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THE PHILADELPHIA HOUSEWIFE,

Or,

Family Receipt Book.

by

AUNT MARY.







[Illustration]

Philadelphia:
J. B. Lippincott & Co.
1855.


Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1855,
By J. P. Lippincott & Co.,
In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court, in and for the
Eastern District of Pennsylvania.




PREFACE.


As the health of a family depends more upon the quality of their
food than upon any other cause whatever, it is a public benefaction
to give good advice upon this subject. That this advice may be most
widely beneficial, it should have reference to the material and the
preparation of food; and in both these respects, regard should be had
to economy. The rich, who are able to provide the most choice and
expensive articles of diet, frequently fail in having them prepared
for the table in an agreeable and healthful manner; and the poor, and
even those in moderate circumstances, are not only not generally well
informed as to healthful and nutritious articles of food, which may be
purchased at moderate expense, but when procured, they more generally
err in the healthful preparation of them, mistaking high seasoning and
rich mixtures for delicious and wholesome food. It is to aid the family
in procuring and preparing their food according to their means, and
with a view to elegance, taste, and health, that the authoress of this
book has been induced to publish these receipts and the accompanying
advice and reflections. She does this at the solicitation of many heads
of families, and with the confidence of knowledge founded on long
personal experience. This is the only source of reliable knowledge on
the subject of procuring and preparing healthful food, in good taste,
and with elegance and economy.

But proper materials may be obtained for food, and the cook may
understand how to prepare them; yet she will fail if she does not have
the kitchen furnished with proper articles for culinary purposes. Each
of these articles should be kept in its proper place, and scrupulously
clean, while every thing should be done with exactness, and at the
proper time.

The authoress has the greatest confidence that the circulation of this
book will promote elegance and comfort in wealthy families, and economy
and health in families of moderate means.




THE

FAMILY RECEIPT BOOK.


TO PREPARE AND TO SELECT BEEF, MUTTON, LAMB, VEAL, AND BACON.

White meats, such as veal, mutton, and lamb, should be washed as
quickly as possible, or the juices of the meat will be extracted by
the water. Fresh beef should never be washed, but well scraped with a
clean knife twice over; any soiled parts which cannot be scraped must
be cut off. If the bones are soiled, saw off the part with the meat
saw. Salted meat should be well washed in three or four waters, and
soaked at least fifteen minutes in cold water, before putting it down
to boil. The pot should be filled with cold water, and boil slowly till
done, according to the size of the meat, or allow a quarter of an hour
for every pound of the meat; quick boiling will make the meat hard and
insipid. Be careful that it does not stop boiling, or the meat will be
injured; remove the scum frequently. People are not generally aware of
the injurious effects from eating the flesh of diseased animals. It
has been my practice to choose beef from the whiteness of the fat, and
always object to it if a dark shade of yellow; let the fat be clear
and thick, and the beef smooth and close; if otherwise, it is old. The
flesh of a young ox should be a good red, and have a smooth and open
grain, and feel tender. Pork may be judged by the thinness of the skin,
and by pinching the lean; if young, it will break. When clammy, it is
not fit for use. Fresh pork will be always cool and smooth. The fat of
mutton should be white and firm, and the lean a good colour. If the
vein in the neck of lamb has a greenish cast, it is stale: it should be
of a bluish hue.

BACON.--The lean should be of a good colour, and tender, and firm on
the bone, the fat should be firm and of a red tinge, and the rind thin.
Try a ham by putting a sharp knife in under the bone. If the smell
is agreeable, the ham is good; if otherwise, and the knife soiled,
reject it. Veal,--The whitest is the most juicy, having been made so
by frequent bleeding: the flesh of a bull calf is firmest, but of a
darker colour. Old and diseased meat will shrink very much in cooking.
Hams and tongues, if they are old and hard, should be put to soak in
warm water the night before they are boiled. A large ham will take from
four to six hours to boil, and a tongue will take nearly as long. They
should be kept constantly boiling, and well skimmed: put them down in
plenty of cold water. Fish should always be boiled in hot water with a
little salt in it: let them boil slowly.

Wild fowls do not require as much cooking as tame. They should be done
before a brisk fire, and be constantly basted. Wild ducks will cook
sufficiently in a quarter of an hour; pheasants in twenty minutes. A
large turkey will take from two hours and a half to three hours. Hen
turkeys are the best for boiling. The time will depend on the size: if
a large one, it will take two hours and a half, and should be boiled
in a cloth. All meats when roasting should be put some distance from
the fire, and brought gradually nearer; the more they are turned and
basted, the more juicy they will be. Vegetables should be freshly
gathered; they are much sweeter and more healthy, if cooked as soon as
taken out of the ground. When potatoes are to be fried, throw them in
water with plenty of ice in it after slicing. This will make them crisp.


