(LIBRARY j ( UNIVERSITY OF I 1IMAL SWAIN'S BAKERY ^213 SUTTER STREET SWAIN BROTHERS. ^i^u^e fllflOGI'S BOUlhLiON LIQUID EXTRACT OF BEEF /"TO HAVE a happy invention is not sufficient. The simplicity with which (d) "MAGGI'S &OUJLLON" can be used will quickly demonstrate it as being as indispensable in the kitchen as^alt or pepper. "MAGGI'S BOUILLON" is simply Liquid Extract of Beef, a teaspoonful of which put into a cup of hot or cold water makes at once a. perfect "Beef Tea" that sick or well will relish. Two tablespoon fuls to a quart of water (adding vegetables, etc.), will make a better Soup or Potage than hours spent over the fire by the finest cook. A small quantity added to Gravies, Ragouts^ Stews, Roasts etc. , will improve their quality to such an extent as will surprise one. Unlike all other Extracts of Meat, "MAGGI'S BOUILLON" is extremely palatable, does not need the addition of salt or pepper to make it so, can be used by the most inexperienced, and will produce a better Broth or Soup than any first- class cook can turn out otherwise. No soup-stock hereafter will be necessary, as "MAGGI'S BOUILLON" is better and cheaper, more nutritious for the sick, convalescent and healthy. [ Bouillon with Fine Herbs VARIETIES -j Plain Bouillon i. Bouillon with Truffles In 5-oz. and Quart bottles with glass stoppers MORRIS NEWTON & GO. AGENTS CARBONE & MONTI THE LEADING FLORISTS 343 KEARNY ST. ^ 619^ VALENCIA ST. TELEPHONE 903 TELEPHONE 6130 SAN KRANCISCO Blanding Ave. Nursery A LAMBDA THE \VORLE>'S GREATEST RAILROAD 9518 Miles of Track THE ONLY ROUTE - ,,. Running both Palace Vestibule and Tourist Pullman Sleepers Daily between San Francisco * Chicago WITHOUT CHANGE For maps, rates or other information, address C. H. SPEERS, W. A. BISSELL, OR Asst. Gen'l Passenger Agent General Passenger Agent Room 61, Chronicle Building, San Francisco, Cal, THE CALIFORNIA BUSH ST., NEAR SAN KRANCISCO, CAL. THE ONLY STRICTLY EUROPEAN PLAN AND FIRE-PROOF HOTEL IN THE CITY IT IS A RECOGNIZED fact that San Francisco has made from time to time the greatest effort to surpass all other cities in her Hotel accommodations, and it must be conceded that the acme of perfection has now been reached. The California was opened December, 1890, and there is nothing on the Pacific Coast, so far as artistic taste, elegance of appointments and lavish^expendi- ture go, which can compare with it. The California is unsurpassed in style of service by the best hotels of the United States. Heretofore there has been no strictly European plan hotel in San Francisco. Select music every evening in Restaurant between 6 and 8 P. M. Moderate rates. A visit to this city is incomplete without seeing The California, unquestionably the most beauti- ful and luxuriously furnished hotel in America. A. F. KINZLER, MANAGER PATENT ROLLER FLOUR Whitest and Best Flour in the market. Sells for fifty cents [500.] per barrel more than any other brand HOME DISSERTATIONS: OFFERING TO THE HOUSEHOLD FOR ECONOMICAL AND PRACTICAL SKILL IN COOKERY, ORDERLY DOMESTIC MANAGEMENT, AND NICETY IN THE APPOINTMENTS OF HOME. EXCERPTS FROM FAVORITE AUTHORS, COMPILED AND ILLUSTRATED BY MRS. E. STEVENS TILTON. V i I SECOND EDITION SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. GOLDBERG, BOWEN & LEBENBAUM, PUBLISHERS 426 TO 432 PINE ST. AND 215-217 SUTTER ST. 1891 Copyright, 1885, by MRS. E. STEVENS TII,TON THE OXFORD PUBLISHING Co. 3 East 14th St., New York PREFACE. presenting HOME DISSERTATIONS, it has been our aim to embody every want, solve every dilemma, and gratify every wish of a good housekeeper. The in- formation endeavored to impart, valuable household re- ceipts for plain and fancy cooking, French names of all articles of food, and how to prepare them, varied menus for all kinds of entertainments, etc., has been ob- tained and arranged with no little effort. GOLDBERG, BOWEN & LEBENBAUM 529 \ PURE, FRESH, DELICIOUS, apd ORDERS BY MAIL OR EXPRESS WILL RECEIVE PROMPT ATTENTION, iei STJ5TE ST., CHICAGO. Branch of 803 Broadway, N. Y. "And when night came, amidst the breathless Heavens, we'd guess what star should be our home when love becomes immortal." * * HOME. Home! home! sweet, sweet home! r "HE household is the home of the man, as well as .of the child. The events that occur therein are more near and affecting to us than those which are sought in senates and academies. Domestic events are certainly our affairs. What are called public events may or may not be ours. If a man wishes to acquaint himself with the real history of the world, with the spirit of the age, he must not go first to the state-house or the court-room. The subtle spirit of life must be sought in facts nearer. It is what is done and suffered in the house, in the constitution, in the temperament, in the personal history, that has the profoundest interest for us," says Emer- son, and adds: "Let us come, then, out of the public square, and enter the domestic precinct. Let us go to the sitting room, the table-talk, and the expenditure of our contemporaries. Does the household obey an idea ? Do you see the man, his form, genius, and aspira- tion, in his economy? Is that translucent, thorough-lighted ? There should be nothing confounding and conventional in economy, but the genius and love of the man so con- spicuously marked in all his estate, that the eye that knew him should read his character in his property, in his grounds, in his ornaments, in his every expense. A man's money should not follow the direction of his neighbor's money, but should represent to him the things he would willingliest do with it. I am not one thing and my expenditure another, My expenditure is me. That our expenditure and our character are twain, is the vice of society. The progress of domestic living has been in cleanliness, in ventilation, in health, in decorum, in countless means and arts of comfort, in the concentration of all the utilities of every clime in each house. They are arranged for low benefits. The houses of the rich are confectioners' shops, where we get sweetmeats and wine; the houses of the poor are imitations of these to the extent of their ability. With these ends housekeeping is not beautiful; it cheers and raises neither the husband, the wife, nor the child; neither the host, nor the guest; it oppresses women. A house kept to the end of prudence is labo- rious without joy; a house kept to the end of display is impossible to all but a few women, and their success is dearly bought. Let us understand, then, that a house should bear witness in all its economy that human culture is the end to which it is built and garnished. It stands there under the sun and moon to ends analogous, and not less noble than theirs. It is not for festivity, it is not for sleep: but the pine and the oak shall gladly descend from the mountain to up- hold the roof of men as faithful and necessary as themselves; to be the shelter always open to good and true persons a hall which shines with sincerity, brows ever tranquil, and a 6 HOME DISSERTATIONS. demeanor impossible to disconcert; whose inmates know what they want; who do not ask your house how theirs should be kept. They have aims: they cannot pause for trifles. The diet of the house does not create its order, but knowledge, character, action, absorb so much life and yield so much entertainment that the refectory has ceased to be so curi- ously studied. With a change of aim has followed a change of the whole scale by which men and things were wont to be measured. Wealth and poverty are seen for what they arc. It begins to be seen that the poor are only they who feel poor, and poverty consists in feeling poor. The poor man's son is educated. There is many a humble house in every city, in every town, where talent and taste, and sometimes genius, dwell with poverty and labor. Honor to the house where they are simple to the verge of hardship, so that the intellect is awake and reads the laws of the universe, the soul worships truth and love, honor and courtesy flows into all deeds." " In the true marriage relation the independence of the husband and the wife is equal, their dependence mutual, and their obligations are reciprocal." The hearts of married people ought to be types of one another; a husband owes to his wife all the sentiment he expects from her; and his happiness depends much more on what he is to her than what she is to him." " It is well for the women of the household to remember that pleasant homes are strong antidotes to the practice of looking for enjoyment abroad; for relaxation and rec- reation will be indulged in somehow by most men, and happy are they who find in the home circle the diversion they need. A lively game, an interesting book read aloud, or in musical families, a new song to be practiced, will furnish pastime that will make an evening enjoyable to all. Our homes should be warm, bright, home-like, and cozy. Every corner should appear as if somebody made it an especial haunt and had just gone out. " Let all the members of households ever remember that at home there should be peace and unity, though all the world be at war. Those bound by the ties of kindred should uphold each other, and bear with each others foibles and hide them from strang- ers' eyes. Those who dwell under the same home-roof must fight under one flag or be defeated. Policy, if not good feeling, should bind together the members of every household." I honor that man whose ambition it is, not to win laurels in the State or the army, not to be a jurist or a naturalist, not to be a poet or a commander, but to be a master of liv- ing well, and to administer the offices of master or servant, of husband, father, and friend. Cut it requires as much breadth of power for this as for those other functions, as much, or more, and the reason for the failure is the same. I think the vice of our housekeep- ing is, that it does not hold man sacred. The vice of government, the vice of education, the vice of religion, is one with that of private life. Let religion cease to be occasional; and the pulses of thought that go to the borders of the universe, let them proceed from the bosom of the household. These are 'he consolations, these are the ends to which the household is instituted HOME. 7 and the rooftree stands. If these were sought, and in good degree attained, can the State, can commerce, can climate, can the labor of many for one, yield anything better or half so good ? Beside these aims, Society is weak, and the State an intrusion. I think the heroism which at this day would make on us the impression of Epaminondas and Phocion must be that of a domestic conqueror. He who shall bravely and gracefully subdue this Gor- gon of Convention and Fashion, and show men how to lead a clean, handsome, and heroic life amid the beggarly elements of our cities and villages; who shall teach me how to eat my meat and take my repose, and deal with men, without any shame following, will restore the life of man to splendor, and make his own name dear to all history. Beyond its primary ends of the conjugal, parental, and amicable relations, the house- hold should cherish the beautiful arts and the sentiments of veneration. Certainly, not aloof from this homage to beauty, but a strict connection therewith, the house will come to be esteemed a Sanctuary. The language of a ruder age has given to common law the maxim that every man's house is his castle: the progress of truth will make every house a shrine." " The happy home. ' It is just as possible to keep a calm house as a clean house, a cheerful house as an orderly house, a happy home as a furnished house, if the heads set themselves to do so. Where is the difficulty of consulting each other's weakness, as well as each other's wants; each other's tempers, as well as each other's health; each other's comfort, as well as each other's character? Oh! it is by leaving the peace at home to chance, instead of pursuing it by system, that so many homes are unhappy. It deserves notice, also, that almost anyone can be courteous and forbearing and patient in a neighbor's house. If anything go wrong, or be out of time, or be disagreeable there, it is made the best of, not the worst; even efforts are made to excuse it, and to show that it is not felt; or, if felt, it is attributed to accident, not design; and this is not only easy, but natural, in the house of a friend. I will not, therefore, believe that what is so natural in the house of another is impossible at home, but maintain, without fear, that a husband, as willing to be pleased at home, and as anxious to please as in his neighbor's house; and a wife as intent on making things comfortable every day to her family as on set days to her guests, could not fail to make their own home happy. Let us not evade the point of these remarks by recurring to the maxim about allowances for temper, unless we could prove that we gained anything good by giving way to it. Fits of ill-humor punish us quite as much, if not more, than those they are vented upon; and it actually requires more effort, and inflicts more pain to give them up, than would be requisite to avoid them." " The rapid increase of boarding-houses and hotels in all our great cities is attracting much attention from those who study the various phases of American social life. The increase is far greater than the natural increase of population would warrant, in many cases homes are broken up and housekeeping abandoned, not from motives of economy, 8 HOME DISSERTATIONS. but from sheer indolence and simply to avoid the management of the household and the innumerable petty cares inseparable from any establishment, however small. The boarding house as a temporary accommodation is useful, but it is hardly the place in which to properly bring up children. The privacy of family life is not an enjoyment which under natural conditions it would be. The delicate relations and expansion of home do not exist, and the liens which hold the family together become lax. There is but little distinction between its intercourse and that which it extends to acquaintances, through lacking opportunities. We believe that the influence of boarding-house life has been mischievous to American society, in weakening the home feeling and developing a gregarious spirit. To live in a crowd has become a habit. There are comparatively few people of the large cities who have the love of a country home in their hearts, owing to what they consider its isolation. There is no "society' there. They depend on others for their daily quota of happiness, and do not think of drawing on themselves. This is nationally characteristic of both rich and poor. The money which a family spends in two or three seasons at Newport, Saratoga or Long Branch would buy a homestead, which, as an educator of manhood and womanhood, would be worth more than any hotel or boarding-house " society " that ever existed. Children would grow up with the trees and become natural, like them, instead of the poor creatures one so often sees in " society." Family ties would become stronger, as well as home virtues. \ " To culti- possess and to " The desire and therefore ' ' Keep noth- ART AT HOME. vate and exercise judiciously the Artistic sense, is to be a person of Taste. To cultivate it in an extraordinary degree, is to be an Artist. for simplicity and sincerity, and, by means of these, beauty, in our houses, in the lives that we spend in them. ing in your house but what you know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." " \ RT decoration," "Art colors," "Art fabrics," "Art needle- /~~\ work," and so on ; and, moreover, what is exactly meant, when people say as I most earnestly wish they would not that they "go in for High Art." The word seems really to have lost the power of expressing what those who care for it in its right meaning would have it express. Let us try to get at that right meaning, and learn to use it properly. "Art decoration," "Art embroidery," and the like, are tautological expressions. If such things ex- ist at all, they must of necessity belong to it, just as geography and chem- istry must of neces- sity be sci- ence, and belong to it. 10 HOME DISSERTATIONS'. 'Lucy Crane, in her lectures on Art and the Formation of Taste, furthermore says: " Many people think that ' High Art,' as they call it is inseparably associated with affec- tation, and melancholy, and dull colors, and general darkness, and dirt, and discomfort; this is certainly not the sort of thing I wish to advocate: the art that those first teachers originated, is an art of simplicity, of cheerfulness and brightness, of comfort, cleanliness, and hospitality, and is a help to good healthy living, and not a hindrance to it." The distinction which has somehow arisen between "Color" and "Art color" is a quite unreasonable one, and based on false ideas. If a color is of such a nature as to be inadmissable in Art, it is no color at all, properly speaking; it is a stain, a dye, a pigment. It is easy to trace these expressions back to their origin. They were invented by shop- keepers, to characterize a kind of goods got up in a certain style to please that part of the public that cares for fashion and novelty alone; and has no higher aims or desires, and wishes to have none. So let us leave such expressions to their inventors, who, by bad imitations of the good work of our time, seek to catch our fancy, careless or idle, as we most of us are, or else too busy to pay any regard to such matters. There is, however, no sort of lasting satisfaction in merely following blindly the fashion of the day, whether it be in house decoration, or in coloring, or in dress, or in pictures; for it seems there is a fashion even in these. Ideas hastily caught up, and adopted without reason and consider- ation, must be shallow and worthless ones. The love of novelty is opposed to the pro- duction of good art which is in its nature and constitution lasting, living, and in a sense immortal: in the race for novelty, the last new thing runs down the one before it, only to perish in its turn, because it deserves no better fate. But for those of us who care for something more in our lives than fashion and novelty, it is worth while to examine into the real nature and true meaning of Art, so as to possess ourselves of all the various knowledge and pleasure it is capable of giving. So, to guard against any misconception from the beginning, let me attempt to define what Art is. The word in its original sense meant force, or strength, and it was applied to mechanical work, and is so still. We speak of the art of weaving, the art of printing, the florist's art, the art of cooking, and so on; and in these we mean to express the result of man's putting forth his hand and operating on Nature; and Art in its widest sense has come to be " human labor regulated by human design." Art decorative, " The first spiritual want of a barbarous man," says Carlyle, " is decoration." That want began to develop itself ages before the time of which we have any certain record; and the same thing is still to be observed among tribes of savage men at the present time. He the savage, the barbarous man scratches patterns on his weap- ons, his paddles, his tools and utensils of all sorts, and on his own body as well; next he begins to weave stuffs for his wearing, and to trace in their texture, patterns first geo- metric, then imitations of animal and vegetable life in short, he learns to decorate whatever he wears or uses, and to find pleasure in the object beyond its use, a pleasure of the eye, a delight in Beauty; and so he gradually creates a new and wonderful thing the Artistic Sense. ART AT HOME. ir I am sorry to say that in these later days of civilization we often see ornament dis- tinctly hindering use. See to what a pass civilization has brought our fire-irons, things of every-day use and necessity. A century or so ago they were lightly made, of a size and shape to be held and used easily, and they did their work well; then, as luxury and osten- tation increased, the poker, and the shovel, and the tongs became larger and heavier, so as to look massive and handsome, and as if a good deal of money had been spent upon them; their shape was altered to suit new and unreasonable notions of elegance they began to be made of burnished steel and lacquer-work of a lustre easily tarnished -and laboriously renewed; and finally they left off work altogether, being too fine for it, and were obliged to be provided with a humble deputy to do it for them. Of the same kind are candle-sticks that must be preserved like exotics under a glass shade, or call it ex- tinguisher; curtain-poles so gilded that the real work must be done by iron ones hidden behind; and cushions and footstools meant for repose, and to that end studded with hard cold beads. Now such ornament as that is clear waste and folly, and wrong from the very beginning. The instinct for ornament in earlier stages of civilization is never found to lead to such sacrifice. The savage does not so over-decorate his paddle, his knife, his tomahawk, as to render it useless, and a real and capable workman or workwoman has the same instinct; and to recur to what I said just now, here should come in the practical knowl- edge, that I suppose we all of us possess in some direction and in some degree, and which we should be proud of possessing. An accomplished needlewoman rejects the highly ornamented and tasselled work- basket with its tinselled implements; a practiced writer objects to a gilded and elaborate inkstand and a gimcrack pen-holder; and a really clever amateur cook is not over-anxious about the trimming of her apron, so that it is of stout material and the shape that will best protect her dress. To expend labor in disguising use and falsifying material, shows an utter misconception of Art and ignorance of Beauty. Ornament has come to be, in these days, a thing of itself, whereas, as such, it has no real reason for existing. I arp not speaking now of anything of the nature of a picture or statue. The idea has somehow arisen that a thing, if called an ornament, however useless, cumbrous, and troublesome, must be prized and taken care of. Now Mr. Morris says: " Nothing is ornamental unless it is also useful." This you will think at the first glance condemns all or most ornamental objects; but on examination it is not so. It condemns groups of wax flowers under glass shades; it condemns vast crochet antimacassars; it condemns glass fuchsias at the end of curtain- poles; it condemns huge china pugs and parrots; it condemns all china and glass objects which will not hold at need flowers or fruit, or other or more substantial things for which china and glass objects were originally intended. I do not mean that we may not use china, and glass, and metal, and wooden objects exclusively as ornaments, as their pecu- liar beauty or rarity may lead us so to preserve them merely to be looked at, but they should have been originally capable of fulfilling perfectly some function or other, or they 12 HOME DISSERTATIONS. cannot be truly beautiful; and the aimlessness of their structure would give a feeble worthless appearance, no matter how much painting and gilding or carving they have re- ceived, or how much skill of hand has been expended on them. We are accustomed to recognize the necessity for intelligence and knowledge in every department of life but that which belongs to Beauty of Decoration, of form and color; taste in these things is left to take care of itself. We all readily allow that education and study go to form the literary taste, the musi- cal taste, and even taste in food or wine; but the artistic taste is left to form itself. Choice in form or color is usually quite unguided by any principle, and is by many sup- posed to be unworthy of serious thought. We do not ask the book-seller to guide our taste in reading, or the music-seller to form our taste in music; still less do we allow the cook and the wine merchant the uncontrolled management of our table. Yet the furnishing of a house in many, if not in all, important particulars is commonly left to the upholsterer, or decorator as he prefers to be called; and as he, not working with his own hands, takes no pleasure in the work, but has gain for his first object, so h's only idea is to carry out what he supposes to be the prevailing style, so as to produce the most show for the most money; and the result of this is likely to be a most unhappy one; still people are content with it educated and refined people too and they live out their lives complacently, surrounded by evidences of vulgarity and bad taste, at which they would be horrified, if they had ever learned to appreciate them. We have to consider Art as a world of itself, created out of Nature by the hand of the artist-workman. Art has been called the " flowering of man's moral nature," it is a natural growth out of, and beyond mere material necessities; to it we owe everything in the whole range of human productions which appeal to the sense of beauty, and the thoughts awakened in us by beauty. The artistic sense by which we appreciate these things may be counted as a sixth sense; it may be possessed in a greater or less degree by the individual, but it exists in every one, and may be developed by training and cultiva- tion like the other senses. As I said that to understand the real nature of Art is to possess ourselves of the various pleasures it is capable of giving. For I must premise that the end and aim of Art, and therefore the cultivation of the Artistic sense, is to give pleasure in the common things of life by giving to them beauty of form, pattern, color; and next, pleasure of a still higher order by translating and trans- forming the things of Nature into the beauty of picture, statue, or building. It is the sort of pleasure that is in all elevated things, and it appeals to the purest and most intellectual side of our nature; there can be no degradation, no intemperance in the cultivation, the indulgence of the Artistic sense. The pleasure it subserves lies at the root, and is the inspiration of music and poetry, as well as of painting, and sculpture, and architecture. It is Beauty that is sought for in all these; Beauty is the source of the pleasure we find in them, and without Beauty, any manifestation of these great aits is nothing worth. We ask of a musical composition, not only that it shall be in strict accordance i ART AT HOME. 13 with technical rules, but also that it shall enchant us with the beauty of its melody or the sublimity of its form; we ask not only that a poem shall be written in faultless language and rhythm, but it shall appeal with higher beauty to the mind and the heart: so it would not be enough for a picture to be designed according to the strictest laws of composition and perspective, or for a statue to obey every rule of anatomy, or for a building to have every proportional and geometric perfection there must be a soul of beauty and sub- limity in the picture, the statue, the building, as well as in the musical composition and the poem; and then by them we shall be made to feel the highest pleasure of which our nature is capable a pleasure which nourishes the intellect in delighting the senses, and through them, the heart. At the head of these greater Arts, the Fine Arts properly so called, Poetry, Music, Painting, Sculpture, Architecture at the head of each of these stand great names with which we are all familiar; of their minds and work we know something, and that some- thing is usually the basis of our knowledge of these Arts themselves. Our admiration of the music of Handel, and Bach, and Beethoven, grows deeper as our theoretical under- standing and practical experience of the Art of Music increases; the more we learn about the nature and powers of language, and the larger our experience of life, the more we appreciate and admire Shakespeare, and Dante, and Goethe; and with inquiry into a study of the nature and history of the Arts, joined with as much practical knowledge of them as may be possible, we shall enter the more fully into the minds and works of the Great Masters of Sculpture and Painting Phidias and Michael Angelo, Leonardo and Raphael and Titian, so that they may be something more to us than merely great names, and their high reputation may be justified to us. So, too, is there much to be learned and enjoyed in the marvels of the architecture of all ages that the Greek, the Romanesque, the Gothic, shall be more than barren names; and following in the train of these great men and periods of Fine Art come a crowd of lesser arts, such as the art of the potter, the carver in wood, in stone, in ivory, of the metal worker, the weaver, the embroiderer, and many others arts which lend beauty of form, and pattern, and color, to the common things of life, each of which has laws and a character of its own to be studied, in accordance with which Beauty is fitly joined with Use; the one furthering rather than interfering with the functions of the other. All this opens a very large prospect. But everything must have a beginning; and it is this little beginning that I want to make in the minds of those for whom it has not already been made a little gate into that field, that vast kingdom of Art, which contains within it things small and great, and of infinite diversity, from the pattern of the door-knob to the sculptures of the Parthenon. " Happy is he," says Goethe, "who, at an early age, knows what Art is;" but it is never too late to learn. "All Art," says Mr. Ruskin, "worthy the name, is energy, neither of the human body alone, nor of the human soul alone, but of both united, one guiding the other: good craftsmanship and work of the fingers, joined with good emotion and work of the heart." 14 HOME DISSERTATIONS. In Mr. Ruskin's " Two Paths " I find a principle laid down that I am convinced is perfectly sound, and easy of application in these matters. " The true forms of conventional ornament consist in the bestowal of as much beauty on the object as shall be consistent with the Material, its Place, and its Office." Every object, then, that we admit into our houses should be able to sustain with credit the following inquiries : Does it appear to be made of the Material of which it really is, or ought to be made ? Is it appropriate to the Place for which it is intended ? Does it declare its use or Office, and seem fit for it ? Let us examine a little into the application of each separate requirement. The first, you see, condemns all imitations of a substance, especially when the object is not likely to have been made of that substance. Such are doors painted in bronze, sham jewelry, paper flowers, glass colored to look like china, plaster to look like iron and bronze, and many more. It seems a strange thing, when we reflect, that it should be supposed that we all take pleasure in a thing that pretends to be something else than it appears, and that the deception should be pointed out to us as a recommendation. The advertisement that assures us that Paris diamonds and Abyssinian jewelry cannot be distinguished from the real thing, the shopkeeper who tells us that some stuff of mixed material has quite the appearance of silk, and that a silk-finished velveteen could easily be mistaken for velvet; all this is intended to appeal, and really does appeal, to the tastes and wants of a large class. But how much better and more honest is it to know what the especial article we want ought to be made of, and to see that we get it silk honestly silk, and woolen honestly woolen, and cotton honestly cotton, and linen really and truly linen; and when the manufacturers find what is expected of them they will supply it accordingly. It must have been inappropriate and perishable material that first put it into the careful housewife's mind to provide an extra case or cover for various household objects oil-cloth or drugget to cover the stair-carpeting, holland covers for the furniture, and antimacassars over them again, oil-cloth to cover tables, and table-covers to cover the oil-cloth, and mats to save the tablecloth, and much more of the same kind. In the first place, the materials used should be appropriate and serviceable, and in the second, people should not be ashamed of the signs of honest wear in them, still, for my part, if I must cover things up at all, I would cover them when they were really shabby than while they were fresh. And when this system of covers extend itself to paper covers for flower-pots, china- cases and covers for sardine boxes, silvered perforated cardboard cases for match-boxes, and such like, it seems to express a dislike to the honest plainness and simplicity, really right and appropriate, of the things themselves, and a false refinement and love of disguise. It is the same feeling that leads people to call shops rep'ositories and emporiums, and florists to call themselves " horticultural furnishers." Simplicity and plain dealing in the material of household goods and appliances will lead us a long way in the direction of taste. Now as to the second requirement. The various rooms in our houses are intended for various uses and occasions, and natural instinct for convenience leads us to furnish them ART AT HOME. 16 HOME DISSERTATIONS. in accordance with these uses and occasions the dining-room solid and severe, with large and steady furniture adapted to serious needs; the kitchen, full of useful homely appli- ances, kept bright and clean; and the drawing-room, with its books and pictures and elegan- cies, suited for leisure and social purposes, and therefore rightly the. most decorated room in the house. So bearing the different functions of each room in mind, and furnishing them in accordance with each, we get a general sense of order and appropriateness. All this is obvious enough, and is generally sufficiently well carried out. Only very often in minor appliances, the want of the feeling for appropriateness makes itself felt. A coal- scuttle is an excellent and useful thing in its way, and in its appropriate place, but why have it in miniature on our tables, and scoop salt or sugar out of it ? Wheel barrows, and buckets, rink-skates and perambulators, used for similar purposes are really less con- venient than a small dish or bowl really designed for use, without any ulterior notion of ingenuity or conceit. A tea-kettle in the form of a drum, with the sticks for handles; a toast-rack formed of wreaths of ivy (what has ivy to do with toast?), or rifles piled up in a very unmilitary manner ; a biscuit-box in the shape of a coal-box ; gilt chain cabhs for holding back curtains; are examples of the same thing that occur to me, but a large and very astonishing list could very soon be collected. It is true as Mr. Morris says, that the best designed and constructed things in a house are generally found in the kitchen ; but that is because they fulfill their use, and are appropriate to their place, both of which qualities they lose when transported to the drawing-room. Now the third requirement, which in its application is closely connected with the second. All things of common use have their appropriate form, which, when once dis- covered, should be used and repeated without disguise. Thus a salt-cellar is most really convenient when made of glass, of a simple oblong shape, so as not to be easily upset, that the spoon may comfortably rest in it, and the salt be easily renewed; and there are many modifications of 'form, and even color, that might be introduced without hinder- ing use in any way, or making the thing seem other than it is ; and so may this principle be carried out indefinitely; and I cannot see, except for the love of novelty and pretentious conceit, why anything more should be wanted. It cannot be a very lasting pleasure to shake pepper out of an owl's head, or help yourself to butter out of a bee-hive ; but it is a lasting pleasure to have a thoroughly useful and soundly constructed thing made out of a right and good material, appearing in its appropriate place, and declaring and fulfilling its proper use and office. The chief materials of which our household goods are made wood, stone, metals, glass, china differ widely in quality of texture and substance. It is a very common objection to what are called artistic colors to say that they are gloomy, dismal, and unbecoming. If this is true of any particular shade, the fact would merely go to prove that it is not a color properly so-called, but some muddy confusion of tints, mistaken for an artistic color for want of a right apprehension and it owes its existence to a foregone conclusion that everything heavy and dull must be artistic. Delicacy of effect is gained by suiting exactly the color to the material. To muslin and ART AT HOME. 17 such like filmy substances full bright tints are most unsuitable ; pale tender hues, and light tracery of pattern belong to them ; still delicacy in these does not involve insipidity, which poverty of tone and design would cause. For richer stuffs, in silk and satin and velvet, fuller hues are quite suitable. The shimmer, the shifting of lights and shadows, the bloom of the texture modifies the effect of a full color which in a dull common stuff would be flat and heavy. It is a immemorial custom that dining-room curtains should be red, with leather chairs, red tablecloth, and Turkey carpet in which red prevails. There is not much variety in this time-honored fashion; nor is there sometimes in the manifestations of the new. I saw a drawing-room the other day with a peacock feather patterned wall-paper, dado and wood work of peacock blue, and curtains and chair-coverings of peacock patterned chintz, ex- actly matching the wall-paper. The result was flat and monotonous, in my opinion. Both these are instances of want of variety. I would never recommend chairs to be covered with stuff like the curtains, or the walls to be like either. The walls of the dining-room may be a brownish yellow, the curtains of a mixed red and yellow the yellow a little pinkish; the chairs plain red, and the carpet brown and yellow and red, and a little green. A great deal of pleasure can be felt in the variety of these tints, which nevertheless pro- duce a unity of effect when regarded as a whole. It is a good rule, if the walls have a pattern on them, that the curtains should be plain, and vice versa; so a dress should not be entirely figured or embroidered, but only in portions, that the design may show all the more richly. Red is the color that first attracts the untrained sense. Green has been said to be a color that is only appreciated by cultivated faculties. Yellow is a color of which, I am inclined to think, the best effects are neglected; it ought to be more used in town houses, so as to bring a little artificial sunlight into them. It cannot be used in masses, but must be broken and mingled with other colors. Yellow and white are as agreeable in their way as blue and white. Mixed shades of yellow and white and a little myrtle green form a pleasing combination. Now as blue is called cold, so is yellow said to be warm. It is the color of the intensest heat we can imagine white-heat; and as blue cools and chills, yellow warms any color with which it is mixed. Red being neutral. is incapable of imparting either cold or warm effect to a color to which it is added in any proportion. In the prismatic spectrum, the original type of color, or the rainbow, are found what are called the three primary colors yellow, red, blue. Between these, and composed of them, are the three secondary colors, orange made of yellow and red; pur- ple, of red and blue; green, of blue and yellow. Of the three primary colors yellow, red, blue in various proportions, every hue in nature is composed black, in which all colors are absorbed, being at one end of the scale, and white, in which all are reflected, at the other end of it. Between the two, the variations may be considered infinite. Some sci- entific calculation numbers thirty thousand; but I could easily believe them to be twice as many. Blue is the only color that can be obtained in a perfectly pure form. Ultramarine the type of purity, the color of the Virgin Mary. iS HOME DISSERTATION'S. Never have a color concentrated in one spot, but take care to repeat it in others. If you have blue and white chintz in one corner of your room, put some in another corner to balance it. In these ways, therefore by using either a color-analogy, or a color-contrast and observing delicacy, variety, and repetition, can harmonious arrangement of color be brought together and applied. "It is the best possible sign of a color," says Mr. Ruskin, "when nobody who sees it knows what to call it, or how to give an idea of it to anybody else." Even among simple hues the most valuable are those which cannot be defined; the most precious purples will look brown beside pure purple; and the most precious greens will be called blue if seen beside pure green, and green if seen beside pure blue. A color may be very agreeable in its real nature, but lose all its pleasing qualities when wrongly combined. Harmony not only brings agreeable tones together, but establishes an affinity between them, both in music and in color. The most striking effect of the modern revival of taste is the change of public opinion it has effected with regard to color a change from coldness and rawness to tone and warmth. And if we compare the magenta, the mauve, the emerald green of a dozen years ago, with the tints that are now the mode, we shall see that the wide difference between their effect on the color sense is owing to the adoption in the latter of warm yellow tones instead of cold blue ones, such as I have described. " There are not many tints," says Mr. Morris, "fit to color a wall with. Here is a short list : a solid red not very deep, but rather describable as a full pink, and toned both with yellow and blue, a very fine color if you can hit it; a light orangy pink, to be used rather sparingly, a pale golden tint, /'. e., a yellowish brown, a very difficult color to hit; and a color between these two last, call it pale copper color. All these three you must be careful over, for if you get them muddy or dirty you are lost." As the beauty of glass consists in its transparency and lightness, and its capability of being twisted, or blown, or moulded into a multitude of delicate forms, it early occurred to the manufacturing mind that, if made thick and solid and cut in facets, it would re- semble crystal; and thus it has come to be a fixed idea that hard glitter is its most valu- able quality, and so it is made inches thick, and pounds heavy, to enhance its brilliancy; and, being one of the most fragile of substances, it must be engraved with people's crests and monograms, as if it were intended to carry down the name of the family for genera- tions to come ! Being of its nature transparent, it must be rendered opaque of set inten- tion by coloring matters, and then painted and gilded ! Since, at the strongest, glass can never be anything but fragile, at least let it keep the beauty belonging to fragility; since it is naturally transparent, let the light be seen streaming through it, sometimes delicately tinted, sometimes iridescent; and, instead of being cut, let it be blown and twisted into the thousand delicate shapes to which it easily lends itself, and of which, in the Vene- tian glass of a bygone day, and in its present revival, there are such delightful exam- ples. In the word pottery is included every species of earthenware, from the rudest cup of ART AT HOME. burnt or baked clay, such as was made a thousand years before the Christian era, to the finest Oriental and Sevres of to-day. The taste for blue and white china, so great a feature in modern decoration, has much to excuse it within due limits. I have never been able to see the fitness of hanging detached plates, however unique and valu- able on walls, as if they were pictures; but on a shelf or ledge where plates can be arranged in a row, the cool, clean color of the older Oriental, or even Delf, is very refreshing and pleasant to the eye. With- out pretending to connoisseurship in marks, and periods, and processes, we may easily learn to distinguish between poor imitations, and original and good objects in pottery between Chinese and Japanese, between early and late works in both, and among the most marked English kinds, Wedgewood, Worcester, Chelsea, Derby, and so on, so to use the most decorative. 20 HOME DISSERTATIONS. Emerson says of Art: '' Because the soul is progressive, it never quite repeats itselL. but in every act attempts the production of a new and fairer whole. This appears in works both of the useful and the fine arts, if we employ the popular distinction of works according to their aim either at use or beauty. Thus in our fine arts, not imitation, but creation, is the aim. It is a rule of largest application, true in a plant, true in a loaf of bread, that in the construction of any fabric or organism, any real increase of fitness to its end, is an increase of beauty. Hence our taste in building rejects paint, and all shifts, and shows the original g.:ain of the wood: refuses pilasters and columns that support nothing, and allows the real sup- porters of the house honestly to show themselves. We ascribe beauty to that which is simple ; which has no superfluous parts ; which exactly answers its end ; which stands related to all things ; which is the mean of many extremes. Beauty rides on a lion. Beauty rests on necessities. The line of beauty is the result of perfect economy. The cell of the bee is built at that angle which gives the most strength with the least wax ; the bone or the quill of the bird gives the most alar strength with the least weight. " It is the purgation of superfluities," said Michael Angelo. Veracity first of ail, and forever. Rien de beau que le vrai. In all designs, art lies in making your object prominent, but there is a prior art in choosing objects that are promi- nent. The fine arts have nothing casual, but spring from the instincts of the nations that created them. Still Beauty rides on her lion, as before. Still, "it was for beauty that the world was made. " But the sovereign attribute remains to be noted. Things are pretty, graceful, rich, elegant, handsome, but, until they speak to the imagination, not yet beautiful. Let us understand, then, that a house shall bear witness in all its economy that human culture is the end to which it is built and garnished. Honor to the house where they are simple to the verge of hardship, so that there the intellect is awake and reads the laws of the universe, the soul worships truth and love, honor and courtesy flow into all deeds. The ornament of a house is the friends who frequent it. There is no event greater in life than the appearance of new persons about our hearth, except it be the progress of the character which draws them. It has been finally added by Landor to his definition of 'the great man, " It is he who can call together the most select company when it pleases him." Beyond its primary ends of the conjugal, parental, and amicable relations, the house- hold should cherish the beautiful arts and the sentiments of veneration. Whatever brings the dweller into a finer life, what educates his eye, or ear, or hand, whatever purifies and enlarges him, may well find place there. And yet let him not think that a property in beautiful object 1 ; is necessary to his apprehension of them, and seek to turn his house into a museum. Rather let the noble practice of the Greeks find place in our society, and let the creations of the plastic arts be collected with care in galleries by the piety and taste of the people, and yielded as freely as the sunlight to all. ART AT HOME. Meantime, be it remembered, we are artists ourselves, and competitors, each one with Phidias and Raphael in the production of what is graceful and grand. The fountain of beauty is the heart, and every generous thought illustrates the walls of your chambers." THE HEARTH-STONE. BLoW HIGH BLoW Low NoT THE WINDS THA T EVER BLW CAN QVENCH oVR HEARTH - FIRES RVDDy GLW. Where thou find'st fires unraked and hearths unswept, There pinch the maids as blue as bilberry. SHAKESPEARE. VESTA was the goddess of the household hearth, or rather the fire burning on the hearth. As, according to the old heathen custom, all men were regarded as enemies unless by a special compact they had been made friends, so Vesta presided especially over true and faithful dealing ; and as the household was the centre of all kindly affections, she was represented as always pure and undefiled. The influence of Vesta was perhaps more deeply felt, and wrought more good, than any other Olympian deity. Her worship involved direct and practical duties. She could not be fitly served by men who broke their plighted word, or dealt treacherously with those whom they had received at their hearth ; and thus her worship was almost an unmixed good, both for households and for the State. The word vesta is often put for fire itself, for it is derived from a Greek word which signifies a chimney, a house, or household goods. She is esteemed the president and guardian of houses, and one of the household deities, not without reason, since she invented the art of building houses: and therefore an image of Vesta, to which they sac- rificed every day, was placed before the doors of the houses in Rome, and the places where these statues were set up were cal/ed vestibula, from Vesta. A perpetual fire was kept in her temple, among the sacred pledges of the empire; not upon an altar, or in the chimneys, but in earthen vessels hanging in the air, which the vestal virgins tended with so much care, that if by chance this fire was extinguished, all public and private business was interrupted, and a vacation proclaimed till they had expiated the unhappy prodigy with incredible pains; and if it appeared that the virgins were the occasion of its going out, by carelessness, they were severely punished. In recompense for this severe law, the vestals obtained extraordinary privileges and respect; they had the most honored seats at games and festivals; the consuls and magistrates gave way whenever they met them; their declarations in trials were admitted without the form of an oath; and if they happened to encounter in their path a criminal going to the place of execution, he immediately obtained his pardon. Upon the calends of March, every year, though it was not extinguished, they used to renew it, with no other fire than that which was produced by the rays of the sun. A portion of the sacred fire of Vesta was carried away by the colonists, to be kept 22 VESTA. 24 HOME DISSERTATIONS. alive forever in their new home; and as long as this fire continued burning, they felt they had a common interest with the citizens of their old country. "It was supposed that in the centre of the earth there was a hearth which answered to the hearth placed in the centre of the whole universe." Lucy Crane says: "The one indispensable stone in every room of the house the hearth- stone is, in most old-fashioned houses, of marble, easily kept clean by washing; when it came to be made of inferior stone, whitening was used at the edges, and black-lead under and about the grate. In fire-places of this kind, instead of these, I would recommend reddening, which has an excellent effect with brass fender, and fireirons, and the red ochre for the purpose can be got everywhere and applied just as easily as whitening or black-lead. As all the interest and home feelings of a house collect about the fireside, in our climate, in which winter holds us half the year, a fire being, as Dr. Johnson said, "a living thing in a dead room," it will be worth while to consider it in other respects carefully. The earlier household fires were made on an open hearth of logs of wood piled on iron supports called dogs, which at their ends fronting the room, were ornamented with figures and devices of wrought metal. As coal became more commonly used, being found capable of containing greater heat in a smaller compass, a sort of basket grate was made to contain it. In most cases the open fireplace is a great black hole in our rooms, only tolerable when there is a fire burning in it, and anything we can do to moderate the black- ness is a benefit, such as to redden the hearth in the way I have mentioned, or still better, to pave the hearth with red tiles not tiles with patterns on them, as the ashes obscure and spoil the effect of the design. In summer great and wonderful efforts are in these days made to do away with that blackness. I cannot think painted and gilded papers, or lace bibs and aprons, or a heap of shavings garlanded with artificial flowers, or even cur- tains or a Japanese umbrella, really comfortable and appropriate. The fireplace itself is the root of the difficulty, which will last until there is a general reform. A wide fireplace lined with patterned and colored tiles, the hearth of plain ones, red or brown or green, and the grate itself a separate and detached object, capable of being removed, and its place in the summer filled with plants; like the hearth in The Deserted Village, "With aspen boughs, and flowers, and fennel, gay." This would be an improvement. The uselessness is obvious, in every way, of the long-admired bright steel fireirons; but now it is common to find these things made of more satisfactory material and shape, and I think there is little doubt that brass is the most beautiful and convenient metal for them, and for the fender and the coal box as well; it is easily kept bright, and has a cheerful effect, always supposing these things to be not too large and heavy, and to have as much elegant shape and delicate detail as are consistent with their use and material. And so we come to a short consideration of metals. Brass candlesticks, inkstands, chandeliers, and sconces are new to be had of simple and elegant shapes, many being reproductions of some of the old good work; and if, in the same room with these, the door- plates, and handles, and bell-pulls, are of wrought brass-work too, the general effect is so THE HEARTH-STONEr 25 much the better, as the eye is pleased with the repetition of the brightness in various forms. How charmingly Leigh Hunt has written: " My fire has been left to itself: it has full room to breathe and to blaze, and I can poke it as I please. What recollections does that idea excite ? Poke it as I please ! Think, benevolent reader, think of the pride and pleasure of having in your hand that awful, but at the same time artless, weapon, a poker, of putting it into the proper bar, gently levering up the coals, and seeing the instant and bustling flame above ! To what can I compare that moment ? That sudden, empyreal enthusiam ? That fiery expression, vivification ? That ardent acknowledgment, as it were, of the kindliness of the operator ? " The utility, as well as beauty, of the fire during breakfast, need not be pointed out to the most unphlogistic observer. A person would rather be shivering at any time of the day than at that of his first rising ; the transition would be too unnatural, he is not pre- pared for it. If you eat plain bread and butter with your tea, it is fit that your modera- tion should be rewarded with a good blaze; and if you indulge in hot rolls or toast, you will hardly keep them to their warmth without it, particularly if you read; and then, -if you take in a newspaper, what a delightful change from the wet, raw, dabbing fold of paper when you first touch it, to the dry, crackling, crisp superficies which, with a skillful spat of the finger-nails at its upper end, stands at once in your hand, and looks as if it said, "Come read me." Nor is it the look of the newspaper only which the fire must render complete: it is the interest of the ladies who happen to form part of your family, of your wife in particular, if you have one, to avoid the niggling and pinching aspect of cold; it takes away the harmony of her features, and the graces of her behavior; while, on the other hand, there is scarcely a more interesting sight in the world than that of a neat, delicate, good-humored woman presiding at your breakfast-table, with hands tapering out of her long sleeves, eyes with a touch of Sir Peter Lely in them, face a little oval and retain- ing a certain tinge of the pillow without its cloudiness. This is, indeed, the finishing grace of a fireside. The evening is beginning to gather in. The window, which presents a large face of watery gray, intersected by strong lines, is imperceptibly becoming darker; and as that becomes darker, the fire assumes a more glowing presence. The contemplatist keeps his easy posture, absorbed in his fancies; and everything around him is still and serene. The stillness would even ferment in his ear, and whisper, as it were, of what the air contained; but a minute coil, just sufficient to hinder that busier silence, clicks in the burning coal, while every now and then the light ashes shed themselves below, or a stronger, but still a gentle, flame flutters up with a gleam over the chimney. At length, the darker objects in the room mingle; the gleam of the fire streaks with a restless light the edges of the furni- ture, and reflects itself in the blackening window; while his feet take a gentle move on the fender, and then settle again, and his face comes out of the general darkness, earnest even in indolence, and pale in the very ruddiness of what it looks upon. This is the only time, perhaps, at which sheer idleness is salutary and refreshing. 