CHAPTER VII.
Dishes for Yachtsmen.—Macaroni, Boiled and Baked.—Baked Turkey.—Pie Crust.—Brown Betty.—Apple Pudding.—Apple Dumplings.
For the benefit of Corinthian yachtsmen, recipes are here given for some dishes which are rather too elaborate in preparation for camp purposes, but which can be cooked readily in the yacht's galley, if it be provided with a regular yacht's stove, having an oven, etc.
Boiled Macaroni.
Wipe the macaroni carefully, and break it into lengths, put it into a pot of boiling salt water, say ten times as much water as macaroni. Boil fifteen to twenty minutes, or until tender. Take care that it does not burst or become a pulp from excessive boiling; drain at once and season with butter.
If desired to impart the flavor of onion to macaroni boil with it two onions for each pound of macaroni. The liquor drained from the macaroni may be used for broth or soup.
Boiled macaroni may be served with a white sauce, made as follows; for one pound of macaroni put into a pot over the fire two ounces of butter and two ounces of flour, stir until it becomes smooth, then gradually stir in one quart of hot milk and water in equal parts, season with pepper and salt, put in the macaroni, and let it remain over the fire for one minute.
Or, as soon as the butter and flour bubbles, gradually pour in one quart of boiling water, stirring it until it becomes smooth; season with pepper and salt; put in the macaroni and let it remain over the fire for one minute. Have ready one or two onions, minced or shredded, fried brown. Dish the macaroni and pour the fried onions over it.
Boiled macaroni may be served with tomato sauce made as follows: for one pound of macaroni put into a pot half a can of tomatoes, or twelve large fresh ones, one half a pint of stock, gravy, or broth of any kind, a little thyme or parsley, six whole cloves, a sliced onion, pepper and salt. Cover and boil gently for one hour, stirring frequently; drain and press the mixture through a sieve (an old pan full of nail holes will do); then stir into it about two ounces of butter and one ounce of flour, previously mixed smooth over the fire; stir until it is well incorporated; pour it over the macaroni: sprinkle on top grated cheese, and put it into the oven for five or ten minutes.
Baked Macaroni and Cheese.
Boil and drain the macaroni and with it fill by layers a buttered earthen dish, seasoning each layer with butter, grated cheese, mustard, pepper, and salt; add bread crumbs for the top layer. Cover and put it into the oven, and bake with a moderate heat for a half hour. Remove the cover, and when the top is browned serve in the baking-dish.
Minced fat pork may be used instead of butter.
Baked Turkey.
Tame and wild turkeys are prepared and cooked alike. The time for cooking is from fifteen to twenty minutes to the pound, but this depends much upon the age of the bird; it must be well done to be palatable. Success lies in cooking it long enough, and frequent basting.
Put the turkey into a pan of cold water; rinse it inside and out in three or four waters; in the last water but one dissolve a teaspoonful of soda. Fill the body with this water; shake it well; pour it off and rinse with fresh water; wipe it dry inside and out; rub the inside with pepper and salt. Prepare a stuffing as follows; Mix into enough grated bread crumbs to fill the craw and body of the turkey a half teaspoonful of summer savory, thyme, or sage, four ounces of lard, four ounces of butter, with enough warm water to make the mixture moist.
Mix all thoroughly and stuff the craw and body with it; tie a string tightly about the neck; sew up the incision; tie down the wings and legs; then lay it on its back in the baking-pan; wet the skin and season it with pepper and salt and dredge it with flour. Distribute on the upper side small pieces of butter; put into the pan about a pint of boiling stock or a quarter of a pound of butter; have a brisk fire; put the pan into the oven and bake. Baste frequently, at least every ten minutes; bake to a rich brown. If it browns too rapidly lay a sheet of white paper over it until the lower part is done. When the turkey is browned on the breast turn it over in the pan while in the oven.
Pepper, salt, and dredge the back with flour, and bake until browned, basting as above. When baked remove the strings from the neck and body; put it into a hot dish and serve with a flour gravy, made as described on page 62.
The turkey may also be stuffed with sausage-meat, fresh oysters or roasted chestnuts.
Pie Crust.
All pie crust should be made in a cool place and handled as little as possible during the process. The heat from the hand makes the crust tough. The ingredients are:
One quart of flour (sifted); one-fourth of a pound butter; one-half teaspoonful salt; enough cold water to make a stiff dough. Sift the flour into a deep wooden bowl or tin pan; put into it the salt; mix; then the lard. With a keen chopping-knife cut up the lard into the flour until it is thoroughly incorporated, with no lumps; wet with cold water, stirring it in with a wooden spoon until it becomes a stiff dough. Flour the hands and make dough into a lump with as little handling as possible.
