SOUPS.
General Directions.—Before giving some receipts for soups, we wish first to remind our young housekeepers that it is important for them to bear in mind the necessity and economy of keeping good stock constantly on hand. The French stock-pot is always in readiness to receive every bone, coarse or refuse bit of meat not suitable to use for the main dish or for side-dishes. We understand that the French use earthenware for this purpose and also for “soup-digesters.” It would be a benefaction if our house-furnishing merchants would import some of these “soup-digesters” and “stock-pots,” as they are far better than metal. But until we can procure such, the stock, as fast as made, should be strained into a large stone pot, and when cold, all the grease that rises and hardens on top must be removed, clarified, and set aside for cooking purposes. Aside from the economy of using all refuse meat and bones for stock, and the convenience of having it always ready for use, the soup will be better if the stock is made at least the day before, because one can then easily remove all the grease,—an important item in preparing good soups.
Stock for Soups.—Buy a knuckle of beef or veal. Have the bone well cracked in small pieces. Put it in the soup-digester, or, if you have none, in a closely covered iron pot. For a medium-size piece, add five or six quarts of cold water (by using cold water you will secure all the juices, whereas in hot water half the juice is retained in the meat). Let it come to a boil before you add salt or pepper; then season it to suit your taste, and if agreeable put in a small bit of red pepper. Set the kettle on the back part of the stove after it once commences to boil, and keep it gently simmering all day; then strain it from the bones and meat, which are now worthless, into a pot kept for the purpose. Never throw away bones that are left from baked, boiled, or roast meat of any kind, or from steak, poultry, anything, (except those taken off the plates); dried or gristly bits of meat may also be used to prepare stock for soup; and in a large family sufficient can be gleaned that would otherwise be thrown into the swill to keep stock on hands for weeks, without buying a bone for that purpose alone. When the stock is strained off, set it in the cellar to cool. The next morning carefully remove all the grease that has risen to the top and hardened, and you will have a clear, rich stock ready for use. Clarify the grease removed from the stock by slicing a raw potato into it, and set it over the fire in a skillet till it boils; then strain it from the potato, and you have fine dripping for many purposes.
Tomato Soup.—Use stock from beef, ham, veal, or any other bones or refuse meat. Put two or three quarts into your soup-kettle,—the size of your family must determine the quantity,—cut in one carrot, one small onion, if agreeable, a little celery or fresh parsley; add salt, pepper, and herbs to suit the taste, and then make the stock thick with tomatoes,—fresh from the vine are much the best; a spoonful or two of star maccaroni is an improvement, or rice or pearl barley, if you have either at hand. Let it boil two hours.
Another.—Take bones or bits of meat left from any dish, and boil well to extract all nutriment, then strain; or, if you have none on hand, make a rich stock, put in cabbage, carrots, parsnips, or any other vegetables you like; boil till well done, then add the tomatoes,—a dozen fresh, or half a can of winter tomatoes; boil twenty minutes, then strain and serve hot.
A Vegetable Soup.—Peel and slice six large onions and four turnips; fry them in one quarter of a pound of butter, and then pour over them four quarts of boiling water. Toast a good-sized crust of bread hard and brown (but take care that it is not burned at all), and put into the soup, with a little celery; sweet herbs, salt, and pepper to suit your taste. Stew gently four hours, stirring often to prevent it from scorching; strain through a coarse cloth or strainer, when it has cooked the four hours. Have ready a little thinly sliced carrot, turnip, and celery,—a few slices of each will be sufficient,—put these into the soup after straining it; return to the fire and stew till these last vegetables are tender. A spoonful or two of tomato catsup will improve it for some people.
We have not tried this soup, but were told by an excellent housekeeper that it was capital. We demurred at the quantity of tomato and onion, but judge the long time given to cook the soup may combine and incorporate the different flavors so as to make it quite palatable.
Mock-Turtle Soup.—Take a calf’s head dressed with the skin on,—the fresher the better. Take out and lay aside the brains. After washing it several times in a plentiful supply of cold water, soak in cold spring water. Then put it into your soup-kettle or digester, adding two quarts more of cold water than is needed to cover it, and place over the stove or range. There should be about two gallons of water in all. As it begins to heat, a large amount of scum will rise to the top. Watch this carefully, and skim it off as fast as it rises. Let it boil one hour, or till the meat can be easily removed from the bone, when it should be taken from the liquor, and when nearly cold cut from the bones in neat pieces about an inch square. The tongue may be cut up in small pieces with the meat, or cut up and mixed with the brains for a side-dish. The skin of the head is the best part, and should be cut up carefully, leaving as much fat adhering to it as you can. As soon as the head is taken up, put to the broth in which it was boiled a five-pound knuckle of veal and the same amount of lean beef, adding all the bones and trimmings of the head; a half-dozen cloves, a quarter of an ounce of allspice, and the same of whole black pepper; boil five hours, skim well, and keep closely covered. Then strain and set aside till morning, when all the fat must be removed, and two quarts of this stock reserved. Now put in a large saucepan, over the fire, half a pound of good fresh butter, six ounces of onions, sliced, quarter of an ounce of green sage, chopped. Let these fry one hour slowly. Be careful that it does not scorch. Then rub in half a pound of flour by degrees, gradually adding the broth, till of the thickness of rich cream. Season with salt to your taste; half an ounce of lemon peel, grated. Let it simmer again gently an hour and a half, and strain through a hair-sieve or tamis. Don’t rub the soup through the sieve, it will make it muddy. If it does not run through easily, knock a wooden spoon against the side of the sieve; that will start it through without the sediment, which would go through if rubbed. Put the stock, when strained, into a clean stew-pot with the pieces of the head; and to each gallon of soup have a pint of nice claret, if you wish it dark, madeira or sherry, if you prefer it light (those who object to wine or brandy in mince-pies must be careful not to call for turtle or mock-turtle soup at restaurants), two table-spoonfuls of lemon-juice, and two of catsup, one of the essence of anchovy, a teaspoonful of curry powder, or quarter of a drachm of cayenne. Let it simmer till the meat is tender, taking care that it is not done too much, and by frequent stirring prevent its sticking. When the meat is quite tender, serve the soup with force-meat, brain, or egg-balls. This should have been reduced by boiling to four or five quarts.
