Obs.—Jellies from other fruits are made in the same way, and cannot be preserved in perfection without plenty of good sugar.
Those who wish jelly to turn out very stiff, dissolve isinglass in a little water, strain through a sieve, and add it in the proportion of half an ounce to a pint of juice, and put it in with the sugar.
The best way is the cheapest. Jellies made with too small a proportion of sugar, require boiling so long; there is much more waste of juice and flavour by evaporation than the due quantity of sugar costs; and they neither look nor taste half so delicate, as when made with a proper proportion of sugar, and moderate boiling.
Mock Arrack.—(No. 480.)
Dissolve two scruples of flowers of benjamin in a quart of good rum, and it will immediately impart to it the inviting fragrance of “Vauxhall nectar.”
Calves’-Feet Jelly.—(No. 481.)
Take four calves’ feet (not those which are sold at tripe-shops, which have been boiled till almost all the gelatine is extracted; but buy them at the butcher’s), slit them in two, take away the fat from between the claws, wash them well in lukewarm water; then put them in a large stew-pan, and cover them with water: when the liquor boils, skim it well, and let it boil gently six or seven hours, that it may be reduced to about two quarts; then strain it through a sieve, and skim off all the oily substance which is on the surface of the liquor.
If you are not in a hurry, it is better to boil the calves’ feet the day before you make the jelly; as when the liquor is cold, the oily part being at the top, and the other being firm, with pieces of kitchen paper applied to it, you may remove every particle of the oily substance, without wasting any of the liquor.
Put the liquor in a stew-pan to melt, with a pound of lump sugar, the peel of two lemons, the juice of six, six whites and shells of eggs beat together, and a bottle of sherry or Madeira; whisk the whole together until it is on the boil; then put it by the side of the stove, and let it simmer a quarter of an hour; strain it through a jelly-bag: what is strained first must be poured into the bag again, until it is as bright and as clear as rock-water; then put the jelly in moulds, to be cold and firm: if the weather is too warm, it requires some ice.
Obs.—When it is wished to be very stiff, half an ounce of isinglass may be added when the wine is put in.