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STEWED EGG-PLANTS
(Melanzane in umido)
Remove the skin, cut them into cubes and place on the fire with a piece
of butter. When this is all absorbed, complete the cooking with tomato
sauce (No. 12).
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EGG-PLANTS IN THE OVEN
(Melanzane al forno)
Skin five or six egg-plants, cut them in round slices and salt them so
that they throw out the water that they contain. After a few hours dip
in flour and frying oil.
Take a fireproof vase or baking tin and place the slices in layers, with
grated cheese between each layer, abundantly seasoned with tomato sauce
(No. 12).
Beat one egg with a pinch of salt, a tablespoonful of tomato sauce, a
teaspoonful of grated[Pg 77] cheese and two of crumbs of bread, and cover the
upper layer with this sauce. Put the vase in the oven and when the egg
is coagulated, serve hot.
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DRESSING OF CELERY
(Sedano per contorno)
The following are three ways to prepare celery to be served as seasoning
or seasoning for meat dishes. For the first two make the pieces about
four inches long, and two inches for the third. The stalk must be
skinned, cut crosswise and left attached to the rib of the celery. Boil
it in water moderately salted not over five minutes and remove dry.
1. Put the celery to brown in butter, then complete the cooking with
brown stock (No. 13) and sprinkle with grated cheese when serving.
2. Put in saucepan a piece of butter and a hash made with ham and a
middle sized onion, chopped fine. Add two cloves and make it boil. When
the onion is browned add soup stock or hot water with bouillon cubes and
complete the cooking. Then rub everything through a sieve and put the
gravy in a plate with the celery, seasoning with pepper only, as the
salt is already in the ham and serve with the gravy.
3. Dip the celery in flour and in the paste for frying (No. 58) and fry
in fat or oil. Or else[Pg 78] dip in flour and then in beaten egg, wrap in
bread crumbs and fry.
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ARTICHOKES WITH SAUCE
(Carciofi in salsa)
Remove the hard leaves of the artichokes, cut the points and skin the
stalk. Divide each artichoke into four parts or six if they are big, and
put them on the fire with butter in proportion, seasoning with salt and
pepper. Shake the saucepan to turn them and when they have absorbed a
good part of the melted butter, pour in some broth to complete the
cooking. Remove them dry, and in the gravy that remains put a pinch of
chopped parsley, one or two teaspoonfuls of cheese grated fine, lemon
juice, more salt and pepper if needed, and, mixing the whole, make it
simmer for a while. Then remove the sauce from the fire and add one or
two yolks of egg, according to the quantity and put back on the fire
with more broth to make the sauce loose. Put the artichokes in the sauce
this second time to heat them and serve especially as a side-dish for
boiled meat.
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STUFFED ARTICHOKES
(Carciofi ripieni)
Cut the stalk at the base, remove the small outside leaves and wash the
artichokes. Then cut[Pg 79] the top and open the internal leaves so that you
can cut the bottom with a small knife and remove the hairy part if it is
there. Keep aside the small interior leaves to put them with the
stuffing. This, if to be used, for example, for six artichokes, must be
composed of the above small leaves, 1/8 lb. of ham more lean than fat,
one fourth of a small onion, just a taste of garlic, some leaves of
celery or parsley, a pinch of dry mushrooms, softened in water, a crumb
of bread and a pinch of pepper, but no salt.
First chop the ham, then grind everything together and with the hash
fill the artichokes, and put them to cook standing on their stalks in a
saucepan with some oil, salt and pepper. Some prefer to give the
artichokes a half cooking in water before stuffing it, but it is hardly
advisable, because in this way they lose part of their special flavor.
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ARTICHOKES STUFFED WITH MEAT
(Carciofi ripieni di carne)
For six artichokes, make the following stuffing:
¼ lb. lean veal.
Two slices of ham, more fat than lean.
The interior part of the artichokes.
[Pg 80]One fourth of onion (small).
Some leaves of parsley.
One pinch of softened dried mushrooms.
One small crumb of bread rolled and sifted.
One pinch of grated cheese.
When the artichokes have been browned with oil alone, pour a little
water and cover with a moistened cloth kept in place by the cover. The
steam that surrounds the artichokes cooks them better.
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PEAS WITH ONION SAUCE
(Piselli alla francese)
The following recipe is good for one of fresh peas. Take two young
onions, cut them in half, put some stems of parsley in the middle and
tie them. Then put them into the fire with a piece of butter and when
they are browned, pour over a cup of soup stock. Make it boil and when
the onions are softened rub them through a sieve together with the gravy
that you will then put on the fire with the peas and two whole hearts of
lettuce. Season with salt and pepper and let it simmer. When the peas
are half cooked add another piece of butter dipped in a scant
tablespoonful of flour and pour in some broth, if necessary. Before
sending to the table put in two yolks of eggs dissolved in a little
broth.[Pg 81]
II
The following recipe is simpler than the preceding, but not so delicate.
Cut an onion in very thin slices and put it on the fire in a saucepan
with a little butter. When it is well browned add a pinch of flour, mix
and then add according to the quantity, a cup or two of soup stock or
water with bouillon cubes and allow the flour to cook. Put in the peas,
season with salt and pepper and add, when they are half cooked, one or
two whole hearts of lettuce. Let it simmer, seeing that the gravy is not
too thick.
Before serving remove the lettuce.
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PEAS WITH HAM
(Piselli col prosciutto)
Cut in two one or two young onions, according to the quantity of the
peas and put them on the fire with oil and one thick slice of ham cut
into small cubes. Brown until the ham is shrivelled; then put the peas
in, season with a pinch of pepper and very little salt, mix and complete
the cooking with broth, adding a little butter.
Before serving, throw the onion away.[Pg 82]
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PEAS WITH CORNED BEEF
(Piselli con la carne secca)
Put on the fire a hash of corned beef, garlic, parsley and oil, season
with a little salt and pepper and when the garlic is browned, put the
peas in. When they have absorbed the sauce, complete the cooking with
broth or, failing that, with water.
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STUFFED TOMATOES
(Pomodori ripieni)
Select ripe middle-sized tomatoes, cut them in two equal parts and scoop
out the inside seeds. Season with salt and pepper and fill the tomatoes
with the following hash, in such a way as to make the stuffing come over
the edge of the half tomato:
Make a hash with onion, parsley and celery, put it on the fire with a
piece of butter and when it is browned, put in a small handful of dried
mushrooms previously softened in water and chopped very fine: add a
tablespoonful of bread crumbs soaked in milk, season with salt and
pepper and let the compound simmer, moistening with water if necessary.
When you take from the fire add, when it is still lukewarm, grated
cheese[Pg 83] and a beaten yolk (or two) of egg, but seeing that the compound
does not become too liquid.
When the tomatoes are filled, take them in the oven with a little butter
and oil mixed together and serve them as a side-dish for roast beef or
steak.
The stuffed tomatoes can be made simpler with a hash of garlic and
parsley mixed with bread crumbs, salt and pepper and seasoned with oil
when they are in the saucepan.
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CAULIFLOWER WITH BALSAMELLA
(Cavolfiore colla balsamella)
Remove from a good sized cauliflower the external leaves and the green
ribs, make a deep cut crosswise in the stalk and cook it in salted
water. Then cut it in sections and brown with butter, salt and pepper.
Put it in a baking tin, throw over a small pinch of grated cheese, cover
with the balsamella (No. 54) and brown the surface.
Serve this cauliflower as an entremets or as a side-dish with boiled
chicken or a stew.
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STUFFED CABBAGE
(Cavolo ripieno)
Take a big cabbage, remove the hard outside leaves, cut the stem off
even with the leaves[Pg 84] and give it half cooking in salt water. Put it
upside down to drain, then open the leaves one by one until the heart is
exposed and on this put the stuffing. Bring up all the leaves, close
them and tie with thread crosswise.
The stuffing can be made with milk veal stewed alone, or with sweetbread
or chicken liver, all chopped fine. To make it more delicate, add some
balsamella (No 54) a pinch of grated cheese, one yolk of egg and a taste
of nutmeg. Complete the cooking of the cabbage in the sauce of this
stew, adding a little butter, on a low fire or in the oven kept low.