26 HOME DISSERTATIONS. How observed with the smallest effort is every trick and aspect of the fire! A coal fall- ing in, a fluttering flame, a miniature mockery of a flash of lightning, nothing escapes the eye and the imagination. Sometimes a little flame appears at the corner of the grate like a quivering spangle; sometimes it swells out at top into a restless brief lambency; anon it is seen only by the light beneath the grate, or it curls aronnd one of the bars like a tongue, or darts out with a spiral thinness and a sulphurous and continued puffing as from a reed. The glowing coals meantime exhibit the shifting forms of hills and vales and gulfs, of fiery Alps, whose heat is uninhabitable even by spirit, or of black precipices, from which swart fairies seem about to spring away on sable wings; the heat and fire are forgotten, and walled towns appear, and figures of unknown animals, and far distant countries scarcely to be reached by human journey; then coaches and camels, and barking dogs as large as either, and forms that combine every shape and suggest every fancy, till at last the ragged coals tumbling together, reduce the vision to chaos, and the huge profile of a gaunt and grinning face seems to make a jest of all that has passed. The entrance of a single candle dissipates at once the twilight and the sunshine, and the ambitious dreamer is summoned to his tea! Where the fire is duly appreciated, whether the party be large or small, young or old, talkative or contemplative. If there is music, a good fire will be particularly grateful to the performers, who are often seated at the farther end of the room. This is the finished evening; this the quickener at once and calmer of tired thought; this the spot where our better spirits await to exalt and enliven us, when the daily and vulgar ones have discharged their duty. Bright fires and joyous faces; and it is no easy thing for philosophy to say good-night. But health must be enjoyed or nothing will be enjoyed, and the charm should be broken at a reasonable hour. Far be it, however, from a rational firesider not to make exceptions to the rule, when friends have been long asunder, when some domestic celebration has called them to- gether, or even when hours peculiarly congenial render it difficult to part. A single friend, perhaps, loiters behind the rest; you are alone in the house; you have just got upon a subject delightful to you both; the fire is of a candent brightness; the wind howls out of doors; the rain beats; the cold is piercing! Sit down. This is a time when the most melancholy temperament may defy the clouds and storms, and even extract from them a pleasure that will take no substance by daylight. Even when left alone, there is sometimes a charm in watching out the decaying fire. The world around is silent; and for a moment the very cares of day seem to have gone with it to sleep, then, for imag- ination's sake, not for superstition's, are recalled the stories of the Secret World and the midnight pranks of Fairyism. Presently the whole band of fairies, ancient and modern, the demons, sylphs, gnomes, sprites, elves, peris, genii, and above all, the fairies of the fireside, the salamanders, lob-lie-by-the-fires, the lemures, larvae, come flitting between the fancy's eyes, and the dying coals, and Oberon gives his gentle order: " Through this house with glimmering light Hop as light as bird from briar; By the dead and drowsy fire, And this ditty, after me, Every elf and fairy sprite Sing and dance it trippingly." FLOWERS. Why does not everybody have a geranium in his window, or some other flower? It is very cheap; its cheapness is next to nothing, if you raise it from seed or from a slip; and it is a beauty and a companion. It sweetens the air, rejoices the eye, links you with nature and innocence, and is something to love. LEIGH HUNT. Flowers are the alphabet of all angels whereby They write on hills and fields mysterious truths. A LOVE of flowers has always ranked among the refined pleasures of a polished people. Apart from cheerful and hygenic consider- ations, there is a question of ornamentation in the presence of plants and flowers about your ^ rooms. Not many of us can afford con- servatories, but all of us, with the sun's ' aid, can compass the window garden; and what picture on our walls is apt to be half so beautiful as a window where the sun is sifting through the snow and gold of tropical-leaved > 4 callas; through the geranium blos- soms like scarlet fire, through the blue lobelia and yellow oxalis, and rose, and carnation, and the net work of all their leaves. The window gardens enliven the dreary wastes of bricks and stone, showing a marvellous wealth of beau- tiful plants on its window-sill, and can be made brilliant with flower- boxes in every window. The favorite plants for early spring are pansies and daisies which send their white and pink blooms high above all the rest. Later, scarlet and pink gera- niums, yellow calceolarias, and blue lobelias, while hanging from the boxes in graceful festoons aretrailing-vines 28 HOME DISSERTATIONS. of English and German ivy and nasturtiums with crimson and golden blossoms. Other boxes can be arranged with a mass of solid green and scarlet green ivy waving below and scarlet geraniums all of one shade glowing above. The most satisfactory window gardens for the entire summer are those where the plants grow from seeds or slips. These make their natural progress through the season and are assailed by no premature blight. In the spring the little seedlings may be seen coming up out of the soft earth. By June some of them are beginning to flower, and in July and August the little garden is in a glory of color with yellow coreopsis, crimson petunias and verbenas of every tint. It is surprising how many wanderers from the winged life of the fields these gardens will attract buzzing bees, saucy yellow-jackets, and sometimes in June mornings bright butterflies will flutter over the flowers. It frequently happens that the outlook from some particular room in the house is not altogether pleasant, or that the window is so placed in relation to the street as that passers- by can observe what is going on in the interior of the room. In such cases as these, window gardens will be found exceedingly useful as well as highly ornamental the plants forming a natural blind of the most elegant description. For interior decoration, rooms may be made beautiful with potted rare exotics, or simple flowering plants, placed within fanciful jars. Tulips massed in various colors, pre- sent a brilliant effect. Primroses make lovely groupings, while hyacinths fill a room with beauty and fragrance. Ferns, small palms and palmettoes are imposing in Morocco or majolica pottery, and even a simple ivy placed on a bracket by a window, without the aid of the sun, will wreath itself in beauty around a room. Flowers and plants beautify more .than costly furniture. Plants should be showered once a week, watered every day, occasionally with a dozen drops of ammonia in a pint of water. Cut flowers should have the water changed every day at least, removing every decayed leaf as soon as they show any symptoms of decay; and the ends of the stems cut off keeps them fresh longer. A more efficacious way, however, is to put nitrate of soda into the water every time it is changed, which will preserve cut flowers in all beauty for above a fortnight. Nitrate of potash, that is, saltpetre in powder, has nearly the same effect but it is not quite as efficacious. Too many flowers should not be crowded together, loose arrangement is more pleasing, and the flowers remain fresh longer. Vines, placed in large, wide-mouthed bottles filled with water and hung on the back of pictures, will soon wreath themselves around the frames. "A lady gardener gathered a handful of forget-me-nots, and to preserve them as long a period as possible, they were put in a large soup-plate, filled with rain-water. The flowers were placed near the window, to enjoy the advantages resulting from an abundance of light and air, and the water was replenished when needful. In three weeks, white, thread-like roots were emitted from the portion of the flower-stalk in the water; and they ultimately formed a thick net-work over the plate. The flowers remained quite fresh, and as soon as the roots began to run in the water the buds began to expand, and, up to the middle of November, the bouquet was a dense mass of flowers, and a more beautiful or chaste ornament cannot be imagined." WIFE. " She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth rot the bread of idleness. " Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her." PROVERBS, xxxi., 27, 28. \ T 7 HAT do you think the beautiful word 'wife' comes from?" asks Ruskin. "Il \f V/ is the great word in which the English and Latin languages conquered the French and Greek. I hope the French will some day get a word for it instead of that dreadful word femme. But what do you think it comes from ? The great value of the Saxon words is they mean something. Wife means weaver. You must be either housewives or housemoths; remember that. In the deep sense, you may either weave men's fortunes and embroider them, or feed upon and bring them to decay. Wherever a true wife comes, home is always around her. The stars may be over her head the glow-worm in the night-cold grass may be the fire at her foot; but home is where she is; and for a noble woman it stretches far around her, better than houses ceiled with cedar or painted with vermillion, shedding its quiet light far for those who else are homeless. This I believe to be the woman's true place and power." Every woman has a mission on earth. There is "something to do" for every one a household to put in order, a child to attend to, some degraded or homeless humanity to befriend. That soul is poor indeed that leaves the world without having exerted an influ- ence that will be felt for good after she has passed away. " What a blessing to a household is a merry, cheerful wife one whose spirits are not affected by wet days or little disappointments one whose milk of human kindness does not grow sour in the sunshine of prosperity ! Such a woman, in the darkest hours, brightens the house like a piece of sunshiny weather. The magnetism of her smiles and the electrical brightness of her looks and movements infect everyone. The children go to school with the sense of something great to be achieved; the husband goes into the world in a conqueror's spirit. No matter how people annoy and worry him through the day, far off her presence shines, and he whispers to himself: ' At home I shall find rest ! ' So day by day she literally renews his strength and energy. And, if you know a man with a beaming face, a kind heart, and a prosperous business, in nine cases out of ten you will find he has a wife of this kind." Many a mother by the quiet usefulness of her life fills her children with a desire to be like her, that makes them in their turn unselfish. It is not those who talk about goodness, but those who are good that are the light of the world. It may be ours only to sow little seeds of love and kindness in some neglected corner of our surroundings, or to uproot from our own hearts noxious weeds which may be thriving there; or it may be our mission only to suffer the will of God. But, if we be faithful in that which is least, striving in each little moment to know and do God's will concerning it and us, ours may be a record of more perfect days, and we shall obtain an enduring crown, a crown far more 29 3 HOME DISSERTATIONS. bright and beautiful than ever rested on the head of an earthly monarch. "We cannot too honestly study to know ourselves. But we should also aim to look out of ourselves up to greater and better models, and aim at being like them. When self-examination is carried too far, it does harm in various ways perhaps by excessive self-condemnation for not coming up to a supposed standard, perhaps by hypocritical pretensions to a certain unnatural sanctimoniousness. A sound religion is eminently conducive to that peace and tranquillity of the mind which favor sanity and sobriety it makes prosperity safe by teach- ing its dependence on God and on the doing of that which is right and true; and it makes adversity bearable by pointing out that it is temporary, and if patiently and piously borne, ' will work out good.' " Oliver Wendell Holmes says: " You talk of the fire of genius. Many a blessed woman, who dies unsung and unremembered, has given out more of the real vital heat that keeps the life in human souls, without a spark flitting through her humble chimney to tell the world about it, than would set a dozen theories smoking, or a hundred odes simmering in the brains of so many men of genius. Mr. Cross says of to women, and to raise thought, could best be amateurs. But it was George Eliot: " She was keenly alive to redress injustices their general status in the community. This, she effected by women improving their work ceasing to be one of the most distinctly marked traits of her character that she particularly disliked everything generally asso- ciated with the idea of a ' masculine woman.' She was, and as a woman wished to be, above all things, feminine 'so delicate with her needle, and an admirable musi- cian.' She was proud, too, of being an excellent house- keeper an excellence attained from knowing how things ought to be done, from her earliest training, and from an inborn habit of extreme orderliness. Nothing jf!?:,., offended her more than the idea that because r. woman had exceptional intellectual powers, therefore it was right that she should ab- solve herself, or be absolved, from her ordinary household duties." " Happy the house in which character mar- ries, and not confusion and a miscel- lany of unavowable motives. Then shall marriage be a covenant to secure to either party the sweetness and honor of being a calm, continuing, in- evitable benefactor to the other." She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. PROVERBS xxxi., 19. MANNERS. Life is not so short but that there is always time enough for courtesy. Good manners are made up of petty sacrifices. I THINK Hans Andersen's story of the cobweb cloth woven so fine it was invisible, woven for the king's garment, must mean manners, which do really clothe a princely nature. Such a one can well go in a blanket, if he would. In the gymnasium or on the sea-beach his superiority does not leave him. But he who has not this fine garment of behavior is studious of dress, and then not less of house, and furniture, and pictures, and gardens, in all which he hopes to lie perdu, and not be exposed. Much ill-natured criticism has been directed on American manners. I do not think it is to be resented. Rather, if we are wise, we shall listen and mend. But in every sense the subject of manners has a constant interest to thoughtful persons. Who does not delight in fine manners ? Their charm cannot be predicted or over-stated. 'Tis perpetual promise of more than can be fulfilled. It is music and sculpture and pictures to many who do not pretend to appreciation of those arts. It is even true that grace is more beautiful than beauty. Yet how impossible to overcome the obstacle of an unlucky temperament, and acquire good manners, unless by living with the well-bred from the start; and this makes the value of wise forethought to give ourselves and our children as much as possible the habit of cultivated society. 'Tis an inestimable hint that I owe to a few persons of fine manners, that they make behavior the very first sign of force, be- havior, and not performance, or talent, or, much less, wealth. " Manners are stronger than laws." 'Tis a rule of manners not to exaggerate. A lady loses as soon as she admires too easily and too much. In man or woman, the face and the person lose power when they are on the strain to express admiration. A man makes his inferiors his superiors by heat. Why need you, who are not a gossip, talk as a gossip, and tell eagerly what the neighbors or the journals say? State your opinion without apology. The attitude is the main point, assuring your companion that, come good news or come bad, you remain in good heart and good mind, which is the best news you can possibly communicate. Self-control is the rule. You have in you there a noisy, sensual savage which you are to keep down, and turn all his strength to beauty. For example, what a seneschal and detective is laughter ! It seems to require several generations of education to train a squeaking or a shouting habit out of a man. Sometimes, when in almost all expressions the Choctavv and the slave have been worked out of him, a coarse nature still betrays itself in his contemptible squeals of joy. It is necessary for the purification of drawing-rooms, that these entertaining explosions should be under strict control. Lord Chesterfield had early made this discovery, for he says: "I am sure that since I had the use of my reason, no human being has ever heard me laugh." I know that there go two to this game, and in the presence of certain formidable wits, savage nature must sometimes rush out in some disorder. If a man have manners and talent he may dress roughly and carelessly. It is only when 3 1 32 HOME DISSERTATIONS. mind and character slumber that the dress can be seen. If the intellect were always awake, and every noble sentiment, the man might go in huckaback or mats, and his dress would be admired and imitated. Remember George Herbert's maxim: " This coat with my dis- cretion will be brave." If, however, a man has not firm nerves, and has keen sensibilities, it is perhaps a wise economy to go to a good shop and dress himself irreproachably. He can then dismiss all care from his mind, and may easily find that performance an addition of confidence, a fortification that turns the scale in social encounters, and allows him to go gaily into conversations where else he had been dry and embarrassed. I am not ignorant, I have heard with admiring submission the experience of the lady who declared "that the sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inward tranquility which relig- ion is powerless to bestow." I "Courtesy and politeness are matters worthy the attention of even the honorable and fortunate, no person whether private or public, ever reached that lofty position, from whence he could afford to disdain all thoughts of etiquette and manners." Our gentlemen of the old school, that is, of the school of Washington, Adams, and Hamilton, were bred after English types, and that style of breeding furnishes fine examples in the last generation; but, though some of us have seen such, I doubt they are all gone. But nature is not poorer to-day. With all our haste and slipshod ways, and flippant self-assertion, I have seen examples of new grace and power in address that honor the country. It was my fortune not long ago, with my eyes directed on this subject, to fall in with an American to be proud of. I said never was such force, good meaning, good sense, good action, combined with such domestic lovely behavior, such modesty and persistent preference for others. The whole of heraldry and chivalry is in courtesy. Would we codify the laws that should reign in households, and whose daily transgres- sion annoys and mortifies us, and degrades our household life, we must learn to adorn every day with sacrifices. Good manners are made up of petty sacrifices. Temperance, courage, love, are made up of the same jewels. Listen to every prompting of honor. "As soon as a sacrifice becomes a duty and necessity to the man, I see no limit to the horizon which opens before me," says Ernest Renan. Of course those people, and no others, interest us who believe in their thought, who are absorbed, if you please to say so, in their own dream. They only can give the key and leading to better society: those nvho delight in each other only because both delight in the eternal laws; who forgive noth- ing to each other; who, by their joy and homage to these, are made incapable of conceit, which destroys almost all the fine wits. Any other affection between men than this geometric one of relation to the same thing, is a mere mush of materialism. These are the bases of civil and polite society; namely, manners, conversation, lucrative labor, and public action, whether political, or in the leading of social institutions. We have much to regret, much to mend, in our society; but I believe that in all liberal and hopeful men there is a firm faith in the beneficent results which we really enjoy; that intelligence, manly -enterprise, good education, virtuous life, and elegant manners have been and are found here, and we hope, in the next generation will still more abound. EXTRACTS FROM EMERSON. CONVERSATION. Manners first, then conversation. THE delight in good company, in pure, 'brilliant, social atmosphere; the incompar- able satisfaction of a society in which everything can be safely said, in which every member returns a true echo, in which a wise freedom, an ideal republic of sense, simplicity, knowledge, and thorough good-meaning abide. doubles the value of life. It is this that justifies to each the jealousy with which the doors are kept. Speech is power: speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel. It is to bring another out of his bad sense into your good sense. You are to be the missionary and carrier of all that is good and noble. Virtues speaks to virtues, vices to vices each to their kind in the people with whom we deal. If you are suspiciously and deeply on your guard, so is he or she. If you rise to frankness and generosity, they will respect it now or later. In this art of conversation, woman, if not the queen and victor, is the lawgiver. If every one recalled his experiences, he might find the best in the speech of superior women, which was better than song, and carried ingenuity, character, wise counsel, and afflic- tion, as easily as the wit with which it was adorned. They are not only wise themselves, they make us wise. No one can be a master in conversation who has not learned much from woman; their presence and inspiration are essential to its success. Shenstone gave no bad account of his influence in his description of the French woman: " There is a quality in which no woman in the world can compete with her, it is the power of intellectual irritation. She will draw wit out of a fool. She strikes with such address the cords of self-love, that she gives unexpected vigor and agility of fancy, and electrifies a body that appeared non-electric." Coleridge esteems cultivated women as the depositaries and guardians of " English undefiled; " and Luther commends that accomplishment of " pure German speech " of his wife. Madame de Stael, by the unanimous consent of all who knew her, was the most extra- ordinary converser that was known in her time, and it was a time full of eminent men and women; she knew all distinguished persons in letters or society, in England, Germany, and Italy, as well as in France, though she said with characteristic nationality, " Conversa- tion, like talent, exists only in France." Madame de Stael valued nothing but conversa- tion. And she said one day, seriously, to M. Mole, " if it were not for respect to human opinions, I would not open my window to see the Bay of Naples for the first time, whilst I would go five hundred leagues to talk with a man of genius whom I had not seen." Ste Beuve tells us of the privileged circle at Coppet, that, after making an excursion one day, the party returned in two coaches from Chambery to Aix, on the way to Coppet. The first coach had many rueful accidents to relate, a terrific thunder-storm, shocking roads, and danger and gloom to the whole company. The party in the second coach, on arriving, heard this story with surprise; of thunder-storms, of steeps, of mud, of danger, they knew nothing; no, they had forgotten earth, and breathed a purer air; such a conver- sation between Madame de Stael and Madame Recramier and Benjamin Constant and Schlegel ! they were in a state of delight. The intoxication of the conversation had made them insensible to all notice of weather or rough roads. 33 34 HOME DISSERTATIONS. Madame de Tasse said: "If I were queen, I should command Madame de Stael to talk to me every day." Conversation fills all gaps, supplies all deficiencies. Politics, war, party, luxury, avarice, fashion, are all asses with loaded panniers to serve the kitchen of Intellect, the king. There is nothing that does not pass into lever or weapon. A right speech is not to be distinguished from action. Courage to ask questions, courage to expose ignorance. The great aim is not to shine, not to conquer your companion, then you learn nothing but conceit, but to find a companion who knows what you do not; to tilt with him and be overthrown, horse and foot, with utter destruction of all your logic and learning. There is a defeat that is useful. Then you can see the real and the counterfeit, and will never accept the counterfeit again. You will adopt the art that has defeated you. You will ride to battle horsed on the very logic which you found irresistible. You will accept the fertile truth, instead of the solemn customary lie. Let nature bear the expense. The attitude, the tone, is all. Let your eyes not look away. Let us not look east and west for materials of conversation, but rest in presence and unity. A just feeling will fast enough supply fuel for discourse, if speak- ing be more grateful than silence. When people come to see us, we foolishly prattle, lest we be inhospitable. But things said for conversation are chalk eggs. Don't say things. What you are stands over you the while, and thunders so that I cannot hear what you say to the contrary. A lady of my acquaintance said: " I don't care so much for what they say as I do for what makes them say it." The main point is to throw yourself on the truth, and say with Newton, " There's no contending against facts." When Molyneux fancied that the observations of the nutation of the earths axis destroyed Newton's theory of gravitation, he tried to break it softly to Sir Isaac, who only answered, "It maybe so; there's no arguing against facts and experi- ments." But there are people who cannot be cultivated, people on whom speech makes no impression, swainish, morose people, who must be kept down and quieted as you would those who are a little tipsey; others, who are not only swainish, but are prompt to take oath that swainishness is the only culture; and though their odd wit may have some salt for you, your friends would not relish it. Blot these out. And beware of jokes, too much temperance cannot be used; inestimable for sauce, but corruption for food; we go away hollow and ashamed. As soon as the company gives in to this enjoyment, we shall have no Olympus. True wit never made us laugh. Stay at home in your own mind. Don't recite other people's opinions. See how it lies there in you; and if there is no counsel, offer none. AVhat we want is, not your activity or interference with your mind, but your content to be a vehicle of the simple truth. The way to have large occasional views, as in a political or social crisis, is to have large habitual views. When men consult you, it is not that they wish you to stand tiptoe, and pump your brains, but to apply your habitual view, your wisdom, to the present question, for bearing all pedantries, and the very name of argument; for in good conversation parties don't speak to the words, but to the meanings of each other. TO-DAY. Trust no future ; howe'er pleasant ! Let the dead Past bury its dead ! Act, act in the livmg Present ! Heart within, and God o'erhead ! LONGFELLOW. 1 The days are made on a loom whereof the warp and woof are past and future time. They are majestically dressed, as if every god brought a thread to the skyey web. rd to be said in their favor. In hotels they are particularly offensive, where we take off the top only to find suspicious lumps beneath. A friend at my elbow says: ' Oh, do speak of that dreadful habit of helping one's self to salt on the table-cloth, then taking it up on ;he blade of the knife, beating a light tattoo over the contents jDf the plate, and finishing v ith a decided whack! " Never eat with your knife. Is this unnecessary advice ? Go into any restaurant or hotel and observe." "A point in etiquette recently decided a lawsuit in a queer way. A traveler on a Ger- man railroad train attempted to eat a lunch while on the journey. While putting a piece of bologna sausage in his mouth the train stopped suddenly, causing his cheek to be badly cut on the edge of his knife, which he was using. The man sued the company for dam- ages, but his claim was not sustained, on the ground that it is a breach of etiquette to eat with a knife." " A singular will has been probated at Jasper, Tenn. An old man died, leaving a large property in trust, to be used by the trustees in any manner they may deem best to suppress the habit prevalent among men of eating with knives when forks should be used. The deceased says he has always felt the disadvantages of early training in that respect. He was in the habit of reproving everybody at hotels or elsewhere he saw using knives for eating, and was a monomaniac on the subject." It might as well be said here of the marked improvement generally as to the use of the knife, it is not now as universally sheathed in a man's or woman's mouth, as if they were sword-swallowers. Thirty years ago in France, the use of the knife at dinner was almost tabooed. The custom was to divide the food with the fork, rather an awkward custom, as forks have generally no cutting edge, and to aid the act of conveying food to the mouth on the fork, by means of a bit of bread ; which, by the way, is very useful in. eating fish. Long habit makes people amazingly clever about this kind of thing. To eat with gloves on is female snobbery. Young women who go out to parties may be lavish , of gloves, and may be indifferent to smearing them with lobster salad, or to have the first finger and thumb darkened where the spoon touches them. But nothing is prettier than the freshness of a woman's hand, and the best fitting glove is, after all, but an awkward thing. Gloved hands that feed, to keep up me whole dignity of the thing, should find mouths which were hidden behind veils. How the knife and fork is to be used, or what is to be done with them when the plate is passed to be replenished ? We think the question divides itself into distinct phases, if there is a servant, the knife and fork may be left on the plate. It is then the duty of the attendant who carries the plate to the place of replenishment to take care of the knife and " EAT AT YOUR OWN TABLE AS YOU WOULD AT THAT OF A KINO," SAID CONFUCIUS. 56 HOME DISSERTATIONS. tork, putting them on one side of the plate, so as to be out of the way of the new supply of food. But this leaving the knife and fork is quite optional. To cross, however, the knife and fork, is inelegant, and gives extra trouble. If, however, there is no one in at- tendance, it is wisest to retain the knife and fork, and here the individual knife-rests are serviceable, an article for dinner service considered indispensable by English dinner givers. As soon as seated, remove your gloves. If raw oysters are already served, you at once begin to eat; to wait for others to commence is old-fashioned. " The mouth should always be kept closed in eating, and both eating and drinking should be noiseless. The mouth should always be wiped with the napkin both before and after drinking. A wineglass is held by the stem, and not by the bowl. Never drink a glassful at once, nor drain the last drop. No one should refuse when asked to drink with another. It is sufficient, however, to fasten your eye upon the eye of the one asking you, bow the head slightly, touch the glass to your lips, and again bow before setting it down. Bread is broken at dinner. Vegetables are eaten with a fork. Asparagus can be taken up with the fingers, if so preferred. Olives and artichokes are always so eaten. Fish and fruit are served with silver knives and forks. If silver fish-knives are not provided, a piece of bread in the left hand answers the purpose as well, with the fork in the right. In England, it is considered to be underbred even to transfer the fork to the right hand. It is well to observe what others do when doubts exist, as customs differ everywhere. Bread should not be broken into the soup, nor the "soup-plate tilted for the last spoonful, nor the last fragment of bread, and last morsel of food eaten. Leave a little for manners. " Finger-glasses are used for the last course. Remove the d'oyley to the left hand, and place the finger-glass upon it as soon as the dessert-plate has been placed before you. The dinner napkin is to be used for wiping the fingers, and never the d'oyley, unless at family dinners, where colored ones are used." " Brillat Savarin, in his 'Physiologic du Gout,' speaks of finger-glasses in connection with the small goblet of water, which is sometimes placed in them, as, 'equally useless, indecent, and disgusting; useless, for among all those who know how to eat, the mouth remains clean to the end of the repast; as to the hands, one should know how to use them without soiling them; indecent, for it is generally a recognized principle that every ablution should be hidden in the privacy of the toilette.' He brings the goblet under the head disgusting, picturing the offensiveness of its use in most graphic language." "The law of the table is Beauty, a respect to the common soul of every guest. Every- thing is unseasonable which is private to two or three or any portion of the company." " There are many persons, besides those who sin through ignorance, who seem to be well bred in other respects, and yet consider table etiquette of too little importance to keep up with the changes in fashion. They judge wrongly. Things trivial in themselves go far towards making people attractive to others or otherwise. Besides, it is always un- pleasant to find one's self ignorant of the usages of polite society." TABLE-TALK. If thou be master gunner, speak not all That thou canst speak at once, but husband it, And give men turns at speech. Do not foiesta!, By lavishness, thine own and other's wit, As if thou mad'st thy will. A civil guest Will no more talk all, than eat all the feast, JESSICA. Nay, but ask my opinion too of that. LORENZO. I will anon; first, let us go to dinner. JESSICA. Nay, let me praise you while I have a stomach. LORENZO. No, pray thee, let it serve for table-talk; Then howsoe'er thou speak'st, 'mong other things, I shall digest it. THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. Pray you, sit down; For now we sit to chat as well as eat. THE TAMING OF THE SHREW. HATTED food," says the old proverb, "is half digested," and there is no doubt that quiet and agreeable conversation at' meals increases enjoyment and facili- tates digestion. The crisp remark, the brisk banter, the tart gossip, the spicy anecdote, the sparkling wit and bubbling humor, when served up in the intervals between the various courses, have all the exhilarating effect of wine without its dangers, prevents dull pauses, and sustains that lively flow of the animal spirits so favorable to the due per- formance of every function, especially that of the stomach and its associated organs. The intrusion, however, of serious discourse and topics of business requiring deep thought and awakening grave reflection or anxious emotion, is fatal to good digestion. " Tact never violates for a moment this law; never introduce the orders of the house, the vices of the absent, or a tariff of expenses, or professional privacies ; as we say, we never talk ' shop ' before company. Lovers abstain from caresses, and haters from insults. If you have not slept, or if you have slept, or if you have a headache, or sciatica, or lep- rosy, or thunder-stroke, I beseech you, by all angels, to hold your peace." " Shun the negative side. Never worry people with your contritions, nor with dismal views of politics or society. Never name sickness, even if you could trust yourself on that perilous topic ; beware of unmuzzling a valetudinarian, who will soon give you your fill of it." Among the guests are some, perhaps, of the highest rank, always some of high political importance, about whom the interests of busy life gathers, intermixed with others eminent already in literature or art, or of the dawning promise which the hostess delights to dis- cover and the host to smile upon. All are assembled for the purpose of enjoyment ; the 57 5 8 HOME DISSERTATIONS. anxieties of the minister, the feverish struggle of the partisan, the silent toils of the artist or critic, are finished for the day ; professional and literary jealousies are hushed; sickness, decrepitude and death are silently voted shadows ; and the brilliant assemblage is pre- pared to exercise to the highest degree the extraordinary privileges of mortals to live in the knowledge of mortality without its consciousness, and to people the present hour with delights, as if a man lived and laughed and enjoyed in this forever. Every appliance of physical luxury which the most delicate art can supply, attends on each; every faint wish which luxury creates is anticipated ; the noblest and most gracious countenance in the world smiles over the happiness it is diffusing, and redoubles it by cordial invitations and encouraging words, which set the humblest scranger guest at perfect ease. As dinner emerges into the dessert, and the sunset casts a richer glow on the branches, still or lightly moving in the evening light, and on the scene within, the harmony of all sensations becomes more perfect ; a delighted and delighting laugh invites attention to some joyous sally of the richest intellectual wit reflected in the faces of all. One happy peculiarity of these assemblies is the number of persons in different stations and of various celebrity, who are gratified by seeing, still more, in hearing and knowing each other ; the statesman is relieved from care by association with the poet of whom he has heard and partially read ; and the poet is elevated by the courtesy, and each feel, not rarely, the true dignity of the other, modestly expanding under the most genial auspices. In Mrs. Dodge's " Theophilus and Others," is facetiously recorded a bit of modern conversation. "You should have seen Hobkins at our table. I'd no idea plain diet could be so suggestive. He found spectrum analysis in the salt cellars, international rowing matches in the spoons, balloon traveling in the omelet, and co-operative house- keeping in the hash. He drew 'survival of the fittest ' from the cheese; and, as John confidentially remarked, actually shook kindergartens and juvenile delinquents out of the baby's feeding-apron. He found prison discipline in the bread ; and female colleges, universal sufferage, and bland opinions generally, in the butter. The calves'-head soup brought forth capital punishment ; the beef, labor-union systems ; and the dessert was full of ' Gates Ajar ' and spiritual manifestations. Once, while filling his teacup, I felt as if I was pouring out the entire Suez Canal, and I am sure I often dropped in a railroad accident with the sugar. What with iron cars, and elastic platforms, and wide gauges, and new brakes, car-starters, and compensating expansible rail-joinings, I grew confused in spite of myself." Apologies for poor dinners are out of place. Shakespeare says: And oftentimes excusing of a fault Doth make the fault the worse by the excuse. English stories, bon-mots, and the recorded table-talk of their wits, are as good as the best of the French. In America we are apt scholars, but have not yet attained the same perfection. Conversation fills up the gaps, supplies all deficiencies. What a good trait is recorded of Madame de Maintenon, that, during dinner, the servant slipped to her side, u Please, Madame, one anecdote more, for there is no roast to-day." DINNER GIVING. " We ask persons to dine with us because we like them for certain inherent qualities." Good sister let us dine and never fret. A table full of welcome makes scarce one dainty dish. Better cheer may you have, but not with better heart. COMEDY OF ERRORS. Bid them cover the table, serve the meat and we will come in to dinner. MERCHANT OK VENICE. '* T F our circle of friends be large we must be acquainted with many who differ ex- tremely in all their social characteristics, to say nothing of their pursuits, sympa- thies, and occupations ; and it is, therefore, by a judicious admixture of the guests that we bring about a successful party. A bad habit prevails among inexperienced dinner-givers of inviting to their own house precisely the same company whom they met, only a week or two previously, at the house of a common friend. If the first party was a great success, the second is more likely to be a failure, although it was that very success which induced the repetition. The common friends assembled, however fond they may be of each other, can hardly carry on the bril- liant or attractive tone of conversation of the first to the second edition, especially when, as is frequently the case, there has been not more than a week or fortnight's interval. It is not sufficient merely to change the rooms and the positions of the host and hostess ; some new elements are needed to season the talk, and so bring in some fresh ideas. This is no evidence of disregard or unfriendliness ; it is only the natural craving for fresh whetstones for the tongue, and I must not be understood to mean that it is a desire for the sake of change. Of course I am assuming if we do meet anyone, to whom we are only partially or not all known, there will be something in them which will accord pleas- antly with ourselves. You may bring all your friends to know each other by turns, to become gradually inti- mate with each other, and even to like each other by these means. " A grand dinner cannot be managed to the entire satisfaction of host and guests, unless it is under the management of professionals, whose trade and business is the sup- plying of every necessity; they have trained waiters table service, with full knowledge of the quantity and requirements, in accordance with the entertainer's wishes. By the em- ployment of professionals, the hostess is relieved of a mountain of care, work, and anxiety. The fashion is increasing of giving large dinner parties outside of your own house then all trouble is at an end. The host and hostess, only in name, are enjoying the feast the same as their invited guests. All invitations should be issued a week or ten days pre- v.'ously, in the joint names of host and hostess. R. S. V. P. placed upon invitations, to the refined, would be a reflection upon their knowledge of etiquette and good breeding ; but nevertheless is used to a great degree, because of the thoughtlessness or carelessness of the invited to respond at once, accepting or declining. The necessity of an immediate answer to a dinner invitation is evident, to 59 60 HOME DISSERTATIONS. enable the hostess to be sure of the number of guests which she desires. The time of ar- rival is about ten minutes before the dinner hour, not earlier or later, to enable the hostess to be fully prepared to meet her guests make introductions and arrangements for escorts to the table. If already made, gentlemen will be handed, by a servant, upon entering the house, cards, upon a tray; he takes the one bearing his name and that of the lady whom he is to escort to the table. Ladies and gentlemen appear in full dress, wearing gloves, which are removed when seated at the table, and need not be worn again during the evening. The chief waiter announces dinner, by bowing to the host, who offers his arm to the honored lady, proceeding first, with guests following to the dining-room ; the hostess enters last with the honored gentleman. Each couple find the places assigned them, as intimated right or left hand of the table and by the dinner card at their plates. A gen- tleman offers his left arm to the lady he escorts to dinner ; he places her at table at his right hand. Guests, after locating themselves at the table, remain standing until the hostess is seated ; ladies are seated next, their escort arranging their chairs for them, when they seat themselves. Small oysters, or clams, when served, precede soups. Soup is passed to all who take it or pretend to do so. After soups guests may refuse, or take whatever pleases them, the menu giving the information as to the various dishes. Custom designates what wines shall be served with each course. No gentleman or lady, however severe in their ideas of temperance, will manifest their convictions while accepting private hospitality. The wine is poured sparingly into the different glasses, and glasses are lifted as toasts are drunk. Accepting hospitality allows no liberty of criticisms of the conduct of the host. The hostess cleverly arranges the seats of the gifted con- versers, so they will occupy, as near as possible, the centre of the table, between the host and hostess, to enable all of the invited to be entertained. Dinner concluded, the hostess bows to the lady at the right of the host, rises, and all the party follows her to the drawing-room. If a theatre or opera party follows dinner, the coffee is served at the dinner-table ; otherwise it is served in the drawing-room, half an hour after dinner ; the hostess sits by the coffee urn, and the gentlemen carry the cups to the ladies, a servant follows with a tray, upon which is cream and sugar. After coffee, guests may at any time take their leave, all going within two hours. If, after coffee, parties desire to leave at once, it is correct to so announce, unobserved, to the hostess before dinner, leaving quietly, unnoticed, without formal adieus, to avoid dis- turbing the pleasure of those remaining. A New York hostess understands this polite withdrawal, which is one of the pleasant customs of Parisian etiquette. Etiquette requires that a call be made by each guest upon the hostess, within a week, on her receiving day, if she has one, to return thanks for the pleasure enjoyed. If by card left in person, one card for each adult member of the family, with right hand upper corner turned down. DINNER GIVING. / " Evening dress is the same, what- ever the nature of the evening's enter- tainment, only the gloves are dispensed with at dinner." Gentlemen wear black dress suits, the coat being "swallow-tail," the waistcoat cut low, the cravat white, thin patent leather shoes, and kid gloves of the palest hue, if not white as prescribed. The shirt front should be plain ; the studs and sleeve- links simple. It need not be added that special attention should be given to the hair, which, according to the present mode, is neither very short nor very long. " In the evening, though you spend it alone with your family, wear a black dress suit ; and if you have sons bring them up to do the same." The theory is, that a gentleman dresses for dinner, and is then pre- pared alike for calls, opera, or ball. Sunday evening, morning dress is worn. No one goes to church in evening dress, and no one is expected to appear in it at home or away from home on that day. In some circles evening dress is considered an affecta- tion, and it is well in provincial towns to do as others do. When invited to an early dinner or a luncheon, either in the city or in country, or at a water- ing-place, the suitable dress for gentle- men is a black frock-coat, colored trousers, white or black waistcoat, and a colored scarf. HOME DISSERTATIONS. TABLE RULES FOR LITTLE ONES. In silence I must take my seat, And give God thanks before I eat; Must for my food in patience wait, Till I am asked to hold my plate. I must not scold, nor whine, nor pout, Nor move my chair nor plate about; With knife, or fork, or napkin ring, I must not play, nor must I sing; I must not speak a useless word, For children should be seen, not heard; I must not talk about my food, Nor fret if I don't think it good; I must not say, " The bread is old," " The tea is hot," " The coffee cold." I must not cry for this or that, Nor murmur if my meat is fat. My mouth with food I must not crowd, Nor while I'm eating speak aloud; Must turn my head to cough or sneeae, And when I ask say, " If you please; " The table-cloth I must not spoil, Nor with my food my fingers soil; Must keep my seat when I have done; Nor round the table sport or run; When told to rise, then I must put My chair away with noiseless foot, And lift my heart to God above, In praise of all his wondrous love. FRENCH NAMES OF DISHES USED IN MENUS. Oysters, raw .' Huitres,crussurdemicoquilles. " Shrewsbury " de Shrewsbury. " Rockaway " de Rockaway. " East River " d'EastRiver. " Blue Points " de Blue Points. " Cherrystone " de Cherry Stone. Saddle Rock " de Saddle Rock. " stewed " cults si I'etuves. " Boston style... " " alaBostonnienne. " fried " frits. " broiled " grilles. " roasted " rotis. " on the spit " a la brochette. " escaloped " en coquilles. " fricasseed " fricassees. " iila Bechamel " a la Bechamel. Salmon Saumon. " Trout Truite saumonee. Brook Trout " d'eaux vives. Mackerel, Spanish Maquereau, Espagnol. " Fresh " frais. Shad Alose. Striped Bass Bass, rayee. Sea Bass " de mer. Black Bass " noir. Sheep's head Sheep's Head. Blue Fish Poisson bleu. White Fish " blanc. Weak Fish Truite de mer. Codfish Morue. Halibut Plie. Kingfish Poisson roi. Perch Perche. Pickerel Brochet. Smelts Eperlans. Eels, fried Anguilles, frites. " alaMatelotc " ala matelote. stewed, plain " a 1'etuvee, simple. Flounder Limande-carrelet. Filet de Sole, fried Filet de sole, frit. " Tomato Sauce.. " " ;t la sauce tomato. " Tartar Sauce... " " Tartare. " au gratin " an gratin. Smoked Salmon Saumon fume. ' ' Haddock Merluche-EgleSn fume. " Herring, English Hareng, a, 1'Anglaise. Salt Mackerel Maquereau, sale. " Codfish, with bacon Morue au lard fume. " hashed with cream. .Hachis de morue, a, la creme. " " " with poached " " aux ceufs eggs. poches. " " Ball " " en croquette. Consomme Soup, plain Potage consomme 1 , naturel. " with poached ' " aux ceufs poches. eggs. Terrapin " " a la terrapin on tortue d'eaux vives. Green Turtle " " a la tcrtue verte. Mock Turtle " " fausse tortue. Macaroni " " aux macaroni. Vermicelli " " aux vermicelli. Rice " "auxriz. Julienne " " Julienne. Colbert " "a la Colbert. Printaniere " " a la Printaniere. Tomato " "alatomate. Pea " " aux pois. Chicken " " alavolaille. Oyster " " aux huitres. Clam " " aux moules. Boiled Leg of Mutton, Caper Bouilli de gigot de mouton, sauce sauce aux capres. " Corned Beef " de boeuf sale. " " " with Cabbage. " " aux choux. " " with Spinach. " " aux epinards. " " Pork with Sprouts.. " de pore sale, aux sprouts ou bourgeons. " Jole, with Spinach " joues de pore, au opi- nards. " Chicken, with Egg sauce.. " poulet, si la sauce ceuf. " " with Oyster sauce " " a la sauce aux huitres. " Turkey, with Cream sauce " dinde a la sauce creme. " " with Celery sauce. " " a la sauce celeri. " Beef a la Mode Bceuf a la mode. " " braised " braise. " Ham, Champagne sauce.. -Jambon,alasauce champagne. Roast Chicken Rots de poulet. " Duck " canard. " Turkey '' dinde. " Lamb, Spring " d'agneau. " Mutton " mouton. " Beef " bceuf. " Veal " veau. " Milk Pig " cochon de lait. Chicken, broiled Poulet, grille. " a la Tartare.. " " alatartare. " fried " frit. ' breaded,Tomato sauce. " pane a la sauce toinate. " Maryland style " ala Maryland. " Viennastyle " a la Viennoise. " saute a la Marengo " sautu, a la Marengo. " a la financiere " a la financiere. " with Mushrooms. . " aux champignons. 6.3 HOME DISSERTATIONS. Chicken, saute, with Truffles.. Poulet, aux truffes. " " with Rice " an riz. " with currie " au curry. " Fricasseed, with Olives. " fricassee a hi sauce d'ol- ives. " " auvinblanc . " " au vin blanc. " au chasseur.. " " au chasseur. " a la Creole " " a la Creole. Breast of Chicken, au vin Supreme de volaille, au vin blanc. blanc. " a la Toulousaine. " a la Toulousainc. " ala Mont pensie.