The Lady's Own Cookery Book, and New Dinner-Table Directory;

Lemon Caudle

Take a pint of water, the juice of two lemons, the rind of half a lemon pared as thin as possible from the white, a blade of mace, and some bread shred very small; sweeten to your taste. Set the whole on the fire to boil; when boiled enough, which you will perceive by the bread being soft, beat three or four eggs well together till they are as thin as water; then take a little out of the skillet and put to the eggs, and so proceed till the eggs are hot; then put them to the rest, stirring well to prevent curdling.

Lemon or Chocolate Drops

Take half a pound of fine-sifted double-refined sugar; grate into it the yellow rind of a fair large lemon; whip the white of an egg to a froth, with which wet the sugar till it is as stiff as good working paste. Drop it as you like on paper, with a little sugar first sifted on it; bake in a very slow oven.

For chocolate drops, grate about an ounce of chocolate as you did of lemon-peel, which must then be left out.

Lemon Puffs

Into half a pound of double-refined sugar, beat fine and sifted, grate the yellow rind of a large lemon. Whip up the white of an egg to a froth, and wet it with the froth, till it is as stiff as a good working paste. Lay the puffs on papers, and bake them in a very slow oven.

Lemon Tart

A quarter of a pound of almonds blanched and beaten with a little sweet cream; put in half a pound of sugar, the yolks only of eight eggs, half a pound of butter, the peel of two lemons grated. Beat all together fine in a mortar; lay puff paste about the dish; bake it half an hour.

Lemon Solid

Put the juice of a lemon, with the rind grated, into a dish: sweeten it to your taste; boil a quart of cream till it is reduced to three half pints; pour it upon the lemon, and let it stand to cool. It should be made the day before it is used.

Syrup of Lemons

To three pounds of the best sugar finely beaten put one pint of lemon juice, set by to settle, and then poured off clear: put it in a silver tankard, and set that in a pot of boiling water. Let this boil till the sugar is quite dissolved, and when cold bottle it; take care that in the boiling not the least water gets in. Skim off any little scum that rises.

Macaroons

Take half a pound of almonds, blanched and pounded, and half a pound of finely pounded lump sugar. Beat up the whites of two eggs to a froth; mix the sugar and almonds together; add the eggs by degrees; and, when they are well mixed, drop a spoonful on wafer-paper. They must be baked as soon as made in a slow oven.

Citron Marmalade

Boil the citron very tender, cutting off all the yellow rind; beat the white very well in a wooden bowl; shred the rind, and to a pound of pulp and rind take a pound and a half of sugar, and half a pint of water. When it boils, put in the citron, and boil it very fast till it is clear; put in half a pint of pippin jelly, and boil it till it jellies very well; then add the lemon-juice, and put it into your pots or glasses.

Cherry Marmalade

Take eight pounds of cherries, not too ripe; stone them; take two pounds of sugar beaten, and the juice of four quarts of currants, red and white. Put the cherries into a pan, with half a pound of the sugar, over a very hot fire; shake them frequently; when there is a good deal of liquor, put in the rest of the sugar, skimming it well and boiling it as fast as possible, till your syrup is almost wasted; then put in your currant juice, and let it boil quick till it jellies; keep stirring it with care; then put it in pots.

Another way

Take five pounds of cherries stoned and two pounds of loaf sugar; shred your cherries, wet your sugar with the juice that runs from them, then put the cherries into the sugar, and boil them pretty fast, till they become a marmalade. When cold, put it into glasses for use.

Orange Marmalade. No. 1

Pare your oranges very thin, and lay them in water two or three days, changing the water twice a day; then take them out, and dry them with a linen cloth. Take their weight in sugar beat fine; cut the oranges in halves, take out the pulp, pick out the seeds, and take off the skins carefully. Boil the rinds very tender in a linen cloth; cut them in strips whilst hot, and lay them in the pan in which you design to boil the marmalade. Put a layer of sugar, and a layer of orange rinds, alternately, till all are in; let them stand till the sugar is quite dissolved; add the juice of a lemon; set them on a stove, and let them boil fast till nearly done; then put in the pulp, and boil them again till quite done. Take them off, and add the juice of a lemon; let them stand in pots for a few days, and they will be fit for eating.

