On the whole, although the soup was a failure, Molly was satisfied with Marta’s first unaided efforts. The lemon pie, in spite of her own admonition to handle the paste very little, she had pressed with her thumb round the edge, to make it smooth, no doubt. The consequence was, the paste was nice and short, but bore no resemblance to puff paste, either in appearance or in eating, but Molly had not expected anything better, and reserved comments until the next time, when she would again show her how to use pastry.
CHAPTER XIII.
PREPARING TO SAVE WORK—BROWN THICKENING—WHITE THICKENING—CARAMEL.
Molly had resolved to take the first opportunity to prepare two or three articles for her storeroom which would simplify work for Marta, and indeed she herself had felt the lack already of these very articles.
Brown thickening saves a great deal of standing over the fire and stirring of butter and flour together, when it is ready, and if thickening of soup or stew is intrusted to inexperienced hands, it often results in something very different from what it should be, while with ready-prepared thickening (roux, the French call it) a blunder is less possible. The ironing being out of the way then on Wednesday, she resolved to make that and several other things, or rather to superintend while Marta carried out her orders.
“Marta, put half a pound of butter in a small saucepan or bowl to melt, and while it is doing so, weigh and sift half a pound of flour. Skim the butter; now pour it off carefully from the milk that has settled at the bottom into another small thick saucepan, and stir it into the flour. Keep on stirring till it is bright brown. Watch carefully that it doesn’t burn; that is almost dark enough. In saying ‘bright brown’ I mean a rich, pale golden brown, not dark like coffee. Now put it into this little marmalade jar, and when it is cold lay a piece of paper on the top and put it away for use. It will keep for months, and when I tell you to thicken any brown gravy, use this for the purpose instead of fresh butter and flour. The flavor is richer than any hastily made thickening.
“Now we will make some white thickening. Wash out the saucepan, melt the butter, half a pound, just in the same way. Now stir in it half a pound of flour; keep on stirring as long as you can, before it begins to change color. It must not be at all brown, yet the flour must be well cooked. Therefore stir it in a cooler spot than the other. When the flour no longer smells raw, put it into a small bowl. Cover as you did the other and put it away. This is for white thickening, for fricassee or to dress vegetables, etc.
“Now wash the saucepan again, and we will make some caramel for coloring. Put in it a cup of sugar and a quarter cup of water. Let them boil till the syrup begins to change color, then watch it carefully. Tilt the saucepan from all sides so that it may get equally brown. The moment it is all nearly black, but before it chars in the least, put to it a cup of boiling water; take care of yourself, for it sputters a good deal. Now let it boil till it is all dissolved and like very dark syrup. A tea-spoonful of this, or less, will give a fine color to gravy or soup if not dark enough in itself. It will also color icing for cake or custard, and in fact is always very useful.”