Instead of filling the whole cabbage, the larger leaves may be filled
one by one, rolling and tying them.
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SIDE-DISH OF SPINACH
(Spinaci per contorno)
After cooking the spinach in boiling water and chopping them fine, the
spinach can be cooked in different ways:
1. With butter, salt and pepper, adding a little brown stock, if you
have it, or a few tablespoonfuls of broth, or milk.
2. With onion sauce (onion chopped very fine) and butter.
3. With butter salt and pepper, adding a very small pinch of grated
cheese.[Pg 85]
4. With butter, a drop of olive oil and tomato sauce (No. 12) or tomato
paste diluted with soup stock or water.
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ASPARAGUS
(Sparagi)
Asparagus can be prepared in many different ways, but the simplest and
best is that of boiling them and serving them seasoned with olive oil
and vinegar or lemon juice. However there are other ways as, for
instance, the following: Put them whole to brown a little with the green
part in butter and, after seasoning them with salt, pepper and a pinch
of grated cheese, pour over the melted butter when it is browned. Or
else divide the white from the green part and place them as follows in a
fireproof plate: Dust the bottom with grated cheese and dispose over the
points of the asparagus one near the other; season with salt, pepper,
grated cheese and little pieces of butter. Make another layer of
asparagus and, seasoning in the same way, continue until you have them.
Be moderate in the seasoning. Cross the layers of asparagus like a
trestle, put on the oven and keep until the seasoning, is melted. Serve
hot.
If you have some brown stock, parboil them first and complete the
cooking with brown stock,[Pg 86] adding a little bust and dusting moderately
with grated cheese.
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FISH WITH BREAD CRUMBS
(Pesce col pane grattato)
This, which can also be served as a side-dish, is made especially when
you have boiled fish of good quality left over.
Cut it into little pieces, remove carefully all the bones, then put it
in the balsamella (No. 54) and season with enough salt, grated cheese
and some mushrooms chopped fine. If dried mushrooms soften in water
first. Then take a fireproof plate, grease it evenly with butter and
dust with bread crumbs ground fine; pour into it the fish prepared as
above and cover with a thin layer of bread crumbs. Finally put over a
piece of butter, brown in the oven and serve hot.
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STEWED FISH CUTLETS
(Pesce a taglio in umido)
The fish that can be used for this dish are the tunny, the umber or
grayling, the sword fish and any piece of fish of large size and good
savor. A pound may be sufficient for four or five persons.[Pg 87]
Remove the scales, clean and dry well, dip in flour and put to brown in
a little oil. Remove dry, throw away the oil that remains and clean the
saucepan. Make a hash, chopped very fine, with half a middle sized
onion, a piece of white celery and a good pinch of parsley. Put this to
brown on the fire with sufficient oil and season with salt, pepper and
one whole clove. When it is browned put abundant tomato sauce (No 12) or
tomato paste diluted in broth or water. Let it simmer for a while, then
place the fish to complete the cooking, turning it over frequently. The
fish must be served with this thick gravy that ought to be abundant.
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WHITING WITH ANCHOVY SAUCE
(Merluzzo alla Palermitana)
Take one whiting, one pound or a little more, and trim all the fins,
leaving the tail and the head. Split it to remove the bone, and season
with a little salt and pepper. Turn it on the back, grease with oil,
season with salt and pepper, dust with bread crumbs then lay it with two
tablespoonfuls of oil on a fireproof plate or baking tin.
Take three or four good sized anchovies, bone and clean them, chop them
and put on the fire with two tablespoonfuls of oil, but do not allow[Pg 88] it
to boil. With this sauce cover the back of the fish and dust it all with
bread crumbs, putting also some leaves of rosemary. Bake in the oven,
allowing a little crust to form over, but see that it doesn't dry up,
pouring over to this purpose more oil. Before removing from the tin
squeeze half a lemon over.
This dish can be served surrounded by little toast with caviar, or
anchovies and butter.
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STEWED EEL
(Anguille in umido)
For this dish it is preferable to have good sized eels that must not be
skinned, but cut in small pieces.
Chop some onion and parsley, put it on the fire with oil, salt, and
pepper, and when the onion is browned, add the pieces of eel. Wait until
it has absorbed the taste of the onion sauce and then complete the
cooking with tomato sauce (No. 12).
See that there is plenty of gravy and serve with little squares or
diamonds of toast.
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EELS WITH PEAS
(Anguille coi piselli)
Cook the eels as above with the onion sauce and when it is cooked remove
it dry to cook the[Pg 89] green peas in the sauce. The pieces of eel should be
put back in the sauce to be warmed. No tomato sauce is necessary here.
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MUSSELS WITH EGG SAUCE
(Arselle in salsa d'uovo)
A good washing with fresh water is sufficient for mussels that do not
have any sand to be cleaned away. Put them on the fire with a sauce of
oil, garlic, parsley and a pinch of pepper. Shake them and keep the
saucepan covered seeing that they do not absorb all of the sauce. Take
them out when they are open and prepare the following sauce: one or more
yolks of egg, according to the quantity, lemon juice, one teaspoonful of
flour, broth and some of their own juice. Cook this sauce until it
becomes a smooth cream and pour it on the mussels when they are served.
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MUSSELS WITH TOMATO SAUCE
(Arselle alla livornese)
Chop fine half an onion and put it on the fire with oil and a pinch of
pepper. When the onion begins to brown add a pinch of parsley chopped
not very fine and after put in the mussels with[Pg 90] tomato sauce (No. 12)
or tomato paste diluted in water. Shake them often and when they are
open, put them over slices of toast prepared beforehand and arranged on
a plate.
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CODFISH
(Baccalá)
I
Freshen and soak the codfish in cold water, changing the water two or
three times, or, better, keeping it for some time in a vase under
running cold water. Then cut it into pieces as large as the palm of the
hand and dip them in flour until they are well covered. Then put a
kettle or a saucepan on the fire with plenty of oil and two or three
cloves of garlic, whole but a little crushed. When the garlic begins to
brown put in the codfish and brown it on both sides, stirring it often,
so that it doesn't burn. Salt is not necessary, or at least only a
little after tasting, but a little pepper will not be amiss. Finally
pour over some tomato sauce (No. 12) or tomato paste diluted in water,
let it boil a little more and serve.[Pg 91]
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II
The following is another way to prepare the codfish, slightly different
from the preceding. Cut the codfish as above, then put it as it is in
saucepan with some olive oil. Spread over it a hash of garlic and
parsley and season with a pinch of pepper, oil and little pieces of
butter. Cook on a good fire and turn it with care, because, not being
sprinkled with flour, it breaks easily. When it is cooked, squeeze a
lemon over and serve.
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FRIED CODFISH
(Baccalá fritto)
Place the codfish on the fire—after washing as explained in No. 107—in
a kettle with cold water and as salt, and as soon as the water boils,
remove the codfish.
After boiling cut it in little pieces and remove all the bones. Sprinkle
some flour and dip in a frying paste composed of water, flour and a
little oil. Fry in oil and serve hot.
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CODFISH CROQUETTES
(Cotolette di baccalá)
Boil as explained above and, if the quantity is one pound or a little
more put together two[Pg 92] anchovies and some parsley, chopping everything
together very fine. Add some pepper, a tablespoonful of grated cheese,
three or four tablespoonfuls of pap, composed of bread crumbs in large
pieces, water and butter, and two eggs. Give the compound the form of
several flat cutlets, dip them in beaten egg and in ground bread crumbs.
Fry in oil and serve with lemon, or tomato sauce.
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FRIED DOG-FISH
(Palombo fritto)
Cut the dog-fish in slices, not very thick, and place it in a plate with
beaten eggs somewhat salted. Leave for some hours until half an hour
before frying, dip the slices in a mixture of bread crumbs, grated
cheese, garlic and parsley chopped fine, salt and pepper. A clove of
garlic is sufficient for one pound of fish. Fry in oil and serve with
lemon.
