Ingredients.—Parsley, hot lard or clarified dripping. Mode.—Gather some young parsley; wash, pick, and dry it thoroughly in a cloth; put it into the wire basket of which we have given an engraving, and hold it in boiling lard or dripping for a minute or two. Directly it is done, lift out the basket, and let it stand before the fire, that the parsley may become thoroughly crisp; and the quicker it is fried the better. Should the kitchen not be furnished with the above article, throw the parsley into the frying-pan, and when crisp, lift it out with a slice, dry it before the fire, and when thoroughly crisp it will be ready for use.
WIRE BASKET.
Wire Basket.—For this recipe a wire basket, as shown in the annexed engraving, will be found very useful. It is very light and handy, and may be used for other similar purposes besides that just described.
PARSLEY JUICE, for Colouring various Dishes.
Procure some nice young parsley; wash it and dry it thoroughly in a cloth; pound the leaves in a mortar till all the juice is extracted, and put the juice in a teacup or small jar; place this in a saucepan of boiling water, and warm it on the bain-marie principle just long enough to take off its rawness; let it drain, and it will be ready for colouring.
Substitute for.—Sometimes in the middle of winter parsley-leaves are not to be had, when the following will be found an excellent substitute:—Tie up a little parsley-seed in a small piece of muslin, and boil it for 10 minutes in a small quantity of water; use this water to make the melted butter with, and throw into it a little boiled spinach, minced rather fine, which will have an appearance similar to that of parsley.
PARSLEY, to Preserve through the Winter.
Use freshly-gathered parsley for keeping, and wash it perfectly free from grit and dirt; put it into boiling water which has been slightly salted and well skimmed, and then let it boil for 2 or 3 minutes; take it out, let it drain, and lay it on a sieve in front of the fire, when it should be dried as expeditiously as possible. Store it away in a very dry place in bottles, and when wanted for use pour over it a little warm water, and let it stand for about 5 minutes. Seasonable.—This may be done at any time between June and October.