OTHER PASTES.
Agnellotti ‘alla Poggio Gherardo.’
Take the meat of a boiled chicken (hare, pheasant, or any game will do as well) and pound in a mortar with one truffle, two ounces of crumb of bread soaked in veal broth, two ounces of butter, a pinch of salt, the same of pepper, and a little grated nutmeg. When well worked into a paste rub it through a sieve. Meanwhile take one pound of flour, three eggs, half a tumbler of milk, and a pinch of salt, mix up into a paste and work it well. Lay it aside for half an hour, then roll it out very thin, divide it in half and let it dry. Then take one half and put the meat paste on it in little heaps (half a teaspoonful) about three inches distant from each other. Cover them with the other half of paste, cut round the little heaps, and press the edges of the two pastes together to prevent the meat stuffing from coming out. Put the agnellotti into a sauce-pan with a great deal of salted boiling water in it, and boil slowly. When done take them out with a strainer, season with butter, grated Parmesan cheese, and good gravy. Serve very hot.
Crescioni.
Boil a bunch of spinach, drain it well and put it to simmer with some pure olive oil, a taste of shallot, some chopped parsley, and salt and pepper to taste: season with some raisins (stoned) and some currants, and a little sugar. Put the spinach into rounds of paste made of flour and eggs, about two inches in diameter, and fold the paste over the spinach (as you make a turnover). Fry in pure olive oil.
Gnocchi ‘alla Romana.’
Mix five and a half ounces of flour and two eggs in a sauce-pan, add one pint of milk by degrees, and three-quarters of an ounce of Gruyère cheese cut into bits. When the paste is cooked put in salt to taste, and three-quarters of an ounce of good butter, spread it in a dish to the thickness of three-quarters of an inch, and let it cool. Then cut it into small square pieces and pile it in layers in a baking-dish with three-quarters of an ounce of good butter in bits, and three-quarters of an ounce of grated Parmesan cheese between the layers (but not on the outside). Brown with the salamander or in a hot oven, and serve at once.
Gnocchi of Semolina.
Take one pint of milk, four and a half ounces of semolina and boil; before taking it off the fire add salt to taste, one ounce of good butter, and three-quarters of an ounce of Parmesan cheese. Before it gets cold mix in two eggs, then pour it out on a dish, spreading it in an even thickness of about three-quarters of an inch. When cold cut it in small square pieces. Pile them one on another in a vegetable dish, adding between each layer one ounce of good butter in bits, and some grated Parmesan cheese (but not on the top), put the gnocchi into a hot oven to be slightly browned, and serve hot.
Pappardelle with Hare.
Make a paste with flour, and three eggs, roll it about the thickness of a florin, and cut it into strips the width of a finger. Boil in salted water and put it aside to dry. Cut up the fillets, or the thighs of a hare (about eight ounces) into small pieces, mince one and a half ounces of bacon, half a small onion, half a carrot, and a quarter of a head of celery, and put them to cook with three-quarters of an ounce of butter, and season with salt and pepper. When browned, sprinkle the meat with one tablespoonful of flour, moisten it with one wine-glassful of gravy, and let it simmer for a time, adding one and a quarter ounces of butter and a little grated nutmeg. Place the pappardelle (the strips of paste) on a hot dish, grate a little Parmesan cheese over them, add the hare condiment, and serve hot.
Spaghetti ‘con Acciughe.’
Take twelve ounces of medium-sized spaghetti, parboil in slightly salted water; meanwhile wash and bone five anchovies, chop them up fine and put them into a sauce-pan with an abundance of pure olive oil, and a pinch of pepper. Do not let them boil, but when hot add two ounces of butter and the pulp of one or two tomatoes (or some tomato conserve). Pour this sauce over the spaghetti and serve hot.
Spaghetti ‘al Forno.’
Boil three-quarters of a pound of fresh spaghetti in plenty of salted water for three-quarters of an hour, adding an onion with two or three cloves stuck into it and half an ounce of butter. Drain and place them in a sauce-pan with half a pint of sauce ‘[Alla Tedesca]’ and half a pint of sauce ‘[Alla Béchamel].’ Add a good pinch of pepper, a little grated nutmeg, and a quarter of a pound of grated Gruyère cheese. Toss well, then put them in a baking-dish, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and bread-crumbs, pour a little clarified butter over them, and put into the oven. When baked a golden colour (about fifteen minutes) serve up hot.
Spaghetti ‘all’ Italiana.’
Boil the spaghetti as above (‘al Forno’), drain, add one pint of Tomato sauce (see Sauces, p. [126]) (or conserve) and a quarter of a pound of grated cheese, add a little pepper and grated nutmeg, and cook for ten minutes, tossing well. Serve hot with some grated Parmesan cheese separate.
Spaghetti ‘alla Napolitana.’
Boil three-quarters of a pound of fresh spaghetti in plenty of salted water for three-quarters of an hour, with an onion stuck with cloves, and half an ounce of butter. Drain and put them into a saucepan with half a pint of Tomato sauce (see Sauces, p. [126]) (or tomato conserve), half a pint of sauce ‘Suprema’ (see Sauces, p. [125]), two truffles, seven or eight mushrooms, and a piece of smoked tongue, all cut up small. Add a little pepper, grated nutmeg, and a quarter of a pound of grated Parmesan cheese. Cook for ten minutes, tossing well, serve hot with some grated Parmesan cheese separate.
Spaghetti, Timbaletti di.
Slide long pieces of spaghetti (or small maccaroni) gently into a sauce-pan, turning them round so that they should not be broken. Boil in salted water until tender, then lay them straight out on a cloth to cool. Butter small moulds (about three inches high), and wind spaghetti round inside them, beginning at the bottom. As you wind, fill each mould with boiled maccaroni, pieces of sweetbread cut into small bits, and button mushrooms, already cooked and prepared. Fill the moulds rather tight, or the timbaletti will not stand up, cover them with buttered paper, and stand them in a pan of hot water to cook in a slow oven for half an hour. Turn the timbaletti carefully out of the moulds, pour a little gravy round them, and serve hot.