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STEWED DOG-FISH
(Palombo in umido)
Cut the dog-fish in rather big pieces and then make a hash of garlic,
parsley and very little onion. Put this hash on the fire with oil and[Pg 93]
when it is sufficiently browned, put the pieces of dog-fish and season
with salt and pepper. When the fish is cooked pour over some tomato
sauce (No. 12), let this simmer for a while, then serve.
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ROAST-BEEF
(Arrosto)
Although roast-beef is not an Italian dish, still it is prepared in a
peculiar way by the Italians, and hence this recipe finds its place
here.
To obtain a good roast-beef not less than two pounds ought to be cooked
on a strong fire. It ought to be covered with good olive oil and finally
with cup of soup stock which with the oil and the juice from the meat
will form a rich gravy. Salt it only when it is half cooked and do it
moderately, because the beef is already tasty by itself.
Put it on the fire half an hour before the soup is served and the meal
begins. This will be sufficient if the piece is not very big. To
ascertain the cooking prick it in the bigger part with a thin
larding-pin, but not often, in order not to allow too much juice to
escape. The juice must neither be of the color of the blood nor too
dark.
If baked it is to be seasoned with salt, oil and a piece of butter,
surrounded by raw potatoes[Pg 94] peeled. Pour in the kettle a cup of broth or
of water. If you do not like cold roast beef, cut it into slices and
warm with butter and brown stock or tomato sauce.
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ROAST VEAL
(Arrosto di vitella)
Choose for that milk veal that is to be found all the year round,
although it is always better during the spring or summer.
The piece or pieces of veal can be cooked in a saucepan, slightly larded
with garlic and rosemary, with oil, butter and a hash of corned beef,
salt, pepper and tomato sauce. In the gravy fresh peas can be cooked.
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POT ROAST
(Arrosto morto)
This can be done with all kinds of meats, but the best is milk veal.
Take a good piece of the loins, roll it and tie with a string and put on
the fire with good olive oil and butter, both in small quantity. Brown
well from all sides, salt when half cooked and complete the cooking with
a half cup of broth, seeing that little juice remains. If no broth is at
hand, use tomato sauce, or tomato[Pg 95] paste diluted with water. Some corned
beef chopped fine can also be added.
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POT ROAST WITH GARLIC AND ROSEMARY
(Arrosto morto coll'odore dell'aglio e del ramerino)
Cook the meat as above, but add a clove of garlic and one or two bunches
of rosemary in the saucepan. When serving the roast rub the gravy
through a sieve without pressing and surround the meat with potatoes or
vegetables cooked apart.
The leg of lamb comes very well in this way, baked in the oven.
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BIRDS
(Arrosto di uccelli)
The best way to cook birds, and that nearly always used by the Italians,
is roasted at the spit. They must be spitted with a small slice of bread
between each bird. Also wrap each bird in very thin slices of bacon, in
such a way that it can be spitted with this covering. Mind to slice the
bacon almost as thin as paper. Pass some oil—only once—over when they
begin to brown, using[Pg 96] a brush or a feather, and salt only once,
moderately.
Put on the fire when near to be served, otherwise they may get dry and
lose much of their flavor. The cooking is rapidly done if on a good
fire.
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ROAST OF LAMB
(Arrosto d'agnello)
Take a leg of lamb and season it with salt, pepper, oil and a drop of
vinegar. Pierce it here and there with the point of a knife and leave it
like this for several hours. Also lard it with bay leaf or rosemary to
be removed when serving. The leg of lamb can be baked or, as the
Italians do, cooked at the spit.
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LEG OF MUTTON
(Cosciotto di castrato arrosto)
Before cooking see that several days elapse after the animal has been
butchered. This, naturally, according to the temperature. Beat it well
with a wooden mallet, then skin and remove the middle bone, without
spoiling the meat. Then tie it and give it a good fire at the beginning,
covering the fire when half cooked. Let it cook in its[Pg 97] own juice and in
a cup of broth strained to remove the fat; nothing else. Salt when it is
almost cooked, but see that it is neither too well done nor rare, just
medium. Serve with its juice apart in a sauce.
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ROAST OF HARE
(Arrosto di lepre)
The part of the hare fitted for roast is the hind quarters, but the
limbs of this game are covered with little skins that must be carefully
removed, before cooking, without cutting the muscles.
Before roasting keep it soaking for twelve or fourteen hours in a liquid
prepared as follows: put on the fire in a kettle three tumblers of water
with half a tumbler of vinegar or less in proportion with the piece to
be cooked, three of four scallions chopped fine, one or two bay-leaves,
a bunch of parsley, a little salt and a pinch of pepper; make it boil
for five or six minutes, cool and pour when cold over the hare. When you
remove the latter from the liquid wipe it and lard it all with little
pieces of good bacon.
Cook on a low fire, salt it sufficiently and grease with cream and
nothing else. Never use the liver of the hare which, it is said, is very
indigestible.[Pg 98]
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POT ROAST LARDED
(Arrosto morto lardellato)
Take a piece short and thick of beef or veal, quite tender and weighing
about two pounds or a little more. Lard it with ham or bacon cut in
little pieces. Tie with a string and put it in a stewpan with a piece of
butter, one fourth of a middle-sized onion cut in two pieces, three or
four ribs of celery half an inch thick and as many slices of carrot.
Season with salt and pepper and when the meat begins to brown—turning
it often—pour over one cup of water and complete the cooking on a low
fire, leaving it to absorb great part of the gravy. See, however, that
it doesn't dry up and become black. When you send to the table strain
the juice that has remained and pour it on the meat, that may be
surrounded with potatoes cut in pieces or kept whole if small,
previously browned in butter or oil.
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PIGEON SURPRISE
(Piccione a sorpresa)
The pigeon (or chicken) must be opened and stuffed with a cutlet of milk
veal. Of course this cutlet must be of proportionate size. Beat it well[Pg 99]
to render it thinner and more tender, season with salt, pepper, a pinch
of spices and little pieces of butter, roll it and put inside the pigeon
sewing the opening. The liver and giblets of the pigeon can be cooked
apart in brown stock or in butter, after being chopped. With the
resulting gravy the cutlet can be smeared. In this way the different
flavor of the two qualities of meat is better amalgamated.
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STUFFED BEEF CUTLET
(Braciuola di manzo ripiena)
The ingredients for this dish are a slice of beef half an inch thick,
weighing about one pound, half a pound or less of lean milk veal, two
small slices of ham and two or three of tongue, one scant tablespoonful
of grated cheese, a piece of butter, two chicken livers, one egg, a
crumb of bread as large as a closed fist.
Make a hash with a small onion, a little celery, carrot and parsley, put
it on the fire with the butter and when it is browned, place in the
saucepan the veal cut in small pieces and the chicken livers, season
with little salt and pepper and complete the cooking with a little
broth. Remove the veal and chicken when cooked, and chop them fine. In
the gravy that remains make a pap rather hard with the crumb of bread,
moistening[Pg 100] with broth if necessary. Now mix the chopped meat, the pap,
the eggs, the cheese, the ham and tongue cut in little pieces. When the
stuffing is composed thus, dip the cutlet in water, in order to stretch
it better, beat it with the back of the knife and flatten with its
blades. Put the stuffing inside and roll up and tie tightly with a
string crosswise. Roast or bake with oil and salt.
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STUFFED CHICKEN
(Pollo ripieno)
For a middle-sized fowl use the following ingredients: two sausages, the
liver and giblets of the fowl, eight or ten chestnuts well roasted, some
pieces of mushrooms, a taste of nutmeg, one egg. If, instead of a fowl,
it is a turkey, double the dose.
Begin by giving the sausages and the giblets half a cooking, moistening
them with a little broth if necessary. Season with a little salt and
pepper on account of the sausages that already contain them. Remove them
and in the gravy that remains put a crumb of bread, in order to obtain
with a little broth two tablespoonfuls of thick pap. Skin the sausages,
chop the chicken giblets and the giblets and grind everything together
with the chestnuts, the egg and the pap; this is the stuffing with which
the fowl is to be filled,[Pg 101] to be baked afterward. It is more tasty cold
than hot, and it can also be cut better.
