then set on the fire, will turn milk to a cnrd as quickly as
anything, or two tea-spoonfuls of preserved ' rennet' will
turn a quart of milk ; the homely way, however, is to boil
a pint of water in a stew-pan, to beat two eggs up with a
pint of milk, and to add the mixture to the boiling water,
with the juice of a couple of limes. As the curd rises it
should be skimmed of, and laid upon a sieve to drain.
When dry, it is ready.
Lobster pilao a la Turque.
Choose the firm pieces of a lobster from the tin, trim
them neatly, set them in a buttered saute-^dm and warm
them thoroughly. Arrange the pieces in a circle in a hot
silver dish filling the centre with riz a la Turque (page
246). Pour some of the following sauce over the pieces
of lobster, but not over the rice, and serve. Cut up a
sweet onion, or half a dozen shalots, and throw the pieces
into a small stew-pan with two ounces of butter. Fry till
the onions begin to take color, then stir in"a table-spoonful
of good curry powder or paste ; cook this for five minutes,
then add a pint of plain gravy ; let the contents of the
pan simmer now for a quarter of an hour while you make
a coffee cupful of lait d'amandes in this way : — Blanch
and peel a quarter of a pound of sweet almonds with one
bitter one ; pound them in a mortar with a little milk ;
when well pounded, pour some boiling water upon them ;
stir well, and then squeeze the milk through muslin. Stir
this into the sauce, adding the yolks of two eggs✪ Lobster Pilao a la Turque, off the
fire, before serving.
On Coffee-Making.
N certain occasions in the course of my jottings, T
have mentioned the cup of cafe noir as the finishing
touch of a nice little dinner. I think, therefore,
that I may as well say a few words regarding its composi-
tion before I ask you to consider my menus ended.
Although few may think themselves ignorant of coffee-
making, I question whether its real secrets are generally
known. Indeed to judge by the stuff that we usually get,
I think, we may say that the art is comparatively rare.
First, to be sure, you must " catch your coffee," i.e. : — get
really good berries, and be willing to pay a trifle over the
usual price for them. That done, the next thing to learn
is the roasting, an operation that should be conducted
daily if you want well-flavoured coffee. The process is by
no means as easy as many believe ; half the coffee we
drink is ruined by ignorant roasting ; a burnt berry, mark
you, will spoil the whole brew. The best way, I think, to
roast the berries is to do a few at a time in a frying-pan
over a very low fire, passing them straight to the mill (a
liand-mill is quite indispensable) from the pan. A table-
spoonful of berries will be found quite enough at a time.
Melt a little butter, sufficient to lubricate the berries, and
stir them about until they turn a light Havannah brown ;
if perchance a berry take a darker tint, throw it away as
you would a reptile ; grind them at once as coarsely as
ON COFFEE-MAKING. 493
your mill will admit, — the grains should be quite as large
as those of rifle guu-powder, — and make the coffee as soon
afterwards as possible.
Page 271 · 1 recipe record on this page
Presented as published in 1885. 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
then set on the fire, will turn milk to a cnrd as quickly as anything, or two tea-spoonfuls of preserved ' rennet' will turn a quart of milk ; the homely way, however, is to boil a pint of water in a stew-pan, to beat two eggs up with a pint of milk, and to add the mixture to the boiling water, with the juice of a couple of limes. As the curd rises it should be skimmed of, and laid upon a sieve to drain. When dry, it is ready.
Lobster pilao a la Turque.
Choose the firm pieces of a lobster from the tin, trim them neatly, set them in a buttered saute-pan and warm them thoroughly. Arrange the pieces in a circle in a hot silver dish filling the centre with riz a la Turque (page 246). Pour some of the following sauce over the pieces of lobster, but not over the rice, and serve. Cut up a sweet onion, or half a dozen shalots, and throw the pieces into a small stew-pan with two ounces of butter. Fry till the onions begin to take color, then stir in a table-spoonful of good curry powder or paste ; cook this for five minutes, then add a pint of plain gravy ; let the contents of the pan simmer now for a quarter of an hour while you make a coffee cupful of lait d'amandes in this way : — Blanch and peel a quarter of a pound of sweet almonds with one bitter one ; pound them in a mortar with a little milk ; when well pounded, pour some boiling water upon them ; stir well, and then squeeze the milk through muslin. Stir this into the sauce, adding the yolks of two eggs, off the fire, before serving.
On Coffee-Making.
N certain occasions in the course of my jottings, T have mentioned the cup of cafe noir as the finishing touch of a nice little dinner. I think, therefore, that I may as well say a few words regarding its composition before I ask you to consider my menus ended.
Although few may think themselves ignorant of coffeemaking, I question whether its real secrets are generally known. Indeed to judge by the stuff that we usually get, I think, we may say that the art is comparatively rare. First, to be sure, you must " catch your coffee," i.e. : — get really good berries, and be willing to pay a trifle over the usual price for them. That done, the next thing to learn is the roasting, an operation that should be conducted daily if you want well-flavoured coffee. The process is by no means as easy as many believe ; half the coffee we drink is ruined by ignorant roasting ; a burnt berry, mark you, will spoil the whole brew. The best way, I think, to roast the berries is to do a few at a time in a frying-pan over a very low fire, passing them straight to the mill (a hand-mill is quite indispensable) from the pan. A tablespoonful of berries will be found quite enough at a time. Melt a little butter, sufficient to lubricate the berries, and stir them about until they turn a light Havannah brown ; if perchance a berry take a darker tint, throw it away as you would a reptile ; grind them at once as coarsely as
ON COFFEE-MAKING. 493
your mill will admit, — the grains should be quite as large as those of rifle guu-powder, — and make the coffee as soon afterwards as possible.
Records on this page
Lobster Pilao a la Turque