Food History

Tonight I felt very much like artichokes with dinner, so I’m giving you a serve as well as myself. I also felt like spending time with Hannah Woolley, and of reminding myself that just because people tell me our ancestors didn’t eat meat, doesn’t make those people right.

Artichoaks Fried

Boil your Artichoaks, and sever them from the bottom, then slice and quarter them; having so done, dip them in Butter, and fry them in Butter. For the sauce, take Verjuice, Butter, and Sugar, with the juice of an Orange, lay Marrow on them, and having garnisht them with Marrow, serve them up.

Artichoaks being boil’d, take out the core, and take off the leaves, cut the Bottoms into quarters, splitting them in the middle, then put them into your flat stewing-pan, with Manchet toasts therein, laying the Artichoaks on them, with an indifferent quantity of Marrow, five or six large Maces, half a pound of preferred Plumbs with the Sirrup, Verjuice, and Sugar; let them thus stew two hours, if you stew them in a Dish, stir them not thence, but serve them up in it, laying on some Barberies preserv’d, and suchlike, so sippet it and serve it up; Instead of preserved Plumbs, you may stew those which are ordinary, and wil do near as well, and are much cheaper.

Take a dozen Pippins, or more, pare, slice, or quarter them, put them into a Skillet, with some Claret-wine, and a race of Ginger sliced thin, a little Lemmon-peel cut small, and some Sugar; let all these stew together till they be soft, then take them off the fire, and put them into a Dish, and when they be cold, take a quart of boil’d Cream, with a little Nutmeg, and put in of the Apple as much as will thicken it; and so serve it up.

My sister has just given me a gorgeous piece of food ephemera.

I’m in Melbourne (until an unholy hour tomorrow morning) to celebrate Betty’s life. You heard about Betty and her chocolate cake last week. You have to admit, I’m having an exceptionally strange August.

When I arrived here, my sister said “These are for you,” and gave me a bunch of leaflets and cookbooks, all of which I’ll get to in due course. Mum plonked her computer in front of me and said “You should blog now” and so I am. I was an obedient child and still have those responses embedded deep within me.

The leaflet looks rather patriotic. 1950s, from the recipes (early sixties at the latest). The cover simply says “For valour” and the picture of a military medal superimposed over shadows of soldiers in the clouds and unending acres of fields below.

Inside, the leaflet has a different name “Heroes of peace.” From there on, its 28 pages are dedicated to the purity and beauty of tinned pineapple. Queensland tinned pineapple. It’s the brand that -these days - is Golden Circle. In the fifties, it was called Victoria Cross. And so the odd military overtones of the leaflet are explained. A whole heap of cultural changes in Australia have taken place over the last fifty years, and one thing that has shifted is the nature of patriotism. VC pineapple has been replaced by Golden Circle pineapple and we no longer feel quite as amazingly military every time we open a tin.

The recipes are equally dated. Let me give you one that caused us fewest shudders:

Bread and Butter Pineapple Pudding

1 1/2 cups VC Crushed Pineapple
3 tbs sugar
1 tbs creamed butter
3 slices stale bread
lemon juice

Place the pineapple and juice in a dish. Spread the thin slices of bread with creamed butter. Cut them in various shapes and fit closely over the pineapple. Put in a few drops of lemon juice and sprinkle with sugar. Bake in a moderate oven until brown about 45 minutes. Serve hot with cream.

It’s impossible to do a useful post on any country’s food in a few hundred words, but of all the countries in the world, Chinese food is the most impossible to summarise in this way. Because of the Chinese diaspora and Chinese restaurants in other counties and a certain understanding of certain dishes in certain countries, we tend to go about our lives happily thinking that we know Chinese food. We don’t. Well, some people do. I don’t. I know some of the regional flavours and a few of the cooking styles and some of the historical influences and that’s enough to teach me that I really don’t know anything.

So, what do I give you here to celebrate the Chinese hosting the Olympics? A version of the Chinese Diaspora, of course. That has its own complex food history and it’s the one most of us know best.

Because the theme has mostly been students abroad, here are some recipes from Hong Kong that a Hong Kong student taught me twenty years ago, when homesick. I’ve gone for the easy dishes, because I’ve come to the end of my energies (how did I get posts to you this week? I crept out of bed and typed until my fingers were too tired, posted what I had done, then crept back into bed again – I made great use of WordPress, which allowed me to post ahead of time – I know they weren’t the best posts in the world, but the recipes are fabulous and it meant I can now creep into bed for the next 2 days, knowing, on Thursday, that you’re all OK for food till Sunday. All my friends have already scolded me, so you can just shake your head sorrowfully and enjoy the posts.)

Curry Triangles

Mix minced beef with curry powder and seasonings. Cut rice pastry into triangles and fill. Fold into small triangles, using beaten egg to seal the corners. Fry in hot oil.

Steamed Chicken

Bring chicken to room temperature. Shred fresh ginger and spring onion. Stuff chicken with it. If you want, you can also sprinkle salt in the stuffing, on the chicken and oil the skin of the chicken lightly. Steam the chicken for fifteen minutes (my friend used a wok as a double boiler – it reached a high heat quickly – you may need a bit longer cooking time if you’re not using a wok). Immediately after steaming, drain and rinse with cold water. Cut and serve with a sauce made by mixing the stuffing with oil and soy sauce.

Beef fillet

Slice beef very thin. Marinate for one hour in hoisin sauce, seasoning, sesame oil. Stir fry very thin slices of onion till brown. Add beef. Serve with lightly steamed Chinese cabbage with oyster sauce.

Thailand is doing so very well at the Olympics and has such a fascinating culinary history, that I can’t resist doing a Thai post. A few years ago Western knowledge of Thailand was of the “Anna and the King of Siam” nature. This makes it almost impossible to describe Thai food in terms of its history without getting very complex. I might return to it when I have time and energy. Energy is still lacking because yes, I’m still ill.

The sort of Thai food I’m giving you here, though, is totally perfect for the sickbed. It’s easy to make and slightly adapted (I suspect, though my fiends were nice and claimed otherwise) for Australian tastes. Again, it is students-in-Australia-food and fish sauce is inevitably replaced by other ingredients to fit my particular allergies.

For anyone who hasn’t encountered the amazing flavours and textures of Thai food, this isn’t such a bad place to start. It’s an inspiring cuisine, and one of the things I find particularly inspiring about it is that you can trace those complex flavours and depth of palate through trade routes and political negotiations. Thai food rests very firmly on Thai history.

Kanum pan na gai (snack food)

1. Dry slices of bread in air (don’t let them become crisp_. Cut off crusts and cut into quarters.

2. Mix topping. (Crush coriander root, garlic, pepper and salt. Pound until mushy. Add minced chicken. Knead until smooth and paste-like.)