Lemon marmalade may be done in the same way, only with a much greater quantity of sugar, or sugar mixed with sugar-candy.

Orange Marmalade. No. 2

Take six dozen Seville oranges; pare thin three dozen, the other three rasp thin, and keep the parings and raspings separate. Cut all the six dozen in halves; squeeze out the juice, but not too hard; scoop out the pulp with a tea-spoon; pick out the seeds, and keep the pulp. Boil the skins, changing the water two or three times, to take off the bitterness, till they are tender enough for a straw to pierce them. When they are boiled, scoop out and throw away the stringy part; boil the parings three times in different waters; beat the boiled skins very fine in a marble mortar; beat the boiled rinds in the same manner. The pulp, skin, rinds, and juice, must be all weighed, but not yet mixed; for each pound in the whole take one pound of loaf sugar, which must first be mixed with a little water, boiled alone, well skimmed, and thoroughly cleared. The pulp, skins, and juice, must then be put into this syrup, well mixed, and boiled together for about half an hour; after which put in the rasped rinds, beaten as above directed, and boil all together for a short time. Put the marmalade into small pots, and cover with brandy paper.

Orange Marmalade. No. 3

Take a dozen of Seville oranges and their weight in sugar finely powdered. Pare the oranges as thin as possible; the first peel is not used in marmalade; it is better to grate off the outer peel and put them in water. Let them lie two or three days, changing the water every day; then cut the oranges in quarters, and take out all the pulp; boil the peels in several waters, till they are quite tender and not bitter. Then put to the sugar half a pint of water, and boil it to a syrup, till it draws as fine as a hair; put in the peels sliced very thin, and boil them gently about a quarter of an hour. While the peels are boiling, pick out all the seeds and skins from the pulp; then put the pulp to the orange-peel; let it boil till it is clear; put a little in a saucer, and when it jellies it is done enough.

Scotch Orange Marmalade

Weigh the oranges, and take an equal weight of sugar; wipe the fruit with a wet cloth; grate them, cut them across, and squeeze them through a hair sieve. Boil the skins tender, so that the head of a pin will easily pierce them; take them off the fire, squeeze out the water, scrape the pulp from them, cut the skins into very thin chips, and let them boil until they are very transparent. Then put in the juice and so much of the gratings as you choose; let it all boil together till it will jelly, which you will know by letting a little of it cool in a saucer.

Red Quince Marmalade. No. 1

Take one pound and a half of quinces, two pounds of sugar, a pint of water, and a quarter of a pint of the juice of quinces; boil it tender, and skim it well. When done enough, put into it a quarter of a pint of the juice of barberries. Skim it clear as long as any thing rises.

Red Quince Marmalade. No. 2

Scald as many fine large quinces as you would use, and grate as many small ones as will make a quart of juice, or according to the quantity you want. Let this settle; after you have pressed it through a coarse cloth, strain it through a jelly-bag, that what you use may be perfectly clear. To every pint of this liquor put a pound and a half of sugar, and a pound and a half of the scalded quinces, which must be pared and cored before they are weighed. Set it at first on a pretty brisk fire; when it begins to boil, slacken the fire; and when it begins to turn red cover it close. As soon as it is of a fine bright red, take it off, as it turns of a blackish muddy colour in a moment if not carefully watched. A small bit of cochineal, tied up in a bit of rag and boiled with it, gives it a beautiful colour. Before you have finished boiling, add barberry juice, to your judgment, which improves the flavour.

Red Quince Marmalade. No. 3

Pare the quinces, quarter them, and cut out all the hard part; to a pound of quinces put a pound and a half of sugar and half a pound of the juice of barberries, boiled with water, as you do jelly or other fruit, boiling it very fast, and break it very small; when it is all to pieces and jellied, it is enough. If you wish the marmalade to be of a green colour, put a few black bullaces to the barberries when you make the jelly.

