Hand-Book of Practical Cookery, for Ladies and Professional Cooks / Containing the Whole Science and Art of Preparing Human Food

by Pierre Blot

2. When baked, spread over the pie some syrup of apples, of pears, or syrup for compotes.

3. Just before serving, spread some crème légère on the top, tastefully and fancifully, by means of a paper funnel, or with the pastry-bag.

Tarts and Tartelettes.—These are small pies. Instead of using a tin dish or a bakepan, you use small tin moulds, such as for madeleines, and proceed exactly as for pies.

Mince-Pie.—Every thing used to make a mince-pie is chopped fine, and the spices are used in powder. Prepare paste as directed for meat-pies, and make it either with or without mould. Proportions: to three pounds of beef add six pounds of beef-suet, one pound of currants, one of prunes, one of raisins, and one of apples, the rind of two lemons, two ounces of citron, and one pound of any kind of comfited fruit; nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, cloves, and sugar to taste; also wine or brandy, or both, to taste. Bake in a moderately heated oven. The fruits may be used candied or fresh, the apples fresh or dried, it is a matter of taste. Twenty kinds of fruits and meat may be used as well as three or four; there are no rules to make a mince-pie, since its compounds are not used to be tasted at all separately, but as a whole.

Pot-Pie.—Make a paste with one pound of flour, two ounces of butter, two ounces of beef-suet (the latter prepared as directed for puff-paste), a little salt and water, enough to make a rather stiff paste; roll it down to a thickness of about a quarter of an inch and fold it in three and roll down again; repeat the process half a dozen times, the last time leaving it rolled down and of the thickness above mentioned. Line the sides of a pot with it, lay slices or strips of salt pork on the bottom of the pot, then fill it with strips of meat, any and every kind (slices of potatoes may be added, if liked); season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon; fill with water or broth; cover with some of the same paste; cover the pan and boil gently till done. When the cover of paste is laid on, make a hole in the centre to let the steam out, and to fill up with water or broth if it boils away. Run a sharp-pointed knife or a skewer through, to ascertain when done. Serve warm. Proceed as above either for butcher's meat, chicken, and other domestic fowls, or game.

Puddings.—Puddings are made of several materials and in a hundred different ways. Some are cooked by boiling, others are baked, and some are both boiled and baked. Puddings for inhabitants of cities ought to be made as light as possible. For persons working outside and at manual labor, it does not matter, because their food passes through the system in a short time. It is very well known that the poorer class of Americans eat too much pudding and pie. Many do it for economy, others for convenience. The former are mistaken, and the latter are blamable. Puddings and pies cost more in the end than meat properly and carefully prepared. We do not mean to do away with them entirely, but we advise every one to do with puddings as with every thing else, "use, but do not abuse." "Pies, cakes, and sweetmeats, are universally known to be poisoning to children, and the mothers who give them are conscious that they are purchasing the momentary smile of satisfaction at the risk of after-sickness, and perhaps of incurable disease."—Peter Parley.

The above needs no commentary; we only recommend it to the consideration of young mothers.

For Convenience.—We have taken the trouble to put questions about it to over three hundred mothers, wives of mechanics or of employés at a comparatively small salary, and we are sorry to say, that more than ninety per cent. gave us about the same answer—they make and cook cakes in one day, enough to feed the whole family for three days, to save the trouble of cooking every day. We cannot see where the trouble can be for a good wife and mother to prepare her husband and children's dinner.

Pudding-eating is an English custom; but, before following a custom of another country, people ought to consider if that custom or fashion (whatever it is) has not been introduced into that country by necessity, which is the case of pudding-eating in England and in some parts of Holland.

In England, where the fog is nearly perpetual, the stomach requires to be filled with something heavy, something that will stay there till the next meal, and very often longer than that.