3. Put topping on bread, running it over the edge of the bread a little.

4. Heat oil. Fry meat side down first, then flip over and fry other side until crisp.

Mi Krop (noodles)

8 oz dried vermicelli
2 cups vegetable oil
¾ cup chopped tofu
1 tbs brown bean sauce
c 1 tbs salt
2 tbs sugar
1 beaten egg
1 tbs chopped spring onion
1 tbs chopped coriander leaves (cilantro for those in the US)
½ cup bean sprouts
½ tsp grated lemon rind
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp shredded red chilli
salt and pepper

Heat oil in deep saucepan. Deep fry vermicelli in very hot oil until crisp and golden. Drain on paper towel and set aside.

In frying pan heat 3 tbs oil. Fry garlic. Stir in beancurd and fry for a few minutes. Season with salt and sugar. Stir in beaten egg. When egg almost cooked, add vermicelli. Mix well. Remove from heat.

Sprinkle with lemon ring, spring onion, coriander leaf and red chilli. Garnish with beansprouts. Can squeeze lemon on before eating.

Obviously I have a thing about large islands. It might be because I live on one. Today’s country is not only a large island, it’s as sporting-mad as Australia, which makes it entirely appropriate for a brief visit during the Olympics. If only there were cricket at the Olympics, Sri Lanka would be impossible to miss.

These recipes are family food brought to Australia by Sri Lankans. I don’t know if they have been adjusted for life in the new country. I do know that they’re different from their Indian near-equivalent. The curries are less complex and the underlying flavours of the vegetables are more pronounced.

These are very much home cooking. The quantities are all to taste and my friend adjusted them for the number of people and tastebuds automatically.

The method is likewise based on experience and not on recipe books. The meat curry recipe is typical of the ones I collected from a very particular group of good cooks. . From experience you are supposed to know what spices are fried first and which ones are added at the end. You’re also supposed to realise that the meat is implied.

I’ve developed my own practises in this regard, changing the way I was taught to cook Sri Lankan recipes to suit the way I cook and the way I eat. I can’t emphasise enough that we all do this, usually instinctively. That every recipe we receive from historical sources is changed before we so much as put a forkful in our mouth.

How would I interpret the meat curry below? I would fry the garlic and ginger (in a little oil then add the mustard, then add the tomato paste and soy sauce. If I use chilli I might add it straight after the ginger, or if paprika, add it right at the end. All the other ingredients go in together, then I would braise cubes of meat in it and then let it all cook, slowly. That’s my method, though, not THE method. We’re so used to formal cookbooks that we forget that most food in history has been cooked by combining ingredients in a comfortable and familiar way, not from following recipes.

Kadju Curry

Soak cashew nuts for 4-5 hours. Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped onion, garlic, raw curry powder, turmeric, lime and salt to taste. Cover and let it marinate. Add soy or other milk to make the curry moist (not wet).

Sri Lankan Beef Curry Powder

1 part cumin: 2 parts fennel: 4 parts coriander

Roast spices until toasted and fragrant. Grind.

Sri Lankan Meat Curry

Tomato paste
Garlic
Ginger
Soy sauce
Paprika or chili powder
Powdered mustard
Beef curry powder (see above)
Vinegar
Curry powder

I’m dreaming of the Pacific Islands today. All my Pacific Islander friends have enjoyed such robust health, and this week I’m so fragile that it was inevitable.

What’s interesting is that these Samoan recipes come from a Cook Island friend. The cultural boundaries of the islands are not the same as the cultural boundaries of other islands. When Th. gave me recipes, they were often from cookbooks and they might equally be Tongan or New Zealander as Cook Islander or Samoan. I don’t know if this was just her, though, or a way of getting rid of me quickly, or whether it reflects those cultural boundaries I’d like it to reflect.

So many of us have recipes and traditions from a single source. It’s so easy to extrapolate and make assumptions about a culture and its foodways from this single source. So easy, but it’s wrong. All you have here (until I add more evidence of those porous boundaries – and in fact I do have some more evidence) are two recipes from a lovely cook.

Mango Chicken

2 kg chicken
5 tbs butter
2 large onions (chopped)
2 mangoes (peeled and sliced)
½ tsp nutmeg
rind of ½ lemon (cut into strips)
1 ½ cups chicken stock
1 tssp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
juice of ½ lemon
½ cup fresh coconut cream
paprika

Cut chicken into serving pieces, filleting the breast. Brown in half of the butter. Remove from fat and keep warm. Fry onion until clear (in rest of butter), add mango and cook for five minutes.

Return Chicken to pan. Add nutmeg, lemon rind, chicken stock, salt and pepper. Cover and cook until chicken is tender (c 45 mins). Remove chicken – keep warm.

Discard lemon rind. Add lemon juice. Stir in coconut cream carefully. Adjust seasoning. Bring to simmer then pour the sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with paprika.

Faapapa (bread)

3 cups sifted flour
1 cup coconut milk
1 ripe banana or 1 tbs sugar
c ½ tsp salt

Mix flour and coconut milk to a stiff paste. Beat in banana and salt. Put mixture on pieces of oiled tin foil, then bring foil up into a ball and twist the top. Do not overfull or press down hard. Bake 30 minutes (till brown and crunchy) at 230 degrees C.

I did my doctorate in Sydney in the 1980s. All these Japanese recipes are therefore from students in their twenties, who, in the 1980s, were studying in Sydney. Why does that sound dull? It wasn’t dull at all. One of my Japanese friends taught me to love Billy Joel, another taught me a very strange dance (which I shall not be demonstrating for anyone soon) and they all got together to give me one of the best birthdays of my life.

There were some good things about Sydney for Japanese food back then. Magnificent seafood, for instance. There were some bad things. Lack of specialist ingredients. And then there was me. I was disastrous for traditional Japanese cooking. My culinary skills were sufficient for Japanese home cooking, but my immense allergy to fish meant that so many of the dishes I recorded were versions made especially for me.

This is not so unusual. The extreme allergy is unusual, but we all make adaptations to dishes when we adopt them into our own foodways. This is a good example of a more extreme adaptation than most, but adaptations always happen. Food history is never static – it’s always about change.

Cucumber Pickles

Slice cucumbers as thinly as possible. Pickle them in vinegar, sugar and a little bit of salt. After 10-30 minutes, squeeze and serve.

Fried chicken

Marinate chicken pieces in sake, soy sauce, grated ginger and Chinese Five Spice Powder. Dry. Dip in flour. Deep fry.

Red Bean Soup

Boil red beans and sugar and water until very soft. Mash or blend. Put a grilled rice cake in the bottom of the soup bowl and serve with pickles and green tea.

Today’s emergency post from a still-unwell-Gillian comes from a volume that’s really a correspondence course. It’s by Alice Bradley, was published in 1922 by the American School of Home Economics and is called Cooking For Profit. It’s a very handy resource on a large number of things and I might have to introduce it to you properly one day.

Cookies

Work until creamy
1 cup butter substitute, and add
2 cups sugar gradually. 4 eggs well beaten
3 cups flour, sifted with
4 teaspoons baking powder
I teaspoon salt and
1 teaspoon nutmeg if desired. Add
4 tablespoons milk and
3 cups flour and flavoring.

