Nelson's Home Comforts Part 4

VEAL AND HAM PIE.

Prepare the crust as for a pork pie. Cut a pound of veal cutlet and a quarter of a pound of ham into dice, season with a teaspoonful of salt and another of black pepper, put the meat into the crust, and finish as for pork pie. Add a quarter of an ounce of Nelson's Gelatine--previously soaked in cold water, and then dissolved--to a teacupful of gravy made from the veal tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs.

PORK SAUSAGES.

When a pig is cut up in the country, sausages are usually made of the tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs; but when the meat has to be bought, the chump-end of a fore-loin will be found to answer best. The fine well-fed meat of a full-grown pig, known in London as "hog-meat," is every way preferable to that called "dairy-fed pork." The fat should be nearly in equal proportion to the lean, but of course this matter must be arranged to suit the taste of those who will eat the sausages. If young pork is used, remove the skin as thinly as you can--it is useful for various purposes--and then with a sharp knife cut all the flesh from the bones, take away all sinew and gristle, and cut the fat and lean into strips.

Some mincing-machines require the meat longer than others; for Kent's Combination, cut it into pieces about an inch long and half-an-inch thick. To each pound of meat put half a gill of gravy made from the bones, or water will do; then mix equally with it two ounces of bread-crumbs, a large teaspoonful of salt, a small one of black pepper, dried sage, and a pinch of allspice. This seasoning should be well mixed with the bread, as the meat will then be flavoured properly throughout the ma.s.s. Arrange the skin on the filler, tie it at the end, put the meat, a little at a time, into the hopper, turn the handle of the machine briskly, and take care the skin is only lightly filled. When the sausages are made, tie the skin at the other end, pinch them into shape, and then loop them by pa.s.sing one through another, giving a twist to each as you do them. Sausage-skins, especially if preserved, should be well soaked before using, or they may make the sausages too salt. It is a good plan to put the skin on the water-tap and allow the water to run through it, as thus it will be well washed on the inside. Fifteen to twenty minutes should be allowed for frying sausages, and when done they should be nicely browned. A little b.u.t.ter or lard is best for frying, and some pieces of light bread may be fried in it when the sausages are done, and placed round the dish by way of garnish. Cooks cannot do better than remember Dr. Kitchener's directions for frying sausages.

After saying, "They are best when quite fresh made," he adds: "put a bit of b.u.t.ter or dripping into a clean frying-pan; as soon as it is melted, before it gets hot, put in the sausages, and shake the pan for a minute, and keep turning them. Be careful not to break or p.r.i.c.k them in so doing. Fry them over a very slow fire till they are nicely browned on all sides. The secret of frying sausages is to let them get hot very gradually; they then will not break if they are not stale. The common practice to prevent them bursting is to p.r.i.c.k them with a fork, but this lets the gravy out."

PUDDINGS.

CUSTARD PUDDING.

We give this pudding first because it affords an opportunity for giving hints on making milk puddings generally, and because, properly made, there is no more delicious pudding than this. It is besides most useful and nutritious, not only for the dinner of healthy people, but for children and invalids. But few cooks, however, make it properly; as a rule too many eggs are used, to which the milk is added cold, and the pudding is baked in a quick oven. The consequence is that the pudding curdles and comes to table swimming in whey; or, even if this does not happen, the custard is full of holes and is tough.

In the first place, milk for all puddings with eggs should be poured on to the eggs boiling hot; in the next, the baking must be very slowly done, if possible, as directed in the recipe; the dish containing the pudding to be placed in another half-full of water. This, of course, prevents the baking proceeding too rapidly, and also prevents the pudding acquiring a sort of burned greasy flavour, which is injurious for invalids. Lastly, too many eggs should not be used; the quant.i.ty given, two to the pint of milk, is in all cases quite sufficient, and will make a fine rich custard.

We never knew a pudding curdle, even with London milk a day old, if all these directions were observed; but it is almost needless to say, that the pudding made with new rich milk is much finer than one of inferior milk.