- " ulaMontpensier. " with Mushrooms- " auxchampignons. with Truffles " aux truffes. Leg of Chicken, with Peas Cuisse de volaille, aux petits I pois. " ala jardiniere " a la jardiniere. " alafinanciere " a la financierc. Coquille of Chicken, ala creme.C'oquille de volaille, a la creine. " with Mushrooms. " aux champignons. " with Truffles " aux truffles. Tame Duck, saute, with Mush- Canard, saute, aux champig- rooms. nons. " " with Olives.. " " aux olives. " " with String " " aux haricots Beans. verts. " withTurnips. " " aux navets. " " a la Borde- " " a la Bordelaise. laise. " " a la finan- " "alafinanciere. ciere. " " with Truffles. " " aux truffes. " en Salmi au Chasseur. Salmis de canard, au chasseur. " " alaBertrand.. alaBertrand. " " with Olives " aux olives. Squab, broiled Pigeon, jeune, grille. Pheasant, English Faisans a 1'Anglaise. " White " blanc. Partridge, broiled Perdreaux, grilles. " saute, with Madeira... " sautes, au vin de Ma- dere. " "with Mushrooms... " " aux champig- nons. " "with Truffles " " aux truffes. " "alafinanciere " " alafinanciere. " "auxChoux " aux choux. " Saimi, aux Olives Salmi de Perdreaux, aux olives. " " a la Bourguig- " a la Bourguig- nonne. nonne. " " au chasseur " au chasseur. " " a la Perrigord " a la Perrigord. Grouse, broiled Coq de Bruyeres, grille. " saute au Madeira " saute au Madere. " " with Mushrooms. " " aux champig- nons. " " alafinanciere " alafinanciere. " " au chasseur... " au chasseur. Filet of Grouse Filet de Coq de Bruyeres. " saute, a la Perrigord. " saute, a hi Perri- gord. ' " with Mushrooms. " " aux cham- pignons. " " au gratin " an gratin. Quails, broiled or roasted Cailles, grillees au roties. " sautees,with Mushrooms. " sautees, aux champig- nons. " " with Truffles " " aux truffes. " " withPeas " " aux petits pois. " " alafinanciere " " a la financicre. " " alapureedemarron. " " a la puree de mar- ron. " braised, Celery sauce " braisees a la sauceceleri. " " with Onions " " " oignons. " " ala Toulousaine.. " " a la Toulousaine. " " alaFlamande " " a la Flamande. Eggs, boiled (Eufs, a la coque. " fried " frits. " " with Ham " " aujambon, " " " Bacon " " au lard fume. " Spanish style " " al'Espagnole. " shirred " sur le plat. " brown butter " " " au beurre noir. " scrambled " brouilles. " withParsley " " aux fines herbes. " " Tomatoes " " aux tomates. " " Mushrooms.. " " aux champignons. " " Truffles " " aux truffes. " " Ham " " aujambon. " " Bacon " " au lard fume. " " Smoked Beef. " " auboeuffume. " Poached " pochcs. " " with Tomato Sauce. " " a la sauce aux to- mates. " " " Anchovis " " aux anchois. Omelette, plain Omelette, au natural. " withParsley " aux fines herbes. " " Tomatoes " aux tomates. " " Cheese '' au fromage. " " Kidney " aux rognons. " " Ham " aujambon. " " Bacon " au lard fume. " " Sausages " aux saucisses. " " Chicken Livers... " aux foies de poulet. " " Mushrooms " aux champignons. " " Truffles " aux truffes. " " Green Peas " aux petits pois. " " Asparagus Points. " auxturionsd'asperges. " " Oysters '' aux huitres. " " Clams " aux moules. " Spanish style " al'Espagnole. " Sweet " aux confitures. " withSugar " simple, au sucre. " " Jelly. " alagelee. " " Rum " au rhum. " ala Celestine... " a la Celestine. FRENCH NAMES OF DISHES USED IN MENUS. Ham, broiled or fried Jambon, grille ou frit. " with Eggs " " auxoeufs. " deviled " " aladiable. Bacon, broiled Lard fume, grille. " with Eggs " auxceufs. Pork, fried, plain Pore, frit, simple. with Apples " " aux pommes f rites. Smoked Beef, plain .Boeuf fume, simple. " with Cream " alacreme. " scrambled with Eggs. " brouille aux ceufs. Pig's Feet, plain Pieds de cochon, naturels. " breaded, Tomato " panee, a la sauce sauce. Tartare. " sauce " e la sauce piquante. piquante. " sauce " poivrade. poivrade. Sausages, Country Saucisses du pays. " smoked Frankfort. " fume de Frankfort. Balls, fried " en boules, f rites. Calf's Liver and Bacon Poie de veau an lard. " saut6 with Mushrooms. " saute aux cham- pignons. " " a 1'Italienne " a 1'Italienne. " stewed, American style. " a I'Americane. Sweetbreads, plain Ris de veau, simple. " breaded, Tomato sauce. " pane, a la sauce Tomate. " larded, with Mush- " pique aux champig- rooms nons. " " with Truffles " " aux truffes. " a la financiere " " a la financiere. " " Toulousaine " " " Toulousaine. Calf's Head, fried, Tomato Tete de veau, frite, a la sauce. sauce tomate. " a la vinaigrette " frite, a la vinaigrette. " " poulctte " " " poulette. " a 1'Italienne " " a 1'Italienne. " en tortue " " en tortue. " au gratin " " an gratin. Calf's Brains, with brown Cervelles de veau, au beurre butter. noir. " sauce poivrade " " a la sauce poivrade. " Tomatoes " " a la sauce tomate. " Re'molade " " a la sauce Remolade. Calf's Tongues, sauce Langues de veau, a la sauce piquante. piquante. " in paper en papillote. " a la Provenc.ale... " a la Provenc,ale. Kidney, broiled, plain, on Rognons, grilles en brochette. the spitt. " deviled " " aladiable. " stewed, plain " saute, simple. " aux Fines Herbes. " " aux fines herbes. " with Mushrooms. " " champignons. Lamb Fries, plain Amourettes d'agneau, simple. breaded, Tomato " paneealasauce sauce. tomate. sause piquante... " a la sauce piquant. Chicken Liver, on the spitt.. -Foiesdepoulet, a la brochette. " stewed, plain " sautes, simple. with Mush- " aux champignons, rooms. " " Washington " a la Washington, style. Tripe, broiled Gras Double, grille. breaded, fried " pane, frit. sauce piquante " a la sauce piquante. " Tomato " a la sauce tomate. stewed with Onions " saute aux oignons. " Cream " alacreme. " alaLyonnaise " a Li Lyonnaise. Pork Chops, broiled Cotelette de pore, grille. " a la maitre d'hotel.- " " a la maitre d'hotel. " breaded, sauce pi- " " panee, a la quante. sauce piquante. " sauce Toma- " " panee, h la toes. sauce tomate. " " poivrade. " " a la sauce poivrade. ' Robert.. " " a la sauce Robert. " deviled " " aladiable. Pork Tenderloin, broiled Filet de Pore, grille. " with fried apples. " aux pommes f rites. Veal Chops, plain Cotelette de veau, simple. breaded, Tomato ' paneealasauce sauce. > tomate. aux Fines Herbes.. " aux fines herbes. " alaMilanaise " a la Milanaise. with Madeira " au Madere, " Green Peas... " aux petits pois. Asparagus " aux pointes Points. d'asperges. in paper . " en papillote. Vienna Schmitzel Schmitzel de Vienne. Lamb Breast, broiled Poitrine d'agneau, grillee. " breaded, Tomato " panee, a la sauce sauce. tomate. piquante " a la sauce piquante. sauce Lamb Chops, broiled Cotelettes d'agneau, grilles. " " breaded, Tomato " " paneesala sauce. sauce tomate. " " with Mushrooms.. " " aux cham- pignons. " with Truffles " " aux truffes. " with Asparagus " " aux pointes Points. d'asperges. " " sautee a 1'Ital- " " saut6es a ienne. 1'Italienne. 66 HOME DISSERTATIONS. Lamb Chops, sautee a la Ly- Cot.elettes d'agneau, sautees a onnaise. la Lyonnaisc. " " " alaSoubise. " " sautees a la Soubisc. " " " a la finan- " " a la fi- ciere. nancierc. " " " in paper. " " en papillote. Mutton Chops, broiled " de mouton, grillees. " breaded, Tomato " " paneesala sauce. sauce tomate. " with Mushrooms. " " aux cham- pignons. " with Truffles " " aux truffes. " with Green Peas. " " aux pctits T-ois. Beefsteak, plain Bifstecks, simple. " withOnions " aux oignons. " with Mushrooms... " aux champignons. Sirloin, plain Entre-cotes de bceuf, simple. " with Mushrooms " aux champignons. " with Truffles " aux truffes. " with Olives " aux olives. " a la Bordelaise " a la Bordelaise. " a la financiere " a la financiere. Tenderloin, plain Filet de bceuf, simple. with Olives " aux olives. " with Mushrooms. " aux champignons. " with Truffles " aux truffes. " with Tomatoes. .. " auxtomates. " with Marrow " a la sauce moe'lle. " with Anchovies " aubeurred'anchois. butter. " a la Bernaise " a la Bearnaise. " a la financiere.... " a la financiere. Filet de Bceuf Chateaubriand. Filet de bceuf Chateaubriand. Entre cote de Bceuf, double. .Entre-cote de bceuf, double. Porter-house Steak Porter-house steak. ' extra cut. tranche extra. Hamburg Beefsteak Bifsteck a la mode de Ilam- bourg. Asparagus Asperges. Cauliflower Chouxfleurs. Brussels Sprouts Choux de Bruxelles. Artichokes Artichauts. Peas Petit pois. String Beans Haricots verts. Lima Beans " de Lima. Green Corn Mai's de Turquie. Succotash Succotash. Mushrooms Champignons. Oyster Plant Salsifis. Spinach Epinards. Parsnips Panais. Turnips Navets. Cabbage Choux. Squash Potirons. Beets... ...Betteraves. Egg Plant Aubergines. Onions Oignons. Tomatoes, stuffed Tomates, farcies. stewed " saut6es. " broiled " grillees. Celery, au jus Celeri, au jus. Maryland Hominy Hominy du Maryland, mai's bouilli. Rice, boiled Riz, bouilli. " croquette " encroquette. " alaMilanaise " a la Milanaise. Macaroni, plain Macaroni, simple. augratin " au gratin. a la Milanaise " alaMilanaise. Potatoes, boiled or roasted... Pommes de terre, bouillies on roties. " fried, plain " frites, sinple. " Julienne " a la Ju- lienne. " alaParisienne, " " a la Par- isienne. " " Saratoga style. " "a la mode de Saratoga. " griddled " grillees. " sautees, plain " sautees simple- ment. " a la Lyon- " a la Lyon- naise. naise. " " Dutch style. " a la IIol- landaise. " stewed, a la maitre "alamaitre d'hotel. d'hotel. " hashed with Cream.. " enhachi,ala creme. " browned augratin. mashed '. " en purees. " browned " " augratin. " alaDuchesse " " a la Duchess. " croquette " " en croquettes. Sweet Potatoes, boiled or " douces, bouillies roasted. ou roties. " " fried " " frites. " " broiled " " grillees. Bermuda Potatoes " Bermudes. Lettuce, Salad Salade de laitue. Chicken " " de volaille. Lobster " " de homard. Dandelion" " de pissenlit. Cresses " " de cresson. Celery " " de celeri. Tomato " " de tomate. Cucumber" " de concombre. Chicory " " de chicoree. Italian " " al'Italienne. Russian " " alaRusse. Anchovis " " aux anchois. Herring " " d'hareng. Potato " " de pommes de terre. FRENCH NAMES OF DISHES USED IN MENUS. 67 Camembert Cheese Fromage de Camembert. Rochefort " " de Roquefort. Naufchatel " " de Neufchatel. Brie " " de Brie. Stilton " " do Stilton. Swiss " " de Gruyere. English " " Anglais. American " " American. Jelly, with Champagne Gelee au vin de champagne. " " Rum " au rhum. " " Port Wine " a 1' Oporto. " " Sherry Wine " au sherry. Meringues of Peaches Me'ringues de pe'ches. Apples " depommes. Strawberries " de fraises. Omelette souffle'e Omelette soufflee. Meringues, a la Creme Meringues a la creme. panach6es " panache'es. Charlotte Russe, & la CrSme.. Charlotte Russe, a la creme. " alaChantilly. " " a la Chantilly. Cup Custard Creme cuite. " Soft Lemon Custard " " au citron. Fruit Pies, in season Tartes de fruits delasaison. Blanc Mange Blano mange. Cakes, Pound Gateaux au beurre. " Sponge " biscuit cumin. " Fancy " garnis. " Lady " a la Dame Blanche. " Lady Fingers " buscuits a la cuiller. " Dry, assorted... " sees. Ginger Snaps " snaps au gingembre. " Bread " " pain de gingem- bre. Croquettes Parisian " croquettes a la Paris- ienne. Carlsbad Wafers " gauf res a la Carlsbad. Macarons, in variety " macarons, assortis. Ice Cream, VanilJa Glaces a la vaniile. " Strawberry " aux fraises. Chocolate " au chocolat. Pistache " aupistache. " Coffee " caf6. Mixed " melees. Neapolitan " Napolitaines. Fancy Neapolitan- " moule'es. Meringues, glacees " me'ringues, glace'es. Charlotte Russe, glac6e " charlotte " Tutti Frutti " tutti frutti. Lemon Ice Glaces a 1'eau, au citron. Orange " " " a 1'orange. Strawberry Ice " " aux fraises. Raspberry " " " aux framboises. Pine Apple " " " al'ananas. Remain Punch Punchs glacis, a la Romaine. Siberian " " " a la Sibe'rienne. Cardinale " " " a la cardinal. Mixed Fruits Punch " " aux mille fruits. Strawberries and Cream Fraises a la creme. Raspberries " " Framboises " Blackberries and Cream Mures a la creme. Peaches " " Peches " Cantelope Melons cantaloups. Water Melon " d'eau. Oranges Oranges. Bananas Bananes. Assorted Fruits Fruits assortis. Hot House Grapes Raisins de serre. Malaga " " de Malaga. Native " " du pays. Apples Pommes. Pears Poires. Black Hamburg grapes Raisins noirs de Hambourg. Coffee Caf<. " with Cream " a la creme. " French, a Tass " a la Francaise. Tea, English Breakfast Th6, dejeuner Anglais. " Black " noir. " Green " vert. " Mixed " mele. " Mandarin " Mandarin. Chocolate Chocolat. Broma Broma. Cocoa Cacao. Iced Coffee Cafe, glace. " " Bavarois " Bavarois glace 1 . " Tea The 1 , glace. " " Bavarois " Bavarois glace. Goblet of Cream Un verre de creme. Milk " de lait. Rolls, French Petits pains, Frangais. " Flutes " flutes. " Albany, " d'Albany. " Graham " Graham. " Corn Bread " dema'is. Muffins, American Muffins, a 1'Americaine. " English " al'Anglaise. Berliner Pretzel Pretzel de Berlin. Vienna Butter Wreaths Butter Wreaths de Vienne. Paris Brioche Brioches de Paris. German Coffee Cakes Gateaux au caf6, a 1'Alle- mande. Toast, Dry Pain roti, sec. " Zwieback " Zwieback. " Buttered " beurre'. " Dipped " a 1'eau. " Milk " aulait. " Cream " alacre'me. " Anchovis " a 1'anchois. " Graham Bread " de Graham. " Boston Brown Bread. -. " brun de Boston. Bread, plain, American Pain, simple, Ame'ricaia. " Graham " " de Graham. " Boston Brown.. " " brun de Boston. " French, Split " fendu Franc.ais. " " Jokos " Jokoa " Cakes, Buckwheat Crepe de sarrasin. " Wheat " defroment. " Indian " Indiens. "WHERE" IS THE MAN THAT CAN LIVE WITHOUT DINING?" We may live without poetry, music and art ; We may live without conscience and live without heart ; We may live without friends, we may live without books, But civilized man cannot live without cooks. We may live without books what is knowledge but grieving ? We may live without hope what is hope but deceiving ? We may live without love what is passion but pining ? But where is the man that can live without dining ? Owen Meredith (Lord Lyttori). SOUP. y^~^vF all soups the most common and susceptible to variations is one in which 1J the stock is prepared of beef. The trouble with the average American- prepared meat soup is that it is too greasy and thick. German soups are often thick, but seldom greasy. Everything is liable to be run across in a Scandinavian soup, from a small sardine to a raisin or a grain of allspice. But the delicious French soups are always clear." " The proper method of extracting the juice of meat for soup is exactly the reverse of that practiced in cooking meat which is intended to be eaten. The meat must be cut into small pieces, put into cold water and slowly heated till boiling. Indeed, the more slowly the better, because cold water is a better solvent of the juice than hot water; the heat being only necessary to cook the juice after it has been extracted, to coagulate the albumen, which is separated as scum, and to dissolve the gelatine. A liquor intended as a basis for most soups and sauces should have its due proportion of gelatine. This liquor, if intended especially for white soups, is best made of poultry or veal, which furnishes more gelatine than any other kind of meat; and to supply flavor, in which veal is deficient, some lean ham or bacon is used, in the proportion of half a pound to six pounds of veal and two gallons of water. For other soups, particularly brown soups, beef is the best, having a richer flavor. Meat of any sort (except pork), bones, trimmings, etc., may, however, be used, and the liquor in which boiled meat has been cooked may be used instead of water. The scum should be removed as it rises, and all fat should be skimmed off. In from three to four hours the juice will be thoroughly extracted, after which the boiling should cease, because if the fibres of the meat begin to separate they will destroy the transparency of the soup. The liquor being then strained is, in the language of the kitchen, called stock, and by the addition of proper seasonings, vegetables and coloring and thickening substances, may be converted into almost any kind of soup. GLAZE. Stock, when reduced by boiling to a rather thick, yellowish-brown fluid, is called glaze. This forms a strong jelly when cold, and will keep good in that state for a considerable time. It is useful among other purposes, for making soups and sauces upon short notice. Portable soup consists simply of a very strong gelatinous glaze dried in the form of tablets similar to glue. The more volatile ingredients, such as ketchup, aromatic spices, etc., should not be added until the soup is ready, because their flavor evaporates, and if added earlier a larger quantity of them will be required. All other ingredients should have ample time to incorporate. fi 70 HOME DISSERTATIONS. VEGETABLES IN SOUP. When vegetables are intended to appear in slices in the soup, an hour's boiling will suffice to cook them, but when intended to flavor and thicken they should be grated and added early. BROWNING TO COLOR SOUP. Broum soup is merely a clear beef soup stock colored. To make the browning fry (saute), till well browned, a small portion of the meat used, along with some onions, before adding the water. A very good "browning " consists of sugar heated in a stew-pan until black- ened, but not burnt, and then melted in water. In this process the sugar loses its sweet- ness, but does not become bitter unless too much heated. A few drops of this browning suffices. Flour browned in the oven is a very good coloring substance for soups that require thickening. Other browning .substances are also employed, such as toasted bread, or dark-colored ketchup. TO MAKE SOUP CLEAR. Should clear stock turn out not so transparent as desired, it may be clarified in the following manner: Whisk the white of eggs with a little cold water in a basin, to which add gradually some of the soup, still whisking the mixture. Pour this slowly into the boil- ing soup, stirring it rapidly. Continue stirring till the soup again nearly boils, then remove from the fire and allow it to stand till the white of egg separates. Lastly strain the soup through a clean cloth. About one egg is required for each quart of soup. Vegetables make a stock sour very quickly, so if you wish to keep stock do not use them. Many advise putting vegetables into the stock-pot with the meat and water, and cooking from the beginning. When this is done they absorb the fine flavor of the meat and give the soup a rank taste. They should cook not more than an hour the last hour in the stock. Potatoes if boiled in the soup, are thought by some to render it unwhole- some, from the opinion that the water in which potatoes have been cooked is almost a poison. As potatoes are a part of every dinner, it is very easy to take a few out of the pot in which they have been boiled by themselves, and cut them up and add them to the soup just before it goes to the table. The soup should be seasoned but very slightly with salt and pepper. If too much it may spoil it for the taste of most of those who are to eat it; but if too little, it is easy to add more. A soup stock must be cooled quickly or it will not keep well. In winter any kind of stock ought to keep a week. That boiled down to a jelly will keep the longest. In the warm months three days will be the average time stock will keep. STOCK FOR CLEAR SOUP. During cold weather the stock for beef soup can be kept on hand. At any season it should always be prepared the day before using. The shin is a good piece for this pur- pose, or the lower part of the round. Have the bones well cracked and extract the mar- row, which should be put in the soup. To each pound of lean beef allow one quart of SOUP. 71 water. Put five pounds of beef into five quarts of cold water into a close kettle and set it where it will heat gradually. Let it boil very slowly for six or seven hours. Look at it once in a while to see if the water is sinking too rapidly. Should this be the case, replen- ish it with boiling water, taking care, however, not to add too much of it. When it has boiled seven hours, remove the meat, which can be used for salad with potatoes and onions. Strain, and set away to cool. In the morning skim off all the fat and turn the soup into the kettle, being careful not to let the sediment pass in. Into the soup put an onion, one stalk of celery, two leaves of sage, two sprigs of parsley, two of thyme, two of summer savory, two bay leaves, twelve pepper-corns, and six whole cloves. Boil gently from ten to twenty minutes, salt and pepper to taste. Strain through a fine sieve. This is now ready for serving as a simple clear soup, or for the foundation of all kinds of clear soup. Put in such vegetables as are desired. If these are cut fine it is "Julian " soup. If young cabbage, quartered and boiled, and young carrots and turnips are put in whole and dished up with the soup, with the addition of toasted crusts, it is the French family soup, according to the taste. The vegetables are better when cooked by themselves and added with their juices to the soup. The seasoning, too, is a matter of taste. Vermicelli or macaroni which has been boiled tender can be added if desired. There is no more absurd notion in regard to soup-making than the idea that all sorts of scraps can be thrown into a pot and made into a good soup. A skillful cook can create a good soup from chicken or turkey bones, but for meat soup only fresh and un- cooked meat must be used. Vegetable Soups may be almost infinitely varied, by employing more or less of each vegetable, or omitting some altogether, so as to have the flavor of one kind predominate. There is hardly an edible vegetable or herb which may not be introduced. The vegetable which predominates usually gives its name to the soup; thus we have tomato soup, turnip soup, cabbage soup, etc. The French cooks name some of them after the seasons or months in which their vegetable ingredients are perfection; as for instance, printaniere soup, julienne soup (spring soup, July soup), etc. Puree of Vegetable Soup is made of any vegetable preferred. The vegetables are cut very small, and sauted along with some lean ham or bacon. A spoonful of flour is then added, and afterward the required quantity of stock, with a bunch of parsley and one or two potatoes; also some boiling milk if desired. When this boils it is seasoned with salt, pepper and sugar, and then rubbed through a sieve; the ham and parsley being removed. It now requires to be re-boiled and skimmed. Serve hot with toasted bread, cut in dice, in it. Vermicelli, Italian paste, macaroni, sago, semolina, rice, and tapioca soups have no vegeta- bles, but consist simply of well-seasoned clear stock, with the above substances boiled in it till softened, but not so dissolved as to thicken the soup. About two ounces of either of the first four is enough for a quart of stock; rather less of the others will be sufficient, because they swell. The rice should be washed and drained and put into cold stock, and then simmer; all the others should be put into boiling stock. Macaroni is better for being 72 HOME DISSERTATIONS. previously boiled for ten minutes in water and then drained. Instead of stock, brown soup may be used for these. Brown soup is merely a clear beef stock colored, if required, by one of the "brownings." It is seasoned with pepper, salt and cayenne, and a little mushroom ketchup if desired. Toasted bread in small dice may be put into it before serving. ASPARAGUS SOUP. Cut off the green portions of asparagus, as far as tender, sufficient to fill a quart meas- ure. Boil them in water with a little salt until quite tender, then drain and add them to two quarts of good beef broth, and serve very hot. Small squares of toasted bread may be served in the tureen with the soup if desirable. BEAN SOUP. The most common of vegetable soups is bean soup. Any kind will do, although the best are the French beans. Soak a quart of them over night in lukewarm water. Put them over the fire next morning with one gallon of cold water. Boil for three or four hours. Add celery, onions if desired, and one or two thinly sliced potatoes. Simmer until the vegetables are done. Caraway or dill seed is a good addition to the seasoning of bean soup. BEEF AND OKRA SOUP. Cut from the bone two pounds of soup beef, crack the bone to release the marrow, and put both meat and bone over the fire in a large saucepan with eight quarts of cold water, a level tablespoon of salt, a small dried red pepper finely chopped or grated, and the fol- lowing named vegetables : six fresh tomatoes and one medium sized onion peeled and sliced ; one large green pepper finely chopped, four dozen okras washed and sliced, the stems being rejected, and one cup of shelled Lima beans ; in the winter all these vegeta- bles can be bought in cans ; cover the saucepan closely, and gently simmer all these in- gredients together for four hours, taking care that they do not burn. While the soup is being cooked boil two large hard-shell crabs, and remove the meat from the shells, or, if live crabs are not available, use the canned crab-meat. After the soup has been boiled for four hours remove the beef bones, leaving all the meat and marrow in the soup, add the prepared crab-meat, and if the soup is too thick to be palatable, a little boiling water; see that it is nicely seasoned, and then serve it hot. BOUILLON SERVED IN CUPS. \ Bouillon is made the same as the clear stock, using a pint of water to a pound of meat, chicken or other poultry, and seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve in large cups with handles. CONSOMME. Eight pounds of a shin of veal, eight pounds of the lower part of the round of beer, half a cup of butter, twelve quarts of water, half a small carrot, two large onions, hair a head of celery, thirty pepper-corns, six whole cloves, a small piece each of mace and cm- SOUP. 73 namon, four sprigs of parsley, sweet marjoram, summer savory and thyme, four leaves of sage, four bay leaves, about two ounces of ham. Put half of the butter in the soup-pot and then put in the meat, which has been cut into very small pieces. Stir over a hot fire until the meat begins to brown ; then add one quart of the water, and cook until there is a glaze on the bottom of the kettle (this will be in about an hour). Add the remainder of the water and let it come to a boil. Skim carefully and set back where it will simmer for six hours. Fry the vegetables, which have been cut very small, in the remaining butter for half an hour, being careful not to burn them. When done, turn into the soup-pot, and at the same time add the herbs and spice. Cook one hour longer, salt to taste, and strain. Set it in a very cold place till morning, when skim off all the fat. Turn the soup into the, pot, being careful not to turn in the sediment, and set on the fire. Beat the whites and shells of two eggs with one cup of cold water. Stir into the soup, and when it comes to a boil, set back where it will simmer twenty minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, put away in a cold place. This will keep a week in winter, but not more than four days in summer. It is a particularly fine-flavored soup, and is the foundation for any clear soup, the soup taking the name of the solid used with it as Consomme, au Riz, consomme with macaroni, etc. CREOLE SOUP. Garlic is characteristic of Creole dishes, but onions will do. Use a medium sized one, peeled and sliced, or a clove of garlic for a quart of soup, and a can of tomatoes peeled and sliced. Put these over the fire and let them begin to cook while you cut up in slices a small carrot and a small turnip. Make a bouquet of herbs by tying together two table- spoons of parsley with the stems and roots on, a stalk of celery, half a dozen cloves, about the same number of unground pepper-corns and a bay leaf. Add this to the soup and season it with a little salt. The reason for using cloves and unground pepper was to se- cure their flavor and prevent the clouding of soup or sauce. When ground pepper is used, select ceyenne or the white. Use the liquid from the tomatoes for the soup, this being sufficient. After all the ingredients have been placed in the soup, it is to be allowed to cook very slowly until all the vegetables are tender enough to rub through a flour-sieve with a potato masher. If not thin enough, put in hot water or broth. Thin it to the consistency of cream. If it is not palatable, season with salt and pepper. Put in about two heaping tablespoons of boiled rice for a quart of soup, half a cup before cooking will answer for four quarts. If the soup is too thin that depends upon the condition of the tomatoes it can be thickened with a very little white sauce made like the white soup, but with water instead of milk, because the acid in the tomatoes will curdle the milk unless there is added for each quart of soup a saltspoon of baking soda. CHICKEN CONSOMME. Clean, draw and truss a pair of old fowls, and roast them until they are slightly browned, or about half cooked. Put them into a soup-pot and cover with cold water. Season with salt, pepper, a blade or two of mace, a bunch of sweet herbs, a sprig or two 74 HOME DISSERTATIONS. of parsley, and a bay leaf. Set the pot on the fire and boil slowly until the fowls are well done and the broth is reduced one-third. Then strain the broth through a fine sieve and serve it with toasted bread. It is a delicacy served without the bread in cups. CHICKEN SOUP. Carefully pluck and singe a chicken weighing about three pounds, draw it without breaking the intestines, and cut it in small pieces about two inches square ; put the chicken over the fire in a saucepan with two quarts of cold water, and let the water gradually heat to the boiling point ; meantime peel and slice a pint of tomatoes, and enough carrots to measure an equal quantity ; shell enough Lima beans to fill a cup ; put the vegetables with the chicken when the water boils ; season the soup with salt and cayenne pepper ; cover the saucepan closely and simmer the soup gently for three hours ; at the end of three hours mix two heaping tablespoons of flour smoothly with half a cup of water, and add it to the soup ; add also a pint of milk ; see that the soup is palatably seasoned ; con- tinue the boiling another hour, taking care that the soup does not burn, and then serve it hot. CLEREMONT SOUP. Cut a dozen white or silver onions, and fry them in butter until well browned. Drain them. Take two quarts of rich veal or chicken broth, season with salt and pepper, place it on the fire, and make it very hot. Add the fried onions and two tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese. Serve with fried bread cut in small pieces. CONSOMME WITH POACHED EGGS. Put into a small pan a pint of water, a teaspoon of salt, and a tablespoon of vinegar. When boiling hot, break in a saucer two eggs at a time and slip them into the pan. Sim- mer till firm, and with a perforated skimmer remove and lay them in a pan of cold water. Having poached the eggs as many as required put them into a tureen and pour over them some good boiling hot broth; chicken or veal is the best. A minute or two before serving add a pinch or two of coarse black pepper. CREAM OF CELERY. A pint of milk, a tablespoon of flour, one of butter, a head of celery, a large slice of onion and small piece of mace. Boil celery in a pint of water from thirty to forty-five minutes; boil mace, onion and milk together. Mix flour with two tablespoons of milk. Cook ten minutes. Mash celery in the water in which it has been cooked, and stir into the boiling milk. Add butter, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Strain and serve immediately. The flavor is improved by adding a cup of whipped cream when the soup is in the tureen. CREAM OF SORREL. Sorrel is a pest to many a farmer, and almost takes possession of his freshly broken fields. However, sorrel makes a fine soup, albeit, like the pumpkin, it is essentially French. The cultivated sorrel can be used. To two quarts of sorrel add a good handful of spinach SOUP. 75 and a few leaves of lettuce. Put them into a frying-pan with a large piece of butter and cook until thoroughly done. Then put them into a kettle with a gallon of boiling water. Just before serving add two beaten eggs with a little cream. Have squares of toasted bread in the soup tureen. This soup is highly esteemed for invalids. "CREAM OF SPINACH" SOUP. The spinach must be very carefully washed, so as to get rid of the sand. Then re- move the leaves from the stalks. Put them into boiling water and salt. Use enough water to well cover the spinach. Boil until it is tender, three minutes in the spring and tenor twelve when the spinach is very tough. The moment the leaves are tender enough to be rubbed away between the fingers they are done, and boiling thereafter makes them shrink. Half a peck of spinach, if in really good condition, the leaves green, fresh, and large, will yield about two quarts of leaves ; if poor, sometimes not more than a quart. A quart of leaves, when done, will be reduced to about a cupful, which will serve for four quarts of soup. For a quart, mix in a saucepan over the fire a tablespoon of butter and one of flour, stirring the flour in as the butter melts. This makes a perfectly smooth paste. Then add milk a teacup at a time until a quart is in the pan, stirring the mixture while pouring in the milk, which may be hot or cold. Hot milk is preferable, it saves time. If the soup has lumps in it the butter had not been melted. When all the milk has been added, the soup should be seasoned with a teaspoon of salt, a quarter of a saltspoon of pepper, and the same quantity of nutmeg. In making sauces or gravies, if the butter is melted there will never be any lumps in them. Soup could be kept hot by setting the kettle in another containing hot water. It will thicken a little if allowed to stand. Should it be- come too thick, a little milk or whatever is used in making the soup it will thin it. Spinach soup can be made of milk, or of milk and water in equal parts, or of meat broth. ENGLISH PEA SOUP. Put a marrow bone and one pint of split peas into the soup-pot, cover these with three quarts of water, simmer slowly for three hours. Season with pepper and salt to taste. Strain the soup through a hair sieve, and mash and press the peas through and return them to the soup ; stir well together. Cover the bottom of the tureen with cube-shaped pieces of buttered toast, and pour the soup hot over them and serve. GIBLET SOUP. Giblets of any kind of poultry, consisting of the head, neck, pinions, feet, liver, giz- zard, and heart. For goose giblet soup two sets of goose giblets maybe used. The pin- ions and the neck-skin should be scalded and picked free from feathers, the feet scalded and skinned, the beak removed and the skull split. After this they must be well cleaned, cut into small pieces, slightly sauted in butter, and then simmered till tender in some good beef stock or brown soup, with some carrot, turnip, onions, parsley, thyme, and a bay leaf. Season highly with mushroom ketchup, salt and cayenne, and thicken with butter rolled 76 HOME DISSERTATIONS. in flour. When the giblets are tender, the soup may be strained, then re-warm it and serve with the giblets, and, if desired, some vegetables in it. TO MAKE GUMBO. For a large family, take two dozen green okras, cut into thin slices, put into a pot with three quarts of cold water, and start it to boiling. Now take two tender chickens, cut them up, and with a rolling-pin or mallet, macerate the flesh and bones until almost a jelly. Add this to the pot of okra. Scald and peel a quart of full ripe tomatoes, and finely grate four ears of tender green sweet corn, which add to the mass. Stir frequently, to prevent burning. Season with fresh butter, pepper and salt ; and when nearly done, add a stalk of finely chopped celery, with a few sprigs of parsley, and one onion. Con- stantly stirring ; and when the mass becomes ropy, and emits a grateful aromatic odor, serve up. If you would Frenchify the dish, just before it is taken up, add a gill of pure wine. LENTEN SOUP. Any good domestic red wine, such as currant, cherry or raspberry wine, may be used for this soup, the quantity of sugar being graduated by the acidity of the wine ; the pro- portion of sugar here given will serve for any wine as acid as claret ; domestic or Califor- nia claret makes a very fair Lenten soup at a reasonable cost, the New York price being thirty-five cents for a large bottle which will make four quarts of soup. Wash quarter of a pound of small sago in cold water, put it over the fire in three quarts of cold water, with a level teaspoon of salt, as much cayenne as can be lifted on the point of a small knife- blade, and a saltspoon of grated nutmeg ; stir the sago frequently enough to prevent burning, and cook it slowly until the little globules are entirely transparent, adding more water if it is required ; when the sago is transparent add quarter of a pound of sugar, and enough boiling water to make three quarts of soup ; then put in a quart of claret, or any good domestic red wine, and stir the soup until the sugar is dissolved ; when the soup is quite hot after the addition of the wine, serve it ; or ice it, and serve it cold. LOBSTER SOUP WITH MILK. Meat of a small lobster, chopped fine ; three crackers rolled fine ; butter, size of an egg ; salt and pepper to taste and a speck of cayenne. Mix all in the same pan, and add, gradually, a pint of boiling milk, stirring all the while. Boil up once and serve. GREEN TURTLE SOUP. HOW TO KILL A TURTLE. The day before the soup is to be made hang the turtle up by the hind fins, head down- wards, and cut off the head. Use a sharp knife, in order to perform the operation quickly Let him hang till the next day, that he may be well bled. Then separate the upper from the lower shell, and be careful in this operation not to cut the gall bladder, which if punc- tured, would completely destroy the flesh over which it ran. Take out the meat of the breast and cut it into half a dozen pieces. Remove the gall and entrails and throw them away. Separate the fins as near the shell as possible, take out the green fat and put it in SOUP. TT a dish by itself. Break the shell into pieces and put them into a soup-pot, cover with water, and boil sufficiently long to enable you to remove the mucilage or gelatinous sub- stance adhereing to the shells. Put this also on a separate dish. Then into the largest stew-pan you have put the head, fins, liver, lights, heart and all the flesh, a pound of ham, a dozen cloves, two or three bay leaves, a large bunch of sweet herbs, such as savory, mar- joram, basil, thyme, a bunch of parsley and an onion cut in slices. Cover all these with the liquor in which you boiled the shells, place the pan on the fire and simmer till the meat be thoroughly cooked. Then strain off the liquor through a fine sieve, and return it to the stew-pan and set aside. Cut the meat into suitable morsels. Put the herbs, onions, etc., into a separate saucepan with a quarter-pound of butter, two or three lumps of sugar and a bottle of Madeira. Let this simmer very slowly. While this is doing, melt half a pound of butter in another saucepan and thicken with flour, then add a pint of the liquor from the shells. Let this boil gently for a minute or two. When both of these sauce- pans are ready, strain the contents of the first, containing the herbs and wine, through a sieve, and this done, add both to the large stew-pan, containing the broth, then add the meat, the green fat and mucilage. Add the yoke of a dozen hard boiled eggs, the juice of two or three lemons and a dessert spoon of cayenne. Make all very hot and serve. If you have more than you require, pour the balance into stoneware crocks, and when cold cover and put in a cool place. It will keep a good while, and improve in flavor as the in- gredients have a chance to more thoroughly amalgamate and blend. When wanted for use, take especial care to make very hot, but without allowing it to boil, as that would spoil its true flavor. In the re-v:arming more wine may be added if desired. This soup is de- licious without the wine. The lemons should have a very thin rind ; should be put into the tureen and the soup poured over it. Cooking the lemon in this or any other soup often gives it a bitter taste. MUTTON BROTH. Take the fat from the liquor in which the leg of mutton has boiled. Add pepper, and a little salt, bearing in mind that mutton will not bear as much salt as beef or veal ; half a cup of raw rice, and half an onion. Boil all together half an hour. This is a delicious broth, and very easily digested. MUTTON SOUP. An excellent mutton soup : Take a leg of mutton, trim off all the fat you can get at ; put it, whole, in a kettle, cover it well with cold water, and set over the fire. When it boils, add salt enough to taste well ; half a cup of pearl barley ; let it boil four hours, keep- ing it covered with water all the time. About an hour before dinner-time, add two medium- sized onions, a sprig of sage, about eight or ten leaves. Some add celery, but it does not improve it for us. If you dislike the flavor the onions and sage give the meat, remove tne meat before putting them in. The cold meat, if made into a salad, the same as chicxeu salarf. is very good, the only soup-meat there is any taste left in that I know of. *S HOME DISSERTATIONS. MOCK TURTLE SOUP. S. R. AUSTIN, CHIEF COOK. The Stock. Make from bones of any description, beef preferable. Eight gallons water, ten pounds meat bones, six carrots, onions and turnips, four blades of mace, one ounce cloves, one ounce of allspice, four laurel leaves, one-fourth ounce whole pep- pers, allspice whole, about two pounds block bones. To color stock and assist to flavor, take four pounds small scraps of meat or bones, eight leaves of sage and summer savory, with one pound butter. Put this in the oven and let brown slowly, with five carrots, five turnips, five onions, cut fine; when brown, put in the same two pounds of flour, stir up, and let all brown together; after brown, scrape it into the stock that is boiling on the fire, with the addition of a large spoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper, and carimel enough to color a nice brown. Let all boil from ten to fifteen hours on a slow fire, until morning, then strain off ; use a very fine sieve ; let cool ; skim off all grease, then put on the fire and let boil slow ; season with pepper and salt to taste, and thicken to the consistency of heavy cream. The Fillings. Take one calf's head and feet ; skin it, wash clean, and boil the skin. Use the bones of the head in the above stock. Cook soft the day before wanting ; when wanted, cut up in dice-sized pieces and put in the above stock one hour before the soup is used. Take two pounds lean veal, cut small and fry brown ; then put it in the soup. The Balls. Take two dozen eggs, boil hard. Separate the whites from the yoik ; mash the yolk up, and all the yolk of three raw eggs with flour to make a stiff paste ; take three-fourths of this and make balls about the size of marbles ; the other one-fourth mix with a pound of chopped veal, fine, and make into large-sized balls. Boil all in water about fifteen minutes; strain off, and put the balls into the soup. Cut the whites in thin pieces and put them in also. The balls can be made the day before cooked, and put in cold water until wanted to use. Peel three lemons, slice in thin slices, cut the skin up in small shreds, throw in the soup fifteen minutes before ready to use, and one pint of port wine. Be sure and have the soup thick enough, and a nice brown color. MULLIGATAWNY SOUP. Cut the meat off three pounds of veal into small pieces, and make a strong gelatinous stock of the trimmings, gristle and bones, along with a knuckle of veal broken in pieces, and simmered in about three quarts of water. Fry (saute) the pieces of meat in butter, in a deep stew-pan, along with some sliced onions and a slice of lean ham. When these are slightly browned, mix in two tablespoons of flour, and pour over them the stock pre- viously strained. Simmer this gently for an hour, skimming off the fat as it rises. Then add two or three dessertspoons of curry powder, with salt and cayenne, and continue the simmering till the veal is thoroughly cooked. Before serving, remove the ham. Carrot and turnip may be used in this soup, being sliced and sauted along with the meat aiiL SOUP. 79 onion; apples also are sometimes employed in the same way. The remains of cooked fowls or rabbits, cut into small pieces, may be warmed up in this soup and served along with the veal. Chicken or turkey bones, scraps from roast veal, lamb or mutton may be used instead of the veal. OX-TAIL SOUP. Ox-tail soup may be made of two or three ox-tails divided into joints, slightly sauted in butter, and then simmered in about three quarts of good beef stock, or brown soup, till the meat becomes quite tender and loose upon the bones. If water is used instead of stock, another tail may be required, and some of the smaller pieces left unsauted, to yield their juice. Season it with whole black pepper and salt at the beginning of the prepara- tion. Vegetables, namely: carrot, turnip, onions or leeks, and celery sliced, and parsley and thyme, may be boiled in it, especially if it is made without stock, the onions being sauted with the meat, and it may be thickened with browned flour. PALESTINE SOUP. Wash and peel two dozen Jerusalem artichokes. Cover them with cold water as fast as peeled. Put them in a saucepan and add a sprig of leek, a sprig of parsley and one of celery ; salt and pepper. Add two quarts of stock or hot water, and simmer an hour and a half. Strain ; remove all but the artichokes and press them through a sieve, return to the liquid and put back on the range. When quite hot, beat into it a pint of boiled cream, add a little nutmeg, taste for seasoning, and serve with croutons. PUREE OF VEGETABLE SOUP. Peel some carrots, turnips and onions, cut them into very small pieces and fry them slightly with some lean ham or bacon ; a spoon of flour mixed smoothly with water is then added, together with two quarts of stock or broth, also a bunch of parsley and one or two potatoes cut into pieces, and a gill of milk. When this boils for twenty minutes, season with salt and pepper and a teaspoon of sugar; after which remove and strain and rub through a fine sieve, the parsley and ham being removed. Replace it upon the fire, bring it to the boil, skim it, and serve very hot, with the toasted bread cut into small pieces in it. POTAGE A LA KEINE. Boil a large fowl in three quarts of water until tender ; the water should never more than bubble. Skim off the fat, and add a teacup of rice, and, also, a slice of carrot, one of turnip, a small piece of celery and an onion, which have been cooked slowly for fifteen minutes in two large tablespoons of butter. Skim this butter carefully from the vege- tables, and into the pan in which it is, stir a tablespoon of flour. Cook until smooth, but not brown. Add this, as well as a small piece of cinnamon and of mace, and four whole cloves. Cook all together slowly for two hours. Chop and pound the breast of the fowl very fine. Rub the soup through a fine sieve ; add the pounded breast and again rub the whole through the sieve. Put back on the fire and add one and a half tablespoons of salt, So HOME DISSERTATIONS. a fourth of a teaspoon of pepper and a pint of cream, which has just come to a boil. Boil up once and serve. This is a delicious soup. PUMPKIN OR SQUASH SOUP. Pumpkin or squash soup is almost a national dish in France. Indeed, the first men- tioned vegetable is scarcely employed there for any other purpose than for soup-making. To two quarts of thoroughly cooked pumpkin or squash allow one quart of milk, plenty of butter, pepper and salt. Serve with toasted bread. SCOTCH BROTH. Two pounds of the scraggy part of a neck of mutton. Cut the meat from thus bones, and cut off all the fat. Then cut the meat into small pieces and put into the soup-pot with one large slice of turnip, two of carrot, one onion and a stalk of celery, all cut fine, half a cup of barley and three pints of cold water. Simmer gently two hours. On to the bones put one pint of water ; simmer two hours, and strain upon the soup. Cook a table- spoon of flour and one of butter together until perfectly smooth ; stir into soup, and add a teaspoon of chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper. SPRING SOUP. Cut your spring vegetables into neat symmetrical shreds ; boil them separately a f^v minutes and add them to consomme. STOCK, OR POT-AU-FEU. Pieces of fresh beef, bones, briskets, skin, tops, trimmings, bits of cooked beef, mutton, lamb, veal, fowl, unsalted, anything that will make a jelly; also, slices of carrots, beets, onions, parsley; avoid spices and herbs, and use salt sparingly. Fill a pot half full ; fill up with cold water. Don't let it boil for the first half hour on any account; after that, let it simmer gently, four, five, or seven hours; skim well, and stew till it has reached a rich consistency; then take it off the fire, strain through a coarse napkin, and set away to cool. When cold, take off all the fat, and it should pour clear from sediment. If desired to be very rich, add jelly from a cow heel, or a lump of butter rolled in flour. Never permit the stock-pot to get empty. So soon as one is placed in the larder, com- mence another. If it accumulates, boil down to a glaze. MRS. E. B. BURROUGHS' TOMATO SOUP. Boil for a few minutes three cups of tomatoes, with a small teaspoon of saleratus. Heat one quart of milk to near boiling, and into this pour the prepared tomatoes. Season with plenty of fresh butter, a little salt and pepper, and serve with small bits of toasted bread cut the shape of dice. An iron spoon should not be used in stirring this soup during its preparation. TURKEY SOUP WITH OYSTERS. Use the carcass of a cold turkey, together with all the cold stuffing and gravy on hand; The INGLENOOK Wines are offered to the public in GLASS only, being bottled at the vineyard in California: pro- tected by its trade mark and the PURE WINE STAMP of the State of California, which guarantees the absolute purity of the Wines. None genuine unless bearing Trade Mark on Seal or Cork. injienooi Tame wines OLD The Standard of Excellence and Purity CHT T^ ni\T T V TT\T GULiJJ UlNljI UN GROWN & BOTTLED CELEBRATED RUTHERFORD, NAPA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Medals and Diploma L'Bxposition Universal, Paris, 1889. CLARETS. ZINFANDEL. BURGUNDY. SAUTERNE GUTEDEL. HOCK. BURGER. RIESLING PRIVATE STOCK BRANDY ForJSale by GOLDBERG, BOWEN & L,EBENBAUM, and all leading Wine Merchants and Grocers in every City in the Union FOR PRICES APPLY TO F, A, HABER, OFFICE AND DEPOT INGLENOOK VINEYARD 122 SANSOME ST., SAN RRANCISCO H.J. HEINZ CO. CELEBRATED THE WORLDS These goods are absolutely pure, and have received gold medals and highest awards wherever exhibited. The H. J. HEINZ goods are made only from the choicest materials. prepared by the most skillful workmen under special processes known only to the H. J. HEINZ CO., whereby the highest perfection is attained. The style of package is as attractive to the eye as the con- tents are pleasing to the taste. COXSUMER. : Your grocer is authorized to refund pur- chasers' money on all goods bearing HEINZ KEYSTONE TRADE MARK, if they do not prove entirely satisfactory to YOU. & 5TRAUT Pacific Coast Agents SOUP. Si put them over the fire with two quarts of water, and boil them gently until the meat falls from the bones; carefully remove all bits of bone from the soup after it has boiled until they separate readily from the meat; strain the liquor from the oysters and add it to the soup; wash and cut in small pieces one root of celery with the stalks and white leaves, saving the green leaves for drying, and put the celery into the soup; after the celery is tender see that the soup is not too thick, and season it palatably with salt and pepper; carefully remove all bits of shell from the oysters, put them into the soup, let it boil once after adding the oysters, and then serve it hot. If it is desirable to increase the quantity of soup do it by using more water and season- ing, and thicken it with bread boiled in it to a pulp, or with flour and butter mixed to a smooth paste and boiled in it. VEAL SOUP. Veal soup can be prepared in a similar manner to beef soup. It is unnecessary, how- ever, to boil the meat the day before it is wanted. Three hours is sufficient length of time for it to be over the fire. The same proportions of meat and water are used as for the beef. Be careful to skim it close, and if not clear to strain it through a colander. If macaroni i? used, put a little butter in with it before adding to the soup. VEAL CREAM SOUP. Boil the remnants of a roast of veal until the meat falls from the bones. Strain and cool. The next day put on to boil, with a slice of onion and one-third of a cup of raw rice. Let it simmer slowly for an hour. Add salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving add one cup of rich milk, or cream if you have it, heated first in a separate dish. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese. WINTER PEA SOUP. Wash two or three pounds of split peas, rejecting those which float, and put them into a saucepan with four quarts of the liquor in which any kind of meat has been boiled, or even cold soft water (a very little carbonate of soda will soften hard water), a small bit of butter or drippings, and any odd scraps of meat and bones well broken. Add some tur- nip, carrot and onion sliced, a bunch of thyme and two or three heads of celery or a little celery seed. Boil these slowly till the peas dissolve, stirring them frequently to prevent burning on the bottom of the saucepan. Then rub the soup through a sieve, season with pepper and salt, boil again for a few minutes, and then pour into the tureen, in which you have previously placed some toasted bread cut into dice. Beef or veal, and bacon may be boiled in it to be eaten, and then it may be made with water only. It is improved by a day's keeping, the vegetables not being in that case added till it is re-boiled for use, the longer the peas are boiled, the smoother and mellower the soup. FRIED BREAD FOR SOUP. Cut dry bread into dice, and fry in boiling fat until brown. It will take about half a minute. The fat must be smoking in the centre when the bread is put into it. FISH. WITH general directions for Baking, Boiling, Broiling, Frying, and Stewing, one cannot be at a loss as to how to prepare any kind of fish. Once having mastered the five primary methods, and learned also how to make sauces, the variety of dishes within the cook's power is great. Fish to be prime must be thick and firm, with bright scales and stiff fins; the gills a very lively red, the eye full and prominent. In the summer they should be cleaned at once and kept on ice till you are ready to cook them; do not attempt to keep fresh fish till next day. Mackerel cannot be cooked too soon, as they spoil more readily than any other fish. BAKED FISH. A general rule, that will cover all kinds of baked fish, is herewith given: A fish weigh- ing about five pounds; three large, or five small crackers, or an equivalent in dry bread- crumbs, quarter of a pound of salt pork, two tablespoons of salt, quarter of a teaspoon of pepper, half a tablespoon of chopped parsley, two tablespoons of flour. If the fish has not already been scraped free of scales, scrape and wash clean; then rub into it one tablespoon of salt. Roll the crackers or bread-crumbs very fine, and add to them the parsley, one tablespoon of chopped pork, half the pepper, half a tablespoon of salt, and cold water to moisten well. Put this into the body of the fish, and fasten together with a skewer. Butter a tin sheet and put it into a baking pan. Cut gashes across the fish, about half an inch ' deep and two inches long. Cut the remainder of the pork into strips, and put these into the gashes. Now put the fish into the baking pan, and dredge well with flour, salt and pepper. Cover the bottom of the pan with hot water, and put into a rather hot oven. Bake one hour, basting often with the gravy in the pan, and dredging each time with flour, salt and pepper. The water in the pan must often be renewed, as the bottom is simply to be covered with it each time. The fish should be basted every fifteen minutes. When it is cooked, lift from the pan on to the tin sheet, and slide it carefully into the centre of the dish on which it is to be served. Pour around it Hollandaise sauce, tomato sauce, or any kind you like. Garnish with parsley. BOILED FISH, SAUCE HOLLANDAISE. Any kind of fish can be used, only it should not be split. Fish-men are possessed with the insane idea that they must give it a slash down the middle, which, in nine cases out of ten, makes trouble for the housekeeper, because, if the fish is to be stuffed and baked, the slash has to be sewed up again; if to be boiled, it is almost impossible to keep the fish in shape, as it breaks so easily; and if to be fried, it spoils the shape of the slices. It is just as easy to dress a fish by cutting it at the gills. If fish-men would concentrate 82 FISH. 83 their attention on the fins and remove them it would be better. To boil a fish, use cold water for a large one and boiling water for a small one, salt being added. A thin fish is the best for boiling. If you put a large fish into boiling water the outside will be done before the inside, whereas if you put it into cold water, and heat it gradually, you are sure to have it thoroughly cooked. A small fish will probably be cooked by the time it is well heated through. There were many other ways of preparing fish, ways that belonged to that high art, cooking, which is to come by and by. One is to boil a fish with a strong stock of bouillon made of cheap wine (claret), which is sometimes imitated by a combination of vinegar and water. A bouquet of herbs should also be used. Twist the fishf into a letter "S" by using a string^ and it is better, unless one had a fish-kettle, to tie a cloth around it so that it can be easily lifted out of the water. For the Hollandaise sauce use the white sauce seasoned with salt and pepper. After heating it over a fire, the yolk of three eggs, for a pint, a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice, and three tablespoons of salad oil added. A saltspoon of mustard, dry or mixed, can be put in, but this depends entirely on one's taste. Fish can be served with the skin on or off. The latest craze of the Ichthyophagous Club of New York is to serve a fish with both the skin and scales on. This announcement may be received with surprise, but the scales and skin do come off together very easily. The white sauce can be used with macaroni, and a heaping tablespoon of Parmesan cheese added. When hot the Italians use only enough sauce to moisten the macaroni; and they sometimes use two or three different kinds of sauce on the same dish. The cream sauce is made like the white sauce, except that milk is used instead of water. The macaroni should be dusted with cracker dust, and browned very quickly in the oven. BOILED FRESH CODFISH. Lay the fish in cold water, slightly salted, for half an hour before cooking. Wipe it free from salt water, wrap it in a clean cloth kept for such purposes. The cloth should be dredged with flour, to prevent sticking. Sew up the sides in such a manner as to protect the fish entirely, yet have but one thickness of the cloth over any part. The cloth should be fitted neatly to the shape of the piece to be cooked. Put into the fish-kettle, pour on plenty of hot water, and boil briskly fifteen minutes for each pound. Prepare a sauce thus: To one gill boiling water add as much milk, and when it is scalding hot, stir in leaving the saucepan on the fire two tablespoons of butter rolled thickly in flour; as this thickens, two beaten eggs. Season with salt and chopped parsley, and when after one good boil, you withdraw it from the fire. Put the fish into a hot dish and pour over it white, or oyster sauce. Some serve in a butter-boat, but I fancy that the boiling sauce applied to the steaming fish imparts a richness it cannot gain later. Garnish with sprigs of parsley and circles of hard-boiled eggs laid around the dish. BOILED SALT CODFISH. Put the fish to soak over night in lukewarm water as early as eight o'clock in the evening. Change this for more warm water at bed-time and cover closely. Change again 84 HOME DISSERTATIONS^ in the morning and wash off the salt. Two hours before dinner plunge into very cold water. This makes it firm. Finally, set over the fire with enough lukewarm water to cover it, and boil for half an hour. Drain well ; lay it on a hot dish, and pour over it egg sauce prepared as in the foregoing recipe, only substituting the yolks of two .hard- boiled eggs, rubbed to a paste with butter, for the beaten raw eggs. This is a useful recipe when fresh cod cannot be obtained. Salt mackerel, prepared in the same way, will repay the care and time required. Should the cold fish left over be used for fish-balls as it should be it will be found that the sauce which has soaked into- it while hot has greatly improved it. CODFISH BALLS. One pint pared potatoes, chopped small, one-half pint raw salt fish, torn in small pieces and put in cold water. Put the potatoes in a kettle, and the fish on top, covered with boiling water; cook until the potatoes are soft. Drain off the water, mash the fish and po- tatoes together in the kettle. Add pepper, salt if needed, also one egg well beaten; one teaspoon butter. Drop tablespoonful into frying-basket and plunge into hot fat. Don't turn them. N. S. P. BOSTON FISH-BALLS. Half a pound of codfish, three ounces suet shred fine, a small lump of butter, a teacup of bread-crumbs, pepper, salt and nutmeg, and two teaspoons of anchovy sauce. Pound all together in a mortar, mix with an egg, divide into small cakes, and fry them a light brown. FISH ON TOAST. Take cold boiled fish of any kind, pick it into flakes and heat in enough milk to moisten it; add a bit of butter, and season with pepper and salt. When it is hot, pour it on slices of buttered toast, and garnish with hard-boiled eggs, cut in slices. SCALLOPED COD. Butter an earthenware pudding dish, and place in it neat flakes of the cold fish with any of the gelatine which is left; line the bottom of the dish, and then pour over it any of the sauce or melted butter that you may have. Sprinkle with salt, a very little red pep- per, and a pinch of mace; place alternate layers of fish and sauce until the dish is full. Cover the top with fine bread-crumbs, put bits of butter over it, and bake twenty minutes. OYSTER SAUCE FOR CODFISH. One quart of oysters (when buying them ask for a little extra liquor), put over the fire, rub up pieces of butter size of small egg with two even tablespoons flour, stir this in the oysters till dissolved, pepper and salt to taste, and on no account let it boil but just one instant the oysters must not be hard. This is enough to serve with cod of eight pounds r for twelve persons, as first course before meat. CODS' TONGUES WITH EGG SAUCE. Wash two pounds of salt cods' tongues in cold water, pour lukewarm water over them, FISH. 85 and let them remain where the water will retain its heat for two hours or longer; after the tongues have been soaked put them over the fire in enough cold water to cover them, add a cup of milk and a small red pepper pod, or a palatable seasoning of cayenne, and cook them slowly for about half an hour, or until they are tender; meantime boil three eggs hard, remove the shells and chop the eggs; just before the tongues are done put in a saucepan over the fire a heaping tablespoon each of butter and flour, and stir them to- gether until they begin to bubble; then gradually stir in enough of the milk and water in which the tongues were boiled to make the sauce sufficiently salt, and more milk to bring it to the consistency of thick cream, put the tongues into the sauce, add the chopped eggs, and then serve them hot. FISH CHOWDER. Peel two quarts of raw tatoes and slice them rather thin; peel and slice two quarts of onions; skin and clean four large porgies, remove the heads and cut each fish in slices about three inches thick; soak four sea biscuit for five minutes in cold water; cut one pound of fat salt pork in thin slices; have ready for seasoning black and red pepper, pow- dered cloves and a very small bunch of thyme; the thyme is to be taken out of the chow- der before it is served. First fry one-third of the pork with one-third of the onions; then take up the fried pork and onions, and put them aside to use presently; wash the kettle in which the pork and onions were fried, wipe it dry and put in the bottom a layer of raw salt pork cut in thin slices; on the pork lay some of the fish, and season it with red and black pepper, salt and a little ground cloves; on the fish pface a layer of potatoes an inch thick, next a similar layer of the raw onions sliced, then the fried pork and onions and half the sea biscuit, and season this layer highly with salt, pepper and powdered cloves. Repeat the layers of fish, potatoes, onions and sea-biscuit until all are used, seasoning them as directed above; pour cold water into the kettle until it entirely covers these ingre- dients, cover the kettle closely and boil its contents slowly until the potatoes are thor- oughly cooked. When the potatoes are done add a quart of claret to the chowder; let it just reach the boiling point, remove the bunch of thyme, and then serve the chowder in a tureen. BROWN STEW OF EELS AND MUSHROOMS. After two pounds of eels have been dressed and washed in plenty of cold, salted water, cut them in two-inch lengths, put them over the fire in enough cold water to cover them, let the water heat to the boiling-point, and then drain the eels and dry them on a clean cloth; meantime open a can of mushrooms, and put the liquid ready to use in making the sauce; or, if fresh mushrooms are used, free them from sand and all imperfections, wash them in plenty of cold, salted water, and cut them rather small ; after the eels are dried, roll them in flour seasoned with salt and pepper, put them over the fire in a saucepan con- taining sufficient butter to prevent burning, and brown them evenly; when the eels are brown add the mushrooms, enough boiling water to cover them, and a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper; if canned mushrooms are used, add the liquid in which they are pre- 86 HOME DISSERTATIONS. served ; let the eels and mushrooms cook together for about twenty minutes, or until t>oth are tender, and then serve them hot. A glass of wine may be added just before serving, if its flavor is desired. FRIED EELS. Prepare as for stewing; roll in flour, and fry, in hot lard or dripping, to a light brown. BROILED HALIBUT WITH MAITRE D'HOTEL Butter both sides of the broiler. Season the slices of halibut with salt and pepper, place them in the broiler and cook over clear coals for twenty minutes, turning frequently. Place on a hot dish, and spread on them the sauce, using one spoonful to each pound. Garnish with parsley. A LA MAITRE D'HOTEL. Put in a small bowl a quarter of a pound of fresh butter, a saltspoon of salt, the same of pepper, two of chopped parsley, the juice of a small lemon or the same quantity of white vinegar, and a very little cayenne. Mix all together and keep in a cool place. This is a good sauce with broiled 'kidneys, or with broiled meats of any kind. BROILED SALT MACKEREL WITH BUTTER SAUCE. Soak a salt mackerel overflight, laying it in plenty of cold water, with the skin upper- most, so that the salt may fall to the bottom of the water after it is disengaged from the fish. In the morning trim off the tail, fins and point of the head ; dry the mackerel, put it between the bars of a double-wire gridiron, well buttered to prevent sticking, and brown the fish over a hot fire; while it is being browned boil some potatoes, as directed in the following recipe, and make a butter sauce; when the potatoes and sauce are ready, serve them separately in hot dishes, and serve the fish with some slices of lemon, or a few sprigs of parsley or water-cresses, on the dish, as a garnish. BUTTER SAUCE FOR BROILED MACKEREL. Put in a saucepan over the fire a tablespoon each of butter and flour, and then stir them until they bubble; then gradually stir in a pint of boiling water, and when the sauce is smooth season it with a level teaspoon of salt, quarter of a saltspoon of white pepper, ,and a tablespoon of chopped parsley or capers, if either is available; after the sauce has jboiled for two minutes, add to it three tablespoons of butter cut in small pieces, and stir the sauce until the butter is melted ; do not allow the sauce to boil after the butter is added ; when the butter is melted put in the juice of half a lemon, and serve the sauce at once with the fish. BROILED TROUT WITH BROWN GRAVY. After a large trout has been scaled, split it down the back, dress it, wash it in cold water, dry it with a clean towel, lay it between the bars of a well-buttered double-wire grid- iron, and broil it over a quick fire; while the fish is being cooked, stir .together over the FISH. 87 fire a tablespoon each of butter and flour until they begin to brown; then gradually stif in a pint of boiling water, a tablespoon of any highly seasoned pickle chopped very fine, a level teaspoon of salt, and a quarter of a saltspoon of pepper; when the sauce boils it is ready to use; pour a little of it on a hot platter to receive the fish, and serve the rest in a sauce-bowl ; when the trout is done transfer it without breaking to the platter containing the sauce, and serve it hot. BROOK TROUT WITH NEW POTATOES. Scrape or rub the skin from a quart of small new potatoes of even size, boil them until tender in salted boiling water, and then drain them and put them into the following sauce while the trout are being cooked ; to make the sauce, put over the fire a tablespoon each of butter and flour, and stir them until they are smoothly blended ; then gradually stir in a pint of milk, a level teaspoon of salt, and a palatable seasoning of white pepper, and let the sauce boil before putting the potatoes into it; after the potatoes and sauce are put over the fire, wash a dozen small trout in cold, salted water, and dry them on a clean towel; rub a frying-pan with a cut onion, put into it two tablespoons of butter and one each of chopped parsley and green herb in season; set the pan over the fire, and when the butter is hot, put the trout, season them with salt and pepper, and shake the pan often enough to keep the trout from burning; when the trout are done serve them hot with the dish of stewed new potatoes. BROILED SHAD. After a shad has been cleaned and washed in cold water, wipe it with a clean cloth, put it between the bars of a double-wire gridiron, thickly buttered to prevent sticking, and place the inside to the fire; as the fish browns moisten it with a little butter seasoned with salt and pepper and cook it thoroughly on both sides; if the fish contains a roe, lay it in cold salted water and cook it later, according to the directions given below. Mix together cold a tablespoon each of finely-chopped parsley and butter, a saltspoon of salt, quarter of a saltspoon of pepper, and a teaspoon of lemon juice, and use the mixture to spread over the fish when it is cooked; or butter, salt and pepper can be used to season the shad. If parsley or lemon is available, either or both may be used as a garnish. STEAMED FISH. Secure the tail of the fish in its mouth; lay it on a plate, and pour over it half a pint of vinegar, season with pepper and salt; let it stand an hour in the refrigerator; then pour off the vinegar, and put it in a steamer over boiling water; steam twenty minutes, or longer if the fish is very large; when done, the meat parts easily from the bone; drain well, and serve on a napkin, garnish with curled parsley; serve drawn butter in a boat. CURRY OF SHAD ROE. Boil a pair of roes in slightly salted water; arrange them on a dish, surrounded by a border of boiled rice; pour over them a curry sauce and serve. HOME DISSERTATION^ RUSSIAN CAVIARE. FISH ROE. Caviare was considered a delicacy, by some in Shakespeare's time, but was not relished by most. Hence, Hamlet says of a certain play, "'twas caviare to the general; but it was as I icceived it, and otners, whose judgments in such matters cried in the top of mine an excellent play, well digested in the scenes, set down with as much modesty as cunning. I remember one said there was no sallets in the lines to make the matter savory, nor no matter in the phrase that might indict the author of affectation; but called it an honest method, as wholesome as sweet, and by very much more handsome than fine." " I dined not long ago at the house of a man famous, and justly so, for giving good dinners, and to my disgust some superb caviare, the genuine sea-green, unpressed, large-grained caviare was served round at the end of the dinner as a savory dish on little round bits of toast and made hot. This struck me as actual sav- a g erv > gi vm g ' lumps of weight ' to the Usbegs and Turcomans. When a mere child I was acquainted with many of the Polish and Hungarian refugees on whose head a price was set. It was from a some time artillery officer, a Pole by birth and aide-de-camp to General Bern, that I learned how to deal with sea-green caviare. The method is to have brown bread well buttered ready and a couple of lemons. When the pot of caviare is opened it is necessary to judge of its consistency. If of the best quality in the season it will need little if any addition of the finest lucca or province oil. But if the season is early to add oil to caviare is to ' throw a perfume on the violet.' When oil or no oil is decided on, then comes the actual preparation which the host had bet- ter do and perform himself. To a large soup-plate full of caviare add the juice only of two lemons and beat with a fork. The mass will immediately become pure sea-green with white spots such as we have often seen in caviare. This famous preparation of sturgeon roe should also be eaten as a hors d'ceuvre or ' whet ' before dinner and not after it." SHAD ROE WITH MASHED POTATOES. After a shad roe has been washed in cold water wipe it dry, put it into a frying-pan containing two tablespoons of lard, butter or drippings, season it with salt and pepper, cover the pan to prevent the spattering of the fat while the roe is being cooked, and fry it for about twenty minutes, turning it several times to insure its complete browning; as soon as the roe is put over the fire peel and slice a quart of potatoes, put them over the fire in plenty of salted boiling water, and boil them until they are tender enough to press through a colander with a potato masher; when the potatoes are soft drain them by pour- ing them into a colander; when all the water has run off put with them a heaping table- spoon of butter and a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper, and mash them through the colander, letting them fall lightly upon a hot platter; lay the shad roe upon the mashed potato and serve the dish hot. Pickled or fresh cucumbers, or any fresh salad, served with the dish, is a great addition to it. PHILADELPHIA PLANKED SHAD. Boards for planking shad are for sale at most house-furnishing stores in Eastern sea- coast cities, but when not available in this way they can be made readily. An oaken plank two inches thick is planed smooth on both sides, and cut about eighteen inches wide by tiirty long; small staples are driven upon one side, near the four corners, in such a way as to permit two stout wires, or small iron rods to be crossed over the middle of the board and have the ends slipped under the staples; sometimes the staples are dispensed with, FISH. 89 the shad being simply nailed to the board ; the board is placed m front of the fire, near enough to heat but not to be in danger of burning, and allowed to become very hot; mean- time the shad is scaled, the fins and tail trimmed off, a cut made down the middle of the back to admit of the removal of the back bone and entrails, the liver and roe being saved ; the shad is then rubbed with cold butter and seasoned with salt and pepper; the liver and roe are placed in a saucepan with half a lemon sliced, two tablespoons each of butter and flour rubbed to a smooth paste, a dozen whole cloves, hot water enough to cover them, and a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper, and stewed gently while the shad is being cooked ; when the shad is done a glass of wine is added to this sauce, the liver and roe are broken up with a fork, and the sauce is sent in a sauce-bowl to the table with the fish. When the plank is quite hot the shad is laid upon it, with the skin next the board, and placed in front of the fire to brown, a prop being put under the upper part of board, and the lower end being placed in a large pan containing two tablespoons of butter; the board is turned when the juice begins to run from the fish, so that it may be equally distributed through it, and it is basted frequently with the butter in the pan; the fish need not be turned, because the heat of the plank will cook the side next to it; when the shad is browned it is properly done; the regulation way of served planked shad is to lay the board on a large platter, remove the wires, and send the fish to the table on the hot board ; but it can be laid on a hot platter. STEWED FISH. Six pounds of any kind of fish, large or small ; three pints of water, quarter of a pound of pork, or half a cup of butter; two large onions, three tablespoons of flour, salt and pepper to taste. Cut the heads from the fish, and cut out all the bones. Put the heads and bones on to boil in the three pints of water. Cook gently half an hour. In the mean- while cut the pork in slices, and fry brown; cut the onions in slices, and fry in the pork fat. Stir the dry flour into the onion and fat, and cook three minutes, stirring all the time. Now pour over this the water in which the heads and bones have been cooked, and sim- mer ten minutes. Have the fish cut in pieces about three inches square. Season well with salt and pepper, and place in the stew-pan. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, and strain on the fish. Cover tight, and simmer twenty minutes. A bouquet of sweet herbs, simmered with the heads and bones is an improvement. Taste to see if the sauce is seasoned enough, and dish on a large platter. Garnish with potato balls and parsley. The potato balls are cut from raw potatoes with a vegetable scoop, and boiled ten minutes in salt and water in a separate dish. Put them in little heaps around the dish. SHELL FISH. TO BOIL LOBSTER. Have the water boiling hot, slightly salted. Put the lobster in, and from fifteen to twenty minutes it will turn a bright red, when remove it and set it away to cool. LOBSTER CUTLETS. In making them, meat of a lobster weighing two and one-half pounds cut into small dice and seasoned with salt and pepper, then one heaping tablespoon of flour added to three tablespoons of butter which has been heated. When the butter and flour are smooth, a half cup of cream, one well-beaten egg, and salt and pepper mixed with it. When this boils up once, the lobster is added, the mixture taken from the fire and one tablespoon of lemon juice added. The mixture is then poured upon a flat dish and set away to cool. When cold, a tin cutlet mould is buttered and sprinkled with bread-crumbs. The cold mixture is pressed into the mould and then turned out. This continue until all the cutlet mixture is used. The mould only buttered once, being well crumbed each time. The cutlets are now dipped in beaten egg and then in bread-crumbs, and placed in a frying- basket and plunged into boiling fat for about two minutes. Put part of a small claw in each one to represent the bone in a cutlet. LOBSTER CROQUETTES. Prepare the same as for cutlets, shaped into croquettes. LOBSTER AND CHICKEN CURRY. Use any cold cooked chicken, cut in small pieces, and a lobster removed from the shell, and cut the bits of equal size; peel and slice six white onions, put them in a sauce- pan with two tablespoons of butter, and stir them occasionally until they begin to brown; then add the chicken and lobster, a heaping tablespoon of curry powder, enough boiling water to cover these ingredients, and a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper; let the curry cook gently for half an hour; meantime put a cup of rice over the fire in salted, boiling water, and boil it steadily for twenty minutes; then drain off all the water, and set the saucepan in the oven to dry the rice; serve the curry and rice together. WATER-TURTLES, OR TERRAPINS. Land-terrapins, it is hardly necessary to say, are uneatable, but the large turtle that frequents our mill-ponds and rivers can be converted into a relishable article of food. Plunge the turtle into a pot of boiling water, and let him lie there five minutes. You can then skin the under part easily, and pull off the horny parts of the feet. Lay him for ten minutes in cold water, then put him in more water, slightly salted, boil until the shells begin to separate at the side; then carefully take away the legs and the meat attached to 90 SHELL FISH. 91 the tail; save the eggs, if the terrapin contains any; if not, make egg-balls according to them, avoiding the breaking of the gall and rejecting the large intestine which lies near the directions already given; cut the terrapin meat and the livers in inch pieces, and put them in a saucepan with a quart of water to a quart of terrapin meat, including the eggs and liver; add six whole cloves, one grated nutmeg, and half a pound of butter; place the saucepan over the fire, and stew the terrapin gently for half an hour; meantime brown a tablespoon of flour in the oven, and add it to the terrapin with a tablespoon of sugar; add also the juice of a large lemon, cayenne pepper and salt to a palatable point; after it is cooked a half hour add to the quantity of terrapin mentioned above a half pint each of port wine and sherry; return the saucepan to the fire just long enough to heat; then serve the terrapin with a garnish of slices of lemon. This method of cooking terrapin was as famous as the hospitality of its giver in the old Washington days of Clay, Webster and Sumner. SOFT-SHELL CRABS. Lift the shell at both sides and remove the spongy substance found on the back. Then pull off the "apron," which will be found on the under side, and to which is attached a substance like that removed from the back. Now wipe the crabs, and dip them in beaten egg, then in fine bread or cracker crumbs. Fry in boiling fat from eight to ten minutes, the time depending upon the size of the crabs. Serve with Tartare sauce. Or, the egg and bread-crumbs may be omitted. Season with salt and cayenne, and fry as before. SOFT-SHELL CRABS, BROILED. After drying and cleaning them well, season them lightly with cayenne pepper and salt; then drop them into boiling water for one minute, take them up and broil over a clear, hot fire. Serve very hot, with a la maitre d'hdtel, or sauce Tartare. DEVILED CRABS. One dozen fresh hard-shell crabs boiled, pick out the meat from the shells; a quarter of a pound of fresh butter; one small teaspoon of mustard powder; cayenne pepper and salt to taste. Put the meat into a bowl and mix carefully with it an equal quantity of fine bread- crumbs. Work the butter to a light cream, mix the mustard with it, then stir very care- fully, a handful at a time, the mixed crabs and crumbs. Wash the crab shells and fill with the mixture, sprinkle bread-crumbs over the tops, put three small pieces of butter upon the top qf each, and brown them quickly in a hot oven. They will puff in baking and will be found delicious. Half the quantity can be made. OYSTERS. r f "'HE traditional oyster season ends the last of April. It was formerly against the law to sell oysters in any months but those having an " R " in their names, but this statute is long since obsolete, and as good a " broil " or " half shell " may be had in August nowadays as in January. " In fact/' said a wholesale oysterman, "many kinds of oysters are in their best condition during the summer months. All along the Connecti- cut shore of Long Island Sound, where oyster culture has been brought down to a science, people think oysters are better in summer, and eat more of them than in winter." It is not as generally understood as it should be that oysters have medicinal qualities of a high order. They are not only nutritious, but wholesome, especially in cases of indi- gestion. It is said " there is no ether alimentary substance, not even excepting bread, that does not produce indigestion under certain circumstances; but oysters, never. Oyster juice promotes digestion. By taking oysters daily, indigestion, supposed to be almost in- curable, has been cured ; in fact, they are to be regarded as one of the most healthful ar- ticles of food known to man. Invalids who have found all other kinds of food disagree with them, frequently discover in the oyster the required aliment. Raw oysters are highly recommended for hoarseness. Many of the leading vocalists use them regularly before concerts and operas; but their*strongest recommendation is the remarkable wholesome in- fluence exerted upon the digestive organs. RAW OYSTERS. It is fashionable to serve these as one of the preliminaries to a dinner party ; some- times in small plates, sometimes on the half-shell. They are seasoned by each guest ac- cording to his own taste. A pretty arrangement for serving raw oysters is to serve them in a block of ice. Select a ten-pound block, melt with a hot flat-iron a symmetrical-shaped cavity in the top to hold the oysters ; chip also from the sides, at the base, so that the ice-block may stand in a large dish on the napkin. When the oysters are well salted and peppered, place them in the ice, and let them remain in some place where the ice will not melt until the time of serving. The salt will help to make the oysters very cold. The ice may be decorated with leaves or smilax vines, and a row of lemon quarters or halves may be placed around the dish at the base of the ice. It has an especially pretty effect served on the table by gaslight. Clams may be served in the same manner. CREAM OYSTERS. One pint cream, a little more than a pint of oysters, one tablespoon of flour, salt and pepper to taste; let the cream come to a boil. Mix the flour with a little cold milk and stir into the boiling cream. Let the oysters come to a boil in their own liquor; then skim carefully. Drain off all the liquor and turn the oysters into the cream. 92 OYSTERS. 93 OYSTERS COOKED AT TABLE. Use a chafing-dish, or a metal dish placed over a small alcohol lamp, at the table; have the oysters carefully freed from all bits of shell ; put into the dish for a pint of oysters two heaping tablespoons of butter, a dust of cayenne and the oysters; no salt is to be added unless the butter is very fresh; stir the oysters until their edges begin to curl, and then put out the lamp and serve them. FRIED OYSTERS AND ONIONS. Have ready over the fire a frying-kettle half full of fat, heating, and a large frying-pan containing two tablespoons of butter and a dust of cayenne ; peel and slice a pint of white onions, and when the fat is hot drop in a few of the onions at the time, and fry them like Saratoga potatoes, taking them out of the fat with a skimmer and putting them in a colander to drain ; meantime carefully remove all bits of shell from a quart of oysters, and put them into the frying-pan with butter, taking care that the butter is brown ; make some toast, and lay it on a hot platter ; put the fried onions around the toast ; when the edges of the oysters curl pour them on the toast, and serve the dish at once. BATTER FOR CLAMS AND OYSTERS. One cup milk, one egg, one teaspoon cream of tartar, half teaspoon soda, a little salt, and flour to make as stiff as for fritters. OYSTER CROQUETTES. Scald and chop fine the hard part of oysters after taking the other part and liquor for a soup ; add an equal weight of mashed potatoes ; to one pound of this add a lump of butter the size of an egg, a teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of pepper, and quarter of a -teacup of cream. Make in small cakes, dip in egg and then in bread-crumbs, and fry in plenty of melted lard. FRIED OYSTERS. The oysters should be large and the cook not hurried. Drain the oysters in a colan- der ; sprinkle pepper and mix well, and set them in a cold place for fifteen or twenty minutes before cooking. Roll, separately, each oyster in sifted crumbs and then in a batter, made of the yolks of as many eggs as you have dozens of oysters, beaten with a little clarified butter, or salad oil, seasoned with a pinch of cayenne pepper and salted. Dip each oyster from the crumb into this, and repeat if crumbs enough do not adhere. Fry in very hot fat, and have enough to cover the oysters. They will brown beautifully, without turning. SCALLOPED OYSTERS. Three dozen oysters, a large teacup of bread-crumbs, two ounces of butter, pepper, salt, half a teacup of oyster juice. Make layers of these ingredients, putting crumbs in the dish first, then oysters, seasoning and butter, and so on until the dish is full, putting 94 HOME DISSERTATIONS. crumbs and pieces of butter upon the top, pouring the liquor over all. Bake in a quick oven about fifteen minutes. These can be put in oyster shells if preferred, and can be served to each person in that manner. OYSTERS A LA POULETTE OR FRICASSEE. All oysters should be very carefully examined to see that no pieces of shell are attached to them. This is a tedious process, but a necessary one. For a poulette, mix a table- spoon of butter and a tablespoon of flour in the bottom of a saucepan. Then add the liquor of the oysters gradually. If there is not enough to make the sauce as consistent as cream sauce, put in water. Season with salt and pepper, and a very little nutmeg. Let the sauce boil for one minute, and then put in the oysters. Let them remain until the edges begin to curl ; then take the pan off the fire and stir into it the yolks of three raw eggs, three tablespoons of salad oil, and one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Add one tablespoon of chopped parsley, and the oysters will be ready to serve. M OYSTER FRITTERS. Drain as many oysters as you want to use, sprinkle some salt and pepper over them, make a batter of three well beaten eggs, four tablespoons of milk, enough flour to make a thin batter. Heat enough lard to swim the fritters in, use two large spoons to prepare them, putting a little batter in one spoon into which put an oyster and drop on it more batter from the other spoon, then drop it into the hot lard and fry quickly without burning. M OYSTER CHOWDER. Put thin slices of salt pork into the bottom of a kettle, then a layer of thin sliced pota- toes, then oysters over the potatoes, season them with salt, pepper and some butter ; pour over each layer half a teacup of tomato catsup, put in what you wish in layers, pour over it the liquor of the oysters, cover tightly and let stew slowly for half an hour. M OYSTER PIE. Stew enough oysters to make a pie the size you wish; if the liquor is fresh stew the oysters in it, that is, let them just come to a boil, season with salt and pepper, and mix together two tablespoons of corn starch or flour, with two tablespoons of butter to a pint of the stew; line a deep earthen pie-plate with a rich paste a quarter of an inch thick, then put in the oysters and cover with an upper crust solid, or ornament with strips of paste. OYSTER PATES. In puffs of rich pastry, put two or three oysters stewed in a dressing of cream ; cover with a round of the pastry, and serve. Both puffs and oysters must be hot. STEWED OYSTERS. It is important that oysters be drained and rinsed, taking out every particle of shell. When canned oysters are used, which is generally the case away from the sea-coast, do not use the liquor, but if fresh oysters can be had the liquor should always be used. OYSTERS. 95 To one quart of oysters, heat a pint of cream or milk in a double kettle, or in one vessel placed in another of hot water. If the oysters are canned use a pint of water, if fresh boil and skim the liquor, add the hot cream, to which there must be two tablespoons of flour rubbed smooth in a little milk. If milk is used instead of cream, rub an ounce and a half of butter with the flour; season with salt, pepper, and mace if liked ; when very hot, put in the oysters, and serve as soon as they are puffed and curled. If preferred, the oysters when drained and washed may be stewed in hot milk, without any of their own liquor, seasoned, and thickened with rolled cracker. PHILADELPHIA CLAM CHOWDER. Peel and slice one quart of onions, put them into a saucepan with two quarts of water, and half a pound of salt pork cut in half-inch pieces, and boil these ingredients together for half an hour; then add one quart of potatoes, peeled and sliced quarter of an inch thick, two tablespoons of sugar, one of salt, one teaspoon each of sweet marjoram and summer savory, and one saltspoon each of ground cloves and red pepper; wash one quart of clams, chop them medium fine, put them into the chowder, and continue to cook it un- til the potatoes are done; meantime soak half a pound of sea-biscuit in cold water for five minutes, and then put it into the chowder. Serve the chowder hot, with a plate of crackers. PHILADELPHIA CLAM SOUP. Twenty-five small clams, one quart of milk, half a cup of butter, one tablespoon of chopped parsley, three potatoes, two large tablespoons of flour, salt, pepper. The clams should be chopped fine and put into a colander to drain. Pare the potatoes and chop rather fine. Put them on to boil with the milk, in a double kettle. Rub the butter and flour together until perfectly creamy, and when the milk and potatoes have been boiling fifteen minutes, stir this in, and cook eight minutes more. Add the parsley, pepper and salt, and cook three minutes longer. Now add the clams. Cook one minute longer, and serve. This gives a very delicate soup, as the liquor from the clams is not used. SCALLOPED CLAMS. Butter a deep tin dish, put in a layer of grated bread or cracker crumbs, sprinkle in pepper and bits of butter; then put in a layer of clams chopped fine, with butter and pepper, and repeat with alternate layers of crumbs and clams until the dish is full. Let the last layer be of crumbs, with plenty of butter on top; put a plate on it, after adding one cup of rich milk, and bake three-quarters of an hour; take off the plate long enough to brown the top nicely before serving. M. CLAM STEW. Drain the liquor from fifteen clams, heat the liquor in a porcelain saucepan, add one tablespoon of flour stirred into four of butter, one teaspoon of salt, one pint of cream or milk, let all come to a boil, then add the clams; if very large cut in two. If the clams are in the shell, place them on a gridiron over hot coals, taking them out of the shells soon as open, saving the juice. FRYING, ROASTING, BROILING, STEWING AND STEAMING. FRYING means cooking by immersion in hot fat, butter, or oil. There is no English word for what is called frying in a spoonful of fat, first on one side and then on the other. Saute is the French word and should be Anglicized. Ordinary cooks instead of frying, invariably saute everything. Almost every article that is usually sauted is much jbetter and more economical if fried ; as, for instance, oysters, fish, birds, cutlets, crabs, etc. The fat should always be tested before the article is immersed. A little piece of bread may be thrown in, and if it colors quickly, the fat is ready, and not before. Hot grease reaches a very much greater temperature than boiling water, and consequently the surtace of anything is almost instantaneously hardened or crisped when thrown in. The inside is thus kept free from grease and quickly cooked. An article first dipped in egg and bread-crumbs should be entirely free from grease when thus cooked, as the egg is hardened the instant it touches the fat, and the oyster or whatever is being cooked is per- fectly protected. The same fat can be used repeatedly for frying the same thing. After frying, let the fat stand for about five minutes, strain, and then return it to the kettle, which should always be kept covered, after it is once cold. The fat in which fish is fried should not again be used for anything except fish. A little kettle for frying potatoes ex- clusively should always be at hand. Now, as to the steak question. I admit that broiled steak is excellent, if the fire is just right, and the only proper fire is a bed of hard wood coals or charcoal, and even coke; but it is next to impossible to broil nicely with either hard or soft coal, the universal fuel in this part of the world. And housekeepers know how difficult it is to have a coal fire just ready to broil, especially in the early morning, and how often, in spite of their best endeavors, the gas and smoke will affect the flavor of the meat. Now, I speak of the best way to do things with the means and appliances at hand, and the best way to procure uniformly good results. I maintain, and am prepared to prove, that steak can be fried to qual in flavor and juiciness any broiled steak that ever was cooked. Broiling is a good way (and I believe has been instituted) to prevent ignorant cooks from overdoing it, and is certainly better than having it fried to death. I look you unflinchingly in the eyes while I lift on high the Frying Pan. What is more, I defy you to taste the difference between your gridironed steaks and the steaks I cook in a pan except that you would pronounce mine rather the better ! I do not praise myself. The necessity of having* good steaks without a broiler has developed in me a capacity to make them so. I keep a pan on purpose for steaks, and into that pan no butter or lard or fat of any sort ever enters, and it is kept religiously clean and smooth. I 96 M. A. CAHN, President 5. L. COOK, Secretary COOK & CO. Importers WHOLESALE * * * RETAIL Novelties and Ornaments for Wedding H Birthday Presents COMPLETE IN ALL ITS BRANCHES Cutlery. Dipper S^ts. 5^a 5?ts by t^ fip^st Europ^ap apd Sr^ptop l/itrified ^^ipa for fiot^ls apd for Bar use Importers lie FIQBT BKTTERY ST. General Agents for Pacific Coast DELBECK & CO., Reims. Champagne BARTON & GUESTIER, Bordeaux. Winesjmd Olive Oil H. & C. BALARESQUE, Bordeaux. Clarets BOUCHARD PI^RE & FILS, Beaune, Burgundy Wines SAZERAC DE FORGE & FILS, Cognac. Brandies GODET FRI^RES, La Rochelle. Brandies C. F. BERGER Couvet, Absinthe A. VAN HOBOKEN Rotterdam, Genuine A V H Case Gin SCHADE & BUYSING Schiedam. Black-bird Gin SANDEMAN, BUCK & CO., Jerez, Pemartin Sherries SANDEMAN & CO., Q P rto > Port wines SANDEMAN BROS., Lisbon > Portu g al wiaes LEACOCK & CO.. Fuchal, Madeiras GORDON & CO. London. Old Tom Gin and Orange Bitters RODEL & FILS FRERES, Superior Sardines, Peas. Mushrooms VEREINIGTE ULTRflMflRINFflBRIKEN, "^s, wash-biue in Bans KOCH & REIS Antwerp. Sublimed Sulphur IMPORTERS OF GENERAL FOREIGN MER- CHANDISE AND JAVA COFFEES FRYING ROASTING. 97 place it over the liveliest kind of a jack-pine fire, and in an instant it is at broiling heat, I dry two steaks with a napkin, rub a little salt and black pepper on them, and lay them in the frying-pan, with meantime a platter and a lump of butter waiting in the oven. In a minute the steaks are ready to be turned, as the point is to brown them on both sides as quickly as possible, and so retain the juice and flavors that are, alas, too often sizzled away on the bars of a gridiron. In four minutes the steaks are done sufficiently for most people they are cut a trifle thinner than for coal-broiling, and are placed on the platter with another bit of butter on top and kept closely covered for a few moments. And hereby hangs a tale: One member of my family for a long time scoffed at these "fried" steaks, and would none of them. One day a thought struck me. I heated the iron potato-masher to a lively shade of color, and applied it to the top of a tempting "porter-house," burning bars across it after the manner of a broiler. The relish with which this steak was devoured by the biased individual, and his wonder that people would submit to fried steaks when broils were " so superior," was only equaled by my relish of the joke that had engulfed him so completely. After he had innocently eaten and praised these steaks for two or three weeks, I disclosed to him in a few impressive words how he had been decieved. He was staggered, and, of course, naturally irritated at being sold, but he now, with the native nobility and candor of his soul, acknowledges that my way of " frying " is quite tolerable, even without the brand of the potato-masher. I recommend this method to all with whom fuel and time are things to be considered. Beef stiet salted is quite as good for frying as lard, and is much cheaper; it can be prepared for use as follows: Skin carefully, chop it fine, add to it any fat you may have skimmed off of soup or meat boilers, put it on the fire with a little water, boil gently fif- teen minutes, skim it well during the process, take from the fire, leave it five minutes, and then strain it; after which, put it in pots, and keep them in a dry, cool place. Cover the pots well every time you have occasion to use the fat, but never cover them while the grease is warm. This fat is as good as any other to fry fish, fritters, and other things that require to be entirely covered with grease in cooking. There are a few common-sense recipes and rules which the young housewife will do well to remember: Meat must have a hot fire always to start on to cicatrize the outside and keep in the juices. Avoid sticking a fork in it as much as possible. When necessary to turn, if a roast, do it with the aid of a cloth, taking it by the skewers or bone. If boil- ing meat, leg of mutton for instance, pour boiling water over it and skim thoroughly. Never expose meat to the action of salt while cooking, it extracts the juice, and leaves the meat poor; but in making soup, where the idea is to extract all the virtue possible, use salt. Seasonings must be added to the gravy of the meat, which should always be thick- ened with a little flour; the old-fashioned way of rubbing flour into the roast before cook- ing is a good one, or at least does no harm. Roasting, meaning to heat violently, is cooking before an open fire; it implies the action of a much greater degree of heat than that employed in any of the previously specified methods of cooking. In the days of open fireplaces this was the general mode of cooking 9 i> HOME DISSERTATIONS. large pieces of meat; now but few persons care to take the trouble to have meat so cooked; consequently baking, or roasting as it is improperly termed, in a very hot oven is found to be a cheaper and more convenient method, and is more generally adopted. Meat of any kind is tenfold better roasted than baked. In Europe, all these articles are roasted, and people there would have great contempt for a piece of beef or a turkey baked. Much de- pends upon the management of the fire. It should be made some time before the meat is placed for roasting, so that the coals may be bright and hot. It should also be strong enough to last, with only the addition of an occasional coal at the top. Basting can be avoided, without allowing the juice to escape harden the sides by exposure to a hot fire. The idea of basting must have arisen from the fact that the juice of the meat was allowed to escape, and then the attempt to restore it by basting. To baste meat when only fat is in the pan will make it a little fatter. The seasoning of meat before it is brown lets out a good deal of juice. Broiling is a very important matter in cooking; too many persons to save time and trouble fry instead of broiling chops ; steak, birds, and fish; in fact comparisons should not be drawn between the two modes of cooking, ham being twice as delicate when nicely broiled as when, as is generally the case, it is fried. We will give a few hints about broil- ing, which, if carefully followed, will add very much to the comfort of the table. Always grease the gridiron well, and have it hot before the meat is placed upon it. Anything egged and bread-crumbed should be buttered before it is broiled. Fish should be but- tered and sprinkled with flour, which will prevent the skin from adhering to the gridiron. Cutlets, and in fact every similar thing, are more delicate buttered before broiling. Birds and other things which need to be halved, should be broiled inside first. Remember that a hot, clear fire is necessary for cooking all small articles. They should be turned often, to be cooked evenly, without being burned. Never put a fork in the lean pait of meat on the gridiron, as it allows the juice to escape. Always cover the gridiron with a tin pan or a baking-pan. The sooner the meat is cooked without burning, the better. The pan holds the heat, and often prevents a stray line of smoke from touching the meat. If the fire should be too hot sprinkle salt over it. Puddings when boiled should be cooked in boiling water. Wet and flour the cloth before adding the pudding. In tying the pudding, leave room enough for it to swell. If cooking in a mould, do not fill the mould quite full. Never let the water stop boiling. As it wastes away in boiling, replenish the kettle from another containing boiling water. Stewing is excellent, wholesome, and economical, and is best done on a stove, over a slow fire. Keep the lid of the stew-pan closely shut, and simmer the contents steadily. Never bring to a boil. Steaming. There is one thing I notice, very few seem to think much of steaming. I like to steam very many things potatoes, puddings, brown bread, etc. When one gets in tne way of it, it is an easy and a good way for many things. A dish of rice is better so, ana no trouble with burning. POULTRY. TO PREPARE A FOWL FOR COOKING. First take out the feathers and then singe it. For doing the latter, hold the fowl over a piece of lighted paper, or a spoonful of alcohol on a plate, the latter is especially rec- ommended because it gives clean flame. Wash quickly in one water. Take out the pin feathers with the point of a knife. To cut up a chicken to get as many pieces as possible, cut off the wings so that a little piece of the breast remains with the wing. Remove the crop by cutting the skin at the back of the neck. Cut off the neck close to the body. Next take off the wing side-bones. Having cut them loose from the backbone, bend them towards the front and they will part at the joint; loosen them with the knife. Take off the legs next. Instead of making a division between the second joint and drumstick, cut midway the second joint, and then just below the joint, and trim off the lower end of the drumstick. Next cut through the side just where the breast-bone joins the ribs. Then the breast- bone can be pulled free from the back, and the entrails can be taken out easily without breaking, which is decidedly a consideration, because if, in drawing a chicken, the entrails are broken, it becomes necessary to wash the chicken very thoroughly, and you thus destroy its flavor. Cut off the lower part of the breast-bone without splitting it, because, while that is a very good piece, it is apt to be a very small one. If there are any pieces of ribs attached to the sides of the breast-bone trim them off. Cut the upper part into two pieces right down the middle, or into four, down the middle and then each piece in two, according to the size of the chicken. Having cut up the breast-bone, the entrails are to be taken away from the back, cutting around the vent being necessary in order to loosen them. The oil bag is of course to be removed; the liver also, without breaking the gall, which can be avoided by leaving a little piece of the liver attached to it. Split the gizzard, take out the bag of stones within. If there is on it any appearance of the contents, wash it, not otherwise. Having now reduced the chicken in hand to " first principles," separate the backbone and neck, and observe the back sidebones, where are located the " oysters." If the back is split entirely down the " oysters " are cut in two; but by cutting off the end of the backbone they are preserved. To some they are the choicest part of the chicken. HOW TO PREPARE AND TRUSS A CHICKEN FOR ROASTING. After the fowl has been drawn and rinsed, by deftly cutting the skin at the joint of the leg, pull out the tendons. Then cut the neck off near the body, being careful to leave all the skin, and also remove the tips of the wings. These parts, with the heart, liver and gizzard, can be boiled for gravy. The chicken should be filled with a light dry dressing 99 ioo HOME DISSERTATIONS. of a quart of grated bread-crumbs, using the white portion of the bread, and a half cup of butter, which is seasoned with a tablespoon of salt, a scant teaspoon of pepper, one of parsley, one of summer savory, and half a teaspoon of sage. The whole should be mixed lightly. When the chicken is filled the wings and legs should be skewered in place and the skin of the neck drawn down by a skewer on to the back. The chicken should then be rubbed with butter, dredged with flour, thoroughly seasoned, and roasted an hour and a quarter. It should be basted, dredged with flour, and seasoned with salt and pepper lightly every fifteen minutes during the time it is roasting. BOILED CHICKEN. Carefully pluck and draw a tender chicken, singe it, wipe it with a wet towel, cut off the head and feet, and truss it for boiling; put the chicken over the fire in sufficient water to cover it, with a level tablespoon of salt and a teaspoon of peppercorns or a small red pepper; boil the chicken until it is tender, then serve it with cream sauce. A fowl boiled very gently for about four hours, or until it is tender, and served with the cream sauce, makes an economical and palatable dish. The chicken or fowl may be boiled until nearly tender enough to serve, then taken from the broth, put into a saucepan with the sauce, and the cooking finished in this way. BROILED CHICKEN. The chicken should be young and tender. Cut it through the back, clean, wash, and wipe it dry; spread it 'on the gridiron, and cook slowly with the inside towards the fire; keep ;t so until nearly done; the chicken cooks more thoroughly in this way, and the sur- face being seared, the juice is retained. It must be well browned on both sides, then served on a hot platter with a little butter, pepper, and salt. Pigeons may be broiled in the same way. FRICASSEE CHICKEN. Clean, wash, and cut up the fowls, which need not be so tender as for roasting. Lay them in salt and water for half an hour. Put them in a pot with enough cold water to cover them, and half a pound of salt pork cut into thin strips. Cover closely, and let them heat very slowly; then stew for an hour, or until the fowls are tender. I have used chickens jfor this purpose that required four hours stewing, but they were tender and good when done. Only put them on in season, and cook very slowly. If they boil fast, they toughen and shrink into uneatableness. When tender, add a little parsley chopped, and pepper. Cover closely again, and, when it has heated boiling, stir in a teacup of milk, to which have been added two beaten eggs and two tablespoons of flour. Boil up fairly; add a tablespoon of butter. Arrange the chicken neatly in a deep chafing-dish, pour the gravy over it, and serve. In this, as in all cases where beaten egg is added to hot liquor, it is best to dip out a few spoonfuls of the latter, and drop a little at a time into the egg. beat- POULTRY. ioi ing all the while, that it may heat evenly and gradually before it is put into the scalding contents of the saucepan or pot. Eggs managed in this way will not curdle, as they are apt to do if thrown suddenly into hot liquid. FRIED SPRING CHICKEN WITH RICE. Carefully pluck and singe a plump spring chicken, cut it in small pieces, removing the intestines without breaking them, and quickly brown it in a hot frying-pan with enough butter to prevent burning; season the chicken with salt and pepper; take care it is done in the thickest part before serving it; when the chicken is first put over the fire to cook, put a teacup of clean rice into plenty of salted boiling water, and boil it fast for twenty min- utes, or until the kernels are just tender; then drain the rice, lay it on a hot platter, and serve the fried chicken on it. CHICKEN POT PIE. Cut up two large fowls and season them with pepper only, as the ham or pork will salt it sufficiently. Make a good paste in the proportion of a pound and a half of minced suet to three pounds of flour; let there be plenty of paste, as it is always much liked by eaters of pot pie. Roll out the paste an inch thick, and cut most of it into long squares. To pre- vent the paste sticking and burning, butter the sides of the pot very lavishly, and line them with paste nearly to the top. Cut up a pound of corned ham or salt pork, lay slices at the bottom of the pot, and then the pieces of the fowl, interspersed all through with squares of paste, and potatoes pared, quartered and parboiled, as the first water in which they are cooked is rank. Pour in a quart of water; cover the whole with a lid of paste, having a slit in the centre, through which the gravy will bubble up; heat very slowly, and boil two hours. Half an hour before you take it up, put in through the hole in the centre of the crust some bits of butter rolled in flour, to thicken the gravy. When done, put the pie on a large dish, and pour the gravy over it; the ham or pork will salt it sufficiently. STEWED FOWL WITH RICE. Truss the fowl for boiling, and stew it in about a quart of mutton broth seasoned with a little pepper, salt, and half a blade of mace, for an hour and a half, skimming it often. About half an hour before the fowl is ready to serve add a large cup of rice, and when tender strain the broth from it, and place the rice on a sieve to dry and swell before the fire, keeping the fowl hot; then place it in the centre of a hot dish, with the rice arranged in rather a high border around it. Serve with parsley and butter sauce in a tureen. CHICKEN CROQUETTES. One pound of cooked chicken, half a teaspoon of pepper, half a tablespoon of salt, half a tablespoon of butter, one egg, half a pint of cream, juice of half a lemon, cracker crumbs. Chop the chicken very fine, mix it with the salt, pepper, butter, egg and cream, have your 102 HOME DISSERTATIONS. molding board well covered with cracker crumbs, form your croquettes in shape and roll them in the crumbs, first covering them with well-beaten egg, fry them in a croquette basket in boiling fat until a light brown. Veal and turkey may be used instead of chicken. CHELSEA CHICKEN CUTLETS, WITH GREEN PEAS. Prepare the same as for croquettes, then shape them like cutlets, cover with well-beaten egg and grated bread, and fry the same as croquettes, serve on a platter garnished with green peas. BONED CHICKEN FOR PICNICS. Bone two chickens, lay upon the table and spread first with a layer of boiled tongue in slice, then with nicely seasoned veal forcemeat, and lastly wit!n slices of broiled ham. Roll each up firmly, tie round with tape and simmer on the back of the stove in a deep sauce- pan with the chicken bones, some herbs, onion, carrot, etc., for flavoring, and enough water to cover. When tender take out the chickens and let the well seasoned gravy sim- mer longer until reduced to a pint; then add to it an ounce of dissolved gelatine, and when the gravy is nearly set into jelly pour it over the chickens. These must have been pre- viously unbound and cut into slices ready for serving, but still retaining their shape. Gar- nish the platter with parsley sprigs and sliced lemon. CANTONS DE ROUEN. This is a very interesting dish, the little ducks being made from the legs of a chicken. Select a chicken which has an unbroken skin. Cut the legs off in the usual way, only be careful to leave as much skin as possible. Remove the thigh bones without cutting the skin not a difficult thing to do. Replace the bones with some stuffing of bread and herbs, or mushroons, if you wish. After the thighs are stuffed cut off the lower bones about an inch below the joint. Then truss into shape. Roast or bake the little ducks and serve them with green peas, or salad, or mixed vegetables. If you want to make them very rich, season the stuffing with salt, and pepper, and spices, and add the white of an egg and about a teaspoon of butter. To make dry stuffing, break up the soft part of bread fine, soak the crusts and squeeze them dry, and break them up fine, and then season in any way you like, only don't put in any liquid. Before baking the cantons you can tie on their backs a thin slice of salt fat pork. That is called " larding," They look pretty when they have something on them, leaves of parsley, watercresses, or anything of the kind. PRESSED CHICKEN. Boil one or two chickens in a small quantity of water, with a little salt; when thoroughly done, take all the meat from the bones, keeping the light and dark meat separate; chop fine and season. Put in a pan a layer of dark and light meat; add the liquor it was boiled in, which should be about a cup. Press with a small weight. When cold, cut in slices. POULTRY. 