Tagliarini ‘al Formaggio.’
Take one pound of flour, three eggs, half a tumbler of milk, and a pinch of salt, mix up into a paste and work it well. Lay it aside for half an hour, then roll it out very thin and let it dry before cutting it into long thin strips (tagliarini). Boil these in salted water over a very slow fire for twenty minutes and then drain well. Meanwhile prepare four ounces of grated Parmesan cheese, five ounces of grated Gruyère, and six ounces of butter; put a layer of tagliarini into a baking-dish, and cover them with cheese and butter. Repeat the alternate layers of tagliarini, cheese and butter, until the dish is full. Sprinkle the top with bread-crumbs and bits of butter, bake in the oven for quarter of an hour and serve in the baking-dish very hot.
Tagliatelle with Ham.
Make a stiff paste with flour and eggs, roll it to the thickness of a florin, cut it into strips half or three-quarters of an inch broad, and parboil with a very little salt. Meanwhile cut up into small square pieces a thick slice of ham, mince some carrot and celery (about the same in quantity as the ham) and put them into a frying-pan with two, or more, ounces of butter. When they begin to brown add some tomato juice (or tomato conserve) and a cupful of broth (or water). Place the tagliatelle, well strained, on to a hot dish, season with grated Parmesan cheese, some bits of butter, and the ham.
Tagliatelle ‘alla Romagnola.’
Put one clove of garlic (or a sliced onion) and a bunch of parsley into a frying-pan with some pure olive oil. As soon as the garlic (or onion) begins to brown, add six or seven tomatoes cut in slices, and salt and pepper to taste. When they are cooked strain off the gravy. Meanwhile make a paste as in ‘Tagliatelle with Ham,’ parboil in plenty of slightly salted water, then put it into a sauce-pan, pour the hot gravy over it, add some butter and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese, mix, and serve at once.
Tagliatelle with Sausages.
Prepare the tagliatelle as in the recipe ‘with Ham,’ only substitute sausages for the ham.
Tortelli.
Take seven ounces of curds (squeeze them through a cloth to extract all the water), one and a half ounce of Parmesan cheese, one egg, and one yolk of an egg, a little grated nutmeg and some allspice, a pinch of salt, and a little chopped-up parsley. Mix well together and put a spoonful on to little rounds of paste (about two and a half inches in diameter). Fold the paste over the curds, as you would a turnover, and put them into boiling salted water. Take them out with a strainer, season with butter and Parmesan cheese and serve hot. The quantities given ought to make about twenty-four tortelli.
Macedoine of Vegetables.
Cut one carrot and one turnip into small dice, balls, or any fancy shapes; take a quarter of a pint of green peas, a quarter of a pint of young flageolet beans, a quarter of a pint of French beans cut into slices half an inch long, and some small pieces of cauliflower. Boil each vegetable separate, and drain them well before mixing them together lightly with a sauce ‘Alla Panna’ or ‘Alla Béchamel’ (see Sauces, pp. [119], [125]), or a seasoning of melted butter, pepper, and salt.
Mushrooms (Pratajuoli[4]) ‘al Burro.’
[4] Agaricus campestris. The mushroom usually cultivated in England.
Take large mushrooms, clean them carefully, break off the stalks and peel the tops, put them on a gridiron, season with a little pepper and salt, turn them, and when done serve up on a very hot dish; put a good piece of fresh butter on to each, and a squeeze of lemon. Place them in a hot oven for a minute, or even in front of a hot fire, and serve on buttered toast.
Mushrooms (Porcini[5]) ‘alla Casalinga’
[5] Boletus edulis.
Peel two pounds of fine mushrooms and put them into fresh water. Melt four ounces of butter in a sauce-pan with two or three spoonfuls of pure olive oil, one or two leaves of mint, an anchovy finely chopped up, and a little pounded parsley. Stir well together, put the mushrooms into the sauce-pan, having first dried them well, and sprinkled them with salt, then cook slowly. Serve up on slices of bread fried in butter, and squeeze the juice of half a lemon over them.
Mushrooms (Pratajuoli[6]) ‘alla Crema.’
[6] Agaricus campestris.
Take one pound of fine mushrooms, break off the stalks, clean, wash, and drain them. (If very large divide them in two.) Put them into a sauté-pan with one ounce of fresh butter, season with one spoonful of salt and half a spoonful of pepper, and cover the pan. Cook over a moderate fire for six or seven minutes, then add half a cupful of cream and two tablespoonfuls of Vellutata sauce (see Sauces, p. [127]). Cook for four minutes, and serve at once in a hot dish with croûtons (fried bread).
Mushrooms (Porcini[7]) ‘alla Francese’.
[7] Boletus edulis.
Peel two pounds of mushrooms, wash, drain, cut them into halves and pickle them for one hour in pure olive oil, salt and pepper. Put some pure olive oil into a clean frying-pan, throw in the mushrooms and add some finely chopped-up parsley. When done put them on slices of bread fried in fresh butter and serve hot.
Mushrooms (Porcini[8]) Fried. No. 1.
[8] Boletus edulis.
Clean and wash some large mushrooms thoroughly; put them into a sauce-pan with a bay leaf, a clove of garlic (or an onion), a little thyme, salt, and a ladleful of water flavoured with a few drops of vinegar or lemon. Boil for two minutes, then drain, and cut them into slices. Throw the slices into a paste made of flour, one or two yolks of eggs, a little white wine (or water), and half a teaspoonful of pure olive oil. Fry in pure olive oil over a good fire, and serve up hot.
