Science in the Kitchen Part 34

Put the rice, which should be very moist, around the bottom and sides of a pudding dish; place the apples inside, cover, and bake ten minutes.

Serve with cream flavored with quince or lemon.

RICE AND TAPIOCA PUDDING.--Soak one half cup of tapioca over night in a cup of water; in the morning drain off the water if any remains.

Add to the tapioca half a cup of rice, one cup of sugar, one cup of raisins, and eight cups of new milk, with a little grated lemon rind for flavoring. Put all in an earthen pudding dish on the top of the range, where it will heat very gradually to the boiling point, stirring frequently. When the milk boils, put the pudding in the oven, and bake till the rice grains are perfectly tender but not broken and mushy. From twenty minutes to half an hour is usually sufficient. When taken from the oven, it will appear quite thin, but after cooling will be of a delicious, creamy consistency. Serve cold.

RICE-FLOUR MOLD.--Braid two tablespoonfuls of rice flour with a little milk and stir the mixture into a pint of boiling milk to which has been added three tablespoonfuls of sugar, and a little salt if desired. Let this boil until it thickens, then mold, and serve with cream and sugar or with lemon, orange, or other fruit sauce.

RICE AND STEWED APPLE DESSERT.--Steam or bake some rice in milk until tender, sweeten slightly and spread a layer of the rice half an inch thick on the bottom of a pudding dish, then a layer of lemon-flavored apple sauce, which has been rubbed through a colander and afterward simmered on the range until stiff. If preferred, the sauce may be prepared by first baking the apples, and then rubbing the pulp through a colander. Add another layer of rice, then one of sauce, and so on until the dish is full. Bake in a moderate oven and serve hot. If the apples are not very tart, part stewed and sifted cranberries may be used with them.

RICE AND STRAWBERRY DESSERT.--Soak a cup of rice in one and a half cups of new milk; place all in an earthen dish, and steam an hour, or until dry and tender, stirring occasionally for the first fifteen minutes. When the rice is done, place in the bottom of cups previously moistened with cold water, five nice hulled strawberries in the shape of a star. Carefully fill the interstices between the berries with the cooked rice, and put in a layer of rice. Add next a layer of strawberries, then another of rice. Press firmly into the cups, and set away to cool. When well molded, turn into saucers, and pile whipped cream around each mold; sprinkle with sugar and serve.

A little care in forming the stars and filling the molds makes this a delicious and pretty dessert. If preferred, the dessert may be prepared in one large mold, and a larger number of berries arranged in the form of a cross in the bottom of the dish, covering with rice, and adding as many alternate layers of berries and rice as desired.

STEWED FRUIT PUDDING.--Take a deep, square or oblong granite-ware or earthen dish; cut strips of stale bread uniformly an inch in width and three fourths of an inch in thickness, and place them in the mold with s.p.a.ces between them equal to their width. Or, fit the strips around the bottom of a round, earthen pudding dish, like the spokes of a wheel, with stewed or canned fruit, sweetened to taste; whortleberries are best, but apricots, cherries, currants, strawberries, and gooseberries may all be used. Separate the juice from the berries by turning them into a colander. Fill the interstices between the bread with hot fruit, using just as little juice as possible. Cover with another layer, this time placing the strips of bread over the fruit in the first layer, and leaving the s.p.a.ces for fruit over the bread in the first layer. Fill the dish with these layers of fruit and bread, and when full, pour over all the hot fruit juice. Put a plate with a weight on it on the top to press it firmly. Dip off any juice that may be pressed out, and set the pudding in the refrigerator to cool and press. When cold, it will turn out whole, and can be cut in slices and served with whipped cream or cocoanut sauce.

STRAWBERRY MINUTE PUDDING.--Cook a quart of ripe strawberries in a pint of water till well scalded. Add sugar to taste. Skim out the fruit, and into the boiling juice stir a scant cup of granulated wheat flour previously rubbed to a paste with a little cold water; cook fifteen or twenty minutes, pour over the fruit, and serve cold with cream sauce.

SWEET APPLE PUDDING.--Pare, core, and slice enough ripe, juicy sweet apples to fill a pint bowl. Heat a quart of new milk to scalding in a double boiler. Pour it hot over one cup of good granulated cornmeal, and beat very thoroughly to remove all lumps. Return to the double boiler, and cook until the meal is set. The batter then should be about the consistency of corn mush. Remove from the fire, add a pint of cold milk, stir in the sliced apples, one third of a cup of sugar or mola.s.ses, and a teaspoonful of flour rubbed smooth in a very little milk. Turn all into a deep earthen crock or pudding dish, and bake slowly from three to four hours, stirring frequently the first hour. It should be moderately browned on top when done. Serve warm or cold.