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CHICKEN WITH SAUCE PIQUANTE
(Pollo al diavolo)
This ought to be cooked with Cayenne pepper and served with a highly
seasoned sauce, but not everybody likes that and a simpler way to cook
the chicken "al diavolo" is the following:
Take a young chicken, remove the neck and the legs, open it all in front
and flatten it open as much as possible. Wash and wipe dry with a towel,
then put it on the grill and when it begins to brown turn it. Grease it
with melted butter or with oil, using a brush, and season with salt and
pepper. The later may be Cayenne pepper for those who like it. Keep
turning and greasing until it is all cooked.
To prepare the sauce piquante that many like with chicken broiled in
this way, put four tablespoonfuls of butter in a saucepan and when it
begins to brown add two tablespoonfuls of flour and stir until it is
well browned, but do not let it burn. Draw to a cooler place on the
range and slowly add two cupfuls of brown stock, stirring constantly,
add salt and a dash of Cayenne and let simmer for ten minutes. In
another saucepan boil four tablespoonfuls of vinegar one table[Pg 102]spoonful
of chopped onion, one teaspoonful of sugar rapidly for five minutes;
then add it to the sauce and at the same time add one tablespoonful of
chopped capers two tablespoonfuls of chopped pickle and one teaspoonful
of tarragon vinegar. Stir well and let cook for two minutes to heat the
pickles. If the sauce becomes too thick dilute it with a little water.
This sauce is excellent for baked fish and all roasts and boiled meats,
besides being a fitting condiment for the chicken "al diavolo".
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CHICKEN WITH HAM
(Pollo in porchetta)
Fill a chicken with thin strips of ham, about half an inch wide. Add
three cloves (or sections) of garlic, two little bunches of fennel and a
few grains of pepper. Season outside with salt and pepper and cook in a
saucepan with butter, or preferably bake in the oven. Sausages cut
lengthwise and previously skinned can be substituted for the ham.
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CHICKEN SAUTÉ
(Pollo saltato)
Take a young chicken, remove the neck and trim the wings. Cut away the
legs. Cut the chic[Pg 103]ken into six pieces. Remove some of the bones. Beat
an egg with a teaspoonful of water and place in it the pieces of chicken
after dipping them in flour and seasoning generously with salt and
pepper. Leave the pieces in the egg until it is time for cooking. Then
take the pieces one by one, sprinkle with bread crumbs and place a
saucepan with a good piece of butter on the fire. When the butter begins
to brown put in the pieces of chicken from the side of the skin, then
turn them when browned to the other side. Let them on a good fire for
about ten minutes. Serve with lemon. The chicken prepared in this way is
good also when cold.
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AFRICAN HEN
(Gallina di Faraone)
This fowl, that resembles the partridge, should not be too fresh, like
all game.
The best way to cook the African hen is roasted at the spit. Put in the
inside a ball of butter dipped in salt and wrap it in a piece of paper
greased with butter and sprinkled with salt. This paper must be removed
when the fowl is nearly cooked, and then the cooking is completed
greasing with more butter and adding more salt.[Pg 104]
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TAME DUCK ROASTED
(Anatra domestica arrosto)
Salt it inside and bandage all the breast with slices of bacon, large
and thin. Grease with oil and salt moderately when the cooking is almost
complete. If you have a wild duck grease with butter, as the meat is
drier.
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TURKEY
(Tacchino)
The turkey has been imported to Europe from America, but it is
nevertheless a well known dish in Italian families, although not
enjoying the popularity that it has on this side of the ocean. When
roasted it is generally larded moderately with little pieces of garlic
and bay-leaf or rosemary and seasoned with a hash of corned beef or
bacon, a little butter, salt and pepper, tomato sauce or tomato paste
diluted in water. The breast, flattened until it is about half an inch
thick and seasoned generously some hours before cooking with oil, salt
and pepper, is excellent broiled on the grill.[Pg 105]
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LOIN OF PORK ROASTED
(Lombo di maiale arrosto)
The loin of pork, cut in little pieces forms an excellent roast at the
spit. The pieces of pork are to be divided by little pieces of toast and
greased with oil.
If the pork is to be baked, choose that piece of the loin that has its
ribs and that may weigh six or eight pounds. Lard it with garlic,
rosemary or bay leaf and a few cloves, but moderately, and season with
salt and pepper.
This roast is very popular in Italy, where they call it arista.
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LEG OF LAMB
(Agnello all'Orientale)
This is a way to cook lamb in use in the Orient and adopted by the
Italians, especially in Southern Italy. The leg of lamb is to be larded
with the larding pin with slices of bacon seasoned with salt and pepper,
greased with butter or milk, or milk alone and salted when half cooked.
The Arabs, who are very fond of this dish, do not lard it, as pork is
forbidden by their religion, but cook it with an abundance of milk.[Pg 106]
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BROILED PIGEON
(Piccione in gratella)
Take a young, but fat pigeon, divide it in two parts lengthwise and
flatten it well with the hands. Then put it to brown in oil for four or
five minutes, just to harden the meat. Season when still hot with salt
and pepper, then arrange it as follows.
Melt in the fire, without boiling it, a piece of butter and mix the
liquid butter with one beaten egg. Dip the pigeon in the butter and egg
and keep it until it absorbs them. Then sprinkle with bread crumbs
ground fine. Cook on a grill on a a low fire and serve with a sauce or a
side dish.
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STEAK IN THE SAUCEPAN
(Bistecca nel tegame)
If you have a steak that does not appear to be too tender, put it in a
saucepan with a little piece of butter and some good olive oil, with a
taste of garlic and bay-leaf or rosemary. Add, if necessary, a little
broth or water or tomato sauce and serve with potatoes cooked in the
gravy that can be made more abundant with more broth, butter and tomato
sauce.[Pg 107]
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VEAL KIDNEY WITH ANCHOVY
(Rognone alle acciughe)
Take a veal kidney, remove the fat, cut it open and cover with boiling
water. When the water has cooled, remove the kidney, wipe with a cloth,
and pass through it clean sticks to make it stay open. Season with
melted butter, salt and pepper and leave it so prepared for an hour or
two.
Then take another piece of butter and two or three anchovies. Clean the
latter, chop and mix with the butter with the blade of a knife, making a
ball. Cook the kidney on the grill, but not too much, in order to keep
it tender, put it on a plate and grease when hot with the ball of butter
and anchovies.
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VEAL KIDNEY SLICED
(Rognone di vitello affettato)
Cut in thin slices one or two veal kidneys, removing the granulous part
that is to be found in the middle, and put the slices in a saucepan with
a piece of butter, a bunch of parsley chopped very fine together with a
clove of garlic. Add a cup of hot broth; salt moderately and let it cook
without boiling, until the sauce is reduced to about one third.
One tablespoonful of vinegar adds a pleasant taste to this dish.[Pg 108]
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BROILED MUTTON KIDNEY
(Rognone di montone alla graticola)
After washing the kidneys, remove the filmy skin that covers them and
cut them in the middle without, however, detaching completely the two
parts. Season with salt and pepper, grease with oil and put them on a
strong fire on the grill. After ten or twelve minutes they will be
broiled. Serve hot with parsley and slices of lemon.
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MUTTON KIDNEY FRIED
(Granelli di montone fritti)
Wash, remove the skin that covers the kidneys and cut in very thin
slices. Wipe with a cloth, dip first in ground bread crumbs, then in a
beaten egg mixed with melted butter, then again in the bread crumbs.
This must be done rapidly, at the time of frying, otherwise the bread
crumbs absorb the moisture of the kidney and make them too hard.
Melt a piece of butter in a saucepan on a strong fire and when it begins
to brown, dip the slices of kidney. Turn often, sprinkle with a little
parsley chopped fine, salt and serve with lemon.
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BEEF TONGUE BOILED
(Lingua di bue lessa)
The tongue is boiled like the beef. When half cooked remove the skin,
which is not nice to see[Pg 109] and has no nutritious elements, although it is
is served with a purée of peas, or spinach or potatoes or beans, etc.