Mushrooms (Porcini[9]) Fried. No. 2.
[9] Boletus edulis.
Choose porcini of a medium size, clean, and wash them well, but do not let them soak, as it spoils the flavour. Cut them into slices and flour well before throwing them into the frying-pan. Fry in pure olive oil, and season with salt and pepper while they are frying.
Mushrooms (Porcini[10]) Grilled.
[10] Boletus edulis.
Remove the skin of some medium-sized heads of porcini (keep the stalks), clean, wash, and put them on a napkin to dry. Make a stuffing of the stalks, some parsley, a very little garlic (or onion), and put a small portion inside each mushroom head, salt according to taste, with a pinch of pepper; season with olive oil, place the heads thus prepared on a gridiron, and cook them over a slow fire for about a quarter of an hour. Serve very hot.
Mushrooms (Porcini[11]) ‘all’ Intingolo.’
[11] Boletus edulis.
Put several peeled mushrooms into a sauce-pan with two or four ounces of butter (according to the quantity of mushrooms used), add a small bunch of parsley and two or three small onions. Put them on the fire, mix with a little flour, a tumbler of soup, half a tumbler of white wine, the same of clear gravy, and boil for an hour. Then skim off the grease, add a little more gravy if required, dust with flour, and put back to cook with salt and pepper to taste. Serve up hot.
Mushrooms (Prugnuoli[12]) ‘alla Spagnuola.’
[12] Agaricus Georgii (or Tricholoma Georgii).
Wash and clean one pound of prugnuoli and put them into a sauté-pan with two ounces of butter, a little flour, salt and pepper, and cook over a brisk fire for ten minutes. Moisten well with chicken broth, and add a little sauce ‘Suprema’ (see Sauces, p. [125]) (made with chicken broth). Prepare croûtons (fried bread) on a hot dish, and after sprinkling the juice of half a lemon over the mushrooms, put them on the bread and serve.
Mushrooms (Dormienti[13]) ‘al Sugo.’
[13] Hygrophorus Marzuolus.
Clean and wash well one pound of dormienti, put them into a sauté-pan with two ounces of butter, a little flour, salt and pepper; boil for a quarter of an hour, and add three tablespoonfuls of veal broth. Prepare croûtons (fried bread) on a hot dish, squeeze the juice of half a lemon over the mushrooms, place them on the bread and serve.
Mushrooms (Pratajuoli[14]) on Toast.
[14] Agaricus campestris.
Choose large fresh mushrooms, peel, and break the stalks off level; sprinkle pepper and salt on them and place a small piece of butter on each. Melt some butter in a frying-pan and put the mushrooms in, covering the pan closely with buttered paper. Fry slowly for ten minutes, then place the mushrooms on buttered toast, and serve at once.
Mushrooms (Porcini[15]) with Tomato Sauce.
[15] Boletus edulis.
Clean and cut the porcini into small pieces, wash, dry, and put them into a sauce-pan with one clove of garlic (or a little onion), and a little salt, adding some tomato conserve or the pulp of two raw tomatoes without skin or seeds, after pounding it well. Serve up hot.
Mushrooms (Ovoli[16]) ‘Trippati.’
[16] Amanita Caesarea.
Choose the ovoli young whilst still closed and of the form of an egg. Clean and wash them and cut them into thin slices. Fry in good butter, and season with salt, pepper, and grated Parmesan cheese. A little gravy is an improvement. Serve hot with croûtons (fried bread).
Onions ‘Farcite.’
Boil six large onions for an hour in their skins. After draining, peel them and cut out their centres. Meanwhile prepare the following stuffing: Chop up fine four ounces of ham, or tongue, add grated bread, some melted butter, one or two tablespoonfuls of cream, a little salt and pepper. Mix well into a paste and fill the centre of the onions with it, then put them into a frying-pan, sprinkle them with a Butter sauce, and grated bread, and cook them with fire above and below, or in the oven. Just before serving pour ‘Alla Panna’ sauce over them (see Sauces, pp. [122], [125]).
Onions Fried.
Peel and slice four medium-sized onions and put them into milk for a short time, then dip them in flour and fry them in very hot fat for eight or ten minutes. Strain, put them on a napkin to dry, and serve on a hot dish garnished with fried parsley.
Onions ‘Glacées.’
Peel twelve large onions and put them into boiling water for about twenty minutes. Then drain, throw them into cold water, remove the two outer skins, and cut out their centres. Stand the onions in a frying-pan and put a teaspoonful of sugar into the centre of each, add four ounces of butter and cook them slowly until soft and slightly browned. Add some strong broth, a little at a time, and let it cook until it becomes reduced, keeping the frying-pan covered. Sprinkle the onions with the sauce and they will be well glacées.
Onions (Small White).
Boil three-quarters of a pound of small white onions, then put them into a sauce-pan with two ounces of butter and a little flour, and cook them till they turn a good colour. Add about a quarter or half a pint of white wine or broth, and before they have finished cooking add some pepper and grated nutmeg. When the liquid is reduced, serve at once.
The onions can also be put into the oven, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and melted butter, and browned.
Onions ‘in Stufato.’
Peel two pounds of onions and, after putting them into cold water, place them in a sauce-pan and cover them with good broth, letting them cook slowly. If young, one hour will suffice, if old, allow two hours. When soft, strain, and put them on a dish. Melt two ounces of butter in a frying-pan, add a spoonful of flour, and three-quarters of a pint of broth, mixing well until it boils, then add a little salt and pepper, and pour it over the onions. Serve hot.
Parsnips ‘alla Crema.’
