The Rural cook book

Beef Loaf. — Take two pounds of round steak and half a pound of suet, both chopped fine; add two eggs, one cupful of bread crumbs that have been softened in cold water, one small onion, chopped fine, one-half cupful of sweet milk, 1½ teaspoonful of salt, and a fourth of a teaspoonful of pepper; mix all together and shape into a loaf, put in a roasting pan and bake in a moderate oven 2½ hours, baste frequently; serve Beefsteak Chowder. — Cut a pound and one-half of round steak in strips or cubes. Cut three or four ounces of fat pork in small pieces and cook in a hot frying pan with an onion sliced very thin. When both are browned add a quart of boiling water, simmer five minutes, pour the whole over the steak, bring to the boiling point, boil for five minutes and then cook slowly until the meat is tender. Have ready five large potatoes peeled, sliced, scalded in boiling water, drained and rinsed in cold water. Add the potatoes, one teaspoonful of salt and a saltspoonful of pepper. Cook until the potatoes are tender, then add one and one-half cupful of rich milk and a little more salt if necessary. Heat to the boiling point and pour over pilot biscuit or thick crackers which have been dipped for a second in hot water, English Beefsteak Pudding. — Make a crust by thoroughly mixing two cupfuls of finely-chopped beef suet in three cupfuls of flour; add half teaspoonful of salt, and mix with cold water into a dough with the consistency of biscuit. Roll out the paste to the thickness of half an inch. Butter an earthen pudding bowl, and line with the paste. Take flank or round steak, cut into one-inch pieces, season with pepper and salt, and fill the dish. Pour in as much cold water as will find its way in around the meat, then cover it with paste, having moistened the edges to make them stick together. Cover with a cloth, well floured, leaving a little room for the pudding to swell. Put it into a pot of boiling water, and let it boil three hours, or put it in a steamer, and allow four hours' cooking. When fully cooked the meat should be very tender, with an abundance of rich clotted gravy. The addition of a few oysters with the meat forms a palatable change. Serve with boiled carrots and turnips. Spiced Beef. — This makes a desirable cold dish for luncheon or tea, or for Sunday dinner in Summer. Select a piece of the flank, trim away the coarse skin, lay it flat on the table, and, with a knife, spread over it the following mixture: One teaspoonful ground mustard, one teaspoonful celery salt, half teaspoonful black pepper, pinch of red pepper, mixed to a smooth paste with vinegar. Then roll up the meat like a jelly cake, the spice inside, tie it up, tie it in a cloth like a pudding. Put it into boiling water, and let it boil three hours. When cooked lift the kettle off the stove, and allow the water to cool before removing the meat. Do not take the cloth off until cold, then slice the meat for serving.