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Common Pancakes

Eight eggs, four tablespoonfuls flour, one pint of milk, one teaspoonful salt. JELLY, BLANC-MANGE, CHARLOTTE RUSSE, BAKED CUSTARD, CREAMS, ETC. Jelly made of the feet of calves, hogs, etc, is more troublesome, but is also considered more nutritious than jelly made of gelatine. It is very desirable, for country housekeepers in particular, to make this sort of jelly, as the materials are generally in their reach. It is well, however, in all cases, to keep on hand Cox's or Nelson's gelatine, on account of the expedition with which jelly may be made from these preparations.

As jelly is considered more wholesome when not colored by any foreign substance, no directions will be given in the subsequent pages for coloring it. The palest amber jelly, clear and sparkling, flavored only by the grated rind and juice of a lemon and pale Madeira or sherry wine, is not only the most beautiful, but the most palatable jelly that can be made. Though the recipes accompanying boxes of gelatine do not always recommend boiling, it is a great improvement to jelly, adding brilliancy, transparency, and a better flavor. Only the grated yellow rind and strained juice of the lemon should be used, and these, with the requisite quantity of pale Madeira or sherry, should be added after the other ingredients have been well boiled together. The white rind or one single lemon seed will render the jelly bitter. A delicious preserve (for which a receipt is given under the proper heading), may be made of lemons, after the yellow rind has been grated off and the juice pressed out for jelly.

The best and most simple arrangement for straining jelly is to invert a small table, fold an old table-cloth four double, tie each corner to a leg of the table; set a bowl under the bag thus formed, with another bowl at hand to slip in its place when the jelly first run through is returned to the bag, as will be necessary, the first never being transparently clear. Catch a little in a glass. If clear as crystal, it will be unnecessary to return it again to the bag. You may then put a thick cloth over the bag to keep in the heat, and if in winter, place before a fire. Shut up the room, and let it drip. The jelly will run through the bag more rapidly if the bag is first scalded. Jelly should never be made in hot weather. Ices are much better and more seasonable.

Always serve jelly with a pitcher of whipped cream, but do not mix it beforehand with the cream, as it is best to leave it to the taste of each person.

For blanc-mange and gelatine, it is best to use gelatine and as few spices as possible, as spices turn gelatine dark. As such explicit directions are given in the subsequent pages for the making of these dishes, it is unnecessary to say anything further on the subject at present.

A nice custard is made in the following manner: Mix the beaten yolks of six eggs with a teacup of sugar. Have a quart of milk boiling in a kettle. Dip up a teacup of milk at a time and pour on the eggs, till the kettle is emptied, stirring rapidly all the time. Wash out the kettle, pour the mixture back, and stir constantly till it thickens. Then pour it into a bowl and stir till cool, to make it smooth and prevent it from curdling. Put in the bottom of glass mugs slips of preserved orange, lemon, or citron. Fill nearly full with custard; put whipped cream and grated nutmeg on top. Or, the yolks may be mixed with boiled milk and sugar in the same proportions, but instead of being returned to the kettle, may be poured into china or earthenware custard-cups, set in a pan of boiling water, placed in a stove or range, and baked. The boiled milk must be seasoned by boiling a vanilla bean in it, or a few peach leaves, or it may be flavored with caromel. Serve the custard with whipped cream on top.