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The Whitehouse Cookbook (1887) written by Mrs. F.L. Gillette

M >> Mrs. F.L. Gillette >> The Whitehouse Cookbook (1887)





TO CURE HAMS AND BACON. (A Prize Recipe.)

For each hundred pounds of hams, make a pickle of ten pounds of salt,
two pounds of brown sugar, two ounces of saltpetre, one ounce of red
pepper, and from four to four and a half gallons of water, or just
enough to cover the hams, after being packed in a water-tight vessel,
or enough salt to make a brine to float a fresh egg high enough, that
is to say, out of water. First rub the hams with common salt and lay
them into a tub. Take the above ingredients, put them into a vessel
over the fire, and heat it hot, stirring it frequently; remove all the
scum, allow it to boil ten minutes, let it cool and pour over the
meat. After laying in this brine five or six weeks, take out, drain
and wipe, and smoke from two to three weeks. Small pieces of bacon may
remain in this pickle two weeks, which would be sufficient.


TO SMOKE HAMS AND FISH AT HOME.

Take an old hogshead, stop up all the crevices, and fix a place to put
a cross-stick near the bottom, to hang the article to be smoked on.
Next, in the side, cut a hole near the top, to introduce an iron pan
filled with hickory wood sawdust and small pieces of green wood.
Having turned the hogshead upside down, hang the articles upon the
cross-stick, introduce the iron pan in the opening, and place a piece
of red-hot iron in the pan, cover it with sawdust, and all will be
complete. Let a large ham remain ten days, and keep up a good smoke.
The best way for keeping hams is to sew them in coarse cloths,
white-washed on the outside.


TO CURE ENGLISH BACON.

This process is called the "dry cure," and is considered far
preferable to the New England or Yankee style of putting prepared
brine or pickle over the meat. First the hog should not be too large
or too fat, weighing not over two hundred pounds, then after it is
dressed and cooled cut it up into proper pieces; allow to every
hundred pounds a mixture of four quarts of common salt, one quarter of
a pound of saltpetre and four pounds of sugar. Rub this preparation
thoroughly over and into each piece, then place them into a tight tub
or suitable cask; there will a brine form of itself from the juices of
the meat, enough at least to baste it with, which should be done two
or three times a week; turning each piece every time.

In smoking this bacon, the sweetest flavor is derived from black birch
chips, but if these are not to be had, the next best wood is hickory;
the smoking with corn-cobs imparts a rank flavor to this bacon, which
is very distasteful to English people visiting this country. It
requires three weeks or a month to smoke this bacon properly.

_Berkshire Recipe_.


TO TRY OUT LARD.

Skin the leaf lard carefully, cut it into small pieces, and put it
into a kettle or saucepan; pour in a cupful of water to prevent
burning; set it over the fire where it will melt slowly. Stir it
frequently and let it simmer until nothing remains but brown scraps.
Remove the scraps with a perforated skimmer, throw in a little salt to
settle the fat, and, when clear, strain through a coarse cloth into
jars. Remember to watch it constantly, stirring it from the bottom
until the salt is thrown in to settle it; then set it back on the
range until clear. If it scorches it gives it a very bad flavor.




SAUCES AND DRESSINGS.


DRAWN BUTTER.

Melted butter is the foundation of most of the common sauces. Have a
covered saucepan for this purpose. One lined with porcelain will be
best. Take a quarter of a pound of the best fresh butter, cut it up,
and mix with it about one tablespoonful of flour. When it is
thoroughly mixed, put it into the saucepan, and add to it half a
teacupful of hot water. Cover the saucepan and set it in a large tin
pan of boiling water. Shake it round continually (always moving it the
same way) till it is entirely melted and begins to simmer. Then let it
rest till it boils up.

If you set it on too hot a fire it will be oily.

If the butter and flour are not well mixed, it will be lumpy.

If you put in too much water, it will be thin and poor. All these
defects are to be carefully avoided.

In melting butter for sweet or pudding sauce, you may use milk instead
of water.


TARTARE SAUCE.

