FoodNetArchive

Cookery and housekeeping

1882

Page 134 · 2 recipe records on this page

Presented as published in 1882. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
Pick off all the outer leaves, leaving only the white. Trim the roots and wash the endive in several waters, carefully removing any insects concealed in the folds of the leaves. Put a large stewpan half full of water on the fire. When the water boils throw in the endive with a handful of salt ; let the endive con- tinue to boil until quite tender. Drain in a colander, and also squeeze till all the water is got rid of Take each head of endive and cut off the root ; again look through the leaves for insects (spreading each leaf out with the point of a knife). Chop the leaves small, and pass through a coarse wire sieve. Put them in a stewpan with 2 ozs. of butter, a pinch of salt, and stir over the fire for ten minutes ; add half a gill of cream, a tablespoonful of white sauce, and a dessert- spoonful of powdered sugarDressed Endive. Let the whole sim- mer till it is thick enough to bear being put in a heap. Garnish with fried croutons, and serve very hot. MUSHROOMS. 331 Mushrooms. The mode of cooking mushrooms must depend on the age and size of the mushroom. Mushrooms grown wild have a far more deHcate flavour than those grown from spawn in mushroom houses and in cellars. Button Mushrooms. These must be chosen of the same size ; they must be skinned and trimmed, and the trimmings can be used to flavour gravies. Put in a stewpan or bain-marie pan some cream and a little broth, and dredge in a little flour which has been dried. Stir this till it is a smooth sauce ; stew the mushrooms in it till they are tender. Serve in a deep dish with sippets of fried bread. If the sauce is too thin, take out the mushrooms and keep warm whilst the sauce reduces to the proper con- sistency. Large Mushrooms. When the mushrooms are large and the gills are black, the best way is to sprinkle them with pepper and salt, to grill them on both sides, and to serve on toast. Some mushrooms are best stewed for a quarter of an hour in white sauce, with a squeeze of lemon. As mushrooms yield a good deal of liquid, the sauce must be allowed to reduce after the mushrooms are 332 TRUFFLES. cooked, and yolk of Qgg may be stirred in the sauce. Serve with croutons of fried bread round or on little cushions of fried bread. Truffles. Truffles may be used as an accessory to savoury dishes ; as an ingredient in forcemeat and sauces ; as a garnish or as a vegetable. In the latter case they are called ' Truffes a la serviette,' or * Truffles in a napkin.' Truffles must be of good quality and with a fresh flavour. They are always very costly, and if intended to be a dish by itself, truffles must be of the first quality. Soak them in cold water ; scrub with a brush, and do not pare them, but cleanse in more water and again use a brush. Boil in a mixture of half champagne, half veal broth ; for an hour or an hour and a half Drain them, and serve in a heap in a napkin. Save the sauce in which they have been boiled for gravies and sauces. A very useful and less costly flavour for sauces can be obtained from ' Pelures de Truffes,' sold in tins in Paris. Onions. Before using a sweet onion cut off a slice at the head, and another at the root. The addition of a little white wine to the stock (such as Chablis) ONIONS. 333 makes the taste of a stewed onion much more delicate. Baked Onions.