Put in ice box or in a cool place until thoroughly chilled, when mixture should be quite stiff. Take out a small portion at a time, on a floured cloth, roll until thin as paper, shape as desired. Place on greased tin and bake 8 minutes in a moderate oven.

Fancy Cookies

1. Sprinkle mixture generously with cocoanut when partially rolled out, finish rolling.
2. Sprinkle mixture with cinnamon and sugar before cutting out.
3. To the mixture add 1 cup chopped nut meats, roll thin, shape, sprinkle with chopped nuts and bake.
4. Put a few currants in the center of each cookie before baking.
5. Put 1 teaspoon caraway seed in the mixture before chilling.
6. To mixture add squares [sorry, number of squares is not clear on the electronic version of the book I'm consulting - also, some of those 1s mught be 1/2s - I need a hard copy of this book!!] melted chocolate before chilling.
7. Use maple sugar instead of plain sugar and sprinkle cookies with maple sugar and chopped pecan nut meats.
8. Flavor cookies with grated orange rind.
9. To mixture add 1 cup chopped candied ginger.
10. Shape cookie mixture with heart, diamond, club and spade cutters. When baked spread hearts and diamonds with frosting colored red, and clubs and spades with melted sweet chocolate.

Baking Powder Biscuits are quickly made if you keep on hand flour ready mixed with baking powder and salt. Each day the shortening may be mixed with the amount of flour you are likely to use. As orders come in milk may be added and biscuits should be ready to serve in 20 minutes. Serve with butter and
Honey or
Maple syrup or
Marmalade or
Jam, preserve or conserve

Baking Powder Biscuits may have one of the following mixtures spread on the dough and then be rolled up, cut off and baked:
Butter and brown sugar
Butter, sugar and cinnamon
Butter and marmalade
Butter, sugar, raisins and spice
Butter, maple sugar and nuts
Butter, sugar and orange juice and rind.

Tonight my post is so late it’s almost tomorrow and it has to be biscuits and scones. Sorry about this, but I’ve had a tempestuous week and it has caught up with me. My body keeps telling me that so much drama in a week is just not permitted. It’s biscuits and scones, therefore, for the whole weekend.

Anyhow, you needed an extra day or so to ponder what countries need to be in our miniature Olympics of food. So far I have China, Finland and Portugal. Oh, and Columbia. Sort of. Just read below and make up your own mind about Columbia, I think.

Favorite dishes. A Columbian Autograph Souvenir Cookery Book. Over three hundred autograph recipes, and twenty-three portraits, contributed specially by the Board of Lady Managers of the World’s Columbian Exposition.
compiled by Carrie V. Shuman, Chicago, 1893

BAKING POWDER BISCUIT.
From MRS. ROLLIN A. EDGERTON, of Arkansas, Secretary of State Board, and Lady Manager.
To one quart of flour add two teaspoons of baking powder, one more of salt, and a tablespoon of lard; mix with sweet milk sufficient to roll out on board without sticking; cut with biscuit tin and bake quickly in hot oven.

HERMITS OR FRUIT COOKIES.
From MRS. SUSAN G. COOKE, of Tennessee, Secretary of the Board of Lady Managers.
I take pleasure in sending you the enclosed recipes. I thought if anyone should send you a recipe for Cookies it ought to be myself. I anticipate spending many pleasant hours in the hereafter trying the recipes of our well known Lady Managers. With best wishes, believe me always, Most cordially yours.
Three eggs, one and one-half cup sugar, one cup butter, one large cup of raisins stoned and chopped, one teaspoon soda; one teaspoon cloves, one teaspoon allspice, one teaspoon cinnamon, flour enough to roll.

COOKIES.
From MISS LILY IRENE JACKSON, of West Virginia, Lady Manager.
Three eggs, two cups of sugar, one cup of butter, one cup of sweet milk, two teaspoons baking powder mix soft, roll thin, bake in a quick oven.

“CORINITA” COOKIES.
From MISS LUCIA B. PEREA, of New Mexico, Alternate Lady Manager.
One cup sugar, one-fourth cup butter, three eggs well beaten together, one cup milk, two teaspoonfuls baking powder well sifted in two cups flour.

COOKIES.
From MRS. ROBT. B. MITCHELL, of Kansas, Lady Manager.
Beat to a cream one cup of butter, two and one-half cups of sugar and the yolks of two eggs. Add a cup of sour cream, into which has been dissolved a small teaspoonful of soda; beat the whites of four eggs to a stiff froth; add to the butter and sugar; flavor to taste; use as little flour as possible to make of consistency to roll thin; sprinkle with sugar; flour the cutter to keep dough from sticking; bake in a quick oven.

GINGER COOKIES.
From MRS. CLARA L. MCADOW, of Montana, Lady Manager.
Two tumblers molasses, one tumbler sweet milk, one tumbler butter, one tablespoon soda, one tablespoon ginger. Well beaten. Mix very soft. Roll thick. Bake in a quick oven.

This week has made me think. Not just about death, but about food traditions associated with death.

My particular branch of Judaism (Anglo-Australian, mostly) links food to almost everything. After the burial close family eats together (in a fairly informal way) and after each minyan (nightly memorial service for eh week of death) we eat too.

There’s no standard fare, though, because it all depends on what people bring who are not the next of kin. When my grandmother died, we found ourselves gifted with more casseroles than biscuits. When Dad died, I seem to remember devilled eggs and many cakes. Also never-ending cups of tea.

The night Dad died was all about biscuits and tea. For me, these are the foods of comfort in times forlorn. I was going to make some of Mum’s biscuits tomorrow, in Dad’s memory, but (since I’m still not well – I’m going for the Guinness Book of World Winter Bug Records) instead I made a gingernut log. A friend is bringing scones, and I’m making club sandwiches (of the Jewish sort, which means that everyone but me is going to have a bit of a shock – apparently the normal version has meat paste or some such thing), a cheese platter and putting out some nibbles. Maybe I’ll make some pikelets, too. Very low key. This also fits the food of mourning. There really isn’t much energy at times like this. Not even my whirlwind mother cooks when emotion drains everything solid from life.

I’m interested to know what foods you associate with mourning and remembrance. It’s not something I know much about, and it’s about time I learned. In return, I’m giving you my recipe for Gingernut Log.

Gingernut Log

1 packet gingernut biscuits
1 container very thick cream (can be thickened)
Between ½-1 glass green ginger wine

Put all the cream in a bowl and mix with 2 tbs of the green ginger wine.

Spread a generous amount of plastic film over a big plate – allow extra for wrapping.

Put the rest of the wine in a pasta bowl (or anything that’s deep enough and has a flat enough base).

