SEASONABLE RECIPES.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20731, 16 December 1932, Page 24

SEASONABLE RECIPES.

Cooking the Christmas Dinner. Housewives, especially those who had but few Christmases in. the management of their homes, may feel a degree of alarm at the prospect of cooking an elaborate Christmas dinner, or at best a dinner more elaborate than usual. Difficulties always seem great in the mass. They may be likened to a bundle of sticks; it is impossible to break the whole bundle, but one at a time the sticks may be broken easily. So with this bunch of difficulties—the cooking of this special dinner. The secret is to plan well in advance what is to be provided, and map out a programme. By the time the great day comes there should not be more to be done than can be accomplished in the hours before the dinner has to be served. Let us suppose the menu for the dinner is to be:— Roast goose, potato stuffing, and apple sauce, York ham, or Roast lamb, mint sauce, New potatoes and green peas, Mince pies, and plum pudding, Fruit and nuts. Alternative menus should cover the needs of most householders, and the following directions for preparing and cooking the various dishes will be found most helpful.

Cooking the Goose. Ci.v-e are not so much in demand as they onct -were for the Christmas dinner, probably because they are harder to pluck and a little wore difficult to took .than, other poultry. But these objections may bo overcome ■with, a little care and the goose served up as daintily as turkey, duck, or fowl. The becret of plucking a goose is to dissolve the gluey substance at the base of the feathers. Having killed aud thoroughly bled the bird, immerse it for a few minutes in a bucket of boiling water, then, wrap it in an old blanket or -woollen cloth, wrap that in heavy cloth or clean bagging and let it steam for "0. minutes.. Uncover, dip the goose again in boiling water, wrap once more, and steam another 15 minutes. When uncovered, every feather and oven the down, will come away very easily. Hiuse in hot water, then in cold. To ■ cook the goose successfully most of tho oil with which a goose is so liberally supplied must be dissolved. Put tho plucked bird iu the oven in a baking dish and heat until the oil begins to ooze; then reduce the heat till it is just .sufficient to keep the oil running. Iu 1 about half an hour you should have nearly a pint of oil, which is excellent for many purposes. Then cook the goose in the usual way in a covered roaster with sufficient water to steum it. Allow 30 minutes per pound and ZQ minutes over. Seasoning: Take six onions, -Hib bread crumbs, one tablespoojiful of sage finelj' chopped, loz butter, salt, and pepper. Boil onions first till nearly tender, drain, dry, and chop them up, add bread crumbs and other ingredients. Blend thoroughly and stuff the bird. Cooking a Ham. Choose a mild-eured ham; a short. thick leg with a, moderate amount of fat is best, and the rind should be rather thin. Wash and scrape it weil trim away all rust and other unsightly parts, then soak it in lukewarm water, or in cold water if it is very salt, changing tho water once or twice. A •whole ham may be all night in the water, but a smaller cut does not usually need so long. To cook the ham. weigh it -first, then put it into a large saucepan with cold or lukewarm water to cover it. Bring the water slowly to the boil and remove any scum; then keep it simmering gently, allowing 20 minutes to each pound and 20 minutes over. A small bunch of herbs, two or three bay-leaves and some small pieces of carrot and turnip may be cooked with the ham, and the addition of a little beer or cider to the water

helps to mellow the flavour. When the ham is cooked enough remove the i saucepan from the heat and let the ham [ lie for an hour or two in the water; | then lift it out and pull off tho skin. I Prepare a mixture of four parts of brown sugar to one part of breadcrumbs and a little mustard', and cover the ham with this, pressing it on. Stick some cloves into the fat, making a diamond pattern on tho top, and place in the oven until glazed. Roast Turkey. Clean carefully a young turkey, singe t.ud wipe the inside well, and till with a forcemeat of one cup of breadcrumbs, half cup fine suet, one tablespoonful of thyme, and marjoram, one tablespoonful chopped parsley, popper and salt, an egg to bind, and the liver chopped fine; or a stuffing of pork sausage meat can be used instead with breadcrumbs, etc. Sew up and skewer into shape, lay on the back in a hot dish with melted dripping; cover the breast with slices of fat bacon. Place a buttered paper over, and bake one hour, basting well. Remove the papeT, dredge flour over, apd brown from half an hour, according to the age of the Servo with a good made gravy. Mince Pies for Christinas. It is not easy to find new mincemeat recipes. The wise housewife sticks to the formula which she has found successful, but the following are a little different. If the home cook wishes to keep the mince for any time she must add one gill of brandy or good dry sherry. Spicy Orange Mincemeat. Take lib stoned raisins, Jib each of sultanas, currants, sugar, sweet orange jam (dryish home-made for preference), and shredded suet, Jib candied peel, lib tart cooking apples (peeled and cored), Jib dessert apples (peeled and cored), the grated rind of one lemon and half its juice, -k teaspoon mixed spice, ■} saltspoon ground ginger, & grated nutmeg. Chop all fruits and suet well together or put through a mincer, and when thoroughly blended add strained lemon juice and jam: mix well again, and store, in airtight jars until required. Ginger Mincemeat. lake 41b stoned raisins, ilb currants, lib dessert apples (peeled, corod, and chopped), *lb finely chopped sulet, -Jib sugar, grated rind of one lemon, juice of half a lemon, one gill syrup from preserved ginger, i teaspoon each of mixed spice ; cinnamon, mace, and salt. j Mix all dry ingredients, chop well, and ' thoroughly blend with syrup and lemon