Bean Soup.—Wash your beans and boil them with a piece of salt pork. When the beans are soft, take them out and press through a colander; then put them back in the water they were boiled in, together with four hard-boiled eggs quartered, and half a lemon sliced, a little pepper, if you like it. Boil up and serve. This is liked by some better than when made with rich beef stock, with tomatoes or catsup for flavor.
Soup with Eggs.—Make a good stock from a knuckle of veal and any bones which may be on hand from baked or broiled beef or mutton. Add one turnip, two carrots, one onion, a little lemon-juice, a small sprinkling of thyme, and a little celery. Let it boil five or six hours, then strain, set it to cool, and, when cold, remove all the grease. When needed, heat it, add a little thickening of rolled cracker or flour, and to three quarts of this stock add the yelks of five or six eggs, one gill of cream, and pepper and salt to taste. Drop the yelks in whole, and let them cook a few minutes. Some like to drop them in just as the soup is dished. We do not think it so nice, but that is a matter of taste.
Green Pea Soup.—Take two quarts of green peas, a quarter of a pound of butter, a quarter of a pound of ham cut very fine, two small onions, and a little parsley, and put it into a soup-digester or kettle; add just a little water, enough to allow it to stew slowly, stirring it well together, and cover closely. When quite tender, add two quarts of veal, beef, or mutton broth, a great spoonful of sugar, and pepper and salt to season it to your taste. Let it boil up once, then rub through a hair-sieve into another kettle, and pour to it one pint of boiling milk; boil five minutes and serve.
Turtle Bean Soup.—Pick free from dirt and imperfect beans a pint and a half of turtle beans; soak them overnight in a good quantity of cold water. In the morning drain off the water, and wash the beans in fresh water; drain and put in the soup-digester, with four quarts of good strong stock from which all the fat has been carefully removed. Set it where it will boil steadily but slowly till dinner-time,—four hours at least, six is better. We always have ours put on as soon as the fire is kindled in the morning before breakfast. One small onion, a carrot, and two or three of the outside stalks of celery cut into the stock is considered an improvement by most persons. Stir it occasionally till the beans begin to soften, to prevent their sticking and burning at the bottom. Two hours before dinner put in half a can of tomatoes, or, in the season, eight or ten fresh ones, and a coffee-cup of tomato catsup. When ready to dish, strain through a fine colander or coarse sieve, rubbing through enough of the pulp of the beans to make it as thick as rich cream. Taste to see if there is plenty of salt and pepper, and send to the table hot. If you have any hard-boiled eggs left over, chop fine and put into the soup, after straining it, or, if eggs are plenty, boil three hard and add, chopped fine.
Nursery Soup (to be prepared the day before needing it).—Two pounds of scrag of mutton, or of the knuckle, put into two quarts of cold water; add two or three sliced turnips, or two spoonfuls rice or pearl barley or star tapioca, whichever best suits the taste. Simmer slowly an hour and a half, then take out the meat and set aside; pour the soup into a large bowl, and leave to cool till next day. In the morning skim off all the fat that has risen on the stock. An hour before needed, turn the stock into a saucepan and bring it to a boil; cut the meat from the bones in fine mouthfuls. Mince very fine a small onion, a little parsley and celery; add a bit of butter the size of a nutmeg, one table-spoonful browned flour; burn an even table-spoonful of sugar in an iron spoon; pour a little boiling water over it and stir it into the browned flour, then stir both into the soup; add the other articles, and boil all together twenty minutes; serve hot, with small bits of carefully toasted bread. This is called nursery soup, but it is not to be scorned by the old folks.
Oyster and Clam Soup.—Fifty oysters, two bunches long clams; drain all the liquor from the oysters into a farina-kettle, add a pint of milk, one and a half table-spoonfuls of butter, pepper and salt to suit the taste; cut off the soft bodies of the clams and put with the oysters; chop the tough, gristly parts very fine and put into the liquor; when it boils, add the oysters and clams, with two table-spoonfuls of powdered cracker or the same of farina. Let all boil about five minutes, and send to table hot. This makes soup enough for six persons.
Potato Soup.—Boil and mash potatoes; about three pints when mashed, to three quarts of rich beef stock; ready boiling; add pepper and salt to taste; stir gradually into the boiling stock, then pass all through a sieve and return to the soup-kettle; simmer five minutes, and serve with fried bread; or, if liked, a half-pint of peas boiled soft, one onion, one head of celery, two spoonfuls of rice, may be put to the stock, well boiled, and the potatoes added when all are done; then pass through the sieve, return to soup-kettle, simmer five minutes, and serve.