Common Sense in the Household 19

Common Sense in the Household 19

This is the “weal and hammer pie” endorsed by Mr. Wegg as a good thing

“for mellering the organ,” and is a great favorite in England. It is

a good plan to butter the eggs as well as the dish, as much of the

success of the pie depends upon the manner in which it is turned out.

Also, upon the close packing of the sliced meat. The salt ham prevents

the need of other salt.

 

 

STEWED FILLET OF VEAL.

 

Stuff, and bind with twine as for roasting. Then cover the top and

sides with sliced ham which has been already boiled, securing with

skewers, or twine crossing the meat in all directions. Lay in a pot,

put in two large cups of boiling water, cover immediately and closely,

and stew gently—never letting it cease to boil, yet never boiling hard,

for four or five hours. A large fillet will require nearly five hours.

Remove the cover as seldom as possible, and only to ascertain whether

the water has boiled away. If it is too low, replenish from the boiling

kettle. Take off the strings when the meat is done; arrange the ham

about the fillet in the dish, and serve a bit with each slice of veal.

Strain the gravy, thicken with flour, boil up once, and send in a boat.

 

Serve with stewed tomatoes and spinach.

 

 

STEWED KNUCKLE OF VEAL.

 

Put the meat into a pot with two quarts of boiling water, half a pound

of salt pork or ham cut into strips, a carrot, two onions, a bunch

of parsley and one of summer savory—all cut fine—two dozen whole

pepper-corns, and stew, closely covered, for three hours. When done,

take the meat from the pot and lay in the dish. Strain the gravy,

thicken with rice-flour, boil up once, and pour over the meat.

 

 

VEAL SCALLOP. ✠

 

Chop some cold roast or stewed veal very fine, put a layer in the

bottom of a buttered pudding dish, and season with pepper and salt.

Next have a layer of finely powdered crackers. Strew some bits of

butter upon it and wet with a little milk; then more veal seasoned as

before, and another round of cracker-crumbs, with butter and milk.

When the dish is full, wet well with gravy or broth, diluted with warm

water. Spread over all a thick layer of cracker seasoned with salt, wet

into a paste with milk and bound with a beaten egg or two, if the dish

be large. Stick butter-bits thickly over it; invert a tin pan so as

to cover all and keep in the steam, and bake—if small, half an hour;

three-quarters will suffice for a large dish. Remove the cover ten

minutes before it is served, and brown.

 

This simple and economical dish should be an acquaintance with all who

are fond of veal in any shape. Children generally like it exceedingly,

and I have heard more than one gentleman of excellent judgment in

culinary affairs declare that the best thing he knew about roast veal

was that it was the harbinger of scallop on the second day.

 

Try it, and do not get it too dry.

 

 

VEAL PÂTÉS.

 

Mince the veal as above, and roll three or four crackers to powder.

Also, chop up some cold ham and mix with the veal in the proportion of

one-third ham and two-thirds veal. Then add the cracker, and wet well

with gravy and a little milk. If you have no gravy, stir into a cup of

hot milk two tablespoonfuls of butter and a beaten egg. Season well to

your taste, and bake in pâté pans lined with puff-paste. If eaten hot,

send to table in the tins. If cold, slip the pâtés out and pile upon

a plate, with sprigs of parsley between. A little oyster liquor is a

marked improvement to the gravy.

 

 

STEWED CALF’S-HEAD.

 

Wash the head in several waters, and taking out the brains, set them

by in a cool place. Tie the head in a floured cloth and boil it two

hours in hot water slightly salted. Wash the brains carefully, picking

out all the bits of skin and membrane, cleansing them over and over

until they are perfectly white. Then stew in just enough water to cover

them. Take them out, mash smooth with the back of a wooden spoon, and

add gradually, that it may not lump, a small teacupful of the water

in which the head is boiled. Season with chopped parsley, a pinch

of sage, pepper, salt, and powdered cloves, with a great spoonful of

butter. Set it over the fire to simmer in a saucepan until you are

ready. When the head is tender, take it up and drain very dry. Score

the top, and rub it well over with melted butter; dredge with flour and

set in the oven to brown. Or, you can use beaten egg and cracker-crumbs

in place of the butter and flour.

 

When you serve the head, pour the gravy over it.

 

Never skin a calf’s-head. Scald as you would that of a pig. A little

lye in the water will remove the hair—as will also pounded rosin,

applied before it is put into the water.

 

 

CALF’S-HEAD (_Scalloped._) ✠

 

Clean the head, remove the brains, and set in a cool place. Boil the

head until the meat slips easily from the bones. Take it out and chop

fine, season with herbs, pepper, and salt; then put in layers into a

buttered pudding-dish with bits of butter between each layer. Moisten

well with the liquor in which the head was boiled. Wash the brains very

thoroughly, removing all the membrane. Beat them into a smooth paste,

season with pepper and salt, and stir in with them two eggs beaten

very light. Spread this evenly over the scallop, dredge the top with a

little flour, and bake to a delicate brown. Half an hour will be long

enough.