103 CURRIED FOWL A L'INDIFNNE. One fowl, one pint stock, three dessertspoons of curry powder, six onions, four ounces butter, one gill milk, three tomatoes, three cloves of garlic, half a lemon, one ounce rais- ins, weighed before stoning. Rub curry the day before to a paste with a little milk, add- ing the rest by degrees; let simmer very slowly next day; fry onions, garlic, tomatoes, sliced in butter, then fry pieces of fowl brown ; put all to stew half an hour, except the lemon, and add that last before seasoning. CHICKEN JELLY. One pair of chickens, two tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, two tablespoons walnut sauce, one tablespoon of salt, half a teaspoon of mace, half a teaspoon of cloves and all- spice, ten eggs, two lemons. Boil the chickens till you can pull the meat from the bones. Allow the bones to boil half an hour longer, stand it in a cool place and it will jelly. Next day cut the meat in small pieces, melt the jelly and put the meat in it; add the sauce and spices, boil the eggs hard and cut in slices, also the lemons, line a mould or bowl with these slices, pour in the mixture and let it stand in a cool place ; but not to freeze. The water should just cover the chicken when put to boil. This is a very ornamental dish and keeps good a long time. ROAST TURKEY. Turkey, seasoning, bread-crumbs, quarter of a pound of butter, a little thym<% Choose a nice fat turkey of eight or ten pounds, clean and singe it, wipe care f u r y Vfh a damp towel but do not wash in water, and fill with dressing which has been prepared as follows : Grate enough dry bread to fill it loosely, not packed tightly ; to this add your butter cut into small pieces, pepper and salt to taste, and about two tablespoons of thyme rubbed fine ; mix all these well together and your dressing is ready for use ; stuff your turkey, tie it well in shape; either lard the top or lay slices of bacon over it ; wet the skin, and sprinkle it well with pepper, salt, and flour. It is well to allow a turkey to remain some time stuffed before cooking. The secret of having a good roast turkey is to baste it often and cook it long enough. A turkey weighing ten pounds should cook three hours and a half at least. The excellence of the turkey depends much upon the frequency of basting it; occasionally baste it with a little butter, oftener with its own drippings. Just before taking it up from the fire or out of the oven, put on more melted butter, and sprinkle over flour; this will make the skin more crisp and brown. While the turkey is cooking, boil the giblets well, chop them fine, and mash the liver. When the turkey is done, put it on a hot dish. Put the baking pan on the fire, dredge in a little flour, and when cooked stir in a little boiling water or stock; strain it, skim carefully, add the giblets, season with salt and pepper. Besides the gravy, always serve cranberry jelly with turkey. 104? HOME DISSERTATIONS. A SIMPLE WAY OF PREPARING BONED TURKEY OR CHICKEN. Boil the fowl in as little water as possible, until the bones can easily be separated from the meat. Remove all of the skin, slice and mix together the light and dark parts, pre- pare a dressing as for roast turkey, put upon the fire to melt the butter, then mould into a round ball and put the meat all around it. Boil down the liquid in which the turkey cr chicken was boiled, then pour it on the meat; wrap it tightly in a cloth, press it with a heavy weight for a few hours. When served, it is cut into thin slices. BOILED TURKEY WITH CELERY SAUCE. The best turkeys marketed in New York are those called mutton-fed; they are always in prime condition, and are worth the slight advance in price over the ordinary turkey. To boil a turkey have it carefully plucked, singed and wiped all over with a towel wet in cold water ; after it is wiped cut off the head and neck close to the body, first cutting the skin down the back of the neck, so as to leave the breast skin entire; throw away the windpipe and crop. To draw the bird make a cut under the leg where it can be concealed in trussing the bird, and then loosen the entrails from the body of the bird ; trm can easily be done by pressing the back of the fingers close against the inside of the car- cass and cautiously breaking the thin covering of the intestines away from the bones ; after the turkey is drawn, carefully wash a bunch of celery in plenty of cold salted water ; cut the tender stalks in half-inch bits, put the celery into the turkey, with a heaping tea- spoon of salt and a liberal dust of cayenne, and sew up and truss the turkey. After the turkey is stuffed and trussed, put it into a large saucepan with enough boiling water to cover it, add two teaspoons of salt and a small dried red pepper, or a teaspoon of pepper- corns, keep the saucepan covered, and boil the turkey slowly until it is tender, which will be in about ten minutes to each pound, from the time it begins to boil. When the turkey is done take it up, remove the cords or skewers used in trussing, and serve it hot, with a sauce made as follows: When the turkey is nearly done, put in a small saucepan over the fire a heaping tablespoon each of butter and flour, and stir them together until they begin to bubble; then gradually stir in about a pint of the broth in which the turkey has been boiling ; when the sauce is stirred quite smooth season it palatably with salt and pepper and serve it in a sauce-boat with the turkey. MINCED TURKEY WITH POACHED EGG. A very appetizing dish is made of cold boiled or roast turkey. Trim off all skin and most of the fat, especially that on the back; pick out the little tidbits in the recesses. Cut off all that will not look neat when sliced cold. Season with salt and pepper, and a table- spoon or two of minced celery, chop up the meat, put it in a pan with a little butter or turkey fat, to prevent burning. Moisten with a little broth made from the turkey bones. Poach one or two eggs for each person; arrange the minced meat neatly on slices of but- tered toast, place the egg on top and serve. The above mode of preparing a breakfast POULTRY. 105 dish is not only economical, but produces one of the most delicious dishes that can be made. Almost any kind of boiled or roast poultry, game or meats can be utilized in this way. BRAISED DUCKS. Truss a pair of fine, young and fat ducks as for roasting and place them in a stew-pan together with two or three slices of bacon, a carrot, an onion stuck with two cloves, and a little thyme and parsley. Season with pepper, and cover "the whole with a broth, adding to the broth a gill of white wine. Place the pan over a gentle fire and allow the ducks to simmer until done, basting them frequently. When done, remove them from the pan and place them where they will keep hot. A turnip should then be cut up and fried in some butter. When well browned, drain the pieces and cook them until tender in the liquor in which the ducks were braised. Now strain and thicken the gravy, and after dishing up the ducks, pour it over them, garnishing with the pieces of turnip. ROASTED DUCKS. Clean and truss them like chickens. For two, make a dressing of half a pound of bread- crumbs, three ounces of butter, one large onion grated, one teaspoon of salt, and half teaspoon of pepper. Season the ducks both inside and out with pepper, salt, and a little sage; put them in the dripping-pan with a little water; put bits of drippings over them, and as they cook, baste very often. Stew and chop the giblets for the gravy, which must be made in the dripping-pan, after pouring off most of the fat; thickening it a little with flour and season well. Stewed cranberries or apple sauce should be served with them. ROAST GOOSE. Clean and truss it; and if old, boil half an hour sewed in a clean cloth; then stuff it with bread-crumbs, seasoned with butter, pepper, salt and sage; dot it with drippings or lard, and baste very often while baking. The stuffing may be made of mashed potatoes, instead of bread-crumbs, and sweet marjoram. Stewed apples should be served with it. ENGLISH GREEN GOOSE. Green goose, from four to six months old, is dressed in the same way as roast duck, and similarly backed with plenty of green peas. The giblets afford a nice variety. Foreign cooks, however, esteem turkey giblets much more highly than those from the goose ; they use the pinions for garnishing several made dishes, including those of fish. We cannot agree with their estimate. Goose giblets contain more flavor, fat, and gelatine. After sufficient stewing with pepper and salt, and perhaps a little onion if liked, they are ready to be con- verted into soup, a pie, or a ragout. The best giblets of all, we hold, are those of the cygnet ; unfortunately they are not to be had every day. GAME. The game is up. CYMBELINE. CORRESPONDENT calls our attention to the large quantities of diseased game which are constantly sent to this market. There is no doubt that the complaint is well founded. Even when the game is in a sound condition when it arrives here, the absence of all proper care of it soon turns it into unwholesome food. It is thrown into a large ice-house, and lies there for weeks together with meat, vegetables, and all sorts of other articles heaped^ in with it. It becomes sodden with the damp, half decomposed, and is entirely deprived of its natural flavor. Any of our readers who have eaten a partridge after it has been recently killed, and then tasted one of our ' store ' partridges, will readily understand the evils caused by the present system pursued in our markets. Somewhere near the first week of last December, we happened to ask a dealer whether the canvas-back ducks were in good condition. ' As good as they will be all through the Winter,' said he, with a peculiar smile. 'What do you mean by that?' we asked. ' Well,' he replied, ' the fact is that most of the ducks which we depend on for the Winter are here now. Others will come along, of course, but we have laid in the greater part of our stock. We keep them in the ice-house, and take them out as we want them.' Now what resemblance can a canvas-back duck thus treated have to the same bird when it has been carefully kept a few days not frozen or sodden with wet, but hung up in a cool and dry place after having been properly ' drawn ' ? " This last point is one of great importance. Much of the game which is sold by our dealers is not ' drawn,' and consequently is almost entirely spoiled as an article of food. There is no market in the world so well supplied with game throughout the Winter season as ours, and it is a great shame that this highly nutritious and valuable food should be ruined, as it now is, by the ignorance or stupidity of those who deal in it. " It is a matter of surprise that our Board of Health has so long permitted the markets of our City to have undressed fowl and game exposed for sale therein. In England, on the Continent, and in New England, although no legal enactments forbid such sale, custom has created a law which is rigidly enforced, prohibiting the sale of any undressed material not alive " LARDED GROUSE. " Clean and wash the grouse. Lard the breast and legs. Run a small skewer into the legs and through the tail; tie firmly with twine. Dredge with salt, and rub the breast with soft butter; then dredge thickly with flour. Put into quick oven. If to be very rare, cook twenty minutes; if wished better done, thirty minutes. If the birds are cooked in a tin-kitchen, it should be for thirty or thirty-five minutes. When done, place on a hot dish, on which has been spread bread sauce. Garnish with parsley. The grouse may, instead, be served on a hot dish, with the parsley garnish, and the sauce and crumbs served in separate dishes. The first method is the better, however, as you get in the sauce all the gravy that comes from the birds." LARDED PARTRIDGES. " Cook and serve the partridges the same as grouse." LARDED QUAIL. "Quails are cooked and served the same as grouse, only that quails cook in fifteen min- utes. All dry meated birds are cooked in this way. Larding is to give richness to a dry meat that does not have fat enough of its own; therefore, meats like goose, duck and mutton are not improved by larding." 106 GAME. 107 BROILED QUAIL. " Split the quail down the back; wipe with a damp towel. Season with salt and pepper, rub thickly with soft butter, and dredge with flour. Broil ten minutes over clear coals, with the inside toward the fire. Serve on buttered toast, garnish with parsley. Wood- cock, and small birds may be broiled in the same manner, and are delicious and nourishing for fare for invalids." REED BIRDS. " Pick, open, and wash carefully a dozen or more; place them in the folds of a clean towel, and with a rolling-pin crush the bones quite flat; season with pepper and salt, spread them in a folding gridiron, put them over a clear fire, broiling the inside first, and when a light brown turn the gridiron. Serve on buttered toast, season with butter and salt, and baste them well with fresh butter." SADDLE OR HAUNCH OF VENISON. " Wash it in warm water and rub it with fresh butter or lard. Cover the fat with sheets of paper two double, buttered, and tied on with packthread that has been soaked to keep it from burning. Or, what is better, cover the first sheets of paper with a coarse paste of flour and water rolled out half an inch thick, then cover the paste with the second sheets of paper, securing the whole well with the string to prevent its falling off. The fire should be steady and strong. Put some butter into the dripping-pan and baste the meat with it frequently. If wrapped in paste, it will not be done in less than five hours. Half an hour before it is taken up, remove the coverings carefully, place again in the oven, baste it with fresh butter and dredge it very lightly with flour. Send it to the table with fringed white paper, wrapped round the bone, and its own gravy well skimmed. Serve currant jelly with it. As venison chills immediately, the plates should be warm. Venison should never be roasted unless very fat. The shoulder is a roasting piece, and may be done without the paper and paste. Venison is best when quite fresh; but if it is to be kept a week before cooking, wash it well with milk and water, then dry it thoroughly with cloths till there is not the least damp remaining on it. Then mix together powdered ginger and pepper, and rub it well over every part of the meat.' 1 HOW TO COOK A LEG OF VENISON. This recipe, contributed by the chef S. H. Agneau, was communicated to him by the cook of the Prince of Wales. Take a leg of venison, leave all the fat and skin on, and rub it well with a glass of good sherry and brandy mixed. Then sprinkle a few pinches of marjoram over it. Take some coarse Graham flour and mix it with water, making it into a good stiff dough. Roll it out and envelop the leg of venison so as to seal it up; then roast it on a spit or in a good hot oven for three hours. The dough must be about two inches thick. Outside the dough roll some paper well greased to prevent the dough from burning. When done and ready to serve, remove the dough. The aroma from the venison will be something grand, and the juices that will flow from the first cut will be the sauce that no epicure will say nay to. BEEF. BEEF TO ROAST. The best cut of beef to roast is the second and third ribs. The oven should be very hot when a roast of any kind is first put in. For a twelve pound roast, one pint of water, one tablespoon of salt, one teaspoon of pepper. Mix the salt and pepper and rub them well into the beef; lay it in the dripping-pan with the water, and roast two hours, basting it often. When the beef is taken up, pour the fat from the dripping-pan, season the gravy well; put a few spoonfuls over the beef, and serve the rest in a gravy-boat, thickened if preferred with browned flour. COLD ROAST BEEF, BROILED. Cut rare roast beef in slices half an inch thick, lay them for half an hour on a plate con- taining enough salad oil and vinegar to moisten the beef, allowing one tablespoon of vine- gar to three of oil ; dust the meat with pepper ; turn the slices at the end of a half hour, and in an hour broil them over a hot fire; do not wipe off the oil and vinegar before broil- ing the beef; broil the beef very quickly at a hot fire, and serve it at once; a little butter, salt and pepper can be used to season the broiled beef, and it may be garnished, if desired, with lemon, parsley or watercress, or served with a dish of sliced fresh toma- toes or cucumbers. Freshly-grated horse-radish, dressed with vinegar and salt, is excel- lent with roast beef, either hot or cold. R. CORNED BEEF. What is generally termed the horseshoe, which is the cut next to the round steak, is ex- cellent corned. It should remain in the pickle three days and nights, and no longer. Boil till perfectly tender, then let it stand in the water in which it was boiled till cold, or nearly so. If it is desirable to eat it warm when first cooked, what remains can be returned to the kettle. One can usually buy the meat and have it corned to order, where he is in the habit of buying regularly. Meats are usually kept in the brine too long, and after- wards not thoroughly cooked, and for both these reasons, corned beef is often hard, dry and unpalatable. It requires five to six hours to boil corned beef. If boiled gently for this length of time, it will be very tender, have a fine flavor, and cut easily and smoothly. R. THE HORSESHOE. This cut of beef previously spoken of as being good corned, is also good boiled fresh, either with water to cover it, in which case the broth is excellent for either soup or gravy; or it can be boiled with just water enough in the bottom of the kettle to keep it from burn- ing ; keep it tightly covered. In either case it is good hot or cold; but it must be boiled 1 08 BEEF. 109 till perfectly tender, fully three and a half hours. If much broth is desired, especially for soup, the meat, or a part of it can be cut in small pieces, and if taken out as soon as done, these pieces will make good hash or hash-cakes for breakfast. An excellent stew can also be made by using a little macaroni, rice, two or three potatoes sliced, a small onion cut in very small pieces, with plenty of the broth, and what part of the meat is required. Dumplings, or toasted bread or crackers used with the stew are excellent. BROILED. BEEFSTEAK. The first requirement is not so much a tender and juicy steak, though this is always desirable, but a glowing bed of coals, a wire gridiron, a stout one, with good-sized wires, and double, so that you can turn the steak without touching it. The steak should be pounded only in extreme cases, when it is cut too thick and is " stringy." Attempt noth- ing else when cooking the steak ; have everything else ready for the table ; the potatoes and vegetables dished and in the warming-closet. From four minutes onward is needed to cook the steak. The time must depend on the size, and you can easily tell by the color of the gravy which runs from the steak, when gently pressed with a knife, as to its condi- tion. If the master of the house like it " rare done," it will be safe to infer that it is done enough for him, when there is a suspicion of brown gravy with the red ; if, as is generally the case, the next stage is the favorite one, remove the steak from the gridiron the instant the gravy is of a light brown. Remove it to a platter, pepper and salt to suit your taste, put on small lumps of butter, and then for two brief moments, cover it with a hot plate, the two moments being sufficient to carry it to the table. One absolutely essential factor in the preparation of good beefsteak is that it must be served at once. BROILED ROUND OF BEEF. Use a tender round-steak cut an inch and a half thick, cut it in strips an inch and a half square and about four inches long; dip the strips in melted butter seasoned with salt and pepper, put them between the bars of a double wire gridiron, and quickly broil them over a very hot fire ; when they are done put them on a hot dish, pour the remainder of the melted butter and seasoning over them, and serve them hot at once. STEWED ROUND STEAK. Have two pounds from the round of beef cut in steaks about an inch thick and three inches square; put them over the fire in a hot frying-pan, and quickly brown them; when the steaks are brown, if there is no fat on them, add to them a heaping tablespoon of good drippings or butter, a can of tomatoes, or a quart of fresh tomatoes peeled and sliced, and a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper ; cover the frying-pan, and gently stew the steaks until they are cooked to the desired degree ; then dish them on the tomatoes, and serve them with plain boiled or baked potatoes. This dish may be varied by boiling and mash- ing a quart of potatoes, seasoning them with salt, pepper and butter, and then forming with them a border, inside of which the steaks and tomatoes may be served. no HOME DISSERTATIONS. BEEFSTEAK ROLLS. Use a tender round steak cut an inch thick; remove all gristle; lay the pieces of beef- steak on the table, sprinkle over the surface of the meat a light seasoning of salt and pep- per, and either chopped fresh celery or celery salt; cut rather thin slices of the soft part of bread about half an inch thick, butter the bread, lay it on the meat, put very little pow- dered cloves over, roll up the bread and meat together fastening the rolls with a string, cover them with flour seasoned with salt and pepper, put them into a saucepan containing enough hot water to prevent their burning, and brown them; cover them with hot water, add a light seasoning of salt and pepper, and stew them gently until the meat is tender. After the rolls are done, remove the strings, and serve them on a dish, with some of the gravy poured over them, sending to the table with them a dish of plain boiled potatoes. HASH. Chop the cooked meat and twice as much potatoes, cold, in separate bowls. Put a little water, boiling, and a bit of butter into an iron saucepan, stewpan, or spider; bring to a boil. Then put in the meat and potatoes, well salted and peppered. Add other vegeta- bles, if desired. Let it cook through well, under cover, stirring occasionally, so that the ingredients be evenly distributed and to keep the bottom from sticking to the pan. When done, it should be not at all watery, nor yet dry, but have sufficient adhesiveness to stand on well-trimmed and buttered toast, on which it should be served. Hash from cold poul- try can be made same way. BEEFSTEAK PUDDING. Remove all pieces of membrane from half a pound of suet, chop it fine, and mix it with a scant pound of flour, a teaspoon of salt, half a saltspoon of pepper, and enough cold water to form a dough stiff enough to roll out about three-quarters of an inch thick; cut two pounds of round steak in inch pieces, and season it with pepper and salt; thickly butter a two-quart earthen bowl ; lay the suet crust in the bowl, gently pressing it against the sides and leaving the crust hanging over the sides of the bowl; put in the beef, and a gill of cold water; draw the crust up over the meat, wetting the edges to close them, so that the gravy cannot escape while the pudding is being cooked; care must be taken to close the crust securely, for the excellence of the pudding depends upon retaining the gravy; when the crust is perfectly closed over the meat wet a cloth in hot water, dust it with flour, lay it over the top of the pudding, lift the bowl, gather the edges of the cloth under the bottom of the bowl and tie them with a cord, so that the water cannot penetrate while the pudding is being boiled; have ready over the fire a large pot of actually boiling water, put in the bowl containing the pudding and boil it steadily for three hours; then remove the cloth, turn the pudding from the bowl upon a hot platter, without breaking the crust, and serve it hot; as it is cut, a rich gravy will flow from it, which is to be served on each plate with a portion of the pudding. BEEF. MUGWUMP IN A HOLE. in One of the F. F. V.'s thus describes a Mugwump : In the existence and development of what eventually becomes a bullfrog there is a state of animal life after he ceases to be a tadpole and before he becomes a bull- frog. At this stage of his existence he is called by the boys of Virginia and the South a " mugwump," viz., neither one thing nor the other. Mugwump in a hole is prepared in the same way as the English dish, " Toad in a hole." One pound of fat meat, perhaps with plenty of bone ; beef is best, veal second best. One pint of milk, one cup of flour, one egg, and salt and pepper. Beat the egg very lightly, add the milk, and a teaspoon of salt ; pour this upon the flour very gradually, beating very light and smooth. Butter a two- quart dish, and in it put the meat ; season well, and pour over it the batter ; bake an hour in a moderate oven. The mugwump, or bit of meat can be taken out of the hole and served on a separate dish, accompanied by vegetables, and the hole itself. This is a good way of getting all that is to be had out of an underdone joint of cold meat, especially if fat enough. FRIZZLED BEEF. Chip dried beef fine, pour boiling water over it, and let it stand a moment; pour off the water, add butter, and fry until it curls a little; then serve hot with a little pepper. If liked, a few eggs may be stirred in just before serving. DRIED BEEF DRESSED WITH CREAM. Chip the beef thin and fine; measure a pint of it without pressing down; put it in a saucepan and pour cold water over it; let it heat slowly, and let it simmer a moment if very salt; then drain off the water, and add one and a half gills of rich cream, and season with pepper. Instead of cream, the same measure of milk may be used with an ounce of butter and a teaspoon of flour. It is excellent laid on split crackers or toast, but for this way it requires more dressing. BEEF SAUSAGES. Mince six pounds of rump beef and two pounds of bacon very fine; pound them; mix well with six or eight cloves of garlic; season high with spices; fill into very large skins, tie them in nine inch lengths, hang them in a dry, warm place or in the smoke. They are eaten raw or broiled. VEAL. ROAST FILLET OF VEAL. Take out the bone, and fill the cavity with stuffing of bread-crumbs, seasoned with salt pork chopped very fine, pepper, salt and sweet marjoram ; make deep incisions in the veal, and fill them with the stuffing, or press into each a strip of salt pork. If a larding-needle is at hand, strips of salt pork may be drawn through the veal without previous cutting. 'Bind it closely together with twine ; put it in the oven with a little water in the pan, baste jOften, and roast until thoroughly done, remembering that no one likes rare veal. When the veal is cooked make the gravy in the dripping pan, after pouring off the fat ; add broth or water, if necessary ; season to the taste with pepper and salt, and thicken with browned flour. VEAL CUTLETS. Cut the veal from the round in slices about an inch thick ; put it in a frying-pan and half cover it with boiling water ; cover the pan closely and let it simmer ten minutes, take it out and when well drained dip the pieces in the beaten yolk of egg seasoned with pep- per, salt, grated lemon-peel, and a little nutmeg, then in grated bread, and fry them in butter and lard. When cooked take them from the pan, pour out nearly all the fat, add hot water (half a pint for an ordinary dish), thicken with two tablespoons of flour and sea- son it, adding a little lemon juice. Pour the gravy over the veal, and garnish the dish with sliced lemon. The lemon and nutmeg may be omitted if preferred. SHOULDER OF VEAL STUFFED. Remove the bone from a shoulder of veal without cutting through the outer skin, and replace the bone with bread-crumbs, chopped thyme and parsley ; a little nutmeg together with some butter and beef suet ; moisten with milk or hot water and bind with a beaten egg ; add a few slips of fat pork or ham and seasoned with salt and pepper ; sew and truss the shoulder in shape, put it into a baking-pan with the bones under it, and brown fit quickly in a hot oven ; after the veal is brown, season it with salt and pepper, dredge it with flour, and baste it with the drippings in the pan ; bake the veal about twenty minutes to each pound, or until the gravy which runs from it shows a trace of red color ; an hour before the veal is done peel a dozen or more medium-size potatoes, and put them into the pan with the meat ; turn them occasionally to insure equal cooking, and, when the veal is done, arrange them around it on a hot platter ; make a gravy for the veal by using the drippings in the baking-pan ; after the meat is taken up set the pan over the fire, stir into it a heaping tablespoon of flour and brown it, then stir in gradually a pint of boiling water and a palatable seasoning of salt. 112 VEAL. 113 VEAL PIE. " Weal pie," said Mr. Weller, soliloquizing, as he arranged the eatables on the grass. " Werry good thing is weal pie, when you know the lady as made it, and is quite sure it an't kittens ; and arter all though, where's the odds, when they're so like weal that the piemen themselves don't know the difference." DICKENS. Make an inch paste, roll out an inch thick and cut an oval piece for the bottom crust, then cut a ring an inch thick and a half inch broad, lay it around the edge of the bottom piece, put it in a pan and bake it a nice brown; also, cut a lid to fit in the ring and bake that; keep it hot until you are ready to fill it; cut the veal into small pieces and put it in a saucepan with half a pint of water; season with salt, pepper and butter, dredge in a little flour and pour in two tablespoons of cream; let it boil up once or twice, then fill the crust and cover with the lid. Serve at once. VEAL LOAF. Use about three pounds of cold veal, weighed after it is freed from bones and tough gristle; chop it quite fine; chop fine also a cup of canned mushrooms, or half a dozen fresh ones of medium size which have been carefully trimmed and washed in cold salted water; to the veal and mushrooms add two cups of finely powdered crackers or fine bread-crumbs, three raw eggs, a level tablespoon of butter softened with gentle heat, and a rather high seasoning of salt, pepper and cayenne; mix all these ingredients together with the hands until they can be molded into the form of one or more loaves; put the loaves into a but- tered baking-pan, dust cracker or bread-crumbs over the top, and then quickly brown the loaves in a hot oven and serve them hot. When the loaves are designed for a coid luncheon or supper dish, the above named ingredients can be closely packed into buttered pans or molds, and baked, and then cooled in the molds; they can be sliced after they are cooled, or served whole and sliced at the table. CALF'S HEAD BOILED. Your butcher will clean the head; cut off the ears and dig out the eyes; boil head until it falls to pieces; separate the meat from the bones; lay the brains in a dish and return the remainder to water in which the head was boiled, and let it cook four hours; do not allow the water to get too low; spice it highly with pepper, salt, allspice, cloves, mace; when done, thicken with a little batter and lump of butter; remove from the fire, and when tne steam evaporates, add one half pint of wine; take up in a deep dish and garnish with sliced lemon and hard-boiled eggs. TM HOME DISSERTATIONS. BOILED PUDDINGS WITH MEATS. .f think it is a pity we do not have more English puddings with our dinners. The Nor- folk dumpling is excellent, eaten with the meat; so is the Yorkshire pudding baked under the meat; and the English apple-pudding. ENGLISH APPLE PUDDING. Make a crust of one-third chopped suet; two-thirds flour; salt well; mix with cold water; roll out to about three-quarters of an inch thick; butter a pudding bowl (one with a thick rim); spread the dough over it, and knead into place with the hands till it is about evenly thin all over; fill full of sliced apples, sugar, and a little nutmeg and cinnamon. Trim the crust round the edge of the bowl, and roll all that is left, and lay over the top, making it quite secure round the edges. Now spread the pudding-cloth over the top, and tie it tightly down under the rim of the bowl; catch up the corners, fold over the top of the pudding, and secure with a pin; plunge it into boiling water and cook steadily one and a half hours. YORKSHIRE PUDDING. Yorkshire pudding is made the same way, but cooked differently. Remove your roast when nearly done from the oven; pour the gravy from the dripping tin into a saucepan, and pour the batter in the pan; set in your meat stand, and place the meat so it will drip on the pudding; twenty minutes ought to cook it. Must have a good hot oven. BOILED INDIAN DUMPLING. Three cups meal scalded with one quart milk; three eggs; salt; boil in a cloth ;y;;e hour. Good with roasts. NORFOLK DUMPLINGS. Norfolk dumplings are made in this way: One quart of milk; four eggs well beat.;'.:; sifted flour, enough to make rather a thick batter, and salt. Dip the pudding cloth hi boiling water, and spread it over a large bowl; dust the hot cloth with flour, and pour the batter in; tie securely, and plunge into a pot of boiling water; boil one and one-fourth hours; dish it up after everything else is ready, and eat with the meat. In some parts of England this pudding is served first with the meat gravy, before the joint is brought to the table. However, it is good no matter when you serve it. But in cooking all boiled puddings, observe this rule: Keep it well covered with water, and never allow it to get off the boil. BOILED RICE. Rice, too, is excellent for the children, prepared this way: Tie the rice in a strong cloth loosely, and boil in salted water one and one-half hours; when cooked, it will be firm enough to cut with a knife. To be eaten with the meat. VEAL. 115 SWEETBREADS. Tell me where is fancy bred, Or in the heart or in the head ? MERCHANT OF VENICE. " Sweetbreads are found in calves and lambs near the throat or the heart. All the tough skin should be carefully pulled off, and the sweetbreads should be allowed to lie in cold water for ten minutes. They should afterwards be boiled twenty minutes no matter what the subsequent mode of cooking is to be. This makes them whiter, thicker and firmer. TO LARD AND BAKE SWEETBREADS. Through each draw four pieces of pork about the size of a match. Let the sweetbreads lie in cold water five or more minutes and boil them twenty minutes, after which spread them with butter, dredge them with pepper, salt and flour, and bake twenty minutes in a quick oven. BROILED SWEETBREADS. Split the sweetbreads," season with pepper and salt, rub with butter and sprinkle with flour. Broil over a quick fire twenty minutes. HOW TO CLEAN TRIPE. The tripe marketed in cities is already cleaned and boiled, and only needs to be scalded with boiling water and scraped with the back of a knife before finally dressing it for the table. But in the country it may sometimes be necessary for the housewife to understand the entire process of preparing it for cooking. Tripe consists of the walls and fatty por- tions of the stomachs of calves and cows, carefully cleansed and partly cooked by boiling. It is cleaned both with lime-water and with lye made from wood ashes. When lime is used it should be mixed with sufficient cold water to make it entirely liquid. After the stomach is emptied it should be sewed up so that no lime can penetrate it, and allowed to remain in the lime-water for half an hour before scraping it. The lime must be washed off } or it will burn the hands. When ashes are used the stomach is to be thickly sprinkled with them after it is emptied, and washed in plenty of cold water, and it is put into a jar or firkin with enough boiling water to cover it, and remains in the lye thus formed for five or six hours before it is scraped. When neither lime nor ashes are available, the tripe must be repeatedly scalded with boiling salted water, and scraped until it is clear ; after that it must be laid in cold salted water for a week, the water being changed every day. In treating the tripe with lime-water or lye, the dark surface can be removed by several scaldings and scrapings ; the tripe should then be left in salted cold water for twenty-four hours ; after that it will be ready to be washed in fresh water and boiled in salted boiling water until it begins to look clear, and is tender enough to permit a broomstraw to be run through it. After tripe has been boiled it can be kept in an earthen jar, covered with milk and water in equally mixed, with sour milk or buttermilk, or with vinegar which has been scalded with plenty of spice, and poured upon the tripe while hot. n6 HOME DISSERTATIONS. * The tripe bought already prepared should be well washed in plenty of cold salted water, and then boiled until tender in salted boiling water ; after that it can be pickled in scalding hot spiced vinegar, or kept in milk or buttermilk for several days ; there are many ways of cooking tripe, and as it is nutritious and digestible as well as cheap, it is an excellent winter food when some of the meats most generally used are scarce and expensive ; if it is prepared for the table immediately after the first boiling, it will require rather high seasoning. FRIED TRIPE. Prepare the tripe for the final cooking as directed in the recipe for cleaning tripe, and then dry it on a clean towel, cut it in pieces about two inches square, and roll it in flour seasoned with salt and pepper ; peel and grate an onion of medium size for two pounds of tripe, put it over the fire with quarter of a pound of lard or drippings, and heat them to- gether ; when the fat begins to smoke put in the tripe, brown it quickly on both sides and then serve it hot. MUTTON. BOILED LEG OF MUTTON WITH CAPER-SAUCE. Sir Andrew. Faith, I can cut a caper. Sir Toby. And I can cut the mutton to 't. TWELFTH NIGHT ; OR, WHAT You WILL. Cut off the small bone at the end, leaving the meat to hide the joint and lap under ; put it in a kettle of cold water, and make it boil as soon as possible, then boil very slowly but steadily until the meat is cooked. For caper-sauce make drawn butter with some of the boilings ; put into it two dessertspoons of capers and one spoonful of their vinegar. Stir together, boil up again, and pour the sauce into a hot gravy-boat. MUTTON OR LAMB CHOPS. Trim them nicely ; broil over a clear fire and when cooked season with butter, pepper, and salt ; serve them, slightly lapping one over the other in the form of an oval, with the bones standing obliquely. It will greatly improve the appearance by putting a frill of white paper an inch wide around the ends of the bones. STUFFED LEG OF MUTTON. Take out the bone and fill the cavity with stuffing made of bread-crumbs, seasoned with pepper, salt, a little summer savory, two ounces of salt pork chopped fine, and a bit of butter half the size of an egg. Skewer the ends, sprinkle the mutton with a tablespoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper ; lay it into the dripping-pan with a little water, and put it in a brisk oven ; when it begins to roast put a little butter over it, and dredge it lightly with flour. Watch it very closely ; keep an even heat, and baste it thoroughly every fifteen minutes. MUTTON. 117 ROAST MUTTON. Precisely like the preceding, without the stuffing. ENGLISH MUTTON CHOPS. Southdown mutton: Trim off the superfluous fat and skin; the chops cut an inch and a half thick; sprinkle with salt, pepper and flour, put them in a double boiler. Broil over or before a fire until one side is done, then broil the other side. Do not turn the chops but once. The fire for chops should not be as hot as for steak; chops can be seasoned with salt and pepper, wrapped in buttered paper and broiled ten minutes over a hot fire. LAMB CHOPS SAUTES. " Use chops from the loin of lamb for sautes; have them cut in accordance with your desire to have them cooked, three-quarters of an inch thick for medium and an inch for rather rare; heat a frying-pan; if the chops are fat you don't need any butter; put them in and brown them quickly, first on one side and then on the other; cook as you like them. Season them, after they are cooked, with salt and pepper; then, if they are not as good as broiled chops, it will be because you have not done them right. They are a great deal better than most broiled chops, because meat cooked over a fire, unless care is used, is very apt to get smoked. On many accounts it is absolutely impossible to broil." LAMB STEWED WITH GREEN PEAS. Cut the scrag or breast of lamb in pieces and put into a stewpan with just enough water to cover it. Cover it closely and let it stew for twenty minutes. Take off the scum; add a tablespoon of salt and a quart of shelled peas; cover and let them stew for half an hour; mix a tablespoon of flour and butter and stir in and let it simmer ten minutes; then serve. If you mix the flour with the cream it makes it better. Would recommend this recipe to our friends who keep bachelors' hall. Veal is good cooked in the same way, with half a dozen small, new potatoes added with peas. IRISH STEW. About two pounds of the neck of mutton, four onions, six large potatoes, salt, pepper, three pints of water and two tablespoonfuls of flour. Cut the mutton in handsome pieces. Put about half the fat in the stew-pan, with the onions, and stir for eight or ten minutes over a hot fire; then put in the meat, which sprinkle with the flour, salt and pepper. Stir ten minutes, and add the water, boiling. Set for one hour where it will simmer; then add the potatoes, peeled, and cut in quarters. Simmer an hour longer, and serve. You can cook dumplings with this dish, if you choose. They are a great addition to all kinds of stews and ragouts. PORK. A DISSERTATION UPON ROAST PIG. i speak not of your grown porkers things between pig and pork those hobbydehoys, but a young and tender suckling, under a moon old, guiltless as yet of the sty, with no original speck of the amor immunditia-, the hereditary failing of the first parent, yet manifest his voice yet not broken, but something between a child- ish treble and a grumble the mild forerunner, or prceludium of a grunt. He must be roasted. I am not ignor- ant that our ancestors ate them seethed or boiled ; but what a sacrifice of the exterior tegument ! There is no flavor comparable, I will contend, to that of the crisp, tawny, well-watched, not over-roasted, crackling, as it is welx called, the very teeth are invited to their share of the pleasure at this banquet in overcoming the coy, brittle resistance, with the adhesive oleaginous O, call it not fat ! but an indefinable sweetness growing up to it, the tender blossoming of fat fat cropped in the bud taken in the shoot in the first innocence the cream and quintessence of the child-pig's yet pure food, the lean, no lean, but a kind of animal manna, or, rather, fat and lean (if it must be so) so blended and running into each other, that both together make bi-t CT.-J ambrosian result, or common substance. . . . His sauce should be considered. Decidedly, a few bread-crumbs done up with his liver and brains, and a dash of mild sage. But banish, dear Mrs. Cook, I beseech you, the whole onion tribe. Barbecue your whole hogs to your palate, steep them in shalots, stuff them out with plan- tations of the rank and guilly garlic ; you cannot poison them, or make them stronger than they are, but consider, he is a weakling a flower. Charles Lamb. A DELICATE ROAST PIG. Lay a nicely-dressed pig in a tub of cold water all night; in the morning change the water, and let it remain until it is time to roast it ; then wipe it dry, rub the inside well with sage, cayenne and salt mixed, and stuff it with a dressing made of bread-crumbs, salt pork chopped fine, pepper, salt, sweet marjoram, and an egg. It should be roasted on a spit be- fore the fire ; but, lacking convenience for this mode, the pig must be placed (the feet turned under) on a rack in the dripping-pan with some water, in which are some sprigs of sage and marjoram tied in muslin. Keep it well floured until half done ; then take it out, wipe off the 1 flour, return it to the oven, and baste well with butter, repeating this several times until the pig is roasted. Serve on a large platter with a potato or small ear of un- husked green corn in its mouth. The herbs may be taken from the dripping-pan, the gravy thickened with flour and seasoned to taste with pepper and salt. Then serve in a boat. Allow three hours for roasting. BAKED FRESH PORK. If the skin is left on the pork, as it is in some markets, scrape it with a dull knife, wash it thoroughly with a wet cloth, and score it in little squares ; if the skin has been removed trim oft some of the superfluous fat ; using a sharp, thin knife cut out the chine or back bone, disjointing it from the ends of the ribs, so that the meat may be carved with ease ; 118 PORK. 119 CORNED HAM, BAKED. Choose a perfectly sweet corned ham, testing it by running a sharp, thin knife-blade close to the bone, and making sure that the odor is pleasant ; let the ham stand over night in enough cold water to cover it ; in the morning trim off all bruised and torn portions, inclose the ham in a dough made of rye or wheat flour and water, lay it in a large pan, and bake it in a moderate oven, half an hour to a pound ; when the ham is done remove the paste, and the skin, if this is desired ; dust the ham with cracker or bread crumbs, sea- soned with salt or pepper, and quickly brown the crumbs in a hot oven ; when the ham is done put a frill of white paper around the bone, and serve it hot or cold ; when the ham is served hot, a brown gravy or sauce usually accompanies it ; pickles of any kind, olives, or cold slaw are good with cold ham. BROILED LIVER. Cut in slices, dip the slices first in butter melted, then lightly in flour, and broil eignt or ten minutes. PICNIC SANDWICHES. Cut thin slices from a tender, cold roast leg of lamb. Lay the slices together and cut them into very small bits. Lay them on thin slices of fresh bread and butter ; spread the corresponding slice with thick mint sauce, and put the two together. DELMONICO RECEPTION SANDWICHES. Two pounds of cold, lean, boiled ham, and one boiled beef tongue ; chop and mince them up very fine ; season with a good pinch of ground cloves, and the same of black pepper. Work two pounds of the very best butter into a softish mass, and blend with it half an ounce of ground dry mustard or a dessertspoon of curry powder, and the minced ham and tongue, and work all together into a paste. Cut the bread, which should be of the very best quality, into thin slices, spread each slice liberally with the meat paste, put together, and, with a sharp knife, cut off the crusts so as to make the pieces perfectly square, then cut them from corner to corner, crosswise, into four, so as to make small triangular pieces of each square. Build these up on dishes in fancy pyramidical forms. Turkey or chicken sandwiches can be made by taking the meat of a cold roast turkey or a pair of roasted chickens and an equal quantity of cold boiled beef tongue ; chop them up into very small pieces, and then pound them in a mortar, with a lump of butter, to a paste. Season this with a little cayenne pepper and salt. Spread this paste on thin slices of fine Vienna bread, cut square, put together, and cut crosswise into triangles. SALADS. To see if I can eat grass, or pick a sallet another while, which is not amiss to cool a man's stomach this hot weather. And I think this word " sallet" was born to do me good : for many a time, but for a sallet, my brain-pan had been cleft with a brown bill ; for many a time, when I have been dry, and bravely marching, it hath served me instead of a quart pot to drink in : and now the word " sallet " must serve me to feed on. SECOND PART OF KING HENRY VI. CHICKEN SALAD. Cold roasted or boiled chicken free of skin, fat and bones. Place on a board, and cut in long, thin strips, and cut these into dice. Place in an earthen bowl; there should be two quarts, and season with four tablespoons of vinegar, two of oil, one teaspoon of salt, and one-half of a teaspoon of pepper. Set it away in a cold place for two or three hours. Scrape and wash enough of the tender white celery to make one quart. Cut this, with a sharp knife, in pieces about half an inch thick. Put these in the ice-chest until serving time. Make the mayonnaise dressing. Mix the chicken and celery together, and add half of the dressing. Arrange in a salad bowl or on a flat dish, and pour the remain- der of the dressing over it. Garnish with white celery leaves ; or, have a jelly border, and arrange the salad in this. Half celery and half lettuce is often used for chicken salad. If. when the chicken or fowl is cooked, it is allowed to cool in the water in which it is boiled, it will be juicier and tenderer than if taken from the water as soon as done. LOBSTER SALAD. Cut up and season the lobster the same as chicken, break the leaves from a head of lettuce one by one, and wash them singly in a large pan of cold water. Put them iu a pan of ice-water for about ten minutes, and then shake in a wire basket, to free them of water. Place them in the ice-chest until serving time. When ready to serve, put two or three leaves together in the form of a shell, and arrange these shells on a salad dish. Mix one-half of the mayonnaise dressing with the lobster. Put a tablespoon of this in each cluster of leaves. Finish with a tablespoon of the dressing on each spoonful of lobster. This is an exceedingly inviting dish. Another method is to cut or tear the leaves rather coarse, and mix with the lobster. Garnish the border of the dish with whole leaves. There should be two-thirds lobster to one-third lettuce. POTATO SALAD. Peel and boil one pint of potatoes, mash them through a colander, letting them fall lightly on a platter ; while the potatoes are being boiled, wash and shave enough from a head of firm, white cabbage to fill a pint bowl ; boil three eggs hard, remove the shells, 1 20 SALADS. 