WHORTLEBERRY PUDDING.--One quart of new milk, one quart of fine bread crumbs, two quarts of fresh whortleberries, one or two tablespoonfuls of sugar. Heat the milk to boiling; fill a pudding dish with alternate layers of bread crumbs and berries, beginning and ending with crumbs. Add the sugar to the milk, let it dissolve, and pour the whole over the pudding. Cover closely, and bake in a slow oven within a pan of hot water nearly an hour. Serve warm with cream or cocoanut sauce.

DESSERTS WITH TAPIOCA, SAGO, MONICA, AND SEA MOSS.

Both pearl and flake tapioca are suitable for these desserts. They should be soaked for some hours before using, and it is always best to soak over night if convenient. The flake tapioca requires longer soaking and cooking than the pearl tapioca. For soaking, use one and a half cups of water for each cup of flake tapioca, and one pint of water for a cup of pearl tapioca. For cooking, three or four additional cups of water will be required for each cup of tapioca, depending upon, the articles used with it. A double boiler should be used for the cooking.

_RECIPES._

APPLE TAPIOCA.--Soak a cupful of pearl tapioca over night. In the morning simmer in a quart of boiling water until transparent and thickened. Arrange in the bottom of a pudding dish four or five good-sized tart apples, which have been pared, cored, and the cavities filled with sugar. Squeeze the juice of a lemon and grate a very little of the rind over the apples. Pour the tapioca over the fruit. Set the dish inside a pan filled with hot water, cover, and bake one hour, or until the apples are done. Serve with sugar and cream. It is best nearly cold. Fresh peaches, pared and stewed, may be used in place of apples, if preferred.

APPLE TAPIOCA NO. 2.--Soak a half cup of tapioca in a cap of tepid water, for at least three hours. Pare, core, and quarter nice tart apples to fill a two-quart pudding dish nearly half full. Add four cups of water and one of sugar to the soaked tapioca, pour it over the apples, and bake two or three hours in a slow oven. Serve with whipped cream.

BANANA DESSERT.--Soak a cup of tapioca over night. In the morning cook in a double boiler in a quart of water until transparent. When done, add a cup of sugar and three or four sliced bananas. Serve cold with cream.

BLACKBERRY TAPIOCA.--Soak a cup of tapioca over night. When ready to cook, add three cups of boiling water and cook in a double boiler until transparent and smooth. Sprinkle a quart of fresh blackberries with sugar, and stir lightly into the tapioca. Pour into molds and serve cold with cream and sugar. Other fresh berries may be used in the same way.

CHERRY PUDDING.--Soak and cook a half cup of tapioca in a pint of water until transparent. Have a pint of fresh pitted cherries in an earthen pudding dish. Sprinkle them well with sugar, pour over them the cooked tapioca, and bake for an hour in a moderate oven. Serve hot with or without cream.

FRUIT TAPIOCA.--Cook three fourths of a cup of tapioca in four cups of water until smooth and transparent Stir into it lightly a pint of fresh strawberries, raspberries, currants, or any small fruit, adding sugar as required. For variety a cup of canned quinces or apricots may be subst.i.tuted for fresh fruit. Serve warm or cold with whipped cream or mock cream.

MOLDED TAPIOCA WITH FRUIT.--Simmer one half cup of desiccated cocoanut in a pint of milk for twenty minutes. Strain out the cocoanut, and add milk to make a full pint. Add one half cup of sugar and one half cup of tapioca previously soaked over night. Let the whole simmer until the tapioca is transparent. Dip some cups in cold water, drain, and lay fresh strawberries, currants, or cherries in the bottom of each in the form of a star or cross. Pour the tapioca into the molds gently, so as not to displace the fruit. When cold, turn out and serve with whipped cream or fruit sauce. Raisins may be subst.i.tuted for fresh fruit, or bits of jelly may be placed around the mold after it has cooled, if preferred.

PINEAPPLE TAPIOCA.--Soak one cup of tapioca over night in one and one half cups of water. Add two and one half cups of water and cook in a double boiler until transparent, then add one cup of sugar and one juicy pineapple minced fine with a sharp knife. Mold, and serve cold with or without cream.

PRUNE AND TAPIOCA PUDDING.--Soak one half cup of tapioca over night. In the morning cook until transparent in two cups of water. Stew two cups of well-washed and stoned prunes in a quart of water till perfectly tender; then add the juice of a good lemon and two tablespoonfuls of sugar, and boil till the syrup becomes thick and rich. Turn the prunes into a pudding dish, cover with the cooked tapioca, and add a little grated lemon rind. Bake lightly. Serve without dressing or with sugar and cream or almond sauce. If preferred, the prunes and tapioca may be placed in the dish in alternate layers, having the top one of tapioca.