The raw yolks of two eggs, half a teacupful of pure olive oil, three
tablespoonfuls of vinegar, one of made mustard, one teaspoonful of
sugar, a quarter of a teaspoonful of pepper, one teaspoonful of salt,
one of onion juice, one tablespoonful of chopped capers, one of
chopped cucumber pickle. Put together the same as mayonnaise dressing,
adding the chopped ingredients the last thing.

This sauce is good for fried or boiled fish, boiled tongue, fish
salad, and may be used with fried and broiled meats.


EGG SAUCE, OR WHITE SAUCE.

Mix two tablespoonfuls of sifted flour with half a teacup of warm
butter. Place over the fire a saucepan containing a pint of sweet milk
and a saltspoon of salt, and a dash of white pepper; when it reaches
the boiling point, add the butter and flour, stirring briskly until it
thickens and becomes like cream. Have ready three cold hard-boiled
eggs, sliced and chopped, add them to the sauce; let them heat through
thoroughly, and serve in a boat. If you have plenty of cream, use it
and omit the butter. By omitting the eggs, you have the same as "White
Sauce."


OYSTER SAUCE.

Take a pint of oysters and heat them in their own liquor long enough
to come to a boil, or until they begin to ruffle. Skim out the oysters
into a warm dish, put into the liquor a teacup of milk or cream, two
tablespoonfuls of cold butter, a pinch of cayenne and salt; thicken
with a tablespoonful of flour stirred to a paste, boil up and then add
the oysters.

Oyster sauce is used for fish, boiled turkey, chickens and boiled
white meats of most kinds.


LOBSTER SAUCE.

Put the coral and spawn of a boiled lobster into a mortar with a
tablespoonful of butter; pound it to a smooth mass, then rub it
through a sieve; melt nearly a quarter of a pound of sweet butter,
with a wine-glass of water or vinegar; add a teaspoonful of made
mustard, stir in the coral and spawn, and a little salt and pepper;
stir it until it is smooth and serve. Some of the meat of the lobster
may be chopped fine and stirred into it.


SAUCE FOR SALMON AND OTHER FISH.

One cupful of milk heated to a boil and thickened with a tablespoonful
of cornstarch previously wet up with cold water, the liquor from the
salmon, one great spoonful of butter, one raw egg beaten light, the
juice of half a lemon, mace and cayenne pepper to taste. Add the egg
to thickened milk when you have stirred in the butter and liquor; take
from the fire, season and let it stand in hot water three minutes,
covered. Lastly put in lemon juice and turn out immediately. Pour it
all over and around the salmon.


SAUCE FOR BOILED COD.

To one gill of boiling water add as much milk; stir into this while
boiling two tablespoonfuls of butter gradually, one tablespoonful of
flour wet up with cold water; as it thickens, the chopped yolk of one
boiled egg, and one raw egg beaten light. Take directly from the fire,
season with pepper, salt, a little chopped parsley and the juice of
one lemon, and set covered in boiling water (but not over fire) five
minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour part of the sauce over fish when
dished; the rest in a boat. Serve mashed potatoes with it.


FISH SAUCE. No. 1.

Make a pint of drawn butter, add one tablespoonful of pepper sauce or
Worcestershire sauce, a little salt and six hard-boiled eggs chopped
fine. Pour over boiled fish and garnish with sliced lemon.

Very nice.


FISH SAUCE. No. 2.

Half a cupful of melted butter, half a cupful of vinegar, two
tablespoonfuls of tomato catsup, salt, and a tablespoonful of made
mustard. Boil ten minutes.


CELERY SAUCE.

Mix two tablespoonfuls of flour with half a teacupful of butter; have
ready a pint of boiling milk; stir the flour and butter into the milk;
take three heads of celery, cut into small bits, and boil for a few
minutes in water, which strain off; put the celery into the melted
butter, and keep it stirred over the fire for five or ten minutes.
This is very nice with boiled fowl or turkey. Another way to make
celery sauce is: Boil a head of celery until quite tender, then put it
through a sieve; put the yolk of an egg in a basin, and beat it well
with the strained juice of a lemon; add the celery and a couple of
spoonfuls of liquor in which the turkey was boiled; salt and pepper to
taste.


