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Cream Dressing
Yolks of two eggs, two tablespoonfuls vinegar, two teaspoonfuls mustard, red pepper and salt to taste; beat the yolks, stir mustard and vinegar together, then stir eggs, vinegar and mustard, and put over hot water and cook; then add two tablespoonfuls of butter, the salt and pepper; after it is cold, stir in one cupful of whipped cream. Another dressing is made with one-half pint of cream, yolks of three eggs, one large teaspoonful salt, one of mixed mustard, one tablespoonful vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of butter, pepper, white or red; let cream and butter come to a boil, beat eggs light and add, mix to other ingredients, and stir altogether.
This is a boiled dressing — a cooked egg custard sharpened with vinegar and mustard, lightened with cream — the standard American salad dressing before bottled mayonnaise. Two versions are given; the first is the more reliable.
- Cook it over water, never over flameThe hinge of the whole thing. Yolks with only two tablespoons of vinegar for liquid will scramble in seconds on direct heat. Use a bowl set over barely simmering water, stir constantly, and pull it off when it coats the back of a spoon — around 170F, which is also past the point where the eggs are safe.
- Two kinds of mustard"Two teaspoonfuls mustard" in the first version means dry mustard powder, which is why it is slaked in the vinegar first. "One large teaspoonful mixed mustard" in the second means prepared mustard from a jar. They are not interchangeable spoon for spoon; prepared mustard is far weaker.
- Red pepperCayenne. A pinch is enough for this quantity — it should warm the back of the palate, not announce itself.
- Vinegar strengthHousehold vinegar of the period was not standardised the way today's 5 percent cider or white wine vinegar is, and its strength varied. Taste before adding the cream and hold back a little if it reads sharp; the whipped cream will soften it but not by much.
- Fold, do not stirThe instruction to "stir in one cupful of whipped cream" after the base is cold is the one place to disobey the wording. Fold it in with a spatula or the dressing goes flat and weeps within the hour.
- Butter behaves differently coldTwo tablespoons of butter beaten into the warm custard will firm up as it chills, so the base thickens noticeably. Whisk it smooth again before the cream goes in.
- The second version is fussierBoiling half a pint of cream and butter, then adding beaten eggs, invites curdling. Temper the eggs with a ladle of the hot cream first, then return everything to gentle heat. It is essentially a savoury custard and wants the same care.
- Yield and keepingThe first makes somewhere around a cup and a quarter to a cup and a half, enough for a large bowl of greens or a chicken salad for several people. It keeps two or three days covered in the refrigerator but the whipped cream will slacken; fold in fresh cream if you are holding the base.
Cooked or "boiled" dressings like this one were common in American kitchens before commercial mayonnaise was widely sold. They use vinegar and heat rather than a slow emulsion of oil, which made them cheaper and less likely to break in the hands of an inexperienced cook. The style suited the salads of the era: shredded cabbage, cold potato, chicken, and the sturdy head lettuce common on American tables. Compilations of this sort often print two or three variants of the same dressing side by side and leave the reader to choose.