Take large fresh gathered artichokes, boil and simmer them till they are nearly tender, remove the leaves and choke, and put the bottom part of the artichoke in a salt brine for about forty-eight hours; then strain off the brine, put the artichoke into a jar, and cover it with vinegar, previously heated to the boiling point, and seasoned with pepper, salt, eschalots, and mace.
SOUR KRAUT.
M. Parmentier has given a minute description of a process of making sour kraut on the large scale. The heads of white winter cabbages, after removing the outer leaves, are to be cut into fine shreds, by means of a knife, or with a plane, and spread out to dry upon a cloth in the shade. A cask is to be set on end, with the head taken out. If it formerly contained vinegar or wine, so much the better, as it will promote the fermentation, and give the cabbage a more vinous taste; if not, the inside may be rubbed over with sour kraut liquor. Caraway seeds are to be mixed with the shreds of cabbage, a good layer of salt is placed at the bottom of the cask, and then cabbage shreds evenly packed, to the depth of four or six inches. The layers are regularly stamped down with a wooden stamper, to half their original bulk. The same process is to be repeated, with additional layers of salt, and shreds, till the whole be packed. They are then to be covered with a layer of salt, or till the barrel be filled within two inches of the top, over which the outside leaves of the cabbages are to be spread. About two pounds of salt are required for twenty middling sized cabbages.
The head of the barrel, which should have been previously well fastened together, is lastly to be put within the barrel above the leaves, and loaded with stones, to prevent the mixture from rising during the fermentation. The mass thus compressed subsides, and the cabbage gives out its juice, which rises to the surface, it is green, muddy, and fætid. It is to be drawn off by a spigot placed two or three inches from the bottom, and re-placed by fresh brine.
The following notice may serve to remind the reader of the time when the various articles for preparing pickles are in season.
- Nasturtium pods fit for pickling, are in season in the middle of July.
- Onions, by the middle and end of July.
- Cucumbers, the latter part of July and August.
- Capsicum pods, the end of July and beginning of August.
- Tomatas, or Love Apples, the end of July and August.
- Cauliflower, in July and August.
- Artichokes, in July and August.
- Radish pods, in July.
- French Beans, in July.
- Mushrooms, in September.
- Red Cabbage, in August.
- Samphire, in August.
MUSHROOM CATSUP.
The name of catsup is given to several kinds of liquid pickles, made of savoury vegetable substances, such as mushrooms, walnuts, &c. The following method of preparing mushroom catsup is copied from the Cook’s Oracle:—
Take full grown mushrooms; put a layer of them at the bottom of a deep earthen pan, and sprinkle them with salt, then another layer of mushrooms, put some more salt on them, and so on, alternately, salt and mushrooms; let them remain two or three hours, by which time the salt will have penetrated the mushrooms, and rendered them easy to break; mash them well and let them remain for a couple of days, stirring them up, and mashing them well each day; then pour them into a stone jar, and to each quart add half an ounce of whole black pepper; stop the jar very close, set it in a stew-pan of boiling water, and keep it simmering for two hours at least. Take out the jar, and pour off the juice clear from the sediment through a hair sieve into a stewpan (without squeezing the mushrooms); let it boil up, skim it, and pour it into a dry jar; let it stand till next day, then pour it off as gently as possible, through a tammis, or flannel bag, (so as not to disturb the sediment at the bottom of the jar.) Bottle it in pints or half pints; for it is best to keep it in such quantities as are soon used: in each pint, put a dozen berries of black pepper, the same of allspice, and a table-spoonful of brandy.