12 c and chop the eggs fine ; chop one large pickled pepper fine, or use in its place a large pickled cucumber cnopped fine and seasoned highly with cayenne ; mix together two tablespoons of vinegar, six tablespoons of good salad oil, one level teaspoon of salt, and half a saltspoon of pepper ; when the potatoes are ready, mix all the ingredients together quickly and lightly, put them into a salad bowl, and serve the salad at once. SHRIMP SALAD. Peel the boiled shrimps, and when thoroughly cold arrange them in a circle upon leaves of fresh lettuce. Pour a mayonnaise sauce in the centre, and serve at once. Sometimes a tablespoon of chopped parsley is added to the dressing for this salad. SALAD DRESSING. OIL SALAD DRESSING. Put in a bowl the yolks of two raw eggs, one level teaspoon of mustard, two tablespoons of vinegar, quarter of a saltspoon of pepper, and as much salad oil as is required to make about half a pint of dressing. EGG SALAD DRESSING. Mix thoroughly together, by beating, four tablespoons of vinegar, one heaping table- spoon of moist sugar, and the yolk of one raw egg. MAYONNAISE DRESSING. A tablespoon mustard, one cup of sugar, one-tenth teaspoon of cayenne, one teaspoon of salt, the yolks of three uncooked eggs, the juice of one-half of a lemon, one-quarter cup of vinegar, one pint of best olive oil, and one cup of whipped cream. Beat the yolks and dry ingredients until light and thick. Place the bowl in which the dressing is made in a pan of ice-water during the beating. Add only a little of the oil at a time. When the dressing becomes so thick that the beater turns hard, add a little of the vinegar. When the last of the oil and of the vinegar has been added, the dressing should be very thick. Now add the lemon juice and whipped cream, and place on ice till needed for use. The cream may be omitted without injury. FRENCH SALAD DRESSING. Mix half a saltspoon of pepper with one of salt ; add three tablespoons of olive oil, and one even tablespoon of onion, scraped fine ; then one tablespoon of vinegar ; when well mixed, pour the mixture over your salad and stir all till well mingled. The merit of a salad is that it should be cool, fresh, and crisp. For vegetables, use only the delicate white stalks of celery, the small heart leaves of lettuce. SAUCES. \ " It is a desideratum in works that treat de re culinarid, that we have no rationale of sauces, or theory of mixed flavors : as to show why cabbage is reprehensible with roast beef, laudable with bacon ; and why the haunch of mutton seeks the alliance of current jelly, the shoulder civilly declineth it ; why loin of veal (a pretty problem), being unctuous, seeketh the adventitious lubricity of melted butter, and why the same part in pork, not more oleaginous, abhorreth from it ; why the French bean sympathizes with the flesh of deer ; why salt fish points to parsnip, brawn makes a dead set at mustard ; why salmon (a strong sapor per se) forti- fieth its condition with the mighty lobster-sauce, whose embraces are fatal to the delicater relish of the turbot ; why oysters in death rise up against the contamination of brown sugar, while they are posthumously amorous of vinegar ; why the sour mango and the sweet jam by turns court and are accepted by the compliable mutton- hash, she not yet decidedly declaring for either. We are as yet but in the empirical stage of cookery. We feed ignorantly, and want to be able to give a reason of the relish that is in us ; so that, if Nature should furnish us with a new meat, or be prodigally pleased to restore the phoenix, upon a given flavor, we might be able to pronounce instantly, on philosophical principles, what the sauce to it should be, what the curious adjuncts." ANCHOVY SAUCE. For a pint of anchovy sauce put over the fire in a saucepan a tablespoon each of butter and flour and stir them until they are smoothly blended ; then gradually stir in a pint of boiling water a teaspoon of anchovy paste, quarter of a saltspoon of pepper, and a pal- atable seasoning of salt ; stir the sauce over the fire until it boils and is perfectly smooth, and then serve it in a sauce-bowl. Potted anchovies, or those packed in small glass jars, can be used instead of anchovy paste, but they must first be reduced to a smooth pulp by pounding them in a mortar, and removing all the bones ; a larger proportion of this paste will be required for the sauce than of the anchovy paste, which is put up in small blue china jars ; enough must be used to properly season and color the sauce. APPLE SAUCE. Pare, core, and slice half a dozen juicy apples, and cook them till tender, along with the yellow rind of a lemon, in an earthenware jar placed in a pot of boiling water. The pot should be closely covered, and care taken that none of the water enters the jar containing the apples. When softened and perfectly tender remove the lemon peel, and beat the apples to a smooth pulp, along with a little butter, sugar, and a little grated nutmeg. BECHAMEL SAUCE. Chop one pound of lean veal and half a pound of lean ham in small pieces, a half-dozen mushrooms, and one small onion sliced, two cloves, one blade of mace, a pinch of thyme, and the same of sweet marjoram, and two tablespoons of butter ; add one pint and a half 122 SAUCES. 123 of white stock or gravy, and stew all gently for an hour and a half ; then mix some of the gravy with a teacup of flour, make very smooth, and add to it a pint of rich cream. Add this to the sauce, let it boil for a quarter of an hour, stirring constantly, then strain and season with salt and pepper. BUTTER A LA MAITRE D'HOTEL. Quarter of a pound of fresh butter, one and a half tablespoons of parsley, chopped fine, half a teaspoon of salt, one pinch of white pepper, and the juice of two lemons. Cream the butter perfectly, beat in the salt, pepper and lemon juice, add the parsley, and serve.' If preferred, a tablespoon of vinegar and a tablespoon of mixed mustard may be added. CURRY SAUCE. One tablespoon of butter, one of flour, one teaspoon of curry powder, one slice of onion, one large cup of stock, salt and pepper to taste. Cut the onion fine, and fry brown in butter. Add the flour and curry powder. Stir for one minute, add the stock, and season with the salt and pepper. Simmer five minutes ; then strain and serve. This sauce can be served with a broil or saute" of meat or fish. CELERY SAUCE. Wash and cut into inch pieces a fresh young head of celery, and boil it till tender in veal stock or in milk and water. Season this with white pepper, nutmeg and salt, and thicken it with a mixture of butter and flour. Another simple celery sauce consists of drawn butter, made with a decoction of celery seeds, and seasoned as above. CAPER SAUCE. Caper sauce is made by mixing a gill of capers, with some of their pickle-vinegar, into the drawn butter prepared as follows : DRAWN BUTTER. ' ' When I made my first attempts at becoming a cook it seemed as if every recipe for certain dishes ended with these words, ' Serve with drawn-butter sauce. ' How to make it I did not know, and I dared not ask. I felt that if I did, every older housewife would regard me as we used to the dull boy in school who begged us to tell him how many eighths there were in a whole, and how we knew. ' Intuitive knowledge ' of anything pertaining to keeping house was denied me, but after many experiments rules were evolved, and have never failed to give satisfaction." Take two large tablespoons of butter and one tablespoon of flour, and nearly one cup of milk ; before putting in the milk, mix the butter and flour thoroughly with a wooden spoon ; then add the milk or the same quantity of water, a teaspoon of salt and a little white pepper. Set this over the fire, and stir it continually till nearly boiling. This is melted butter, or drawn-butter, as it is called in the language of the kitchen ; being the basis of a number of sauces, its preparation is important. 124 HOME DISSERTATIONS. EGG SAUCE. Two hard-boiled eggs chopped fine, and added to hot drawn butter. This is an excel- lent sauce for fish. It is also good on potatoes, and one of which children are very fond. HOLLANDAISE SAUCE. Half a teacup of butter, the juice of half a lemon, the yolks of two eggs, a speck of cayenne, half a cup of boiling water, half a teaspoon of salt. Beat the butter to a cream ; then add the yolks, one by one, the lemon juice, pepper and salt. Place the bowl in which these are mixed in a saucepan of boiling water. Beat with an egg-beater until the sauce begins to thicken, it will take about a minute, and add the boiling water, beating all the time. When like a soft custard it is done. The bowl, if thin, must be kept over the fire only about five minutes, provided the water boils all the time. The sauce should be poured around meat or fish when it is on the dish. LOBSTER SAUCE. One small lobster, four tablespoons of butter, two of flour, one-fifth of a tablespoon of cayenne, two tablespoons of lemon juice, one pint of boiling water. Cut the meat into dice. Pound the "coral" with one tablespoon of butter. Rub the remaining flour and butter to a smooth paste. Add the water and pounded " coral," and butter and flour paste, and the seasoning ; simmer five minutes, and then strain on the lobster. Boil up once and serve. MINT SAUCE. Fresh young leaves of mint finely minced and mixed with vinegar and sugar. OYSTER SAUCE. Boil half a pint of small oysters with their liquor in one pint of water until the flavor is well extracted, then strain, pressing the juice well from the oysters ; put in a pint of small oysters, and stew until puffed ; take them out, skim well, and make drawn butter by adding flour and butter ; put back the oysters, and when thoroughly heated, serve. PARSLEY SAUCE. Boil till tender a bunch of well washed and picked parsley, remove the larger stalks mince the leaves finely, and stir them into hot drawn butter, made as above. ROBERT SAUCE. Two cups of stock, two small onions, four tablespoons of butter, one heaping tablespoon of flour, one teaspoon of dry mustard, one of sugar, a speck of cayenne, two tablespoons of vinegar, salt. Cut the onions into dice, and put on with the butter. Stir until they begin to color ; then add the flour, and stir until brown. As soon as it boils, add the stock and other ingredients, and simmer five minutes. Skim and serve. SAUCES. 125 SAUCE FOR STEAK. Equal parts of red wine catsup, a small piece of butter, a little pepper, a tablespoon of shallot vinegar; stir altogether in a small saucepan on the fire and pour it very hot over the steak. It is also good with mutton chops. SAUCE A LA TARTARE. Chop an onion, two shallots, a little parsley and tarragon, and a few capers very fine; two yolks of hard-boiled eggs rubbed down to a paste with a tablespoon of water. Mix all these well together, and add a dessertspoon of tarragon and one of plain vinegar; beat it well with a wooden spoon, adding by degrees a spoonful of the best olive oil and mus- tard to your taste. This is an excellent sauce with broiled fowl, grouse, or with cold meats of all kinds. TOMATO SAUCE. Put in a stew-pan a quart can of tomatoes, two cloves, a sprig of thyme, two sprigs of parsley, half a bay leaf, three peppercorns, three allspice, two slices of carrot, one small onion, and boil about twenty minutes; then strain through a sieve. Melt in another pan one and a half ounce of butter, and as it bubbles, sprinkle in half an ounce flour; stir till well cooked. Mix with the tomato pulp, and it is ready for the table. TARRAGON VINEGAR. Fill a pickle bottle one-quarter or one-third full of sprigs of tarragon, or merely with the leaves picked off the stalks. Fill the bottle with good vinegar, and stop it down with a good cork. Let it stand a few days to make a cold infusion, and it is fit for use. No salt, spice or boiling are needed. The leaves are so full of their peculiar flavor that, after the first brewing of vinegar has been used, a second may be poured over them. This simple relish is exceedingly useful to have in store. PICKLES. P. CUCUMBER PICKLES. Make a brine of one gallon of water and one teacup of fine salt. Pour the brine hot over the cucumbers for nine mornings, then rinse in cold water, and scald in alum water ; put them in vinegar with spices, and nearly boil. Add peppers and onions if liked. CHILI SAUCE. Thirty tomatoes, three large onions, three peppers, one tablespoon allspice, cloves, cin- namon, two nutmegs, two tablespoons of salt, one quart of vinegar, one cup of sugar. Chop onions and peppers very fine, Cook tomatoes some first. Mix thoroughly. 126 HOME DISSERTATIONS. PICKLED LEMONS. Take eight lemons, thick skins, one-half pound of fine salt, two quarts of vinegary one-quarter of an ounce each of cloves, nutmeg, mace, and cayenne, two ounces of mus- tard seed, and a small onion. Put all this in a muslin bag, the whole to be put in a tight, covered jar. Set in a kettle of boiling water and let it remain till the lemons are tender. It is better to keep them three months before using. MUSTARD PICKLE. One peck of green tomatoes, half as many onions, three or four cauliflowers ; boil until tender ; slice, cover with salt, and drain over night. Add one and a half boxes of mus- tard, two or three red peppers ; cover with vinegar, and simmer all day. GRAPES SPICED. Five pounds of fruit, four pounds of brown sugar, one pint of vinegar, one tablespoon cloves, allspice, a little pepper ; cook slowly three or four hours. PICKLED PEACHES. Take as much vinegar as will cover the quantity of peaches you have. After it has boiled sufficiently, sweeten it to your taste ; put in your spices, cloves, cinnamon, or mace. Boil together for a little while, then put in your peaches ; peeled or with the skins on, as you prefer. Boil for fifteen minutes, or until they are tender. Take them out, and boil the vinegar down until it is strong enough to keep them. Put them in a cool place. PICKLED LILY. Three pecks ripe tomatoes, three pecks green tomatoes, five heads of cabbage, one dozen onions, one ripe pepper, one green pepper, half a pound of celery, all chopped fine. Cover with brine two days, drain off, cover with vinegar, three pints of brown sugar. Scald an hour ; add one cup grated horseradish, two tablespoons white mustard seed, one tablespoon of cloves, two tablespoons of allspice, two of ginger, and one tablespoon of mustard. Cover close and put away for a month before using. TOMATO KETCHUP. Boil ripe tomatoes one hour ; strain through a sieve. To one quart of juice add one tablespoon cinnamon, one tablespoon black pepper, one-half tablespoon cayenne, one table- spoon ground mustard, one-quarter cup salt, two onions chopped fine. Boil three hours. Then to each quart of juice add one pint cider vinegar and boil half an hour longer. Bottle hot. VEGETABLES. Whatever advantages, real or imaginary, may attend the consumption of raw vegetables, it is abundantly evident that peril must beset the use of this description of food, unless the articles eaten are most thoroughly cleansed. Asparagus, lettuce, and especially water-cresses, spinach, and all greens used for boiling or salads, -.should be scrupulously washed, and nothing less than the most painstaking brushing under water can cleanse them. Summer vegetables should be perfectly fresh, cooked the same day they are gathered, if possible. Look them over well, cutting out all decayed or unripe parts. Lay them when peeled in cold water for some time before cooking. Always let the water boil before putting them in. Cook thoroughly, raw vegetables are neither good nor fashionable. Drain well, serve hot. Potatoes keep best buried in sand or earth. They should never be wetted till they are washed for cooking. If you have them in the cellar, see that they are well covered with matting or old carpet, as the frost injures them greatly. PUREE. As there is no English word to express a substance that has been rubbed through the colander, or pounded to a pulp, the French -word, puree is used. Where cream is used with vegetables, mu"k slightly thickened with an additional bit of butter may be substituted. ASPARAGUS. Large full-grown asparagus is the best. Before you begin to prepare it for cooking, set on the fire a pot with plenty of water, and sprinkle into it a spoonful of salt. The asparagus should be all of the same size, reject the woody or lower portions, and scraping the white part which remains. Throw it into cold water as you scrape them. Then tie them up in small bundles with bass or tape, as twine will cut them to pieces. If very young and fresh, it is well to tie them in a piece of coarse net to protect the top. When the water is boiling fast put in the asparagus for twenty or forty minutes, according to age. When it is nearly done boiling, toast two or three slices of bread, cutting off the crust, and dip it in the asparagus water in the pot, butter and lay in in a hot dish. When you take up the asparagus, drain, unbind the bundle, and heap it upon the toast, the stocks all one way, with bits of butter between. Serve with drawn butter. BURR ARTICHOKES. Strip off the outer leaves, and cut the stocks close to the bottom. Wash well, and let tnem lie two or three hours in cold water. Put them in a pot of boiling water, the stock- ends uppermost, with an inverted plate upon them to keep them down. They must boil steadily from two to three hours, or until very tender ; take care to replenish the pot with additional boiling water as it is wanted. When tender all through, drain them, and pla .:e whole on a napkin; serve with drawn butter. In eating them take off the leaves y.e by one, dip the large end in the drawn butter, and eat only the soft, pulpy part. 197 HOME DISSERTATIONS. BOSTON BAKED BEANS. " For many generations this has been New England's Sunday dish. The little bean-pots bustling to the bakery Saturday evening and returning the next day in quietness and solemnity for the Sunday dinner, have become a part of history. So many associations cluster around this little crock, that even were its place sup- plied by a new invention better adapted to the purpose, we could not abandon it. But there is nothing better, nor so good. It is broad and low, the mouth about two-thirds the diameter of the crock, but wide enough to admit the piece of pork, put in endwise, then turned. It is easily covered, which is a great advantage, as it is highly important to prevent the escape of the steam and to preserve the flavor of the beans." First obtain a Boston bean-pot and some small white beans ; the small beans are the jbest. Pick over and wash a quart of beans, pour over them a quart of tepid water, and let Jthem soak all night ; in the morning take them out of the water, and put them in a kettle jwith two quarts of water, and boil half or three-quarters of an hour, or until the skin begins to crack ; skim them out of the water, and put them in the " bean-pot" ; score a pound of salt pork, part fat and part lean, in small squares, and put it in the centre of the beans, sinking it to the rind ; pour a quart of hot water over it, add one and a half table- spoons of molasses, cover the pot, and bake slowly three hours. LIMA BEANS. Put one quart of shelled beans into a pan of cold water, and let them remain an hour ; put them in boiling water, more than enough to cover them ; when tender pour off the water ; add two ounces of butter and half a gill of cream ; season with pepper and salt ; let them simmer a moment, then serve. All shell beans may be cooked in this way- STRING BEANS. With a sharp knife snip off the ends into small pieces about an inch long, removing the strings as you break them. Boil them until tender in plain salt and water. When tender remove with a skimmer, and season with a little butter, salt and pepper ; or, after they are drained, return to the saucepan, add a little sweet cream or milk, and heat to boiling. BOILED BEETS. Wash, but do not touch with a knife before they are boiled. If cut while raw, they bleed themselves pale in the hot water. Boil until tender ; if full-grown, at least two hours. When done put them into cold water for a moment ; then rub off the skins, slice Around if large, split if young, butter well. Salt and pepper to taste. A good way is to slice them upon a hot dish, mix a tablespoon of melted butter, with four or five of vinegar, pepper and salt, heat to boiling, and pour over the beets. The cold ones left over, pour vinegar over them, and use as pickles. CARROTS. Wash and scrape them well. If large, cut them in two, three, or four pieces. Put them in boiling water, with a little salt in it. Full-grown carrots will require three hours VEGETABLES. 129 boiling ; smaller ones two hours, and young ones an hour. Try them with a fork, and when thoroughly tender, take them up and dry them in a cloth. Divide them in pieces and split them, or cut them in slices. Season with butter, pepper and salt. They should accompany boiled beef or mutton. STEWED CARROTS. Boil one and a quarter pound of carrots. When tender, slice very thin in a saucepan, add two ounces of butter, stir two teaspoons of- salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper in two gills of cream, and pour it over the carrots ; let them stew fifteen minutes ; then put them into a vegetable dish, and leave the saucepan with the cream on the stove ; when it boils, stir in the well-beaten yolks of two eggs, and pour over the carrots. BOILED CAULIFLOWER. Pick off the outside leaves ; cut the stalk close to the flowers ; lay it in cold water for half an hour ; if very large, quarter it ; put it in boiling water ; salt a little ; cook until tender ; drain well ; place it on a hot dish ; pour over plenty of drawn butter ; remove it from the water as soon as it is done ; serve quickly ; it darkens while standing. CABBAGE WITH SALT PORK. Carefully wash a head of white cabbage, tear the leaves apart, and let it lay for half an hour in plenty of cold salted water ; meantime cut a pound of fat salt pork in inch pieces, put it over the fire in two quarts of cold water, and let the water gradually heat and boil ; in half an hour put in the cabbage, after cutting it in rather small pieces, and boil it steadily for half an hour ; then drain off the water, see that the pork and cabbage are palatably seasoned, and serve them together. An onion quartered, and put on top of the cabbage while boiling, will prevent its being indigestible. HOT SLAW. Mix together four tablespoons of vinegar, one of sugar, and the yolk of one raw egg ; add this dressing to as much cabbage as it will moisten, season the cabbage palatably with salt and pepper; put it over the fire in a covered saucepan, and let it come to the boiling point; when the cabbage begins to boil remove it from the fire, and serve it hot. COLD SLAW. Remove the outer green leaves from a firm head of white cabbage, cut the cabbage through the centre, cut out the tough stalk, put the cabbage into a large pan of salted cold water and let it stand for at least half an hour; then drain it, shave it on a cabbage-cutter, or chop it rather fine, and dress it with any of the salad dressings for which recipes are given. 130 HOME DISSERTATIONS. RED CABBAGE AND APPLES, PENN. STYLE. Wash a medium-sized head of firm, red cabbage, shave it rather fine, put it into a sauce- pan with a tablespoon each of butter and sugar, a gill of vinegar and a level teaspoon each of salt, whole cloves and peppercorns; set the saucepan on the back part of the stove, where its contents will steam gently, and let it cook; peel, quarter and core half a dozen tart apples, lay them on the top of the cabbage, and continue the cooking until the cabbage is tender; when the cabbage is done drain off the liquid portion, and make a sauce by boiling it with a tablespoon each of butter and flour which have been stirred together cold until they form a smooth paste; slip the cabbage out of the saucepan upon a deep dish without disturbing the apples; pour the sauce over them, and serve the dish hot, as a vegetable. The same kind of dish can be prepared with less danger of burning by baking it in the oven and putting the ingredients into an earthen jar or disn. BOILED GREEN CORN ON COB. Choose young sugar corn, full grown, but not hard, test with the nail. When the grain is pierced, the milk should escape in a jet, and not be thick. Clean by stripping off the outer leaves, turn back the innermost covering carefully, pick off every thread of silk, and recover the ear with the thin husk that grew nearest it, tie at the top with a bit of thread, put into boiling water salted, and cook fast from twenty minutes to a half ar. hour, in pro- portion to size and age. Cut off the stocks close to the cob, and send whole to table wrapped in a clean napkin. * STEWED GREEN CORN. Cut from the cob, and stew fifteen minutes in boiling water. Turn off most of this, cover with cold milk, and stew until very tender, adding before you take it up, a large lump of butter cut into bits and rolled in flour. Season with pepper and salt to taste, boil five minutes and serve. CELERY. Scrape and wash well, and let it lie in cold water til} shortly before it goes to the table; then dry it in a cloth, trim it, and split down the stocks almost to the bottom, leaving on a few green leaves. Send it to the table in a celery glass, with a little cold water and bits of ice. Or the white parts may be chopped fine and served with a salad dressing. CUCUMBERS. Pare from end to end, and lay in ice-water an hour. Wipe them and slice thin ; put them in cold water well salted for a few moments, turn the water off; season with pepper, salt, vinegar and oil, if you wish putting some pieces of ice between them, add thin slices of onions if desired. Cucumbers should be gathered while the dew is upon them, and eaten the same day. Leave them in a cool place until you are ready to pare them. VEGETABLES. 131 EGG PLANT FRIED. Pare and cut in slices half an inch thick; sprinkle with salt; cover, and let stand with a weight upon them for an hour. Rinse in clear cold water; wipe each slice dry; dip first in beaten egg, then in rolled cracker or bread crumbs, season with pepper and salt, and fry brown in butter. STUFFED EGG PLANT. Parboil to take off their bitterness. Then slit each one down the side, and take out the seeds, fill the cavity with a stuffing made of grated bread-crumbs, butter, minces sweet herbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and beaten yolk of egg. Bake and serve with drawn butter. TO BOIL ONIONS. Peel medium-sized white onions and let them stand in cold water one hour; then put them into boiling water, and boil fifteen minutes; pour out this water and put in more boil- ing water, and cook till soft; then pour off the water and put in a little milk; season with butter and salt, and let them cook in the milk about five minutes; thicken the gravy with a little flour and water. This way of cooking will take away the strong taste of the onions and make them tender outside as well as inside. BAKED ONIONS. Peel large onions, and boil one hour in plenty of water, slightly salted. Butter a shallow dish or a deep plate, and arrange the onions in it. Sprinkle with pepper and salt, put a teaspoon of butter in the centre of each onion, and cover lightly with crumbs. Bake slowly one hour. Serve with cream sauce. BOILED PARSNIPS. If young, scrape before cooking. If old, pare carefully, and if large, split. Put into boiling water, salted, and boil, if small and tender, from half to three-quarters of an hour. If full grown, more than an hour. When tender, drain and slice lengthwise, butter well, and serve very hot. FRIED PARSNIPS. Prepare as for boiled parsnips, cut in thick slices lengthwise. Dredge with flour, dip in a batter and fry in hot dripping or lard, turning when one side is brown. Drain off every drop of fat; pepper and serve hot. PARSNIP FRITTERS. Boil tender, mash smooth and fine, picking out the woody bits. For three large pars- nips allow two eggs, one cup of rich milk, one tablespoon of butter, one teaspoon of salt, three tablespoons of flour. Beat the eggs light, stir in the mashed parsnips, beating hard, then the butter and flour, next the milk, lastly the salt. Fry as fritters or as griddle cakes. 132 HOME DISSERTATIONS. GREEN PEAS. Green peas are unfit for eating after they become hard and yellowish; but they are better nearly full grown than when very small and young. They should be laid in cold water as soon as they are shelled. It will require about a half hour to boil them soft. When quite done, drain them, mix with them a piece of butter and a little pepper. A little cream or good milk added after they are drained and returned to the stew-pan and allowed to simmer a few moments is liked by some. Peas may be greatly improved by boiling with them two or three lumps of loaf-sugar. BAKED POTATOES. To bake potatoes quickly, pour boiling water over them and let them stand a minute or so before putting them into the oven. The excellence of baked potatoes depends upon eating them as soon as done, and not before. They are worthless till cooked, and dry rapidly so soon as baked through. BOILED POTATOES. Water enough to cover the potatoes put on the fire to boil. Then cut a ring around the potatoes to make them " mealy," and to render easy the removal of the remaining sections of skin. Put the potatoes into the water, when it begins to boil, or a little before, salt should be added liberally, a tablespoon to a quart or so of water. a Let them boil about fifteen minutes; the time, however, depends upon the size of the potatoes, and the season too, because later in the year potatoes take longer to boil, as the fibre is a little tougher and harder. Try them with a fork. If it pierces them easily pour off the water. Do not let them boil until they break open. Cover them with a dry towel, and set the pan con- taining them on the back of the stove, where the potatoes will keep warm without burning, until they become mealy, which will be in five or perhaps ten minutes." A brick should be placed on the stove for the tin to rest upon. Potatoes can be kept hot in that way for a couple of hours. Peeled potatoes should be boiled in the same way. The best of the potato is just under the skin; therefore, pare very thin. BROILED POTATOES. Cut boiled potatoes in slices, put the slices on the gridiron to broil. Have ready a heated platter, with melted butter to put them in. Broil quickly, season with pepper and salt, and serve hot, and as soon after broiling as possible. DUCHESS POTATOES. Boiled potatoes cold, cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper, and dip in melted butter and slightly in flour. Arrange them on a baking sheet, and bake fifteen minutes in> a quick oven. Serve very hot. VEGETABLES. 133 LYONNAISE POTATOES. Three tablespoons of butter put in a frying-pan, and when the butter is melted, a table- spoon of chopped onion fried in it till it is of a pale straw-color, then add a quart of cooked potatoes, sliced and thoroughly seasoned with salt and pepper. When they are hot a tablespoon of chopped parsely added and cooked two minutes. The onions may be omitted. SARATOGA POTATOES. Pare the potatoes, slice them thin as possible on a potatoe-cutter, leave them for an hour, in cold water, then dry them in a towel. Have a deep kettle of lard for frying them; when it is hot cover the surface with the dried slices, sprinkle a little salt over them, turn them with a skimmer, and when done lay them on a double brown paper in the oven open. Fry them all in this way, putting them upon the paper as they come from the lard. They are eaten both hot and cold, for breakfast, lunch, tea, sometimes with a fork, but oftener with the fingers. STEWED POTATOES. Pare, quarter, and soak in cold water an hour. Stew in enough salted water to cover them. Before taking up, and when they are breaking to pieces, drain off the water, and pour in a cup of milk. Boil three minutes, stirring well; put in a lump of butter the size of an egg, a little salt and a pinch of pepper; thicken slightly with flour, boil up well and turn into a covered dish. This is an excellent family dish. Children are usually fond of it, and it is very wholesome. Cold boiled potatoes may be served in the same manner, and are excellent. ROASTED SWEET POTATOES. Sweet, as well as Irish potatoes, are very good for picnic luncheon, roasted in hot ashes. This, it will be remembered, was the dinner General Marion set before the British officer as " quite a feast, I assure you, sir; we don't often fare so well as to have sweet potatoes and salt." The feast was cleansed from ashes by the negro orderly's shirt-sleeve, and served upon a natural trencher of pine bark. SALSIFY OR OYSTER PLANT FRIED. Having scraped the salsify roots, and washed them in cold water, parboil them. Take them out, drain them, cut them in small pieces and fry them in butter. STEWED SALSIFY. Stew slowly till quite tender, and then serve with melted butter. Or it may first be boiled, then grated, and made into cakes to be fried in butter. Salsify must not be left exposed to the air, or it will turn blackish. 134 HOME DISSERTATIONS. NEW SPINACH WITH POACHED EGGS. Trim off the roots and tough stalks of half a peck of new spinach, wash it in plenty of cold salted water until it is quite free from sand, put it over the fire in salted boiling water enough to cover it, and boil it fast for three minutes or longer, until it is just tender; do not allow it to become soft and watery; drain the spinach, throw it into a large pan of cold water until it is cool, then chop it very fine, or rub it through a colander with a potato masher; put it again over the fire to heat, with a palatable seasoning of salt and pepper; while the spinach is being heated poach half a dozen eggs soft, and when it is dished lay them upon it, and serve the dish hot. SUMMER SQUASH OR CYMLINGS. If the nail presses easily through the skin, do not remove it, or the seeds, which should be done if not young and tender. If quite small the cymlings may be cooked whole. Summer squash should be steamed and not boiled, as it will be less watery if steamed. When tender mash soft in a colander; then put them in a stew-pan, add butter, salt, and a little cream. When very hot serve. BAKED HUBBARD SQUASH. Wipe a squash with a wet towel, cut it in two-inch pieces, remove the thin outer skin and the seeds, but not the soft pulp in which the seeds are imbedded; put the pieces of squash in layers in a buttered earthen dish, seasoning each layer lightly with salt and pepper; midway of the dish, and on the upper layer of squash, put a tablespoon each of butter and sugar; place the dish in a hot oven and bake the squash for an hour; serve it hot, as a vegetable, in the dish in which it was baked. WINTER SQUASH. Pare it, take out the seeds, cut it in pieces, and steam it till quite soft. When tender, mash it with a little butter, pepper and salt. SUCCOTASH. Ten ears of green corn, one pint of Lima beans, or you can substitute for the latter string or buttered beans (have a third more corn than beans). Cut the corn from the cob and put it into boiling water, stew gently with the beans until tender, using as little water as possible; pour off nearly all the water, stir in a lump of butter, a teaspoon of flour wet with cold water, pepper and salt to taste. Milk may be added if you choose. BAKED STUFFED TOMATOES. Choose large, uniform size ripe tomatoes, remove the stem, and with a sharp knife cut off a slice from the stem end ; take out the core, place the tomatoes in a baking-dish and fill the orifice with bread-crumbs seasoned with butter, salt, pepper, a little sugar, and VEGETABLES. 135 grated onion if liked ; replace the tops and bake in a slow oven. When done remove them very carefully from the baking-dish and arrange on a hot dish; garnish with sprigs of parsley. BROILED TOMATOES. Select three large Florida tomatoes; split each in two, strew a little cracker-crumbs over the cut part, brush a little butter over all, broil over a slow fire and serve with melted butter, salt and pepper. STEWED TOMATOES. In stewing tomatoes, pour away the surplus water, so soon as they begin to boil, and add a small piece of butter, a very little sugar, pepper and salt ; cook about fifteen minutes, when stir in bread-crumbs, if you like them. BOILED TURNIPS MASHED. Peel and lay in cold water, slightly salted, put them in boiling water, and boil gently for an hour and a half, or until tender, Try them with a fork, and when tender, take them up, drain them on a sieve, and either send them to the table whole with melted butter, or mash them in the colander with a wooden spoon ; stirring in a little butter with pepper and salt to taste; serve hot. Setting in the sun after they are cooked, or on a part of the table upon which the sun may happen to shine, will give to turnips a singularly unpleasant taste, and should therefore be avoided. When turnips are very young, it is customary to serve stewed whole in milk. Mutton, either boiled or roasted, should always be accom- panied by turnips. BOILED MACARONI. Put it into boiling water and salt enough water to cover it, and a tablespoon of salt to a quart of water. Boil it until it is just tender enough to break easily between the fingers without being boiled in pieces. Then drain it and put it in cold water, and keep it there just long enough to cool it. It will then be ready to dress with any kind of sauce or cheese. Italian macaroni is recommended because it does not break in boi-ling, and, besides, has a very mild, pleasant taste and is more nutritious, since it is made of better wheat than the American, German, or French macaroni. Never wash macaroni before it is boiled. If it is dusty, wipe it off with a dry cloth. MACARONI WITH TOMATOES. Boil macaroni in a little water with a piece of beef until tender. Take out the meat, season the gravy with salt and pepper ; thicken with a little flour, and add the tomatoes strained. 136 HOME DISSERTATIONS. BOILED RICE. To boil rice so that all the grains will be separate and the mass perfectly dry, pick it over and take out any husks there may be in the rice ; wash it in cold water and drain it, and then put it into plenty of boiling water salted. Boil it for twelve minutes ; then drain it and cover it with the lid of the kettle or a thick towel. Let it stand ten or twelve minutes longer, until it is dry and the grains crack just a little. Then it will be ready to use. RICE CROQUETTES. To half a pound of rice, one quart of milk, one teacup of sugar, a very little butter, yolks of one or two eggs beaten, flavoring, and a little salt. Soak the rice three or four hours in water ; drain, and put into a basin with the milk and salt. Set the basin in the steamer, and cook until thoroughly done. Then stir in carefully the sugar, the yolks of one or two eggs, very little butter, and flavor with extract of lemon or vanilla. When cool enough to handle, form into small balls ; press the thumb into the centre of each ; insert a little marmalade, or jelly of any kind, and close the rice well over them. Roll in the beaten eggs (sweetened a little) and bread-crumbs. Fry in boiling hot lard. EGGS. " An egg is a good example of the different way in which the different substances which serve as our food are acted on by heat. Put it on the fire in a saucepan, with cold water ; let it heat gradually and slowly ; and you will find that the yolk is set before the white, and also before the water boils. The white becomes fixed soon afterwards, and at the temperature of scarcely boiling soft-water. You will, therefore, employ quite a moderate degree of heat for sauces thickened with yolk of egg, while a very little more heat will serve for dishes com- posed of the whites and yolks together. You understand why, if baked custards, rice puddings, and the like boil in their baking-dish, they are ruined, running into whey ; why boiled custards and creams containing eggs should be done in a bain-marie, or jar immersed in a saucepan of hot water ; why an omelette, left long enough in the pan to get penetrated by the heat of the butter in which it is fried, becomes leathery. Quick boiling converts the white of the egg into something very like gutta-percha, even though the yoke is not yet hard. Poached eggs, on the contrary, in which it is desirable to set the white speedily, in order to keep them whole and shapely, should be dropped not only into boiling water, but into water hotter than ordinary boiling water, i. e., quite fresh water. Now the boiling of water may be delayed ; that is, it may be made to get hotter before it comes to a boil, by dissolving in it any solid body less volatile than itself, such as common salt, when eleven or twelve degrees higher of Fahrenheit are required to produce ebullition. This is why plunging fish into boiling salt and water renders it firmer by suddenly coagulating the albumen. The greater heat so obtained also cooks vegetables more thoroughly. And the same hot liquid is best for poaching eggs ; they come out of their bath with smooth and clean, instead of ragged and untidy jackets." PROPER WAY TO COOK EGGS. Butter a tin plate and break in the eggs ; set in a steamer ; place over a kettle of boil- ing water and steam till the whites are cooked. They are more ornamental when broken EGGS. 137 into patty tins, as they keep their form better. The whites of the eggs, when cooked in this manner, are tender and light, and not tough and leathery, as if cooked by any other process ; they can be eaten by invalids, and they certainly are very much richer than by any other method. If cooked in the shell, they taste of the lime contained in them ; and if broken into boiling water, it destroys their flavor. M. EGG BALLS. Take the yolks of six hard-boiled eggs, mash them on a plate, with one large tablespoon of flour and some pepper ; when mixed to a paste, use enough raw egg to make it suffi- ciently moist to roll into balls or cakes. Put the balls in a dish and pour over them some cream and butter heated together ; cut the whites in rings and garnish with them. M. SOFT-BOILED EGGS. Wash the shells clean, put them in cold water over a quick fire until it comes to a boil when they will be just right for soft-boiled eggs if desired hard, let them boil two or three minutes longer. The flavor is more delicious if put in cold water first, instead of hot water. When, boiled in hot water, it should be boiling hot four minutes for soft-boiled, six to seven minutes for hard-boiled. Eggs cook in the shell, after being taken from the water, if not removed from the shell at once. Serve boiled eggs in a napkin. EASTER EGGS. Easter morning would be incomplete, for the children at least, without the brightly- colored eggs typical of the day. There are many ways of coloring the eggs, the easiest being the boiling of them with various colored dyes sold in small packages at the chem- ists'. An old-fashioned method was to tie each egg in a piece of figured chintz or calico, which would leave its imprint on the egg after it was exposed to the action of boiling water. Another good way to produce a variegated reddish purple color was to boil with the eggs the skins of red onions. To color the eggs with original designs, a provincial method was to trace figures upon the shells of raw eggs with a bit of hard tallow candle, thus covering the part of the shell which was desired white, and then to put the eggs in boiling dye-water. Sometimes the eggs are entirely dyed, and then designs are engraved upon them with a sharp knife or a strong trussing or darning needle. When the prepared dye stuffs are not available, varied colors may be produced by using the following named chemicals, boiling a small quantity with the eggs : red, Brazil wood ; yellow, Persian berries, or a very little turmeric ; brown, a strong dye of turmeric ; claret color, logwood ; black, logwood and chromate of potash ; blue, a mixture of powdered indigo, crystals of sulphate of iron, and a little dry slacked lime. The eggs should always be boiled for ten minutes at least. 138 HOME DISSERTATIONS. POACHED EGGS. Have over the fire a large shallow frying-pan half full of boiling water, salted; put in half a cup of vinegar and a teaspoon of salt, and then drop in the eggs, which must previously be broken in cups ; small rings may be set in the pan, an egg being poured into each one without breaking the yolk, or an egg-poacher of perforated tin may be used ; when the eggs are done to the desired degree take each one up separately on a skimmer, trim off the uneven edges, and then serve on toasted bread. FRIED EGGS. After frying ham, drop the eggs one by one in the hot fat, and dip it over them until the white is set. They may be served alone, or on the ham ; or they may be fried in other fat and served on broiled ham. An egg on each piece of ham to be served together. SCRAMBLED EGGS. Heat two ounces of butter in a frying-pan ; break six eggs in a bowl, and throw a half teaspoon of salt over them ; pour them, unbeaten, into the hot butter, and as they cook, scrape them from the sides and bottom of the pan. Cooking them in this way leaves strips of the white and yellow through the dish. If this is not liked, the eggs may be beaten before they are put in the frying-pan, and stirred constantly while cooking to avoid the large pieces. Be careful not to let them get stiff, nor have the dish on which they are served too hot. When served, sprinkle with pepper. One gill of milk or cream may be added to the beaten eggs, in the above recipe, and they may be scrambled in a baking dish, and sent in to the table. SHIRRED EGGS. Butter as many small dishes, which come for the purpose, as you wish to serve, one for each person ; into each dish break two eggs, taking care that each is whole, and does not encroach upon the other so much as to disturb the yolk. Sprinkle sparingly with pepper and salt, and put a bit of butter on each. Put them into an oven and bake until the whites are well set. Serve immediately in the same dish in which they are cooked. Each per- son shirs or mixes them together, according to taste. Or the eggs may be shirred alto- gether in one large earthen or silver dish. OMELETTES. An omelette pan should be used exclusively for the purpose. When the omelette is made the pan should be put away in a clean, dry place, bottom up; when needed, warm on a slow fire and wipe clean with a towel, but do not wash it unless something unclean gets into it. PLAIN OMELETTE. Porportions : One ounce of butter and a pinch of salt to four eggs. Process : Beat the eggs and salt ; the eggs should not be beaten too much, as it makes them thin and destroys the appearance of the omelette. Place the butter in the pan over a good fire, melt the butter quickly EGGS. 139 without allowing it to brown, turn the eggs in ; as it cooks raise the edge with a knife, and press it slightly towards the centre ; the moment it is thickened or " set " fold the omelette by turning one half over the other, then turn the pan upside down upon a warm dish, so that the under side of the omelette when in the pan will be the upper side when on the dish. It should be soft, juicy and smooth. It is unnecessary to add water or milk if cooked properly it is soft enough without any liquid being mixed with the eggs. Omelettes are often spoiled by making too slowly. An omelette can not be made too quickly. VEGETABLES IN OMELETTES. If vegetables are to be added, they should be already cooked, seasoned, and hot ; place in the centre of the omelette, just before turning : so with mushroom, shrimps, or any cooked ingredient. ASPARAGUS OMELETTE. Prepare same as plain omelette. When ready to fold, place a cup of asparagus points cooked, hot and seasoned, in the middle of the omelette, double it, and finish the same as jelly omelette. BLAZING OMELETTES. When made and turned on the warm dish, sprinkle with sugar, and with the end of a red-hot poker touch it on the top here and there, or in fanciful shapes, according to taste. Pour over it a wineglass of good Jamaica rum or brandy, and set it on fire with a match ; serve at once and dip the liquor with a silver spoon over the omelette as long as it will burn. KIDNEY OMELETTES. Wipe half a beef kidney with a wet towel, cut it in small slices, rejecting all veins and membranes, put it over the fire in a frying-pan with two heaping tablespoons of butter and fry it quickly. Meantime break three eggs, beat them with a saltspoon of salt and a little pepper ; put a heaping dessertspoon of butter in a frying-pan over the fire, and when it is melted pour in the beaten egg ; break the omelette a little while it is cooking, so that the uncooked portion may run to the bottom of the pan; when the uncooked portion is sufficiently done, pour the kidney in the middle of it, fold it together, turn it out on a hot dish, and serve it hot. PARSLEY OMELETTE. A few sprigs of parsley chopped fine, add a little grated nutmeg, and mix with the beaten eggs, finish as directed. Parsley and chives prepared as above is called Omelette aux fines herbes. HAM OR BACON OMELETTE. If the ham is raw, cut in small pieces ; put it in the butter, when cooked, turn the beaten eggs over it ; finish as directed. If boiled ham is used, cut in small pieces and mix with the beaten eggs. Bacon may be used in the same manner. 140 HOME DISSERTATIONS. * CHEESE OMELETTE, A little cheese grated, or cut in thin square pieces ; mix it with the beaten eggs ; finish as directed. The best kind of cheese are Swiss cheese, Gruyere Parmesan and pine-apple cheese. JELLY, JAM, OR MARMALADE OMELETTE. Rub off the yellow part of the lemon with a piece of loaf sugar ; pound the sugar in a mortar and mix it with the beaten eggs. When the omelette is ready to double up place a few spoonfuls of apple jelly on the middle of the omelette, and double it so the jelly is concealed. Any kind of jams, or marmalades, and, in fact, any kind of sweetmeat, may be used in the same way. BREAD. " Give us this day our daily bread." " In the English language there is no nobler word than lady. But go back to its origin, and what do we find that it means ? We find that it means she that looks after the loaf, the guardian of the bread. And to look rightly after the loaf, must not the ' lady ' herself have been able to make it, and able to teach her maids how to make it ? Most certainly. " In our day ' lady ' has, indeed, a wider meaning than this its early sense. But there is not a lady in the land who would not add to her accomplishments in the ability to make good bread." Bread, good bread, is of pre-eminent importance and should receive our first consideration. If you have good bread other food can be added, very easily; but, without good bread everything else is as nothing, bread being the numeral, and all other adjuncts, units as it were. There need be no morsel of bread wasted, recipes will be given for using all that has become dry and stale. HOW. TO DISTINGUISH GOOD FLOUR. To make good bread you must have the best flour, which is far more satisfactory and economical in the end. The best flour is yellowish white ; when handled it is lively and will stick to the fingers. TO MAKE GOOD BREAD. Next in importance to good flour, is good yeast or emptings. Flour should always be sifted and put in a warm place, to get thoroughly warmed and dried before the sponge is made. Bread is much better and more tender wet with milk than with water, and requires less flour and less kneading. Some prefer a little shorten- ing. In making good bread, great care must be taken of it, mixing, kneading and baking all require the closest attention. If milk is used, it must be new, and in warm weather it must be scalded, and then cooled until but luke- warm ; the batter must be of the right temperature when the yeast is put in ; if hot, . the life of the yeast is destroyed ; if cold, much time is lost in rising. If you cannot use all milk for wetting the flour, a part milk is better than all water. If liked, put half a cup of shortening melted in the wetting, to one large loaf, or added to the sponge after it has risen the first time. One cup of yeast to every two loaves. The dough should be kept warm from the time it is mixed until it is baked, it will rise quicker and be better for it. Mix the sponge stiff, if set at night in cold weather, put it where it will keep warm, otherwise you had better wait until morning in summer the natural heat is sufficient. R. T. ACRES H. E. P. WILLIAMS Telephone 423 SAN FXANCSSCO Blank Book Manufacturers Book Binders Lithographers, Printers ai?d Boupd IT) tl?e latest elotl? bipdir^s THE BANCROFT COMPANY PUBLISHERS, BOOKSELLERS, STATIONERS 721 MARKET ST., SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. PRINTERS, LITHOGRAPHERS, ENGRAVERS 49 FIRST STREET OICE EXTRA STARR&CO I6 CALIFORNIA ST FRANCISCO. This Brand of Flour Leads all others ! Try It;! OAKLAND DEPOT: FOOT OF FRANKLIN STREET. THE VIENNA MODEL BAKERY 205 Kearny Street R. BECK, - Proprietor San Francisco, Aiig. 26, 1891 THE CENTRAL MILLING CO. Gentlemen: We cheerfully recommend yo^lr "DRIFTED SNOW Flour as being the whitest and best family flour we have ever used. Yours, R. BECK & CO. Vienna Model Bakery MOST POPULAR UNITED STATES DUFF GORDON SHERRY THE MEDICAL DEPARTMENT OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY awarded their last contract for Sherry to agents of MESSRS. DUFF, GORDON X GO. In preference to all other Competitors. Charles Meinecke& Co,, 314 Sacramento St., San Francisco Sole /I<$ei)t5 pacific Qoast BREAD. 