CAPER SAUCE.

Chop the capers a very little, unless quite small; make half a pint of
drawn butter, to which add the capers, with a large spoonful of the
juice from the bottle in which they are sold; let it just simmer and
serve in a tureen. Nasturtiums much resemble capers in taste, though
larger, and may be used, and, in fact, are preferred by many. They are
grown on a climbing vine, and are cultivated for their blossom and for
pickling. When used as capers they should be chopped more. If
neither capers nor nasturtiums are at hand, some pickles chopped up
form a very good substitute in the sauce.

[Illustration]


BREAD SAUCE.

One cup of stale bread crumbs, one onion, two ounces of butter, pepper
and salt, a little mace. Cut the onion fine, and boil it in milk till
quite soft; then strain the milk on to the stale bread crumbs, and let
it stand an hour. Put it in a saucepan with the boiled onion, pepper,
salt and mace. Give it a boil, and serve in sauce tureen. This sauce
can also be used for grouse, and is very nice. Roast partridges are
nice served with bread crumbs, fried brown in butter, with cranberry
or currant jelly laid beside them in the platter.


TOMATO SAUCE.

Take a quart can of tomatoes, put it over the fire in a stewpan, put
in one slice of onion and two cloves, a little pepper and salt; boil
about twenty minutes; then remove from the fire and strain it through
a sieve. Now melt in another pan an ounce of butter, and as it melts,
sprinkle in a tablespoonful of flour; stir it until it browns and
froths a little. Mix the tomato pulp with it, and it is ready for the
table.

Excellent for mutton, chops, roast beef, etc.


ONION SAUCE.

Work together until light a heaping tablespoonful of flour and half a
cupful of butter, and gradually add two cups of boiling milk; stir
constantly until it come to a boil; then stir into that four tender
boiled onions that have been chopped fine. Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with boiled veal, poultry of mutton.


CHILI SAUCE.

Boil together two dozen ripe tomatoes, three small green peppers, or a
half teaspoonful of cayenne pepper, one onion cut fine, half a cup of
sugar. Boil until thick; then add two cups of vinegar; then strain the
whole, set back on the fire and add a tablespoonful of salt, and a
teaspoonful each of ginger, allspice, cloves and cinnamon; boil all
five minutes, remove and seal in glass bottles. This is very nice.


MINT SAUCE.

Take fresh young spearmint leaves stripped from the stems; wash and
drain them, or dry on a cloth. Chop very fine, put in a gravy boat,
and to three tablespoonfuls of mint put two of white sugar; mix and
let it stand a few minutes, then pour over it six tablespoonfuls of
good cider or white-wine vinegar. The sauce should be made some time
before it is to be used, so that the flavor of the mint may be well
extracted. Fine with roast lamb.


SHARP BROWN SAUCE.

Put in a saucepan one tablespoonful of chopped onion, three
tablespoonfuls of good cider vinegar, six tablespoonfuls of water,
three of tomato catsup, a little pepper and salt, half a cup of melted
butter, in which stir a tablespoonful of sifted flour; put all
together and boil until it thickens. This is most excellent with
boiled meats, fish and poultry.


BECHAMEL SAUCE.

Put three tablespoonfuls of butter in a saucepan; add three
tablespoonfuls of sifted flour, quarter of a teaspoonful of nutmeg,
ten peppercorns, a teaspoonful of salt; beat all well together; then
add to this three slices of onion, two slices of carrot, two sprigs of
parsley, two of thyme, a bay leaf and half a dozen mushrooms cut up.
Moisten the whole with a pint of stock or water and a cup of sweet
cream. Set it on the stove and cook slowly for half an hour, watching
closely that it does not burn; then strain through a sieve. Most
excellent with roast veal, meats and fish. _St. Charles Hotel, New
Orleans_.