White Quince Marmalade

Pare and quarter the quinces, and put as much water as will cover them; boil them all to pieces to make jelly, and run it through a jelly-bag. Take a pound of quinces, quarter them, and cut out all the hard parts; pare them, and to a pound of fruit put a pound and a half of finely beaten sugar and half a pint of water. Let it boil till very clear; keep stirring it, and it will break as you wish it. When the sugar is boiled very thick, almost to a candy, put in half a pint of jelly, and let it boil very fast till it becomes a jelly. Take it off the fire, and put in juice of lemon; skim it well, and put it into pots or glasses.

Marchpane

Blanch one pound of almonds as white as you can; take three quarters of a pound of fine white sugar well pounded; beat them up together with a little rose-water, to prevent the almonds from oiling. Take out the mixture, work it like paste, make it into cakes, lay them on wafers, and bake them. Boil rose-water and sugar till it becomes a syrup; when the cakes are almost done, spread this syrup all over them, and strew them with comfits.

Another way

Take a pound of almonds finely beaten, and a pound of fine sugar, sifted through a hair sieve; mix these together; then add the whites of four eggs, beaten up to a froth; mix the whole well together, and scald it over your fire, still keeping it well-stirred, to prevent burning. Let it stand till cold; afterwards roll it on papers, and bake it.

Marrow Pasties

Make the pasties small, the length of a finger; put in large pieces of marrow, first dipped in egg, and seasoned with sugar, beaten cloves, mace, and nutmeg. Strew a few currants on the marrow, and either bake or fry them.

Melons or Cucumbers, to preserve

Cut and pare a thoroughly ripe melon into thick slices; put them into water till they become mouldy; then put them into fresh water over the fire to coddle, not to boil. Make a good syrup; when properly skimmed, and while boiling, put your melon in to boil for a short time. The syrup should be boiled every day for a fortnight; do not put it to the melon till a little cold: the last time you boil the syrup, put it into a muslin bag; add one ounce of ginger pounded and the juice and rind of two lemons; but, if a large melon, allow an additional ounce of ginger.

Melon Compote

Cut a good melon as for eating; peel it, carefully taking off the green part entirely, but not more. Take out all the inside, and steep the slices for ten days in the best vinegar, keeping it well covered. Take out the slices, and put them over the fire in fresh vinegar; let them stew till quite tender. Then drain and dry them in a cloth; stick bits of cloves and cinnamon in them; lay them in a jar, and make a syrup, and pour over them. Tie the jar close down. This kind of sweetmeat is eaten in Geneva with roast meat, and is much better than currant jelly or apple sauce. The melon must be in good order, and within three or four days of being ripe enough to eat.

Mince Meat. No. 1

One pound of beef, one pound and a half of suet, one pound of currants, half a pound of chopped raisins, one pound of sugar, if moist, half a pint of brandy, a pint of raisin wine, mace, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg, pounded together. Sweetmeats, candied lemon, and fresh peel, may be added, when used for baking.

Mince Meat. No. 2

One pound of beef suet, one pound of apples peeled and cored, one pound of raisins stoned and chopped very fine, the same of currants well picked, half a pound of sugar made very fine, a glass of brandy, a glass of wine, half an ounce of allspice, the juice of two large lemons, the rind chopped as fine as possible: add sweetmeats to your taste.

Mince Meat. No. 3

Take one pound of beef and two pounds of suet shred fine, two pounds of currants, one pound of the best raisins stoned, but not chopped, three quarters of a pound of sugar, four fine pippins or russetings chopped fine, some grated lemon-peel, half an ounce of cinnamon, the same of nutmeg, a quarter of an ounce of mace, wine and brandy to your taste, and whatever sweetmeats you please.

Mince Meat without Meat. No. 1

Twelve pounds of currants, very well washed, dried, and picked, six pounds of raisins stoned and chopped very small, a quarter of a pound of cloves, three ounces of mace, and two of nutmegs, pounded very fine, the rind of three large fresh lemons pared very thin and chopped fine, six pounds of powder sugar, a quart of sack, a quart of brandy, one hundred golden rennets, pared, cored, and chopped small: mix all well together, and let it stand two days, stirring it from the bottom twice or thrice a day. Add three whole dried preserved oranges and an equal weight of dried citron. Mix in the suet a day or two before you use it. Add lemon-juice to your taste, and that only to the quantity you mean to bake at once. Without suet these ingredients will keep for six months.