But it can be served simply with sprigs of parsley.
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BEEF TONGUE WITH OLIVES
(Lingua di bue alle olive)
Scald the tongue and peel off the skin. Then put it back to boil until
fully cooked.
Melt a piece of butter and brown half a medium sized onion cut in
slices. When the onion is browned remove it from the butter and dilute
in the latter a teaspoonful of flour. When the flour begins to brown,
thin it with one or two cups of soup stock hot and passed through a
sieve. Mix and boil for ten minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper.
When the sauce is prepared place the tongue in the saucepan containing
it and let it cook again on a low fire for about an hour, turning it
over frequently and keeping it moistened with the gravy. Cut some olives
in a spiral to remove the stone and place it in the saucepan with the
tongue. This becomes more tasty if left with the olives for one or two
days.
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STEWED BEEF TONGUE
(Lingua di bue in stufato)
Clean a fresh tongue of beef; put it in a plate,[Pg 110] salt it generously and
put it back in the ice-box or in the pantry, until the following day.
After twenty-four hours, scald it in boiling water, skin and lard with
little pieces of bacon and put it in a kettle or a large saucepan in
which the seasoning is already placed. This seasoning consists of ½
lb. bacon cut in very thin slices, ¼ lb. butter, one or two thin
slices of ham and two middle sized onions, sliced. Sprinkle the tongue
with flour, surround it with chopped meat and place the saucepan on the
fire. When the tongue begins to brown, pour five or six cups of soup
stock and one cup of water. Add the usual bunch of greens, two or three
cloves, salt, a pinch of pepper and one of cinnamon.
Cover the saucepan tightly, boil for about four hours, rub the sauce
through a sieve and serve everything hot.
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VEAL SWEETBREADS
(Animelle di vitello)
Keep in fresh water for an hour. Then place them in a skimmer (ladle
with holes) and dip in boiling water or broth. After a brief boiling
remove and cool in cold water. Then remove the veins and gullet, taking
care not to tear them. The sweetbreads are prepared in various ways and
here we give some of the best known:
Sweetbreads with butter.—Boil in broth or[Pg 111] water, clean and cut into
slices. Brown a piece of butter with salt and pepper. Then place the
sliced sweetbreads and brown them. Before serving squeeze on a little
lemon juice. The sweetbreads prepared in this way are served preferably
with rice or vegetables.
Sweetbreads with white sauce.—Boiled, cleaned and cut into slices, they
are placed in white sauce or balsamella (No. 54) adding a taste of
nutmeg, pepper, salt and the juice of half a lemon.
Sweetbreads in fricassee.—Boil, trim and cut into pieces. Then brown in
butter with a scallion chopped fine. Once browned, remove from the gravy
in which pour a tablespoonful of flour, moistened with broth. The sauce
that results is bound with egg-yolks and lemon juice.
Sweetbreads fried.—Boil and trim. Then cut in large slices, neither too
thick nor too thin. Dip in beaten egg and in bread crumbs ground. Then
fry in butter. Serve with vegetables.
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TENDERLOIN WITH SPICES
(Filetto alla piemontese)
Clean and trim the meat, removing all the little skins. Then sprinkle
with nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, and pepper, and place in an earthen vase
covered, together with a bunch of aromatic herbs, sage, parsley,
rosemary, onion, carrot and celery, all chopped fine. After a few hours
melt and[Pg 112] brown a piece of butter with the aromatic herbs, then remove
the latter and place the tenderloin, leaving it to simmer for half an
hour, pricking it often with a large fork or a larding pin, to add its
juice to the gravy. Serve hot.
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STUFFED ONIONS
(Cipolle ripiene)
Boil six large onions for an hour. Then drain and skin. Remove the heart
with the point of a knife. In the place of the heart place the stuffing
made with ¼ lb. ham or tongue, chopped and mixed with bread crumbs
ground, two tablespoonfuls of milk, two pinches of salt and one of
pepper. When the onions are prepared and stuffed place them in a
saucepan whose bottom has been greased with butter, sprinkle with bread
crumbs ground and place in the oven, not too hot. At the time of serving
add some white sauce or balsamella (No 54). Stuffed onions are served as
vegetables, or side-dish with roast-beef or boiled-beef.
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STEWED ONIONS
(Cipolle in stufato)
Keep in cold water, for half an hour, two pounds of middle-sized onions.
Afterward skin and place in a saucepan in which pour as much broth as is
necessary to cover them. Let them[Pg 113] cook on a low fire for an hour, if
they are scallions, or young onions. If they are not, two hours are not
enough, sometimes.
When cooked and soft, drain and place in a large deep dish. Brown a
piece of butter with a tablespoonful of flour, a cup of broth, salt and
pepper. Mix everything and when it begins to boil pour the sauce on the
onions, which must be served hot.
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VEAL LIVER
(Fegato di vitella alla veneziana)
Brown a large onion cut in thin slices in oil and place in the saucepan
the liver cut in thin slices. Brown everything on a strong fire. When
the liver takes a reddish color it is ready. If it is overdone, it
becomes too hard. Salt just before removing from the saucepan.
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FRIED LIVER
(Fegato al tegame)
Clean and trim the liver, then cut in slices half an inch thick. Dip in
flour and place, without delay in a saucepan in which a small onion has
been browned in butter. Salt just before serving.
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POLENTA WITH SAUSAGES
(Polenta colle salsicce)
The polenta is a very popular dish in Northern[Pg 114] Italy and can be
prepared in various ways. Always, however, it is better to serve with
the addition of sausages, or with birds or tomato paste.
The polenta is practically cornmeal and it is made with the so-called
farina gialla or yellow flour.
The ingredients for a good polenta are one pound of corn meal,
preferably granulous, one quart and a half of water, salted in
proportion, one piece of butter, one cup and a half of milk.
Pour the meal little by little into boiling water, continually stirring
with a wooden spoon. When the meal is half cooked, put the butter and
pour the milk little by little. While the polenta boils, place on the
fire in a little saucepan a tablespoonful of olive oil or a small piece
of butter. When the oil is hot or the butter is melted, put some
sausages repeatedly pricked with a fork.
When the sausages are cooked, pour the polenta hot in a dish and place
the sausages and the gravy in a cavity practised in the middle. Serve
hot.
In cooking the sausages two or three bay-leaves may be added and removed
before serving.
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SAUSAGES WITH ONIONS
(Salsicce alla cipollata)
The salsicce alla cipollata are prepared with fresh and lean pork meat
and bacon in equal quantity, chopped fine and seasoned with salt,[Pg 115]
pepper and spices. Add a proportional quantity of onions chopped very
fine, not too much, however. Fill with the hash the prepared entrails,
tie every two inches to divide the sausages.
CELERY
(Sedano)
Beside being used as a condiment with a great quantity of dishes, the
celery may be prepared in various different ways to form appetizing
vegetable dishes. We give here a certain number of those that appear
most commonly on Italian tables:
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CELERY WITH BUTTER
(Sedano al burro)
Two heads of celery for each person.
Clean and trim, removing the sprigs that are too hard, and the leaves,
that are to be cut where they begin to be green. Finally trim the stem.
Then wash repeatedly in running water, drain and put to boil in salted
boiling water. Remove when cooked and drain again.
About three quarters of an hour before serving, melt a piece of butter
in a saucepan and brown the celery, turning them often for about ten
minutes. After that pour over hot stock (soup stock or chicken broth)
cover the saucepan and parboil. A few moments before serving season with
brown stock, if you have any at hand, otherwise with salt and pepper
only.[Pg 116]
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CELERY AU JUS
(Sedano al sugo)
Select nine or ten heads, neither too hard nor too soft, and cut them
about four inches from the root. Remove the green and hard branches and
trim the root, cutting the latter to a point. Scald the celery, after
washing well, in salted boiling water. Ten minutes will be sufficient.
Dip in cold water, open well the leaves and wash again carefully. Drain
and make bunches of two or three heads each that you will put in a
saucepan with a pint of broth or water and half a cup of good fat, onion
and carrot chopped, salt and pepper. Cover and let it simmer for about
two hour. Then remove the celery, drain and serve.