The method is really straightforward. You dip the bottom of a biscuit in the wine then turn and dip the other side. Put the first biscuit flat on the plate. Soon a teaspoon (or more, but more will make sensitive stomachs sick) of the cream on the biscuit. The next few biscuits you dip then stick them to the previous biscuit. When the stack gets high enough, place it horizontal across the plate. When you run out of biscuits or plate, spoon the rest of the cream around the roll and smooth it down.

Wrap the roll firmly in the plastic wrap. Wrap the whole lot in aluminium foil, pressing to make sure it’s all enchantingly even. Refrigerate for at least 24 hours.

We used to make this with chocolate ripple biscuits, cream and Madeira, but Dad liked ginger, so I’m getting two memories of my father in the one – somewhat rich – dish.

My life this week keeps zig-zagging. Some amazing and wonderful things kept me from normal work and now some sad events

I don’t remember what I promised for today’s post, but I know what you’re getting.

When someone dies, it’s usually better to remember them and the highlights of their life and what they have given you rather than collapse in a puddle. Puddles are tempting, I admit. But if there’s anything that can lure most people out of those puddles, it’s chocolate cake.

No-one knew this better than Betty. She made the best chocolate cake of my childhood. This took some doing, because I come from a family of excellent cooks and was brought up surrounded by women who knew how to bake properly.

When I started this blog, nearly two years ago, I sneaked a look into my mother’s scrapbook. Of course she had asked Betty for that chocolate cake recipe, and of course Betty had given it.

Small sequences add up, one on one, and create a lasting memory, a bit of food history.

The sad moment in the sequence came yesterday, when Betty died. Her daughter was my best friend at primary school and through quite a chunk of high school. We’ve never not been good friends, even though we’re as different as chalk and cheese. Both of us will be carrying this recipe with us, in the future, and every time we make it, we will be keeping Betty’s memory alive. Not that it needs much keeping – she was much beloved.

Betty’s chocolate cake

2 oz melted butter
¾ cup caster sugar
1 egg
2 tbs dark cocoa
vanilla essence
½ cup milk
1 ½ cups self raising flour
¼ cup boiling water

Pour melted butter over sugar. Beat. Add egg. Beat. Add vanilla.

Sift flour and cocoa. Add alternatively with milk.

Lastly, fold in boiling water.

Quickly pour into greased floured tin. Bake in slow oven for 40 minutes.

This is only a base – can steam or add other ingredients (left over chocolates are good!)

So, I’m on my way to being better. What would have someone made me in England in the nineteenth century, to help restore me to my normal self? Why restoratives, of course.

These recipes are from The Jewish Manual (1846, London) again.

HARTSHORN JELLY

Boil half a pound of hartshorn shavings in two quarts of water over a gentle fire until it becomes thick enough to hang about a spoon, then strain it into a clean saucepan and add half a pint of sherry wine, and a quarter of a pound of white sugar, clear it by stirring in the whites of a couple of eggs, whisked to a froth; boil it for about four or five minutes, add the juice of three lemons, and stir all together, when it is well curdled, strain it and pour into the mould, if the color is required to be deeper than the wine will make it, a little saffron may be boiled in it.

BARLEY JELLY

Boil in an iron saucepan, one tea-cup full of pearl barley, with one quart of cold water, pour off the water when it boils, and add another quart, let it simmer very gently for three hours over or near a slow fire, stirring it frequently with a wooden spoon, strain it, and sweeten with white sugar, add the juice of a lemon, a little white
wine, and a quarter of an ounce of isinglass dissolved in a little water, and pour it into a mould. This is a very nourishing jelly.

CAUDLE

Make a fine smooth gruel of grits, with a few spices boiled in it, strain it carefully and warm as required, adding white wine and a little brandy, nutmeg, lemon peel, and sugar, according to taste, some persons put the yolk of an egg.

RICE CAUDLE

Boil half a pint of milk, add a spoonful of ground rice mixed with a little milk till quite smooth, stir it into the boiling milk, let it simmer till it thickens, carefully straining it, and sweeten with white sugar.

BARLEY MILK

Boil half a pound of pearl barley in one quart of new milk, taking care to parboil it first in water, which must be poured off, sweeten with white sugar. This is better made with pearl barley than the prepared barley.

RESTORATIVE MILK

Boil a quarter of an ounce of isinglass in a pint of new milk till reduced to half, and sweeten with sugar candy.

MILK PORRIDGE

Make a fine gruel with new milk without adding any water, strain it when sufficiently thick, and sweeten with white sugar. This is extremely nutritive and fattening.

WINE WHEY

Set on the fire in a saucepan a pint of milk, when it boils, pour in as much white wine as will turn it into curds, boil it up, let the curds settle, strain off, and add a little boiling water, and sweeten to taste.

TAMARIND WHEY

Boil three ounces of tamarinds in two pints of milk, strain off the curds, and let it cool. This is a very refreshing drink.

PLAIN WHEY

Put into boiling milk as much lemon juice or vinegar as will turn it, and make the milk clear, strain, add hot water, and sweeten.

ORGEAT

Beat three ounces of almonds with a table-spoonful of orange-flour water, and one bitter almond; then pour one pint of new milk, and one pint of water to the paste, and sweeten with sifted white sugar; half an ounce of gum-arabic is a good addition for those who have a tender
chest.

IRISH MOSS

Boil half an ounce of carrageen or Irish moss, in a pint and a half of water or milk till it is reduced to a pint; it is a most excellent drink for delicate persons or weakly children.

A third post? This is because Francatelli is so full of good stuff. These are the foods we read about in nineteenth century novels, where Oliver Twist in the poorhouse asks for more, or where the dying days of consumption bring forth the need for special food. They weren’t romantic originally. The romance comes from the fact that we are so far removed from it.

Some of these recipes are similar to some of The Jewish Manual. I’ll give you a few of those tomorrow, though not quite the equivalent sections. On Sunday I’ll take a break and try to get well, so we can move on to other types of posts next week. Unless you like these posts, of course. I can do at least another week looking at other cookbooks and other places and times if the feeding of the sick fascinates.

This section is less about food and more about cures, but cures that are still very much a part of foodways.

MEDICINAL, HERBACEOUS, AND OTHER DRINKS FOR INVALIDS, ETC.

No. 204. BRAN TEA: A REMEDY FOR COLDS, ETC.
Boil a large handful of bran in a quart of water for ten minutes, then strain off the water into a jug, sweeten it with one ounce of gum Arabic and a good spoonful of honey; stir all well together, and give this kind of drink in all cases of affections of the chest, such as colds, catarrhs, consumption, etc., and also for the measles.

No. 205. ORANGEADE, OR ORANGE DRINK.
Peel off the rind of one orange very thinly without any of the white pith, and put the rind into a jug, pare off all the white pith from three oranges so as to lay the pulp of the fruit quite bare, cut them in slices, take out all the seeds, or, as they are more generally termed, the pips, as their bitterness would render the drink unpalatable; add one ounce of sugar, or honey, pour a quart of boiling water to these, cover up the jug, and allow the orangeade to stand and steep until quite cold; it may then be given to the patient. This is a cooling beverage, and may be safely given in cases of fever.

