Christmas Bill of Fare

Boiled Turkey with Oyster Sauce
Roast Goose with Applesauce
Boiled Ham
Winter Squash
Beet Root
(Hot) Cole- Slaw
Turnips
Savory Chicken Pie
Salsify Cakes
Mince Pie
Plum Pudding
Lemon Custard
Cranberry Tart



Rich Plum Pudding:

Stone carefully one pound of the best raisins, wash and pick one pound of currants, chop very small one pound of fresh beef suet, blanch and chop small or pound two ounces of sweet almonds and one ounce of bitter ones; mix the whole well together, with one pound of sifted flour, and the same weight of crumb of bread soaked in milk, then squeezed dry and stirred with a spoon until reduced to a mash, before it is mixed with the flour. Cut in small pieces two ounces each of preserved citron, orange, and lemon-peel, and add a quarter of an ounce of mixed spice; quarter of a pound of moist sugar victorian pictureshould be put into a basin, with eight eggs, and well beaten together with a three-pronged fork; stir this with the pudding, and make it of a proper consistence with milk. Remember that it must not be made too thin, or the fruit will sink to the bottom, but be made to the consistence of good thick batter. Two wineglassfuls of brandy should be poured over the fruit and spice, mixed victorian picturetogether in a basin, and allowed to stand three or four hours before the pudding is made, stirring them occasionally. It must be tied in a cloth, and will take five hours of constant boiling. When done, turn it out on a dish, sift loaf-sugar over the top, and serve it with wine-sauce in a boat, and some poured round the pudding. The pudding will be of considerable size, but half the quantity of materials, used in the same proportion, will be equally good.
[from Godey's Lady's Book, Dec. 1860]

FRIED RABBIT & COLLARD GREENS

FRIED RABBIT

1 rabbit, cleaned and cut in 6 pieces (cut off front legs at shoulders,
back legs at hips, and separate ribs from loin)
1/3 c. lard
1 c. flour seasoned with :
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. red pepper
1 c. beef stock or water
1 tbs. cider vinegar
2/3 c. cream for gravy

Heat lard in heavy frying pan until good and hot. Mix flour with salt and peppers and dredge rabbit in seasoned flour, shaking off excess. Put in pan meaty side down and fry up until browned, turning once to brown both sides. Pour off fat if there is too much; add onion, stock and vinegar and put to simmer for about 1 hour or until rabbit is tender. Remove rabbit from pan and keep warm; pour cream into skillet and stir constantly, scraping up any bits stuck to pan, until thickened as desired, about 8-10 minutes. Serve over rabbit.

COLLARD GREENS

3 c. water
1 ham hock
1 tbs. sugar
1 tsp.. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
3-4 bunches collard greens. Can also use mustard or other greens.

Note to federal troops, if your regiment has been afflicted with a shipment of desiccated vegetables that look at least a little bit green, you can use them as in this recipe. It will not be the same, Lord knows, but will bring those vile vegetables as close to edibility as can be managed.

Put water and ham hock into pot and hang over fire to boil. Then move off the fire a little and let it to simmer for an hour or so. Wash the greens with good water, cold if possible. Tear stem off each leaf and tear remainder up into bite sized pieces. Check ham hock; if too much water is boiled off add enough to cover it again and move pan further off the fire next time. When everything is up to a simmer again add the greens, salt pepper and sugar. Simmer 45 min. to an hour or until greens are tender enough to eat.

-Submitted by Emily Burns

BATTER BREAD - WINTER SQUASH - PEPPER POT - RASPBERRY CREAM

Recipe of the month for February 2013
from The Virginia Housewife, Mrs. Mary Randolph, 1860


BATTER BREAD

6 spoonfuls of flour
3 spoonsful of corn meal
salt
4 eggs
rich milk

Take the flour and corn meal, with a little salt; sift them, and make a thin batter with the eggs, and a sufficient quantity of rich milk; bake it in little tin moulds in a quick oven.