MAITRE D'HOTEL SAUCE.

Make a teacupful of drawn butter; add to it the juice of a lemon, two
tablespoonfuls of minced onion, three tablespoonfuls of chopped
parsley, a teaspoonful of powdered thyme or summer savory, a pinch of
cayenne and salt. Simmer over the fire and stir well. Excellent with
all kinds of fish.


WINE SAUCE FOR GAME.

Half a glass of currant jelly, half a glass of port wine, half a glass
of water, a tablespoonful of cold butter, a teaspoonful of salt, the
juice of half a lemon, a pinch of cayenne pepper and three cloves.
Simmer all together a few minutes, adding the wine after it is
strained. A few spoonfuls of the gravy from the game may be added to
it. This sauce is especially nice with venison. _Taber House, Denver_.


HOLLANDAISE SAUCE.

Half a teacupful of butter, the juice of half a lemon, the yolk of two
eggs, a speck of cayenne pepper, half a cupful of boiling water, half
a teaspoonful of salt; beat the butter to a cream, add the yolks of
eggs one by one; then the lemon juice, pepper and salt, beating all
thoroughly; place the bowl in which is the mixture in a saucepan of
boiling water; beat with an egg-beater until it begins to thicken
which will be in about a minute; then add the boiling water, beating
all the time; stir until it begins to thicken like soft custard; stir
a few minutes after taking from the fire; be careful not to cook it
too long. This is very nice with baked fish.


CURRANT JELLY SAUCE.

Three tablespoonfuls of butter, one onion, one bay leaf, one sprig of
celery, two tablespoonfuls of vinegar, half a cupful of currant jelly,
one tablespoonful of flour, one pint of stock, salt, pepper. Cook the
butter and onion until the latter begins to color. Add the flour and
herbs. Stir until brown; add the stock, and simmer twenty minutes.
Strain and skim off all the fat. Add the jelly and stir over the fire
until it is melted. Serve with game.


BROWN SAUCE.

Delicious sauce for meats is made in this way: Slice a large onion and
fry in butter till it is brown; then cover the onion with rich brown
gravy, which is left from roast beef; add mustard, salt and pepper,
and if you choose a tablespoonful of Worcestershire sauce; let this
boil up, and if too thick, thin it with a little stock or gravy, or
even a little hot water with butter. Pour this when done through a
fine sieve. Of course a larger quantity can be prepared at once than
is mentioned here.


MUSHROOM SAUCE.

Wash a pint of small button mushrooms, remove the stems and outside
skins, stew them slowly in veal gravy or milk or cream, adding an
onion, and seasoning with pepper, salt and a little butter rolled in
flour. Their flavor will be heightened by salting a few the night
before, to extract the juice. In dressing mushrooms only those of a
dull pearl color on the outside and the under part tinged with pale
pink should be selected. If there is a poisonous one among them, the
onion in the sauce will turn black. In such a case throw the whole
away. Used for poultry, beef or fish.


APPLE SAUCE.

When you wish to serve apple sauce with meat prepare it in this way:
Cook the apples until they are very tender, then stir them thoroughly
so there will be no lumps at all; add the sugar and a little gelatine
dissolved in warm water, a tablespoonful in a pint of sauce; pour the
sauce into bowls, and when cold it will be stiff like jelly, and can
be turned out on a plate. Cranberry sauce can be treated in the same
way. Many prefer this to plain stewing.

Apples cooked in the following way look very pretty on a tea-table,
and are appreciated by the palate. Select firm, round greenings; pare
neatly and cut in halves; place in a shallow stewpan with sufficient
boiling water to cover them, and a cupful of sugar to every six
apples. Each half should cook on the bottom of the pan, and be removed
from the others so as not to injure its shape. Stew slowly until the
pieces are very tender; remove to a dish carefully; boil the syrup
half an hour longer; pour it over the apples and eat cold. A few
pieces of lemon boiled in the syrup adds to the flavor. These sauces
are a fine accompaniment to roast pork or roast goose.


CIDER APPLE SAUCE.