No. 206. HOW TO MAKE LEMONADE.
Proceed in all particulars as directed for making orangeade, using, for the purpose, lemons instead of oranges.

No. 207. APPLE-WATER DRINK.
Slice up thinly three or four apples without peeling them, and boil them in a very clean saucepan with a quart of water and a little sugar until the slices of apples are become soft; the apple water must then be strained through a piece of clean muslin, or rag, into a jug. This pleasant beverage should be drunk when cold; it is considered beneficial in aiding to allay scorbutic eruptions.

No. 208. HOW TO MAKE A SOOTHING DRINK FOR COUGHS.
Take of marsh-mallow roots and of liquorice roots each one ounce; of linseed, half an ounce; shave the roots very thinly; put them and the linseed into a clean earthen pot with one quart of hot water, cover with the lid, and set the whole on the hob of the fire to simmer for half an hour or more; then strain the drink into a clean jug, sweeten with honey, and when it has become quite cold, let it be given in small quantities several times in the course of the day. This mucilaginous beverage is most beneficial in relieving persons who are suffering from cold on the chest, and also those who are afflicted with gravel, etc.

No. 209. LINSEED TEA.
Put a table-spoonful of linseed into a clean earthen pot or pipkin with a quart of water, and a little orange or lemon rind; boil this gently for about ten minutes, and then strain it through muslin into a jug; sweeten with honey or sugar, add the juice of a lemon, stir all together, and give this beverage to allay irritation of the chest and lungs–in the latter case, the lemon juice had better be omitted. Linseed tea in its purest form is an excellent accessory in aiding to relieve such as are afflicted with gout, gravel, etc.

No. 210. CAMOMILE TEA.
Put about thirty flowers into a jug, pour a pint of boiling water upon them, cover up the tea, and when it has stood about ten minutes, pour it off from the flowers into another jug; sweeten with sugar or honey; drink a tea-cupful of it fasting in the morning to strengthen the digestive organs, and restore the liver to healthier action. A tea-cupful of camomile tea, in which is stirred a large dessert-spoonful of moist sugar, and a little grated ginger, is an excellent thing to administer to aged people a couple of hours before their dinner.

No. 211. BALM AND BURRAGE TEA.
These, as well as all other medicinal herbs, may easily be cultivated in a corner of your garden, when you are so fortunate as to live in a cottage of your own in the country; they are also to be obtained from all herbalists in large towns. Take of balm and burrage a small handful each, put this into a jug, pour in upon the herbs a quart of boiling water, allow the tea to stand for ten minutes, and then strain it off into another jug, and let it become cold. This cooling drink is recommended as a beverage for persons whose system has become heated from any cause.

No. 212. SAGE OR MARYGOLD TEA.
Put a dozen sage leaves into a tea-pot, pour boiling water upon them, and, after allowing the tea to stand for five or ten minutes, it may be drunk with sugar and milk, in the same way and instead of the cheaper kinds of teas, which are sold for foreign teas, but which are too often composed of some kind of leaf more or less resembling the real plant, without any of its genuine fragrance, and are, from their spurious and almost poisonous nature, calculated to produce evil to all who consume them, besides the drawback of their being expensive articles.
Teas made from sage leaves, dried mint, marygolds, and more particularly the leaf of the black currant tree, form a very pleasant as well as wholesome kind of beverage; and, if used in equal proportions, would be found to answer very well as a most satisfactory substitute for bad and expensive tea.

No. 213. HOW TO STEW RED CABBAGES.
The use of the red cabbage in this country is confined to its being pickled almost raw, and eaten in that detestable and injurious state, whereby its anti-scorbutic powers are annulled.
The red cabbage, when merely boiled with bacon, or with a little butter and salt, is both nutritious and beneficial in a medicinal point of view, inasmuch as that it possesses great virtue in all scorbutic and dartrous affections. On the Continent it is customary to administer it in such cases in the form of a syrup, and also in a gelatinized state. The red cabbage, stewed in the following manner, will be found a very tasty dish:–Slice up the red cabbage rather thin, wash it well, drain it, and then put it into a saucepan with a little dripping or butter, a gill of vinegar, pepper and salt; put the lid on, and set the cabbage to stew slowly on the hob, stirring it occasionally from the bottom to prevent it from burning; about an hour’s gentle stewing will suffice to cook it thoroughly. All kinds of cabbage or kail are anti-scorbutic agents.

No. 214. HOW TO MAKE TOAST WATER.
Toast a piece of bread thoroughly browned to its centre without being burnt, put it into a jug, pour boiling water upon it, cover over and allow it to stand and steep until it has cooled; it will then be fit to drink.

No. 215. HOW TO MAKE BARLEY WATER.
Boil one ounce of barley in a quart of water for twenty minutes; strain through muslin into a jug containing a bit of orange or lemon peel.

No. 216. HOW TO MAKE RICE WATER.
To six ounces of rice add two quarts of water, and two ounces of Valentia raisins; boil these very gently for about half an hour, or rather more; strain off the water into a jug, add about two table-spoonfuls of brandy. Rice water, prepared as above, is recommended in cases of dysentery and diarrhoea.

No. 217. HOW TO MAKE TREACLE POSSET.
Sweeten a pint of milk with four table-spoonfuls of treacle, boil this for ten minutes; strain it through a rag; drink it while hot, and go to bed well covered with blankets; and your cold will be all the less and you the better for it.

No. 218. HOW TO MAKE WHITE WINE WHEY.
Put a pint of milk into a very clean saucepan or skillet, to boil on the fire; then add half a gill of any kind of white wine; allow the milk to boil up, then pour it into a basin, and allow it to stand in a cool place, that the curd may fall to the bottom of the basin; then pour off the whey–which is excellent as an agent to remove a severe cough or cold.

No. 219. HOW TO MAKE A CORDIAL FOR COLDS.
First, prepare a quart of the juice of black currants, by bruising and boiling them for twenty minutes, and then straining off the juice with great pressure through a sieve into a basin. Next, boil four ounces of linseed in a quart of water until reduced to one-third of its original quantity, taking care that it does not boil fast, and, when done, strain the liquid into a very clean saucepan; add the currant juice, two pounds of moist sugar, and half an ounce of citric acid, or one pint of lemon juice; boil all together until reduced to a thick syrup–that is, when it begins to run rather thick from the spoon without resembling treacle; as soon as the syrup has reached this stage, remove it from the fire, and pour it into a jug to become quite cold. This syrup will keep good for any length of time, if bottled and corked down tight, and kept in a cool place. A tea-spoonful taken occasionally will soon relieve the most troublesome cough.
This cordial may also be prepared in winter, using for the purpose black currant jam, or preserved black currant juice, instead of the juice of fresh-gathered currants.