If the parsnips are young and tender they must be put into cold water immediately after being scraped, to keep them white. If old they must be peeled and cut lengthwise into four pieces. Boil young parsnips three-quarters of an hour, old ones one and a quarter hours. Then drain, arrange on a hot dish, and pour a sauce ‘Alla Panna’ over them (see Sauces, p. [125]).
Parsnips ‘al Forno.’
Wash and peel six large parsnips, cut them in two and put them into a sauce-pan with enough boiling water to cover them, for one hour. Then drain, and place them on a hot dish. Meantime melt two ounces of butter in a frying-pan with three or four tablespoonfuls of flour, and stir to prevent browning. Add half a pint of hot water and boil for five minutes, stirring constantly. Add salt and pepper to taste, pour the sauce over the parsnips, sprinkle them with bread-crumbs and grated cheese, and bake for a quarter of an hour in a slow oven.
Parsnips ‘Fritte.’
Boil the parsnips till tender; drain, sprinkle with salt and pepper, dip them into butter, then into flour, and then sprinkle with sugar. Melt two or three tablespoonfuls of dripping in a frying-pan, put in the parsnips, and fry until browned on both sides.
Parsnips ‘Sautés.’
Mash six or seven parsnips, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and stir in one tablespoonful of flour and one egg. Make them up into small round cakes and fry in dripping, turning occasionally, until browned on both sides.
Peas ‘all’ Antica.’
Shell carefully three quarts of young peas and wrap them in a wet cloth until wanted. Wash and tie up a lettuce head, and put it with the peas into a sauce-pan, adding one tumbler of water, a quarter of a pound of fresh butter, and a pinch of salt. Cook for a quarter of an hour, take out the lettuce, and before serving put in three tablespoonfuls of cream, mixed with the yolk of one egg, a spoonful of powdered sugar, and half a saltspoonful of white pepper. Boil for five minutes and serve hot.
Peas ‘alla Borghese.’
Put one quart of young shelled peas into a sauce-pan with a little browned onion, one or two slices of ham chopped up fine, one ounce of fresh butter, a bunch of sweet herbs, and a sprinkling of flour. Add a large ladleful of good stock and cook slowly. When done, mix in a cupful of milk, a little powdered sugar, and thicken with two yolks of eggs. Serve up hot.
Peas ‘al Burro.’
Put one quart of shelled peas into a sauce-pan with a little cold water and four ounces of fresh butter. Place them on a hot fire, add a cupful of boiling water, salt and pepper to taste, a spoonful of sugar, and a bunch of parsley. When reduced take out the parsley, add one or two ounces of fresh butter, and serve hot.
Peas ‘alla Consommé.’
Boil one and a half quarts of peas, and two carrots cut into small square pieces, in good broth, with a tablespoonful of powdered sugar, for about an hour. Just before serving put the peas on to croûtons (fried bread) fried in fresh butter.
Peas ‘alla Crema.’
Cook one pint of shelled peas in an earthen pot of salted boiling water for a quarter of an hour, then drain. Put two ounces of fresh butter into a sauce-pan with one tablespoonful of flour, then add half a pint of milk and mix until it boils. Add salt and pepper to taste, and then put in the peas. Cook in a Bain-marie for a quarter of an hour, and serve as a garnish to any baked meat.
Peas ‘alla Francese.’ No. 1.
Take two young onions, cut them in half lengthwise, tie them up with a bunch of parsley leaves, and put them into a sauce-pan with one ounce of butter. When browned, pour a large cupful of broth over them and boil. As soon as the onions are quite soft rub them through a sieve together with the broth, and put them into a sauce-pan with one quart of peas and two heads of lettuce. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and boil slowly. When half done add one ounce more of butter mixed with a dessert-spoonful of flour, and a little more broth, if needed. Before serving take out the lettuce and thicken with two yolks of eggs mixed in a little broth.
Peas ‘alla Francese.’ No. 2.
Cut two young onions into fine slices, and put them in a sauce-pan with one ounce of butter. When browned, mix in a sprinkling of flour, pour in one or two cupfuls of broth and let the flour cook. Put in one quart of young peas, season with salt and pepper, and when half-cooked add two heads of lettuce. Boil slowly, taking care that the gravy does not get too thick, and before serving take out the lettuce. Sugar can be added, but only in small quantities.
Peas ‘al Buon Gusto.’
Make a cross cut in an onion and put it into a sauce-pan with one ounce of butter; when browned, take it out and add a little flour to the butter. Mix and put in one quart of boiled peas, sprinkling them with salt and allspice. As soon as they have taken up the butter pour in a cupful of stock to finish the cooking, and serve.
Peas ‘all’ Inglese.’
Boil the peas in salted water with a bunch of parsley, drain when done. Just before serving turn them into the dish adding a few slices of fresh butter.
Pea Omelette.
Boil one quart of shelled peas in salted water for fifteen minutes, then strain and keep them hot while preparing the omelette. Beat up four eggs, and add four tablespoonfuls of hot water, three-quarters of an ounce of fresh butter, and three or four drops of onion juice. Then put four ounces of butter into a frying-pan, brown it well and put in the eggs. Stir over a brisk fire till the eggs have set, then tilt the pan so that the butter passes under the omelette, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put two spoonfuls of the boiled peas into the middle of the omelette, turn one half of it over the peas, and put it on a very hot dish. Add a spoonful of Butter sauce to the rest of the peas and put them round the omelette. Serve up very hot.
Pease-pudding.
Melt two ounces of fresh butter in a sauce-pan, when browned put in one quart of shelled peas, add salt to taste, and mix for three minutes. Then moisten with strong stock (for maigre use fish soup) and add a little cinnamon and allspice. When the peas are soft to the touch rub them through a sieve. Meanwhile cook two ounces of butter in a sauce-pan, put in the purée of peas, stir, and add a tablespoonful of flour, and then (stirring all the time) two pounded maccaroons, and three yolks of eggs. Take the peas off the fire and let them cool before mixing lightly with them three whites of eggs well beaten up. Butter a shape, put in the peas, and cook in a Bain-marie with fire above and below.
