“Beyond the spar-loft the sail-loft had been set aside and fashioned most elegantly for refreshment. An immense table crossed it, behind which servants stood, and behind the servants the wall had been lined with shelves covered with cakes, oranges, apples, early peaches, melons and nectarines, and late strawberries, also wines of every sort, pastry, jellies, whip-syllabub, rocky and floating island, blanc-mange, brandied preserves--and Heaven knows what! But Elsin Grey whispered me that Pryor the confectioner had orders for coriander and cinnamon comfits by the bushel, and orange, lemon, chocolate, and burned almonds by the peck.”
A cook of roughly the same moment, setting down the same dish.
Cut a hole in the stalk part, the size of a shilling, and with a blunt small knife scrape out the pulp quite clear without cutting the rind. Tie each separately in muslin, and lay them in spring water two days, changing twice a day; in the last boil them tender on a slow fire. Observe that there is enough at first to allow for wasting, as they must be covered to the last. To every pound of orange, weigh two pounds of double refined sugar, and one pint of water; boil the two latter together with the juice of the orange to a syrup, and clarify it, skim well, and let it stand to be cold; then boil the fruit in the syrup half an hour; if not clear, do this daily till they are done. Pare and core some green pippins, and boil in water till it tastes strong of them; do not break them, only gently press them with the back of a spoon.
Sources: The passage is from Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers, The Reckoning, free to read in full at Project Gutenberg. The recipe is from Rundell, New system of domestic cookery, formed upon principles of of 1806, also free in full. Both are in the public domain in the United States. The binding above is ours — moss cloth, grapes stamp.