The encyclopaedia of practical cookery

Fig. 1155. Persian Melon. odour, but is not edible, being used only for ornament, garnishing, &c. The Persian Melon (see Fig. 1155) is long, pear-shaped, yellow, marbled with dark-green, and Fig. 1156. Queen Anne’s Pocket or Dudaim Melon. its greenish-white flesh is very sweet. Queen Anne’s Pocket or Dudaim Melon (see Fig. 1156) is very small, orange or orange-yellow, marbled with brown ; it has a very strong odour, but, like Figari, is not edible, Fig. 1157. Winter Melon. be used only for garnishing and other decorative purposes. The Winter Melon (see Fig. 1157) is the largest of the white-fleshed kinds, but is also one of the least desirable; it is long-elliptic or rarely nearly spherical, and varies in colour from dark green to creamy- white or yellow. Nicholson, in the “ Dictionary of Gardening,” gives the following limited selection of the best varieties of Melons. Green or White-fleshed. — Cashmere, Colston Basset Seedling, Eastnor Castle, Gilbert’s Green -fleshed, Golden Gem, Golden Queen, Hero of Lockinge, Queen Emma, Victory of Bath, and William Tillery. Scarlet-fleshed.— Blenheim Orange, Bead's Scarlet-fleshed, Scarlet Gem, and Scarlet Premier. Melons— continued. Baked stuffed Musk Melon. — Cut the stalk part off a Melon, leaving an opening about Sin. in diameter (the stalk part will afterwards be used as a lid), and scoop out all the seeds and part of the inside. Finely mince two onions and sufficient mutton to fill the Melon. Put the mince into a deep frying-pan, with a lump of butter, and fry till brown ; then put in 2 table-spoonfuls of washed and dried rice, the same quantity each of blanched and skinned almonds and pistachios, 1 table-spoonful of washed currants, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir the mixture over the fire for a few minutes, then take it off and stuff the Melon with it, fix the stalk-part on again, and fasten it down with a few small wooden skewers or pins. Lay the Melon in a baking-dish, put it in a moderate oven, and when nicely baked serve on a dish that has been embellished with a folded napkin or an ornamental dish-paper. Compote of Melons. — Peel the Melons, cut them into slices, remove the seeds, and trim them. Put the slices of Melon into a sugar-boiler with sufficient syrup to cover them, add a small piece of cinnamon, and let them simmer for a-quarter-of-an-hour over a slow fire. At the end of that time, move the boiler from the fire, and let the contents steep for several hours in the syrup. Arrange the slices in a compote-dish, pour the syrup over, and serve. Melon in Claret Jelly. — Soak loz. of isinglass in 1 teacupful of cold water for half an -hour, then put it into a lined saucepan with § pint of claret, the juice and thinlypared yellow rind of a moderate-sized lemon, half a stick of cinnamon, a few cloves, and 4 table-spoonfuls of caster sugar. Add the beaten whites and shells of two eggs, together with the juice from a tin of Melons, and stir the whole over the fire until boiling ; then move the saucepan to the side, put the lid on, and let the contents simmer for twenty minutes. Cut the slices of Melon into small fancy-shaped pieces, and strain the jelly two or three times through a jelly-bag until quite clear. Thoroughly clean the interior of a mould, and arrange at the bottom a few pieces of Melon ; pour over them a thin layer of the jelly, and let it set.