Peas in their Pods.
Take two pounds of very young peas in their pods and boil them in an earthen pot in salted boiling water for about half an hour. When cooked put them into a hot dish and pour sauce ‘Alla Panna’ over them (see Sauces, p. [125]), or melted butter, salt, and pepper. Serve hot.
Peas ‘allo Stufato.’
Take one and a half or two pounds of shelled peas, and put them into a sauce-pan with some ham, two ounces of butter, a bunch of sweet herbs, and a little fried onion. Simmer gently till they are done, then blend with the yolks of two or three eggs. Serve hot.
Peas ‘allo Zucchero.’
Take one pound of shelled peas, put them into a sauce-pan with two ounces of butter, one tumbler of water, one ounce of sugar, and a sprinkling of salt. Cook them over a sharp fire for a quarter of an hour; when tender, take them off the fire and add the yolks of four eggs well beaten up with half a tumbler of cream. Put them on the fire again and stir continually to prevent them from boiling. As soon as the eggs are set serve at once.
Polenta ‘Dabs.’
Scald one pint of Indian corn flour in boiling water. Mix together one dessert-spoonful of butter, two lightly beaten-up eggs, one wine-glassful of cream and a little salt, add this to the corn flour, and drop the paste from a spoon into a well-buttered pan. Bake in a moderate oven.[17]
[17] This is an American recipe.
Polenta ‘alla Parmigiana.’
Stir one pound of Indian corn flour, a little at a time, into one pint of boiling salted water until smooth, then turn out into a dish to cool, in a layer about half an inch thick. When quite cold, cut into pieces of one inch long, and pile in layers in a baking-dish, sprinkling each layer well with grated Parmesan cheese and some melted butter. Bake in a slow oven and serve hot.
Polenta with Sausages.
Make a polenta as above (alla Parmigiana) and while cooling boil two or three sausages in an earthen pot with very little water. When done, skin them, break them into small pieces, and add a little stock and tomato conserve. Lay the polenta in a baking dish, putting some sausage and grated Parmesan cheese between each layer with some bits of butter here and there. Then cook with fire above and below, or in the oven, and serve very hot.
Potatoes Boiled.
Wash the potatoes well and peel off a piece of skin round each potato about half an inch wide to make them mealy. Put them in a sauce-pan, and cover them with cold water; add half a handful of salt, cover the sauce-pan, boil for forty-five minutes. Drain them well, place them in a napkin on a hot dish, and serve hot.
Potatoes ‘alla Borghese.’
Boil two pounds of potatoes, and put them in a covered dish to drain. When dry, peel and cut them into slices, then put them into a sauce-pan with four ounces of butter, some chopped parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Let them simmer over a slow fire, then squeeze the juice of two lemons over them and serve up hot.
Potatoes ‘alla Campagnuola.’
Boil two pounds of potatoes, peel, slice fine, and brown them slightly in a frying-pan with four ounces of butter. Toss them now and then, adding a little salt and grated nutmeg, and mix Béchamel sauce with them before serving hot (see Sauces, p. [119]).
Potatoes ‘in Casseruola.’
Mix one pound of mashed potatoes, the yolks of four eggs, half a pint of cream, and two ounces of butter in a sauce-pan. Cook until hot, stir constantly until the paste is flaky and light, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange the paste in a circle round a dish and set it in the oven to colour. Then fill the circle with a fricassee of chicken or rabbit, or any kind of stew, mushrooms, or any cooked vegetables (peas, French beans, etc.) left over from the day before, or half a bottle of tomato conserve, or the pulp of six or seven fresh tomatoes.
Potatoes ‘alla Crema.’
Boil six or eight potatoes, and cut them into small pieces. Put four ounces of butter, a little flour, salt, pepper, half an onion, some parsley chopped up fine, and a pinch of grated nutmeg, into a sauce-pan. Mix well until it boils, then add a tumbler of cream. Stir constantly over a slow fire until it boils, and then add the potatoes. Stand the sauce-pan by the fire for a few minutes, and serve up very hot.
Potato Croquettes. No. 1.
Boil two pounds of potatoes in salted water, when cool pound in a mortar, and mix with two or three eggs, and various sweet herbs chopped up (parsley, thyme, marjoram, chervil, etc.). Moisten with half a cup of cream and stir into a thick paste. Roll this into croquettes and fry in fresh butter. When they have taken a good colour serve up hot.
Potato Croquettes. No. 2.
Put one pound of mashed potatoes, the beaten-up yolks of two eggs, a little onion juice, grated nutmeg, salt, two tablespoonfuls of cream, a pinch of cinnamon, one dessert-spoonful of minced parsley, and two ounces of butter, into a sauce-pan over a moderate fire. Cook until it comes away from the sides, then remove it from the fire. When cold it will break up into small pieces. Meanwhile beat up an egg with a little hot water, dip the pieces of potato into it, and then into grated bread-crumbs. Fry in boiling fat and serve hot with fried parsley.
Potato ‘Farcite.’
Wash and peel six or seven large potatoes, cut them in two lengthwise, scoop out the centres (leaving just enough of the potato to support the skin), and fill with forcemeat made of fresh pork minced, salt and pepper to taste, a pinch of grated nutmeg, and a little powdered thyme. Arrange the potatoes in a well-buttered baking-dish, and cook for half an hour in a slow oven until well browned.
Potatoes ‘al Forno.’ No. 1.