TAPIOCA AND FIG PUDDING.--Cook three fourths of a cup of tapioca as for Apple Tapioca. Have ready two cups of finely sliced or chopped tart apples, and one cup of chopped figs, which have first been lightly steamed. If preferred, raisins may be used in place of half the figs.

Put the fruit in the bottom of the pudding dish, turn the tapioca over it, and bake till the fruit is very soft. If the apples are not very tart, sprinkle the juice of a lemon over them before adding the figs and tapioca.

A nice fruit pudding can also be made by using half canned pears and half apples, or canned quinces may be subst.i.tuted for figs.

PEACH TAPIOCA.--For this will be needed a quart of nicely canned peaches, a cup of tapioca, and from one half to three fourths of a cup of sugar, according to the sweetness of the peaches. Soak the tapioca over night in just enough water to cover. When ready to cook, put in a double boiler with three cups of water, and cook for an hour. Remove from the fire and add to it the juice from the peaches, of which there should be a cup and a half, which has been secured by draining the peaches in a colander, and stir it well into the tapioca. Place a layer of this mixture in an oiled pudding dish, add the peaches, cover with the remainder of the tapioca, and bake for an hour in a moderate oven.

TAPIOCA JELLY.--Soak a cup of tapioca in a pint of water over night. Add another pint and cook until transparent and smooth. Add three tablespoonfuls of lemon juice and four tablespoonfuls of sugar; beat well together and tun into molds. Serve cold. No dressing is required.

This may be varied by using unsweetened currant, grape, or other acid fruit juice in place of lemon. Fruit jelly may be used if the juice is not easily obtained. Add when the tapioca is well cooked, and stir until dissolved.

APPLE SAGO PUDDING.--Soak one cup of sago in six cups of water; stew ten small apples, mix with the sago, and bake three quarters of an hour. Serve with cream and sugar. It is better warm than cold, but acceptable either way.

RED SAGO MOLD.--Take a quart of red raspberry juice, pure or diluted with one third water, and sweeten to taste. Have ready one half cup of best sago which has soaked for twenty minutes in just enough water to cover. Drain off any water that may remain. Add the sago to the juice, and cook until the sago is transparent, then turn into molds.

Serve cold with cream. Cranberry or strawberry juice may be used in place of the raspberry, if preferred.

SAGO FRUIT PUDDING.--Soak a small cup of sago an hour in just enough water to cover. Drain off any water that may not be absorbed. Mix two thirds of a cup of sugar with this sago, and stir all into a quart of boiling water. Let it boil until the sago is perfectly transparent and pour in a pint of nicely hulled strawberries. Turn into molds to cool, or serve warm with cream, as preferred. Tapioca can be used instead of sago, but needs longer soaking. Raspberries, stoned cherries, or currants can be used in place of strawberries.

SAGO PUDDING.--Soak a cupful of sago for twenty minutes in a cup of cold water; then pour over it a quart and a cup of boiling water, add a cup of sugar and one half cup of raisins. Cook till the sago is perfectly transparent, flavor with vanilla, and set away to cool. Serve with whipped cream.

MANIOCA WITH FRUIT.--Pare, core, and quarter six medium-sized tart apples, and put them to cook in a quart of boiling water. Add a cup of sugar, and cook without stirring until softened, then sprinkle into the water in which they are cooking five tablespoonfuls of manioca, and cook until it is transparent, which will be in about ten minutes. Flavor with a little grated lemon rind, and serve hot with sugar and cream, or mold, as preferred. Canned peaches, apricots, or cherries may be used in a similar manner, adding boiling water if there is not sufficient juice to properly cook the manioca. Or the manioca may be first cooked in boiling water, using four scant tablespoonfuls for a pint of water, and when transparent, turning it over sliced bananas, pineapples, or oranges, molding and serving with cream and sugar.

RASPBERRY MANIOCA MOLD.--Heat a pint of water, and when boiling, sprinkle into it four scant tablespoonfuls of manioca and cook for ten minutes or until transparent, stirring continually. When transparent and thickened, remove from the fire and add a tablespoonful of lemon juice and one cup of sugar. Place a layer of the cooked manioca in the bottom of a pudding dish, add a layer of freshly picked red raspberries, then another of the manioca, filling the dish in alternate layers with one of manioca for the top. Set away in some cool place until well molded.

Serve in slices with cream flavored with rose. Other fresh berries may be used instead of raspberries.