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SAUCE FOR CELERY AU JUS
(Salsa per sedani al sugo)
The celery, prepared as above, are seasoned with the following sauce:
Make a roux melting a piece of butter and browning an equal weight of
flour; stir for about three minutes on the fire, after which thin the
roux with a little brown stock or with bouillon cubes diluted in water.
Continue stirring and reduce the sauce. Then rub through a sieve, pour
over the celery and serve very hot.[Pg 117]
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FRIED CELERY
(Sedani fritti)
This is a convenient way to prepare left-over celery that is still too
good to be thrown away.
Clean the left-over celery removing as best you can the sauce in which
they were served, dip in frying paste (flour and egg) fry and serve with
lemon.
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PUREE OF CELERY
(Macco di sedani)
Take some big roots of celery, prepare as usual and wash in running
water. Boil in salted water, crush and rub through a sieve. Put in a
saucepan this purée, with a piece of butter, salt, flour and a little
cream or milk. The milk may be substituted with good soup stock or brown
stock. Just before serving add a little powdered sugar.
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STEW
(Stufato)
The Italian stufato is somewhat different from the stewed meat that is
known under the name of "Irish stew". It corresponds to the French daube
and is prepared in Italy in many different ways.
An excellent stufato can be made in the following way: Chop fine two
bunches of parsley,[Pg 118] a small carrot, half a medium sized onion, a little
piece of scallion and two bay-leaves. Brown with a good piece of butter
in a saucepan in which one and a half tablespoonful of oil have been
previously poured.
The meat must have been prepared beforehand, that is to say washed,
trimmed and larded. When half cooked, season moderately with salt and
pepper. If necessary, moisten with broth or water. During the cooking
the saucepan must be covered with its cover and with a sheet of paper
greased with fat or oil. The stufato will be ready after about three
hours' cooking on a low fire.
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SOUTHERN STEW
(Stufato Meridionale)
Put the piece of meat in a saucepan of such a size that it remains
completely filled, moisten with two cups of water and two of white wine,
season with salt and pepper and cook for five hours on a low fire.
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STEW MILANAISE
(Stufato alla milanese)
Beat and flatten a good piece of meat and lard with bacon or ham cut in
small pieces. Season with salt, pepper and a taste of cinnamon. Sprinkle
flour over the meat.
Place in a saucepan a little fat of beef chopped[Pg 119] with a middle sized
onion and brown with a piece of butter. When the onion is browned,
remove it and place the meat over the melted butter. Brown with melted
butter. Then fill the saucepan with half water, half red wine, but only
when the meat is browned from all sides. Cover the saucepan the best you
can, with cover and greased paper and let it simmer for five or six
hours on a very low fire.
After removing the stew, let it cool, rub the gravy through a sieve, put
again on the fire and serve hot.
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FRENCH STEW
(Stufato alla francese)
Prepare on the bottom of the saucepan a layer of thin slices of ham, on
which place several little cubes also of bacon. In the middle place a
bunch of parsley, and around this some cloves, half an onion sliced, a
few carrots in little cubes several young onions, bay-leaf, salt, and
pepper.
On this bed lay the meat that may be larded with bacon or ham and
seasoned with salt, pepper and a taste of cinnamon. Pour on the meat two
cups of soup stock or water and one cup of white wine. Cover the
saucepan hermetically and cook on a very low fire for five hours.
When the stufato is to be served cold, the[Pg 120] gravy is to be rubbed
through a sieve before it gets cold.
Note.—In these and similar dishes we have indicated the use of
wine, which is a common ingredient, in small quantities in Italian
and French cooking. This, however, can always be dispensed with if
its taste is not appreciated, or for any other reason.
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TROUT ALPINE
(Trota all'alpigiana)
These are many ways to prepare this delicious fish, found in abundance
in the many streams of clear water that run from the Alps and the
Apennine mountains. Often the trout is cooked in wine, but, of course,
this part many be changed.
For the trota all'alpigiana, so called because it is the favorite dish
of Piedmont, the trout must be cleaned, scaled, washed, wiped then
salted and left under the action of the salt for about an hour.
Pour in a fish-kettle one quart of white wine to which will be added
three medium sized onions a few cloves, two sections of garlic and a
little bunch made of thyme, bay-leaf, basil or mint; finally a piece of
butter as large as an egg, dipped in flour. Then put the trout in the
fish-kettle and place on a strong fire. When the liquid has boiled the
trout is cooked. Remove the onions and the bunch of greens and serve the
trout with its gravy and some parsley.[Pg 121]
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TROUT LOMBARD
(Trota fritta)
Clean, scale, wash and wipe the trout. Salt and leave for half an hour.
Fill with water half a fish-kettle; add half a lemon, two bay-leaves,
one carrot light or ten berries of pepper, one onion divided into four
parts, salt and three cloves. When the water is lukewarm, dip in the
trout. Cook on a moderate fire and serve the trout with parsley, slices
of lemon and young potatoes boiled. A good fish-sauce ought to accompany
it.
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FRIED TROUT
(Trota fritta)
Small and young trouts are best for frying. Scale, clean, wash and wipe.
Then dip in flour and fry like the other fish in oil or in butter. Serve
with browned parsley and lemon.
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TROUT WITH ANCHOVIES
(Trota alle acciughe)
Scale, clean wash and wipe the trouts. Cut the sides and place to pickle
with salt, pepper berries, garlic, parsley and onions chopped fine; with
mushrooms chopped fine with thyme, bay-leaf and mint, all seasoned with
good olive oil. Rub the pickled pieces at the sieve and place it and
the[Pg 122] trout in a baking-tin. Bake in the oven and serve with anchovy
sauce (No. 17).
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EGGS WITH ONION SAUCE
(Uova trippate)
Prepare some hard boiled eggs, shell and cut into disks one third of an
inch thick.
Melt in a saucepan a piece of butter in which brown half an onion cut
into thin slices, to be removed from the butter when browned. Then add
to the butter two teaspoonfuls of flour, mix but don't allow to brown,
thin with a cup of hot broth, add salt and pepper and let simmer for ten
minutes. Put the sliced eggs in the sauce to warm them, stir a little,
but carefully to avoid breaking them, and do not boil again. Just before
serving add to the sauce a teaspoonful of cream and stir carefully.
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EGGS WITH HAM
(Uova al prosciutto)
Place in a frying pan as many pieces of butter, large like a nut, as
there are eggs to be cooked. For each piece of butter put a little slice
of ham and place the frying pan on the fire. As soon as the butter is
melted break an egg on each slice of ham. Let cook for ten minutes on a
moderate fire.[Pg 123]
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EGGS WITH TOMATO SAUCE
(Uova al pomidoro)
Prepare some hard boiled eggs, cut them through the middle lengthwise,
place in good order upon a plate and pour some good tomato sauce, taking
care not to cover the upper part of the eggs, which must emerge from the
sauce.
Instead of the tomato, the eggs may be arranged with a balsamella sauce
(No. 54).
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SCRAMBLED EGGS
(Uova strapazzate)
Break the eggs in a plate, assuring first that they are all fresh.
Melt in a saucepan a piece of butter about as big as an egg. When it is
melted pour the egg and scramble them with a fork on a low fire.
When the eggs are cooked season moderately with salt and butter. Just
when you take them away from the fire and before serving add a
tablespoonful of milk or liquid cream. Serve hot with a little grated
cheese.
The scrambled eggs can be served with points of asparagus, truffles,
mushrooms, etc. which are prepared just as if they were to go in an
omelet.[Pg 124]
PART II
PASTRY, SWEETS, FROZEN DELICACIES, SYRUPS
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PUDDING OF HAZELNUTS
(Budino di nocciuole)
Shell half a pound of hazelnuts in warm water and dry them well at the
sun or on the fire, then grind them very fine, together with sugar, of a
weight somewhat less than the nuts. Put one quart of milk on the fire,
and when it begins to boil, put two third lb. lady fingers or macaroons
crumbed and let it boil for five minutes, adding a small piece of
butter. Rub everything through a sieve and put back on the fire with the
nuts to dissolve the sugar. Let it cool and add six eggs, first the
yolks, then the white beaten, pour in a mold greased with butter and
sprinkled with bread crumbs ground fine. The mold must not be all full.