Boil a pint and a half of milk with two ounces of lump sugar, or rather more if a sweet pudding is liked, and pour it boiling hot on three eggs lightly beaten--that is, just sufficiently so to mix whites and yolks.

Flavour the custard with nutmeg, grated lemon-peel, or anything which may be preferred and pour it into a tart-dish. Place this dish in another three-parts full of boiling water, and bake slowly for forty minutes, or until the custard is firm. There is no need to b.u.t.ter the dish if the pudding is baked as directed.

SOUFFLe PUDDING.

This is a delicious pudding, and to insure its success great care and exactness are required. In the first place, to avoid failure it is necessary that the b.u.t.ter, flour, sugar, and milk, should be stirred long enough over a moderate fire to make a stiff paste, because if this is thin the eggs will separate, and the pudding when done resemble a batter with froth on the top.

Before beginning to make the pudding, prepare a pint tin by b.u.t.tering it inside and fastening round it with string on the outside a b.u.t.tered band of writing-paper, which will stand two inches above the tin and prevent the pudding running over as it rises. Melt an ounce of b.u.t.ter in a stewpan, add one ounce of sifted sugar, stir in an ounce and a half of Vienna flour, mix well together, add a gill of milk, and stir over the fire with a wooden spoon until it boils and is thick. Take the stewpan off the fire, beat up the yolks of three eggs with half a teaspoonful of extract of vanilla, and stir a little at a time into the paste, to insure both being thoroughly mixed together. Put a small pinch of salt to the whites of four eggs, whip them as stiff as possible, and stir lightly into the pudding, which pour immediately into the prepared mould. Have ready a saucepan with enough boiling water to reach a little way up the tin, which is best placed on a trivet, so that the water cannot touch the paper band. Let the pudding steam very gently for twenty minutes, or until it is firm in the middle, and will turn out.

For sauce, boil two tablespoonfuls of apricot jam in a gill of water, with two ounces of lump sugar, stir in a wine-gla.s.sful of sherry, add a few drops of Nelson's Vanilla Flavouring, pour over the pudding and serve.

OMELET SOUFFLe.

Put the yolks of two eggs into a basin with an ounce of sifted sugar and a few drops of Nelson's Vanilla Essence; beat the yolks and sugar together for six minutes, or until the mixture becomes thick. Then whip the whites very stiff, so that they will turn out of the basin like a jelly. Mix the yolks and whites lightly together, have ready an ounce of b.u.t.ter dissolved in the omelet-pan, pour in the eggs, hold this pan over a slow fire for two minutes, then put the frying-pan into a quick oven and bake until the omelet has risen; four minutes ought to be sufficient to finish the omelet in the oven; when done, slide it on to a warm dish, double it, sift sugar over, and serve instantly.

SPONGE SOUFFLe.

Cover the bottom of a tart-dish with sponge-cakes, pour over a little brandy and sherry; put in a moderate oven until hot, then pour on the cakes an egg whip made of two packets of Nelson's Alb.u.men, beaten to a strong froth with a little sugar. Bake for a quarter of an hour in a slow oven.

CABINET PUDDING.

b.u.t.ter very thickly a pint pudding-basin, and cover it neatly with stoned muscatel raisins, the outer side of them being kept to the basin.

Lightly fill up the basin with alternate layers of sponge-cake and ratafias, and when ready to steam the pudding, pour by degrees over the cake a custard made of half-a-pint of boiling milk, an egg, three lumps of sugar, a tablespoonful of brandy, and a little lemon flavouring.

Cover the basin with a paper cap and steam or boil gently for three-quarters of an hour. Great care should be taken not to boil puddings of this cla.s.s fast, as it renders them tough and flavourless.

BRANDY SAUCE.

