The "Queen" cookery books: Pickles and Preserves

White Wine Vinegar [French). — Have ready a small barrel of good, colourless vinegar (cyder vinegar is much used for this), and take three or four quarts (according to the size of the barrel) from it, replacing these by an equal amount of sound, clear, light French wine; then close up the bunghole, and leave the barrel in a warm, even temperature for a month, when the same quantity should be again drawn off and replaced with wine, and again left to stand. Treated thus, a stock cask will last for a long time, good and clear, and without the least deposit. Formerly vinegar was always made from a “ mother,” as it was called, i. e. a sort of fungus, sometimes also called the “ vinegar plant ” — these can be still bought in the country, and also, I believe, in Covent Garden Market. For this melt 1 lb. of coarse brown sugar and ½ lb. of treacle in about two gallons of water, and let it all boil up well, then stir it well, put it into a cask or large jar, and when tepid place the vinegar plant in it. Let it stand for two or three months at least, in a warm place, then draw off the liquor, boil up, strain, and bottle for use. This vinegar after bottling should be always kept in a cool place. Remember the “mother/' being in reality nothing but a fungus, requires moisture, heat, and darkness ; if left dry it dies. A young plant forms on the old one, and if scaled off carefully can be used to make more vinegar. This vinegar, however, is rather tasteless. One thing must be remembered, and that is when making wine vinegar, sound wine must be used ; corked, or acid wine will result in failure, for the stronger and better the wine (in reason), the better will be the vinegar. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to disabuse the minds of would-be thrifty housekeepers of the notion that wine, when so sour and spoilt as to be manifestly unfit for drinking, is therefore just right for use in cookery, or for vinegar. A very good rough and ready method of discharging the colour from good vinegar for picklemaking, is to stir together animal charcoal (obtainable at the chemist’s), and the very best vinegar, let it stand for a few days, then strain off the clear liquid. The proportions are 1 oz. of the charcoal to each quart of vinegar. Lastly, there is an old-fashioned recipe for dried vinegar balls, in which our grandmothers had great faith. Gather blackberries when just half ripe, dry them, and then pound to a powder; mix this to a stiff paste with a little very strong white vinegar. Make into balls the size of nuts, dry well, and keep in air-tight boxes. When wanted, dissolve one of these balls in either light white wine, or a little stale beer, and use. I have never tried this, but found it in an old and usually most trustworthy book. The two following are not strictly culinary, but being “ vinegars ” are given here : Toilet Vinegar. — Add 2oz. dried rose-leaves and 40 drops attar of roses to 5oz. rectified spirits of wine and one pint dilute acetic acid. Stand in a closed vessel for fourteen days, shaking or stirring it