Remove lump to well-floured kneading-board, and roll it out into a sheet a fourth of an inch thick, always rolling from you, and with as little pressure upon the rolling-pin as may be necessary.
Into the rolled sheet stick small pieces of butter at regular intervals. Dredge slightly with flour. Roll up the sheet, commencing to roll from the side nearest you. Roll out, again buttering and dredging until the butter is exhausted. If time will permit, when the butter has been exhausted and the roll made up, lay it away in a cold place or on the ice for twenty minutes.
Place it again upon the floured kneading-board, roll out into a sheet as hereinbefore directed. Butter the pie-plates; lay the paste lightly within them, fitting it nicely. Trim off the paste neatly around the edges of the pie-plates. Gather up the cuttings and roll them into a separate sheet.
If the pies are to have a top crust, cover the tops with the paste, cutting neatly round the edges, and with a knife, spoon or the fingers join securely the edges of the top and sides to prevent escape of juices. Then with a sharp knife make three or four incisions about an inch long in the center of the top crust.
If the top crust is lightly brushed with sweet milk, it will brown evenly.
Bake in a moderate oven until a light brown. Be careful to have the heat as great at the bottom as at the top of oven. If this is not looked to, the lower crust will be uncooked and inedible.
Should a richer crust be desired the proportions of lard and butter can be doubled.
Brown Betty (Baked).
The ingredients are: Cooking-apples, pared, cored, and sliced; dry-bread crumbs, or well-toasted bread rolled into crumbs; sugar, butter, and ground cinnamon.
Grease well a deep baking-dish. Into the bottom of this put a layer of prepared apples; sprinkle them lightly with sugar; scatter small pieces of butter over this, then dust with ground cinnamon; over this place a layer of bread crumbs from one-half to three-quarters of an inch thick; over this apples, butter, and cinnamon, and continue this process until the dish is full, or until sufficient material has been used. The top layer must be crumbs, and on this must be scattered small pieces of butter. If the top layer is moistened with a couple of tablespoonfuls of milk it will brown more evenly.
Put into a moderate oven and bake from a half to three-quarters of an hour.
When a fork will easily penetrate the apples it is cooked. Alden dried apples may be substituted for the fresh fruit.
It can be eaten hot or cold with butter, sugar, or sauce.
Baked Apple Pudding.
Use the following ingredients: Apples pared, cored and sliced; one quart sifted flour; three teaspoonfuls baking powder, incorporated with the dry flour; one-half teaspoonful salt; two tablespoonfuls lard (half butter is preferable); one pint milk (cold water will do).
Have ready sugar, butter, and ground cinnamon. Put flour into a deep dish or pan; mix into it the salt and lard; then add the milk, and work the mixture with the hands to a smooth light dough.
Roll the dough into a sheet about one-quarter of an inch thick. Have prepared a well-greased baking-dish. Cover the bottom and sides of the dish with rolled dough or paste, press it lightly against the sides and bottom, and cutoff the edges above the dish.
Put into the bottom of the baking-dish thus prepared a thick layer of sliced apples, sprinkle them with sugar and ground cinnamon, then another layer of apples treated in like manner, and so on successively until the dish is full. The top layer of apples should have the dressing of sugar and cinnamon, and be also sprinkled with small pieces of butter. Wet the top layer with three or four teaspoonfuls of water, and then sprinkle it lightly with dry flour.
Take the remainder of the dough, roll it out thin, and cover the dish with it, pressing the paste down round the edges of the dish to join it with the paste that lines the sides. Make three or four incisions in the cover with a sharp knife.
Then put the dish into a moderate oven and bake from one to one and a half hours. When a fork easily penetrates the pudding, it is cooked. Eat hot with sauce. Alden dried apples, canned apples, canned peaches, or fresh peaches pared, quartered, and the stones extracted may be used.
Baked Apple Dumplings.
The apples pared, cored and quartered. Prepare paste as directed for Baked Apple Pudding above.
When the paste is rolled, cut it into squares, and in the centre of each square place the four parts of an apple; add to each apple a piece of butter the size of a chestnut and a small sprinkle of sugar and ground cinnamon.
Envelop the apple in the paste, pressing the cut edges together. Place the dumplings thus prepared into a well-greased baking-pan, cut edges downwards.
Bake a half to three-fourths of an hour in a moderate oven. When a fork will penetrate the dumplings they are cooked. Apples dried by the Alden process may be used.