Crystal Palace Pudding.—1 oz. isinglass, ½ oz. ratafias, 1½ pint milk, yolks of 3 eggs, ½ lb. sugar, a few currants, 6 sponge cakes, flavour with almond, lemon, bay leaf, or vanilla. Dissolve the isinglass in the milk, add the yolks of the eggs, and make as for custard. When nearly cold, stick the top of the mould, after oiling it, with currants, then a little custard; moisten, but do not soak the cake in milk. Cut the cake in pieces, fill the mould alternately with cake and custard, strewing a few currants between. When quite set, turn out and cover with custard.
Curaçoa Jelly.—Take 2 calves’ feet, chop them into convenient pieces, and put them in a saucepan with rather more than 2 qt. cold water; set the saucepan on the fire; directly the water boils throw it away, and wash the pieces of feet carefully; then put them on again with 2 qt. cold water, and let them boil slowly for 3 hours, removing the scum carefully during the process; then strain the liquor into a basin, and when quite cold and set take off all the fat, and wash the top of the jelly with a little hot water, so as to get rid of every vestige of fat. Put the jelly in a saucepan on the fire; directly it is melted add sugar to taste, the juice and the thin rind of 1 lemon, and the whites of 3 eggs whisked to a froth. Beat up the mixture till it boils. Place the thin rind of a lemon at the bottom of a jelly bag, and pour the mixture over it. The bag should have been previously rinsed in boiling water, and the first ½ pint of jelly that comes through must be returned to the bag. If the jelly does not come out quite clear, the operation of straining must be repeated. Add sufficient dry curaçoa to the clarified jelly to flavour it well. Fill a mould with it, and place it on ice to set.
Currant Jelly.—Take 8 lb. very ripe currants, red and white; pick off all the stalks, and put them in a wide earthen pan; then take them up in handfuls, and squeeze them till the juice is all crushed out of them, which will take some time. Leave them in the pan, with the juice, for 24 hours. Put 2 lb. raspberries in a saucepan, with 2 teacupfuls water, and boil them for a few minutes, till they are all crushed. Then pass all the currants and raspberries through a hair sieve, pressing them with a wooden spoon to extract all the juice. If the juice should be very thick, pass it also through a jelly bag. Weigh the juice, and for every lb. of it put 2 lb. loaf sugar, broken into large pieces. Put the sugar into a preserving pan, with 1 pint water; pour all the juice on it. Let it boil for ½ hour, stirring frequently. Then put it into small bottles, and cork it for use. 2 tablespoonfuls in a tumbler of water make a very refreshing drink in summer. Cherry syrup may be made in the same way with Morella cherries.
Custards.—(a) Boil, and when boiling, pour ½ pint milk upon 1 egg beaten up. Put in a dish, and stand this on a larger dish of hot water. Bake ½ hour.
(b) To 1 oz. isinglass, dissolved in ½ pint milk, add 1 pint thin cream, sugar to taste, and 3 bay or laurel leaves. When these just simmer, pour them upon the yolks of 5 eggs, well beaten. Put the whole on the fire, and stir it one way till it begins to thicken; then strain it through a fine sieve, and let it stand till new-milk warm; then add 1 tablespoonful lemon juice, stirring it well, and afterwards pour it into a mould.
(c) To make about 7 custards, boil 1 pint milk with 3 dessertspoonfuls sugar. Beat the yolks and whites of 2 eggs well together, and pour the milk, when slightly cool, on to the eggs, and beat well together. Fill white china French custard cups; stand them in a bain-marie, and let them cook until they become solid, taking care to let no water get on the top. When set, take the bain-marie off the fire, and put the cups in the oven for the custard to slightly brown. Vanilla or any flavouring can be used.
Damson Cheese.—Pick off the stalks, and to every lb. of fruit put ¾ lb. loaf sugar; boil as for jam till the damsons are tender, then rub them carefully through a hair sieve, and to every lb. of the pulp allow another ¾ lb. sugar, pounded this time. Boil it an hour very slowly, constantly stirring; then pour it into pots or moulds, and tie down with brandy papers. When cold it will be quite firm. If wanted sweet, 1 lb. sugar must be allowed for each boiling. (Bessie Tremaine.)
Danish Jelly.—Take ¾ pint claret, ½ pint sherry (Marsala is best), ½ pint brandy, 6 oz. loaf sugar, ½ pint cherry juice, the juice and peel of 1 lemon, 1½ oz. gelatine. Mix all these ingredients together; boil, and strain them into a mould. The gelatine should be put to soak the night before in a very little cold water. This jelly must not boil quickly, else it will spoil the colour. Let it cool before putting it into the mould. Serve with a rich custard flavoured with vanilla round it.
Date Pudding.—Take ¼ lb. finely grated breadcrumbs, ¼ lb. chopped dates, 3 oz. sugar, 6 oz. chopped suet, with grated nutmeg to taste. Mix 1 teaspoonful Yeatman’s yeast powder with ¼ lb. flour, add this to the other ingredients, moisten with milk, mix well, and boil for 4 hours in a basin. Serve with wine sauce.
Diplomatic Pudding.—Decorate a plain mould with a lining of currants and pistachio nuts, and fill the outer part with jelly; when the jelly is set remove the lining by putting a little warm water in it; make a custard with 1 pint milk and the yolks of 4 eggs, flavour the milk with vanilla, add ½ oz. isinglass, stir it into the custard when hot; break up 1 or 2 sponge cakes and macaroons, cut up a few candied fruits, put a layer of each until the mould is full, pour in the custard, leave it in a cool place until wanted; then dip the mould into tepid water a second, turn it out on a cold dish, and serve.