2 meals in this book
“We have had for breakfast, toast, cakes, a Yorkshire pie, a piece of beef about the size and much the shape of my portmanteau, tea, coffee, ham, and eggs; and are now going to look about us. Having finished our discoveries, we start in a postchaise for Barnard Castle, which is only four miles off, and there I deliver the letter given me by Mitton's friend. All the schools are round about that place, and a dozen old abbeys besides, which we shall visit by some means or other to-morrow. We shall reach York on Saturday I hope, and (God willing) I trust I shall be at home on Wednesday morning.”
898. INGREDIENTS.--2 lbs. of veal cutlets, 1/2 lb. of boiled ham, 2 tablespoonfuls of minced savoury herbs, 1/4 teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, 2 blades of pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, a strip of lemon-peel finely minced, the yolks of 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 pint of water, nearly 1/2 pint of good strong gravy, puff-crust. _Mode_.--Cut the veal into nice square pieces, and put a layer of them at the bottom of a pie-dish; sprinkle over these a portion of the herbs, spices, seasoning, lemon-peel, and the yolks of the eggs cut in slices; cut the ham very thin, and put a layer of this in. Proceed in this manner until the dish is full, so arranging it that the ham comes at the top. Lay a puff-paste on the edge of the dish, and pour in about 1/2 pint of water; cover with crust, ornament it with leaves, brush it over with the yolk of an egg, and bake in a well-heated oven for 1 to 1-1/2 hour, or longer, should the pie be very large.
Recipe from The Book of Household Management of 1861.
“1 bottle superior old port, 1 do. do. golden sherry, 1 do. do. best French brandy, 1 do. do. 1st quality old Tom gin, 1 bottle superior prime Jamaica rum, 1 do. do. small still _Isla_ whiskey, 1 kettle boiling water, two pounds finest white lump sugar, Our cards, 1 lemon, and Our compliments.”
460. INGREDIENTS.--1 pint of brandy, the rind of two small lemons, 2 oz. of loaf-sugar, 1/4 pint of water. _Mode_.--Peel the lemons rather thin, taking care to have none of the white pith. Put the rinds into a bottle with the brandy, and let them infuse for 24 hours, when they should be strained. Now boil the sugar with the water for a few minutes, skim it, and, when cold, add it to the brandy. A dessertspoonful of this will be found an excellent flavouring for boiled custards. LEMON RIND OR PEEL.--This contains an essential oil of a very high flavour and fragrance, and is consequently esteemed both a wholesome and agreeable stomachic. It is used, as will be seen by many recipes in this book, as an ingredient for flavouring a number of various dishes. Under the name of CANDIED LEMON-PEEL, it is cleared of the pulp and preserved by sugar, when it becomes an excellent sweetmeat.
Recipe from The Book of Household Management of 1861.
Sources: Every passage above is quoted verbatim from The Letters of Charles Dickens. , 1833-1856, free to read in full at Project Gutenberg. The recipes come from cookbooks of the period, also free in full. All are in the public domain in the United States. The binding is ours — slate cloth, teapot stamp.