BEEF SOUP, THIN.

Wash and scrape well a shin of beef, put it down early in the morning
in plenty of cold water, with a piece of veal, and a small piece of
lean ham; let it boil slowly one hour, and skim it well; then add two
carrots, washed, scraped, and cut fine, six potatoes, four onions, and
one turnip; some horse-radish cut in small pieces; season with black
and cayenne pepper, and salt to your taste: about half an hour before
it is done, put in a bunch of sweet herbs, parsley, and a little
celery cut in small pieces. You can either strain it or send it to
table with the vegetables in it.


ANOTHER BEEF SOUP.

Boil a shin of beef the day before it is wanted. The next day put on
your stock, after removing the fat from the top of it; then put in
a tea-cup of barley, wash and cut up two carrots, three onions, one
turnip, three tomatoes, put in parsley and the usual pot herbs, twenty
minutes before it is done; season with cayenne and black pepper and
salt to your taste.


VEAL SOUP.

Put into the soup kettle a small piece of ham; wash and cut up four
onions; put them into the pot with the ham, and six quarts of water;
let it boil slowly an hour and a half, then put in a shin of veal;
let it boil an hour and a half longer; then take out the ham; skim
off the grease as it rises; beat up in a gill of good cream, two
table-spoonsful of flour, and the yolks of two eggs very light; and
then add the soup; season with parsley, pepper, and salt, and serve up.


MUTTON BROTH.

Scrape and wash clean a breast of mutton; put it down in the soup
kettle to boil with five quarts of water, put in a small cup of barley,
or two tablespoonsful of rice; let it boil slowly three hours and
thirty minutes; skim it well; add carrots, a turnip, an onion, and a
little parsley cut up; let it boil forty minutes longer; season with
pepper and salt; serve hot. The carrots should be grated.


CHICKEN BROTH.

Chicken broth may be made in the same way. Some persons prefer rice,
but rice is used in so many ways, that barley is more uncommon as
well as more nutritious. Noodles or vermicelli can be substituted, if
preferred.


CHICKEN SOUP.

Put a pair of chickens in the soup kettle, with five quarts of water,
one large carrot grated, and let it boil; skim off the grease as it
rises: after it has boiled three hours take out the chickens, and
strain the liquor through a sieve; put it in the kettle again; add the
vermicelli after it has boiled an hour, an onion chopped small, some
pepper and salt, a few blades of mace, a little parsley cut fine. If
you like, just before it is served up, add a small bunch of thyme.


OYSTER SOUP.

Strain the liquor from a hundred oysters into the soup kettle; add
a quart of milk, a little mace, cloves, pepper and salt, with a
little rolled cracker; boil 20 minutes; then put in the oysters; stir
frequently: fifteen minutes after the oysters are in, serve it up.


MOCK TURTLE SOUP.

Clean very well a calf’s head, take out the eyes, cut off the nose; let
it soak for ten minutes; then put it down with five quarts of water,
a small piece of ham, four onions, and some salt; let these boil till
tender, or till the meat will leave the bones; then strain it; add
cloves, nutmeg, parsley, and thyme; let it stew slowly for an hour; add
a small piece of butter rubbed in flour, some wine and mushroom catsup.
You can then put the meat in or send the soup to table without it, as
preferred.


CALF’S HEAD SOUP.

Prepare as above. Then put down the head and liver in six quarts of
water; let them boil till tender; take them up; cut the meat in small
pieces; be careful to take out all the bones; then put the meat into
the liquor with three onions, some cloves, mace, and nutmeg, pepper,
black and cayenne, and salt; set this on the fire; let it simmer gently
an hour: just before taking it up, add a little butter rubbed in flour,
and some wine.


OX-TAIL SOUP.

Wash and joint two ox-tails; pour over them in a soup kettle five
quarts of water; when it comes to a boil skim it, and add some salt,
three onions, two carrots cut fine, three turnips, four potatoes, a
large bunch of pot herbs, some cayenne pepper, and a little rice flour;
boil slowly for three hours, but do not put in the vegetables till
after it has been boiling two hours: half an hour before you take it
up, add a little celery cut up fine.


MULLAGATAWNY SOUP.

This soup is always made of the same materials, only varying in
quantity. Brown in some butter six or eight onions; fry some pieces of
rabbits and chicken; lay it upon the onions; have ready some stock,
boiling hot; let it simmer gently for an hour and a quarter; then
strain it through a sieve; add two quarts more of stock, and let it
stew; mix with it three tea-spoonsful of currie powder, and two of
brown flour with a little cold water; let it boil slowly for half an
hour. If preferred, the juice of a lemon may be strained into it.


OCHRA SOUP.