141 If the sponge is set at night and kept warm it will be light in the morning and should be kneaded at once in one large lump, then let it stand to rise again, when light mould into loaves. The more bread is kneaded before forming the loaves, the better it will be, but it should be kept soft as possible, using as little flour as you can ; when the loaves are formed put them into well-buttered pans or in rows in one large pan. Set the pans in a warm place for an hour, with a cloth thrown over them to exclude the air and dust ; then bake in an oven not hotter than you can hold your hand in while counting thirty ; keep a uniform fire. When baked, which will require about an hour, let it stand in the pans a few moments, then turn out and place in an upright or stand- ing position. Do not cover the bread up in cloths ; it spoils the taste ; turn the pans, and let i-t rest against them without covering. When cold put it away in a well-aired, clean stone crock, and keep it closely covered. Keep it in a cool place. All kinds of yeast bread is made by this method. You can add mashed boiled potatoes to any kind of bread and it will improve it, one teacup of potato to every loaf. Dry bread can also be used, first remove the crust, then moisten it in the wetting, proportioning a half loaf of the dry bread to two of the new. HOP YEAST. This yeast will keep a long time. Six potatoes, double handful hops, three tablespoons flour, three tablespoons salt, three tablespoons yeast, two tablespoons sugar, one table- spoon ginger. Tie the hops in a coarse muslin bag, boil in two quarts of water. Grate the potatoes ; pour on them the hop water, boiling hot, of which there must be one quart, which forms a starch, add the flour, salt, sugar, ginger, stir thoroughly and set aside until lukewarm, then add three tablespoons of good yeast, set it in a warm place to rise ; when light and spongy, which will take about three or four hours, put it in a jug that can be corked air-tight, and keep it in a cool place. After the first time some of the yeast can be saved to raise the next with. SALT RISING, OR EMPTINGS. Pour a pint of boiling hot water into a two-quart bowl or pail, on a half teaspoon of salt, half teaspoon of sugar ; when the finger can be held in it, add enough flour to make a stiff batter ; mix well, and set it in a kettle of warm water ; keep it at the same temper- ature until the batter is nearly twice its original bulk, which will be in from five to eight hours. It may be stirred once or twice during the rising. The salt rising, or empting, can be set at night, the kettle being left in a warm oven, and will be risen by morning. Add this to a sponge made of one quart of warm water and two and a half quarts of flour, adding as much more as may be necessary to make a soft dough ; mix well, and leave it in a warm place to rise ; when light mould into loaves, keeping them soft as possible ; lay them in buttered tins, and when light, prick and bake. R. BEST STEAMED BROWN BREAD. Three cups sour milk or buttermilk, two-thirds cup of molasses, three eggs, one tea- spoon ginger, two teaspoons soda heaped a little, a little salt, one-third part flour, two- thirds part corn meal. Make a soft batter, put it into a tin pail, put this pail into a kettle 142 HOME DISSERTAIONS. of boiling water, not letting the water come high enough to boil into the pail or wet the bread in the least. Cover the kettle tight. It is not necessary to cover the pail. Boil four hours, taking care that there is always water in the kettle. Hot water must be used to keep up the supply, being careful not to wet the bread. This makes also an excellent pudding to use with sauce. GRAHAM BREAD. One cup of milk and one of water ; bring to scalding point, and remove from fire ; add small piece of butter, same as you would for the white bread ; add half a cup of coffee- sugar, or clean, dry, yellow sugar ; salt, and when cool enough stir into the Graham flour. And here let me say you want the best no spring-wheat Graham flour without you want a sticky bread. Sift the flour, if it seems to have an undue proportion of bran. One-fourth of a cake of compressed yeast, dissolved in half a cup of water ; stir the batter as stiff as possible with a spoon. When light, stir in half a saltspoon of soda, dissolved in a little water. Do not add anymore flour, but turn it in the pan, and sponge not quite so much as the white bread. Bake in one loaf, in a long, deep tin. When baking brown bread, do not open the oven until it is nearly done, for it is very sensitive to the cold air, and will fall, and no amount of baking will make it rise again. RYE BREAD. One cup of rye meal ; one of Indian meal ; one of molasses ; two of flour ; one pint and a half of sour milk ; a teaspoon of soda ; an egg ; one teaspoon of salt. Mix the dry ingredients together. Dissolve the soda in two tablespoons of boiling water. Add it and the milk to the molasses. Stir well and pour on the other mixed ingredients. Beat the egg and add it. Mix thoroughly, and pour into a well-buttered tin pan that holds two quarts. Steam two hours, and then put in the oven for half an hour. SODA BISCUIT WITHOUT MILK. One quart flour ; two heaping tablespoons butter, chopped up in the flour ; two cups cold water ; two teaspoons cream tartar, sifted thoroughly with the flour ; one teaspoon soda, dissolved in boiling water ; a little salt. When flour, cream of tartar, salt and butter are well incorporated, stir the soda into the cold water, and mix the dough very quickly, handling as little as may be. It should be just stiff enough to roll out. Stiff soda biscuit are always failures. Roll half an inch thick with a few rapid strokes, cut out, and bake at once in a quick oven. SOUTHERN RAISED BISCUIT. Heat a pint of milk to melt a heaping tablespoon of butter, and then cool it until it is lukewarm ; beat an egg smoothly, add to it a level teaspoon of salt, a gill of good yeast, a quart of flour and the lukewarm milk ; cover the bowl or pan containing this sponge with BREAD. 143 a folded towel, and let it stand over night in a place warm enough to insure its rising properly ; the next morning knead the dough gently for five minutes, using enough flour to prevent its sticking to the hands ; make it up in small biscuit, put them into a buttered baking-pan, cover them with a folded towel and put the pan in a warm place for half an hour, or until the biscuit have swollen to twice their original size ; do not put the pan where it is too hot to hold the hand ; when the biscuit are light brush them over the surface with a little sugar dissolved in milk, or with melted butter, and then bake them brown in a quick oven and serve them hot. VIENNA ROLLS. One quart flour ; half teaspoon salt ; two teaspoons baking powder ; one table- spoon lard ; one pint milk. Sift together flour, salt and baking powder, rub in the lard, which must be cold, add the milk and mix into a smooth dough in the bowl easy to be handled without sticking to the hands or board ; flour the board, turn it out and give it a quick knead or two to equalize it, then roll it out to the thickness of half an inch; cut with round cutter, fold one half on the other, doubling it; lay it on a greased baking sheet with- out touching ; brush with a little milk to glaze them ; bake in a hot oven fifteen minutes. FRENCH ROLLS. One pint of milk ; one small cup of home-made yeast ; flour enough to make a stiff batter ; raise over night ; in the morning add one egg, one tablespoon of butter and flour enough to make it stiff to roll. Mix it well and let it rise, then knead it again to make it fine and white ; roll out, cut with a round tin and fold over, put them in a pan and cover very close. Set them in a warm place until they are very light, bake quickly, and you will have delicious rolls. K. ENGLISH JOHNNY CAKE. Boil a pint of sweet milk ; pour it over a teacup and a half of Indian corn meal and beat it for fifteen minutes. Unless well beaten, it will not be light. Add a little salt, half a teacup of sour milk, one beaten egg, a tablespoon of melted butter, a tablespoon of flour, and a teaspoon of carbonate of soda. Beat well together again. This cake is best baked in a spider on the stove. When browned on the bottom, turn it into another spider, or finish it off on the pan-cake griddle R. AMERICAN JOHNNY CAKE. Two cups buttermilk or sour milk ; one half cup of molasses ; two eggs ; one half tea- spoon ginger ; one teaspoon soda ; butter half the size of an egg ; a little salt ; one part flour ; two parts corn meal ; make a batter of medium thickness, bake thirty to forty minutes in hot oven. i 4 4 HOME DISSERTATIONS. BOILED INDIAN MEAL MUSH. Put over the fire a saucepan containing about two quarts of water and a level tablespoon of salt ; into this water, when it boils, stir enough Indian meal to make a mush thick enough to hold the pudding-stick upright in it when it boils ; about two pounds of Indian meal will thicken two quarts of water ; unless it seems quite easy to sift the meal gradually into the boiling water with the left hand, while the right is used constantly for stirring, the meal may be mixed to a thin batter with cold water and then poured and stirred gradually into the boiling water; the addition of two heaping tablespoons of flour to each pound of Indian meal before cooking will make the mush easier to fry, because the flour will hold the slices of mush together during the frying ; after the mush has been stirred quite free from lumps let it boil for an hour, stirring it often enough to prevent burning, and using only enough heat to maintain it at the boiling point ; when the mush is sufficiently cooked pour it into pans or earthen dishes wet with cold water, and let it cool; it will then be ready to slice and fry. Mush made in this way not quite so stiff is excellent with milk, or cream and sugar. FRIED MUSH. When prepared aS above, cut in slices about half an inch thick. Beat an egg and put it in a shallow dish; wet the pudding in the egg and fry brown in hot lard, of which there should be sufficient to keep the pan from getting dry. This is excellent for breakfast, with maple syrup or sugar. P. GRAHAM GEMS. One egg, one tablespoon molasses, two cups buttermilk, one teaspoon soda, a little salt, Graham enough to make a stiff batter. Bake in hot gem pans. R. FLOUR OF THE WHOLE WHEAT. This contains all the nourishing substance of the wheat, and is better than Graham flour, tne hull being entirely removed. It makes good bread, but muffins and griddle-cakes made of it are especially good. It is brown, but as fine as the white flour. Ask for flour of the whole wheat. R. MUFFINS. One quart of flour, one and one-fourth pints of milk, one tablespoon of sugar, one tea- spoon salt, two teaspoons of baking powder; bake in hot oven about thirty minutes. They are good with part water and part milk if the supply of milk should fall short. Double or treble the quantity at pleasure. Also good baked in loaves as well as in muffin rings or patty pans. Bread like white bread only mixed softer. R. SALLY LUNNS. One quart flour, one teaspoon salt, two teaspoons baking powder, two-thirds cup butter, four eggs, one half pint of milk ; rub the butter into the flour ; mix to a firm batter ; bake in two round cake-tins twenty-five minutes in a hot oven. BREAD. 145 WAFFLES. Beat carefully into one quart of flour one quart of sweet milk, one cup of melted butter, half a teaspoon of salt, and a scant half cup of good home-made yeast. When raised add two eggs well beaten, and let the batter rise half an hour longer. Bake as soon as light in hot greased waffle-irons. Waffles are much better made with yeast than with soda and cream-tartar, or any yeast powder. DRY BREAD. GRIDDLE CAKES FOR SUNDAY BREAKFAST. It is a mistake to suppose that bread-pudding, like broiled steaks, are necessary to existence. It is very melancholy to see so many ways divulged for using " stale " bread, whereby dry slices and crusts might suffer a sea-change Into something rich and strange. I am not very much interested in these ways, there are so many better puddings than "bread puddings " to be had at less expense. I've never been able to see the economy of wasting eggs, milk, raisins and spices just for the sake of " saving " a few crusts ! The best way to deal with stale bread is to resolve not to hare any that is too stale to be agreeable. Good bread baked twice a week and kept in a stone jar in a cool, dry place will generally be eaten as bread, but if a few crusts accumulate each week they can be merged into palatable griddle- cakes for Sunday breakfast. Let them soak in three cups of rich, sweet milk until soft, then stir in two or three well-beaten eggs, a dessertspoon of baking powder, and enough flour to create the right consistency. They will be found as delicate and tender as rice cakes ; and eaten only once a week, will not preceptibly shorten life. QUICK BUCKWHEAT CAKES. Any one can make delicious Buckwheat Cakes by using Hecker's Self -Raising Buckwheat as follows: Have the griddle hot. Measure two even cupfuls of Hecker's Self-Raising Buckwheat and two of the same sized cupfuls of cold water or milk. Stir the buckwheat with part of the water or milk until it forms a soft dough; then add the balance of the liquid the less stirring the better. Bake or fry immediately. Keep the batter in a, cool' place if not wanted for immediate use. Two teaspoonfuls of good molasses mixed in the batter will give the cakes a rich brown color. OATMEAL GRUEL. FOR INVALIDS. Take from two to four ounces of Hecker's Rolled Oats, two quarts of water, one teaspoonful salt. Soak the oatmeal over night in half the water. In the morning strain through a coarse tarletan bag, pressing through all the farinaceous matter that will go. Add the rest of the water with the salt, and boil down until it begins to thicken perceptibly. Let it cool enough to become almost a jelly, and eat with powdered sugar and cream. It is very good for others besides invalids. 146 HOME DISSERTATIONS. OHIO OATMEAL. Put into plenty of boiling water as much oatmeal as is required, if there is not an abundance of water at first the oatmeal will not be very good no matter how much is added during cooking. Allow two quarts of boiling water to one cup of oatmeal which has been wet with cold water. Boil one hour, stirring often, and then add half a teaspoon of salt, and boil an hour longer. Some soak it over night to hasten the cooking. This makes it clammy. It is also clammy when it is allowed to cook after it is thoroughly done. The oatmeal must be bought of a reliable grocer who will not furnish a stale article. Cracked wheat may be cooked in the same way. . SCOTCH OATMEAL PORRIDGE. Scotch oatmeal porridge is made with milk and water, in proportion of one part of the former to two of the latter. Allow two ounces of oatmeal to a pint and a half of milk and water, and boil half an hour. STRAWBERRY SHORT-CAKE. Make a soda-biscuit crust with one quart of flour ; divide it in two equal parts ; it is to be served on a platter, roll the crust the shape and size inside the rim ; if a dinner-plate is to be used, make the cakes round. Roll them half an inch thick, prick well, and bake in a hot oven. Split the cakes, lay one half on the plate, crust down ; butter, and put over it a thick layer of strawberries and sugar ; then another half cake, butter, strawberries and sugar and so on ; the last half may be a cover, the crust side up, or it may be turned and covered with fruit like the others. Leave it in the oven from five to ten minutes, and serve smoking hot. Epicures prefer the strawberries crushed with sugar before putting between the cake layers. CREAM TOAST. One quart milk ; two tablespoons of flour dissolved in a little milk ; the spoon should be heaped ; salt to taste. Let the milk come to a boil ; add the flour, stirring till it boils. Let it boil four minutes. It should be as thick as cream. Vienna bread makes the best toast. Brown it, and pour the thickened milk over it just before it is served. It is better not to pour it upon the bread while boiling, for it makes the bread too soft to be palatable. If made just right it is delicious. BREAD-CRUMBS. The pieces of bread should be dried thoroughly by placing them in a pan on a shelf over the stove. "When dry, roll them with a rolling-pin and sift them through a flour sieve. The fine crumbs will be as fine as meal, and are used for what is called breading, covering chops or oysters, or croquettes by dipping them first in the crumbs, then in egg beaten up, and again in the crumbs, and then frying them. The coarse crumbs are very much better than flour for plum or bread pudding." Keep in paper bags. CAKE. /Pandarus. He that will have a cake out of the wheat must needs tarry the grinding. 7'roiius. Have I not tarried ? Pandarus. Ay, the grinding, but you must tarry the bolting. Troilus. Have I not tarried? Pandarus. Ay, the bolting, but you must tarry the leavening. Troihis. Still have I tarried. Pandarus. Ay, to the leavening ; but here's in a word ' hereafter ' the kneading, the making of the cake, the heating of the oven and the baking ; nay, you must stay the cooling too. or you may chance to burn your lips. Troilus. Patience herself, what goddess e'er she be. Doth lesser blench at sufferance than I do. TROILUS AND CRESSIDA. Ail the* ingredients for making cake must be of the best quality. Good flour, dry white sugar, remember- ig that there is no intermediate degrees of quality in butter and eggs, they are either good or bad. " English currants come to us with so much of their native soil, that they should be thoroughly cleansed. " The process is necessarily so long and troublesome that it is better to wash several pounds at once ; a year's supply. Put them in a milk-pan with a quantity of warm water ; after rubbing them thoroughly pour off the water and put the currants into the colander; rinse the pan, set the colander in it, and pour over the fruit as much cold water as the pan will hold, then wash the currants well, and stir them about so that the clean water may run in as the dirty water runs out. If needfaj take another water, and still another. Persevere until the fruit does not change the color of the water, then let it drain in the colander for half an hour. Spread a large cloth on the table, pour the currants in the centre, and rub them with the sides and ends, absorbing as much of the water as possible ; when the cloth is quite damp spread a dry one, and cover it thinly with the fruit. This work should be done in a good light, that all foreign substances may be seen and removed. Through the whole process keep a constant "lookout for breakers" for jelly-cake, which bakes in a few moments, it should be ready when the cake goes into the oven. The whites of three eggs will make sufficient icing for two loaves of cake. Icing will keep for weeks, closely covered in a cool place. If too stiff from partial drying, add a little water. The whites of eggs will keep several days. The white of a common-sized egg weighs one ounce. Cake should be wrapped in a thick cloth as soon as cool, and kept in tight tin boxes. Do not cut more at a time than you are likely to use, as it is not good when dry. Jelly-cakes are best set away on plates, cicfhs wrapped oioseiy about them, and a box enclosing all. ANGEL CAKE. Whites of eleven eggs, one and a half cups of granulated sugar, one cup of pastry flour, measured after being sifted four times, one teaspoon cream of tartar, one teaspoon extract vanilla. Stir the flour and cream of tartar together. Beat the whites to a stiff froth. Beat the sugar into the eggs, and add the seasoning and flour, stirring quickly and lightly. Beat until ready to put the mixture in the oven. Use a tubed pudding pan, eleven inches in diameter on top, eight and a quarter inches on bottom ; height, four and a quarter inches. Three legs, equal distance apart, to project one and a half inches above top of pan and riveted to the outside. Tube five and one-eighth inches long. Use this dish for (no other purpose. Do not butter the pan. Bake forty minutes. Keep a pint di. c L of hot 'water in the oven while baking. Do not open the oven door for at least twenty minutes after being put in. Avoid jarring the oven while the cake is baking. When the forty minutes have passed, take out the tin, turn it bottom side up, and leave the cake to fall out itself. CAROLINA CAKE. One pound of sugar, quarter of a pound of butter, one pound of flour, half a pint of cream, one teaspoon of soda. Cream the sugar and butter, work the flour smoothly in, CAKE. 149 next the cream, and lastly the soda, stir lightly and rapidly together, and bake quickly, in small patty-pans. Eat while fresh. COCOANUT LAYER CAKE. One cup sugar, one cup flour, one-half teaspoon cream of tartar, one-quarter teaspoon soda, one tablespoon of boiling water, three eggs ; beat the yolks of the eggs, stir in the sugar, then the whites beaten to a stiff froth, then the flour with cream tartar mixed through it, then the soda dissolved in the boiling water; bake in three or four cakes in layer pans in a quick oven. Make an icing of the whites of two eggs, and six heaping table- spoons of pulverized sugar ; spread the icing on one cake, then a layer of cocoanut, then icing, then another cake, and so on ; soak the cocoanut, before using it, in a little milk. BOSTON CREAM CAKES. Into one pint of boiling water stir four ounces of butter, six of flour, and when cool, add five eggs, well beaten, and one-half teaspoon of baking powder ; beat up thoroughly, and bake in patty-pans in a very hot oven. When cool, with a sharp knife cut a small opening and fill with the custard, which you will make in this way : One pint of boiling milk, one cup of sugar, three beaten eggs, one-half cup of corn-starch, and flavored with lemon or vanilla, as preferred. HICKORY-NUT MACCAROONS. One cup of hickory-nut meats, pounded in a mortar ; one cup of sugar, one egg and a half, and two tablespoons of flour; bake on a greased paper; put very little in a place. CUP CAKE. Four eggs, four tumblers of sifted flour, three tumblers of powdered white sugar, one tumbler of butter, one tumbler of rich milk, one nutmeg, one teaspoon powdered cinna- mon, one small teaspoon soda. Warm the milk and put in the butter, keeping it by the fire until the butter is melted. Beat the eggs very light and stir into the milk, in turn with the flour, add the spice, and lastly the soda dissolved in a little vinegar. Stir all very hard. Butter small tin pans, half fill them, and bake in a moderate oven of equal heat throughout. R. COOKIES. One quart flour, one cup milk, two heaping teaspoons baking powder, one and one- half cups sugar, two eggs, butter size of an egg, half a nutmeg. Beat sugar, butter and eggs together. Roll out thin and cut in whatever shape is desired. COOKIES WITHOUT EGGS. Two cups white sugar, one cup butter, one cup sour milk, three cups flour, one small teaspoon soda, lemon extract, more flour to roll out. Bake in a hot oven. 150 HOME DISSERTATIONS. P. GINGER COOKIES. One cup molasses, one cup brown sugar, one egg, one cup lard, one-half cup warm water, one teaspoon soda, ginger and salt to the taste. CRULLERS. One cup sour cream, one cup sugar, one egg, small teaspoon soda, a little salt ; spice to taste. Mix soft with flour. Fry in boiling lard. P. COFFEE CAKE. One cup sugar, one cup molasses, half cup butter, one cup coffee, one cup raisins, one teaspoon soda, two eggs ; spice as you please. Add flour to make stiff batter as for cup cake. R. DOUGHNUTS. One egg, one cup of sugar, one cup of milk, one tablespoon of butter, salt and spice to taste, two teaspoons of baking-powder, one quart of flour. Roll out and cut with cake- cutter, making a hole in the middle with a very small cake-cutter. Fry in boiling lard. Turn as soon as brown. These will not soak fat if taken out as soon as done. ECLAIRS. Put one cup of boiling water and one-half cup of butter in a large saucepan. When it boils up, turn in one pint flour. Beat well with the vegetable masher. When perfectly smooth, remove from the fire. Break five eggs into a bowl. When the paste is nearly cold, beat the eggs into it with the hand. Only a small part of the eggs should be added at a time. When the mixture is thoroughly beaten, spread, on buttered sheets, in oblong pieces, about four inches long and one and a half wide. Place about two inches apart. Bake, in rather a quick oven, for about twenty-five minutes. As soon as they are done, ice with frosting made of the whites of two eggs and one and a half cups of powdered sugar. Flavor with a teaspoon of vanilla. When the icing is cold, cut the eclairs on one side, and fill them. Filling. Put one and a half cups milk in the double boiler. Beat together two-thirds cup of sugar, one-quarter cup of flour, stir the mixture into the boiling milk. Cook fifteen minutes, stirring often. A chocolate icing may be made by putting two squares of scraped chocolate with five tablespoons of powdered sugar and three of boiling water. Stir over the fire until smooth and glossy. Dip the top of the eclairs into this, as they come from the oven. B. FRUIT CAKE WITHOUT BUTTER OR EGGS. Thirteen ounces of fat pork chopped very fine, one pint of boiling water poured on the chopped pork ; two cups of sugar, one cup of molasses, one tablespoon of saleratus, one tablespoon of cloves, one tablespoon of cinnamon, four cups of flour, and one pound of raisins. A & C HAMS Jtye be5t ip ttye market. They are very lightly salted. Mild, delicious flavor. One trial will prove them the best in the world. The highest grade Champagne in the World WHITE I. V Itl I "Carte Blanche." A Magnificent Rich Wine. BROWN I.AltKI, "Grand Vin Sec." Perfection of a Dry Wine. BRUT (BROW** I.AIJ1.I, Finest of all Champagnes. See that every bottle bears the private label of MACONDRAY & CO. SOLE AGENTS FOR THE PACIFIC COAST PHOTOGRAPHERS BANCROKT BUILDING, 723 MARKET STREET CABINETS, $4.00 per dozen ; CRAYONS from $10 up. Berlin Panels, Handkerchief Prints, Porcelain and Watch Dials executed in the highest style of art. SEE OUR DOOR DISPLAY! ENGELBERG'S GERMAN BAKERY AND CONFECTIONERY F. SIEBRECHT, - PROPRIETOR 416 KEARNY ST., bet. Cal. and Pine San Francisco, Aug. 26, 1891 THE CENTRAL MILLING CO. Gentlemen: I think your "Drifted Snow Flour' is the best in the market. F. SIEBRECHT, 416 Kearny St. Palace Hotel, San Francisco, Cat, August 28, THE CENTRAL MILLING CO. Gentlemen: After thoroughly testing your "Drifted Snow Flour" I take pleasure in recommend- ing it as a first-class article in every particular. Yours truly, J. IV. YOUNG, Steward Palace Hotel S. . & J. C. MOTT'S PURE NEW YORK CIDER /T\ott'$ (garbopatqd /T\ott's CIDER VINEGAR ) i eo, 1O7 FRONT ST., SAN KRANCISCO CAKE. 151 R. FRUIT CAKE, PLAIN. One cup sugar, one-half cup molasses, two-thirds cup of butter, three eggs, one-half cup of milk, two even teaspoons soda one cup raisins, one-half cup currants, a little citron, flour to beat stiff. R. WEDDING FRUIT CAKE. One pound sugar, one pound flour, one pound butter, eight eggs, two pounds raisins, one pound currants, one pound citron, one tablespoon molasses, one cup sour milk, two even teaspoons soda, one teaspoon each of spices of all kinds ; flour for stiff batter. Bake two hours in a moderate oven, sprinkling a little flour over the cake, and put on frosting while the cake is hot. Frosting. Nine teaspoons sugar to the white of one egg, one teaspoon of powdered starch, one teaspoon strained lemon juice ; add a little sugar, then beat thin ; add a little more sugar, beat till it is stiff enough. This cake will keep a year. R. FEATHER CAKE. One egg, one cup of sugar, one cup of milk, butter the size of an egg, two teaspoons of cream tartar, one teaspoon of soda, flour for thin batter. Beat the egg, sugar and butter to a cream ; then add milk and flour ; mix cream tartar with the flour, and dissolve the soda in the milk. Bake in a quick oven twenty to thirty minutes. This cake is simple but excellent. R. GINGERBREAD. One cup of molasses, one cup of sour milk or buttermilk, one-half cup of sugar, one- half cup of butter, one egg, one teaspoon ginger, one teaspoon soda. Mix the egg, sugar, and butter thoroughly together ; dissolve the soda in the molasses ; add flour enough for stiff batter ; bake about forty minutes. Excellent. B. ICE CREAM CAKE. The whites of eight eggs, two cups of sugar, two cups of sifted flour, one cup of corn- starch, one cup of butter, one cup of milk, two teaspoons baking powder. Bake in thin layers. Preparation to put between the Cakes. The whites of four eggs, four cups of sugar ; pour half a pint of boiling water over the sugar ; boil until clear, hard and candied ; pour the boiling hot sugar over the eggs, stirring until a stiff cream, then add a teaspoon of citric acid or juice of a lemon also flavor with vanilla : when cool, spread between and over the cakes. This makes a delicious white cake. JELLY ROLL. Beat the yolks of four eggs with half a cup of powdered sugar ; beat the whites to a stiff, dry froth, and add to the yolks and sugar ; add a cup of pastry flour, and stir quickly and 152 HOME DISSERTATIONS. gently ; bake in a shallow pan twenty minutes. While it is yet warm cut off the edges, and spread the cake with any kind of jelly ; roll up, and pin a towel around it ; put it in a cool place till ready to serve ; cut it in slices with a sharp knife. JUMBLES. One pint of sugar, half pound of butter, one quart and one jill of flour, one teaspoon of soda dissolved in one and a half jills of sweet milk, one nutmeg, two teaspoons of cream of tartar sifted with the flour, four eggs. Stir the butter and sugar until very light, and beat the eggs one by one ; add the rnilk, nutmeg and flour. The hands must be floured for molding the jumbles ; make a roll about the size of the little finger, and five inches long ; lap the ends, and lay in a slightly buttered pan, giving plenty of room, as jumbles spread very much in baking. B. LEMON CAKE. Three eggs, one cup of sugar, one and a half cups flour, even teaspoon cream tartar, half teaspoon soda, two tablespoons cold water. Bake in layer pans. Lemon Cream to put between the Cakes. One lemon grated and juice, one cup sugar, two tablespoons water. Beat all together, and put on the fire and let boil, then spread between the layers of cake. P. MARBLE CAKE. White part : one cup butter, three cups white sugar, beaten to a cream ; one cup sweet milk, one-half teaspoon soda, five cups flour, whites of eight eggs beaten to a froth added last. Brown part : one cup butter, three cups brown sugar, beaten together ; one cup molasses, one cup sour milk, one teaspoon soda, the yolks of eight eggs and one egg besides beaten, four cups flour, spice of all kinds that is liked. Put into the baking-pans first a layer of the brown part, and then of the white; finish with the brown part. This is excellent, and makes three or four loaves. WHITE MOUNTAIN CAKE. Five eggs, beat whites separately, three cups granulated sugar, one cup butter, one cup sweet milk, three cups flour, one-half teaspoon of soda, two teaspoons cream tartar, a pinch salt. Beat the butter, sugar, and yolks of the eggs to a cream ; mix the soda in the milk, and cream tartar in the flour; add the whites of the eggs just before the flour. Bake in jelly-cake tins, browning lightly. Take the white of one egg, a little sugar and water, beat together and with a knife spread over the top of each cake, grate one cocoa- nut and mix it with sugar, sprinkle it over- the cakes, and pile them one on top of the other, finishing the top in the same way. This is delicious with ice-cream. CAKE. 153 ORANGE CAKE. Two cups sugar, one-half cup butter, mixed together; two eggs, three cups flour, one cup milk, one-half teaspoon soda, teaspoon cream tartar. For the cream, grate the peel of one orange in the frosting, whip the whites of three eggs, add one cup powdered sugar, the juice of two oranges. Make six cakes, on jelly tins, spread therewith the frosting, and put them together, making two loaves of three layers each. R. OUR CAKE. One quart flour, two teaspoons baking powder, two cups sugar, one cup butter, three eggs, one cup milk, a little salt, half a nutmeg, or two teaspoons of vanilla. Bake thirty to forty minutes in a hot oven. PINAFORE CAKE. One cup of butter stirred to a cream, one and a half cups of sugar, half a cup of milk, one teaspoon of soda in it, four beaten eggs, half a cup of corn starch, one and a half cups of flour, with two tablespoons of cream tartar in it. Barke in sheets. P. MY RAISIN CAKE. One cup of butter, one cup of brown sugar, one cup of molasses, one cup of sweet milk, three cups of flour, four eggs, two teaspoons baking powder, one pound of raisins seeded and chopped, one teaspoon each of cassia, cloves and nutmeg. Beat butter and sugar to a cream, then add beaten eggs, then other ingredients, add raisins last rolled in flour, stir well. This makes two loaves. B. RAISED CAKE. Three cups of bread dough, three cups of flour, three eggs, one cup butter, one teaspoon of soda; spices and fruit. P. SPONGE CAKE. Whites of three eggs, one cup sugar, one cup flour, two tablespoons sweet cream, two teaspoons baking powder. Beat eggs, add sugar and cream, then baking powder mixed with flour. P. SPONGE CAKE. Whites of five eggs beaten well, half a. tumbler of flour, half a tumbler of white sugar, haif a teaspoon cream tartar, quarter teaspoon soda ; put the soda and cream tartar in the eggs before the sugar, and add last. This cake is delicious. SILVER CAKE. Two coffee cups of sugar, one-half cup of butter, two and one-half cups flour, three- quarters cup sweet milk, one-half teaspoon soda, one teaspoon cream tartar, whites of eight eggs ; flavor with lemon or almond extract ; frost with white icing. 154 HOME DISSERTATIONS. GOLD CAKE. One cup sugar, three-quarters cup butter, two cups flour, one-quarter cup sweet milk, one-half teaspoon soda, one teaspoon cream tartar, the yolks of eight eggs ; frost with golden icing. CARAMEL FROSTING. Scrape fine one square of chocolate, add one cup of brown sugar, put these with one tablespoon of water in a saucepan. Simmer gently twenty minutes, being careful not to let it burn. Spread on the cake while hot. GOLDEN FROSTING. Stir the yolks of two eggs with enough powdered sugar to thicken, and flavor with lemon. The flavor is not so good as other kinds of frosting, but it makes a change. MARKING CAKES IN GOLD. Bake round cakes for the children, and when the frosting on them is hard, dip a small brush into the yolk of an egg and write a word or name upon the cake. It pleases the little ones very much. WHITE FROSTING. Over one pound of the best white sugar, pour just enough water to dissolve the lumps. Take the whites of three eggs and beat them a little, but not to a stiff froth, and add these to the sugar and water. Put it in a deep bowl, and place in a vessel of boiling water, and beat the mixture. It will at first become thin and clear. When it becomes quite thick, remove from the fire and continue the beating, until it becomes quite cold and thick. Then spread it on with a knife. It will be perfectly white. FROSTING. To the white of one egg add a teacup of powdered sugar by degrees, beating with a spoon. When all has been added, stir in a tablespoon of lemon juice. If the white of the egg is large it will require a very full cup of sugar, and if small, a rather scant cup. The egg must not be beaten until the sugar is added. This gives a smooth, tender frosting, which will cover one small sheet of cake. The same amount of ingredients, prepared with the whites of the eggs unbeaten, will make one-third less frosting than it will if the eggs are beaten to a stiff froth before adding the sugar; but the icing will be enough smoother and softer to pay for the extra quantity. It may be flavored with half a teaspoon of vanilla. CHOCOLATE ICING. Beat one and two-thirds cup of sugar into the unbeaten whites of two eggs. Scrape two squares of Baker's chocolate and put it with one-third of a cup sugar and four tablespoons of boiling water into a small frying-pan. Stir over a hot fire until smooth and glossy, and then stir into the beaten whites and sugar. With the quantity given two sheets of cake can be iced. PASTRY. Two pints of flour, one and a half pints of butter, chopped in the flour ; a half pint of cold water. Mix with a knife. The dough should be dry and handled as little as possible, keep it very cold ; roll out and bake in a quick oven. TART PASTE. Rub half a pound of fresh butter into a pound of flour ; add the yolk of an egg, a little lump of sugar, and enough milk to mix it properly. PUFF PASTE. One quart of pastry flour, one pint butter, one tablespoon salt, one tablespoon sugar, one and a quarter cups ice-water. Fill a large pan or bowl with boiling water, and a moment later substitute cold water, leaving the bowl half full. Wash the pint of butter in this water, and work with the hands until light and wavy ; this frees it from buttermilk and salt and lightening it, so that the pastry will be more delicate. After shaping the butter into two thin cakes, put it in a pan of ice-water to harden. Mix the flour, sugar and salt together, and with the hands rub a third of the butter into the flour ; add the water, stirring with a knife, and continue stirring quickly and vigorously until the paste becomes a smooth ball. Sprinkle the molding-board lightly with flour ; turn the paste on the board and pound it quickly and lightly with the rolling-pin. Be careful not to break the paste. Roll from you and to one side ; or if you prefer to roll from you all the while, turn the paste round. When it has been rolled down to the thickness of about quarter of an inch wipe the remaining butter, break it into bits and spread these on the paste. A light sprinkling of flour should follow, and the paste should be folded, one-third from each side, so that the edges meet. Next fold from the ends, but do not have these meet. Double the paste, pound lightly, and roll down to the thickness of about a third of an inch. Fold as before and roll down again. Repeat the operation three times for pies, and six vol-au-vents, patties or tarts. When it has been rolled the last time place upon ice. It should remain at least an hour in the ice- chest before it is used. In hot weather if the paste sticks when being rolled, put it on a tin sheet and on ice. As soon as it has been chilled it will roll easily. The smaller the quantity of flour used when rolling the better the paste will be ; indeed, no matter how carefully all the work is done, the paste will not be good if much flour be used. APPLE PIE. Make a thick sliced apple pie, seasoning with cinnamon or nutmeg, and a little butter. No sugar. Make a small opening in the centre of the upper crust. Bake until thoroughly done. Cook one cup or one and a half cups sugar, according to the sourness of the apples, till it becomes a syrup, adding water, as necessary, lest it be too thick. When the pie is done, but still hot, pour the syrup carefully through the opening in the crust. APPLE LEMON PIE. Rind and juice of one lemon, piece of butter size of a walnut, two apples chopped fine, one egg, one cup of sugar. Bake with upper crust. BLACKBERRY PIE. Line a pie-dish with pastry and fill with ripe berries, sweetening plentifully. Cover with paste and bake in a moderate oven. Eat cold with white sugar sifted over it. 155 156 HOME DISSERTATIONS. CHERRY PIE. Line the pie-dish with paste ; fill with a mixture of sour and sweet cherries ; sweeten plentifully ; cover with paste printed at the edge and slit in the middle, and bake a light brown. Eat fresh, but not warm, with white sugar sifted over the top. B. CURRANT PIE. One cup of washed currants, one cup of sugar, one tablespoon of flour, yolks of two eggs, use the whites of eggs same as lemon meringue pie. CREAM PIE. Three cups of milk, two eggs, two tablespoons of corn-starch, butter the size of a walnut, a pinch of salt, two tablespoons of sugar. Have the crust ready baked. Then scald one and one-half cups of the milk, with the butter and salt. Beat the yolks of the eggs with the corn-starch and the other one-half cups of milk, with one teaspoon lemon extract. Put it in the crust and bake till done. Then beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth with a little sugar, and spread over the pie. Return it to the oven and brown slightly. BOSTON CREAM PIE. One cup of sugar, one cup of flour, four eggs. Beat the yolks and sugar together to a cream, add the flour, then the whites well beaten, and one teaspoon of milk with one of baking powder. Bake in round tins so that the cake will be one inch and a half thick. For the custard, take two eggs beaten separately, one cup of sugar, one tablespoon of corn- starch, add a little cold milk, then turn the mixture into less than a pint of scalding milk, and stir constantly until cooked. When the cake is cold, spread with the custard. Flavor with vanilla or lemon. FRUIT PIES IN SEASON. Have the fruit ready ; line with pastry the sides only of a deep dish, yellow-ware pre ferred, but an ordinary cake-tin will do; place a small cup in the centre of the dish one that will sit flat with the rim down; pour the berries or fruit all round the cup; pile as-high as means will allow ; cover thickly with sugar ; cover with pastry ; make one or two little slits in it for the steam to escape, and bake a light brown. When serving, remove a piece of the top crust, and insert a knife under the rim of the cup and raise it. It will be found to be full of the richest juice, which generally runs over in the oven from the flat pies. This does away with the soggy bottom crust, and will keep a day or two. Fruit is always better mixed for pies ; such as strawberries and cherries, raspberries and carrants etc. Always stone the cherries. LEMON MERINGUE PIE. One lemon, grate the rind and squeeze the juice, one tablespoon of corn-starch dis- solved in cold water, one cup of sugar, one egg, piece of butter size of an egg, one cup PASTRY. 157 of hot -yater ; boil a few minutes, bake on an under crust. Make a meringue of the whites of two eggs and two tablespoons of pulverized sugar, beaten to a stiff froth. Put it on the top of the pie after it is baked, and return to the oven a few minutes until it is a light brown. RICH MINCE-MEAT. One cup chopped beef or fresh tongue, one and a half cups of raisins, one and a half cups of currants, one and a half cups brown sugar, one cup of granulated sugar, three cups of chopped apples, two teaspoons of cinnamon, half a teaspoon of mace, half a tea- spoon of powdered cloves, half a cup of sliced citron, half a cup. of brandy, half a cup of wine, one cup of cider, one orange rind and juice, one cup chopped suet. Mix in the order given, and after it is all well mixed let it stand a few days before using so that it may become well flavored. PUMPKIN PIE. One quart stewed pumpkin, rubbed through a fine colander; six eggs; two quarts of milk; one teaspoon of mace; one teaspoon of cinnamon and the same of nutmeg; one and one-half cups of sugar. Beat the eggs light and whip in the sugar, then the pumpkin and spice. At last mix in the milk, stirring up well from the bottom. Bake in open shells of pie-crust. Eat cold. SQUASH PIES. rive pints of stewed and strained squash, two quarts of boiling milk, one and a half nutmeg, four teaspoons of salt, five cups of sugar, nine eggs, four tablespoons of Sicily Madeira and two of rose-water. Gradually pour the boiling milk on the squash, and stir continually. Add the nutmeg, rose-water and sugar. When cold, add the eggs, well beaten, and just before the mixture is put in the plates, add the Madeira. Butter deep plates and line with a plain paste. Fill with the mixture, and bake in a moderate oven for forty minutes. WASHINGTON PIE. One teacup of sugar rubbed to a cream with butter of the size of an egg. Beat four eggs separately, and stir in one heaping cup,of sifted flour, with a full teaspoon of cream- tartar, and one teaspoon of soda dissolved in one small teaspoon of milk. Divide the mixture on two shallow tin plates well buttered; put in a moderate oven. When baked, put preserves or jelly between the cakes; and, when on the plate, sprinkle some fine pow- dered sugar over the upper cake. T. PIES AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE. Bake under crust, or open shells of puff paste, or flaky pie-crust. Keep them in a dry, cool place. When wanted, fill with stewed fruit, preserves or jam of any kind. It is a dainty and delicious pie. PUDDINGS. A mould, a basin, or a pudding-cloth, will be required for boiled or steamed puddings. The mould should have a close cover, and be rubbed over the inside with butter before putting the pudding in it, that it may not. stick to the side ; the cloth should be dipped in boiling water, and then well floured on the inside. A pudding- cloth must be kept clean and in a dry place. The water must be boiling hot when the pudding is put in, and continue to boil until it is done. If a pudding is boiled in a cloth it must be moved frequently whilst boiling, otherwise it will stick to the saucepan. There must always be water enough to cover the pudding if it is boiled in a cloth ; but if boiled in a tin mould, do not let the water quite reach the top. To boil a pudding in a basin, dip a cloth in hot water, dredge it with flour, and tie it closely over the basin. When the pudding is done, take it from the water, plunge whatever it is boiling in, whether cloth or basin, suddenly into cold water, then turn it out immediately ; this will prevent its sticking. If there is any delay in serving the pudding, cover it with a napkin, or the cloth in which it was boiled ; but it is better to serve it as soon as removed from the cloth, basin or mould. Gelatine should be soaked in an equal quantity of cold water for an hour. Tapioca washed and soaked in cold water over night, or in lukewarm until thoroughly soaked. APPLE BUTTER ROLL. Make dough as for biscuit, only a little shorter, roll until one-half inch thick, spread with apple butter, roll up, then put a cloth around it, tie at each end with a string, leav- ing the cloth loose enough to have room to rise, and boil it one hour, or one hour and a quarter if large. It is to be rolled the same way as jelly roll, and eaten warm with sweet cream. Cherries and berries can be used instead of apples. APPLE SOUFFLE PUDDING. Take six or seven fine juicy apples, one cup fine bread-crumbs, four eggs, one cup sugar, two tablespoons butter, nutmeg, and a little grated lemon peel. Pare, core and slice the apples, and stew in a covered double saucepan, without a drop of water, until they are tender. Mash to a smooth pulp, and, while hot, stir in the butter and sugar. Let it get quite cold, and whip in first the yolks of the eggs, then the whites beaten very stiff alternately with the bread-crumbs. Flavor, beat quickly three minutes, until all the ingredients are reduced to a creamy batter, and bake in a buttered dish in a moderate oven. It will take about an hour to cook properly. Keep covered until ten minutes before you take it out. This will retain the juices and prevent the formation of a crust on the top. APPLE TAPIOCA PUDDING. One teacup tapioca; six apples, juicy and well-flavored, pared and cored; one quart water, one teaspoon salt. Cover the tapioca with three cups of lukewarm water and set in a warm place to soak thoroughly, stirring now and then. Place the apples in a deep 158 PUDDINGS. 159 dish, adding a cup of lukewarm water; cover closely and steam in a moderate oven until soft all through, turning them if they cook at the bottom. If the dish is more than a third full of liquid, turn some of it out before you pour the soaked tapioca overall. Unless the apples are very sweet, fill the centre with sugar. Bake, after the tapioca goes in, one hour. Eat cold with cream, or warm with hard sweet sauce. R. BAKED APPLE PUDDING. One quart flour, two heaping teaspoons baking powder, butter size of an egg, milk enough to mix it to roll, stir baking powder well into the flour, work the butter into the flour, add the milk slowly, being careful not to get it too soft. Roll out two-thirds of it for the bottom and sides of a deep baking dish holding not over one quart. Fill it with sliced sour apples. Cover it with the remaining crust, cutting a hole in the centre, through which pour two tablespoons of water just before putting in the oven. Bake forty minutes, or until the apple is thoroughly cooked. Serve with your favorite pudding-sauce. This is better and more healthful than apple-pie. BAKED APPLE DUMPLINGS. Pare and core smooth apples of uniform size, and fill the cavity of each with sugar and a little cinnamon. Divide the paste into as many parts as there are apples; roll each piece out square, and enclose an apple in it, slightly wetting the edges to make them slide. Bake in shallow pans, steam or boil, and serve with hard sauce. R. CUSTARD PUDDING. Six eggs, one quart milk, six teaspoons sugar, heaped, salt and nutmeg to taste. Bake thirty minutes. R. INDIAN PUDDING. One quart boiling milk, one teacup white corn-meal, one quart cold milk, three eggs, one cup sugar, one small teaspoon salt, butter size of a hen's egg, a little nutmeg. Stir the meal carefully into the boiling milk, letting it fall slowly through the fingers; there must be no lumps; beat the eggs and mix them with the cold milk; let the meal cook in the milk about five minutes, then put into a baking dish, and add the other ingredients, the cold milk and eggs last. Bake slowly about two hours; if properly baked it is delicate and delicious. It can be easily spoiled by baking in too hot an oven. Raisins improve it. DELICIOUS FRUIT PUDDING. Line a mould with slices of sponge cake, then put in a layer of fruit, strawberries, rasp- berries, blackberries, currants or ripe pineapple torn into bits rich, tart, ripe fruit is best; put over this a layer of hot custard, then another layer of cake and another of fruit and of custard until the mould is full; put away to get cold and firm and serve when turned out of the mould with sugar and cream; for the custard bring to boiling point in a farina kettle a 160 HOME DISSERTATIONS. pint of milk; add an ounce and a half of dissolved gelatine, the yolks of four eggs and four ounces of sugar. When the custard has thickened be sure it doesn't curdle take it off the fire and stir in half a pint of cream and the juice of a lemon. LEMMON PUDDING. Three eggs, one scant cup of sugar, two liberal teaspoons of corn-starch, one lemon, juice and rind; two cups of milk, one heaping teaspoon of butter. Scald the milk, and stir in the corn-starch wet up in four teaspoons of cold water. Cook stirring all the time until it thickens well; add the butter, and set aside until perfectly cold; then beat the eggs light, add the sugar, the lemon juice and grated peel, and whip in, a great spoonful at a time, the stiffened corn-starch milk. Bake in a buttered dish and eat cold. P. ORANGE PUDDING. Two oranges sliced, one cup sugar sprinkled on them, yolks of two eggs, two table- spoons corn-starch, and half a cup of sugar stirred in one pint milk; cook and turn on the oranges, then beat the whites of two eggs with a little sugar. Turn on top and brown in the oven. QUINCE ICED PUDDING. Three eggs beaten very light, add a cup and a half of sugar, and continue beating until the mixture is foamy. Two cups of sifted pastry flour put into a teaspoon of cream- tartar, and a half teaspoon of soda with half a cup of cold water stirred into the beaten egg and sugar, and the flour sifted into the same bowl. A double oval mould, tapering, should be used, about four inches high, and the measurement at the top where it opens, six inches by eight. The space between the outer and inner walls is about an inch and a half. When the mould has been buttered the cake mixture should be turned into it, and baked slowly twenty minutes. Allow it. to stand in the mould until nearly cold, and then turn out on a flat dish. Into the whites of two eggs beat a cup of pow- dered sugar, seasoned with half a teaspoon of vanilla extract. The cake should be iced with this and set away. In the meantime a generous quart of cream, a cup of sugar, a pint of soft custard and a tablespoon of vanilla extract and combine and freeze like ice ream. A large tumbler of quince jelly should be spread on the inside of the cake, and (he frozen cream put in the centre ; whipped cream should be heaped on the top and at the base, making an elegant dish. The ice cream should not be put into the pud- ding until just before it is to be served. R. RICE PUDDING. Three-fourths of a cup of rice, one-half cup of sugar, two teaspoons of vanilla, two quarts of milk, salt to taste. Nutmeg or raisins can be used for flavoring instead of vanilla. It requires one-half cup of raisins. Bake in pudding-dish about two hours, PUDDINGS. 