Boil four quarts of new cider until it is reduced to two quarts; then
put into it enough pared and quartered apples to fill the kettle; let
the whole stew over a moderate fire four hours; add cinnamon if liked.
This sauce is very fine with almost any kind of meat.


OLD-FASHIONED APPLE SAUCE.

Pare and chop a dozen medium-sized apples, put them in a deep
pudding-dish; sprinkle over them a heaping coffeecupful of sugar and
one of water. Place them in the oven and bake slowly two hours or
more, or until they are a deep red brown; quite as nice as preserves.


CRANBERRY SAUCE.

One quart of cranberries, two cupfuls of sugar and a pint of water.
Wash the cranberries, then put them on the fire with the water, but in
a covered saucepan. Let them simmer until each cranberry bursts open;
then remove the cover of the saucepan, add the sugar and let them all
boil twenty minutes without the cover. The cranberries must never be
stirred from the time they are placed on the fire. This is an
unfailing recipe for a most delicious preparation of cranberries. Very
fine with turkey and game.


APPLE OMELET.

Apple omelet, to be served with broiled sparerib or roast pork, is
very delicate. Take nine large, tart apples, four, eggs, one cup of
sugar, one tablespoonful of butter; add cinnamon or other spices to
suit your taste; stew the apples till they are very soft; mash them so
that there will be no lumps; add the butter and sugar while they are
still warm; but let them cool before putting in the beaten eggs; bake
this till it is brown; you may put it all in a shallow pudding-dish or
in two tin plates to bake. Very good.


FLAVORED VINEGARS.

Almost all the flavorings used for meats and salads may be prepared in
vinegar with little trouble and expense, and will be found useful to
impart an acid to flavors when lemons are not at hand.

Tarragon, sweet basil, burnet, green mint, sage, thyme, sweet
marjoram, etc., may be prepared by putting three ounces of either of
these herbs, when in blossom, into one gallon of sharp vinegar, let
stand ten days, strain off clear, and bottle for use.

Celery and cayenne may be prepared, using three ounces of the seed as
above.


CUCUMBER VINEGAR.

_Ingredients_.--Ten large cucumbers, or twelve smaller ones, one quart
of vinegar, two onions, two shallots, one tablespoonful of salt, two
tablespoonfuls of pepper, a quarter of a teaspoonful of cayenne.

_Mode_.--Pare and slice the cucumbers, put them in a stone jar, or
wide-mouthed bottle, with the vinegar; slice the onions and shallots,
and add them, with all the other ingredients, to the cucumbers. Let it
stand four or five days; boil it all up, and when cold, strain the
liquor through a piece of muslin, and store it away in small bottles
well sealed. This vinegar is a very nice addition to gravies, hashes,
etc., as well as a great improvement to salads, or to eat with cold
meat.


CURRY POWDER.

To make curry powder, take one ounce of ginger, one ounce of mustard,
one ounce of pepper, three ounces of coriander seed, three ounces of
turmeric, half an ounce of cardamoms, one-quarter ounce of cayenne
pepper, one-quarter ounce of cinnamon, and one-quarter ounce of cumin
seed. Pound all these ingredients very fine in a mortar; sift them and
cork tight in a bottle.

This can be had ready prepared at most druggists, and it is much less
trouble to purchase it than to make it at home.


CURRY SAUCE.

One tablespoonful of butter, one of flour, one teaspoonful of curry
powder, one large slice of onion, one large cupful of stock, salt and
pepper to taste. Cut the onion fine, and fry brown in the 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.


TO BROWN BUTTER.

Put a lump of butter into a hot frying pan and toss it about until it
browns. Stir brown flour into it until it is smooth and begins to
boil. Use it for coloring gravies, and sauces for meats.


TO BROWN FLOUR.

Spread flour upon a tin pie-plate, set it upon the stove or in a
_very_ hot oven, and stir continually, after it begins to color, until
it is brown all through.

Keep it always on hand; put away in glass jars covered closely. It is
excellent for coloring and thickening many dishes.


