Original White House Cookbook

Chop fine one cup of cold, cooked, lean beef, half a cup of fat, half a cup of cold boiled or fried ham; cold pork will do if you have not the ham. Also mince up a slice of onion. Season all with a teaspoonful of salt, half a teaspoonful of pepper, and a teaspoonful of powdered sage or parsley if liked. Heat together with half a cup of stock or milk ; when cool add a beaten egg. Form the mixture into balls, slightly flattened, roll in egg and bread crumbs, or flour and egg. Fry in hot lard or beef drippings. Serve on a platter and garnish with sprigs of parsley. Almost any cold meats can be used instead of beef. BEEF CROaiTETTES. No. 2. Take cold roast or corned beef. Put it into a wooden bowl and chop it fine. Mix with it about twice the quantity of hot mashed potatoes well seasoned with butter and salt. Beat up an egg and work it into the potato meat, then form the mixture into little cakes the size of fish-balls. Flatten them a little, roll in flour or egg and cracker crumbs, fry in butter and lard mixed, browning on both sides. Serve piping hot. MEAT AND POTATO CROaUETTES. Put in a stewpan an ounce of butter and a slice of onion minced fine ; when this simmers add a level tablespoonful of sifted flour ; stir the mixture until it becomes smooth and frothy; then add half of a cupful of milk, some seasoning of salt and pepper ; let all boil, stirring it all the while. Now add a cupful of cold meat chopped fine, and a cupful of cold or hot mashed potato. Mix all thoroughly and spread on a plate to cool. When it is cool enough, shape it with your hands into balls or rolls. Dip them in beaten egg and roll in cracker or bread crumbs. Drop them into hot lard and fry about two minutes a delicate brown ; take them out with a skimmer and drain them on a piece of brown paper. Serve immediately while hot. These are very nice. Cold rice or hominy may be used in place of the potato ; or a cupful of cold fish minced fine in place of the meat. COLD ROAST, WARMED. No. 1. Cut from the remains of a cold roast the lean meat from the bones into small, thin slices. Put over the fire a frying pan containing a spoonful of butter or drippings. Cut up a quarter of an onion and fry it brown, then remove the onion, add the meat gravy left from the day before, and if not thick enough add a little fiour ; salt and pepper. Turn the pieces of meat into this and let them simmer a few minutes. Serve hot. COLD ROAST, WARMED. No. 2. Cold rare roast beef may be made as good as when freshly cooked by slicing, seasoning with salt, pepper and bits of butter ; put it in a plate or pan with a spoonful or two of water, covering closely, and set in the oven until hot, but no longer. Cold steak may be shaved very fine with a knife and used the same way. Or, if the meat is in small pieces, cover them with buttered letter paper, twist each end tightly, and boil them on the gridiron, sprinkling them with finely chopped herbs. Still another nice way of using cold meats is to mince the lean portions very fine and add to a batter made of one pint of milk, one cup of flour and three eggs. Fry like fritters and serve with drawn butter or sauce. COLD MEAT AND POTATO, BAKED.