Home › The Principles of Cookery › Yorkshire Veal Cake
Yorkshire Veal Cake
Take one pound and a half of lean veal from the fillet, three-quarters of a pound of thinly-cut ham, and four eggs. Boil the eggs till they are hard and let them get cold, then cut the veal into neat pieces. Take about half a pint of clear, highly-seasoned veal gravy, made so strong that it will jelly firmly when cold. Put a layer of this at the bottom of an earthen potting-pan, and fill the dish with successive layers of the veal, the ham, the hard-boiled eggs cut into slices, and the jellied gravy. Season each layer lightly with a little pepper, minced parsley, and shallot, and salt, if required; this will depend upon the saltness of the bacon. Cover the potting-pan with a coarse stiff paste of flour and water, put it in the oven, in a dripping-tin three-parts filled with boiling water, and add more water in place of that which boils away, till the veal cake is done enough. Let the cake get cold, turn it whole upon a dish, and garnish with parsley. The jellied gravy may be made by boiling the bones and trimmings of the veal in water, with a cow-heel and suitable seasonings, and clarifying the liquor with white of egg. It should form a stiff jelly when cold. Time to bake the cake, one hour and a quarter. Probable cost, 3s. 6d. Sufficient for a breakfast or luncheon dish.
A pressed loaf of veal, ham and egg set in its own jelly — closer to a terrine than anything called a cake today. Most of the work is in the stock, and the finished dish needs a full night in the refrigerator before it will turn out cleanly.
- The hinge: the gravy must set hardEverything holds together on the strength of the jelly. Reduced veal stock made with a split calf's foot or a couple of pig's trotters will set firm; a modern low-gelatine stock will not, and the cake will collapse when turned out. If you are using bought stock, reduce it well and reinforce it with leaf gelatine, testing a spoonful on a cold saucer first.
- Half a pintAn imperial half-pint is 10 fl oz, about 1¼ US cups. That is barely enough to moisten the layers, which is intentional — the meat should be packed tight, not swimming.
- Veal from the filletIn British butchery of the period the fillet is the leg, not the loin. Any lean solid cut of veal shoulder or leg works. Cut it into slices about the thickness of a coin so the layers press together without gaps.
- Ham or baconThe recipe calls for ham and then refers to "the saltness of the bacon" — most likely a slip in the original text rather than a real change of ingredient. Use a mild cooked or dry-cured ham, taste it before seasoning, and hold back the salt entirely if it is a salty one.
- Potting-pan and paste lidAn earthen potting-pan is a straight-sided glazed stoneware jar. A 1½- to 2-quart soufflé dish or a loaf tin is the modern equivalent, since the meat, eggs and jelly together fill more than a quart. The flour-and-water paste is a seal, not food; a double layer of foil crimped tight does the same job.
- Oven and water bathThe dripping-tin of boiling water is a bain-marie. The recipe gives no temperature; a moderate oven, around 325F (160C), suits it. Keep the water level halfway up the dish, topping up with boiling water as it evaporates. Veal in small pieces should be cooked through well within the stated hour and a quarter — check with a thermometer rather than trusting the clock.
- Cooling and turning outCool at room temperature no longer than an hour, then refrigerate overnight, weighted with a small plate and a tin if you want a dense slice. Dip the mould briefly in hot water to release it.
- YieldAbout 2¼ lb of meat plus four eggs gives six to eight portions as a luncheon dish, cut in thick slices with salad or pickles. The 3s. 6d. is a Victorian costing, and not a trifling sum for a breakfast or luncheon dish.
Veal cake sets the same layering of pale meat, cured pork and hard-boiled egg in a stiff aspic as a veal-and-ham pie, but potted rather than raised in pastry. Dishes of this kind belong to the cold table: the breakfast sideboard and the luncheon spread, where things were cooked ahead and served cold. The calf's foot or cow-heel in the stock is the whole point, and it explains why Victorian recipe books treat gelatinous cuts as a staple rather than an oddity; before commercial gelatine was cheap and reliable, a cook who wanted a jelly bought a foot. The costing in shillings and pence is a habit of the Victorian household cookery dictionaries, and 3s. 6d. was no trifle.