TO MAKE MUSTARD.

Boil some vinegar; take four spoonfuls of mustard, half of a
teaspoonful of sugar, a saltspoonful of salt, a tablespoonful of
melted butter; mix well.


FRENCH MUSTARD.

Three tablespoonfuls of mustard, one tablespoonful of granulated
sugar, well worked together, then beat in an egg until it is smooth;
add one teacupful of vinegar, a little at a time, working it all
smooth; then set on the stove and cook three or four minutes, stirring
all the time; when cool, add one tablespoonful of the best olive oil,
taking care to get it all thoroughly worked in and smooth. You will
find this very nice. _Mrs. D. Riegel_.


KITCHEN PEPPER.

Mix one ounce of ground ginger, half an ounce each of black pepper,
ground cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice, one teaspoonful of ground
cloves, and six ounces of salt. Keep in a tightly corked bottle. _The
Caterer_.


PREPARED COCOANUT. (For Pies, Puddings, etc.)

To prepare cocoanut for future use, first cut a hole through the meat
at one of the holes in the end, draw off the milk, then loosen the
meat by pounding the nut well on all sides. Crack the nut and take out
the meat, and place the pieces of meat in a cool open oven over night,
or for a few hours, to dry; then grate it. If there is more grated
than is needed for present use, sprinkle it with sugar, and spread out
in a cool dry place. When dry enough put away in dry cans or bottles.
Will keep for weeks.


SPICES.

Ginger is the root of a shrub first known in Asia, and now cultivated
in the West Indies and Sierra Leone. The stem grows three or four feet
high and dies every year. There are two varieties of ginger--the white
and black--caused by taking more or less care in selecting and
preparing the roots, which are always dug in winter, when the stems
are withered. The white is the best.

_Cinnamon_ is the inner bark of a beautiful tree, a native of Ceylon,
that grows from twenty to thirty feet in height and lives to be
centuries old.

_Cloves_.--Native to the Molucca Islands, and so called from
resemblance to a nail (_clavis_). The East Indians call them
"changkek" from the Chinese "techengkia" (fragrant nails). They grow
on a straight, smooth-barked tree, about forty feet high. Cloves are
not fruits, but blossoms, gathered before they are quite unfolded.

_Allspice_.--A berry so called because it combines the flavor of
several spices--grows abundantly on the allspice or bayberry tree;
native of South America and the West Indies. A single tree has been
known to produce one hundred and fifty pounds of berries. They are
purple when ripe.

_Black pepper_ is made by grinding the dried berry of a climbing vine,
native to the East Indies. White pepper is obtained from the same
berries, freed from their husk or rind. Red or cayenne pepper is
obtained by grinding the scarlet pod or seed-vessel of a tropical
plant that is now cultivated in all parts of the world.

_Nutmeg_ is the kernel of a small, smooth, pear-shaped fruit that
grows on a tree in the Molucca Islands, and other parts of the East.
The trees commence bearing in the seventh year, and continue fruitful
until they are seventy or eighty years old. Around the nutmeg or
kernel is a bright, brown shell. This shell has a soft, scarlet
covering, which, when flattened out and dried, is known as mace. The
best nutmegs are solid, and emit oil when pricked with a pin.


HERBS FOR WINTER.

To prepare herbs for winter use, such as sage, summer savory, thyme,
mint or any of the sweet herbs, they should be gathered fresh in their
season, or procure them from the market. Examine them well, throwing
out all poor sprigs; then wash and shake them; tie into small bundles,
and tie over the bundles a piece of netting or old lace (to keep off
the dust); hang up in a warm, dry place, the leaves downward. In a few
days the herb will be thoroughly dry and brittle. Or you may place
them in a cool oven and let them remain in it until perfectly dry.
Then pick off all the leaves and the tender tops of the stems; put
them in a clean, large-mouthed bottle that is perfectly dry. When
wanted for use, rub fine, and sift through a sieve. It is much better
to put them in bottles as soon as dried, as long exposure to the air
causes them to lose strength and flavor.