Obs.—The peaches may be converted into excellent mangoes by cutting out from the stalk-end of each, a round of sufficient size to allow the stone to be extracted: this should be done after they are taken from the brine. They may be filled with very fresh mustard-seed, previously washed in a little vinegar; to this a small portion of garlic, or bruised eschalots, cayenne, horseradish, chilies (the most appropriate of any), or spice of any kind may be added, to the taste. The part cut out must be replaced, and secured with a packthread crossed over the fruit.
SWEET PICKLE OF MELON. (FOREIGN RECEIPT.)
(To serve with Roast Meat.)
Take, within three or four days of their being fully ripe, one or two well-flavoured melons; just pare off the outer rind, clear them from the seeds, and cut them into slices of about half an inch thick; lay them into good vinegar, and let them remain in it for ten days; then cover them with cold fresh vinegar, and simmer them very gently until they are tender. Lift them on to a sieve reversed, to drain, and when they are quite cold stick a couple of cloves into each slice, lay them into a jar (a glass one, if at hand) and cover them well with cold syrup, made with ten ounces of sugar to the pint of water, boiled quickly together for twenty minutes. In about a week take them from the syrup, let it drain from them a little, then put them into jars in which they are to be stored, and cover them again thoroughly with good vinegar, which has been boiled for an instant, and left to become quite cold before it is added to them.
This pickle is intended to be served more particularly with roast mutton, hare, and venison, instead of currant jelly, but it is very good with stewed meat also. Small blades of cinnamon, and a larger proportion of cloves are sometimes stuck into the melon, but their flavour should not prevail too strongly. We have found the receipt answer extremely well as we have given it, when tried with small green melons, cut within four days of being fit for table.
Melons not quite ripe, pared from hard rind and sliced, 1 or 2: in vinegar 10 days. Simmered in it until tender. In syrup 6 to 7 days. In fresh vinegar to remain. Ready to serve in a month.
A Common Sweet Pickle of Melon.—Prepare the fruit as above. In a fortnight simmer it until tender; drain, and lay it into jars, and pour on it while just warm, a pickle made with a pound and two ounces of coarse brown sugar, twenty cloves, and half a drachm of cinnamon to the pint of vinegar, boiled together for ten minutes.
TO PICKLE MUSHROOMS.
Select for this purpose the smallest buttons of the wild meadow mushrooms, in preference to those which are artificially raised, and let them be as freshly gathered as possible. Cut the stems off quite close, and clean them with a bit of new flannel slightly moistened, and dipped into fine salt; throw them as they are done into plenty of spring-water, mixed with a large spoonful of salt, but drain them from it quickly afterwards, and lay them into a soft cloth to dry, or the moisture which hangs about them will too much weaken the pickle. For each quart of the mushrooms thus prepared, take nearly a quart of the palest white wine vinegar (this is far superior to the distilled vinegar generally used for the purpose, and the variation in the colour of the mushrooms will be very slight), and add to it a heaped teaspoonful of salt, half an ounce of whole white pepper, an ounce of ginger, sliced or slightly bruised, about the fourth of a saltspoonful of cayenne tied in a small bit of muslin, and two large blades of mace: to these may be added half a small nutmeg, sliced, but too much spice will entirely overpower the fine natural flavour of the mushrooms. When the pickle boils throw them in, and boil them in it over a clear fire moderately fast from six to nine minutes, or somewhat longer, should they not be very small. When they are much disproportioned in size, the larger ones should have two minutes boil before the others are thrown into the vinegar. As soon as they are tolerably tender, put them at once into small stone jars, or into warm wide-necked bottles, and divide the spice equally amongst them. The following day, or as soon as they are perfectly cold, secure them from the air with large corks, or tie skins and paper over them. They should be stored in a dry place, and guarded from severe frost. When the colour of the mushrooms is more considered than the excellence of the pickle, the distilled vinegar can be used for it. The reader may rely upon this receipt as a really good one; we have had it many times proved, and it is altogether our own.
Mushroom buttons (without the stems), 2 quarts; palest white wine vinegar, short 1/2 gallon; salt, large dessertspoonful, or 1-1/2 oz.; white peppercorns, 1 oz.; whole ginger, 2 oz.; cayenne, small 1/2 saltspoonful; 1 small nutmeg.