Twentieth century home cook book

Pies without Cider. — Take four pounds of boiled lean beef ; one-half pound suet; four ounces cinnamon ; two ounces mace or nutmeg; one ounce cloves; four pounds raisins ; one pint molasses ; one quart brandy ; sugar to make it very sweet. To the above add an equal weight, nearly twelve pounds, of tart apples, chopped fine. This will keep for months. Before baking, add a tablespoon of strong cider vinegar to each pie. We prefer making the mince-meat with sound cider; or put in half the prescribed quantity of boiled cider, and just before bringing the pies to the table, cut around the top crust with a sharp knife, remove it, and pour equally over the filling, a tablespoonful of brandy, or a wineglassful of wine to each pie. IV. Rhubarb Pie. Pkepare the stalks by peeling off the thin, reddish skin, and cutting in half or three-quarter inch pieces, which spread evenly in your crust-lined tins. Sift on a little flour, to which add a bit of butter and a teacup of sugar, if for a large pie. However, when it is desirable to economize sugar, or when a very sharp, sour taste is not relished, a pinch of soda may be used to advantage, with less sugar, as it goes far toward neutralizing the acid. If you live in a new country without fruit, raise a good patch of rhubarb, save all your surplus, prepare as for use, and dry in the sun, as stove heat turns it dark colored. Soak and stew for winter use, with sugar and soda as above for pies. It makes, also, a nice sauce for tea. All tart fruit pies may be made in the same manner as directed for rhubarb pies, simply varying the proportions of sugar according to the fruit, and omitting the flour. V. Some Bvery-Day Pies. Good Lemon Pie. — Take one lemon, one cup of water, one cup of brown sugar, two tablespoonfuls of flour, five eggs, three tablespoonfuls of white sugar. Grate the rind of the lemon ; squeeze out the juice, put all together and add the. water, brown sugar and flour, working the mass into a smooth paste. Beat the eggs and mix with the paste, OBLONG piE-PL.vTE saving the whites of three of them. Make two pies, baking without top crust. While these are baking, beat the whites of the three eggs saved for that purpose to a stiff froth, and stir in the white sugar. When the pies are done spread this frosting evenly over them and set again in the oven and brown slightly. Lemon Pie without Lemon. — Take one-half a teaspoonful of tartaric acid dissolved in half a cupful of cold water, half a teaspoonful of extract of lemon, one of sugar, yolk of egg, one soda cracker. After dissolving the acid stir the yolk and sugar together, and mix with the acid and water, then the extract, then cracker crumbled in. Bake in crust as for custard pie, and cover with the white of an egg and brown. Many pi'efer this to pie made with the lemon. Kaisin Pie. — Take one pound of raisins, turn over them one quart of boiling water and boil one hour. Keep adding water, so there will be a quart when done. Grate the rind of one lemon into one cup of sugar, three spoonfuls of flour and one ecr<T. Mix well together. Turn the raisins over the mixture, stirring the while. This makes three pies. Peach Pie. — Line a dish with a good crust. Then place in it a single layer of peaches, cut in halves; sprinkle sugar over them, and pour on enough sweet cream to fill the dish, and bake. Use no upper crust. "Homely" Pie, — Take one cup of molasses, one cup of good vinegar, one cup of water, one small spoonful of extract of lemon and a piece of butter the size of a hen's egg. Let it all come to a boil and thicken it with corn starch. This makes two pies. Don't put on a top crust, but lay strips of the paste on, as there is danger of its foaming over.