 

 

SWEET-BREADS (_Fried._) ✠

 

Wash very carefully, and dry with a linen cloth. Lard with narrow

strips of fat salt pork, set closely together. Use for this purpose a

larding-needle. Lay the sweet-breads in a clean, hot frying-pan, which

has been well buttered or greased, and cook to a fine brown, turning

frequently until the pork is crisp.

 

 

SWEET BREADS (_Broiled._) ✠

 

Parboil, rub them well with butter, and broil on a clean gridiron. Turn

frequently, and now and then roll over in a plate containing some hot

melted butter. This will prevent them from getting too dry and hard.

 

 

SWEET-BREADS (_Stewed._) ✠

 

When you have washed them, and removed all bits of skin and fatty

matter, cover with cold water, and heat to a boil. Pour off the hot

water, and cover with cold until the sweet-breads are firm. If you

desire to have them very rich, lard as for frying before you put in

the second water. They are more delicate, however, if the pork be left

out. Stew in a very little water the second time. When they are tender,

add for each sweet-bread a heaping teaspoonful of butter, and a little

chopped parsley, with pepper, and salt, and a little cream. Let them

simmer in this gravy for five minutes, then take them up. Send to table

in a covered dish, with the gravy poured over them.

 

If you lard the sweet-breads, substitute for the cream in the gravy a

glass of good wine. In this case, take the sweet-breads out before it

is put into the gravy. Boil up once and pour over them.

 

 

SWEET-BREADS (_Roasted._)

 

Parboil and throw into cold water, where let them stand for fifteen

minutes. Then change to more cold water for five minutes longer. Wipe

perfectly dry. Lay them in your dripping-pan, and roast, basting with

butter and water until they begin to brown. Then withdraw them for an

instant, roll in beaten egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and return to

the fire for ten minutes longer, basting meanwhile twice with melted

butter. Lay in a chafing-dish while you add to the dripping half a cup

hot water, some chopped parsley, a teaspoonful browned flour, and the

juice of half a lemon. Pour over the sweet-breads before sending to

table.

 

 

JELLIED VEAL.

 

Wash a knuckle of veal, and cut it into three pieces. Boil it slowly

until the meat will slip easily from the bones; take out of the liquor;

remove all the bones, and chop the meat fine. Season with salt, pepper,

two shallots chopped as fine as possible, mace and thyme, or, if you

like, sage. Put back into the liquor, and boil until it is almost dry

and can be stirred with difficulty. Turn into a mould until next day.

Set on the table cold, garnish with parsley, and cut in slices. The

juice of a lemon, stirred in just before it is taken from the fire, is

an improvement.

 

 

CALF’S-HEAD IN A MOULD.

 

Boil a calf’s-head until tender, the day before you wish to use it.

When perfectly cold, chop—not too small—and season to taste with

pepper, salt, mace, and the juice of a lemon. Prepare half as much cold

ham, fat and lean—also minced—as you have of the chopped calf’s-head.

Butter a mould well, and lay in the bottom a layer of the calf’s-head,

then one of ham, and so on until the shape is full, pressing each layer

hard, when you have moistened it with veal gravy or the liquor in which

the head was boiled. Pour more gravy over the top, and when it has

soaked in well, cover with a paste made of flour and water. Bake one

hour. Remove the paste when it is quite cold, and turn out carefully.

Cut perpendicularly.

 

This is quite as good a relish when made of cold roast or stewed veal

and ham. It will keep several days in cool weather.

 

 

VEAL OLIVES WITH OYSTERS.

 

Cut large, smooth slices from a fillet of veal, or veal chops will do

quite as well. Trim them into a uniform shape and size, and spread each

neatly with forced-meat made of bread-crumbs and a little chopped pork,

seasoned with pepper and salt. Over this spread some chopped oysters,

about three to a good-sized slice of veal. Roll them up carefully and

closely, and pin each with two small tin or wooden skewers. Lay them in

a dripping-pan; dash a teacupful of boiling water over them, and roast,

basting at least twice with melted butter. When they are brown, remove

to a chafing-dish, and cover, while you add a little oyster-liquor to

the gravy left in the dripping-pan. Let this simmer for three or four

minutes; thicken with a teaspoonful of browned flour, and boil up at

once. Withdraw the skewers cautiously, so as not to break the olives;

pour the gravy over and around them, and serve. If you have no skewers,

bind the olives with pack-thread, cutting it, of course, before sending to table.