Mince Meat without Meat. No. 2

To make a mince meat that will keep for five or six years, take four pounds of raisins of the sun, stoned and chopped very fine, five pounds of currants, three pounds of beef suet shred very fine, the crumb of a half-quartern loaf, three pounds of loaf-sugar, the peel of four lemons grated, half an ounce of nutmeg, a quarter of an ounce of mace, the same of cloves, and one pint of good brandy. When you make your pies, add about one third of apple chopped fine; and to each pie put six or eight small slices of citron and preserved orange-peel, with a table-spoonful of sweet wine, ratafia, and a piece of a large lemon mixed together.

Mince Meat without Meat. No. 3

Three pounds of suet, three pounds of apples, pared and cored, three pounds of currants washed, picked, and dried, one pound and a half of sugar powdered, three quarters of a pound of preserved orange-peel, six ounces of citron, the juice of six lemons, one pint of sack and one of brandy, a quarter of an ounce of mace, the same of nutmeg, and of cloves and cinnamon half a quarter of an ounce each.

Lemon Mince Meat

Cut three large lemons, and squeeze out the juice; boil the peels together with the pulp till it will pound in a mortar; put to it one pound of beef suet, finely chopped, currants and lump sugar, one pound of each; mix it all well together; then add the juice with a glass of brandy. Put sweetmeats to your taste.

Mirangles

Put half a pint of syrup into a stewpan, and boil it to what is called blow; then take the whites of three eggs, put them in another copper pan, and whisk them very strong. When your sugar is boiled, rub it against the sides of the stewpan with a table-spoon; when you see the sugar change, quickly mix the whites of eggs with it, for if you are not quick your sugar will turn to powder. When you have mixed it as light as possible, put in the rind of one lemon; stir it as little as possible: take a board, about one foot wide and eighteen inches long, and put a sheet of paper on it. With your table-spoon drop your batter in the shape of half an egg: sift a little powdered sugar over them before you put them in the oven. Let your oven be of a moderate heat; watch them attentively, and let them rise, and just let the outside be a little hard, but not the least brown; the inside must be moist. Take them off with a knife, and just put about a tea-spoonful of jam in the middle of them; then put two of them together, and they will be in the shape of an egg; you must handle them very gently.

Moss

Take as much white starch as sugar, and sift it; colour some of the sugar with turmeric, some with blue powder, some with chocolate, and some with the juice of spinach; and wet each by itself with a solution of gum-dragon. Strain and rub it through a hair sieve, and let them dry before you touch them.

Muffins

Mix flour in a pan, with warm new milk and water, yest and salt, according to your judgment. Beat it up well with a wooden spoon till it is a stiff batter; then set it near the fire to rise, which will be in about an hour. It must then be well beaten down, and put to rise again, and, when very light, made into muffins, and baked in flat round irons made for the purpose. The iron must be made hot, and kept so with coals under it. Take out the batter with a spoon, and drop it on a little flour sprinkled lightly on a table. Then lay them on a trencher with a little flour; turn the trencher round to shape them, assisting with your hand if they need it. Then bake them; when one side is done, turn them with a muffin knife, and bake the other.

Oranges, to preserve

Make a hole at the stalk end; take out all the seeds, but no pulp; squeeze out the juice, which must be saved to put to them, taking great care you do not loosen the pulp. Put them into an earthen pan, with water; boil them till the water is bitter, changing it three times, and, in the last water put a little salt, and boil them till they are very tender, but not to break. Take them out and drain them; take two pounds of sugar and a quart of pippin jelly; boil it to a syrup, skim it very clear, and then put in your oranges. Set them over a gentle fire till they boil very tender and clear; then put to them the juice that you took from them; prick them with a knife that the syrup may penetrate. If you cut them in halves, lay the skin side upwards, and put them up and cover them with the syrup.

Lemons and citrons may be done in the same way.