Mash six or seven boiled potatoes and beat them up while hot with three tablespoonfuls of cream, two tablespoonfuls of butter, one raw egg, and salt to taste. Put a layer into a well-buttered baking-dish, then put a layer of thin slices of yolk of hard-boiled eggs, sprinkled with salt and pepper; put layers of potatoes and eggs until the dish is full. The top layer must be potato, over which strew bread-crumbs thickly. Cover the dish and bake until hot, then brown quickly, and serve in the baking-dish.
Potatoes ‘al Forno.’ No. 2.
Roast six large potatoes in the oven with their skins on, cut them in two, remove the inside with a spoon, but take care to leave enough substance to preserve the shape of the potato. Put the inside of the potato in a dish and add two ounces of butter, half a pint of hot milk, salt and pepper to taste. Mix together until the paste is light, and then add the well-beaten whites of two eggs, and beat up the whole well. Fill the potato skins with the paste, first rolling it in the yolk of egg, then cook in the oven and serve as soon as the top is well coloured.
Potatoes ‘in Frittata’ (Omelette).
Mince up two boiled, cold, potatoes, sprinkle with pepper and salt, and put them into a frying-pan in which two ounces of butter have been melted. Spread the potatoes one-third of an inch deep in the pan, and cook slowly over a moderate fire for about a quarter of an hour. Then turn over (as you would any other omelette), and cook the other side. Serve hot.
Potatoes ‘alla Semplicità.’
Boil and peel eight large potatoes, and pound them in a mortar with two spoonfuls of chopped parsley, a little powdered cinnamon, and some salt. When fairly thick and consistent, make up the paste into fritters and fry in butter, turning them continually until they are a rich brown colour. If a richer dish is desired, add four eggs and two ounces of butter to the potato paste.
Potatoes ‘Fritti alla Francese.’
Wash thoroughly six large peeled potatoes, then cut them into small balls, and put them in boiling water to cook for five or six minutes. Drain, then fry them, a few at a time, in good roast-meat dripping until they are of a golden colour. When cooked, drain them, sprinkle with salt, and serve as a garnish to fish or meat.
Potatoes ‘in Frittura.’
Pound four or six cold, boiled potatoes in a mortar with two tablespoonfuls of chopped parsley, a little powdered cinnamon, and some salt. When the paste is well mixed and smooth, make it up into small round cakes and put them into fried fresh butter, turning them until they take a good yellow colour. Serve hot.
Potato ‘Gnocchi.’
Boil eight or ten potatoes for a few minutes, then peel; place them in the oven until they are quite soft, then pound them in a mortar with three-quarters of an ounce of grated cheese, five or six dessert-spoonfuls of flour, salt to taste, and three eggs. Knead well and make little rolls, cover them with flour, and put them into a large sauce-pan with salted boiling water. Boil for five or six minutes, then take them carefully out, and place them on a dish, sprinkle them with cheese, and pour some browned melted fresh butter over them with a taste of onion in it (if liked).
Potatoes ‘all’ Italiana.’
Wash eight potatoes thoroughly, peel off a strip of skin round each (to make them mealy), put them in a sauce-pan and cover them with cold salted water, put on the lid and boil for forty-five minutes. Then peel and mash them, put them in a sauce-pan, add one ounce of butter and a piece of fresh crumb of bread (about the size of a roll) which has been soaked in milk. Put in two tablespoonfuls of milk, three yolks of fresh eggs with their whites beaten to a froth, salt and pepper to taste, and a little grated nutmeg. Mix well together and pile it high in a baking-dish, pour a little melted butter over it, and sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, then put it in the oven for about ten minutes. Serve as soon as it is of a good golden colour.
Potatoes ‘alla Gran Duchessa.’
Take one pound of mashed potatoes, add two ounces of butter, and salt to taste, one tablespoonful of powdered white sugar, and work up into a light paste, adding two well-beaten eggs. Make the paste into oval balls, roll them in melted fresh butter, and place them in the oven on greased paper until well cooked. They make a nice garnish.
Potatoes ‘alla Lionese.’
Boil two large potatoes, and when cold cut them into slices. Melt two ounces of butter in a frying-pan, add a sliced onion, and stir till well browned. Put in the potatoes and simmer gently until they are coloured, then sprinkle with a little salt. Place them on a hot dish and serve very hot.
Potatoes ‘alla Maître d’Hôtel.’
Boil four large potatoes and cut them into dice. Put them into a sauce-pan, add about one pint of stock, and cook slowly for a quarter of an hour, sprinkling with salt and pepper to taste, and then place them on a hot dish. Meanwhile fry two ounces of butter, one tablespoonful of chopped parsley, and the juice of one lemon, when done, pour over the potatoes and serve immediately.
Potatoes ‘all’ Olandese.’
Peel six large, cold, boiled potatoes, cut them into dice, and throw them into boiling water for five minutes. After draining, place them in a sauce-pan with two ounces of butter on a moderate fire, or in a slow oven, and shake them occasionally, until the potatoes have absorbed the butter and are soft. Serve on a hot dish with sauce ‘Olandese’ (see Sauces, p. [124]).
Potatoes ‘alla Panna.’
Boil eight or ten large potatoes, and cut them up when cold into small dice. Melt four ounces of butter in an earthen dish with one tablespoonful of flour, then mix in one pint of fresh cream (or milk), a little salt and pepper, and a small pinch of nutmeg. Stir well together until it boils, then put in the potatoes, add some grated bread-crumbs and bits of fresh butter, and cook over a brisk fire until they have turned a good yellow colour. Serve up hot in the earthen dish.
Potato Pudding.
Mash twelve large boiled potatoes in a sauce-pan with four ounces of butter, two tumblers of cream, a pinch of salt, and a tablespoonful of flour. Then rub through a sieve, adding four ounces of white powdered sugar, a little cinnamon, the yolks of four eggs, with their whites beaten to a froth. Mix well, put into a well-buttered mould thickly sprinkled with bread-crumbs, and bake for three-quarters of an hour until browned.