No. 220. HOW TO MAKE A STRINGENT GARGLE.
Put the following ingredients into a very clean earthen pipkin:–Twenty sage leaves, a handful of red rose leaves, and a pint of water; boil these for twenty minutes, then add a gill of vinegar, and two table-spoonfuls of honey; boil again for ten minutes, and strain the gargle through a muslin rag, to be used when cold.

No. 221. A SIMPLE REMEDY AGAINST WIND ON THE STOMACH.
A few drops (say four) of essence of peppermint on a lump of sugar.

No. 222. A CURE FOR A HARD DRY COUGH.
Take of each one table-spoonful–spermaceti grated, honey, and peppermint water; mix all together with the yolks of two eggs in a gallipot. A tea-spoonful to be taken on the tongue, and allowed to be swallowed slowly as it dissolves.

No. 223. A COOLING DRINK.
To half an ounce of cream of tartar, add one ounce of loaf sugar, and a bit of orange or lemon peel; put these into a jug, pour upon them a quart of boiling water; stir all together, and allow the beverage to become cold.

No. 224. HOP TEA.
Pour a quart of boiling water upon half an ounce of hops, cover this over, and allow the infusion to stand for fifteen minutes; the tea must then be strained of into another jug. A small tea-cupful may be drunk fasting in the morning, which will create an appetite, and also strengthen the digestive organs.

No. 225. LIME-FLOWER TEA.
To half an ounce of lime-flowers, placed in a tea-pot or jug, pour a pint of boiling water, and when the infusion has stood for ten minutes, sweeten with honey or sugar, and drink the tea hot, to assuage the pains in the stomach and chest, arising from indigestion. This beverage may also be successfully administered in attacks of hysteria.

No. 226. HYSSOP TEA: A REMEDY FOR WORMS.
To a quarter of an ounce of dried hyssop flowers, pour one pint of boiling water; allow the tea to infuse for ten minutes, pour it off, sweeten with honey, and take a wine-glassful three times in the course of the day; this will prove an effectual cure when children are troubled with worms.

No. 227. ICELAND-MOSS JELLY.
Boil four ounces of Iceland moss in one quart of water very slowly for one hour, then add the juice of two lemons and a bit of rind, four ounces of sugar, and a gill of sherry; boil up, and remove the scum from the surface; strain the jelly through a muslin bag into a basin, and set it aside to become cold; in which state it may be eaten, but it is far more efficacious in its beneficial results when taken warm. The use of Iceland moss jelly is strongly recommended in cases of consumption, and in the treatment of severe colds, catarrhs, and all phlegmatic diseases of the chest.

No. 228. ANTISPASMODIC TEA.
Infuse two-pennyworth of hay saffron (sold at all chemists’) in a gill of boiling water in a tea-cup for ten minutes; add a dessert-spoonful of brandy, and sugar to sweeten, and drink the tea hot. This powerful yet harmless remedy will quickly relieve you from spasmodic pains occasioned by indigestion.

No. 229. DANDELION TEA.
Infuse one ounce of dandelion in a jug with a pint of boiling water for fifteen minutes; sweeten with brown sugar or honey, and drink several tea-cupfuls during the day. The use of this tea is recommended as a safe remedy in all bilious affections; it is also an excellent beverage for persons afflicted with dropsy.

No. 230. REFRESHING DRINK FOR SORE THROAT ATTENDED WITH FEVER.
Boil two ounces of barberries with half an ounce of violets in a quart of water for ten minutes; sweeten with honey, strain off into a jug, and drink several glasses during the day.

No. 231. A CURE FOR SPRAINS.
Bruise thoroughly a handful of sage-leaves, and boil them in a gill of vinegar for ten minutes, or until reduced to half the original quantity; apply this in a folded rag to the part affected, and tie it on securely with a bandage.

No. 232. A CURE FOR CHILBLAINS.
The pulp of a baked turnip beat up in a tea-cup with a table-spoonful of salad oil, ditto of mustard, and ditto of scraped horse-radish; apply this mixture to the chilblains, and tie it on with a piece of rag.

No. 233. A CURE FOR BURNS OR SCALDS.
Thoroughly bruise a raw onion and a potato into a pulp, by scraping or beating them with a rolling-pin; mix this pulp with a good table-spoonful of salad oil, and apply it to the naked burn or scald; secure it on the part with a linen bandage.

No. 234. A CURE FOR COLD IN THE HEAD.
Thirty drops of camphorated sal volatile in a small wine-glassful of hot water, taken several times in the course of the day.

No. 235. A CURE FOR THE STING OF WASPS OR BEES.
Bruise the leaf of the poppy, and apply it to the part affected.

No. 236. A CURE FOR TOOTHACHE.
Roll a small bit of cotton wadding into a ball the size of a pea, dip this in a very few drops of camphorated chloroform, and with it fill the hollow part of the decayed tooth.

No. 237. HOW TO MAKE COFFEE.
Mix one ounce of ground coffee in a clean pot with a pint of cold water, stir this on the fire till it boils, then throw in a very little more cold water, and after allowing the coffee to boil up twice more, set it aside to settle, and become clear and bright. The dregs saved from twice making, added to half the quantity of fresh coffee, will do for the children. It is best to make your coffee over-night, as it has then plenty of time to settle. If, as I recommend, you grind your coffee at home, you will find Nye’s machines very good.

COOKERY AND DIET FOR THE SICK ROOM.

No. 175. BEEF TEA
Chop up a pound of lean beef, and put it on to boil in a saucepan with a quart of water, stirring it on the fire occasionally while it boils rather fast, for at least half an hour; at the end of this time the beef tea will have become reduced to a pint; season with salt to taste, strain it through a clean bit of muslin or rag, and give a tea-cupful of it with dry toast to the patient.

No. 176. MUTTON BROTH.
Chop a pound of scrag end of neck of mutton into small pieces, and put it into a saucepan, with two ounces of barley, and rather better than a quart of water; set the broth to boil gently on the fire, skim it well, season with a little salt, thyme, parsley, and a couple of turnips; the whole to continue gently boiling on the side of the hob for an hour and a-half; at the end of this time serve some of the broth strained through a clean rag into a basin; or, if the patient is allowed it, serve the broth with some of the barley and pieces of the meat in it.

No. 177. CHICKEN BROTH.
Draw, singe, and cut a chicken into four quarters; wash these, put them into a clean saucepan with a quart of water, and set the broth to boil on the fire; skim it well, season with two ounces of sago, a small sprig of thyme and parsley, and a little salt. Allow the broth to boil very gently for an hour, and then serve some of it with the sago in a cup, and, if allowed, give the patient the chicken separately.

No. 178. A CHEAPER KIND OF CHICKEN BROTH.
In large towns it is easy to purchase sixpenny-worth of fowls’ necks, gizzards, and feet, which, prepared as indicated in the foregoing Number, make excellent broth at a fourth part of the cost occasioned by using a fowl for the same purpose.