Wash well a dozen and a half young ochras; slice them thin, three
onions chopped fine; pour on these five quarts of water early in the
morning with pepper and salt; let this stew slowly two hours; then
put in a piece of veal and a piece of lean bacon, with seven or eight
tomatoes, skinned and sliced; boil it till it is thick; serve hot to
table.


CATFISH SOUP.

Take one large catfish, clean it well, cut off the head; then cut the
fish in half; put it in a pot with two onions, and a bunch of parsley
cut up fine, and some pepper and salt; put in a quart of water, and
stew slowly till the fish is tender; then add a pint of milk and a
quart of water; let this all simmer for half an hour; roll a piece of
butter in a little flour: in twenty minutes after the butter and flour
go in, it will be sufficiently done.


DRIED PEA SOUP.

Wash a quart of dried peas well; put them in four quarts of water to
soak over night; early in the morning place it over the fire in your
soup kettle; when it has boiled three hours, put in a small piece of
salt pork; add some salt, pepper, and two chopped onions; after it
has boiled some time take out the pork; mash the peas, and strain the
liquor through a sieve into a kettle; put the pork in again; skim off
the fat; let it boil one hour; serve up hot with toast.


GREEN PEA SOUP.

Shell a quart of green peas; wash them, and put them down to boil with
three quarts of water and a little salt; when it has boiled slowly
an hour and a half, season with pepper and a little butter rolled in
flour: boiling a few of the pods with the peas is an improvement.


BEAN SOUP.

Wash the beans and soak them over night; in the morning throw off the
water, and put down the beans with five quarts of water and a small
piece of salt pork; let it boil till the beans are perfectly soft; then
take out the pork and either strain the soup, or send it to table with
the beans in, as preferred.


CLAM SOUP.

Wash the shells of a peck of clams carefully; put them to boil in two
quarts of cold water; when the shells have opened, take off the liquor;
return it to the soup kettle; take the clams out of the shells, put
them in the pot with the seasoning; a little salt and pepper; rub in
a small piece of butter, a dessert spoonful of flour; stir constantly
till boiling hot; add some parsley chopped fine, and a pint of milk.


FISH.

Fresh fish are easily told by the redness of their gills. If the gills
are white or the flesh is not hard to the touch, reject them. They are
not fresh. Fish should be sent to table as soon as cooked. Broiled fish
should be sprinkled with salt before broiling. When boiled, should have
salt in the water.


TO BAKE A SHAD.

Shad should be fat. Clean it well, take out the inside and the gills.
Score and salt the fish, make a dressing of bread, butter, pepper,
salt, parsley, thyme and sweet marjoram; fill the fish with this; tie
it up and put it in a pan with some water: dredge the fish with flour,
let it cook slowly, baste it often; when nearly done, add some mushroom
catsup to the gravy; season to your taste with pepper and salt. Take it
up very carefully: bake half an hour.


TO BROIL A SHAD.

Cut it down the back, sprinkle it with pepper and salt, grease your
gridiron well, and put it down on the flesh side first. Let it be well
done. Send hot to table.


FRESH COD BOILED.

Clean and wash it well; put it down to boil in the fish kettle. It
will cook in half an hour; take it up carefully, garnish the dish with
hard-boiled egg, and serve with egg sauce. All boiled fish should have
salt in the water, or the fish will be insipid.


TO BOIL HALIBUT.

Sprinkle it with salt, tie it up in a cloth, put it in the kettle in
boiling water; let it boil slowly till done, which will depend upon the
size, allowing eight minutes to a pound.


TO FRY HALIBUT.

Cut it into small pieces, season it with pepper and salt, dip it in the
yolk of egg, then into rolled cracker: fry in hot lard, and serve it up.


TURBOT.

Turbot is one of the most delicious fish we have, when properly
prepared and served. It must be washed with the greatest care, and cut
down the middle of the back, on the dark side of the fish. Have your
kettle perfectly clean; put your fish into boiling water, enough to
cover it, with two table spoonsful of salt; let it boil slowly, skim it
frequently. It will cook sufficiently in twenty minutes: drain and dish
it; serve up hot with butter and egg sauce, or any other preferred.


TROUT.

Trout should be fried as perch.


TO BOIL STURGEON.

Sturgeon may be boiled as rock fish, and served up with the same
sauces. It is very good with spiced vinegar poured over when cold.


TO PICKLE FRESH HERRING.

First scale and clean them well, cut off the heads, put salt, pepper
and cloves in the vinegar; boil it, and when cold, pour over the fish
in a stone jar; set the jar on a warm stove for half a day; then put
them in a cold place.


TO BOIL SHEEP’S HEAD.

Sheep’s head is one of the most delicate fish, and should be boiled as
rock fish; to be eaten with egg sauce, walnut catsup, or harvey sauce.


SEA BASS.

Sea bass are good either fried or boiled.


