The housekeeper's companion

Pig's Feet Soused. — Scald and scrape clean the feet; if the covering of the toes will not come off without, singe them in hot embers until they are loose, then take them off. Many persons lay them in a weak lime-water to whiten them. Having scraped them clean and white, wash them and put them in a pot of hot (not boiling) ^ater, with a little salt, and let them boil gently, until, by turning a fork in the flesh, it will easily break, and the bones are loosened. Take off the scum as it rises. When done, take them from the hot water into cold vinegar, enough to cover them; add to it one-third as much of the water in which they were boiled; add whole pepper and allspice, with cloves and mace, if liked; put a cloth and tightfitting cover over the pot or jar. Boil until the bones are loose. Soused feet may be eaten cold from the vinegar, split in two from top to toe; or, having split them, dip them in wheat flour and fry in hot lard, or broil and butter them. In either case, let them be nicely browned. To Boil Ham. — Wash the ham in cold water two or three times, and put it into a kettle of hot (not boiling) water to cover it; let it boil gently according to its weight (fifteen minutes to each pound); it must be kept slowly boiling all the time; keep the pot covered, except to take off the scum as it rises; if it is likely to boil over, take the lid partly off. Putting meat down to boil in cold water draws out its juices. Hard or fast boiling makes it tough and hard. Ham which has been smoked a long time, should be soaked over night. When it is done, take off the skin, trim off the under side neatly, and put spots of pepper, and stick cloves at regular intervals, over the whole upper surface; or dredge it well with wheat flour or rolled crackers, and brown it in a hot oven, or before a hot fire. Serve hot with the gravy from it and boiled vegetables; or it may be served cold. Trim the bone with parsley, or the delicate leaves of celery, and put sprigs o( the same around it on the dish; lemon sliced and dipped in flour or batter and fried, may be laid over the ham and on the dish. Mashed potatoes, stewed apple, or cranberry, celery, or boiled spinach, or cauliflower and mashed turnips are served with hot ham. With cold ham serve pickles or dressed celery, or both, and bread and butter sandwich. To Boil a Leg of Pork. — Take a leg of pork which has been in pickle for three or four days, soak it for half an hour in cold water to make it look white; then tie it in a nicely floured cloth, and put it in hot water to cover it. Boil the same as ham. When done, take a small sharp knife, and cut through the skin in a straight line about a quarter of an inch apart; put spots of pepper over and serve with the same vegetables as for ham; or with mashed potatoes, turnips mashed, and pickles or tart apples stewed without sugar. Currant jelly or cranberries may be served with ham or leg of pork. Pig's Cheek — Is smoked and boiled like ham with vegetables; boiled cabbage or fried parsnips may be served with it. Pork Chops, Steaks and Cutlets. — Fry or stew pork chops, after taking off the rind or skin, the same as for veal. Cutlets and steaks are also fried, broiled, or stewed, the same as veal.