No. 179. VEAL AND RICE BROTH.
Cut up one pound and a-half of knuckle of veal, and put it on to boil in a saucepan with a quart of water, four ounces of rice, a small sprig of thyme, and a little parsley; season with a few peppercorns and a little salt; boil very gently for two hours.

No. 180. MEAT PANADA FOR INVALIDS AND INFANTS.
First, roast whatever kind of meat is intended to be made into panada, and, while it is yet hot, chop up all the lean thereof as fine as possible, and put this with all the gravy that has run from the meat on the plate into a small saucepan with an equal quantity of crumb of bread previously soaked in hot water; season with a little salt (and, if allowed, pepper), stir all together on the fire for ten minutes, and give it in small quantities at a time. This kind of meat panada is well adapted as a nutritious and easily-digested kind of food for old people who have lost the power of mastication, and also for very young children.

No. 181. HOW TO PREPARE SAGO FOR INVALIDS.
Put a large table-spoonful of sago into a small saucepan with half a pint of hot water, four lumps of sugar, and, if possible, a small glass of port wine; stir the whole on the fire for a quarter of an hour, and serve it in a tea-cup.

No. 182. HOW TO PREPARE TAPIOCA.
This may be prepared in the same manner as sago; It may also be boiled in beef tea, mutton broth, or chicken broth, and should be stirred while boiling.
Arrow-root is to be prepared exactly after the directions given for the preparation of sago and tapioca.

No. 183. HOW TO MAKE GRUEL.
Mix a table-spoonful of Robinson’s prepared groats or grits with a tea-cupful of cold water, pour this into a saucepan containing a pint of hot water, and stir it on the fire while it boils for ten minutes; strain the gruel through a sieve or colander into a basin, sweeten to taste, add a spoonful of any kind of spirits, or else season the gruel with salt and a bit of butter.

No. 184. BROWN AND POLSON GRUEL.
Brown and Polson’s excellent preparation of Indian corn is to be purchased of all grocers throughout the kingdom. Mix a dessert-spoonful of the prepared Indian corn with a wine-glassful of cold water, and pour this into a small saucepan containing half a pint of hot water; stir on the fire for ten minutes, sweeten with moist sugar, flavour with nutmeg or a spoonful of spirits.

No. 185. GRUEL MADE WITH OATMEAL.
In the absence of groats, oatmeal furnishes the means of making excellent gruel. Mix two table-spoonfuls of oatmeal with a gill of cold water; pour this into a saucepan containing a pint of hot water, stir the gruel on the fire while it boils very gently for about a quarter of an hour, then sweeten with moist sugar, or, if preferred, the gruel may be eaten with a little salt and a bit of butter.

No. 186. HOW TO MAKE CAUDLE.
Mix four ounces of prepared groats or oatmeal with half a pint of cold ale in a basin, pour this into a saucepan containing a quart of boiling ale, or beer, add a few whole allspice, and a little cinnamon, stir the caudle on the fire for about half an hour, and then strain it into a basin or jug; add a glass of any kind of spirits, and sugar to taste.

No. 187. RICE GRUEL, A REMEDY FOR RELAXED BOWELS.
Boil very gently eight ounces of rice in a quart of water for about an hour in a saucepan covered with its lid, and placed on the side of the hob; the rice must be so thoroughly done as to present the appearance of the grains being entirely dissolved; a bit of orange-peel or cinnamon should be boiled with the rice, and when quite soft, the gruel is to be sweetened with loaf sugar, and a table-spoonful of brandy added.

No. 188. HOW TO PREPARE ARROW-ROOT.
Mix a piled-up dessert-spoonful of arrow-root with half a gill of cold water, and pour this into a small saucepan containing nearly half a pint of boiling water, four lumps of sugar, and a glass of wine; stir the arrow-root while it is boiling on the fire for a few minutes, and then give it to the patient.
Observe that it is essential to perfection in the preparation of arrow-root, and, indeed, of all farinaceous kinds of food, that the whole of the ingredients used in the preparation should be boiled together.

No. 189. HOW TO MAKE GRUEL WITH PEARL BARLEY.
Put four ounces of pearl barley in a saucepan with two quarts of cold water and a small stick of cinnamon, and set the whole to boil very gently by the side of the fire (partly covered with the lid) for two hours; then add the sugar and the wine, boil all together a few minutes longer, and then strain the gruel through a colander into a jug, to be kept in a cool place until required for use; when it can be warmed up in small quantities.
As this kind of gruel is a powerful cordial, it is to be borne in mind that it should never be administered unless ordered by a medical man.

No. 190. COW-HEEL BROTH.
Put a cow-heel into a saucepan with three quarts of water, and set it to boil on the fire; skim it well, season with a few peppercorns, a sprig of thyme and parsley, and a dessert-spoonful of salt; boil gently for two hours; at the end of this time the broth will be reduced to half its original quantity; skim off all the grease, and serve the broth with the glutinous part of the heel in it. This kind of broth is both strengthening and healing to the stomach.

No. 191. HOW TO MAKE CALF’S-FEET JELLY.
Boil two calf’s feet in two quarts of water very gently for at least two hours; at the end of this time the liquid will be boiled down to one half of its original quantity; it is then to be strained into a pan, and left to cool till the next day. Scrape and wash off all grease, dab a clean cloth all over the surface to absorb any remaining grease, put the calf’s-foot stock or broth into a very clean saucepan, add three ounces of lump sugar, a bit of lemon-peel, the juice of a lemon, a little bruised cinnamon, and half a pint of white wine; boil all together for ten minutes, skim, strain through a doubled piece of muslin into a basin; set the jelly in a very cold place to cool and become firm.

No. 192. HOW TO MAKE ICELAND-MOSS JELLY.
Iceland moss is to be had of all chemists. Put four ounces of Iceland moss to boil in one quart of water, stirring it the whole time it is on the fire; and when it has boiled about three-quarters of an hour, add two ounces of lump sugar and a glass of white wine; strain the jelly through a piece of muslin into a basin, and when it is set firm and cold, let it be given to the patient. This kind of jelly is most beneficial in cases of severe colds, catarrhs, and all pulmonary diseases of the lungs and chest.

No. 193. HOW TO MAKE BLANCMANGE.
Scald, skin, wash, and thoroughly bruise one ounce of sweet almonds with a rolling-pin on a table; put this into a basin with one ounce of lump sugar, and three gills of cold water, and allow the whole to stand and steep for three hours. Next, boil one ounce of shred isinglass, or gelatine, in a gill of water, by stirring it on the fire, while boiling, for ten minutes; pour this to the milk of almonds; strain all through a muslin into a basin, and when the blancmange has become stiff and cold, let it be given to the patient in cases of fevers, or extreme delicacy.

No. 194. HOW TO MAKE SICK-DIET JELLY.
Take of sago, tapioca, eringo root, and hartshorn shavings, of each one ounce; and boil the whole in three pints of water until reduced to one pint, stirring all the time; then strain the jelly through a muslin into a basin, and set it aside to become cold. A table-spoonful of this jelly may be given at a time, mixed in broth, milk, chocolate, cocoa, or tea.
It is considered to be very strengthening.

