The soup which has inspired my
observations was, I think, made in this manner :
To two quarts of soup stock, two carrots, ten
tomatoes, one onion, and a pinch of thyme or
sweet marjoram were added. When the veg-
etables were simmered to pieces, the soup was
strained, the shreds of vegetables thrown away,
and the soup returned to the kettle. A table-
spoonful of flour, stirred to a smooth paste with a
little butter, was added when the soup came to a
boil, also a little salt and pepper. Care was taken
not to overdo the seasoning, but to blend every-
thing perfectly. And just before serving, Alice
put into the soup-tureen diced toast✪ Vegetable Soup ; that is, dry
toast, very crisp, cut in small square bits. These
AT DINNER. 107
bits of toast are best when added to the soup by
the hostess just before serving, as then they reach
the mouth in a dry, or less soaked condition, and,
requiring some mastication, assist the digestion of
the soup. Instead of toast, bread maybe cut into
small bits and fried in butter, until brown and
crisp, or carrots cut in the same form and stewed
until tender, may be added in place of either, or
the soup may be served clear. When carrots,
tomatoes, and browned bits of meat and bones
are not used in preparing soup, a tablespoonful
each of flour, butter, and sugar, browned together
and added to the soup, gives it a rich color and
fine flavor. Pure broths of beef, mutton, or
chicken, delicately seasoned with salt and pepper,
and having no other ingredients than rice or bar-
ley, are always good, and in many respects better
than more elaborate soups. But broths, as well
as soups, should have their distinct flavors, and
should not be mere sloppy or greasy gruel, fero-
ciously salted and peppered.
"This leg of lamb, Alice, is done to a turn,
which cannot truthfully be said of the average
roast. Meat should be put to roast in as hot an
oven as it will bear without burning. After the
outside is browned and crusted over, imprisoning
the juices within, the heat may be somewhat
lessened. But I recommend roasting all meats as
quickly as possible. The roast should be placed
108 COOKING AND CASTLE-BUILDING.
in the pan without water or drippings. When
cooked, it may be sprinkled with salt and pepper,
if desired. The practice, so much in vogue, of
slopping water over meat to MDaste' it, is very
objectionable. It brings out the juices, and
toughens and injures the quality of the meat.
Salt, for the same reasons, should not be sprinkled
over the meat before, or while, roasting. Yeal is
an exception to the general rule. Being a dry,
tasteless meat, I think it is improved by frequent
bastings with a well-seasoned gravy, to which a
piece of butter and a teaspoonful of sugar have
been added. Veal should be cooked more thor-
oughly than any other kind of meat except pork,
— in fact should be cooked to death. Roast veal
is best when cold. ✪ Roast Meat
Page 44 · 2 recipe records on this page
Presented as published in 1880. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
The soup which has inspired my observations was, I think, made in this manner : To two quarts of soup stock, two carrots, ten tomatoes, one onion, and a pinch of thyme or sweet marjoram were added. When the vegetables were simmered to pieces, the soup was strained, the shreds of vegetables thrown away, and the soup returned to the kettle. A tablespoonful of flour, stirred to a smooth paste with a little butter, was added when the soup came to a boil, also a little salt and pepper. Care was taken not to overdo the seasoning, but to blend everything perfectly. And just before serving, Alice put into the soup-tureen diced toast ; that is, dry toast, very crisp, cut in small square bits. These
bits of toast are best when added to the soup by the hostess just before serving, as then they reach the mouth in a dry, or less soaked condition, and, requiring some mastication, assist the digestion of the soup. Instead of toast, bread maybe cut into small bits and fried in butter, until brown and crisp, or carrots cut in the same form and stewed until tender, may be added in place of either, or the soup may be served clear. When carrots, tomatoes, and browned bits of meat and bones are not used in preparing soup, a tablespoonful each of flour, butter, and sugar, browned together and added to the soup, gives it a rich color and fine flavor. Pure broths of beef, mutton, or chicken, delicately seasoned with salt and pepper, and having no other ingredients than rice or barley, are always good, and in many respects better than more elaborate soups. But broths, as well as soups, should have their distinct flavors, and should not be mere sloppy or greasy gruel, ferociously salted and peppered.
"This leg of lamb, Alice, is done to a turn, which cannot truthfully be said of the average roast. Meat should be put to roast in as hot an oven as it will bear without burning. After the outside is browned and crusted over, imprisoning the juices within, the heat may be somewhat lessened. But I recommend roasting all meats as quickly as possible. The roast should be placed
in the pan without water or drippings. When cooked, it may be sprinkled with salt and pepper, if desired. The practice, so much in vogue, of slopping water over meat to baste it, is very objectionable. It brings out the juices, and toughens and injures the quality of the meat. Salt, for the same reasons, should not be sprinkled over the meat before, or while, roasting. Yeal is an exception to the general rule. Being a dry, tasteless meat, I think it is improved by frequent bastings with a well-seasoned gravy, to which a piece of butter and a teaspoonful of sugar have been added. Veal should be cooked more thoroughly than any other kind of meat except pork, — in fact should be cooked to death. Roast veal is best when cold.
Records on this page
Vegetable SoupRoast Meat