Bake in the oven and serve cold.
This dose will be sufficient for eight or ten persons.
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CRISP BISCUITS
(Biscotti croccanti)
One pound of flour.
Half a pound granulated sugar.
[Pg 125]¼ lb. sweet almonds, whole and shelled, mixed to a few pine-seeds.
A piece of butter, one and a half ounce.
A pinch of anise-seeds.
Five eggs.
A pinch of salt.
Leave back the almonds and pine-seeds to add them afterward, and mix
everything with four eggs, so as to use the fifth if it is necessary to
make a soft dough. Divide into four cakes half an inch thick and as
large as a hand, place them in a receptacle greased with butter and
sprinkled with flour. Glaze the cakes with yolk of eggs. Bake in the
oven, but only as much as will still permit cutting the cakes into
slices, which you will do the day after, as the crust will then be
softened. Put the slices back in the oven, so that they will be toasted
on both sides and you will have the crisp biscuits.
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SOFT BISCUITS
(Biscotti teneri)
For these biscuits it would be necessary to have a tin box about four
inches wide and a little less long than the oven used. In this way the
biscuits will have a corner on both sides and, if cut a little more than
half an inch, they will be of the right proportion. The ingredients
needed are:
Flour, about two ounces.
Potato meal, a little less.
[Pg 126]Sugar, four ounces (¼ lb.)
Sweet almonds 1½ ounce.
Candied orange or angelica, one ounce.
Fruit preserve, one ounce.
Three eggs.
Skin the almonds, cut them in half lengthwise and dry in the sun or at
the fire. Pastry cooks usually leave them with the skin but it is much
preferable to skin them. Cut in little cubes the candied fruits and the
preserve.
Stir for a long while, about half an hour the sugar in the egg-yolks and
a little flour then add the white of the eggs well beaten and when every
thing is well beaten add the flour, letting it fall from a sieve. Mix
slowly and scatter on the mixing the almonds and the cubes of candied
and preserved fruit. Grease and sprinkle the tin box with flour. Bake in
the oven and cut the biscuits the day after. If desired these can also
be roasted on both sides.
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BISCUITS SULTAN
(Biscotto alla sultana)
Granulated sugar, six ounces.
Flour, four ounces.
Potato meal, two ounces.
Currants, three ounces.
Candied fruits, one ounce.
Five eggs.
A taste of lemon peel.
Two tablespoonfuls of brandy.
[Pg 127]
Put first on the fire the currants and the candied fruits cut in very
little cubes with as much brandy or cognac as is necessary to cover
them: when it boils, light the brandy and let it burn out of the fire
until the liquor is all consumed: then remove the currants and candy and
let them dry in a folded napkin. Then stir for half an hour the sugar
with the egg-yolks and the taste of lemon peel. Beat well the white of
the eggs and pour them on the sugar and yolks. Add the flour and potato
meal letting them fall from a sieve and stir slowly until everything is
well mixed together. Add the currants and the pieces of candied fruits
and pour the mixing in a smooth mold or in a high and round cake-dish.
Grease the mold or the dish with butter and sprinkle with powdered sugar
or flour. Put at once in the oven to avoid that the currants and the
candied fruits fall in the oven.
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MARGHERITA CAKE
(Pasta Margherita)
Potato meal, three ounces.
Sugar, six ounces.
Four eggs.
Lemon juice.
Beat well the egg-yolks with the sugar, add the potato meal and the
lemon juice and stir everything for half an hour. Finally beat well[Pg 128] the
whites, and mix the rest, stirring continually but slowly. Pour the
mixture in a smooth and round mold, greased with butter and sprinkled
with powdered sugar. Put at once in the oven.
Remove from the mold when cold and dust with powdered sugar and vanilla.
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MANTUA TART
(Torta Mantovana)
Flour, six ounces.
Sugar, six ounces.
Butter, five ounces.
Sweet almonds and pine-seeds, two ounces.
One whole egg.
Four egg-yolks.
A taste of lemon peel.
First work well with a ladle the eggs with the sugar, then pour the
flour little by little, still stirring, and finally the butter,
previously melted in a double steamer (bain-marie). Put the mixture in a
pie-dish greased with butter and sprinkled with flour or bread crumbs
ground. On top put the almonds and the pine-seeds. Cut the latter in
half and cut the almonds, previously skinned in warm water, each in
eight or ten pieces. This tart must not be thicker than one inch, so
that it can dry well in the oven, which must not be too hot.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve cold.[Pg 129]
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CURLY TART
(Torta ricciolina)
Sweet almonds with a few bitter ones, four ounces,
Granulated sugar, six ounces,
Candied fruits or angelica, 2½ ounces,
Butter, two ounces,
Lemon peel.
Mix two eggs with flour, flatten the paste to a thin sheet on a bread
board and cut into thin noodles. In a corner of the bread board make a
heap of the almonds with the sugar, the candied fruit cut in pieces and
the grated lemon peel. All this cut and crush so as to reduce the
mixture in little pieces. Then take a pie-dish and without greasing it,
spread a layer of noodles on the bottom, then pour part of the mixture,
then another layer of noodles and continue until there remains no more
material, trying to have the tart at least one inch thick. When it is so
prepared cover with the melted butter, using a brush to apply it evenly.
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ALMOND CAKE
(Bocca di dama)
Granulated sugar, nine ounces,
[Pg 130]Very fine Hungarian flour, five ounces,
Sweet almonds with some bitter ones, two ounces,
Six whole eggs and three egg yolks,
Taste of lemon peel.
After skinning the almonds in warm water and drying them well, grind or
better pound them well together with a tablespoonful of sugar and mix
well with the flour. Put the rest of the sugar in a deep dish with the
egg yolks and the grated lemon peel (just a taste) and stir with a ladle
for a quarter of an hour. In another dish beat the six whites of egg and
when they have become quite thick mix them with other ingredients
stirring slowly everything together.
To bake place the mixture in a baking-tin greased evenly with butter and
sprinkled with powdered sugar and flour.
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CORN MEAL CAKES
(Pasta di farina gialla)
Corn meal, seven and a half ounces,
Wheat flour, five and a half ounces,
Granulated sugar, five and a half ounces,
Butter, three and a half ounces,
Lard, two ounces,
A pinch of anise seed,
One egg.
Mix together the corn meal, the flour and the anise seed and knead with
the butter, the lard and[Pg 131] the egg that quantity that you can, forming a
loaf that you will put aside. What remains is to be kneaded with water
forming another loaf. Then mix the two loaves and knead a little, not
much because the dough must remain soft. Flatten with the rolling pin
until it becomes one quarter of an inch thick, sprinkle with flour, and
cut in different sizes and shapes with thin stamps.
Grease a baking tin with lard, sprinkle, with flour, glaze with the egg,
bake and dust with powdered sugar.
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BISCUIT
(Biscotto)
Six eggs,
Granulated sugar, nine ounces,
Flour, four ounces,
Potato meal, two ounces,
Taste of lemon peel.
Stir for at least half an hour the yolks of the eggs with the sugar and
a tablespoonful only of the flour and meal, using a ladle. Beat the
whites of the eggs until they are quite firm, mix slowly with the first
mixture and when they are well incorporated pour over from a sieve the
flour and the potato meal, previously dried in the sun or on the fire.
Bake in a tin where the mixture comes about one inch and a half thick,
previously greasing the[Pg 132] tin with cold butter and sprinkle with powdered
sugar mixed with flour.
In these cakes with beaten whites the following method can also be
followed: mix and stir first the yolks with the sugar, then put the
flour then, after a good kneading, beat the whites until they are firm,
pour two tablespoonfuls to soften the mixture, then the rest little by
little.
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CAKE MADELEINE
(Pasta Maddalena)
Sugar, four and a half ounces,
Flour, three ounces,
Butter, one ounce,
Egg-yolks, four,
Whites of eggs, three,
A pinch of bi-carbonate of soda,
A taste of lemon peel.