No. 195. HOW TO PREPARE ISINGLASS JELLY.
Put one ounce and a-half of isinglass, with two ounces of lump sugar and half a pint of water, into a small stewpan, and stir the whole on the fire while it boils gently for ten minutes; then remove the jelly from the fire, add the juice of three oranges, and the thin pared rind of one orange; stir well together for five minutes, strain through a muslin into a basin, and set the jelly in a cold place to become stiff.

No. 196. HOW TO MAKE GROUND-RICE MILK.
Put a pint of milk with a bit of cinnamon to boil, mix a large table-spoonful of ground rice quite smooth with a tea-cupful of milk, pour this into the boiling milk, stirring quickly all the time in order to render it smooth; add sugar to sweeten, and stir the ground-rice milk on the fire while boiling for ten minutes. Remember, that whenever you are stirring any kind of sauce, gruel, porridge, or thick milk, etc., on the fire, it is most essential that you should bear with some weight on the edge of the bowl of the spoon to prevent whatever is being stirred from burning at the bottom of the saucepan, as such an accident would infallibly spoil the gruel, etc.

No. 197. HOW TO MAKE A SMALL BATTER-PUDDING.
Beat up in a basin an egg with a large table-spoonful of flour, and a grain of salt; add, by degrees, a tea-cupful of milk, working all together vigorously; pour this batter into a ready greased inside of a tea-cup, just large enough to hold it; sprinkle a little flour on the top, place a small square clean rag on it, and then, with the spread-out fingers of the right hand, catch up both cloth and tea-cup, holding them up in order to enable you to gather up the ends of the rag tight in your left hand, while with a piece of string held in the right hand, you tie up the pudding securely, and put it on to boil, in boiling water, for a good half-hour; at the end of this time the pudding will be done, and should be eaten immediately with sugar, and a few drops of wine, if allowed and procurable.

No. 198. HOW TO MAKE A TEA-CUP BREAD-PUDDING.
Bruise a piece of stale crumb of bread the size of an egg, in a basin, add four lumps of sugar and a very little grated nutmeg, pour half a gill of boiling milk upon these, stir all well together until the sugar is melted, then add an egg, beat up the whole thoroughly until well mixed; pour the mixture into a buttered tea-cup, tie it up in a small cloth as directed in the preceding Number, boil the pudding for twenty minutes, at least, and, as soon as done, turn it out on a plate. This, or any similar light kind of pudding, constitutes safe food for the most delicate.

No. 199. HOW TO MAKE A TAPIOCA PUDDING.
Put two table-spoonfuls of tapioca into a basin with four lumps of sugar, a grain of salt, and a lump of sugar rubbed on the rind of a lemon; pour a gill of boiling milk over these ingredients and cover them up with a saucer to steep for ten minutes, then add one egg; beat up all together, and boil the pudding in a buttered tea-cup tied up in a cloth, for nearly half an hour.

No. 200. HOW TO MAKE AN ARROW-ROOT PUDDING.
Mix a large dessert-spoonful of arrow-root with the same quantity of bruised sugar, and a tea-cupful of milk, in a small clean saucepan; stir this on the fire until it boils, and keep on stirring it, off the fire, for five minutes, until the heat has subsided; then add an egg, beat up and thoroughly mix it into the batter, and then boil the pudding as shown in the preceding Numbers.

No. 201. HOW TO MAKE A SAGO PUDDING.
Soak two table-spoonfuls of pearl sago with a tea-spoonful of hot milk, in a covered basin, for a quarter of an hour; then add a very little grated nutmeg or lemon-peel, sugar to sweeten, and an egg; beat up all together until thoroughly mixed, and then boil the pudding in a buttered basin or tea-cup, as directed in preceding cases.

No. 202. HOW TO MAKE A GROUND-RICE PUDDING.
Mix a large table-spoonful of ground rice with half a pint of milk, six lumps of sugar, and a very little nutmeg; stir this in a saucepan on the fire until it has boiled for five minutes; then mix in an egg, and boil the pudding for twenty-five minutes.

No. 203. BROWN AND POLSON TEA-CUP PUDDING FOR INFANTS.
Mix a good dessert-spoonful of Brown and Polson’s corn-flour with half a pint of milk, six lumps of sugar, a grain of salt, and a very little grated orange-peel; stir these on the fire to boil for five minutes, then add one egg, beat up until well mixed; pour this batter into a buttered tea-cup, tie it up in a small cloth, boil it for twenty-five minutes, and serve it while hot.

Today’s recipes for sick folks are all from the “Receipts for Invalids” section of The Jewish Manual, by a Lady (who was probably Judith Cohen Montefiore).

You can find the whole book on Project Gutenberg, or you can (if you’re like me and like facsimiles) buy it in facsimile.

The recipes in here are some of the nicest I’ve seen for that period. Maybe it’s because the food is actually seasoned – I’ve seen beef tea descriptions (I might give you one tomorrow) which look entirely tasteless. What I love about the popularity of beef tea is that it shows the class of people the books are aimed at (those with enough money to buy beef) and the sheer quantity of beef consumed by the comfortably-off in the nineteenth century. The difference in diet between the rich and the poor can be measured by the size of bones, and London in the nineteenth century produced the shortest skeletons in the history of the city.

Having said that, today’s recipes don’t assume great wealth. The whole of the chicken is used, and the beef tea suggests fleshy beef, rather than specifying an expensive cut. Chuck steak would do the trick, in fact. The Jewish community had some of the greatest extremes in that London of terrific contrasts. There were a few well-off families and the vast bulk of the community was dangerously impoverished. The Jewish communities had many charitable organizations to help that dire poverty not lead to starvation, but it was all very parlous. Many of these Jews were early free immigrants to Australia – my ancestors were among them, a very few years after this book was published.

So, three 1846 recipes for Jewish invalids in London from 1846.

BEEF TEA

Cut one pound of fleshy beef in dice, or thin slices, simmer for a
short time without water, to extract the juices, then add, by degrees,
one quart of water, a little salt, a piece of lemon peel, and a
sprig of parsley, are the only necessary seasonings; if the broth is
required to be stronger put less water.

CHICKEN PANADA

Boil a chicken till rather more than half done in a quart of water, take of the skin, cut off the white parts when cold, and pound it to a paste in a mortar, with a small quantity of the liquor it was boiled in, season with salt, a little nutmeg, and the least piece of lemon peel; boil it gently, and make it with the liquor in which the fowl has been boiled of the required consistency. It should be rather thicker than cream.

CHICKEN BROTH

After the white parts have been removed for the panada, return the rest of the chicken to the saucepan, with the liquid, add one blade of mace, one slice only of onion, a little salt, and a piece of lemon peel; carefully remove every particle of fat. Vermicelli is very well adapted for this broth.