Camp cookery (Kephart)

on this. Roasting ears in the husks, or sweet potatoes, are a desirable addition. Cover all with another layer of sea-weed, and let steam about forty minutes, or until clams will slip in the shell. Uncover and serve with melted butter, pepper, salt, and perhaps lemon or vinegar. Clam Chowder. — Wash the clams, put them in a kettle, and pour over them just enough boiling water to cover them. When the shells open, pour off the liquor, saving it, cool the clams, and shell them. Fry two or three slices of pork in bottom of kettle. When it is done, pour over it two quarts of boiling clam liquor. Add six large potatoes, sliced thin, and cook until nearly done. Turn in the clams, and a quart of hot milk. Season with salt and pepper. When this boils up, add crackers or stale bread, as in fish chowder. Remove from fire and let crackers steam in the covered pot until soft. Fried sliced onion and a can of tomatoes will Improve this chowder. Cloves, allspice, red pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and other condiments, may be added according to taste. Shellfish, Steamed. — See page 60. CHAPTER VIII. BACON, Fried. — Slice quite thin. Remove the rind, as it not only is unsightly but makes the slices curl up in the pan. Put pan half full of water on fire; when water is warm, drop the bacon in, and stir around until water begins to simmer. Then remove bacon, throw out water, fry over very few coals, and turn often. Remove slices while still translucent, and season with pepper. They will turn crisp on cooling. Some prefer not to parboil. Bacon, Broiled. — Slice as above. Turn broiler repeatedly until bacon is of a light brown color. Time, three to four minutes. Bacon, Boiled, — Put in enough cold water to just cover. Bring to a boil very gradually. Remove all scum as it arises. Simmer gently until thoroughly done. Two pounds take 1^ hours; each additional pound, % hour. Bacon, Toasted. — Cut cold boiled bacon into thin slices. Sprinkle each with fine bread crumbs peppered with Cayenne. Toast quickly in wire broiler. Bacon and Eggs. — Poach or fry the eggs and lay them on fried bacon. Bacon Omelet. — See Ham Omelet, near end of chapter. Bacon and Liver. — Fry bacon as above, and re- move to a hot plate. Slice the liver (that of any large game animal) thin. Flour and pepper it and place it in the pan. Turn frequently until done; then place a slice of bacon on each slice of liver and pour over it a gravy made as follows: Bacon Gravy, Thin. — Pour off the fat and save it for future use. Pour in enough water to supply the quantity of gravy desired. Add the juice of a lemon. Boil and pour upon the bacon. If a richer gravy is desired, follow recipe given below. Pork Gravy, Thickened. — This can be made with ham or salt pork, as well as with bacon. To make gravy that is a good substitute for butter, rub into the hot grease that is left in the pan a tablespoonful of flour, keep on rubbing until smooth and brown; then add two cups boiling water and a dash of pepper. A tablespoonful of catchup may be added for variety. If you have milk, use it instead of water (a pint to the heaping tablespoonful of flour), and do not let the flour brown; this makes a delicious white gravy. Salt Pork, Fried. — Same as fried bacon, above. Pork should be firm and dry. Clammy pork is stale.