Ox-tail Soup.
- 1 ox-tail.
- 2 lbs. of lean beef.
- 4 carrots.
- 3 onions.
- Thyme and parsley.
- Pepper and salt.
- 2 tablespoonfuls of browned flour.
- 4 quarts of cold water.
Cut the tail into joints and fry brown in good dripping. Slice the onions and two carrots, and fry in the same, when you have taken out the pieces of tail. When done, tie them, with thyme and parsley, in a lace bag, and drop into the soup-pot. Put in the tail, then the beef, cut into strips. Grate over them the two whole carrots, pour over all the water, and boil slowly four hours. Strain and season; thicken with brown flour wet with cold water; boil fifteen minutes longer, and pour out.
Irish Stew.
- 3 lbs. of lean beef—a sirloin steak is best.
- 8 parboiled potatoes.
- 2 onions, or one, if it be large, also parboiled.
- Browned flour for thickening.
- Thyme and sweet marjoram.
- Pepper and salt.
- A little pie-paste—not rich—for dumplings.
Cut the meat into pieces an inch wide by two long. Slice the parboiled potatoes and onions. Put a layer of meat in a pot; then one of potatoes, next one of onions. Pepper and salt each sparingly; scatter the herbs upon the onions; put in more meat, and so on. When all are in, cover—barely—with cold water, and stew slowly two hours. Strain out the meat, and put into a covered dish—a chafing-dish, if you have one. Return the gravy to the saucepan; thicken with browned flour; cut your paste into narrow strips two inches long, and drop, one by one, into the boiling gravy. Stew about eight minutes, and pour over meat, potatoes, etc., which await it in the dish.
Corn Pudding.
- To one can of corn add
- 3 beaten eggs.
- 1 cupful of milk.
- 2 tablespoonfuls of butter.
- 1 tablespoonful of sugar.
- A little salt.
Rub butter and sugar together; beat in the eggs; salt the milk, and put in next; lastly, the corn, drained of can liquor. Beat up well; pour into a greased bake-dish, and set, covered, in the oven. At the end of half an hour, take off the lid, and brown.
Potatoes à la Lyonnaise.
Parboil double the quantity of potatoes required for your Irish stew, and lay aside eight for this dish. Cut, when cold, into dice; fry a small chopped onion in a heaping spoonful of butter, for one minute, then put in the potatoes. Stir briskly to keep them from browning; cook until very hot; add a tablespoonful of chopped parsley; stir a minute longer; turn all into a heated colander; shake hard to get rid of the grease, and serve hot in a vegetable-dish.
Queen’s Toast.
Cut slices of stale baker’s bread round with a cake-cutter, taking off all the crust. Fry in sweet lard to a light brown. Dip each round quickly into boiling water to remove the fat. Sprinkle thickly on both sides with a mixture of powdered sugar and nutmeg, and pile upon a hot plate. You may dispense with sauce if you will heat a glass of wine, and put a teaspoonful, or less, upon each piece, after dipping it into the water, and before sugaring it. Serve hot.