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The "Queen" cookery books: Pickles and Preserves

1902

Page 88 · 1 recipe record on this page

Presented as published in 1902. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
into tlie oven, or on tlie top of tlie stove, overnight, after the cooking is over, and leave them there till next day, repeating this process for two or three nights till the fruit is properly reduced. These are excellent for cakes, &c., as they are, but if soaked in luke-warm water for a little, they swell out, and make delicious compote and tarts. They must be kept in air-tight tins or bottles. Damson Cheese. — Stew the fruit till tender, then drain off the juice, remove the skins and stones from the fruit, return to this pulp about half the juice, weigh it all, and then boil it over a clear fire to a dry paste ; now stir in 6oz. of sugar to every pound of the fruitDamson Cheese, and keep it stirred over the fire till the mixture will leave the sides of the pan and adhere to the spoon in a solid mass. If it yields to the finger without sticking when touched, it is ready, and should at once be turned into little pots or china moulds, and when cold covered with a paper cut to shape and dipped in spirit, and then covered down in the usual way. Bullaces, and, indeed, most plums, are good prepared thus. Honey. — Formerly honey was always used for conserves instead of sugar, which was too dear for general use. The only difference is that honey must always be most carefully clarified, and, needless to add, must first of all be run out of the comb. ( See recipe for Orange wine, p. 81.) Pot Pourri. — Gather the flowers on a dry day only, and dry them in the sun (the rose leaves may, if the weather is very dry, be put straight into the jar). For pot pourri, roses, clove carnations, lavender and ODDS AND ENDS. L79 ♦ rosemary flowers, jasmine, orange blossom, and violets may all be used. In fact, any sweet smelling, but not succulent, flowers may be used. Shred fine a handful each of bay leaves, rosemary, myrtle, lemon thyme, and sweet verbena; pound lib. bay salt, 2oz. salt- petre, one nutmeg, and |oz. each cloves and allspice, and have ready prepared the following mixture : One drachm each of musk, spirits of lavender, essence of lemon, and storax, loz. bergamot, 6oz. powdered orris root, and the finely pared rind of four lemons ; mix these all well together and put it in the jar, add- ing the flowers as you can get them (with the shredded herbs and leaves given above) in the proportion of three handfuls each of orange blossom and clove pinks, and two each of rosemary and lavender flowers, violets, and jasmine, to every six good handfuls of very sweet smelling rose leaves (for pot pourri the old-fashioned cabbage and single roses are the best) ; if the mixture gets too dry, add more bay salt and saltpetre ; if too moist, more orris root, stirring it all well in. Pot pourri cannot be too much stirred. Start your pot pourri with the quantities given above, and then you can add more flowers or spice, &c., as may be needed. This potpourri, which is, it must be confessed, a little expensive, is most delicious, and keeps good for years. It is an old family recipe. A simpler form is the following : Gather the flowers as before, and dry in the sun ; beat to a powder a small quantity each of musk, storax, gum benjamin, Seville orange peel, cloves, orris root, coriander seed, Jamaica peppers, lemon peel, &c., as you please, and fill the pot in layers — flowers, then a good sprinkling of n 2 ISO PICKLES AND PRESERVES.