Potato Pudding with Mushrooms (Budino con Prugnuoli).
Peel eight or more potatoes, cut them into quarters, wash, and boil them in salted water with half a lemon; take them off the fire before they are over-cooked. Then strain through a sieve, put them into a large dish, and mash them well with a wooden spoon. Add two ounces of fresh butter, and pour in half a tumbler of cream (a little at a time). Beat up well with the spoon until the paste is smooth, then add three or four well-beaten-up yolks of eggs. Butter a mould and pour in the potato paste, make a hole in the centre, put small whole mushrooms into it, cover them with a piece of the paste, and cook in the oven. When baked, turn out the pudding on to a dish and serve hot.
Potatoes ‘in Ragoût.’
Cut six fine potatoes into dice, and put them into boiling water with six sliced leeks. Boil for ten minutes, then drain. Boil half a bunch of asparagus, drain, cut off their heads, and add them to the potatoes and leeks, mixing well together. Meanwhile put two ounces of butter, one pint of milk, one tablespoonful of chopped chervil, pepper and salt to taste, into a sauce-pan, mix slowly over the fire until hot, then pour over the potatoes, leeks, and asparagus, and boil the whole together. Serve very hot.
Potatoes ‘Arrostite’ (Roasted).
Choose two pounds of young, round, and equal-sized potatoes. Put them into a sauce-pan with four ounces of butter, salt to taste, and cover hermetically. Place over a slow fire and shake frequently. After three-quarters of an hour the potatoes will have a brown crust, and inside they will be white and tender.
Potatoes ‘Sautées.’
Cut three or four cold, boiled potatoes into dice, and put them, a few at a time, so that they shall not overlap one another, into a frying-pan with fresh butter. (Allow one tablespoonful of butter for each potato.) Brown them well, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.
Potatoes ‘in Stufato.’
Cut ten large potatoes into dice and put them into cold water for a quarter of an hour. Drain, and cook in boiling water for about ten minutes, then dry in a cloth and put them into a sauce-pan; sprinkle them with flour, add one pint of milk and two ounces of butter. Cover tightly and let them simmer slowly for ten or fifteen minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve up very hot.
Potatoes ‘Tartufate.’
Cut three or four parboiled potatoes into thin slices and lay them one by one, with thin slices of truffles mixed with grated Parmesan cheese, in an earthen dish. Add two ounces of butter in bits, salt and pepper to taste, and when the potatoes begin to cook moisten with broth or gravy. Before serving, squeeze a little lemon juice over them, and serve hot in the earthen dish.
Potatoes ‘all’ Umido.’
Boil five or six large potatoes, let them get cold, and then cut them into dice. Put them into a baking-dish with two ounces of butter and enough cream to cover them. Cook until nicely browned, and serve very hot.
Pumpkins ‘alla Fiorentina.’
Take twelve very young pumpkins (about one and a half inches long), cut them in half, and put them in cold water. Have a sauce-pan ready with four quarts of salted water. When boiling put in the pumpkins. When they are cooked put them again into cold water. Just before serving place them in a sauce-pan with four ounces of butter, heat for three minutes, then add two tablespoonfuls of veal broth, two of cream, and a squeeze of lemon. Heat again and serve.
Pumpkins ‘Fritti.’
Take young pumpkins (about the size of your two fists), peel them, cut them in half, and take out seeds and pulp. Cut them into thin strips (one and a half or two inches long, and as wide as your finger), and put them into a dish with salt for some hours. Then squeeze out the water with your hands, and throw them into flour, taking care to separate and cover each strip with flour, shake the superfluous flour off them in a sieve, and put them into a frying-pan with plenty of boiling lard or oil. Serve at once.
Pumpkin Pudding (Bodino).
Cook (but not too much) two and a half pounds of pumpkin with two ounces of butter, a little pepper, allspice, and salt, and pass through a sieve, adding some crumb of bread soaked in milk or cream, some powdered cinnamon, several pounded bitter almonds, a handful of grated bread, and three yolks of eggs. Mix thoroughly and put it into a well-buttered shape with thin slices of buttered bread arranged round the inside, and cook with a fire above and below until thoroughly browned. Serve up hot.
Pumpkins ‘Ripiene.’ No. 1.
Cut six young and small pumpkins (about two and a half inches long) in two, and take out the pulp. Meanwhile mince fine the breast of a fowl (or any tender white meat you have over from the day before), one slice of tongue, and one of ham; put them into a sauce-pan with three tablespoonfuls of veal broth, the yolk of an egg, a pinch of salt, and one of pepper; parboil; therewith fill the pumpkins. Butter a sauté-pan, lay the stuffed pumpkins in, and cook with fire above and below, occasionally adding some broth. Serve as soon as cooked.
Pumpkins ‘Ripiene’ (maigre). No. 2.
Take young pumpkins (about the size of your fist), scoop out their insides, and fill them with minced tunny fish preserved in oil, yolk of egg, a pinch of Parmesan cheese, a little of the soft pulp of the pumpkin, and a little allspice and pepper, but no salt. Cook the pumpkins in butter, and when brown serve with Tomato sauce (see Sauces, p. [126]).
Rice (How to cook).
Place a large sauce-pan with water on a hot fire; it is necessary that the water should boil violently in order to keep the grains of rice separate. Wash the rice in several waters so as to remove the floury coating, which makes it pasty. Drain, and drop it gradually into the sauce-pan, so as not to stop the boiling. Then boil hard for a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes. When the rice is soft to the touch, it is done. Then drain off every drop of water, sprinkle with salt, cover the sauce-pan with a thin napkin, and leave it by the fire to steam and get dry. (The rice can also be put into a cullender to drain, and then into an open oven to dry; or butter the interior of a stew-pan, put in the rice, put on the lid tight, and stand the pan on a trivet in the oven, or by the fire.)
