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Mrs. Lincoln's Boston cook book

1884

Page 169 · 3 recipe records on this page

Presented as published in 1884. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
chicken weighing from four to six pounds ; one large white French turnip ; eight or ten medium-sized potatoesSuccotash. Wash the beans, and soak over night in cold water. In the morning put them on in cold soft water. When boil- ing, change the water, and simmer until soft enough to mash to a pulp and the water is nearly all absorbed. Wash the salt pork and the corned beef, which should be corned onl}^ three or four days. Put them on about eight o'clock, in cold water, in a very large kettle, and skim as they begin" to boil. Clean, and truss the chicken as for boiling, and put it with the meat about an hour and a quarter before dinner time. Allow a longer time if a fowl be used, and keep plenty of water in the kettle. Two hours before dinner time, put the beans, mashed to a pulp, and the hulled corn into another kettle, with some of the fat from the meat in the bottom to keep them from sticking. Take out enough liquor from the meat to cover the corn and beans, and let them simmer where they will not burn. Stir often, and add more liquor if needed. The mixture should be like a thick soup, and the beans should absorb all the liquor, yet it must not be too dry. Pare, and cut the turnip into inch slices ; add it about eleven o'clock, and the potatoes (pared) half an hour later. Take up the chicken as soon as tender, that it may be served whole. Serve the beef and pork together, the chicken, turnip, and potatoes each on separate dishes, and the beans and corn in a tureen. The meat usually salts the mixture sufficiently, and no other seasoning is necessary. Save the water left from the meat, to use in warming the corn and beans the next day, serving the meat cold. This will keep several da3^s in cold weather ; and, like many other dishes, it is better the oftener it is warmed over, so there is no objection to making a large quantity. The white Southern corn is considered the only kind suitable for this ancient dinner. 286 The Boston Cook Book. HuUed Corn. Tie a quart of oah wood ashes in a flannel bag, and put it with three gallons of cold water into an iron kettle. Let it boil and become Ije, or till the water is black. Put in four quarts of corn^ and boil till the hulls have all started. Stir it well with a wooden spoon. Then pour it into a large pan of cold water, and rub with the hand thoroughly to loosen the hulls. Change the water five or six times, and wash and rub till the corn is white and clean. Keep in cold water over night ; then put on in fresh cold water, and simmer four hours, or till soft and flour3\ Take off the hulls and scum from the water, and add fresh water several times during the simmering. Indian Meal Pudding. {Mrs. Barnabas Churchill.) Indian Meal Pudding