SEA MOSS BLANCMANGE.--Wash the moss well in several waters, and soak in a very little cold water for an hour before using. It is hardly possible to give exact directions for making this blancmange, owing to the difficulty of accurately measuring the moss, but in general, a small handful will be ample for a quart of milk. Add the moss, when washed, to the milk, and cook in a double boiler until the milk has become thickened and glutinous. Add sugar to sweeten, flavor with vanilla or rose water, and strain through a fine sieve into cups previously wet in cold water, and mold. This may be varied by using boiling water instead of milk for cooking, adding the juice of one or two lemons and a little grated rind to flavor.

DESSERTS MADE WITH GELATINE.

Gelatine is an article largely employed in making delicate and dainty dishes. It is economical and convenient, because the dessert can be prepared several hours before needed; but it must be stated that it has in itself little or no food value, and there is great liability of its being unwholesome. A writer in the _Anti-Adulteration Journal_, a short time since, speaking of the use of gelatine, says:--

"The nutritive value of pure gelatine has been shown to be very low in the scale of foods. The beef gelatine of the markets that is used by bakers, is far from being pure gelatine. It frequently has a very disagreeable, fetid odor, and has evidently begun to decompose during the process of manufacture. After a thorough drying, putrefaction does not take place as long as it remains dry. But suppose that gelatine which has thus begun to decompose during the drying process, containing, perhaps, putrefactive germs in the dried state, be dissolved in water, and in hot weather, kept in this condition for a few hours previous to being used; the result would be rapid putrefaction. The putrefaction would be checked by freezing; but the bacteria causing it are not killed by the low temperature. As soon as the dessert is melted or eaten, they resume their activity in the body, and may cause sickness. It is a well-known fact that gelatine is an excellent medium in which to cultivate various kinds of micro-organisms; and if the conclusions here mentioned be correct, it seems that gelatine should be used with great care in connection with food preparations. When used carelessly, it may do a great deal of harm. I wish to impress those who use it with the importance of guarding against its dangers. Gelatine should not be allowed to remain in solution for many hours before using, especially in hot weather.

"When used at all, the best varieties should be employed, and such as are free from putrefactive odor."

A "box" of gelatine is used to signify a two-ounce package. If half a box is called for, divide it by cutting the box and its contents in halves rather than by emptying the box and then attempting to make a division.

To prepare gelatine for desserts, first soak it till soft in a small quant.i.ty of cold water (a cupful to one box of gelatine is sufficient); fifteen minutes will suffice if it is stirred frequently; then dissolve in boiling liquid. Do not cook the gelatine, and after it is dissolved, always strain through a cloth strainer before using.

In winter, a two-ounce package will solidify two quarts of liquid, including the water in which the gelatine is soaked. In summer, a little less liquid should be used. Gelatine desserts must be left on ice or in a cool place until hardened, but they should not be served at the table so cold as to interfere with the digestion of other foods.

_RECIPES._

APPLES IN JELLY.--Pare and core without cutting open, a half dozen medium-sized tart apples of the same degree of hardness. Fill the centers with a little grated lemon rind and sugar. Steam until tender but not broken. Have ready half a package of gelatine which has been soaked for an hour in just enough water to cover. Prepare a syrup with one cup of sugar and a pint of water. When boiling, turn the syrup over the gelatine, stirring well to dissolve it, and add the juice of half a lemon. Strain, place the apples in a deep dish with a little s.p.a.ce between each; turn the mixture over them, and set in the ice box to cool. Serve with or without a little whipped cream.

APPLE SHAPE.--Steam some nice tart apples. When tender, rub through a colander. Have two thirds of a box of gelatine soaked in just enough water to cover; pour over it a cup and a half of boiling water; when well dissolved, strain and add a pint of the sifted apples sweetened to taste, and one half cup of grated fresh or canned pineapple, or if preferred, one half cup of the juice of canned pineapple. Turn into cups previously wet in cold water, and mold. Serve with a little cream.

Canned peaches, apricots, and other fruit may be used the same as apples, if preferred. Rub the fruit with but little juice through a colander, and proceed as above.

BANANA DESSERT.--Dissolve half a box of gelatine in a half cup of warm water. Heat three cups of rich milk to boiling, and add to it one cup of sugar and turn over the well-dissolved gelatine and strain. Let it partly cool, and mix in three or four bananas, sliced thin or chopped fine. Turn all into a mold previously wet with cold water, and leave till hardened, which may require several hours unless the mold be placed on ice. When well molded, turn into a gla.s.s dish, serve with whipped cream flavored with vanilla or lemon.

CLEAR DESSERT.--Soak a box of gelatine in a large bowl with half a cup of cold water. When soft, pour over it three pints of boiling water, add the juice of three large lemons and two cups of sugar. Stir well, strain, and pour into molds previously wet with cold water. Put into the refrigerator until hardened. Serve with whipped cream. Quince, apricot, orange, or pineapple juice may be subst.i.tuted for lemon, and thus a variety of desserts may be made.