The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-17
FOR A XMAS BANQUET.
Some Dressings and Appetizins Sauces
for the Day Of Rejoicing.
Dainty Ways OF Serving Vegetables.
Lobster Outlets Mushroom Pates.
Tips on Salads and Pretty Des-
aertR.
(Copyright)

(Copyright)
New York, Dec 16.-In the good old
times, which it is the fashion to laud, but
which fancy few OF US would care to ex-
change for the present, the model Christ
mas table was that which groaned under
the greatest profusion of dishes. To-
day that house wife is the most to be
envied who can prepare the daintiest
feast or can greet the eyes and palates of
her guests with some pretty and novel
dish. some little original wrinkle in the
making of a sauce or the cooking Of the
ime-houored turkey.
In France it is the custom among poul-
terers TO feed their poultry for weeks be-
forehand on a diet composed largely of
highly peppered animal food. which con-
duces greatly to quick growth and con-
sequent size. In early times the French
varied the flavor of their fowls by feed
ing them at great cost with a paste quail
flied with musk, anise seed and other aro-
matte spices; it was French queen who
spent 500 francs in imparting pecu-
liarly delicate favor TO the livers of three
geese. once knew of an aristocratic old
epicure Il almost said 'gourmand'D, who
never allowed turkey on his table that
had not been fed for weeks before under
his special direction. Sometimes diet
u.
milk and grain, was given, aud again
nuts with large quantities of animal food,
cabbage and lettuce.
Unless you have your own poultry yard
you cannot of course. make experiments
of this kind, but you can, by your skill in
cooking, add such flayOrs as the grower
has failed to impart.
For the highest gastronomic effect your
Christmas turkey should be of the hen
variety, led to the block after fast of
twenty-four hours, broken only at the
last by spoonful of the best vinegar,
after which it will die gamer that is
the meat will be whittier, sweetor, and of
a better flavor. All of this your poultry
merchant will attend to for you. know
of one enterprising dealer who engaged
his turkeys six weeks before Christmas,
and then fed them up for special custo-
mers according to their directions
An Italian restauranteur, in New York
city, gives delicious flavor to his tur-
keys by keeping them for two days in a
marinade of claret. Lay the bird in a
dish Just large enough to hold il and
cover with pint each of vinegar and
claret and gill of salad oil. Turn fire.
quently that every part of the flesh may
be acted on by the acid and oil II is safe
to say that mine host makes use of this
secret to economic by buying old, tough
birds since the effect of this treatment is
to soften the tlbers of the flesh as well as
to favor it.
AS regards the best stufing for a tur-
key there are many men of many
minds" The finest bread dressing is
made Of half pound each of sweet stale
bread crumbs-the crumbs from a loaf
twenty-four hours old - and nicely
creamed and mashed potatoes, half cup
of minced mushrooms, four ounces of the
best butter, and a seasoning of sweet mar
grated nutmeg ana grated lemon rind.
Hold together with a beaten egg.
You can change the flavor of this by
substituting for themashed potato steNved
celery or boiled onions, or you can double
the quantity of crumbs and flavor princi-
pally with minced onion fried in butter;
but when mushrooms are used leave out
the onion.
Sweet potato stuffing was the favorite
of Mrs. Senator Vance of North Carolina
They must be baked in their skins and
then mashed smoothly and beaten light
with plenty of butter and seasoning TO
taste.
The wife of one of our chief Justices
prefers French or Italian chestnuts for
stuffing. Boil on roast the nuts, peel and
fill the body of the bird. Some cooks use
half pound each of lean veal and fresh
pork, at least half of the latter being
fat; moisten with broth and for good
sized bird add fifty chestnuts.
An oyster Stuffing is most delicious use
as much of the oyster liquor as is neces-
sary to moisten the requisite quantity of
crumbs, of which you want only half
enough to fill the bird. then season highly
and add oysters enough to make up the
balance
OF course a stuftng of trufies is the ne
plus ultra, but as it takes at least half a
pound for small turkey they are not
often used
A turkey garnished with sausage has a
very festive, not to say bacchanalian APP
pearance. Three-quarters of an hour be
fore the cooking is finished festoon it
with strings Of link sausage: these YOU
must turn from time to time so that every
part shall be as brown as the bird
itself. The better the flavor of the
sausage, of course the finer the
favor of the turkey. With this you
will want giblet sauce made by stewing
and mincing the giblets and adding them
to the gravy in the pan after the fat has
been removed. Thicker and color with
Tournade's kitchen bouquet.
With celery stuffiug serve both giblet
and celery sauce and with oyster stuff
fling an oyster sauce.
The vegetables served at a Christmas
dinner should be prepared with special
reference to pleasing the eye, although
certainly not at Jne Expense OF the taste.
A dainty way to serve potatoes is to pre-
pare quantity of mashed potatoes with
less cream or milk than for plain use; let
these get cold and mold compactly into
the form of small apples-thev should be
no larger than lady apples; make slight
indention in the stem end, roll in crum bs
then in egg, and again in crumbs,
and stand in the ice box until
wanted. a few moments before
serving immense them until a golden
brown in very hot dripping of lard, use
ing a wire basket. Lay on a napkin on
hot dish and insert the stem of an apple
or tiny crust of bread shaped like
stem.
Very small white onions Drowned in
butter and then cooked in stock until
done or very savory.
Celery fritters make a delicate little
course The white stalks of celery cut
in two-inch lengths are boiled until ten
der in sailed water. Drain and dip in a
batter made from the yolk of raw egg
a tablespoonful of salad oil or melted but
ter. four ounces of flour and cold water
enough TO make it of the fright tconsis-
tency. The moment before using stir
in the whipped white Of the egg
Sweet potatoes should not make their
appearance au naturel, but when boiled,
cut in eighths and basted with plenty Of
sweet melted butter while browning in
quick oven, they are delicious. Small,
even sized tubers are also nice when