the yolks of four eggs and four tablespoonfuls of sugar, flavor with nutmeg or vanilla; then add the four beaten whites, a pinch of salt and, lastly, a quart of sweet milk; mix well and pour into tins lined with paste. Bake until firm.

BOSTON CREAM PIE.

_Cream Part._--Put on a pint of milk to boil. Break two eggs into a dish and add one cup of sugar and half a cup of flour previously mixed after beating well, stir it into the milk just as the milk commences to boil; add an ounce of b.u.t.ter and keep on stirring one way until it thickens; flavor with vanilla or lemon.

_Crust Part._--Three eggs beaten separately, one cup of granulated sugar, one and a half cups of sifted flour, one large teaspoonful of baking powder and two tablespoonfuls of milk or water. Divide the batter in half and bake on two medium-sized pie-tins. Bake in a rather quick oven to a straw color. When done and cool, split each one in half with a sharp broad-bladed knife, and spread half the cream between each. Serve cold.

The cake part should be flavored the same as the custard.

MOCK CREAM PIE.

Take three eggs, one pint of milk, a cupful of sugar, two tablespoonfuls of cornstarch or three of flour; beat the sugar, cornstarch and yolks of the eggs together; after the milk has come to a boil, stir in the mixture and add a pinch of salt and about a teaspoonful of b.u.t.ter. Make crust the same as any pie; bake, then fill with the custard, grate over a little nutmeg and bake again. Take the whites of the eggs and beat to a stiff froth with two tablespoonfuls of sugar, spread over the top and brown in a quick oven.

FRUIT CUSTARD PIE.

Any fruit custard, such as pineapple, banana, can be readily made after the recipe of APPLE CUSTARD PIE.

CHERRY PIE.

Line your pie plate with good crust, fill half full with ripe cherries; sprinkle over them about a cupful of sugar, a teaspoonful of sifted flour, dot a few bits of b.u.t.ter over that. Now fill the crust full to the top. Cover with the upper crust and bake.

This is one of the best of pies, if made correctly, and the cherries in any case should be stoned.

CURRANT PIE.

Make in just the same way as the "Cherry Pie," unless they are somewhat green, then they should be stewed a little.

RIPE CURRANT PIE.

One cupful of mashed ripe currants, one of sugar, two tablespoonfuls of water, one of flour, beaten with the yolks of two eggs. Bake; frost the top with the beaten whites of the eggs and two tablespoonfuls powdered sugar and brown in oven.

GREEN TOMATO PIE.