Whole Oranges, to preserve

Take six oranges, rasp them very thin, put them in water as you do them, and let them lie all night. In the morning boil them till they are tender, and then put them into clear water, and let them remain so two or three days. Take the oranges, and cut a hole in the top, and pick out the seeds, but not the meat; then take three pounds of fine sugar, and make a thin syrup, and, when boiled and skimmed, put in your oranges, and let them boil till they are clear. Take them out, and let them stand three or four days; then boil them again till the syrup is rather thick. Put half a pound of sugar and half a pint of apple jelly to every orange, and let it boil until it jellies; put them into pots, and place any substance to keep down the orange in the pot till it cools.

Seville Oranges, to preserve

Put Seville oranges in spring water, where let them remain three or four days, shifting the water every day. Take them out, and grate off a little of the outside rind very carefully without touching the white, only to take away a little of the bitter; make a thin syrup, and, when it is sufficiently cleared and boiled, take it off, and, when it is only warm, put the oranges in and just simmer them over the fire. Put them and the syrup into a pan, and in a day or two set them again on the fire, and just scald them. Repeat this a day afterwards; then boil a thick syrup; take the oranges out of the thin one, and lay them on a cloth to drain, covered over with another; then put them to the thick syrup, as you before did to the thin one, putting them into it just hot, and giving them a simmer. Repeat this in a few days if you think they are not sufficiently done. The insides must be left in.

Butter Orange

Take a pint of the juice of oranges and eight new-laid eggs beaten well together; mix and season them to your taste with loaf-sugar; then set it on the fire; keep stirring till it becomes thick; put in a bit of butter of the size of a walnut, stirring it while on the fire; then dish it up.

Candied Orange

Take twelve oranges, the palest you can get; take out the pulp, pick out the seeds and skins; let the outsides soak in water with a little salt all night: then boil them in a good quantity of spring water, till tender, which will be about nine or ten hours. Drain and cut them in very thin slices; add them to the pulp, and to every pound take one pound and a half of sugar beaten fine. Boil them together till clear, which will be in about three quarters of an hour.

Orange Cream

Grate the peels of four Seville oranges into a pint of water, then squeeze the juice into the water. Well beat the yolks of four eggs; put all together; and sweeten with double-refined sugar. Press the whole hard through a strong strainer; set it on the fire, and stir it carefully one way, till it is as thick as cream.

Orange Jelly

Dissolve two ounces of isinglass in a pint of water; add a pint of the juice of four China oranges, two Seville oranges, and two lemons. Grate the peel of them all, and sweeten to your palate.

Orange Paste

Pick all the meat out of the oranges, and boil the rinds in water till they are very tender. Cut off all the outside, and beat the pulp in a mortar till it is very fine. Shred the outside in long thin bits, and mix it with the meat, when you have taken out all the seeds. To every pint of juice put half a pint of the pulp, and mix all together. Then boil up a candy of sugar; put in your paste, and just scald it; add a good pound of sugar to a pint of the paste; put it into a broad earthen pan, set it on a stove, let it remain till it candies; skim it off with a spoon, drop it on glasses to dry, and as, often as it candies keep skimming it.

Another way

To six ounces of sugar put six ounces at least of fine flour, mixed with a little orange-flower water, but no eggs, as they would make it too dry. Moisten with water, taking care that it is neither too hard nor too soft. Rub the pan with a little fine oil.

Orange Puffs

Pare off the yellow peel of a large Seville orange, but be careful not to touch the white; boil it in three several waters to take out the bitterness; it will require about three hours’ boiling. Beat it very fine in a marble mortar, with four ounces of fine lump sugar, four ounces of fresh butter, the yolks of six eggs, four good spoonfuls of sweet thick cream, and one spoonful of orange-flower water. Beat all these ingredients so well together that you cannot discern a particle of the orange-peel. Roll out your puff paste as thin as possible, lay it in pattypans, fill them with the ingredients, but do not cover them. Bake them in an oven no hotter than for cheesecakes; but for frying you must make them with crust without butter, and fry them in lard.

Another way

Take one pound of single-refined sugar sifted and the rind of an orange grated, a little gum-dragon, and beaten almonds rubbed through a sieve. Mix all these well together; wet it into paste, and beat it in a mortar; add whites of eggs whipped to a frost.

Orange Sponge