WINTER SQUASH

The crooked neck of this squash is the best part. Cut it in slices an inch thick, take off the rind, and boil them with salt in the water; drain them well before they are dished, and pour melted butter over;
serve them up very hot.

The large part, containing the seeds, must be sliced and pared; cut it in small pieces, and stew it till soft, with just water enough to cover it; pass it through a sieve and stew it again, adding some butter, pepper, and salt; it must be dry, but not burnt. It is excellent when stewed with pork chops.

PEPPER POT

2 or 3 pounds of tripe
1 knuckle of veal
part of a pod of pepper
spice
sweet herbs
salt
dumplins

Boil the tripe, cut it in pieces, and put it on the fire with the veal, and a sufficient quantity of water; pepper, a little spice, sweet herbs according to your taste, salt, and some dumplins; stew it till tender, and thicken the gravy with butter and flour.

RASPBERRY CREAM

1 quart of rich boiled custard
1 quart of ripe red raspberries

Make the custard; when cold, pour it on the raspberries; mash them in it,
pass it through a sieve, sweeten, and freeze it.

PLAIN FAMILY DINNERS

Recipe of the month for January 2013
from Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management

PLAIN FAMILY DINNERS

Sunday.—1, Boiled turbot and oyster sauce, potatoes. 2. Roast leg or griskin of pork, apple sauce, brocoli, potatoes. 3. Cabinet pudding, and damson tart made with preserved damsons.
Monday.—1. The remains of turbot warmed in oyster sauce, potatoes. 2. Cold pork, stewed steak. 3. Open jam tart, which should have been made with the pieces of paste left from the damson tart; baked arrowroot pudding.
Tuesday.—1. Boiled neck of mutton, carrots, mashed turnips, suet dumplings, and caper sauce: the broth should be served first, and a little rice or pearl barley should be boiled with it along with the meat. 2. Rolled jam pudding.
Wednesday.—1. Roast rolled ribs of beef, greens, potatoes, and horseradish sauce. 2. Bread-and-butter pudding, cheesecakes.
Thursday.—1. Vegetable soup (the bones from the ribs of beef should be boiled down with this soup), cold beef, mashed potatoes. 2. Pheasants, gravy, bread sauce. 3. Macaroni.
Friday.—1. Fried whitings or soles. 2. Boiled rabbit and onion sauce, minced beef, potatoes. 3. Currant dumplings.
Saturday.—1. Rump-steak pudding or pie, greens, and potatoes. 2. Baked custard pudding and stewed apples.

MACARONI, as usually served with the CHEESE COURSE.
INGREDIENTS – 1/2 lb. of pipe macaroni, 1/4 lb. of butter, 6 oz. of Parmesan or Cheshire cheese, pepper and salt to taste, 1 pint of milk, 2 pints of water, bread crumbs.

Mode.—Put the milk and water into a saucepan with sufficient salt to flavour it; place it on the fire, and, when it boils quickly, drop in the macaroni. Keep the water boiling until it is quite tender; drain the macaroni, and put it into a deep dish. Have ready the grated cheese, either Parmesan or Cheshire; sprinkle it amongst the macaroni and some of the butter cut into small pieces, reserving some of the cheese for the top layer. Season with a little pepper, and cover the top layer of cheese with some very fine bread crumbs. Warm, without oiling, the remainder of the butter, and pour it gently over the bread crumbs. Place the dish before a bright fire to brown the crumbs; turn it once or twice, that it may be equally colored, and serve very hot. The top of the macaroni may be browned with a salamander, which is even better than placing it before the fire, as the process is more expeditious; but it should never be browned in the oven, as the butter would oil, and so impart a very disagreeable flavour to the dish. In boiling the macaroni, let it be perfectly tender but firm, no part beginning to melt, and the form entirely preserved. It may be boiled in plain water, with a little salt instead of using milk, but should then have a small piece of butter mixed with it.

Time.—1–1/2 to 1–3/4 hour to boil the macaroni, 5 minutes to brown it before the fire.
Average cost, 1s. 6d.
Sufficient for 6 or 7 persons. Seasonable at any time.

-Submitted by Emily Burns