# The Virginia Housewife: or, Methodical Cook/Cold creams

Pare the rind very thin from four fresh lemons, squeeze the juice, and strain it—put them both into a quart of water, sweeten it to your taste, add the whites of six eggs, beat to a froth; set it over the fire, and keep stirring until it thickens, but do not let it boil—then pour it in a bowl; when cold, strain it through a sieve, put it on the fire, and add the yelks of the eggs—stir it till quite thick, and serve it in glasses.
Is made in the same manner, but requires more juice to give a flavour.
Stir as much raspberry marmalade into a quart of cream, as will be sufficient to give a rich flavour of ​the fruit—strain it, and fill your glasses, leaving out a part to whip into froth for the top.
Put one ounce of the best tea in a pitcher, pour on it a table spoonful of water, and let it stand an hour to soften the leaves; then put to it a quart of boiling cream, cover it close, and in half an hour strain it; add four tea-spoonsful of a strong infusion of rennet in water, stir it, and set it on some hot ashes, and cover it; when you find by cooling a little of it, that it will jelly, pour it into glasses, and garnish with thin bits of preserved fruit.
Wash the sago clean, and put it on the fire with a stick of cinnamon, and as much water as will boil it thick and soft; take out the cinnamon, and add rich boiled custard till it is of a proper thickness; sweeten it, and serve in glasses or cups, with grated nutmeg on the top.
Is made the same way—you may add a little white wine to both; it will give an agreeable flavour.
Pick the stems and blossoms from two quarts of green gooseberries; put them in a stew pan, with their weight in loaf sugar, and a very little water—when sufficiently stewed, pass the pulp through a sieve; and ​when cold, add rich boiled custard till it is like thick cream; put it in a glass bowl, and lay frothed cream on the top.
Make a quart of rich milk moderately warm: then stir into it one large spoonful of the preparation of rennet, (see receipt to prepare rennet,) set it by, and when cold, it will be as stiff as jelly. It should be made only a few hours before it is used, or it will be tough and watery; in summer, set the dish in ice after it has jellied—it must be eaten with powdered sugar, cream, and nutmeg.
Turn one quart of milk as for the slip—let it stand until just before it is to be served: then take it up with a skimming dish, and lay it on a sieve—when the whey has drained off, put the curds in a dish, and surround them with cream—use sugar and nutmeg. These are Arcadian dishes; very delicious, cheap, and easily prepared.
Break one ounce of isinglass into very small pieces; wash it well, and pour on a pint of boiling water; next morning, add a quart of milk, boil it till the isinglass is dissolved, strain it, put in two ounces sweet almonds, blanched and pounded; sweeten it, and put it in the mould—when stiff, turn them into a deep dish, and put raspberry cream around them. For a change, stick thin slips of blanched almonds all over the blanc mange, ​and dress round with syllabub, nicely frothed. Some moulds require colouring—for an ear of corn, mix the yelk of an egg with a little of the blanc mange; fill the grains of the corn with it—and when quite set, pour in the white, but take care it is not warm enough to melt the yellow: for a bunch of asparagus, colour a little with spinach juice, to fill the green tops of the heads. Fruit must be made the natural colour of what it represents. Cochineal and alkanet root pounded and dissolved in brandy, make good colouring; but blanc mange should never be served, without raspberry cream or syllabub to eat with it.
Get five small eggs, make a hole at one end, and empty the shells—fill them with blanc mange: when stiff and cold, take off the shells, pare the yellow rind very thin from six lemons, boil them in water till tender, then cut them in thin strips to resemble straw, and preserve them with sugar; fill a small deep dish half full of nice jelly—when it is set, put the straw on in form of a nest, and lay the eggs in it. It is a beautiful dish for a dessert or supper.
Little Dishes for a Second Course, or Supper.
Roast two pheasants in the nicest manner—get a deep dish, the size and form of the one you intend to serve the pheasants in—it must be as deep as a tureen; put in savoury jelly about an inch and a half at the bottom; when that is set, and the pheasants cold, lay ​them on the jelly with their breasts down; fill the dish with jelly up to their backs; take care it is not warm enough to melt the other, and that the birds are not displaced—just before it is to be served, set it a moment in hot water to loosen it; put the dish on the top, and turn it out carefully.
Truss six partridges neatly, cover them with thin slices of fat bacon taken from the top of a middling; this keeps them white, and gives a good flavour; they must be wrapped entirely in it—roast them, and when done, take off the bacon; let them get cold, and use jelly as for the pheasants.
Roast two half grown chickens, cut off the legs and wings, pull the breast from each side entire, take the skin from all the pieces, lay it in the dish, and cover it with jelly.
Put eight or ten pounds of coarse lean beef, or the same quantity of the inferior parts of the fore quarter of veal, into a pot with two gallons of water, a pound of lean salt pork, three large onions chopped, three carrots, a large handful of parsley, and any sweet herb that you choose, with pepper and salt; boil it very gently till reduced to two quarts; strain it through a sieve—next day, take off the fat, turn out the jelly, and separate it from the dregs at the bottom; put it on the fire with half a pint of white wine, a large ​spoonful of lemon pickle, and the whites and shells of four eggs beaten: when it boils clear on one side, run it through the jelly bag.
Bone a small turkey, put pepper and salt on the inside, and cover it with slices of boiled ham or tongue; fill it with well seasoned forcemeat, sew it up and boil it—cover it with jelly.
Turn a bowl on the dish, and put on it in regular rings, beginning at the bottom, the following ingredients, all minced:—anchovies with the bones taken out, the white meat of fowls without the skin, hard boiled eggs, the yelks and whites chopped separately, parsley, the lean of old ham scraped, the inner stalks of celery; put a row of capers round the bottom of the bowl, and dispose the others in a fanciful manner; put a little pyramid of butter on the top, and have a small glass with egg mixed as for sallad, to eat with the salmagundi.
Put some soup or gravy from any of the dishes on the table, into the stew dish; add a good portion of pepper, vinegar, wine, catsup and salt; let it be very highly seasoned; broil the legs, liver, and gizzard of a turkey, the kidney of veal, or any thing you fancy; cut it up in small pieces: when broiled, put it in the gravy, and stew it at table.
Lay the perch in a deep pan with the heads on; sprinkle salt, pepper, and a little chopped onion over each layer; when they are all in, take as much water as will be sufficient to fill the pan less than half full; add a gill of wine, one of catsup, a little lemon pickle and spice; cover the pan, and let it stew gently till done; take out the fish without breaking, put them in a deep dish, pour the gravy on, and neatly turn them out.