The hearthstone; or, Life at home

Chickens. — For roasting or boiling, chickens should have a dressing prepared like that for turkeys. Half a teacup of rice boiled with them makes them look white. Smothered Chicken {Southern method). — Dress young chickens; wash and let them stand in water half an hour to make them white ; put into a baking-pan (first cutting them open at the back); sprinkle salt and pepper over them, and put a lump of butter here and there; then cover tightly with another pan the same size, and bake one hour; baste often with butter. A delicious dish. Chicken or Fowl Patties. — Take the remains of cold roast chicken or fowl ; to every quarter of a pound of meat allow two ounces of ham, three tablespoonfuls of cream, two tablespoonfuls of veal gravy, one-half tablespoonful of minced lemon-peel ; cayenne, .salt and pepper to taste ; one tablespoonful of lemon-juice, one ounce of butter rolled in flour; puff-paste. Mince very small the white meat from a cold roast fowl, after removing all the skin ; weigh it, and to every quarter of a pound of meat allow the above proportion of minced ham. Put these into a stewpan with the remaining ingredients, stir over the fire for ten or fifteen minutes, taking care that the mixture does not burn. Roll out some puff-paste about one-quarter of an inch in thickness ; line the patty-pans with this, put upon each a small piece of bread, and cover with another layer of paste ; brush over with the yolk of an egg, and bake in a brisk oven for about one-quarter of an hour. When done, cut a round piece out of the top, and with a small spoon take out the bread (be particular in not breaking the outside border of the crust), and fill the patties with the mixture. It will require one-quarter of an hour to prepare the meat; not quite fifteen minutes to bake the crust. Fried Chicken. — Cut up the chicken and parboil it; then season each piece with salt and pepper, rub with flour, and fry in hot lard. After the chicken is fried, make gravy in the pan, using the broth in which the chicken was cooked. Roast Goose. — If the goose be an old one, put it in a pot with cold water, and let it remain until the water becomes boiling hot; then take it out, put an onion inside of it, but no other dressing. Roast it then, watching it that it does not get too much browned. If the gravy be too fat, as is generally the case, take off the top, sprinkle in a little flour, and, if you like, add a few oysters ; let it boil up, and serve. Onions and apple-sauce or jelly are the peculiar accompaniments of a goose. Partridge Pie. — Take three partridges, pepper and salt to taste; one teaspoonful of minced parsley, three-quarters of a pound of veal cutlet, a slice of ham, half-pint of stock, puff-paste. Line a pie-dish with a veal cutlet; over that place a slice of ham and a seasoning of pepper and salt. Pluck, draw and wipe the partridges ; cut off the legs at the first joint, and season them inside with pepper, salt, minced parsley, and a small piece of butter ; place them in the dish, and pour over the stock ; line the edges of the dish with puff-paste, cover with the same ; brush it over with the yolk of an egg, and bake from threequarters to one hour.