Rice ‘alla Casalinga.’
Wash eight ounces of rice, and blanch it in a sauce-pan with two quarts of water for five minutes, then strain and let it cool. Meanwhile fry four ounces of lean bacon cut up into small pieces, and when browned, add one and a half pints of stock and a small teaspoonful of white pepper. Put in the rice, cook for twenty minutes, stirring every now and then, take it off the fire, add half a tumbler of Tomato sauce (see Sauces, p. [126]), or conserve, and mix well. Turn out the rice on to a hot dish, and garnish with small sausages.
Rice Croquettes.
Boil a cupful of rice in weak chicken broth, drain, stir in two beaten-up eggs, one teaspoonful of butter, a slight sprinkling of flour, pepper, and a pinch of grated lemon-peel. Flour your hands, and make the rice, when cold, into small sausages (or croquettes), roll each in raw egg, and then in bread crumbs, and fry to a golden brown.
Rice with Tomatoes. No. 1.
Boil one cupful of rice soft in hot water, shake it now and then, but do not stir it. Drain, and add a little milk in which a beaten egg has been mixed, one teaspoonful of butter, and a little pepper and salt. Simmer for five minutes, and if the rice has not absorbed all the milk, drain it again. Put the rice round a dish, smooth it into a wall, wash it over with the yolk of a beaten-up egg, and put it into the oven till firm. Take half a bottle of tomato conserve (or the strained juice and pulp of seven or eight tomatoes), season with pepper, a little salt, sugar, and half a chopped onion, stew for twenty minutes, then stir in one tablespoonful of butter and two tablespoonfuls of fine bread-crumbs. Stew three or four minutes to thicken, and then pour the tomato into the dish in the middle of the rice, and serve.
Rice with Tomatoes. No. 2.
Boil one cupful of rice as directed in ‘How to boil Rice’; add half a cupful of Tomato sauce (see Sauces, p. [126]), season with some butter, salt, and pepper to taste, and one or two bay leaves. Toss, or mix lightly with a fork, being careful not to mash the grains. Serve hot. This makes a nice dish for winter.
Rice with Prawns.
Mince up half an onion, one clove of garlic, one carrot, half a head of celery, and a bunch of parsley, and brown in pure olive oil. Then put six or seven ounces of prawns into the sauce-pan, and season with salt and pepper. Turn them often, and when all are red put in two or three tablespoonfuls of Tomato sauce (or conserve), and add enough hot water to cook fourteen or fifteen ounces of rice in afterwards. Do not boil too much, as prawns cook fast. Take the prawns out, dry them, choose about a third of the finest, shell and lay them aside. Pound the others in a mortar (shells and all), rub them through a sieve, and mix again with the water in which they were cooked. Meanwhile put some butter into a sauce-pan, add the rice, stir well, and as soon as it has taken up the butter, pour the water little by little on to it. When half-boiled add the shelled prawns, and before serving sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the whole.
Rice with Quails.
Mince up two or four slices of ham and a quarter of an onion, and brown in a sauce-pan, then put in four quails ready drawn. Sprinkle with pepper and salt, and as soon as they are browned, parboil them in broth, then add fourteen ounces of rice, and boil all together. Powder with grated Parmesan cheese and serve on a hot dish.
Rice ‘alla Ristori.’
Cut two ounces of bacon into small pieces, and put them into a sauce-pan with chopped-up cabbage. Steam for half an hour and add a little salt, pepper, and chopped parsley; then throw in a quarter of a pound of rice and half a pint of veal broth. Cook for fifteen or eighteen minutes, and serve with grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled over it.
Risotto ‘alla Milanese.’ No. 1.
Melt two ounces of good fresh butter in a sauce-pan over a sharp fire, add one onion chopped fine, brown a deep golden colour, then add about ten ounces of clean rice (Italian if possible) and two large truffles chopped up. Stir without stopping for one and a half minutes, and add one quart of boiling veal broth, stir and let it cook for fourteen minutes. Add six chopped-up mushrooms, and, a little at a time, one more quart of broth, stirring constantly over a sharp fire for ten minutes more. Put in half a teaspoonful of salt, a little pepper, one and a half ounces of grated Parmesan cheese, and a teaspoonful of saffron soaked in two tablespoonfuls of hot broth, and strained. Cook three or four minutes longer, stirring all the time, then pour into a deep dish, and serve hot with some grated Parmesan cheese separate. It is an improvement to put a tablespoonful of marrow into the centre just before serving.
Risotto ‘alla Milanese.’ No. 2.
Cut up an onion and cook it with one and a half ounces of beef marrow, and the same quantity of good butter; when browned put in one pound of rice and add three-quarters of a glass of good white wine and broth enough to cook the rice. Before taking off the fire add one and a half ounces of butter and some grated Parmesan cheese, and serve with more grated cheese separately.
Risotto with Peas.
Mince up one small onion, brown it in two ounces of butter, then put in one pound of rice, and stir with a ladle until the rice has taken up all the butter. Add hot water (a cupful at a time), sprinkle with salt, and let it boil dry, adding two ounces of butter. Before taking it off the fire add peas cooked ‘[alla Borghese]’ omitting the milk and eggs. Mix, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, and serve hot.
Risotto ‘alla Poggio Gherardo.’
Mince an onion, put it into a three-quart sauce-pan, and brown with three ounces of good butter. Take out the onion, put in one pound of rice, and half a wineglassful of Marsala. Reduce over a brisk fire, then add one quart of stock, and boil hard so as to reduce in eighteen minutes. Then take it off the fire and season with one ounce of good butter, one ounce of grated Parmesan cheese, three or four fowls’ livers and mushrooms minced up fine, and some good gravy. Serve hot.