Mix a tablespoonful of fine flour with a gill of cold water, put it into a gill of boiling water, and, having stirred over the fire until it is thick, add the yolk of an egg. Continue stirring for five minutes, and sweeten with two ounces of castor sugar. Mix a wine-gla.s.s of brandy with two tablespoonfuls of sherry, stir it into the sauce, and pour it round the pudding. If liked, a grate of nutmeg may be added to the sauce, and, if required to be rich, an ounce of b.u.t.ter may be stirred in before the brandy.

WARWICKs.h.i.+RE PUDDING.

b.u.t.ter a pint-and-a-half tart-dish, lay in it a layer of light bread, cut thin, on this sprinkle a portion of two ounces of shred suet, and of one ounce of lemon candied-peel, chopped very fine. Fill the dish lightly with layers of bread, sprinkling over each a little of the suet and peel.

Boil a pint of milk with two ounces of sugar, pour it on two eggs, beaten for a minute, and add it to the pudding just before putting it into the oven; a little of Nelson's Essence of Lemon or Almonds may be added to the custard. Bake the pudding in a very slow oven for an hour.

VANILLA RUSK PUDDING.

Dissolve, but do not oil, an ounce of b.u.t.ter, mix in a quarter of a pound of sifted sugar, stir over the fire for a few minutes, add an egg well beaten, and half a teaspoonful of Nelson's Vanilla Extract, or as much as will give a good flavour to the paste, which continue stirring until it gets thick.

Spread four slices of rusk with the vanilla paste, put them in a b.u.t.tered tart-dish. Boil half-a-pint of new milk, pour it on to an egg well beaten, then add it to the rusk, and put the pudding to bake in a slow oven for an hour. Turn out when done, and sift sugar over the pudding. If a superior pudding is desired, boil a tablespoonful of apricot jam in a teacupful of plain sugar syrup, add a little vanilla flavouring, and pour over the pudding at the moment of serving.

JUBILEE PUDDING.

Pour a pint of boiling milk on two ounces of Rizine, stir over the fire for ten minutes, add half an ounce of b.u.t.ter, the yolks of two eggs, an ounce of castor sugar, and six drops of Nelson's Essence of Almonds. Put the pudding into a b.u.t.tered pie-dish, and bake in a moderate oven for a quarter of an hour. When taken from the oven, spread over it a thin layer of apricot jam, and on this the whites of the eggs beaten to a strong froth, with half an ounce of castor sugar. Return the pudding to a slow oven for about four minutes, in order to set the meringue.

NATAL PUDDING.

Soak half-an-ounce of Nelson's Gelatine in half-a-pint of cold water until it is soft, when add the grated peel of half a lemon, the juice of two lemons, the beaten yolks of three eggs, and six ounces of lump sugar dissolved in half-a-pint of boiling water. Stir the mixture over the fire until it thickens, taking care that it does not boil. Have ready the whites of the eggs well whisked, stir all together, pour into a fancy mould, which put into a cold place until the pudding is set.

QUEEN'S PUDDING.

Half-a-pound of bread-crumbs, a pint of new milk, two ounces of b.u.t.ter, the yolks of four eggs, and a little Nelson's Essence of Lemon. Boil the bread-crumbs and milk together, then add the sugar, b.u.t.ter, and eggs; when these are well mixed, bake in a tart-dish until a light brown. Then put a layer of strawberry jam, and on the top of this the whites of the eggs beaten to a stiff froth, with a little sifted sugar. Smooth over the meringue with a knife dipped in boiling water, and bake for ten minutes in a slow oven.

CHOCOLATE PUDDING.

Boil half-a-pound of light stale bread in a pint of new milk. Stir continually until it becomes a thick paste; then add an ounce of b.u.t.ter, a quarter of a pound of sifted sugar, and two large teaspoonfuls of Schweitzer's Cocoatina, with a little Nelson's Essence of Vanilla. Take the pudding off the fire, and mix in, first, the yolks of three eggs, then the whites beaten to a strong froth. Put into a b.u.t.tered tart-dish and bake in a moderate oven for three-quarters of an hour.

COCOA-NUT PUDDING.