161 slowly, and take out immediately when the rice is done. This can be ascertained only by tasting. Do not stir the rice. If properly baked it will be creamy and delicious. If baked in too hot an oven, or too long-, it will be spoiled. T. MY MOTHER'S RICE PUDDING. One pint of rice thoroughly washed, rubbing it well through several waters; mix with it half a pint of good-sized clean raisins; put it in a conical pudding-bag. Boil three-quar- ters of an hour. To be eaten hot with sauce, a gill of butter well-creamed, and beaten until light, with two gills of brown sugar. Serve with nutmeg thickly grated over the peaks. To prepare a pudding-bag, sew firmly strong canvas in the shape of a sugar-loaf; sew within four inches of the top a strong string. Before putting in the pudding dip the bag in boiling water, turn the bag on the wrong side, and dredge it well with flour. Have ready a pot of water boiling hard, slightly salted; put in the pudding, allowing one-third room for swelling, and tie firmly. Turn a plate in the bottom of the pot, and be sure that there is enough boiling water to completely cover it. Keep the teakettle boiling all the while the pudding is in the pot, and fill up often. Fifteen minutes after the pudding is put in turn it over in the pot. I?. RICE MERINGUE PUDDING. Half a cup of rice boiled to a pulp, one pint of milk, yolks of four eggs, grated rind of one large lemon, or two small ones. Bake lightly in moderate oven the same as a custard. When cold add the meringue which consists of the whites of four eggs, the juice of the lemon, and one pint of powdered sugar, well beaten, which spread over the top and return it to the oven until it has browned and formed a crust. R. CORN-STARCH PUDDING. One quart of milk, four tablespoons of corn-starch heaped a little, one egg, salt to taste. Beat the egg and add to it a little of the cold milk and the corn-starch ; mix thoroughly; put the rest of the milk in a kettle and let it come to a boil; stir in the mixture, and con- tinue to stir till it boils; let it boil four minutes. It is good either warm or cold, and is to be eaten with milk or cream, with sugar for those who like; jelly is often eaten with it also. It is much better made in this simple way than in the usual way one finds it prepared. CUSTARD FOR PUDDINGS. Heat in a saucepan till nearly boiling a pint of new milk; beat together in a basin the yolks of two eggs, a little cream and some pulverized loaf-sugar. Over these pour the hot milk, and then pour it from the basin into the saucepan and back again until thoroughly mixed. Lastly, stir it over the fire till nearly boiling. It can be used on puddings, fruit pies, or served cold in a glass dish, with nutmeg grated over it. i6 2 HOME DISSERTATIONS. FRITTERS. Beat three eggs well together, add alternately flour and milk, salted, till a pint of each be used, beating quickly all the time. To the above add immediately a pint of pre- served fruit and drop spoonfuls into boiling hot lard. If oysters or clams be used, chop, not too fine, about twenty-five, and mix as above. So of green corn, ripe or canned ap- ples, pears, cored and halved, or stoned peaches. When the fritters are done and drained, sprinkle sugar over them. FRUIT CUSTARD FRITTERS. For fruit syrup use either the juice of any canned or preserved fruit, or make a syrup of fresh fruit as follows: Pick over a pound of any juicy fruit, put it into the preserving ket- tle with a pound of granulated sugar, boil it until the sugar is all dissolved and the juice of the fruit runs freely; then strain the syrup through a fine sieve or a jelly-bag, and cool it before using it for the fritters. Put into an earthen bowl half a pint each of fruit syrup and milk, and mix them thoroughly with an egg whip; then add half a pound of granu- lated sugar and six eggs, one at a time, beating the mixture constantly while the eggs are being added; strain the custard thus made, put it into a shallow earthen dish large enough to make the custard an inch thick; set the dish in a pan of hot water and put it into a moderate oven; watch the custard, and occasionally test it by running a small knife blade or a broom straw into it; as soon as it does not adhere to the knife or straw it is done; take the custard from the oven, and cool it in the dish in which it was baked. When the custard is cool put over the fire a fry ing-kettle half full of fat to heat; turn the custard from the dish upon a pastry board covered thickly with fine bread-crumbs, and cut it in pieces about two inches long and one inch wide, or in any fanciful shape; roll the pieces of custard in the crumbs, dip them in beaten egg, and again in the crumbs, and then fry them golden brown in the hot fat, putting them in when it begins to smoke; when the fritters are fried a golden brown take them out of the fat with a skimmer, lay them on brown paper for a moment to free them from grease, and then dust them with powdered sugar and serve them hot. FLORIDA ORANGE FRITTERS. Peel and slice two or three oranges, about quarter of an inch thick, and remove the seeds, taking care not to break the slices or squeeze out the juice; put a frying-kettle over the fire, with enough fat to half fill it, and let the fat get smoking hot; put a cup of flour into a bowl with the yolk of a raw egg, a level teaspoon of salt and a tablespoon of good olive oil; mix these ingredients smoothly together, then gradually stir in enough water to make a batter thick enough to hold a drop let fall from the mixing spoon; beat the white of the egg to a stiff froth, mix it lightly with the batter; put two or three slices of oranges in the batter, and when the fat begins to smoke lift them from the batter with a fork, drop them into the hot fat, and try them golden brown; take the fritters out of the fat with a skimmer, lay them for a moment on brown paper to free them from grease, and then dust them with powdered sugar, and serve them hot. SAUCES FOR PUDDINGS. R. BRANDY SAUCE. Put quarter of a pound of butter into a large bowl and beat it with a fork unth it is smooth and soft, gradually mix with the butter a cup of powdered sugar, beating con- stantly; when all the sugar has been beaten into the butter add the white of an egg un- beaten and beat the mixture for a minute, next place the bowl in a basin of warm water, gradually add half a gill each of brandy and boiling water, and beat the sauce for two minutes longer, then pour it into a sauce-bowl. CREAM SAUCE. Beat a half cup of fresh butter to a cream, add gradually a cup of powdered sugar, beating thoroughly all the while; when all is reduced to a light, creamy substance, add gradually, and still beating, a quarter of a cup of rich cream and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. This is inviting and delicious. NUN'S BUTTER. Beat and stir a quarter of a pound of butter and three or four ounces of the finest pul- verized sugar together to a cream; add and stir well in a tablespoon of brandy and flour, and flavor with pure vanilla extract, or grated nutmeg, or powdered cinnamon. HARD SAUCE. Beat one quarter ot a pound of butter to a cream, add gradually one pound of white sugar, one wineglass brandy, and half a small nutmeg; beat until light and white, and then pile up in a pyramid; set it on ice or a cool place. SABYLLON. Beat two yolks and one whole egg a few minutes with a scant half teacup of sugar in a small saucepan; place the saucepan into another containing boiling water over a fire; beat briskly with a whisk while you pour in gradually a scant half teacup of sherry ; when the eggs begin to thicken remove and add the juice of half of a lemon. SOUR SAUCE. Half a cup of butter and stir in a tablespoon of flour and one pint boiling water, nearly one cup of sugar, two spoons good vinegar; spice to taste. STRAWBERRY SAUCE. )ne cup sugar, half cup butter; beat them well together and add a cup of strawberries, well mashed. R. WINE SAUCE. One half pint of Madeira wine, one-fourth pint of sugar, yolks of six eggs, dessert-spoon of lemon juice or vanilla to taste. Dissolve the sugar in the wine; make it hot but do not let it boil; pour it hot over the yolks of the eggs well beaten; keep it over the fire until it is well thickened and highly frothed, then add the flavoring. 163 DESSERT. There's half a dozen sweets. LOVE'S LABOR LOST. The hero is not fed on sweets, Daily his own heart he eats. EMERSON. AMBROSIA. One pine-apple chopped quite fine, half box of strawberries, six bananas and six oranges sliced and the slices quartered, one lemon cut fine. Sweeten to taste ; add one wineglass of sherry or Madeira, and set away until very cold. BLANC-MANGE. One tablespoon and a half of sea-moss farina, three pints of milk, four tablespoons of sugar, half a teaspoon of salt, one teaspoon of extract of vanilla or of lemon. Put the farina with the milk and let it stand in a cold place for two hours ; then put it in the double boiler, and heat quickly. Do not let it boil. Stir often; and as soon as the farina is melted, take off, and add the sugar, salt and flavor. Strain and partially cool before putting it into the moulds. It should stand six hours before serving, and it is even better, especially in summer, to make it the day before using. CHOCOLATE AND COFFEE CUSTARD. Chocolate and coffee custards are made by incorporating chocolate with, or adding strong coffee to, the milk which enters into custard. BAVARIAN CREAM. Whip a pint of cold cream to a froth, which will lie on a sieve. Boil another pint of cream, or rich milk, with a vanilfa bean and two tablespoons of sugar, until it is well flavored. Remove it and add half a box of gelatine, which has soaked an hour in half a cup of water in a warm place. When slightly cooled stir in the well-beaten yolks of four eggs. When it has become quite cold and begins to thicken, stir without cessation until it is very smooth. Then stir in the whipped cream lightly until well mixed. Place in moulds and set on ice, or in a cool spot. To this you can add almonds, chocolate, peaches, pine-apples, strawberries, or any seasonable fruit. BOILED CUSTARD. Beat the yolks of five eggs and five dessert-spoons of sugar to a froth, and stir into a quart of boiled milk. Put into a double custard boiler, of boiling water, stirring con- stantly till thickening commences. If it be well stirred, the custard will be a smooth cream ; but not otherwise. Add flavors after it is cooked; except a vanilla bean, or peach leaves, which cook with the custard. BOSTON BAKED CUSTARD. Pour a quart of hot milk over five well-beaten eggs. Add a teaspoon of butter. Season with vanilla, rose water, or nutmeg, and sweeten to taste. Bake in cups or pudding dish. 164 DESSERT. 165 CHARLOTTE RUSSE. Dissolve one ounce of good isinglass in a cup of new milk ; beat the yolks of six eggs and one pound of fine sugar together ; whip to a froth one pint of good cream, and beat to a froth the whites of twelve eggs. Strain the isinglass into the yolks ; add the cream, then the whites, and beat it altogether lightly. Flavor it with vanilla ; set it on the ice to stiffen a little; line the moulds with spongecake; turn in the cream, and set in the ice five or six hours. R. FLOATING ISLAND. One pint milk, three eggs, three heaping teaspoons sugar. Beat the yolks of the eggs well; add the milk and heat while stirring till it thickens a little like cream; then remove it at once; beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, put on the top of the custard in round shapes like little islands, and set in a cool place. Sometimes the froth is set in the oven an instant to stiffen it so that it will better keep in place. To be eaten cold. "HOME PYRAMID OF KISSES." Make a pasteboard frame, and stick the kisses together as fast as they come from the oven; as soon as cold, or just before using, remove the form carefully. FRUIT GLACE. Boil together for half an hour, one cup of granulated sugar and the juice of a lemon; dip the point of a skewer into the syrup and then into water, and if the thread thus formed breaks off brittle, the syrup is ready for the use on fruit. Pare some oranges, divide them into eighths, and wipe the parts free from moisture; part of the syrup turn into a small cup, which put in a basin of boiling water; take the pieces of orange up separately on the point of a skewer and dip them into the syrup, and afterwards place on a dish that had been buttered slightly. Grapes and nuts can be prepared the same way. Special pains must be taken to avoid stirring the syrup, for stirring will spoil it. B. RUSSIAN CREAM. Half a box of best gelatine, cover with cold water fifteen minutes, one quart of milk, four eggs, one cup of sugar; beat yolks and sugar together, stir in the gelatine and pour into the milk when boiling; let it cook a little more than custard; let it cool a little and stir in the whites of the eggs beaten to a stiff froth and pour into moulds, rinsed in cold water, and place them on the ice. When ready to serve, loosen the edge, lay a small platter over the mould, and turn it upside down; shake the mould if the cream does not come out easily, but be careful to keep it in the centre of the platter. B. TAPIOCA CREAM. Four tablespoons tapioca soaked over night in one gill of cold water, boil one quart of milk, add the tapioca, let it boil, add the yolks of three eggs beaten well with half pint of crushed sugar, boil and stir until like thick custard, flavor and turn into a dish; when cold, cover with the whites of the eggs beaten to a stiff froth with four tablespoons of sugar; brown lightly. To be eaten cold. ICES. PREPARATION SUITABLE FOR ALL ICE CREAMS. This foundation is suitable for all kinds of ice cream. Having heated a generous pint of milk to the boil- point, stir into it a cup of sugar, a scant cup of flour and two eggs, all beaten together ; and the mixture allowed to cook twenty minutes longer, stirring it frequently. Strain the mixture into the freezer DIRECTIONS FOR PACKING ICE CREAM. The ice should be broken the size of a walnut. After the can containing the cream has been properly adjusted in the freezer, a layer of ice five inches deep should be packed around it. A liberal sprinkling of rock salt should be added next. Continue with alternate layers of ice and salt until the tub is full ; the packing being pounded with a paddle. The crank of the freezer being turned a few times, causes the ice to settle somewhat, and more should be added. For if the packing be solid at first there need be no repacking. Especial stress is laid on the fact that the water must not be drawn off. It fills all the crevices and gives the can a complete cold envelope. For a gallon freezer about ten quarts of ice and three pints of salt are required. With more salt it will take less time to freeze, but the cream will not be so smooth. At first the crank should not be turned very fast, but the speed should be increased as the work becomes harder. When the cream is frozen as indicated by the extreme difficulty with which the crank is turned wipe the salt and ice from the cover of the can and remove the cover without displacing the can itself. Remove the beater and scrape the ice cream from it. With a large spoon work up and down in the can until the cream is light, and the space left vacant by the removal of the beater is filled. Replace the cover of the can, put a cork in the hole from which the handle of the beater was taken. Set the freezer in a cool place. When the cream is to be served, place the can for a few seconds in a pan of warm water so that the heat causes the cream to slip out easily upon a dish. If the cream is to be moulded, it should be removed from the can when the beater is taken out ; and when it is put into the mould it should be worked up and down with a spoon, so that it shall be lightened, and worked into every part of the mould as well. A sheet of white paper should be placed over the cream before the cover of the mould is put on, and the mould should be repacked in fresh ice and salt. CARAMEL ICE CREAM. Put a small cup of sugar into a small frying-pan and stir over the fire until it turns liquid and begins to smoke, then turn it into the boiling mixture or foundation, which put away to cool. When it becomes cold Add a quart of cream. The flavor of the ice cream can be varied by browning the sugar more or less. Strain the mixture in a freezer. COFFEE ICE CREAM. Pound two ounces of freshly roasted coffee in a mortar, just enough to thoroughly crush the berries without reducing them to powder. Put them into a pint of milk with six ounces of loaf sugar ; let boil, then leave it to get cold; strain it on the yolks of six eggs in a double kettle, and stir on the fire until the custard thickens. Be sure that it does not curdle. When quite cold work into it a gill and a half of cream whipped to a froth. Freeze the mixture in the ice-cream freezer, then fill a plain mould with it and put it in the freezer till time to serve it. This is a delicious dessert in hot weather. B. LEMON ICE CREAM. Half a box of gelatine dissolved in a little water, strain and pour over half a pint of boiling milk, add one quart of cream, two quarts of milk. The rind of a lemon grated in while boiling; juice added while it is freezing. 166 ICES. 167 PEACH ICE CREAM. Select rich, ripe peaches, peel and mash them to a pulp; make them very sweet; a pound or more of sugar to a pound of fruit, and add to every pint a pint of cream. Remember in using sugar that much sweetness is lost in the freezing. Coddled apples may be used in the same way. PINE-APPLE ICE CREAM. Choose a very ripe pine-apple, pare it, take out all the eyes, then grate it, and make after the above rule. PISTACHE ICE CREAM. To prepare pistache nuts for ice cream, pour boiling water over them; let them stand a few moments, drain, and cover again with boiling water, when the skins will slip off quite easily. They are then pounded to a paste in a mortar and mixed with the cream. STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM. Pour a pint of scalding milk on a well-beaten egg and an even tablespoon of corn- starch mixed smooth in a little cold milk ; stir it over boiling water until it begins to thicken; when cold, mix it with a pint of strawberries that have been mashed with a half pound of sugar and rubbed through a colander. CURRANT ICE. To one pint of currant juice add one pound of sugar, and one pint of water; when partly frozen, add the whites of three eggs whisked to a stiff froth. LEMON ICE. To one pint of lemon juice add one quart of sugar, and one quart of water in which the thin rind of three lemons has been steeped until highly flavored; when partly frozen, add the whites of four eggs beaten to a stiff froth. ORANGE ICE. Grate the rind of four oranges and steep it ten minutes in a pint and a gill of water; strain a pint of the water on one pound of sugar, add a pint of orange juice, and when cold, pour it into a freezer, and freeze; when half frozen, add the whites of four eggs whisked to a stiff froth. PINE-APPLE ICE. Pare good, ripe pine-apples and cut out the eyes; grate them and pass the pulp through the colander; to one quart of this add one and a quarter pounds of sugar and one pint of water; whisk the whites of two eggs to a stiff froth and add the above little by little, beating well to make them mix; freeze. STRAWBERRY ICE. Crush two quarts of strawberries with two pounds of sugar; let them stand an hour or more, squeeze them in a straining cloth, pressing out all the juice; add to it an equal measure of water, and when half frozen add the whisked whites in the proportion of three to a quart. TUTTI FRUTTI. Rich vanilla cream with cherries, raisins, currants and citron. Fruit to be added when the cream is nearly frozen. BEVERAGES. TEA. T He W A TeR B oI LING . B e FILLING . T He . T e A . P o T . SP^LS . TH e T e A. " Molly, put the kettle on, Molly, put the kettle on, Molly, put the kettle on, And we'll all take tea." " The water in which the tea is steeped must be boiling. The water used for filling the pot must be boiling. I speak within bounds when I say that I could tell on the fingers of my two hands the tables at which I have drunk really good, hot, frech tea. Sometimes it is made with boiling water, then allowed to simmer on the range or hob until the decoction is rank, reedy and bitter. Sometimes too little tea is put in, and the beverage, while hot enough, is but faintly colored and flavored. Oftenest of all, the tea is made with unboiled water, or with water that did boil once, but is now flat and many degrees below the point of ebullition. Scald the china, or silver, or tin teapot from which the beverage is to flow directly into the cups ; put in an even teaspoon of tea for each person who is to partake of it, pour in a half-cup of boiling water and cover the pot with a cozy or napkin for five minutes. Then, fill up with boiling water from the kettle and take to the table. Fill the cups within three minutes or so and you have the fresh aroma of the delicious herb." BEAUTY BEHIND THE TEAPOT. The teapot simmers in scores of houses every afternoon, and tea-drinking is now the popular mania and dissipation. In some houses one member of the family is generally kept busy occupied all the afternoon in making and pouring tea, and of Miss Tillie Frelinghuysen, who is always enthroned behind her tea-table at entertainments in her father's house, Mr. George Bancroft says that she is entitled to a coat-of-arms all her own, bearing the device of a teapot. A pretty woman never looks better than when seated behind a tea-table, set with a shining equipage and rows of dainty cups. English breakfast tea is the fashionable leaf now, and as many of the fair brewers say, there is more pleasure in making than in drinking that herb-flavored stuff. In general the tea is steeped in a small silver pot and made of triple strength, so that each cup has to be filled up with boiling water from the silver or brass teapot that is always steaming over an alcohol lamp in the middle of the table. Mrs. Ilitt and Mrs. Adams, whose teas are famous, make each cup separately, the dry tea leaves being put in a perforated silver ball pendent from a long chain. The ball is dropped in the cup, boiling water poured in and the tea ball is stirred about until the decoction assumes the right color and strength. This is quite the prettiest way of making tea, and girls who appreciate the chance for coquetries and tableaux that the rite affords, are enamored with the tea ball, providing always that there is some gallant man about to handle the burning silver when it is necessary to empty and refill the ball. Huge brass somovars for boiling water on the table have been brought over from Russia for several families, but the bother of lighting the charcoal in the central cylinder and getting steam up in time renders them really a nuisance to the owners. The wife of the Russian Minister banishes the somovar from her tea-table and substitutes a pretty silver pot over an alcohol flame. Washington Letter. 1 68 BEVERAGES. 169 THE STYLE IN TEA. CHEESE STRAWS AND SALTED ALMONDS. There are some conservatives who still take sugar and even cream in their tea, but these heresies are fast giving way to the newer styles. The real connoisseur takes his tea without any modifications, and fashion, although it allows a lump of sugar, rather ordains a slice of lemon or a spoonful of preserves, according to Russian style. About half the people who sip tea these afternoons do it because it is the fashion, and not because they care for the drink itself. Last season the cheese straws were prominent on every tea table, and the indigestible little strips of pie-crust filled with grated cheese and sprinkled with red pepper were supposed to be just the thing to spur up a jaded appetite. This year the salted almond is the favorite dish of the after- noon nibblers, and confectioners are doing a great business in roasting almonds and then turning them over in a pan with a little butter and a great deal of salt. A man who knows tells me that there is nothing like the almond anyhow to clear the brain and steady the tongue when there have been loo many wines at dinner, and the salted almond is even more of a restorative than the fresh nut. The almonds are naturally prominent on every dinner table and now have found their way to the tea tray to clear the Clouded brain of tea drinkers. A CUP OF GOOD COFFEE. " It is one of the simplest things in the world to make a cup of good coffee, and this can easily b accom- plished by using a little common sense. If you put boiling water on coffee and not let it boil, you will have all the good qualities preserved. One reason why dyspeptics cannot drink coffee is because it is boiled. The style of coffee-pot is just a matter of fancy. I have made as good coffee in an old tomato can as I have ever sipped from a cup filled from the finest French coffee urn. We should take lessons in these matters from the Turks and Arabians, who grind their coffee to a fine powder. When the coffee is ground as fine as possible put it into a little bag of unbleached muslin, which should be tied tightly enough to prevent the escape of the grounds. If you use a cup of unground coffee you can make over a quart of very strong, black coffee. In making coffee many persons sacrifice flavor for strength. Bitterness comes from boiling. When boiling water is placed on the bag of ground coffee it should stand at least three minutes before serving. Remember the longer it stands the stronger it becomes. Be careful not to allow the watered coffee to boil." K. COFFEE AS IN FRANCE. Coffee should be roasted of a cinnamon color, and coarsely ground when cool. For one pint of boiling water take two ounces and a half of coffee. Put the coffee into boiling water; close the coffee-pot, and leave it for two hours on a trivet over the fire, so as to keep up the heat without making it boil. Stir now and then, and after two hours remove it from over the fire and allow it a quarter of an hour to stand near the fire, to settle. Then pour it off to serve. Loaf sugar should be used for coffee. R. BROMA. One cup of hot water, one cup of milk, one even tablespoon of broma; save a little of the warm milk and water in which to dissolve the broma. When the milk and water boil, pour in the dissolved broma, and boil two minutes, stirring a little. This is a delicious drink. CHOCOLATE. In preparing chocolate cut off two inches in length of the cake to one quart of water; stir it in a little cold water till soft, then pour on the boiling water; after it has boiled a short time, add a pint of milk, bring to a boil, and then serve. The French put two cups of boiling water to each cup of chocolate. They throw in the chocolate, just as the water commences to boil. Stir it with a spoon so soon as it boils up, add two cups of good milk, and, when it has boiled sufficiently to cook, serve. i 7 o BEVERAGES. P. ELDERBERRY' WINE. Two quarts of the juice of the berries, three pounds of sugar, two quarts of water ; stir all together and put in a jug, keep it full with extra juice till it is done working, then scald and put in a jug, cork when cold and keep in a cold place. HOT APPLE TODDY. Take the pulp from a hot baked apple of medium size, using a teaspoon to free it from skin and core; put it into a tumbler, with an equal measure of apple-jack, a pleasant addi- tion of sugar and grated nutmeg, and a little boiling water. A usual proportion for a single toddy is one finger of baked apple, two each of apple-jack and boiling water, a tablespoon of sugar, and a grate of nutmeg on the top. HOT COFFEE AND SODA. For temperance advocates hot black coffee mixed with soda, is a good substitute for the spirituous winter drinks; make black coffee as follows: Quarter of a pound of good coffee infused in boiling water, but not boiled, will make medium strong coffee. Use hot black coffee and soda in equal proportions, with a palatable addition of cream syrup, or condensed milk and sugar. PEACH AND HONEY. A good winter drink is made by mixing together one tablespoon of honey and a wine- glass of peach brandy. ROMAN PUNCH. Grate the rinds of four lemons and two oranges in two pounds of white sugar, adding their juice; cover and let stand until next day, when strain through a sieve, adding a bottle of champagne and the whites of eight eggs beaten very stiff; freeze like ice cream. SOUTHERN EGG-NOGG. Beat thoroughly the yolks of eight eggs, with one pound of granulated sugar, with which mix one half gallon of fresh, rich milk; then pour upon it, very slowly, stirring the eggs and milk briskly, a pint and a half of best Jamaica rum; if not sweet enough, add more sugar; have ready the whites of the eggs, beaten to a froth, with a little pulverized sugar; stir in about one half; put the other on top; place it on ice. This is first-class Virginia egg-nogg. RASPBERRY SHERBET. Two quarts of raspberries, one cup of sugar, one pint and a half of water, the juice of a large lemon, one tablespoon of gelatine. Mash the sugar and berries together and let them stand two hours. Soak the gelatine in cold water to cover. Add one pint of the water to the berries, and strain. Dissolve the gelatine in half the water, add this to the strained mixture and freeze. FOOD FOR THE SICK. MILK. When using milk in dishes for the sick, the disease of the persons \Vho are to consume the food should be considered. Long boiling hardens the albumen and makes the milk constipating ; hence, if the patient be already constipated, great care should be exercised not to allow the milk or cream to heat above the boiling point; also one cannot use seasoning for a sick person that would suit a well person. More salt and acid can and should be used in most cases when seasoning food for the sick, while less sugar or other sweet flavor should be used. Do not send a too bountiful supply of food to the patient, nor set any one dish before him frequently just because it has tasted especially good at first. We emphasize the desirability of serving all dishes in the daintiest and most attractive ways, so as to induce an appetite which may be dormant. GRUEL OF BOILED FLOUR. Make a bag of white cotton cloth about six inches long, and four inches wide ; fill it with white flour pressed down hard; tie up the bag firmly. Put it into boiling water ; boil four hours; take it out of the bag, remove the wet skin, and a hard white ball will be left which, if kept in a dry place, will be good several months. Grate a little of it, stir it up in a little milk or water, then cook it in boiling water or 1 milk about four minutes, stirring constantly. It is more palatable made with milk. This is excellent for diarrhoea, but must be used cautiously at first, for it is medicine as well as food. APPLE PIE FOR THE SICK. Slice up one or more nice, tart apples, in a saucer, sweeten with white sugar, and cover with a moderately thick slice of bread, buttered slightly on the underside; when the bread is browned, the apples, if of a tender kind, and thinly sliced, will be done. APPLE WATER. One large juicy pippin, three cups of cold water one quart if the apple is very large; pare and quarter the apple, but do not core it; put it on the fire in a tin or porcelain saucepan with the water, and boil, closely covered, until the apple stews to pieces; strain the liquor at once, pressing the apple hard in the cloth; strain this again through a finer bag, and set away to cool; sweeten with white sugar, and ice for drinking. BEEF STEAK AND MUTTON CHOPS. Choose the tenderest cuts and broil over a clear hot fire with your wisest skill. Let the steak be rare, the chops well done. Salt and pepper; lay between two hot plates three minutes, and serve to your patient. If he is very weak, do not let him swallow anything except the juice, when he has chewed the meat well. The essence of rare beef, roasted or broiled, thus expressed, is considered by some physicians to be more strengthening than beef tea prepared in the usual manner. BOILED RICE. Half a cup of whole rice, boiled in just enough water to cover it, one cup of milk, a little salt, one egg, beaten light. When the rice is nearly done, turn off the water, add the milk and simmer, taking care it does not scorch, until the milk boils up well. Salt, and bea in the egg. Eat warm with cream, sugar, and nutmeg. 171 172 HOME DISSERTATIONS. BEEF TEA FOR THE SICK. One pound lean beef, cut into small pieces. Put into jar without a drop of water, cover tightly, set in a kettle of cold water. Heat gradually to a boil, and continue this steadily for three or four hours, until the meat is like white rags, and the juice all drawn out. Season with salt to taste, and when cold, skim. The patient will often prefer this ice-cold to hot. CELERY CURES RHEUMATISM. " New discoveries or what claims to be discoveries of the healing virtues of plants are continually being made. One of the latest is that celery is a cure for rheumatism ; indeed, it is asserted the disease is impossible if the vegetable be cooked and freely eaten. The fact that it is always put on the table raw prevents its therapeutic powers from being known. The celery should be cut into bits, boiled in water until soft, and the water drank by the patient. Serve warm with pieces of toasted bread, and the painful ailment will soon yield. Such is the declaration of a physician who has again and again tried the experiment, and with uniform success. At least two-thirds of the cases named ' heart disease ' are ascribed to rheumatism and its agonizing ally, gout. Here, in Germany, we boil the roots and stalks, as the root is the principal part of it, and afterwards eat it as salad, with oil and vinegar. I received such immediate benefit that I am anxious to let all the rheumatic sufferers know of it." German Correspondent BACKER GRUEL. A scant half-pint of boiling water poured upon four tablespoons of powdered cracker, and, after a pint of milk and half a teaspoon of salt is added, the mixture should be stirred until it boils up once. EGG-NOGG. The white of an egg beaten to a stiff froth ; a teaspoon of sugar beaten in ; then the yolk of the egg, and finally a tablespoon each of milk, water and wine. PANADA. Six Boston crackers, split, two tablespoons white sugar, a good pinch of salt, and a little nutmeg, enough boiling water to cover them well; split the crackers, and pile in a bowl in layers, salt and sugar scattered among them ; cover with boiling water and set on the hearth, with a close top over the bowl, for at least one hour. The crackers should be almost clear and soft as jelly, but not broken. Eat from the bowl, with more sugar sprin- kled in if you wish it. If properly made, this panada is very nice. PORTEREE. Pint bottle of porter, two glasses pale sherry, one lemon peeled and sliced, half pint of ice-water, six or eight lumps loaf sugar, half of a grated nutmeg, pounded ice. This mixture has been used satisfactorily by invalids, for whom the pure porter was too heavy, causing biliousness and heartburn. SOFT BOILED EGGS. Fresh eggs for invalids, who like them cooked soft, should be put in a pan of boiling water, and set on a part of the range where they will not boil for several minutes. At the end of that time they will be like jelly, oe.rfectly soft, but beautifully done, and quite digestible by even weak stomachs. FOOD FOR THE SICK. 173 SOFT TOAST. Toast well, but not too brown, a couple of thin slices of bread; put them on a warm plate and pour over boiling water; cover quickly with another plate of the same size, and drain the water off; remove the upper plate, butter the toast, put it in the oven one minute, and then cover again with a hot plate and serve at once. THICKENED MILK. With a little milk, mix smooth a tablespoon of flour and a pinch of salt. Pour upon it a quart of boiling milk, and when it is thoroughly amalgamated put all back into the saucepan, and boil up once, being careful not to burn, and stirring all the time, to keep it perfectly smooth and free from lumps. Serve with slices of dry toast. It is excellent for diarrhoea, and becomes a specific by scorching the flour before mixing with the milk. CHICKEN JELLY. Half a raw chicken, pounded with a mallet, bones and meat together, plenty of cold water to cover it well, about a quart. Heat slowly in a covered vessel, and let it simmer until the meat is in white rags and the liquid reduced one-half. Strain and press, first through a colander, then through a coarse cloth. Salt to taste, and pepper if you think best; return to the fire, and simmer five minutes longer. Skim when cool. Give to the patient cold just from the ice with unleavened wafers. Keep on the ice. You can make into sandwiches by putting the jelly between thin slices of bread spread lightly with butter. INDIAN MEAL GRUEL. One tablespoon of fine Indian or oat-meal, mix smooth with cold water and a saltspoon of salt; pour upon this a pint of boiling water and turn into a saucepan to boil gently for half an hour; thin it with boiling water if it thickens too much, and stir frequently; when it is done, a tablespoon of cream or a little new milk may be put in to cool it after strain- ing, but if the patient's stomach is weak it is best without either. Some persons like it sweetened and a little nutmeg added, but to many it is more palatable plain. MILK PORRIDGE Two cups best oat-meal, two cups water, two cups milk. Soak the oat-meal over night in the water; strain in the morning, and boil the water half an hour. Put in the milk with a little salt, boil up well and serve. Eat warm, with or without powdered sugar. ICE IN THE SICK ROOM. Cut a piece of flannel about nine inches square, and secure it by ligature round the mouth of an ordinary tum- bler, so as to leave a cup-shaped depression of flannel within the tumbler to about half its depth. In the flannel cup so formed ice may be preserved many hours all the longer if a piece of flannel from four to five inches square be used as a loose cover to the ice cup. Cheap flannel with comparatively open meshes, is preferable, as the water easily drains through it, and the ice is thus kept quite dry. 174 HOME DISSERTATIONS. SCOTCH BROTH. A two-pound piece of scraggy part of a neck of mutton. This particular cut is em- ployed because the muscles of a sheep's neck are in constanc use as to make that part of the animal better flavored and more nutritious than those parts through which the blood has run less freely. Cut the meat from the bones and remove all fat. Cut the meat into small pieces and put it into a soup-kettle, together with two slices of carrots, a slice of turnip, a stalk of celery and an onion all cut fine ; half a cup of barley and three pints of water; allow the broth to simmer gently two hours. The bones, with a pint of water allow the same time for simmering, then strain into the soup-kettle. A tablespoon each of butter and flour should be cooked together until perfectly smooth, and then stir into the broth; after which salt and pepper, and a teaspoon of chopped parsley should be added. Do not cook too rapidly or at too high a temperature, as it hardens the fibres of the meat, whereas a slow bubbling renders the meat tender and secures a better flavor for the broth. Mutton is so nutritious, and so easily digested as to deserve much attention as a food during convalescence. If it be properly cooked, the peculiar flavor that is disagreeable to some persons is concealed, though the meat remains palatable. MUTTON BROTH. Mutton broth recommended for patients whose food must be light, is made with a pound of meat like that used for Scotch broth, freed of fat, cut into small pieces and put into a saucepan containing a quart of cold water. When this water has become heated to a boiling point skim it carefully, add a teaspoon of barley, and allow it to simmer slowly two hours. LEMON JELLY. Soak one-fourth cup of gelatine in an equal quantity of cold water for two hours. Pour upon the gelatine a cup of boiling water, and add half a cup of sugar, one-fourth cup of lemon-juice, and after straining the jelly through a napkin into a mould, set it away to cool. CREAM TOAST. Half a cup of cream heated to the boiling point, and seasoned with salt. In the mean- time toast two slices of bread to a light-brown, then dip them in the cream and place on a dish, the remaining cream pour over them. ENGLISH SNIPE. Clean them, cut off the wings and legs at the first joint. Then cut the birds open in the back, season with salt and pepper, dip in melted butter, then dredge with flour. Broil eight or ten minutes, and serve on buttered toast. WINE WHEY. Sweeten half a pint of milk to suit the sick one's taste. Let this come to the boiling point, then pour in a wineglass and a half of sherry wine. Let it stand on the stove to simmer until a curd forms; then strain it through a muslin cloth laid in a colander. Let it stand until it is cool. Serve in a pretty cup, and on the saucer lay two or three wafers. CONTENTS. HOME, ....... ART AT HOME, . . . THE HEARTH-STONE, . FLOWERS, . . WIFE MANNERS, . . CONVERSATION, . . . . . TO-DAY HAPPINESS, ORDERLY DOMESTIC MANAGEMENT, KEEPING HOUSE, ,..-.- . EMERSON ON THE BABY, MR. RUSKIN'S IDEAS OF A MODEL NUR- SERY, . . . , i . CLEANLINESS, . . . FOOD AND DRINK, . . . ENTHUSIASM OF LABOR, . TABLE ETIQUETTE, TABLE TALK, . . . DINNER GIVING, TABLE RULES FOR LITTLE ONES, FRENCH NAMES OF DISHES USED IN MENUS, . . . V/HERE IS THE MAN THAT CAN LIVE WITHOUT DINING, .... PAGE PAGE 5 sou.v, . 6 9 FISH, ..*,.. 82 22 SHELL FISH, . . 90 77 OYSTERS, ...... 9 2 FRYING, ROASTING, BROILING, STEWING 2 9 AND STEAMING, . . . . , 96 31 POULTRY, QO 33 GAME, . . . . . . . . 77 106 BEEF, 1 08 38 VEAL, . . ... . 112 MUTTON, 116 4 1 PORK, . . 118 42 SALADS 120 43 *" SALAD DRESSING 121 SAUCES 122 44 PICKLES, . . . . . . I2C 45 VEGETABLES, ^j 127 47 EGGS, . . I 3 6 5i BREAD, . . . . .-',:. 140 53 CAKE, . . . . . . . . c. be contradicted, and the opposite ning to be implied. A, DUHEM, FLORIST AND DECORATOR, 121 SUTTER ST., S. OFFICE OF Goldberg, Bowen & Lebenbaum The first edition of Home Dissertations met with such universal approval by all who received copies, and the books were so soon distributed that we immediately set to work to issue this second edition. Since issuing the first edition the consolidation has taken place of the two oldest Grocery Establishments on the Pacific Coast, and we. now present this modest offering to housekeepers, to a clientele comprising the best fami- lies in this city and every city and town of the Pacific Coast, who have been patrons of one or the other of the houses. Thus il may not be inappropriate to give a few details concerning the business. The two stores will remain as heretofore, on Pine street just below Kearny and on Sutler just above Kearny. San Francisco is a cosmopolitan city and the whole Pacific Coast is cosmopolitan in its inhabitants, and in order to cater to the various nation- alities a stock must include the delicacies from every climate and civilized nation. On the two following pages are enumerated some of the articles imported from the different producing countries, although it would be impossible to classify anything like the entire list. France sends the greatest variety, followed by Germany, England, Italy, Holland, Switzerland, India, China, Japan, etc. Importations from GENUINE CHATEAU CLARETS Chateau Lafite, 1875 & 1879 Chateaux Margaux, 1881 and 1888 Chateau Leoville, 1874 and 1881 Brown Cantenac, 1874 and ( 1881 Mouton Rothschild, 1881 and 1882 Pichon Longueville, 1881 Rausan Segla, 1887 Latour, 1887 I^Pontet Canet, 1887 { Romance Conti, 1881 Chambertin, 1881. qts. Montrachet, 1881, qts. Clos de Vougeot, 1878, pts. and qts. ^Chablis, 1881, qts. ( All the after dinner drinks I Creme de Men the, Curacoa, 1 Parfait Amour, Assorted [ Liqueurs in Paniers ( Fruits Preserved in Juice { Fruits Preserved in Brandy ^ Candied and Glace C Champignons, Petit Pois, Harricot Vert, Harricot j Flageolet, Marrons Rotis et au Sirop, Asperges, Pimeintes Morrones et Truffles, in glass and tin Pates in terrines and tin Pate de foie Gras Foie Gras Pique aux Truffles Bird Pates in Bijou tins Puree de foie Gras (^ Saucisses et Saucisson ["Society Roquefort I Camembert, in glass jars CHEESE { Roquefort, in glass jars | Coulomnier, in glass jars t Fromage de Brie,in glass jars f Sardines a' la huile, boneless Sardines Royanau Truffles Puree de Poisson FISH { Anchovies a 1'huile Anchovies au sel I Thon Marine I Mackerel a 1'huile GENUINE CHATEAU BURGUN- DIES CORDIALS FRUITS VEGE- TABLES MEATS Importations from f Wiesbaden Fruits FRUITS \ Melange in Arrack ^Preserved Cranberries MEATS FISH ( Westphalian Hams j Braunschweiger Sausage J Ganseleber Sausage Truffled Cervalatewurst Pommersche Gansebrust, smoked Brabant Sardellen Eels, Smoked and in Gelee Appetit Sild Keiller Sprotten Krauter Anchovies k Marinirte Herring CHEESE - Limburger PICKLES - f Dill Gherkins \ Senfgurken ' Salt Pickles f Nuremberg and Brunswick SUNDRIES -< Hone y Kuchen l^Gall and Almond Soap SUNDRIES < Importations from Italy Olives Olive Oil Parmesan Cheese Gorgon zola Cheese Thon Mackerel in Oil Macaroni, Vermicelli, etc. Currants Chestnuts Mortadella Sausage Castile Soap Lachryma Christi Wine Marsala Wine Vermouth Importations f r m f Milchner Herrings Cocoa SUNDRIES < Edam Cheese j Cucumbers l^ SUNDRIES 3 Importations f r W Switzerland f Neufchatel Cheese I Emrnenthaler Cheese SUNDRIES ^ Coffee Extracts I Chocolate ^Condensed Milk Importations from JHungary C Paprika (Pepper) J Ansbruch Tokayer < j rv j- Burgundy, bzegszardi t Hock Wine, Szamorodni Importations from n?' ai ?d f Stilton Cheese Cheddar Cheese Yarmouth Bloaters Anchovy, Bloater, and Shrimp Pastes Kippered Herring Bol g na Sausage Oxford Sausage Yorkshire Game Pate Jams and Jellies Pickles and Sauces Malt and Crystal Vinegars Ale and Porter .Glenfield Starch Importations from Ireland f Belfast Bacon SUNDRIES ^ Dublin Porter I Irish Whiskies Importations from Scotland f Dundee Marmalade J Jams and Jellies SUNDRIES < J Oatmeal [Scotch Whiskies Importations from Mia f Malaca Pine Apple | Chutnies SUNDRIES-^ Sauces | Ceylon Tea i, Darjaling Assam Tea Importations from ( Hankow Russian Chop, J English Breakfast ] Formosa Oolong (^Souchong and Congou Importations from Japan ( Preserved Ginger SUNDRIES -{ Rice ( Spices f Natural Green j Natural Uncolored Basket TEAS Fired | Spider Leg t. Pekoe Teas Importations from Spain f Cadiz Sherries SUNDRIES -j Olives and Olive Oils [ Raisins Importations from Arabia COFFEE j Mocha Importations from Portugal PORT j Oporto Importations from CUBA j Havana Cigars PHIL- f . LJPINE 1 S P 1C6S CEYLON | Cinnamon JAVA | Coffee Referring to the foregoing list of delicacies and the countries of their origin from which we import direct, buying only from first hands and in large quantities upon most advantageous circumstances, we are enabled to own our stock in trade at a margin very close to that of the producers. We pay no profit to the wholesale dealer or middleman and buy every- thing for spot cash. These advantages enable us to offer to the consumer the very finest high class of goods the world pi oduces at very low prices. We publish a monthly Catalogue of Prices (5,000 copies] which will be sent free to anyone upon application (send postal). It enumerates the entire stock, comprising a greater variety of lines, necessary for the table, kitchen and boudoir, than any other regularly published price list. Keen judges of value and careful buyers are invited to inspect our stock and compare prices with those asked by others for inferior goods. Very respectfully, GOLDBERG, BO WEN & LEBENBAUM Hires' Improved Root Beer One 25c Package makes 5 gallons of a Delicious, Sparkling and Wholesome Beverage HIRES' ROOT BEER has grown in such popular favor, a number of imitations have appeared upon the market. The manufacturers thereof representing to dealers that their goods are j ust as good as Hires', and their inducements offered to dealers of a much lower price, occasionally induce a dealer to invest in these inferior goods, and for the sake of more profit, misrepresent them to their customers. If you intend purchasing a package of Hires' Improved Root Beer, do not be put off by such dealers telling you that any other article is just as good. Insist upon getting Hires', and take no other. WHEN YOU HAVE A COUGH OR COLD, USE TTTDCQ' HI K co TTTP17 LUKc HUCKINS Tomato, Ox Tail, Pea, Beef, Vermicelli, Mock Turtle, Terrapin, Okra or Gumbo, Macaroni, Green Turtle, Julienne, Chicken, RICH and PERFECTLY SEASONED. Consomme, Sou p and Boii ill! , Mullagatawny, Require only to be heated, and I Prepared with great care from I Have enjoyed the highest reputa- are then ready to serve. | only the best materials. | tion for more than 32 years. r^^^~im*mi^^m Send us SO cents, to help pay express, and receive, prepaid, two 8am- I TCCT CDpE I Pie cans of these Soups, your choice. | JEOI TREE | j H w j^Cj^j^g & C Q ^ SOLD BY ALL LEADING GROCERS. Sole Manufacturers, Boston, Mass. The Santa Fe Route PERSONALLY CONDUCTED Overland Excursions San Francisco, Oakland, Modesto, Merced, Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Madera, Fresno, Stockton, San Jose, Selma, Kingsburg, Lathrop, Tulare and Bakersfield EVERY WEDNESDAY THROUGH TO BOSTON WITHOUT CHANQE Every Excursion is Accompanied by a, Santa Fe Route Excursion Manager, Through to Boston Byron Mauzy's Piano Warerooms 51?e arjd U/arqrooms or? tfre pacific C^oast INTERIOR VIEW OF WAREROOMS SOLE AGENT FOR SOHMER & CO, CHASE BROS. HALLETT & CUJVISTON NEWBY & EVANS TABER REED ORGANS Pianos Sold on very EASY TERMS at CASH PRICES PIANOS XUBJEO <* REPAIRED. I'lA XS XO 308, 310. 312, 314 POST STREET, SAN FRANCISCO IVVCH IC-l >!< CI^ITB 1M I I,IIX. Coast Representative for Hook & Hastings, Pipe Organ Manufacturers SHEET MUSIC DEPARTMENT Branch of White-Smith Music Publishing Company Boston L. BUDD ROSENBERG, Manager SMALL GOODS DEPARTMENT Guitars, Violins, Mandolins, Banjos, Accor- dions, Zithers, etc. Best Quality Strings. Something about Pianos In these days of art and culture, a piano is an almost indispensable article in the household. In selecting so expensive an article it is advisable to patronize some well established firm. Byron Mauzy, 308 to 314 Post street, in the Pacific-Union Club Building, has the largest and finest warerooms in the city, and as he is agent for many of the leading makers, one would have no trouble in making a proper selection. We noticed Grands and Uprights in Rosewood, Mahogany, Oak, Walnut and Hazelwood, and prices according to style and maker. Music and the trade therein finds its most worthy representative in San Francisco in Mr. Byron Mauzy. Mr. Mauzy has done for local amateurs and lovers of the tune- ful art what no other dealer has ventured to attempt to do. He has given them a handsome and spacious hall, appropriately fitted up with all the accessories for a pub- lic performance. This, added to the fact that Mr. Mauzy is agent for the Sohmer Piano, has gained him a great popularity in the music-loving community a feeling which in nowise interferes with the steady growth of his successful business. As agent of so peerless an instrument as the Sohmer, which a large number of people think the very best piano made, Mr. Mauzy would naturally have his hands full; but it is only his due to state that he has done more for the advancement of a popular taste for good music than any other dealer in the city, and deserves proportionately better of all music-lov- ing people. The Delbeck Champanes DRY THE PERFECTION OF A DRY WINE THE VIN BRUT The Highest Grade of Champagne, without Sweetness The Barton & Gaestiet* (Established 1725, Bordeaux) CLARETS, WHITE WINES *P OLIVE OIL James de Fremery & Co. SAN RRANCISCO Qeperal /l<$er>ts for tl? F ront Street, San F raivcisco, Cal. ANHEUSER AND BUDWEISER BOTTLED LAGER BEER ANHEUSER-BUSCH BREWING ASSOCIATION ST. LOUIS CELEBRATED BOTTLING OF WM. EDMONDS JR. & CO.- LIVERPOOL GUINNESS' STOUT, BASS' ALE PIG BRAND VAL BLATZ'S CELEB " "WEINER" ** "PRIVATE STOCK" RED RIBBON BEERS TRADE SUPPLIED BY JONES, MUNDY & CO. Street . gan. KrartciSCQ, Cal. FREERECLIIHKG Cn/UR CARS COLONIST SLEEPERS, AND DRAWING ROOM StEEPIN<5 CARS AND SUPERB DINING CARS. 2O6 &2O3GL.ARK ST -* PASSENGER. STATION *^< COA. "WELLS A XINZJE GHIGAGO 1*0 OAVAHA 15% MRS. DENVER 33/ 2 PORTLAND 32 SAN FRANCISCO 85 ST. PAUL 13/2 ,, AINNEAPOLIS 1* nULVTH 16 3rd ^ ce Eresidfflt TIKE Fastest Trains in America, SCHEDULED FOR PASSENGER TRAFFIC, KTJN VIA Baltimore & Ohio R, R, BETWEEN Pullman Buffet Cars on Day Trains. Pull- man Sleeping Cars on all Night Trains. The Baltimore & Ohio R, R, Maintains a Complete Service of Vestibuled Express Trains between New York, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Chicago, *: -EQUIPPED WITH- #& ' \/DJ |h* Pullman Palace Sleeping Cars RUNNING THROUGH WITHOUT CHANGE, All B, & 0, Trains Between the East anJ West Rnn WASHINGTON. 211 Washington Street, Boston, Mass. 415 Broadway, New York. 9th and Chestnut Streets, Philadelphia, Pa. Cor. Baltimore and Calvert Streets, Baltimore, Md. 1351 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D. C. Corner Wood Street and Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa. Corner 4th and Vine Streets, Cincinnati, O. 101 North Fourth Street, St. Louis, Mo. J. T. ODELL, General Manager. 193 Clark Street, Chicago, 111. CHAS. O. SCULL, BALTIMORE, MD. General Passenger Agent The INGLENOC tected by its trade m the Wines. None g< IICE ^, * . Eav f the vineyard in California: pro- aarantees the absolute purity ot ?S and Purity TILED ATTHE CELEBRATED ^OOK VINEYARDS FORNIA First Award of Merit and Medal, International Exhibition, Melbourne, Aust., 1888. Cal cest Production CL BURGUNDY. SAUTERNE DEL. HOCK. BURGER. RIESLING PRIVATE STOCK BRANDY Absolute Purity Guaranteed by the Legal Pure Wine Stamp For Sale by GOLDBERG, BOWEN & LEBENBAUM, and all leading Wine Merchants and Grocers in every City in the Union FOR PRICES APPLY TO F, A, HABER, OFFICE AND DEPOT INGLENOOK VINEYARD 122 SANSOME ST., SAN FRANCISCO THE CALIFORNIA BUSH ST., NEAR SAN KRANCISCO, CAL. THE ONLY STRICTLY EUROPEAN PLAN AND FIRE-PROOF HOTEL IN THE CITY IT IS A RECOGNIZED fact that San Francisco has made from time to time the greatest effort to surpass all other cities in her Hotel accommodations, and it must be conceded that the acme of perfection has now been reached. The California was opened December, 1890, and there is nothing on the Pacific Coast, so far as artistic taste, elegance of appointments and lavish expendi- ture go, which can compare with it. The California is unsurpassed in style of service by the best hotels of the United States. Heretofore there has been no strictly European plan hotel in San -Francisco. Select music every evening in Restaurant between 6 and 8 P. M. Moderate rates. OTF A visit to this city is incomplete without seeing The California, unquestionably the most beauti- ful and luxuriously furnished hotel in America. A. F. KINZLER, MANAGER