CHERRY TART.
Ingredients.—1½ lb. of cherries, 2 small tablespoonfuls of moist sugar, ½ lb. of short crust. Mode.—Pick the stalks from the cherries, put them, with the sugar, into a deep pie-dish just capable of holding them, with a small cup placed upside down in the midst of them. Make a short crust with ½ lb. of flour, by either of the recipes for short crust, lay a border round the edge of the dish, put on the cover, and ornament the edges; bake in a brisk oven from ½ hour to 40 minutes; strew finely-sifted sugar over, and serve hot or cold, although the latter is the more usual mode. It is more economical to make two or three tarts at one time, as the trimmings from one tart answer for lining the edges of the dish for another, and so much paste is not required as when they are made singly. Unless for family use, never make fruit pies in very large dishes; select them, however, as deep as possible. Time.—½ hour to 40 minutes. Average cost, in full season, 8d. Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons. Seasonable in June, July, and August.
Note.—A few currants added to the cherries will be found to impart a nice piquante taste to them.
CHESTNUT SAUCE, Brown.
Ingredients.—½ lb. of chestnuts, ½ pint of stock, 2 lumps of sugar, 4 tablespoonfuls of Spanish sauce (see [Sauces]). Mode.—Prepare the chestnuts as in the succeeding recipe, by scalding and peeling them; put them in a stewpan with the stock and sugar, and simmer them till tender. When done, add Spanish sauce in the above proportion, and rub the whole through a tammy. Keep this sauce rather liquid, as it is liable to thicken. Time.—1½ hour to simmer the chestnuts. Average cost, 8d.
CHESTNUT SAUCE, for Fowls or Turkey.
Ingredients.—½ lb. of chestnuts, ½ pint of white stock, 2 strips of lemon-peel, cayenne to taste, ¼ pint of cream or milk. Mode.—Peel off the outside skin of the chestnuts, and put them into boiling water for a few minutes; take off the thin inside peel, and put them into a saucepan with the white stock and lemon-peel, and let them simmer for 1½ hour, or until the chestnuts are quite tender. Rub the whole through a hair-sieve with a wooden spoon; add seasoning and the cream; let it just simmer, but not boil, and keep stirring all the time. Serve very hot, and quickly. If milk is used instead of cream, a very small quantity of thickening may be required: that, of course, the cook will determine. Time.—Altogether, nearly 2 hours. Average cost, 8d. Sufficient, this quantity for a turkey.
CHESTNUT (Spanish) SOUP.
Ingredients.—¾ lb. of Spanish chestnuts, ¼ pint of cream; seasoning to taste of salt, cayenne, and mace; 1 quart of stock. Mode.—Take the outer rind from the chestnuts, and put them into a large pan of warm water. As soon as this becomes too hot for the fingers to remain in it, take out the chestnuts, peel them quickly, and immerse them in cold water, and wipe and weigh them. Now cover them with good stock, and stew them gently for rather more than ¾ of an hour, or until they break when touched with a fork; then drain, pound, and rub them through a fine sieve reversed; add sufficient stock, mace, cayenne, and salt, and stir it often until it boils, and put in the cream. The stock in which the chestnuts are boiled can be used for the soup, when its sweetness is not objected to, or it may, in part, be added to it; and the rule is, that ¾ lb. of chestnuts should be given to each quart of soup. Time.—Rather more than 1 hour. Average cost, per quart, 1s. 6d. Sufficient for 4 persons. Seasonable from October to February.