juiee; pack in jars, cover, and store in cool, dry place. To make mince pies use any pastry puff, flaky, or short, whichever you are most successful in making. Make either one big tart or individual pies. This is rather a nice pastry: Mince Pie Pastry. Take *lb flour, Jib butter, ami : }lb lard (or all butter), pinch of salt, yolk of one egg, one teaspoon lemon juice. Sift the flour and salt in a basin, whisk c £g yolk, add two tablespoonsful cold water and lemoa. juico and stir into flour to make a stiff dough; put on floured board and roll out. Divide shortening into threo equal parts, flour each, and roll or pat out as thin as possible. Place one part in the middle of the rolled-out. dough, fold over each corner flour lightly and roll out one way only. Leave for quarter hour, and use the remaining in the same way. Leave in cool placo for quarter hour. Leave all for one hour in a cool place before making pies for baking—the ice chest is a. good spot. Vne white of egg to glaze pastry. Ideas for Iced Brinks. These are novelties for iced drinks: Apricot Crush —Halve and stone sufficient ripe apricots to fill a quart measure and press the fruit through a sieve. Add to the pulp 1 pint of water, 1 cup powdered sugar, and the juice of 1 orange and 2 lemons. ( Stir till sugar is dissolved and add an equal quantity (3 to 4 pints) of iced water. The orange and lemon juico may be omitted and lemonade used instead of water. Ehubarb Punch. Take lib rhubarb, 1 cup water, I stick cinnamon, l-\ cups sugar, i cup lemon juice, .1 cup pineapple juice, 1 quart water. Wash rhubarb and cut in pieces, add cinnamon and water and cook for 10 minutes. Strain, add sugar,

chill, and add remaining ingredients. Serve with cracked ice. The quantities make 2 quarts. Mint. Cordial. Wash and pick the leaves from J 3 or 20 sprigs of mint. Crush lightly and put into a bowl with the juice of 2 lemons. Lot stand for 1 hour. Boil 1 cup sugar with 1 piut water for about 10 minutes and pour boiling hot over the mint and lemon juice. When cold, strain. Add the juice of 2 oranges and 1 cup finely-shredded or crushed pineapple. Add about 3 pints iced water and serve with a sprig of mint in each glass. Strawberry Whip. i.' strawberries. 11 cups powdered sugar, white L' eggs, 1 teaspoon gelatine soaked in 1 tablespoon cold water. Wash, hull, and crush tho berries. Dissolve the gelatine by setting the cup in a pan of hot water. Put all tho ingredients in a bowl and beat them with a wire whisk until stiff enough to hold a shape. Pile the whip on a dish and chill. .Stove with soft custard or thin cream. Chocolate Candy Sticks. Heat one egg-white to a stiiV froth and work into it as much icing-sugar fis you can (it will take about Jlb>. Shape the mixture into little rolls and cover them with melted chocolate flavoured with lemon essence. Roll tho sticks into grated coconut and sat aside to coo*. Peche Maiba. Peel and halve the number of pouches required, and stow them in a sugar and water syrup, flavoured with vanilla, until tender (tinned peaches may be used instead, if preferred). Colour with cochineal and add a little maraschino if liked. Lift out the poaches, dram, and allow to cool. Put a portion of vanilla iee cream into a dish or glass, place half one of the peaches on top, and coat with chilled raspberry juice or puree. Yuletide Greengages. A few almonds, some mince,, meat. white of egg, ratafia biscuit crumbs, shredded citron. Whip egg-white to a stiff froth. Form the mince-meat into the shape of greengages; soak and skin tho almonds and place one in the centre of each mock greengage to form "a kernel. 801 l greengages in white of then in biscuit crumbs and smooth with a knife. Put in a warm place to dry. then dip in the egg again; cover with shredded citron and serve. Candied Ginger. Grate loz ginger and, with lib loaf sugar crushed very finely, put it into a pan with sufficient water to dissolve it. Stir well over a slow lire till sugar begins to boil; then put in another Jib sugar (beaten finely) and continue stirring till quite .thick. Take off (ire drop m cakes on a dish and set in a warm place to dry. They should be hard and brittle. Easily Made Ices Ices that arc easily made at home Trill bo appreciated when the hoi weather starts in earnest. The foundation of cream-ice is made by stirring together in a double saucepan 1 pint of milk, 4ozs sugar and 2 beaten eggs. When nearly boiling take off the lire and stir m } O2 melted gelatine. Add he desired flavouring, strain, and freeze. The richness of the mixture may be varied by using a little cream i.i place of some of the milk. AH kinds oi flavourings can be used. SU eh as vanilla, pistachio, ginger, coffee, curacao or orange-flower water. Cream-ices made with crushed fruits, such as apricots, bananas, and strawberries, are delicious. Crush the fruits ii„ e ]v, add sugar and beat into the cream mixture: lor apricots peaches, cherries, and pears he tmn is better if cooked and tensity the flavours.

Banana Royal. Slice a peeled banana lengthways put it into a boat-shaped dish, eovor with u portion of strawberry iee cream and a portion of %-anilla ice cream, and a spoonful of crushed pineapple, and top with whipped cream.