First mix and stir the yolks with the sugar and when they have become
whitish, add the flour and stir for fifteen minutes more. Mix with the
butter, melting or softening it fine if it is hard and finally add the
whites when they are well beaten. The flour must be previously dried in
the sun or on the fire.
This cake may be given different shapes, but keep it always thin and in
little volume. It can be put in little molds greased with butter and
sprinkled with flour, or else in a baking tin, keeping it[Pg 133] not more than
half an inch thick, and cutting it after baking in the shape of diamonds
and dusting with powdered sugar.
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ALMOND CRISP-TART
(Croccante)
Sweet almonds, four and a half ounces.
Granulated sugar, three and a half ounces.
Skin the almonds, divide the two parts and cut each part into small
pieces. Put these almonds so cut at the fire and dry them until they
take a yellowish color, but do not toast. Meanwhile put the sugar on the
fire in a saucepan and, when it is perfectly melted, pour the almonds
hot and already slightly browned. Now lower the fire and be careful not
to allow the compound to be overdone. The precise point is known when
the mixture acquires a cinnamon color. Then pour little by little in a
cold mold, previously greased with butter or oil. Press with a lemon
against the walls of the mold, making the mixture as thin as possible.
Remove from the mold when perfectly cooled and, if it is difficult to do
so, dip the mold in boiling water.
The almonds can also be dried in the sun and chopped fine, adding a
small piece of butter when they are in the sugar.[Pg 134]
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WAFER BISCUITS
(Cialdoni)
Put in a kettle:
Flour, three ounces.
Brown sugar, one ounce.
Lard virgin, half an ounce.
Cold water, seven tablespoonfuls.
First dilute the flour and the sugar in the water, then add the lard.
Put on the fire the iron for waffles or better an appropriated iron for
flattened wafers. When it is quite hot open it and place each time half
a tablespoonful of the paste. Close the iron and press well. Pass over
the fire on both sides, trim all around with a knife and open the iron
when you see that the wafer is browned. Then detach it from one side of
the iron and hot as it is roll it on the iron itself or on a napkin
using a little stick. This operation must be made with great rapidity
because if the wafer gets cold, it cannot be rolled.
Should the wafers remain attached to the iron, grease it from time to
time, and if they are not firm enough, add a little flour.
These wafer-biscuits are generally served with whipped cream.[Pg 135]
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QUINCE CAKE
(Cotognata)
The ingredients are about six pounds of quinces and four pounds of
granulated sugar.
Put on the fire the apples covered with water, and when they begin to
crack remove them, skin and scrape to put together all the pulp. Rub the
latter through a sieve. Put back the pulp on the fire with the sugar and
stir continually in order that it may not attack to the bottom of the
kettle. It will be enough to boil for seven or eight minutes and remove
when it begins to form pieces when lifted with the ladle.
Now in order to prepare the quince-cake spread it on a board to the
thickness of about a silver dollar and dry it in the sun covered with
cheese cloth to keep away the flies. When it is dry cut it in the form
of chocolate tablets and remove each piece from the board passing the
blade of a knife underneath.
If it is wished to make it crisp, melt about three and a half pounds of
granulated sugar with two tablespoonfuls of water and when the sugar has
boiled enough to "make the thread" smear every one of the little quince
cakes with it. If the sugar becomes too hard during the operation put it
back on the fire with a little water and make it boil again. When the
sugar is dry on one side and on the edge, smear the other side.[Pg 136]
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PORTUGUESE CAKE
(Focaccia alla Portoghese)
Sweet almonds, five ounces.
Granulated sugar, five ounces.
Potato meal, one and a half ounce.
Three eggs.
One big orange or two small.
First mix the yolks of the eggs with the sugar, then add the flour, then
the almonds skinned and chopped fine, then the orange juice (through a
colander) then a taste of orange peel. Finally add to the mixture the
whites of the eggs well beaten. Put in a paper mold greased evenly with
butter, with a thickness of about an inch and bake in a very moderately
hot oven. After baked, cover with a white glaze or frost, made with
powdered sugar, lemon juice and the white of eggs.
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MACAROONS
(Amaretti)
I
Granulated sugar, nine ounces.
Sweet almonds, three and a half ounces.
Bitter almonds, half of the above quantity.
Whites of egg, two.
Skin and dry the almonds, then chop them very fine. Mix the sugar and
the whites of egg and stir for about half an hour, then add the al[Pg 137]monds
to form a rather hard paste. Of this make little balls, as large as a
small walnut. If the paste is too soft add a little butter, if too hard
add a little white of egg, this time beaten. Were it desired to give the
macaroons a brownish color, mix with the paste a little burnt sugar.
As you form the little ball, that you will flatten to the thickness of
one third of an inch, put them over wafers or on pieces of paper or in a
baking tin greased with butter and sprinkled with half flour and half
powdered sugar. Dispose them at a certain distance from one another as
they will enlarge and swell, remaining empty inside.
Bake in an oven moderately hot.
II
Powdered sugar, ten and a half ounces.
Sweet almonds, three ounces.
Bitter almonds, one ounce.
Two whites of egg.
Skin the almonds and dry them in the sun or on the fire, then chop and
grind very fine with one white of egg poured in various times. When this
is done, put half of the sugar, stirring and kneading with your hand.
Then pour everything in a large bowl and, always mixing, add half of the
other white of egg, then the other half of the sugar and finally the
other half of the white.
In this way an homogenous mixture will be obtained of the right
firmness. Shake into a kind[Pg 138] of a stick and cut it in rounds all equal,
one third of an inch thick. Take them up one by one with moistened
fingers and make little balls as large as a walnut. Flatten them to the
thickness of a third of an inch and for the rest proceed as said above,
but dust with powdered sugar before putting in a hot oven.
With this dose about thirty macarons can be obtained.
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FARINA CAKES
(Pasticcini di semolino)
Farina, six and a half ounces.
Sugar, three and a half ounces.
Pine-seeds, two ounces.
Butter, a small piece.
Milk, one quart.
Four eggs.
A pinch of salt.
Taste of lemon peel.
Cook the farina in the milk and when it begins to thicken pour the
pine-seeds, previously chopped fine and pounded with the sugar, then the
butter and the rest, less the eggs which must be put in last when the
mixture has completely cooled. Then place the whole well mixed in little
molds, greased evenly with butter and sprinkled with bread crumbs ground
fine, and bake.[Pg 139]
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RICE TART
(Torta di riso)
Milk, one quart.
Rice, seven ounces.
Sugar, five and a half ounces.
Sweet almonds with four bitter ones, three and a half ounces.
Candied cedar (angelica), one ounce.
Three whole eggs.
Five egg-yolks.
Taste of lemon peel.
A pinch of salt.
Skin the almonds and grind or pound them with two tablespoonfuls of the
sugar.
Cut the candied cedar in very small cubes. Cook the rice in the milk
until it is quite firm, put in all the ingredients except the eggs,
which are added when the mixture is cold. Put the entire mixture in a
baking tin greased with butter and sprinkled with bread crumbs ground
fine, harden in the oven and after 24 hours cut the tart into diamonds.
When serving dust with powdered sugar.
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FARINA TART
(Torta di semolino)
Milk, one quart.
Farina finely ground, four and a half ounces.
[Pg 140]Sugar, four and a half ounces.
Sweet almonds with three bitter, three and a half ounces.
Butter, a small piece.
Four eggs.
Taste of lemon peel.
A pinch of salt.
Skin the almonds in warm water and ground or pound very fine with all
the sugar, to be mixed one tablespoonful at a time.
Cook the farina in the milk and before removing from the fire add the
butter and the almonds, which will dissolve easily, being mixed with the
sugar. Then put the pinch of salt and wait until it becomes lukewarm to
add the eggs that are to be beaten whole previously. Pour the mixture in
a baking tin greased evenly with butter, sprinkled with bread crumbs and
of such a size that the tart has the thickness of an inch or less. Put
it in the oven, remove from the mold when cold and serve whole or cut
into sections.
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